Mumbai, September 13 (Daily Kiran) : Union Home Minister Amit Shah attended the inauguration of the Ganesh Gyanarthi Exhibition at the Asiatic Society in Mumbai on September 13. Speaking to the audience, Shah noted, “I am the first Home Minister to visit the Asiatic Society, but I am here not just as a minister; I come as an advocate for the movement that promotes Indian knowledge traditions spanning thousands of years. I firmly believe that the Asiatic Society will serve as a custodian of Indian knowledge, spreading it across the nation.”
He stressed that any nation that fails to protect its language, culture, history, and traditions, regardless of its power, is destined to decline. “A nation that safeguards its heritage, even if it has been subjugated for years, cannot truly be enslaved. India exemplifies this truth,” he stated. Shah underscored that while attempts have been made to extinguish the luminous knowledge originating from this land, such efforts have ultimately failed. “Libraries like that of Nalanda may be burned, but the knowledge embedded in the memories of the people cannot be erased,” he added.
The Home Minister remarked on India’s cultural ethos, stating that when faced with defeat, the nation shows resilience. “When victorious, we strive to incorporate the memories of those we have conquered into our traditions without erasing them,” he emphasized.
Shah urged a transformation within the Asiatic Society, asserting that true knowledge should never be shackled by ideology. “Knowledge is an ideology in itself, and when constrained, its meaning changes. It must remain free and unbound. The resources and knowledge of the Asiatic Society should be utilized to build a great India, contributing to global welfare,” he said. He criticized the British for intertwining knowledge with power, advocating for a system where power is derived from knowledge.
He also discussed the significance of the term “Indology,” which encompasses various fields such as numismatics, epigraphy, anthropology, history, archaeology, linguistics, philosophy, literature, and religious studies. Shah clarified that the original intent behind these studies was not to benefit the world but to understand local systems for prolonged governance.
In closing, Shah reiterated that the Asiatic Society should work on expanding its knowledge base through three key approaches: attracting scholars, connecting libraries nationwide through electronic means, and preserving manuscripts in Maharashtra’s villages to contribute to the Indian Manuscript Project.
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