As the preparations for Mahakumbh 2025 at Prayagraj are reaching the final stage, it would be interesting to recall a historical moment around six decades ago at the same place. Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), an organization inspired by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) had successfully organized the first World Hindu Conference (WHC) at Prayagraj in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh at the Mahakumbh in 1966.
In India, the Maha Kumbh of Mauni Amavasya occurs every 12 years. In the year 1966, this occasion was falling in January. Therefore, it was decided to organize a three-day long Vishwa Hindu Sammelan(World Hindu Conference) from 22–24 January 1966. The decision to organize this conference was taken when VHP was set up in 1964 in Mumbai.
It was a momentous event for several reasons and it left a long-lasting impact in terms of bringing VHP to the centre stage of Hindutva movement globally. This was the first World Hindu Conference where delegates from across the world gathered to deliberate on the issues and challenges faced by Hindus globally.
Dada Saheb Apte, an RSS Pracharak (full-time worker), who was the key architect of the VHP took upon himself to make this conference successful and historic in every respect. Apte travelled almost the whole country to make it successful. He contacted leaders of all sects, religious and spiritual organizations and political parties.
Though VHP was set up in 1964 and hence was still in the nascent stage, it managed to put on an impressive show. The RSS was also not as big an organization as it is today. And yet around 25000 delegates gathered from all around the world to participate in this conference which took place from 22 to 24 January, 1966. Spiritual and religious heads of every significant Hindu sect were present in this Conference.
Addressing the Conference Jagadguru Sri Shankaracharya of Dwarka Sharada Peeth said, “It is important that we have gathered here under the aegis of ‘Vishwa Hindu Parishad’ so that we can move towards establishing unity among Hindus of the whole world.”
The then Governor of Uttar Pradesh Vishwanath Das inaugurated this Conference. Anant Shaynam Iyengar, Governor of Bihar, while releasing the special issue of ‘Hindu Vishwa(Hindu World)’ published specially on this occasion, said, “The adoption of Hindu ideals and values can help in establishing peace in the world. The entire world is suffering from many crises. The crisis of war can be resolved only when the principles of Hindu Dharma are followed.”
Messages of good wishes were received from all over the world for this historic conference. Many scholars from America, Canada, Australia, England, Germany, France, Poland, Switzerland, Finland, Japan and South-East Asian countries expressed their happiness. Expressing his sentiments, His Holiness Dalai Lama, the religious leader and head of state of Tibet, wrote to Apte, “Among the many religions of the world, Hinduism is the oldest and eternal and its philosophy is very rich. Therefore, the followers of Hinduism should be very vigilant to protect Hinduism, so that they can make their due contribution to modern society.”
The then President Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, while emphasizing the importance of this historic conference, said, “From the Vedic period to the Upanishads and the Gita and to the Acharyas and modern devotees, the tradition of self-renewal has been emphasized in various forms. Everyone has emphasized on various appropriate aspects according to the time in their times. Today the same development-oriented tradition is being presented and internal amendments are taking place in Hinduism. This does not mean that Hinduism should abandon its fundamental principles through which one can have a personal experience of God and these elements of Hindu Dharma inspire the spirit of sacrifice and service to humanity. Hinduism has always emphasized on the search for truth and it never likes to stick to mere tradition. It is not necessary to abandon one’s body or life for the spirit of sacrifice. It is also not necessary to abandon the world. Divine elements are present everywhere. We have to explore them. For this, it is necessary that every person has mental hunger and self-curiosity.”
In the message sent to Apte, the King of Nepal wrote, “If the ‘Vishwa Hindu Sammelan’ can solve the great problem of world peace in a practical and peaceful manner through cultural sources, then it will be a great contribution, this is undeniable. From this point of view also, all of us Nepalese welcome this conference. If the unity of all the Pandits, Yogis and learned men present in this Hindu Sammelan can focus on this and provide modern guidance to scientifically investigate all these subjects and to raise the standard of living based on their ideals, then it will be a great achievement for the Hindus, we have no doubt about it. Our Dharma has been in existence since time immemorial. This Dharma has maintained its existence intact despite many upheavals in the world due to the high thoughts, generosity and the feeling of ‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’ residing within it.’
Many representatives from South-East Asia, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Trinidad, Fiji, Thailand and other countries participated in this conference and expressed their views.
The Conference passed 11 resolutions. One of the resolutions said, “Today it has become very necessary that whoever wants to return to Swadharm (the religion of their ancestors) voluntarily without any pressure, should be assimilated and adopted.”
Another resolution talked about the ‘Glory of Temples’. It urged the administrators and trustees of temples, monasteries and ashrams to make efforts to re-establish their importance and improve these holy places by bringing appropriate changes in them with the help of the general public. The Conference also passed a resolution requesting the government to immediately enact a central law to ban cow slaughter in the entire India, giving due respect to the feeling of reverence of Hindus towards Mother Cow.
(The article was first published on www.moneycontrol.com. link: https://www.moneycontrol.com/