New Delhi, Sep 14
The Ramayana and the Gita
are not religious texts and should be taught in schools, according to
union Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma.
Sharma said that including
the Ramayana and the Gita in school curriculum was an attempt to
inculcate spiritual and cultural values in children.
"It is an
attempt to teach spiritual values to children. Ramayana is a way of
life and it tells stories about many relationships - son and father,
wife and husband and brother and brother. Likewise Gita is the
knowledge given by Lord Krishna to Arjuna. These are not religious
texts," Sharma told IANS in an interview here.
The minister
further said that the importance of these texts are recognised even in
countries like Indonesia and Mauritius. "Ramayana is a great book and
its importance is being recognised in Indonesia and even Mauritius.
These countries have set up Ramayana centres. It's high time we
recognise their value," added Sharma.
Denying reports of him
saying that the Bible and the Quran are not central to India's soul,
Sharma said that he respected all religions and had been misquoted.
However, he stressed that while the Bible and the Quran are religious
texts, the Mahabharata and the Ramyana are not.
"I respect all
religions. Bible is a religious text of Christians and Quran is a
religious text of Muslims. Gita never advocates the worship of any God
or religion. They are karma granths. But Bible and Quran preach to
worship a particular God and religion. They are specific religious text
for religions," said Sharma.
The minister had recently stoked
controversy by saying that western culture is making inroads into Indian
culture and polluting it.
Talking about the foreign culture, the
minister said that young people should learn Indian languages like
Sanskrit and Hindi to fight the "cultural pollution".
Sharma
said that he wanted students to emphasise on learning Indian languages.
"It is a shame that students learn German and Spanish before learning
Sanskrit or Hindi. I would like to term it a cultural pollution. Hindi
is an optional language in many schools now. Sanskrit and Hindi should
be made compulsory in all schools," he said.
Recently, the
culture ministry's decision to revamp Nehru Memorial Museum and Library
(NMML) sparked controversy as Congress leaders and many historians
termed it an attempt to tamper with India's first Prime Minister
Jawahar Lal Nehru's legacy. Contesting the charge, the minister said,
"We are trying to preserve and acquire documents of nationalist leaders
of modern India. The museum is not about one person," Sharma said.
The ministry also has plans to re-examine the appointment of Mahesh
Rangarajan as the director of NMML, the minister said. "There are
certain irregularities in the appointment. The appointment was made
despite the EC's order to the Culture ministry on May 12, 2014 asking it
to postpone the appointment of Rangarajan," the minister said.
Rangarajan's
appointment was approved by the UPA on May 14, two days after the last
day of polling -- when the Election Commission's Model Code of Conduct
ceases to be operational. The minister added that Rangarajan took charge
as director on May 19, 2014. "We will re-examine his appointment," the
minister said.
(Preetha Nair can be contacted at [email protected])
