PTI By

Tibetan Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama today said the pursuit of science and technology was important for Indians but they should not neglect the vast treasures of ancient Indian knowledge. Inaugurating the national seminar on, 'Nalanda Tradition of Buddhism in Asia', he called for universities and colleges in the country to pay more attention to ancient Indian Buddhist teachings and view these as academic topics and not just religious teachings.

"Modern Indians are westernised. Science and technology is important, and you must catch up. Look at China, it is rapidly catching up with the world... but you should not neglect your thousand years of ancient knowledge," he said. The Nalanda school of thought, which stresses on the need for reasoning before accepting, might be ancient but was still relevant in the 21st century, added the Dalai Lama.

"Buildings of the Nalanda University might be in ruins but the knowledge is still alive in the 21st century. We Tibetans for 1,000 years have preserved Nalanda knowledge, through memorising, reading and debate," he said.

The Tibetan spiritual leader also praised the Indian concept of secularism, which he said was based on the practice of respect for not only other religions but for non-believers as well.

"My friends in the West have some sort of reservation with the word secularism, for them secularism means distance from religion. "But the Indian understanding is respect to all religions and also the non-believers. This is a realistic approach and also relevant in today's world," the Dalai Lama said.

Relating an anecdote, the Dalai Lama said that even Chinese leader Mao-Tse Tung had praised his scientific approach to teaching.

"In 1954, when I was in Beijing, Mao told me 'your thinking is very scientific'.

"But, then, he said 'Religion is poison'", the Dalai Lama revealed. He said he felt that had Mao-Tse Tung got a chance to learn about the Indian masters of thought, he would have followed their teachings.

The Dalai Lama said he considers himself a son of India for two reasons: first, because since childhood, his mind and brain was filled with Nalanda thoughts.

"And, second, after living in India for 55 years, this body has survived on Indian dal, Indian rice and Indian chapati, so therefore I am Indian. And wherever I go, I consider myself a messenger of India, I am really proud," he said.