Chandigarh December 20: Haryana Chief Minister Mr. Bhupinder Singh Hooda released a book entitled as”Kurukshetra – Timeless Sanctity” authored by Principal Secretary, Culture and Tourism Department, Haryana Mr. Vijai Vardhan here today. This is the third book which has been authored by Mr. Vardhan in the last two years.
Congratulating Mr. Vijay Vardhan, Mr. Hooda said that this book was exceptional as it traced the history of Kurukshetra prior to Vedic times. He said that it conclusively establishes the antiquity of the greater Kurukshetra region to an era prior to the Indus valley civilization. Besides, Mr. Vijai Vardhan has established that Kurukshetra was not just the land where the epic battle of Mahabharata was fought but it had remained a confluence of myriad streams of faiths as divergent yet concurrent as Buddhism, Sufism and Hinduism.
Mr. Hooda said that the chapter entitled “the Sikh Splendour” reveals how the great Sikh gurus – Guru Nanak Dev ji, Guru Ram Dass Ji, Guru Hargobind Ji and Guru Teg Bahadur ji did penance in Kurukshetra and delivered illuminating discourses in this timeless city. Mr. Hooda said that “I am fascinated to learn from this book and the author that Buddhism reached and flourished in Kurukshetra through Lord Buddha himself and some of his most profound and enlightening sermons were delivered at Thanesar and Kaithal”.
The Chief Minister said that Dara Shikoh’s (the eIdest son of the mughal emperor Shah jahan) unquenchable thirst for Tauhid’ lead him to explore what Hindu and Islamic mysticism had in common. This brought him repeatedly toSheikh-Chehli the renowned Sufi mystic of Thanesar. He said that Vijai Vardhan’s deep interest in Sufism has highlighted the fact that in the contemporary world where clash of civilizations and religions was a frightening reality, the compassion of Sufism provides the possibility of building bridges of interfaith dialogue and solidarity. The unimaginable valour, courage and patriotism displayed by the brave hearts of Thanesar and Kurukshetra in the first war of independence of 1857 has been aptly Chronicled and researched by the author.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Vijay Vardhan described Mr. Hooda as not only a successful politician but also a good person and a talented sportsperson. He said that understanding the problems of the common man was one of his specialty. He said that this book was a result of more than five years of sincere and dedicated research . “I have visited countless libraries, archives and read various scriptures, travelogues, primary sources and interacted with renowned scholars while writing this book”, he added.
Judge of Punjab and Haryana High Court Mr. Justice Ajay Tiwari and Padmashri recepient Mr. B. N Goswami also spoke on the occasion.
Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Mr. Chhatar Singh, Additional Principal Secretaries to Chief Minister Dr. K.K. Khandelwal and Mr. Shiv Raman Gaur, Principal OSD Mr. M.S Chopra, OSD Mr. B.R Beri, Additional Principal Secretary, Irrigation Mr. K.K. Jalan, Principal Secretaries namely Mrs. Dheera Khandelwal, P. Raghvendra Rao, Mr. T.C Gupta, Mr. Dhanpat Singh, Managing Director, Haryana Tourism Mr. Anand Mohan Sharan, Managing Director, HSIIDC Mr. Tarun Bajaj, Director General, Information, Public Relations and Cultural Affairs Department Mr. Sudhir Rajpal, Additional Media Advisor to Chief Minister Mr. Kewal Dhingra and a number of senior officers of the State Government and intellectual personalities were also present.