RECLAIMING HISTORY: Developing PALI AS A LINGUA-FRANCA ACROSS SOUTH-EAST ASIA and BEYOND RAJ NATH BHAT BANARAS HINDU UNIVERSITY Prior to the colonial rule, the people from the south-east and the east Asian countries lead a life with greater inter-regional harmony and a deep spiritual bond in the form of Buddhist practices and beliefs. The commoners’ life was by and large driven by Buddhist ethics and meditative practices. Pali as the LANGUAGE of spiritual awakening and religious practices played a pivotal role in guiding the principles of living-in–harmony and peace not only amongst communities but also with the natural surroundings, fauna and flora. An invisible flute of peace made its impact upon minds from Indonesia to Korea. Pali and Sanskrit and the literatures therein made a significant impact upon the languages as well as mind-sets of the masses of people across the vast region. The six south-east Asian countries, [namely Myanmar, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam], can build Pali as an inter-regional lingua-franca to allow their citizenry to interact amongst themselves with greater ease and spiritual confidence. Such a move can have far-reaching consequences in the areas of diplomacy, trade, economy, travel and pilgrimage as well as education and peace. One can imagine a common Laotian or Cambodian on a pilgrimage, for instance, to visit some holy Buddhist place in Sri Lanka/Thailand/Myanmar. The party/group of pilgrims from several countries in the region will be on a firm ground while on a pilgrimage to any Buddhist site in India or elsewhere. Pali will thus be a facilitator to foster inter-regional communication, travel, holy tourism and commerce. A fresh look at the teaching modules in respect of Pali shall thus be necessary. The novel teaching module must encompass regional history, literature, theology and above all Spoken Pali-Introductory, Intermediate and Advanced.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Dec 2014 14:58:54 +0000
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