GUWAHATI, March 23 - Srimanta Sankardev propagated his message to every section of the society through various ways and most of them were cultural. The most important thing was that he was successful in using each and every way and touched the people.
This was observed by eminent writer and scholar Dr Nagen Saikia while delivering a speech as the chief guest at the inaugural function of a seminar �Srimanta Sankardev: The Saint, Poet and Reformer Extraordinaire� organised by the Sahitya Akademi at the Sangitacharyya Lakshmiram Barua Sadan here.
Delivering the welcome address, Sahitya Akademi secretary K Sreenivasarao stated the two-day-long seminar has been organised to discuss various aspects of Sankardev and his works. �We have arranged this seminar to discuss about the personality who single-handedly united the people of Assam, and who is also a pioneer in many fields,� Sreenivasarao added.
Sahitya Akademi vice president Madhav Kaushik said, �The Akademi has taken the initiative to discuss and appreciate the works of those personalities of our country who had changed the civilization. Srimanta Sankardev is among them. We have seen the effect of their works in the present time.�
A total of 14 scholars will present research papers during the seminar. The research papers to be presented are �The Tradition and Legacy of Azhwars� by MA Alwar, �The Philosophical Underpinning of Vaishnavism� by SR Bhatt, �From the temple to the people: Story of development of Sattriya dance from satras to the proscenium� by Sharodi Saikia, �Chaitanya Movement in Bengal and Odisha� by Basant Panda, �Sankardev and Manipuri Vaishnavism� by Upendra Sharma, �Challenges before Sankardev: Reaching out to the common masses� by Dhruba Jyoti Borah, �Bhagavata Purana: The mother text of Vaishnavism� by Rani Sadasiva Murty, �The bhakti poets of India: Tulsidas, Mirabai, Tukaram� by Surya Prasad Dixit, �Brindabani Vastra: Weaving as a Divine Art� by Surya Hazarika, �Culture as a vehicle of religion: The pan Indian tradition and bhakti� by Sandhya Purecha, �Sankardev�s thoughts and philosophy� by Sanjib Kumar Borkakoti, �Poetic Tradition of Sankardev� by Mridul Sarma, �Sattriya Bhawnas in the Indian context� by Satyakam Borthakur and �Carrying the message to masses: The unique dramatic and linguistic style of Sankardev�.
Nandakishore Acharya, Paramananda Rajbongshi, Swadhinata Mahanta, Pradip Acharya and Nirmal Kanti Bhattacharjee will be present during the sessions �Vaishnavite Bhakti and Sankardev�, �The Practice of Vaishnavism�, �Bhakti: From Scriptures to Masses�, �The Cultural Significance of Bhakti� and �Sublime Movements: Bhakti as Performance� respectively as chairperson.
