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SHANTINIKETAN (Abode of Peace) Visva-Bharati and Scottish Connection

In UK a huge bust of TAGORE was erected at Stratford-upon-Avon Shakespear’s birth place in May 2014…reports Dilip Roy

The Poet Laureate Rabindranath Tagore who came from a very wealthy family of Bengal and during his life time has travelled length and breadth of world lecturing on Indian philosophy at the same time gathering knowledge of other countries specially on subjects like arts and culture. Among his world sojourn he was very much inspired and influenced by Scottish folk songs which he has interpreted in his mother tongue Bengali. The most significant name is that of an 18th century Scottish poet called ROBERT BURNS (1759-1796) Burns is regarded as the national poet of Scotland and Tagore greatly admired Burns poetry for him it was like the meeting of minds.

A Scottish centre of Tagore studies (ScoTs) was established under the auspices of Edinburg university in May 2012 to promote (Indian culture, education, philosophy and literature as Tagore’s legacy) the first of its kind in the United Kingdom. Tagore also forged friendship with Scottish intellectual called Sir PATRICK GEDDES (1854-1932) a polymath but most of all he was known as a scientist and an architect who spent a lot of time in India planning some fifty cities has also lectured in Indian universities. Geddes had long studied Indian philosophy, arts and architecture of India. Hence, it was natural that he was deeply impressed by the vision it offered for India and the world. Tagore invited Geddes to provide to provide the plans for his International university, Visva-Bharati at Shantiniketan.

Shantiniketan: New Indian site on the UNESCO World Heritage List

SHANTINIKETAN (Abode of Peace) West Bengal has been inscribed on UNESCO list of World Heritage Site during the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee 2023. Shantiniketan is India’s 41st UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is an ensemble of historic buildings, landscapes and gardens, pavilions, artworks, and continuing educational and cultural traditions that together express its Outstanding Universal Values.

Established in rural West Bengal in 1901 by the renowned poet and philosopher Rabindranath Tagore, Shantiniketan was a residential school and centre for art based on ancient Indian traditions and on a vision of the unity of humanity transcending religious and cultural boundaries. Shantiniketan is an embodiment of Rabindranath Tagore’s vision and philosophy using a combination of education, appreciation of nature, music and the arts. It represents the purification of Rabindranath Tagore’s greatest works and the continuing legacy of his model of education that reinterpreted ancient Vedic philosophical traditions. Shantiniketan exhibits the crystallization of the ideas of Rabindranath Tagore and the pioneers of the Bengal School of Art. Shantiniketan is therefore an outstanding example of an enclave of intellectuals, educators, artists who collaborated with Asian modernity based upon ancient, medieval and folk traditions of India.

In UK a huge bust of TAGORE was erected at Stratford-upon-Avon Shakespear’s birth place in May 2014.

(Dilip Roy is a researcher on cultural subjects and a Fellow of Royal Asiatic Society UK)

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UK submits argument in Scottish independence poll case

It is understood that the UK government has asked for the court’s permission to publish the submission…reports Asian Lite News

The government has submitted its argument in a case that could allow the Scottish Parliament to legislate for another independence referendum.

Scottish Advocate Dorothy Bain referred a prospective referendum bill to the Supreme Court last month to ascertain if it was within the powers of the Scottish Parliament, reports dpa news agency.

Oral arguments are due to be heard in the case in October, but the Advocate General for Scotland Lord Stewart submitted the case against the bill being within the legislative competence of Parliament at Holyrood on Tuesday.

It is understood that the UK government has asked for the court’s permission to publish the submission.

A spokeswoman for the UK government said: “People across Scotland want both their governments to be working together on the issues that matter to them and their families, not talking about another independence referendum.

“We have today submitted our written case to the Supreme Court, in accordance with its timetable.

“On the question of legislative competence, the UK government’s clear view remains that a bill legislating for a referendum on independence would be outside the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament.”

In its submission to the court, submitted last month, the Scottish government leaned heavily on any future referendum not being “self-executing”, meaning it would be purely advisory and only meant as a way to ascertain the views of the Scottish people.

The Scottish National Party (SNP) has also made an attempt to intervene in the case, arguing that, as a public body, it would be “fair, just and reasonable” for it to make arguments to the court.

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