Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu presents a memento to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat at the inaugural Bharatiya Vigyan Sammelan in Tirupati on Friday. Union Minister Jitendra Singh is seen.
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat clearly agreed that modern science and traditional knowledge are never in conflict and mostly run hand in hand.
Inaugurating the seventh edition of the Bharatiya Vigyan Sammelan at the National Sanskrit University (NSU) here on Friday, Mr. Naidu called for a balance between modern science and traditional learning as “India’s ancient knowledge systems must remain central to her scholarly endeavours”.
He urged scientists, administrators, scholars and policy makers to ensure India’s progress on the path of science and technology without deviating too much from its established civilizational traditions.
Mr. Naidu wanted the company to introduce Indian cultural stories to its youth at an early age to help them stay connected to their roots.
“Parents and teachers will have to tell our children noble characters from our epics and not Western fictional characters like Spiderman or Batman. This helps inculcate in them qualities like honesty, courage, devotion, responsibility and wisdom,” he advised.
The Chief Minister appreciated the organizers for presenting India’s knowledge systems in a structured form, thereby enabling a meaningful dialogue with their modern counterparts.
Mr. Mohan Bhagwat termed the perceived gap between science and spirituality as “misplaced” and said that both went parallel in their own trajectories to understand the truth.
He attributed the split to a limited understanding of the Dharma.
“Dharma is the natural law that governs the functioning of creation, but it is mistaken for religion,” he noted.
Unlike the Western world, where the difference between science and spirituality was quite stark, he said, Indian thinkers were concerned with consciousness, a subject that modern science only began to explore late. “Development in other countries is limited to material pleasures, but Bharat does not think like that,” he asserted.
Mr. Bhagwat recalled the integration of scientific research into everyday life in the past, the subsequent period witnessed a decline in research output and standards. “It is encouraging to see organizations like Vijnana Bharati trying to revive traditional knowledge systems.”
The RSS chief advocated the need to pursue scientific education in regional languages so that knowledge permeates the masses. In the same vein, he warned against the misuse of scientific research against the interests of people or nature.
Among the participants were Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh, State Revenue Minister Anagani Satya Prasad, Vijnana Bharati President Sekhar C. Mande, NSU Vice Chancellor GSR Krishnamurthi, former DRDO Chairman G. Satheesh Reddy.
Published – 26 Dec 2025 20:45 IST
