Vice President Venkaiah Naidu calls for peace and oneness on Shivaratri

Joining the festive fervour of Maha Shivaratri on Friday evening, lakhs of devotees from across the world descended on the bustling spiritual centre Isha Yoga Centre, nestled in the foothills of Vellliangiri along the verdant Western Ghats on the outskirts of Coimbatore.

Amid sacred chants by the devotees of the centre extolling Lord Shiva, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the dusk-to-dawn festivities comprising music, chants and discourses on Lord Shiva.

Addressing lakhs of devotees, Naidu said that this is a night of worshipping Shiva, to meditate and become one with our inner self. “We may speak different languages, wear a different costume and pray to different gods. But regardless of this diversity, we are, culturally, one and that is India. This feeling of Indianness has to be there in all.”

Cautioning that the violence will only spell doom, the vice president said, “Peace is the prerequisite of progress for any nation. We belong to a culture that sees the whole world as a family and no civilization other than ours speaks about it. We want the wellbeing of everybody as our aim is to live in peace and harmony. We must all strive hard to pass this on to our progeny.”

He also said that festivals, like Shivaratri, and events like this at Isha Foundation imbibe our age-old cultural values among the youth. “Relevance of Lord Shiva and quality that he epitomises cannot be overemphasised in present-day world and lifestyle. The whole world in this era of competitiveness needs more than just happiness and that is exactly Lord Shiva teaches us.”

Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, founder of Isha Foundation, said, “Maha Shivaratri brings us immense spiritual benefits due to natural planetary positions. On this night, the northern hemisphere of the planet is positioned such that there is a natural upsurge of energy in the human system, pushing one towards their spiritual peak.” The book ‘Death-An Inside Story’ written by Sadhguru was released by the vice president during the occasion.

Divyadarshan of Adi Yogi through a guided sound and light show left the audience spellbound and carried them on a spiritual sojourn. Classical vocals and instrumental performances by noted musicians, performances by the Lebanese band and concert by Kabir Cafe offering divine message along with Satsang and meditation discourse by Sadhguru left the devotees enthralled all through the night.