In the present context, we have a knowledge culture where all the important theories and frameworks of thinking have been imported from the West and we merely ape or at best adapt these theories to suit our reality. Our structures of business, government, education and research have been built and are sustaining themselves on these frameworks. If the developed world opened its doors to all of us, a high proportion of our business, political and educated elite would perhaps themselves prefer to migrate to these supposedly prosperous and functioning areas of the world.
This has also resulted in a situation where most of us, either in education, business or policy making, just play act ritualistically standard foreign prescriptions to our local problems which have no meaningful relation to our reality and without a larger purpose for our benefit. In this process of imitation, so called development of our society, the innate talent, resources and skills of our people are being continuously eroded. There is not a single example of any nation becoming great and powerful by borrowing and imitating concepts, theories and organization structures from an alien knowledge tradition.
There is an urgent need for creating and evolving concepts, values, theories, frameworks and organizational structures that allow for the free expression of the spirit and talent of our people, instead of blocking and stultifying all innovation and adventure. For India to completely come into its own, within say the next thirty years, we have to acquire a thorough understanding of not only our past, but we must also develop a deep understanding of other civilizations of the world from an Indian perspective.
We have not only to comprehend the present day technological world, i.e., the world of the past 200 years, but even more we have to have an understanding of its sources and traditions by getting to their roots which are in the ancient Greek, Roman, Egyptian and Chinese civilizations.
Our youth must also know about not only the religions native to Indian but also the religions of Islam, Christianity, Zoroastrianism and Judaism which came to India from outside but now are an important ingredient of our cultural life.
The Centre shall invite and discuss with the best of scholars steeped in the Indian Knowledge Traditions, who shall help us in forming an overview of the current Indian situation, and of our place in the world. Scholars invited to the Centre shall individually be experts in various knowledge traditions of India, and other areas relating to material culture and beyond.
The Centre may also bring out a journal, Paravidya, which will document and express our ideas and efforts in this direction.