Share Nepal's pain, hope it bounces back soon: PM Modi on Buddha Purnima

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday led the nation in prayers and solidarity with the people of India and Nepal on the occasion of Buddha Purnima.

Speaking on the occasion of International Buddha Purnima Diwas 2015, the PM said the messages of Buddha are relevant even today.

Sharing the "pain" of quake-devastated Nepal, Modi hoped that the "beloved brother" bounces back quickly from its current crisis even as he observed that the task of recovery was long and arduous.

"We should share the pain and wipe the tears of people of Nepal," Modi said while referring to the devastation caused in the birthplace of Lord Buddha on the occasion of his birth anniversary.

He was addressing a gathering here on 'Buddha Purnima' where one-minute silence was observed in memory of those killed in the massive earthquake in Nepal and India.

"The birthplace of Lord Buddha, our beloved brother Nepal is going through a massive crisis. People of Nepal have to bear this difficult situation. It is difficult to imagine how long and arduous this journey will be. We share the pain of the people of Nepal. Let us pray to Lord Buddha that they get new strength," he said.

Invoking Lord Buddha, he said his teaching of compassion inspires one to rebuild lives.

India has deployed massive resources, including military forces, for rescue and relief operations in Nepal.

Address the gathering attended by ambassadors, MPs, scholars and Buddhist monks from across the globe, Modi also said the world is going through "turmoil" and added the teachings of Lord Buddha can show the way out.

"Violence is at its peak. Major part of the world is soaked in blood....People are baying for each other's blood. In this situation of bloodshed, where will the message of compassion come from? The only resort is Lord Buddha and his teachings," the Prime Minister said.

He cited how Buddha, who was born as a prince, renounced the wordly things like power and wealth to seek salvation through spiritualism 2500 years back.

"Some people think power and prosperity are good enough to solve all problems.... But Lord Buddha renounced all these to seek greater powers through love and compassion for welfare of humanity. This thought is not small. He must have been having big conviction and courage to renounce all these," Modi said. 

Modi said Lord Buddha had always championed the cause of dalits, oppressed and deprived classes of the society besides empowerment of women.

He did not believe in "ekla chalo" (march alone) but always laid emphasis on bringing people together, which has inspired dalit icon Baba Ambedkar.

"Lord Buddha wanted evolution in the society... The issues being discussed presently were taken up by Lord Buddha 2500 years ago. His teachings are relevant in this age also," the Prime Minister said.

Referring to the talk that 21st century belongs to Asia, he said this cannot happen without Buddha and application of his teachings.

"Buddha's words had immense power and that is why the world accepted him," he underlined.

Taking a dig at his critics, Modi said he, as Chief Minister of Gujarat, had placed a statue each of Lord Buddha at the entrance of the state Secretariat and his official residence but "apparently their (critics') attention has not gone to that aspect. Otherwise, they would have flogged me."

He said he proposes to build an impressive Buddha temple in his ancestral place Vadnagar in Gujarat where materials related to the founder of Buddhism had been found.

Earlier this morning, the PM took to microblogging website Twitter to extend his greetings on the occasion of Buddha Purnima.

बुद्ध पूर्णिमा के अवसर पर देशवासियों को हार्दिक शुभकामनायें।भगवान बुद्ध के सत्य, अहिंसा और शांति के संदेश हमे सदैव प्रेरित करते रहेंगे। — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 4, 2015

Only twice since Independence has Buddha Purnima been officially commemmorated, in 1956 and 2007.

Buddha Purnima or 'Vesak' is recognised as the thrice sacred day that marks the birth, enlightenment and Mahaparinirvana of Lord Buddha. While Buddha was born in Lumbini in Nepal, he attained enlightenment in Bodhgaya in Bihar, preached first in Sarnath and attained Nirvana in Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh, it said.

Thousands of people died in Nepal last week in the devastating earthquake on April 25. The quake affected various states of India too, killing many.

(With Agency inputs)