On the occasion of Abhidhamma Divas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Thursday that the whole world will find solutions in Buddha and not in Yuddh (war) and appealed to follow the learnings of the enlightened spiritual leader by eliminating war, paving the way for peace.

Addressing the International Abhidhamma Divas programme at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi, Prime Minister Modi said, “…Today I say with great confidence that the whole world will find solutions in Buddha and not in Yuddh (war). Today, on the occasion of Abhidhamma Divas, I appeal to the whole world to learn from Buddha, eliminate war, pave the way for peace because Buddha says there is no greater happiness than peace….”

Prime Minister Modi felicitated Buddhist monks during the celebration of International Abhidhamma Divas and recognition of Pali as a classical language.

He said India was captured by such an ecosystem that worked to push the country in the opposite direction.

”It took seven decades for the Pali language to get its rightful place. The country is now moving ahead with self-respect, self-confidence, and self-pride. Due to this, the country is taking big decisions. Therefore, today Pali language gets the status of a classical language, and at the same time, the Marathi language also gets the same respect. Similarly, we have given the status of classical language to Bengali, Assamese and Prakrit languages.”

He said language is the soul of civilization and culture. ” Therefore, it is the responsibility of all of us to keep the Pali language alive, to keep the words of Lord Buddha alive with its original values. I am happy that our government has fulfilled this responsibility with great humility…”

Prime Minister Modi congratulated all the countrymen on Sharad Purnima and Valmiki Jayanti. ”The Pali language has been given the status of classical language by the Government of India this month. This status of classical language to Pali language is an honour to the great legacy of Lord Buddha.”

He shared that his journey of association with Lord Buddha that began at the time of his birth, has continued uninterrupted.

”I was born in Vadnagar, Gujarat, which was once a major centre of Buddhism… In the last 10 years, I have had the opportunity to participate in many sacred events, from historical Buddhist sites in India to different countries of the world, from visiting the birthplace of Lord Buddha in Nepal to the unveiling of his statue in Mongolia…”

He said on October 20, he was going to Varanasi, where many development works will be inaugurated in Sarnath. ”Along with new infrastructure, we are also preserving our past. In the last 10 years, we have brought back more than 600 ancient heritages, artefacts and remains from different countries of the world to India.”