Posts Tagged ‘Science and Spirituality conference’

The following is a summary of a talk given by His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Swami on May 21, 2002, at 26 Second Avenue. Maharaja holds a doctorate in chemistry and has devoted his life, at Srila Prabhupada.s request, to engaging scientists and mathematicians in the development of scientific proofs to support spiritual knowledge.

Can we make a living being by assembling some chemical ingredient?

My personal relationship with Prabhupada was based on preaching. Prabhupada’s thesis was life comes from life, and it remained so from the moment I met him to the day he passed away in Vrindavan. In that last onemonth, Prabhupada was generally awake from midnight on. At thosetimes, he spoke mostly in the Bengali language. He often discussed the conceptthat life comes from life, because it is the foundation of Krishna consciousness,whether one takes the philosophical, theological, or scientific viewpoint.

Life comes from life means we all come from Krishna. Krishna is the originof everything. That was Prabhupada’s very strong instruction. In May 1977, Prabhupada’s secretary, Tamal Krishna Goswami, ordered all GBC members to come to Vrindavan, because Prabhupada was ill. In May of that year the first gathering of all the leaders of our society was held in Vrindavan. By Krishna’s arrangement, I was in Vrindavan at that time. With so many devotees gathered there, we conceived the idea of organizing a conference to discuss the science of

Krishna consciousness. I suggested to Prabhupada that we call it the Bhaktivedanta Conference and that we hold it regularly for generations

to come. Prabhupada said, “If we call it the Bhaktivedanta Conference, scientists may not take it very seriously. It is better to call it the First International

Conference on Life Comes from Life.” That was Prabhupada’s position.

We organized the conference very hurriedly, and within one month the

plans were finalized. The conference would be held in Vrindavan, October 14-16, 1977. After the dates were set, I went to Boston where the other Bhaktivedanta Institute scientists were preparing monographs and booklets for presentation

at the conference. When I returned to Vrindavan in August, Prabhupada was on his way to the United States. He was supposed to go to Gita-nagari farm, in Pennsylvania, but his health was failing and from London he returnedto Vrindavan. Realizing he hadn’t much time remaining, Prabhupada said again and again, “Do something before I depart. I want to see that conference.”

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DR. T.D. Singh (1937-2006) His Holliness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Swami: A pioneer in advancing the dialogue on synthesis of Science and Spirituality throughout the world since 1974

Dr. T. D. Singh received Ph.D. in Physical Organic Chemistry from the University of California at Irvine in 1974. He was a scientist and spiritualist known for his pioneering efforts in the synthesis of science and religion for a deeper understanding of life and the universe. He was trained in Vaishnava Vedanta studies from 1970 to 1977 under Srila Prabhupada and was appointed Director of the Bhaktivedanta Institute in 1974. He organized four major International Conferences on Science and Religion – First and Second World Congress for the Synthesis of Science and Religion (Mumbai, 1986 & Kolkata, 1997), First International Conference on the Study of Consciousness within Science (San Francisco, 1990), and Second International Congress on Life and Its Origin (Rome, 2004). Collectively thousands of prominent scientists and religious leaders including several Nobel Laureates participated. He has authored and edited more than dozen books including What is Matter and What is Life? (1977), Theobiology (1979), Synthesis of Science and Religion: Critical Essays and Dialogues (1987) and Thoughts on Synthesis of Science and Religion (2001). He was also the founder Editor-in-Chief for two journals of the Bhaktivedanta Institute.

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