New York University

Speaker: Vijay Swami
Pictures

Topic: Ecological Awareness and Native Cultures
Venue: 905 Mikkel Centre, New York University Campus
Time: 8:30PM
Date: 24th Sept, 07
Organized By: Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh and Hindu Student Council

Vijay Swamyji reached New York University campus around 7Pm from Philadelphia. After receiving him from penn station we brought him to campus and had a little snack and coffee with him. Meantime we introduced ourselves to him and also got a very clear and concise
picture of his work and his mission. At 8Pm we moved to the venue. Some students were waiting there and some were yet to come. By 8:30PM we had the projector ready. Also the snacks (Samosas, apple juice and some water) were on the table along with a sign in sheet. We decided to go for snacks and some juice before the talk began, so that way some students those had not come yet wouldn¡|t miss much. Finally the talk started at 8:45PM with a detail introduction of Vijay Swamyji.

Vijay Swamyji talked for 30 minutes. His talk was highly enlightening and informative, mainly focused on Arunachal Pradesh and the 6 other north eastern states of India. His slides were very appropriate (Less text, more beautiful scenic pictures with a message) to the audience. And there were slides in between summarizing the points. In a nutshell, Swamyji talked about the natural resources, the ancient cultures, the different tribes and how their ways of living life is still having that originality and bit far from all modernisms. He extracted the universal Hindu laws and Indian philosophies from this primitive way of living lives. He also put forward the threats, the miseries, and the lackadaisical feelings of Indian Govt. towards
the betterment of North Eastern states. Finally he showed the way how UWATCH is showing some directions in this regard.

Finally we had 10 minutes of question answer session. After the talk was over, the students eagerly talked to Swamyji for his contact details and some casual talks continued for next 15 to 20 minutes.

Highlights:
- Sankhya was 25
- Talk was informative and interesting
- Swamyji offered that he would arrange the trips in and around Arunachal Pradesh if anybody pays a visit there during his or her India trip
- There were students from all academic years of undergraduate degree. There were couple of Anthropology major students who were really excited after the talk.