Saurashtra-Tamil Sangam
India is such a nation, where for thousands of years our forefathers have said ‘Sangachchhadhwam Samvadhwam San Wo Manansi Jantam’ i.e., let us all walk together; speak together, and may our minds be united, with ideal thoughts such as those that laid the foundation of our cultural heritage. Despite being a diverse, multilingual, and multi-cultural nation, our country is endowed with ancient bonds of joint traditions, mixed cultures, and common moral values.
Our Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, who has immense faith in Indian cultural values and is always committed and dutiful towards the public, has branded every region of the country with the mantra “Ek Bharat-Shreshtha Bharat” to strengthen this feature of Indian society. Has determined to do Bhagirath work to give respect to the cultural heritage. Giving concrete shape to this idea of the Prime Minister, recently the Gujarat government organised a grand event of historic Saurashtra-Tamil Sangam in the holy presence of Lord Somnath Mahadev.
The event is a confluence of the cultures of the southern tip of India and the western tip. After a long period of about twelve hundred years, such an event has been organised of this magnitude. It is the first time that people of Saurashtra origin, who had gone to Tamil Nadu centuries ago, are visiting their native land on the occasion of this event.
Similarly, talking about the mythological importance of both states, Lord Someshwara Shiva resides on the sea coast of Gujarat, while on the sea coast of Tamil Nadu, the historical Rameswaram temple established by Lord Shri Ram is situated. Also, both states hold an important place from the point of view of antiquity. While Gujarat has been the centre of ancient, developed cultures like the Harappan civilization, Tamil Nadu and Tamil culture are the centre of India’s antiquity and pride.
On the other hand, from the perspective of history, this programme dedicated to the idea of Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat also holds historical importance. A few thousand years ago, parallel to other states of India, when foreign invasions were taking place in Gujarat too, some residents of Saurashtra took refuge in Tamil Nadu and settled there.
These forefathers of our Saurashtra carried forward the handicrafts and arts of Gujarat to Tamil Nadu as well, which gained acceptance and popularity among the people there. The ruler of that time, Thirumalai Nayakkar, and his princess once said in praise of the silk cloth made by our Gujarati artisans that if our Saurashtra silk artisans had not come here, we would have to wear silk, which is better than Chinese and European silk. not get. This honour received by Tamil residents of Saurashtra origin is the best example of India’s cultural, social, and artistic harmony.
It is particularly noteworthy that our Prime Minister when he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat, initiated several efforts in 2005 and 2006 to re-establish contact with the community. His efforts bore fruit when, in the year 2010, in the presence of Narendrabhai, Virat Saurashtra Sangam was organised in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, in which about 50 thousand people registered their presence. It is the result of Narendrabhai Bhagirath’s efforts that today various pleasing programmes of exchange are going on between the Saurashtra people of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.
Migration is a natural process around the world. But this migration of Saurashtra people is a unique and historical phenomenon. I would like to appreciate the Tamil community of Saurashtra origin. They were displaced due to the oppression of foreign invaders, but they always kept the tradition and culture of Saurashtra alive in their hearts.
Through the Saurashtra-Tamil Sangam programme, this community has had the opportunity to visit their motherland after thousands of years. While on the one hand, we Gujaratis are eager to welcome our Saurashtrian Tamil brothers, on the other hand, our Tamil brothers of Saurashtra origin are also feeling very emotional and proud to have come to the land of their forefathers after so many years.
Many cultural presentations and sports competitions are being organised by our government under this programme. In addition, the Saurashtrian Tamil brothers will be provided with the darshan of Lord Somnath and Dwarkadhish Lord Krishna of historical and mythological importance, a visit to the Statue of Unity, the world’s tallest statue built with state-of-the-art technology, and an interview with Asiatic lions in a famous sanctuary like Sasan Gir. By doing this, efforts are being made to make this visit memorable forever.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi once said in the context of “Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat”, “Sardar Patel has given us “Ek Bharat,” and now it is the duty of all of us Indians to make it “Shreshtha Bharat” with our collective efforts.” Along with the Saurashtra-Tamil Sangam programme, the Madhavpur fair in Gujarat is also based on the ideas of Narendrabhai. Based on the legend, the
Madhavpur Mela marks the marriage of Lord Krishna, the king of Dwarka, and Rukmini, the princess of Arunachal Pradesh.
This is also a confluence programme between the cultures of West India and East India. It is a matter of pride for us that in the last two years, we have completed two successful events like this.
To express the spirit of patriotism and sacrifice for the country on this special occasion, I am reminded of a few lines of our inspiration and former Prime Minister of India, Late Atal Bihari Vajpayee: “This (India) is the land of sandalwood; congratulations, it is the land of This is the land of sacrifice, this is the land of offering. Its pebble is Shankar, and its point is the water of the Ganges. We will live for this, and we will die for this.
