EARTHDAY.ORG – India Releases ‘Sayings on Nature from Different Religions’ on World Teachers’ Day

EARTHDAY.ORG – India today released a publication titled, “Sayings on Nature from Different Religions” that focuses on the reverence all religions place on nature. The eBook includes quotations from nine religions: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Sikhism, Zoroastrianism, and the indigenous Santhal. Launched on World Teachers’ Day in Kolkata, India, “Sayings on Nature from Different Religions” is digitally available at: https://bit.ly/SayingsOnNatureFromDifferentReligions 

The event, hosted by the United Interfaith Foundation India on World Teachers’ Day, was attended by senior leaders representing 15 different faiths/groups. His Grace, The Most Rev Thomas D’Souza, Archbishop of Kolkata, impressed with the publication, announced that the Foundation (of which he is President) would work to put together a more detailed compilation for release for Earth Day 2022. The Archbishop also spoke about the importance Christianity places on the care for nature.

Other speakers included the senior-most Imam of West Bengal State, Qari Fazlur Rahman, who emphasized that Islam teaches its followers to conserve water and keep water bodies clean. Guruji Venerable Miao Ru from Fo Guang Shan, representing the worldwide Humanistic Buddhist institution headquartered in Taiwan, and the Buddha’s Light International Association, shared the resolution taken by the organizations to focus on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The resolution states, “To sustain the promotion of environmental and spiritual preservation…in reviving a new life for Earth.” Satnam Singh Ahluwalia, President, Behala Gurudwara, and Secretary of the United Interfaith Foundation, quoted the Sikh Holy Book to showcase the reverence in it for the earth. The Secretary of the International Vedanta Society, Swami Achyutananda Puri, addressed the issue of the need to be conscious of and care for nature – even a blade of grass.

Karuna Singh, Regional Director, EARTHDAY.ORG, said, “The beautiful original sayings from different religious texts reinforce the fact that we need to give serious thought to help Restore Our Earth, not just because we care about the natural world, but because we are a part of it as well, as our enlightened religious heads knew. Nature is our best teacher and the provider of our greatest wealth. It is for this reason that we launch the publication on World Teachers’ Day.”

“Since the first Earth Day in 1970, the global faith community has been an integral part of the fight against climate change with their ability to mobilize millions of people for the protection of our shared home,” said EARTHDAY.ORG President Kathleen Rogers. “This publication will help followers of all faiths to see the interconnected reverence all faiths place on nature.”

About EARTHDAY.ORG: 
EARTHDAY.ORG – India’s efforts to Restore Our Earth include initiatives to regenerate the green cover, recharge aquifers, rejuvenate soil, reduce air pollution, encourage responsible consumption, and manage waste. EARTHDAY.ORG’s mission is to diversify, educate, and activate the environmental movement worldwide. Growing out of the first Earth Day (1970), EARTHDAY.ORG is the world’s largest recruiter to the environmental movement, working with more than 150,000 partners in nearly 192 countries to build environmental democracy. More than 1 billion people now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world. Learn more at earthday.org.

For additional information, please reach out to Debapriya Dutt, Senior Manager – Outreach at [email protected] or Olivia Altman, Publicist at [email protected]