PM Narendra Modi says Pali ignored till now

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi underlined the contribution of Pali, spoken during the times of Lord Buddha and declared a classical language a few days back, to India's culture and enumerated various steps taken by his government for giving due respect to Buddhism which preached peace to the world. Significantly, his remarks come amid Assembly elections in Maharashtra which has a sizable Dalit population that follows Buddhism.

Addressing the International Abhidhamma Diwas celebration program here, Modi lamented that Pali- the language in which Lord Buddha spoke- was "unfortunately" not given due recognition and is no longer in common usage.

"Heritage of language, literature, art and spirituality of any society defines its existence," Modi said, adding that any historical relic or artifact discovered by any country is presented before the entire world with pride. India, however, lagged on this front due to invasions before independence and the "slave mentality" of dispensations soon after.


The nation has now shunned this "inferiority complex" and is taking crucial decisions. Giving classical language status to Pali and Marathi languages is one of them, he maintained.