London: The Sanatan Sanstha of the United Kingdom (SSUK) organised the first Gita Jayanti event in UK Parliament on Thursday (December 1). The event was chaired by Bob Blackman (MP Harrow East), Amish Tripathi (Minister of Culture & Director of Nehru Center) along with the revered saint Keshav Maharaj (Senior priest in Iskcon, UK).
The event was organised by the newly-formed SSUK to spread the message of Lord Krishna while celebrating the International Gita Jayanti in the UK Parliament's House of Commons. The event began with shloka chanting by Saloni Belaid and Abhi Yogi along with some children versing the Vasudev Sutam. This was followed by Keshava Maharaj explaining the relevance of the Bhagwad Gita and Krishna and how it affects our lives still in a most unique way when we follow the Gita.
Abhi Yogi of SSUK explained the objectives and vision behind creating SSUK and Praveen Kumar from Haryana gave a detailed presentation on Kurushetra and the various places a person can still visit the place in Haryana to see the various places of Hindu History in this land.
Bob Blackman in his speech highlighted that ‘Hindus should not fear in showing their Dharma as they are very peaceful and always give the message for benefit of others also’. Amish Tripathi in his speech highlighted many incidents from Vedic history that the Hindus should learn to pass on their knowledge to future generations effectively.
The event was filled with bhajans, a monologue on Krishna and multiple things which kept the place filled with joy and a full house throughout. The event’s highlight was that many children were utilised by SSUK along with youth in delivering the message of lord Krishna. Children as young as 7 years came and did Sanskrit Sholakas and youth came and told about how reading the Gita transformed their lives and helped them overcome teen problems also.
The event came to an end with a closing speech by Hirdesh Gupta of SSUK. Close to 100 Gitas were distributed among the attendees on this occasion all of which were provided by Keshava Maharaj (ISCKON).
