Shravasti Awards

Shravasti Awards
Shravasti Awards
Sponsored by	The Drikung Kyabgon Tinle Lhundup
First awarded	20 December 2021
Website	shravastiawards.org

The Shravasti Awards are given to extraordinary role models that transcend religious and cultural barriers and contribute to the betterment of the world by leading the way in promoting good acts, therefore inspiring more individuals from other areas and cultures to collaborate and benefit humanity. The vision of the Shravasti Awards is towards encouraging humans to transcend our differences and together build a harmonious homeland where all human beings exist in balance, and beautiful earth can develop sustainably.

On December 20, 2021, the First Shravasti Awards has announced its three winners of this year. Adhering to the principle of "mutual love" and "symbiosis", the Shravasti Awards pay tribute to those who transcend religious differences to promote good deeds and encourage people from different cultures to collaborate and improve the world.

History

As His Holiness, The Drikung Kyabgon Tinle Lhundup said, "The physical world and the mental world are connected to and dependent on each other. Likewise, all living beings are interdependent in a similar manner. Therefore, we should respect other beings with kindness. This is the virtue of being a human and what we should value as a human."

Background:

For a long time, His Holiness The Drikung Kyabgon Tinle Lhundup has been devoting himself to promoting the development of cultural diversity, education and humanistic care, aiming to manifest the principle of "mutual love" and "symbiosis" in all areas of life. His Holiness initiated GO GREEN GO ORGANIC and other sustainability projects in the Himalayan region. These projects have greatly improved the lives of local people in the highest desert in the world. The local population of this area comes from a different religious backgrounds, including Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, etc. His Holiness has been appointed as the Mountain Partnership Goodwill Ambassadors of the United Nations for his excellent contributions.

The Shravasti Foundation was established in September 28, 2020 in California, USA. Adhering to the principle of "mutual love" and "symbiosis", the foundation encourages people to realize religious harmony, transcend differences, care for the living beings and our environment. A team of volunteers founded this foundation to support His Holiness Drikung Kyabgon Tinle Lhundup's humanitarian activities.

More than 2500 years ago, when Buddha Shakyamuni preached the Dharma teachings in Shravasti, he pointed out that all living beings share a common destiny and equality. Therefore, we should treat other beings with kindness and no discrimination. This is where the foundation takes its name. The Shravasti Foundation strives to practice the Buddha teachings, making great endeavors to transcend religious differences and promote harmony between different groups and between humans and the environment.

Philosophy behind the concept

The concept of the Shravasti Awards is based on the teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni who led us to realize the interconnection of all occurrences at Shravasti over 2500 years ago. He emphasized how the physical environment and mental health are intertwined and interdependent. Similarly, all living things coexist in the same way. Another insight Buddha revealed was that "all sentient beings have Buddha-nature." All living beings, like humans, have the capacity to achieve enlightenment, therefore we should treat them with respect and kindness. This is what it is to be human, and it is something we should value. The Shravasti Awards were founded for the sake of our ecosystem and all living species within it.

Winners

The Shravasti Spiritual Leadership Award: Mutual Love and Symbiosis- The winner of the Spiritual Leadership Award is His Holiness Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati, a Hindu spiritual leader. His Holiness Pujya Swami has led the Global Interfaith Summit and has long been devoted to realizing religious harmony. Moreover, His Holiness Pujya Swami has put his heart and soul into humanitarian projects, working on saving the Ganga River, developing healthcare and education, and improving women's positions. His Holiness's contributions have been recognized by receiving awards such as the World Peace Ambassador Award and the Mentor of India Award.
The Shravasti Humanities Award: Prosperity of All Human Beings- The winner of the Humanities Award is Dr. Her Rey Sheng, the initiator of global "goodness" research and deputy CEO of Tzu Chi Foundation. Transcending the differences between Eastern and Western culture, Dr. Her advocates altruism to achieve equal wealth and prosperity of all human beings and to achieve social harmony and fulfillment of life. Dr. Her has participated in relief work of the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake in China, the 2013 Philippine Typhoon, and the 2015 Nepal Earthquake.
The Shravasti Environmental Award: Caring for Farmers and Nature- The winner of the Environmental Award is Dr. Mohammed Deen Darokhan. Dr. Deen is an environmentalist dedicated to ecological protection in the Himalayan region. His vision of transforming his hometown into an integrated organic area by 2025 is crucial to glacial and climate protection in Ladakh. Dr. Deen has made significant contributions to carbon neutrality, ecological agriculture system, afforestation, biodiversity, energy and water conservation, reduction of plastic use, protection of local cultural traditions and language diversity.