Indian Religious Leader Wins $1.2-Million Templeton Prize
NEW YORK — The founder of an Indian spiritual self-knowledge movement, Pandurang Shastri Athavale, was named Wednesday as the winner of the 1997 Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion, worth more than $1.2 million.
More than 40 years ago, Athavale, 76, initiated the practice of swadhyaya, a Sanskrit word meaning self-study, which has spread across India and is estimated to have affected the lives of 20 million people.
Based on the Bhagavad Gita, the holiest Hindu text, Athavale’s philosophy asks people to recognize the inner presence of God which, he says, leads to a sense of self-esteem as well as an awareness of the divine presence within all persons.
The prize was established in 1972 by Tennessee-born investment fund founder Sir John Templeton to honor those who advance the world’s understanding of religion and spirituality.
Previous recipients have included Mother Teresa of Calcutta (1973), American evangelist Billy Graham (1982) and the Rev. Kyung-Chik Han, a South Korean Presbyterian pastor (1992).
The prize is described as the world’s largest annual monetary award. This year’s prize will be presented by Britain’s Prince Philip at a ceremony in Westminster Abbey on May 6 marking the award’s 25th anniversary.
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