Bratislava, Apr 9 (PTI) President Droupadi Murmu was presented a copy of the first-ever Slovak translation of ancient Indian texts, the Upanishads, by Slovak President Peter Pellegrini on Wednesday.
Murmu arrived here Wednesday on the second leg of her two-nation visit, becoming only the second Indian Head of State to visit the Slovak Republic.
Murmu met and discussed various aspects of bilateral relations and issues of shared global and regional interests with President Pellegrini during one-to-one meetings and delegation-level talks.
Pellegrini presented a copy of the first-ever Slovak translation of the Upanishads to President Murmu who is on a State Visit to the country.
Literary scholar Robert Gafrik dedicated five years to translating the ten main Upanishads from the original Sanskrit into Slovak.
Revered as some of the oldest and most influential religious-philosophical texts in the world, Upanishads approximately date back to around the 7th to 5th centuries BC.
The translation published by VEDA, the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAS) publishing house, offers translations of Upanishads from their original Sanskrit.
The work was hailed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Mann Ki Baat where he had termed it as an “inspiring initiative” that focuses on preserving and promoting our culture.
“For the first time, the Upanishads have been translated into the Slovak language. This reflects the increasing popularity of Indian culture worldwide,” he had said.
Highlighting “close cultural ties” between India and the Slovak Republic, Secretary West, External Affairs Ministry Tanmaya Lal had said, “There are strong connections, and studies of Sanskrit language in Slovakia”. PTI ABS AMS
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