New Delhi, February 2: The Ministry of Tourism and Culture, which is organising a three-day international seminar on Buddhism, has invited the Dalai Lama to inaugurate the event. The seminar, to be held in Bodh Gaya to mark the 2,550th year of Buddha’s Mahaparinirvana, will begin on February 4. The Dalai Lama would also deliver the inaugural speech.

On an earlier occasion, a group of Chinese tourists had walked out of the screening of the film Buddhism: A Spiritual Journey, produced by the Bihar tourism department. The tourists were annoyed by the short footage of the Dalai Lama in the film.

However, the ministry is of the view that the Dalai Lama’s presence will only add up to the function which has representatives from many countries with Buddhist presence. “We don’t think that Dalai Lama’s presence would create any trouble. It is such a grand congregation of Buddhist experts. How can we keep Dalai Lama out of it,” said a senior official with the ministry.

There are also plans to inaugurate the Huen Tsang Memorial, on February 10, at Nalanda with a mega event. Built in memory of the Chinese traveller, the memorial is a collaboration between both countries with Chinese engineers working on the project. The Chinese government is also contributing in a major way to set up an international university at Nalanda. Beijing has already donated extensively to set up a Xuan Zang Memorial Hall here.

The seminar Bodhgaya will have experts from various countries, including USA, Germany, Estonia, Brazil, Hungary, Malaysia, Taiwan, UK, Japan, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The inaugural session will also have senior Cabinet ministers and will be introduced by Planning Commission member Balachandra Mungekar.

Chinese Buddhist expert Dr Wang Bangwei is also expected to deliver a lecture on ‘Buddhist monastic life in the 7th century India: Eyewitness accounts by Yijing’.