July 16, 2004 ☼ Foreign Affairs
The doubly prefixed Sri Sri Ravishankar intends to visit Pakistan to help fix the India-Pakistan problem. The wisdom of a religious leader - albeit that one professes inclusivity and moderation - discussing ‘peace’ with Pakistan’s political and military leadership is questionable. For a start the visit will only reinforce the cliched stereotype of a Hindu India that is so prevalent among Pakistani people.
Sri Sri Ravishankar can by all means pursue a purely spiritual agenda in Pakistan ; open his Art of Living centres and engage in people-to-people contact with his religious-spiritual counterparts. It will be gracious of the Pakistani government if it allows this, but it must not be expected to do so. But even a purely spiritual tour may give the Islamic fundamentalists reason to spread a new dose of India-phobia, for it is quite predictable that his visit may be interpreted as an example of Hindu proselytising or Indian cultural expansionism.
It may be much more prudent for him to focus his considerable energies on other projects.
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