Bhubaneswar: An Eco Pad Yatra will be organised to heritage sites of Buddhism in the state to create awareness about conserving the environment.
The Yatra will be organised by the Drukpa Lineage, and led by Drukpa Thuksey Rinpoche, the present Gyalwang Drukpa and the 12th incarnation of the founder of the Drukpa Lineage.
The Drukpas are best known for taking meditation off the mat and into the world, and converting compassion into action to tackle the world’s challenges.
Odisha has initiated action to check the use of plastic, and plastic bags are banned in six cities from October 2. The ban is expected to be extended to more cities.
The Eco-Pad Yatra will kick off in Bhubaneswar October 24. During the eight-day Eco Pad Yatra, His Holiness, the Gyalwang Drukpa and other participants will travel 140 km by foot through the five important Buddhist sites of Bhubaneswar, Udayagiri which is also known as the city of major stupas and monasteries, Dhauli, the city of the famous Shanti Stupa, Lalitgiri, the city known for its enormous brick monasteries and Ratnagiri, a city with the remains of 300 minor stupas.
Speaking about the event, His Holiness, the Gyalwang Drukpa said, “In ancient times Buddha walked with his disciples and taught them through his actions as well as verbal expressions. Similarly, through this Eco Pad Yatra we are communing with one another through action, drawing inspiration from the Buddhist heritage of Odisha, and spreading an urgent environmental message along with it.”
During the course of the Eco Pad Yatra, His Holiness and monastic and lay pilgrims will pray daily for peace and compassion, perform large scale cleaning of the terrain along the route, and will campaign about the importance of preserving nature.
The event will also promote awareness about the Buddhist heritage sites of Odisha, where cultural relics and monastic structures have been preserved for centuries.
This will be the 16th Eco Pad Yatra by Drukpa Lineage. The Eco Pad Yatra will conclude October 31 at Ratnagiri in Odisha.
The first Pad Yatra, 500 km long, was organised in 2006 by His Holiness, the Gyalwang Drukpa, in which nine Rinpoches and 180 nuns and monks took part.
PNN