The speakers at the inaugural of a national seminar on ‘Remembering professor K. Satchidananda Murthy' paid rich tributes to him describing him as “one among the few towering philosophers India has ever produced.”
A seminar, jointly organised by the Indian Council of Philosophical Research (ICPR) and the Department of Philosophy, Andhra University, was held at the Platinum Jubilee Guest House of AU on Wednesday.
Principal Secretary in the Higher Education Department and in-charge Vice-Chancellor of Andhra University M.G. Gopal said that Satchidananda Murthy was the only philosopher to have written a full-length book on the philosophical traditions of the East. He was secular and respected Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism, and other religions. He was the first philosopher to get Dr. B.C. Roy National Award in 1982. H was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1984 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2001.
GITAM University President MVVS Murthy recalled that during his student days in Andhra University almost everyone in the university used to look up to Satchidananda Murthy with respect and admiration.
During his tenure as Vice-Chancellor of Sri Venkateswara University, Satchidananda Murthy won the appreciation of the people of Tirupati. They had never looked upon him as an outsider as he used to mingle with them and try to solve their problems.
A professor from Delhi University Ashok Vohra said K.S. Murthy had written his first book which was a commentary of The Bhagavad Gita in Telugu, when he was just 16 years old in 1941. Both his admirers and critics had described his books as classics. Despite his criticism of non-dualistic Vedanta, he was honoured by the Sankaracharya of Sringeri.
Prof Vohra said that Satchidananda Murthy hadn't acquired any property either in Visakhapatnam, despite working for more than two decades in the city, or in Delhi where he served for a few years as Vice-Chairman of the University Grants Commission. He had also declined to undertake any official assignments or attend public functions after retiring from service.
Chairman of ICPR K. Ramakrishna Rao described him as a ‘nishkama karma yogi' and a role model, inspirer and guide to his students and followers.
