Pandurang Shastri wins Templeton award

Athavale, 76, was honoured for his leadership of a self-knowledge movement based on the Bhagvad Gita that touched nearly 100,000 villages. The basic message of Swadhyaya, a Sanskrit word meaning self-study, is that god is present in all people.

Started in 1954 with 20 persons, there are now some 200,000 Swadhyayees -- as followers are called -- travelling throughout India, mixing with people of all classes, encouraging personal piety and social programmes to build housing and feed the poor.

Athavale said he would put the prize money back into the movement, which has reached an estimated 20 million people without a single paid staff worker.

"This award is to advance the human spirit's quest for love and understanding of god,'' Athavale said. "I see it as a tribute to the conviction that existence of god is central to life and true religion is the guiding principle of life.''

The Templeton prize was established in 1972 by investment manager John M Templeton to recognise people who advance the world's understanding of religion. The award of £ 750,000, valued at around $ 1.21 million, is the largest monetary prize for achievement in any field. It will be awarded at a ceremony at Westminster Abbey on May 6.

Born in 1920 in a village near Bombay, Athavale became a respected teacher of the Bhagvad Gita. In 1954, trying to apply principles of his faith to practice, he and 19 others began visiting villages around Bombay, urging people to recognise the presence of god within themselves and their neighbours.

The movement's philosophy is once people believe all persons are divine brothers and sisters in the family of god, not only are class and religious conflicts defused but villagers will work together to build affordable housing and feed the poor. It supports agricultural and housing projects throughout the country.

"Without religion, you can't change the person,'' Athavale said in an interview. Religion is a powerful organisation to change the world.''

Previous winners of the Templeton prize include Billy Graham, Mother Teresa and Alexander Solzhenitsyn. Last year's winner was Bill Bright, an American evangelist who founded the Campus Crusade for Christ.