Conference on Spirituality in Indigenous Cultures and Religious Traditions
Oct 24 – 25, 2009 at Sri Siva Vishnu Temple (www.ssvt.org)
6905 Cipriano Road Lanham, MD 20706, USA
Click here to read the report

Achieving Inner and Outer Balance in the Ancient Traditions and Cultures: Exploring Ancient Paths to Emotional Well-Being
Saturday, August 26, 2006, 9am-5pm
Monroe Community Hospital, 435 East Henrietta Road, Rochester, NY 14620, USA
Click here to read the Program

Bakhle Memorial Lecture
May 14, 2006
Dokras Hall, The Institution of Engineers, North Ambazari Rd., Nagpur, India
Delivered by Late Professor Ram Shewalkar on “Pracheen Maanavi Ssanskrutiteel Saamya Sutre”
Chair: Dr. Pankaj Chande, Vice Chancellor, Kavikulguru Kalidas Sanskrit University, India

Hindu-Hopi Joint Workshop
March 31 to April 2, 2006
Sedona, Arizona, USA
This workshop was conducted to study similarities between Hindu and Hopi cultures. Please click here to see the press coverage of this event.

Second International Conference of Elders of Ancient Traditions and
Cultures:Spirituality Beyond Religions
5-10 February 2006
Jaipur, India
This conference was organized by World Council of Elders of Ancient Traditions and Cultures (WCEAT), a forum of ICCS, in association with ICCS USA Inc. Representatives of indigenous cultures had come from 42 countries. Read further. Press coverage (4 MB pdf file)

Ancient Family Traditions of Asian, African, Latin, Hebrew and Native
American Cultures and their Relevance in Modern Times
The 7th conference in the series of understanding Ancient Traditions and Cultures of the World 17-18 September, 2005
Atlanta, GA, USA
This conference explored ancient cultural traditions and how they impact the institution of family in antiquity and modern times. Family is the foundation of human civilization. The weight of human society rests on the family. To shoulder this weight and fulfill its societal obligations, the family must adopt methods that strengthen and unify its ranks. The challenge has never been greater than today.

Hindu – Maya Cultural Similarities
The 6th conference in the series of understanding Ancient Traditions and Cultures of the World May 29-30, 2005
Maya Village Lake Atitlan, Guatemala
Hindu and the Maya traditions and cultures are one of the ancient in the world. The conference and workshop looked at the similarities in these cultures and traditions as well as workshops were conducted on ceremonies of these traditions. This conference was conducted in collaboration with Council of Elders of the Sacred Mayas, Guatemala, which is a council of more than 440 Elders of the Maya Traditions and cultures belonging to 23 different ethnic Sacred Maya Groups. Click here to see the report.

Science of Survival in the Ancient Traditions and Cultures: Hands on experience with the Traditional Techniques of Survival
The 5th conference in the series of understanding Ancient Traditions and Cultures of the World April 30-May 1, 2005
Club House, East Brooke Town-homes, Brighton, Rochester, NY, 14618, USA
This conference aimed to bring together people from many traditional backgrounds to explore ancient traditions that predate the “Christian era” and their application in today’s society. This conference provided an interactive platform for sharing information through word of mouth and hands-on workshops between participants and audience members. Click here to see the report.

Haudenosaunee and Hindu Cultures
The 4th conference in the series of understanding Ancient Traditions and Cultures of the World 17-19 September 2004
Rochester, NY, USA
This conference will be organized in collaboration with Native American Cultural center, Rochester and Tree of Peace Society with the theme “Haudenosaunee- Hindu Cultures”. Haudenosaunee is a general term used to refer to the Six Nations of Native American people, who are Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk and Tuscarora. Haudenosaunee means “People building an extended house or also referred as “People of the Long House”. The topics to be discussed are Haudenosaunee-Hindu history and common roots; philosophy, theology, traditions, similarities and peculiarities; life of society and traditions in the present scenario; Preserving our great culture and
traditions in changing world.

Hindu-Lakota Community Conference
The 3th conference in the series of understanding Ancient Traditions and Cultures of the World 24 July 2004
Pineridge, South Dakota, USA
This conference as a whole provided a great opportunity for Hindu and Lakota communities to explore the richness of both the ancient cultures. Click here to see the report.

Spirituality of Indigenous Peoples
The 2nd conference in the series of understanding Ancient Traditions and Cultures of the World 26-28 March, 2004
Washington, D.C., USA
The conference was organized in collaboration with The African Traditional Spiritual Coalition, Washington DC. The African Traditional Spiritual Coalition of Washington, DC is a non-profit member organization comprised of 14 Spiritual Houses whose practices are deeply rooted in the Akan, Kamitic, Vodoun and Yoruba Traditions. Themes of the conference were: History and Common roots of Indigenous Peoples; Philosophy and theology of indigenous traditions: similarities and peculiarities; The effects of migration on indigenous peoples; Preserving traditions in changing world; spirituality in the Ancient traditions of the world.

Indo-Romuva Cultural Conference
The 1st conference in the series of understanding Ancient Traditions and Cultures of the World 11-12 October, 2003
Atlantic City, USA
The conference was organized in collaboration with the World Congress of Ethnic Religions (WCER), Lithuania. The conference brought together eminent scholars belonging to Indian and Romuvan tradition from Lithuania, Latvia, Mexico, North America and India. The conference focused on the following topics: threat to Lithuanian culture in the West; Hindu dharma and its universality; Yoruba traditions; science of dharma; religion Vs dharma; revival of religion in native American; Sikh traditions; syncretism; medicine and spirituality; influence of Hindu culture on rebirth of Lithuanian culture.

First International Conference of Elders of Ancient Traditions and Cultures
4-9 February 2003
Mumbai, India
This conference was organized by World Council of Elders of Ancient Traditions and Cultures (WCEAT), a non-political, non-religious, non-profit Socio cultural forum of ICCS Inc., in association with Vishwa Adhyayan Kendra, Mumbai; Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini International and SNDT Womens’ University, Mumbai. Representatives of indigenous cultures had come from Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa, Ghana, Latin America, USA, Canada, Austria, Mauritius, Ecuador, Zambia, Lithuania, and Trinidad & Tobago. During the five day conference about 148 papers were presented on wide ranging themes like the Concept and Role of Elders in Ancient Traditions, Introducing Ancient Traditions and Cultures, Threat to the Ancient Tradition from Various Sources, Revival of Ancient Traditions – various experiments, and Spirituality – Metaphysics and Ancient Traditions. A resolution was unanimously passed (“Mumbai Manifesto”) and signed by 184 delegates representing different global traditions and cultures. The preamble to the manifesto says, “At the start of the New Millennium, humanity stands at critical crossroads of history. In the midst of tremendous strides in scientific and technological progress and material comforts, there is an urgent need for spiritual and moral resurgence for ensuring the well-being of the human family, for preserving the larger living world and for strengthening the foundations of durable universal peace. All human beings are born equal and have equal rights to live peacefully on Mother Earth and, peace and prosperity, at global level, can be realized only when the conflicts within and between the communities vanish and we develop the spirit of tolerance”. The signatories consider themselves an integral part of the Divine Creation and relate to each other as Children of the Mother Earth. The Mumbai Manifesto lays emphasis on reducing all forms of exploitation that have continued in the name of race, religion and economy.

Preservation of Ancient Cultures and Globalization Scenario
22-24 November 2002
Bryant Hall, University of Waikato Hamilton, New Zealand
This conference was organized in collaboration with the School for Maori & Pacific Development University of Waikato Hamilton, New Zealand (AOTEAROA). Papers were presented in the following categories: Indigenous Culture Scenario, Inventory of Indigenous Cultures of the world, Value Systems and Traditions of Indigenous Cultures, Sources of Threat to Indigenous Cultures, Globalization and Cultural Dimensions, New Institutions for Cultural Cooperation, Multi Religion Cultural Ethos: Conflicts and Cooperation, Cultural Conflicts and Tolerance, Recent Experiences and Lessons, Cultural Cadets International-CCI.