Celebration of the 1150th anniversary of Abu Nasr al-Farabi started in Almaty.
The Jubilee Year of Al-Farabi, which is widely celebrated internationally under the auspices of UNESCO, brought together guests from more than 40 countries of the world.
The official ceremony of Abu Nasr al-Farabi 1150th anniversary celebration was held at al-Farabi Kazakh National University (KazNU) in Almaty on January 29, 2019. The anniversary year of al-Farabi, which is widely celebrated internationally under the auspices of UNESCO, gathered guests from more than 40 countries of the world, a zakon.kz correspondent reports.
The official opening ceremony of the jubilee year took place at the Student’s Palace of al-Farabi Kazakh National University. The ceremony was attended by the State Secretary of the Republic of Kazakhstan Krymbek Kusherbayev, Mayor of Almaty city Bakytzhan Sagintayev, government and public figures, representatives of the UN and UNESCO, OIC, TURKSOY and other international organizations, diplomatic missions in Kazakhstan, rectors of universities, heads of scientific centers and research institutes, well-known foreign and domestic scientists-farabiologists.
Before the start of the ceremonial meeting, its participants laid flowers at the monument to Abu Nasr al-Farabi on the main university square and took part in the opening ceremony of the al-Farabi Library Center, where they got acquainted with the expositions of the museum dedicated to the great thinker of the East. They also visited an exhibition of his works, domestic and foreign publications about him, the halls of the First President of Kazakhstan, Abai and the leaders of the Alash movement, a fund of rare and valuable books, a digital reading room.
State Secretary of the Republic of Kazakhstan Krymbek Kusherbayev, opening the solemn event, emphasized that the celebration of the 1150th anniversary of al-Farabi would give a powerful impetus to the study and understanding of the heritage of the great scientist both in our country and abroad.
He noted that the anniversary of the great thinker of the East is included in the UNESCO Calendar of Memorable Dates and Events and will be widely celebrated at international cultural venues with the support of ISESCO, OIC, TURKSOY and other organizations.
……..As part of the anniversary of al-Farabi, scientific symposiums are planned in Paris, Nur-Sultan and the Turkestan region, in which leading scientists from more than 40 countries of the world will take part, international expeditions will be organized, historical cultural objects will be reconstructed, and the works of the scientist have been translated, a series of documentaries has been created, al-Farabi centers will open abroad,” said Krymbek Kusherbaev.
Mayor of Almaty city, Bakytzhan Sagyntayev in his ceremonial speech, also noted that 2020 year is rich in significant dates important for the history of the country. First of all, this is the 1150th anniversary of the world famous scientist Abu Nasr al-Farabi. And it is not without reason that the opening of the Year of the Great Thinker takes place in the Almaty city.
……..the main University of the country – Al-Farabi Kazakh National University and the scientific center for fundamental and system research – the National Academy of Sciences are located in our city. The library and the Center of Al-Farabi are actively working in Almaty, the Al-Farabi Heritage Research Center has been opened in the city. On the basis of such culturally significant events, let me welcome you to our wonderful city and congratulate everyone on the 1150th anniversary of al-Farabi! – said the mayor of the city.
At the same time, he emphasized that the basis of any prosperous nation is its ability to face the future without fear, while not forgetting to look back at the past. Awareness of one’s cultural values and traditions is an important step in achieving progress. Weaving ever more tightly into the bonds of the modern globalizing world, it becomes necessary to understand the enormous role of the outstanding personalities of the nation in the formation and development of our history.
……..The main reason for today’s event is the respect and expression of our tribute to the spiritual heritage of the great thinker of the Middle Ages, encyclopedist and philosopher Abu Nasr al-Farabi, who made an invaluable contribution to the development of world science and civilization. Pride for us is the realization of the fact that the great thinker is a descendant of the Kazakh land. The contribution of the “second teacher”, namely, as Abu Nasr al-Farabi is called, to the world of such sciences as philosophy, logic, metaphysics and natural science has no equal in its significance. The philosopher’s ideas about the “virtuous city” are also relevant for modern urban life. The “ideal of the city” he developed is based on the concept of justice, mutual support of citizens and the ways in which its inhabitants can achieve the common good. Of course, in the realities of modern life, this mission seems difficult to achieve. However, it is at least able to change people’s aspirations for the better and teach them one of the eternal goals of humanity – finding harmony and happiness, – Bakytzhan Sagintayev said.
He added that, like a thousand years ago, we face the same tasks – creating a comfortable environment and improving the quality of life of city residents. All this was taken into account in the Development Strategy of the city “Almaty-2050”, which defines 7 strategic guidelines.
Also, the mayor of the city stressed that we have to do a lot of work to study the heritage of al-Farabi and adapt it to the present. In this regard, he proposed to take a number of measures.
……..Studying of al-Farabi heritage is still not on the agenda and we have to study and do a lot. Firstly, we need to collect and bring all the translated works of al-Farabi into foreign languages from different parts of the world to our homeland and open the al-Farabi Center. It is also necessary to resume the translation process of the works of al-Farabi, which began with the 1100th anniversary of the thinker in 1975. Secondly, Almaty is a city of youth. Youth is the future of the country. This is exactly what the thinker thought and at one time said that “if you want to know the future of the country, show me your youth, and I will predict your future.” Education through the study of the works of al-Farabi on the intellectual and moral improvement of a person will certainly contribute to the humanization of society. In this regard, we are announcing an open competition among students to study the heritage of al-Farabi for Almaty Mayor’s scholarships,” Bakytzhan Sagintayev said.
Thirdly, since 2009, the Al-Farabi Olympics has been held in Almaty with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan. I think that this competition, like the Zhautykov Olympiad, should be of an international level. Fourthly, we propose to develop an interactive map “In the footsteps of al-Farabi”, on the basis of which to develop an interactive tour route. Fifthly, the doctrine of the study of celestial bodies entered the scientific sphere of the great thinker. In order to popularize the heritage of al-Farabi for teenagers, I propose to open a Farabi corner in the Almaty Observatory, Bakytzhan Sagintayev summed up.
The Director of the UNESCO Cluster Office for Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan Krista Pikkat also made a ceremonial speech. She noted that the inclusion of the celebration of the 1150th anniversary in the UNESCO global list of memorable dates gives this event a worldwide significance. And the inclusion of the celebration corresponds to the task of the Organization to bring peoples closer together through the popularization of their contribution to the development of world culture, science and education.
…… The life of al-Farabi is an example of life and the pursuit of knowledge, understanding of the world and understanding of the meaning of life. On the reflections and spiritual quotes of the great scientist and sage, one can educate a person as a person and strengthen true human values. The wisdom of the great teacher is relevant and has great meaning today. The scientist’s treatises require a certain level of understanding, inner preparation and awareness. And it is no coincidence that one of the leading universities in Kazakhstan bears the name of al-Farabi. This is very symbolic, since the university in its activities pays attention to the problems of cognition, contributes to the development of the desire to reveal the possibilities and abilities of a person. The name of a scientist imposes a certain status on the university, teachers and students – and therefore the university was appointed as the main executor of the implementation of the anniversary events, – said Krista Pikkat.
She also noted that the creation and operation of the new Al-Farabi Center is of great importance for the UN and UNESCO. Al-Farabi’s vision and heritage is in tune with the new agenda for sustainable development, as well as with the programs and goals of UNESCO. That is why the Center can become an active partner of UNESCO in promoting intercultural dialogue not only in Kazakhstan, but also in Central Asia. The activities of the Center can help UNESCO promote science among young people, promote the knowledge and skills necessary to promote sustainable development, including the promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, and awareness of the value of cultural diversity.
At the end of the official part of the event, the guests were presented with a theatrical performance telling about the life of the great scientist, as well as a festive concert with the participation of Kazakhstan’s pop stars.