The 21st century as the era of the holistic approach which overcomes materialistic mechanicism, as a period during which peace loving, moderate religious authorities meet eminent personalities of the scientific world in order to debate vital issues for the future of humanity, like the origin of life, its protection and its goal. This is the ideal project of Bhaktisvarupa Damodar Swami, a Hindu Guru belonging to the Vaishnava tradition who is also a scientist, a professor of Physical Organic Chemistry at the University of California and a researcher on gas phase reaction mechanisms using Ion Cyclotron Resonance spectroscopy.

Being the founder of the Bhaktivedanta Institute, an international organization which promotes dialogue between science and religions, Swai Bhaktisvapura has published different books and articles. In 2003 he organized in Calcutta an important international Congress of studies, sponsored by the Indian government. For the year 2004, Swami has chosen Rome as the seat of a new Congress, dedicated to the theme "Life and its Origin. Science Meets Spirituality and Religious Traditions".

From left: Prof. Laura Provera, Saidas Babaji, Shaykh Palazzi,
Dr. Gianfranco Di Segni, Swami Bhaktisvarupa, Guru Shabad,

Under the patronage of the President of the Italian Republic, of the Regional Counsel of the Lazio Area, of the Provincial Administration of Rome and of the Municipality of Rome and with the auspices of FAO and UNESCO, the Bhaktivedanta Institute chose for the Congress two prestigious seats: the Aula Magna John Paul II of the Pontifical Dominican University St. Thomas Aquinas for the preliminary Conference and the Protomoteca Hall in Capitol, their historical seat of the Municipality of Rome, for the opening ceremony and for the sessions of studies of November 12, 13 and 14.

The opening ceremony started with the message of greetings by the Italian President Carlo A. Ciampi, then the Mayor of Rome Walter Veltorni turned the "lamp of good will" on. Before their speeches, many and qualified religious leaders prayed together. Among them the president of the Jewish Community of Rome Eng. Leone Passerman for Judaism, the Romenian Archimandrite Stephanos Popa for l'Ortodoxy, the Patriarcal Guardian of the Basilic of St. Francis in Assisi F. Vincenzo Coli, the Jesuit and theologian of the Gregorian University F. Arji A. Roest Crollius and the Franciscan F. Maximillian Mizzi for Catholicism, Prof. Hassan Raad and myself for Islam, Saidas Babaji and Swami B. M. Ban Maharaj for Hinduism, the Ven. Lama Gesche Sonam Chanciub for Tibetan Buddhism, Guru Shabad Singh Khalsa for Sikhism and Prof. D. Bakhtiari for Zoroastrianism.

The panel of scientific participants was also crowded, including the Nobel Prize Mairead Macquire, the molecular biologist and Dean of the University of Perugia Prof. Francesco Bistoni, the biologist and geneticist Prof. Giuseppe Sermonti, The director of the Scientific Counsel of the Gregorian University and professor at the Lateranense University Prof. Gennaro Auletta, the professor of Quantistic Physics at "La Sapienza" University Prof. Vittorio Marchi, Dr. Anita Goel of Harvard University, the glico biologist of Oxford University Dr. Pauline M. Rudd, Dr. Robert Mann of the University of Waterloo, Canada, the dermatologist Dr. Made Wardhana of the University of Udayana, Indonesia, the CNR biologist Dr. Gianfranco Di Segni, Prof. Lothar Schafer of the University of Arkansas, Prof. Jagadish Srivasta of the University of Colorado, Prof. F. Mario Calidari of the Pontifical Academy for Life, the biblicist of Gregorian University Prof. Laura Provera and the U.S. archaeologist Michael Cremo.

At the end of each session the Congress includes two evening events dedicated to traditional arts and vegetarian gastronomy by the Ristotheater of Via Celsa in Rome: on November 12 the Nanak Group presents the dance performance "Tanta, Where Time and Space Meet"; on November 13 the Moroccan musician Jamal Oussini plays "Meeting in Tangeris", a concerto for violin and orchestra of Arab-Andalus music.