Gala Evening Dedicated to the 133rd Anniversary of Helena Roerich's Birth
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On February 13, 2012 the gala evening dedicated to the 133rd anniversary of Helena Roerich was held in the Museum named after Nicholas Roerich of the International Centre of the Roerichs. On this day, it is a tradition to announce the names of laureates of the International research prize named after Helena Roerich established in 2008 by the Charitable Foundation by name of Helena Roerich to encourage the scientific researches on the Living Ethics, the Philosophy of Cosmic Reality.
In her opening speech Ms Lyudmila V. Shaposhnikova, First vice president of the ICR, Director General of the Museum named after Nicholas Roerich, Honored Art Worker of Russia, emphasized that Helena Roerich, a prominent philosopher, played a significant role in the very difficult spiritual evolutionary process of creation a new cosmic worldview. The invaluable information was conveyed to us through the Roerichs as a philosophic system of the Living Ethics primarily due to Helena Roerich.
Ms Tatiana O. Knizhnik, Head of the publishing department of the ICR, told in details about the reprinting of the letters by H. Roerich stored in the ICR Manuscript department.
Ms L. Shaposhnikova, President of the Charitable Foundation by name of H. Roerich and Chairman of the Jury, announced the name of the 2011 competition winner. It was Valentina A. Voropayeva, professor of the Kyrgyz Russian Slavonic University, Phd. By the unanimous verdict of the Jury her scientific work «In Search of Integral Cultural Space: G. Roerich and Russian Researchers of the Oriental History» was recognized as the best one. Ms V. Voropayeva was awarded with a gold medal, a diploma, and a sum of 5000 Euro in ruble equivalent.
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Ms V. Voropayeva is a historian and culture expert who has been studying the Roerichs' oeuvre for more than twenty years. Her book was dedicated to the illustrious Russian experts in Oriental studies. In the book, she narrates about George Roerich's long-term scientific research activities penetrated with the main idea of cultural unity of peoples. This idea came to him during the Roerichs' Central Asian expedition headed by N. Roerich. The Roerichs founded a new scientific trend according to which culture is the basis of the cosmic evolution of the mankind.
Mr Pavel M. Zhuravikhin, Assistant Executive Director of the Charitable Foundation bu name of Helena Roerich, told about the competition goals and themes. The competition of works dedicated to the Living Ethics philosophy has been held for four years already. This year the Prize Jury received seven entries from the researchers.
In her speech, Ms V. Voropayeva told that the staff of her university helped her a lot in preparing the book. She noted: «I am a lecturer, so this book was written primarily for students. I wanted the history to be inhabited with real people of flesh and blood».
The evening ended with the piano concert that featured compositions by M.K. Churlionis, performed masterly by the famous pianist Rocas Zubovas, the artist and composer's great-grandson, and his wife Ms Sonata Zuboviene.
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