The second Nishan Forum will be held in Qufu city, the birthplace of Confucius in east China's Shandong Province, on May 21, the "World Day of Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development," said the organizers Tuesday.

The Nishan Forum on World Civilizations, dedicated to dialogue among civilizations, will be held on the same day to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the event of the United Nations, which declared May 21 as the "World Day of Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development" at the General Assembly in 2002, said members with the forum's organizing committee.

The committee plans to invite officials from the United Nations and important figures from various countries to study progress made in the dialogue between civilizations over the past decade and issue a report on the future directions of world civilizations, according to the committee.

The forum, named after Ninshan Mountain where Confucius was believed to be born in a cave, is initiated by Xu Jialu, a former vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

The first forum, held in September 2010, saw more than 170 people attend, including former national leaders, local Confucian scholars, Buddhists, Taoists as well as more than 30 foreign scholars and Christian personalities.

At the seminars in 2010, domestic and overseas scholars drew upon the wisdom of ancient sages Confucius and Jesus, who lived more than 2,000 years ago, to broaden the possibilities for peaceful solutions of daily living issues. The Nishan Declaration of Harmony was issued during the forum.

Confucius, born in the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC to 476 BC), advocated morality, honesty and good manners. His teachings are found in the "Analects of Confucius," compiled by his students many years after his death.

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