Bhubaneswar: Shankaracharya of Gobardhan Peetha in Odisha’s Puri Neeschalananda Saraswati has turned down the invitation for the consecration ceremony at Ram Temple in Ayodhya on January 22.
Expressing displeasure over Prime Minister Narendra Modi performing the Pran Pratishtha ceremony, the Puri seer said that the installation of Ramlala’s idol in the temple should be done in accordance with Shastriya Vidhi (principles of our Shastras). “What will I do there as the Shankaracharya, when Modiji (PM Modi) will touch the idol and install it there? Am I expected to clap and hail him while chanting victory slogans? There is also a dignity to my position,” the saint told reporters during an interaction on the sidelines of a religious event in Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday.
He further alleged that neither advice nor guidance of Govardhan Peeth/Mutt, whose jurisdiction spans up to Prayag, was sought for the entire January 22 religious exercise.
The Shankaracharya also rebuffed the invitation, saying “Even if I was allowed to be there with 100 people, I wouldn’t have gone there that day”. He, however, clarified that he was not upset. “…. but happy like any other Sanatani Hindu as the current PM doesn’t believe in portraying himself as secular. He is brave and takes pride in Hindutva and the concept of idol worship.”
While praising PM Modi for his commitment towards Hindutva, he also added, “The pilgrimages are now being turned into centres of tourism in the name of development which means that Teerth Sthals are being turned into Bhog Sthals, perhaps this what is being lapped up by the people also in the name of development.”
Over 7,000 people are on the invitee list of the temple trust — Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra — and they include cricket legends Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli, Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, and industrialists Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani, according to official sources.
The guest list also includes a large number of sadhus and seers, and some foreign invitees.
