Uttarakhand Shankaracharya who called Ram Temple ‘incomplete’, praises PM Modi

A day before the ‘pran-pratishta’ ceremony of Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand of Uttarakhand's Jyotish Peeth said that he is an admirer of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as during his tenure, Hindus has become aware of their self-respect. The remarks came days after the Shankaracharya triggered a controversy after saying that the ‘pran-pratishta’ should not be conducted in an incomplete temple.

"The truth is PM Modi has made Hindus self-aware which is not a small thing. We have said several times in public that we are not anti-Modi but his admirers. Name another prime minister of India who strengthened Hindus like Modi before. We have had many prime ministers and they all have been good -- we are not criticizing anyone," the Shankaracharya said.

Shankaracharya elaborated his point as he named other decisions of PM Modi-led Union Government and said Hindus are strengthened and Narendra Modi is doing that work.

“When Article 370 was scrapped, didn't we welcome it? When the Citizenship Amendment Act came, didn't we praise it? Did we obstruct PM Modi's Swachchta Abhiyaan? We also praised how there was no disruption in the law and order situation after the Supreme Court ruled that Ram Temple will be built on the land,” Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand said. “We are happy whenever Hindus are strengthened and Narendra Modi is doing that work,” the Shankaracharya added.

‘Ayodhya Ram mandir inauguration against scriptures’

Earlier, Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand of Uttarakhand's Jyotish Peeth said that the ‘pran pratishtha’ of the Ram Temple is being conducted in an incomplete temple which is against religious scriptures. The Uttarakhand Shankaracharya was among the four Shankaracharyas, who declined the invitation to the Ram Temple inauguration ceremony in Ayodhya.

"It is not right to instill life (pran-pratishtha) in the body without its head or eyes. This goes against our scriptures. Hence, I will not be going there because if I go there people will say scriptures have been violated in front of me. Hence, we have raised the issue with responsible people, especially with the members of the Ayodhya Trust -- that the celebration should be done once the temple is fully constructed. Discussion has been going on," the Shankaracharya had said.

As the new idol of Ram Lalla was placed in the sanctum sanctoram of the Ram Temple on 18 January, the Jyotish Peeth Shankaracharya wrote a letter to Nritya Gopal Das, chief of the Ram Janmabhoomy Teerth Kshetra questioning the status of existing idol of Ram Lalla.

“The question is, if this new idol will be placed, what happens to Ram Lalla virajman? So far, Ram bhakts thought that the new temple was being built for Lalla virajman. But now, the news of a new idol in the under-construction sanctorum in the temple precincts has raised doubts whether Ram Lalla viraj will be sidelined/ignored," the letter written in Hindi said.