New Delhi:
Controversy has arisen over a statement given by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on social reformer Narayana Guru. Vijayan had said on Tuesday that an attempt was being made to portray Narayana Guru as a supporter of Sanatana Dharma. He was addressing an annual function of Sivagiri Math in Thiruvananthapuram district on Tuesday. In this he had said that Narayan Guru had recreated Sanatan Dharma. BJP has opposed his statement. BJP says that Vijayan has insulted Hindu religion to get the votes of extremists. Congress has also jumped into this fight between CPM and BJP. Let us know on what issue the fight is taking place and who was Narayan Guru and what was his philosophy.
Pinarayi Vijayan said what was
At the event at Sivagiri Math, Vijayan had said, “He challenged the caste system and reestablished Sanatan Dharma. He maintained a secular and humanist world view. Any attempt to limit that view within the scope of Sanatan Dharma Guru will be insulted. His religion is to stand with the times and challenge the varnashrama. How can Narayan Guru, who propagated the concept of ‘one caste, one religion, one God’, be a supporter of Sanatan Dharma? An attempt has been made to portray the social reformer Guru as a religious leader and religious ascetic.
Vijayan said that the essence of Sanatan Dharma lies in its varnashram system. This varna system was challenged by Narayan Guru. Guru was the person who stood against casteism. His religion was a new age religion, it cannot be defined by religion, it was for the welfare of the people. Whatever may be their religion…but to bind them within the ambit of Sanatan Dharma would be a sin against the Guru.
BJP came out in protest against Vijayan’s statement
Kerala politics heated up on this statement of Vijayan. BJP, which is trying to establish its foothold in Kerala, strongly opposed Vijayan’s statement. Senior BJP leader and former Union Minister V Muraleedharan has said that Vijayan has insulted the entire Sree Narayaniya community. Vijayan believes that Sanatan Dharma is abhorrent. His comment is a continuation of DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin’s stand in which he had said that Sanatan Dharma has to be abolished. Does Vijayan have the courage to speak against any other religion? Muraleedharan alleged that Hindus have faced the most challenges under Vijayan’s rule. Tried to challenge Hindu faith.”
#WATCH BJP leader V Muraleedharan says, “Even while the Congress leader of Kerala and the Leader of Opposition in the state assembly disagrees with the Chief minister’s comments on Sanatan Dharm and opposes the term of saffronization, his own party president of Kerala has… pic.twitter.com/ihIfQYHqQn
— ANI (@ANI) January 2, 2025
Congress also jumped into this fight between CPM and BJP. Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Kerala Assembly VD Satheesan criticized Sanatan Dharma and Varna system for equating them. He described Varnashram as responsibilities based on caste-based social status. He said that unlike Varnashrama, Sanatan Dharma talks about universal welfare. He has described Sanatan as the collective culture of India.
BJP and CPM in Kerala politics
Vellapalli Natesan of SNDP has been supporting the ruling party in Kerala for a long time. His son Tushar Vellappalli is the national president of ‘Bharat Dharma Jana Sena’, the political wing of SNDP. Tushar is a BJP supporter. CPM is afraid of this, the upper caste Hindus of Kerala have already joined BJP, in such a situation, if Ezhavas also leave it, it will cause loss to BJP. BJP has been trying to increase its support in Ezhava for a long time. This effort of BJP can be seen in the results of Lok Sabha elections. In the 2024 elections, BJP had won one seat with 16.8 percent votes. Whereas CPI(M) got 26 percent votes and one seat. Earlier in the 2019 elections, BJP had secured 13 percent votes. But he did not get any seat. Whereas CPM had won one seat in that election with 26 percent votes. These figures show that BJP’s base is increasing rapidly in Kerala. However, since the last two Lok Sabha elections, Congress has remained the largest party in the state. Congress got 37.5 percent votes and 15 seats in 2019. Congress won 35.3 percent votes and 14 seats in the 2024 elections. BJP has also secured double digit votes in the last two assembly elections, although it has not got any seat.
who was narayan guru
Narayana Guru is respected throughout Kerala. His ideology is a mixture of religion and social reform. Narayana Guru was born in 1856 in the Ezhava caste, a backward caste in Kerala. His philosophy is known as Advaita Vedanta. He talks about one caste, one religion and one God for all. He said that the temple should be open to people of all castes.
In the Ardhanarishvara temple of Karamukku, Narayana Guru had installed a Belgian mirror purchased from Kochi in 1927. ‘Om’ was written on this mirror. Apart from this, no idol was installed in that temple. In fact, Narayan Guru wanted to show through this mirror that spirituality lies in self-contemplation and not in rituals or idol worship.
Narayana Guru died in 1928, a year after the installation of the Belgian Mirror in the Ardhanarishvara temple. But even today, almost 100 years after his death, Narayana Guru remains relevant throughout Kerala. Just like Dr. BR Ambedkar is revered and respected in other parts of the country. Narayan Guru’s Ezhava caste population is about 23 percent in Kerala. This caste is traditionally pro-Left. Narayana Guru is a respected figure for the Ezhavas. Shri Narayana Dharma Paripalan Yogam (SNDP), an organization of Ezhavas, has considerable political influence. Vijayan’s statement on Narayana Guru is a symbol of the ongoing infighting in his party CPM over religion. CPM has still not been able to clear its stand on religion.
What was Narayan Guru’s opinion on Sanatan?
Vijayan’s statement comes after he supported the suggestion of Sivagiri Math chief Swami Satchidananda in which he said that the practice of male devotees removing their shirts before entering temples should be abolished. On one hand, the politicians of Kerala are at loggerheads among themselves regarding Narayana Guru and Sanatan Dharma. Whereas Swami Sachchidananda has said that Narayana Guru himself has propounded his theory regarding Sanatan Dharma. He told the English newspaper ‘The New Indian Express’ that before his samadhi, in 1927, Narayana Guru had given his last speech at Pallathuruthy in Alappuzha. In this he had said that the proclamation of ‘one caste, one religion, one God’ is Sanatan Dharma. He has also said that Hindu religion does not have a monopoly on Sanatan, it is universal. He says that the caste system of Sanatan Dharma Has no connection with. He believes that it was only because of the existence of Sanatan Dharma that religions like Christianity and Islam could enter India.
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