"This is not about ego...": Puri Shankaracharya Swami Nischalanand clarifies decision to skip Ram Mandir inauguration

South 24 Parganas (West Bengal [India], January 15 : In the midst of assertions from opposing factions that the four Shankaracharyas are contemplating skipping the Pran Pratishtha ceremony of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, Swami Nischalanand Saraswati Maharaj, the Shankaracharya of Puri, disclosed that their decision is rooted in the deviation from established traditions during the installation of the Ram Lalla idol.
Speaking to ANI, Swami Nischalanand Maharaj revealed why the four Shankaracharyas are not attending the Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha event.
"The Shankaracharyas uphold their own dignity. This is not about ego. Are we expected to merely sit outside and applaud when the Prime Minister installs the idol of Ram Lalla? The presence of a 'secular' government does not imply the obliteration of tradition," he remarked.
Meanwhile, there has been a lot of hue and cry in the opposition over the four Shankaracharyas reportedlys skipping the event.
Opposition parties, including the Congress, have claimed that the Shankaracharyas have decided against attending the January 22 event after objecting to the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony at an 'incomplete temple'.
Turning down the invite for the Pran Pratishtha event, Congress leader Ashok Gehlot said that even our Shankaracharyas (religious guru) will not be attending the Ram Mandir event which shows that the reason for not attending it is important.
"When they politicised the event and took decisions, our Shankaracharyas, who are at the top of Sanatan Dharma and guide us, said that they will not be attending the event. This has become such an issue that all Shankarachariyas are saying they will boycott this event. If the Shankaracharyas are saying so, it has its own importance," Gehlot said.
Delhi minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Saurabh Bharadwaj alleged that BJP is trying to separate two-thirds of the country's population from Lord Ram by putting a political tag on the Pran Pratishtha of Ram Temple.
"There is a system and set of rituals to perform Pran Pratishtha. If this event is religious, then is it happening under the guidance of the Shankaracharyas of the four Peeths? All four Shankaracharyas have said clearly that the Pran Pratishtha of an incomplete temple cannot be done. If this event is not religious, then it is political," he said.
Preparations are in full swing for the grand inauguration of the temple, anticipated to attract dignitaries and individuals from various backgrounds. The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust has set noon on January 22 as the moment to install the idol of Ram Lalla in the sanctum sanctorum of the Ram Temple. The Vedic rituals for the Pran-Pratishtha ceremony of Ram Lalla in Ayodhya are scheduled to commence on January 16, one week prior to the main ceremony.