Sanatana Dharma row rekindled as Pinarayi Vijayan doubles down​on January 2, 2025 at 1:37 pm

Sanatana Dharma row rekindled as Pinarayi Vijayan doubles down

​Sanatana Dharma row rekindled as Pinarayi Vijayan doubles down Sanatana Dharma row rekindled as Pinarayi Vijayan doubles down   

Amid a mounting political controversy, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan was not backing away. This morning, in a long post on Instagram, Vijayan reiterated his thoughts regarding Sanatana Dharma and Sree Narayana Guru’s teachings.

At an event held on Tuesday to mark the 92nd Sivagiri pilgrimage, Vijayan highlighted Guru’s opposition to Sanatana Dharma, stating its core “varnashrama dharma”, based on “chatur varnyam”, upheld caste-based jobs, whereas Guru urged rejecting caste- or religion-based roles.

Pinarayi also cautioned against using Sree Narayana Guru as a “spokesperson or practitioner of Sanatana Dharma”.

Amid searing criticism from the BJP, which accused Vijayan of insulting Sanatana Dharma and its followers, and vote-bank politics, the Chief Minister, a day later on New Year’s Day, said “I stand by what I have stated about Sanatana Dharma”.

On Thursday, he put out a long post on Instagram, reiterating most of what he said at Tuesday’s event, including Sree Narayana Guru not being a spokesperson of Sanatana Dharma. He also repeated his opinion on Sanatana Hindutva, saying, “The old Brahminical monarchy is being tried to be established through the word Sanatana Hindutva.”

Responding to Vijayan’s comment, Congress leader VD Satheesan, at the closing event of the Sivagiri pilgrimage on Wednesday, alleged that the Chief Minister misrepresented the concept and alienated a significant cultural and spiritual tradition of the country. He implied that Vijayan effectively allowed the BJP to appropriate Sanatana Dharma.

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president (KPCC) K Sudhakaran, too, alleged there was an attempt to “hijack” Sree Narayana Guru’s ideals and legacy.

This has rekindled the debate surrounding the topic, which began with Udhayanidhi Stalin talking about its eradication.

WHAT DID PINARAYI VIJAYAN EXACTLY SAY?

The chief minister equated the concept with another term, saying: “Sanatana Hindutva is a word that is now often heard in Indian politics. This word is becoming equally beloved for both monarchy and casteism. What more proof is needed that what is being tried to be established through the term ‘Sanatana Hindutva’ is the old monarchy of Brahminical rule?”

Vijayan said there was growing support for the idea that Sanatana Hindutva is a great and glorious tradition and that “its restoration is the only solution to all social problems”.

According to him, central to this was the slogan ‘loka samastha sukhino bhavantu’ which means ‘may the whole world be happy’. “Hindutva is the only religion in the world that has put forward such a noble concept. But those raising this forget the preceding line which states ‘if cows and Brahmins are good then the whole world is good’,” he said.

BACKLASH AGAINST PINARAYI’S STATEMENT

This triggered criticism across parties, especially from the BJP. Former state BJP chief V Muraleedharan said the Kerala chief minister insulted “the holy land of Sivagiri” and “followers of Sanatana Dharma”.

Speaking to the media, Muraleedharan said: “Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is saying Sanatana Dharma is like a monarchy. He is saying that Sanatana dharma is ‘Varnashrama Dharma’. Pinarayi’s statement is a continuation of Udayanidhi Stalin’s statement that Sanatana Dharma should be eradicated.”

The former Union minister said Vijayan was “insulting Sanatana Dharma” to get vote support from “forces that work against the nation’s interest.”

“He is not making any such insulting remarks about other religions,” Muraleedharan added.

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla too condemned the Chief Minister’s remarks and accused him of insulting Hinduism to secure extremist votes.

Congress’s VD Satheesan argued that Sanatana Dharma transcended caste and religion. It embodied the essence of India’s spiritual and cultural heritage rooted in the Vedas and Upanishads.

“By making such a statement, he has declared the entire Sanatana Dharma as the right of one section of people. It does not belong to the people the Chief Minister intended,” Satheesan said.

“There is an effort to confine Sree Narayana Guru within the framework of ‘chatur varnyam’ and ‘varnashram’ under the guise of Sanatana Dharma,” KPCC chief K Sudhakaran said, adding that Guru’s teachings cannot be surrendered to such narratives.

SREE NARAYANA GURU & SIVAGIRI PILGRIMAGE

Notwithstanding all this, did Pinarayi Vijayan really reopen the can of worms by talking about Sanatana Dharma? A topic which got Udhayanidhi Stalin in so much legal and political trouble?

To understand this latest brouhaha regarding ‘Sanatana Dharma’, the Sivagiri pilgrimage and Sree Narayana Guru’s cultural significance must be understood.

Sivagiri pilgrimage is an important festival among followers of Sree Narayana Guru. It’s an annual festival observed for three days, from December 30 to January 1, when devotees, attired in yellow, gather at the Guru’s samadhi at Sivagiri.

A philosopher and spiritual leader of late 19th-early 20th century Kerala, Sree Narayana Guru led a reform movement against caste-based discrimination. His iconic declaration, “One caste, one religion, and one God for all human beings,” became the cornerstone of his mission.

He has since been elevated to being called a saint, but he championed the belief that with skills, knowledge, hard work, and a clean environment, oppressed communities could become self-reliant, fearless, and morally and financially strong.

The Sivagiri pilgrimage, envisioned by the Guru, embodies a transformative vision with guiding tenets like “One in kind, one in faith, and one in God is Man” and “Whatever be the religion, man must be good.”

And it must be borne in mind that Vijayan’s remarks were made on a platform that celebrated this very pilgrimage.