Vijayendra Saraswathi, the reigning Sankaracharya of the Kanchi Mutt at Kancheepuram reminded the believers of Sanathana Dharma to be alert against all sorts of onslaughts on the belief and traditions. Inaugurating the 10th edition of the Hindu Spiritual and services Fair at Chennai late on Tuesday evening, the Seer pointed out that Hinduism was facing one of the severest tests it had faced.
“The Hindu religion grew by learning and acquiring of knowledge through the study of Vedas and Upanishads. Nobody has propagated Hinduism anywhere in the world. What the gurus did was to clarify the doubts of the seekers of truth who approached them for guidance,” said the sanyasin who was anointed head of the Kanchi Mutt following the demise of Jayendra Saraswathi.
He said times have changed and the practitioners of Hinduism should take steps to peacefully propagate the beauty of the religion. “We might have survived the tests of time in the past. But we may not be able to survive the competition by others who have well defined objectives and missions. All of us have to be on our guards and tell the world that we are always committed to service,” said Vijayendra Saraswathi.
Swasthi Sree Dhavalakeerthi Swami, the head of the Thirunalai Mutt, decried the decrease in the number of children enrolling for learning in Veda Patasalas (schools for learning Vedas). “The adoption of western culture by the Hindu community has resulted in the reduction of children. Parents opt for one-chid norm and this is the reason for the non-availability of children in Veda Patasalas,” said the Swami who exhorted the Hindu parents to have at least three children. “One child for the family, one for the nation and one for spirituality. That should be the guiding spirit,” said the monk.
The HSSF which will conclude on February has showcased through 400 stalls some of the spiritual and philanthropic services undertaken by the Hindu society. “When we launched the HSSF in 2009, we had just four or five stalls. Now the number has crossed the 400 mark,” said S Gurumurthy, the brain behind the event.
