Is Narayan Guru Part of Sanatan Dharma?

 

            Is Narayan Guru Part of Sanatan Dharma? 

                Ram Puniyani 

 

Recently (31^st December 2024) while inaugurating the Conference as a part of Sivagiri pilgrimage, Pinarayi Vijayan supported the proposal of Swami Satchitanand’s to stop the practice of removing shirts, to keep the torso bare while entering temples. It is believed that this practice came into being to identify those wearing sacred thread, upper caste which alone were privileged to wear it. Some people doubt it, but it is unlikely that there was any other reason for keeping one’s torso uncovered. The one’s not having sacred thread was to be prohibited from entering the temple. Vijayan also said that there are efforts to propagate that Guru was part of Sanatan tradition. He was far away from it as Guru propagated, ‘one caste, one religion, one God’. This equality irrespective of caste and religion is far away from the core of Sanatan Dharma.

Vijayan also pointed out that Guru’s life and work is very relevant today as violence is being orchestrated by instigating religious sentiments. Guru was not merely a religious leader; he was a great humanist. His critics are also criticizing Vijayan that during his tenure as Chief Minister Hindus are being troubled. They give the example of Sabrimala where the ruling party decided to support the Supreme Court ruling of entry of even menstrual age women to the sacred temple. BJP spokespersons are up against Vijayan for insulting Sanatan Dharma in this instance also.

The debate around Sanatan seems to have come to the fore for the second time. First it came up when Dayanidhi Stalin spoke against Sanatan. BJP-RSS is stating that Santan can’t just be reduced to caste and Chaturvarnya. Incidentally in 2022, Kerala had submitted a float for republic day parade. It displayed Narayan Guru. The jury from the Defense ministry stated that the Kerala float should display Shankarachaya from Kaladi rather than Guru. This was a major reason for rejecting the float.

As such Sanantan stands for eternal and has been used for Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism. Hindu is a religion, which has no single prophet or no single holy book. Word Hindu does not find mention in its holy scriptures. It has two major streams, Brahmanism and Shramanism. Brahmanism is based on graded inequality and patriarchal values. Ambedkar renounced this Hinduism as he felt that Hinduism is dominated by Brahmanical values. The Shramanic traditions include Nath, Ajivikas, Tantra, Bhakti traditions which are away from the values of inequality.

Today in popular parlance Sanatan Dharma and Hindu dharma are interchangeable. Some of the ideologues claim that Hinduism is not a religion but a way of life based on Dharma. As per them Dharma is not the same as religion. As such Sanatan Dharma stands for primarily Varna system, caste inequality and sticking to these traditions. Dharma is best understood as religiously ordained duties. What is being opposed by social reformers is rejection of a religion which is based on inequality.

If we take the example of Ambedkar himself, he regarded Buddha, Kabir and Jotirao Phule as his Gurus. What matters to him is rejection of inequality of caste and gender. In medieval India the saints Kabir, Tukaram, Namdeo, Narsi Mehta and their likes harped on opposition to the caste system and some of them had to face attacks from upper caste rulers. As such Narayan Guru comes in as a great social reformer against the caste system and transcends religious divides. No wonder the present ruling Government, guided by Brahminical Hinduism, can't accept the float from Kerala which shows Narayan Guru.

Narayan Guru was a deeply humane person. During the course of his growing up he went into a deeper engagement with spiritualism and the practice of Yoga. During the course of his philosophical journey in 1888, he visited Aruvippuram where he went in meditation. It is during his stay there, that he took a rock from the river, consecrated it and called it as an idol of Shiva. This place since then has been known as Aruvippuram Shiva Temple. This act later came to be known as Aruvipuram Pratishta. It created a lot of social commotion and opposition especially from amongst the upper caste Brahmins.

They did not accept Guru's right to consecrate the idol. He replied to them "This is not a Brahmin Shiva but an Ezhava Shiva". This quote of his later became very famous and has been used against casteism. To fight against casteism he committed his life. His steps were a big practical means in challenging the deepset caste system. The revolutionary understanding of Guru was ‘one caste, one religion, one God.’

He goes much beyond the caste and religious divides to proclaim, single humanity. Later on he went on to open the school, which was open even to low castes, quite on the line of what Joti rao Phule did in Maharashtra. Like the principles of Ambedkar’s Kalaram Temple movement he went on to build temples which were open to all the castes.

The recent suggestion of Swami Satchitanand supported by Pinarayi Vijyan also argues that a bare torso may be medically bad as it may transmit diseases. There are many practices which need to change with time. One recalls that women did not have the right to cover their breasts. There was a breast tax if women covered the top. It was Tipu Sultan, when he annexed Kerala, when he abolished breast tax and women gained their dignity as they were permitted to cover their breasts.

Temples are a part of our community life. Such changes in dress code have to accompany the changes in social patterns. The opposition to this is like putting the clock back. The politics in the name of religion at most of the places is against the social changes and change in political values. Kerala also shows many contrasts in diverse fields. It was here that on one hand the Acharya from Kaladi Shankar countered the Buddhists in debate. The Buddhists argued on materialist ground to focus on the issues of this world, while roughly speaking Shankar tried to argue the World is an illusion supporting the idealist philosophy.

At present times in India, Kerala included, we need to follow the path of Saints like Narayan Guru and Kabir, whose humane values gave a direction of amity to the society. The conservative ‘status quo’ in most matters retards social progress.

Bhagwan Das As I Know Him
S.R.Darapuri

I have known Bhagwan Das for the last thirty thirty six years. He was known in Delhi as one of the most learned and dedicated followers of Baba Saheb Ambedkar.
I heard him for the first time in the weekly meetings of the Boudha Upasak Sangh in Lakshmi Bai Nagar, New Delhi. Ambedkar Bhavan was the centre of Buddhist activities for some years. Buddhist society of India organized weekly religious meetings. Two Shastries, Mr. Y.C.Shaankranand Shastri and Mr. Sohan Lal Shastri, both product of the Braham Vidyalaya, an Arya Samajist institution of Punjab, were the leaders of the Buddhist movement. They organized these weekly meetings on the pattern of the Arya Samaj meetings. For some reason some differences developed between the two Shastries and they parted company. Mr.Shankranand Shastri along with some of his friends formed the Boudha Upasak Sangha and began to hold weekly meetings in front-yard of one room flat owned by Mr. Rama Rao Bagde, an employee of the reserve Bank of India. He and his wife devotedly made the preparations, cleaned the floor, provided flowers, incense etc. Mr. Das was one of the prominent speakers in these meetings.
He was interested in the unity of Dalits and had tried to bring in many castes like Dhanuks, Khatiks, Balmikis, Helas, Kolis into the movement.
Besides working at grass root level he contributed articles on diverse problems of the Dalits and minorities which were published in the Sarita, Milap, Naya Zamana, Ujala and, Bheem Patrika etc. He has good command over English and Urdu. He can read and write in simple Hindi and Punjabi in Gurmukhi script, Bengali which he learnt while serving in the Air force in Bengal and Arakans, he has forgotten.
I have traveled throughout India and know many officers, professors, teachers and leaders belonging to the Scheduled Castes. I believe Mr. Das owns the largest collection of books and journals. He is a voracious reader and spends most of his working hours in reading. He spends good deal of money on purchasing books and journals. In his collection one finds some very rare books written by foreign and India writers. In his files lie many good articles and booklets on diverse subjects which he could not get printed or just forgot about them.
From the talks I had with him, I have come to the conclusion that although he was brought up in a Cantonment near Shimla, the summer capital of India, and the family was well to do, yet he suffered from insults and humiliations owing to his birth in an untouchable family. He is proud of his father who has contributed a great deal in molding his character. He was an admirer of Baba Saheb Ambedkar and very fond of reading newspapers. Study of Ayurveda was his hobby beside reading scriptures of Hinduism, Christianity, Islam and Sikhism. Mr. Das has inherited love for knowledge from his father.
It seems Mr. Das was influenced by Christianity like most Untouchables of his times. Later on he studied Arya Samajists literature and Koran and other books on Muslim theology. For considerable time he had been reading Marxist literature and also wrote on Marxism. Class character of Communist leaders, however, deterred him. To cap it all he read Ingersoll, Tom Paine, Voltaire, Bernard Shaw and Bertrand Russell. He developed his own ideas about religion before he came in direct touch with Baba Saheb Ambedkar.
He was introduced to Baba Saheb Ambedkar by late Mr. Shiv Dayal Singh Chaurasia, an imminent leader of the Backward Classes who served as a Member in Kaka Kalekar Commission and also as a Member of Rajya Sabha.
Mr. Das had no plan to marry but it was Mr.Chaurasia who got him married to a well educated girl belonging to Dhanuk caste of Lucknow. Mr. Das was sixteen when his father died. He had to brave another calamity. Immediately one month after the death of his father, his house caught fire on the 14th May 1943 and in the evening of that fateful day he was reduced to the level of a pauper. He had to support a large family of six members of his family getting them reasonable high school education and later on they themselves improved their acquisitions and status.
Mr. Das has written many books besides compiling and editing the speeches and writings of Baba sahib Ambedkar long before this work was undertaken by the Government of Maharashtra. He wrote four books on the Sweepers and, Scavengers and a booklet on the Dhobies. His books on Buddhism and caste and the seminar papers which he has presented in the seminars and conferences in India and abroad give an idea how deep is his study and how dedicated he is to the cause of the down-trodden and discriminated against people of the world. If Marx gave a call to the workers of world unite, Das’s call has been Dalits of India Unite, Dalits of World Unite. I do not think there is any body who has tried to bring all Dalits of Asia on a common platform and struggle for liberation and for the right to live with dignity. At present Mr.Das has 23 books to his credit. He has three books in hand: Untouchability in Asia, History of Reservation and Balmiki but his failing health and memory are the biggest impediment.

He leads a very simple life; eats little, just enough to do the work which he has chosen to do. He is modest and in the words of late Bhadant Anand Kausalyaayan, “You have too much of humility”. He has very strong ascetic tendencies. As a lawyer he works hard when he accepts a brief but choosy about the kind of cases he would like to handle. Avarice is certainly not his weakness. Mr. Das does not have many friends nor does he happily attend social functions. He feels more at home in the libraries or in the company of the intellectuals and people who are working for the upliftment of the oppressed and the discriminated against people.
Mr. Das has visited many countries of the world and addressed public meetings or read papers on Human Rights, discriminated nation, problems of women and disadvantaged people, revival of Buddhism in India. He does not only preach Buddhism but also practices Buddhism.
There are few people in India having vision, courage, intelligence, commitment and dedication to the cause of the deprived and disadvantaged people – Untouchables, indigenous people, other backward classes, unorganized labour, victims of the violation of human rights and women as Mr. Das has.
His contribution towards the propagation of ideology of Baba Saheb Ambedkar whether it is appreciated in India or not, officially recognized or not is great and has attracted the attention of scholars and leaders in the sub-continent and abroad. He is by nature quiet and unassuming and avoids publicity.
One wishes if there were a few more followers of Baba Sahib Ambedkar with the same qualities, commitment, knowledge, courage and character as Mr. Das has the caravan of Baba Saheb would have covered great distance and attained great heights. One wishes he lives longer but those who know him intimately know he lived as he liked and will die according to his wishes. Euthanasia has great attraction for him.
But we do not want to lose him. We wish him a long life.