Jyotishpeethadhishwar Shankaracharya Swami Shri Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati on Monday once again demanded from Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath proof of being a Hindu.
He said he had given the Chief Minister 40 days to completely stop cow slaughter and declare the cow as the state mother. Ten days have passed, but there has been no response.
The Shankaracharya said, “Everyone knows that during the last Magh Mela, the state government demanded the proof of my being a Shankaracharya within just 24 hours, which we provided within the stipulated time. After that, we generously gave the Chief Minister 40 days to provide proof of his being a true Hindu. Ten days have passed, but in these ten days, neither Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath nor the state government has presented any proof of being Hindu.”
He further said that in these ten days, the government took the first step by giving its Animal Husbandry Minister an article to read, which he read aloud with great enthusiasm. After that, he said that they do not consider him a ‘Shankaracharya’.
The Shankaracharya reacted strongly to this, saying: Firstly, the recognition or non-recognition of the Uttar Pradesh government is irrelevant for being a Shankaracharya, as this government came into existence thousands of years after the establishment of the Peeth (monastery).
Secondly, only someone who is not a Hindu himself would not recognize a Shankaracharya.
Thirdly, anyone who calls himself a Hindu but does not recognize the Shankaracharya, proves himself to be a fake Hindu.
Fourthly, governments should not forget that Adi Shankaracharya clearly stated in the Mathamnaya Mahanushasan that Dharma (righteousness) is the foundation of human beings and it depends on the Acharya (spiritual teacher).