Concerning some problems that Sanatana Dharma has to confront nowadays in India.

Written by Avinash Chandra.

In the last Magh Mela in Prayagraj (February 2025), a strong police force (accompanied by several high authorities) stopped the Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath, Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati ji and his followers from peacefully accessing the sacred river Ganga for a snan in Mauni Amavasya. The police beat mercilessly the batuks (religious students), brahmacharis, sannyasis and other devotees. They drag the batuks by the shikha and beat old sadhus and women (one video, that shows only a small fraction of the brutalities, is available in YouTube). They “kidnapped” the Shankaracharya, separating him from his followers and driving him to several places until they left him.

Far from asking forgiveness, the Mela organization asked the Shankaracharya to prove that he was a Shankaracharya and, accusing him of making trouble, threatened him to stop his coming to the Mela ground forever.

After that, a renowned criminal posing as a brahmachari, probably engaged by some political forces, launched very serious and disgusting accusations against the Shankaracharya, trying to defame him through “character assassination”. The Shankaracharya was on the verge of being arrested and taken to jail. These accusations were fortunately soon proved completely false.

All this is done to stop his voice claiming for a law in protection of the cow. As you well know, the cow in India has always been considered as “Mother”, and the abode of all devatas. Go, gay, has always been a deep symbol of Sanatana Dharma, and many people and kings have proclaimed their duty to “protect cows and brahmanas”, the main symbols of Sanatana Dharma, who stand as representatives of the whole non-human species and of all human beings.

While before Independence laws against the slaughter of cows existed in many states (even during Muslim rule), after Independence — in spite of many promises to this effect — no such national law has ever been approved. A major nationwide movement against cow slaughter took place in 1965 under the leadership of several dharmacharyas, which was mercilessly crushed through police force. Now the Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath (supported by other acharyas) is asking for an urgent law in this sense. The number of Indian cows is quickly declining, and India is now the second beef exporter in the world. Laws to this effect exist in Nepal and Sri Lanka.

All these happenings show that there is a very unfortunate development happening: in India, the mahatma was always placed above the raja (the king, the political power). The political and religious functions were deeply separated, but the primacy was always given to the religious and spiritual power, represented by the traditional acharyas and mahatmas. The kings always respected them, as shown in innumerable tales in the Puranas and epics. It is unbelievable that a time has come when the political power feels free to mistreat and brutalize sannyasis, acharyas and mahatmas.

Nowadays the political power considers itself above everything else, and does not respect the mahatmas — except when these support the government. The happenings in the Prayag Magh Mela are very indicative of this: when could we imagine the police attacking a traditional acharya accompanied by his followers? Nowadays, the political power wants to possess also the religious power, as in the Muslim tradition of the Khalifas.

Avinash Chandra