Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unveil a 12-feet tall statue of Adi Guru Shankaracharya at the Kedarnath shrine premises today. The statue has been polished with coconut water to bring out its shine. The event will be live-streamed to the 11 Jyotir Lingas, four maths (monastic institutions) and major Shiva temples.
The 12-feet tall statue of Adi Guru Shankaracharya weighs 35 tonnes and has been made by Mysore-based sculptors Yogiraj Shilpi and his son from chlorite schist. The speciality of this rock is that it can withstand rain, sunshine and harsh climate, tourism officials said on Wednesday. The making of the statue began in September 2020.
Earlier, the Shankaracharya samadhi was washed away in the devastating 2013 Uttarakhand floods. The new Shankaracharya statue has been prepared with a special design under the reconstruction works of Kedarnath Dham for which a total allocation of over Rs 500 crore was approved.
The allocated amount was to be spent in phases for this reconstruction project. The Shankaracharya statue has been built by excavating land just behind the Kedarnath temple and in the middle of the samadhi area, said officials.
Who is Adi Guru Shankaracharya?
Adi Guru Shankaracharya was an 8th-century Indian spiritual leader and philosopher who was born in Kerala.
He consolidated the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta and made a significant contribution in unifying Hinduism by setting up four Mathas across India.
The four Mathas he set up are believed to have helped in the historical development, revival and propagation of Advaita Vedanta.
Adi Guru Shankaracharya, along with Madhava and Ramanuja, played an important role in the revival of Hinduism.
The doctrines formed by Adi Shankaracharya, Madhava and Ramanuja are followed by their respective sects to date.
Adi Guru Shankaracharya is said to have taken samadhi here at Kedarnath and hence Uttarakhand's Himalayas hold special significance.
It was also in Uttarakhand that he established one of the four, Jyotir Math in Chamoli district and also installed an idol at Badrinath.
His birth anniversary is observed as Adi Shankaracharya Jayanti which usually falls in April or May. This year it was celebrated on May 17.
