Author: TSV Hari in Kancheepuram
Publication: Sify News
Date: November 19, 2004
URL: http://sify.com/news/othernews/fullstory.php?id=13613397
Two words can aptly describe the
expression on the face of Shankara Vijayendra Saraswati, the junior pontiff
of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham. Stunned disbelief.
The quest to meet the junior seer
began nearly 18 hours before this report was filed. As a matter of policy,
the Mutt has now learnt to forget the existence of the contraption called
mobile phone.
As a believer in the Hindu faith,
and as a devotee of the Mutt, this journalist wanted to hear from the present
centre of power of the 2500 year old institution what it was all about.
The terse reply on a landline connection said, 'Come before 9.00 am tomorrow.'
At 8:45 am, the Mutt was almost
deserted. But for a strong contingent of policemen outside the Mutt, and
three old hands at the place, there was an eerie silence - a far cry from
the usual hustle and bustle that one normally associates with the institution.
The junior seer spotted this scribe
and immediately stopped for a few words. It began with innocent incredulity.
"Why has the press suddenly turned
so hostile towards us?" the junior seer asked the question not as a rhetoric.
It was obvious that he is yet to
come to terms with a medium called television which captured his visuals
and juxtaposed it with diatribe. | Full Coverage: Arrest of Kanchi Shankaracharya
|
"As every hour passes, I am informed
that a new series of lies has been said about us. When people started saying
that my brother from my previous existence was trying to hide from law,
I requested the television crews to come here and take pictures of him.
They did that and uttered more untruths," he said.
"Now I know better. The press is
free to write and show what it wants. I only have one wish now. I just
want to see 'my guru' and hear from him what kind of tribulations he is
undergoing. The second and third hand information is confusing and threatening
at the same time," Vijayendra Saraswati said in an emotional tone.
"I have requested the advocates
representing us to seek the permission (of magistrate Uttamraj] to enable
me to meet my guru in person - a one- to-one meeting. That is all I want
for now."
"Just tell me, what is the truth
about Shankararaman?" this writer asked.
"I remember this man vaguely. That
is all. All this talk about him being a former employee of the Mutt and
everything else is like a nightmare. But why talk about him? The courts
can find out the truth. But I have firm belief in one thing. My guru is
innocent. Every allegation made against him is untrue."
"The outside world doesn't know
what kind of rigorous discipline we have and how many rituals we have to
perform. Today, various newspapers and television channels show some visual
and add a different commentary, totally twisting everything out of context.
Some one told me that a television channel said that I was emotional. They
showed me brushing off the dust from my eyes, suggesting that I was shedding
tears. Tell me, is this journalism?"
Devotees of the Mutt began gathering
to seek the junior pontiff's blessings before he started his worship -
the Chandramouleeshwarar Puja - which lasts a minimum of 140 minutes.
The junior seer seemed unaware of
the passage of time till he was reminded about it politely. It seemed inappropriate
to ask probing questions, because the auspicious minutes were fast approaching.
The wait to hear him utter something
more seemed interminable though it lasted for just two minutes.
"Just request your readers to pray
for the release of my guru. I simply want him to be free. Everything else
seems so needless for the moment," he said in a matter of fact tone, blessed
this scribe, got up and walked away towards the main hall of the Mutt for
puja.
