All four ‘Shankaracharyas’ (pontiffs of major Hindu shrines) will not attend the consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple in Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya on January 22, said Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, the Shankaracharya of Jyotish Peeth in Uttarakhand.

Who are Shankaracharyas?

The Shankaracharyas are the heads of the four major shrines called ‘peeths’ situated in Joshimath in Uttarakhand, Dwarka in Gujarat, Puri in Odisha and Sringeri in Karnataka.

Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati said the Hindu religious gurus will not attend the grand ceremony as it violates the rules of Sanatan Dharma, reported The Telegraph. He explained that the installation of the idols of Lord Ram without the completion of the construction of the temple was against the Hindu religion.

“There was no need of such hurry,” he said.

Swami Avimukteshwaranand stressed there was enough time for the construction of the Ram Temple and then complete ‘Pran Pratishtha’ or the consecration ceremony.

He said it was a bad idea to inaugurate an incomplete temple.

Swami Avimukteshwaranand further said they could be called anti-Modi for the decision but the religious reverends don’t hold any ill-will against anyone.

“We are not anti-Modi but at the same time we also can’t go against our Dharma Shastra,” said Avimukteshwaranand, according to The Telegraph.

Earlier this week, the Shankaracharya of Puri Gowardhanpeeth, Swami Nishchalanand Saraswati, had also said he would not attend the event because it was against the scriptures.

Celebrities from film and television, industrialists, political leaders, sportspersons as well as seers, scholars, and prominent personalities from different fields have been invited to the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22.

While Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to deliver a speech at the grand event, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is overseeing the preparations for the long-awaited inauguration.