Which leader does Swami Avimukteshwarananda like the most, which incident made him/her a sanyasi? Everything told in a special conversation

New Delhi: Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati of Jyotirmath is known for his/her clear and frank views. he/she freely expresses his/her views on various issues related to religion and politics. he/she had raised questions on the Pran Pratishtha of the half-finished Ram temple in Ayodhya. he/she had also refused to attend the program. These days Swami Avimukteshwaranand is leading the campaign to declare the cow as the mother of the nation. Recently, during his/her Delhi visit, we had a conversation with Anup Pandey. Here are excerpts from this conversation:Question: What should be the religion of politics?
answer: The religion of politics should be public welfare. When ‘Matsya Nyaya’ (big fish eating small fish) had happened in the society, then politics was born so that the interest of the weak could also be protected.

Question: What should be the politics of religion?
answer:There is no politics of religion because the fields of both politics and religion are different. Religion works for the upliftment of the individual and politics works for the upliftment of the society. Many times people in politics start influencing religion and then the influence of politics on religion starts increasing. If religious values ​​start getting affected due to politics, then the intervention of religion becomes necessary. Right now we have started a campaign that we should vote for the one who stands for cow. This can be considered interference in politics, but in reality this is not interference in politics, this is the protection of our religion.

Question:10 Is religion more important for changing the system or politics?
answer: Life is governed by religion only.

Question: Should a Dalit be a temple priest?
answer: The rule of the temple is that the institution which builds the temple decides who will be the priest, i.e. the founder of the temple decides this and the rules which are decided at the time of establishment are followed even later. There are many such temples in our country whose priests are Dalits.

Question: What is your opinion about the project of making India a world leader?
answer: There is nothing wrong in this. But before becoming a Guru, one has to become knowledgeable, has to study, has to follow good conduct. But the knowledge of our India has been removed from our curriculum, so what will India become a Guru of? How will we become a Vishwa Guru by teaching Shakespeare?

Question: Can the development and culture of India be imagined by keeping Muslims aside?
answer: India is not a country built in a day. Muslims did not exist 1400 years ago. India was leading the world before that. Muslims are also humans. It is wrong to label someone on the basis of name, dress etc. Any person can have good and bad qualities. We have relations with many Muslims who cooperate in our work. When we agitated for Ganga, people of all religions were with us.

Question: Many claims were made but Ganga is still dirty. What should be done about it?
answer:Ganga Ji has the quality of being clean in itself. If someone throws dirt in Ganga, then after 14 kilometers that dirt gets automatically destroyed. If Ganga becomes uninterrupted then it will become clean on its own. We do not allow Ganga to become uninterrupted. River is a different thing and drain is a different thing. If we resolve that we will not allow drain to merge with the river then the river will become clean on its own.

Question: Innocent people are being killed in our country in the name of cow slaughter. Is this right?
answer:Both are problems – cow slaughter is happening and innocent people are being killed in the name of cow slaughter. The government is not ready to accept both the things as problems. If we leave it like this, the problem will not be solved. It has been 77 years since independence, but the government is not ready to accept it as a problem.

Question: In which direction is the country going?
answer: Rolling in any direction is not a direction, the country is saying this emotionally. The scholars of the country should decide in which direction the country should go.

Question: Your visit to Mukesh Ambani’s son’s wedding was much talked about. Could it not have happened that they would have come to seek your blessings?
answer: We have a tradition of coming to take blessings and there is a tradition of going to give blessings. God also goes to the house where you invite him/her. We are smaller than God. Before this, we have also gone to thousands of poor people’s houses for weddings. But the media does not have cameras. We try to show the richness of the rich.
They do not see it and they do not see the poverty of the poor.

Question: If we invite you to a wedding at our place, will you come?
answer:Even if you call me to take my exam, I will not come, but if you call me from your heart, I will definitely come.

Question: Is social media poison?
answer: There is no such thing as poison or nectar. If used correctly, it is nectar and if used incorrectly, it is poison. Our vegetables are cut with the same knife and our hand is cut with the same knife.

Question: Name some leaders who have influenced you?
answer: Everyone has done some good work but I don’t want to name anyone. I believe that all the politicians are very hardworking. Even if people call them at midnight, they still listen to them. They have a strong desire to move ahead. Even after reaching big positions, they keep insisting on moving ahead. This is a good thing. Only if one has such a desire, will he/she progress. The third quality is that they make everyone their own. People from other parties abuse them and criticize them so much. Even after this, they forget everything and go to the same party the next day. They have such a great capacity for adjustment.

Question: How is Shankaracharya different from an ordinary person?
answer: There is a difference of vision. A common man’s vision is different from Shankaracharya’s. Circumstances do not affect Shankaracharya the way they affect a common man.

Question: You are an expert in Vedas, Puranas and Upanishads. As a summary of all these, tell us 5 things that can show the common man the path of life.
answer:The scriptures say that life should not be crooked. It should be like a straight line. Meaning that whatever is in your mind should be in your speech. Whatever is in your speech should be in your conduct. The scriptures say to be clear. If you do not do this, then understand that you are going to be in trouble.
Second, Your diet and lifestyle should be right. If you maintain a right diet and lifestyle, then your body and mind will remain healthy. Even if you do not become spiritual and remain materialistic, your body and mind should still be healthy.
third, The scriptures say that you should speak the truth. The general meaning of speaking the truth is to tell the incident as it happened. But the truth beyond this is that we should keep what we say. Do not let your statement be false. This is what builds your credibility.
FourthDon’t behave with others in a way that is unfavorable to you.
Fifth Live for others
If you live for yourself, you will be called selfish, but if you live for others, someone will be living for you too. When we live for ourselves, we live small. When we live for others, we live big.

Question: What should be the purpose of life?
answer: The purpose of life should be to know the one who has given life (God).

Question: Is it not the case that people have become more entangled in religious rituals?
answer: The rituals are for the fulfillment of the desires of the people who have risen above this, for the purification of their mind. The day the mind becomes pure through chanting and meditation, that day we will find God. Just like if there is dirt on the mirror and we clean it, then the picture becomes clear, in the same way when the dirt of the soul is removed, then the God will be realized.

Question: Which is the path of Shankaracharya? We tell all three paths, but our own path is of knowledge.
answer: Who is causing the most harm to Hindutva these days? Hindu politics is causing the most harm to the so-called Hindus.

Question: Nowadays there is a flood of fake religious gurus. Is there any criterion to identify a true guru?
answer: Scriptures are the standard here. Test it on the touchstone of scriptures. If any religious guru says anything, ask him/her to show it in the scriptures. The fake guru will run away on his/her own. Only the real one will survive.

Question: Can you tell any religious text for common people which if read can improve their life?
answer: It is enough if you just read Ramcharitmanas. It is in simple language and has the essence of all the scriptures.

Question: How can people reach the top of their field?
answer:You think that the one who has got money, position and prestige is at the top. But for us, that is not the top. Whatever someone has achieved by following the right path is at the top.

Question: To attain God, is ritualism or meditation the more appropriate way?
answer: We have 3 paths – rituals, devotion and knowledge, which you can also call meditation. Rituals are for those who are worldly and believe the world to be true. Those who do not know much about the world, they follow the path of devotion and take refuge in God. Some people trust their knowledge, they try to know God through knowledge. The path is according to the situation of the person.

Question: How far can a human being reach?
answer: Man has so much power that he/she can reach even where God is not there. There are so many possibilities in this man.

Question: What incident happened in your life due to which you became a Sanyasi?
answer: I did not know how this happened but when I gained consciousness, I found myself among saints. It is said that my birth chart had the yoga of death at the age of 12. After this, my father left me with a sanyasi. he/she believed that if you have to die, then go to the shelter of God. Since then, we are fine till today.