Swamy Ramanujacharya: Amit Shah virtually unveils ‘Statue of Peace’ in Srinagar

Union home minister Amit Shah today virtually unveiled the ‘Statue of Peace’ of Swamy Ramanujacharya in Srinagar, located in a temple in the Sonwar region.

Shah, while unveiling the statue, said, “This will be a message of peace in not only Kashmir, but the whole country… The Gujarat government, too, will install a Ramanujacharya statue next year.”

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the saint’s 216-feet statue in Hyderabad in February.

Saint Ramanujacharya, also known as Ramanuja, is considered to be a great thinker, philosopher and social reformer, a south Indian Brahmin born in Tamil Nadu’s Sriperumbudur.

Ramanuja is known to have revolted against the discrimination of untouchability and played a role in bringing a big change in society. He is a follower of Vaishnavism and taught people the principles of salvation.

He wrote many books, including Sri Bhashya, Vedartha Sangraha and Bhagavad Gita Bhasya, based on his belief that is different from the teachings of Adi Shankaracharya.

The saint is known for judging people not by their caste at birth, but by their character. He is believed to be the first Hindu acharya to initiate women into ‘sanyasa’ (renunciation of the world). He is also known for blending Vedanta methodology with ‘bhakti’. After Ramanuja’s demise, the female community of ‘sanyasinis’ faded away.