Prime Minister Narendra Modi will dedicate the rebuilt samadhi sthal (resting place) of Adi Shankaracharya at Kedarnath to the nation on Friday, November 5. The earlier memorial had been washed away by the floods of June 2013.
A Delhi-based NGO, Faith Foundation, had organised a spiritual tour from Kaladi in Kerala, the birthplace of Shankaracharya, to Kedarnath in Uttarakhand, which has culminated in rebuilding of the samadhi sthal.
The six-month-long tour that started on February 14, 2014, and covered 30,000km across 24 states had largely followed the original route taken by the eighth-century saint for propagating the Vedic faith.
The 27 volunteers hailing from various parts of India, including three young priests from Ujjain, visited the Shankara Hill in Kashmir, Kamakhya Temple in Assam and Pasupatinath Temple in Nepal among other places, and collected soil from several spots on the route, including from Kaladi.
“We could arrange for getting soil even from the Sarvagya Sarada Peeth in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir,” said Colonel Ashok Kini (retired), who heads the foundation.
Kini also interacted with all the current Shankaracharyas and sought their blessings for the project. The site was consecrated by the team on the first anniversary of the floods.
“Throughout the trip, we gave inspirational lectures on Sankaracharya's teachings at schools, colleges and public gatherings,” said Kini. “The idea is to revive the Sanatana Dharma’s spiritual roots and reinstate Kedarnath as a prime place of pilgrimage.”
Faith Foundation has also started a National Philosophers Day celebration in Delhi on the birth anniversary of Sankaracharya every year.
Colonel Kini had earlier served as the comptroller in the Rashtrapati Bhavan, during the term of Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam as president, and as adviser to the minister of state for defence Shripad Naik.
