GANDHINAGAR: Union home minister Amit Shah on Thursday said Adi Shankaracharya was instrumental in establishing the Indian identity and ensuring that the banner of Sanatan dharma fluttered high in all corners of the country.Speaking at the launch of a ‘granthavali’ of Shankaracharya in Gujarati at an event in Ahmedabad, Shah expressed confidence that the complete works of the 8th-century scholar of Advaita Vedanta, published in 15 volumes, will help youth from Gujarat delve into them and leave an impact on their lives and work. “You will find solutions to all the questions that existed in society of that time in these texts,” Shah said.Shah said very few people can accomplish so much in such a short lifetime: “Shankaracharya travelled extensively across country on foot, and in a way, he played the role of a walking university. He established India’s identity, built four monasteries in four directions, established centres of knowledge, and ensured the banner of Sanatana dharma fluttered high in all four directions,” Shah said.Adi Shankaracharya paved the way for the common man to recognise the core essence of Sanatan dharma – from worship of nature to its fundamental principles, he added. Shah said the monasteries established by the scholar-saint did not merely become religious centres. Under their auspices, he divided Vedas among them, creating a permanent place for their preservation and propagation. He said in his lifetime, Adi Shankaracharya addressed doubts that had arisen around Sanatan dharma amid the rise of various philosophical schools, including Buddhism, Jainism, Kapalika and Tantric traditions. He provided logical answers to all the questions and doubts, Shah said. “Shankaracharya not only gave ideas, but also offered India a synthesis of ideas. He not only imparted knowledge, but also gave it a form. He not only presented the idea of liberation, but also paved the way to it,” Shah said.
