Kashmir’s Sharada: be in India!

नमस्ते शारदा देवि काश्मीरपुरवासिनि।
त्वामहं प्रार्थये नित्यं विद्यादानं च देहि में।।

Where is Kashmir and where is Karnataka? In spite of the staggering distance, we were reciting this shloka, praising Kamshmirapuravasini Sharada, sitting in a corner of the house in Karnataka! “We” here includes all followers of Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism) of this holy land Bharat – have recited this shloka in our childhood! Why Karnataka? Divine spell of this shloka extends through the length and breadth of Indian peninsula!

Yes! Reach of Kashmir’s Sharada is not just limited to Kashmir, but is to entire nation!

Kashmir is awash with Sharada! In olden days Kashmir referred to as SharadaDesh. Kashmir’s script is called Sharada! The village where Sharada Mandir is situated was and still is, even after it became part of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, known as Sharada village! A mountain facing the SharadaMandir is called as Sharadi! The habitats of this village are converted centuries ago. But even today they take their oath and swear in the name of Mother Sharada!

The original inhabitants of Kashmir are called Kashmiri Pandits. ‘Pandits’ because of their learning, learning is because of mother Sharada! The name “Kashmiri Pandits” to their race is Sharada’s grace!

Do you know? Once upon a time there was not even a single man without knowledge in an entire race! For the same reason that entire race was called Pandits! There was a time when in undivided India the ultimate test of knwoeldge used to take place in Kashmir. The man who is accepted there was true Pandit – the man of learning. His learning is not complete till then.

Kashmir was kingdom of learning!

If India was a temple, Kashmir was its peak. If Kashmir was India’s peak, SharadaPeetha was its crown. The curse to our times is, crown of India is without roof today, leave alone having a crown! Sharada, who is being worshipped in every Indian heart as Goddess of Learning is deprived of an idol in her own original shrine! Leave alone worship! You are not a Bharatiya if your heart does not melt looking at the tragic vision of dilapidated structure with falling walls and shaken seat!

Sharada didn’t reign only in her shrine; she reigned in the eyebrows of high browed pundits and in their scholarly speeches. But it’s today’s plight is worse than death! Innumerable of those harmless people were done to death; many more women and children were robbed of their chastity; remaining few were forced out of Kashmir leaving everything and clutching their dear life!

We shed gallons of tears for Rohingyas who have come from far of places; but we don’t have the eyes to look at the plight of our own Kashmiri Pandits!

Today their burning desire is to visit SharadaPeetha once a year. Tragedy of tragedies is, they don’t have the permission to visit what remains of their mother’s mandir! A wall called Line of Control has separated the mother from her children!

Are you aware? Muslims from this side have special permission to visit their kin on the other side of the border! But for us Hindus, for Kashmiri Pandits, permission is denied to visit their mother once a year!

Governments have not responded favorably to this long standing demand of Kashmiri Pandits!

Times are changing now. Or the relentless struggle of Kashmiri Pandits is forcing a change in times. Pakistan, which is the main reason for the problems of SharadaPeetha and Kashmiri Pandits, is now talking about permitting SharadaDarshan! That is not all, Pakistan has announced to set up roads and basic infrastructure around SharadaGram for the benefit of pilgrims. Present government of Kashmir has openly announced support to SharadaYatra.

Now little about Muslims of SharadaGram; they are a mystery!

They are excited about renovation of SharadaPeetha; they are supporting SharadaYatra by KashmiriPandits. Hard to believe but true, after ages there was a worship in SharadaMandir recently! Those who performed the worship were Muslims of SharadaGram! They offered flowers and performed a worship in the same place where there was a deity earlier; they have placed a portrait of Sharada on the wall of Santum Sanctorum; they have sent prasadam and the holy soil of Sharada Bhumi to Kashmiri Pandits by post!

Mark this; people who did all this with utmost love and affection are Muslims living in Pak Occupied Kashmir! Today they believe in Islam; they live in a place occupied by Pakistan! It is very hard to believe that Muslims, who staunchly oppose idolatry, living in Pak Occupied Kashmir, that too in a place haunted by terrorists, have performed worship at SharadaMandir and sent prasadam! But when a delegation of Kashmiri Pandits met us alongwith the prasadam, photos of the worship and showed us the Pakistan stamped cover in which they received all these, we had no option but to believe them!

Fact that our SriMatha has floral prasadam of Sharada of Kashmir and the soil of Sharada Gram is a matter of pride to us equaling the fact that we have Vikhyata Vyakhyana Simhasana with us!

But heart sinks when we remember that natives of SharadaGram, who are the men behind those flowers and soil, are all originally Kashmiri Pandits who were converted and deported forcefully!

Fine! What is needed now for SharadaYatra is permission from Government of India. Door to SharadaMandir will open for Kashmiri Pandits just by addition of the words “and for pilgrimages” after the present words “to meet the relatives across the borders, to indulge in trade there” in the rules governing permissions! To this end they are in a non-stop struggle under the umbrella of “Save Sharda” organization. All Indians need to join hands in this struggle of Kashmiri Pandits. We should join our voice with theirs, and our might with theirs. Sharada’s service is not just of Kashmiri Pandits, it is of all of us! Sharada is not just mother to Kashmiri Pandits, she is mother to all of us!

Whether anyone joins hands or not, we sure are with Kashmiri Pandits in their struggle for renovation of SharadaPeetha. That we are Indians is the natural reason for this. That we belong to Shankaracharya order is a special reason!

Shankara and Sharada – inseparable connection!

Shankara adorned the Sarvajna Peetha to become Jagadguru in the precincts of KashmiraPuraVasini Sharada! Door to the south of Sharada Peetha was never opened earlier as no intellectual from South India had scaled such scholarly heights so far! Through his in-depth knowledge Shankara mesmerized the Pandits of Kashmir, had the door to the south opened to enter the mandir. Not through swords but through words he conquered the capital of learning to adorn the SarvajnaPeetha! To top it all, he offered real worship to Sharada by starting Sharada University there!

Being the present link of unbroken lineage of Shankaracharya our wish is:

Entire Kashmir should return to India;
All Kashmiris should return to Kashmir;
All Kashmiris to return to their original faith of Sharada worship;
SharadaPeetha should return to India to reign in its original grandeur.

Things that are to be done forthwith:

Permission to Kashmiri Pandits to visit KashmirapuraVasini on foot.

Today nation is ruled by the people who have come to power with the strength of blessings from nationalist and spiritual majority. If this not done today, when?

It is Navratri – Vijayadashami now! This is the time when entire nation worships Goddess Sharada. If we are devoid of a little devotion towards the original abode of Goddess Sharada and little compassion to her progeny, the worship we do will be devoid of all meanings! We are not fit for Sharada’s blessings!

Last ounce of ambrosia:

The day Bharati returns to India, India will rule the world!

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Received Photos, Prasadam & Inputs with thanks, from:

Shri Ravindar Pandith, founder member of “SAVE SHARDA COMMITTEE KASHMIR ®”.
Shri. Mohan Krishan Mongha, member of “SAVE SHARDA COMMITTEE, KASHMIR ®” and disciple of HH Swami Nand Lal ji Ashram in Hushru, Kashmir.

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