: “Ours is a human mission powered by divine will and spirit for the unity of mankind. The Walk of Hope, as we named it, has no political colour at all. Our religion is that of love, peace and fraternity,” said Sri M, founder of Satsang Foundation.
Sri M, aka Madhurkarnath or Mumtaz Ali Khan, began his 6,500-km mega walk from Kanyakumari to Kashmir on Vivekananda Jayanti Day on January 12. The walk was flagged off by the Union Minister for Communication and Information Technology Ravi Sankar Prasad. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy too joined the walk when it reached the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram on January 18.
Sri M and his entourage reached the Chengannur Mahadeva Temple on Saturday after a night’s halt at the Orthodox Christian Seminary at Parumala. They offered prayers at the ancient Siva temple at Chengannur and proceeded to the heritage village of Aranmula.
Metropolitan of the Chenganur diocese of the Malankara Orthodox Church Thomas Mar Athanasius, who called Sri M a prophet of interfaith harmony, joined the walk till it crossed the Chengannur town limits. People, cutting across religion, waited in front of their house with candles and traditional Kerala lamps to greet Sri M.
Talking to The Hindu , Sri M, who has been propagating the ancient science of ‘kriya yoga’, said his walk was aimed at “restoring the innate spirituality of the nation, rekindling true faith and rejuvenating the spirit of hope, love, peace, harmony and oneness.”
The Aranmula Heritage Village Trust leaders accorded a rousing reception to the padayatra near the Aranmula Sathram.
National Minority Education Commission member Thykkoottathil Zakeer and Geevarghese Chacko of Pandalam joined the march from the Sathram junction to the Vazhuvelil Tharavadu, ancestral home of Malayalam poet Sugathakumari.
Sri M and his entourage were escorted in a ceremonial procession to the accompaniment of Vanchippattu, Panchavadyam and Thalappoli. The spiritual master lit a lamp at the ancient sacred grove (kavu) and at the verandah of the Tharavadu before planting a coconut sapling in the courtyard as a noble mark of his visit.
A fairly large crowd has gathered in front of the Sree Parthasarathy Temple at Aranmula to hear his spiritual discourse at the Satsang held in the afternoon.
Our religion is of love, peace and fraternity: Sri M
Sri M hailed as prophet of interfaith harmony
