Sree Narayan Guru

September 2, 2023

ABOUT SREE NARAYANA GURU

He was a 19^th century spiritual guru and social reformer.
He was born in 1856 into a backward Ezhava family in an era when people from such communities faced social injustice in the caste-ridden society of Kerala.
He became one of the greatest proponents and re-evaluators of Advaita Vedanta, the principle of non-duality put forward by Adi Shankara.
Sree Narayana Guru had propagated the message of ‘One Caste, One Religion and One God for Mankind’.
In 1888, he built a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva at Aruvippuram which was against the caste-based restrictions of the time.
In 1903, he established the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP) as the founder and president.
He also led the ‘Vaikom Satyagraha’ in 1923-24 to protest movement against caste discrimination, untouchability, and inequality.
In a temple he consecrated at Kalavancode, he kept mirrors instead of idols to symbolize that the divine was within each individual.
He also Guru founded the Sivagiri foundation in 1924 to promote the virtues of cleanliness, education, devotion, agriculture, handicrafts, and trade.
Literary contribution– Advaitha Deepika, Asrama, Thevarappathinkangal, Brahmavidya Panchakam