New Delhi: In yet another controversial remark on Sai Baba, Shankaracharya of Dwaraka-Sharda Peeth Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati has held worship of the ‘unworthy’ Shirdi Sai Baba responsible for a drought-like situation in Maharashtra.
The seer, who is on a 15-day visit to Haridwar, termed worship of Sai Baba, who was a ‘fakir’ and not a God, as inauspicious.
"Calamity strikes where those unworthy of worship are worshipped," the 94-year-old said, adding that “such places suffer drought, flood, death or fear, and Maharashtra is facing all of these”. He also quoted scriptures to corroborate his stand.
The seer, who is known for his bitter opposition to Hindus worshipping Shirdi's Sai Baba, had in past appealed to his followers to take down Sai Baba's photographs and remove his idols from the places of worship.
Marathwada is one of the most water-deprived regions of Maharashtra. This is the third successive year of drought in the region. Rivers, canals, ponds and nallas have dried up.
The ongoing drought has evoked comparisons with the great drought of 1972.
The seer further condemned the act of women entering the sanctum sanctorum of the Shani Shingnapur temple, saying “Shani is paap grah (planet of sins). Worshipping him will lead to rise in crime against women.”
Last week, the Shani Shingnapur Temple Trust allowed women to enter the sanctum sanctorum, breaking the tradition followed for several decades.
