Bengaluru: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday called Prime Minister Narendra Modi the "flag bearer" of Indian culture and tradition.
Speaking at an event organised by Vedanta Bharati here, Shah said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi is touring the globe as the flag bearer of the Indian culture and tradition."
To buttress his point, the BJP President said Modi took a holy dip in the Ganga river and attended Ganga Aarti in Varanasi before taking oath as Prime Minister.
He recalled that Modi had sent red sanders to the Pashupatinath Temple in Nepal for special prayers to be performed on behalf of the government of India.
The Prime Minister had on August 4 2014 offered puja at the famous fifth century Pashupatinath temple.
He had also donated 2,500 kg of sandalwood to the temple.
Shah slammed the previous governments for their 'wrong interpretation' of secularism, preventing them from honouring the best things of the country.
"But after a long interval we have a Prime Minister who sends across the message that we have a lot to give to the world," he said.
Addressing a large gathering of students at the Palace Grounds here to chant 'Vivekadeepini', authored by Adi Shankaracharya, Shah said chanting of sacred hymns in chorus strengthens the mind, body and soul.
"It is the need of the hour to inculcate the teachings of the Vedas, the Upanishads and the Puranas, which Vedanta Bharati is doing religiously," he said.
Remembering Adi Shankaracharya,Shah said the achievements of the great Sanyasi were beyond anyone's comprehension.
"Though he (Adi Shankara) died young, he toured the country seven times and established the four Maths, assigning each one with the responsibility of preserving one of the four Vedas," Shah said.
The Union Home Minister recalled that Adi Shankara was born in turbulent times when the Hindu religion was divided into various sects, leading to conflicts.
The great philosopher monk brought together all the sects under one umbrella, he said.
Shah recalled that Adi Shankaracharya set up the Dasha Naami tradition, which, he opined was capable of combating climate change.
"I want to tell those who talk of the environment and climate change to study these 10 names (Dasha Naamis) -- Aranya, Ashrama, Bharati, Giri, Puri, Parvata, Saraswati, Sagara, Teertha and Vana.
This Dasha Naami order for Sanyasins was created to protect the domains they have been assigned," Shah said.
The Union Home Minister also visited the Poorna-Prajna Vidyapeetha in Bengaluru and paid homage to Pejawar seer Vishwesha Teertha who passed away on December 29, last year, in Udupi and was interred at the Vidyapeetha.
The seer, who headed one of the eight Maths of the Madhvacharya sect, was closely associated with the Ram Janma Bhoomi issue and had dreamt of a grand Rama temple in Ayodhya.
