Juna Akhara to ordain a Dalit sadhu as ‘Mahamandaleshwar’

ALLAHABAD: For the first time in the history of the Juna Akhara — considered by many to be the largest and oldest order of sadhus in India — a Dalit sanyasi will be designated “Mahamandaleshwar”, an influential position in the order, at Kumbh 2019.

The seer, 32-year-old Kanhaiya Kumar Kashyap, was rechristened Kanhaiya Shivanand Giri after his “diksha” ceremony on Tuesday.

This is not the first time a Dalit religious scholar has been given “diksha” by the head of an akhara.

Niranjani Akhara had included a Dalit in its higher echelons at the last Kumbh in Ujjain. But Shivanand’s inclusion in Juna Akhara is significant and marks yet another turn in the remarkable life of a man who was denied entry into a Sanskrit seminary because of his caste.

Undeterred, he earned a “Jyotishacharya” degree from Chandigarh-based Bharatiya Jyotish Vigyan Kendra before joining Juna Akhara.

‘Denied entry to Pathsala since he was non-Brahmin’

Juna Akhara follows the sanyasi tradition and is more inclusive than many akharas on caste issues.

Apart from Shivanand, two others were given “diksha” by Juna Akhara on Tuesday — Renu Sharma, who has been rechristened Sadhvi Durga Giri, and Amit Joshi, who will now be called Swami Tufan Giri. While the former was a student of music at Allahabad University, the latter has been associated with RSS and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad.

Shivanand rose swiftly through the ranks and was given the title of “Gosain” in 2016. Talking about his journey, Shivanand told TOI, “The authorities of Sanskrit Pathshala refused me admission as I was not a Brahmin, but I was determined since there aren’t any saints or gurus from my community.”

Asked about the impact of his becoming “Mahamandaleshwar”, Shivanand said, “With people like me, victims of thecaste system, being given such an important responsibility... the day will come when like casteism will end.”