The Union Home Minister said that India’s saintly tradition is very rich. He said that whenever the country needed a particular role, the saintly tradition fulfilled it. He said that saints created knowledge, bound the country together, and during the period of slavery, saints kept the flame of national consciousness alive through devotion. He said that when the country’s governance and the country, after independence, started to be influenced by Western ideas, Acharya Vidyasagar Ji Maharaj was the only Acharya who kept himself connected to India, Indianness, and Indian culture. Shri Amit Shah said that Jain monks have made a significant contribution to uniting the entire country. He said that from Hastinapur in Uttar Pradesh to Shravanabelgola in Karnataka, from Rajgir in Bihar to Girnar in Gujarat, they travelled everywhere on foot, conveying the message of their sacrifice through their actions. He said that Acharya Ji taught us that our identity lies in our culture.
The Union Home Minister said that Acharya Vidyasagar Ji Maharaj wrote the Hindi epic ‘Mookmati’, on which many people have written research and essays. Following Acharya Ji’s message of preserving and promoting all Indian languages, his followers have translated ‘Mookmati’ into many languages. He said that ‘Mookmati’ explains religion, philosophy, ethics, and spirituality in great depth and also contains a description of the ephemerality of the body and a message of patriotism. Shri Amit Shah said that Acharya Vidyasagar Ji Maharaj believed that the linguistic diversity of our country is our true strength. He said that a country with many languages, scripts, and dialects, and different types of grammar and ballads, is considered culturally rich.
Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah said that there was a very cordial dialogue between Modi Ji and Acharya Ji. He said that Acharya Vidyasagar Ji’s message, discourses, and writings are a priceless legacy for the Jain community as well as the entire nation.