'Sengol' in parliament: History and significance

Tamil Nadu Aadheenam to hand over 'Sengol' to PM Modi

Madurai Aadheenam pontiff hands over the 'Sengol' to Prime Minister Narendra Modi | PTI Madurai Aadheenam pontiff hands over the 'Sengol' to Prime Minister Narendra Modi | PTI

Sri Harihara Gnanasambanda Desika Paramacharya, the 293rd pontiff of the Madurai Aadheenam, will hand over the sacred 'Sengol' to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 28 on the occasion of the inauguration of new parliament building.



The event is to honour the Chola system of power transfer and to re-enact the historical ceremony in which Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister, was given the 'Sengol' when India gained independence in 1947.



In August 1947, Lord Mountbatten asked Nehru if he had any symbolic ceremony in mind to officiate the transfer of power. Nehru consulted C. Rajagopalachari, the last governor general of India. It was Rajaji, as Rajagopalachari was fondly called, who suggested that they hold a ceremony in the traditional Chola fashion. The transfer of power during Chola times was sanctified by Shaivite high priests.



Rajaji approached the Madurai Aadheenam for a sceptre. The then seer of the Thiruvaduthurai Aadheenam, Sri La Sri Ambalavana Desika Swamigal, assigned Vummidi Banru Chetty, a jeweller, to make a five-foot tall sceptre.



The Thiruvaduthurai Aadheenam claims it was in charge of handing over the ‘Sengol’ to Lord Mountbatten who then presented it to Nehru on the eve of India's independence. A spokesperson of the Aadheenam told The Hindu that the souvenirs published after the independence had recorded this event.



Copies of these souvenirs, which were handed over to journalists, however, had neither mentioned any dates not did they make any reference to the Aadheenam.



Aadheenams are a non-Brahmin Shavite order established to develop and spread the Shaiva ideology. It is believed that the Madurai Aadheenam was founded by Lord Shiva and Devi Parvati. Around 1,500 years ago, saint Thiru Janasambandar, who is considered the first apostle of the Shaiva philosophy, revived this Aadheenam.



Born in 1954 as Bhagavati Laskmanan to Gandhimadhinadhan Pillai and Janaki Ammai, Sri Harihara Gnanasambanda Desika Paramacharya Swamigal became a saint when he was just 21. For the next 39 years, he held multiple positions in famous Shavite mutts such as Kundrakudi Aadheenam, Thiruvavadudurai Aadheenam, and Dharmapuram Aadheenam, say reports. He was chosen by Srila Sri Arunagirinatha Gnanasambantha Desika Paramacharya, the head of the then Madurai Aadheenam, as his successor in 2019.



On June 6, 2019 after the 292nd pontiff's passing, the head of Dharumai Aadheenam declared junior pontiff Sri Harihara Gnanasambanda Desika Swamigal as the 293rd pontiff.



Swamigal told ANI that he appreciated what Prime Minister Modi was doing for the people and was looking forward to seeing his victory in the next year's elections as well. Sri la Sri Ambavanan Desika Paraacharya Swamigal of the Thiruvaduthurai Aadheenam also told a TV channel that all the Aadheenams flying to Delhi for the historical event were happy to give the sceptre to the prime minister.



Addressing a press conference in Chennai on Thursday, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman had said that 20 Aadheenams have been invited for the inauguration ceremony where the 'Sengol' will be installed permanently in the new parliament building. Among those invited were the Thiruvaduthurai, Perur, and the Madurai Aadheenams.



"The pontiffs will attend the event, there will be Oduvars (Tamil temple singers) who will recite the Thevaram. In 1947 also, the Oduvars recited Kolaru Pathigam when the 'Sengol' was handed over to Nehru," she had said.



The 'Sengol' is set to be installed in a very ceremonious fashion adhering to Tamil traditions. A group of musicians playing the Nadaswaram will lead the procession. The Aadheenams will be purifying the 'Sengol' with holy water while Oduvars (Tamil temple singers) chant hymns in the background. Following this, the prime minister will install the scepter in a glass cage next to the Lok Sabha Speaker's seat in the new parliament building.

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