Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will unveil on September 21 a grand statue of Hindu saint Adi Shankaracharya in Omkareshwar, a temple town, which houses one of the 12 Jyotirlingas dedicated to Lord Shiva, an official said on Tuesday.
The 108-foot-tall statue dedicated to the eighth-century philosopher, an influential and revered figure in Hinduism, has been named Ekatmata Ki Pratima (Statue of Oneness). The towering structure is perched atop the picturesque Mandhata hill on the banks of the Narmada river in Omkareshwar in Khandwa district.
Chouhan was supposed to unveil the grand statue on September 18, but because of heavy rains in the region, the programme was rescheduled for September 21, the official said.
A monumental tribute designed under the guidance of Acharya Shankar Sanskritik Ekta Nyas and the Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation (MPSTDC), the multi-metal statue of Oneness celebrates the legacy of Adi Shankaracharya and his profound teachings, he said.
This extraordinary structure, conceptualised to honour the life and philosophy of Adi Shankaracharya, is a tribute to the great saint's masterpiece of commentary on 'Bharmasutrabhasya' (comment on Brahma Sutra), a fundamental text of the Vedanta school of Hinduism and the concept of Oneness that he preached, CP Kukreja Architects' managing principal Dikshu Kukreja, who is the brain behind the project, said.
"This cultural project will fulfil the much-treasured vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi -- 'Vasudaiva Kutumbakam (The world is one family). With this 108-foot-tall statue, Madhya Pradesh will consolidate its position as a cultural and spiritual hub of all religions, the official said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Madhya Pradesh had earlier given its approval for a Rs 2,141.85-crore project under which the statue of Adi Shankaracharya was to be built along with a museum in Omkareshwar. (PTI)
