Saints of Shri Panch Nirvani Ani Akhara
– Photo: Amar Ujala
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Among the three Akharas of Vaishnav sect, Nirvani Ani Akhara has been considered the most powerful as the center of protection of culture and devotion. Be it the issue of safety of saints or protection of monasteries and temples of Hindu deities, Nirvani Ani Akhara has always been in the headlines as the voice of Sanatan culture.
This is the first Akhara, where Sadhus work in four departments. Due to its authority over Hanumangarhi in Ayodhya, it is considered to be the most powerful Akhara. Its Shri Mahant Dharamdas has been a party in the Ram Mandir case.
He tells that there are four departments of sadhus in Nirvani Ani Akhara. Among these, Hardwari, Vasantiya, Ujjainiya and Sagariya are prominent. Mahant Dharamdas tells that to get the title of Mahant in this Akhara, new monks have to serve the Guru for a long time.
If the Guru is happy then he gets the throne of Mahant with the opinion of Shri Panch. According to the tradition of Vaishnav Akhara, whenever a new monk takes sannyasa, after three years of service he is given the title of ‘Muretiya’.
