Causing Distress to Others in the Name of Lord Ganesha is a Grave Sin: Brahmasri Samavedam Shanmukha Sarma

Renowned spiritual scholar Brahmasri Samavedam Shanmukha Sarma has issued an earnest appeal to festival organizers and youth ahead of Vinayaka Chavithi, urging them to preserve the sanctity of the celebration and stop turning it into a source of public torment. Emphasizing that festivals in Sanatana Dharma are designed to bring peace, joy, and spiritual elevation to society, he expressed profound anguish over the widespread nuisance caused in neighborhoods. He pointed out the stark contradiction of worshipping Lord Vighneshwara-the divine remover of obstacles-while deliberately subjecting fellow human beings to severe obstacles and distress.

Condemning the widespread use of deafening DJ sound walls and high-decibel speakers, Samavedam asserted that chaotic noise pollution has no connection to authentic devotion. He urged organizers to consider the immense suffering inflicted upon heart patients, the elderly, hospital patients, infants, and students preparing for examinations who are robbed of rest and peace day and night. Citing the foundational scriptural dictum "Paropakaraya punyaya, papaya parapidanam"-which states that helping others earns merit, while causing misery to others is a sin-he warned that depriving neighbors of sleep and tormenting the sick under the guise of religious worship brings spiritual demerit rather than divine grace.

He also voiced sharp indignation over the playing of vulgar film numbers and item songs accompanied by indecent dancing directly in front of the consecrated idol of Lord Ganesha. Describing such vulgarity as an outright sacrilege against the deity, he stressed that an unrighteous display does not please God and will only invite divine displeasure. Devotion, he noted, must be conducted with sattvic purity, filled with Vedic chanting, Atharvashirsha recitations, and peaceful bhajans rather than commercial street revelry.

Calling for a return to traditional decorum, Samavedam appealed to the youth and pandal committees to exercise maturity and cultural restraint. He urged them to stop coercive donation collections, avoid barricading public roads to disrupt vehicular traffic, and celebrate Vinayaka Chavithi in strict accordance with scriptural norms and civic responsibility, ensuring that not a single living being is harmed or inconvenienced in the name of worship.