Rambhadracharya
Jagadguru Ramanandacharya Swami Rambhadracharya (born Pandit Giridhar on 14 January 1950) is an Indian Hindu spiritual leader, educator, Sanskrit scholar, polyglot, poet, author, textual commentator, philosopher, composer, singer, playwright and "Katha" artist based in Chitrakoot, India. He is one of four incumbent "Jagadguru Ramanandacharya", and has held this title since 1988. Rambhadracharya is the founder and head of Tulsi Peeth, a religious and social service institution in Chitrakoot named after Saint Tulsidas. He is the founder and lifelong chancellor of the Jagadguru Rambhadracharya Handicapped University in Chitrakoot, which offers graduate and postgraduate courses exclusively to four types of disabled  students. Rambhadracharya has been blind since the age of two months, had no formal education until the age of seventeen years, and has never used Braille or any other aid to learn or compose. Rambhadracharya can speak 22 languages and is a spontaneous poet and writer in Sanskrit, Hindi, Awadhi, Maithili, and several other languages. He has authored more than 100 books and 50 papers, including four epic poems, Hindi commentaries on Tulsidas' Ramcharitmanas and Hanuman Chalisa, a Sanskrit commentary in verse on the Ashtadhyayi, and Sanskrit commentaries on the Prasthanatrayi scriptures. He is acknowledged for his knowledge in diverse  fields including Sanskrit grammar, Nyaya and Vedanta. He is regarded as one of the greatest authorities on Tulsidas in India, and is the editor of a critical edition of the Ramcharitmanas. He is a "Katha" artist for the Ramayana and the Bhagavata. His "Katha" programmes are held regularly in different cities in India and other countries, and are telecast on television channels like Shubh TV, Sanskar TV and Sanatan TV. He is also a leader of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP). Birth and early life. Jagadguru Rambhadracharya was born to Pandit shri Rajdev Mishra and shrimati Shachidevi Mishra in a  Saryupareen Brahmin family of the Vasishtha "Gotra" (lineage of the sage Vasishtha) in Shandikhurd village in the Jaunpur district, Uttar Pradesh, India. He was born on Makara Sankranti day, 14 January 1950. Born to mother Shachidevi and father Pandit Rajdev Mishra, he was named "Giridhar" by his great aunt, a paternal cousin of his paternal grandfather, Pandit Suryabali Mishra. The great aunt was a devotee of Mirabai, a female saint of the Bhakti era in medieval India, who used the name "Giridhar" to address the god Krishna in her compositions. Loss of eyesight. Giridhar lost his eyesight at the age  of two months. On 24 March 1950, his eyes were infected by trachoma. There were no advanced facilities for treatment in the village, so he was taken to an elderly woman in a nearby village who was known to cure trachoma boils to provide relief. The woman applied a paste of myrobalan to Giridhar's eyes to burst the lumps, but his eyes started bleeding, resulting in the loss of his eyesight. His family took him to the King George Hospital in Lucknow, where his eyes were treated for 21 days, but his sight could not be restored. Various Ayurvedic , Homeopathic, Allopathic, and other practitioners were approached in Sitapur, Lucknow, and Bombay, but to no avail. Rambhadracharya has been blind ever since. He cannot read or write, as he does not use Braille; he learns by listening and composes by dictating to scribes. Childhood accident. In June 1953, at a juggler's monkey dance show in the village, the children—including Giridhar—suddenly ran away when the monkey began to touch them. Giridhar fell into a small dry well and was trapped for some time, until a teenage girl rescued him. His grandfather told him that his life was  saved because he had learned the following line of a verse in the Ramcharitmanas (1.192.4), from the episode of the manifestation of the god Rama: <poem> यह चरित जे गावहिं हरिपद पावहिं ते न परहिं भवकूपा ॥ yaha carita je gāvahı̐ haripada pāvahı̐ te na parahı̐ bhavakūpā ॥ </poem> Giridhar's grandfather asked him to recite the verse always, and from then on, Giridhar has followed the practice of reciting it every time he takes water or food. First composition. Giridhar's initial education came from his paternal grandfather, as his father worked in Bombay. In the afternoons , his grandfather would narrate to him various episodes of the Hindu epics Ramayana and Mahabharata, and devotional works like "Vishramsagar", "Sukhsagar", "Premsagar" and "Brajvilas". At the age of three, Giridhar composed his first piece of poetry—in Awadhi (a dialect of Hindi)—and recited it to his grandfather. In this verse, Krishna's foster mother Yashoda is fighting with a Gopi (milkmaid) for hurting Krishna. Mastering Gita and Ramcharitmanas. At the age of five, Giridhar memorised the entire Bhagavad Gita, consisting of around 700 verses with chapter and verse numbers, in 15 days, with the help of his neighbour, Pandit Murlidhar  Mishra. On Janmashtami day in 1955, he recited the entire Bhagavad Gita. He released the first Braille version of the scripture, with the original Sanskrit text and a Hindi commentary, at New Delhi on 30 November 2007, 52 years after memorising the Gita. When Giridhar was seven, he memorised the entire Ramcharitmanas of Tulsidas, consisting of around 10,900 verses with chapter and verse numbers, in 60 days, assisted by his grandfather. On Rama Navami day in 1957, he recited the entire epic while fasting. Later, Giridhar went on to memorise the Vedas, the Upanishads, works of Sanskrit grammar, the Bhagavata  Purana, all the works of Tulsidas, and many other works in Sanskrit and Indian literature. Upanayana and Katha discourses. Giridhar's "Upanayana" (sacred thread ceremony) was performed on (the Ekadashi falling in the bright half of the lunar month of Jyeshtha) of 24 June 1961. On this day, besides being given the Gayatri Mantra, he was initiated (given "Diksha") into the mantra of Rama by Pandit Ishvardas Maharaj of Ayodhya. Having mastered the Bhagavad Gita and Ramcharitmanas at a very young age, Giridhar started visiting the "Katha" programmes held near his village once every three years in the intercalary month  of "Purushottama". The third time he attended, he presented a "Katha" on Ramcharitmanas, which was acclaimed by several famous exponents of the "Katha" art. Discrimination by family. When Giridhar was eleven, he was stopped from joining his family in a wedding procession. His family thought that his presence would be a bad omen for the marriage. This incident left a strong impression on Giridhar; he says at the beginning of his autobiography: Formal education. Schooling. Although Giridhar did not have any formal schooling until the age of seventeen years, he had learned many literary works as a child by listening  to them. His family wished him to become a "Kathavachak" (a "Katha" artist) but Giridhar wanted to pursue his studies. His father explored possibilities for his education in Varanasi and thought of sending him to a special school for blind students. Giridhar's mother refused to send him there, saying that blind children were not treated well at the school. On 7 July 1967 Giridhar joined the Adarsh Gaurishankar Sanskrit College in the nearby Sujanganj village of Jaunpur to study Sanskrit "Vyakarana" (grammar), Hindi, English, Maths, History, and Geography. In his autobiography he recalls this day as the day when  the "Golden Journey" of his life began. With an ability to memorise material by listening to it just once, Giridhar has not used Braille or other aids to study. In three months, he had memorised and mastered the entire "Laghusiddhāntakaumudī" of Varadaraja. He was top of his class for four years, and passed the "Uttara Madhyama" (higher secondary) examination in Sanskrit with first class and distinction. At the Adarsh Gaurishankar Sanskrit College, Giridhar learnt the eight "Ganas" of Sanskrit prosody while studying "Chandaprabhā", a work on Sanskrit prosody. The next day, he composed his first Sanskrit verse, in the "Bhujaṅgaprayāta  metre. Graduation and masters. In 1971 Giridhar enrolled at the Sampurnanand Sanskrit University in Varanasi for higher studies in Vyakarana". He topped the final examination for the "Shastri" (Bachelor of Arts) degree in 1974, and then enrolled for the "Acharya" (Master of Arts) degree at the same institute. While pursuing his master's degree, he visited New Delhi to participate in various national competitions at the All-India Sanskrit Conference, where he won five out of the eight gold medals—in "Vyakarana", "Samkhya", "Nyaya", "Vedanta", and Sanskrit "Antakshari". Indira Gandhi, then Prime Minister of India, presented the five gold medals , along with the "Chalvaijayanti" trophy for Uttar Pradesh, to Giridhar. Impressed by his abilities, Gandhi offered to send him at her own expense to the United States for treatment for his eyes, but Giridhar turned down this offer, replying with an extemporaneous Sanskrit verse. In 1976 Giridhar topped the final "Acharya" examinations in "Vyakarana", winning seven gold medals and the Chancellor's gold medal. In a rare achievement, although he had only enrolled for a master's degree in "Vyakarana", he was declared "Acharya" of all subjects taught at the university on 30 April 1976. Doctorate and post-doctorate. After  completing his master's degree, Giridhar enrolled for the doctoral "Vidyavaridhi" (PhD) degree at the same institute, under Pandit Ramprasad Tripathi. He received a research fellowship from the University Grants Commission (UGC), but even so, he faced financial hardship during the next five years. He completed his "Vidyavaridhi" degree in Sanskrit grammar on 14 October 1981. His dissertation was titled "Adhyātmarāmāyaṇe'pāṇinīyaprayogānāṃ Vimarśaḥ", or "Deliberation on the non-Paninian usages in the Adhyatma Ramayana". The thesis was authored in only thirteen days in 1981. On completion of his doctorate, the UGC offered him the position of head of the "Vyakarana" department  of the Sampurnanand Sanskrit University. However, Giridhar did not accept; he decided to devote his life to the service of religion, society, and those with disabilities. On 9 May 1997, Giridhar (now known as Rambhadracharya) was awarded the post-doctorate "Vachaspati" (DLitt) degree by Sampurnanand Sanskrit University for his 2000-page Sanskrit dissertation "Pāṇinīyāṣṭādhyāyyāḥ Pratisūtraṃ Śābdabodhasamīkṣā", or "Investigation into verbal knowledge of every Sūtra of the Ashtadhyayi of Panini". The degree was presented to him by K. R. Narayanan, then President of India. In this work, Rambhadracharya explained each aphorism of the grammar of Panini in Sanskrit verses. In 1976  Giridhar narrated a "Katha" on Ramcharitmanas to Swami Karpatri, who advised him not to marry, to stay a lifelong "Brahmachari" (celibate bachelor) and to take initiation in a "Vaishnava Sampradaya" (a sect worshipping Vishnu, Krishna, or Rama as the supreme God). Giridhar took "vairagi" (renouncer) initiation or "Virakta Diksha" in the Ramananda Sampradaya on the "Kartika" full-moon day of 19 November 1983 from Shri Ramcharandas Maharaj Phalahari. He now came to be known as "Rambhadradas". Following the fifth verse of the "Dohavali" composed by Tulsidas, Rambhadradas observed a six-month "Payovrata", a diet of only milk and fruits, at  Chitrakoot in 1979. Later life. 1979–1988. In 1983 he observed his second "Payovrata" beside the Sphatik Shila in Chitrakoot. The "Payovrata" has become a regular part of Rambhadradas' life. In 2002, in his sixth "Payovrata", he composed the Sanskrit epic "Śrībhārgavarāghavīyam". He continues to observe "Payovrata"s, the latest (2010–2011) being his ninth. In 1987 Rambhadradas established a religious and social service institution called Tulsi Peeth (The seat of Tulsi) in Chitrakoot, where, according to the Ramayana, Rama had spent twelve out of his fourteen years of exile. As the founder of the seat, the title of "Śrīcitrakūṭatulasīpīṭhādhīśvara" (literally, "the Lord  of the Tulsi Peeth at Chitrakoot") was bestowed upon him by Sadhus and intellectuals. In the Tulsi Peeth, he arranged for a temple devoted to Rama and his "Patni"Sita to be constructed, which is known as "Kanch Mandir" ("glass temple"). Post of Jagadguru Ramanandacharya. Rambhadradas was chosen as the "Jagadguru Ramanandacharya" seated at the Tulsi Peeth by the Kashi Vidwat Parishad in Varanasi on 24 June 1988. On 3 February 1989, at the "Kumbh Mela" in Allahabad, the appointment was unanimously supported by the "Mahants" of the three "Akharas", the four sub-"Sampradayas", the "Khalsas" and saints of the Ramananda Sampradaya . On 1 August 1995 he was ritually anointed as the "Jagadguru Ramanandacharya" in Ayodhya by the Digambar Akhara. Thereafter he was known as "Jagadguru Ramanandacharya Swami Rambhadracharya". Deposition in the Ayodhya case. In July 2003 Rambhadracharya deposed as an expert witness for religious matters (OPW 16) in Other Original Suit Number 5 of the Ram Janmabhoomi Babri Masjid dispute case in the Allahabad High Court. Some portions of his affidavit and cross examination are quoted in the final judgement by the High Court. In his affidavit, he cited the ancient Hindu scriptures including the Ramayana, "Rāmatāpanīya Upaniṣad", Skanda Purana, Yajurveda , Atharvaveda, and others describing Ayodhya as a city holy to Hindus and the birthplace of Rama. He cited verses from two works composed by Tulsidas which, in his opinion, are relevant to the dispute. The first citation consisted of eight verses from a work called "Dohā Śataka", which describe the destruction of a temple and construction of a mosque at the disputed site in 1528 CE by Mughal ruler Babur, who had ordered General Mir Baqui to destroy the Rama temple, considered a symbol of worship by sanatana dharmi. The second citation was a verse from a work called "Kavitāvalī , which mentions a mosque. In his cross examination, he described in some detail the history of the Ramananda sect, its Mathas", rules regarding "Mahants", formation and working of "Akharas", and Tulsidas' works. Refuting the possibility of the original temple being to the north of the disputed area, as pleaded by the pro-mosque parties, he described the boundaries of the "Janmabhoomi" as mentioned in the "Ayodhya Mahatmya" section of Skanda Purana, which tallied with the present location of the disputed area, as noted by Justice Sudhir Agarwal. However, he stated that he had no knowledge of whether there was a  Ram Chabootra ("Platform of Rama") outside the area that was locked from 1950 to 1985 and where the "Chati Poojan Sthal" was, nor whether the idols of Rama, his brother Lakshmana, and Sita were installed at "Ram Chabootra" outside the "Janmabhoomi" temple. Multilingualism. Rambhadracharya is a scholar of 14 languages and can speak 22 languages in total, including Sanskrit, Hindi, English, French, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Oriya, Gujarati, Punjabi, Marathi, Magadhi, Awadhi, and Braj. He has composed poems and literary works in many Indian languages, including Sanskrit, Hindi, and Awadhi. He has translated many of his works of poetry and prose into  other languages. He delivers "Katha" programmes in various languages, including Hindi, Bhojpuri, and Gujarati. Institutes for the disabled. On 23 August 1996 Rambhadracharya established the Tulsi School for the Blind in Chitrakoot, Uttar Pradesh. He founded the Jagadguru Rambhadracharya Handicapped University, an institution of higher learning solely for disabled students, on 27 September 2001 in Chitrakoot. This is the first university in the world exclusively for those with disabilities. The university was created by an ordinance of the Uttar Pradesh Government, which was later passed as Uttar Pradesh State Act 32 (2001) by the Uttar Pradesh legislature. The act appointed  Swami Rambhadracharya as the lifelong chancellor of the university. The university offers graduate, post-graduate, and doctorate degrees in various subjects, including Sanskrit, Hindi, English, Sociology, Psychology, Music, Drawing and Painting, Fine Arts, Special Education, Education, History, Culture and Archeology, Computer and Information Sciences, Vocational Education, Law, Economics, and Prosthetics and Orthotics. The university plans to start offering courses in Ayurveda and Medical Sciences from 2013. Admissions are restricted to the four types of disabled students—visually impaired, hearing impaired, mobility impaired, and mentally impaired—as defined by the Disability Act (1995) of the Government of India. According to the  Government of Uttar Pradesh, the university is among the chief educational institutes for Information Technology and Electronics in the state. Rambhadracharya also founded an organisation called Jagadguru Rambhadracharya Viklang Seva Sangh, headquartered in Satna, Madhya Pradesh. Its goal is to create community awareness and initiate child development programmes in rural India. Its primary objective is to supplement the education programmes of Jagadguru Rambhadracharya Handicapped University by helping disabled children get a good education. Aid is generally given in the form of facilities which enable easier access to education. Rambhadracharya also runs a hundred-bed hospital in Gujarat. Critical edition of  Ramcharitmanas. The Ramcharitmanas was composed by Tulsidas in the late sixteenth century. It has been extremely popular in northern India over the last four hundred years, and is often referred to as the "Bible of northern India" by Western Indologists. Rambhadracharya produced a critical edition of the Ramcharitmanas, which was published as the Tulsi Peeth edition. Apart from the original text, for which Rambhadracharya has relied extensively on older manuscripts, there were differences in spelling, grammar, and prosodic conventions between the Tulsi Peeth edition and contemporary editions of the Ramcharitmanas. In November 2009, Rambhadracharya was accused of tampering with the  epic, but the dispute died down after Rambhadracharya expressed his regret for any annoyance or pain caused by the publication. A writ petition was also filed against him but it was dismissed. This edition was published in 2005 by Shri Tulsi Peeth Seva Nyas. Assassination threats. In November 2007 someone claiming to be an al-Qaeda member sent Rambhadracharya a letter telling him and his disciples either to accept Islam or to be prepared to die. Police superintendent Kamal Singh Rathore said that this letter had been sent from Haridwar, that Rambhadracharya's security arrangements had been increased and that  an intensive investigation of the letter had been carried out. Gita Devi, secretary of JRHU, said that Rambhadracharya had been threatened by al-Qaeda, as Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas president Nrityagopal had been in the past. In November 2014, Rambhadracharya received another assassination threat with a demand of "terror tax" over JRHU operations. Participation in 84-kosi yatra. On 25 August 2013, Rambhadracharya arrived at the Chaudhary Charan Singh Airport in Lucknow along with VHP leader Ashok Singhal. He was going to Ayodhya to take part in the "84-kosi yatra", a 12-day religious "yatra" which was banned by the  state government citing law and order reasons. It is alleged that the ban was due to opposition from Muslim organisations or vote-bank politics. Rambhadracharya's participation in the yatra was kept secret. Rambhadracharya was put under house arrest at the home of R C Mishra, his disciple and friend. On 26 August 2013, a local lawyer Ranjana Agnihotri filed a habeas corpus petition in the Allahabad High Court's Lucknow bench, on which judges Imtiyaz Murtaza and D K Upadhayaya passed the release order for Rambhadracharya, along with Singhal and Praveen Togadia. The petitioner's advocate H S Jain  said that even though Rambhadracharya and other leaders were arrested under the section 151 of the 1973 Criminal Procedure Code, which permits an arrest to prevent commission of cognisable offences, the custody period cannot exceed 24 hours unless any other section of the code or any other law is applicable. After his release, Rambhadracharya said that the government had creating misconceptions about the "yatra". Two days after the incident, Rambhadracharya was given Y-category security cover by the Uttar Pradesh government since he had reported security threats. "Hindustan Times" reported that this grant could be a possible attempt to  build bridges with the sadhus after the Sunday showdown. Government officials said that a high-powered committee will decide on the continuation of the security cover. JRHU vice-chancellor B Pandey said that Rambhadracharya met Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow and invited him to be the chief guest in a University function, and Yadav accepted the invitation. However, Yadav did not attend the function due to difficult circumstances, but sent the Energy Minister of State Vijay Mishra and Secondary Education Minister of State Vijay Bahadur Pal. Rambhadracharya was disappointed that Yadav could not "come for even 15  minutes for disabled children," and said that he will have atone for this. Works. Rambhadracharya has authored more than 100 books and 50 papers, including published books and unpublished manuscripts. Various audio and video recordings have also been released. His major literary and musical compositions are listed below. Prose. Sanskrit commentaries on Prasthanatrayi. Rambhadracharya composed Sanskrit commentaries titled "Śrīrāghavakṛpābhāṣyam" on the Prasthanatrayi scriptures – the Brahma Sutra, the Bhagavad Gita, and eleven Upanishads. These commentaries were released on 10 April 1998 by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, then Prime Minister of India. Rambhadracharya composed "Śrīrāghavakṛpābhāṣyam" on Narada Bhakti Sutra in 1991. He thus  revived the tradition of writing Sanskrit commentaries on the Prasthanatrayi. He also gave the Ramananda Sampradaya its second commentary on Prasthanatrayi in Sanskrit, the first being the "Ānandabhāṣyam", composed by Ramananda himself. Rambhadracharya's commentary in Sanskrit on the Prasthanatrayi was the first written in almost 500 years. Literary style. Rewa Prasad Dwivedi writes in his Sanskrit poem dedicated to Rambhadracharya that he is an encyclopaedia of learning whose literature is like numerous Narmadā rivers flowing out simultaneously, and in whose literary works Shiva and Parvati delight while performing Tandava and Lasya. Devarshi Kala Nath Shastry writes in his review  of Rambhadracharya's works that Rambhadracharya is an accomplished and eloquent poet who is the foremost among scholars and is also well-versed in all scriptures, and who even talks in extemporaneously composed poetry with Sanskrit scholars, usually in "Upajāti" metre. Rambhadracharya uses with great effect the "Daṇḍaka" style with Sanskrit adjectives in his speeches. Shastry recounts a use of a long sentence in the "Daṇḍaka" style at a speech in Jaipur in July 2003 by Rambhadracharya, in which one sentence with multiple adjectives lasted around seven minutes and was "replete with poetic beauty". Shastry writes that among Sanskrit poets , only Śrīharṣa (poet of "Naiṣadhīyacaritam") has been described as having such wonderful command over Sanskrit as Rambhadracharya has. Shastry critiqued the work "Śrībhārgavarāghavīyam" in the January 2003 issue of the Sanskrit monthly "Bhāratī". Shastry writes that the work has poetic excellence, variety of meters and dexterity of language which has not been seen hitherto in Sanskrit epics. Shastry finds the twentieth canto of the epic to be an excellent illustration of Sanskrit poetry in Prakrit verses, a style which was pioneered by Shastry's father. Dr. Brajesh Dikshit, Sanskrit scholar from Jabalpur, says that "Śrībhārgavarāghavīyam" combines the styles of three  previous Sanskrit epics – it has two leading characters like in Bhāravi's "Kirātārjunīyam", the poetic excellence and variety of prosodic metres is like in Śrīharṣa's "Naiṣadhīyacaritam", while the length and extent of the work is like the "Śiśupālavadham" of Māgha. Shastry also critiqued the work "Bhṛṅgadūtam", about which he says that it has many new usages ("Prayoga"s) not seen earlier in Sanskrit poetry. As per Shastry, new dimensions in Sanskrit literature are seen in the play "Śrīrāghavābhyudayam" where there are songs in the "Gīti" style, and Gītarāmāyaṇam which is an epic poem in the "Gīti" style of Gītagovindam by  Jayadeva. Dikshit writes that "Kubjāpatram" is a revival of the letter-poem ("Patrakāvya") genre in Sanskrit after 2000 years, and is the first work in Sanskrit literature whose lead character is disabled. Shastry says that rhyme ("Antyānuprāsa") is a distinguishing feature of Rambhadracharya's Sanskrit poetry. Shastry notes that another feature of Rambhadracharya's works is the devotion to motherland and patriotism, which is most evident in the poetic work "Ājādacandraśekharacaritam" on the life of Chandrashekhar Azad. Shastry says that this strong feeling of love towards motherland is reminiscent of old Sanskrit literature including Prithvi Sukta of Atharva Veda, various  Puranas including Bhagavata Purana, and also in the Sanskrit works of Swami Bhagavadacharya, a former Jagadguru Ramanandacharya. Dikshit says that the nationalistic play "Śrīrāghavābhyudayam" establishes Rambhadracharya as a successful playwright at a young age. Dikshit praises the aesthetics of the work "Śrīsītārāmakelikaumudī" saying that it represents all the six "Sampradāya"s of Indian literature ("Rīti", "Rasa", "Alaṅkāra", "Dhvani", "Vakrokti" and "Aucitya"), and that it is a unique work of Rambhadracharya when it comes to figures of speech. Dikshit says that this work places Rambhadracharya in the league of "Ritikavya" poets like Raskhan, Keshavdas, Ghananand and Padmakar; but observes the distinction that  while the works of all these poets are primarily in the Śṛngāra Rasa, "Śrīsītārāmakelikaumudī" is a work which has Vātsalya Rasa as the primary emotion, which is augmented by Śṛngāra Rasa. Dinkar notes that in the poems of Rambhadracharya, the three poetical styles of "Pāñcālī" (secondary figurative sense with short and sweet-sounding compounds), "Vaidarbhī" (with compounds and soft contexts and without many figures of speech) and "Lāṭī" (with precise contexts and without many figures of speech) are dominant. Rambhadracharya is widely popular in Chitrakoot. Atal Bihari Vajpayee considered Rambhadracharya to be an "immensely learned person well versed in Vedic  and Puranic literature besides the grammar", and commended his intelligence and memory. Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi said of Rambhadracharya that the "intense knowledge of the most revered is indeed adorable". Nanaji Deshmukh called Rambhadracharya "an astonishing gem of the country". Swami Kalyandev considered Rambhadracharya to be "an unprecedented intellectual and speaker, and an Acharya with great devotion". Somnath Chatterjee called him a "celebrated Sanskrit scholar and educationist of great merit and achievement". He is considered one of the greatest scholars on Tulsidas and Ramcharitmanas in India, and is cited as such. Ram Prakash Gupta and Keshari Nath Tripathi have stated  that Rambhadracharya has enriched society with his contributions and will continue to do so. Swami Ramdev considers Rambhadracharya to be the most learned person in the world at present. Rambhadracharya was a member of a delegation of saints and "Dharmacharyas" which met the then president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and the then union Home Minister Shivraj Patil in July 2005 to hand over a memorandum urging to strengthen the security arrangements for important religious places in the country. Abhiraj Rajendra Mishra said that Rambhadracharya is of a high-mind, has a stupendous grip on the Indian literature, and "his soul feels  the true pleasure in serving oppressed disabled people". Mata Prasad Pandey, the Speaker of Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly, said that Rambhadracharya has opened a door of development for those with disabilities in India, and that he has achieved what eminent industrialists and the government cannot do. Energy Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Uttar Pradesh Vijay Mishra termed Rambhadracharya as "most revered", whereas Uttar Pradesh's Secondary Education Minister of State Vijay Bahadur Pal called him the "chancellor of the utterly unique handicapped university." Rambhadracharya is also a member of the 51-members "Akhil Bharatiya Sant Ucchadhikar Samiti" (Empowered  Committee of the All India Saints). In November 2014, Rambhadracharya was one of the nine people nominated by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Clean India Campaign. In September 2014, Rambhadracharya adopted five villages of Chitrakoot, with an aim to construct toilets in all the households. Rambhadracharya was one of the guests in the inaugural International Yoga Day event in New Delhi. In 1992 Rambhadracharya led the Indian delegation at the Ninth World Conference on Ramayana, held in Indonesia. He has travelled to several countries, including England, Mauritius, Singapore, and the United States to deliver discourses on Hindu  religion and peace. He has been profiled in the "International Who's Who of Intellectuals". He was also one of the key figures of the "Dharma Prachar Yatra" at Detroit. Recognition, awards and honours. Recognition. Rambhadracharya was one of the spiritual and religious Gurus from India at the Millennium World Peace Summit, organised by the United Nations in New York City from 28 to 31 August 2000. While addressing the gathering, he gave Sanskrit definitions for the words "Bharata" (the ancient name of India) and "Hindu", and touched upon the Nirguna and Saguna aspects of God. In his speech on  Peace, he called for developed and developing nations to come together to strive for the eradication of poverty, the fight against terrorism, and nuclear disarmament. At the end of his speech, he recited the Shanti Mantra. Awards and honours. In 2015, Rambhadracharya was awarded Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian honour. Rambhadracharya has been honoured by several leaders and politicians, including A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, Somnath Chatterjee, Shilendra Kumar Singh, and Indira Gandhi. Several state governments, including that of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Himachal Pradesh have conferred honours on him. In 2021, he was also awarded with  Kendra Sahitya Academy Fellowship.