Mangaluru: Sri Kshetra Dharmastala Dharmadhikari D Veerendra Heggade on Tuesday said spirituality and social service cannot be separated.

During the felicitation on the occasion of 50th Vardyantyutsava of his Pattabhisheka in Dharmasthala, Heggade said. “If you ask me how I mix spirituality with social service, my answer is simple — both should be parallel. If you want to offer prayers to god, we have to serve society too. Hence, spirituality and social service are not different qualities.”

Quoting Shivarama Karanth, Heggade said, “It is not years that count in one’s life, but the contribution one makes that creates an impression. The golden age is before us, not behind us. Hence, we should consider that our golden age has just started.”

He said, “For me, the position of Dharmadhikari is everything and the rest comes because of the inspiration derived from it. I never considered this position a burden but a responsibility. Those who are with me play a major role in all my endeavours.”

Heggade said a school will be built in Mangaluru on 7 acres donated by a devotee Ramakrishna Mallya. “I was really not aware about today’s programme. The felicitation committee planned it very secretly. They did not tell me exactly what they planned. I’m happy that a large number of people have gathered here,” he said.

Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala, the land of righteousness and piety, is one of south India’s most renowned religious landmarks with a history as old as 800 years. Manjunatheshwara, the chief deity, has taken the form of a Shivalinga. Lord Manjunatheshwara is worshipped in an unusual manner as Vaishnava priests conducts the rituals and it’s administered by Jain descendants.

Dharmasthala, the abode of dharma, is considered the quintessence of humanity and faith. The temple is located 75km from Mangaluru, is famous for ‘anna daana’ and a large number of devotees from various parts of the nation and abroad visit it regularly.

Modi to visit Dharmastala on October 29

He will have darshana of Lord Manjunatha at Sri Kshetra Dharmastala at 11am and attend a programme organized by the Shri Kshethra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project (SKDRDP) at Ratnavarma Heggade Stadium in Ujire at noon. He’ll symbolically launch the distribution of RuPay Cards to Self-Help Group members enrolled for the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) through SKDRDP.
L H Manjunath, executive director, SKDRDP, said SKDRDP workers helped 12 lakh SHG members to open PMJDY accounts at their own premises. The Prime Minister will symbolically transfer RuPay cards to women who will then conduct banking transactions in the MICRO ATMs on the dais during the programme.

Immediately thereafter, the entire gathering will show their RuPay cards as proof of having received and operated their own RuPay cards, Manjunath said.