A third Sankaracharya, Swami Sadanand Saraswati of Shardapeeth in Dwarka, Gujarat, has said he would not attend the Ram temple consecration in Ayodhya because of its link to controversies and “anti-religious forces”.

Earlier, Swami Nishchalanand Saraswati and Swami Avimukteshwaranand — the Shankaracharyas of Jyotishpeeth (Uttarakhand) and Gowardhan Puri Peeth (Odisha) — had said they wouldn’t be at the event because the consecration of an unfinished temple flouted the scriptures. Nishchalanand had said that all four Shankaracharyas would decline the invitation.

“Worshipping is prohibited if a religious place is involved in a controversy and anti-religious forces overpower it,” Sadanand Saraswati told reporters at his ashram in Gujarat on Friday.

“The Ram temple movement has been going on for the last 500 years, and we had wanted it (the disputed land) handed over to Hindus. We visit Ayodhya for a spiritual power that exists there.

“But we fail to get that spiritual power when anti-religious elements take over such an area. The symbols of our culture should remain with spiritual people for the sake of their purity.”

He added: “All four Shankaracharyas have received the invitation but none is going to Ayodhya to attend the event on January 22.”

Like his peers, Sadanand Saraswati too said the scriptures were being ignored in connection with the consecration. “The puja should be conducted in keeping with the principles laid down in the Vedas,” he said.

Avimukteshwaranand has hit back at a remark by a member of the temple trust, who had reacted to the Shankaracharyas’ stand by saying the shrine belonged to the Ramanandi tradition and not sadhus or Shaivites.

“If so, then why had the trust demanded donations from us for the construction of the Ram temple and why did they accept money from us?” Avimukteshwaranand said on Thursday.

“We belong to the Sanatani tradition. I would also like to ask the member of the trust to step down immediately and hand over the temple to Ramanandi saints if it belongs to their tradition.”

Swami Bharati Teerth, Shankaracharya of Shringeri Peeth (Karnataka), has yet to make a statement on the subject.

According to the tradition of the Shankaracharyas, the world is an illusion and Brahm is the ultimate truth. The Ramanandis believe the world is the truth and that all their karma is to be done on the earth.