BHOPAL, INDIA, January 11, 2012 (Hindustan Times): As the Madhya Pradesh government prepares to create a Guinness world record with thousands of school students performing the yogic exercise, Surya Namaskar, on January 12, Muslim leaders have termed bowing before the sun un-Islamic and idolatrous. Top clerics in the state issued a fatwa against Surya Namaskar on Tuesday.
Alleging that Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s government was gently and insidiously saffronising education in MP, the Muslim leaders said if the government went ahead with its mass Surya Namaskar, they would approach the court. But state school education minister Archana Chitins said participation in the mass Surya namaskar was voluntary.
“Surya Namaskar is a healthy yogic exercise. And we are not imposing it. It is not mandatory for all. Those who don’t want to participate, are most welcome to drop out. Surya Namaskar is a healthy exercise which has been ratified by scientists and health experts across the world. We want children to adopt a healthy lifestyle. That is our only aim here.”
However, the Muslim leadership said Islam did not give them permission to bow before any picture or three-dimensional object. Muslims leaders from various organisations, who jointly held a press meet in Bhopal on Tuesday under the banner of Coordination Committee for Indian Muslims Unit, Madhya Pradesh, urged Muslim students not to participate in the “un-Islamic” event.
State government has issued guidelines to all joint directors of school education and district education officers to ensure the success of the Surya Namaskar event. The state government is aiming for a world record for the largest aerobics demonstration (multi-location). Currently, Kazakhstan holds the record for the largest aerobics demonstration (multi-location) in which 4,845,098 people participated.