161st birth anniversary of Sree Narayana Guru

About Sree Narayana Guru

• 1854 – 1928 - social reformer. 
• credited with transforming the social fabric of Kerala and changing the beliefs of keralites in ways unimaginable at that point in time.
• born into an Ezhava family in an era when people from such communities (Avarnas) faced social injustice in the caste-ridden society of Kerala.
• led a reform movement in Kerala
• rejected casteism
• stressed the need for the spiritual and social upliftment of the downtrodden by their own efforts through the establishment of temples and educational institutions.
• In the process, he denounced the superstitions that clouded the fundamental Hindu cultural convention of caste.
• preached the ‘oneness’ of humanity, crossing the boundaries of caste and creed.
• Aravippuram movement - In 1888, he installed an idol of siva at Aravippuram in Kerala in his effort to show that the consecration of god’s image was not a monopoly of the brahmins.  
• The above event also inspired many socio religious reform movements in the south including Temple Entry Movement.