Motivational speaker 'Maha Vishnu' ‘karma, rebirth’ remarks at Chennai schools spark controversy

Motivational speaker Maha Vishnu faced backlash after commenting on “rebirth and karma” at two government schools in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

A motivational and spiritual speaker, “Maha Vishnu”, faced backlash after making comments on “rebirth and karma” at two government schools in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, and allegedly blaming the children for their difficulties. His speech, delivered on Teachers' Day (September 5), prompted the state government to take action.

Two government schools in Chennai invited Maha Vishnu, who runs an NGO, to deliver a motivational speech on the occasion of Teachers’ Day (HT file)

The controversy sparked when Maha Vishnu used the school setting to make “religious remarks” and engaged in a heated exchange with a differently abled teacher who challenged his statements.

Members of the DYFI and SFI held a protest questioning the School Education Department for allowing spiritual awakening classes in state-run schools at Saidapet and Ashok Nagar. They also called for action against the speaker from the Paramporul Foundation, an NGO, which organised the classes.

What did he say?

In his speech, Maha Vishnu blamed the British for systematically destroying Gurukulams and claimed that by chanting certain mantras, one could cause a rain of fire, cure ailments, and even fly.

“All these were written as scriptures by our ancestors, but the British erased them,” Maha Vishnu purportedly said in a video that went viral.

“If God was kind, everyone should be born equal. One is born rich or poor, a criminal or a hero. Why such differences? You have been given in this life based on what you did in your previous birth,” he had said. To this, a teacher objected and said, in the video, that he was invited for a motivational talk and not spiritual discourse on school premises. This led to an argument with Maha Vishnu who accused him of having “ego issues,” he said.

State School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi promised to take action against the speaker for his controversial speech at a government school.

The two government schools that invited Maha Vishnu for a motivational talk also faced criticism. Vishnu reportedly used the school setting to criticise the students and confronted a differently-abled teacher who challenged his religious comments.

Tamil Nadu CM Stalin and other leaders react

Amid the ongoing controversy, Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin reiterated his commitment to promoting education and fostering scientific thinking, a message he has consistently delivered at various events over the past three years. “Science is the way to progress,” Stalin stated in a post on the social media platform X on Friday.

Stalin also announced that he had ordered the creation and implementation of new guidelines to regulate various school programmes across Tamil Nadu. This move aims to ensure that all students, who represent the future generation, are exposed to progressive scientific ideas and lifestyles.

Congress MP from Karur, Jothimani, condemned the incident, saying that it undermines the government's ideological efforts. “The government must act against whoever invited and allowed him to speak against the scientific temper, the very basic foundation of our education system, and humiliate the teacher who asked the right question,” she wrote in a post on X.

Congress MP Karti P Chidambaram also took to X saying, “Distressing to see a charlatan peddle gobbledygook in a government school in Tamil Nadu.”

Meanwhile, a source from the School Education Department, quoted by PTI, revealed that the principals of the two schools who invited Maha Vishnu have been transferred, and a departmental inquiry is underway.

BJP reacts

Tamil Nadu BJP state vice-president Narayanan Thirupathy questioned why the school principal was transferred despite her clarification that the lecture was intended to motivate students and did not include any religious remarks. Thirupathy criticised the minister's action against the principal, saying it was based on social media posts and was “not only ridiculous but also reprehensible.”

“Without knowing that spirituality is science, the Tamil Nadu government is supporting the inimical forces that are sowing anti-Hindu thoughts in the name of rationality,” he said in a post on the social media platform X, urging the government to revoke the transfer order against the principal.

In a separate post, Narayanan questioned whether the Indian Constitution prohibited discussions on spirituality in government schools.