Category: Miscellaneous

(A Sankarite institution in Narmada-theeram)

After successfully persuading His mother to permit Him to enter the ascetic order in order to save himself from the peril of being devoured by a crocodile which had caught hold of his foot, while bathing in the Curna, one day, and thereby delivering Himself from its clutches and thereof from worldly bonds as well, Sankaracharya travelled northwards in search of a proper preceptor.

In course of months, He reached the southern bank of the Narmada. In a cave on the river bank, He came in contact with Govinda Bhagavatpada, Who initiated Sankaracharya in the Mahavakyas and imparted to Him the Atmavidya during the course of Sankarachaya’s stay with the preceptor. It is believed that this event took place at a place near the Omkareshwar kshetra in Madhyapradesh. Some biographies give the place of meeting the preceptor as at Badri kshetra and some as at Varanasi.

Another interesting piece of information is found in the Hindi book ‘Narmada-parikrama (published at Allahabad).

According to this publication, the spot where Sankaracharya met His great preceptor is located on the southern bank of the river Narmada, near Kukud matha.

The relevant passage is as follows:-

” कुकुड्मठ: बोन्दर गाँम से करीब ६ मील श्री नर्मदा जी के दक्षिण तट में मचरार (गोमती) नदी – के किनारे डिंडीरी की सड़क के पास कुकुड़े मठ का स्थान है । इस स्थान में श्रीमान् स्वामी शंकराचार्यजी निर्मित रणमुक्तेश्वरनाथ का बहुत प्राचीन मन्दिर है । आजकल बहुजोर्ण दश में है …. लोक कहते हैं कि प्रतिदिन रात्रि को लाल आँखों वाला सर्प भगवान् शंकर की मूर्ति खे लिपट जाता है, और प्रातःकाल जला जाता है I”

[ Kukud Matha : About 6 miles away from the village of Bondar, on the bank of the Narmadā, near the river Macrar (Gomati), there is the spot of Kukud Math very near the Dinderi road….. Here is the very ancient temple of Ranamuktesvara constructed by Swami Sri Sankaracaryaji. It is now in a decadent condition. . . . . People say that every night a serpent with red eyes coils round the Sivalinga (in the temple) and goes away in the morning].

These details and the information found in the biographical sketches get confirmed by local tradition.

Many Biographies of Sri Sankara Bhagavadpada such as the Patanjali charitam, Prachina Sankara vijaya, Gururatnamalika, Madhaviya Sankaravijaya, Bhagavatpadabhyudayam etc., state that Sankaracharya’s preceptor Govinda Bhagavatpada was an avatara of Patanjali who in turn was none other than Adisesa, the thousand-headed serpent Couch of Visnu, in Human form.

On the basis the indication found in the above mentioned works and the popular traditional information about the serpent coming to Rina-muktesvara temple at Kukud Matha (as per the Narmada-Parikrama), some indologists fix the spot where Sankara met Govinda Bhagavatpapa as at the latter’s cave situated on the South bank of the Narmada near Kukud Matha.

The suffix “Matha” in the name of the village also suggests that Sankara Bhagavadpada, founder of several institutions, all over India, perhaps established the first one near the sacred place of His preceptor’s cave.

श्रीकांची कामकोटिपीठाधीश जगद्गुरु

श्रीशङ्करभगवत्पादानां गङ्गादितीर्थविजययात्रा।

Extract from the Pandita Patra Dated 8th October 1935.

It is well known that Rshyasringa was a sage of epic celebrity. As such, he ought to have lived long ages before Sankaracarya.

Rshyasringa in Ramayana

There can be no greater authoritative sources than the Ramayana and the Mahabharata regarding the location of the ashrama of the sage, Rshyasringa.

The following verses in Valmiki’s Ramayana will give the clue to the fact that Rshysringa belonged to the period of Dasaratha and that Rshyasringa’s abode was in Angadesa (modern Assam), whence Dasaratha took the sage to Ayodhya.

(a) Ramayana Balakanda – Canto IX:

“एतस्मिन्नेव कालेषु रोमपादः प्रतापवान्” – Verse 7

“ अङ्गेषु प्रथितो राजा भविष्यति महाबलः” – Verse 8

By this time, the mighty Romapada will be the renowned king of Angadesa.

“विभण्डकसुतं राजन्। सर्वोपायैरिहानय।

आनाय्य च महीपाल ऋश्यशृङ्गं सुसत्कृतम् ॥ ” – Verse 12

“प्रयच्छ कन्यां शान्तां वै विधिना सुसमाहितः । । ” – Verse 13

Sage Vasishta says to Dasaratha:-

“O king! Bring Rshyasringa, son of Vibhandaka, here, by all means. After having brought Rshyasringa, give Santa, the virgin, in marriage to him.”

Canto XI.

“पुत्रस्त्वङ्गाधिराजस्य रोमपाद इति श्रुतः तं स राजा दशरथो गमिष्यति महायशाः ।।” – Verse 4

“तं च राजा दशरथो यशस्कामः कृताञ्जलिः।।

ऋश्यशृङ्गं द्विजश्रेष्ठं वरयिष्यति धर्मवित्।।” – Verse 8

“Dasaratha shall go to Romapada, son of the king of Anga, and with folded hands pray for sending the great Brahmin, Rshyasringa”

“वसिष्ठेनाभ्यनुज्ञातो राजा संपूर्णमानसः ।

सान्तःपुरस्सहामात्याः प्रययौ यत्र स द्विजः ।। – Verse 14

अभिचक्राम तं देशं यत्र वै मुनिपुङ्गवः ।

आसाद्य तं द्विजश्रेष्ठं रोमपादसमीपगम्।।” – Verse 15

Having been permitted by Vasishtha, King Dasaratha, with the ladies of the harem, and with his ministers, started for the place where that Brahmin and great sage (Rshyasringa) lived. Having got near that Brahmin, who was near Romapada.

According to the further verses in the epic, Dasaratha requested the King of Angadesa to send sage Rshyasringa to Ayodhya for the Vedic sacrifice that Dasaratha had arranged for.

Rshyasringa in Mahabharata

The story of Rshyasringa is narrated in chapters 87, 88 and 89 of the Teerthayatra section of the Aranyakanda of the Mahabharata.

In verse 22 of chapter 87, Lomasa tells Yudhishthira that Visvamitra’s hermitage shines on the bank of the sacred river, Kausiki.

The next verse states that the abode of the great sage, Kasyapa, known as Punyashrama, is also there, and points to it as also the residence of the tapasvin Rshyasringa.

The relevant verses are:

लोमश:-

“येवा देवी महापुण्या कौशिकी भरतर्षभ ।

विश्वामित्राश्रमो रम्य एष चात्र प्रकाशते ॥

आश्रमश्चैव पुण्याख्यः काश्यपस्य महात्मनः ।

ऋश्यशृङ्गस्सुतो यस्य तपस्वी संयतेन्द्रियः ॥”

Verse 40 of the same chapter states that Romapada is the King of Angadesa. In the tenth verse of chapter 88, Rshyasringa enquires the leader of the damsels (sent by Romapada to entice sage Rshyasringa and bring him to the royal court), as to where the damsel leader’s residence is In the next verse (11), the leader of the damsels informs the sage that her abode is only three yojanas from the other side of the hill, seen near (near Rshyasringa’s hermitage).

The pertinent line runs as follows:

‘ममाश्रमः काश्यपपुत्र रम्यस्त्रियोजन शैलमिमं परेण ।”

The word Yojana’, according to standard lexicons, is a measure of distance equal to 48,000 feet, or roughly 9.09 miles.

Hence, according to the line quoted above, Rshyasringa’s hermitage should have been situated only about 27.21 miles away from the capital of Romapada, the King of Anga, according to the Mahabharata.

Thus, both the Great Epics clearly indicate that Rshyasringa’s ashrama had existed in north-eastern India, somewhere on the border of Angadesa (modern Assam). Kshetras, Asramas or temples with Rshyasringa’s name are also found in Bihar, Chhattisgarh (Shihawa), Himachal pradesh, Karnataka, Tamilnadu and Puducherry (Kottucherry)

(Source: B.Krishnan)

Alluri Kuppanna ( Andhra Kaldasa) : 18th century Telugu poet, son of Venkatesa and Narasamambika, an inhabitant of the region bordering on the Krishna river.

From his infancy he studied Telugu and Sanskrit and in due time became a poet of considerable merit. He travelled through various countries.

Later he became a pupil of Kasturi Rangayya, a great poet and head of the French peons in Trichinopoly and composer of many odes on his French masters.

Alluri Kuppanna migrated to the Tanjore Mahratta kingdom. He also became an asthana vivian in Rajesri Tulajaji Maharaja’s (1763-1787) palace darbar.

Alluri Kuppanna, translated the Sankara Vijaya of Anandagiri into Telugu (Acharya Vijayamu). In appreciation of his great work, King Tulajaji, conferred the worthy title of ‘Andhra Kalidasa’ .

Alluri Kuppana wrote many works of which may be mentioned Panchanada Sthalapurana, Yakshaganas of the Ramayana and Bhagavata stories, Parama Bhagavata Charitra, Indumati Parinaya and Karmapaka.

Cauvelly Venkata Ramaswamie, in his 1828 publication, The Biographical Sketches of Deccan Poets says,”The Telugu Translation of Anandagiri’s Sankaravijayam, Andhra Kalidasa Kavi’s Acharya Vijayamu is still in existence and extensively circulated in the Telugu country.”

(Contd.) Further even today there exists a Matha by name Sumeru Matha (also known as Paduka Matha) in Varanasi.

It has a distinct code (Mathamnaya) of its own. In an appeal for funds, for carrying out repairs of the Matha issued on behalf of this institution several years ago, it is stated that during his stay at the holy City of Kasi Paramahamsa Parivrajakacharya Jagadguru Adi Sankaracharya Maharaj established the Sumeru Math.’

Among the signatories in this appeal the names of the Heads of the Omkar Matha and Dattatreya Matha, the Mahants of the Visvesvar and Annapurani Temples, four distinguished scholars with the title of Mahamahopadhyaya, the Private Secretary of the Maharajah of Benares, many other Scholars, Officers, Zamindars etc., are seen.

In this connection it may be remembered that in Mathamnayas, the Matha for Urdhvamnaya is given as Sumeru Matha’, its Sampradaya as Kashi Sampradaya and kshetra (location) as Kaivalya-Kshetra (meaning thereby the place of liberation-Kashi being the foremost of the seven sacred cities of liberation or Mokshapuris of our land).

Among the other details given in Mathamnaya works occur the phrases: ‘शुकवामदेवादि – जीवन्मुक्तानां सुसंवेदप्रपठनं etc.

Some of ancient title records of the Vanjiyur Sri Viswanatha Swamy Devasthanam estates belonging to the Kanchi Matha, evidence the existence of a Branch matha of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetha in the Hanuman Ghat,

Kashi and also the details of the mahant (sanyasi disciple) who was the in charge of the Varanasi Branch matha (also known as Sukadeva Matha).

With the laudable idea of fittingly commemorating the stay of Sri Sankara Bhagavadpada in the Holy Varanasi, the spiritual capital of Bharat, Sri Sankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Moolamnaya Sarvajna Peetha performed the Kumbhabhishekam of the newly constructed Kamakotisvara and Panchayatana Mandir at Kashi on 28th January 1974.