“..This book tells us how Sri Sankaracharya wandered all over India and set up at cardinal points of the country monastic institutions which would protect the spiritual interests of the people. Amongst the five institutions, namely, Badri in the Himalayas, Puri in the East, Dwaraka in the West, Sringeri and Kanchi in the South, the Mutt in Kanchipuram has assumed greater importance for the reason that today, the Mutt has got three figure heads, who are Acharya and Guru in their own right, Sri Paramacharya, a living God, Sri Jagadguru Jayendra Saraswathi, a path finder and a leader of new heights and Balaguru, an emblem of renascence and purity.
Before reading this book, I had heard and believed that Mandan Mishra from Mahishmathi (Mahishi in Bihar) came all the way with Sri Jagadguru Sankaracharya to Kanchi and lived to be recognised as one of the foremost disciples of the Jagadguru.”
Extract of the joint declaration made in Tunga Sringeri on June 27, 1993 by the Sankaracharyas of the five Peethas:
“Sri Adi Sankara Bhagavatpadacharya, incarnation of. Lord Parama shiva; took birth at Kalady to revive the Sanatana dharma–the eternal law–and preached the Advaita philosophy touring in all the directions of our country. He appealed to everyone to restore and foster the ideals of dharma and spirituality of this great land which alone would secure the well-being of humanity.
There are many points with regard to the date and life of Sri Adi Sankara that we are not in agreement: However, we do not want to discuss these issues now. We also direct our devotees not to give room for discussion on these issues in future. We deem it right to have discussion on other subjects where we have unanimity. Keeping in mind the prevailing situation in the country and the need to give a unanimous call and direction to all believers…”
The manuscripts of the Madhaviya Sankara Vijaya available at the Madras Government Oriental Manuscripts Library and the Adyar and the Tanjore Libraries have two additional slokas in the beginning after the first sloka and these two verses are found missing in the printed editions.
From these slokas, we learn that the teacher of Madhava, the author of Sankshepa Sankarajaya was one Mahesvara who certainly is not known as Vidyaranya’s teacher.
Why are the modern printed editions of the Madhaviya Sankaravijaya missing these verses? Let the adherents of those institutions propagating Madhaviya and Mathamnaya answer.
Images: Temple at Tiruvaikavur – Bilvaranya (the Birth-place of Sri Vidyateertha Swami, the 51st Peethadhipati of Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetha) near Kumbakonam. After reigning at the Kanchi Sri Kamakoti Peetha for 73 years, this Acharya went to Himalayas to perform tapas. After spending 15 years in tapas Sri Vidyatirtha Swami attained videha mukti there.
படங்கள்: கும்பகோணத்திற்கருகிலுள்ள ஸ்ரீகாஞ்சீ காமகோடி பீடம் 51வது ஆசார்யர் ஸ்ரீவித்யாதீர்த்த ஸ்வாமிகள் அவர்களின் ஜன்ம ஸ்தானமான வில்வாரண்யம் எனப்படும் திருவைகாவூரிலுள்ள கோயில். ஸ்ரீகாஞ்சீ காமகோடி பீடத்தின் ஜகத்குரு ஆசார்யாள் அவர்களாக 73 ஆண்டுகள் அருளாட்சி செய்த இந்த அருளாளர் ஹிமாலயம் சென்று 15ஆண்டுகள் தவம் செய்து நிறைவாக அங்கேயே விதேஹகைவல்யம் அடைந்தனர் என்பது வரலாறு.
It is believed that Parasurama after his surrender to Rama, prince of Ayodhya, came down to the South and was instrumental in colonising the Kerala region with Tamilians.
It seems quite probable that another migration of Tamilians to Kerala did take place in the middle of the first millenium before Christ. Even now there are some villages around Tiruchur and Kaladi with names similar to those of certain villages near Sivapuram. Some of these are:- Mathur, Sedinipuram, Chandrasekharapuram, Karukkudy (Marudanallur-called in Kerala ‘Karukkurry’.”). Names of places such as Alathur, Tiruvaloor ( Tiruvarur), Tiruvangad (Tiruvenkadu) are also found in the Chera country. There as is also a place called ‘Kandiyur’ in Kerala. Kandiyur is the name of a village about 20 miles west of Kumbhakonam.
It is evident that the very name ‘Kaladi’ given to Sankara’s birth place is a Tamil name. Perhaps the place got the name ‘Kaladi’ after the advent of Sankara. Sankara is also known by the epithet ‘Bhagavatpada’. ‘Pada’ signifies ‘foot’ and ‘Kaladi’ means ‘footstep’.
Ancient literary works like the ‘Sivarahasya’ indicate that Sankara was born in a village known as ‘Sasalagrama’.
Hence it can be concluded that ‘Kaladi’ is a Tamil name and a later name. Sivaguru, Sankara’s father was a native of Kaladi. Perhaps Sivaguru’s parents gave their only child the name ‘Sivaguru’ after the name of the Lord of Sivapuram (near Kumbhakonam) which might have been the ancestral home of their forebears.
That settlers in new lands generally named their new colonies after their original native places is borne out by history. Protestant emigrants to the coasts of North America from the time of Elizabeth Tudor till the time of George III, named their new settlements in America, after their original homes in England, with a prefix ‘New’ in certain cases. There is a city ‘York’ in England and one ‘New York’ in America, as also a ‘Plymouth’ in England and a ‘New Plymouth’ in America. In both England and America there are towns called Ports mouth, Halifax etc. And one can find names of certain villages with almost identical names in Tamilnadu and Andhra Pradesh.
Alwaye and Alavai
There is a river flowing near Kaladi called ‘Alwaye’ (called ‘Choorna’ or ‘Poorna’ in olden times). On her bank there is a town also ‘Alwaye’. There is a river flowing through the city of Madurai (in Tamil Nadu), known by the name ‘Vaikai’ (pro- bably a later nickname as per Tiruvilayadal Puranam), having its source very near that of the river Alwaye.
It may be mentioned that the city of Madurai is known in Tamil classics as ‘Tiru Alavay” (“Tiru’ being only a prefix denoting sacredness). And we have a Sanskrit name for Madurai in an almost similar sounding- word-“Halasya”.
Similarity of the name of a town in Kerala with the classical name of a town in Tamil Nadu provides another indication of the migration of Tamilians to Kerala.
Sage Vyasa reduced the essence of the Upanishads into aphorisms, known as Brahmasutras. Sankara Bhagavatpada was the first to produce a superb gloss on the Vyasa-sutras.
It is quite common knowledge that Sankara was born at Kaladi, in Kerala. All biographical sketches about Sankara state that his father, Sivaguru, performed penance at the sacred Tiruchivaperur (modern Tiruchur) for an offspring.
About two miles and a half to the south east of Kumbhakonam there is a village called ‘Tiru- chivapuram’. Puranas as also Tevaram hymns record Sivapuram as a sacred spot where Vishnu in the form of a white boar (Varaha) has worshipped Siva. Tirunavukkarasar”, Jnanasambandar¹ and Arunagiri- nathar have extolled the shrine at Sivapuram.
A small sculptural representation of Varaha (boar) worshipping a Siva Lingam is seen on the Sivapuram southern wall (outside) of the sanctum sanctorum of the Sivapuram temple.
The outer Gopuram (tower on gateway) of this temple seems to be pretty old. There is an old Champaka tree in the front part of the temple, in accordance with one of the below mentioned lines (2), about this shrine, in Tevaram.
A stone plaque on the left side of the main entrance gives the name of the temple as “The Temple of Sivagurunathar.” And the name of the presiding Sivalingam in the temple is ‘Sivagurunatha’ according to the Sthalapurana and ancient tradition.
It is notable that the name of ‘Sivagurunatha’ and its curtailed form ‘Sivaguru’, are quite common and widespread among saivites in and around Kumbakonam.
And it is to be remembered that Sankaracharya’s father too bore the name ‘Sivaguru’. But this name is not quite so common around Tiruchur or Kaladi as in the Kumbhakonam area of the Kaveri Delta region.
This passage is an extract of an article dtd. 01.4.1935, by Sri Ramapati Misra, President of the Bombay branch of the Varnasrama Svarajya Sanga, in Hindi.
In the second paragraph, the Author states that among the Sankaracharya Pithas with Dasnami Ascetics as their Heads, Five Pithas have been famous from the beginning.
(Sri Sankaracharya And Sankarite Institutions By Sri Anantanandendra Saraswati of Sri Upanishad Brahmendra Matha)
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.
