Category: Shankarite Institutions

I have recorded in these pages the facts as I observed them, out of a real desire for the search after the truth. I will be highly obliged if my readers communicate to me their kind criticism or correct any errors or send me additional valuable information.

– K. KUPPUSWAMIAH, Retired Deputy Collector.

Upanishad Ashrama, Nungambakkam, Madras.

Samvat 1993 (1936 A.D)

Kasi Vijaya Yatra of His Holiness Jagadguru Pujyasri Sankaracharya Swamiji of Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam

” In the last quarter of year 1934, I happened to be at Benares. My stay there synchronised with the historic visit of His Holiness Jagadguru Shri Shankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetha, to the holy city.

His Highness the Maharaja of Benares, who was at the head of the Reception Committee formed to welcome His Holiness, Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, all the Mahamahopadhyayas, other eminent scholars and indeed the entire public of that spiritual capital of our country, filled with joy, took every possible step to make the visit of the Acharya, hailing from distant Kanchi on foot, spiritually beneficial and advantageous to the Benares publlic.

Prior to the arrival of the Swamiji at Benares, the Maharaja took the opportunity to consult his court pandits and his palace library where a manuscript of the voluminous Shivarahasya was found, the 16th adhyaya of the 9th amsha of which deals with the Avatara of Shri Shankaracharya, as an amsha of Lord Shiva.

This Arsha Grantha referred to in the well known Smriti, ‘Nirnaya Sindhu’ as pramana, mentions the village ‘Shashala’, as the birthplace of Shri Shankaracharya.

Further it describes the origin and distribution of the five Sphatika Lingas and their pooja; and the Adhyaya ends with the Shloka:-

तद्योगभोगवरमुक्तिसुमोक्षयोगलिङ्गार्चनात्प्राप्तजयः स्वकाश्रमे । तान्वै विजित्य तरसाऽक्षतशास्त्रवादैर्मिश्रान् स काञ्च्यामथ सिद्धिमाप II

denoting Kanchi as to the Acharya’s Ashram and place of siddhi. The Maharaja perused also the past records relating to the institutions of Adi-Shankaracharya.

As a result he prepared a document with his seal and signature, as to what he felt, and placed it with his own hands at the feet of the Acharya of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetha on 1991 Tama Vikrama Samvat Magha Shukla Trayodashi at the annual Convocation of the Sanga Veda Vidyalaya, when all the pandits and leading citizens of Benares had assembled.

A portion of the Abhinandana Patra of the Maharaja is extracted below :-

This Sankarite institution belongs to the Urdhvamnaya division and follows Sama Veda. The presiding deities are “Nirajanesvara Mahadev and Bhadra Kali (Maya)”.

According to the Guruvamsa Kavya of Sringeri matha, Sri Sankara Bhagavadpada established five mathas while staying in Kashi. (However, names and location of these five mathas were not mentioned by Kashi Lakshmana Sastri, its author)

This matha has been under the royal patronage of His Highness The Maharaja of Benares. It was presided over by a Bengali dandi sanyasin during the last century.

The “Paduka Matha” is also known as “Sumeru Matha”. Many Acharyas have presided over the matha without any break since from its inception.

In an appeal issued on behalf of this Matha by some dandi-sanyasis, Mahamahopadhyayas and other respectable persons, the following statement appears :

” During His stay at the holy city of Kashi (Benares), Paramahamsa Parivrajakacharya Jagadguru Sri Adi Sankaracharya Maharaj established the Sumeru Math “…

Sri Sankaracharya visited this place which was then a thatched house belonging to a Maharashtra Brahmana. When the Acharya left the place, His followers there wanted some sacred object be left behind in His memory. The Acharya Blessed the disciple His divine Padukas which is worshipped there even today.

During the period of Lord Cornvallis, the Britishers were persecuting the then Raja of Benares, and the Raja had to run for his life. By chance he came to this matha. Being thirsty he wanted some water and the then presiding Acharya quenched his thirst and blessed him. Later the Raja regained his State and became a disciple of the matha and provided for Annual grants for the maintenance of the matha.

Guruparampara

i. Upanishad Brahmendra

ii. Vasudevendra Sarasvati

iii. Upanishad Brahmendra II – Commentator of 108 Upanishads. (Vasudevendra Sarasvati had two other Sishyas Krishnananda Sarasvati and Svayamprakasa Sarasvati)

iv. Rama Brahmendra Sarasvati (Disciple of Svayamprakasa Sarasvati author of Tatvasangraha Ramayana, Ramayana Tatvadarpana and various other works)

v. Anantananda Sarasvati

vi. Gnanendra Sarasvati

vii. Vasudevendra Sarasvati

viii. Brahmanendra Sarasvati

ix. Ishtasiddindra Sarasvati

X. Krishnanandendra Sarasvati

X. Anantanandendra Saraswati

Anantanandendra Sarasvati, author of Vedanta Sara Sangraha (Ramayana Printing Press, Madras) says that he is the sishya of one Mahadevendra Sarasvati who was the prasishya (grand disciple) of Upanishad Brahmendra Sarasvati.

He says that Mahadevendra Sarasvati had 10 sishyas of whom he was one and that he consecreted a Sivalinga at Virunchipuram.

(Source: Anantanandendra’s paper ms.)

Upanishad Brahmendra Matha is situated in Kanchipuram. Upanishad Brahmendra Sarasvati was a disciple of one Sri Vasudevendra Sarasvati. He was also known as Sri Ramachandrendra Sarasvati.

Upanishad Brahmenrda wrote commentaries on all the 108 Upanishads. He seems to have lived during the 18th century. At the end of the commentary on the Muktikopanishad, he says, he completed it on 17-12-1751. His writings come to about 45,000 granthas. His contributions to Advaita is voluminous.

In Benares there is a Sankarite institution called Brahmendra Matha in the Shivala Ghat. There is an inscription dated Vikrama Samvat 1941 Salivahana Saka 1806 (1884 C. E.) which refers to Sankaracharya, indicating thereby that a parampara of Sri Sankaracharya with “Indrapatta” existed in the 19th century at Benares. Visvanatha yatindra who is referred to in this inscription was a disciple of Sri Chandrasekharendra Sarasvati, the 64th Acharya Kanchi Kamakoti Matha.

There is a tradition in Benares that a sanyasi belonging to this Matha once visited Benares. At that time the Maharaja of Benares was suffering from some disease. The Sanyasi cured him of this disease. The Maharaja wanted to do something in acknowledgement of this help.

The Sanyasi wanted that a Matha may be constructed in Kasi for his stay. The Maharaja gave the necessary land for the Matha and the Matha was constructed, funds being given from the original Upanishad Brahmendra Matha. That is the Matha, now known as the Brahmendra Matha in Kasi.

Vasudeva Brahmendra Sarasvati of Upanishad Brahmendra Matha was the author of “Sastra Siddanta Lesa Tatparya Sangraha “.

According to the introduction to this book published in 1926 written by one Mayavaram Vaidyanatha Sastri, this Vasudeva Brahmendra Sarasvati was a disciple of one Krishnanandendra Sarasvati who was himself a disciple of Upanishad Brahmendra Sarasvati.

Ramabrahmendra, disciple of Svayamprakasendra Saraswati lived in Benares. He was the author of the work Ramabrahmendra Pancadashi.

Ramabrahmendra Panchadashi is a collection of various works compiled by Ramabrahmendra which includes Mathamnaya from Citsukhacarya’s Brihat Sankaravijaya, Sureswaracarya Sishya Parampara Stuti and Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Guruparamapara namamala, stava which was published by Kalpattu Guruswamy Sastry, in 1894.

In the introductory part of the above cited publication, it is mentioned that this had been regularly recited by the Sanyasi disciples of Kashi and the same was obtained from one Paramanandendra, who was residing in the Dandi Ghatta of Avimukta Kshetra (Kashi).

According to Gururatnamalika of Sadasiva Brahmendra (verse no.75) and the Sushama commentary on the same by Atmabodha, Vidyaranya, the disciple of Vidyatirtha, Peethadhipathi of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peeta – went to Mysore which was then in a state of confusion, established 8 branch mathas there, Virupaksha and Pushpagiri being two among them.

As regards these two mathas, Kokkandram Venkataratnam Pantulu, an adherent of Sringeri Matha in his Sankara Matha -Tatva- Prakasikartha-Sangraha quotes from the Mathamnaya recited in Pushpagiri Matha according to which Sri Vidyaranya went from Kanchi and installed Chandrasekhara Bharati at Sringeri. He also established a new Matha at Virupaksha where he installed Narasimha Bharati as the Head.

Another version about the origin of this Sankarite institution is as given below:

One of the successors of Narasimha Bharati in the Virupaksha Matha went on tour and on his way he reached Pushpagiri. He found that it was a convenient place for tapas and meditation and accordingly founded a matha there and himself stayed in that (Pushpagiri) Matha and sent one of his disciples to preside over the Virupaksha Matha.

In the Topographical list of inscriptions of the Madras Presidency, many records with names of Narasimha Bharati and Vidyasankara Bharati, the Gurus of Pushpagiri matha, are found. All these Grant’s were made to the Pushpagiri matha, only as an * independent religious institution* .

None of these records mention this matha as a shakha or branch matha of any other Sankarite institution.

In the cultural heritage of India two streams viz, Pravirtti and Nivritti based on the Vedas are flowing. For these two streams the original canal is Lord Siva in the form of Uma and Mahesvara. This form indicates the path or Pravirtti. For the path of Nivritti the form of Dakshinamurthy is the original source. In Northern India, when many temples were razed to the ground, during the Mughal period, the tradition of Dakshinamurthy came to fade.

From Bengal to Baluchi and Kashmir to Kerala, the upasana of Dakshinamurthy is observed to this day. Yet the scarcity of temples for external worship of Dakshinamurthy are very few.

His Holiness Satchidanandagiri has constructed a temple of Dakshinamurthy near the old temple of Siddhantha Mani where he himself meditated upon Dakshinamurthy. Probably this is the Advaita Mutt referred to as Dakshinamurthy Mutt, at Kasi.

The Guruparampara of Dakshinamurthy Mutt also called Dhruvesvara Mutt, Varanasi is as follows:

1. Managiri

2. Meghagiri

3. Ramagiri

4. Satchidanandagiri

5. Amarendragiri

6. Manishagiri

7. Ramananda Giri

8. Nrisimha Giri

9. Niranjana Giri

10. Krishnananda Giri

(Prepared from ‘Gandivam’-Chaitra Sukla Prathama, 24-3-1974 By Sri Anantananendra Saraswati)