Vedas and Adi Sankara - Part 8 By Sri.Sri.Muralidhara Swamiji.

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Dear Members,

 

Sankara was born to the couple Aryamba-Siva

Guru.Periyava has said that these people belonged to

dakshina kshetra who had migrated to Kaladi because

Siva Guru is the name of a deity in Kumbakonam. So

Siva Guru must have gone from here. And Arya is the

name of Goddess Kamakshi. Mooka has first sung ‘Arya

Shatakam’. It is from Dravida desam they must have

moved to Kerala, which is Parasurama kshetra. Many

have thus migrated to Kerala for, we find that many

names found in Tamizh Nadu are also found in Kerala,as

also a lot of Tamizh culture and traditions are found

in Kerala. Monsoon is very strong and continuous in

Kerala so much so that some of them found it difficult

to live in such a changed atmosphere. So they returned

to Tamizh nadu. But these people still wear ‘poorva

sigai’ (tuft on their forehead) as per Kerala

tradition.

 

The couple Siva Guru-Aryamba was childless for a long

time. So, they performed ghee abhisheka to

Vadakkunatha swami in Trissur as there was a belief

that one was blessed with a child with ‘nei

(ghee)abhishek’ to this God. They spent that night in

the temple precincts and they each had a dream. Lord

Siva appeared to both of them in their dream and

declared that He Himself would be born to them as

their son.They were both filled with joy. In the

morning when each eagerly wished to tell the other

about the dream,to their surprise they found that both

of them had had the same dream. Achãrya (Sankara) has

shown his bhakti for his mother in his slokas by

including a line with her name ‘Arya mahãsevita’ - One

worshipped by Arya.

 

A son was born to the couple. The child was very

lustrous (‘Maha tejasvi’). The Child was named

Sankara. Sankara was the name given to Him and it

stayed so. After a time the father Siva Guru passed

away. ‘Upanayana’ was conducted for the child at the

appropriate time and he was given Veda adhyayana. The

child was taught ‘Shastra abhyãs. The death of the

father brought the realization to the child that life

was temporal in nature. He felt that he should attain

the purpose of his birth. There was a Krishna temple

on the banks of the Purna river. This was their family

deity. This is near the old Sringeri Mutt. Everyday

Sankara worshipped this Krishna. While he first

composed a sloka on Krishna He sang -‘Mama kulapati’.

 

Sankara used to bathe daily in this river Purna. His

glory (‘Prabhãva’) comes out when he turned the course

of the river and made it flow near his home as his

sick mother was unable to walk up to the river! Such

was his tapas. The mother was wonder struck. After the

completion of the studies of the Vedas while still in

Brahmachari ashram he carried on the practice that

pertains to this ashrama. So, he begged for food at

doorsteps. A brahmachari should beg for his food. It

is not so for a householder who can take ‘unchavridhi’

if he desires to. By the very call, “Bahuti Bhikshãm

dehi!” or “Bhikshãm bahuti dehi!” the householder

knows who is at the door - a brachmachri (the former

call) or a sanyasi (the latter call). This is because

a brahmachari can be offered either cooked food or

rice and grains whereas a Sanyasi who is forbidden to

light fire can be offered only cooked food.

 

One day Sankara stood at the door of a very poor woman

and called out, “Bahuti Bhikshãm dehi!” The hostess

saw the ‘Maha Tejasvi’ child. She yearned to offer

something to the divinely charming child. But,alas!

There was not a grain in the house! The divine child

knowing the woman’s plight and with a desire to bless

her called out, “Mother! I have obtained rice but I

need some dish to go with it. Please offer anything

that is available at home”. This brahmachari needs no

side dish but it is only to bless the woman such a

request was made. She searched the ‘empty’ pots and

found a ‘goosebury’ kept aside for ‘dwãdasi’ (12th day

after the full/new moon when one consumes food after a

day of fast on ‘Ekãdasi’ - 11th day after the full/new

moon) ‘pãranai’. With deep embarrassment and tears in

her eyes the woman dropped this into the child’s

begging (‘bhiksha’) bowl. The pleased child

immediately sang, “Angam Harerpulakabhushanam

ãsrayanti; Bringãnganeva mukulãbharanam tamãlam”

(Kanakdãra stotra) on Goddess Lakshmi and it rained

golden gooseburies in the courtyard of the woman’s

house! Even today people of this lineage live in

Kaladi. Such was the glory of Sankara even in His

childhood.

 

!!! Will Continue !!!

 

Regards

 

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

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