Grace of Sankara Incarnate

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Namami Sankaraachaaryam, sarvalokaika Poojitham

 

With permission blessings and grace from HH Swamy Vijeyendra

Saraswathi garu of Shri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham Paramacharya and

miracles

 

Grace of Sankara Incarnate

Dr. T.M.P. Mahadevan

Any one who has read the works of Sri Sankara would certainly want to

know what sort of a person the great Master was. In all this

extensive writings he nowhere makes any reference to himself.

The outlines of the story of Sankara's life could be gathered only

from the Sankara-Vijayas and other narratives. In spite of varying

accounts in regard to some of the details, the image of the Master

that one forms from these sources, taking into account also the grand

teachings that are to be found in his own works, is that of a great

spiritual leader who renounced all worldly attachments even as a boy

who was a prodigy in scriptural lore and wisdom, who spent every

moment of his life in the service of the masses of mankind by placing

before them, thought precept and practice, the ideal of the life

divine, and who was a teacher of teachers, the universal Guru. Even

as such a magnificent image is being formed, the doubt may arise in

the minds of many: Is it possible that such a great one walked this

earth? Is it possible that in a single ascetic frame was compressed

several millennia of the highest spiritual human history?

This doubt is sure to be dispelled in the case of those who have had

the good fortune of meeting His Holiness Jagadguru Sri

Chandrasekharendra Sarasvati, the sixty-eight Acharya in the hallowed

line of succession of Sankaracharyas to adorn the Kamakoti Pitha of

Kanchi. Anyone who comes into the august presence of His Holiness

cannot but recall to his mind the image of Adi Sankara, the

immaculate sage who was divine and yet human, whose saving grace was

universal in its sweep, and whose concern was for all-even for the

lowliest and the last. For sixty-three years Sri Chandrasekharendra

Sarasvati has been fulfilling the noble spiritual mission entrusted

by Adi Sankara to his successors bearing his holy name. Numerous are

the way in which he has given the lead for human up-liftment through

inner awakening. When one considers his life of ceaseless and

untiring dedication to the task of stabilizing and promoting the

renascent spirit of India so that humanity may be benefited thereby,

one cannot but conclude that it is the unbounded Grace of Sankara

that has assumed this new form in order to move the world one step

higher on the ladder to universal perfection.

'Chandrasekarendra Sarasvati' is the Sannyasa name given to

Swaminathan when he was barely thirteen. It was the 20th of May,

1894, that Swaminathan was born in Villupuram (South Arcot District).

His father, Subrahmanya Sastri, belonged to the Hoyasala Karnataka

Smart Brahmana family which had migrated years earlier to the Tamil

Country and had settled in Chola-desa. Subrahmanya Sastri served as a

teacher for some time, and then entered the Educational Service. At

the time of Swaminathan's birth, he was at Villupuram. Swaminathan's

mother Mahalakshmi, hailed from a family belonging to Icchangudi, a

village near Tiruvaiyaru. An illustrious and saintly person connected

with the family, Raja Govinda Dikshita of the Sixteenth century, was

minister to the first Nayak King of Tanjavur. Dikshita, popularly

known as Ayyan, was responsible for many development projects in

Chola territory; his name is still associated with a tank, a canal,

etc. (Ayyan Canal, Ayyan Kulam)

Swaminathan was the second child of his parents. He was named

Swaminathan after the Deity of the family, the Lord Swaminatha of

Swamimalai. Two incidents relating to this early childhood period are

recorded by the Acharya himself in an article contributed to a

symposium on What life has taught me.

Reflecting on these experiences, the Acharya observes with

characteristic humility: " I am prone to come to the conclusion that

there lives none without predominantly selfish motives. But with

years rolling on, an impression, that too a superficial one true to

my nature, is dawning upon me that there breathe on this globe some

souls firmly rooted in morals and ethics who live exclusively for

others voluntarily forsaking, not only their material gains and

comforts but also their own sadhana towards their spiritual

improvement. "

In the year 1900, Swaminathan was in the first standard in a school

at Chidambaram. Sri M. Singaravelu Mudaliyar, the Assistant Inspector

of Schools, visited the school on an inspection and discovered in the

boy the makings of a genius. He asked him to read the Longaman's

English Reader prescribed for a higher standard: and Swaminathan read

it remarkably well. At this instance Swaminathan was promoted to the

third standard.

The Upanayanam of the boy was performed in 1905 at Tindivanam to

which place Subrahmanya Sastri had been transferred. It is

significant that the sixty-sixth Sankaracharya of Kamakoti Pitha, Sri

Chandrasekharendra Sarasvati, who was at the time touring in South

Arcot District, sent His blessing; and it was he that later on

literally captivated the boy, and chose him as successor to the holy

seat; and it is also significant that Swaminathan came to bear the

sannyasa name of the sixty-sixth Acharya.

When Swaminathan was ten years of age, he was admitted in the Second

Form in the Arcot American Mission School, Tindivanam. The prodigy

that the boy was, he gave an excellent record of himself at school.

He used to carry away many prizes, including the one for proficiency

in the Bible studies. The teachers of the School naturally took a

great liking for Swaminathan. They were proud of him and cited him to

the other boys as a model student.

In 1906, when Swaminathan was studying in the Fourth Form, the school

was arranging for a dialogue from Shakespeare's King John. The

teachers who were responsible for fixing the participants in the

dialogue could not find a suitable candidate from the age-group fixed

for taking on the role of Prince Arthur, the central character in the

play the Headmaster who knew Swaminathan's extraordinary talents sent

for the boy who was only twelve then and assigned him the role after

obtaining permission from his parents, Swaminathan rehearsed his part

for only two days, and acquitted himself remarkably well as Prince

Arthur in the dialogue, winning the appreciation of the entire

audience. The acting was perfect and the pronunciation of

Shakespeare's Classical English accurate. One of Swaminathan's

friends had lent him the attire of a prince and Swaminathan really

looked a prince. Many of the teachers went to Subramanya Sastri's

house next day and expressed how greatly they were pleased with

Swaminathan's superb performance.

In 1906 the sixty-sixth Acharya of Kamakoti Pitha, Sri

Chandrasekharendra Sarasvati was camping in the village Perumukkal

near Tindivanam and was observing the chaturmasya-vrata there.

Subrahmanya Sastri went to that village along with his family to have

the Acharya's darsana and receive His blessing. Swaminathan saw His

Holiness from a distance in a temple during the visvarupa-yatra.

His Holiness, the sixty-sixth Acharya, had the Navaratri Celebrations

performed at Marakkanam village. After the Navaratri he was camping

at Saram village situated on the Tindivanam-Madurantakam rail route.

Swaminathan went there with a friend without informing his parents.

He offered his homage at the lotus-feet of His holiness and requested

his permission to leave. His Holiness insisted that Swaminathan

should stay there itself. Two pandits attached to the Matha also

asked Swaminathan to stay there. But Swaminathan said that he had to

attend school and that he had not informed his parents about his

coming over to the Matha. After Swaminathan had left, His Holiness

informed the two pandits of the Matha his keen desire to install

Swaminathan as his successor to the glorious pontifical seat of

Kanchi.

His Holiness the sixty-sixth Acharya attained siddhi at Kalavai and

Swaminathan's maternal cousin was installed as the sixty-seventh

Acharya. He was the only child of Swaminathan's mother's sister.

When Swaminathan's parents received the news about his installation

of the Pitha, Swaminathan's mother desired to see and console her

sister whose only child had become an ascetic. The whole family

planned to leave for Kalavai in a cart without proper escort. But

they were advised to go to Kanchi by train and from there to Kalavai

in a cart.

The epic journey to Kanchi and Kalavai and the providential manner in

which Swaminathan came t be installed as the Head of the Kamakoti

Pitha at a very tender age is recounted by the Acharya himself in the

article " What life has taught me " already referred to in the

following words:

" We traveled by rail to Kanchipuram and halted at the Sankaracharya

Matha. There I had my ablution at the Kumara-Koshta-Tirtha. A

carriage of the Matha had come there from Kalavai with persons to buy

articles for the Maha Puja on the 10th day after the passing away of

the late Acharya Paramagur . But one them, a hereditary maistri of

the Matha asked me to accompany him. A separate cart was engaged for

the rest of the family to follow me.

" During our journey, the maistri hinted to me that I might not return

home and that the rest of my life might have to be spent in the Matha

itself! At first I thought that my elder cousin having become the

head of the Math it might have been his wish that I was to live with

him. I was then only thirteen years of age and so I wondered as to

what use I might be to him in the institution.

" But the maistri in regular face gradually began to clarify as miles

rolled on, that the Acharya, my cousin in the purvasrama, had fever

which developed into delirium and that was why I was being separated

from the family to be quickly taken to Kalavai. He told me that he

was commissioned to go to Tindivanam itself and fetch me, but he was

able to meet me at Kanchipuram itself. I was stunned with this

unexpected turn of events. I lay in a kneeling posture in the cart

itself, shocked as I was, repeating RAMA RAMA, the only spiritual

prayer I knew, during the rest of my journey. "

" My mother and the other children came some time later only to find

that instead of her mission of consoling her sister, she herself was

placed in the state of having to be consoled by someone else! "

Permission for installing Swaminathan in the great pontifical seat of

Kanchi was obtained from his father through telegram and every

arrangement was made as quickly as possible for his installation.

Swaminathan ascended the Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Pitha on the 13th of

February. 1907, as the sixty-eight Acharya, assuming the Sannayasa

name 'Chandrasekharendra Sarasvati'. His Holiness went in a

procession to the Siddhi Sthala and performed the Maha-Puja of the

sixty-sixth Acharya.

From Kalavai the new Acharya proceeded to Kumbhakonam where the

headquarters of the Matha were located. The transfer of the

headquarters of the Matha were located. The transfer of the

headquarters from Kanchi to Kumbhakonam had been necessitated by the

unsettled political conditions in Tondaimandalam in the eighteenth

century during the time of the sixty-second Acharya.

The Acharya made a brief halt at Tindivanam. One could well imagine

what a proud day it should have been for the people of Tindivanam

when they received their own Swaminathan as the new Acharya of

Kamakoti Pitha. The town wore a festive appearance. The teachers of

the American Mission School and the former school-follows vied with

one another in meeting the Acharya and conversing with him. The

Acharya had a good word for every one, and spoke tenderly to each one

of the teachers.

The head of an Acharya-Pitha is looked upon by the disciples as the

spiritual ruler, and is invested with all the regalia associated with

a king. The disciples of the Matha desired to celebrate the

installation of the new Acharya as the head of the Kamakoti Pitha

with due ceremony. The installation was performed on a grand scale on

Thursday, the 9th of May, 1907, at the Kumbhakonam Matha. That night

seated in the golden Ambari on a regal elephant, sent by the Tanjore

ruling family, his Holiness went in a grand procession through the

main steels of Kumbhakonam. Thus commenced the Acharya's spiritual

rulership as the Jagadguru.

Tours of victory (Vijaya-yatra), in the present context, mean the

journeys undertaken by the Acharya to the different parts of the

country to bless the people by his presence, to give them

opportunities for participation in the daily Puja performed to Sri

Chandramaulisvara and Tripurasundari (Paramesvara and Parvati), the

presiding deities of the Matha and to impart to them the light of

spiritual knowledge and the guidelines for conduct. Wherever the

Acharya goes, the people of that place take the fullest advantage of

his presence, celebrate the event as a great festival, listen to his

soul moving discourses in pin-drop silence and find the very

atmosphere a sense of exaltation.

The first tour undertaken by the new Acharya was to Jambukesvaram

(Tiruvanaikka) in 1908. It was here that Adi Sankara had adorned the

image of the Goddess (Akhilandesvari) with ear-ornaments (Tatanka).

In 1908 arrangements were made for the Kumbhabhishekam of the temple

there, after it had been renovated. Our Acharya was invited by the

temple Sthanikas and the authorities to grace the occasion with His

presence. The Kumbhabhishekam was performed with all solemnity and

grandeur.

1909 was the Mahamakha year at Kumbhakonam an event which occurs

every twelfth years. The Matha did its part in playing host to the

pilgrims. On the day of the festival, it was a feast for the eyes to

see the Acharya go for the ceremonial bath in the Mahamakha tank. In

a grand procession he went seated in an Ambari on the back of an

elephant.

Our Acharya was only fifteen years old in 1909. For two years, the

learned pandit of the Matha imparted to Him instruction in Samskrit

classics at Kumbhakonam itself. The management of the Matha felt that

a less congested place than Kumbhakonam a place which would not be

frequented by visiting crowds would be more suitable for study.

Mahendramangalam, a quiet village on the northern bank of the Akhanda

Kaveri, was selected for the purpose; a parnasala was put up near the

edge of the river. From 1911 to 1914 the Acharya stayed there

studying and receiving the requisite training. It was a strange

relation between the teachers and the Matha. The Acharya showed the

utmost consideration for and respect to the teachers who were

entrusted with his training; they too were conscious of the unique

honour that was theirs.

Whenever experts in Vedas and exponents of musicology met Him, he

sought to improve his knowledge of this science and art through

conversations with them. He used to snatch time to visit the nearby

islands in the Kaveri to marvel at the natural scenery. Photographers

sometimes took photographs of the natural surroundings. The Acharya

evinced interest in the photographic art.

Some of the other areas of study of which he gained intimate

knowledge are Mathematics and Astronomy.

In 1914 the Acharya returned to the Matha in Kumbhakonam. He was

twenty then. He had acquired by then encyclopedic knowledge. Whenever

scholars went to him, he used to put searching questions relating to

their respective fields of fields of study and thereby gain a lot of

information. When he was studying in Kumbhakonam, he made it a point

to pay an annual visit to Gangaikondacholapuram and study the

inscriptions to be found there and the niceties of temple-

architecture. Thus, in a variety of ways, the Acharya equipped

himself with the all-round knowledge and ability required for

fulfilling the obligations of the leadership of the Kamakoti Pitha.

A new journal 'Arya-Dharma' commenced its publication under the

auspices of the Matha. In October 1916, the Navaratri festival was

observed at the Matha with a new fervor. The poet Subrahmanya Bharati

wrote in one of his essays praising in the highest of terms, the

manner in which the festival was conducted in the Matha. This is the

annual festival at which worship is offered to the world Mother in

her triple manifestations as Durga, Lakshmi and Sarasvati. So men are

honoured with offering of gifts, as they are manifestations of Para

Sakti (the Great Mother of the world). And ceremonial Puja is

performed to girl, commencing with a two-year old, on the day. This

is what is known as Kany-puja. Along with recitation of the Vedas.

Parayanam of the Devi Bhagavata, the Ramayana, the Gita and other

texts, the Chandi and Sri Vidya homas are performed during the

festival.

Some of the very first measures taken by the Acharya for the

promotion of classical learning and of social welfare yielded rich

results and marked only the beginning of many more to come.

Distinguished scholars were honoured by the award of titles such

as 'sastraratnakara'. Essay competitions were held for college

students on subjects relating to our dharma. Free studentship were

instituted for the benefit of deserving students in schools and

colleges. A free Ayurvedic dispensary was started in the Matha.

During the Acharya's stay in Kumbhakonam from 1914 to 1918, almost

every evening there were learned assemblies or music concerts.

Even professors, scientists, engineers, and administrators, went to

him for guidance and encouragement. The followers of the other faiths

found in the Acharya a deep understanding of their respective

doctrines and profound appreciation of every type and grade of

spiritual endeavour. Everyone who came into contact with the Acharya

recognized in Him the Jagadguru.

The Acharya's great tour of our sacred lane commenced in March, 1919.

It was a long and strenuous tour but it was supremely worthwhile

because of the opportunities it gave to people all over the country

to meet the Acharya and receive his blessings. The Acharya never uses

any of the modern modes of transport. He mostly walks and accepts the

use of a palanquin only when it is absolutely necessary. An entourage

accompanies him consisting of the officials of the Matha, panditas,

vaidikas, servants and animal such as cows, elephants etc. Whenever

the Acharya camps, lots of devotees gather and stay at the camp as

long as they can in order to derive the utmost advantage from the

Holy Presence. Besides the daily anusthana and Puja, meeting the

devotees, receiving visitors, giving instruction to the people

concerned for the conduct of the affairs of the Matha and of the many

religious and welfare organizations occupy the Acharya's time reach

day. He hardly gets two or three hours of rest out of twenty four.

With frugal diet taken in between fasting days and with so much of

pressing work day after day, it is a marvel how the Acharya meets the

demands on his time and attention with absolute serenity and with

perfect poise. No one will fail to note that the ideal of the

Sthitaprajna, (the sage who has gained steady wisdom) has become

actual in the soul-elevating person of the Acharya.

The long pilgrimage began, in March, 1919. During the first three

years, the Acharya visited all the places of pilgrimage even remote

and out-of-the way village in the Thanjavur District, the District in

which Kumbhakonam is situated. The Chaturmasya in 1919 was in

Vappattur village at a distance of five miles to the east of

Kumbhakonam. During the chaturmasya the Sannyasins area to stay at

one place so that no harm may be caused to insects and other

creatures by treading on them when they come out on the ground in the

rainy season. The Sannyasins camp at one place for four fortnights,

pakshas. the observance starts on the full-moon day in the month

Ashada which is dedicated to the worship of the saga Vyasa.

During His tour of the Thanjavur District in a village the Acharya

saw about two hundred harijans waiting for his darsana, after having

bathed, putting on clean clothes and wearing vibhuti on their

foreheads. The Acharya spent sometime with them, made kind enquiries

about their welfare and gave them new clothes. Similar events have

occurred very often during the Acharya's journeys. His concern for

the poor is great and unlimited and the never fails to exhort the

better placed sections of society to go to their succor and asks the

Matha to set an example in this direction.

The Acharya visited Rameswaram and collected a small quantity of sand

for consigning it later on in the waters of the Ganga, which act is

symbolic of the spiritual unity of India.

The Acharya then went to Jambukesvaram. In those early times

according to legend the image of Akhilandesvari was manifesting the

Goddess's fierce aspects. Sankara changed this state of affairs and

enabled the beneficent aspect to express itself by adorning the image

with a pair of ear-ornaments (Tatankas) made in the shape of Sri-

chakra. When the ornaments fall into disrepair periodically, they are

set right and re-fixed. This tasks is the sacred responsibility of

the Kamakoti itha; and it is the Head of the Pitha that has the

ornaments re-fixed. In 1846, the then Acharya of the Pitha and this

ceremony performed. Now, again, in 1923, arrangements were made for

the re-fixing of the Tatankas. Our Acharya went to Jambukesvaram for

participation in this function. It was a great occasion for devotees

to gather and pay their homage. Every detail of the ceremony was

attended to with meticulous care. Opportunity was availed of for

declaring open the renovated Matha of the Kamakoti Pitha there. A

Vedapathasala and center for scriptural learning started functioning

at the Matha.

During the Acharya's Chettinadu visit, a great Sivabhakta, Vainagaram

Ramanathan Chettiyar similarly enjoyed attending the Puja and meeting

the Acharya. The people of Chettinadu organised a grand procession at

Kadiyapatti. During the procession the Acharya looked out for

Ramanathan Chettiar, but he could not be seen. At the conclusion of

the procession, the Acharya enquired as to where Chettiyar was.

Chettiyar who was sanding at a distance in the crowd responded. Asked

as to why he was not to be found in the procession, he replied with

great elation that he had the privilege that night of being one of

the Acharya's palanquin-bearers.

Many politicians and nationalist leaders met the Acharya during this

period. Among these were Sri C.R.Das, along with Sri S. Satyamurti

and Sri A. Rangaswami Aiyangar, and Sri Jamnalal Bajaj along with Sri

C. Rajagopalachari, and others. The latter group met the Acharya in

1926 at Jambukesvara. Sri C. Rajagopalachari was staying out, sending

in Sri Jamnalal Bajaj. The Acharya sent for C. Rajagopalachari and

asked him why he had not come in. When the latter replied that the

reason was that he had not bathed that day, the Acharya told him that

those who were engaged in national work might not find the necessary

time for daily bath etc., and Sri C. Rajagopalachari who had

dedicated his life for the service of the nation could meet him at

any time, and in any condition. The Acharya made it clear to the

politicians and political leaders that he, as a Sannyasi, would not

identify himself with party politics of any brand; but he was free to

ask them all to keep the good of the people always at heart and to

work towards its achievement, and also to do all they could to

strengthen faith in God.

An incident which occurred in 1926 deserves special mention. The

Acharya was proceeding to Pattukottai from Karambakkudi. Among the

people who saw the Acharya off at the latter place there were some

Muslims also. One of the Muslims followed the party, touching the

palanquin with his hands as a mark of respect. After about three

miles of the journey, the Acharya stopped and called for the Muslim

gentleman and made kind enquiries. The Muslims placed before the

Acharya some personal matters for his advice and guidance and then

offered some verses of praise he had composed along with flowers and

fruits. At the command of the Acharya, the Muslim read out those

verses and explained their meaning also. When taking leave he

expressed his joy in these words: " To my eyes the Acharya appears as

the embodiment of Allah Himself. The Acharya's darsana is enough for

a man who wants to get liberation from world bondage. "

At Pondicherry, the officials of the French Government and the people

gave the Acharya a royal welcome. In march the Acharya went to Salem

and toured the district.

After visiting Coimbatore in April, 1927, the Acharya arrived in

Palghat in the first week of May. Kerala which had given birth to Adi

Sankara was now jubilant at the visit of an illustrious successor in

whose life and mission the greatness of the Adi Guru was luminously

reflected. The Acharya spoke to the Sishyas in Malayalam. The people

who listened to him mistook him for a Keraliya.

In the latter half of 1927, Mahatma Gandhi was touring the South. He

had heard about the Sage of Kamakoti Pitha and wanted very much to

meet him. The meeting took place at Nallicheri in Palghat. They met

in a cattle-shed in the Acharya's camp. It was a unique experience

for the Mahatma. Here was an authentic successor of Adi Sankara,

dressed in a piece of ochre cloth made of Khadi and seated on the

floor. The Acharya too appreciated the occasion provided for getting

to know at first had the leader of the nation who had adopted

voluntarily the mode of a simple peasant's life. The Acharya

conversed in Sanskrit and the Mahatma in Hindi. The conversation took

place in a most cordial atmosphere. On taking leave of the Acharya,

the Mahatma gave expression to the immense benefit he had derived

from this unique meeting. How profoundly he was drawn to the Acharya

will be evident from a small incident that occurred during the

interview. It was 5-30 in the evening. Sri C. Rajagopalachari went

inside the cattle shed and reminded the mahatma about his evening

meal; for the Mahatma would not take food after 6 o'clock. The

Mahatma made his significant observation to Sri C.

Rajagopalachari: " The conversation I am having now with the Acharya

is itself my evening meal for today. "

In February, 1929, the Acharya began His tour of the South Arcot

District. The Chaturmasya that year was observed in Manalurpettai.

For about a month the Acharya was having fever. In utter neglect of

the state of his body, He performed the daily worship, taking His

usual bath. In due course the fever subsided, relieving the devotees

of their great anxiety.

During the present tour, the Acharya was passing through Tandalam

village. A cowherd of that place wanted to sell him small holding and

give the proceeds as his offering to the Acharya. The Acharya

dissuaded him from doing so; but the devotee would not go back on his

resolve. He actually sold his piece of land to a rich man of the

place and made his heart-offering of the Acharya. The Acharya,

however, did not like that the cowherd should become a destitute. He,

therefore, arranged through the local Tehsildar for the allotment of

sufficient piece of puramboke land to the cowherd.

In December, 1930, at Tirukkalukkunram (Pakshitirtham), an address of

welcome was presented to the Acharya on the behalf of the All-India

Sadhu Mahasangham. The address referred in glowing terms to the

invaluable service that the Acharya was doing to Hindu dharma and

society, both through precept and practice, following faithfully the

grand tradition of Adi Sankara.

From Chingleput, the Acharya went to Kanchi, the seat of the Kamakoti

Pitha. This was His first visit after He had assumed the headship of

the Pitha. The ceremonial entry into the holy city was made on Sunday

the 25th January, 1931. The city wore a festive appearance that day.

The citizens offered to the Acharya a reverential and enthusiastic

welcome.

The Chaturmasya in 1931 was in Chittoor. After that the tour was

resumed. While the Acharya was camping in Arani, a party of about two

hundred volunteers of the Indian National Congress wanted to have His

darsana. Those were the peak days of the struggle for freedom. The

British Government would come down upon anyone who showed any

hospitality to the volunteers. Therefore, the officials of the matha

were hesitant in the matter of receiving the volunteers. When the

Acharya was informed of the intention of the volunteers, He

immediately asked the officials to admit them and arrange for their

hospitality. He made individual enquiries of the members of the party

and gave to each one of them vibhuti-prasada.

In March, 1932 the Acharya went to Kalahasti for the Maha Sivaratri.

During his stay there, he walked round the Kailasa hill, a distance

of about thirty miles along difficult forest terrian. From Kalahasti,

the Acharya proceeded to Tirupati and Tirumalai; vast concourses of

people listened to his daily discourses in chaste Telugu.

In Nagari, the Acharya was presiding over a discussion on Vedanta

among scholars. One day the Manager of the Matha received a telegram

from Kumbhakonam carrying the sad news of the passing away of the

Acharya's mother on the 14th of June, 1932. As the Manager was

approaching, the Acharya enquired if it had come from Kumbhakonam, to

which the Manager replied 'Yes'. The Acharya made no further enquiry,

but asked the Manager to get back. He remained silent for some time

and then asked the assembled scholars; " What should a Sannyasin do

when he hears of the passing away of his mother? " Guessing what had

happened, the scholars were deeply distressed and could not say

anything. The Acharya got up and walked to a water-falls at a

distance of two miles followed by a great number of people chanting

the Lord's name. He took his bath; the others too did the same. The

passing away of the Mother of the Jagadguru was felt as a personal

loss by every one of the Sishyas.

There is a spot of natural beauty near Nagari, called Bugga. In the

same temple here, there are the shrines of Kasi Visvanatha and

Prayaga Madhava. A perennial river flows by the temple; and five

streams feed the river Commencing from the 17th of July, 1932, the

Acharya observed the chaturmasya at this fascinating place. During

his stay the temple was renovated and Kumbhabhishekam performed on a

grand scale.

Before we follow the Acharya to Madras, let us record here the epic

of a faithful and devoted dog. Since 1927 a dog was following the

retinue of the Matha. It was a strange dog-an intelligent animal

without the least trace of unclean lines. It would eat only the food

given to it from the Matha. The Acharya would therefore enquire every

evening if the dog had been fed. When the camp moved from one place

to another, the dog would follow, walking underneath the palanquin,

and when the entourage stopped so that the devotees of the way side

villages could pay their homage, it would run to a distance and watch

devoutly from there, only to rejoin the retinue when it was on the

move again. One day, a small boy hit the dog; and the dog was about

to retaliate, when the officials of the Matha, in fear, caused the

dog to be taken to a distance of twenty-five miles blindfolded and

left there in a village. But strange as it may seem, the dog returned

to where the Acharya was, even before the person who had taken it

away could return. From that day onwards the dog would not eat

without the Acharya's darsana and stayed till the end of its life

with the Matha.

The citizens of Madras had the great privilege of receiving the

Acharya on the 28th of September, 1932. During the four months' stay

of the Acharya in the city, the people felt in their life a visible

change for the better. In crowds they flocked to the camp at the

Madras Sanskrit College and later in the different parts of the city,

and drank deep of the elevating presence and the soul moving speeches

of the Acharya.

The Navaratri in 1932 was celebrated at the Sanskrit College. During

this Puja festival, the Acharya fasts and observes silence on all the

nine days. Thousands observe silence on all the nine days. Thousand

people participated in the Navaratri festival at the Sanskrit College

and received the Acharya's benedictions.

After the Navaratri the Acharya delivered discourses every evening

after the Puja. Thousands of people listened to these in pin-drop

silence. Seated in the simhasana, the Acharya would remain silent for

some time. Then, slowly he would commence to speak. It was not a mere

speech; it was a message from the heart, each day. With homely

examples, in an engaging manner, he would exhort the audience to lead

a clean, simple unselfish and godly life. The essentials of Hindu

dharma, the obligatory duties, the supreme duty of being devoted to

God, the harmony of the Hindu cults, the significance of the Hindu

festivals and institutions, the cultivation of virtues, and the

grandeur of Advaita, formed some of the themes of these discourses.

For a long time the Acharya had the intention of visiting

Chidambaram. But about a hundred years past no previous Acharya had

gone there, the reason being that the Dikshitars of the temple of Sri

Nataraja would not let even the Acharyas of the Sankara Matha take

the sacred ashes straight from the cup as was the custom in all other

temples as a mark of respects shown to the Pitha. Many of the

devotees of Chidambaram, however, wished very much that the Acharya

should visit Chidambaram; and the Acharya too wanted to have Sri

Nataraja's darsana. Accepting the invitation of the devotees, he

arrived at Chidambaram on May 18, 1933. A great reception was accord

to him by the inhabitants of Chidambaram, including the Dikshitars.

The devotees of the Acharya were rather apprehensive of what might

happen when the Acharya visited the temple in regard to the offering

of Vibuti. The Acharya, however, was utterly unconcerned. All that he

wanted was to have Sri Nataraja's darsana as early as possible. He

resolved to go to the temple early in the morning. Having asked one

of his personal attendants to wait for him at the tank, he went there

alone at 4 a.m., had his bath and anusthana and when the shrine was

opened he entered and stood in the presence of Sri Nataraja absorbed

in contemplation. The Dikshitar who was offering the morning worship

was taken aback when he saw the Acharya there. He sent word to the

other Dikshitars, and all of them came at once. They submitted to the

Acharya that they were planning for a ceremonial reception, and that

they were pained at the fact that none of them were present in the

temple to receive him that morning. The Acharya consoled them saying

that he had gone to the temple to have the early morning darsana of

Sri Nataraja, known as the visvarupadarsana and that He would be

visiting the temple several times during his sojourn in Chidambaram.

The Dikshitars honoured the Acharya in the same manner as he was

honoured in the other temples. And at the earnest request of the

Dikshitars, the Acharya stayed in the temple for a few days and

performed the Sri Chandramoulisvara Puja in the thousand-pillared

mantapa. The devotees had the unique experience of witnessing Puja

performed, at the same place, to two of the five sphatika-lingas

brought by Sankara, according to tradition, from Kailasa - the Moksha-

linga of Chidambaram and the Yoga-linga of Sri Kamakoti Pitha.

The preparation for the Acharya's northward journey to Kasi had by

now completed. Aged Sannyasins like Brahmananda Sarasvati and revered

scholars including Mahamahopadhyaya Ananda Saran and Pratap Sitaram

Sastri, Agent of the Sringeri Matha, sent their letter of invitation

to the Acharya of the Kamakoti Pitha on behalf of the citizens of

Varanasi.

A representative Committee had been formed at Varanasi headed by His

Highness the Maharaja of Kasi, with Pandit Madanmohan Malaviya, the

Mahamahopadhyayas, distinguished scholars and other eminent men as

members. The citizens of the Spiritual Capital of our country were

eagerly looking forward to the visit of our Acharya, who had already

made the sankalpa for kasi-yatra.

In conformity with the best practice observed by the previous

Government, the Government of Madras issued a notification to the

Governments of other States, and the native States to accord due

honour and all facilities to the Acharya and his entourage during his

journey to Kasi.

The journey commenced in the second week of September, 1933. The

Acharya proceeded northwards, covering about twenty miles each day.

While camping at Kurnool, the Acharya thought of going to Srisaila

which is regarded as the Southern Kailasa.

Taking with him only a few attendants, the Acharya went by boat up to

Peddacheruvu and from there walked the remaining distance eleven

miles uphill. He reached Srisaila on the 29th of January, 1934, went

to the temple, and stood before the deities for a long time reciting

verses from the Sivanandalahari and the Saundaryalahari. After

spending a few days at Srisaila, the Acharya returned to Kurnool.

During the difficult Srisaila journey through dense forests, the

Chenchus, members of a wild hill-tribe, gave every assistance and

protection to the visiting party. They considered the Acharya's

presence in their midst a great blessing.

Crossing the Tungabhadra at Kurnool, the Acharya entered the

Hyderabad State. He reached the capital of the State on the 12th

February, 1934. The people and the State officials including the

Chief Minister vied with one another in paying their homage to

Jagadguru. At the command of the Nizam, the State Government

undertook to meet on day's expenses of the Matha.

As the journey from Hyderabad northwards would be a difficult one-

through wild forests and uninhabited areas a large part of the

entourage consisting of carts, cattle, attendants and others, was

left behind; this part rejoined the group that accompanied the

Acharya, after four years, in Andhra Pradesh.

After spending two weeks at Nagpur in June, the Acharya traveled

through the country of the Vindhya mountains. It was an arduous

journeys in burning summer through practically waterless tracts. The

members of the party braved all difficulties with cheer, their sole

aim being to serve the Master in the fulfillment of the resolve to

complete the pilgrimage to Kasi. After crossing the Vindhyas, the

Acharya reached Jabalpur on the 3rd July, 1934 and had his bath in

the sacred river Narmada, Journeying quickly thereafter the Acharya

arrived at Prayaga (Allahabad) on the 23rd of July 1934. At the

outskirts of the holy city, the prominent leaders of the place headed

by Mahamahopadhyaya Ganganatha Jha received the Acharya with due

ceremony. Thousands of people lines the route of the procession,

uttering the words " Victory to the great Guru! " (Gurumaharajki jai).

On the 25th July, 1934, the Acharya immersed the sacred earth he had

brought from Rameswaram in the holy waters at Prayaga, the place of

Triveni-Sangama, the confluence of the Ganga, the Yamuna and the

subterranean Sarasvati and gathering the holy water in vessels, he

had it sent to the places of pilgrimage in South India. By these

significant ceremonial acts, the Acharya made it known to our people

how custom and tradition are expressive of the spiritual, as well as

geographical, unity of India. On the 26th of July, the Acharya

commenced the Chaturmasya at Prayaga. During the chaturmasya period,

a conference of scholars was held in the immediate presence of the

Acharya. Several Pandits in the Conference received the Acharya's

blessings.

From Prayaga (Allahabad) to Kasi-a distance of eighty miles - the

Acharya traveled by foot. He entered the most holy city of Kasi on

the 6th of October, 1934, and was received by the citizens in their

thousands, headed by the Maharaja of Kasi, Pandit Madanmohan Malaviya

and others. About a lakh of people participated in the procession

that day, many of them uttering the full-throated cry of

victory, " Jagadguru-maharaj-kijai!' Unprecedented crowds a records in

the history of the city-gathered to greet the visiting Acharya.

It was this Kasi near Manikarnika Ghatta that Adi Sankara wrote his

commentaries. It was Kasi that proclaimed him as the Jagad-guru. It

was from there that he started on His dig-vijaya. And so our

Acharya's visit to Kasi was full of supreme significance.

On the 9th of February, 1935 in response to Pandit Madanmohan

Malaviya's request the Acharya paid a visit to the Hindu University.

In his welcome address consisting of five verses in Sanskrit, Pandit

Malaviya referred to the fact that the Acharya was adorning the

Kanchi Pitha established by Sri Sankara and that his name and grace

born of his great wisdom, austerity, compassion, generosity etc., has

spread far and wide in this sacred land. The Acharya pointed out that

the end of education is to gain peace of mind and that it is by

acquiring wisdom that one realizes immortality. The Acharya said that

the main objective of Astika education should always be kept in view

in planning the details regarding the courses of study etc., and

expressed the wish that the University would train and send out

leaders of thought and action who would set an example in ideal

living for the masses of the people to follow. In his concluding

speech, Pandit Malaviya said that while from the legends regarding

Adi Sankara they knew that the great Master visited Kasi and saved

the world through his wondrous words, they now had the rare

experience of seeing with their own eyes in Kasi the Acharya who was

a avatara of Adi Sankara

A conference of the Pandits of Bengal led by the grand old

Mahamahopahyaya Kamalanayan Tarkaratna was held at Calcutta. Over one

hundred and thirty scholars met. The conference sent as its

representative Sri Mahamahopadhyaya Durgasaran to Varanasi to invite

His Holiness to visit Calcutta and to convey its considered view

acclaiming the high status and the greatness of Kamakoti Pitha at

Kanchi.

Leaving Kasi on the 18th of March, 1935, the Acharya reached Patna

(patliputra) on the 24th of April. The next important place of visit

was Gaya.

After brief halts en route, the Acharya reached Calcutta on the 13th

July, 1935. The premier city accorded him a rousing welcome. The

Acharya observed the chaturmasya from the 17th of July at Kanchi

Ghat.

Navaratri or Dasara (called Puja in Bengal) is the most important

festival for the Bengalis. The Acharya performed the Navaratri Puja

in September-October at Calcutta, delighting the hearts of thousands

of devotees there. In the third week of October, the All-India tour

was resumed. A steamer took the Acharya and the entourage across the

rivers, Damodar and Rupnarayan which are tributaries to Aadi Ganga.

The Acharya reached Midnapore in response to the earnest request of

the people of the place on the 27th of October, 1935. Midnapore at

the time was the spearhead of the revolutionary nationalist movement.

Many young men-especially college students-were behind prison bars as

detenus. And the town was under curfew restrictions. The authorities,

however, relaxed some of the restrictions to enable the people to

received the Acharya and participate in the religious functions

connected with the unique visit. Coming to know of the Acharya's

presence in Midnapore, many of the detenus desired to meet him. They

obtained permission from the British officer in charge of the prison

for this purpose; but the conditions imposed was that they should

return to the prison before 6 p.m. that day. When the detenus reached

the Acharya's camp late in the evening, the Acharya had just then

retired for a brief rest after the day's Puja. After waiting for some

time, the young men started going back to prison, disappointed.

Meanwhile, the Acharya came out and on learning about what had

happened, sent for the detenus. They came again, prostrated before

the Acharya and prayed to Him for His blessing for the gaining of

independence for the country and for the welfare and happiness of the

people.

Entering Orissa through Jaipur on 4th April, 1936, after visiting

Sakshi-Gopal, the Acharya proceeded to Puri Jagannath. At the end of

a grand procession, a ceremonial reception was given to him at the

Govardhana Matha. The other Advaita Mathas of Puri, viz, Sankarananda

Matha, Sivatirtha Matha and Gopalatirtha Matha, also associated

themselves with this function and co-operated in the arrangements

connected with the Acharya's visit. The Acharya visited the temple of

Jagannatha and at the request of the scholars of the Mukti-mantapa

Sabha, sat on the Pitha in the Mantapa and blessed the assembly. In a

speech delivered in Samskrit, the Acharya said that he regarded the

honour shown to him as belonging to Adi Sankara whose Holy Feet are

worshipped by all and who made the false doctrines disappear from the

land by establishing the supreme truth.

The next part of the journey though the Chilka Lake area was an

arduous one. High mountains, thick forests and sandy wastes had to be

crossed. Walking at the rate of twenty five miles a day, the Acharya

with the tour part arrived at Chatrapur on the 17th of May, 1936; at

this place at the southern end of the Lake, there is a temple of Adi

Sankara where He worshipped.

Simhachalam is an ancient pilgrim center in Andhra. On a picturesque

hill is situated the ancient temple of Sri Varaha Narsimha. On the

4th of November 1936, the Acharya visited this shrine and spent some

time in mediation near the Gangadhara falls. Three days later, the

Acharya reached Visakhapatnam, the harbour-town.

The Andhra districts to receive the Acharya next in sequence were

Krishna, Guntur and Nellore. After visiting Venkatagiri, he went to

Kalahasti and Tirupati again. In April, 1939, Sri Sankara Jayanti was

celebrated at Bugga. After having Sri Subramanya's darsana on the

Tiruttani hill, the Acharya reached Kanchi on the 2nd of May, 1939.

From Kanchi, the Acharya proceeded to Chidambaram en route the

Rameswaram. The sand collected at Rameswaram in September, 1932, it

will be recalled, was immersed in the holy waters at Triveni Sangama

(Allahabad) on the 25th of July, 1934. The sacred water of the Ganga

that was gathered there was now to be offered to Sri Ramanatha as

abhiseka. One the 10th of June, 1939, after bathing in the Agni-

tirtha the Acharya went to the temple, and the abisheka was

performed. With this was concluded the Acharya's Ganga-yatra.

From the next day onwards, for over six months, the Acharya observed

silence. But the tour-schedule was continued, as also all the

activities connected with the Matha. The Acharya returned to

Kumbakonam from where He had started out on his vijaya-yatra twenty-

one years earlier. The 29th of June 1939 was a red-letter day for the

citizens of the town; there was no end to their joy in receiving the

Acharya again into their midst.

The twenty-one years, All India tour had paved the way for taking

concrete steps towards the consolidation and furtherance of our

ancient dharma. In the years that have followed, the Acharya has

given the lead in several directions for bringing together the

different sections of Hindus, for the promotion of Vedic and Vedantic

studies, for the due observance of religious ceremonies, and rules of

conduct as prescribed in the Sastras, for deepening the spiritual

life on the people, for rendering service to the sick and the

disabled and for universal welfare.

In 1939, the Acharya had an organization of mudradhikaris set up with

a view to serve the people in a comprehensive way. The mudradhikaris

are representatives of the Matha in the different places. Among their

functions are: to enlist the co-operation of the people in keeping

the temples in good repair, see to it that temple-worship is

performed in the proper order, to arrange for popular expositions of

the Puranas on Ekadasi days, to bring together all classes of people

in such corporate activities as digging tanks and wells, dragging the

temple-car on festival days etc., and cattle-care. In order to

implement this program and ensure the best possible results, the

Acharya toured the villages in the Thanjavur District and other

places several times and convened periodical conferences of the

mudradhikaris to instruct them personally.

Under the guidance of the Acharya, several of the old temple came to

be renovated, and Kumbhabhishekams were performed.

In order that the evils caused by the Second World War may not

oppress the people and distort their minds, the Acharya suggested to

the temple-authorities, and management of religious charities in

1942, that the Sri-Rudra and Sri-Vishnusahasranama be recited and

archanas performed in the temples; this suggestion was carried out.

The Vedas constitute the basic scriptures of the Hindus. It is

through the preservation of the Vedas that Hindu Culture has been

preserved in spite of the vicissitudes of history. In recent times,

the cultivation of skill in Vedic recitation and Vedic studies have

been neglected because of alien influence and conditions of modern

life. In order to offset the forces making for deterioration, the

Acharya caused to be organized the Veda-dharma-paripalana-sabha.

Under the auspices of this Sabha, which was started in 1944, annual

conference of Vedic scholars are held in the various parts of the

country, examinations are conducted in Vedic Literatures, maintenance

is provided for selected Vedic scholars, institution for teaching the

Vedas are set up and run, and every possible assistance is giving for

the preservation of Vedic culture. In January, 1955 at Kanchi where

the Acharya was staying at the time, a conference of eminent Vedic

scholars was convened and seventeen pandits in Rig, Yajus and Sama

Vedas were selected from all over the country and honoured with

presented shawls and awards.

The consolidation of Advaita through his bhashyas and numerous

Vedantic manuals and through teaching by example and precept, was the

greatest gift Adi Sankara conferred on the entire humanity. The

central mission of any institution which owes its foundation to the

Great Teacher should be to spread the knowledge of Advaita. The

Jagadgurus of Sri Kamakoti Pita have in various ways, rendered

invaluable services to the cause of Advaita. An important measure

designed to promote studies in Advaita was taken when the Parama-guru

of our present Acharya inaugurated, in 1894, at Kumbhakonam, the

Advaita Sabha. The Golden Jubilee of the Sabha was celebrated in

February, 1945, at the Kumbhakonam Matha in the presence of our

Acharya. The Acharya commended the work of the Sabha, and explained

the essentials of Advaita Vedanta. The basic truth of Advaita is that

the Self (Atman) alone, is real, and that all else is mithya. Not

understanding the implication of the words, mithya and maya, the

critics found fault with Advaita. Although ultimately the world of

plurality is not real, it is not that it is not useful. Until the

onset of wisdom, it is vested with empirical reality (vyavaharika

satya). It is in this world and while living in it, that we have to

strive for and gain release from bondage. The true moksha is the

attainment of all-selfhood, in this very life, by the removal of maya

through knowledge. The followers of the different religions think

that their particular mode of worship alone is the true mode. But we

who follow Advaita believe that it is the same God that is attained

through any of the religious modes, and that devotion to God is

essential for realizing the truth of Advaita. In conclusion, the

Acharya referred to the fact that teachers of Advaita have appeared

at all times and in all the different parts of the country, and have

left behind immortal works on Advaita; and he declared that it was

our duty to study those works and gain the wisdom that is contained

in them.

Ten years later, in March, 1956 the Diamond Jubilee of the Advaita

Sabha was celebrated at Sivasthanam near Kanchi, where the Acharya

was staying at the time. Addressing the conference, the Acharya

observed that the aim of the Advaita Sabha was to spread the light of

the self as revealed in the Upanishads, that those who adopted

Advaita as their way of life should took upon all beings as they

would on themselves and render some service or other everyday to the

afflicted and the distressed and that they should investigate the

cause of dispute among religious cults and seek to eliminate it.

It is one the basis of Advaita that the conflicts among religious

cults could be removed. With sympathy and understanding, it will not

be difficult to realize that, it is the same God that is worshipped

under different names and forms. The special contribution of Hinduism

to the world's history of religions is the truth that there are as

many modes of approach to God-head as there are minds. And, yet on

account of misunderstanding and narrowness, the followers of the

different cults of Hinduism have indulged in quarrels sometimes. In

South India, exclusive claims have been advanced, for instance, on

behalf of Vaishnavism and Saivism. While the Alvars and Nayanmars

were universalistic in their outlook, their later followers

introduced narrow distinctions and dogmatic partisanships. Our

Acharya wanted to give a concrete form to the movement for unity and

co-ordination as between the Vaishnavas and the Saivas in Tamilnadu;

and accordingly, the idea of Tiruppavai-Tiruvempavai-Shadanga-

conference was hit upon in 1950. Andal's Tiruppavai and

Manikkavachakar's Tiruvempavai are sung in the Vishnu and Siva temple

respectively in the month of Margali (Margasirsha). The Acharya had a

conference of scholars in these sacred texts organized at

Tiruvidaimarudur in December, 1950. It was a unique experience to

listen to the Vaishnava and Saiva scholars speak from the same

platform.

The unity-movement has been gaining in popularity since its

inception. Encouragement is given for children to learn to recite the

two poems.

Religion is the basis of Hindu culture; spirituality is its back-

bone. What are considered elsewhere to be secular arts, such as

sculpture and dancing, are here in India regarded as sacred. Hindu

culture in all its aspects spread far wide in the past. The evidences

of its influence are even now to be found in widely distant countries

from Egypt in the West to Java and Bali in the East. Speaking about

the pervasiveness of Hindu culture at a meeting at the Kumbhakonam

Matha in January, 1947, the Acharya dwelt on the need for the

resuscitation of the traditional arts and crafts. These should be

revived and popularised, bearing in mind that all of them serve the

purpose of strengthening faith in God, faith in spiritual values. The

temple is the center of the ancient Arts and Crafts, Architecture,

Sculpture, and Iconography go into the building of temples and the

making of images. The directions for these arts are to be learns from

the Agamas-Saiva, Sakta, Vaikhanasa and Pancharatra. It is from the

same sources that the arhchakas have to know the correct procedures

of temple-rituals and worship. Popular discourses on the Epics and

Puranas used to be given mainly in the temples and on occasions of

temple-festivals. The fold-songs, dances etc., have for their themes

the religious stories as related in the Epics etc. The Acharya wanted

to institute an organization which would work for the revival-leading

to a renaissance of the ancient skills and arts relating to the

temples. He had a sadas arranged for, for the first time in 1962,

during the chaturmasya at Ilayattangudi-the Akhil-Vyasa Bharata-Agama-

Silpa-Sadas. Scholars and specialists in the various fields covered

by the wide scope of the sadas were invited to present papers and

give expositions at the sessions of the conference. Besides the

traditional pandits in the Agamas and experts in Silpa, some foreign

scholars also took part in the Sadas. The Archakas were asked to

discuss and settle points relating to rituals and worship.

Arrangements were made for cultural programs consisting of the folks

arts of the different regions. The Sadas has become now a permanent

annual feature.

One of the most significant achievements in the last few years is the

bringing together of the Heads of the Dharma-Pithas in South India in

periodical conference with a view to formulate and execute concerted

measures for the safeguarding and furtherance of Hindu institutions

and practices. This has become possible through the initiative and

leadership of our Acharya. The objectives of the conference of the

Heads of the dharma-Pithas are to strengthen the forces that make for

astikya, to project before the people the true image of Hindu dharma,

to work for the consolidation of the Hindu society and to persuade

its members to follow the path of virtue.

The 'rice-gift' scheme formulated by the Acharya is being implemented

in several areas. According to this scheme, in each household,

everyday before starting to cook rice, a handful of rice along with a

paisa should be put into a pot kept for the purpose. Once a week the

rice and coins should be collected by the Association in each street

r locality constituted under the scheme. The rice thus gathered

should be handed over to the temple in the neighborhood for being

cooked and offered to the deity as naivedya. The cooked rice that has

been consecrated should be sold in packets to the poor people of the

place at a nominal charges of 10 paise per packet. The amount

collected thus and the gift coins gathered from the charity-pots

should be utilized towards meeting the cost of firewood and for

paying the temple-cook for his services. This scheme will benefit

those who give as well as those who receive. Those who give will have

the satisfaction of having made their daily offering to God and their

less fortunate brethren; and those who receive will have their hunger

satisfied and thought purifies through partaking of the consecrated

food.

One of the most distressing phenomena is the crude way in which

Corporation or Municipal servants dispose of the dead bodies of Hindu

destitutes. The Acharya has repeatedly exhorted the well-to-do-Hindus

to do their duty to those who are unfortunate in life and unfortunate

in death also. Arranging for the proper cremation or burial of the

dead bodies of the destitute is of the greatest importance. This is

one of the function of the Hindu-mata Jivatma-Kainkarya Sangha

organised at the instance of the Acharya. Among the functions of the

Sangha are: weekly visits to hospitals for distributing the Acharya's

prasada (vibhuti and kunkumam) to patients and making them think of

God who is the Great Healer, offering the tulasi leaves, Ganga-water

etc., to those who area on the verge of death and performing Sri

Ramanama japa staying by their side; going to the villages on day

every week for explaining to the people the essentials of Hindu-

dharma; and arranging for frequent talks on ethical living and

spiritual disciplines for the benefits of the those who are behind

prison-bars.

Some of the other activities and institutions which owe their

inception to the Acharya, in recent times, are: the institution

of " Weekly Worship " enabling the Hindu community of each place to

visit the local temple collectively once a week and perform bhajana,

the setting up of Amara-bharati-pariksha-samiti for arranging for

instruction in Samskrit for beginners, conducting periodical

examinations and awarding certificates and prizes, the starting of

the Madras Samskrit Education Society at Nazarethpet near Madras for

the promotion of studies in Samskrit.

One of the major causes for our cultural decline was foreign

domination. This cause was removed when our country gained political

independence from British rule on the 15th of August, 1947, under the

leadership of Mahatama Gandhi. But political emancipation cannot be

an end in itself; it must lead on to a new flowering of the Soul of

India. In a message issued on the independence, the Acharya said: " At

this moment when our Bharata Varsha has gained freedom, all the

people of this ancient land should with one mind and heart pray to

the Lord. We should pray to Him to vouchsafe to us increasing mental

strength and the power for making spiritual progress. It is only by

His Grace that we can preserve the freedom we have gained, and help

all begins in the world to attain the ideal of true happiness...For a

long time our country has striven for freedom; by the Grace of God,

by the blessing of sages, and by the unparalleled sacrifices of the

people, freedom has come to us. Let us pray to the all-pervading God

that He may shower His Grace so that our country will become

prosperous, being freed from famine-conditions and the people will

live united and without any communal strife " . The Acharya also

appealed that the people should cultivate the cardinal virtues,

ridding themselves of passions and violent desires and that they

should by inward control and spiritual knowledge seek to realize the

Self.

The Acharya wanted to select a successor to the Kanchi Kamakoti Pitha

and train him for the great tasks and duties associated with the

headship of the Pitha. The choice fell on a young disciple,

Subrahmanyam by name, the son of Sri Mahadeva Aiyar who was an

official of the Southern Railway at Tiruchi. From his early boyhood,

Subramanyam had been receiving Vedic education at the Matha itself.

He was about nineteen years of age in 1954. the Vedic rituals

connected with initiating him into sannyasa and imparting to him the

mahavakya upadesa by the Acharya took place at Kanchi from the 19th

to the 22nd March, 1954. Thousands of people had gather in the city

for witnessing the unique ceremony on the 22nd of March. The young

disciple stood hip-deep in the Sarvatirtha Tank as soon as the

Acharya had arrived there, and discarded the insignia and attire of

the purvasrama. Then he donned the kashaya cloth and repaired to the

Shrine of Sri Visvesvara where the Acharya imparted to him mahavakya-

upadesa. He was given the yoga-pattam, 'Sri Jayendra Sarasvati.' From

that day onwards he has been with the Acharya as the First Disciple,

receive the necessary guidance in the performance of the many duties

associated with the Pitha and its ever increasing sphere of spiritual

service to the people.

On the 18th May, 1954, the Acharya's shashti-abda-purti (sixty-first

birth day) was celebrated all over the country. In a message to the

disciples who had gathered at Kanchi that day, the Acharya asked them

to do their utmost to preserve the Vedic lore, to spread the spirit

of devotion among the people, and to make endowments of land etc.,

for charitable purposes. To mark the auspicious occasion Sri

Sankara's Brahma-sutra-bhashya with notes was published by the

Kamakoti Kosasthanam.

The Golden Jubilee of the Acharya's ascension to the Kamakoti Pitha

was celebrated on the 17th of March 1957, at Kalavai where he had

ascended the Pitha in 1907. In the course of a message, the Acharya

observed.

" We know today that half-a-century has passed. There is not much use

in reviewing all that we have been able to do in the past fifty

years. On the contrary, we should bestow our thoughts on what we have

to do in the remaining years that are given to us by God in this

life. What is it that has to be done by us? What has to be done is to

be gain the state of freedom from all action. But, in the

Bhagavadgita, the Lord declares repeatedly that the state of freedom

from action cannot be obtained by remaining quite (without performing

our duty). It is by performing action that the state of actionless-

ness can be realized. What is the action which is very intense, by

which actionless-ness is to be achieved by us? In answering this

question, we recollect and remind you of the Bhagavatpada's

command: 'Let us thus perform our allotted actions. It is the

performance of our allotted action that constitutes service to the

Lord, worship of Him becomes the means to obtain His Grace.

Therefore, performing our respective duties, and thus worshipping the

Lord, we shall gain the Supreme God. "

In the history of city of Madras, the year 1957-59 constitute an

unforgettable chapter; for, during these years, the Acharya stayed in

the city-visiting it after a lapse of twenty-five-years-and blessed

the people by his benign presence, by the daily Puja performed to Sri

Chandramoulisvara and Sri Tripurasundari and by His post-Puja

discourses.

Every moment of His Holiness's life is spent in the service of Adi

Sankara, in conveying the Great Master's all-comprehensive and soul-

saving message to the people at large. With a view to remind the

people of Sri Sankara and his spiritual mission, His Holiness has

been causing Sankara Memorial Mantapas to be constructed during the

last few years, at important places of pilgrimage. The first to be so

constructed is the one at Rameswaram. After participating in the

Kumbhabhishekam of Sri Bangaru Kamakshi at Thanjavur on the 7th of

April, 1963, the Acharya proceeded to Rameswaram for the consecration

of the first Sankara Memorial Tower there. The consecration ceremony

took place significantly on the Sankara Jayanthi Day, the 28th of

April, 1963.

The entire Memorial is a graceful structure with representations of

holy sages and preceptors whose sight would bring back to one's

memory the unique grandeur of India's culture. As one rises from the

Agnitirtha after a sanctifying bath, one beholds the Memorial Tower

and the various features thereof. Each aspect elevates. The figure of

Sri Adi Sankara surrounded by his disciples impresses the pilgrim as

representing all that is best and noblest in India's heritage.

In connection with Kumbhabhishekam, a Sadas was held that night.

Addressing the audience, the Acharya explained the significance of

the installation of Sri Adi Sankara. With a smile, he observed in a

lighter vein. " Sri Adi Sankara was a wandering Acharya moving quickly

and frequently from place to place. He had traveled throughout his

sacred country. Today Sri Adi Sankara has assumed a fixed seat in

Rameswaram, the dakshinamnayakshetra, the southern-most dharma of all

the Dharmas of Bharatavarsha. To the four corners of India he carried

his message; but from all over people will be coming to him at

Rameswaram and after touching his Paduka placed in front of the

Mantapa, will receive the message and inspiration from him. " The

Acharya thus gave the reason why Rameswaram has been chosen as the

first place for the installation of Sri Adi Sankara.

Tiruvidaimarudur, also called Madhyarjuna, is a notable place of

pilgrimage connected with Adi Sankara's Dig-vijaya. When Sankara

visited this place, he desired that the Mahalinga at the temple

should itself declare the truth of Advaita so that the doubt in

regard thereto lingering in the minds of some people might be

dispelled. In response to the Jagadguru's prayer, the Lord Siva

appeared out of the Mahalinga, raised the right hand, and proclaimed

the truth of Advaita three times thus: 'satyam advaitam; satyam

advaitam; satyam advaitam'. Our Acharya wished that this greatly

significant incident should be adequately represented in sculpture so

that peopled would easily remember it. A vimana over the entrance of

the local Sankara Matha was put up, and within it were installed

sculptured figures of the Mahalinga with the right hand raised and of

Adi Sankara with palms joined. In the central courtyard of the Matha

a shrine was constructed and in it was installed Sankara-paduka. Our

Acharya accompanied by Sri Jayendra Sarasvati Swami participated in

the Kumbhabhishekam of this new Memorial, which took place on the 5th

of December, 1963, a special feature of the ceremony was the archana

performed to the Paduka with 108 laced shawls, which were

subsequently presented to the Pandits.

In the Sri Matha at Kanchi, a new sixteen-pillared hall was

constructed and therein were installed the images of Adi Sankara and

his four disciples and the Guru Paduka. The Acharya arrived at Kanchi

on the 26th of February, 1964, after a tour of the southern

districts. On the next day, the 27th, of February, the consecration

ceremony was performed.

At Kanyakumari, the land's end, where the eternal Virgin Mother

presides, a Memorial Mantapa for Sankara was built. The

Kumbhabhishekam for this was performed on the 31st of May, 1964.

Srisaila, the Holy Mountain in Andhra Pradesh is one of the most

sacred Sivasthalas. We have already referred to the visit of our

Acharya to this place in 1934 during His vijaya-yatra and to the fact

that Adi Sankara had also visited it. A fitting Memorial Mantapa for

Sankara has been built there. And, our Acharya went to Srisila in

March, 1967, the Sankara Jayanthi day.

At Kurukshetra, the images of Sri Sankara and of the Gitopadesa have

been installed. Among the other places of pilgrimage where

arrangements are in progress of Sankara-Memorials are: Trayambaka

where the Godavari has its source, Prayaga where there is the

confluence of the Ganga, the Yamuna and the invisible Sarasvati and

Badari on the Himalayas where Nara and Narayana observe perpetual

tapasya for the welfare of the world.

During the period of the Acharya's stay in Kanchi in 1953-57, His

second visit to the city in 1957-59 and in subsequent years several

foreigners scholars and savants, spiritual seekers and religious

leaders, exponents of the arts and even diplomats-have had interviews

with the Acharya, thereby gaining first-hand knowledge of the

immortal tradition of India. What Professor Milton Singer, of the

University of Chicago, said after meeting the Acharya in 1955,

express precisely the feeling of all those from abroad who have had

the privilege of conversing with the Great One. This is what the

Professor said: " Before I went to India I had heard and read much

about the great 'soul-force of its holy men and saints but I had

assumed that this was something in the ancient past. And it was not

until I had met Sankaracharya that I realized it is still a part of

the living force of Hinduism to day " .

In his book, The Lotus and the Robot, the well-known writer Mr.

Arthur Koestler records his impression of a meeting which he had with

the Acharya in 1959, and speaks in glowing terms of the smile that

transformed the Acharya's face into that of a child; " I had never

seen a comparable smile of expression; it had an extraordinary charm

and sweetness " .

Miss Eughina Borghini, of Buenos Aires, Argentina, who was among

those who attended the first Agama-Silpa-Sadas at Illaiyattangudi in,

1962, has this to say about our Acharya:

" I consider the day I first saw His Holiness as a day of great

fortune in my life. I consider that in him Jesus has come again into

this world. He is an image of love. From the moment I saw him, the

light of his grace gave me maturity to understand clearly some of the

aspects of spiritual life and religious teachings. His Holiness lives

just like Jesus, homeless and devoted to a life of renunciation and

with his contemplation, worship, penance, and teaching is working for

the welfare of mankind. I shall bow at His feet and be always adoring

him. "

Dr. Albert B. Franklin, formerly U.S. Consul-General in Madras, saw

the Acharya for the first time in the Madurai Meenakshi temple during

the Kumbhabbhishekam in 1963. In these striking words he records what

he saw and the deep impression it made on his mind:

" A stir in the central portion of the temple-yard before the glided

Vimanam under which the Goddess Meenakshi is henceforth to stay,

attracted our attention. The V.I.P. in that area parted respectfully

to let an old man with a beard and a long stick come through. He

approached the ladder leading to the top of the Vimanam. It was the

Sankaracharya. The old man approached with halting steps, his head

turning from side to side as if he wanted not to miss any detail of

his surroundings, Who was he? He has a name, he has a dwelling place,

he has an age, but in fact, he is Every man and he is as old as man's

ponderings. He is the man of faith. He is the symbol of that

renunciation which is at the heart of all religions and which Christ

himself demanded when asked by the rich young man " What must I do be

saved? " So, here, at this time, in the temple, he is more than the

most highly placed of the V.I.P. guests. With a vigour surprising in

so old a man, he seizes the railing of the ladder in a long fingered,

bony hand and rapidly climbs seven or eight rungs to a point from

which he can reach the top of the Vimanam with his stick. He remains

a central figure throughout the ceremony " .

Presiding over a meeting held in Madras as part of the Diamond

Jubilee celebrations, on the 28th February, 1967, he paid the

following tribute to His Holiness:

" The greatest miracle of the human spirit is the sum of knowledge

found in the body of lore which we collectively term the Vedanta. His

Holiness, sixty years ago, abandoned the multitude of other levels of

human existence, contest, involvement, to devote himself to this

Truth. "

" If we meet here to-day to honour him because of the sixty years of

his accession to the title of Holiness, I believe that this is

immaterial to him. I believe that he is as far beyond the titles and

honours of this world as we, on our side, are in need of honouring

him as a way of symbolizing our awareness of the Reality he

represents for us. "

" It is hard for me to find a tribute in words which expresses my

feeling of admiration and gratitude towards His Holiness. Those of us

who deal in words as commodity or as a tool of trade, learn to

mistrust them. Especially do we mistrust words as a means to describe

a living, changing force, or personality and like your remote

ancestors we learn to mistrust words as a means of describing

ultimate things. "

" It gives me pleasure to be able to say, in these circumstances, that

though some of my ancestors were in their day the subject of

controversy because of their beliefs, just as Emerson was in his day,

yet not one of them would question the appropriateness of my being

here this evening. For them as for me, the Spirit whom we are

celebrating, represents the highest aspirations of mankind. "

It is difficult to reduce to words what one feels about the unique

greatness of our Acharya. His very presence in our midst is a

blessing. The solace that countless devotees receive from his words

is inexpressible. When one thinks of His Holiness, one is reminded of

the definition of " The Guru " given by Adi Sankara in his Prachnottara

ratna-malika:

Ko gurur-adhigatatattvah

Sishyahitaayodyatah satatam.

" Who is the Guru? He who has realized the Truth, and who is always

intent on the disciples' good " .

For sixty-three years, His Holiness Sri Chandrasekharendra Sarasvati

has adorned the ancient Kanchi Kamakoti Pitha as the sixty-eight

Acharya in succession to Adi Sankara. May this spiritual rulership

continue to shower its many blessing on the entire world!