Shri Adhi Shankara
Four Maths established by Shankara
We have to be thankful to Shankaracharya because Sanatana Dharma, the all-encompassing eternal code of life contained in the Vedas, still flows as the dynamic force underlying and unifying popular Hinduism. It is a monumental testimony to his life and works that this remains so.
The very fact that Hinduism is still a dynamic and all-encompassing religion stands as ample testimony to the deeds of Adi Shankaracharya.
One of His invaluable contributions towards this was the reordering and restructuring of the ancient Sannyasa order.
During his travels across the length and breadth of India, he established four maths (ashrams) to unify the scattered and diverse groups of Sannyasis. These four maths were established, about 500 BC, in four different corners of India.
They are:
1. Charade Math at Dwaraka in Western India
2. Shringeri Math at Shringeri in Southern India
3. Jyotir Math at Badrinath in Northern India
4. Govardhana Math at Jagannath Puri in Eastern India
He selected four of his senior most disciples to head each of these maths. The Acharyas were:
1. Hastamalaka - Sharada Math
2. Sureshwara - Shringeri Math
3. Trotaka - Jyotir Math
4. Padmapada - Govardhana Math
Ādi Śhaṅkara
Introduction
Śhaṅkara, also known as Ādi Śhaṅkara or the original Śhaṅkara, was a great spiritual leader and teacher in India about 2500 years ago. He is renowned for combining deep devotion with sharp intellect. He founded four seats of learning in four corners of India, known as the seats of the Śhaṅkarāchāryas, to perpetuate his teachings in their purity.
The value of human life
“To get a human body is a rare thing—make full use of it. There are four million kinds of lives which a soul can gather. After that one gets a human body. Therefore, one should not waste this chance.
“Every second in human life is very valuable. If you don’t value this, then you will have nothing in hand and you will weep in the end.
“Because you’re human, God has given you power to think and decide what is good and bad. Therefore, you can do the best possible kind of action. You should never consider yourself weak or a fallen creature.
“Whatever may have happened up to now may be because you didn’t know, but now be careful.
“After getting a human body, if you don’t reach God, then you have sold a diamond at the price of spinach.”
Birth and childhood
The birth place of Adi Shankara at Kalady Adi Sankara Keerthi Sthampa Mandapam, Kalady, Kerala
Shankara was born in the Nambudiri Brahmin community to Sri Sivaguru and Aryamba in or near Kaladi in central Kerala. According to lore, it was after his parents, who had been childless for many years, prayed at the Vadakkunnathan temple, Thrissur that Sankara was born under the star Thiruvathira.
His father died while Shankara was very young.
Shankara's upanayanaṃ,
the initiation into student-life, was performed at the age of five. As a
child, Shankara showed remarkable scholarship, mastering the four Vedas by the age of eight.
Sannyasa
From a young age, Shankara was inclined towards sannyasa, but it was only after much persuasion that his mother finally gave her consent.
Shankara then left Kerala and travelled towards North India in search of a guru. On the banks of the Narmada River, he met Govinda Bhagavatpada, the disciple of Gaudapada. When Govinda Bhagavatpada asked Shankara's identity, he replied with an extempore verse that brought out the Advaita Vedanta philosophy. Govinda Bhagavatapada was impressed and took Shankara as his disciple.
The guru instructed Shankara to write a commentary on the Brahma Sutras and propagate the Advaita philosophy. Shankara travelled to Kashi, where a young man named Sanandana, hailing from Chola territory in South India, became his first disciple. According to legend, while on his way to the Vishwanath Temple, Sankara came upon an untouchable
accompanied by four dogs. When asked to move aside by Shankara's
disciples, the untouchable replied: "Do you wish that I move my ever
lasting Ātman ("the Self"), or this body made of flesh?" Realizing that the untouchable was none other than god Shiva himself, and his dogs the four Vedas, Shankara prostrated himself before him, composing five shlokas known as Manisha Panchakam.
At Badari (OUR GURU-DEVs Seat of the North-Shankarcharya) he wrote his famous Bhashyas ("commentaries") and Prakarana granthas ("philosophical treatises").
Meeting with Mandana Mishra
One of the most famous debates of Adi Shankara was with the ritualist Mandana Mishra. Madana Mishra's guru was the famous Mimamsa philosopher, Kumarīla Bhaṭṭa. Shankara sought a debate with Kumarīla Bhaṭṭa and met him in Prayag where he had buried himself in a slow burning pyre to repent for sins committed against his guru: Kumarīla Bhaṭṭa had learned Buddhist philosophy
from his Buddhist guru under false pretenses, in order to be able to
refute it. Learning anything without the knowledge of one's guru while
still under his authority constitutes a sin according to the Vedas.
Kumarīla Bhaṭṭa thus asked Adi Shankara to proceed to Mahiṣmati (known today as Mahishi Bangaon, Saharsa in Bihar) to meet Maṇḍana Miśra and debate with him instead.
After debating for over fifteen days, with Maṇḍana Miśra's wife Ubhaya Bhāratī acting as referee, Maṇḍana Miśra accepted defeat.
Ubhaya Bhāratī
then challenged Adi Shankara to have a debate with her in order to
'complete' the victory. She asks the questions in "kamasutra" in which
sankaracharya has no knowledge since he is a true celibate and
sanyasi,So he uses the art of "parakaya pravesa" and his soul joins a
dead body of a king.And he acquires all the knowledge of "art of love"
from the queen from questionnaire.Finally Ubhaya Bhāratī allowed Maṇḍana Miśra to accept sannyasa with the monastic name Sureśvarācārya, as per the agreed rules of the debate.
Missionary tour
Sharada temple at Sringeri Sharada Peetham, Sringeri.
Adi Shankara then travelled with his disciples to Maharashtra and Srisailam. In Srisailam, he composed Shivanandalahari, a devotional hymn in praise of Shiva. The Madhaviya Shankaravijayam says that when Shankara was about to be sacrificed by a Kapalika, the god Narasimha appeared to save Shankara in response to Padmapada's prayer to him. As a result, Adi Shankara composed the Laksmi-Narasimha stotra.
He then travelled to Gokarṇa, the temple of Hari-Shankara and the Mūkambika temple at Kollur. At Kollur, he accepted as his disciple a boy believed to be dumb by his parents. He gave him the name, Hastāmalakācārya ("one with the amalaka fruit on his palm", i.e., one who has clearly realised the Self). Next, he visited Śṛngeri to establish the Śārada Pīṭham and made Toṭakācārya his disciple.
After this, Adi Shankara began a Dig-vijaya (tour of conquest)
for the propagation of the Advaita philosophy by controverting all
philosophies opposed to it. He travelled throughout India, from South India to Kashmir and Nepal, preaching to the local populace and debating philosophy with Hindu, Buddhist and other scholars and monks along the way.
With the Malayali King Sudhanva as companion, Shankara passed through Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Vidarbha. He then started towards Karnataka where he encountered a band of armed Kapalikas. King Sudhanva, with his Nairs, resisted and defeated the Kapalikas. They safely reached Gokarna where Shankara defeated in debate the Shaiva scholar, Neelakanta.
Proceeding to Saurashtra (the ancient Kambhoja)
and having visited the shrines of Girnar, Somnath and Prabhasa and
explaining the superiority of Vedanta in all these places, he arrived at
Dwarka. Bhaṭṭa Bhāskara of Ujjayini, the proponent of Bhedābeda philosophy, was humbled. All the scholars of Ujjayini (also known as Avanti) accepted Adi Shankara's philosophy.
He then defeated the Jainas in philosophical debates at a place called Bahlika. Thereafter, the Acharya established his victory over several philosophers and ascetics in Kamboja (region of North Kashmir), Darada
(Dabistan) and many regions situated in the desert and crossing mighty
peaks, entered Kashmir. Later, he had an encounter with a tantrik, Navagupta at Kamarupa.
Accession to Sarvajnapitha Statue of Adi Shankara at his Samadhi Mandir, behind Kedarnath Temple, in Kedarnath, India
Adi Shankara visited Sarvajñapīṭha (Sharada Peeth) in Kashmir (now in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir).
The Madhaviya Shankaravijayam states this temple had four doors for scholars from the four cardinal directions. The southern door (representing South India)
had never been opened, indicating that no scholar from South India had entered the Sarvajna Pitha. Adi Shankara opened the southern door by defeating in debate all the scholars there in all the various scholastic disciplines such as Mimamsa, Vedanta and other branches of Hindu philosophy; he ascended the throne of Transcendent wisdom of that temple. Towards the end of his life, Adi Shankara travelled to the Himalayan area of Kedarnath-Badrinath and attained videha mukti ("freedom from embodiment"). There is a samadhi mandir
dedicated to Adi Shankara behind the Kedarnath temple.
Kanchipuram (Tamil Nadu).
Four Maths established by Shankara
We have to be thankful to Shankaracharya because Sanatana Dharma, the all-encompassing eternal code of life contained in the Vedas, still flows as the dynamic force underlying and unifying popular Hinduism. It is a monumental testimony to his life and works that this remains so.
The very fact that Hinduism is still a dynamic and all-encompassing religion stands as ample testimony to the deeds of Adi Shankaracharya.
One of His invaluable contributions towards this was the reordering and restructuring of the ancient Sannyasa order.
During his travels across the length and breadth of India, he established four maths (ashrams) to unify the scattered and diverse groups of Sannyasis. These four maths were established, about 500 BC, in four different corners of India.
They are:
1. Charade Math at Dwaraka in Western India
2. Shringeri Math at Shringeri in Southern India
3. Jyotir Math at Badrinath in Northern India
4. Govardhana Math at Jagannath Puri in Eastern India
He selected four of his senior most disciples to head each of these maths. The Acharyas were:
1. Hastamalaka - Sharada Math
2. Sureshwara - Shringeri Math
3. Trotaka - Jyotir Math
4. Padmapada - Govardhana Math
Ādi Śhaṅkara
Introduction
Śhaṅkara, also known as Ādi Śhaṅkara or the original Śhaṅkara, was a great spiritual leader and teacher in India about 2500 years ago. He is renowned for combining deep devotion with sharp intellect. He founded four seats of learning in four corners of India, known as the seats of the Śhaṅkarāchāryas, to perpetuate his teachings in their purity.
The value of human life
“To get a human body is a rare thing—make full use of it. There are four million kinds of lives which a soul can gather. After that one gets a human body. Therefore, one should not waste this chance.
“Every second in human life is very valuable. If you don’t value this, then you will have nothing in hand and you will weep in the end.
“Because you’re human, God has given you power to think and decide what is good and bad. Therefore, you can do the best possible kind of action. You should never consider yourself weak or a fallen creature.
“Whatever may have happened up to now may be because you didn’t know, but now be careful.
“After getting a human body, if you don’t reach God, then you have sold a diamond at the price of spinach.”
Birth and childhood
The birth place of Adi Shankara at Kalady Adi Sankara Keerthi Sthampa Mandapam, Kalady, Kerala
Shankara was born in the Nambudiri Brahmin community to Sri Sivaguru and Aryamba in or near Kaladi in central Kerala. According to lore, it was after his parents, who had been childless for many years, prayed at the Vadakkunnathan temple, Thrissur that Sankara was born under the star Thiruvathira.
His father died while Shankara was very young.
Shankara's upanayanaṃ,
the initiation into student-life, was performed at the age of five. As a
child, Shankara showed remarkable scholarship, mastering the four Vedas by the age of eight.
Sannyasa
From a young age, Shankara was inclined towards sannyasa, but it was only after much persuasion that his mother finally gave her consent.
Shankara then left Kerala and travelled towards North India in search of a guru. On the banks of the Narmada River, he met Govinda Bhagavatpada, the disciple of Gaudapada. When Govinda Bhagavatpada asked Shankara's identity, he replied with an extempore verse that brought out the Advaita Vedanta philosophy. Govinda Bhagavatapada was impressed and took Shankara as his disciple.
The guru instructed Shankara to write a commentary on the Brahma Sutras and propagate the Advaita philosophy. Shankara travelled to Kashi, where a young man named Sanandana, hailing from Chola territory in South India, became his first disciple. According to legend, while on his way to the Vishwanath Temple, Sankara came upon an untouchable
accompanied by four dogs. When asked to move aside by Shankara's
disciples, the untouchable replied: "Do you wish that I move my ever
lasting Ātman ("the Self"), or this body made of flesh?" Realizing that the untouchable was none other than god Shiva himself, and his dogs the four Vedas, Shankara prostrated himself before him, composing five shlokas known as Manisha Panchakam.
At Badari (OUR GURU-DEVs Seat of the North-Shankarcharya) he wrote his famous Bhashyas ("commentaries") and Prakarana granthas ("philosophical treatises").
Meeting with Mandana Mishra
One of the most famous debates of Adi Shankara was with the ritualist Mandana Mishra. Madana Mishra's guru was the famous Mimamsa philosopher, Kumarīla Bhaṭṭa. Shankara sought a debate with Kumarīla Bhaṭṭa and met him in Prayag where he had buried himself in a slow burning pyre to repent for sins committed against his guru: Kumarīla Bhaṭṭa had learned Buddhist philosophy
from his Buddhist guru under false pretenses, in order to be able to
refute it. Learning anything without the knowledge of one's guru while
still under his authority constitutes a sin according to the Vedas.
Kumarīla Bhaṭṭa thus asked Adi Shankara to proceed to Mahiṣmati (known today as Mahishi Bangaon, Saharsa in Bihar) to meet Maṇḍana Miśra and debate with him instead.
After debating for over fifteen days, with Maṇḍana Miśra's wife Ubhaya Bhāratī acting as referee, Maṇḍana Miśra accepted defeat.
Ubhaya Bhāratī
then challenged Adi Shankara to have a debate with her in order to
'complete' the victory. She asks the questions in "kamasutra" in which
sankaracharya has no knowledge since he is a true celibate and
sanyasi,So he uses the art of "parakaya pravesa" and his soul joins a
dead body of a king.And he acquires all the knowledge of "art of love"
from the queen from questionnaire.Finally Ubhaya Bhāratī allowed Maṇḍana Miśra to accept sannyasa with the monastic name Sureśvarācārya, as per the agreed rules of the debate.
Missionary tour
Sharada temple at Sringeri Sharada Peetham, Sringeri.
Adi Shankara then travelled with his disciples to Maharashtra and Srisailam. In Srisailam, he composed Shivanandalahari, a devotional hymn in praise of Shiva. The Madhaviya Shankaravijayam says that when Shankara was about to be sacrificed by a Kapalika, the god Narasimha appeared to save Shankara in response to Padmapada's prayer to him. As a result, Adi Shankara composed the Laksmi-Narasimha stotra.
He then travelled to Gokarṇa, the temple of Hari-Shankara and the Mūkambika temple at Kollur. At Kollur, he accepted as his disciple a boy believed to be dumb by his parents. He gave him the name, Hastāmalakācārya ("one with the amalaka fruit on his palm", i.e., one who has clearly realised the Self). Next, he visited Śṛngeri to establish the Śārada Pīṭham and made Toṭakācārya his disciple.
After this, Adi Shankara began a Dig-vijaya (tour of conquest)
for the propagation of the Advaita philosophy by controverting all
philosophies opposed to it. He travelled throughout India, from South India to Kashmir and Nepal, preaching to the local populace and debating philosophy with Hindu, Buddhist and other scholars and monks along the way.
With the Malayali King Sudhanva as companion, Shankara passed through Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Vidarbha. He then started towards Karnataka where he encountered a band of armed Kapalikas. King Sudhanva, with his Nairs, resisted and defeated the Kapalikas. They safely reached Gokarna where Shankara defeated in debate the Shaiva scholar, Neelakanta.
Proceeding to Saurashtra (the ancient Kambhoja)
and having visited the shrines of Girnar, Somnath and Prabhasa and
explaining the superiority of Vedanta in all these places, he arrived at
Dwarka. Bhaṭṭa Bhāskara of Ujjayini, the proponent of Bhedābeda philosophy, was humbled. All the scholars of Ujjayini (also known as Avanti) accepted Adi Shankara's philosophy.
He then defeated the Jainas in philosophical debates at a place called Bahlika. Thereafter, the Acharya established his victory over several philosophers and ascetics in Kamboja (region of North Kashmir), Darada
(Dabistan) and many regions situated in the desert and crossing mighty
peaks, entered Kashmir. Later, he had an encounter with a tantrik, Navagupta at Kamarupa.
Accession to Sarvajnapitha Statue of Adi Shankara at his Samadhi Mandir, behind Kedarnath Temple, in Kedarnath, India
Adi Shankara visited Sarvajñapīṭha (Sharada Peeth) in Kashmir (now in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir).
The Madhaviya Shankaravijayam states this temple had four doors for scholars from the four cardinal directions. The southern door (representing South India)
had never been opened, indicating that no scholar from South India had entered the Sarvajna Pitha. Adi Shankara opened the southern door by defeating in debate all the scholars there in all the various scholastic disciplines such as Mimamsa, Vedanta and other branches of Hindu philosophy; he ascended the throne of Transcendent wisdom of that temple. Towards the end of his life, Adi Shankara travelled to the Himalayan area of Kedarnath-Badrinath and attained videha mukti ("freedom from embodiment"). There is a samadhi mandir
dedicated to Adi Shankara behind the Kedarnath temple.
Kanchipuram (Tamil Nadu).