Hinduism: Details about 'Sringeri Sharada Peetham'
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Sri Sringeri Sharada Peetham is one of the important Hindu Advaita maṭhas. The heads of the maṭha are known as Shankaracharyas. It is believed to be one of the original maṭhas started by Sri Adi Shankaracharya.
LocationThe maţha is located in the temple town of Sringeri (also spelled as Shringeri), on the banks of river Tunga located in the Chikmagalur district of the Karnataka state, India. It is located 190 km from Mangalore. HistoryThe origin of the maṭha is described in Sankara Vijaya, written by Madhava, which has many mistakes but the supporters of this matha want to suppress that. According to legends, Sankara and the pair reached Sringeri on an exceptionally hot noon and as they proceeded to the river Tunga for their ablutions, they saw a frog struggling in the blazing sun to be delivered of its offspring. A cobra, the natural enemy of frog, raised its hood to provide the frog with shelter and protection from the ravages of the tropical sun. Sankara was greatly moved by the sight. If there was paradise on earth, here it was, where the lion and the lamb, the tiger and the cow, the cobra and the frog lived in mutual amity and peace. He just turned round when, as she had already stipulated, Bharati, known also as Sarada, decided to stay for good at Sringeri on the banks of the sacred river Tunga. Vishwarupa, assuming the name of Suresvaracharya, was installed here as the successor of Sankaracharya before the latter resumed his tour to found his three pithas at Puri, Dwaraka and Badrinath. Thus the maṭha traces its lineage from Suresvaracharya. The Sringeri maṭha records its history from the 8th century onwards. The recent Sringeri maṭha sources reported that Sankara was born in the 14th year of the reign of Vikramaditya. Some believe him to be the Vikramaditya II of the Western Chalukya Dynasty, which ruled from Badami in Karnataka. Others believe him to the Vikramaditya of the 1st century BC. The history of the Sringeri Matha since the period of Sri Bharathi Tirtha (I) and Sri Vidyaranya onwards is well documented. Most of the names from the Sringeri lineage up to Vidyaranya are also found in the Sri Guru Charitra, a 15th century Marathi work by Gangadhara Saraswathi. The maṭha continues in existence even to this day, and governs many institutions. Head of the maṭhaThe head of the maṭha is usually a Brahmachari,educated in the Vedas. The Existing head of the maṭha decides upon a worthy disciple ,initiates him into Sanyasa,and appoints him as the head. T he present head of the maṭha is Sri Bharati Theertha Swamigal. Philosophy and Traditions of the maṭhaThe maṭha Gurus follow the philosophy of Advaita Vedanta. As per the tradition initiated by Adi Shankara, the matha is incharge of the Yajur Veda (the Black Yajurveda is more popular in south India). The Gurus of the maṭha believe in all the demigods (devas), described in the Vedas and the Puranas, to be mundane manifestations of the same One Cosmic Spirit, called Brahman. They suscribe to the Vedic phrase "Aham Brahma Asmi",which means that "I am the Universal spirit". The Gurus wear ochre robes, smear their forehead with Sacred ashes or Vibhuti and worship God for many hours everyday. They practice intense penance and meditation, which they believe helps in the control of the mind. They sustain themselves on optimum diet and minimal sleep. They meditate on the Rudraksha beeds and worship Shiva Linga everyday. To an Advaitin, Shiva is Vishnu and Vishnu is Siva. Both are one and the same. The Sringeri Gurus advocate that an individual must not merely revere a Guru and listen to his teachings, but imbibe the good habits of the Guru in their own life. Some of the things advocated by the Gurus are:
Much of the examples and advices of the Gurus are inspired from Ancient Vedic Wisdom. They would never advise anything contradictory to scriptures, as they hold the ancient Vedas as God inspired Truth. The material world is considered as 'Maya',or temporary, which is like a dream, so they believe that one should be involved in the material world only in order to fulfill one's responsibility. Even as they adhere to the teachings of Adi Shankaracharaya, they read other secular and religious works. They however do not advocate Religious Conversion and believe that individuals must follow the religion of their own birth properly and correctly. With regard to many ideas, they are still very conservative. Some people criticize them since these gurus do not accept widow remarriage, divorces, women devoting to career ( at the cost of family life) etc — although their condemnation of extra marital affairs and animal sacrifices are definitely praiseworthy. Followers of the maṭhaNormally people of all castes visit the Shankaracharya. But the majority of devotees are Smartha Brahmins of South India and Maharashtra.The maṭha has huge following especially among the Vedic community, who recite the vedas even to this day. The succeessor of the maṭha is himself chosen from the Vedic Brahmanas. Activities of the maṭhaMuch of the maṭha activity is centered around religious institutions. A number of Vedic Schools and Temples are maintained by the maṭha. Besides this the maṭha also runs a hospital, and a few colleges. It has established branches in many parts of India. The Sharadambal Temple at Sringeri is managed by the Sringeri maṭha. There is also a spectacular library in Sringeri, with rare Sanskrit Volumes ,which is managed by the maṭha. The environment in Sringeri is highly unpolluted and beautiful. The maṭha has also played an important role in preserving the natural beauty of the Place. Relationship with other maṭhas and InstitutionsThe maṭha has enjoyed patronage from many Kings and Rulers. Its sage Vidyateertha was contemporary to the founders of Vijayanagar Empire. The maṭha was given lavish grants of land by the Vijayanagar Kings.Vidyaranya another maṭha head, was himself the advisor to the Vijayangar King. Tipu Sultan,the famous Muslim ruler of Mysore,also respected the Sringeri Acharyas, and helped it to sustain itself. Even in modern times the maṭha has had good relationship with the State and Central Governments, as it has strived to be politically neutral and non controversial. But in Independent India, with the coming of Land reforms, it has lost many of its traditional land, and was struggling to maintain itself. With the Increase in donation of NRIS, things have turned for the better. The maṭha also enjoys good relationship with three other mutts, believed to have been Started by Adi Shankaracharya. These mutts are located in Puri, Dwaraka and Badrinath. These four mutts are considered by many historians as the four most important mutts established by Adi Shankracharya. There is also one another maṭha in Kanchi, Kanchi Kamakoti matha ,which is also highly regarded by the Smartha Brahmins and other Hindus. Its abbot claims to be the fifth Sankaracharya, although most Hindus recognize only four. This maṭha has slightly different traditions from these mutts. Though it is not officially recognized by the four above mutts, it has maintained its own traditions and influence. This maṭha is equally popular among people and has done a lot of Social work as well. Some people believe that this maṭha was originally a branch of the Kudali Sringeri maṭha but due to the politically compelling reasons ie. due to the animosity between the Tanjore kings ( in whose kingdom the Kanchi maṭha was there) and the Mysore king ( in whose kingdom the Kudali Sringeri maṭha was located ) the Kanchi maṭha became independent. This probably happened at the time of Vidyashankara Swami as he had to leave the maṭha in a hurry and go to a safe place in the North with all the important documents and the shastras of the maṭha so that the Muslim invader Malik Kafur would not be able to seize and destroy them. The Sringeri maṭha devotees disagree with the date of Adi Shankracharya proposed by the Kanchi maṭha. The Kanchi maṭha claims that it originated in 509 BC. The devotees of the two mathas have been arguing and showering insults on each other for almost a century now, and there are already many books that have come out on this issue. Besides the Kanchi maṭha, there is also a Kudali Sringeri maṭha which claims that it is the Original Sringeri maṭha. This maṭha is located in Kudali,where the rivers Tunga and Bhadra meet. It claims that a particular Guru of the maṭha, Swami Vidyasankara, had left Kudali Sringeri, presumably for Kashi, during the invasion of Malik Kafur in 1310 AD, in order to escape from the wrath of the invader. In fact Swami Vidyasankara was already very old and nearing 100 years of age at that time as he became the Acharya of the Kudali Sringeri matha in 1229 CE and had been the Acharya of the matha for 81 years till 1310 CE, when Malik Kafur invaded that area. As Swami Vidyasankara did not return for many years Swami Bharati Tirtha, the younger brother of Vidyaranya, became the officiating new Acharya in 1328 CE and he shifted the matha to a politically safe place at Sringeri. As long as Swami Vidyasankara was presumed to be alive the Sringeri matha was considered as a branch of the Kudali Sringeri maṭha. As swami Vidyashankara did not return till 1330 CE a new Acharya was installed at Kudali Sringeri according to the tradition. The claim of Bharati Tirtha as the natural successor to Swami Vidyasankara was ignored. Thus Bharati Tirtha stayed back at Sringeri and in 1333 CE he too declared himself as the true successor of Swami Vidyasankara, saying that for three years from 1330 to 1333 CE Swami Vidyasankara was in Lambika Yoga in Sringeri. When Bharati Tirtha took samadhi in 1380 CE Swami Vidyaranya became the Acharya of the Sringeri maṭha. At the time of Vidyaranya the new Srngeri maṭha prospered and gained eminence due to royal patronage from the Vijayanagar empire. The claims of the Kudali Sringeri maṭha is supported by the Kanchi maṭha, but not accepted by the maṭha at Sringeri. Guru ParamparaThe list of Gurus given here, is as taken from the Official site of Sringeri maṭha. The dates refer to the period during which the maṭha was governed, by that particular Guru. But the Dwaraka, Puri and the Joshi matha lineage of Adi Sankara sarts from 509 BCE. Guru Parampara(the lineage of Sringeri Jagadgurus)
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