Adi Shankaracharya’s 2,515th birthday

[Guest guest]

Adi Shankaracharya's 2,515th birth anniversary falls on May 2

Adi Shankara and Hindu revival

By Swami Gyananand Saraswati

 

Adi Shankara provided the divine light of enlightenment to the people

of India, especially at a time when they were badly mired in the

narrow confines of regionalism, orthodoxy, weakness, sectarianism and

excessive ritualism. Adi Shankara's sheer brilliance and

far-sightedness of vision, plus his strength and strategic acumen of

organisation resuscitated the Indian nation.

 

ADI Jagadguru Shankarachaya's message is the very embodiment of our

national dharma. Born in Kerala 2,515 years ago, Adi Shankara, during

his brief life span of only 32 years, 6 months and 10 days had

endeavoured to bind our nation in the bond of cultural values and

enlightenment. His mighty endeavour is reflective of his total

commitment to the supremacy of national dharma. This is the prime

reason why Adi Shankara's divine vision provides us constant

inspiration of national integration, realising the innate oneness of

the Supreme Being and the soul, self and national esteem. In the realm

of universal peace and national unity, he will forever shine as the

radiance, whose lustre will illuminate the path of the human world in

its journey.

 

Adi Shankara, who held the ideal of national dharma to be Supreme,

traversed the entire country and also established four mutts in the

four different corners of the country with the purpose of preserving

and strengthening national unity and integrity. Adi Shankara, through

his unique and unparalleled act of his, firmly put his belief into

action, that the moral development and advancement of the nation was

possible only through two ways. One was through the spiritual messages

of saints and acharayas, and the other was the might of the sovereign

state.

 

Adi Shankaracharya clearly instructed the acharyas who headed the

peeths (seats) established by him in the four corners of the country:

Mathey tu niyato vâsa âchâryasya na yujyatey (acharays must never stay

in their respective mutts for too long a period or continuously).

Their duty was to be constantly on the move, and engage themselves in

nation-building. Yet another message of Adi Shanakara to his disciples

and coming acharyas was: Swa swa râshtra pratishtityai sanchâraha

suvidhiyatâm (examine one's own self and the state of the nation while

being constantly on the move.)

 

The political and spiritual centres of the nation must today draw

inspiration and sustenance from the philosophy that Adi Shankara

initiated and must resuscitate those very values, which alone can

provide the wherewithal for the perseverance of India's spiritual,

religious, social, historical and geographical integrity. Today, when

our national flag can be lowered in observance of grief for the demise

of persons belonging to a particular faith, why then cannot we, as a

nation resolve that the birth anniversary of Adi Shankaracharya, who

was a pioneer of universal dharma and philosophical vision, a

progenitor of united India, be consecrated as a national festival? Adi

Shankara's universal persona and his achievements must form an

inseparable part of central and state government schools in both their

primary and secondary syllabi/curriculum.

 

It was Adi Shankara who provided the divine light of enlightenment to

the people of India, especially at a time when they were badly mired

in the narrow confines of regionalism, orthodoxy, weakness,

sectarianism and excessive ritualism. Adi Shankara's sheer brilliance

and far-sightedness of vision, plus his strength and strategic acumen

of organisation resuscitated the Indian nation and made it shine with

renewed luster in the world. Shankara's life-journey was responsible

in immortalising the social, historical, geographical, spiritual unity

and integrity of our nation that had earlier been badly divided into

no less than 72 different seats like Vedic, Buddhist, Jain, Shaiva,

Kâpâlik, Pânchrâtra and so on.

 

The four different mutts that Adi Shankara established in the four

corners of the country, namely Jyotirmutt at Badrinâth in the

Himalayas, Govardhan Mutt at Jagannâth Puri in Orissa, Shringa-giri

(Shringeri) Shârdâ Mutt at Karnataka and the Dwârakâ Mutt in Dwârakâ,

Gujarat, and the Kânchi Kâmakoti Mutt for penance and worship, are

even today, centres revered and held in awe by the people of India.

 

Lord Krishna, through the Geeta, provided philosophical and

metaphysical template to integrate all different sects and ideologies

into a single unit. For this purpose, he also established Yudhishtir

as the emperor of a vast empire that straddled practically all of

Asia. Adi Shankara, though not choosing any sovereign ruler or monarch

to represent the political unity of India, left the imprint of his

effort in engineering unity in every walk of national life, also

strengthening the traditions and values that lent sustenance to this

unique oneness of India. Shankara's mighty endeavour in strengthening

the cultural unity of our nation has ensured that despite many adverse

and hostile transgressions upon this land, the underlying and innate

unity of the land of Bharat has always re-manifested itself time and

again.

 

Shankara's philosophy drawn from Advaita Vedânta is today held in

reverence throughout the world due to its message of universal peace

and the welfare of humanity. It is Shankara's untiring and ceaseless

efforts that saved India from being caught in the trap of rigid

ritualism on one hand and from falling into the abyss of empty

materialism devoid of spiritualism, on the other. Adi Shankaracharya

thus was the saviour of India at a very critical juncture in its history.

 

The advent of Adi Shankara took place at that particular juncture in

the history of Vedic dharma, which can be indeed termed as the dawning

of a new era. The pristine land of Bharat was being bogged down in a

morass of non-Vedic influences; the dark demons of vice and sin were

eager to devour it from all sides. The land and its people were sunk

in laziness, inaction and fatalism. It was at such a period in time

that Bharat witnessed the advent of Adi Shankara. The flickering lamp

of dharma, which was in real danger of being extinguished by the gust

of the winds of adharma and looked to be in its last throes, was

protected, preserved and then nurtured into a mighty radiant light by

this supreme savant, and it then spread its illustrious light of

dharma throughout the entire country. The whole land resonated with

the victorious proclamation of the triumph of Sanâtan Vedic Dharma.

 

Âdi Shankara's immortal messages of Jeevo brahmaivanâparâhâ (The soul

and the Supreme are not different from each other) Tattvamasi (Thou

Art That meaning the Supreme One), Pragyânâm Brahm meaning the

ultimate wisdom is the Almighty), Aham Brahmâsmi (I am verily the

Brahman) and Sarvam Khalvidam Brahm (The entire universe is the

manifestation of the Supreme One), which are drawn from the

Upanishads, began to resonate throughout the country. The Geeta's

wisdom, so aptly reflected and enunciated through Adveshtâ sarva

bhootânâm, maitra karuna eva cha" (Hating no living being, but

harmonious and kind towards all) was thence made available to the

people of this nation, making them aware of the significance,

hoariness and the sheer power of our wisdom. More importantly, social

and religious lethargy and sloth had to yield place to valour and

enterprise from out of a reawakened spirit of nationalism. This was

truly a new era in the history of our national dharma. Which Indian

therefore, does not worship Adi Shankara, the individual who brought

about this epoch, the great savant responsible for the resurrection of

Sanatan Dharma in every heart?

 

It is for this precise reason that the Shreemad Adya Jagadguru

Shankarachaya Vedic Shodh Sansthanam, Varanasi, is whole-heartedly

engaged in and dedicated to the strengthening of those very national

values and presenting before India's students and our coming progeny,

the actual period of Adi Shankaracharya's advent, the complete events

of his life and his comprehensive accomplishments, his illustrious

person, his supreme character and his total independence of action and

karma.

 

(The author is engaged in research on Adi Shankaracharya for several

years.)

< Terms of Service.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Sir,

There is also a perception from readings of Brahm Sutra, that the twin

curses which drove the Hundu society to the darkness of Black holes through

giving legitimacy and establishing caste based society and relegation of 50%

of human society by condemning women to the roles clubbed with ineligibility

to social equality were established by Adi Shankaracharys, in completely

opposite thinking from Vedic ideals..

The much needed clarification of these traditionist views is still not

coming forth from our present Shankarachryas.

Subodh Kumar

 

On 04/05/06, Vrndavan Parker <vrnparker > wrote:

>

> Adi Shankaracharya's 2,515th birth anniversary falls on May 2

> Adi Shankara and Hindu revival

> By Swami Gyananand Saraswati

>

> Adi Shankara provided the divine light of enlightenment to the people

> of India, especially at a time when they were badly mired in the

> narrow confines of regionalism, orthodoxy, weakness, sectarianism and

> excessive ritualism. Adi Shankara's sheer brilliance and

> far-sightedness of vision, plus his strength and strategic acumen of

> organisation resuscitated the Indian nation.

>

> ADI Jagadguru Shankarachaya's message is the very embodiment of our

> national dharma. Born in Kerala 2,515 years ago, Adi Shankara, during

> his brief life span of only 32 years, 6 months and 10 days had

> endeavoured to bind our nation in the bond of cultural values and

> enlightenment. His mighty endeavour is reflective of his total

> commitment to the supremacy of national dharma. This is the prime

> reason why Adi Shankara's divine vision provides us constant

> inspiration of national integration, realising the innate oneness of

> the Supreme Being and the soul, self and national esteem. In the realm

> of universal peace and national unity, he will forever shine as the

> radiance, whose lustre will illuminate the path of the human world in

> its journey.

>

> Adi Shankara, who held the ideal of national dharma to be Supreme,

> traversed the entire country and also established four mutts in the

> four different corners of the country with the purpose of preserving

> and strengthening national unity and integrity. Adi Shankara, through

> his unique and unparalleled act of his, firmly put his belief into

> action, that the moral development and advancement of the nation was

> possible only through two ways. One was through the spiritual messages

> of saints and acharayas, and the other was the might of the sovereign

> state.

>

> Adi Shankaracharya clearly instructed the acharyas who headed the

> peeths (seats) established by him in the four corners of the country:

> Mathey tu niyato vâsa âchâryasya na yujyatey (acharays must never stay

> in their respective mutts for too long a period or continuously).

> Their duty was to be constantly on the move, and engage themselves in

> nation-building. Yet another message of Adi Shanakara to his disciples

> and coming acharyas was: Swa swa râshtra pratishtityai sanchâraha

> suvidhiyatâm (examine one's own self and the state of the nation while

> being constantly on the move.)

>

> The political and spiritual centres of the nation must today draw

> inspiration and sustenance from the philosophy that Adi Shankara

> initiated and must resuscitate those very values, which alone can

> provide the wherewithal for the perseverance of India's spiritual,

> religious, social, historical and geographical integrity. Today, when

> our national flag can be lowered in observance of grief for the demise

> of persons belonging to a particular faith, why then cannot we, as a

> nation resolve that the birth anniversary of Adi Shankaracharya, who

> was a pioneer of universal dharma and philosophical vision, a

> progenitor of united India, be consecrated as a national festival? Adi

> Shankara's universal persona and his achievements must form an

> inseparable part of central and state government schools in both their

> primary and secondary syllabi/curriculum.

>

> It was Adi Shankara who provided the divine light of enlightenment to

> the people of India, especially at a time when they were badly mired

> in the narrow confines of regionalism, orthodoxy, weakness,

> sectarianism and excessive ritualism. Adi Shankara's sheer brilliance

> and far-sightedness of vision, plus his strength and strategic acumen

> of organisation resuscitated the Indian nation and made it shine with

> renewed luster in the world. Shankara's life-journey was responsible

> in immortalising the social, historical, geographical, spiritual unity

> and integrity of our nation that had earlier been badly divided into

> no less than 72 different seats like Vedic, Buddhist, Jain, Shaiva,

> Kâpâlik, Pânchrâtra and so on.

>

> The four different mutts that Adi Shankara established in the four

> corners of the country, namely Jyotirmutt at Badrinâth in the

> Himalayas, Govardhan Mutt at Jagannâth Puri in Orissa, Shringa-giri

> (Shringeri) Shârdâ Mutt at Karnataka and the Dwârakâ Mutt in Dwârakâ,

> Gujarat, and the Kânchi Kâmakoti Mutt for penance and worship, are

> even today, centres revered and held in awe by the people of India.

>

> Lord Krishna, through the Geeta, provided philosophical and

> metaphysical template to integrate all different sects and ideologies

> into a single unit. For this purpose, he also established Yudhishtir

> as the emperor of a vast empire that straddled practically all of

> Asia. Adi Shankara, though not choosing any sovereign ruler or monarch

> to represent the political unity of India, left the imprint of his

> effort in engineering unity in every walk of national life, also

> strengthening the traditions and values that lent sustenance to this

> unique oneness of India. Shankara's mighty endeavour in strengthening

> the cultural unity of our nation has ensured that despite many adverse

> and hostile transgressions upon this land, the underlying and innate

> unity of the land of Bharat has always re-manifested itself time and

> again.

>

> Shankara's philosophy drawn from Advaita Vedânta is today held in

> reverence throughout the world due to its message of universal peace

> and the welfare of humanity. It is Shankara's untiring and ceaseless

> efforts that saved India from being caught in the trap of rigid

> ritualism on one hand and from falling into the abyss of empty

> materialism devoid of spiritualism, on the other. Adi Shankaracharya

> thus was the saviour of India at a very critical juncture in its history.

>

> The advent of Adi Shankara took place at that particular juncture in

> the history of Vedic dharma, which can be indeed termed as the dawning

> of a new era. The pristine land of Bharat was being bogged down in a

> morass of non-Vedic influences; the dark demons of vice and sin were

> eager to devour it from all sides. The land and its people were sunk

> in laziness, inaction and fatalism. It was at such a period in time

> that Bharat witnessed the advent of Adi Shankara. The flickering lamp

> of dharma, which was in real danger of being extinguished by the gust

> of the winds of adharma and looked to be in its last throes, was

> protected, preserved and then nurtured into a mighty radiant light by

> this supreme savant, and it then spread its illustrious light of

> dharma throughout the entire country. The whole land resonated with

> the victorious proclamation of the triumph of Sanâtan Vedic Dharma.

>

> Âdi Shankara's immortal messages of Jeevo brahmaivanâparâhâ (The soul

> and the Supreme are not different from each other) Tattvamasi (Thou

> Art That meaning the Supreme One), Pragyânâm Brahm meaning the

> ultimate wisdom is the Almighty), Aham Brahmâsmi (I am verily the

> Brahman) and Sarvam Khalvidam Brahm (The entire universe is the

> manifestation of the Supreme One), which are drawn from the

> Upanishads, began to resonate throughout the country. The Geeta's

> wisdom, so aptly reflected and enunciated through Adveshtâ sarva

> bhootânâm, maitra karuna eva cha" (Hating no living being, but

> harmonious and kind towards all) was thence made available to the

> people of this nation, making them aware of the significance,

> hoariness and the sheer power of our wisdom. More importantly, social

> and religious lethargy and sloth had to yield place to valour and

> enterprise from out of a reawakened spirit of nationalism. This was

> truly a new era in the history of our national dharma. Which Indian

> therefore, does not worship Adi Shankara, the individual who brought

> about this epoch, the great savant responsible for the resurrection of

> Sanatan Dharma in every heart?

>

> It is for this precise reason that the Shreemad Adya Jagadguru

> Shankarachaya Vedic Shodh Sansthanam, Varanasi, is whole-heartedly

> engaged in and dedicated to the strengthening of those very national

> values and presenting before India's students and our coming progeny,

> the actual period of Adi Shankaracharya's advent, the complete events

> of his life and his comprehensive accomplishments, his illustrious

> person, his supreme character and his total independence of action and

> karma.

>

> (The author is engaged in research on Adi Shankaracharya for several

> years.)

> <

> http://www.organiser.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&pid=129&page=23

> >

>

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