Kudali Sringeri Shankaracharya Mahasamstanam Gets Its 72nd 'Peethadhipati': Sri Abhinava Sankara Bharati Swami

At Kudali, the confluence of Tunga and Bhadra that flows therefrom as the mighty Tungabhadra, one can amply experience the divine.

Referred to as Varanasi of the South, Kudali is where Jaganmata Sarada stands, Her divine grace flowing unrestrained, ensuring the upkeep of dharma among mankind.

When Mandana Misra conceded defeat in a debate with Adi Sankaracharya, Mandana Misra’s learned wife and judge of the debate, Ubhaya Bharati, promised to follow Sankara as long as he did not turn to look behind.

At Kudali, when Sankara failed to hear Mata Ubhaya Bharati's anklets, he turned back and, therefore, she stood there. Knowing her to be an incarnation of Saraswati, Sankara worshipped her there as Sharadamba.

He sang the Sharada Bhujanga stotram spilling his utmost devotion to Her where he says –

कटाक्षे दयार्द्रां करे ज्ञानमुद्रां

कलाभिर्विनिद्रां कलापैः सुभद्राम् ।

पुरस्त्रीं विनिद्रां पुरस्तुङ्गभद्रां

भजे शारदाम्बामजस्रं मदम्बाम्

which alludes to the gracious Sharada in front of who flows Tungabhadra.

Sankara established the Dakshinamnaya Mula Sharada Peetham at this place, appointing Mandana Misra, who was given the name Sureswaracharya, as the first Peethadhipati.

This was the first among the four peethams that Sankara established to protect and propagate the four Vedas.

Kudali Sringeri Dakshinamnaya Moola Sarada Peetham has been propagating Yajur Veda since then, advocating the principles of Advaita philosophy as per the smartha tradition.

Continuing the unbroken 2,500-year-old guru parampara, the 71st peethadhipati, His Holiness Sri Sri Vidyabhinava Vidyaranya Bharati Mahaswami decided to appoint his successor to take charge of the activities of the Mahasamstanam.

Accordingly, Paramapujya Abhinava Sankara Bharati Swami, took charge as the 72nd peethadhipati of the Kudali Sringeri Shankaracharya Mahasamstanam Dakshinamnaya Mula Sri Sharada Peetam on 22 May 2023.

The solemn five-day ceremony, which started on 18 May, was shrouded in Sharadamba’s divine grace and culminated in Mahaswami anointing his successor by giving him sanyasa deeksha and mahavakya upadesha.

The reverberations of the chants emanating from tens of Vedic scholars including many ghanapaathis gave the utmost sanctity to the ceremonies.

Thereafter the peethaarohanam and pattabhishekam took place with an abundance of blessings of many gurus and mathadhipatis who had gathered to add glory to the event.

His Holiness Sri Vijayendra Saraswati, Mahaswamy of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, gave his warm blessings via live video conference during the occasion. A swell of devotees had come from everywhere to witness the rare event.

The present Sankaracharya in his purvaasrama went by the name Dattaraj Deshpande.

Born in north Karnataka in a traditional Brahmin family, he is a Sanskrit scholar and a Rig Veda ghanapaathi, who underwent training in the oral tradition by staying with highly knowledgeable gurus at their abodes at several places in the Southern part of Bharata.

He mastered the six aṅgas and the three kaandas of the Vedas as well as the praatishaakhya, and is thus a dashagranthi.

He was a Vedacharya for over a decade and, during this time, he studied the Yajur Veda and Sama Veda. A polyglot who can speak and write in multiple languages, he published his first book at the age of 17.

Over time, he came to understand the complexities of the forces working against dharma and developed a keen interest in Indology and the dharmashastras.

He has been doing research, writing columns and books and making documentary films in his areas of interest and has been a strong advocate of the gurukula method for all fields of education.

In 2018 he renounced his family and career to volunteer full time with Bharatiya Shikshan Mandal, an organisation working to revive the gurukula education system, holding the responsibility of State Organising Secretary of north Tamil Nadu until he was identified as the person to take on his present role at Kudali.

The coming together of the sylvan surroundings, the immense beauty of the confluence of Tunga and Bhadra and the benevolent presence of Saradamba have made Kudali Mahasamstanam a perfect place to issue divine dharmik work for two and half millennia.

Through the centuries, the peetham has had the patronage of several kings, chieftains and devotees.

Prominent members from public life in recent times such as His Highness the Maharaja of Mysore and former President Dr S Radhakrishnan have consulted the Kudali Mahaswami in matters of governance and administration.

Devotees have been thronging the place and have found blissful solace in their otherwise mundane lives. Anyone who visits the place experiences a deep desire to remain there, such is its magnetism!

The possibility of a dip at the sangamam and the presence of many ancient temples in the vicinity, several of them managed by the Mahasamstanam, make the journey to Kudali an even more meaningful pilgrimage.

Situated in Shimoga district at a distance of about 16 km from the district headquarters, Kudali is accessible by road.