Biography of Sri Adi Sankara

By HH Sri Jayendra Saraswathi Swamigal

The state of Kerala was created by Lord Parasurama. Sri Adi Shankara took his Avatar in that Holy land of Kerala in a place called Kaaladi and was born to Sivaguru and Aryambal as an Amsam of Lord Siva (with the divine qualities of Lord Shiva). Sri Sankara’s upanayanam was performed at the age of five. Then His father passed away. Adi Shankara, at that time used to go for Biksha and earn His living by receiving alms (beg for food). Likewise one day when He went to a house for seeking Biksha, the lady of the house being too poor to give Shankara anything, gave Him the only Gooseberry (Amla) fruit that was available at home as Biksha. Shankara accepted the gooseberry fruit and sang Kanakadhara Sthothram and brought about a rain of golden gooseberries thus eliminating the poverty at her home.

One day when Shankara asked His mother if He could attain Sannyasa, she categorically refused to give permission for it. Then one day He turned the course of the river towards their house for the sake of His mother. One day when he was bathing in the river, a crocodile caught hold of His feet. At once Adi Shankara told His mother who was standing on the river bank that the crocodile would let go of His leg only if He promised to attain Sannyasa. His mother in her urge to save her son from the crocodile gave her consent. Immediately the crocodile let go of His feet and disappeared into the water.

Shankara after getting His mother’s blessings went to Omkaareshwar (Ujjain) temple in Madhya Pradesh to attain Sanyasa. The whole place was flooded and engulfed in water. Shankara encompassed the entire water into His Kamandala.

Then He got Sannyasa from Govinda Bhagavath Pada. He stayed with his Guru, serving him for some time. From there He undertook a pilgrimage to Kasi walking all the way by foot. He involved Himself in many debates winning over great pundits. He also won a lot of Buddhist and Jain exponents.

While staying in Kasi, Shankara gave Sannyasa Deeksha to a Brahmin boy called Sanandana. One day Adi Shankara was sitting on the banks of the river Ganges and Sanandana was standing on the other side of the river. When Shankara called him, Sanandhana started walking on the river to reach his guru. A lotus flower bloomed under his foot for his every step on the water. He placed his feet on the Padmam (lotus) and reached the banks where Sankara was sitting. Shankara was extremely happy to see this and called his disciple “Padma Padharey” meaning, “the lotus footed one.”

Once in Kasi, when Shankara was going to the temple to have a darshan of Lord Viswanatha, Lord Eshwara Himself, in the guise of a Sandala, (man from a poor caste) confronted Him on the way. An argument between the Lord and Shankara ensued. Then realizing the truth Shankara worshipped Eswara and sang a sloka called ‘Manisha Panchakam’.

“Indham yasya dhrida madhi: sukare
Nithye pare nirmale
Sandalo sthu sa thu dhwijosthu
Gururithyesha manisha mama||

Athagu
Nithya Nirmala
Perunmai naanenra nambikkai
Kondon panjamano
Parpano oppugiren endhan guru…2

(“The man who has such a faith that he is none other than the great and chaste everlasting truth, be him a Brahmin or a man of low caste, becomes one and I bow to such a man as my Guru.”)

At once Lord Eswara came out of the guise of a Sandala and regained His original form with Parvathi and gave Darshan to Shankara.

From Kasi, He moved towards Badrinath at a slow pace. There He had the Divine Darshan of Sage Veda Vyasa. Veda Vyasa is the person who imbibed the words containing the essence of Vedanta and used them in his works. The person who wrote Bashyam (treatises) on his works is Adi Shankara. Pleased by this, Veda Vyasa blessed Shankara to live for sixteen more years.

Shankara then went to Badrinath Temple. The main deity was thrown by somebody into a hot furnace. He found this through His Yogic powers and reinstated the deity.

Then He went to Kedarnath. From there He went to Kailash acquiring a Yoga Sareera (Yogic body.) There He had the Darshan of Lord Parameswara and composed Siva Mahimai Sloka; got five Shiva Lingams and Soundarya Lahari from Him. Nandhi Deva, who was keeping watch at the entrance of Kailash, got hold of the Soundarya Lahari. Then Nandhi returned half of it. Shankara after getting it, came back to Kedarnath. Then he established Mukthinath deity there. This has been interpreted by many as the attainment of Mukthi by Shankara Himself. It is not so. He went to Kailash and came back to Kedarnath through His Yogic powers but did not attain Mukthi there.

Then He got down from Kedarnath and came towards Prayag. There was a person there, who joined Buddhism to learn all its philosophies in order to disprove them, and after having done so, spread Meemaamsai, a religion, based on the Vedas. He is Kumarila Bhatta. Shankara invited him for debate to establish Adwaita.

Buddhists called Kumarila Bhatta for a debate and pushed him from a mountain. During the fall he got a small wound on his leg. He got hurt because he made a counter sound. He felt bad for having betrayed his Buddhist gurus and to repent for his action, he was planning to give up his life by sitting inside the fire-lit husk.

Normally it is considered to be wrong to take out one’s own life. But one is allowed to attain Mukthi willingly, in a place where Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswathi flow through, and where there is the Sannidhi of Lord Someswara. He told Acharya about a city called Magishmathi, where a man called Mandanamishrar was residing, and asked Him to invite him for a debate.

Bhagawadpadha went to Magishmathi via Kasi. When He went there it was a Sraddham (ceremony) day at Mandanamishrar’s house. So he stayed outside and went in after the Sraddham got over and called him for a debate. Mandanamishra is the Avatar of Lord Brahma. His wife Sarasawani is Goddess Saraswathi’s incarnation. Kumarila Bhatta is the incarnation of Lord Muruga.

A debate began between Adi Shankara and Mandanamishra. Both of them adorned themselves with a garland. The person whose garland dried first was considered to be the loser in the debate. The debate went on for fifteen days. It went on throughout the day except during the Puja time and while they had their food. At that time Sarasawani asked a few questions related to materialistic pleasures. Being a Sannyasi, Shankara lacked knowledge in those areas and sought a day’s time to reply. Then He went into the body of a king who had died that day and after learning the things he wanted, came back to His own body and replied her questions. Shankara won the debate. Then He gave Sannyasa to Mandanamishra and blessed him with the title Sureshvaracharyar. Mandanamishra called Sarasawani and requested her to come along with them. Sarasawani said, “I will follow you. But you should not turn back to see me. If you do so, I will stay then and there.” They consented to her condition and the three started their journey. While coming near the river Thungabathra, the sound from Sarasawani’s anklets had stopped. Shankara turned back to check and Sarasawani stopped there. The place is there still now. Goddess Saradha Devi is standing there even today.

Then there was a person called Hasthamalakar. People around him informed Shankara that he was unable to speak right from his childhood. Shankara asked him his name and the man who was dumb all along, explained the whole Vedanta. Pleased by this, his parents sent him along with Shankara.

Shankara wrote a treatise (Bahsyam) on His disciple’s work on Adwaitha. Every day after taking bath all the disciples would listen to Shankara’s discourses on various topics. One day a boy was late to the session. “ You all carry on with your lessons. The boy will take some time to come”, said Shankara. Meanwhile the boy turned up composing Thotakashtakam in Thotaka meter.

After some time Adi Shankara’s mother passed away. On hearing the news Shankara went to Kaladi. He built a Samadhi for his mother at the back yard. The Samadhi can be seen even today. All the Namboodhris in the town objected to this. So Adi Shankara declared that Namboodhri families should not reside there. Only the two Namboodris, who carried the head and the feet, stayed there as Thalaikattu Namboodhri and Kaalkattu Namboodhri. Those are the only two families Namboodhri living there to this day. Those two families are still performing pujas in the Krishnan temple there. One can see them even today if one goes there.

From there Shankara came to Srisailam after visiting many pilgrimages on the way. He composed Sivananada Lahari slokam only at Srisailam. In that Kshetram there was a Kaapaalika with the belief that his desire would be fulfilled only if a king or a Sanyasi was killed and offered as sacrifice. He asks Adi Sankara to give his life for that purpose. At that time Lord Narasimha descended on Padmapadha (his Sishya) and drove away the Kaapaalika. Then He visited a lot of Kshetrams. In Thiruppathi, He performed the Pradhishtai of two Yantras for Janaakarshanam (to attract and make the people throng the temple) and Dhanaakarshanam (to bestow wealth). In memory of this there is a statue on a stone in the Suprabatha Mandapa. Adi Shankara’s Vimana was consecrated on the banks of Pushkarani pond. The name Venkata Subramanian is common these days. There is an Urchava murthy by that name in Adi Shankar’s Vimana.

Then Shankara had the Darshan of Lord Nataraja at Chidambaram. From there He came to Kanchipuram. Sri Rama’s birth place Ayodhya, Krishna’s birth place Madhura, Ganga’s origin Haridhwar, Kasi, Kanchi, Avantika (Ujjain), Omkareshwar, and Sri Krishna’s kingdom Dwaraka are the seven places of Moksha, Seven Mokshapuris. Shankara came to Kanchi which is one among them. Kanchi is in the fifth place among these seven. It is here that Goddess Kamakshi is showering Her blessings in her Rupam (form) and as Pilakasam. The Ambal had an Ugra roopam (with an angry look), at the time of Shankara’s visit. So Bagavadhpaadhal performed a Chakra Pradhishtai and turned Kamakshi into a Santharoopini (with a sedate look).

Then Shankara went about meeting many people and ascended the throne of Sarvagnya Peetam. He ascended Sarvagnya Peetam at the place where there is Thundira Maharaja’s statue is standing now, which in next to the Mantapa opposite Urchava Murthy. At that time, a small boy from Brahma Desam in Thirunelveli district, who had his Upanayanam done, approached Shankara. He put forth many questions and debated with Shankara. Shankara answered all his questions. Then the boy accepted his defeat. Shankara being impressed by the boy’s knowledge and ability gave Sanyasa to him and also a title called Sarvagnyendra Saraswathi and made him adorn the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam. The first Sishya was Padmapaadhar. The last one who came to Him was Sarvagnyendrar. Then Shankara assigned Sureshvaracharyar to look after the worldly duties of the Sri Matam.

On the way of Prahara of Kamakshi temple Shankara became a Jeevan Mukthar and is still blessing us all in the Kamakshi temple. Out of the five Sivalingas that He got from Lord Siva, He established (pradhishtai) of Mukthi Linga at Kedarnath, Moksha Linga at Nepal, Boga Linga at Koodali, and Vara Linga at Chidhambaram. He kept Yoga Linga for Himself. Adi Shanakara is the first Peetathipathy of Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam. The lineage has been continuing till now to the Seventieth (70th) Peetathipathy and pujas are being performed continuously to this day.

Jaya Jaya Shankara Hara Hara Shankara!!!
Source: mahaperiyavaa.blog