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| Acharya: Sri Bharati Tirtha |
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| Styles | Sri Sri Jagadguru |
| Sri Maha Swaminah | |
| Residence | Shringeri |
| Founder | Adi Shankara |
| First Acharya | Maṇḍana Miśra |
| Formation | 820 AD |
| Website | http://www.sringeri.net/ |
Sringeri Sharada Peetham (Kannada: ಶ್ರಿಂಗೇರಿ ಶಾರದೆ ಪೀಠ ) is the southern Advaita Vedanta matha. It is located in Shringeri. It is claimed that it is the first of the four original mathas established by Adi Shankara.
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The matha is in the temple town of Shringeri on the banks of the Tunga River in Chikmagalur district, Karnataka, India. It is about 105 kilometres from Mangalore.
The origin of the matha is described in various traditional sources, including the Śankara Vijaya of Mādhava. Adi Shankara is said to have lived here for twelve out of his short life-span of thirty-two years.
According to legends, Shankara and his four disciples, accompanied by Bharati, an incarnation of Goddess Saraswati 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 spawn. A cobra, a natural enemy of frogs, had raised its hood to provide the frog with shelter and protection from the ravages of the tropical sun. Shankara 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 turned round when, as she had already stipulated, Bharati, known also as Sharada, 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 Shankaracharya before the latter resumed his tour to found his three pithas at Puri, Dwaraka and Badrinath. Thus, the matha traces its lineage from Suresvaracharya.
The Sringeri matha records its tradition from the 8th century onwards. The history of the Sringeri matha since the period of Sri Bharathi Tirtha (I) and Sri Vidyaranya (14th century) onwards has been extensively 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. Sringeri matha sources report that Śankara was born in the fourteenth year of the reign of Vikramaditya. Some believe this Vikramaditya 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 BCE.
In 1791, Maratha cavalry under Raghunath Rao Patwardhan raided the temple and matha, killing and wounding many, and robbing the places of all their valuable possessions.[1] On 24 May 1791 Trimbak Rao Pethe, a general of Madhavrao II gave the following account of the incident to Balasaheb Patwardhan of Miraj:[2]
"The army crossed the Tunga but the Lamans and the Pendharis had previously proceeded towards Shivmoghe. They went to the Swami's village of Shringeri and plundered it. They robbed the Swami of all his belongings, including the danda (cane) and kamandalu (ascetic's staff and water jug), and left nothing. Even women were molested and some of them sacrificed their lives, the images belonging to the Swami, consisting of those of gods and phalluses, were plundered. The Lamans brought away all the elephants and horses. The Swami fasted for 5 days and died (in consequence)."
After news of the raid reached Raghunath Rao Patwardhan, the raiders were arrested but out of all the stolen goods, only the elephants were recovered.[2] The incumbent Shankaracharya undertook a fast in order to raise the attention of Maratha authorities to his grievances, and later repeatedly wrote to Madhavrao II requesting that his property be restored.[2] It is not known if the guilty were punished for their crimes, or whether the Shankaracharya was compensated for his losses.[2] In his letter to the Peshwa dated 30 December 1791, Raghunath Rao Patwardhan denied responsibility for the raid and stated that Lamans belonging to other detachments were guilty of the offence. He further demanded an enquiry into the matter.[2]
The Shankaracharya petitioned the Mysorean ruler, Tipu Sultan for help.[1] A bunch of about 30 letters written in Kannada, which were exchanged between Tipu Sultan's court and the Sringeri Shankaracharya, were discovered in 1916 by the Director of Archaeology in Mysore. Tipu expressed his indignation and grief at the news of the raid:
"People who have sinned against such a holy place are sure to suffer the consequences of their misdeeds at no distant date in this Kali age in accordance with the verse: "Hasadbhih kriyate karma ruladbhir-anubhuyate" (People do [evil] deeds smilingly, but suffer the consequences crying)."[1]
He immediately ordered the Asaf (Nawab) of Bednur to supply the Shankaracharya with 200 rahatis (fanams) in cash and other gifts and articles. Tipu's interest in the Sringeri temple continued for many years, and he was still writing to the Shankaracharya in the 1790s.[3] The matha continues to flourish to this day, and governs many institutions.
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The matha gurus follow the philosophy of Advaita Vedanta. Following the tradition initiated by Śankara, the matha is in charge of the Yajurveda (the Black Yajurveda is more prevalent in South India, over which the matha has authority in the Smarta tradition). The gurus of the matha teach that all the devas described in the Vedas and the Puranas are mundane manifestations of the same one cosmic spirit, called Brahman. Moreover, the innermost self of the human being is also not different from Brahman. They subscribe to the Vedic phrase Aham Brahma Asmi, which means, "I am the Universal spirit". The gurus wear ochre robes, smear their forehead with sacred ashes or vibhuti, and worship God for many hours every day. They practice intense penance and meditation, which they believe helps in the control of the mind. They sustain themselves on an optimum diet and minimal sleep. They meditate/chant on the Rudraksha and Tulasi beads and worship both the lingam and Sila every day.
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:
The material world is considered maya, or temporary like a dream, so they believe that one should be involved in the material world only in order to fulfill one's responsibility. Although they adhere to the teachings of Śankara, they read other secular and religious works. Within the recorded history of the last two centuries, every one of the gurus at Sringeri has been a polyglot and a scholar with knowledge of a wide range of subjects. They do not advocate religious conversion, and believe that individuals must follow the religion of their own birth properly and correctly.
The Shringeri Matha's main deity is the Goddess of Learning Sri Sharada Parameshwari. The present image in the temple is in gold and is believed to be in place from the times of Jagadguru Vidyaranya Swaminaha; before which a murti made of sandal wood was in worship.
Sri Sharadamba as the Math's sishyas call her, is seated comfortably in padmasana, with four hands respectively showing chinmudra, japa mala, pustaka and amruta kalasa. She is Brahma Vidyapersonified and is revered throughout centuries by the succeeding Jagadgurus and the discples of the Math.
The Shringeri Sharada Suprabhatha was adopted by the Shringeri matha in the late 1970s by his holiness Jagadguru Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha swamiji. The very famous Sree Sharada Suprabhata Stotram was composed by Veda Brahma. Turuvekere Subrahmanya Vishweshwara Dikshith also known as Sri. T. S. Vishweshwara Dikshith for the divine Shringeri Sharada maata (God Mother).
Veda. Brahma. T. S. Vishweshwara Dikshith was born in Turuvekere, a small town in Tumkur district and was the Sanskrit professor in Maharaja College in the Royal Kingdom of Mysore and resided at Mysore. He was also the Aasthana Vidwan of Alankaara Shasthra of King Jayachamaraja Wodeyar Bahadur. Sri. T. S. Vishweshwara Dikshith was a learned Sanskrit scholar in several Vedas (Yajur Veda in particular) and specialised in Ghana Krama – which is the essence of the Vedas. He also composed the Sree Srikanteshwara Suprabhata and Sree Chandramoulishwara Suprabhata of Lord. Srikanteshwara of Nanjangud, and Sri Chandramoulishwara temple in V. V. Mohalla, Mysore respectively. He was a Ghana Pati and had mastered several Shastras such as Alankara Shastra, Jyothishya Shastra (Astrology), Tarka, and Vyakarana (Literature) to name a few. He received several awards and accolodates from the Maharaja of Mysore, and their holiness the pointiffs' of Sringeri Sharada Peetham and Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam respectively for his contributions made to Sanskrit Literature.
The matha has a huge following, especially among the Vedic community. People of all castes from all over India visit the Śankāracharya at the matha, but the majority of followers are Smartha Brahmins of South India, Maharashtra and Goa. Succession to the Śankāracharya title is through disciplic selection by the existing Śankāracharya. The successor to the matha is usually named at a young age, from among the Vedic Brahmana community.
The primary objective of the Matha is to ensure deep learning in Scriptures and tradition by the qualified seekers and living a life established in Dharma. The successive Jagadgurus have been so far come in an unbroken tradition and have themselves been quite clear living examples of hight learning, and pious life besides teaching the same to their disciples. The Swamis of this matha believe themselves to be the Apostolic descendants of Adi Shankara.[4]
Preserving the tradition of Vedic learning and living a vedic life has been the central theme of this Matha so far, and it has produced many lively scholars.
A number of Vedic schools and temples are maintained by the matha across India. Besides this, the matha also runs a hospital and a few colleges. It has established branches in many parts of India. The Sharada Temple at Sringeri is managed by the Sringeri matha. There is also a library in Sringeri, with rare Sanskrit volumes, which is managed by the matha. The matha has also played an important role in preserving the natural beauty of Sringeri.
The matha has enjoyed patronage from many kings and rulers. Its sage Vidyatheertha was contemporary with the founders of Vijayanagar Empire, and the matha was given lavish grants of land by the Vijayanagar Kings. Vidyaranya another matha head, was the founder of Vijananager empire and also served as 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 matha has had good relations with the State and Central Governments, as it has always been politically neutral and non-controversial. In Independent India, however, with the coming of land reforms, the Sringeri matha lost much of its traditional land and sources of income, and at one time was struggling to maintain itself. With the increase in donations by NRIs, however, things have turned for the better.
The matha maintains good relationships with the three other mathas believed to have been founded by Śankara, located in Puri, Dwaraka, and Jyotirmath (near Badrinath). In addition, over the centuries, the successive heads of the Sringeri matha had established branch institutions, many of which continue to function, with their own collateral lineages. In the interests of preserving all the traditions derived from the Vedas, the Sringeri matha also maintains cordial working relationships with institutions belonging to other Vedanta schools, such as the Sri Vaishnava and Madhva institutions.
The head of the matha is venerated as Jagadguru. The head has so far been chosen by the prevailing pontiff usually from among his disciples usually chosen as a Brahmachari, educated in the Vedas and other required learning. So far the Pontiffs have been monks.
The present head of the matha is His Holiness Jagadguru Shankaracharya Sri Sri Bharati Tirtha Swaminah.
See: Jagadguru of Sringeri Sharada Peetham for the full list of Jagadgurus
The below table is about the last four Jagadgurus, including the incumbent Sri Bharati Tirtha Swaminah.[5]
| Name | Years as Jagadguru | Place of Birth | Purvashrama name[6] |
| Sri Sacchidananda Shivabhinava Nrusimha Bharati | 1872–1912 | Mysore | Shivaswami |
| Sri Chandrashekhara Bharati | 1912–1954 | Sringeri | Narasimha Sastri |
| Sri Abhinava Vidyatirtha | 1954–1989 | Bangalore | Srinivasa Sastri |
| Sri Bharati Tirtha | 1989–Present | Machilipatnam | Sitarama Anjaneyulu |
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