Sri Caitanya Caritamrta Madhya-lila Chapter 9 Verse 244

SYNONYMS

śrińgeri-mathe — to the Śrińgeri monastery; āilā — came; śańkarācārya-sthāne — at the place of Śańkarācārya; matsya-tīrtha — the holy place named Matsya-tīrtha; dekhi' — seeing; kaila — did; tuńgabhadrāya snāne — bathing in the river Tuńgabhadrā.

TRANSLATION

Then He saw the monastery known as Śrińgeri-matha, the abode of Ācārya Śańkara. He then visited Matsya-tīrtha, a place of pilgrimage, and took a bath in the river Tuńgabhadrā.

PURPORT

The monastery known as Śrińgeri-matha is situated in the state of Karnataka, in the district of Chikmagalur. This monastery is located at the confluence of the rivers Tuńga and Bhadrā, seven miles south of Harihara-pura. The real name of this place is Śrińga-giri or Śrińgavera-purī, and it is the headquarters of Śańkarācārya.

Śańkarācārya had four principal disciples, and he established four centers under their management. In North India at Badarikāśrama, the monastery named Jyotir-matha was established. At Purushottama, the Bhogavardhana or Govardhana monastery was established. In Dvārakā, the Sāradā monastery was established. And the fourth monastery, established in South India, is known as Śrińgeri-matha. In the Śrińgeri-matha, the sannyāsīs assume the designations Sarasvatī, Bhāratī and Purī. They are all ekadandi-sannyāsīs, distinguished from the Vaishnava sannyāsīs, who are known as tridandi-sannyāsīs. The Śrińgeri-matha is situated in South India in a portion of the country known as Āndhra, Dravida, Karnāta and Kerala. The community is called Bhūrivāra, and the dynasty is called Bhūr-bhuvah. The place is called Rāmeśvara, and the slogan is aham brahmāsmi. The Deity is Lord Varāha, and the energetic power is Kāmākshī. The ācārya is Hastāmalaka, and the brahmacārī assistants of the sannyāsīs are known as Caitanya. The place of pilgrimage is called Tuńgabhadrā, and the subject for Vedic study is the Yajur Veda.

The list of the disciplic succession from Śańkarācārya is available, and the names of the ācāryas and the dates of their accepting sannyāsa, according to the Śaka Era (or Śakābda), are as follows (for approximate Christian-era dates, add 78 years): Śańkarācārya, 622 Śaka; Sureśvarācārya, 630; Bodhanācārya, 680; Jñānadhanācārya, 768; Jñānottama-śivācārya, 827; Jñānagiri Ācārya, 871; Simhagiri Ācārya, 958; Īśvara Tīrtha, 1019; Narasimha Tīrtha, 1067; Vidyātīrtha Vidyā-śańkara, 1150; Bhāratī-krishna Tīrtha, 1250; Vidyāranya Bhāratī, 1253; Candraśekhara Bhāratī, 1290; Narasimha Bhāratī, 1309; Purushottama Bhāratī, 1328; Śańkarānanda, 1350; Candraśekhara Bhāratī, 1371; Narasimha Bhāratī, 1386; Purushottama Bhāratī, 1398; Rāmacandra Bhāratī, 1430; Narasimha Bhāratī, 1479; Narasimha Bhāratī, 1485; Dhanamadi-narasimha Bhāratī, 1498; Abhinava-narasimha Bhāratī, 1521; Saccidānanda Bhāratī, 1544; Narasimha Bhāratī, 1585; Saccidānanda Bhāratī, 1627; Abhinava-saccidānanda Bhāratī, 1663; Nrisimha Bhāratī, 1689; Saccidānanda Bhāratī, 1692; Abhinava-saccidānanda Bhāratī, 1730; Narasimha Bhāratī, 1739; Saccidānanda Śivābhinava Vidyā-narasimha Bhāratī, 1788.

Regarding Śańkarācārya, it is understood that he was born in the year 608 of the Śakābda Era, in the month of Vaiśākha, on the third day of the waxing moon, in a place in South India known as Kālādi. His father's name was Śivaguru, and he lost his father at an early age. When Śańkarācārya was only eight years old, he completed his study of all scriptures and took sannyāsa from Govinda, who was residing on the banks of the Narmadā. After accepting sannyāsa, Śańkarācārya stayed with his spiritual master for some days. He then took his permission to go to Vārānasī, and from there he went to Badarikāśrama, where he stayed until his twelfth year. While there, he wrote a commentary on the Brahma-sūtra, as well as on ten Upanishads and the Bhagavad-gītā. He also wrote Sanat-sujātīya and a commentary on the Nrisimha-tāpanī. Among his many disciples, his four chief disciples are Padmapāda, Sureśvara, Hastāmalaka and Trotaka. After departing from Vārānasī, Śańkarācārya went to Prayāga, where he met a great learned scholar called Kumārila Bhatta. Śańkarācārya wanted to discuss the authority of the scriptures, but Kumārila Bhatta, being on his deathbed, sent him to his disciple Mandana, in the city of Māhishmatī. It was there that Śańkarācārya defeated Mandana Miśra in a discussion of the śāstras. Mandana had a wife named Sarasvatī, or Ubhaya-bhāratī, who served as mediator between Śańkarācārya and her husband. It is said that she wanted to discuss erotic principles and amorous love with Śańkarācārya, but Śańkarācārya had been a brahmacārī since birth and therefore had no experience in amorous love. He took a month's leave from Ubhaya-bhāratī and, by his mystic power, entered the body of a king who had just died. In this way Śańkarācārya experienced the erotic principles. After attaining this experience, he wanted to discuss erotic principles with Ubhaya-bhāratī, but without hearing his discussion she blessed him and assured the continuous existence of the Śrińgeri-matha. She then took leave of material life. Afterwards, Mandana Miśra took the order of sannyāsa from Śańkarācārya and became known as Sureśvara. Śańkarācārya defeated many scholars throughout India and converted them to his Māyāvāda philosophy. He left his material body at the age of thirty-three.

As far as Matsya-tīrtha is concerned, it was supposedly situated beside the ocean in the district of Malabar.

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