A Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology and Religion, Geography, History, and Literature c5.1592

c5.1592

SANKARĀCHĀRYA (Sankara + āchārya). The great religious reformer and teacher of the Vedānta philosophy, who lived in the eighth or ninth century. He was a native of Kerala or Malabar, and lived a very erratic life, disputing with heretics and popularising the Vedānta philosophy by his preaching and writings wherever he went. His travels extended as far as Kashmīr, and he died at Kedāranāth in the Himālayas at the early age of thirty-two. His learning and sanctity were held in such high estimation and reverence, that he was looked upon as an incarnation of Siva, and was believed to have the power of working miracles. The god Siva was the special object of his worship, and he was the founder of the great sect of Smārtava Brāhmans, who are very numerous and powerful in the south. He established several maths or monasteries for the teaching and preservation of his doctrines. Some of these still remain. The chief one is at Sringa-giri or Sringiri, on the edge of the Western Ghauts in the Mysore, and it has the supreme control of the Smārtava sect. The writings attributed to him are very numerous; chief among them are his Bhāshyas or commentaries on the Sūtras or aphorisms of Vyāsa, a commentary on the Bhagavad-gītā, some commentaries on the Upanishads, and the Ānanda-laharī, a hymn in praise of Pārvatī, the consort of Siva.