The making of the legendary paste

Chyawanprash, the Ayurvedic paste, is generally reckoned to be the oldest commercial brand in the world. It was created or rather formulated in India by ancient Ayurvedic experts several thousands years ago and since then it has been selling in large numbers both in India and abroad.

The Chyawanprash was and still is a paste of 46 herbs and shrubs. It is also credited with being the oldest generic brand formulation. The tale of this herbal paste is fascinating.

The first mention of the Chyawanprash is during the Vedic age, more than several thousand years ago. The saints, Brighu and Chyavana lived thousands of years ago in north India and they were gifted this rare combination of herbs in Dhosi Hills in Haryana.

The Doshi Hills have several varieties of herbs and shrubs and it is a rare repository of Ayurvedic plants and trees. There is something in the land and water of the Hills that makes the herbs so special.   

The twin Ashwinis-experts in Ayurvedas and physicians of Gods- prepared Chyawanaprash by grinding the herbs to prepare the paste.

Various religious, medical and philosophical texts, including the Mahabharata and Puranas tell us that this formulation was first prepared by the Royal Vaids of Gods- the Ashwini twins-10,000 years ago, for Chyawan Rishi at his Ashrama on Dhosi Hills near Narnaul in Haryana. It also borders Rajasthan.

This is how the formulation came to be known as Chyawanprash. However, the first historically documented formula for chyawanprash is found in Charaka samhita, the ancient Ayurvedic text.

Another paste “manufactured” from herbs in the Hill is Kayakalp, a skin toning and glowing process. This made Chyavana look young and energetic. This story is mentioned in the Puranas, Brahamanas and the Mahabharata.

Besides these two pastes, the hills have several ponds or kalyanis which are supposed to have medicinal properties. People come from several states crossing thousands of kilometers to take a dip in these ponds which are supposed to rejuvenate the body.

Chyawanprash is widely consumed in India and south Asia because of its health benefits. The market size of chyawanprash in 2010 was Rs. 400 Crores or Rs 4 billion (about 80 million US dollars). Amla is the main ingredient and today’s paste has anything from 29 to 80 herbs.

The Mahabharata says the hills were formed after a volcanic eruption during the beginning Treta Yuga. This is described by Sage Shaunak, who had accompanied Pandavas during their visit to the hills as part of their agnyatawasa   some 5100 years ago. Lava, in solidified condition, can still be seen on one side of the hill.

As per Manusmriti, this hill is part of the Vedic state of Brahmavarta which is also called as Devabhoomi. Apart from Manu, rishis like Durvasa, Piplad, Chyavana lived in the vicinity. It also says that Brahmavarta was situated at the confluence of two revered rivers-Saraswathi and Drishadwati near the Hills.

Dhosi Hills is in Mahendragarh district of Haryana, about 8 kms from Narnaul town. It is connected by road to Delhi, Gurgoan, Rohtak, Rewari, in Haryana, and Jaipur, Jhunjhunu, Behror in Rajasthan.

Buses depart from the main bus interchange junction in Narnaul to these and other towns of Haryana  and Rajasthan. Narnaul is located on the Chandigarh-Delhi-Ringas-Abu Road-Ahmedabad-Mumbai railway track. Only seven trains run on this section.

The nearest airport is Delhi, which is 130 kms away. Jaipur is 160 kms away. There is an airstrip located at Bachhod village 10 km from Narnaul and it is mainly used as a flying club.

The temple maze

The first thing that strikes you about our country is the number of Hindu temples. These temples, to whichever God they are dedicated, can be recognised by their towers or gopuras.

In Hinduism, there are 33 crore gods (actually there is only one god and the rest are god like, according to Madhwacharya) and it can be safely assumed that there are temples for many of them. Though the exact number of temples cannot be counted, we can assume that there are several lakhs of temples in India. This is apart from Jain temples and cave temples.

In south India, the temples are massive and the architecture marvellous. The South has the maximum number of temples with

Tamil Nadu having 34,000 of them, Andhra Pradesh 43,000, Karnataka 34, 000 and Kerala 28,000 temples. This is the list compiled by the respective state Governments and they ass up to a lakh and eight thousand.

The list does not include private temples and those run by the trust. Thus, their numbers increase substantially. Apart from individual temples, boards such as Travancore and Cochin Development Board runs the Bagavathy temples and the have 1800 temples under their fold. The TTD too has many temples under its control as has the Mantralaya matha of Raghavendra Swamy.

Kanchi as a city has 108 ancient temples.  It also has some of the largest and richest temples of Tamil Nadu.

However, if you want to know the largest temple complex in India, the credit goes to Ranganatha in Srirangam. It is called the largest living temple in India and the second largest in the world after Angor Wat. However, the are no poojas at the Angor Wat and they are only a cluster of ruins.

The Srirangam temple occupies an area of 156 acres. After this comes Aksharadham in Delhi, Chidambaram in Tamil Nadu, Annamalai temple in Tiruvannamalai, Ekambeshwara temple in Kanchi, Jambukeshawa temple in Trichy, Meenakshi Temple in Madurai, all in Tamil Nadu.

However, if you take only the temple spread, the largest in India is the Annamalai in Tiruvannamalai and the largest temple complex including the temple, temple area and grounds according to Guiness Book of Records is the Akshardham in Delhi.

The tallest Gopura is that of Murudeshwara in Murudeshwar near Bhatkal near Karwar, Karnataka. It is 249 feet and this followed by Ranganatha temple of Srirargam (243 feet) and Annamalai temple in Thiruvvanamalai (216 feet).

The north has as many temples as the south but they are comparatively smaller. Even a small state like Himachal Pradesh has over 2,000 temples while the Brij area comprising places where Krishna lived, stayed and played-Agra, Mathura, Brindavan, Gokul, Ujjain-has 5,000 temples and most of them consecrated to Krishna.

In the West, Maharashtra seems to have taken the lead with 45,000 temples. Gujarat and Rajasthan follow closely behind. The Kurukshetra belt in Haryana has a large number of temples dedicated to the  Mahabharata heroes, Pandavas, Krishna, Vishnu and Shiva. The Gangetic belt of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh has a large number of temples and most of them are on the Ganges or its tributaries.

If a temple is to be measured by its riches, then the south outpaces all other regions. Considered the second richest temple in India, the Venkatesha or Srinivasa temple in Tirupathi has the highest number of footfalls for such a structure worldwide. It has an annual visitage of 40 million pilgrims.

The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) also holds the distinction of being the largest gold holder outside central banks in the world.

Infact, temples in India are beloved to hold much more gold  than  the Reserve Bank of India. India's official gold reserves is estimated to be around 750 tons. The TTD alone holds around 200 tons of gold in its vaults. On average, the temple receives 10 kg of gold every week. (Contrast this with the 800 tones of gold that India imported in 2012).

Lakhs of followers line up each day here just for view lasting barely a second and proffer their rich offering. It is not only Balaji who receives Gold. Many other temples like the Krishna temple in Udupi, the Raghavendra Swamy Temple in Mantralaya, the Sai Baba Mandir in Shirdi, Siddhi Vinayaka temple in Mumbai, Krishna temple in Guruyavoor, Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala, Vaishno Devi temple record massive inflow of gold, jewels and cash.

India’s temples collect so much of this stuff they don't know what to do with it. Some like the TTD mint gold coins and sell it back to the devotee. Others just keep on hoarding not knowing what to do. An example is the huge riches discovered in the Ananthapadmanabha swamy temple.

Though there is no dispute that the treasure, valued at over Rs. 1 lakh crores, belongs to the royal family of Trivandrum, nobody knows what to do with it. Unfortunately, it is only now that an inventory of the riches are being made. But what about the riches and jewels and temple belongings of others.

Raja Raja Chola, who is credited with having built the massive Brihadeshwara temple in Tanjavur, has inscribed on the temple walls all that he had given, including gold, jewels, ornaments, vessels. What happened to them. Where are they.

The Brihadeshwara temple is so large that he assigned 4,000 cows, 7,000 goats, and 30 buffalos just to supply the butter required for the lamps to be lit within the temple and the temple yard. Well, there is an inscription about this too in the temple.   

Raja Raja Chola and Rajendra chola meticulously mentioned the articles they had gifted to the temple. These records have stood the test of time but what about the items.

Similarly, Krishna Deva Raya, the Vijayanagar Emperor, gifted priceless articles to several temples including those at Tirupathi, Kalahasti an Vijayanagar itself. What happened to them. And  what about the riches of the Vijayanagar temples. Many of the temple were no doubt destroyed by the marauding Muslim armies of the Deccan in 1565 but what about the treasures they had. The temple jewels had been removed before the armies swept into Vijayanagar and till date there is no mention of them.    

The richest temple in India now is the Ananthapadmanabha Swamy in Tiruvananthapuram in Kerala. The second richest is Tirupathi followed by the Mahalakshmi temple of Kolhapur in Maharashtra.

By the way, the world’s largest Hindu temple project is coming up in East Champaran district in Bihar at Kathwalia on Chakia-Kesaria main road, just five km away from the tallest Buddhist stupa at Kesariya.

It is slated to look like the Angkor Wat temple of Cambodia. It will be a five-storey temple complex with a total built-up area of around 6 lakh square feet.

It will have 18 sanctum sanctorum and 18 shikhars (spires) and they will be constructed with Chunar stones which Emperor Ashoka had used in his inscriptions. The presiding deities will be Rama, Sita, Lav, Kush and Maharishi Valmiki.

This temple is expected to be taller than the Brihadeshwara Temple in Thanjavur and larger than the Akshardham Temple in Delhi.
So the one thing that we can see here is that people are constructing temples-one arger than the other, bigger and higher than the other. Well, what happens to the daily offerings that lakhs of devotees so liberally give in the temples. The maze of temples that are in India need to be restructed so that they can contribute to the good of society and also help reconstruct the locaity in which they are located.
Is is not time that the money that goes into the temples are channelised in a proper manner involving devotees. At present, there are only a handful of  temples which involve devotees in its management. 

The temple where Paan is the prasad

This is perhaps the only temple in India which gives out paan as Prasada. This could also be the only temple within a huge palace. Therefore the deity is worshipped more as a King rather than as God.

Though a temple was constructed to house the deity, it could never be placed there as the deity choose the palace to reside. This is the temple of  Ram Raja in Orcha near Jhansi in Madhya Pradesh.   

The temple is situated in the premises of the Rani-Ka-Mahal. It is here that devotees are offered Paan as prasada. This is because the priests consider the place as a court of Ram and not a shrine.

The Ram was meant to be housed in the magnificent Chaturbhuj Temple that was built by the Bundela Emperors. 

The Ram here is seated on a throne and he is flanked in his Durbar by his wife Sita and his brothers, Hanuman and his courtiers.

Ram presides over his court and he gives Paan to whoever comes.

Just besides the door leading to the Durbar or sanctum is a statue of an armed guard. The guard stands vigil as Ram holds forth on maters of state.

The morning and evening poojas are a sight to see. It is during  aarti that the devotees receive a paan-a symbol of hospitality, love and affection. The deity is also given gunshot salute as he is a King.

The Rama Navami festival here are special and the Vivaha Panchami festivities during November and December herald  the nuptials of Ram and Sita. Rama arrives in a splendid palanquin  to wed Sita who is beautifully decorated.

There is a beautiful story on how Ram came into the palace, never to move out.

A King of Orcha, Madhukar Shah, was an ardent devotee of Banke Bhihari (Lord Krishna) while his wife was a devotee of Lord Ram.

The King frequently made fun of his wife and her devotion to Rama and asked her to follow Krishna. One day, the Queen  could not bear his taunts and she decided to leave the palace.

She wanted to go on foot from Orcha to Ayodhya so that she could get an idol of Ram. She left the palace without telling the King. Meanwhile, she instructed architects and builders to construct the Chaturbhuj Temple where she said she would place the idol of Ram.

The Queen reached Ayodhya. She fasted for several days and meditated on Ram who appeared before her. The Queen requested Ram to come back to Orcha with her. Ram agreed but he put forth three conditions.

His first condition was that he could come only as a child and not as a man. The second was that if he came to Orcha he would be the King. His final condition was that his consecration would have to be performed at a particular time. If that time passed, he would stay on in that place itself, irrespective of whichever that place was.

The Queen agreed to all the conditions. Ram and the Queen then set out to Orcha. Meanwhile, Madhukar Shah had a dream in which he was rebuked for trying to distinguish between Ram and Krishna. In the dream , he was told that Ram and Krishna were one and the same.

A repentant King came rushing to the Queen’s quarters. He then came to know the Queen had gone to Ayodhya and that she was returning back.

The Queen, with the baby Ram in her lap, went to her quarters and retired for the night. She wanted to consecrated Ram in the newly built Chaturbhuj temple the next day. Unfortunately, for her the time to consecrate the idol had already passed in the night and Ram transformed himself into an idol in the room. None could move the statue and the Queen decided to move out and construct a temple here itself.     

To this day, the Ram Raja Temple is in the palace and not in the Chaturbhuj which is adjacent to the palace. Ram also rules the land as he is King. Hence, the name Ram Raja Temple.

The temple is closed in the afternoon. It opens from 8 a.m., to   12-30p.m., and again from 7 p.m., to 9-30 p.m. Unlike other temples of Orcha, this palace-temple is painted in pink and cream.

The Lakshminarayana and Chaturbhuj Temples, Raja Mahal, Jahangir Mahal, Fort, Rai Parveen Mahal and the many Cenotaphs of the Bundela kings are other places of interest here.

Orcha is a historic town on the banks of the Betwa. It was founded in 1537 but was devastated by Shahajan, the Mughal Emperor. It is just 15 kms from Jhansi. Orcha is on the way from Jhansi to Khajurao.

Orcha has an excellent road and rail network.   

The British fort from where not even a single shot was fired

This is one of the major forts built by the British in India more than two hundred and fifty years ago. It quickly became the centre of trade and commerce and of course the military. In a few years time, it also became part of the City  that was the first capital of India.

The fort stands even today, a tribute to the British engineers and planners. Yet, this fort has a dubious distinction. It is perhaps the only fort in India and one of a handful in the world that never saw even a single shot fired.

This is the Fort William in Kolkata which is built on the banks of the Hoogly, a major distributary of the River Ganges. The fort took shape during the early years of the Bengal Presidency of  British India.

Kolkata then was the major military, trade and commerce centre of the British and the Governor-Generals of India were based from here.

The fort was named after  King William the third of England and Ireland. Even today, most of the fort is visible from the Maidan which is a vast open space in front of the walled structure. Once upon a time, the Maidan used to be a part of the Fort and it is now the largest urban park in Kolkata.

By the way, there are actually tow For Williams. The old one was built in 1696 by the British East India Company under the supervision of John Goldsborough.

This was the fort where the infamous Blackhole incident occurred.

In 1756, the Nawab of Bengal, Siraj Ud Daulah, attacked the fort and conquered Kolkata. He then changed its name to Alinagar.

The British then began fearing another attack by the Indians and this led them to build a new and stronger fort in the Maidan. It was started by Robert Clive in 1758 and  completed in 1781 at a cost of two million pounds.

The Fort William we see today is one of  the biggest forts built by the British and it covers  70.9 hectares. It is this structure that has the distinction of being the only fort in the world from which not a single shot was fired.

Today this fort is managed by the Indian Army and civilians are generally not allowed inside. This is also the headquarters of Eastern Command and it has provisions for accommodating 10,000 army personnel.

Much of  the Fort and its buildings are unchanged except for the  St. Peter's Church which used to serve as a chaplaincy center for the British no longer exists.

The Old fort was repaired and was used as a customs house from 1766 onwards. The New Fort is still in use as described above.

The new fort is built of brick and mortar in the shape of an irregular octagon with five of its sides facing the land and three towards the Hoogly. The design is in the shape of a star, which is believed to be best suited defence against cannon fire.

The fort was  surrounded by a dry moat 9 metres deep and 15 meters broad. It has six main gates- Chowringhee, Plassey Calcutta, Water Gate, St Georges and the Treasury Gate.

If you want to visit the fort, you have to obtain permission from the Army. Well, what do I have to say about connectivity of Kolkata. There are any number of trains and flights from all parts of India.

There are a lot of see in Koltata. I will cover them in another article.

The perceptor who lost to the Acharya

He was the preceptor of a King. He was also known as among the foremost Adwaitha scholars of the time. His two brothers too were unmatched scholars of the day.

The King relied on Trivikrama not only on religious matters but also in statecraft. Whenever, any scholar came to the kingdom, he was sure to be treated to a battle of “wits” and “treatises” by the preceptor who invariably won them hands down.

Over time, the King’s teacher came to be  known as the foremost Adwaitha scholar of his day.

The king ruled over the small but rich province of  Kumbla near Kasargod and his preceptor was Trivikrama Panditacharya. Kudlu was the capital of the province and today it a small village, four kms from Kasargod in Kerala.

Kudlu was also the home town of  Trivikrama and his brothers. Their ancestral  home still exists. One of Trivikrama’s brothers-Shankara Pandiracharya - was in the service of Madhwacharya who generally stayed in Udupi and its surroundings.

Shankara was a librarian with Madhwacharya and it was his job to maintain the Acharya’s library. During one of his visits home, Shankara gave the Brahmasutra Bhashya by Madhwacharya to his brother-Trivikrama.

Tivirkarama read the book and he was astonished at the scholarship of Madhwa and his interpretation of  Dwaitha. Being an Adwaitha, Shankara did not principally agree with the Bhasya but he could not help marvel at the elucidation and terse language of  the writer.

When Madhwa began defeating all Adwaitha scholars, including Pundalika Puri, many of them got together and persuaded a reluctant Trivikrama to challenge the Acharya for a debate. The anger of the Adwaitha scholars had reached a peak as the Acharya had converted Shobana Bhatta from being an Adwaitha into his first disciple- Padmanabha Theertha and Narahari Theertha as his second disciple. Narahari Theertha too was an Adwaitha pandit and as Shyama Shastri he was renown as a scholar par excellence.  Madhvacharya has travelled to Kasargod and comprehensively defeated Padma Theertha in a philosophical debate. The essence of this debate has been published as the Vada or Tattvoddyota.

Trivikrama first familiarised himself with all the teachings of Madhwa and read many of his books. He then went to a temple in Vishnu Mangala where the Acharya had camped with his disciples. He listed on awe to the effortless ease with which the Acharya demolished the arguments and tenets of Shankaracharya.

Unable to stomach further condemnation of the Adwaitha way of life, he sent out a challenge to Madhwa for a debate. Madhwa instantly accepted it and the venue was agreed among them to be   Kudlu.

The debate took place before King Jayasimha at the Kudlu Matha, which exists even today. The debate lasted a full fortnight at the end of which Trivikrama conceded defeat and asked to be admitted as a disciple. Madhwacharya was gracious in defeat and admitted Trivikrama into the Dwaitha order. He then commissioned the pandit to write a commentary on the Brahma Sutra Bhashya This work by Trivikrama Panditacharya is called Tatwapradipa.

Trivkirama had three sons, the youngest of whom was Narayana Panditacharya, the author of the Madhwa Vijaya.

The God who drinks alcohol

There are very few people, or rather, I would put it this way that very few sane people would recommend drinking alcohol. And fewer among them would even ask women and youngsters to have a sip. Hic.

However, in Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, there is a temple where the deity drinks alcohol and you are expected to bring picture full of Soma Rasa to offer to the deity.

This is the temple of Kalabhairavanath and the deity is famous for its addition to alcohol. Believe it or not, the deity drinks all the alcohol placed before its mouth. No one has been able to figure out the peculiar phenomenon.

Devotees who come to the temple here offer bottles and sachets of alcohol which are then placed by the priest before the mouth of Kalabhairava.

What amazes the devotees and of course I too was stunned, was that the deity seems to be able to hold its drink. It keeps on drinking and it is ready for more. How this statue in stone consumes so much alcohol and what happens to the liquid is still a mystery.

One of the oldest temples of Ujjain and even India, the Kalabhairava temple is associated with the Tantric cult. In ancient times, this temple was more known as the centre of black magic and tantra.

Although tantric practices are outlawed, you can still see sadhus with matted hair and ashes dabbed all over their bodies mumbling tantric mantras, none of which make sense to ordinary people.

For them, this temple is the  Kshetra palaka of Ujjain.
The temple is in the north of  Ujjain and is close to the banks of the Shipra. The temple is so huge that it resembles a fort. Nearby is the underground temple of Patala Bhairavi. There are temples of  Vikranta Bhairav Naraditya nearby.
According to Puranas, Kalbhairava is considered to be the chief of the spirits created by Shiva. As even Kaal or time is scared of  Bhairava, he is also called Kalabhairava.

The Kalabhairava temple here is believed to have been built by  King Bhadrasen. This is mentioned in Avanti Khanda of the Skanda Purana.

Once the devotee hands over the picture, bottle or even sachet of alcohol to the priest, it is offered as Naivaidya to the idol. After a major portion of the liquid is gulped down by the statue, the rest is given back as  prasada to the devotee. 

So you can se, devotees flocking to the temple with all kinds of liquor in all shapes and sizes of bottles and containers. No wonder, liquor is available just outside the temple all through the year.

By the way, there is a statue of a black dog at the gate of  the temple. This is so as the black dog is supposed to be the vehicle of Bhairava. Therefore, you can find hundreds of devotees feeding and taking care of dogs every Saturday. The priest will tell you all your problems will vanish if you take good care of  dogs.

Bhairava is also called the kotwal for guarding the temple of Shiva.

This temple has never a dry day whatever be the festival or occasion. Liquor is freely available but mind you it should first be offered to the deity. You will anyhow get it second.

Ujjain is easily approachable by road and it is near Bhopal. There are many hotels and eateries here.

All I conclude by saying is, Hic Hic hurray.

When Kalidasa was not offered a seat

It was sometime around 385 AD and Chandragupta Vikramaditya, the Emperor of  the Gupta Empire, had just got his favourite daughter Prabhavathi married to the Vakataka king Rudrasena the second. The Gupta empire practically stretched the whole of north India and extended upto Gujarat.

Chandragupta was holding court in Ujjian and among those in the court were Kalidasa, the poet, Varahimitra the astronomer and seven other gems-part of the Navaratna.

Chandragupta had been hearing about the rise of the Kadambas of Banavasi. The Kadambas had taken on the mighty Pallavas and managed to wrest control of coastal and south Karnataka from them. Mayurasharma, the founder of the Kadambas, had built the first Kannada kingdom with Banavasi as its capital

Chandragupta who has ascended the Gupta kingdom in 375 AD had been keenly following the fate of other kingdoms in India and among them was the Kadambas. His interest was not misplaced. A keen judge of men and events, Chandragupta had already seen two Kadamba kings-Kangavarma and Bhagitara consolidate their empire.

Kanga Varma in 365 AD had fought  the Vakatas but had been defeated. By its King Prithvisena. Yet, he had managed to safeguard the kingdom. His son Bhagitara had retrieved his fathers losses.

Chandragupta was not only a warrior par excellence but also a shrewd political scientist. He knew the advantage of  winning over allies and offering the hand of friendship. But what better way to seal the friendship than by entering into matrimonial alliances.

Chandragupta got the support of the powerful Vakatakas by giving his daughter in marriage to its King Rudresena. He thus had safeguarded the western border of his province.

Now, Chandragupta turned his attention to the south where he found the Kadambas equal in bravery and thought it best to seal a matrimonial alliance with them. Like the Guptas, the Kadambas were Brahmins and, hence, Chandragupta thought it fit to send an ambassador to call on the Kadamba King.

Chandragupta then sent a team of high-tanking officers to the Kadamba Kingdom under his favourite Navaratna-Kaviratna Kalidasa.

Though the name of the Kadamba King who received Kalidasa is not very clear, it should be either Bhagitara or Kakustha Varma. When Kalidasa first saw Banavasi, he fell in love with the beautiful city and described it in his magnum opus Meghadoota.

Locals of Banavasi will tell you that Kalidasa was captivated by the beauty of a forest which is now called Pampa Vana and he has give a graphic account of it in Meghadoota. (The Pampa Vana exists even today and it is a sight to behold)

The serene river of Varada which flows around Banavasi and the many temples of Banavasi, its trees and grooves gave a lot of pleasure to Kalidasa.

Kalidasa also visited Gokarna and prayed at the famous temple. He mentions the “Lord of Gokarna” in another of his later work called Raghuvamsha.

However, a major shock awaited Kalidasa when he called on the Kadamba King. He found the King seated on a throne. When Kalidasa presented his credentials, the King accepted them gracefully but he did not offer him a seat.

The Kadamba King asked Kalidasa to be seated on the ground. The King thus showed Kalidasa that he was the master of his land and that he could not be cowed down by anybody.

Kalidasa ruefully sat down on the ground and interacted with the Kadamba King while the rest of his team stood around, shuffling uncomfortably. Historians view this act as one of assertion by the Kadambas who considered themselves equal to the imperial Guptas.

A contemporary Sanskrit work, “Aichitya Vichara Charcha” by Kshemendra quotes portions of  Kunthalesvara Dautya by Kalidasa where he describes his visit to the Kadamba kingdom as an ambassador where he was not offered a seat in the court of the Kadamba king and had to sit on the ground.

The Sanksrit poet Hemachandra also mentions about Kalidasa not having been honored with a seat by the Kadamba King. Another reference to Kalidasa’s  visit to Banavasi is by Bhoja Raja in his work Sringaraprakasika.    

All we know is that Chandragupta did not marry any Kadamba Princess but he got one for his grandson, Skanda Gupta. The immediate successor to the Kadamba throne after Raghu was his brother Kakusthavarma.

Kakusthaverma is described as the most ferocious and powerful ruler of the kingdom. He maintained marital relations with even the imperial Guptas, according to the Talagunda inscription.

One of his daughters was married to Kumara Gupta's son Skanda Gupta, while another daughter was married to the Vakataka king Narendrasena.

Kalidasa is supposed to have visited Banavasi during the reign of Kakasthavarma. Whatever be the name of the king, one thing is sure. Kalidasa was not offered a seat and he ruefully said he sat on a permanent throne (earth) which would never unseat him. 

The Guptas forged an alliance with both the Kadambas and Vakatakas and the three were a formidable force in ancient India.

The Smartha librarian of Madhwa

He was a Shivalli Brahmn and Tulu by birth. He belonged to the Angirasa Gotra. He was a staunch believer in the tenets of Shankaracharya and like his two brothers, he was a master of Adwaitha.

However, while one his brothers-Trivikrama Panditacharya-lost to Madhwa in a debate on Siddantha and became his ardent disciple, this person neither changed his name nor his creed. He remained a committed Smartha Brahmin till his death.

Yet, this person had a closer and daily interaction with the Acharya everyday. He was privileged to have seen Madhwa from very close quarters and interacted with him and his works more closely than anyone did. Unfortunately, he still remains a shadowy figure, unknown to the rest of the world.

He is Samkamacharya or Shankara Panditacharya, one of the younger brothers of Trivikrama Panditacharya (1258-1320). His father was Subramanya Suri, a scholar of Kasargod.  Trivikrama Panditacharya was one of the foremost disciples of Madhwa and he composed the Vayu Stuti,  one of the most famous stotras.

Trivikrama Panditacharya was the preceptor of the King of Kasargod called Jayasimha. Once when  Madhwacharya visited Kasaragod, he challenged him to a debate, as he believed in the Adwaitha tradition. The debate lasted for several days before Trivikrama gracefully accepted defeat and became his disciple.

By then, Samkamacharya was already in the employment of Madhwa. He was the librarian of Madhwa’s vast and valuable library.

It is Samkamacharya who had given the Brahma Sutra Bhashya by Madhwacharya to his brother to read. The book was a challenge to Adwaithas and the librarian had given the book to Trivikrama as he knew that his brother was a scholar-writer who would not let its author go “scot free”. He knew that there would be a debate.   

Though Madhwa knew that Samkamacharya was a Smartha, he had employed him as the custodian of his “knowledge”. He had never preached to Samkamacharya or asked him to switch over to Madhwa way of life. Nod did Samkamacharya offer to do so.

In fact, each of them went about their work with utmost honesty, dedication and perseverance. If Madhwa went around the country, demolishing the arguments of Adwaitha scholars and recruiting them, as his followers, Samkamacharya went about guarding Madhwa’s library and adding new works.

He also classified and categorised the books in Madhwa’s library and kept a close watch on the works of Madhwa. He ensured that whatever books Madhwa wanted were available on hand and within no time.

He thus became a man that Madhwa implicitly trusted. Even when Madhwa took on Trivikrama in the debate at Vishnu Mangala, Samkamacharya was at hand to hand over books and texts to Madhwa in case he needed to refer to then. This shows that he was in Madhwa’s employment even before the debate took place or Madhwa met Trivikrama.

 It would be grossly unfair to club Samkamacharya as a mere book-keeper. He was himself an eminent scholar like his brother and he was equally well-versed in both the Dwaitha and Adwaita systems.

As the name itself suggests, he was a Smarta Brahmin and he lived the life of a Smartha. Neither did he change his name nor did the Acharya ask him to do so. Yet, the librarian-scholar served the Acharya dutifully and with all sincerity. It shows the catholicity and broadmindedness of  both.

He has written a short commentary on the Anu Vyaka of Mahdwacharya in Devanagiri script. It is called Sambandha Dipika.

Some of the passages in the Sambandha Depika have been quoted by Raghavendra Swamy in his work Parimala and even by Raghunatha Theertha of  Uttaradhi Matha in his work Seshachandrika.

This work is in Sanskrit and it contains 400 verses.
Madhwacharya had great regard and respect to his librarian.  The Acharya went with his books and the librarian whenever and wherever he travelled. The books were not only used by the Acharya but by all his disciples.
 The only time he got angry with Samkamacharya was when all his works were stolen after he defeated Pundarika Puri, an Adwaita ascetic. It was around this time that Padmatheertha, another ascetic envious of Madhwacharya’s growing popularity, arranged to have his works stolen from the custody of  Samkamacharya or Pejattaya Shankara Pandita also known as Panditacharya in Kasargod.
A raging Madhwacharya berated the hapless librarian but he soon calmed down and comprehensively defeated Padma Theertha in a philosophical debate. The essence of this debate is now available in Vada or Tattvoddyota.
By the way, the stolen works were eventually returned to the Acharya at a felicitation arranged by King Jayasimha.

New post on Raghavendra Swamy

http://raghavendraswamy.wordpress.com

This is a blog on wordpress on Raghavendra Swamy. This was created after our trip to Mantralaya on December 25. It will deal with the life and times of Rayaru, his works, places associated with him and events during his lifetime.

Since Raghavendra Swamy is an avatar of  Vyasa Raja, the blog will also have details about Vyasa Raja and his works. It  will also feature Rayara mathas of Bangalore and their activities. This post is also avalible on Google as Rayaru 

The brother of Vadiraja

Vadiraja Theertha is one of the most famous Dwaitha saints. His contribution in the field of  Madhwa religion, philosophy and Dasa sahitya is unmatched.

Prof B N K Sharma, the Dwaitha scholar, ranks him alongside Madhwacharya and  Jaya Theertha in the scholastic order. Vadiraja Theertha is one of the longest living saints. He was born in Huvinakere near Kumbashi in Kundapur taluk in 1480 and entered Brindavana 120 years later at Sode in Sirsi taluk.

However, what many people are not aware of is that Vadiraja Thertha had a brother who was also a seer and that he also headed a Madhwa matha during the period of his illustrious brother.

Vadiraja Theertha was already a Sanyasi when his brother was born. He came back from one of his tours, met his aged parents-Ramachandra and Gowri Devi- and conducted the Upanayana of his younger brother.

Thereafter, Vadiraja Theertha left on his Sanchara and his brother continued to live with his parents at their ancestral house in Hoovinakere. Meanwhile, Vadiraja’s brother learnt all the vedas and Shastras in the course of time he mastered all the religious texts.

A few years later, Gowri Devi passed away and then Ramachandra. After this incident Vadiraja’s brother lost interest in the materialistic world and gave up all the properties to Sode Matha.

He then began staying in the matha itself and began to led a monastic life. He then sought out Vadiraja Theertha and urged him to give Sanyasa deeksha.

Vadiraja then gave Sanyasa deeksha to his brother and named him  Surothama Theertha. He then placed him under the care of Raghuvallabha Thertha of Banderkeri Matha. Surothama Theertha ascended the Bandarkeri Matha seat after his guru. He was the 14^th seer of the matha founded by Madhwacharya himself.

Interestingly, Surothama Theertha was in Udupi when the Kanakana Kindi incident is supposed to have taken place in the Sri Krishna Temple.

He has written commentaries on Vadiraja Yukti Mallika and Vishnu Theertha’s Sanyasapaddhati. In his commentary on the Sanyasapaddathi, Surothama Theerth has written that there is no rigid rule that an idol of presiding deity of a temple has to face East. It can face West too, he says, and gives the example of Madhwacharya installing the Krishna idol in Udupi.   

Surothama Theertha handed over the reigns of the Bandarkeri matha to Visvwottama Theertha.

By the way, there is a lot of similarity between the brothers of  Madhwacharya and Vadiraja Thertha. Madhwacharya’s brother-Vishnu Theertha-was born after the Acharya decide to take Sanyasa. Similarly, Surothama Theertha was born after Vadiraja was born for an ascetic life according to Vageesha Theertha, the seer of the Sode Matha.

Both Vishnu Theerth and Surothama Theertha lived a life of a householder or Grihasta for several years and took care of their parents. Both decided to take the plunge into Sanyasa only after the death of their parents.

Both were head of different mathas and both were given sanyasa by their illustrious brothers. While Vishnu Theertha was head of the Subramanya and Sode Matha, Surothama Theertha was the chief of the Banderkeri Matha.

Both Vishnu Theertha and Surothama Theertha have written commentaries on some of the works of their brothers. Both were excellent scholars and they had their own standing in the Dwaitha order.

The similarities, however, end here. While Vishnu Theertha disappeared from view at Kumara Parvata, Surothama Theertha entered Brindavana.