| Sri
Vidyaranya - His initiation and growth
Tradition has it that Vidyaranya,
whose preascetic name is not known for certain, was
the elder of two brahmachari brothers belonging to a
poor but learned brahmin family of Ekashilanagari (present-day
Warangal). The younger of the two, wandering south in
search of true knowledge, reached Sringeri when the
great Vidya Sankara Tirtha was the reigning pontiff.
On seeing the innate greatness of the young brahmachari,
Sri Vidya Tirtha readily gave him sannyasa diksha with
the ascetic name of Bharati Krishna Tirtha, in 1328.
After Sri Vidya Tirtha attained nirvana by entering
into lambika yoga samadhi, Sri Bharati Krishna
Tirtha succeeded him as the 11th Jagadguru
on the Sringeri matha and reigned from 1333 to 1380.
In
the meanwhile, the elder brahmachari, whom we may call
Madhava, left home in search of his younger brother
whom he found at Sringeri as Bharati Krishna Tirtha.
At the younger brother's request Sri Vidya Tirtha readily
gave him sannyasa diksha in 1331 under the ascetic name
of Vidyaranya, which means "a Forest of Knowledge".
Sri Bharati Tirtha, though younger than Vidyaranya became
his senior by virtue of his earlier ordainment into
sannyasa Ashrama, and came to be known as the senior
Sripada, and Vidyaranya the junior.
Sri
Vidyaranya then started on a pilgnmage and reached Kashi.
At the direction of Sri Vyasa, he went to Badarikasrama,
where the great sage himself initiated him into Sri
Vidya. Returning south, he retired to Matanga hill,
near Hampi, where he immersed himself in intense meditation.
It was at this time that the two brothers, Madhava and
Sayana, sons of Mayana of Bharadwaja Gotra approached
Sri Vidyaranya and sought his blessings. Sri Vidyaranya
graciously gave them his unfinished veda bhashyas
and some other works. He blessed them to complete the
works in their own names. Later, both the brothers served
as ministers to Bukka Raya and Harihara I & II.
After
the kingdom of Vijayanagara was firmed, Sri Vidyaranya
resumed his pilgrimage to Varanasi. It was at that time
that Sri Bharati Tirtha at Sringeri began the construction
of the magnificent Vidya Sankara temple over the tomb
into which his guru Sri Vidya Tirtha had entered into
Lambika Yoga Samadhi.
Bukka
and Harihara who were sharing the responsibilities of
ruling their empire and who were marching from victory
to victory, went to Sringeri in around 1346 for the
blessings of Sri Bharati Tirtha. They celebrated the
occasion with a land grant to the senior Sripada. After
Sri Bharati Tirtha attained videha mukti, Sri Vidyaranya
assumed charge of the Sringeri matha and reigned as
Jagadaguru for six years from 1380 to 1386.
Works
Sri
Vidyaranya wrote prodiguously on such works as vyakarana,
mimamsa, smriti, purana, astronomy/astrology,
mantra sastra, music, darsana and Advaita
Vedanta: Some important works include Jaiminiya
Nyayamala, Parasara-smriti Vyakhyana, Smriti Sangraha,
Vyavahara-Madhava, Sri Vidyartha-Dipika, Vivaranaprameya
Sangraha, Panchadasi, Jivanmukti Viveka, Drig Drisya
Viveka, Aparokshanubuthi-Tika, and six Upanishad-Dipikas.
Madhaviya Sankara Vijaya is the work of Sri
Vidyaranya. Because of its high poetic merit and objectivity,
it is considered the best for recitation during Sankara
Jayanti.
Sri Vidyaranya was the head of the Sringeri matha for
only a short span of six years. However, his association
with Sri Bharati Tirtha (his predecessor Jagadguru and
poorvasharma brother) for over five decades left an
indelible mark on the spirituaI psyche of his times.
He is rightly oonsidered
as one of the brightest jewels in the illustrious line
of Sringeri Guru Parampara.
|
