This document provides a summary of the life and works of Adi Sankara based on various biographical accounts. It discusses Sankara's birthplace in Kaladi, key milestones in his life like upanayana at age 5 and completing Vedic studies by age 7. It outlines his works like bhashyas on 11 Upanishads and Brahma Sutras. It also mentions his debates with Mandana Misra and establishment of the Sankara Mathas. In the end, it discusses the relevance of Advaita philosophy propounded by Sankara in modern times for inner peace and overcoming challenges like fear and depression.
1. Author : ShankaraNarayanan S
Publisher: Adyar Library and Research Center ] The Theosophical
Society Press
First Edition third Reprint 2011
ISBN [10]: 81-85141-14-2
ISBN [13]: 978-81-85141-14-5
4. Biographies = 33 accounts
Brihaccankaravijaya 1&2 = Chitsukhacharya 1220 AD?
Sankaravijaya of Ananda-Giri
Sivarahasya tradition}
Sankara was born in chidambaram
Sankara-Vijaya of Madhava
Minister for Harihara Bukka 1300s
?vidyaranya of sringeri math
Vyasa-cala
mahadevendra saraswati of Kanchi peetham 1498-1507
Brahmaananda
disciple of sarvajna-atman, author of sanksepa-saariraka
5. Hostile Accounts
Dwaita Works
Madhava Vijaya
ManiManjari
Buddhism History = Taranatha
Sankara leapt into Ganga after losing to Dharma-kirti
Criticism
they are very late and full of exaggerative and hyperbolic
statements, 16.
6. State of history writing in India
Poetic license
Kumarila Bhatta in Mimamsa Vartika
states that even valmiki and Vyasa used poetic license in
narratives
8. 2 fold Dharma of Bharat
Pravriti [ Rituals and Scriptures ]
Nivritti [ renunciation, enquiry, negation ]
Decline and its restoration by the Divine, 23.
10. 6 schools of Dharma
Sankhya: Oldest
inert material cause, [ pradhaana]
○ denouncing supremeness, ++ no God Particle
○ Satkarya vada [ theory of causation, effects exist subtly in the cause]
Nyaya
nyaya vartika b udhyottakara 600AD? fight against buddhism
Vaisesikha,
Yoga,
Purva-Mimamsa,
Authors Jaimini, Upavarsa, Sabar-svamin ++ pravritti dharma ++
Karma
Bhartru-prapanca = found it difficult to understand how Nivritti
was an independent path in itself
The Bhakti school, 29.
12. Northern school of Vedanta,
Gaudapãda
?Alleged Buddhistic features of Gauda pada's Karikas
mandukya kaarika = commentary on Mandukya upanishad
Buddhism picks off vedanta as Mahedra-varma I pallava 600 AD
noted
Govinda Bhagavatpada. ,
Mahabhasya of Patanjali, grammarian
Real name chandra-svamin ,
4 sons : bhartruhari being one of them
○ who propounded - sabda-advaita vaada [ wave theory ]
Kashmir / Ujjain
13. Southern school of Vedanta
Brahmanandin, = Chandogya Vaakya, [atri]
Dramidacarya.= Bhasya on the above vaakya [atri]
Sundara Pandya= varttika on sariraka mimansa vritti by
upavarsa
19. Atri Gotra
Atri [book 5, svarbhanu, Sun ]
taittiriya YajurVeda,
10K students
a-tri free from rajas tamas, sat.
Anusuya, ++ Dandaka Forest
Sivaguru Father title : Vidhya-adhiraja
Makha Pandita FIL / Meputtur
Aryamba Mother
Tri-sivaperur [ Trissur ] Blessing for son
Vrsa-cala Bull hill ++ Dakshina Kailasa
20. Legend of Sankara as Siva
Muruga = Kumarila bhatta
Indra = King Sudhanva
Brahma = Visvarupa mandana Misra
Sarasvati as wife ubhaya bharati
Vishnu = Padmapada
Vayu = Hastamaalaka ….
21. Sankara Birth
Pancami, Vaisakha [ May / June ]
Guru poornima today
Nakshatra
○ punarvasu 7 Rama
○ ardra 6th Siva
Meaning of Samkara
Sam [5] + Ka [1] + Ra [2] == 5 th day, 1st fortnight, 2nd month ..
7th nakshatra
Sanskrit numbering = sequential consonants ++ chronograph, 1
sun, 2 eyes etc..
22. Key milestones
3Y = caulakarma
Saundarya Lahari : Bhagavathi feeds the baby and baby narrates [
Devibhujanga, Bhujangaprayaata ]
5Y upanayana = ghatika , chaturvaidyasala , bhiksha carana
7Y = completed all the vaidika works
Kanakadhara stotra
Poor woman, gooseberry offering bhiksha
gold + svarna Attu mana
8Y back at home
Pulls river purna nearer to home for his mother 56.
Rajasekhara's visit
Offers gold, ++ 3 poems recital …. they are good!! ++ Son is born
Rishis, 8Y Bless further life ++ expanded to 16Y sad news
Samnyasa : Crocodile incident
VivekaChudamani [79,81,82,143 ] Crocodile as craving and indulgence in
life
24. Govinda Bhagavatpada Guru
Ans Sat-chit-ananda
Dasa-sloki
madhusudana Sarasvati comments that this is better than
Brahma-sutras of baadaraayana / Vyasa ]
Contains the narmada
narmada-astaka [ Vindhya viruddham dhyayati, Agastya = one
who conquered a mountain
25. Gaudapada
Patanjali’s student and is cursed R
Released by Govinda / ChandaraSvamin
Wrote mahabhasya on Patanjali’s work
Govinda asks Sankara to start his work
26. Works of Sankara
Kasi [ pentad and Octad written ]
Meeting Vishnu-sarma
Sanandana and later padma-pada
Narrating Bhaja Govindam
dwadasa pajarika stotra
chaturdasa [ charpata] panjarika stotra ]
12 + 14 = mohamudgara
Candala as preceptor = Manisa pancakam
27. Badarika Asrama Gauda padas
15 works
11 Upanishad Bhasya
Mandukya, Isha, Kena [2] , Chandogya, katha,
prashna, taittiriy,a Aittiriya, bhruhad-aranyaka , mundaka
2 bhaasyas on kena are pada and vakya [ word and sentence]
Other Doubtful Upanishads
nrusimha taapini, kausitaki, svetashwatara upanishads
3 itihasa bhasya
Bagavadgita,
sanat-sujaatiya
vishnu sahasra nama stotra
Sutra-prasthana on brahmsutra
shariraka bhaasya
Meeting Badaraayana Vyasa
debate [ mural in the varadaraja temple in kanci
gives him 16 more years
28. 4 stages of learning
Learning a subject [
understanding the subject
living the learning accordingly [
propagating the learning [ 16Y [ comparison with
Devanaampriya Asoka
29. Agnisarma & return to Kaladi
Agnisarma brings family wealth
Sankara builds a temple
Returns to Kaaladi
Aaryamba dies and cremation by self
cursing nambudiri of kaaladi
Narrating the poems of rajasekara back to him from
memory
30. Kumarila Bhatta and Mandana
Misra
Disciples = Mandana, Umveka, Prabhakara Misra, Muraari Misra
Kumarila bhatta Falls pushed by buddhists, losing right eye
Sankara wants kumarila to write a varttika on Sariraka Bhasya
Dying Kumarila, on the pyre reads introduction and guides him to
visvarupa / Mandana
Mandana mishra
mahishmati , Shraddha ceremony
Ubhaya bharati as the judge
Judgment by fresh garland
Ubhaya bhaarati
questions on sex kama sutra = amaru-sataka by sankara
Mandana becomes sureshwara-carya [ 1st sankara of sringeri ]
31.
32. Visits and meetings list
Kapalika meets and dies
hasta-aamalaka
7Y son of prabhakara,
dumb gets voice, becomes disciple
hastamaalakiya bhasyam
○ guru writes bhasya on disciples verses
Giri becomes totaka-acharya
sruthi sara samudhaarana in totaka meter 179 verses
verse for a leper Ekaasloki
commentary by svayampakasa yogi a disciple of gopala yogiindra
kaapalika krakaca killed by bhairava
bhagandara anal disease and cure
??Kaamarupa after debating with abhinava gupta
33. shanmatha sthapana acarya
6 deities unified for the first time with 6 disciples
Surya / indra == ravi kumara
Sakthi = tripura kumara
Shaiva == paramata kaalanala
Ganapatya = girijaa kumara
Kumara = vatukanatha / kapaalika
Vaishnava == laksmana
40. Brahma sat
Svarupalaksana
negation, == nirguna saguna
antaryaamin
sambandha avastha
imaginary relations
maya- sakti leads to lower level entities with different sat rajas
tamas , sankhya inert
Sambandha anaavastha
relentless relationship regression
relationship is false bheda self contradictions three there is no
difference Brahma isvara self
41. advaita focus
Focus on nature of Brahman and not relations
sraddha ++ manana ++ anumana
frailty of suska tarka self based logic
Sravana and sramana Buddha Sankara
Brahma sat ! Nirguna saguna are the same
vimuktas cha vimucyate
3 states atma Brahman medium
self deha dehi ( jiva)
reflects universal nature svaprakasa self luminous
42. Atman aham
Difference is anirvacaniya and through maya-sakti
Aavarana Maya and. Viksepa
veiling and manifesting extremes leading to lower forms
self clouding
17 layers organs
sutra-atma
atma as a string
Indian string theory mahaprana virat vaishvaanara
Gods are interactions of guna rajas sat tamas in
differing proportions
Maya == differentiation bheda ! Interaction
sambandha ! Interpretation mithya
43.
44. Jagan mithya
phantasia , buddha comparison vivartavada
satkaaravada
parinamavada
vivartavada
change and no change
cryptic Buddhist
45. Atma brahmaiva na para
brahmavid brahmaiva bhavati
atomic atma
embodied Brahman encapsulation satyam jnanam anantam atma
! ruler is not analogy of Brahman
Ruler knows the kingdom but not everywhere
wrong association Brahman not associated
medium size atma
realization failure
Hunter kidnap instant realization to Prince
bhagatyagalaksana
words association are dropped and only root essence is true
… like number and arithmetic ways to get there impermanence
kataka nut water purification 8todo
Soham vs daso-ham
objection our perception is limited reality
association sambandha avastha problem like owner described as the house
46. Chapter VII : relevance on
Sankara in modern times
dogma and belief based on Veda
Veda itself and Sankara prod people to think
independent experience and thinking before validating
Pitch based on understanding self and nature
samnyasa is the basis of advaita
!! progress does not need philosophy
agreed lot of progress is there
but mind fear depression are today's challenges
inner engineering