| Sages,Rushis & Saints |
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| Biographies of Great Indians & Hindus |
SHANKARACHARYA |
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| Introduction One of the greatest philosophers and savants of Bharat. Though he lived for only thirty-two years, his achievement was unparalleled. He propounded the vedantic tenet that Brahman the Supreme and man are of one essence and that all people should strive to cultivate this vision of oneness. He established four spiritual centres in the four corners of the country, thus' upholding the underlying unity of the holy land of Bharat. Author - K.B.Ramakrishna RaoShankaracharya Amala-kamalaadhivasini maanaso vaimalyadaayini manoine i sundara-gaatri susheele tava charanaambhoruham narnaami sadaa ii (O Goddess, You live in the lotus of purity, You make the mind pure, and You are known by the inner mind. You are beautiful as well as virtuous. I offer my salutation at Your lotus feet at all times.) This hymn on Goddess Saraswati, so well known and familiar in our country, was composed by Sri Shankaracharya. "it is not possible to describe His form in any specific way. But great is His Glory." This statement is made about God. It occurs in Vedas. The same thing may be said of sages, seers and philosophers-the most glorious personages who were responsible for the growth and development of our national culture. They did not want to fill the pages of Indian history with physical and material information such as dates, place, birth, period of life, etc. This is the characteristic of our culture. Their vital spirit is still present all around us. Their works alone testify to their spiritual, intellectual and creative powers. These great men will appear to us as God-men, when we understand their works. Their actions appear as superhuman. As they are beyond our ability to understand, we tend to think of them as miracles. But these extraordinary men are far above those miracles also. Leaving aside these miracles, if we just take their life story, even that would be wonderful and interesting. The lives of such persons with their pristine purity . reveal the very heart of Indian culture. Sri Adi Shankaracharya belongs to the galaxy of such men. The history of Indian culture, in fact, is the stream of lives of such great souls. In order to recover from the crises-the religious, moral, that crop up ideological or political in the society from time to time, the country anxiously awaits the help of inspiring and glorious personalities. It may be said that Sri Shankaracharya's birth took place in the same way, as a result of India's spiritual longing for redressal of its all-round suffering. It is the opinion of scholars that he belonged to the period between 788 and 820 A.D. |
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