http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucgadkw/position/shank-jyot-ascii.html
Read the whole article if you want to get a good feel for the complexity of it all. Some excerpts. ------------------------- There is currently a succession dispute at the Jyotirmath Sankaracharya seat, the origin of which dates back to the year 1953. Till recently, the two major rivals were Swami Swarupananda Saraswati (who is also the Sankaracharya of Dwaraka in the west) and Swami Vasudevananda Saraswati. Since 1993-4, another Sannyasin named Madhava Asrama has been a third claimant to the Jyotirmath title. [Since this article was written, the courts have decided against Swami Vasudevananda Saraswati -- the TMO favored candidate and ruled he can not use the title Shankaracharaya] The history of Jyotirmath is extremely complicated. According to official accounts, after the period of one Swami Ramakrishna Tirtha in the 18th century, the matha was extinct for about 165 years, before it was revived in 1941, under Swami Brahmananda Saraswati. However, in the meantime, various Sannyasins had claimed to be the Sankaracharya of Jyotirmath, and for some time, many people thought that the Rawal (head-priest) of the Badrinath temple was also the Sankaracharya of Jyotirmath. There are records of lawsuits from the early 1900's, which show a number of names, each laying claim to the Jyotirmath Sankaracharya title. ... The appointment of Swami Brahmananda Saraswati in 1941 was made by a group of monks and pundits based in Varanasi (the Bharata Dharma Mahamandala, Kashi Vidvat Parishad, and the Akhila Bharatiya Dharmasangha), with the blessings of Swami Bharati Krishna Tirtha, the then Sankaracharya of Puri. Swami Chandrasekhara Bharati of Sringeri also endorsed Brahmananda's appointment. Thus, right from the beginning of the Jyotirmath's revival in 1941, the opinions of the heads of other Amnaya mathas were taken seriously into consideration. [1] Another important factor that legitimated the Jyotirmath revival should not be overlooked. This is the involvement of the Hindu kings in north India in the process, and their acceptance of Brahmananda Saraswati. The ruler of Garhwal was important because Badrinath was in his province, while the rulers of Varanasi and Darbhanga were well known and respected as patrons of several religious institutions. India was not yet independent in 1941, and this royal recognition helped in overcoming potential opposition from previous claimants to the Jyotirmath title, and their followers. Brahmananda was selected as he was widely regarded as the epitome of the qualifications mentioned in texts like Mahanusasana and Mathamnaya, which are attributed to Adi Sankaracharya. For the purposes of this discussion, it is immaterial to investigate who wrote these texts, or to question whether Adi Sankaracharya established any mathas at all. It is sufficient to note that the living tradition of Advaita monasticism more or less unanimously accepts these texts and the four Amnaya mathas as originating from Adi Sankaracharya himself. Beginnings of Conflict - Swami Brahmananda Saraswati passed away in 1953, but he had not clearly indicated his successor. This immediately caused a problem, as he had initiated a number of disciples into Sannyasa. A few weeks after he passed away, a will was found, according to the terms of which, a disciple called Swami Santananda Saraswati was named as the first choice for succeeding to the Jyotirmath title. However, many followers of Brahmananda Saraswati were satisfied neither with the credentials of Santananda, nor with the validity/authenticity of the will. Perhaps, the doubts about the will were themselves based partly upon the perception that Santananda was not a good choice for successor. His quickness to take charge of the matha administration on the basis of this will also probably raised many eyebrows. Meanwhile, there was a widespread rumor that Brahmananda Saraswati had been poisoned. This set a number of civil lawsuits into motion. To the best of my knowledge, no criminal lawsuits were filed against anyone, on the basis of the poisoning theory. However, Santananda's reputation definitely took a blow, although the major complaint against him was simply that he was unfit for the post of Sankaracharya, because he did not measure up to the qualifications described in the Mahanusasana texts. [2] Also, in 1953, Swami Hariharananda Saraswati (popularly known as Karapatri Swami), another disciple of Brahmananda Saraswati, was seen as the more deserving candidate to become the Sankaracharya, but he didn't want the title. In fact, as the head of the Akhila Bharatiya Dharmasangha, it is said that Hariharananda had been the first choice for the Sankaracharya post in 1941, but he had declined and proposed his guru's name (Brahmananda) instead. It is also said that it was Hariharananda who convinced his guru to accept the position. Hariharananda Saraswati passed away recently, and avoided the Sankaracharya title for himself, but the opinion of his followers is reflected in the title they have given him - Abhinava Sankara. [3] Divided Lineage - Because of the controversy over Brahmananda's will and Santananda's succession, the organizations involved in reviving Jyotirmath in 1941 considered other nominations for the Sankaracharya post. These efforts were blessed by Swami Abhinava Sacchidananda Tirtha, the then Sankaracharya of Dwaraka. In 1953 itself, one Swami Krishnabodha Asrama was appointed as the new Jyotirmath Sankaracharya, contesting Santananda's claim. Krishnabodha Asrama was not a direct disciple of Brahmananda Saraswati, but given the nature of Jyotirmath's revival in 1941, this was not necessarily a disqualification. The new appointment also had the support of the Puri matha, but it must be noted that this matha was to have a few succession problems of its own, within a decade. [4] When Krishnabodha Asrama passed away in 1973, he nominated Swami Swarupananda Saraswati to the title. Swarupananda is a direct disciple of Brahmananda Saraswati, but he has also studied under both Krishnabodha Asrama and Abhinava Sacchidananda Tirtha of Dwaraka. [5] Meanwhile, Santananda had not relinquished the Sankaracharya seat, so that by this time, the two major claimants of the title were Swarupananda and Santananda. In the year 1980, Santananda stepped down from the title, in favor of Swami Vishnudevananda Saraswati, another disciple of Brahmananda. However, Vishnudevananda Saraswati passed away in 1989/90, while Santananda Saraswati was still alive. Following this, one Swami Vasudevananda Saraswati was named as the successor. Santananda passed away in late 1997, and Vasudevananda Saraswati is currently the sole representative of this lineage. Vasudevananda was present at the appointment of a Mahamandaleswara of the Mahanirvani Akhada in 1995 (according to Hinduism Today, August 1995). Adding to the complexity of this dispute is the fact that according to the terms of Brahmananda's contested will, one Swami Dwarakesananda Saraswati was supposed to have been the second choice after Santananda. There is no indication that Dwarakesananda ever claimed the Sankaracharya title, or that it was ever formally offered to him. A similar situation obtains with a Swami Paramatmananda Saraswati, who was also named in the will, but as the next choice after Vishnudevananda. [6] ... However, in 1979, when a conference of the Sankaracharyas of the four Amnaya mathas was held at Sringeri, Santananda and Vishnudevananda were not invited. It was Swarupananda Saraswati who represented Jyotirmath. There is no indication that the rival lineage of Santananda and his disciples was endorsed at this time by any of the other Sankaracharyas. Accounts written by Swarupananda's followers do not mention Krishnabodha Asrama very prominently, probably because he was not a direct disciple of Brahmananda Saraswati. [7] Swarupananda, being a direct disciple of Brahmananda, traces his lineage directly to the ascetic who was the first Sankaracharya of the revived Jyotirmath. Needless to say, the list of Sankaracharyas of a matha must be distinguished from the Guru-Sishya lineages of the Sannyasins who become Sankaracharyas. In an ideal situation, the lineages are identical, but circumstances often dictate otherwise. Other major factors that affect this succession dispute are the relationships of the principals with Indian political parties and with internationally popular gurus. Swarupananda Saraswati's involvement with the Indian Congress party dates back to the period of the Indepedence struggle, before he became a Sannyasin. He remains close to numerous Congress politicians (e.g. Digvijay Singh of Madhya Pradesh and P. V. Narasimha Rao, the former Prime Minister of India), and has been quite vocally anti-VHP and anti-RSS. [8] In contrast, or perhaps because of this, Santananda, Vishnudevananda and Vasudevananda have all had the support of the "Hindutva" organizations. Vasudevananda is usually present at major VHP and RSS events, where he is introduced as the Jyotirmath Sankaracharya. Santananda and Vishnudevananda have also had close connections with Mahesh Yogi, who used to be Brahmananda Saraswati's secretary. In fact, the earliest doubts about the will left by Brahmananda Saraswati were linked to suspicion of the motives and actions of Mahesh Yogi (then called Mahesh Brahmachari). These TM connections probably did not endear Santananda and Vishnudevananda to the predominantly Brahmana following of the various mathas. I have also heard rumors that when Santananda stepped down in favor of Vishnudevananda, there was the hand of Mahesh Yogi behind it. As with so many aspects of this dispute, I don't know if this is just rumor, or if there is something more to it. It is well known that Swarupananda and Mahesh Yogi don't see eye to eye on any issue, and the ex-TM literature has much information about their disputes. [9] However, the connection of Mahesh Yogi to Santananda and his lineal successors is not without its own complications. For example, Deepak Chopra, the popular New Age author, who used to have intimate ties to Mahesh Yogi and his organization, has now broken his connections to him, and claims acknowledgement directly from Vasudevananda Saraswati instead. Swarupananda at Dwaraka - A further complication was introduced in 1982, when Abhinava Sacchidananda Tirtha, the Sankaracharya of Dwaraka, passed away, leaving a will with a few names as possible choices for his successor. Among these was Swarupananda Saraswati of Jyotirmath. The others either declined or were eliminated from consideration for one reason or the other. Swarupananda was then coronated at Dwaraka, in a ceremony presided over by Swami Abhinava Vidya Tirtha of Sringeri. Swarupananda Saraswati's Dwaraka title is undisputed, and he is routinely described in press reports as the Sankaracharya of Dwaraka. However, it should be noted that while his status as the head of two principal mathas is somewhat unusual, and also confusing for the lay public, it had not been insisted that he relinquish his position at Jyotirmath, before taking charge at Dwaraka. Swarupananda had attended the 1979 meeting of the Sankaracharyas at Sringeri, in his capacity as the Sankaracharya of Jyotirmath. He also attended the funeral ceremonies of Swami Abhinava Vidya Tirtha at Sringeri in 1989. In June 1993, a joint statement was issued by the Sankaracharyas, in connection with the Babri Masjid demolition, which Swarupananda Saraswati signed twice, in his dual capacity as the head of both Dwaraka and Jyotirmath. And as Jayendra Saraswati of the Kanchi matha has also signed the 1993 statement, I assume that he too accepts Swarupananda at both Dwaraka and Jyotirmath. ... Clearly, at least in the eyes of these others, Swarupananda Saraswati is the Sankaracharya of Jyotirmath, and also the Sankaracharya of Dwaraka. However, Vasudevananda Saraswati's connections with the Akhada Parishad (a coordination body that deals with such matters as order of procession of the Akhadas during the Kumbha Mela, etc.) indicate that the Dasanami Akhada structure may not be unanimously supportive of Swarupananda. [13] ... However, for more than a decade after assuming charge at Dwaraka, Swarupananda Saraswati had continued to retain his Jyotirmath title. It is said that in 1993-4, the Kashi Vidvat Parishad and the Akhila Bharatiya Dharmasangha decided that this was creating much public confusion, and decided to appoint Madhava Asrama as the Sankaracharya of Jyotirmath. The coronation ceremony is reported to have been conducted in Varanasi itself. [15] To summarize, the three competing Jyotirmath lineages are - The Role of Other Traditional and Modern Institutions - [16] The above discussion has dealt only with the cultural and religious aspects of the Jyotirmath dispute. A few centuries ago, such problems would have been referred to the local king, and perhaps solved quickly. In independent India, the dispute has been taken to the secular courts, but these are quite different from the old princely durbars in their procedures and rules. The judges also lack legislative and executive authority over religious institutions, unlike the Hindu king of old days. It seems to me that those who did not wish to acknowledge Santananda as the Sankaracharya of Jyotirmath did not sufficiently appreciate these changes in modern times, and expected the courts to accept their cultural, moral and religious arguments as legally valid. Thus, none of the civil suits in this dispute seems to have been framed in terms of contesting the legal bona fides of Brahmananda's will. Consequently, although one judge did acknowledge the merits of the claim that Santananda was not properly qualified, he found no legally valid reason to give a verdict voiding Santananda's claim to the title. ... The latest development from this angle is that on February 22, 1999, the court at Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, has passed an interim order, prohibiting Vasudevananda from using the title of Sankaracharya to collect any donations, till the legal case gets resolved either way. The reasons cited for this order are that his installation is suspect, and that Swarupananda has the better claim to the Jyotirmath title, both for historical reasons and by virtue of being acknowledged by the other Sankaracharyas. Clearly, the role played by the Kashi Vidvat Parishad and the Akhila Bharatiya Dharmasangha was not questioned when Krishnabodha Asrama was appointed to the Jyotirmath title, except perhaps by Santananda and his followers. As for the other mathas and their heads, whatever their reservations may have been about Santananda's qualifications for the Sankaracharya title, their endorsement of Krishnabodha Asrama's appointment and/or his subsequent appointment of Swarupananda meant that they tacitly approved of and accepted the actions of these two organizations. ... To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
