I bow to the lotus feet of Master Shree Adi Shankaracharya

My Obescience to Lord Ganesha

Queller of Obstacles the Ganadeesha

My prayer to Mother Sharadha

I beseech her to help me sing the glory of Lord Shankara

I then pray to Mother Chandala Parameshwari and Sangameshwara with all my heart

They are family deities on my part

I then pray at the lotus feet of my Sadguru Sainath

To help me sing his glory, glory be to Sadgurunath

Listen here to the story of Lord Shankara

The renunciate incarnation of Lord Shiva

It was during the Kali yuga the time running

Righteousness was down and unrighteousness was ascending

The heretical scriptures of the Atheists and the Agnostics

Were revered more than the holy Vedas

When the agnostics and atheists rejoiced

In having Sanathana Dharma decried

When ritualistic worship was of Sanathana Dharma the emperor

And black magic and superstitions were his minister and foremost courtier

There rose in all three worlds a cry

Let the river of Sanathana Dharma not run dry

All the Devas(Gods) went to seek refuge

To the god of gods to save Sanathana Dharma from the deluge

The merciful God of Gods was moved by their plight

Promised to incarnate as a mortal and do what is right

Aryamba and Shivaguru offered at Chandramauleeshwara temple their sincere prayer

Each saw in their dream an old Sanyasin clad in robes of color Ochre

He asked them what they most wanted

A single son with life limited

Though extraordinary in intellect and a teacher of the world

Or many sons, ordinary intellect they hold

The couple chose the one brilliant son unanimously

For the other choice would be wrong decision made erroneously

Thus was born on earth at Kalady in Kerala as Shankara,

Lord Shiva as the son of Shivaguru and Aryamba

A different incarnation this was to be

Not like the earlier incarnations was this meant to be

This was not like the Maryada Purushottama Rama

Nor was this like the upholder of the mighty Govardhana Krishna

Nor was he like the terrible axe weilding Parashurama

Nor was he like the hermit Vamana

Nor was he like the slayer of Hiranyakashapu Narasimha

Nor was he like the uplifter of Bhoomidevi Varaha

Nor was he like the churner of Ksheerasagara the Kurma

Nor was he like the slayer of Hayagriva the Matsya

Though he was one with all the above

In a beautiful incarnation he was about to involve

He was to become a monastic

All his deeds were to be fantastic

Shivaguru left his mortal frame

with the almighty prabrahman one, he became

From a poor woman amlaka fruit as alms Shankara received

Prayed to Mother Lakshmi to bestow upon her cartloads of gold

Yearning for his divine nature was extreme

He told Aryamba, a monastic he wants to become

Shankara promised that he would be with her when her end is near

He would perform the last rites for one so dear

Bound she was by motherly love

Around Shankara indeed does her life revolve

She refused to give him the permission

To allow her son to live a life of renunciation

Caught was Shankara's leg in a crocodile's mighty grip

Try what he might, could not get out of the crocodile's grasp

Shankara asked a  crying Aryamba in desperation

At least allow me now to lead a life of renunciation

She gave the permission finally

Released by the crocodile, he swam to the shore safely

Shankara the earlier promise reiterated

Said he will be there when most needed

He went up north to become a renunciate

In search of Guru, who would to the monastic order initiate

He walked and walked until central India he reached

Heard that there was a great sage who preached

For near the banks of the river Narmada

Were present the lotus feet of Shree Govinda Bhagavatpaada

He sat in Nirvikalpa Samadhi when Shankara arrived

In blissful realization was he, unconscious of the world

In full fury was the river Narmada in spate

Unconscious of this, what was to be his fate?

Shankara with his Kamandalu touched the Narmada

Instantly she calmed down and did not go near Bhagavatpaada

Returned when to worldly consciousness

Impressed was he by the boy's spiritual prowess

Accepted him as his disciple he did

Life of a renunciate Shankara had reached

He thought Shankara the four vedas

He also thought him the six Shastras

Bhagavatpada thought him the tenet

"That Brahman and the soul are no different"

"This whole Universe and everything in it's realm

There is one god and everything has arisen from him"

Shankara was the brightest student clearly

The Guru had come to like him dearly

He told Shankara "Go to the four corners of the nation

Spread the tenets of Advita for self realisation"

The guru's orders set into motion

The divine mission throughout the nation

The holy city of Kashi he reached

Advaita to many he preached

His disciples many became

In their hearts rose the divine flame

Sanandhyaya was master Shankara's clothes drying

When on the other side of the river he heard Lord Shankara calling

So much was his faith in the guru that to meet

Him he walked on lotus flowers to cross the river to the Guru's feet

Shankara called him Padmapaada (Padma -Lotus,Paada - Feet)

Extreme was his devotion towards Shankara Bhagavatpaada

That the Vishwanatha temple at Kashi is holy is redoubtable

But when Shankara was going there, his path was blocked by an untouchable

"Move aside" said all the devotees of Shankara

"We do not want to be impure before visiting Hara"

"Oh, revered Acharya", the "untouchable" said

"Pray tell me what to move?" he questioned

"Is it the body that is made of the 5 elements and is perishable?"

"Or the self that is all pervading and invisible?"

"The body I can move"

"The self I cannot move"

Shankara saw in him Lord Shiva

He realized that the untouchable is none other than Hara

To him Shankara prostrated

Whatever Shankara taught the "untouchable" had reiterated

He saw near a river an old teacher

Teaching his pupils Sanskrit grammar

Shankara for him felt bad

At his age seek he should the bliss of god

"Futile is the repeating of grammar by-heart"

"Bhaja Govindam" came out of  his heart

"Worship the lord oh foolish mind

This grammar will not protect you when the end is near, I remind"

A while later came to debate an old sage

16 year old Shankara's knowledge he had come to gauge

They debated on Brahmasutra Bhashyam for days

The Sage turned out to be the immortal Vyasa radiant as the sun rays

Adi Shankara with another sixteen years of life he blessed

To go all over the nation so Advaita could be preached

First went Shankara to quell ritualistic worship done without feeling

This was the beginning for the Juggernaut of victory to start rolling

This was the beginning of the glorious Digvijaya of Shankara

It spelled doom for the irreligious and the nastika (Atheist or Agnostic)

First he went to meet Kumarila, the mimamsa scholar

Living incognito in Nalanda for the agnostics he was a destroyer

However to his guru he claimed he had injustice committed

To end his life in a pyre was what he intended

"There is my disciple called Mandana Mishra in Mahishmati"

"He has an equally intelligent and pious wife called Saraswathi"

"You may debate with him instead of me"

"Knowledgeable in mimamsa verily is he"

To Mahishmati proceeded Shree Shankara

He reached the house of Mandana Mishra

He requested for a debate a chance with the condition

That the loser is to become the disciple of the winner with initiation

Saraswathi however a reasonable doubt raised

The responsibilities of a householder Shankara had not experienced

Shankara agreed with her point of view

Leaving his body in an Astral form flew

Brought back to life the dead king of Vanga country (Modern day Bengal)

Shankara was, in Vanga country king's body

He experienced the joys and sorrows of life

In many glittering durbars the good and evil of life

Having had enough experience he left the body

And returned to his own body thus leaving Vanga country

Vanga was filled with sadness ,now bereft of a king

Meanwhile the devotees of Shankara his glory sang

Now started the awesome debate with Saraswathi as the Judge

Engrossed, none in the audience dared to budge

Mandana on following the rituals stressed

As enjoined in the scriptures blessed

Shankara said "Mere mechanical rituals are of no use

Without bhakthi (devotion) they are a misuse"

The flowers in Mandana's garland wilted first

While Shankara's garland was with fresh flowers like those found in morning mist

By Mandana was defeat accepted

Sureshwaracharya was the monastic name received

They proceeded together towards south

Saw barbarous hill people who were uncouth

Shankara to them Advita preached

They became his blessed devotees reformed

At Gokarna came Hastamalaka who was supposedly dumb

By Shankara's blessings he spoke deeply about Advita making everyone numb

Kalananda came and sang praises at the lotus feet of Shankaracharya

He became the disciple Totakacharya

At Shringeri Saraswathi stood transfixed on the banks of Tungabadra

Established the Sharada peetham there did Shankara

By his divine nature Shankara fathomed

That his mother's end was near

He went to Kalady and comforted her

Pleased was Aryamba to see Shankara so near

As she breathed her last

She became one with the almighty

Shankara prepared to perform her final rites

Much to the dismay of the Orthodox Nambodri hypocrites

Shankara did visit every part of India

Established mutts in Puri, Jyotirmat and Dwaraka

He went to the Sharada peetham in Kashmir in the North

The door was never opened in the direction of the South

This indicated that no scholar came to the Sarvagna peetha from the South

Shankara came and had the door opened in the South

Defeated all the scholars present there

A Jain Muni sat at the highest seat here

He stood no chance against Shankara

The Sarvagna Peetham was occupied by the incarnation of Lord Hara

Many places did he travel

All the people did him marvel

One branch of corrupted Sanathana Dharma

Was still spewing Adharma

The terrible black Magician Ugra Bhairava

Came to combat Adi Shankara

Fearing his own existence

He decided to put an end to Shankara's brilliance

He tried to Kill Shankara with his Occult powers

They were no match for the Purity of the Gayatri Mantra and Shankara's Prowess

Rebound did the Bhairava's spell

In doing so the it did the Bhairava kill

Thus did Shankara, travel length and breadth

Was it possible to measure Shankara the ocean of Spirituality's depth

He brought an end to the heretical nastikas

They vanished into lands where they later became melacchas (Barbarians,uncouth people)

After the divine mission to an end came

At Kedarnath Lord Shiva's incarnation left his mortal frame

He returned to Kailasa amidst cheers and cries

Flowers rained from the Devas in the skies

At Kedarnath near the Jyotirlinaga so holy

Lies the Samadhi of Adi Shankara blissfully

He taught Monism to one and all

People followed him big or small

Jnaneshwar, Namadev, Tukaram, Mukta Bai,Nivritthinath

Sopan, Samartha Ramdas , Sai Baba and Swami Samarth

All advocated the truth that was spoken by Shankara

Verily he was the incarnation of Lord Hara

Sharath, the servant of Sai,

By his grace alone sings oh Mai

These words I offer at the lotus feet of Adi Shakara

May your grace be always upon me Lord Hara,

Did you not, save the devas and the Asuras when they pleaded for help

By drinking the deadly Kola Hala poison with a single gulp

Likewise oh Lord I beg you

Swallow my problems I beseech you

In you alone I trust

In your feet alone I rest

You are my Sadguru Sainaatha

And my Sadguru Sainatha is Lord Shankara

Thus concludes the narration of the glorious life of Shree Shankara

Written on the Jayanthi of the fabulous incarnation of Lord Hara

-- Dedicated to Lord Shree Adi Shankaracharya

Anantha Koti Brahmanda Nayaka Raja Dhi Raja Yogiraja Parabrahma Shree Satchitananda Sadguru Sainath Maharaj Ki Jai!

Bow to Shree Sai! Peace be to all!