[Advaita-l] The Case against the Kanchi Math being the "Moolamnaya"

[Swagata Chowdhury]

🙏 *Beautiful.*
Although I personally accept only the four principal Śaṅkarācārya Maṭhas. I
request that this thread now be closed, as further discussion may lead to
unnecessary disputes among followers of Advaita. Both sides deserve
respect, as each is sincerely striving to cultivate eminent scholars and
dedicated sādhakas in the service of the Shankar tradition.



*Swagata Chowdhury*
*A humble devotee of Dr. Ramkishor Tripathi, D.Litt., former Head of the
Department of Vedānta, Sampurnanand Sanskrit University; recipient of the
titles Vedāntaśāstrasiromaṇi, Vedānta Mārtaṇḍa, Kāśī Vidvat Bhūṣaṇa, and
Kāśī Vidvat Gaurava; awardee of the Śaṅkara Puraskāra, Mahāśakti Puraskāra,
Viśeṣa Puraskāra, Viśiṣṭatva Puraskāra, and Karpatri Swami Puraskāra; and
Vice President of the Shri Kashi Vidvat Parishad.*


On Tue, 9 Jun 2026, 1:08 am S Jayanarayanan via Advaita-l, <
advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

> { This is an addendum to the excellent article titled "Real history of the
> Kanchi math", written by Sri Vidyasankar Sundaresan that is stored in the
> Advaita Vedanta Homepage, originally posted in the newsgroup "Alt.Hindu"
> on 3rd Aug 1994: https://www.advaita-vedanta.org/avhp/alt_hindu_msg.html }
>
>
> The Chaturamnaya Maths are preeminent institutions in the world that
> preach Advaita Vedanta in the tradition following Adi Sankara. The Four
> Maths are
> located in the four corners of India at Sringeri (South), Dwaraka (West),
> Jyotirmath/Badrinath (North) and Puri (East).
>
> The Kanchi Math (falsely) asserts that it was also established by Adi
> Sankara, and that it is superior to the Chaturamnaya Maths in that it is the
> "Moolamnaya" or the "Foundational" institution to command authority over
> the other Four Sankara Maths. This claim has however been denied by the
> Chaturamnaya Maths, as they maintain the Kanchi Math to be an "Upa-Matha"
> or a Branch of the Sringeri Math. In other words, the Sringeri Math is
> rightfully in charge of the Kanchi Math, rather than vice-versa! This
> article will provide an explanation as to why the Kanchi Math was not among
> the original Maths established by Adi Sankara, and how the attempt to
> assign it the status of "Moolamnaya" is obviously misguided.
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> Reasons for excluding the Kanchi Math as among the Advaita Vedanta Maths
> founded by Adi Sankara:
>
>
> (I) TEXTUAL Reason:
>
> The Madhaviya Sankara Dig-Vijaya (MSDV) is considered the most authentic
> biography of Adi Sankara available today, and refers to Adi Sankara's
> involvement
> with Sringeri in no less than THREE DIFFERENT passages:
>
> #1 - CANTO 10 - When Adi Sankara hails Ubhaya Bharati as Goddess
> Saraswathi:
>
>     "Sankara said to her {i.e. Goddess Saraswathi}, '...I shall, in
> future, be instituting temples of worship for you in Risyasringa (Sringeri)
>     and other places...'"
>
> #2 - CANTO 12 - The arrival of Totakacharya - in fact, the entire section
> is titled "The Acharya at Sringa-giri and Coming of Totaka" (!):
>
>     "Then, this great sage {i.e. Adi Sankara}, whom the Devas praised and
> who had conquered all the desires of the heart, travelled with Padmapada
>     and other disciples to the place called Sringa-giri (Sringeri), where
> the sage Risya-sringa had for a long time meditated on the Supreme Self."
>
>     "There, at Sringa-giri, he {i.e. Adi Sankara} had a temple, as
> graceful as those of Indra-Ioka, built and installed therein an image of the
>     Divine Mother and instituted Her forms of worship...So he installed
> Her there at Sringa-giri under the name of Mother Sarada, and there She
> resides
>     even to this day, granting devotees their prayers."
>
> #3 - CANTO 16 - The Final Identity of Adi Sankara as Shiva Himself:
>
>     "After this crowning triumph of his life, he {i.e. Adi Sankara} left
> for Badari with some of his disciples, while deputing the others to
> Sringagiri
>     and other places."
>
>
> The above instances show that Sringeri occupied a very important place in
> the Life of Adi Sankara - he not only built the Temple, installed the
> Deity of Sarada at Sringeri and ordained Her worship, but also enjoined
> his own Disciples to stay there - one of whom (viz. Sureshwaracharya)
> presumably
> assumed the role of a Pontiff. The last part about appointing a disciple
> to Sringeri is crucial, since any lineage traced back to Adi Sankara must
> be via
> at least one of his disciples, which is explicitly mentioned in
> conjunction with Sringeri, implying that the Guru-Shishya Parampara of Adi
> Sankara with
> regards to Sringeri is beyond question! No other town in the whole of
> India has been so sanctified by Adi Sankara's presence as Sringeri.
>
>
> Now, coming to Kanchipuram - this city too finds mention in the MSDV
> (CANTO 15):
>
>     "After worshipping Ramanatha at Rameswaram, the Acharya travelled
> through the Pandya and Chola countries and reached the city of Kanchi which
>     shone like an ornament to the Hasti ranges. There he built a temple,
> instituted the worship of Devi, with rituals that are in accordance with the
>     Vedic traditions and suited to the attainment of supreme knowledge. He
> eschewed, in those rituals, every trace of the Tantrika modes of worship.
>     Next, blessing the people of Andhra country and worshipping Lord
> Venkatanatha, he reached the land of Vidarbha. He was given a cordial
> reception
>     by the king of that place."
>
> There is exactly ONE reference to Adi Sankara's association with Kanchi -
> visiting it during the midst of a pilgrimage to several temples graced by
> him
> during the course of his travels. There is also NO mention of him
> directing any of his disciples to stay there, unlike Sringeri. Therefore,
> there is
> good basis to conclude that the Kanchi Math traces its lineage to Adi
> Sankara via the Sringeri Math only.
>
>
> Besides, the Kanchi Math claims that Adi Sankara spent his last days
> there, conferring it the special status of Moolamnaya, which is once again
> refuted by
> the MSDV, which states that it was at Kedara that the Acharya finally gave
> up his earthly body:
>
>     "Next, the Acharya went to Kedara, the holy land of Siva, where the
> heat of sin in men is dispelled and peace generated in their hearts, where
> the
>     votaries of the Lord feel uplifted from the dangers and difficulties
> of life...Now there came a concourse of Rishis and Devas with Brahma at
> their
>     head, to lead this incarnate aspect of Siva back to His pristine state
> in Sivaloka (Siva's Abode) in the heaven of Kailasa."
>
>
> (II) TRADITIONAL Reason:
>
> I will simply quote SWAMI TAPASYANANDA in his Introduction to the English
> Translation of the MSDV:
>
>     "...the fact that the Orders of Dasanami Sannyasins recognise and
> accept affiliation with only these four Maths -- the Orders known as Puris,
>     Bharatis and Saraswathis with Sringeri Math; Giris, Aranyas and Vanas
> with Jyothi Math; Ashramas and Tirthas with Dwaraka Math; and Parvatas and
>     Sagaras with Puri Math. No other Math is recognised by them. Now, if
> there were more Maths of Sankara, why have the Dasanami Sannyasins limited
>     their affiliation to these four Maths only? None of the protagonists
> of different Sankara Maths have answered this question."
>
> Thus the Kanchi Math's contention that there was an eleventh "Indra
> Saraswathi" lineage of Sannyasins started by Adi Sankara is highly dubious,
> to say
> the least! As a matter of fact, the Sannyasin name "Saraswathi" has
> historically been affiliated exclusively with the Sringeri Math.
>
>
> (III) DHARMIC Reason:
>
> The Sringeri Math has steered clear of any Ethical or Moral controversies
> throughout its entire history, which cannot be said to be the case for the
> Kanchi Math:
>
>     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sankararaman_murder_case
>
>     Sankararaman murder case
>
>     "The Sankararaman murder case was a case on the murder of
> Sankararaman, the manager of Varadharaja Perumal Temple in Kanchipuram, a
> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Kanchipuram,+a?entry=gmail&source=g>
> town in state
>     of Tamil Nadu. He was murdered in the premises of the temple on 3
> September 2004. The blame was hoisted on the {Kanchi Math} Shankaracharya
>     Shri Jayendra Saraswati Swamigal and Shri Vijayendra Saraswati
> Swamigal...The case involved the arrest of Jayendra Saraswati and Vijayendra
>     Saraswati, the seers of the Kanchi Mutt."
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> CONCLUSION:
>
> The Kanchi Math was NOT one of the Maths established by Adi Sankara. It
> actually emerged as a branch of the Sringeri Math in the 19th century, and
> later
> declared itself as an independent Math. The reasons provided here should
> be sufficient to reject it as a "Moolamnaya" or central institution
> superseding
> the other four traditional Chaturamnaya Maths in authority.
>
> This is not to say that everything about the Kanchi Math is bad or untrue.
> The Kanchi Math owes its origins and allegiance to Sringeri, and should be
> revered as such, keeping in mind that the traditional Maths established by
> Adi Sankara are exactly four in number and no more: Sringeri, Dwaraka,
> Jyotirmath/Badrinath and Puri.
>
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