Nanditha Krishna - You are the Supreme Light: Life Lessons from Adi Sankara

YOU
ARE THE
SUPREME
LIGHT ALEPH BOOK COMPANY An independent publishing firm promoted by Rupa Publications India First published in India in 2018 by Aleph Book Company 7/16 Ansari Road, Daryaganj New Delhi 110 002 Series Introduction Copyright Nanditha Krishna 2018 Book Introduction Copyright Nanditha Krishna 2018 This Edition Copyright Aleph Book Company 2018 Copyright for individual pieces vests with the respective authors All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in a retrieval system, in any form or by any means, without permission in writing from Aleph Book Company. ISBN: 978-93-87561-38-0 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publishers prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published. EDITORS NOTE Adi Shankaras writing in Sanskrit was abstruse and esoteric. I have edited and translated his work with a view to making it easier for the reader to grasp his philosophy, commentaries and devotional poetry.

They were monks, nuns and renunciates, nationalists and reformers. No one religion had a monopoly on them. They range from Mahavira and Buddha, who lived over 2,500 years ago, to medieval saints like Chishti, Avvaiyar and Guru Nanak, to more recent philosophers and religious icons such as Vivekananda, Ramakrishna, Saint Teresa and many others. Each of them touched the lives of the people they lived among and the generations that followed. They inspired devotees and followers with their erudition and wisdom. The spiritual and philosophical heritage they left behind is Indias gift to all Indians and the world.

Through the Life Lessons series we will examine the teachings of some of Indias best-known spiritual teachers. Each book will be a handy companion to help the reader along the difficult pathways of life. Happiness and sorrow are unavoidable. The world is a place of trials and problems recur in every generation. Is suffering a necessary part of human life? How can one overcome suffering? Can hardship make a person stronger? What is happiness? Everybody wants to be happy, but how does one achieve this state? Does happiness come from vast riches and great achievements or does it come from the satisfaction of the soul? Is worldly success more important or is it fulfilment that one should seek? These and similar questions vex every individual and have preoccupied the minds of philosophers and religious savants down the ages. The answers that these great souls found to lifes conundrums occupy entire libraries worth of books and texts.

This series is culled from their essential teachings and will present to readers some of the greatest truths to be found in Indias spiritual heritage in a simple and accessible way. It is to be hoped that what you find here will prompt you to go deeper into the life and work of those who plumbed lifes greatest mysteries. Walking in the footsteps of these great men and women can take each of us to greater heights of knowledge, wisdom and understanding. They can teach us how to find happiness and peace and the true meaning of wellbeing and success. Most of all, they can teach us how to value one another and cherish the holy gift of life. INTRODUCTION

He is called Adi (first) Shankara or Adi Shankaracharya (Shankara the teacher) because he was the first of many gurus, all of whom were and still are known as Shankaracharya. Vedanta is one of the six orthodox schools of Hindu philosophy that emerged from the philosophies contained in the Upanishads. Advaita, as Shankara expounded it, explains the unity of the Soul (Atman) with the Supreme Being (Brahman). He is also credited with having synthesized the various sub-sects of Hinduismthe worship of Shiva or Vishnu or Shakti or Ganesha or Surya or Skanda that existed in the eighth century, which gave him the title of Shanmata Sthapana Acharya. He sought to uphold the truths propounded by the Bhagavad Gita, Brahmasutras and the Upanishads through his commentaries. When did Shankara live? There is no concrete answer.

There is an astronomical date corresponding to the date maintained by the mathas, which is 509 BCE. There is the modern historical date of 788 CE, which doesnt have enough historical evidence to support it. All we know is that the Buddha, who probably lived between 558 and 491 BCE, preceded Shankara. There is evidence that Shankara visited Kanchipuram in the eighth century, during the reign of King Rajasimha Pallava (700728 CE) and suggested that he should build a temple to a more gentle form of Kali as Kamakshi. Shankara also refers to the Tamil poet Thirugnana Sambandar, who lived in the seventh century CE. So it seems most likely that he lived in the eighth century.

Shankara lived in a period when Sanskrit was still the lingua franca. It was a period of great spiritual churning. By Shankaras time, the Buddhist approach, which was not based on Vedic rituals and traditions, had ceased to appeal to the vast majority of Indians. Vedic sacrifices too had lost their importance and temple worship was becoming popular. Adi Shankara rapidly gained a following because he combined in himself the artistry of a poet, the sharp intellect of a logician, the devotion of a bhakta and the intuition of a mystic, besides being the protagonist of Advaita. He was an inspired poet who appealed to every human feeling and sentiment.

His descriptions of nature and his appraisal of human and divine personality were the summit of art. Shankara travelled from his hometown Kaladi in Kerala all the way to Kashmirteaching Advaita wherever he went. He composed poetry in praise of the towns and temples he visited. He debated with the great philosophers of the time and gained many followers and disciples on his travels. He is most famous for having set up the Shankara mathas all over the country. Shankara spent his life wandering around India as a sanyasi, transcending distinctions of caste, teaching and preaching Vedanta.

He attracted huge crowds and held discussions with eminent pandits. He never discredited his opponents and conceded whatever was acceptable to him in their school of thought. But on the vital point of Advaita he was unyielding and held his ground with his clear and incisive logic, reinforced by Vedantic texts. Yet he searched for common ground with other philosophies. Adi Shankara was born to a Namboodri coupleSivaguru and Aryambalin Kaladi, modern Kerala, in the eighth century CE. Sivaguru was working as a priest in the Vadakkunathan Temple at Trichur when Shankara was born.