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 OUR
RELIGIOUS SEATS
We have three religious seats, Gurupeethas,
which are called maths. They are Shri Kaivalya,
Shri Gokarn and Shri Kashi Maths. And each one
of them is headed by a Guru whom we call as
Shri
Swamiji. They are sanyasis who have severed
family ties at the time of taking sanyas and
with this they belong to the world as a whole in
general and Samsthan in particular. Each math
has its own followers, history and culture.
Area of Operation :
All the maths are independent of each other and
their area of operation does not overlap.
Starting from the Southern tip of India, Shri
Kashi Math has the large following in the States
of Kerala and Dakhsina Kannada and Udupi
Districts of Karnataka, and Shri Gokarn Math,
Udupi District, Uttara Kannada District, Malenad
and Goa, and Shri Kaivalya Math has the
followers in Goa, Konkan and Belgaum District.
In fact there are no boundaries as such and
cordial relations exist among the Swamijis
themselves as well as the disciples.
Occasionally, they attend one another's
programmes, meet each other and exchange views
on matters of common interest. Among themselves,
when they write to each other, such letters are
called prema patras or love letters and when the
Swamijis write to their disciples such
correspondence is called rayasa patras or
commands and when the disciples write to the
Swamijis they are called binnaha patras or
letters of requests or appeals. It is told to us
as a permanent instruction by our elders and
parents that when we pay a visit to the Swamiji
we must not go empty-handed. A garland of
flowers, fruits and at least one coconut has to
be offered after we bow before Swamiji. Our
speech should be soft, courteous and full of
respect preferably with folded hands. We also
carry a shawl or a fresh handkerchief to receive
from the Swamiji blessings in the form of
phala-mantrakshate, normally in the form of
fruits, a coconut and the sanctified rice with
sandal wood paste sometime. We take this as the
most sacred blessings from our Guru Maharaj.
Adwaita School :
Historically among these three maths, Shri
Kaivalya Math established around 8th Century AD,
is the most ancient one. This belongs to Smarth
Sampradaya that advocates that both Shiva and
Vishnu are equal. This math also believes in the
Adwaita philosophy propagated by Shri Guru
Gowdapadacharya, which in simple terms tells
that Atma or the individual soul is not
different from Paramatma or the Soul supreme. In
other words it pronouces, "I myself am
God!" which indicates that all of us must
endeavour to rise to that level and see divinity
in everything.
Dwaita School :
The two other maths, Shri Gokarn and Shri Kashi
took shape almost six to seven centuries later.
Both of them belong to Vaishna sampradaya that
proclaims that only Lord Vishnu is supreme. Both
of them had accepted Dwaita Philosophy
propagated by Shri Madhwacharya (around 13th
Century A.D.), which emphatically tells that God
and individual souls are two distinct and
different entities.
Living Gods :
Whatever be the philosophical approach of both
the schools of thought, they have the deitis of
daily worship which have a great religious
appeal to the disciples. These deities are
offered poojas three times a day, morning,
after-noon and night and at that time the
disciples throng to have a darshan of the
swamijis performing the pooja as, in the normal
course, the Swamijis themselves are regarded as
living gods, with abundant supernatural prowess.
They are brahmachari sanyasis on the one hand
and rulers on the other hand with all the royal
splendour - the silver throne or the colourful
royal umbrella. As spiritual masters they rule
over our mind and heart. An enlightened Swamiji
is always a great asset to the society as a
whole, as their word carries tremendous weight
and respect.
Spiritual Wisdom :
Swamijis always wear saffron to
signify sacrifice which is a key to human
happiness. They hold Danda, the sacred staff as
a mark of their authority on religious and
spiritual matters. In fact they rule our mind
and heart and spirit. They spark of spiritual
wisdom, in this materialistic world, but only
one in a thousand will receive a message. And
for others blessings will be sufficient to
inspire them in the path of devotion to God.
Contribution :
The greatest contribution of our
Swamijis is their building, infusing and
retaining the religious faith among the GSBs in
spite of all the onslaught of modern world with
different outlook and values. They bless our
endeavours, guide our actions and so they have
become an integral part of our lives. On account
of their presence and guidance, the community as
a whole does not feel the burden of antiquity.
In this respect at least they deserve our full
appreciation and reverence.
Conclusion :
There is an expectation from some
quarters that our maths also should embark on
welfare activities on a large scale as done by
other religious institutions. Maths are our
ancient universities to impart the most sacred
spiritual knowledge. Once welfare activities on
a large scale are started, responsibility of
managing and running them directly or indirectly
falls on the shoulders of the Swamijis, and in
this complex world should they be burdened with
these additional duties, which they are not
expected of as sanyasis. The opinion is very
much divided here.
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