KAn.chI

[Balaji Hebbar]

Dear  Mr. Sundaresan:

Many  thanks  to  you  for  your  sincere  efforts  for  sending  me
detailed  answers  to  my  4  questions.  I  understand  that  there
will  be  people  both  in  this  list  and  outside  who  will
disagree  with  you.  But  that  is  the  name  of  the  game.  That
will  not  in  any  way  diminish  your  replies.  You  obviously  have
done  a  lot  of  research  in  your  maTha  traditions  as  I  have
done  in  our  MAdhva  tradition.

One  question  and  one  comment.

QUESTION:  Do  the  other  lesser  "ShankarAcAryas"  say  of  KUDli,
GayA  etc.  acknowledge  the  supremacy  of  the  4
Super-ShankarAcAryas?  OR  are  they  independent?

COMMENT:  The  ChitrApur-ShirALi  MaTha  is  a  SArasvat  maTha  and
not  GauDa-Sarasvat.  The  Kavle  (Kaivalya)  MaTha  in  Nasik  governs
the  small  group  of  GauDa-SArasvat  SmArtas.  The  abbotts  of
ChitrApur-ShirALi  MaTha  belong  to  the  "Ashrama"  order.  The
current  reigning  abbott  (as  far  I  know)  is  ParijNAnAshrama.  His
predecessor,  AnandAshram  was  an  extremely  charismatic  abbott  and
was  held  in  high  regard  by  the  SArasvat  community.  The  abbotts
of  the  Kavle  MaTha  belong  to  the  "SarasvatI"  order.  The
current  head  of  the  Kavle  MaTha  (as  far  as  I  know)  is
SaccidAnanda  SarasvatI.

Also,  you  might  add  to  your  group,  two  other  SmArta  MaThas.
These  are  the  EDanIr  and  BALakudru  MaThas.  They  govern  a  small
group  of  TuLu-speaking  SmArta  brahmins.  The  EDanIr  MaTha  which
is  the  larger  and  better  known  of  the  two  is  based  at
Kasargod  (Cannanore  Distt.,  KeraLa).

Regards,
B.N.Hebbar