Vijayendra Saraswati Swamigal Explained

Shankara Vijayendra Saraswati Swamigal
Kānchi Kāmakoti Pīṭādhipati
Birth Name:Sankara Narayanan
Birth Date:13 March 1969
Birth Place:thandalam, Tiruvallur
Website:www.kamakoti.org
Nationality:Indian
Module:
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Kanchi Kāmakoti Pīṭādipati
Term Start:28 Feb 2018
Predecessor:Jayendra Saraswathi
Religion:Hinduism
Honorific Prefix:His Holiness Jagadguru Sri
Honors:Peethadishwar

Jagadguru Sri Shankara Vijayendra Saraswathi Swamigal (born 13 March 1969) is the 70th Jagadguru Peethadipathi of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, Kanchipuram. He became the senior Pontiff of the Kanchi Mutt following the death of Jayendra Saraswati, the 69th Pontiff, on 28 February 2018.[1]

Biography

Sri Shankara Vijayendra Saraswathi was born in 1969 as Sankara Narayanan Sastri[2] in Periyapalayam village near Arani in Tiruvallur.[3] He attended a village school in Periyapalayam and studied the Vedas with his father, Sri Krishnamurthy Sastri, a Vedic scholar and teacher. He joined the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham when he was 13 and was named 70th Peethadhipati in 1983.[4]

Arrest and acquittal

See main article: Sankararaman murder case. In 2004, the junior Sri Vijayendra Saraswathi Mahaswamigal was arrested in connection with the Sankararaman murder case on Diwali day along with the senior Jayendra Saraswathi pontiff.[5] The court said that the complainant failed to support the prosecution and he was given bail. The trial went on till 2013 when he was acquitted by the court.[6] [7]

Controversy

Vijayendra Saraswati chose to sit through the Tamil Thai Vazhthu even as he reportedly stood for the national anthem at during the release of a Tamil-Sanskrit dictionary compiled by the late father of Bharatiya Janata Party leader H. Raja in January 2018. Tamils from across the world criticised him for insulting the Tamil anthem.[8] In a clarification, the Kanchi Mutt said Vijayendra Saraswati was meditating when the anthem was playing.[9] Hundreds of activists belonging to Dravidar Viduthalai Kazhagam and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi were arrested by the police when they tried to besiege the Mutt fortified with heavy police security. Several Tamil organisations filed complaints against him.[10] The Madras high court on March directed the police to register an FIR after a complaint filed by Thanthai Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam.[11] [12] Justice G. R. Swaminathan quashed an FIR in December 2021 filed by Naam Tamilar Katchi saying the Tamil Thai Vazhthu is only a prayer song and not a national anthem and hence, there is no need for every one to remain in standing posture when it is rendered.[13]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Know All About Kanchi Peethadipathi Jayendra Saraswathi. NDTV.com. 28 February 2018.
  2. Web site: Sri Vijayendra Saraswathi brilliance made him the pontiff of Kanchi Mutt.
  3. Web site: History of Kamakoti Matham. Kamakoti.org. en. 24 August 2018.
  4. Web site: Vijayendra Saraswati: A quick look at the new Kanchi Shankaracharya and head of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam. Zee News. 1 March 2018. en. 28 February 2018.
  5. Web site: Kanchi seer Jayendra Saraswathi, a spiritual colossus till his arrest in 2004, dies - Times of India ►. The Times of India. 1 March 2018.
  6. Web site: Kanchi seer Sri Jayendra Saraswathi, others acquitted in auditor assault case - Times of India ►. The Times of India. 1 March 2018.
  7. Web site: The heat is now on the junior pontiff. The Times of India.
  8. Web site: Junior Sankaracharya sits through 'Tamil Thai Vazhthu', creates massive furore. 24 January 2018. The News Minute.
  9. Web site: Kanchi Mutt's junior Sankaracharya faces backlash after video shows him sitting through Tamil anthem. Scroll Staff. Scroll.in.
  10. Web site: 2018-01-26. Kanchi seer issue: Protesting DK, VCK men held. https://web.archive.org/web/20211214080009/https://www.dtnext.in/News/TamilNadu/2018/01/26022448/1059729/Kanchi-seer-issue-Protesting--DK-VCK-men-held.vpf. 14 December 2021. live. 2021-12-14. dtNext.in. en.
  11. Web site: Anthem Row: Book Kanchi Seer if Cognisable Offence Proven, Says HC. The. Quint. 3 March 2018. TheQuint.
  12. Web site: Madras HC says FIR can be filed against Kanchi Mutt pontiff if he committed a cognisable offence. Scroll Staff. Scroll.in.
  13. Web site: Tamil Thai Vazhthu is Prayer Song, not Anthem: Madras HC. 11 December 2021. NewsClick.