A short biography by John M Evans. Part 2

Obviously, there would be no world without God, just as there would be no snake without the rope. But the converse is not true, and this leads to an acceptance of the mistaken identity of the world and the omnipresence of Brahman, the Self. Remove that ignorance by enquiry and liberation is secured.

Shankara’s life is shrouded in the fog of history. This is no surprise to Orientalists since Indian religious figures are never well documented at the best of times. Despite the number of biographies about his life and his own enormous literary and physical legacy, much surmise is required to get a grip on the real Shankara. In the manner of most historical sages, he has been well endowed with the miraculous by his followers and later interpreters. So one has tactfully to dismiss the works of wonder, the fatherhood of Siva, and the belief that he completed his mighty oeuvre by the tender age of twelve.

He was born a Brahmin in the state of Kerala, South India. By some accounts he was a brilliant child, foregoing whole stages of his education and development. As a consequence, he left home in his youth to become the chela (disciple) of Govindanatha, a guru of the Advaita persuasion. Later he moved on to Benares and then to a town in the Himalayas, already with a chela of his own. Here he composed some of his most famous works, commentaries on the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutra of Badarayana, the founder of Vedanta.

In the aftermath of this immense literary accomplishment, Shankara set off to travel all over India spreading his gospel of “only God is real”. He is credited with a profound interest in education and founded several institutions devoted to Advaita Vedanta and related studies, in addition to religious orders modelled on the Buddhist sangha (community of monks and nuns). His work had that brisk modernity and organization which the Buddhists introduced to India.

His monastic foundations in the North, South, West and East of the country began to radiate teachers and monks to smaller temples which served more local needs. It seems clear that Shankara was an exceptional organizer and manager, as well as philosopher, sage, writer and religious leader.

Swami Chinmayananda, in a commentary on Shankara’a Bhaja Govindam, writes of its author, “An exquisite thinker, a brilliant intellect, a personality scintillating with the vision of Truth, a heart throbbing with industrious faith and ardent desire to serve the nation, sweetly emotional and restlessly logical, in Shankara the Upanishads discovered the fittest Spiritual General.” He was Buddha, Rishi and Gandhi all in one.

He died, we are told, at the early age of thirty-two, though doubt has been cast on this. Given the immensity of his achievement, a longer life would perhaps hold greater credence.

Next : The works of Shankara