Swami Shankarashram I (DevanÃÂgarë: à ¤¶à ¤Âà ¤Âà ¤°à ¥Âà ¤¾à ¤¶à ¥Âà ¤°à ¤®à ¥ or à ¤¶à ¤Âà ¤Âà ¤Âà ¤°à ¥Âà ¤¾à ¤¶à ¥Âà ¤°à ¤®à ¥Â,') was the second guru and MathÃÂdhipati (Head of the community or Head of the matha ("Monastery")) of the ChitrÃÂpur SÃÂraswats. He was ordained as the MathÃÂdhipati in 1720 and served as the head till his death in 1757. He was the shishya (disciple) of Swami ParijñÃÂnÃÂshram I.
Swami Shankarashram was responsible for the establishment of the Chitrapur Math at Shirali which is now the head matha of the SÃÂraswats. Under his reign, the matha got many land grants from the King of Nagar. There are many stories where Swami ShankarÃÂshram is said to have performed miracles (See Miracles) for his devotees in their times of need. So devotees from different parts of Karnataka and beyond came to be his followers.
He died in 1757 at Shirali. His samÃÂdhi (shrine) is located inside the Chitrapur Math at ShirÃÂli. He was succeeded by Swami Parijnanashram II as the MathÃÂdhipati in the same year.
ShankarÃÂshram was the son of Krishnayya Kulkarni of the Shukla Bhat family before he was chosen as the shishya of Swami ParijñÃÂnÃÂshram, the first MathÃÂdhipati and guru of the SÃÂraswats. He belonged to the Kaundinya Gotra
ShankarÃÂshram I was ordained as the second Guru of the SÃÂraswats after the MahÃÂ-samadhi of his guru, Swami ParijñÃÂnÃÂshram (On Krishna Chaturdashi day of the month of Chaitra in 1720). The ceremony was held at the Bhandikere Matha in Gokarn(See ÃÂdi matha). He had been under Swami ParijñÃÂnÃÂshram for only 14 days after which Swami ParijñÃÂnÃÂshram diÃÂed.
At the time of Swami ShankarÃÂshram ordination as the new MathÃÂdhipati, his devotees gave a solemn promise in writing, that they would be faithful to him and would always follow his religious observances. The Swami's family henceforth was known as Shuklabhat ().Shukla means "bright" or "new" in Sanskrit and Bhat is a generic surname for scholars. So Shuklabhat means "New scholars". (NOTE:Henceforth in this article, Swamiji will refer to Swami ShankarÃÂshram I
During the reign of Swami ShankarÃÂshram, the community and the matha received land grants from the King of Nagar. In 1739, BÃÂsappa Nayak II of Nagar made land grants to the Math by a gift deed. This helped in the development of the infrastructure of the matha.
Swami ShankarÃÂshram was able to persuade several people from stopping their Vaishnavite customs and converted them to the Advaita Shaivism practised by the community.
Swamiji is attributed to many miracles which he is said to have performed for his highly devout followers when they were faced with difficulties. Two of them are listed below.
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Once there lived a Brahmin in the village of Bankikodla who was pious and devout. Every morning after finishing his pooja (prayers and offerings to the Lord), he would stand on the streets and try to find a hungry beggar. He would offer that needy person his hospitality and serve that person good meal. He did this out of true concern for the people in need in his village.
He had this desire of serving Swamiji but could not travel all the way to Gokarn to meet him. One day he happened to see a sanyÃÂsi clad in saffron robes walking down his street. When the sanyÃÂsi came closer, the Brahmin discovered that it was none other than Swami ShankarÃÂshram. With great reverence he led Swamiji to his house and fed him a simple meal that his wife had prepared.
After the meal, when Swamiji was resting, the Brahmin left his house for an errand. When he came back he saw that the swami had left. He was utterly disappointed that he could not see the swami off. Some time later he called on the matha only to find that the swami had never left the matha at all that morning. So when the Brahmin next met Swami ShankarÃÂshram, with teary eyes he fell at Swamiji's feet and thanked him for having fulfilled his ultimate desire.
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Once there was an artist who lived in the town of Gokarn. He was a pious Brahmin who found it difficult to make ends meet since his paintings were not selling. He had an ardent desire to serve Swamiji at his home, but he could not afford it.
One night, both he and his wife had a dream where Swamiji assured them his grace. They were startled since both of them had had the same dream. So the next day they prepared a simple meal with much love and devotion anticipating the arrival of Swamiji. As the dream had proclaimed, Swamiji came to their home. He graciously accepted their bhikshÃÂ (meal) and a meagre amount of four AnnÃÂskÃÂnika (monetary offering). He blessed the couple and left for the matha.
Within a few days after Swamiji's visit, the artist received a huge assignment from a wealthy family for a portrait. The patron was very pleased by the work and rewarded the artist handsomely with a princely sum of Rupees One Thousand. The artist recognized this as the result of the blessings from Swamiji. He immediately rushed to Swamiji and placed the entire amount at his feet. Swamiji accepted a small portion of the money and gave back the rest and asked him to pursue his work with full devotion. The swamiji promised him that the grace of the Lord was always with him.
Things were never the same for the artist. His services were hired by many a patron who rewarded him generously for his works. This story is a popular tale among the people of the SÃÂraswat community.
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Even though the devotion of many people grew, not everybody "believed" in the divine grace of Swami ShankarÃÂshram. The residents of the town of Bhatkal were among those who chose not to have faith in the Swamiji.
Once Swamiji travelled to Bhatkal to offer spiritual discourses to the residents there. It so happened that rumours about the Swamiji being a fake spread rapidly. So on the given day nobody was there to welcome him and perform GurusÃÂvÃÂ (Service to the Guru). This misunderstanding resulted in the Bhatkal clan being distanced from the Swamiji's followers.
After the "no-show" at Bhatkal (See above section) Swami ShankarÃÂshram was deeply hurt. He decided to return to Gokarn. On the way back, at the village of Shirali, the devotees pleaded to Swamiji to stay there for sometime and to bless the people with his presence. The swamiji consented and he stayed at the residence of the NÃÂgarkattÃÂ family.
The NÃÂgarkattÃÂ family later donated their residence in honour of the Swamiji, after his death. This became the ChitrÃÂpur Matha, the head matha of the community.
During his stay at ShirÃÂli as the honoured guest of the NÃÂgarkattÃÂ family, Swami ShakarÃÂshram's health failed rapidly. To the dismay of his devotees, his health took a turn for the worse and Swamiji became terminally ill.
"My children, the grace of Lord BhavÃÂnishankara will always protect you. Follow all that has been taught without fear" <br>(-Translated from Konkani to Sanskrit).
With these words, Swami ShankarÃÂshram died on the 6<small>th</small> day of the month of Ashwina in 1757. Swamiji's untimely death meant that he could not accept a shishya(disciple). This resulted in the community not having a guru to succeed Swami ShankarÃÂshram. His samadhi is located in Shirali and is also called the Hodi SamÃÂdhi ('Big SamÃÂdhi' in Konkani)