ajAti vAda

karapAtrI swAmi (hariharAnanda
sarasvatI), a well-known disciple of SrI
brahmAnanda, was asked to take over
the Jyotirmath title, but he declined. To
resolve the dispute, another committee of
pundits from Varanasi was formed, under
the guidance of karapAtrI swAmi and SrI
abhinava saccidAnanda tIrtha of
Dvaraka. SrI kRshNabodhASrama was
appointed as the new head of the maTha.
When he passed away in the early
1970's, he nominated SrI
svarUpAnanda sarasvatI, another
disciple of SrI brahmAnanda, as his
successor. SrI svarUpAnanda continues
as the SankarAcArya of Jyotirmath, and
has also been in charge of Dvaraka since
1982.
Some people consider the rightful
succession of the Jyotirmath title to
be along the disciple line of SrI
SAntAnanda sarasvatI. He is said
to have retired in 1980, in favor of
his disciple, SrI vishNudevAnanda
sarasvatI, who has since passed
away. SrI SAntAnanda also passed
away in December 1997, and has
been succeeded by SrI
vAsudevAnanda sarasvatI. Thus,
there are at least two separate
lineages at Jyotirmath currently,
although it is SrI svarUpAnanda
sarasvatI who is endorsed by the
other AmnAya maThas.
• There is a third ascetic, named SrI mAdhavASrama, who is another claimant to
the Jyotirmath title, who contests both the claims of SrI svarUpAnanda and SrI
vAsudevAnanda. SrI mAdhavASrama is a disciple of SrI kRshNabodhASrama,
who was nominated to the Jyotirmath title in the 1960's. His contention is that SrI
svarUpAnanda cannot be accepted as the head of two different AmnAya maThas
(Dvaraka and Jyotirmath), so that the Jyotirmath title has to revert to another
disciple of SrI kRshNabodhASrama. According to publications supporting his
claim, he was anointed in 1993 or 1994, under the guidance of SrI niranjana deva
tIrtha, the former SankarAcArya of Puri. Thus, the dispute between two parties
for the title of Jyotirmath SankarAcArya has now become a dispute among three
different parties.
Contact Addresses: Sri Sankaracharya Math, Joshimath, Badrinath, Uttar Pradesh 246
443, INDIA.
Swami Swaroopananda Saraswati: Sri Rajarajeswari Mandir, Paramhansi Ganga,
Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh 482 002, INDIA.
Swami Vasudevananda Saraswati: Shankar Math, Allope Bagh, Allahabad, Uttar
Pradesh 211 001, INDIA.
Swami Madhavashrama: Sri Keshav Ashram, Haridwar, Uttar Pradesh 249 401, INDIA
Other maThas: Other than the four AmnAya maThas, there are a number of wellknown
maThas owing allegiance to advaita and the SankarAcArya lineage. Many of
them were originally branches of one of the four AmnAya maThas, established officially
by the parent maTha, and which grew into more or less independent institutions over
time. Notable among these are the branch maThas at Kumbhakonam (now based in
Kancipuram, Contact Address: No. 1, Salai Street, Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu 631 502,