Part 11 - Sri Sankara Vijayam

Thanks to my spiritual Friend Subramanian Garu for sharing this information.

In Swamimalai town Sankara composed only two verses on this place.One is called Skanda Dyana Sloka, for meditating on Skandawith this verse. Another is praising his Spear, which is not carried by Skanda in this temple!

Skanda Dyana Sloka:

I pray to Skanda, who will confer boons like a Karpaga tree,
to those who prostrate him, the One with hue of red lotus,
who has got two shoulders, the one who will cure the diseases
of the devotees, the one with one face, the darling son of
Uma, Katyayani, the one who keeps his left hand on his waist,
wearing codpiece, and one who keeps a stick on his right hand!

Sankara is said to have composed the following poems also on Skanda.

1. Sri Swaminatha karavalamba Stotram.
2. Sri Guha Pancharatnam.
3. Sri Swaminatha Stotram.

But the biographies of Sankara do not mention about these songs having been composed at any particular temple of Skanda.

Sankara then came to Kumbakonam, a bigger town, wherethere are many temples for Siva and Vishnu.Siva here is called Sri Kumbeswara, the Linga in the form of Kumba, pot.

Sankara composed the famous Kumbeswara Stotram here. It starts as Namo, nama karana kaaranaaya....

Sankara left Kumbakonam and proceeded to south again, to Madurai.He visits the temple of Sundareswara-Meenkashi there in Madurai.

Sankara was by this time 26 years old.He had a darsan of Meenkashi and Sundareswara.He composed his Meenkashi Pancharatnam here.

From Madurai, Sankara came to Tula-bhavani, where Kaveri river moves east from the Western Ghats.This is in today's Salem district of Tamil Nadu.There is a small dam on Kaveri called Bhavani Sagar.Jnani gets all Upasnas from his state of Self. Sankara did Mahalakshmi Puja here.

From here, Sankara came to Tiruvananthapuram, the present day's capital of Kerala.There he continued to worship Mahalakshmi and Narayana in the yoga- nidra.

Sankara then came to Karnataka, to a place called Subrahmanya.

From Subrahmanya, Sankara came again towards east and had darsan of Ekambara Natha Siva in Kanchipuram and the goddess, Kamakshi.Kanchipuram is the place for a variety of religions. Buddhists even had a Vihara there.There are Siva Kanchi and Vishnu Kanchi, where Ekambaranatha and Varadaraja are there.

Sankara witnessed bitter infights between Saivites and Vaishanavites. He told the King to renovate both the temples and also told the subsects to pray to their Ishta Devata, their pet god but not have fight with other sects and ill-speak about someone's else's faith.Siva will definitely not allow an ill-speaking Saiva into Kailash and Vishnu will definitely not allow an ill-speaking Vaishnavite into Vaikunta.If you do Atma Vichara, then, you will understand that both reside in your Heart, as nameless and formless, as One Principle!

Sankara composed Maya Panchakam in Kanchipuram.

Sankara then left for Karnataka, and reached a place called Dakshina Ujjaini.Biographers feel that this should be the present temple of Mookambika in Kollur,near Mangalore.There were innumerable Tantriks here praying to Kabali, the Ugra-bhaivarar.These Tantriks were practising ill-conceived left handed methods, taking liquor, making abulations with liquor to Siva and sacrificing humans to please Siva!

The king was Sudhanva.He is a humble person.He told Sankara:You can go to Mookambika temple.I shall send my army for your protection.But do not debate with the Tantriks there.They are dangerous guys.I have myself no control over them.

Sankara smiled and then left with a small army, as given by the King.

Sources:

1) http://www.arunachala-ramana.org/forum/index.php?board=10.100
2) http://www.celextel.org/adisankara/mayapanchakam.html