The senior priest of the Sankara Mutt, Sankaracharya Jayendra Saraswathi passed awy today after suffering a cardiac arrest. He was 82. According to a brief statement issued by the mutt administration on their website, Jayendra Saraswathi Shankaracharya Swamigal passed away at 9 am today at Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam Sankara Matam, Kanchipuram. He will now be succeeded by Vijayendra Saraswathi, who will be anointed as the 70th Shankaracharya.
Jayendra Saraswathi born in Tamil Nadu’s Thiruvarur district was chosen as the successor of Parmacharya Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi at the mere age of 19. Jayendra Saraswathi mysteriously disappeared from the mutt in 1987 and left behind his sacred thread and other articles of faith in his quarter, according to reports. However, three days after he went missing, Jayendra Saraswathi was traced in Karnataka’s Talacauvery. Till date, nobody knows the reason behind the sudden disappearance of Jayendra Saraswathi.
Jayendra Saraswathi mysteriously disappeared from the mutt in 1987 and left behind his sacred thread and other articles of faith in his quarter, according to reports. However, three days after he went missing, Jayendra Saraswathi was traced in Karnataka’s Talacauvery. Till date, nobody knows the reason behind the sudden disappearance of Jayendra Saraswathi.
After forty years, Jayendra Sarawathi succeeded Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi as the 69th Shankaracharya of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam in 1994.
Jayendra Saraswathi came under the spotlight in 2004 after he was named as an accused in the murder case of Sankararaman who was the temple manager. When Jayendra Saraswati wanted to visit China in 2000, Sankararaman sought the court intervention to stop him from going abroad. Following this, Jayendra Saraswati had to abandon his plan. It has been reported that Sankararaman was not allowed to enter the mutt owing to differences between the two. He even wrote letters complaining of alleged abuse of position and that he would be seeking the help of the court. In 2004, Sankaraman was stabbed to death by five unknown assailants at the Debrajasamy temple.
It took Jayendra Saraswathi nine years to come clean on the murder allegation. While the criticism of his influence continued regardless, he began to focus on issues that were affecting the nation. It was this intent that led him to try and bring out a solution to the contentious Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute when the erstwhile National Democratic Alliance government. His efforts saw him engaging with stakeholders from both sides of the religious spectrum.