This blogpost discusses the cultural and religious importance of the town of Shringeri.
LOCATION
At the banks of Tunga
Shringeri is a town that rests in the lap of Sahyadari Hills near the banks of river Tunga. It is a beautiful and quaint town with picturesque scenery surrounding it. It is located in Karnataka and is one of the most visited pilgrimage towns in South India. The town is full of history and evidence of spiritual revolution.
Its scenery and temples award the town with a beautifully religious and holy aura due to temples which were built in the ancient times.
MYTHOLOGY
From the tales in Ramayan
The name Shringeri comes from the name of a hill, ‘Rishyashringa’ which was mentioned in the epic of Ramayana. The story of Shringeri also comes up when Adi Shannkaracharya decided to set up an institute to teach his students at Shringeri.
According to a folklore, Shringeri awed Adi Shankaracharya when he witnessed the animals and their behavior with each other in the time of adversity and that inspired him to stay there and start a school for his students. There was no looking back from that point on since he started the first matha of South India in Shringeri.
SIGNIFICANCE
A hub of Advaita Vedanta philosophy
After establishing a school at Shingeri, he also started the first school of Advaita Vedanta philosophy in the 8th BCE. He established Dakshinamanya Shringeri Sharada Peetham as one of the four schools of Advaita Vedanata. It was started as a school of non-dualism.
It became a very special place since it was the first matha in the southern part of India.
ARCHAEOLOGY
A hub of Dravidian and Chalukyan temples
Shringeri is home to several very important temples with a beautiful and strong Dravidian and Chalukyan architecture. These are historical temples which have survived several centuries and have stayed religiously prominent and attract many pilgrims every year and make Shringeri a popular pilgrim spot with deep historical roots.
Temples like Sri Sharadamba, Sri Vidyashankara, Sir Mahankikarshvara temple and many more are the epitome of history and were established in ancient and medieval age with beautiful and original Dravidian style of architecture. This type of architecture makes Shringeri a popular hub for archeologists and historians who wish to study the architecture of temples and research. They form the heart of Shringeri and add more rich history and a religious aura to the town.
Shringeri: Town of the first Matha established by Adi Shankaracharya
The concept of Advaita Vedanta has played a very important role in the religion and culture of India’s rich history. The conception and propagation have played an important role in the development of the culture and theology that we cherish today. Shringeri being an important matha played an important role in the development of theology and philosophy which made the culture and wisdom of India widely known all around the world.
Today, more and more pilgrims visit Shringeri not only for tourism but also with the purpose of witnessing the rich culture of Shringeri and understand how the architecture accentuates the religious aura of the town. From research to religion, Shringeri will always be the hub of deeper study of philosophy, religion and history.
To read and understand more about the beautiful cities and town of India with a deep historical and cultural past, keep reading the blog on Sameedh.
