Kanchi Mutt's 71st Junior Pontiff anointed
Junior Pontiff (Ilaya Peetadhipathi) of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam, also called as Kanchi Sankara Mutt, on Wednesday.
The ceremony took place in the sacred precincts of the world famous Goddess Kamakshi Amman
Temple in Kanchipuram.
After anointing him, as part of the tradition, Sri Vijayendra Saraswathi Swamigal bestowed the monastic name Sri Sathya Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi Swamigal upon the new junior pontiff.
The current 70th pontiff, Sri Sankara Vijayendra Saraswathi Swamigal, bestowed the Sannyasa
Ashrama Deeksha upon the new junior pontiff at the holy Panchaganga Theertha tank located
inside the temple complex.
To witness the spiritual initiation, special seating arrangements were made for Acharyas and
Sannyasis on a floating theppam (raft) in the tank.
Following the ritual, both the senior and junior pontiffs had darshan of the main deity, Goddess
Kamakshi.
The ceremony witnessed the presence of several prominent dignitaries, including Tamil Nadu
Governor R.N. Ravi, senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, Hindu Makkal Katchi leader Arjun
Sampath, BJP National General Council Member K. Annamalai, Thuglak Editor S. Gurumurthy,
among others.
After the rituals at the temple, both pontiffs were taken in a grand procession accompanied by
traditional music to the Sankara Mutt where the new junior pontiff formally assumed his role as
the 71st Peetadhipathi, following the traditional upadesam (spiritual instruction).
In celebration of this significant event, the Kamakshi Amman Temple and the Sankara Mutt were
beautifully illuminated and tastefully decorated with colorful lights and flowers.
Ganesha Sharma Dravid is a Rigvedic scholar from Annavaram Kshetra in Andhra Pradesh and
had served at the Sri Gnana Saraswathi Devasthanam in Basara, Telangana. He was initiated into
Vedic studies in 2006. In addition to the Rigveda, he has also completed studies in the Yajurveda, Samaveda, Shadangas, and Dashopanishads. He has also been pursuing Shastric studies.
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