About Guruji

"My Beloved Gurudeva"

Very few person can there be amongst the cultured people of India who have not heard about HIS HOLINESS JAGADGURU SANKARACARYA BHARATI KRSNA TIRTHAJI MAHARAJA the magnificent and divine personality that gracefully adorned the famous Govardhan Math, puri, his vast and versatile learning, his spiritual and educational attainments, his wonderful research achievements in the field of Vedic Mathematics and his consecration of all these qualification to the service of humanity as such.

His Holiness, better known among his disciples by the beloved name ‘Jagadguruji’ or ‘Gurudeva’ was born of highly learned and pious parents in March, 1884. His father, late Sri. P. Narasimha Shastri was then in service as a Tahsildar at Tinnivelly (Madras Presidency) who later retired as a Deputy Collector. His Uncle, late Sri Chandrashekhar Shastri, was the Principal of the Maharaja’s College, Vizianagaram and his great-grandfather was late Justice C. Ranganath Shastri of the Madras High Court.

Jagadguruji, named as Venkatraman in his early days, was an exceptionally brilliant student and invariably won the first place in all the subject in all the classes throughout his educational career. Trichanapalli; Church Missionary Society College, Tinnivelli and Hindu College, Tinnivelli. He passed his matriculation examination from the Madras University in January, 1899, topping the list as usual.

          He was extraordinarily proficient in Sanskrit and oratory and on account of this he was awarded the title of ‘Saraswati’ by the Madras Sanskrit Association in July, 1899 when he was still in his 16^th year. One cannot fail to mention at this stage the profound impression left on him by his Sanskrit Guru Sri Vedam Venkatriai Shastri whom Jagadguruji, always remembered with deepest love, reverence and gratitude, with tears in his eyes.

          After winning the highest place in the B.A. Examination, Sri Venkatraman Saraswati appeared at the M.A. Examination of the American College of Sciences, Rochester, New York, form Bombay Center in 1903; and in 1904 at the age of just twenty he passed M.A. Examination in seven subjects simultaneously securing the highest honors in all, which is perhaps the all-time world-record of academic brilliance. His subjects included Sanskrit, Philosophy, English, Mathematics, History and Science.

          After several years of the most advanced studies, the deepest meditation, and the highest spiritual attainment Prof. Venkatraman Saraswati was initiated into the holy order of Samnyasa at Banaras (Varanasi) by his Holiness jagadguru Shankaracharya Sri Trivinkram Tirthaji Maharaj of Sharadapeeth on the 4^th July 1919 and on this occasion he was given the new name, Swami Bharati Krsna Tirtha.