Swami Swaroopanand Saraswatiji: A much revered Sanyasi

Staff Reporter

Shankaracharya of Jyotish and Dwarka-Sharda Peeth, Swami Swaroopanand Saraswatiji Maharaj, who was considered to be the greatest religious leader of Hindus, passed away at the ripe old age of 99 on Sunday.

He took his last breath at Paramhansi Ganga Ashram, Jhoteshwar at 3.21 pm, on Sunday. After his passing away, religious head of the Ashram performed Vedic rituals and took Sankaracharyaji from Manideep Ashram to Ganga Kund site on a palanquin, where the devotees will have darshan.

As per information, the last rites (Samadhi) of Shankaracharyaji will be performed around 4 pm, on Monday. He had celebrated his 99th birthday recently on the day of Hariyali Teej.

Swamiji was the Shankaracharya of two maths (Dwarka and Jyotirmath). He was born on September 2, 1924. in the village of Dighori near Jabalpur in Seoni district of Madhya Pradesh in a Brahmin family. He was the son of Dhanpati Upadhyay and Girija Devi. His parents named him Pothiram Upadhyay. At the age of nine, he left home. During this time, he reached Kashi and took learning of Vedas from Brahmalin Swami Karpatri Maharaj Veda-Vedang. This was the time when the movement to free India from the British was going on. When the slogan of Quit India was raised in 1942, he also jumped into the freedom struggle and at the age of 19 and became famous as a revolutionary ‘Sadhu’.

During the time, he also spent nine months in Varanasi jail and six months in Madhya Pradesh jail. He was also the President of Ram Rajya Parishad of Karpatri Maharaj. Swami Swaroopanandji was made a Dandi Sanyasi in 1950 and received the title of Shankaracharya in 1981. In 1950, Brahmalin Shankaracharya of Jyotishpeeth took deeksha of Dand-Sanyas from Swami Brahmanand Saraswati and came to be known as Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati. He also contributed to the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Countless political leaders right from President of India to National Presidents of Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party, Union Ministers, Chief Ministers and others visited the Shankaracharya and took his blessings. Likewise, well known entrepreneurs, religious heads and people of all walks of live thronged Swamiji’s Ashram to have darshan and blessings of him. Condolence messages are pouring in from every part of the country. People of all sections of the society have expressed grief over the passing away of Shankaracharya Swaroopanand Saraswati Maharaj.