Sri Ramakrishna Advaita Ashrama, Kalady, celebrated Adi Shankara Jayanthi with devotion and solemnity. The day’s programme included special puja, homa, and devotional bhajans, drawing numerous devotees to the sacred birthplace of the great Acharya.
Swami Akshayatmananda ji, a senior monk of the Order, addressed the assembled devotees, narrating the divine story of Adi Shankaracharya’s birth. Swamiji spoke of how Lord Shiva granted the boon of Shankara’s birth to his devout parents and recounted the famous crocodile incident in the Periyar River, during which young Shankara received his mother’s blessing to embrace sannyasa. He also shared the story of the Kanakadhara Stotram, highlighting the compassion and spiritual power of Shankaracharya through its miraculous result.
The celebration concluded with pushparchana and the distribution of prasadam to all attendees.
In the evening, sweets and drinking water were distributed to participants of a procession organized by the local body, as part of the wider celebration of the Jayanthi.
