Our Inspirational Gurus
The word Sankara means the one who does good. Our mission draws its name and inspiration from Adi Sankara and the unbroken parampara of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam.
Compassion, scholarship, and selfless service — the values that shape our foundation are rooted in a tradition that stretches back more than two millennia.
Jagadguru
Adi Sankaracharya
Adi Sankara was a revered saint-philosopher who lived in India more than two thousand years ago and produced seminal change in society. His works remain profoundly relevant today.
A particularly resonant treatise is his Prashnōttara Ratna Mālikā — a garland of questions and answers — in which he both poses and resolves the deepest questions of human life.
From the Prashnōttara Ratna Mālikā
A garland of questions and answers — the verses that guide our work.
किं भाग्यं देहवताम्
What is good fortune for those with a body?
आरोग्यम्
Good health.
कुत्र विधेयो यत्नः
Where is the effort ordained?
विद्याभ्यासे सदौषधे दाने
In education, good medicine, and charity.
पात्रं किम् अन्नदाने
Who is eligible for annadānam?
क्षुधितम्
The hungry.
The Kanchi Kamakoti Parampara
We take our mission’s inspiration from the current acharyas of Adi Sankara’s unbroken lineage — the preceptors of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam.
68th Acharya — Mahaperiyava
Sri Chandrashekharendra Sarasvati
1894 – 1994
Affectionately known as Mahaperiyava, the Sage of Kanchi, revered across India for a century of austerity, scholarship, and selfless service.
69th Acharya
Sri Jayendra Sarasvati
1935 – 2018
Carried forward the Peetam’s legacy of community service — hospitals, schools, and outreach to villages and the underserved.
70th Acharya
Sri Sankara Vijayendra Sarasvati
b. 1969
The current pontiff of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam, continuing the parampara of dharma, scholarship, and compassion.
71st Acharya
Sri Satya Chandrashekharendra Sarasvati
present
The newest preceptor of the Kanchi Peetam, installed to carry the unbroken lineage forward into the next generation.
Anugraha Bhashanam — Dhanvantari Jayanthi
Watch Periyava’s anugraha bhashanam on the occasion of Dhanvantari Jayanthi 2020, in your chosen language.
Tamil
Telugu
Hindi
Carry the parampara forward
Education, good medicine, and charity — the three efforts Adi Sankara ordained. Your support helps us live those values every day.