Advaita Guru Parampara

Advaita Guru Parampara

The Advaita Guru-Parampara is the list of divine, Vedic and historical teachers of Advaita Vedanta.

The current Acharyas, the heads of the four maṭhas set up by Adi Shankara, trace their authority back to the four main disciples of Shankara. Each of the heads of these four maṭhas takes the title of Shankaracharya, after Adi Shankara.

Beginning of Advaita Parampara

The Advaita guru-parampara begins with the mythological time of the Dev-parampara (देव परम्परा), followed by the Vedic seers of the Rishi-parampara (ॠषि परम्परा), and the Manava-parampara (मानव परम्परा) of historical times and personalities:

Dev-Parampara (देव परम्परा)
  • Narayaṇa
  • Lord Brahma

Rishi-Parampara (ॠषि परम्परा)

  • Vasistha
  • Sakti
  • Parasara
  • Vyasa
  • Suka

Manava-Parampara (मानव परम्परा)

  • Gauḍapada
  • Govinda bhagavatpada
  • Adi Sankara and then his four disciples
  • Padmapada
  • Hastamalaka
  • Toṭaka
  • Vartikakara (Suresvara)

List of Gurus of Advaita Parampara

These are the famous sloka which specify the list of Advaita Gurus :

सदाशिव समारमभां शङ्कराचार्य मध्यमाम्॥
अस्मदाचार्य पर्यन्तां वन्दे गुरु परम्पराम्॥

Salutation to the lineage starting with lord Sadasiva, with Adi Sankara in the middle and continuing up to my immediate teacher

श्रुति स्मृति पुराणानाम् आलयम करुणालयम्।
नमामि भगवत्पादम शंकरं लोक शंकरम्॥

I bow at the feet of the Lord in the form Sri Sankaracharya, who is the blessing for the humanity, who is the shrine for the shruti, the smriti and the purana, and, who is the abode of compassion.

Mentioned in Totakashtakam – तोटकाष्टकम् , these three verses specify the lineage of Advaita gurus.

शंकरं शंकराचार्यं केशवं बादरायणम् ।
सूत्रभाष्यकृतौ वन्दे भगवन्तौ पुनः पुनः ॥

नारायणं पद्मभुवं वसिष्ठं शक्तिं च तत्पुत्रपराशरं च ।
व्यासं शुकं गौडपदं महान्तं गोविन्दयोगीन्द्रमथास्य शिष्यम् ॥

श्री शंकराचार्यमथास्य पद्मपादं च हस्तामलकं च शिष्यम् ।
तं तोटकं वार्तिककारमन्यानस्मद्गुरून् संततमानतोऽस्मि ॥

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