61st Vardhanti celebrations at Sringeri
The 61st Vardhanti of the Jagadguru Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamiji was celebrated with a gusto and devotional fervour here at Sringeri on Chaitra Shukla Shashti, the 9th of April 2011.
The Shashtyabda Purti Mahotsava which was announced a year back and began a week back at Sringeri, reached its pinnacle today, being the day of Avatar of the Jagadguru. Thousands of devotees flocked to Narasimhavanam to have the Ahnika-Darshanam of the Jagadguru early in the morning. Ahnika Darshanam of the Jagadguru began at around 7:00 AM and went on till around 10:00 AM. Unlike previous Vardhanti Mahotsavas, the number of devotees who had come to have the darshan of the Jagadguru and seek His blessings sky-rocketed, establishing a new record in the numbered of devotees who had come for the Darshan of the Jagadguru, at Sringeri. The serpentine que extended till the entrance of Narasimhavanam, from Guru-Nivas comprising of thousands of devotees who had come from the four corners of the country and many from outside the country aswell.
After blessing devotees with Ahnika-Darshanam, the Jagadguru proceeded to the North-bank of the Tunga River accompanied with Nadaswaram and Vadya Ghosham. Having had darshan at the various shrines in the Math complex, the Jagadguru entered the shrine of Sharadamba and performed special puja on the occassion of His Vardhanti. After special puja to Goddess Sharadamba, the Jagadguru graced the Purnahuti ceremony of the Urgra-Ratha Shanti, Navagraha, Ayusha and Mrityunjaya Homas.
In the evening the Jagadguru presided over the Guruvandanam function in which many devotees offered Phala-Pushpa samarpanam to the Jagaduru. Commemoration Souvenir of the Shashtabdapurti Mahotsava was released by the Jagadguru along with a three volume pictorial souvenir containing memorable quotes of the Jagadguru. The Jagadguru also released a commemorative DVD documenting His life and teachings, produced by the Peetham’s research wing, Sri Shankara Advaita Research Centre.
At the end of the function, the Jagadguru delivered a benedictory discourse to the overflowing audience gathered in which he highlighted the greatness and importance of the Vedas and their relation as a stepping stone into Vedanta. The Guru-Vandanam function ended at around 8:30 P.M. after which the Jagadguru returned to Narasimha Vanam.
Later in the evening, the Jagadguru performed special puja to Lord Chandramouleeshwara amidst sonorous chanting of Vedic mantras by the Pandits of the Math, other Pandits from the four corners of the country, and students of century old Sadvidya Sanjeevini Samskrita Mahapathashala. The special puja included Phala-Panchamrita Abhishekas which is not normally done on other night-pujas. It was a veritable sight to see Guru-Nivas jam-packed with devotees who had gathered to witness the special puja to Lord Sri Chandramouleeshwara performed by the Jagadguru.