Kalady

Kalady

Kalady (Malayalam: കാലടി) is a village located east of the Periyar river, in the Ernakulam district of Kerala, India. Notably, it is the birthplace of Sri Adi Shankara, and thus is a popular destination for pilgrims. Kalady started featuring in the spiritual map of India only after its rediscovery in the late 19th century by the then Shankaracharya of Sringeri and the subsequent consecration of a temple for Sri Adi Shankara in 1910. The Centenary of Kalady was celebrated in May 2010 and the story of Kalady has been documented in digital media.^[1]

• Kalady : is a popular pilgrim center because it is the birthplace of Sri Adi Sankara, one of India's foremost philosopher-saints who preached the Advaita or monastic philosophy.

stitutions after 1900 AD

Shankara Temple

·         Adi Shankara was born in Namboodiri Brahmin family as the only son of Sivaguru and Aryamba. Shankara's shrine at Kalady, run by the Sringeri Mutt, is a large, partly open structure situated on the northern bank of the river Periyar, or Purna. There are two major shrines in the temple; one is dedicated to Sri Sankaracharya and the other to Goddess Saradamba, the main deity of Sringeri. 

The samadhi of Sri Sankara's mother, Aryamba, is also located here. A small shrine to Vinayaka, or Ganapati, is the scene of evening prayers, chanted to the rhythmic ringing of cymbals. The worship in these temples is done by Tamil or Kannada Smartha Brahmins, and not by Namboothiris.

Ramakrishna Advaita Ashram

·         The Ramakrishna Advaita Ashram^[4] is a branch centre of Ramakrishna Math, Belur Math. It is located very near the accepted birthplace of Sri Shankara. It has a spacious prayer hall and a shrine modeled on the Sri Ramakrishna temple at Belur Math. The Ashram also runs a school (Brahmanandodayam), a charitable dispensary, and a library. 

Sri Adi Sankara Keerthi Sthamba Mandapam

Sri Adi Sankara Keerthi Sthamba Mandapam is an eight-story memorial built by Kanchi Kamakoti Mutt. The entrance to the memorial, guarded by two elephant statues, leads to the Paduka Mandapam. Two silver knobs represent the padukas, or wooden sandals of the Teacher. 

 

 

The walls of the memorial feature framed relief paintings that tell the story of Adi Sankaracharya. Several large statues of Ganapati, Adi Sankara, and others are also housed in this memorial. Adi Sankara's shrines in Kalady are open to all pilgrims, irrespective of religion and caste. Visitors can review the life of Sankara Acharya as they climb to the top.The famous Sankara Stupa has 8 sides.