Conclusion

Lakṣmaṇa Sūrin was an orthodox Sanskrit scholar who lived in the Renaissance period. This age gave birth to many philosophers and social reformers like Vivekananda, Sri Ramakrishna Paramahaṃsa, Dayananda Sarasvatī etc. They were well versed in the glorious past of India. This age also witnessed the spiritual awakening of India. The study of Sanskrit language and Indian heritage became prominent in that period. Lakṣmaṇa Sūrin was born in a middle class family of Tamilnadu. His family members got western education, though he was also acquainted with western education. But he followed traditional method of learning and teaching of Sanskrit. He tried to popularise Sanskrit language and literature among the common people. The core area of his study was Vedanta especially Śaṅkara philosophy. Like Śaṅkara, Lakṣmaṇa Sūrin believed that to create the feelings of oneness among the people could be done by Vedanta Philosophy,which was the crust of Śaṅkarā’s ideology. He gave importance to the feeling of ‘unity in diversity’. He used legendary style in depicting of Śaṅkara’s life, by simple Sanskrit language. While going through the text of Lakṣmaṇa Sūrin it is found that he did not use any historical facts and figures to decipher his ideas. He quoted Śaṅkarā’s stotra kāvyās in Bhagavatpādābhyudaya, which was not seen in any other Śaṅkaradigvijayās. It is evident that he was an ardent devotee of Śaṅkara. In Bhagavatpādābhyudaya he had given due consideration of tāntric vidya of Śaṅkara. The salient features of Lakṣmaṇa Sūrin’s Bhagavatpādābhyudaya is the honesty of the writer to give references of other Digvijayās as and when the idea put forwarded by him seem to be controversial to others idea, which shows that he had made sincere effort and hard work to pen his work. Most of the Śaṅkaradigijayās were written by scholars who renounced worldly life. Contrary to Lakṣmaṇa Sūrin led a worldly life and was closely associated with social life. In Bhagavatpādābhyudaya we can see the references to Upaniṣad and Bhagavatgīta. He pictures Śaṅkara as a human being rather than an amazing incarnation of Lord Śiva. The main intention of Lakṣmaṇa Sūrin in writing Bhagavatpādābhyudaya is to strengthen the ideas of unity and spread the merits of Sanskrit language in Southern parts of India. In order to create self-reliance to the common people he made an attempt to understand classical culture of India by the general public. Lakṣmaṇa Sūrin picturised the dynamic and unbelievable life of Śaṅkarācārya in his magnum opus of Bhagavatpādābhyudaya. Although it was written in the style of Mahākāvya it cannot fulfil the lakṣaṇas of Mahākāvya.

Śaṅkara, the most eloquent and eminent philosophers of ancient India, is silent about himself. Nowhere in his works does the Ācārya give us any information about himself or his own family, or about his teachers or his own times or his life mission. His disciples also tell us nothing directly about their revered master. In the case of Śaṅkara, there has been no historical facts on the surface for biographers to see and record. The Ācārya too must have believed that a man’s value depends not on what he learns or what is position or fame is, and even on what he does, but on what he is and inwardly becomes. But the inner life is always a closed book. All these factors must have led to the fictitious and legendary outpourings in the biographies of the Ācārya, having the title “Śaṅkaravijaya” (a work describing the visit, victories and achievements). The Ācārya is perhaps the only one, or one among the very few ancient Indian philosophers centring whom so many biographies of legendary nature have originated. It is these biographies that happen to be the basic source materials for our study of Śaṅkara’s life.

The biographers attribute some supernatural powers and miracles to the Ācārya. We assume that some valuable works on Śaṅkaravijaya likely to be lying hidden in some obscure corners of the some libraries which contain manuscripts on Śaṅkaradigvijaya by different authors. Some are of the view that only five of them are available at present in printed form. Śaṅkarā’s real life is enveloped in a shroud of mystery. Scholars and critics have analysed his books by concentrating on certain aspects of his works. The traditional biographers of Śaṅkara have described the pathetic condition of Dharma, on the eve of Śaṅkara’s birth. The Ācāryā’s own work tell us little about their authors.

As to the biographical details of different Śaṅkaravijayās, wide variations have cropped up. There is no way now of settling these differences, although they can give fertile grounds for endless and inconclusive discussions for learned men. On these circumstances, Mādhava Vidyāraṇya’s Śaṅkaradigvijaya which has stood the test of time, may be taken as sufficient authority to give the laymen much of the available information about Śaṅkara. Bhagavatpādābhyudaya follows this work to a large extent. But it is also inspired by the general spirit of Indian Renaissance which unearthed the glorious of ancient Indian and its great merit.