Swami Karpatri


Karpatri Ji Maharaj so called because he would eat only what would come in his palm kara, as the bowl pātra, was a monk in the Hindu dashanami monastic tradition.

Life and works

He was a disciple of Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath Swami Brahmananda Saraswati. He was also the founder of Dharma Sangha in Varanasi where he spent most of his life. He was a teacher in the Advaita Vedanta tradition of Hindu philosophy. According to French indologist, Alain Daniélou, Karpatri initiated him into Shaivite Hinduism. Swami Nishchalanand Saraswati, the 145th Govardhan Peeth Shankaracharya of Puri, Odisha, is an eminent disciple of Swami Karpatri.

Politics

In 1948, Swami Karpatri founded the Ram Rajya Parishad, a traditionalist Hindu party.
He led a movement against the Hindu Code Bill but he was unsuccessful in blocking it. He was also a prominent agitator in 1966 anti-cow slaughter agitation.

Other works

On 18 April 1948, he founded the newspaper Sanmarg which promoted Sanatan Dharma and also advocated the Hindu Code Bill and voiced opposition on cow slaughters.

Books

Kaal Mimamsa: Dating of all events related to Ramayana and Mahabharata.

The Linga And The Great Goddess: Two articles on the meaning of the Linga and the nature of the Great Goddess. Besides doctrinal and mythological clarifications, it presents a sophisticated debate about the nature of Sakti between two traditional schools: Nyaya and Mimamsa, which could be compared with those held in the times of Adi Sankara.

Marxvad aur Ramrajya : A detailed biography of Western philosophers and politicians; their time, opinions and comparison with Indian sages; the corollary of theism, the opposition of Marxism in the strong classical light and the principle of 'Nyaya' and 'Vedanta'. An encyclopedia of politics and philosophy.

Gaay Ek Samgra Chintan and Kya Sambhog Se Smadhi.