Five things you should know about Sudhindra Theertha, the head of the Kashi Mutt

The legal and spiritual head of the Kashi Mutt, Sudhindra Theertha breathed his last in the early hours of Sunday in Haridwar. He was 90 years old.

The seer was flown in to Sri Vyas Ashramam in Haridwar on Friday morning by an air ambulance in acquiescence to his last wish. He was undergoing medical treatment at a private hospital in Mumbai. 

Manorama reported that his disciples, who learned of the Swami’s deteriorating health, cancelled all his engagements in Kerala and returned to Mumbai.

Here are the five things you didn’t know about the seer:

1. Sudhindra Theertha became the 20th head of the Kashi Mutt in 1949. He became the disciple of then Kashi Mutt head Sukrutheendra Swami while in studying in college and was the longest serving head of the Kashi mutt.
2. He was born in Ernakulam, Kerala, to Ramadasa Shenoy and Droupathi on March 31, 1926, and was named Sadhasiva Shenoy. His father was a trustee of Shri Venkataramana Temple in Ernakulam.
3. He studied science, physics and chemistry at Maharaja’s College in Ernakulam. He was initiated into sanyas in 1944 by his guru Sukrateendra Thirtha and was eventually named as his successor. Following this he left his family and started his spiritual journey.
4. He founded the Goud Saraswat Brahmin Sabha in Kerala and was head of number of mutts and owned many assets. Yet he is remembered by his followers and disciples for his simplicity.
5. He had installed idols in Shri Venkataramana Temple in Kasaragod, Shri Varadaraja Venkataramana Temple in Gurupura, Shri Venkataramana Temple in Mangalore, Sri Krishna Mandir in Mangalore, Mahalasa Temples at Konchady Shri Kashi Math, Shri Muralidhara Krishna at Kota, Shri Narasimha at Shri Ramanjaneya Temple, Vile Parle (Mumbai), Shri Narasimha at Shri Venkataramana Temple, Uppinangadi and Shri Lakshmi Venkatesha Temple at Moodbidri.