Ashta Mathas of Udupi

The Ashta Mathas of Udupi are a group of eight "mathas" or monasteries established by Sri Madhvacharya the preceptor of the Dvaita school of Hindu thought. For each of the eight mathas, Sri Madhvacharya also appointed one of his direct disciples to be the first Swamiji. The names of the mathas and the first Swamijis are:

#Palimaru - Sri Hrishikesha Tirtha
#Adamaru - Sri Narasimha Tirtha
#Krishnapura - Sri Janardhana Tirtha
#Puttige - Sri Upendra Tirtha
#Shirur - Sri Vamana Tirtha
#Sodhe - Sri Vishnu Tirtha
#Kaniyooru - Sri Raama Tirtha
#Pejavara - Sri Adhokshaja Tirtha

The ashta mathas are named after the villages in which they were originally located. Today, the mathas are situated in the temple town of Udupi. The mathas work to propagate the Dvaita philosophy. They also administer the famous Udupi Krishna Temple by way of a formal rotation scheme called "Paryaya".

When the ashta mathas were formed, Sri Madhvacharya initiated the Swamijis of the mathas in pairs. Each pair of mathas is called a "Jodi" (literally meaning a pair in the local languages Kannada and Tulu). Each matha in a pair is called a "Dwandwa" (dual). In the event the current Paryaya Swamiji has difficulty performing his duties, the Swamiji from the "Dwandwa" matha takes over the responsibility. The four pairs of mathas are: Palimaru and Adamaru; Krishnapura and Puttige; Shirur and Sodhe; and Kaniyooru and Pejavara.

See also

*Paryaya
*Udupi cuisine
*Swamijis of the Ashta Mathas of Udupi

External links

* [http://www.puthigesree.org Sri Puthige Matha]
* [http://www.kaniyoorumatha.org Sri Kaniyooru Matha]
* [http://www.pejavara.org Sri Pejavara Adhokshaja Matha]

References

* [http://www.pajakakshetra.org/madhva/mathas.html Udupi Ashta Mathas and other Madhva Mathas]
* [http://www.midcoast.com.au/~dasa/05-carst.htm Around the Car Street]
* [http://www.dvaita.org/madhva/udupi/paryaya_1.html The Festival of Paryaya]