High priests' clash disturbs Konkanis

By K.P.M. Basheer

KOCHI, JULY 26. The well-knit, prosperous and peace-loving Gowda Saraswatha Brahmin community in the State is deeply disturbed by the row over the tussle between its two most prominent members -- the supreme spiritual leader, Sudheendra Thirtha Swamy, and his anointed successor, Raghavendra Thirtha Swamy.

Senior members of the community in Kochi, from where the two swamis hail, expressed anguish at the turn of events which they fear have tarred the fair image of the community. Nothing of this sort has happened to the conservative GSB community which is spread mainly over Kerala, Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra

Not that the community was unaware of the behind-the-scene goings-on. A small section had known that the relationship between the reigning head of the Kashi Math Samsthan and his successor was not smooth, but they always took care to keep the issue within the community. They also knew that some people were trying to aggravate the differences between the 20th and 21st pontiffs, at the cost of the community.

The `raayasa pathra' (a copy of which was read out in public after religious ceremonies at the Ernakulam Tirumala Desvaswom Temple late this evening) issued by the senior swamy from Dwaraka on July 19 removing the junior swamy from all powers was the culmination of a series of tit-for-tat events spread over the past two years.

The situation had come to a head following the presentation of a `collective vijnapana pathram' signed by 112 persons to Swamy Sudheendra Thirtha last year which levelled serious allegations against Raghavendra Thirtha and questioned his efficiency and capabilities. The initiative for this was said to have been taken by the president of the Gowda Saraswatha Brahmin Temples Association, Mangalore.

The memorandum, which was a moral blow to the junior swamy and which hurt him deeply, is said to have done the biggest damage to relations between the two swamis. The events that followed aggravated the issue.

Many community elders feel that the tussle between the two leaders is in fact the manifestation of the proxy war between the `coteries' (the advisors, aides and confidants) of the two swamis. It was the oneupmanship between the two coteries for the control of the immense wealth of the Samsthan that had developed into a personal feud between the two revered leaders, they told The Hindu.

``Money is the crux of the problem,'' a senior functionary of a GSB organisation remarked. In the recent past, there had been a lot of allegations of financial irregularities in the running of the GSB institutions and management of properties, he pointed out.

But in the midst of all the din, one thing is very clear: most of the community members want the two spiritual leaders to end their squabbles and give a proper leadership to the community whose social, cultural and spiritual life is centered around their temples and the gurus.

The Gowda Saraswatha Brahmins--who speak Konkani at home and are hence called Konkanis, though not all Konkanis are Gowda Saraswaths--is a significant presence in Kerala's business and trade. Traditionally, the `Konkanis' are men of commerce.

The Konkanis are believed to have first arrived in Kochi in 1294 from Gomanthak (Goa). They also settled in several other parts of Kerala. But in the wake of the Portuguese occupation of Goa and the religious persecution that followed in the 16th century, there was a huge influx of the GSBs to Kerala. They are identified with their surnames like Shenoy, Pai, Kamath, Prabhu, Bhat, Vadyar and Rao.

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