Welcoming HH Sri Sri Raghuvarendra Theertha Swamiji of Sri Bheemanakatte Matha

Pranams and a very warm welcome: to   : His Holiness Sri Sri Raghuvarendra Theertha Swamiji of Srimad Achyuthaprekshacharya Mahasamsthana, Sri Bheemanakatte Matha, Udupi. It is our great privilege and honour to welcome His Holiness today.

Malnad in Western Ghats  literally means "land of rain" or "rain country." Bhīmanakatte, in the rain-drenched Malnad of Karnataka, stands on the banks of the sacred Tunga, with  confluence of Malathi  amidst the lush forests and hills of the Western Ghats.   

When we think of Karnataka’s Malnad, we think of the land of rain — the lush forests, the Western Ghats, and the sacred rivers that have nurtured a remarkable spiritual tradition. And among these sacred places stands Bhīmanakatte, on the banks of the holy Tunga, where the Malathi joins its waters.  There is, indeed, a beautiful geographical and spiritual connection between the two great Krishna kṣetras of our land.

Maha Bharatha and Lord Krishna guides and unites the Nation, all of us.  Here, on the eastern shores of the peninsula, overlooking the Bay of Bengal, stands the ancient kṣetra of Śrī Parthasarathi — Krishna, who took the reins of Arjuna's chariot.”

“Far across the peninsula, on the western shores facing the Arabian Sea, stands Udupi — another great Krishna kṣetra, sanctified by Śrī Madhvacharya.”

“And from Udupi, as we move inland through the rain-rich Malnad, along the sacred Tunga where the Malathi joins it, we reach Bhīmanakatte — the ancient seat of the Bhīmasetu Munivṛnda Maṭha.”

"Tunga pāna, Ganga snāna"

— drink the waters of the Tunga; bathe in the Ganga.

To understand the significance of this occasion,  we need to travel in imagination to the beautiful Malnad country of Karnataka — to Bhīmanakatte, a sacred kṣetra. The Tunga, flowing through the forests and hills of Malnad, is not merely a river of Karnataka. It has nourished a remarkable spiritual landscape of temples, maṭhas, saints and scholars. And on its banks stands the ancient Bhīmasetu Munivṛnda Maṭha, popularly known as Bhīmanakatte Maṭha.

Madhwa Philosophy, also known as Dvaita Vedanta, is the  school of thought  founded by Sriman Madhwacharya in the 13th century,  based on the principles of duality, emphasizing the distinction and separate existence of individual souls and the supreme reality, God.

The very name Bhīmasetu carries a beautiful traditional association with Bhīmasena and the Tunga. The legendary valorous warrior Bheema built this bridge.  The place is  traditionally  associated with Śrī Achyutaprekshacharya, the revered guru of Śrī Madhvacharya.  HH Madhvacharya entrusted his disciple Śrī Satya Tīrtha to Achyutaprekshacharya, continuing this spiritual lineage. Thus arose the Achyutapreksha Tīrtha Samasthāna, from which the Bhīmanakatte tradition subsequently emerged.

The lineage that we honour today therefore belongs to the great Madhva sampradāya — a tradition distinguished by devotion, rigorous śāstric enquiry, teaching and service.    It is particularly gratifying that His Holiness Himself represents the continuation of this living tradition.

Born as Ramachandra Aras in Beejadi near Kundapura, His Holiness received traditional education in Veda and Vedanta and pursued advanced study of the Dvaita śāstras, including Śrīman Nyāyasudhā. On 13 March 2009, He received sannyāsa dīkṣā and entered the Bhīmanakatte lineage as Śrī Raghuvarendra Tīrtha.

There is also a beautiful connection with Udupi in His Holiness's spiritual journey: His sannyāsa dīkṣā was performed at Śrī Kṛṣṇa Maṭha, Udupi.

Today, therefore, we have before us not merely a revered pontiff, but a living link in a long and distinguished paramparā — a paramparā that reaches back through Bhīmanakatte, Achyutaprekshacharya and Madhvacharya, and continues through generations of ācāryas devoted to jñāna, bhakti and tattva-prachāra.

On behalf of  SYMA and all of us gathered here, I offer our most respectful pranāms to His Holiness Śrī Raghuvarendra Tīrtha Swamiji and extend to Him a very warm and heartfelt welcome.

Śrī Gurubhyo Namaḥ.
Śrī Kṛṣṇārpaṇamastu.

On 14.8.2o26, Srinivas YOungmens Association [SYMA] entered its 50^th year, having been inaugurated on 14.8.1977.

The Association has plans for year-long celebrations with 50+ medical camps, planting trees and many civic projects.

His Holiness Sri Sri Raghuvarendra Theertha Swamiji inaugurated the Project celebrations at Thiruvallikkeni at SYMA premises on 14.8.2026 and planted a tree symbolically. The foregoing is the welcome speech to Swamiji rendered by me

With regards – S Sampathkumar

An abridged version of this Welcome address was rendered by me welcoming HH Sri Sri Raghuvarendra Theertha Swami and further reduced Tamil version was rendered when Swami was the guest at Indepedence day flag hoisting of TAMBRAS Triplicane on 15.8.2026