Pontiff of Jain Mutt Shravanabelagola no more

Shravanabelagola: This Jain pilgrimage centre of the world in Hassan district drowned in sorrow following the demise of KarmayogiCharukirtiBhattarakaMahaswamiji of Jain Mutt here today. He was 74.

Born in Varanga in Karkala Taluk in Udupi district on 3 May 1949, His father was a priest- Rathnachandra Raja and his mother is Srikanthamma. Among the seven children, the Seer was the third child. His name was then Rathnavarma. He used to be also called Rathnakar. His elder sister Vijaya resides in Saligrama. His brothers Dharanendra and Yuvaraja perform pooja at the mutt in Varanga. His younger sister Vani is settled in Belur and his younger brother Shanthiraj is in Bengaluru. His other younger sister Indira is residing in Shravanabelagola.

Right from childhood young Rathnakar showed great piety and scholarly nature which new nurtured throughout his life. He studied till Class 5 at Padmambika School in Varanga. He then pursued high school education by staying at KarkalaBhujabali Ashrama. He got his religious education from Hombuja Mutt Seer- Sri Devendrakeerti Swamiji. CharukeerthiBhattaraka Swamiji studied Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. He had ascended the 'Peeta' of the Jain Mutt when he was 19 years old.

He is the only Swamiji who has conducted successfully all four events of Mahamastakabhisheka to Lord Bahubali, which comes in a 12-year cycle. His last Mahamastakabhisheka was in 2018 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former President Ramanth Kovind and former vice president Venkaiah Naidu attended.

He had also mentored many young Jain Swamijis in taking forward the Jain religious tenets. He also translated the Jain apex document 'Dhavala, Jaya Dhavala and Mahadhavala' from Sanskrit to Kannada. He is also known for his knowledge and research in bringing back one of the oldest languages Prakrit known to mankind. He instituted the Institute of Prakrit Studies and Research in Shravanabelagola where thousands of Prakrit manuscripts have been restored and documented.

Appreciating his commitment to a deeper study of Jain religious tenets and his ability to research, former prime minister late Indira Gandhi bestowed on him the title 'Karmayogi'.