"There is the foot of the Guru and in His glance there is unlimited compassion. There is His teaching. What else is there that constitutes the consummation of the purpose of life?"

Acharyal adorned the Sringeri Sharada Peetham for 35 years from 1954 to 1989. During this time, He toured India extensively several times to bless the disciples and to inculcate faith in the doctrines of Sanatana Dharma. Thousands of devotees thronged to have the darshan of the compassionate Guru and to listen to His speeches which are profound in meaning, yet delivered in a simple and lucid manner. He expounded the great truths of Vedanta with practical examples and parables so that even the common man could understand and appreciate the Vedic wisdom. He was very well versed in Sanskrit, Hindi, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil and His discourses were always rendered in the appropriate language. Needless to say, this delighted the entire audience. He had repeatedly stressed the importance of purifying the mind by following one’s duties as laid down in the Sastras and inculcating devotion to Ishwara. Purifying the mind is a pre-requisite for the proper understanding of Vedanta.

Each of His hundreds of speeches is a priceless gem and those who have heard the ambrosial words of Acharyal on at least one occasion know that the electronic version cannot convey the unforgettable impact of His peace-radiating presence, captivating smile, riveting facial expressions and significant gesticulations.

He always preached what He had practised. To cite an example, a person requested Acharyal to explain the dhyana sloka of a particular mantra. Acharyal closed His eyes and gave such a lucid description that the devotee remarked, “Acharyal’s explanation is so excellent that I can virtually see the form in front of me”. Candidly Acharyal replied, “Of what use will My clarification be if I merely confine Myself to mechanically translating the dhyana sloka? I was indeed visualising the form described therein. That was the reason why I was speaking slowly, focusing My attention on the various parts of the Divine form before giving out what I was observing”. This, in essence, is the beauty of all His actions and teachings.