Chikkamagaluru: During a ‘guru vandana’ programme held in the Math on Sunday, Jan 4, Shri Bharati Tirtha Swamiji of Sringeri Shri Sharada Pitha made the announcement of nomination of a successor.
The nominee is Kuppa Venkatesh Prasad Sharma. The official ceremony will be held on January 22 and 23, according to him. The Swamiji recalled that his guru had nominated his successor at the age of 57. Similarly, he said, he was nominating his successor at the age of 64.
He further said that the occasion was ideal to make the announcement. By divine grace, a suitable successor had emerged and he should be accepted by all devotees, he said.
Venkatesh Prasad Sharma hails from Guntur district of Seemandhra. He has pursued intense Vedic studies in Tirupati and Sringeri.
Shri Bharati Tirtha Swamiji, the current presiding guru, is the 36th in the line. He was born in a family of Vedic scholars in 1951 as Seetarama Anjaneyalu. Renouncing the world and embracing sanyas in 1974, he was under the care and guidance of his guru for about 15 years. In 1989, he ascended to the Pitha as the presiding guru.
Celebrations to mark the completion of 25 years are currently being held.