A Brief Introduction to Vasishtha Kavyakantha Ganapati Muni

Vasishtha Kavyakantha Ganapati Muni
(From 1878 -1936)

The Muni was the first and foremost disciple of Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi. He was born on the 17^th November of 1878 in Kalavarayi, a small village situated in the Vizag district of Andhra Pradesh. He was a mighty spiritual personality with a vast knowledge of Sanskrit. A yogi, poet, philosopher, critic, scholar, an eloquent speaker, an ardent devotee of Mother India, he never deviated from his goals: the attainment of India’s freedom through the power of tapas; revival of the Vedic teachings. Thus he did intense tapasya to reach his goals. He untiringly endevoured to reveal the inner significances of the Vedic hymns, and believed that the future of India rests on a complete revival of the Vedic truths.

Following is an autobiographical sketch gathered from some letters written by the Muni to his disciples:

“My father’s name was Narasimha Sastri. My mother’s name was Narasamamba. My elder brother was Bhima Sastri. Not that he knew the Shastras, he simply bore the name of his grandfather, who wea well versed in the Shastras. My sister was Annapurna. My younger brother Sivarama was taken in adoption by my uncle Prakasha Sastri. Sarveshwara Sastri was my another uncle. His son Suryanarayana was elder to me in age. We have the surname of Ayyala Somayajis and belong to Kaundinya Gotra. As the clan of Kaundinas is known as  Vasishthas, I call myself as Vasishtha Ganapati.” (Adopted from the book Bhagavan and Nayana by S. Shankarnarayanan)

All those interested to know more about the life of Vasishtha Kavyakantha Ganapati Muni can read the following books:

Vasishthavaibhabam of Kapali Sastri, 

(The book is entirely in Sanskrit but now it is available with English translation by SR Leela under the title Glory of Vasishtha Ganapati. This book is published by Sri Aurobindo Kapali Sastry Institute of Vedic Culture, Bangalore)

 Nayana, A biography of Ganapati Muni by G. Krishna

Bhagvan and Nayana by Sri Saknaranarayanan, published by Sri Ramanasramam, Thiruvannamalai, Tamilnadu

Mahatapasvi, originally in Telugu by Sri AV Ramana and translated into English by Smt. Sonti Anasuyamma, published by AM Sastry, 112/1, Central Railway Officer’s Colony, Mathuanga East, Mumbai -400019

Here is a link to a write up by Sri K. Natesan in which he gives a very elegant introduction to the life and works of the Muni.