Sharada Peeth – History

Sharada Peeth – History

Sharada Peeth is an abandoned Hindu Temple and ancient centre of learning in the Pakistani administered territory of Azad Kashmir.

Origins of Sharada Peeth:

There are competing theories of when Sharada Peeth was built. Some historians believe that it was built under the Kushan Empire (30 CE-230 CE), whereas some others hold that similarities between Sharada Peeth and the Martand Sun Temple suggest that it was built by Lalitaditya. There is an alternative school of thought suggesting that it was built not at once, but in stages. It has also been suggested that Sharada Peeth is more than 5,000 years old, but this may be a reference to the religious shrine rather than the centre of learning. 

Ancient Seat of Learning:

Sharada Peeth is said to be where the texts written by Panini and other grammarians were stored. It is said in the Prabhavakacarita that when Jain scholar Hemachandra was commissioned by Jayasimha, King of Gurjara Desa (present-day eastern Rajasthan and northern Gujarat) to write the Siddhahema. Hemachandra visited Sharada Peeth for access to previous works on grammar, as it was the only place with a library known to have all such works available in their complete form.

Kashmir was sometimes referred to as the Sharada Desh, or "Sharada country", because of the significance of the Sharada temple and the associated institution of learning. Between the 6^th and 12^th centuries CE, Sharada Peeth was one of the foremost temple universities of the Indian subcontinent, hosting scholars such as Kalhana, Adi Shankara, Vairotsana, Kumarajiva, and Thonmi Sambhota. As a religious institution, it is one of the three famous tirthas, or holy sites, for Kashmiri Pandits, the other two being the Martand Sun Temple and the Amarnath Temple. 

Historical facts reveal that a Buddhist university existed near the temple which was established by Emperor Ashoka in 273 BCE. The Sharda script was invented at this university by scholars. Buddhist University established during the reign of Emperor Ashoka in 273BC. Fourth Buddhist council summoned at the Sharda Peeth by Emperor Kanishka in 141 A.D.

Adi Sankaracharya:

It is at this temple that Sankaracharya received the right to sit on the Sarvanjnanapeetham or Sarvajna Peetha (Throne of Wisdom). The first verse of 'Prapanchsar' composed by Adi Shankaracharya is devoted to the praise of the temple's goddess, Sri Sarada Devi. The Sarada image at Sringeri Saradhamba temple in South India was once said to have been made of sandalwood, which is supposed to have been taken by Sankaracharya from here.

References in Religious & Historical Texts:

Nilamata Purana:

The earliest available references to Sharada Peeth are found in the Nilamata Purana, an ancient text that detailed sacred places, rituals and ceremonies in Kashmir. 

Rajatarangini:

In Rajatarangini the famous text describing Kashmir's history, composed by Kalhana in the year 1148 CE, there is a mention of the temple and its geographic location. Also, Kalhana describes its importance to Hindus.

Prabhavakacarita:

According to the Prabhavakacarita, a Jain historical work dated 1277–78, the Svetambara scholar Acharya Hemachandra requested king Jaisimha Siddharaj to send a team to the Sharda institution in Kashmir to bring back copies of the existing eight grammatical texts preserved here so he could compile his own grammar, the Siddha-hema Shabdanushasan, named jointly after the king and the author.

Grand Vizier Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak Notes:

During the reign of Akbar in the 16^th century, Grand Vizier Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak, one of the famous Nava-Ratnas, wrote about the temple as being near the banks of river Madhumati, now known as the Neelum River, which is full of gold particles. Abu'l Fazl also wrote that one can experience miracles on every eighth day of the bright fortnight of the month here.

Visits:

Xuanzang Visit:

The Chinese Buddhist monk, Xuanzang, visited this learning centre in 632 CE. He stayed there for two years and appreciated the mental gifts of priests and students of this learning centre. 

Visit of followers of King of Gauda, Bengal:

Kalhana wrote that during Lalitaditya's reign in the 8^th century CE, some followers of a king of Gauda in Bengal came to Kashmir under the pretext of visiting the shrine, highlighting the significance of the temple throughout South Asia.

Al-Biruni Visit:

In the year 1030 CE, the Muslim historian Al-Biruni visited Kashmir. According to him, there was a wooden idol of Sri Sharada Devi in the temple. He compared the temple to the Multan Sun Temple, Vishnu Chakraswamin temple at Thanesar and Somnath temple.

14^th Century:

The temple had periodically fallen into disrepair by the 14^th century. In the 14^th century, the temple was attacked for the first time by Muslim invaders. After this attack, India started losing its contact with Krishanganga and Sharada Peeth.

Swami Ramanuja Visit:

The Vaishnava saint Swami Ramanuja traveled all the way from Srirangam to refer to Bodhayana's Vrithi on Brahma Sutras preserved here, before commencing work on writing his commentary on the Brahma sutras, the Sri Bhashya.

Practices:

South Indian Brahmins:

There is believed to be an ancient tradition among South Indian Brahmins of prostrating in the direction of Sharada Peeth before beginning their education. 

Saraswat Brahmin:

Saraswat Brahmin communities in Karnataka are also said to move seven steps towards Kashmir and retrace their steps when conducting the Yagnopavita ceremony.

Music:

This temple is referred to in the Carnatic music song "kalavathi kamalasana yuvathi" by the famous composer Sri. Muthusamy Dikshithar. The song set in the raga yagapriya, in praise of Saraswathi, describes her as "kashmira vihara, vara sharadha", meaning "the one who resides in Kashmir, Sharada".

Dogra King:

During the Dogra rule, the temple emerged as a regular pilgrimage site for the Kashmiri Pandits. In the 19^th century, Dogra king of Kashmir, Maharaja Gulab Singh, restored this temple.

After Indian Independence:

In 1947, Swami Nand Lal Ji of Tikker Kupwara moved the stone idols from Sharda to Tikker, some of which are preserved in Devibal in Baramulla and in Tikker in Kupwara. Following the brief 1947-1948 Kashmir war in the region between Pakistan and India, the site came under control of Pashtun tribesmen who invaded the region. Control was then passed to the newly formed government of Pakistan's Azad Kashmir. The site was heavily damaged in the 2005 Kashmir earthquake which struck the region, and has not been repaired since.

After Vajpayee-Musharraf meeting at Islamabad during SAARC conference from 4 to 6 January 2004, some CBMs between the two parts of Kashmir were initiated to normalize the situation, create friendly relations and encourage the peace process. These include the cease-fire on LOC, opening of two roads across the LOC via Poonch-Rawalakote and Uri-Srinagar, meeting of divided families, and the start of trade ventures etc. Accordingly, Kashmiri Pandits and other religious organizations of J&K demanded the opening of Sharda Shrine of POJK for religious tourism so that they could have Darshan of this old temple and annual yatra of the Shrine could be revived.

The then President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf accepted the demands of the minorities of J&K in principle and sanctioned Rs. 8 crores in 2006 for the creation of infrastructural facilities near the Shrine so that pilgrims could visit. Though POJK Government constructed few tourist huts, community centers and cafeteria near the site, no attention was paid towards the revival of the Shrine which is in a dilapidated condition. The Muslim natives of the village Sharda and adjoining areas still call the monument as Sharda Mai (Mother Sharda).

In 2007, a group of Kashmiri Pandits who were permitted to visit Azad Kashmir were denied permission visit the temple. In September 2009, the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies recommended increased cross-border religious tourism between India and Pakistan, including allowing Kashmiri Pandits to visit Sharada Peeth, and Pakistani Muslims to visit the Hazratbal Shrine in Srinagar. Ruksana Khan, a Pakistan based scholar, has undertaken an archaeological survey of the Sharda site. In 2015, she and her team unearthed antiques which revealed the history of the site. Since then they have started the Sharda Project which works to preserve the culture.

In 2018, Pakistan government opened the Kartarpur Corridor to allow Sikh pilgrims in India to visit the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur across the border. Pakistani Hindus rarely visit the temple, preferring to visit sites farther south in Sindh, Balochistan, and Punjab provinces. As such, restoration of the temple is not considered a priority in the manner that Katasraj Temple was regarded by the Pakistani government.

There is a demand from certain section of Indian politicians that Pakistan should renovate this temple, in the same manner that it renovated the Katasraj Temple in Punjab. This has prompted calls by Kashmiri Pandits to the Pakistan government to open a corridor to Sharada Peeth site (Neelum valley, 30 Kms from Kupwara). The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, and Omar Abdullah have requested PM Modi to pursue this request.