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Vedanta Kesari H.H.Shri Mallikarjuna Swamiji started his journey towards spirituality at quite a young age. When he turned 20, he left home and proceeded towards Naganur in Gadag district of Karnataka.
There, he met H.H. Shri Shivananda Swamiji and was accepted as a disciple. Under the guidance of Sadashiva Swamiji of Gadag, he became proficient in the language of Sanskrit. At the same time, his Guru taught him Vedanta, Yoga, Sharana philosophy and many other such traditional practices. Having become well versed in all the traditions, he started giving Pravachans (discourses) right from 1925. As he was blessed with a great unwavering voice, he was also well known for his singing abilities. Over the years, he was invited to deliver Pravachans across Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka. Until the year 1982, he spent all his life going from place to place, mostly around the banks of Krishna river delivering Pravachans for the benefit of all.
Mallikarjuna Swamiji was regarded as a strict disciplinarian. All his life, without missing even a single day, he practised Shivayoga for several hours in the day. He exhibited this kind of resolve towards all other aspects of life as well. He has passed on this kind of living to all his other disciples as well.
Among all the spiritual things, Swamiji also had a great love for our country, its tradition and culture. He was very fond of Khadi and promoted its usage. On the matters of money, he was very particular that any excess money that was collected by the people to organize his Pravachan programs should be redirected for the purposes of establishing schools in those very places. Most of these schools continue to function to this day. There are also incidents in Swamiji’s life where he was often requested by people to absolve all kinds of disputes that arose in certain villages and in one such place called Bailahongal, he once stayed back for several months and left the place only after solving each and every dispute that was brought before him.
With a tall and majestic personality, Swamiji was popularly known as the incarnate of the Vedantic wisdom that was bestowed upon him by his spiritual Master. His singular mission was to spread the wisdom and knowledge of Vedanta for the welfare and well-being of humanity at large. He accomplished this through his captivating and enlightening discourses. He has also written two books on Yoga called Patanjala Yogasutra and Yoga Pravesha. Adding to those books, Pujya Siddheshwar Swamiji has converted some of his prominent Pravachans and turned them into books. Anubhavaamruta, Paramartha Geethe, Paramanu Bhava Bodhe, Bhagavad Gita, Ishavasya Upanishad, Kena Upanishad, Mundaka and Mandukya etc. are some of the works of his that went on to become books later on.
Siddheshwar Swamiji is indeed a very rare and unique saint. At a very young age of 14, Swamiji got his spiritual calling and soon came under the discipleship of H.H. Shri Mallikarjuna Swamiji. While staying with the Guru itself, he completed all his education.
Being soft-spoken and having a simple appearance, Swamiji is very unassuming. Divinity and divine wisdom keep flowing incessantly in all of his words and more so in his living. Like his spiritual master, Swamiji’s mission is also to spread divine wisdom among Sadhaks and all people alike. For more than five decades, he has been carrying on this mission with a singular mind.
Jnanayogi Sri Siddheshwar Swamiji has been giving Pravachans in Kannada, English and Marathi for more than 50 years. A good number of these Pravachans have been made into books. Being widely travelled, both in India and across the world, Swamiji has a very wide knowledge of spiritual traditions from many parts of the country and world. He is known for his uncanny ability to present the most complex philosophical matters in the simplest of language that can be understood by all. Continuing the tradition of his Guru, Swamiji travels to various villages and towns across Karnataka and Maharashtra, and even to other countries in order to share the divine knowledge with one and all.
In the last few decades, Swamiji has written several books on Upanishads, Gita, Sharana philosophy and general spirituality. Some of his major works are; Siddhanta Shikhamani, Allamaprabhu’s Vachana Nirvachana, Bhagavad Chintana (Reflections of the Divine). He has also written the following books in English: God, World and Soul, Patanjali Yoga Sutras, Narada Bhakti Sutra and Shiva Sutra. Allama Prabhudevara Vachana-Nirvachana, the commentary on Allama Prabhu’s Shatsthala Vachana is now being translated into English and will be released shortly.