South India and Advaita Vedānta Monastic Networks

Abstract

This paper examines the historical development of the vernacular Advaita Vedānta monastic tradition of the Nampūtiri Brahmins in Kerala and argues that it formed part of wider transregional monastic networks extending across South India. Drawing on inscriptional evidence, vernacular hagiographic literature, normative texts, and historical records, the study traces the transformation of Keralan monastic institutions from earlier temple-centred ascetic institutions into relatively autonomous monastic centres organized into a network of parent and branch maṭhas.
The paper outlines the institutional structure of Nampūtiri Advaita monasticism and examines the earlier ascetic roles associated with temple functionaries that may have provided the institutional basis for later monastic formations. It also considers the processes through which these local institutions acquired new historical identities and forms of legitimation during periods of socio-political transformation in Kerala.
Situating these developments within the broader South Indian religious landscape, the study argues that the adoption of Śaṅkara affiliation and networked monastic organization in Kerala was likely influenced by already established South Indian monastic systems. The paper proposes that Keralan Advaita monasticism represents a case of local religious institutions becoming integrated into transregional monastic circuits through processes of adaptation and selective institutional borrowing, while remaining deeply rooted in the social and ritual context of Kerala.