They are often referred to under the general name of
Sankaracharya. Consequently, any reference made to any one of these
Mathadhipatis is apt to be mistaken for a reference to the first
Sankaracharya himself.
Mr. Barth, whose opinion regarding Sankara's date is quoted by "An
English F.T.S." against the date assigned to that teacher in Mr.
Sinnett's book on Esoteric Buddhism, does not appear to have carefully
examined the subject himself. He assigns no reasons for the date given,
and does not even allude to the existence of other authorities and
traditions which conflict with the date adopted by him. The date which
he assigns to Sankara appears in an unimportant foot-note on page 89 of
his book on "The Religions of India," which reads thus: "Sankaracharya
is generally placed in the eighth century; perhaps we must accept the
ninth rather. The best accredited tradition represents him as born on
the 10th of the month 'Madhava' in 788 A.D. Other traditions, it is
true, place him in the second and fifth centuries. The author of the
Dabistan, on the other hand, brings him as far down as the commencement
of the fourteenth.
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