Brahmaśrī K P Shankara śāstrī was born in the divine city of Kaladi in Kerala. His elder brother Mahāmahōpādhyāya Srī Nārāyaṇa śāstrī was a scholar par excellence and a great śrīvidyā upāsaka. He spent his last few days in the holy city of Kāśī. He was a great devotee of Paramēśvara. It is said that when he passed away, a Bāṇaliṅga was found materialized on his body. Coming from a family of such stalwarts, Srī Shankara śāstrī studied Veda, Vēdānta, Mīmāmsā, Tarka and other branches of learning from the masters in the respective fields.
Srī Shankara śāstrī was the foremost disciple of Mahāmahōpādhyāya Srī Hanagal Virūpākṣa śaStrī under who he learnt and mastered Tarka. Under the guidance of his Guru, he received upadēśa in śrīvidyā, Pañcākṣarī, and Nr̥simha mantras from the great Jīvanmukta, Srī Chandraśēkhara Bhāratī of Sringeri Shāradā Pīṭha. He received Pādukānta dīkṣā from his Guru Mahāmahōpādhyāya Srī Hanagal Virūpākṣa śaStrī, who himself had been personally trained and initiated by Srī Saccidānanda Shivābhinava Nr̥simha Bhāratī of Sringeri. The unbroken stream of instruction in śrīvidyā thus passed on from Srī Saccidānanda Shivābhinava Nr̥simha Bhāratī to Srī Shankara śāstrī through Mahāmahōpādhyāya Srī Hanagal Virūpākṣa śaStrī and Srī Chandraśēkhara Bhāratī.
Later, Mahāmahōpādhyāya Srī Hanagal Virūpākṣa śaStrī asumed sannyāsa from the Kudali maṭha pontiff Srī Vālukēśvara Bhāratī with the title, Srī Vidyābhinava Vālukēśvara Bhāratī. Srī Shankara śāstrī received guidance from Srī Vālukēśvara Bhāratī in śrīvidyā upāsanā, mantra śāstra and Vēdānta. He was also initated into several mahāmantras by various luminaries including AvadhūtaSrī Srīdhara svāmī of Varadapura, who graced him with the mahāmantra of Dattātrēya.
The disciples of Srī Shankara śāstrī are numerous as the stars in the sky. He has not only taught and guided an innumerable number of Gr̥hastha upāsakas, but also the Pīṭhādhipatis of various monasteries. Most pīṭhādhipatis of Shāṅkara sampradāya in Karnakata, Maharashtra, Kashi, etc. have received instruction from him in śrīvidyā, Tarka, and Vēdānta. For most aspects related to śrīvidyā, Srī Abhinava Vidyā Tīrtha and Srī Bhāratī Tīrtha held him as the final word and redirected sincere sādhakas to him for guidance. He was the āsthānavidvān of both Sringeri and Kanchi Kamakoti pīṭhas. His written works include Varivasyārahasya bhāṣya, Tripurā Mahimna stotra bhāṣya, ṣōḍaśa samskāra vidhi, etc. He has also composed various hymns on Srī Rājarājēśvarī. Most maṭhas affiliated to Sringeri Shāradā pīṭham follow his guidelines for Navāvaraṇa pūjā (which strictly follows the procedure during the time of Srī Saccidānanda Shivābhinava Nr̥simha Bhāratī, which has currently been simplified, watered down and modified in Sringeri).
The honors and rewards that have come his way are many. He has received a gold medal from the president of India, Sri Shankar Dayal Sharma. He has also received top honors from the late Maharaja of Mysore. He has served as the Principal of Sanskrit College in Kaladi and as a professor in other reputed institutions across the country.
A few words regarding the śrīvidyā sampradāya of Sringeri would be quite relevant here. It is held that Adi Shaṅkarācārya instructed all the four āmnaya pīṭhas to worship Mahātripurasundarī in śrīcakra, along with the worship of Chandramaulīśvara liṅga. This practice continues to the present day without interruption. It was already mentioned that the ācāryas of Sringeri were great śrīvidyā upāsakaS. Srī Vidyāraṇya, who is held to be the author of the great encyclopedia Srīvidyārṇava Tantra (although this claim is contested), was a Shaṅkarācārya of the illustrious Sringeri pīṭha. However, a special person deserves mention here. Srī Satyānandanātha was a great jīvanmukta and Siddha born in the āndhradēśa. Nothing much is known about his parents, year of birth, or even his age. He is said to have been initiated by an avadhūta Srī Paramānandanātha. His name is alternately recorded as Prakāśānandanātha by a few other elders from the Sringeri sampradāya. Though belonging to Dakśiṇāmūrti sampradāya of śrīvidyā, he had the sākṣātkāra of Dattātrēya and had tremendous mantra-siddhi. He was immersed in eternal bliss in a cave and appeared in Sringeri one fine day after receiving a Yogic invitation from Srī Saccidānanda Shivābhinava Nr̥simha Bhāratī. As per his instructions, Srī Satyānandanātha instructed and trained a few select scholars of Sringeri, including Srī Virūpākṣa śāStrī in śrīvidyā. Senior upāsakas of this lineage are still present in Benaras, Bengal, Chennai, and Andhra. His chief disciple was Jñānānandanātha. Srī Satyānandanātha was more or less a contemporary saint of Srī Guhānandanātha. Sri Narayana Bharati (Brahmaśrī Chidānandanātha’s late grandson) once mentioned that probably they were sahaśiṣyas. I am fortunate to have a śrīcakra Mahāmēru with me (given by Dr. C P Ramaswamy Iyer’s family which) that is said to have been worshipped by Satyānandanātha for many years and later by Srī Saccidānanda Shivābhinava Nr̥simha Bhāratī Himself. This Mahāmēru handed to him by his own Guru is ancient and the presence of Paramēśvarī in it is undeniable due to the power exuded by it.
सद्गुरुचरणारविन्दार्पणमस्तु ||