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The boy born on 14th March 1884 in Tirunelveli, Tamilnadu, was exceptionally brilliant since child hood. In 1899 he passed matriculation and got title: Sarasvathti for his authority in Sanskrit from Madras Sanskrit Association. Venkataraman joined the National College in Trichinopoly. After this, he moved to the Church Missionary Society College and eventually the Hindu College, both in Tirunelveli.
Venkataraman passed the B.A. examination in 1902. He then appeared for the M.A. examination for the American College of Sciences in Rochester, New York from the Bombay centre in 1903. He also contributed to W. T. Stead's Review of Reviews on diverse topics in religion and science. During his college days, he also wrote extensively on history, sociology, philosophy, politics, and literature.
Venkataraman worked under Gopal Krishna Gokhale in 1905 for the National Education Movement and the South African Indian problems. However, his inclination towards Hindu studies led him to study the ancient Indian holy scripture Adhyātma-Vidyā. In 1908, he joined the Sringeri Matha in Mysore to study under Swami Satchidananda Sivabhinava Nrisimha Bharati. the Sankaracarya of Sringeri. However, his spiritual practice was interrupted when he was pressured by nationalist leaders to head the newly-started National College at Rajamahendri. Prof. Venkataraman Shastri taught at the college for three years. But in 1911, he suddenly left the college to go back to Sringeri Math
Returning to Sringeri, Venkataraman spent the next eight years studying Advaita Vedanta and Sastra (scripture) under Jagadguru Sankaracarya Satcitananda Sivabhinava Nrisimha Bharati.
During those years, the Jagadguru initiated Venkatraman into yogic practices. Venkataraman also practiced meditation, Brahma-sadhana and Yoga-sādhāna, in the nearby forests. He is said to have attained self-realization during his years at Sringeri Math. He would leave society and practice meditation in seclusion for many days. During those eight years, he also taught Sanskrit and philosophy at local schools and ashrams. He delivered a series of sixteen lectures on Adi Shankara's philosophy at Shankar Institute of Philosophy, Amalner (Khandesh). During that time, he also lectured as a guest professor at institutions in Mumbai, Pune and Khandesh
After Venkataraman's eight-year practice and study of Vedanta, he was initiated into sannyasa, in the Tirtha sub-order of the Dashanami Sampradaya, in Varanasi by Jagadguru Shankaracharya Swami Trivikrama Tirtha of Dwarka Sharada Peetham in Dwarka on July 4, 1919, receiving the name "Swami Bharatikrishna Tirtha".
The Sankaracarya of Govardhana matha, Swami Madhusudhana Tirtha, was in failing health and was greatly impressed with Bharatikrishna. Madhusudana requested Bharatikrishna to succeed him at Govardhana Matha. Bharatikrishna declined the offer. In 1925, however, Madhusudhana's health worsened and Bharatikrishna was compelled to accept the Govardhana gaddi (chair). In 1925.
In 1921, Bharatikrishna was one of the seven arrested in what became known as the "Karachi case". Mohammad Ali Jouhar, Shaukat Ali, Saifuddin Kitchlew, Maulana Hussain Ahmed, Pir Ghulam Mujaddid, Maulana Nisar Ahmed, and Bharatikrishna were charged with preaching in favor of a fatwa issued by the Muslim religious heads of India advocating all Muslims to not cooperate with the government. While the Shankaracharya was eventually acquitted, the others were sentenced to two years’ imprisonment.
As Sankaracarya of Govardhana Matha, Bharatikrishna toured several countries in thirty-five years to promote Dharma and Indian culture.[8] He wrote a number of treatises and books on religion, science, mathematics, world peace, and social issues. In 1953, at Nagpur, he founded the Sri Vishwa Punarnirmana Sangha (World Reconstruction Association). The administrative board initially consisted of Bharatikrishna's disciples and supporters, then later included distinguished personalities.
In February 1958, Bharatikrishna went to Britain and the United States to speak on Vedanta, staying for three months in Los Angeles, California. This was the first trip outside India by a Sankaracarya. The tour was sponsored by the Self-Realization Fellowship, the yoga society founded by Paramahansa Yogananda. At that time, Albert Rudolph, or "Rudi", reportedly became one of Bharatikrishna's students.
Bharatikrishna also attended various national and international conferences on yoga and on religion. He served as Sankaracarya of Govardhana Matha until his death in 1960.
In 1965, a Chair of Vedic Studies was founded at Banaras Hindu University by Arvind N. Mafatlal, a generous Mumbai business magnate and devotee of Bharatikrishna.
Vedic Mathematics is a very revolutionary and marvellous book. It presents an entirely different perspective and refreshing approach to solutions of problems with the help of 16 sutras and 13 upasutras.
The book was published by Banaras Hindu University, in 1965.The book has in total 40 chapters of which 16 are related to arithmetic,19 chapters pertain to algebra, three to geometry and one each on Vedic numerical code and application of sutras in different fields and sections of Mathematics
Feb 2nd is the remembrance day of the Nationalist mathematician and Author of Vedic Mathematician : Swami Bharti Krishna Theerthaji.