MEANINGS OF TITLES OF SWAMIS:

Adi Sankara in his work Matha Aamnaya explains the meanings of the ten titles - Dasanami orders:

1. Saraswati: One who is greatly learned and adept in yoga, and has proficiency in the Vedas. He specialises in music and propagates jnana of the fine arts.

2. Puri: One who is full of knowledge of Brahman. One with perfect (sampoorna) spiritual prowess. He is duty bound to be completely engaged in jnana and does not mingle with the external world.
3. Giri: One who is steadfast like a mountain. He lives on the lofty peaks in seclusion away from the people. He internalises his sadhana for universal good.
4. Bharati: Carrying the treasure trove of learning, he forsakes all worldly burdens. He transcends worldly sorrows and is duty bound to propagate all vidyas and jnana.
5. Aranya: One who lives in a forest completely detached from mundane affairs, yet experiencing bliss of living in a mystical garden. He is duty bound to spread the Supreme happiness of merging with the Divine.
6. Ashrama: A monk living in a hermitage. He has cast away the bonds of kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mada and matsarya. He is duty bound to propagate conquest of desires and worldly attractions.
7. Parvata: One who resides at the foothill of the mountains in samadhi state, and has realisation of the exalted ideals with knowledge of the transient nature of the world.
8. Sagara: One who has dived into the depths of the ocean of knowledge and collected the gems of Truth. He goes in-depth into philosophical matters and his duty is to spread this knowledge of wisdom.
9. Vana: One who has transcended all the snares and desires. Unshackled from the worldly ties he lives quietly int he interiors of deep forests, in seclusion.
10. Tirtha: One who bathes in the confluence of the three rivers of knowledge and seeks realisation of Truth through maha vakyas, with the constant aim of unravelling their hidden meaning.

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