Suyateendra Tirtha Swami, head of the Sri Guru Raghavendra Math at Mantralayam in Andhra Pradesh, appointed the Diwan of the math, Pavamanacharya as his successor at Hosaritti, about 50 km from Haveri, on Saturday.

Pavamanacharya will now be called Subudendra Tirtha Swami.

At a grand religious ceremony organised at Dheerendra Tirtha Swami’s Brindavan on the banks of the Tungabhadra at Hosaritti, Suyateendra Tirtha Swami performed all the rituals connected with the appointment of his successor.

As per tradition, daily worshipping of Lord Rama is a must, and only the chief seer has to do that. As he is not keeping well, Suyateendra Tirtha Swami was not only concerned about the continuation of the puja, but was also finding it difficult to handle the management of math. It is learnt that he chose Hosaritti for the ceremony and not Mantralayam to avoid a possible clash as there were many aspirants for the post at the main math.

After taking charge as the chief seer, Subudendra Tirtha Swami paid his first visit to the Math at Bakatpura, Hyderabad on Saturday. The crowds clamored to get a glimpse of the new Swamiji. Here, he first paid obeisance to Sri Guru Raghavendra Swami with an aarthi after which the crowd proceeded to the auditorium for a night of song and devotion.