Guru Karunamaya
Guru Karunamaya is an Indian spiritual guru, and religious reformer. He was born as Kompella Subba Rao and was given the Deekshanama 'Guru Karunamaya' by his spiritual teacher Sri Amrithananda Natha Saraswathi of Devipuram. Life. Karunamaya was born in a traditional family in Chennai, Tamil Nadu in 1953. He is an engineering graduate from University of Madras. He lived in New Zealand and the United States for a decade before moving to India. Sri Amritananda Natha Saraswati desired to make Karunamaya as Peetadhipathi (chief pontiff) of Devipuram. “Guruji announced that he was handing Devipuram’s leadership over to  a new peetadhipathi. His choice of successor seemed a logical one as well: Mr. Subbarao Kompella, also known by his initiatory name, Sri Karunamaya Baba, and later as Chinna Guruji (“Little Guruji”), was a distant relative and early disciple, having taken initiation in 1978 when Guruji was still living in Bombay and working at TIFR. A knowledgeable ritualist, Subbarao’s particular strength lay in organizing and presiding over large-scale, participatory ritual events—which also seemed to fit Guruji’s paradigm of empowering as many people as possible to learn Sri Vidya pujas and other teachings.” - Quote from ""The Goddess  and the Guru: A Spiritual Biography of Sri Amritananda Natha Saraswati" by Michael M. Bowden, chapter - 26 Precisely What I Wanted". With divine guidance and blessings from his guru, Karunamaya moved out from Devipuram to establish Soundarya Lahari Trust to unclutter and spread the esoteric teachings of divine mother and share the secret's of Shri Vidya to one and all in simple and traditional approach. Tradition. Guru Karunamaya teaches Shri Vidya as per Vedic Kaula tradition (also known as Kaulācāra, Kulamārga) as laid down in the Parasurama Kalpasutra, one of the most authentic texts in Shri Vidya. Parasurama, the  fifth avatar of Lord Vishnu was a disciple of Guru Dattatreya. Parashurama is said to be the author of the Kalpasutra, a text on the worship of the Mother Goddess Lalitha Tripura Sundari worshiped in the Shri Yantra (also called Shri Chakra). The term ‘kalpa’ denotes a manual laying down rules governing religious rites. Parasurama Kalpasutra has its origins in the Dattatreya Samhita which consisted of ten thousand suktas. It is said that Guru Dattatreya instructed Parasurama to condens the Samhita into six thousand suktas in fifty parts. The present work consists of 84 sutras arranged in 10 parts and  is compiled by Sumedha, a disciple of Parashurama. Organization. Karunamaya is the founder of Sri Vidya Peetham and Soundarya Lahari Trust, established for promoting Shri Vidya as per Vedic tradition as described in Parasurama Kalpasutra. He teaches and initiates people into the Secret Doctrine of Shri Vidya to anyone who wishes to learn. Shri Vidya is traditionally prohibited and is only taught to a section of people in Hinduism. Karunamaya says, 'Divine mother's grace is open to anyone who seeks her honestly.' Guru Karunamaya is also the author Sri Vidya Ganapathi Sadhana book. Guru Karunamaya especially encourages women to  learn and share the knowledge of divine mother irrespective of caste, creed, and nationality. He delivered a series of talks on Sri Sankara TV on Devi Khadgamala revealing the inner meaning of Shri Yantra (also known as Sri Chakra). SVBC TV (Sri Venkateswara Bhakthi Channel) managed by Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam has telecasted Karunamaya's talks on Mantra Mahima (the power of mantras). Under guidance of Karunamaya, his disciples drew the world's largest Sri Chakra, measuring 67,400 sq ft in Cranbury, New Jersey. 108 points were chosen to conduct Vedic Homa (ritual) (fire rituals) simultaneously.