Hyderabad: The shishya sweekara ceremonies to annoint Vedic scholar Kuppa Venkateswara Prasada Sharma as the successor to the pontiff of the Sringeri Sharada Peetham will take place on January 22 and 23 at Sringeri.

The Jagadguru will initiate Sharma, a brahmachari, into sanyasa on January 23. Born to Mr Kuppa Shiva Subrahmanya Avadhani and Ms Sita Nagalakshmi on July 24, 1993, at Tirupati, Sharma lived at Sainikpuri in Secunde-rabad and later shifted to AS Rao Nagar.

He studied up to Class 2 at Bhavan’s School in Sainikpuri in Secunderabad before taking up Vedic studies under the tutelage of his father, grandfather Kuppa Ramagopala Vajpeyayaji and grandmother Kalpakamba till he joined the Sringeri mutt in 2009.

“He studied the Vedas under me and his grandfather after dropping out,” Mr Avadhani said. Mr Avadhani has two sons, the eldest, Mr Venkata Kondiniya, is an engineer with RIL Mumbai.

Asked if his son Sharma had chosen Vedas over other studies, he remarked, “It’s God's wish. It has happened.”

The present 36th Jagadguru Shankar-acharya Sri Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamiji took over as the head pontiff of the Sharada Peetham 25 years ago. Sharma will take over the mantle after him.