Sri Sringeshwar Bhat (34)

Sri Sringeshwar Bhat joined the foundation in November 2006 with the blessings of his holiness. He is Rg Veda priest. He too has undergone extensive training in the Sri Sringeri Pathashala and is extremely knowledgeable in the conduct of our pujas, homas and samskaras. It is captivating to hear him chant and watch him perform the pujas. Sri Sringeshwara has a high school diploma, has passed the Sahitya examination conducted by the government of Karnataka, is skilled in the fine art of Rangoli decoration and is a good cook. He is fluent in Kannada; can get by in Tamil and English. He is married to Sow. Shubha and has a son, Chi. Shashanka and daughter Sow. Sharada Shriya.

Sri Shiv Shankar (47)

Sri Shiv Shankar is the third priest to be appointed to the foundation. He joined in April 2008 with the blessings of His Holiness. Sri Shiv Shankar holds a B.Com. degree in addition to having religious training. Sri Shiv Shankar is very knowledgeable about food preparation for Naivedyam. His preparations are delectable! He has nearly 30 years experience working in Sringeri institutions which he puts to good use as a custodian of the Stroudsburg temple complex in addition to his regular duties. He is fluent in Kannada, English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. Sri Shiv Shankar lives with this wife Sow. Chandrika and has a daughter, Sow. Kavyashree.

Sri Shyamasundara (25)

Sri Shamasundara was chosen as a ritwik by His Holiness for the Kumbhabhishekam of the Sri Sharadamba - Chandramouleeswara temple in July 2008. Subsequently he was retained as a resident priest. He was a student at the Sadvidya Sanjeevini Samskruta Mahapathashala in Sringeri where he studied Samskruta Sahitya, Rg Veda and Prayoga. He is well versed in the conduct of Vaidika rituals. He is exceptionally fluent in Sanskrit both spoken and written. He speaks Kannada, Tamil and Telugu besides Sanskrit. His artistic skills in doing Alankara (decoration) of the deities is unique. He is married to Sow. Veena. He can also talk and converse in Hindi.

Sri Chandramouli (28)

Sri Chandramouli was also chosen as a ritwik by His Holiness for the Kumbhabhishekam of the Sri Sharadamba - Chandramouleeswara temple in July 2008. Subsequently he was retained as a resident priest. He was a student at the Sadvidya Sanjeevini Samskruta Mahapathashala in Sringeri where he studied Rg Veda and Prayoga. He is well versed in the conduct of Vaidika rituals. He has been a priest since 2002 in Bangalore before joining us in 2008. Sri Chandramouli speaks Kannada and has familiarity with Tamil and Telugu. He too is a bachelor priest.

All the temple priests are housed in our priest's quarters along with their families. All the priests are available for private functions either at the temple or at devotee's homes. If priest's services are engaged at the devotee's home, the devotee is responsible for the priest's transportation and sambhavana.

Sri Balusamy Kumar (30)

Sri Balusamy Kumar is the resident shilpi (religious artisan) of our temple complex. He was one of several artisans flown in from India for the temple construction with special emphasis on the detailed carving of temple reliefs. Shilpis are knowledgeable about agamas relating to temple construction. Sri Kumar is responsible for maintenance and upgrades of the temple exterior. He is married with two children; all living in Tamilnadu, India.