ADI SHANKARA AND HASTAMALAKA
:HASTAMALAKA STOTRAM

Once Adi Shankara was passing through a village Sri Bali (Shivalli, near Udupi). The village had a pious Brahmin named Prabhakara whose 13 year old son never spoke a word.

Adi Shankara saw the child sitting outside his house.

“Tell me, who are you?” questioned Adi Shankara. The boy composed 12 Sanskrit verses summarizing the teachings of Vedanta on the nature of 'SELF', thus answering Adi Shankara's question. These verses came to be known as Hastamalaka Stotram.
@DetheEsha @onlyonenetra

Adi Shankara took him as his disciple. He got the name Hastamalaka ie. one who has the knowledge of the Brahman comfortably like a fruit in his palm (Hasta means palm and Amalak is gooseberry).
When Adi Shankara established 4 Mathas, Hastamalaka became the head of Dwarka Muth.

Later, Adi Shankar revealed the story of Hastamalaka. Once, a sadhu was meditating on the banks of Yamuna when some Brahmin women came. One woman left her 2 year old son near the Sadhu asking him to take care of the child till she came back after bathing.

The baby crawled into the river n was drowned. The Sadhu was oblivious of this. When he awoke from samadhi, he was moved by pity for the grieving mother. By yogic power, he left his body and entered the child’s body. The dead child sprang into life. That child was Hastamalaka.