THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Swami Prakashananda, former chief of the Sivagiri Sree Narayana Dharma Saghom Trust, passed away on Wednesday.
The 99-year-old was being treated for age-related ailments at the Sree Narayana Mission Hospital at Varkala.
Swami Prakashananda became the general secretary of the trust in 1970 and 1977. Later, he served as its president during 1995-97 and for ten years since 2006.
Born in 1922, Prakashananda joined the Sivagiri monastery at the age of twenty-two. He joined as the shishya of Swami Sankarananda. He received deeksha at the age of 35.
Prakashananda's tenure at the helm of the organisation was noted for several initiatives to propagate the life and message of Sree Narayana Guru. The platinum jubilee celebration of Sivagiri Pilgrimage and centenary of Guru's "Daiva Dasakam" was held during the period. It also saw the establishment of the Sivagiri Brahma Vidyalayam.
Swami's samadhi rituals will be conducted at the mutt at 5 pm on Wednesday. He was born at the Kalatharadi House at Piravanthoor.