Shankarāshram was the son of Krishnayya Kulkarni of the Shukla Bhat family before he was chosen as the shishya of Swami Parijñānāshram, the first Mathādhipati and guru of the Sāraswats.
[6] At the time of Swami Shankarāshram ordination as the new Mathādhipati, his devotees gave a solemn promise in writing, that they would be faithful to him and would always follow his religious observances.
In 1739, Bāsappa Nayak II of Nagar made land grants to the Math by a gift deed.
[1] Swami Shankarāshram was able to persuade several people from stopping their Vaishnavite customs and converted them to the Advaita Shaivism practised by the community.
Every morning after finishing his pooja (prayers and offerings to the Lord), he would stand on the streets and try to find a hungry beggar.
With great reverence he led Swamiji to his house and fed him a simple meal that his wife had prepared.
So when the Brahmin next met Swami Shankarāshram, with teary eyes he fell at Swamiji's feet and thanked him for having fulfilled his ultimate desire.
He graciously accepted their bhikshā (meal) and a meagre amount of four Annās[9]kānika (monetary offering).
Within a few days after Swamiji's visit, the artist received a huge assignment from a wealthy family for a portrait.
The patron was very pleased by the work and rewarded the artist handsomely with a princely sum of Rupees One Thousand.
Swamiji accepted a small portion of the money and gave back the rest and asked him to pursue his work with full devotion.
On the way back, at the village of Shirali, the devotees pleaded to Swamiji to stay there for sometime and to bless the people with his presence.
[1] During his stay at Shirāli as the honoured guest of the Nāgarkattē family, Swami Shakarāshram's health failed rapidly.
To the dismay of his devotees, his health took a turn for the worse and Swamiji became terminally ill. "My children, the grace of Lord Bhavānishankara will always protect you.