At age eight, while bathing in the river, young Shankara was seized by a crocodile. In this life-threatening moment, he called to his mother, asking permission to become a sannyasin (renunciate) so he could die in the holy order. Aryamba, desperate to save her son, agreed. The crocodile immediately released him—whether miracle or pedagogical theater, the story captures how dramatically Shankara entered spiritual life. Despite taking vows of renunciation, he made his mother a promise that would later create controversy: he would return to perform her last rites, something technically forbidden for sannyasins.