Thiruvananthapuram | Eminent philosopher, spiritual leader Muni Narayana Prasad, who headed the famed Narayana Gurukula, passed away early Saturday, sources said. He was 87.

He breathed his last while undergoing treatment for a brief ailment at a private medical college hospital in Venjaramoodu here, said sources at Narayana Gurukula, a Varkala-based philosophical and educational organisation inspired by the teachings of saint-social reformer Narayana Guru.

A recipient of the Padma Shri in 2024 and Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for his contributions to literature and philosophy, Prasad was an engineering graduate before choosing the spiritual path.

He worked in the state government service before joining as an inmate in Gurukula, founded by Sree Narayana Guru's disciple Nataraja Guru in 1923.

Prasad later became the head of Gurukula following the demise of its then chief and prominent philosopher Nitya Chaitanya Yati.

An eminent scholar and a prolific writer, he wrote several books on various streams, especially on philosophy and spirituality.

People from various walks of life condoled Muni Narayana Prasad's demise.