Sadhu Kochoonju Upadesi

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Muthampakkal "Sadhu" Kochkunju Upadesi
Born	M. I. Varghese 1883 (1883) Edayaranmula. near Aranmula, Travancore
Died	30 November 1945(1945-11-30) (aged 61–62)
Resting place	Laka St Thom Marthoma Church, Edayaranmula
Nationality	Indian
Other names	Kochukunju, Kochoonju
Occupation	Missionary
Known for	Christian poet, composer
Spouse	Aleyama
Parent(s)	Itty and Mariamma

Sadhu Kochkunju Upadesi (born Muthampackal Itty Varughese) (1883 – 30 November 1945) was a famous Malayali Christian preacher, poet and composer. Kochoonju was a very distinctive person in appearance. He always wore a white shirt and white dothi. He was about 175 cm tall and had very thin and frail body. His eyes appeared to be piercing and his forehead was frowned as if brooding yet with a childlike impression. He always carried an umbrella and his Bible wherever he went. His saintly life, self-control, self-denial, and commitment towards social issues made him a unique person. He liked to spend time alone with Bible, to him the Bible was not a book to be read but an instruction book which should be followed in day-to-day life. Much of his time he spent in reading.^[1]

During his lifetime he was known as Kochoonju which was a contraction of the two Malayalam words Kochu and Kunju. Malayalam equivalent of a preacher is Upadesi. During his missionary work in Tamil Nadu, India, they called him Sadhu meaning, holy man. Thus he came to be known as Sadhu Kochkunju Upadesi.