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Hagiography

Vallabhacharya Mahaprabhu, also known as Vallabha, Mahaprabhuji, and Vishnuswami, was a revered Hindu saint and philosopher who lived from 1479 to 1531 CE. He is known for establishing the Krishna-centered PushtiMarg sect of Vaishnavism in the Braj(Vraj) region of India, as well as for developing the Vedanta philosophy of Shuddha advaita (Pure Non-dualism).

Vallabhacharya was born into a Telugu Tailang Brahmin family in Varanasi during the late 15th century. However, his family had to flee to Champaran of Chhattisgarh state due to the fear of a Muslim invasion. The name Vallabha, which means the beloved or lover, is derived from the names of Vishnu and Krishna.

As a child, Vallabhacharya studied the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, and Shat Darshan. He then embarked on a journey throughout the Indian subcontinent for over 20 years, during which he became one of the important leaders of the devotional Bhakti movement.

Vallabhacharya&#39;s mother, Illamma, was the daughter of a family priest serving the rulers of the empire of Vijayanagara. Biographies written by his followers claim that he engaged in numerous philosophical and scholarly debates with the followers of Adi Shankaracharya, Ramanuja, Madhvacharya, and others, and emerged victorious in most of them. He was also said to have had visions and performed miracles, which added to his spiritual stature.

Overall, Vallabhacharya&#39;s life and teachings continue to inspire many, and he is remembered as a great saint and philosopher in the Hindu tradition.

Vallabhacharya&#39;s teachings emphasized the path of loving devotion to God Krishna as the means to achieve salvation. He believed that this path was accessible to anyone, regardless of their social or economic status, and rejected the idea of asceticism and monastic life.

His teachings had a significant impact throughout India and are evidenced by the existence of Vallabh Digvijay, Sampraday Pradep, Sampraday Kalpadrum, and his 84 Baithakjis (places of worship) located in various parts of the country, including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Uttaranchal, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Goa, and other regions.

Vallabhacharya is associated with the Vishnuswami Sampraday and is considered the prominent Jagadguru Acharya of Rudra Sampradaya among the four traditional Vaishnava Sampradayas. His teachings continue to influence the devotional Bhakti movement in India and beyond.

Vallabhacharya was a prolific author who wrote several texts, including his famous commentary on Brahma Sutra called Anubhashya, and Shodash Granth, a collection of sixteen &#39;stotras&#39; or devotional tracts. He also wrote commentaries on the Bhagavata Purana.

His writings and compositions focus on the divine plays and pranks of baby Krishna with his mother Yashoda, as well as the youthful Krishna&#39;s protection of the good and his victory over demons and evils. These works are rich in allegory and symbolism, highlighting the significance of divine grace and unconditional love.

Vallabhacharya&#39;s legacy is best preserved through the acharyas of his Pushtimarg Vallabh Sampraday, particularly in the Braj region, and at the Nathdwara and Dwarkadhish temples in the Mewar region of India, which are important pilgrimage centers for devotees of Krishna.

According to some beliefs, Vallabhacharya is considered to be an incarnation of Agni, specifically the Vaishwanar Agni Swaroop of Shri Krishna&#39;s face.

Vallabhacharya, the founder of the Pushtimarg or Shuddhadvaita philosophy, was born in 1479 CE (V.S. 1535) to Shri Lakshmana Bhatta and his wife IllammaGaru in Champaranya, now in Chhattisgarh. The family belonged to the Vishnu Swami school of thought and were Somyagya Performing Telugu Vaidiki Brahmins known as Velanadu or Vellanatiya. According to devotional accounts, Krishna had promised Vallabhacharya&#39;s ancestor, Yagnanarayana Bhatta, that he would be born in their family after they had completed 100 Somayagnas (fire sacrifices).

During Vallabhacharya&#39;s birth, the region was facing religious persecution and conversion due to Muslim invasions, and his family had to flee Varanasi while his mother was pregnant. She gave birth prematurely, and as the child did not show signs of life, the parents wrapped him in cloth and left him under a tree. However, Krishna appeared in a dream to Vallabhacharya&#39;s parents, informing them that he had taken birth as the child they had left under the tree, and the child was miraculously alive and protected by a circle of divine fire. The parents rushed to the spot and found their baby unharmed, and the mother was able to extend her arms into the fire to receive the divine baby. The child was named Vallabha, meaning &quot;the dear one&quot; in Sanskrit.

The circumstances of Vallabhacharya&#39;s birth were tumultuous, but he went on to become an influential philosopher and teacher, founding the Pushtimarg tradition which emphasizes the devotion and grace of Lord Krishna.

Vallabhacharya began his education at the age of seven with the study of the four Vedas, Upnishads, Puranas, and Shat Darshan. He was a quick learner and soon acquired mastery over the books expounding the six systems of Indian philosophy. He also studied and learned philosophical systems of Adi Sankara, Ramanuja, Madhva, Nimbarka, as well as the Buddhist, Jain, and Cārvāka schools. He possessed an exceptional ability to recite a hundred mantras not only from beginning to end but also in reverse order. Vallabhacharya&#39;s knowledge made a strong impression on the public, and he was hailed as Bala Saraswati at Vyankateshwar and Lakshmana Balaji.

At the young age of 11, Vallabhacharya completed his education, and he then went to Vrindavan.

When Vallabhacharya was just 11 years old and already known as Bala Saraswati, a debate was held at Vijayanagara between the followers of Madhvacharya and Adi Shankracharya on the dualistic or non-dualistic nature of God. Vallabhacharya was given the opportunity to participate and after 27 days of scholarly discussion, he emerged as the winner. Emperor Krishnadevaraya and other learned pandits honored him with the kanakabhishekam ceremony, and conferred upon him the titles of &#39;Acharya&#39; and &#39;Jagadguru&#39; (world preceptor).

Although he was offered vessels of gold weighing a hundred maunds, Vallabhacharya politely declined to accept them and instead distributed them among poor learned brahmins, keeping only seven gold mohurs to prepare the ornaments of Vithoba (Vitthalanatha) in Pandharpur. This grand victory at Vijayanagara was a significant moment in Vallabhacharya&#39;s life, solidifying his reputation as a knowledgeable scholar and teacher.

Vallabhacharya embarked on three barefoot pilgrimages (Digvijay Yatra) of India, which are referred to as Prithvi Parikrama or Vallabh Digvijay in Pushtimarg Literature.

During these pilgrimages, he donned a simple white dhoti and a white upper garment cloth known as Upavarna, and did not use any footwear. He delivered discourses on Bhagavata at 84 different locations, elucidating the meanings of the Puranic text. These 84 places are now revered as Chaurāsi Baithak and are popular pilgrimage sites. Vallabhacharya spent four months each year in Vraja. [1][16][19

Vallabhacharya embarked on three barefoot pilgrimages of India, known as Digvijay Yatra or Prithvi Parikrama in Pushtimarg Literature.

During these pilgrimages, he wore a simple white dhoti and an Upparna, a white upper garment cloth (known as Upavarna in Sanskrit), and did not use any footwear. He delivered discourses on the Bhagavata at 84 places, explaining the meanings of the Puranic text. These 84 places are now known as Chaurāsi Baithak (चौरासी बैठक) and have become places of pilgrimage. He spent four months of each year in Vraja.

Vallabhacharya Mahaprabhu&#39;s encounter with Shrinathji at Mount Govardhan led to the establishment of Pushtimarg Vallabh Sampraday. According to legend, when Vallabhacharya entered Gokul, he was concerned about restoring people to the right path of devotion. He meditated on Krishna, who then appeared in the form of Shrinathji and revealed the Brahma Sambandha mantra to him, a mantra of self-dedication to Krishna.

Vallabhacharya wanted to spread his message of devotion to God and grace, which he called Pushtimarg, and he undertook three pilgrimages of India, conferring the Brahma Sambandha mantra to many people. Thousands of people became his disciples, and he created the Siddhant Rahashya granth, which contained word-to-word instructions he received regarding Brahma Sambandh. He also met with Vyas in his Himalayan cave to discuss Krishna and his flute.

One of his disciples, Damodardasa, became the first Vaishnava initiated by Vallabhacharya after he related his experience with Shrinathji and explained the meaning of the mantra to him. The initiation ceremony involved conferring on the devotee the Nama Nivedana mantra or the Brahma Sambandha mantra.

While thousands of people became his disciples, 84 devoted servants are particularly famous, and their lives have been documented in Pushtimarg literature as the &quot;Story of 84 Vaishnavas.&quot;

Vallabhacharya had intended to remain a lifelong celibate brahmachary, but his deity-guru Vithoba of Pandharpur commanded him to marry and live the life of a householder. Following this command and his caste traditions, Vallabh married Mahalaxmi, a kashi resident girl of his own Tailang Velanadu Brahmin caste and had two sons, Gopinathji and Vitthalnathji (also known as Gusainji).

At the age of 52, Vallabhacharya is said to have returned to Goloka, the heavenly abode of Param Brahma Shri Krishna, via samadhi in the Ganga river in Hanuman Ghat of Kashi. According to Pushti Marg literature, Shrinathji had commanded Vallabhacharya to leave the worldly life and come near him. After Vallabhacharya received this command for the third time, he reached Kasi and formally renounced the world by taking Tridand Vaishnav Sanyasa and a vow of silence. He lived in a hut made of leaves on the Hanuman Ghat for about a week and spent his last days in contemplation of Krishna.

His sons, Gopinathji and Vithalnathji Gusaiji, along with Shri Vallabh&#39;s all devotees, followers, and admirers, assembled near him for his last darshan. When asked about his advice, Vallabhacharya scribbled three and a half Sanskrit verses in the sand by way of counsel. To complete this message, it is believed that Krishna Himself manifested visually on the spot and wrote in the form of a verse and a half. This collection of verses is known as &lsquo;ShikshaSloki&rsquo; in Pushti Marg literature.

Later, on the day of Rath Yatra, Vallabhacharya entered the waters of the Ganges, and people are said to have witnessed a brilliant flame as he arose from the water and ascended to Goloka. In Pushtimarg, this episode is known as AsurVyamohLila. It is believed that in his AsurVyamohLila, Vallabhacharya left this earthly world and traveled to Goloka near Krishna to serve Him. Vallabhacharya is considered eternal and immortal in the Pushtimarg tradition.

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Vallabha was a prolific writer who authored various texts, including the Anubhashya or BrahmaSutrAnubhashya, which is his commentary on the Brahma Sutra. He also wrote the Shodash Granth or sixteen tracts, along with several commentaries on the Bhagavata Purana.

Vallabha&#39;s writings and compositions primarily revolve around the playful and mischievous childhood of baby Krishna, depicting the unconditional love of his mother Yashoda. He also portrays a youthful Krishna as a protector of the good, using divine grace to overcome demons and evil. Vallabha employs allegory and symbolism to convey his message.

As the Jagadguru Acharya and Guru of the Pushti Marg bhakti tradition and Suddhadwait Brahmavad (Vedant Philosophy), Vallabhacharya is highly regarded for his teachings and interpretations of Vedanta philosophy. He founded the Pushti Marg sect after his own interpretation of the Vedanta philosophy and established a tradition of devotion to Lord Krishna, which is still followed by many today. Additionally, his philosophy of Shuddha advaita emphasized the non-dual nature of the ultimate reality and provided a new perspective on the relationship between the individual self and the divine.

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