Sri Advaita Acharya was born in 1434 in Nabagram, Bengal to Sri Kubera Pandit and Srimati Nabha devi. They were originally inhabitants of Nabagram village near Sri Hatta, but later moved to Santipura on the banks of the Ganga.
Early life of Advaita Acharya
When Sri Advaita Acharya made his appearance in this world, Srila Madhavendra Puri, Sri Ishvar Puri, Sri Sachi Mata and Sri Jagannatha Mishra also made their advent.
Sri Advaita was a disciple of Srila Madhavendra Puri and is one of the chief figures amongst the Panchatattva – Sri Krishna Chaitanya, Prabhu Nityananda, Sri Advaita, Gadadhara Pandit and Srivasa.
Sri Advaita studied the Vedas and other scriptures under a scholar named Santacharya in Phullavati village near Santipura, where He was awarded the title Acharya.
Praying Lord to manifest
Before the appearance of Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu, all the Vaishnava devotees in the Navadvipa area used to gather at the house of Advaita Acharya. In these meetings, Advaita Acharya preached on the basis of the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam. He spent most of his adult life in Santipura with his wife and family.
He prayed to the Lord for several months – He worshipped His shaligram shilas lovingly with sacred tulasi leaves and Ganges water calling out to the Lord to manifest and show a way to the worldly people to reach the eternal spiritual abode.
By the momentum of his spiritual fervor, his loud cries pierced the coverings of the material universe and echoing through the transcendental Vaikuntha lokas, reached the ears of Sri Krishna in Goloka. Sri Krishna then advented as Sri Krishna Chaitanya in Mayapur, Bengal as the son of Sri Jagannatha Mishra and Sachi Devi.
When his parents, Kubera Pandit and Nabha Devi disappeared, He went to Gaya to perform their pinda daan ceremonies and continued on a pilgrimage tour of the holy places in India.
He came to Vrindavan and became absorbed in the worship of Krishna. He discovered the deity of Sri Madan Mohan which He later entrusted to the care of a Choube brahmin in Mathura before continuing on his pilgrimage tour.
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Himself glorified Advaita Acharya and described his nature in the following manner:
Advaita Acharya is God himself. As a result of his association, I have become purified. Because there is no one equal to him in devotion to Krishna, nor in knowledge of the scriptures, he is called Advaita Acharya. By his mercy, even the mlecchas become devotees of Krishna.
Sri Advaita Acharya disappeared in the year 1559, at the age of 125 years. The Narasimha shaligram shila and deities made in the image of Sri Sri Madan-Gopal that were worshiped by Sri Advaita Acharya are still to be found at Santipura in Madan-Gopal Para.
The place on the banks of the Ganga where Sri Advaita Acharya worshiped the shaligram shila and called out to the Lord to descend to the world is known today as Babla. A temple has been built in memory of Advaita Acharya’s pastimes there.
