Jayatirtha

Born into an aristocratic Deshastha Brahmin family, he later adopted the cause of Dvaita after an encounter with the Madhva saint, Akshobhya Tirtha (d. 1365). He composed 21 works, consisting of commentaries on the works of Madhva and several independent treatises criticizing the tenets of contemporary schools, especially Advaita, while simultaneously elaborating upon the Dvaita thought. His dialectical skill and logical acumen earned him the title of Ṭīkacārya or commentator par excellence.

Biography

Historical sources on Jayatirtha's life are scant. Most of the information about his life is derived from two hagiographies: Aṇu Jayatīrtha Vijaya and Bṛhad Jayatīrtha Vijaya from his disciple, Vyāsatirtha (not to be confused with Vyasatirtha) and a compilation by Chalāri Saṁkarṣaṇacārya (c. 1700). According to legendary accounts and the hagiographies, Jayatirtha is an incarnation of Indra, the lord of gods with avesha of Adi Sesha and have been miraculously favoured by the Goddess Durga (Mahalakshmi). In the previous birth, Indra incarnated as Arjuna. In his next life, he incarnated as a Bull. He carried the load of the library of Madhvacharya throughout the Madhva's wanderings between Udupi and Badrinath.

Jayatirtha was born Dhondopant (or Dhondorao) Raghunath into a Deshpande family of nobles belonging to Deshastha Brahmin community of Vishvamitra Gotra in Mangalwedha near Pandarpur present-day in Solapur district, Maharashtra. His father's name is Raghunath Pant Deshpande and his mother's name is Sakubai. His father was a nobleman of military rank. Dhoṇḍo Pant grew up in affluence, with preference towards sports, particularly horse riding.At the age of twenty, after a chance encounter with the ascetic Akshobhya Tīrtha on the bank of river Bhima, he underwent a transformation which led him to renounce his former life, but not without resistance from his family. After much deliberation, his family relented and he was subsequently initiated into the Dvaita fold by Akshobhya Tirtha, who named him Jayatīrtha. Jayatirtha succeeded Akshobhya as the pontiff in 1365. He composed several commentaries and treatises in the brief span of 23 years between his initiation and death in 1388.