Srinivasa's father's name was Sri Gangadhara Bhattacharya. Later he became known as Caitanya Das. His wife's name was named Sri Laksmipriya. He lived on the banks of the Ganges in a village called Chakhandi Gram.
When Sri Gaurasundara ended his Nabadwipa lila he went to the ashram of Keshava Bharati to accept sannyasa, news of their conversation was proclaimed far and wide. From all around thousands and thousands of people came to see the sannyasa of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. At that time, from Chakhandi Gram came Gangadhara. When Sri Nimai Pandit was about to have his beautiful hair shaved off, all the devotees began weeping floods of tears. The barber was unable to do the work of shearing the Lord's hair. His eyes filled with tears, and he was unable to see. Mahaprabhu requested him to use the razor his hair. After some time, Sri Madhu, the barber did the work of shaving the Lord's beautiful hair from his head. The barber cried out in anguish, "What misery I have caused! What have I done?" and fell unconscious upon the earth. A great uproar of weeping and wailing filled all four directions. Who could console them? What a pitiful sight. The men and women there were unable to speak, and seeing this pitiful sight, the birds in the trees also fell silent.
Sri Gangadhara Bhattacharya was shocked, and fainted upon seeing this scene. When he arose again, he was half-mad. The only sound that issued from his lips was "Sri Krishna Caitanya, Sri Krishna Caitanya." He returned to Chakhandi Gram, but like a madman he would only go on chanting Sri Krishna Caitanya, Sri Krishna Caitanya, again and again, softly to himself. His chaste and faithful wife hearing of Mahaprabhu's sannyas began overflowing with tears. All the brahmanas and their wives past their days weeping in great agony. In this way the people of Nadia gave Gangadhara Bhattacharya the name "Caitanya Dasa." In order to take darshan of the lotus feet of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu Caitanya Dasa went with his wife to Jagannatha Puri.
When Caitanya Dasa finally arrived in Jagannatha Puri after such a long journey and received darshan of the holy feet of Sri Caitanya, Caitanya Dasa and his wife crying tears of joy, fell before the Lord and offered their obeisances. Sri Caitanya called them to his side and blessing them with his merciful glance spoke the following sweet words: "Jagannatha is delighted that you have come here. Go and take darshan of him. The lotus eyed Lord is ready to satisfy your innermost heart's desire. The Lord is supremely merciful. In order to receive his mercy, you have come a long way, and he wants to satisfy your heart's desire. Go now and take darshan of Lord Jagannatha."
Sri Caitanya Dasa and his wife went to take darshan of Jagannatha. The Lord's personal servant, Govinda, went with them. The good brahman and brahmani, upon seeing Lord Jagannatha wept tears of prema and offered many prayers and hymns from the scriptures to the Lord. After this they followed the directions the Lord had given them on where to stay, and went to the place he had provided for their stay. For a few days, Sri Caitanya Dasa in great happiness remained in Jagannatha Puri.
One day, being the Paramatma in everyone's heart and therefore knowing everything, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu told his servant, "Govinda! The desired son of that brahmana and his wife shall soon appear. Srinivasa will be his name, and he will be a greatly beautiful child. Through Sri Rupa and Sanatana I will manifest the bhakti-shastras. Through Srinivas, all these shastras will be distributed. Let that brahmana and his wife quickly return to Gauda Desh."
Receiving the auspicious blessings of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu with great ecstasy, Sri Caitanya Dasa returned to Gauda Desh. Soon, within the womb of the brahmana wife of Caitanya Dasa, a child was conceived who embodied the mercy potency of the Lord. Laksmipriya's father's name was Balarama Vipra. He was a pandit and an astrologer expert in the Jyoti Shastras. He could understand that from the womb of Lakshmipriya a great soul, a mahapurusha, would soon take birth.
Sri Caitanya Dasa offered the boy to the lotus feet of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. At the beginning of their son's birthday celebration, they gave profusely in charity to the brahmanas and their wives. All the brahmanas and their wives took great pleasure in holding the newborn child. Finally, Lakshmipriya herself took the child in her lap and Gaura-nam kirtana began. They taught the boy to chant the holy name of Gauranga. Just as the moon grows from a tiny crescent to its full and brilliant form, so the boy gradually grew up and became more brilliant with each passing day. Gradually his hair-cutting ceremony and sacred thread ceremony came and went. After this time, he went to Sri Dhananjaya Vidyavacaspati where he began studying grammar, poetry, rhetoric, and shastra. Within a short time he became highly learned in all the different subjects he was taught, and his vision into the revealed scriptures was extraordinary.
When he was a small child, Srinivasa received the mercy of Sri Govinda Ghosh Thakura and Narahari Sarakara Thakura. After some time, Srinvasa's father passed away. At the disappearance of his father, Srinivasa was devastated with grief. All the devotees did their best to pacify him, but he was unconsolable at the loss of his father. So bereaved was he that he would allow no food or drink to pass through his lips, and in this way he fasted for some time.
Bidding farewell to the devotees there, Srinvasa and his mother left Chakhandi Gram, and after a few days, they arrived in Yajigram at the house of Sri Balaram Vipra, Srinvas's maternal grandfather. Hearing of Srinviasa's move to Yajigram the saintly persons who lived there became very happy. Seeing Srinvas's profound scholarship and bhakti-prema all the pandits and brahmanas in Yajigrama were amazed. Still, the hankering within the heart of Srinivasa was unsatisfied. He could only think day and night of seeing the lotus feet of Sri Caitanya. By and by he grew very eager to go to Jagannatha Puri.
To take darshan of the holy feet of Sri Narahari Sarakara Thakura, Srinivasa went to Sri Khanda. Arriving there, he fell at the feet of Narahari with his mind filled with the ecstasy of love of Godhead and began rolling on the ground, his voice choked with emotion. Seeing his wonderful love for Krishna, Narahari embraced him. Srinivasa was absorbed in remembrance of the holy name of Sri Gauranga and wept tears of joy. Then he let Narahari know of his aspiration to go to Jagannatha Puri to see the holy places of Sri Gauranga's lila. Sri Narahari Sarakara Thakura, Raghunandana Thakura, and some of the other devotees who were there, upon listening to his proposal were very happy and said, "You should wait here for a few more days. Soon many of the devotees from Bengal will go to Puri. At that time you may go in their association."
Srinivasa left Sri Khanda and returned to Yajigram, where he told his mother of his plans for a long journey to Jagannatha Puri with the devotees.
After staying in the house of Gadadhara Pandit for a day, Srinivasa went to take darshan of Ramananda Raya, Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya, Vakreshvara Pandit, Paramananda Puri, Shikhi Mahiti, Govinda, Shankara, and Gopinatha Acharya as well as many others who were eternal associates of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Seeing Srinivasa, all these devotees were very happy. Seeing Srinivasa's unprecedented Gaura-prema, the devotees could understand that he was Gaura-shakti, the energy of the Lord. They could understand that through him the message of Sri Caitanya and the various scriptures would be preached. Knowing this, all the internal devotees of Sri Caitanya gave various important instructions to Srinivasa.
First he went to Sri Khanda, where he offered obeisances to the holy feet of Sri Narahari Sarakara, Raghunandana Thakura and the other devotees. Having taken their blessings, he went on to Sri Mayapur in Navadwipa. Seeing the holy land of Sri Caitanya's birth, Srinivasa fell to the ground his voice choked up in ecstasy.
Upon seeing her, Srinivasa fell upon the earth with tears of prema, offering prostrated obeisances. Sri Vishnupriya Thakurani gave her blessings to Srinivasa told him to remain and take prasada.
After staying for a few days in Nabadwipa dham, he went to Shantipura to the house of Sri Advaita Acharya and took darshan of the holy feet of Sri Sita Thakurani, the eternal wife of Sri Advaita Acharya. Sita Thakurani, out of separation from Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, was barely keeping her body and soul together. She gave her blessings to Srinivasa. Srinivasa visited many other devotees in Shantipura and offered them his respects and prayers. Gradually from there he went to Khadadoha.
In Khadadoha, at the house of Sri Nityananda Prabhu, Sri Parameshvari Thakura was staying. He brought Srinivasa before Sri Vasudha and Sri Jahnava, the wives of Nityananda, and Sri Birchandra, Nityananda's son. Srinivasa, with tears of prema in his eyes offered his dandavats before those great souls, and, as he did so, Sri Jahnava placed her lotus feet upon his head and blessed him with the dust of her lotus feet. Everyone was very affectionate towards Srinivasa. In this way he stayed for a few days in Khodadoha. Finally Sri Jahnava Mata ordered him to go to Vrindavana Dham.
In Sri Khanda, upon again seeing Narahari Sarakara Thakura and Raghunandana Thakura, Srinivasa was very happy. Finally he returned home to Yajigrama and when he arrived at his own house again offered respects to his mother's lotus feet. He then told her of the order he had received from Sri Jahanava Devi to go to Vrindvana, and prayed for her blessings to go. His mother gave her blessings with great pleasure. Srinivasa soon left for Vrindavana. On the way he stopped in Gaya and took darshan of the lotus feet of the Vishnu deity there at the place where Mahaprabhu met Ishavara Puri and took initiation from him.
After staying in Gaya for two or three days, he arrived in Kashi at the house of Chandrashekhara. He also met with many other devotees there. Hearing directly from Tapana Mishra and Chandrashekara about the different pastimes Mahaprabhu had performed while in Kashi, Srinivasa swam in the ocean of nectar. After a few days he left Kashi.
Soon he arrived in Mathura. He took bath at Vishrama Ghat. It was at Vishrama Ghata that Sri Krishna rested after slaing the demonic King Kamsa. And for that reason it is known as Vishrama Ghata, or the "place of rest."
That day, Krishna Pandit, the servant of the Govinda Deity, brought prasada to Srinivasa. Srinivasa took prasada with Jiva Goswami himself. It was in the afternoon on the full moon day of the month of Vaishakha that Srinivasa arrived in Vrindavana at the place of Jiva Goswami. The next morning he went with Jiva Goswami and took darshan of the Radha Raman Deities. They also saw Gopal Bhatta Goswami. Gopal Bhatta Goswami was very happy to see Srinivasa. Srinivasa offered his respects to the lotus feet of Gopal Bhatta Goswami with great humility and begged him to initiate him in the divine mantra. Gopal Bhatta Goswami with great happiness agreed to initiate him. The following day, at the temple of Sri Radha-Raman, Sri Gopal Bhatta Goswami gave mantra diksha to Srinivasa. The day after he was initiated, Srinivasa was sent to Raghunatha Dasa Goswami. With great happiness, Srinivasa went to the Radha-kunda where Raghunatha Dasa Goswami used to stay. There he found Krishna Dasa Kaviraj Goswami, Raghava Pandit, and many other great devotees and offered his respects to all of them.
At length, Srila Jiva Goswami taught the Srimad Bhagavatam and the scriptures of the Goswamis to Srinivasa. In a short time Srinivasa knew by heart all the siddhantas of the Goswami's literature. Because of his expertise in philosophy, Jiva Goswami gave him the title "Acharya." From that day on he became famous among the Gaudiya Vaishnavas as Srinivasa Acharya.
Srinvasa Acharya had previously heard of Narottama Thakura, but at the ashram of Jiva Goswami he met him in person. From the time of their first meeting, Srinivasa and Narottama became lifelong friends. Jiva Goswami ordered the two of them to wander in the forest of Vrindavana with Raghava Goswami.
Sri Narahari Chakravarti dedicates five chapters of his Bhakti-ratnakara to discussing in great detail how Srinivasa and Narottama together with Raghava Goswami wandered throughout the 64 kroshas of Mathura Mandala.
After wandering through the twelve forest of Vrindavana for some time, they again returned to Jiva Goswami. At that time, Duhkhi Krishna Dasa, (Shyamananda Prabhu) had just arrived from Gauda-desha. Srila Jiva Goswami seeing him was greatly happy. Dukhi Krishnadas was the dear disciple of Sri Hridaya Caitanya Prabhu. Sri Hridaya Caitanya Prabhu himself had sent Dukhi Krishna Dasa to study at the school of Jiva Goswami. Jiva Goswami asked him for news of the devotees in Bengal and in Utkala, inquiring about the welfare of each and every one of them.
After this Dukhi Krishna Dasa was introduced to Srinivasa and Narottama. The three of them were ornamented with all good qualities and soon began a friendship that was to last the rest of their lives. The three of them cultured a deep understanding of the Goswami scriptures, studying them at the lotus feet of Srila Jiva Goswami. In this way they stayed with Rupa Goswami who taught these faithful and dear disciples of his everything, until their understanding was perfect.
At this time, it was decided by the Goswamis of Vrindavana to send Narottama, Srinivasa, and Shyamananda to Bengal to deliver the Goswami scriptures and preach. The three of them were extremely renounced and highly learned in the conclusions of the bhakti-rasa scriptures. After this, the three of them were called before the Goswamis, who made clear their desires for preaching the literatures. The three of them agreed with great enthusiasm to carry out the task they had been ordered to do. It was settled that the three of them would leave on an auspicious day.
Vanavishnupura was the headquarters of King Birhambir, a leader of dacoits. He heard from one of his thieves that many people were moving along the road with a chest full of jewels loaded onto a bullock cart heading towards Bengal. He reported that they had just entered Vanavishnupura.
King Birhambir again and again sent different thieves to get news of their movements. And it came to pass by the will of providence that after many days his mind's goal was achieved. One especially dark night the devotees were sleeping peacefully by the side of a river after taking prasada, having left all the Goswami scriptures in the chest on the bullock cart. They were deep asleept. At that time, the thieves came and carefully stole away with the chest of books and hurried away.
The king considered, "This chest has certainly come from the west. After many days, I have finally obtained great wealth." In this way, his joy was boundless. He had been told that some valuable jewels were inside the chest, and so he wanted that chest. King Birhambir had an astrologer in his court who had told him that what was in the chest was priceless.
In this way, when the devotees arose the following morning, they saw that the chest containing the Goswami's scriptures was no longer on the bullock cart. They felt as if their heads had been struck by a thunderbolt. They began searching about and inquiring from everyone around. But no one knew anything. They could find nothing. The three of them were close to death with depression.
That night, the king opened the chest containing the Goswami's scriptures. After opening the box, he removed the cloth that covered what was beneath. There he saw the treasured books of the Goswamis. He opened one of the books and saw the name "Sri Rupa Goswami" written on the palm leaf. When he saw the infallibly beautiful handwriting of Sri Rupa Goswami all the sins that he had amassed throughout his long life of crime immediately flew away from him. His heart was purified. From his pure heart arose the divine rapture of Krishna prema.
When the king had seen the scriptures in the chest, he immediately began to worry, thinking to himself, "The loss of these holy scriptures is certainly causing great trouble to someone, somewhere. This will be a cause of great anxiety for me." In his dream some divine person said, "O King. Do not worry. In order to retrieve these treasured scriptures I shall soon come to meet with you. Life after life you shall be my eternal servant."
The three devotees decided that Sri Narottama Thakura should go to Kheturi Gram, Sri Shyamananda Prabhu would go to Ambika Kalna, and Srinivasa Acharya himself would stay behind in Vishnupura, where he would go to the king's palace and retrieve the Goswami scriptures.
The Bhakti Ratnakara records that "On the full moon day in the month of Vaishakha, in the constellation or naksatra of Rohini, when all the stars were aligned in an auspicious way, Lakshmipriya gave birth to a son." The boy's bodily luster was as brilliant as molten gold. He had a long nose, his eyes extended to his ears, a broad chest, and arms that extended to his knees. In this way, he was seen to manifest all the bodily symptoms of a mahapurusha, or great soul.
Upon hearing her son's wishes, and seeing that his mind was made up, she gave him her blessings. A few days later he set out for Puri in the company of the devotees from Bengal. Completely overwhelmed with internal joy, gradually reached Jagannatha Puri in the afternoon. That night they stayed at the house of a panda who lived near the simhadvara gates. The next morning he went to the house of Gadadhara Pandit. Seeing the Pandit, Srinivasa fell on the ground before his lotus feet with tears in his eyes. Gadadhara Pandit affectionately took hold of him and embraced him. As Srinivasa was being embraced by Sri Gadadhara Pandit, he wept in separation from Sri Gauranga.
In a few days, having seen all the important holy places of Sri Caitanya's pastimes in Jagannatha Puri he bade farewell of the devotees there in order to return to Bengal. All the devotees affectionately embraced Srinivasa before his departure. After bidding farewell to the devotees, Srinivasa started down the road to Bengal. When he had gone down the road for a while, he heard that Sri Gadadhara Pandit had disappeared.
Srinivasa drowned in the ocean of separation and began weeping and wailing piteously. That night in a dream, Sri Gadadhara Pandit came to him in a dream and pacified him. After this, Srinivasas once again headed for Bengal. On the path he heard the news that Sri Advaita Acharya and Sri Nityananda Prabhu had disappeared. Srinivasa Acharya fell down on the road, stunned. There he spent the night wetting the earth with his tears of sadness in separation. That night, out of their causeless mercy, Sri Nityananda and Sri Advaita appeared to Srinivasa in a dream and pacified him. Gradually, Srinvasa came to Bengal.
At the house of Sriman Mahaprabhu he found Vamshivadana Thakura. Srinivasa offered his obeisances to the lotus feet of Vamshivadana. When he came to know who Vamshivadana Thakura was, he was very happy. Srinivasa loudly cried out the holy name of Sri Caitanya. Srinivasa prayed to have darshan of the lotus feet of Sri Vishnupriya devi. At that time, Sri Vishnupriya did not give him darshan. When Vamshivadana Thakura informed Sri Vishnupriya of Srinivasas intense desire to have her darshan, and requested her again and again to meet with him, she gave her consent, and upon her order Vamshivadana Thakura brought Srinivasa to her.
Out of separation from Sri Gauranga, Sri Vishnupriaya Thakurani had grown thin as the waning moon of Krishna Caturdashi, when the slim lunar crescent is barely perceptible just before the dark moon. Her practice was to set aside a grain of rice for every rosary of Hare Krishna mantras she would chant. At the end of the day she would cook the rice she had set aside and offer it to her deity of Mahaprabhu. Then she would accept just enough to keep her body and soul together.
In Nabadwipa, Srinivasa took darshan of many Vaishnavas including Sri Murari Gupta, Srivasa Pandit, Damodara Pandit, Sri Sanjaya, Shuklambara Brahmachari and Gadadhara Das.
Taking her order upon his head he visited Khanakula, where he went to the house of Abhirama Gopala. After he offered his respects to Abhirama Gopal Thakura, Abhirama Gopal gave Srinivasa three lashes with his whip called Jaya-mangal, or "Victory of auspiciousness." His wife, Sri Malini Devi became outraged and forbade him to continue, out of compassion for Srinivas. She held her husband's hand and forced him to stop whipping Srinivas. Upon being lashed by the transcendental whip of a pure devotee, Srinivasa's body was overwhelmed with the ecstasy of Krishna prema. Srinivasa humbly offered his prayers to Abhiram Gopala and begged his blessings to return to Sri Khanda.
Srinivasa visited Krishna's holy birthplace and took darshan of the Adikeshava Deity and then turned towards Vrindavana. On the road to Vrindavana he met many brahmana residents of Vrindavana who told him that Raghunatha Bhatta Goswami and other great devotees had just passed away. Hearing this, he became very sorrowful. He began to weep and fell to the ground in the agony of separation. The brahmanas who were with him somehow helped him to the place where Srila Jiva Goswami was.
Srila Jiva Goswami had heard of Srinivasa. Srinivasa offered his respects to the lotus feet of Srila Jiva Goswami, who embraced him with great affection. After this, they both had much to say to each other. Srila Jiva Goswami who was from Bengal wanted to hear news about the welfare of the different Gaudiya Vaishnavas, and after they talked for some time, Jiva Goswami arranged for prasada and a place to stay for Srinivasa.
For three days he stayed at the Radha-kunda and received many instructions about bhajan from those great souls. Having received the blessings of all of the devotees there at Radha-kunda, Srinivasa once again returned to Vrindavana to the shelter of the lotus feet of Srila Jiva Goswami.
On the order of their guru they set about to journey through the Vrindavana forests. Sri Raghava Pandit was a South Indian brahmana, and was singlemindedly devoted to Sri Gaurasundara and was very dear to Him.
Sriman Kavi Karnapura notes in his Gaura Ganodesha Dipika: "That person who was once the dear gopi friend of Radharani and whose name was Champakalata later appeared as Sri Raghava Goswami and lived at Govardhana where he worshiped a deity of Giridhari in great ecstasy."
The Shukla-paksha day of the month of Agrahayana was chosen. Thereafter, having first offered their respectful obeisances unto the three principle deities of Vrindavana, Sri Govinda, Gopinatha, and Madana Mohan, those three great souls, Shyamananda Prabhu, Narottama Thakura, and Srinivasa Acharya were sent by Jiva Goswami with the Goswami scriptures to Bengal.
The books were carefully packed in a trunk and loaded onto an oxcart for safekeeping. In this way they set out with the oxcart on the road to Mathura on their way to Bengal. It was a long way, and they would slowly move from one village to the next, stopping at night in a village where they would perform sankirtan, preach, take prasada and rest. Gradually the bullock cart arrived in Vanavishnupura.
The king instructed his men to steal the chest of jewels from the bullock cart. The devotees finally arrived in Vanavishnupura just as the sun was going down. After confering with one another, they decided to settle down for the night and rest on the banks of a sarovara in the village. Since many people lived nearby there, they could have some of them watch the bullock cart and make sure that nothing was stolen. Indeed, upon seeing the effulgence of these Vaishnavas, and after listening to their bhajan and kirtan, all the people of that village were astonished.
They brought the chest to King Birhambir, as he had ordered them to do. When the king saw the chest, he thought "Jewels! Treasure!" His mind was carried away by happiness. Calling the thieves before him, he rewarded them with new clothes and ornaments and commended them on their good work.
Some time later, when they were more calm, they said, "Who can understand the will of Govindadeva? When we left on this journey we had His blessings. It was by His will that all the Goswami scriptures were put into that one chest." In this way the devotees spoke contemplatively about the meaning of the tragedy that had befallen them. They remembered once hearing from the Goswamis that Vanavishnupura had a king who was the leader of a gang of dacoits. That king was famous for stealing all sorts of valuables from pilgrims passing on the road.
Again placing the Goswami scriptures carefully within the chest, the King retired for the evening. As he was resting, he had an unusual dream. In his dream he saw a beautiful person, whose body glowed with an unprecedented effulgent as brilliant as a golden mountain. His smile was like the moon. Then that person spoke, saying, "Do not worry. Soon I shall come and we shall meet. At that time your joy shall be unceasing. Life after life you are to be my eternal servant."
A brahmana resident of Vishnupura named Sri Krishna Vallabha was fascinated upon seeing Srinivasa Acharya and brought Srinivasa Acharya to his own home where he duly worshiped with Acharya with the proper respect. At length, the Acharya initiated him into the divine mantra. There were others also who were present there who recognized Srinivasa Acharya as their guru and accepted initiation from him.