Vidyadhisha Tirtha

Vidyadhisha Tirtha (Vidyādhīśa Tīrtha), was an Indian philosopher, scholar, theologian, saint and dialectician. He served as the sixteenth pontiff of Uttaradi Math from 1619 to 1631. He is considered to be one of the important stalwarts in the history of Dvaita school of thought on account of his sound elucidations of the works of Madhvacharya, Jayatirtha and Vyasatirtha. He is also the most celebrated pontiff of Uttaradi Math after Padmanabha Tirtha, Jayatirtha and Raghuttama Tirtha.

Born into a Deshastha Brahmin family of scholars, Vidyadhisha started pursuing the knowledge of Mīmāṃsā, Vyakhyana and Vedanta at very early age. Before becoming the pontiff of Uttaradi Math, he was an accomplished scholar and logician. He composed 10 works, consisting of commentaries on the works of Madhva, Jayatirtha and Vyasatirtha and several independent treatises. His work Vakyartha Chandrika is an elaborate, complicated commentary known for its brilliance.