Śrīnivāsa Ācārya was devoted to his parents. He was fortunate to hear about Mahāprabhu’s divine glories as well as Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa’s Vṛndāvana pastimes from Caitanya Dāsa. Father and son would go into an ecstatic state as they discussed these transcendental topics. His mother trained him in various forms of nāma-saṅkīrtana.

He studied grammar, literature and poetic theory from Dhanañjaya Vidyā Vācaspati, and quickly acquired mastery of these subjects.

Śrīnivāsa’s father left the world while he was still quite young. The loss of his father’s association greatly affected Śrīnivāsa, but the other devotees made a concerted effort to console him and his mother in their grief.

Śrīnivāsa took his mother and moved from Chakhandi to his maternal grandfather’s house in Jajigram where the villagers were overjoyed to see him. Shortly after moving to Jajigram, he went to visit Narahari Sarakāra in nearby Srikhanda. From Narahari Sarakāra he learnt that Mahāprabhu would shortly be ending His earthly pastimes. This news made Śrīnivāsa determined to see the Lord before it happened. He quickly returned to Jajigram and took permission from his mother to make the trip to Purī. He then joined the devotees on the annual pilgrimage. It was the fifth day of the waxing moon.

Before Śrīnivāsa arrived in Purī, however, the news that Mahāprabhu had indeed ended His līlā reached the party of pilgrims. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya fainted at hearing this report, and when he came back to consciousness, he decided to commit suicide. However, the Lord Himself appeared to him in a dream and told him to complete his journey to Purī. Once in Purī, he again had a dream in which he saw Jagannātha, Baladeva and Subhadrā, as well as Caitanya Mahāprabhu with His associates.

In Purī, Śrīnivāsa met Śrīla Gadādhara Paṇḍita Gosvāmī, the incarnation of Mahāprabhu’s pleasure potency, and both of them were immersed in an ocean of ecstasy. He also met Rāya Rāmānanda, Paramānanda Purī, Śikhi Māhiti, Sārvabhauma Paṇḍita, Vakreśvara Paṇḍita, Govinda, Śaṅkara Paṇḍita, and Gopīnātha Ācārya and received blessings from them all.

Śrīnivāsa stayed in Purī for some time, hearing Śrīmad Bhāgavatam from Gadādhara Paṇḍita Gosvāmī and was enchanted. Gadādhara then told him to return to Gauḍa.

While on his way to Bengal, Śrīnivāsa learnt that Advaita Ācārya and Nityānanda Prabhu had also wound up their earthly pastimes. Once again he determined to end his life in Their separation, but the two Prabhus appeared to him in a dream to assuage his grief and persuaded him to give up his resolve.

When he arrived in Navadvīpa, Śrīnivāsa was once again plunged into an ocean of despondency at the loss of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Vaṁśīvadanānda Ṭhākura saw him in this condition and approached Viṣṇupriyā Devī and asked her to grant Śrīnivāsa an audience and to bless him. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya was amazed to see Śrīmatī Viṣṇupriyā Devī’s deep faith towards Mahāprabhu’s worship with intense renunciation. While in Navadvīpa, he had a dream of Śacī Devī and received blessings from her, too. Śrīnivāsa then wandered throughout Bengal, going to all the Sripats of the associates of Mahāprabhu and Nityānanda Prabhu, seeking their blessings. In this way, he visited Śāntipura, Khardah, Khanakul, Krishnanagar, and Srikhanda. Among the associates he met were Murāri Gupta, Śrīvāsa Paṇḍita, Dāmodara Paṇḍita, Śuklāmbara Brahmacārī, Gadādhara Dāsa, Paramesvarī Dāsa, Jāhnavā Devī, Vasudhā Devī, Vīrabhadra, Abhirāma Ṭhākura, Narahari Sarakāra Ṭhākura, and Raghunandana Ṭhākura. All these great personalities witnessed Śrīnivāsa’s intense devotion and told him to go to Vṛndāvana. Śrīnivāsa then went to his mother and repeatedly asked her for permission to make the trip. His mother could not refuse when she saw his eagerness.

Śrīnivāsa then travelled through Agradvīpa, Katwa, Maureshwar, Ekachakra, then went to Kāśī, Ayodhya, and Prayāga. He spent a long time visiting all these holy places before he finally arrived in Vraja. There he learnt that Rūpa Gosvāmī, Sanātana Gosvāmī, Kāśīśvara Paṇḍita and Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī had all disappeared. Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī, Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī and Jīva Gosvāmī were still living, however. Śrīnivāsa met all three of them and received their blessings. He was initiated by Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī and took instruction in the Vaiṣṇava scriptures from Jīva Gosvāmī. In great affection for Śrīnivāsa, Jīva Gosvāmī commended him to his deities, Rādhā-Dāmodara. Śrīnivāsa met Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī and Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī in Rādhā-kuṇḍa and received their blessings. One day Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī heard Śrīnivāsa explain a verse from Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi and was so impressed by his erudition that he bestowed the title “Ācārya” upon him. Jīva Gosvāmī also gave the titles “Ṭhākura” to Narottama and “Śyāmānanda” to Duḥkhī Kṛṣṇadāsa. Jīva Gosvāmī ordered Śrīnivāsa Ācārya Prabhu to tour all of Vraja’s pilgrimage sites with Rāghava Gosvāmī.

Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī and the other Vaiṣṇavas in Vraja ordered Śrīnivāsa Ācārya, Narottama Ṭhākura and Śyāmānanda Prabhu to take manuscripts of the invaluable Gosvāmī’s literature placing them in a chest that was offered to them by a rich merchant in Mathura back to Bengal in an ox-cart. They set off on the śuklā pañcamī of Agrahāyaṇa month. It was a long and dangerous trip, but they were able to cover the greater part of the distance without any trouble. Upon arriving in the Hindu kingdom of Ban Vishnupur, they felt that the danger was over. However, the rumour had reached the capital of Vishnupur that a rich merchant was travelling to Purī with a valuable cargo of merchandise.

Bīrahāmbīra, the ruler of Ban Vishnupur, was also the leader of a gang of highwaymen. When he heard that a cargo of great value was passing through his territory, he asked an astrologer to confirm the truth of the rumours. The astrologer confirmed that the chest being carried on the oxcart was indeed of great value. The king immediately sent a group of robbers to steal the chest, thinking that it contained gold and jewels. He specified to the robbers that they should kill no one.

The robbers first worshipped the goddess Caṇḍī, then sent out a spy who returned to tell them that everyone in the group accompanying the oxcart was sleeping in exhaustion after eating their evening meal. The robbers felt that Caṇḍī had mercifully given them a golden opportunity to make the raid. They stole the chest of books and turned them over to the king of Vishnupur.

When Bīrahāmbīra saw the large chest, he was delighted at the prospect of finding large booty inside. How disappointed he must have been to see nothing but books! He turned to the astrologer and asked him how he could have made such a mistake. The astrologer answered, “I can’t understand it. Every time I made my calculations I came up with the same conclusion: this chest is full of priceless jewels! It is incredible, I don’t know why my calculations have gone wrong!”

The mere sight of the holy books had a purifying effect on the king, however, and he regretted having stolen them. Indeed, he desired to meet with the ācārya who owned them. That night he had a dream in which this ācārya appeared to him and this pacified him somewhat.

The next morning, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya, Narottama Ṭhākura and Śyāmānanda Prabhu awoke to find the chest of books missing. They searched everywhere, but when they failed to find any clue of the books’ whereabouts, they felt so depressed that they considered killing themselves. Some local villagers saw the distressed condition of the three Vaiṣṇavas and immediately suspected the robber king, Bīrahāmbīra and rebuked him. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya made some further inquiries and was assured that he would be able to find more information from the king himself. The three Vaiṣṇavas felt some hope and abandoned their suicidal intentions. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya decided to remain in Vishnupur in the hope that he would be able to recover the manuscripts, but he sent Narottama Dāsa Ṭhākura to Kheturi and Śyāmānanda Prabhu to Odisha.

While staying in Vishnupur, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya heard from a brāhmaṇa named Kṛṣṇavallabha that Bīrahāmbīra liked to listen to Śrīmad Bhāgavatam and daily attended its recital. One day, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya went with this brāhmaṇa to the place where the Bhāgavata was recited. The brāhmaṇa introduced Śrīnivāsa Ācārya to the king as a great Vaiṣṇava, and the king indeed observed the characteristics of a great person in him and was attracted to him. The King expressed a desire to hear Śrīnivāsa Ācārya speak on the Bhāgavata and Śrīnivāsa Ācārya agreed, thinking that this might be a good opportunity to recover the books. So he started to speak on the Bhāgavata on a daily basis. The King was enchanted by Śrīnivāsa Ācārya’s unprecedented explanations of the Bhāgavata in his sweet voice.

Śrīnivāsa Ācārya preached Mahāprabhu’s teachings both through speaking on the Bhāgavata and kīrtana, while Narottama Ṭhākura and Śyāmānanda Prabhu primarily used the medium of kīrtana. Each of them had his own particular style of singing kīrtana, by which they intoxicated their listeners with devotional ecstasy. The styles that these three ācāryas used respectively were named manohara-sāhī, garāṇahāṭī, and reṇeṭī.

Bīrahāmbīra arranged for a secluded dwelling to be given to Śrīnivāsa Ācārya. One day, when he had the opportunity to find the king alone in his apartments, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya recounted the entire story of his journey from Vraja and the theft of the manuscripts. The King immediately confessed, showing great sorrow for his misdeed, and had the chest of books returned to him. Greatly relieved, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya immediately sent messengers to Vṛndāvana, Narottama Ṭhākura and Śyāmānanda Prabhu with the good news. In the course of time, Bīrahāmbīra and his entire entourage all took initiation from Śrīnivāsa Ācārya and dedicated their entire lives and wealth to him. At initiation, Bīrahāmbīra was given the name Caitanya Dāsa.

After staying in Ban Vishnupur for some time, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya returned to his maternal grandfather’s house in Jajigram. Then he set off on another tour of Katwa, Navadvīpa and other towns in Bengal. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya greatly respected Narahari Sarakāra of Srikhanda and was also very devoted to his saintly mother. When Narahari Sarakāra heard Śrīnivāsa Ācārya’s mother express her desire to see her son married, he gave him the order to do so. Even prior to receiving this order, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya had received the same command from Advaita Ācārya in a dream. Though he felt somewhat ashamed, he realized that he could not ignore the wishes of Advaita Prabhu, Narahari Sarakāra and his mother. He thus agreed to get married and was wed to Īśvarī, the devoted daughter of Gopāla Cakravartī of Jajigram.

It is not always easy to understand the divine activities of Mahāprabhu’s devotees. Only someone who is totally surrendered to the Lord and His devotees can comprehend their glories.

Śrīnivāsa Ācārya started to teach the Gosvāmīs’ books to his disciples in Jajigram. One of his most important disciples was Rāmacandra Kavirāja, the son of Srikhanda resident, Cirañjīva Sena. Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī Prabhu gave Rāmacandra the title kavirāja after hearing his poems. Narottama Ṭhākura had a close friendship with Rāmacandra Kavirāja and even wrote about it in one of his songs:

dayā kara śrī-acārya prabhu śrīnivāsa
rāmacandra sanga māge narottama dāsa

“O my master, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya! Please be merciful to me. I, Narottama Dāsa beg you to give me the association of Rāmacandra.

When Śuklāmbara Brahmacārī, Gadādhara Dāsa, Narahari Sarakāra and Dvija Haridāsa Ācārya all ended their earthly activities, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya was once again overcome by grief and made another trip to Vṛndāvana. Rāmacandra Kavirāja and Śyāmānanda Prabhu also joined Śrīnivāsa Ācārya in Vraja on this occasion. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya met with Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī and Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī, as well as with Bhūgarbha Gosvāmī and Lokanātha Gosvāmī, and these great devotees encouraged him and diminished his feelings of separation.

When he returned to Gauḍa, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya joined in the festivities occasioning the departure of Gadādhara Dāsa in Katwa, Narahari Sarakāra in Srikhanda and Dvija Haridāsa Ācārya in Kanchan Gariya. From there he went to Budhari village, where Rāmacandra Kavirāja and Govinda Kavirāja hosted him in great opulence.

Narottama Dāsa Ṭhākura had also left Vṛndāvana on Lokanātha Gosvāmī’s orders, returning to Kheturi. On the full moon day of Phālguna, he established the worship of six sets of deities in the temple there: Śrī Gaurāṅga, Śrī Vallabhī Kānta, Śrī Vraja Mohana, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Śrī Rādhā-kānta, and Śrī Rādhā-Ramaṇa. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya performed the installation ceremony and the first pūjā.

Jāhnavā Devī was also present at this great event. After the festival, she went on to Vraja with her entourage. Upon her return, she met with Śrīnivāsa Ācārya at Katwa and then went with him to Jajigram where she spent some time as his guest.

Śrīnivāsa Ācārya made another trip to Navadvīpa with Narottama Ṭhākura and Rāmacandra Kavirāja, performing the parikramā of the nine islands, each of which represents one of the limbs of devotional service.

When Raghunandana Ṭhākura entered the nitya-līlā, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya went to Srikhanda and participated in the disappearance festival. He returned with a heavy heart to Jajigram, and from there went to Ban Vishnupur. The King and the other residents of the town were excited by his visit and received him with great pomp. In Vishnupur, Śrīnivāsa Ācārya received an order from Mahāprabhu in a dream to accept the hand of Gaurāṅga Priyā, the daughter of a certain Rāghava Cakravartī. Rāghava Cakravartī and his wife Mādhavī had been searching for a suitable husband for their daughter. They had simultaneously received the order to give their daughter in marriage to Śrīnivāsa Ācārya in a dream. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya thus married for the second time.

Pure devotees have no objective in life other than to fulfill the desires of the Supreme Lord. They are thus ready to do anything if it pleases the Lord. None of their activities has the slightest hint of material desire in it. Śrīnivāsa Ācārya is the śaktyāviṣṭa-avatāra of Mahāprabhu and only a person who has received his special blessings can describe his transcendental activities.