Ramanuja (ca. 1077–ca. 1157)

The famous saint and philosopher Ramanuja, also known as Ramanujacharya, was born in India near Chennai at Perumbudur in 1017 CE and was the son of the Brahman Kesava Somayaji and Kantimath. Traditional accounts had given his lifespan as stretching to 120 years. This has not been accepted by modern scholars, who have attributed to him a lifespan from 1077 to 1157 CE. From an early age, he was attracted to the deeper realms of philosophy. Abandoning the life of a householder, Ramanuja became an ascetic. He was very well versed in the Vedic texts and soon fell out with his teacher, Yadavaprakasha, over matters of interpretation. Referred to as Yatiraja (King of Ascetics), he established a math (monastery) near the Vaishnavite temples at Srirangam. ...