Madhavendra Puri
Madhavendra Puri was a 15th century Vaishnava ascetic who was an early figure in the rediscovery of Braj.
Biography
Sectarian Affiliation
According to both Gauḍīya and Puṣṭimārga accounts, Mādhavendra Purī was a follower of Madhva's Dvaita school. However, according to modern scholars he was likely a follower of the Shringeri Math of the Daśanāmī Sampradāya, who followed monistic Vedanta. The followers of the Madhva school themselves never mention Mādhavendra or his disciples.According to Gauḍīya tradition, Mādhavendra Purī was the disciple of Lakṣmīpati Tīrtha. His main disciple is stated to be Īśvara Purī, and is also stated to have taught Advaita Ācārya and Viṣṇu Purī, and to a lesser extent Keśava Bhāratī and Rāghavendra Purī.
Worship of Krishna Image on Govardhan Hill
Gauḍīya tradition
According to Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja's Caitanya Caritāmr̥ta, Mādhavendra Purī once circumambulated Govardhana Hill and bathed in Govinda Kuṇḍa. There he was approached by a cowherd boy who offered him milk, and later that night the boy appeared to Mādhavendra Purī in a dream, where he revealed himself as Gopāla. Gopāla revealed to Mādhavendra that he was hidden in a thicket from Muslim attacks, and that he was suffering due to being exposed to the elements. The next morning, Mādhavendra had the image of Gopāla removed from the thicket and installed in a temple on top of Govardhana Hill. Mādhavendra began the institutional worship of Gopāla by appointing Bengali brahmins to the image's service. After two years, he had a dream where he was ordered to go to South India to get sandalwood, from which he never returned.Puṣṭimārga tradition
According to a Harirāya's Do Sau Bāvan Vaiṣṇavan kī Vārtā, Mādhavendra Purī met Vallabha's son, Viṭṭhalanātha, which Entwistle states is a "distorted account".According to the Caurāsī Baiṭhakana ke Caritra, there is mention of a Mādhavānanda Brahmacārī who teaches Lakṣmaṇa Bhaṭṭa astrology. According to Śāstrī, Mādhavānanda was a student of Mādhavendra Yati who is confused for his teacher in this text.
According to the Śrī Govardhananāthajī ke Prākaṭya kī Vārtā, Mādhavendra Purī taught Vallabha in Varanasi, however this is considered "highly improbable" by Entwistle due to the dates of Vallabha's birth and Mādhavendra's death. When asked what he would like as a fee for teaching Vallabha, Mādhavendra asked to serve Śrī Nāthajī, as he had a premonition that Vallabha would establish the formal worship of the deity. When Mādhavendra Purī arrived at Govardhan Hill, the image was being already being worshipped as a snake deity by the local villagers, and as Kr̥ṣṇa by Saddu Pāṇḍe. Mādhavendra Purī adorned Śrī Nāthajī with a garland and turban decoration, and offered him milk. The text also claims that Mādhavendra was appointed mukhiyā of the Bengali priests, which is also considered unlikely by Entwistle since the Śrī Nāthajī temple was built after his lifetime. Mādhavendra Purī later went to South India to get sandalwood, from which he never returned.