Akshobhya Tirtha was a disciple of Sri Madhvacharya, an exponent of Dvaita philosophy. His original name was Govinda Shastri and he was the head of the state of Jamkhandi during the reign of the Chalukyas. He was a skilled warrior and an eminent scholar. Even while young, he developed an aversion to worldly pursuits which finally led to this renunciation. Sri Madhvacharya ordained him in the ascetic order in 1312 CE under the name Akshobhya Tirtha.
Kumara Kamparaya, son of the emperor Harihara Raya of Vijayanagara, arranged for a Vedantic debate between Akshobhya Tirtha and the celebrated Advaitin Vidyaranya, who was responsible for the founding of Vijayanagar Empire. The latter suggested that the renowned Vishishtadvaita, Vedanta Desika, should be the arbiter. The debate was on the interpretation of the famous Upanishadic statement ‘tat-tvam-asi’ (that thou art). The arbiter is reported to have given the verdict in favor of Akshobhya Tirtha. Kumara Kamparaya had the details of the event inscribed on a commemorative stone pillar and installed it at the commemorative stone pillar and installed it at the site of the disputation at Mulbagal, Kolar. The authenticity of the debate and the verdict thereon is vouched for in the work Vedanta-desika-vaibhava prakasika of Doddayyacharya.
Akshobhya Tirtha’s inestimable gift to the development of Dvaita thought was his ordaining of Dhondo Pant, a knight, as a monk under the name of Jayatirtha, training him in the niceties and nuances of Madhvacharya’s works and turning him into a master dialectician of the Dvaita system of philosophy.