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CC Ādi 16.25
tabe ta’ karila prabhu digvijayī jaya
As in the modern day there are many champions in sports, so in bygone days there were many learned scholars in India who were champions in learning. One such person was Keśava Kāśmīrī, who came from the state of Kashmir. He traveled all over India and at last came to Navadvīpa to challenge the learned scholars there. Unfortunately he could not conquer the learned scholars in Navadvīpa, for he was defeated by the boy scholar Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Later he understood that Caitanya Mahāprabhu is none other than the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus he surrendered unto Him and later became a pure Vaiṣṇava in the sampradāya of Nimbārka. He wrote Kaustubha-prabhā, a commentary on the Vedānta commentary of the Nimbārka-sampradāya, which is known as the Pārijāta-bhāṣya.
The Bhakti-ratnākara mentions Keśava Kāśmīrī and lists his predecessors in the disciplic succession of the Nimbārka-sampradāya: (1) Śrīnivāsa Ācārya, (2) Viśva Ācārya, (3) Puruṣottama, (4) Vilāsa (5) Svarūpa, (6) Mādhava, (7) Balabhadra, (8) Padma, (9) Śyāma (10) Gopāla, (11) Kṛpā, (12) Deva Ācārya, (13) Sundara Bhaṭṭa, (14) Padmanābha, (15) Upendra, (16) Rāmacandra, (17) Vāmana, (18) Kṛṣṇa, (19) Padmākara, (20) Śravaṇa, (21) Bhūri, (22) Mādhava, (23) Śyāma, (24) Gopāla, (25) Balabhadra, (26) Gopīnātha, (27) Keśava, (28) Gokula and (29) Keśava Kāśmīrī. It is stated in the Bhakti-ratnākara that Keśava Kāśmīrī was a favorite devotee of mother Sarasvatī, the goddess of learning. By her grace he was an extremely influential scholar, and he was the greatest champion among all the scholars in the four corners of the country. Therefore he got the title dig-vijayī, which means “one who has conquered everyone in all directions.” He belonged to a very respectable brāhmaṇa family of Kashmir. Later, by the order of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, he gave up the profession of winning championships and became a great devotee. He joined the Nimbārka-sampradāya, one of the Vaiṣṇava communities of the Vedic culture.