(1513–1570?) Narayana Bhatta - He was the patriarch of a
scholarly family and the most famous scholar and commentator on dharma
literature of his day.
Narayana's father had moved to Benares, a Sanskrit study
center, from the city of Paithan in central India.
Narayana's works were mostly nibandhas ("collections"), which were collections of Hindu learning.
Nibandha compilers collated fragments from the Vedas, dharma
literature, puranas, and other canonical religious books on a certain issue
into a single volume.
Apart from his unrivaled grasp of these ancient books,
Narayana was also known for his erudite interpretation and commentary, using
the criteria that the Purva Mimamsa philosophical school had created to
interpret the Vedas, the earliest Hindu holy scriptures, to these works.
He was a guy whose personal sanctity was matched to his vast
scholarship, according to legend.
He is said to have accomplished a miracle by forcing rain to
fall out of season, persuading the Muslim rulers of Benares to allow the
construction of the Vishvanath temple.
