Madhvacharya

Born near Udupi in coastal Karnataka, Madhva broke further from Advaita than Ramanuja had, holding that the individual soul (jiva) and the supreme (Vishnu) remain eternally and fundamentally distinct — a dualist philosophy setting him apart from both Shankara and Ramanuja.

He founded the Krishna Matha at Udupi, still active today, and his Dvaita school directly influenced the later Bhakti movement's devotional intensity, including its emphasis on a personal, ever-distinct relationship between devotee and god — a thread later carried forward by saints like Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.