Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë was a Hindu religious leader. He is primarily known for having started the Rudra sampradaya. There are almost no sources on the life of Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë. The dates of Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë's life are unknown, but scholars conjecture he lived circa the 13th century. Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë's own works do not survive, and thus little is directly known of his theological positions. His students are also unknown, and his lineage did not continue uninterrupted.
According to à Ârëdhara's commentaries on the BhÃÂgavata PurÃÂá¹Âa and the Viá¹£á¹Âu PurÃÂá¹Âa (c. 1250), Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë considered Narasiá¹Âha to be the supreme deity. MÃÂdhavÃÂcÃÂrya's Sarvadarà Âanasaá¹ graha (14th century) quotes the SÃÂkarasiddhi, a work of one of Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë's followers, and states the same.
In Vallabha's (c. 1478 - 1530) commentary on the BhÃÂgavata PurÃÂá¹Âa entitled Subodhinë, he states that Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë's devotional path was of the tamÃÂsa guá¹Âa, while he states his own is nirguá¹Âa. Vallabha was the founder of the Puá¹£á¹ÂimÃÂrga.
According to a Puá¹£á¹ÂimÃÂrga text, GadÃÂdharadÃÂsa's Saá¹ÂpradÃÂyapradëpa (colophon states A.D. 1552âÂÂ54, but according to Hawley, actually from the latter half of the 1600s), at one point in Kali Yuga a king from DrÃÂviá¸Âa country had conquered all of India and Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë was the son of that king's BrÃÂhmaá¹Âa minister. The text states the Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë prayed for seven days until Kråṣá¹Âa appeared before him and thus started the Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë sampradÃÂya. Centuries later Vallabha wins a à ÂÃÂstrÃÂrtha at the court of Vijayanagara ruler Kråṣá¹ÂadevarÃÂya and is offer the ÃÂcÃÂrya seat of the Madhva sampradÃÂya by VyÃÂsatërtha; however he rejects the offer after he receives a dream in which Vilvamaá¹ gala (author of the à Ârëkråṣá¹Âakará¹ÂÃÂmrÃÂ¥ta) reveals that he has waited 700 years as the last of 700 Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë ÃÂcÃÂryas for Vallabha to take his seat and end the popular worship of à Âiva as promoted by à Âaá¹ kara. Due to historical inconsistencies, Hawley states this account is "clearly counterfactual" and was composed to further late 17th century Puá¹£á¹ÂimÃÂrga interests in promoting Vallabha's sect as one of the four sampradÃÂyas of Vaishnavism and Vallabha as preeminent among contemporary Vaiá¹£á¹Âava figures as well as previous generations of South Indian Vaiá¹£á¹Âavas.
There exists a copper land-grant plate dated to 1661, which states that the Vijayanagara ruler Raá¹Âga RÃÂya gifted the villages of Raá¹Âaghaá¹Âa and HirekalyÃÂá¹Âi to the head of the Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë maá¹Âha. The plate states that Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë was a 5th generation student of Gauá¸ÂapÃÂda, the student of à Âuka, the student of VyÃÂsa and from there NÃÂrada.
In 1812, the king of Mysore Kråṣá¹Âa RÃÂja Oá¸Âeyar III remitted the taxes owed by Kråṣá¹ÂÃÂnanda SvÃÂmë, who was the head of the Viá¹£á¹ÂusvÃÂmë maá¹Âha.