[4] Saraswati was born into a Deshastha Brahmin family in Karanjapura, modern-day Lad-Karanja (Karanja) in the Washim district, which is a part of Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, India.

[5] His father (Madhava) and his mother (Amba-Bhavani) initially named him Narahari or Shaligramadeva, with the surname Kale.Shri Narasimha Sarswati[6] is considered to be the second incarnation of Dattatreya, the first Incarnation was Sripada Srivallabha, as per his blessings to Amba Bhavani, in her previous birth, Sripada Srivallabha had blessed her & he advised her to perform shiva pooja.

This led his parents to worry about his speech ability; however, Narahari showed through hand gestures that after his upanayana or munji (sacred thread ceremony), he would be able to speak.

After becoming a Sanyasi, Narasimha Saraswati visited several holy places (tirtha) before returning to Karanja at the age 30 to meet his parents.

Possible years and dates are given according to descriptions of the lunar and stellar events calendar mentioned in the Shri GuruCharitra.