Sripadaraja (Sanskrit: श्रीपादराज; Śrīpādarāja) or Sripadaraya, also known by his pontifical name Lakshminarayana Tirtha (c.1422 - c.1480), was a Hindu Dvaita philosopher, scholar and composer and the pontiff of the Madhvacharya mutt at Mulbagal.
His father, Sheshagiriappa, served as an accountant while young Sripadaraja looked after the cattle, studying Sanskrit texts in his spare time.
[5] Tradition asserts that Sripadaraja was the cousin of Brahmanya Tirtha, who served as the pontiff of the Madhvacharya mutt at Abbur and the guru of Vyasatirtha.
Legends speak of Svarnavarna Tirtha encountering young Sripadaraja on his way to Abbur and after a brief rapport, being amazed by the youth's innate intelligence.
Jackson conjectures that the simple and rural beginnings of Sripadaraya coupled with an intimate connection with his vernacular language influenced his poetry.