Damodara Deva (1488-1598), a prominent figure in the Vaishnavite movement, was a Brahmin, but it is said that he took initiation from Sreemanta Sankaradeva and became his disciple. Immediately after Sankaradeva`s death, however, there was disagreement between Madhavadeva and Damodara Deva.
Damodara seceded from the Orthodox Church and established his own sect known as Damodariya, in which worship of other Hindu gods and Brahmin rituals were permitted. It was for these reasons that Damodara`s creed attracted a large number of Brahmin adherents. Ramarai Dvija, a contemporary of Damodara, in his Gurulila, and Nilakantha Das in his Damodara charit, has given detailed accounts of the life and activities of the saint and of the Satras that Damodara had established.
The historical facts revealed in these two biographies give a dependable picture of the growth of different shades of faith in the main religion and their respective doctrines and theologies. Ramananda in his Vamilgopaladevar-carit refers also to Damodara Deva, who was the spiritual Guru of the missionary Vamsigopal, whom Damodara, before his secession from the main sect, deputed to Eastern Assam to propagate the teachings of the Vaishnava religion. Ramakanta`s Vanamalideva charit is also indispensable for mapping the history of Vaishnavism in Eastern Assam. Vanamali Deva (c. 1576 A.D.) was a disciple of Vamsigopaladeva, and was responsible for the spread of the faith in Eastern Assam. In his mission he secured royal patronage for the Ahom monarch Jayadhvaja Singha.
Ramakanta was not only a devotee but a keen observer of contemporary events and possessed an understanding of the political affairs of the time, and so, besides giving biographical details about his master and his proselytizing activities, particularly in Eastern Assam, he offers ample historical information on Ahom rule and administration and its relation with the Vaishnava gurus and Satras. Satsampradaya Katha, compiled by Govinda Das during the reign of the great Ahom ruler Rudra Singha (1697-1714), though brief, is a very reliable work on the history of the Satra institutions, particularly under the Ahoms. Besides religious and metaphysical leanings, Govinda Das shows much historical sense, acuteness of observation and love of truth.
