Shankaravara could run faster than all his friends and swim across the Brahmaputra when it was in spate. But when his grandmother scolded him for not paying attention to his books, he took her words seriously. Named Shankar Dev by his guru, the young man fulfilled all his duties as a student and a householder before embarking on a voyage of self-discovery. A voyage which led to his starting the Vaishnava movement in Assam.