Narayan Tilak was born into a Kokanastha Hindu family on 6 December 1861 in the village of Karajhgaon in Ratnagiri District of Bombay Presidency. On 9 May, he died at J.J. Hospital, Byculla, Mumbai.

Tilak's growth and development as a Hindu born in colonial India was entirely along traditional HIndu religious and social lines. He was a close relative of Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak. Unlike many of his Chitpavan Hindu caste fellows, such as Mahadev Govind Ranade, Lokmanya Tilak, Gopal Krishna Gokhale who made a name in 19th century Maharashtra after going college in Pune and after that to England for higher studies in economics, and law, for example, Narayan Tilak never left India's shores for his entire life. His mind was not formed by studies of Western thinkers in academic circles that were shaped by western education in British India, but he read widely and thought deeply on matters of moment for his people in a colonial situation.