Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami ki jay !!!

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna,

 

 

 

PAMHO, AGTSP

 

 

 

There are seven original and most important Temples of Vrndavana:

 

Temple Founder

Madana- Mohana Sanatana Goswami

 

Govindaji Rupa Goswami

 

Radha-Gopinatha Madhu Pandit Goswami

 

Radha-Damodara Jiva Goswami

 

Radha-Syamasundara Syamananda Pandita Goswami

 

Radha Ramana Gopal Bhatta Goswami

Radha-Gokulananda Lokanatha Goswami

 

 

 

Radha Ramana Temple

This is the famous temple of Gopal Bhatta Goswami. The seva puja of Radha

Ramana was established in 1542, after the Deity self-manifested from a

salagrima-sila. Once a rich business man made an offering of clothes, crown and

jewellery to Gopal Bhatta Goswami, who lamented that, as he was worshipping

salagrama-sila (which is round just like a stone), he could not dress or put

crowns and jewellery like other Goswamis were doing with their Deities.

Lamenting in this way, the Goswami took rest. Early next morning, when came to

bathe his salagrama-sila, he discovered that one of the silas had transformed

into the most beautiful Deity of Krishna, who had manifest Himself out of love,

just to receive worship from Gopal Bhatta Goswami. Radha Ramana means 'one who

gives pleasure to Radha.' This is one of the names of Lord Krishna. There is no

Deity of Radharani at this temple, but a crown is kept next to Krishna

signifying Her presence.

 

 

Sri Sri Radha Ramana ki jay jay!!!

 

 

 

SB 5.18.23

 

sa tvam mamapy acyuta sirsni vanditam, karambujam yat tvad-adhayi satvatam

 

bibharsi mam laksma varenya mayaya, ka isvarasyehitam uhitum vibhur iti

 

 

 

TRANSLATION

 

O infallible one, Your lotus palm is the source of all benediction. Therefore

Your pure devotees worship it, and You very mercifully place Your hand on their

heads. I wish that You may also place Your hand on My head, for although You

already bear my insignia of golden streaks on Your chest, I regard this honour

as merely a kind of false prestige for me. You show Your real mercy to Your

devotees, not to me. Of course, You are the supreme absolute controller, and no

one can understand Your motives.

 

 

 

PURPORT

 

In many places, the sastras describe the Supreme Personality of Godhead as

being more inclined toward His devotees than toward His wife, who always

remains on His chest. In Srimad-Bhagavatam (11.14.15) it is stated:

 

na tatha me priyatama,atma-yonir na sankarah

 

na ca sankarsano na srir, naivatma ca yatha bhavan

 

Here Krsna plainly says that His devotees are more dear to Him than Lord

Brahma, Lord Siva, Lord Sankarsana (the original cause of creation), the

goddess of fortune or even His own Self. Elsewhere in Srimad-Bhagavatam

(10.9.20) Sukadeva Gosvami says,

 

 

nemam virinco na bhavo, na srir apy anga samsraya

 

prasadam lebhire gopi, yat tat prapa vimuktidat

 

The Supreme Lord, who can award liberation to anyone, showed more mercy toward

the gopis than to Lord Brahma, Lord Siva or even the goddess of fortune, who is

His own wife and is associated with His body. Similarly, Srimad-Bhagavatam

(10.47.60) also states:

 

nayam sriyo 'nga u nitanta-rateh prasadah, svar-yositam nalina-gandha-rucam

kuto 'nyah

 

rasotsave 'sya bhuja-danda-grhita-kantha-, labdhasisam ya udagad

vraja-sundarinam

 

"The gopis received benedictions from the Lord that neither Laksmidevi nor the

most beautiful dancers in the heavenly planets could attain. In the rasa dance,

the Lord showed His favour to the most fortunate gopis by placing His arms on

their shoulders and dancing with each of them individually. No one can compare

with the gopis, who received the causeless mercy of the Lord."

 

In the Caitanya-caritamrta it is said that no one can receive the real

favour of the Supreme Personality of Godhead without following in the footsteps

of the gopis. Even the goddess of fortune could not receive the same favour as

the gopis, although she underwent severe austerities and penances for many

years. Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu discusses this point with Vyenkata Bhatta

in Caitanya-caritamrta (Madhya 9.111-131): "The Lord inquired from Vyenkata

Bhatta, 'Your worshipable goddess of fortune, Laksmi, always remains on the

chest of Narayana, and she is certainly the most chaste woman in the creation.

However, My Lord is Lord Sri Krsna, a cowherd boy engaged in tending cows. Why

is it that Laksmi, being such a chaste wife, wants to associate with My Lord?

Just to associate with Krsna, Laksmi abandoned all transcendental happiness in

Vaikuntha and for a long time accepted vows and regulative principles and

performed unlimited austerities.'

 

 

 

"Vyenkata Bhatta replied, 'Lord Krsna and Lord Narayana are one and the

same, but the pastimes of Krsna are more relishable due to their sportive

nature. They are very pleasing for Krsna's saktis. Since Krsna and Narayana are

both the same personality, Laksmi's association with Krsna did not break her

vow of chastity. Rather, it was in great fun that the goddess of fortune wanted

to associate with Lord Krsna. The goddess of fortune considered that her vow of

chastity would not be damaged by her relationship with Krsna. Rather, by

associating with Krsna she could enjoy the benefit of the rasa dance. If she

wanted to enjoy herself with Krsna what fault is there? Why are you joking so

about this?'

 

"Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu replied, 'I know that there is no fault in the

goddess of fortune, but still she could not enter into the rasa dance. We hear

this from revealed scriptures. The authorities of Vedic knowledge met Lord

Ramacandra in Dandakaranya, and by their penances and austerities, they were

allowed to enter into the rasa dance. But can you tell me why the goddess of

fortune, Laksmi, could not get that opportunity? '

 

"To this Vyenkata Bhatta replied, 'I cannot enter into the mystery of this

incident. I am an ordinary living being. My intelligence is limited, and I am

always disturbed. How can I understand the pastimes of the Supreme Lord? They

are deeper than millions of oceans.'

 

"Lord Caitanya replied, 'Lord Krsna has a specific characteristic. He

attracts everyone's heart by the mellow of His personal conjugal love. By

following in the footsteps of the inhabitants of the planet known as Vrajaloka

or Goloka Vrndavana, one can attain the shelter of the lotus feet of Sri Krsna.

However, the inhabitants of that planet do not know that Lord Krsna is the

Supreme Personality of Godhead. Unaware that Krsna is the Supreme Lord, the

residents of Vrndavana like Nanda Maharaja, Yasodadevi and the gopis treat

Krsna as their beloved son or lover. Mother Yasoda accepts Him as her son and

sometimes binds Him to a grinding mortar. Krsna's cowherd boy friends think He

is an ordinary boy and get up on His shoulders. In Goloka Vrndavana no one has

any desire other than to love Krsna.' "

 

The conclusion is that one cannot associate with Krsna unless he has fully

received the favour of the inhabitants of Vrajabhumi. Therefore if one wants to

be delivered by Krsna directly, he must take to the service of the residents of

Vrndavana, who are unalloyed devotees of the Lord.

 

 

 

Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami

(Disappearance day on 5th June)

 

 

 

Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami (the son of a Vyenkata Bhatta, a Sri Vaisnava

brahmana) appeared in Sri Rangam, South India. Lord Caitanya once stayed four

months in his home, and converted the family to Gaudiya Vaisnavism. A mere boy

at his home, Gopal personally served the Lord. Sri Caitanya treated him

affectionately giving His remnants and blessing to become an acarya.

 

During His four-month stay, Lord Caitanya developed a close friendship with

Vyenkata Bhatta, which Krishnadas Kaviraja describes as 'sakhya rasa.' Freely

conversing with each other, they would often laugh and joke together. One day

in humorous mood Lord Caitanya asked Vyenkata: 'Why does your friendship able

goddess of fortune, Sri Laksmidevi, abandon the happiness of Vaikuntha and her

service to Her Lord Narayana! Why does She go to Vrndavana and perform severe

austerities to attain the association of My Lord Gopal, the cowherd boy of

Vraja! I can't understand these mysteries,' said Vyenkata, 'but You, being the

Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself, can surely enlighten me.'

 

'Lord Krishna has one unique quality,' said Lord Gauranga, 'He attracts the

hearts of everyone with His personal conjugal love (madhurya rasa). Lord

Narayana only has sixty transcendental qualities but Sri Krishna has

sixty-four. And all of them are saturated with His unique quality of madhurya

(honey sweetness). The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krishna, attracts

the mind of Laksmidevi. But Lord Narayana can never attract the minds of the

Vraja Gopis.

 

 

 

In Vraja lila, Krishna disguised as Lord Narayana, once appeared before the

gopis who were searching for Krishna. Seeing Lord Narayana the gopis said; 'O

Lord Narayana, pranams. Where did Krishna go, did You see!' by following the

gopis, who spontaneously love Krishna without awareness of His Godhood, one can

attain Krishna. The Srutis worshiped Krishna in the ecstasy of the gopis.

Following in their footsteps, they received gopis bodies to join in the rasa

dance. Laksmidevi, however, wanted to enjoy Krishna but retain Her spiritual

form as Laksmidevi. Without following the gopis's

 

Footsteps no one can attain Krishna.'

 

 

 

After receiving initiation from Sri Prabodhananda Sarasvati, Gopal Bhatta came

to Vrndavana and became a dear friend of Rupa and Sanatana Goswami. He did

bhajana in Vrndavana for forty-five years, mostly at Radha-kunda. On pilgrimage

he obtained twelve Salagrama silas. Later the Damodara sila manifested Himself

as the beautiful Radha-Ramana Deity. Since 1542, Radha-Ramanaji has been

worshiped with pure devotion following precise sastric rituals.

 

 

 

When Krsnadas Kaviraja Goswami took permission from all the Vaisnavas before

writing Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Gopal Bhatta Goswami also gave him his

blessings, but he requested him not to mention his name in the book. Therefore

Krsnadas Kaviraja Goswami has mentioned Gopal Bhatta Goswami only very

cautiously in one or two passages of the Caitanya-caritamrta.

 

 

 

Lord Caitanya ordered Gopal Bhatta to write a book to check the spread of

pseudo-loving rasas and negligence to vaidhi bhakti. In corroboration with Sri

Sanatana Goswami he compiled the Hari-bhakti-vilasa, the authorized book

explaining the ritual and devotional practices of Gaudiya Vaisnava sampradayas.

He also wrote Sat-kriya-dipika and outlined for Jiva Goswami's Sat Sandarbhas.

 

 

 

He eternally serves Srimati Radharani as one of Her asta manjaris,

Guna-manjari. His previous name in the pastimes of Lord Krishna was

Ananga-manjari. His samadhi is within Radha-Ramanaji's temple compound behind

the appearance of the Deity. Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami initiated Gopinatha

(pujari Goswami), a lifelong Brahmacari who served Radha-Ramanaji for his whole

life. Gopal Bhatta Goswami initiated Srinivasa Acarya and many other stalwart

Vaisnavas.

 

 

 

Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami ki jay !!!