Srila Gopala Bhatta Gosvami

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna,

 

 

 

PAMHO, AGTSP

 

 

 

Kindly glorifiy the pastimes of Srlia Gopal Bhatt Goswami

 

 

 

Your servant in mission of Srila Prabhupada

 

 

 

 

Srila Gopala Bhatta Gosvami

 

 

 

Srila Gopala Bhatta Gosvami (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 this time, Gopala personally served the Lord. Sri Caitanya treated him

affectionately giving His remnants and blessings to become as acarya.

 

 

 

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

Vyenkata Bhatta, which Krishna Dasa Kaviraja describes as "sakhya rasa."

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

One day in a humorous mood Lord Caitanya asked Vyenkata:

 

 

 

"Why does your worship 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 Gopala, 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). Lord Narayan

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, Sir 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. The Srutis worshiped Krishna in the

ecstasy of the gopis. Following in their footsteps, they received gopi's

bodies to join Krishna in the rasa dance. Laksmi, however, wanted to enjoy

Krishna but retain Her spiritual form as Laksmidevi. Without following the

gopis, footsteps no one can attain Krishna."

 

 

 

After receiving initiation from Sri Prabodhananda Sarasvati, Gopala Bhatta cam

to Vrndavana and became a dear friend of Sri Rupa and Sanatana Gosvamis. 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 worshipped with pure devotion following precise sastric

rituals.

 

 

 

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

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

Sanatana Gosvami he compiled the Hari.bhakti-vilasa, the authorized book

explaining the ritual and devotional practices of the Gaudiya Vaisnava

sampradaya. He also wrote Sat-kriya-dipika and the outline for Sri Jiva

Gosvami,s Sat Sandarbhas. He eternally serves Srimati Radharani as one of Her

asta manjaris, Guna-manjari. His samadhi is within Radha Ramanaji's temple

compound behind the appearance place of the Deity. Sri Gopala Bhatta Gosvami

initiated Gopinatha (Pujari Gosvami), a lifelong brahmacari who served Radha

Ramanaji for his whole life. Gopala Bhatta Gosvami initiated Srinivasa Acarya

and many other stalwart Vaisnavas.

 

 

 

TEXT105

 

çré-gopäla bhaööa eka çäkhä sarvottama

 

rüpa-sanätana-saìge yäìra prema-äläpana

 

TRANSLATION

 

Çré Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé, the forty-seventh branch, was one of the great and

exalted branches of the tree. He always engaged in discourses about love of

Godhead in the company of Rüpa Gosvämé and Sanätana Gosvämé.

 

PURPORT

 

Çré Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé was the son of Veìkaöa Bhaööa, a resident of Çré

Raìgam. Gopäla Bhaööa formerly belonged to the disciplic succession of the

Rämänuja-sampradäya but later became part of the Gauòéya-sampradäya. In the

year 1433 Çakäbda (A.D. 1511), when Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu was touring South

India, He stayed for four months during the period of Cäturmäsya at the house

of Veìkaöa Bhaööa, who then got the opportunity to serve the Lord to his

heart's content. Gopäla Bhaööa also got the opportunity to serve the Lord at

this time. Çré Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé was later initiated by his uncle, the

great sannyäsé Prabodhänanda Sarasvaté. Both the father and the mother of

Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé were extremely fortunate, for they dedicated their entire

lives to the service of Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu. They allowed Gopäla Bhaööa

Gosvämé to go to Våndävana, and they gave up their lives thinking of Çré

Caitanya Mahäprabhu. When Lord Caitanya was later informed that Gopäla Bhaööa

Gosvämé had gone to Våndävana and met Çré Rüpa and Sanätana Gosvämé, He was

very pleased, and He advised Çré Rüpa and Sanätana to accept Gopäla Bhaööa

Gosvämé as their younger brother and take care of him. Çré Sanätana Gosvämé,

out of his great affection for Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé, compiled the Vaiñëava

småti named Hari-bhakti-viläsa and published it under his name. Under the

instruction of Çréla Rüpa and Sanätana, Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé installed one of

the seven principal Deities of Våndävana, the Rädhäramaëa Deity. The sevaits

(priests) of the Rädhäramaëa temple belong to the Gauòéya-sampradäya.

 

When Kåñëadäsa Kaviräja Gosvämé took permission from all the Vaiñëavas before

writing Çré Caitanya-caritämåta, Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé also gave him his

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

Kåñëadäsa Kaviräja Gosvämé has mentioned Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé only very

cautiously in one or two passages of the Caitanya-caritämåta. Çréla Jéva

Gosvämé has written in the beginning of his Tattva-sandarbha, "A devotee from

southern India who was born of a brähmaëa family and was a very intimate friend

of Rüpa Gosvämé and Sanätana Gosvämé has written a book that he has not

compiled chronologically. Therefore I, a tiny living entity known as jéva, am

trying to assort the events of the book chronologically, consulting the

direction of great personalities like Madhväcärya, Çrédhara Svämé,

Rämänujäcärya and other senior Vaiñëavas in the disciplic succession." In the

beginning of the Bhagavat-sandarbha there are similar statements by Çréla Jéva

Gosvämé. Çréla Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé compiled a book called

Sat-kriyä-sära-dépikä, edited the Hari-bhakti-viläsa, wrote a foreword to the

Ñaö-sandarbha and a commentary on the Kåñëa-karëämåta, and installed the

Rädhäramaëa Deity in Våndävana. In the Gaura-gaëoddeça-dépikä (184) it is

mentioned that his previous name in the pastimes of Lord Kåñëa was

Anaìga-maïjaré. Sometimes he is also said to have been an incarnation of

Guëa-maïjaré. Çréniväsa Äcärya and Gopénätha Püjäré were two of his disciples.