Rupa Goswami

The three brothers studied the Nyaya-sastras (treatise on justice) from the famous logician Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya and his brother Madhusudana Vidyavacaspati. They also studied Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian.^{[citation needed]}

Due to their noble character and academic proficiency, Rupa and his elder brother

Dear Lord, you are going to Vrindavana with hundreds and thousands of people following You, and this is not a fitting way to go on a pilgrimage.

— Chaitanya Charitamrita 2.1.224^[10]

Second meeting with Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

After visiting

Shortly after, they were also joined by their nephew Jiva Goswami who was given initiation by Rupa and personally trained by him in the philosophy of Gaudiya Vaishnavism.^{[citation needed]}

Rupa Goswami departed from this world in 1564 CE and his samadhi (tomb) is located in the courtyard of the Radha-Damodara temple in Vrindavana.^{[citation needed]}

In Gaudiya Vaishnava theology, Rupa Goswami is considered to be the incarnation of Rupa Manjari, the foremost junior cowherd damsel who eternally serves Radha-Krishna under the guidance of Lalita.^{[citation needed]}

Works

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• Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (The Ocean of Nectar of Divine Love): Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu can be considered to be one of the most important books in Gaudiya Vaishnavism. It elaborately describes gradations of bhakti from its lowest stage of sraddha (faith) up to its highest stage of maha-bhava (ultimate ecstasy in love of Godhead).
• Ujjvala-nilamani (The Sapphire of Divine Love): This work exclusively explains the conception of madhurya-rasa (divine conjugal love). Ujjvala-nilamani is considered to be a sequel to the Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu.
• Laghu-bhagavatamrta (A Summary of Nectar about Godhead): It is a summary of Sanatana Goswami's book Brhat-bhagavatamrta. It begins by explaining the intrinsic nature of Krishna and his incarnations and subsequently deals with devotees of Krishna.
• Vidagdhamadhava (1524) & Lalitamadhava (1529): Rupa originally began to write these two dramas as one in 1516 but he completed them as two separate plays in
  Saka era 1451 (1529) respectively.^[11]
  It is said that Rupa had a vision of Satyabhama, one of Krishna's queens in Dvaraka, who told him to divide the book into two separate dramas. Thus, Lalitamadhava deals with Krishna's pastimes in Dvaraka, and Vidagdhamadhava narrates Krishna's pastimes in Vrindavana.
• Stavamala (The Flower Garland of Prayers): This is a compilation of short works, some of which are often published as separate books.
• Danakelikaumudi (The Lotus-like Tax-collecting Pastimes) (1549): This Bhāṇikā (one-act play) was written in
  Saka era 1471 (1549) and narrates the danakeli (tax-collecting pastime) between Krishna and the Gopis of Vrindavana.^[11]
• Sri Radha-krsna-ganoddesa-dipika (A Lamp to See the Associates of Radha-Krsna) (1550): In this book, Rupa Goswami lists the associates of Radha and Krishna and describes their characteristics.
• Mathura-mahatmya (The Glories of Mathura): This book tells the glories of Mathura, in the form of a conversation between Varaha (the boar incarnation of Vishnu) and the Earth Goddess. Rupa Goswami explains various processes of devotional service by quoting statements from various Hindu scriptures and establishes that Mathura vanquishes all one's sinful reactions and awards piety and liberation.
• Uddhava-sandesa (News of Uddhava): In this work, Rupa Goswami narrates the story from the Bhagavata Purana of Krishna requesting his friend Uddhava to go to Vrindavana and pacify his friends and relations by reminding them of their pastimes with him.
• Hamsa-dutam (The Swan Messenger): This text tells the story how Lalita, the confident of Radha, sends a messenger in the form of a swan to Krishna in Dwaraka.
• Sri Krsna-janma-tithi-vidhi: This short work is a paddhati (manual on ritual worship) explaining the process of worshiping the deity of Krishna during the festival of
  Janmastami, the birthday of Krishna celebrated by Vaishnavas
  in August/September.
• Nataka-candrika (The Illuminating Moon of Dramatics) This book explains the rules of Gaudiya Vaisnava dramaturgy.
• Upadesamrta (The Nectar of Instruction): This short work contains eleven verses of instructions to aspirants on the path of devotion to Krishna. The Upadesamrta was originally a part of the Stavamala.

See also

• Hare Krishna
• Nityananda
• Vaishnava Theology
• Krishnology

References

• Tirtha, Swami B.B., Sri Caitanya and His Associates, 2002, Mandala Publishing, San Francisco.
  ISBN 1-886069-28-X
• Mahayogi, Swami B.V., Lives of the Saints, translated from Gaura Parsada Caritavali, unpublished work.
• Gaudiya Vaisnava Abhidhana (Bengali), Compiled by Haridasa Dasa, Haribol Kutir, Navadvipa, W. Bengal, 1957.
• Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, A.C., The Nectar of Devotion, 1970, Los Angeles: The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. (A summary study of Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu
  .)
• Swami, Dhanurdhara, Waves of Devotion, 2000, Bhagavat Books
  ISBN 0-9703581-0-5
  . (A study guide to The Nectar of Devotion.)

• Rupa Goswami - Gaudiya History
• Upadesamrta (The Nectar of Instruction) – English translation by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
• Nectar of Devotion – A summary study of Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
• Website On Krishna (krishna.com)
• Online study of Rupa Goswami's Nectar of Devotion (bhakti-sastri.com)