In the new Bengali dictionary edited by Āśutoṣa Deva, Rūpa Gosvāmī’s dates are given as 1489 to 1558 AD, or 1410-1479 of the Śaka era. In his earthly pastimes, Rūpa Gosvāmī appeared in a brāhmaṇa family of the Bharadvāja gotra which hailed from Karnataka, where they had been kings. His father’s name was Kumāradeva. His mother’s name is not known. Narahari Cakravartī Ṭhākura has given the names of seven generations of his family in Bhakti-ratnākara (1.540-568).

Śrīla Bhakti Siddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Ṭhākura has summarized this family history in his Anubhāṣya: “Sarvajña, a jagad-guru, was a great soul who was born in the Bharadvāja gotra, the best among the brāhmaṇas, in the 12th century of the Śaka era. His son Aniruddha had two sons named Rupeśvara and Harihara, neither of whom inherited the land holdings. The older brother Rupeśvara went to live in the mountains and his son Padmanābha moved to Bengal, taking up residence in the village of Naihati on the banks of the Ganges. Padmanābha had five sons, the youngest of whom was named Mukunda, who fathered the pious Kumāradeva, who had several sons, amongst whom were Sanātana Gosvāmī, Rūpa Gosvāmī and Anupama. Kumāradeva’s house was in the village of Bakla in Chandradvīpa.¹ His house was in the village of Fatehabad in the Jessore district of that time. Three of his sons became Vaiṣṇavas. These three brothers left the Fatehabad home to live in Ramakeli for their work. Jīva Gosvāmī was born there. As a result of their service to the Nawāb, all three of them were awarded the Mallika title. Mahāprabhu met Anupama for the first time when He came to Ramakeli. When Rūpa Gosvāmī abandoned his government duties to go to Vṛndāvana, he was accompanied by Anupama, who was also known as Vallabha.” (Anubhāṣya to Caitanya Caritāmṛta 1.10.84)

Mahāprabhu met Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī for the first time beneath kadamba and tamāl trees in Ramakeli village. Rūpa Gosvāmī had a large pond excavated that still exists, named Rūpa-sāgara. The three brothers were engaged in the service of the contemporary king of Gauḍa, Hussain Shah. Sanātana Gosvāmī was his prime minister with the title Sākara Mallika, while Rūpa Gosvāmī was also an important minister with the title Dabira Khāsa. We have an indication of this from the Caitanya Caritāmṛta, where the Shah addresses him with this title.

When Mahāprabhu arrived at Ramakeli surrounded by countless Hindus, with some concern, the Shah summoned Rūpa Gosvāmī to ask him who Mahāprabhu was. Rūpa Gosvāmī glorified Mahāprabhu in such a diplomatic way that the Shah’s mind was put at ease.

The king made private inquiries from Dabira Khāsa, who told him of Mahāprabhu’s glories. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.1.175)

Vṛndāvana Dāsa Ṭhākura also confirms definitively in the Caitanya Bhāgavata that Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī were named Dabir Khas and Sākara Mallika respectively.

In the Antya-khaṇḍa, the Lord revealed His divinity to Dabira Khāsa and Sākara Mallika and recognizing their greatness, released them from their bondage. He then named them Rūpa and Sanātana. (Caitanya Bhāgavata 1.2.171-2)

Then, two greatly fortunate brothers, Sākara Mallika and Rūpa, came to the spot where the Lord was. The Lord looked upon them with compassionate eyes. (Caitanya Bhāgavata 3.9.238-9)

Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī were eternal participants in Kṛṣṇa-līlā. When the time for them to make their contribution to Gaura-līlā arrived, Mahāprabhu and His associates arrived in their home village. While performing their earthly pastimes, the Lord and His devotees make an effort to keep their transcendental natures concealed to facilitate spreading of their teachings to the people in this world; however, when they come close to one another their actual identity cannot remain concealed. Thus, as soon as Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī saw Mahāprabhu, though they were naturally attracted to Him, they behaved in the manner of conditioned souls in order to show the people of this world how to act.

When the Muslim King heard that Mahāprabhu had come to Ramakeli with a party of thousands of Hindus, he was frightened and suspected Mahāprabhu of having a political purpose. A certain Keśava of Kṣatriya caste who knew about the Lord explained to the Shah, “He is just a sannyāsī, a beggar who is out on pilgrimage. A few people are accompanying Him, but there is no need to be alarmed.” The Shah also consulted Rūpa Gosvāmī, who told him of Mahāprabhu’s glories and succeeded in calming his fears.

Being desirous of meeting the Lord themselves, Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī left the palace in the middle of the night and came to Ramakeli. They first encountered Nityānanda Prabhu and Haridāsa Ṭhākura, who brought the two brothers into the presence of the Lord. Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī placed some grass in their mouths and wrapped cloth around their necks as a sign of humility. They fell down at the Lord’s lotus feet and, with tears in their eyes, made the following humble submission:

“We are millions of times more degraded, fallen and sinful than Jagāi and Mādhāi. We have taken a wicked birth, we have become the servants of Muslims and our activities are exactly like those of the Muslims. We constantly associate with people who are inimical toward the cows and brāhmaṇas. Due to our abominable activities, we are now bound by the neck and hands and have been thrown into a ditch filled with the excrement of evil sense enjoyment.” (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.1.196-198)

When the Lord heard the extreme humility of the two brothers, He became compassionate. Even so, it is clear from His response to their statement that they were not ordinary conditioned souls, but His eternal associates.

“I really had no need to come to Bengal, but I came anyway just to see the two of you. No one knows My purpose and so people ask Me why I have come to this village of Ramakeli. I am very glad that you have come to see Me. Now you can go home; do not fear anything. You have been My servants life after life, so Kṛṣṇa will deliver you very soon.” After saying this, the Lord placed His hands on the heads of Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī, and they immediately took the Lord’s lotus feet and placed them on their heads. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.1.212-6)

The Lord wished to teach that the conditioned soul is delivered by the mercy of the devotees, so He asked Nityānanda Prabhu, Haridāsa, Śrīvāsa, Gadādhara, Mukunda, Jagadānanda, Murāri, Vakreśvara and His other associates to bless the two brothers.

Sanātana Prabhu then advised Mahāprabhu, “Dear Lord, you are going to Vṛndāvana with an entourage of hundreds and thousands of people, and this is not a fitting way to go on a pilgrimage.” (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.1.224) As a result of this advice, Mahāprabhu put off going to Vṛndāvana and turned back after going a little further, as far as Kanair Natshala.

From this meeting at Ramakeli, it is evident that Mahāprabhu intended to teach the people of this world through Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī. Not long afterwards, an intense spirit of renunciation awakened in the two brothers and they started looking for a way to extricate themselves from their entanglement in the service of the king. They paid two brāhmaṇas a large sum of money to perform a puraścaraṇa of the Kṛṣṇa-mantra on their behalf.²

Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī finally resigned from his government service and he deposited 10,000 coins with a grocer in the capital, Gauḍa on behalf of his elder brother. Then he took the rest of their accumulated wealth with him in a boat to Bakla Chandradvīpa where he divided it up, giving half to the brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas and a quarter for the maintenance of his family, while keeping the rest with a trustworthy brāhmaṇa against any future necessity. Then he sent two messengers to Purī to find out when Mahāprabhu intended to travel to Vṛndāvana by the jungle route through Jharikhand.

In the meantime, Sanātana Gosvāmī had stopped his duties in the court of the Shah. Though he claimed to be ill, he was in fact engaged in an intense study of the Bhāgavata with a group of scholars. The Shah first sent a doctor to examine Sanātana Gosvāmī and then, upon learning the truth of the matter, came himself to exhort him to return to work. When Sanātana Gosvāmī showed a continued reluctance to engage in his duties, the Shah had him put in prison. He then departed to invade Odisha.

When Rūpa Gosvāmī received the news from his two messengers that Mahāprabhu had left for Vṛndāvana, he and Anupama left Bakla in an attempt to join Him. He sent a letter to Sanātana Gosvāmī with this message, invoking him to take any necessary steps to free himself and then to come and join them. When Rūpa Gosvāmī arrived in Prayāga, he learnt that Mahāprabhu was there at the house of a South Indian brāhmaṇa. Finding Him there, Rūpa was overwhelmed with feelings of love for the Lord. He and Anupama placed straw between their teeth in humility and repeatedly paid their prostrated obeisances to the Lord, chanting various verses of praise. The Lord felt great affection for the two brothers and said, “Kṛṣṇa’s mercy is beyond description, for He has delivered you from the blind well of sensual existence.”

Mahāprabhu recited verses affirming that a devotee from a family of dog-eaters is dearer to the Lord than even a non-devotee brāhmaṇa who knows the four Vedas and that a devotee of the Lord is as worshipable as the Lord Himself. Then He showed His mercy by embracing them and placing His lotus feet on their heads. The two brothers folded their hands and chanted the following verse to show their gratitude to the Lord for His mercy toward them:

namo mahāvadānyāya kṛṣṇa-prema-pradāya te
kṛṣṇāya kṛṣṇa-caitanya-nāmne gaura-tviṣe namaḥ

O most munificent incarnation! You are Kṛṣṇa Himself appearing as Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya. You have assumed the golden color, and You are widely distributing pure love of Kṛṣṇa. I offer my respectful obeisances unto You.

Mahāprabhu heard from Rūpa Gosvāmī that his brother Sanātana Gosvāmī had been made prisoner by the king but predicted that it would not be long before Sanātana Gosvāmī would escape and meet Him. The South Indian brāhmaṇa invited the two brothers to stay with him that day and they ate Mahāprabhu’s prasāda remnants.

When Vallabha Bhaṭṭa, who lived in the village of Arail on the other side of the Ganges, heard that the Lord had come, he immediately rushed to Prayāga to meet Him and fell to the ground in obeisances to Him. Mahāprabhu embraced him and then the two engaged in conversation about Kṛṣṇa. Vallabha Bhaṭṭa was astonished to see the ecstatic reactions of the Lord in the course of their discussions.

As soon as Rūpa Gosvāmī and Anupama saw Vallabha Bhaṭṭa, they paid obeisances to him from a distance out of humility. When he came forward to touch them, they both reacted by saying, “We are lowly untouchables. You should not contaminate yourself by touching us.” They then moved back a certain distance.

Mahāprabhu was pleased by their display of humility, while Vallabha Bhaṭṭa was impressed. The Lord said to Vallabha Bhaṭṭa, “You are an older, aristocratic brāhmaṇa, while these two belong to a low caste. You should certainly not touch them.” Vallabha Bhaṭṭa was able to understand that there was some hidden meaning to the Lord’s utterance and he asked how they could be considered of a low caste when they chanted the Name of Kṛṣṇa constantly.

Vallabha Bhaṭṭa then invited the Lord and His entourage to come to his house to take prasāda and Mahāprabhu was happy to accept. They embarked on a boat, but as they crossed the confluence of the Yamunā and the Gaṅgā, Mahāprabhu was affected by the sight of the waters of the Yamunā and began to dance ecstatically in the boat, causing everyone on board a great deal of anxiety and fear. Finally, Mahāprabhu jumped into the Yamunā’s waters and had to be helped on board again by all the devotees.

Vallabha Bhaṭṭa took the Lord to his house, washed His feet and sprinkled this water on his own head. Then he performed an elaborate pūjā of the Lord with a variety of ingredients. After this he fed Him with a great feast of numerous preparations and satisfied Rūpa Gosvāmī and Anupama with the Lord’s remnants. He gave the Lord a mouth purifier and then a place to rest. When the Lord lay down, he sat beside Him and served Him by massaging His feet. In this way, Vallabha Bhaṭṭa considered himself to have attained the highest good fortune. The Lord told Vallabha to take prasāda.

During this time, Raghupati Upādhyāya, a brāhmaṇa from Tirhut arrived there. The Lord was ecstatic to hear the devotional verses which Raghupati Upādhyāya had composed in glorification of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Mahāprabhu asked him to say what was the Supreme Lord’s superlative form, abode, age and last of all, what was the supreme object of worship. Raghupati answered:

The form of Śyāmasundara is the Supreme Form, the city of Mathura is the supreme abode, meditation on Lord Kṛṣṇa’s adolescent form is supreme, and love for Kṛṣṇa in the mood of the gopīs is the supreme sentiment. (Padyāvalī, 82)

Mahāprabhu was very pleased with this answer and embraced Raghupati Upādhyāya. All the inhabitants of the village became devotees of Kṛṣṇa upon seeing Mahāprabhu. Vallabha Bhaṭṭa again took the Lord back to Prayāga by boat.

Afraid of attracting crowds, Mahāprabhu stayed only ten days in Prayāga, remaining incognito at the Dasasvamedha Ghat. The Lord taught Rūpa Gosvāmī the truths about Kṛṣṇa, devotion to Him, and transcendental divine mellows, as well as all other devotional conclusions. He compassionately infused all the supreme sentiments of Vṛndāvana, which are slowly becoming extinct, into Rūpa Gosvāmī.

The teachings Mahāprabhu gave Rūpa Gosvāmī are known as Śrī-rūpa-śikṣā. Śivānanda Sena’s son, Kavi Karṇapūra, has described this event extensively in his Caitanya-candrodaya-nāṭaka:

kālena vṛndāvana-keli-vārtā
lupteti tāṁ khyāpayituṁ viśiṣya
kṛpāmṛtenābhiṣiṣeca devas
tatraiva rūpaṁ ca sanātanaṁ ca

In the course of time, tidings of Kṛṣṇa’s amusements in Vṛndāvana had been lost. To make them known again in detail the Lord drenched Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī with His mercy. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.19.119)

priya-svarūpe dayita-svarūpe
prema-svarūpe sahajābhirūpe
nijānurūpe prabhur eka-rūpe
tatāna rūpe svavilāsarūpe

The Lord explained the rasa-śāstra to Rūpa Gosvāmī, in a way He did no other person, for Rūpa Gosvāmī was the dear friend of Svarūpa Dāmodara, his true identity was that of the Lord’s beloved, his nature was that of divine love itself, and he was also endowed with natural physical beauty. Mahāprabhu knew him to be like unto Himself, and indeed, he was verily the expansion of the Lord. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.19.121)

Through Rūpa Gosvāmī, Mahāprabhu taught the world about Kṛṣṇa’s Vṛndāvana pastimes and the process for attaining Vraja-prema. Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī writes, “Through the mercy of Sanātana Gosvāmī I have learnt the devotional doctrines, and by the grace of Rūpa Gosvāmī I have attained the sublime devotional sentiments.” (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 1.5.203)

The Lord taught about sacred rapture and Vraja’s pastimes of transcendental divine love through Rūpa Gosvāmī. Who can effectively describe the subtleties of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s līlā? (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.5.87)

vṛndāvanīyāṁ rasa-kelivārtāṁ
kālena luptaṁ nija-śaktim utkaḥ
sañcārya rūpe vyatanot punaḥ sa
prabhor vidhau prāg iva loka-sṛṣṭim

Just as the Lord enlightened the heart of Lord Brahmā with the truths about His own self, so did Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu eagerly impregnate the heart of Rūpa Gosvāmī with spiritual potency so that he could spread Kṛṣṇa’s Vṛndāvana pastimes, which had almost been lost to memory due to the influence of time. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.19.1)

While in Prayāga, Mahāprabhu gave Rūpa Gosvāmī the direct order to write Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu. Rūpa Gosvāmī himself has stated this in the introductory verses to that book:

hṛdiryasya preraṇayā pravartito ’haṁ varāka-rūpo ’pi
tasya hareḥ pada-kamalaṁ vande caitanya-devasya

I worship the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, known as Lord Caitanya-deva, for though I am nothing but an ignorant wretch, I have set out to write this book by His inspiration. (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.1.2)

Particularly relevant in this connection is Śrīla Bhakti Siddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda’s Anubhāṣya to Caitanya Caritāmṛta (2.19.131) on the importance of studying and writing books as an element of devotional practice: “The lives of the Gosvāmīs were exemplary in their renunciation. Sometimes they would engage in chanting the Holy Names of the Lord, sometimes they would worship him by writing books on divine aesthetics (bhakti-rasa-śāstra), and sometimes they would remember or glorify the pastimes of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. There is an idea that has some currency amongst the prākṛta sahajiyās that devotional practice entails the renunciation of studying and writing devotional scriptures, and indeed scriptural discussions should be stopped for such pursuits are foolish by nature. Those who follow in the footsteps of Rūpa Gosvāmī do not entertain such ideas. However, if a devotional practitioner studies or writes devotional scriptures for the sake of making money through which to satisfy his material senses or attain material fame, respect or any of the other insignificant and superficial goals which are classed as distractions or weeds in the garden of devotional service, then he will not attain the auspicious results which are the real fruit of such activity. A real rūpānugā (follower of Rūpa Gosvāmī) has no fruitive ambition for such petty results.”

When Mahāprabhu was giving Rūpa Gosvāmī the prologue to the characteristics of the different mellows and instructed him how to get an iota of a taste of the fathomless ocean of sacred rapture, He pointed out how difficult it is to attain devotional service to Kṛṣṇa.

The jīva or living entity is an atomic spark of conscious energy. There are countless jīvas who are divided into two categories—moving and non-moving. Those that have mobility are again divided into three: those that move on the land, in the air or in the water. Amongst those who live on the land, a small number are human beings, of which only a minority accept the Vedic principles. Outcastes such as pulindas, mlecchas, shabaras and buddhists are in the majority. Of those who accept the Vedas, some do so in name only and engage in sinful activity. Those who practice the Vedic principles are in the minority. Those who are engaged in religious practices toward some fruitive end form the majority in this group.

Amongst millions of such karma-niṣṭha followers of the Vedas, one person may perhaps attain the level of spiritual knowledge; yet only one in many millions of such jñanis will be an actual liberated soul. And out of millions of liberated souls, it will still be difficult to find a devotee of Kṛṣṇa. Devotion to Kṛṣṇa, which is thus so rare, can take birth when a certain merit is attained through great good fortune.

The seed to the devotional creeper comes through the mercy of the Lord and His devotee. The creeper of spontaneous ecstatic devotion does not get shelter anywhere in this world or Viraja, not even in Vaikuṇṭha in the spiritual world, but only in Vṛndāvana at Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet. Kṛṣṇa’s feet are like the wish-fulfilling tree around which the vine of devotion wraps itself and bears fruit. This is described in the clearest and most wonderful manner by Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī in Caitanya Caritāmṛta:

After wandering through this entire universe, birth after birth, some fortunate souls receive the seed of devotion (bhakti-latā-bīja) by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa and the guru. Upon receiving the seed of devotional service, one should take care of it by becoming a gardener and sowing it in his heart. If he waters the seed regularly by the process of śravaṇa and kīrtana [hearing and chanting], the seed will begin to sprout. As one waters the bhakti-latā-bīja, the seed sprouts, and the creeper gradually increases to the point where it penetrates the walls of this universe and goes beyond the Viraja River between the spiritual world and the material world. The creeper passes through the Brahma-loka, the Brahman effulgence until it finally reaches the spiritual sky and the spiritual planet Goloka Vṛndāvana where it takes shelter of the desire tree of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. There the creeper expands greatly and produces the fruit of love for Kṛṣṇa, while the gardener continues to regularly sprinkle the creeper with the water of hearing and chanting here in the material world.

An offence to the Vaiṣṇavas is like a mad elephant that uproots or breaks the creeper, causing its leaves to dry up. The gardener must, therefore, take care to protect the creeper by making a fence around it so that the elephant of offences may not touch it. Even so, unwanted creepers, such as the weeds of desire for material enjoyment or liberation from the world, may grow along with the creeper of devotional service. Such weeds are countless in their variety. Some examples are forbidden activity, faultfinding and duplicity, causing suffering to other creatures, seeking wealth, adulation or mundane importance. All these weeds grow alongside the main creeper as one waters it, causing its growth to be curtailed. As soon as the devotee sees one of these weeds growing beside the original creeper, he must cut it down instantly. Then the real bhakti-latā can grow nicely all the way to Vṛndāvana where it will find shelter under the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.19.151-61)

Śrīla Bhakti Siddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Ṭhākura has commented on this passage in his Anubhāṣya: “Through the act of watering the creeper of devotional service by hearing and chanting, weeds may also grow which results in the growth of the bhakti-latā being stifled. If one does not avoid bad association, which is the only way to be free of offences while hearing and chanting, then one becomes attached to sense gratification, the idea of liberation from material bondage, various mystic achievements, or the practice of deception.

“One may also become addicted to the illicit association of women, practice of other manifestations of false devotion like the prākrita sahajiyās, or become a dweller of the five places given by Parīkṣit to Kali, namely wherever there is gambling, intoxication, prostitution, animal slaughter or the accumulation of gold. In such case, he starts to take the Vaiṣṇavas to be members of a particular race or caste, aspires for honour due to birth in a respected higher caste, and engages in the chanting of Holy Name, mantra, deity worship and Bhāgavata recitation for making a livelihood. He finds dishonest ways of collecting money or makes a show of practicing spiritual life in seclusion while secretly harbouring desires for fame and adulation. The desire for mundane reputation may result in his compromising the philosophy to draw a parallel between the material and transcendental planes, or becoming a supporter of the hereditary caste system by professing discipleship to a so-called guru who opposes Viṣṇu and the Vaiṣṇavas. The sum and substance of these aberrant paths are that one becomes intoxicated in the gratification of one’s own senses in pursuit of these superficial and destructive ends. One may pretend to be a dignified, saintly or religious person, but anything less than pure devotion is a hindrance to attaining service to Kṛṣṇa.

“If one uproots the various weeds as soon as one sees them beginning to sprout, then the creeper of devotional service will be able to grow as far as Goloka Vṛndāvana where it will bear fruits of divine love. If not, one will end up being cut off from devotional life and, remaining in the material world, whether in the higher or lower planets, will have to suffer its vagaries.” (Anubhāṣya to Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.19.160-1)

There are twelve devotional sentiments. The five primary sentiments are those of passivity, servitude, friendship, parenthood, and conjugal love. The seven secondary sentiments are humor, astonishment, heroism, compassion, anger, disgust and fear.

The five primary sentiments remain permanently within the devotee’s heart, while the secondary sentiments are adventitious appearing only when there is a cause. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.19.188)

The secondary rasas act as supporting elements for the primary sentiments, coming and going under propitious circumstances. After serving their function, they again disappear, whereas the primary sentiments are permanently established in the devotee’s heart. In His teachings to Rūpa Gosvāmī, Mahāprabhu established that among the five primary rasas, the divine sentiment of conjugal love is foremost. The characteristics of śānta-rasa are the abandonment of other desires and steady attachment to Kṛṣṇa. Over and above these characteristics, the possessor of the serving mood has his service, the friend has an intimacy, while the parent has a sense of being the protector. The devotee in madhura-rasa has all these qualities with the addition of serving with her own body. Just as all the qualities of the other principle elements of matter starting with the ether are added together to be united in the earth, so are all the qualities of the other devotional moods united in the mood of conjugal love. Since all the sentiments are present in madhura-rasa, it is the foremost.

After the Lord had instructed Rūpa Gosvāmī for ten days at Prayāga, He prepared to leave for Benares. Rūpa Gosvāmī was eager to accompany Him, but the Lord instructed him to go on to Vṛndāvana and that he could take the road through Bengal at some later date to see Him in Purī. In keeping with the Lord’s order, Rūpa Gosvāmī continued on to Vṛndāvana and stayed there for one month. Then, he and Anupama set off in search of Sanātana Gosvāmī, hoping to meet him somewhere along the Ganges. However, by the time they reached Prayāga, Sanātana Gosvāmī had already left for Mathura by the main highway, so their paths did not cross. When Sanātana Gosvāmī arrived in Mathura, Subuddhi Rāya informed him that Rūpa Gosvāmī and Anupama had already departed.

As the two brothers were travelling along the banks of the Ganges toward Bengal, Anupama departed for the eternal abode of Rāmacandra. Because of Anupama’s disappearance, Rūpa Gosvāmī was not able to join the other Bengali Vaiṣṇavas in their annual pilgrimage to Purī, arriving there much later.

While in Vṛndāvana, Rūpa Gosvāmī had commenced writing a play on Kṛṣṇa-līlā, and had composed several verses of the introductory portion, known as the nāndī. The nāndī verses include the obeisance, the blessing and the indication of the play’s subject matter. Travelling through Odisha on his way to Purī, he stopped overnight in a village named Satyabhamapur. There he had a dream in which Satyabhāmā Devī appeared to him and told him to write a separate play in her honour.

The morning after, Rūpa Gosvāmī said to himself, “Satyabhāmā has ordered me to write a play for her. I had started to write a play that described events from both Vraja and Dvaraka, but now I shall do them separately. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.1.43-4)

When in Purī, Rūpa Gosvāmī would not go into the Jagannātha temple to take darśana of the Lord. This was because of his great humility. In fact, though there was no impediment to his going there, he would not even enter Kāśī Miśra’s house to visit Mahāprabhu out of the same sense of being fallen. Though he had been born into a very respectable brāhmaṇa family, he considered himself to be a mleccha due to his long association with the Muslim rulers of Bengal. Therefore, he preferred to stay with Haridāsa Ṭhākura at Siddha Bakula. In spite of knowing the supreme eligibility of Rūpa Gosvāmī to see Lord Jagannātha, Mahāprabhu Himself respected his decision and never told him to go to see Lord Jagannātha, for He wished to teach the world humility through Rūpa Gosvāmī’s example.

Through Haridāsa Ṭhākura, the Lord taught forbearance. Through Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī, he taught humility. (Bhakti-ratnākara 1.631)

When Mahāprabhu suddenly came one day to visit Haridāsa Ṭhākura, He was attracted by Rūpa Gosvāmī’s humble, pure devotional attitude and embraced him. The Lord then sat down with him and asked him for the latest news about him and Sanātana Gosvāmī and they talked about these and other topics. Another day, Mahāprabhu came there with His whole entourage and Rūpa Gosvāmī paid obeisances to all of them. Mahāprabhu, out of affection for Rūpa Gosvāmī, had Advaita and Nityānanda Prabhus give him Their blessings. Every single day, Rūpa Gosvāmī and Haridāsa Ṭhākura would get the remnants of Mahāprabhu’s prasāda through Govinda.

One day, the Lord suddenly said to Rūpa Gosvāmī, “Never take Kṛṣṇa out of Vraja. Kṛṣṇa never abandons Vṛndāvana to go elsewhere.” (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.1.66) As a result of this hint from the Lord, Rūpa Gosvāmī understood that both Satyabhāmā and Mahāprabhu wanted two different dramas, so he composed Vidagdha-mādhava exclusively about Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes in Vraja and Lalita-mādhava about the Dvaraka-līlā.

By Mahāprabhu’s mercy, Rūpa Gosvāmī was able to understand His internal devotional states. Standing in front of the Lord’s chariot during the Ratha-yātrā, Mahāprabhu was overcome by the mood of Rādhā and recited a seemingly ordinary verse from the Kāvya-prakāśa and danced in ecstasy. Other than Śrī Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī, no one was able to understand the meaning of the verse. Rūpa Gosvāmī, however, also had an insight into the Lord’s mood and he composed a beautiful verse that expressed this sentiment. He wrote the verse down on a palm leaf and tucked it into the thatched roof of Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s cottage. Then he went to take his bath in the ocean.

While he was gone, Mahāprabhu came by and found the palm leaf. When He read the verse, He was astonished to see that Rūpa Gosvāmī had such a clear intuition into His innermost feelings.

priyaḥ so ’yaṁ kṛṣṇaḥ sahacari kurukṣetra-militas
tathāhaṁ sā rādhā tad idam ubhayoḥ saṅgama-sukham
tathāpy antaḥ-khelan-madhura-muralī-pañcama-juṣe
mano me kālindī-pulina-vipināya spṛhayati

O companion! This is the My beloved Kṛṣṇa meeting Me here in Kurukshetra, and I am the same Rādhā, and both of Us are feeling the joy of union. Even so, My mind yearns to be in the forest by the banks of the Yamunā where the fifth note of His flute reverberated sweetly within My heart. (Padyāvalī, 383)

When Rūpa Gosvāmī returned from bathing, Mahāprabhu gave him an affectionate slap, saying, “How did you know what was in My mind?” Then He embraced him tightly.

The Lord took the verse and showed it to Svarūpa Dāmodara, asking him to examine it for any possible faults. He asked him, “How was Rūpa able to know My mind?” Svarūpa Dāmodara answered, “I believe it must be the result of Your special benediction.” (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.1.85-6)

One day, Rūpa Gosvāmī was busy writing Vidagdha-mādhava. Mahāprabhu arrived unexpectedly and was impressed by his beautiful handwriting, comparing it to a string of pearls. He read the verse that Rūpa Gosvāmī had composed in the glorification of the Holy Name and was overcome with devotional ecstacy:

tuṇḍe tāṇḍavinī ratiṁ vitanute tuṇḍāvalī-labdhaye
karṇa-kroḍa-kaḍambinī ghaṭayate karṇārbudebhyaḥ spṛhām
cetaḥ-prāṅgaṇa-saṅginī vijayate sarvendriyāṇāṁ kṛtiṁ
no jāne janita kiyadbhir amṛtaiḥ krṣṇeti varṇa-dvayī

I do not know how much nectar the two syllables of Kṛṣṇa’s Name contain; dancing madly on my tongue, they awaken in me the desire to possess many mouths. As they sprout in my ears, I long for millions of ears; and as they enter into the garden of my heart they overcome the activities of every one of my senses, leaving me inert! (Vidagdha-mādhava 1.15)

Haridāsa Ṭhākura, the ācārya of the Holy Name, was amazed to hear such an extraordinary glorification of Kṛṣṇa’s Name and he started to dance. He said, “I have heard the glories of the Holy Name from many scriptures and sādhus, but never a description like this of the sweetness of the Name!” (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.1.101)

On another day, after visiting Jagannātha Deva, Mahāprabhu came to Siddha Bakula with His entire entourage, including Śrī Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī, Rāmānanda Rāya and Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya. Svarūpa Dāmodara read the priyaḥ so ’yaṁ verse to all the devotees. Upon hearing the verse Rāmānanda Rāya and Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya expressed how as a result of Mahāprabhu’s special mercy Rūpa Gosvāmī had been able to understand something that even Brahmā and the demigods were unable to comprehend. Then the Lord asked Rūpa Gosvāmī to read the tuṇḍe tāṇḍavinī verse glorifying the Holy Name. All the devotees were delighted and said, “How often we have heard about the greatness of the Holy Name. But no one has ever written such a description of its sweetness!” (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.1.122)

Then Rāmānanda Rāya began discussing the subject matter of Rūpa Gosvāmī’s plays with him. He desired to hear the verse glorifying the object of his devotion that would appear at the beginning of the play. At first, Rūpa Gosvāmī was reluctant to recite his composition in front of the Lord. However, when the Lord insisted that he recite, Rūpa Gosvāmī read his verse aloud. Mahāprabhu externally expressed displeasure, saying, “Your praises are overdone. It is an exaggeration,” but the rest of the devotees were overcome with ecstatic love. The verse is the second of the first act of Vidagdha-mādhava:

anarpita-carīṁ cirāt karuṇayāvatīrṇaḥ kalau
samarpayitum unnatojjvala-rasāṁ sva-bhakti-śriyam
hariḥ puraṭa-sundara-dyuti-kadamba-sandīpitaḥ
sadā hṛdaya-kandare sphuratu vaḥ śacīnandanaḥ

When Rāmānanda Rāya heard this extraordinary verse, drenched in love for the Lord, he began to praise Rūpa Gosvāmī with what seemed like a thousand tongues.

Rāmānanda Rāya said to the Lord: “I wish I had a thousand tongues to glorify Rūpa’s poetic ability. This is not poetry, it is a fountain of ambrosia. It is the essence of all ultimate realizations, appearing in the form of plays. His description of transcendental love affairs is truly wonderful. My ears and mind are spinning with delight upon hearing them. (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 3.1.192-4)

Once, Kālī Dāsa was considered the greatest Sanskrit poet; that was only until Rūpa Gosvāmī began to write his transcendental poetry, deeply imbued with divine sentiments.

From Purī, Rūpa Gosvāmī returned to Gauḍa-deśa to arrange for the equitable distribution of his accumulated wealth amongst his family, brāhmaṇas and temples and stayed there for nearly a year before going to Vṛndāvana for good. In the meantime, Sanātana Gosvāmī came to Purī via the Jharikhand path and then returned by the same route to Vraja. When the two brothers met again, it had been more than a year since they had seen each other.

Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī set an unequalled standard of devotional discipline and an exemplary method of worship:

These two brothers have no fixed residence, but lie down each night beneath another tree in the forest. They sometimes take a meal at a brāhmaṇa’s house or merely go door-to-door accepting a handful of cooked food from each home. In this way, their meal consisted of only some dry bread and fried chickpeas. Their only possessions are their water pots, and the quilts and torn clothes they wear. In such a detached state, they constantly chant Kṛṣṇa’s Holy Names, discuss His pastimes and dance jubilantly. They engage in Kṛṣṇa-bhajana for almost twenty-four hours a day, sleeping only an hour and a half. Some days, when they are absorbed in chanting the Holy Names they do not sleep at all. Sometimes they write books on the divine raptures of devotional service, and other times they spend their time talking or thinking about Caitanya Mahāprabhu.” (Caitanya Caritāmṛta 2.19.127-31)

Bhakti-ratnākara credits Rūpa Gosvāmī with the authorship of 16 books: (1) Haṁsadūta, (2) Uddhava-sandeśa, (3) Kṛṣṇa-janma-tithi-vidhi, (4) Laghu Radhā-kṛṣṇa-gaṇoddeśa-dīpikā, (5) Bṛhat Radhā-kṛṣṇa-gaṇoddeśa-dīpikā, (6) Stavamālā, (7) Vidagdha-mādhava, (8) Lalita-mādhava, (9) Dāna-keli-kaumudī, (10) Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (11) Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi, (12) Prayuktākhyāta-candrikā, (13) Mathurā-mahimā, (14) Padyāvalī, (15) Nāṭaka-candrikā and (16) Laghu-bhāgavatāmṛta.

Besides these sixteen titles, Upadeśāmṛta, Nāmāṣṭaka, Siddhānta-ratna and Kāvya-kaustubha, etc., are attributed to Rūpa Gosvāmī.

Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī stayed in Mahāprabhu’s association in Purī for sixteen years under the tutelage of Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī. When the Lord and Svarūpa Dāmodara both ended their pastimes within this world, Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī became so saddened by their departure that he decided to go to Vṛndāvana to commit suicide by jumping off Govardhana after seeing Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī one last time. The two brothers were very affectionate to Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī, however, and would not allow him to kill himself. Rather, they adopted him as a third brother and kept him constantly by their side.

Another of the six Gosvāmīs was Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī, whose father was Tapana Miśra. When Mahāprabhu was in Benares, He stayed and ate at the home of Tapana Miśra, giving the young Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa the opportunity to render Him service by taking His remnants and massaging His feet, etc. When he grew older, he went to see the Lord in Purī and stayed there for eight months. During this time he gave Mahāprabhu great satisfaction by cooking various preparations for Him,. After this, the Lord ordered him to return to Benares to serve his ageing parents, which Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa did for four years. When his parents departed from the material world, Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa returned to Purī where the Lord told him to go to Vṛndāvana and to follow in Rūpa Gosvāmī’s footsteps. Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa followed the Lord’s directions and came to Vraja where, by Rūpa Gosvāmī’s mercy, he became infused with love for Kṛṣṇa. He would recite Śrīmad Bhāgavatam for Rūpa Gosvāmī’s pleasure.

In Vṛndāvana, Rūpa Gosvāmī established a temple for Govindajī, and Sanātana Gosvāmī established one for Madana Mohana. Bhakti-ratnākara describes the way that Govindajī appeared to Rūpa Gosvāmī: Mahāprabhu had given four instructions to Rūpa Gosvāmī—to discover the holy places in the dhāma that had become invisible to material eyes, to establish deity worship, to publish scriptures on pure devotional service, and to preach love of the Holy Name. Rūpa Gosvāmī carried out each of these desires of the Lord to perfection except one. Rūpa Gosvāmī was worried about how he could establish deity worship and started wandering through the villages and forests in Vraja in search of Govindajī, but without success.

After the failure of these efforts, he was sitting one day by the banks of the Yamunā, upset and burning up with intense feelings of separation from Kṛṣṇa. Just then, a divine personality taking the form of a handsome Vrajavāsī came up to him and asked him in a sweet voice what was the cause of his distress. Rūpa Gosvāmī was attracted by the charming voice and appearance of the Vrajavāsī and told him everything that had been troubling him. The Vrajavāsī consoled Rūpa Gosvāmī, saying, “There is no cause for worry. Govindajī is secretly residing in the hill named Gomā Tilā, which is the Yogapīṭha here in Vṛndāvana. Every morning a cow goes there and joyfully gives Him milk.” Having told him this, the Vrajavāsī disappeared.

Rūpa Gosvāmī thought, “Kṛṣṇa came here and spoke to me and I could not recognize Him,” and he fainted. Even so, he was somehow or other able to overcome his feelings of loss at having been unable to recognize Kṛṣṇa and proceeded to the place that the Vrajavāsī had indicated. Other residents of the village helped him dig at Goma Tilā until they found the deity of Govindajī, more beautiful than a million Cupids. It is said that this Govinda deity had originally been worshipped by Kṛṣṇa’s own grandson, Vajranābha.

After revealing His presence on Goma Tilā, Govindajī was first served in a simple thatched hut, but later, a disciple of Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī built a beautiful temple and kīrtana hall, etc. (Bhakti-ratnākara 2.404-37)

In 1590, the king of Amber, Man Singh, repaired the existing structure and built additions to this temple, with the result that there stood an exquisite sandstone temple. In his Mathura Memoir, Growse has described this temple in the following words: “The temple of Govinda Dev is not only the finest of this particular series but is the most impressive religious edifice that Hindu art has ever produced, at least in upper India.”

It is said that the seven-story building was so high that the emperor Aurangzeb could see the temple’s pinnacle from his palace in Agra. Out of envy, he destroyed the upper portion of the building. At around this time, Govindajī was moved first to Bharatpur and then later to Jaipur out of fear of Muslim iconoclasm, and He remains in Jaipur to this day.

Narottama Dāsa Ṭhākura has written and has described Rūpa-mañjarī or Rūpa Gosvāmī as his all-in-all in the following song from Prārthanā:

śrī rūpa mañjarī pada sei mora sampada
sei mora bhajana-pūjana
sei mora prāṇa-dhana sei mora ābharaṇa
sei mora jīvanera jīvana

sei mora rasa-nidhi sei mora vāñchā-siddhi
sei mora vedera dharama
sei vrata, sei tapa sei mora mantra japa
sei mora dharama karama

anukūla habe vidhi se pade haibe siddhi
nirakhiba ei dui nayane
se rūpa mādhurī rāśī prāṇa kuvalaya-śaśi
praphullita habe niśi-dine

tuwā adarśana ahi garale jārala dehi
ciradina tāpita jīvana
hā hā prabhu kara dayā deha more pada chāyā
narottama laila śaraṇa

Śrī Rūpa-mañjarī’s feet are my only possession. They are my devotional practice, my worship. They are the treasure of my life; they are my ornament, the life of my life.

They are my treasure house of sacred rapture, they are the fulfilment of my deepest wishes, they are my prescribed duty. They are my religious vow; they are my austerities, my meditation and my mantra. They are my religious obligation.

One day, fate will smile upon me and I will be perfected in a position of service to Rūpa-mañjarī. I will see that form which is an ocean of sweetness, which will cause the moon lotus of my heart to bloom night and day.

The snake of separation from you spits a venom that burns my body. I have long suffered in this life as a result. O my Rūpa Prabhu! Please be merciful and give me the shade of your lotus feet. Narottama has taken shelter of you.

Śrīla Bhakti Siddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda also considered the dust from Rūpa Gosvāmī’s feet to be the most important thing in his life. He often said that he desired nothing other than this.

ādadānas tṛṇaṁ dantair idaṁ yāce punaḥ punaḥ
śrīmad-rūpa-padāmbhoja-dhūliḥ syāṁ janma-janmani

With bunches of straw between my teeth, I pray repeatedly that I may take birth again and again as a particle of dust at the lotus feet of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī. (Raghunātha Dāsa, Muktā-caritra)

Rūpa Gosvāmī’s main samādhi temple and the place where he performed his bhajana can be found in the courtyard behind the Radha-Dāmodara temple in Vṛndāvana. Other places consecrated to Rūpa Gosvāmī’s memory in the Vraja area include his place of worship near Nandagrāma, called Ter Kadamba. In this place, Rādhārāṇī came in disguise of a young girl to give Rūpa Gosvāmī milk, rice and sugar so that he could cook a sweet-rice preparation for Sanātana Gosvāmī. When Sanātana Gosvāmī tasted the sweet rice, he felt divine ecstasies invade his body. Upon learning how he had received the ingredients, however, Sanātana Gosvāmī forbade Rūpa Gosvāmī to ever cook sweet rice again so that Rādhārāṇī would not have to go to any trouble on his behalf.

Rūpa Gosvāmī’s pastimes in this world came to an end in the month of Bhādra, on the twelfth day of the waxing moon, the day after Jhulan ekādaśī.

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¹ - Chandradvīpa was the ancient name of a kingdom, which now lies in Bangladesh. It included Faridpur, Bakhar Ganj and the southern parts of Dhaka and Pabna districts.

² - Śrīla Prabhupāda comments: a puraścaraṇa is a ritual performance which consists of worshiping the Deity, chanting the mantra, offering oblations, performing a fire sacrifice, and feeding the brāhmaṇas every morning, noon and evening for a fixed period of time. This is performed for getting desired fruits from the mantra. Such performances are not necessary for the mahāmantra of Holy Name, for by even uttering the Holy Name once one obtains all the results to be obtained from puraścaraṇa.