SIX GOSWAMIS OF VRINDAVAN – SRI GOPALA BHATTA GOSWAMI
(1) Father: Vyenkata Bhatta, a Sri Vaishnava brahmana.
(2) Place of appearance: Srirangam, South India (Near Tiruchirapalli).
(SIX GOSWAMIS OF VRINDAVAN – INTRODUCTION! READ HERE!)
(3) Lord Chaitanya once stayed four months in his home, and converted the family to Gaudiya Vaishnavism.
(4) A mere boy at this time, Gopala personally served the Lord Sri Chaitanya who treated him affectionately giving His remnants and blessings to become an acharya.
(5) During His four month stay, Lord Chaitanya developed a close friendship with Vyenkata Bhatta, the father of Sri Gopala Bhatta Goswami. They would often laugh and joke together.
(SIX GOSWAMIS OF VRINDAVAN -SRI RUPA GOSWAMI! READ HERE!)
GOPIS WANT ONLY KRISHNA, NOT NARAYANA!
(6) One day in a humorous mood Lord Chaitanya asked Vyenkata:
“Why does your worshipable goddess of fortune, Shri Lakshmidevi, abandon the happiness of Vaikuntha and her service to Her Lord Narayana? Why does she go to Vrindavana 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 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, Shri Krishna, attracts the mind of Lakshmidevi. But Lord Narayana can never attract the minds of the Vraja gopis.
(SIX GOSWAMIS OF VRINDAVAN -SRI SANATANA GOSWAMI! READ HERE!)
“In Vraja lila, Krishna, disguised as Lord Narayana, once appeared before the gopis who were searching for Krishna. Seeing Lord Narayana the gopis said, ‘Oh 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 gopi’s bodies to join Krishna in the rasa dance. Lakshmi, however, wanted to enjoy Krishna but retain Her spiritual form as Lakshmidevi. Without following the gopis’s footsteps no one can attain Krishna.”
(7) He got initiation from Shri Prabodhananda Saraswati.
(8) Then, Gopala Bhatta came to Vrindavana and became a dear friend of Sri Rupa and Sanatana Goswamis.
(9) He did bhajana in Vrindavana for forty-five years, mostly at Radha-Kunda.
(SIX GOSWAMIS OF VRINDAVAN – SRI JIVA GOSWAMI! READ HERE!)
(10) On pilgrimage he obtained twelve Shalagrama shilas. Later the Damodara shila manifested Himself as the beautiful Radha Ramana Deity. Since 1542, Radha Ramanaji has been worshiped with pure devotion following precise sastric rituals.
(11) He compiled the Hari-bhakti-vilasa as ordered by Sri Caitanya. This book is the authorized book for the rituals and devotional practices of the Gaudiya Vaishnava sampradaya.
(12) His another book: Sat-kriya-dipika
(13) He eternally serves Shrimati Radharani as one of Her asta manjaris, Guna-manjari.
(14) His samadhi is within Radha Ramanaji’s Temple compound behind the appearance place of the Deity.
(15) The vaishnavas initiated by Sri Gopala Bhatta Goswami: Gopinatha (Pujari Goswami), Shrinivasa Acharya and many others.
(SIX GOSWAMIS OF VRINDAVAN -SRI RAGHUNATHA BHATTA GOSWAMI! READ HERE!)