Persons

Sri Acyutananda
He was the son of Advaita Acarya and the disciple of Gadadhara Pandita. He was a great and dear devotee of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Gaura Ganoddessa Dipika says that he was an incarnation of Karttikeya, the son of Lord Siva and he was formerly the gopi named Acyuta. Narahari Dasa says in his book Narottama-vilasa that Acyutananda was at the Kheturi festival. During Lord Caitanya’s presence Acyutananda lived in Jagannatha Puri with Gadadhara Pandita. He then later stayed in Santipur.

Sri Advaita Acarya
It is stated in Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika that Advaita Acarya and Lord Siva are non-different. In the Caitanya Caritamrita it is stated that he is an incarnation of Maha Vishnu. Advaita Acarya takes the form of Vishaka Devi to take part in Lord Krishna’s conjugal pastimes. He is one of the most intimate associates of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
He appeared in the town of Nava-grama, a village near Sri Hatta in Bengal in 1434. He was the first of Lord Caitanya’s associates to appear within the material world. He is about 50 years older than Lord Caitanya. His father was Kuvera Pandita and mother Nabha devi. He had two names Kamalaksa and Advaita, but everyone called him Advaita. Advaita means one who is nondifferent from Lord Hari. When Advaita Acarya was four or five his family moved to Santipur, which is next to the Ganges.

Advaita’s parents passed away while he was a young man. He then went to Gaya to offer sraddha. He also visited many holy places at this time and during his travels took initiation (diksa) from Madhavendra Puri. He also went and visited Mathura and Vrindavana. There is a tree under which Advaita used to stay in the town of Vrindavana called Advaita-vat.

Advaita Acarya then moved to Navadvipa, where he taught Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam. Visvarupa, the elder brother of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was one of his students. While living in Navadvipa he prayed to Lord Krishna to descend to earth and deliver the fallen conditioned souls. He would offer tulasi manjaris and Ganges water, because he knew that the Lord was very pleased by these items.

After Lord Caitanya accepted sannyasa Advaita Acarya moved back to Santipur.

His Divine Grace A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
He appeared in 1896, in a family of Gaudiya Vaishnavas in Calcutta. He was named Abhaya Charan. His father’s name was Gour Mohan and his mother’s name was Rajani. When he was twenty-six he met his spiritual master Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Maharaja, the founder-acarya of the Gaudiya Math. He was later initiated by Bhaktisiddhanta in Allahabad in 1933. At this time aravinda, which means “lotus” was added to his name.

In 1944 he began to publish Back to Godhead magazine in English following the order of his guru. He was instructed to, “Go to the West and spread Krishna consciousness in the English language.” He took sannyasa in 1959 in Mathura. He stayed in Vrindavana between 1956 and 1965, before going to New York at the age of 70.

In 1966 he established the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). In the 1970’s he traveled around the world 14 times, established 108 temples, initiated over 4,000 disciple, and wrote over 80 books. He translated and wrote commentaries on Sri Caitanya Caritamrita, Srimad Bhagavatam, Bhagavad-gita and Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu. He was the first acarya to start having Rathayatra outside of India in such cities as San Francisco, New York and London. He established a large international temple at Sri Dham Mayapur called the Sri Mayapur Chandrodaya Mandir.
He left his body on November 14, 1977. He left this world in Vrindavana during the month of Kartika (Oct/Nov), which is considered very auspicious. His beautiful marble samadhi is in front of the Krishna Balarama Temple in Vrindavana and his beautiful puspa samadhi is at the ISKCON temple is Sri Dham Mayapur.

Sri Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur
He appeared in Jagannatha Puri on February 6, 1874. His father was Bhaktivinoda Thakur and his mother’s name was Srimati Bhagavati Devi. When he was six months old when Lord Jagannatha’s cart reached the house of Srila Bhaktivinoda the cart would not move for three days. During this time his mother Bhagavati Devi held her son in her outstretched arms and offered him to the lotus feet of Lord Jagannatha. As she did this a flower garland fell from the neck of Lord Jagannatha onto the head of the infant child.

He quickly became expert in the Vedas and memorized the Bhagavad-gita. He became known as “The Living Encyclopedia” because of his great knowledge. In school he was always at the top of his class. He entered the Sanskrit College University in 1892. He was then awarded the title Siddhanta Sarasvati because of his vast knowledge of the spiritual scriptures. In 1900 in Sri Navadvipa Dham, at Swananda Sukhada Kunja, Gaura Kishore Dasa Babaji initiated him. In 1905 he made a vow to chant 1 billions holy names of Krishna. He completed this vow in 1915. He was a lifelong celebrate. He took sannyasa on the appearance day of Lord Caitanya on March 29, 1918. His sannyasa name became Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati.

He established 64 Gaudiya Math temples and initiated over 60,000 devotees. He built a beautiful Gaudiya Math temple at Lord Caitanya’s appearance place in Sridhama Mayapur. He published many books including the works of his father, Bhagavad-gita, Srimad Bhagavatam, Caitanya Caritamrita and Caitanya Bhagavata.
He left this world on January 1, 1937. His samadhi is at the Sri Caitanya Math in Mayapur.

Sri Bhaktivinoda Thakur
Sri Saccidananda Bhaktivinoda Thakur took birth in a wealthy family in the village of Ulagrama within Gaura Mandala, on September 2, 1838.
He took diksa initiation from Sri Vipinvihari Gosvami in the line of Srimati Jahnava Devi. He was the father of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Gosvami. He wrote almost 100 books and discovered the appearance place of Lord Caitanya. He was the great grandson of Madanamohan Datta, who was the seventh generation from Krishna Datta, who was a follower of Nityananda Prabhu. He published a magazine called Sajjana Tosani to preach the message of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
“He had a responsible government position as the District Magistrate (high court judge), maintained a Krishna conscious family, and wrote almost one hundred books on Krishna consciousness. At the same time, he served the Supreme Lord in so many ways. That is the beauty of his life. After a full day of government service he would sleep four hours, get up at midnight and write until morning. That was his daily program.” (Srila Prabhupada)
He remained a grihasta until the last few years of his life. He then renounced everything and accepted babaji.

Sri Bhavananda Raya
He is the father of Ramananda Raya. He also had four other sons named Gopinatha, Kalanidhi, Sudhanidhi and Vaninatha. Lord Caitanya told him, “You formerly appeared as Pandu, and your five sons appeared as the five Pandavas.” His residence was in Alalanatha, which is about 12 miles from Puri. He was the governor of Madras under the control of King Prataparudra of Jagannatha Puri.

Sri Buddhimanta Khan
He was a very rich resident of Navadvipa, and he arranged for the marriage of Lord Caitanya with Vishnupriya. He paid for all the expenses of the marriage. When Lord Caitanya was attacked by derangement of the air in His body, Buddhimanta Khan paid for all the medicines and treatment to cure the Lord. He was the Lord’s constant associate in the sankirtana movement. He collected ornaments for Lord Caitanya when He played the part of the goddess of fortune in the house of Candrasekhara Acarya. He would visit Lord Caitanya in Jagannatha Puri.

Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu (1486-1534)
He appeared in Navadvipa, West Bengal in 1486. He is also known by the names Gaura, Gauranga and Nimai. He was initiated by Isvara Pura in Gaya. His spiritual master, Isvara Puri came in the line of Madhavendra Puri, who came in the line of Madhvacarya. Lord Caitanya lived until he was 24 in Navadvipa, spreading the sankirtana movement. He took the renounced order of life when he was 24 from Kesava Bharati at Katwa. At this time he moved to Puri in Orissa. He then traveled in South India for a year, after which He returned to Puri. He then made a trip to Vrindavana, stopping at various places on the way, including Varanasi and Allahabad. He then returned to Puri and stayed there until He left His body at the age of 48. He stayed in Puri for 23 years.

His followers understand Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu to be non-different than Lord Krishna Himself appearing in the form of a devotee. He taught that by chanting the holy names of the Lord specifically the mantra Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare one could attain transcendental devotion to God.
He taught the philosophy that the Supreme and the individual souls are simultaneously one and different. He explained the direct meaning of the sastras (scriptures) as devotion (bhakti) to Lord Krishna.

Sri Candrasekhara
Candrasekhara lived in Navadvipa. His house was close to Jagannatha Misra. His wife, Malati, was the younger sister of Srimati Sacidevi. When Lord Caitanya took birth both Sri Candrasekhara and his wife were present. They had no children of their own. When Jagannath Misra left this world, Candrasekhara acted as the Lord’s father, accepting Him as his son. He also accepted all responsibility for the welfare of Sacimata.
He took part in the kirtanas at Srivasa Bhavan. Lord Caitanya would come to Candrasekhara’s house and perform kirtanas and plays depicting the pastimes of Krishna there. In a drama in his house, Lord Caitanya played the goddess of fortune. Candrasekhara was present when Lord Caitanya took sannyasa in Katwa and he carried the message of Lord Caitanya to Advaita Acarya in Santipur and to the other devotees in Navadvipa. He would come to Jagannatha Puri to visit Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He forms the second branch of the tree of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur established the headquarters of the Sri Caitanya Gaudiya Math at the site where the house of Candrasekhara Acarya once was located.

Sri Devananda Pandita
While living in Kuliya (present day Navadvipa) Devananda Pandita was a professional Bhagavatam reciter. Lord Caitanya did not like his interpretation of Bhagavatam. What he would speak was tainted by Mayavadi philosophy.
When Devananda was expounding the Mayavadi interpretation, Srivasa Thakura was once present and he started to cry. Devananda students then drove him out. Later, Caitanya Mahaprabhu passed that way, and when he met Devananda He chastised him severely because of his Mayavada interpretation of Srimad Bhagavatam. At that time Devananda had little faith in Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu as an incarnation of Lord Krishna. Some time later Vakresvara Pandita was a guest in his house, and when he explained the science of Krishna, Devananda was convinced about the identity of Lord Caitanya. In Gaura Gannodesa Dipika it is stated that he was formally Bhaguri Muni, who was the pandita who recited Vedic literatures in the house of Nanda Maharaja.
Sri Gadadhara Dasa Gosvami
He would travel with Nityananda Prabhu. He was one of Nityananda’s chief preachers in Bengal.
Sri Gadadhara Gosvami is the united form of Candrakanti gopi (an expansion of Radharani’s effulgence) and Purnananda (an expansion of Lord Balarama’s girlfriend).

Sri Gadadhara Dasa
In Gaura Gannodesa Dipaka he is stated to be the luster of the body of Srimati Radharani. Caitanya Mahaprabhu is sometime explained to be radhabhava-dyuti-subalita, or characterized by the emotions and bodily luster of Srimati Radharani. Gadadhara Dasa is this dyuti, or luster.
When Lord Caitanya went to the house of Raghava Pandita while going to Vrindavana, Gadadhara Dasa went to see Him and Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was so glad that He put His foot on his head. Sri Madhava Ghosh performed a drama known as Dana-khanda with the help of Sri Nityananda Prabhu and Sri Gadadhara Dasa.

Sri Gadadhara Pandita
He was an extremely intimate associate of Lord Caitanya. He appeared a year after Sri Caitanya. He was the son of Madhava Misra. Gadadhara (Gadai) and Nimai (Sri Caitanya) were childhood playmates. They were students together in the tola (Sanskrit school) of Ganga Dasa Pandita. He was Lord Caitanya’s chief assistant during Sri Caitanya’s Navadvipa pastimes. In Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika it is stated that he is Srimati Radharani in Krishna’s pastimes.

“No one can describe the characteristics and ecstatic love of Gadadhara Pandita. Therefore another name for Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Gadadhara Prananatha, ‘the life and soul of Gadadhara Pandita.’” (Caitanya-caritamrita)
Gadadhara Pandita took sannyasa and went to Jagannatha Puri to be with Lord Caitanya. He accepted ksetra sannyasa (a renunciate who never leaves the holy dhama). He served the Deity of Tota-Gopinatha in Puri. The first time Lord Caitanya wanted to leave Jagannatha Puri Gadadhara wanted to accompany Him. The Lord forbade him and insisted that he remain and keep his vow intact.

Sri Caitanya would regularly hear Sri Gadadhara read Srimad Bhagavatam. He was a great scholar. Every day he would make sandalwood paste and apply it to the body of Lord Caitanya.

Lord Caitanya entered into the Tota-Gopinatha Deity to leave this world. After this, even though he was no more than 48 years old, Sri Gadadhara began to rapidly age due to the intense anguish of separation from Lord Caitanya. He could not properly dress the Deity of Tota Gopinatha. Understanding his difficulty the Lord mercifully sat down. This is the only temple where Krishna sits.
Sri Gaura Kishora Dasa Babaji Maharaja
He appeared around 1820 near the village of Tepakhola on the bank of the Padma River in an area near Bangladesh.

He was married when he was young. After the death of his wife in 1849 he left grihasta life. He went to Vrindavana. Around the year 1863 he went to Braja. He took initiation from Sri Bhagavata Dasa Babaji, a disciple of Sri Jagannatha Dasa Babaji. He would chant 200,000 names of Krishna every day (128 rounds of japa). He spent 30 years in Vrindavana living under the trees at Nandagrama, Varsana, Govardhana, Radha Kunda, Surya Kunda, Raval and Gokula.
After thirty years in Vrindavana, in around the year 1894, he went to Sri Navadvipa Dhama to see the pastime places of Lord Caitanya. He accepted only one disciple, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. He left his body on November 19, 1915 in Sri Koladvipa (the present city of Navadvipa). His samadhi is on the bank of Sri Caitanya Math’s Radha Kunda, in Mayapur.

Sri Gopinatha Acarya
He was a resident of Navadvipa and was a constant companion of Lord Caitanya. He was the husband of Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya’s sister. In Gaura Ganoddessa Dipika he is stated to be Ratnavali gopi.

Sri Govinda Ghosh
He was the brother of Vasudeva Ghosh. He would chant sweet kirtanas at the Jagannatha Rathayatra festival. In Krishna-lila he was Kalavati Sakhi.

Sri Haridasa Thakura
He was born in the village of Budhana (or a village near there) in Bangladesh and later moved to Fulia, which is on the bank of the Ganges near Santipur. He was born in a Muslim family. After he became a Vaishnava he chanted 300,000 holy names of the Lord daily. While chanting Hare Krishna in Benapola, he was tested by a prostitute.
When Advaita Acarya performed the sraddha ceremony of his father, he offered the first plate to Haridasa Thakur. Prema Vilasa says that Haridasa Thakur took diksa initiation from Sri Advaita Acarya.

The Muslim ruler had Haridasa Thakura arrested. He gave Haridasa Thakura the choice of either giving up his belief or to die. Haridasa told him that even if he was killed he would still chant Hari Krishna. He was then publicly beaten in 22 market places and thrown into the Ganges. But he did not die.

When Haridasa Thakura came to Jagannatha Puri, Lord Caitanya arranged a place for him to stay next to where He was staying. Lord Caitanya would regularly visit him. After leaving his body, Lord Caitanya took his body on His lap, and He danced with it in great ecstasy. His samadhi is located next to the sea in Jagannatha Puri.

Sri Isvara Puri
He was the chief disciple of Sri Madhavendra Puri. He usually lived in Gaya. Lord Caitanya met him in Gaya when He went there to perform sraddha for his father. At this time Isvara Puri initiated Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Lord Caitanya had previously met him in Navadvipa, when Isvara Puri stayed at the house of Gopinathacarya for seven months. At this time Lord Caitanya and Gadadhara Pandita went to see Isvara Puri each evening. One day Isvara Puri came to Lord Caitanya’s house. The Lord personally cooked for him After prasada the Lord offered Isvara Puri a flower garland and rubbed sandalwood paste on him.

After Lord Caitanya took sannyasa, He came to Kumarhatta, the appearance place of Isvara Puri. He offered His obeisances and picked up a handful of earth and tied it to a corner of His outer cloth. He considered the earth from the birthplace of his guru to be the most valuable possession. Just before Isvara Puri left this world he sent Govinda and Kasisvara to Jagannatha Puri to serve Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Sri Jagadananda Pandita
He is one of the eternal associates of Lord Caitanya. His house was near Svarupa Damodara in Navadvipa, but at the present time it is not known exactly where his residence was located. He was the Lord’s constant companion and took part in all the pastimes of the Lord in the house of Srivasa Pandita and Candrasekhara. He went to Jagannatha Puri from Navadvipa to render service to Lord Caitanya. Several pastimes that he had with Lord Caitanya are mentioned in Caitanya Caritamrita. He always wanted to see to the comforts of Lord Caitanya, but since the Lord was a sannyasi He did not accept the luxuries that Jagadananda Pandita offered. They sometimes appeared to fight over trifles, but these quarrels were based on their affection.

He did not know anything but Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. In Krishna-lila he was Satyabhauma, one of Krishna’s chief queens in Dwarka. Jagadananda was sent by Lord Caitanya from Jagannatha Puri to Navadvipa to see Sacimata

Jagai and Madhai
Jagai and Madhai were born in respectable brahmana families, but they adopted the professions of thieves and rogues and thus became implicated in all kinds of undesirable activities, especially woman hunting, intoxication and gambling. Later, by the grace of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Sri Nityananda Prabhu, they were initiated, and they got the chance to chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. As a result of chanting, both brothers later became exalted devotees of Lord Caitanya.

Sri Jagannatha Dasa Babaji
He was born in 1750, in a village in the Mammon district in Pari. He took diksa from Sri Madhusudana Dasa Babaji. He did his bhajana for many years at Surya Kunda in Vrindavana. Each year he would spend six months in Braja Mandala and six months in Sri Navadvipa Dhama. He was considered to be the most advanced Gaudiya Vaishnava in Gaura and Braja Mandalas.

He lived to be 144 years old. Bhaktivinoda Thakur would receive valuable instruction about devotional service from him. To confirm his finding of the appearance place of Sri Caitanya, Bhaktivinoda Thakur requested Jagannatha Dasa Babaji in 1893 to come see the place. When he got there, Jagannatha Dasa Babaji, at the age of 142, jumped high into the air and began chanting and dancing.

Srimati Jahnava Mata
She is one of Lord Nityananda’s two wives. She traveled throughout Gaura and Braja Mandalas. She initiated many disciples. She went to the famous Kheturi Gaura Purnima festival.
It is said that she left this world by entering into the Deity of Gopinatha in Vrindavana. Lord Nityananda’s two wives, Sri Vasudha and Sri Jahnava Devi are expansions of Lord Balarama’s consorts Varuni and Revati.

Sri Jayadeva Gosvami
He was from the 12th century (around 1170). He is the author of the famous song Gita Govinda. This song is sung daily in the Lord Jagannatha temple in Puri and in many other Vaishnava temples. Gita Govinda expresses the deep feelings of separation that Radharani felt during the rasa dance. Lord Caitanya would daily hear Gita Govinda sang by Svarupa Damodara Gosvami or Mukunda.

Jayadeva Gosvami was the court pandita of the King of Bengal, Sri Laksmana Sena. After a while he moved to Navadvipa, which is where he wrote Gita Govinda. He moved to Vrindavana with his wife Padmavati and lived on the bank of the Yamuna. He then moved to Jagannatha Puri and left his body there.

Sri Jiva Gosvami
He was the son of Sri Vallabha (Anupama), who was the brother of Rupa and Sanatana Gosvamis. He was born in Ramakeli, Bengal in 1514 and he left his body in Vrindavana in 1618. He established the Radha Damodara Temple in Vrindavana.
From his childhood Jiva Gosvami was very fond of Srimad Bhagavatam. He went to Navadvipa to study Sanskrit and circumambulated the entire Navadvipa Dhama. He toured Navadvipa Dhama with Lord Nityananda. He went to Benares (Varanasi) to study Sanskrit under Madhusudana Vacaspati, a disciple of Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya. After finishing his studies he went to Vrindavana and took shelter of his uncles, Sri Rupa Gosvami and Sri Sanatana Gosvami. This is described in Bhakti-ratnakara.

After the disappearance of Srila Rupa and Sanatana Gosvamis in Vrindavana, Srila Jiva Gosvami became the acarya of all the Vaishnavas in Bengal, Orissa and the rest of the world. In 1542 Jiva Gosvami established the worship of Radha Damodara in the Seva Kunja area in Vrindavana. Later, Srila Jiva Gosvami inspired Srinivasa Acarya, Narottama dasa Thakura, and Syamananda Prabhu (Duhkhi Krishnadasa) to preach Krishna consciousness in Bengal.
Jiva Gosvami wrote 25 works in Sanskrit (over 400,000 Sanskrit verses) such as: (1) Sat Sandharbha, (2) Harimam Amrita Vyakaran, (3) Sarva Sambadindi, (4) Gopala Champu, (5) Kramasandarba, (6) Commentary of the Brahma Samhita, (7) Durgama Sangamani, (8) Sutra Malika - a Grammatical work dealing with the derivation of words, (9) Commentary on Krishna Karnamrita, (10) Krishna Chandra Dipika.
Jiva Gosvami personally managed the Govindaji, Madana Mohan, Gopinatha and Radha Damodara temples. He assisted Raghunatha dasa Gosvami to excavate Radha Kunda.

Srila Prabhupada said about Jiva Gosvami: “The Vaishnavas are by far the greatest philosophers in the world, and the greatest among them was Srila Jiva Gosvami. Prabhupada.” In the Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika it is said that Srila Jiva Gosvami was formerly Vilasa-manjari gopi.

Sri Kasisvara Pandita
Kasisvara Pandita was the godbrother of Lord Caitanya. Both of them were initiated by Isvara Puri. He was sent by Isvara Puri to personally serve Lord Caitanya in Jagannatha Puri. Kasisvara Pandita, who was strongly built, would walk in front of Lord Caitanya to protect him from the crowds. After kirtanas he would serve prasada to the devotees.

Lord Caitanya later sent him to Vrindavana. Lord Caitanya asked Kasisvara Pandita to go to Vrindavana to help to worship Govindaji. Because Kasisvara feared being separated from Him, Lord Caitanya gave him a Deity of Himself, that exactly resembled Him. The Deity, named Gaura-Govinda, is a golden colored Deity of Krishna playing His flute. Today this Deity is worshiped at the Govindaji temple in Jaipur, Rajasthan.

Sri Kavi Karnapura
He was one of the three sons of Sivananda Sena. He was also known as Puri Dasa. When he was a baby he sucked the toe of Lord Caitanya in Jagannatha Puri. When he was seven he was requested by Lord Caitanya to recite a Sanskrit verse, which he did. Svarupa Damodara gave him the name Kavi Karnapura since as a boy his poetry pleases the hearts and filled the ears with nectar.

Lord Caitanya had told Sivananda Sena, “When this son is born give him the name Puri Dasa.” The child was named Paramananda Dasa in accordance with the Lord’s order, and the Lord jokingly called him Puri Dasa.

He wrote the famous Gaura Gannodesa Dipaka which describes who the personalities in Gaura-lila were in Krishna-lila. He also wrote Caitanya Carita Mahakavya, Caitanya Candrodaya Nataka, Alankara Kaustubha and Ananda Vrindavana Campu.

Sri Krishna Dasa Kaviraja Gosvami
He appeared near Katwa in Jhamatapura (Bardhaman) in Bengal. He went to Vrindavana after Lord Nityananda told him in a dream, are are krishnadasa, na karaha bhaya, vrindavana yaha tanha, sarva larya haya. “O my dear Krishna dasa, do not be afraid. Go to Vrindavana. For there you will attain all things.” (Caitanya Caritamrita, Adi 5.195)

He lived at Syama Kunda by Manasa Pavana Ghata. He wrote Caitanya Caritamrita, the life history of Lord Caitanya after hearing many of the pastimes from Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami. His samadhi and bhajana kutir are at Radha Kunda. In Krishna-lila he was Kasturi manjari, one of the eight main maidservants of Srimati Radharani.

Sri Madhavendra Puri
He took initiation from Laksmipati Tirtha who was in the Madhvacarya sampradaya. He had many disciples. His main disciples were Advaita Acarya and Isvara Puri, the spiritual master of Lord Caitanya. He made an extensive pilgrimage of India. He spent a good deal of his time in Vrindavana and Orissa. He discovered the Gopal Deity (Sri Nathaji) near Govardhana Hill. Madhavendra Puri’s samadhi is in Remuna, Orissa near the Kshira Chora Gopinatha temple.

Sri Madhvacarya (1239-1319)
He devoted himself to defeating the impersonal philosophy. He taught that there is the Supreme Lord, the individual souls, and the material world. He taught that the individual souls are superior to matter and are distinct from the Lord and are His servitors. He also taught that each person molds his own karma, and that by serving the Supreme Lord one can eliminate karma and return to his position of serving the Lord in the eternal spiritual world.

He possessed an unusually strong body and extraordinary intellectual power. He went to almost every sacred place of pilgrimage, where he defeated scholars of rival school and won them over to his faith.

Madhvacarya went to the Himalayas to meet Srila Vyasadeva. Vyasadeva gave him a shalagram-shila called Astamurti and approved his Bhagavad-gita commentary.

Sri Murari Gupta
He was an intimate associate of Lord Caitanya. He belonged to a vaidya physician family of Sri Hatta, the paternal home of Lord Caitanya, and later became a resident of Navadvipa. He was an Ayurvedic doctor. Once Murari Gupta offered foodstuffs to Lord Caitanya that was cooked with excessive ghee, and the next day the Lord became sick and went to Murari Gupta for treatment. Lord Caitanya accepted some water from the water pot of Murari Gupta, and He was thus cured. People would come to visit him with physical diseases. Not only would he cure the physical diseases he would also cure people of the decease of material existence. Murari Gupta never accepted charity from friends, nor did he accept money from anyone. He practiced as a physician and maintained his family with his earnings.

He was a classmate of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu at Gangadasa Pandita’s school. He was an expert dancer and would sing very sweetly. He moved to Navadvipa when he was young. He would take part in the kirtanas at Srivasa Pandita’s house. When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu appeared in the house of Srivasa Thakura in His Caturbhuja-murti, Murari Gupta became His carrier in the form of Garuda, and in these pastimes of ecstasy the Lord then got up on his back.

His worshipable Deity was Lord Ramacandra. Murari Gupta was Hanuman and his attachment to Ramachandra was unwavering. When Lord Caitanya exhibited His maha-prakasa form, He appeared before Murari Gupta as Lord Ramacandra.

Lord Caitanya requested Murari Gupta to be attracted to Lord Krishna instead of his worshipable Deity, Lord Ramacandra. He requested Murari Gupta, “Worship Krishna and take shelter of Him. But for His service, nothing appeals to the mind.” After this, Murari Gupta went home and spent the whole night thinking how he would be able to give up the association of Raghunatha, Lord Ramacandra. Thus he was overwhelmed. In the morning Murari Gupta told Lord Caitanya, “It is not possible for me to give up the service of Raghunatha’s lotus feet. At the same time, if I do not do so I shall break your order. What can I do?” Lord Caitanya told him, “All glories to you, Murari Gupta! Your method of worship is very firmly fixed—so much so that even upon My request your mind did not turn. Just to test your faith in your Lord, I requested you again and again to change your worship from Lord Ramacandra to Krishna. I accept Murari Gupta as My life and soul.”

After Lord Caitanya took sannyasa and went to Jagannatha Puri, Murari Gupta would go each year to Rathayatra. He wrote the first biography of Lord Caitanya called Sri Caitanya Carita.

Sri Narottama Dasa Thakur
He was the son of a king. He was a lifelong brahmacari. Narottama arrived in Vrindavana in April 1593. He was initiated by Lokanatha Gosvami and he took siksa (instructions) from Jiva Gosvami. He wrote many devotional songs. His samadhi is in the courtyard of the Radha Gokulananda Temple.

In August 1594, Jiva Gosvami introduced him to Srinivasa. Jiva Gosvami was teaching both of them. Narottama dasa Thakur, Syamananda Prabhu and Srinivasa Acarya, by the order of Jiva Gosvami, took the original manuscripts of the Gosvamis and brought them to Bengal to be copied. They were stolen by a gang of dacoits (thieves) under Bir Hambhir, the king of Vishnupur, but were later recovered.
Narottama visited all the pastime places of Lord Caitanya in Gaura Mandala and Jagannatha Puri. He arranged the famous Kheturi Mahotsava festival in Kheturi. This was the first Gaura Purnima festival to honor the appearance of Lord Caitanya. During this festival Narottama installed six Deities: Sri Gauranga, Sri Vallabikanta, Sri Krishna, Sri Braja Mohan, Sri Radha Raman and Sri Radha Kanta.

Sri Nimbarka Acarya
He is the main acarya of the Kumara sampradaya. This sampradaya is also known as the Nimbarka sampradaya. It is believed that he was on this earth about the 13th century. This sampradaya worships Radha and Krishna. Many of the important temples in Braja are managed by devotees in the Nimbarka sampradaya.

In the Vrindavana and Mathura area there are many followers of the Nimbarka sampradaya sect. The village of Nimgaon, which is 1½ km from Govardhana, is named after Nimbarka. He lived there from his childhood and performed his bhajana there.

In Navadvipa Dhama Mahatmya, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura writes that Nimbarka had previously worshiped Lord Siva in Bilva Paksha in Rudradvipa. Lord Siva appeared before him and instructed him to take initiation from the four Kumaras, who were meditating nearby.

Lord Nityananda
Lord Nityananda is considered non-different than Lord Balarama. In the Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika it is described that Halayudha, Baladeva, Visvarupa and Sankarsana appeared as Nityananda Prabhu. He was born in the village of Ekacakra in 1473, approximately fourteen years before Lord Caitanya. His father was Hadai Pandita and His mother was Padmavati. Lord Nityananda stayed at home for 12 years.

In Caitanya Bhagavata there is a story of how Lord Nityananda would enact the pastimes of Krishna and Balarama and Rama and Laksman. He was especially adept at playing the parts of Balarama and Laksmana, because they were His eternal identities. Once he took the part of Laksmana being severely injured during the battle with Ravana. He fell unconscious and His friends could not revive Him. Only when another boy playing the part of Hanuman brought healing herbs from the Gandahmadana mountain did he revive.
When Nityananda was 12 years old a sannyasi came to where Hadai Pandita lived. Hadai Pandita offered the sannyasi some food. The sannyasi told him he had one request and if you accept my request I will eat. Hadai Pandita vowed to accept the sannyasi’s request and then fed him. The sannyasi then requested that Nityananda come with him as he was going on pilgrimage and needed a brahmachari assistant. Nityananda then left with the sannyasi.

He spent twenty years traveling to holy places. While traveling in South India, Nityananda went to Pandharpur and saw the Deity of Vithala (Lord Krishna). At this time Nityananda was initiated by Laksmipati, the guru of Madhavendra Puri. Prabhu Nityananda traveled in South India and then eventually reached Mathura. He went to Gokula, Vrindavana and other places in Braja. While in Braja, Nityananda Prabhu would just wander from forest to forest searching for His younger brother Krishna.

He then went to Navadvipa where he met Lord Caitanya. When Lord Caitanya went to Jagannatha Puri, Sri Nityananda Prabhu accompanied Him. He stayed in the house of Nandana Acarya thinking that Lord Caitanya would understand that he was there. He told Nandana Acarya not to tell anyone that he was there. Lord Caitanya then went to Nandana Acarya’s house. When he arrived there He saw Nityananda Prabhu, who had an aura as bright as millions of suns.

He went to Jagannatha Puri with Lord Caitanya. Under the order of Lord Caitanya He returned to Navadvipa. He married Jahnava devi and Vasuddha devi. At this time, He lived in Kardaha. While in Bengal Nityananda Prabhu engaged His eternal associates, the original cowherd boys who were friends of Lord Balarama in Gokula Vrindavana. Together they would chant the holy names of the Lord.

Vrindavana Dasa Thakur warns that if one worships Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and does not worship Nityananda Prabhu he is sure to visit the house of Yamaraja after death.

Sri Pundarika Vidyanidhi
Pundarik Vidyanidhi was born in a brahmana family. In Krishna-lila he was King Vrishabhanu, the father of Srimati Radharani. Caitanya Mahaprabhu therefore treated him as His father. He was a disciple of Madhavendra Puri. He had good relations with Madhava Misra, the father of Gadadhara Pandita and was a good friend of Svarupa Damodara. He was a wealthy landlord. He had a house and some property in Navadvipa.
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu called Pundarika Vidyanidhi “father,” and He gave Him the title Premanidhi. He would never bathe or allow his feet inside the river Ganges. He would offer his obeisances to the Ganges and would sip a little acaman from its purifying waters.

He was the spiritual master of Gadadhara Pandita. Gadadhara Pandita at first misunderstood Pundarika Vidyanidhi to be an ordinary man who was just interested in money, but later, upon being corrected by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, he became his disciple. Mukunda told Gadadhara Pandita one day that he would introduce him to an exceptional Vaishnava. When they went to see him Pundarika was reclining on an opulent bed covered with red satin sheets and silk pillows.
Another incident in the life of Pundarika Vidyanidhi involves his criticizing the priest of the Jagannatha temple, for which Jagannatha Prabhu chastised him personally by slapping his cheeks. When a new cloth was given to Lord Jagannatha Pundarika Vidyanidhi saw that Lord Jagannatha was given a starched garment. He then became a little hateful. In this way his mind was polluted. That night the brothers Lord Jagannatha and Balarama came to him and, smiling, began to slap him. Although his checks were swollen from the slapping, Pundarika Vidyanidhi was very happy within.

Sri Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami
He was also called Raghunatha Bhattacarya. He was the son of Tapana Misra.

Raghunatha Bhatta was born in 1505 in Varanasi. When he was 8 or 9 years old Lord Caitanya came to Varanasi. Lord Caitanya took him on his lap and caressed him. At this time Raghunatha massaged Lord Caitanya’s feet and took the remnants of His food. Lord Caitanya stayed in Varanasi for 10 days. During this time Raghunatha Bhatta was able to hear His teachings, massage His feet and take the remnants of His prasada. Later Rupa Gosvami came to Varanasi, and Raghunatha Bhatta also rendered service to him.
One day some devotees were going to Puri for Ratha Yatra and Raghunatha Bhatta joined them. When he arrived in Puri he went to see Lord Caitanya, who then embraced him. He stayed in Puri for eight months and would often cook for Lord Caitanya. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu would accept with great satisfaction all the food he prepared. After the Lord was satisfied,

Raghunatha Bhatta would eat His remnants. After eight months Lord Caitanya sent Raghunatha back to Varanasi. At this time He gave Raghunatha Bhatta His kantha-mala (tulasi beads that he wore around His neck). Four years later his parents left their bodies. Raghunatha then returned to Puri. He stayed there for eight months. Lord Caitanya then told him to go the Vrindavana and to live in the company of Rupa and Sanatana, read Srimad Bhagavatam, always chant the names of Krishna and not to get married. He was so expert in reciting Srimad Bhagavatam that he would recite each verse in three melodious tunes. Mahaprabhu gave him a 20 foot long tulasi garland and a roll of betal leaf containing betal nut which was prasada of Lord Jagannatha.

He was expert in reciting the Srimad Bhagavatam and cooking. It is said that whatever he would cook would be nectarean. Lord Caitanya would be greatly pleased to accept whatever food he would cook, and then Raghunatha Bhatta would than take His remnants. He never talked nonsense or of worldly matters, but always engaged 24 hours a day in hearing about Krishna. He never cared to hear blasphemy of a Vaishnava. Even when there were points to be criticized, he used to say that since all the Vaishnavas were engaged in the service of the Lord, he did not mind their faults.
Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami had one of his disciples construct the Govindaji Temple. Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami later lived by Radha Kunda in a small cottage.

In the Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika, verse 185, it is said that Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami was formerly the gopi named Raga-manjari, who was one of Radharani’s asta-manjaris.

Sri Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami
Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami was born around 1494 in a kayastha family in Krishnapur, a village in Bengal. He was the only son of his father Govardhana Majumdara, who was the younger brother of the then Zamindar, Hiranya Majumdara. His family were all Vaishnavas and very rich.
His spiritual master was Yadunandana Acarya. Because he wanted to leave home and join Lord Caitanya his father engaged special bodyguards to keep him at home. Although Raghunatha Dasa was married, he had no attachment from his estate and wife. In 1517, at the age of 23, he left home and joined Lord Caitanya in Jagannatha Puri.

He stayed for sixteen years in Jagannatha Puri. During the day he spent time with Mahaprabhu and he saw His pastimes. What ever happened at night was described to him by Svarupa Damodara. Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami described these pastimes to Krishna Dasa Kaviraja who wrote them down in Caitanya Caritamrita. After Raghunatha was in Puri for sixteen years, Lord Caitanya left this world. Raghunatha Dasa then decided to go to Vrindavana to have the darsana of Rupa and Sanatana and then give up his life by jumping from Govardhana Hill. Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami came to Vrindavana to see Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami. Because Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami was an assistant to Svarupa Damodara, he knew much about the pastimes of Lord Caitanya. Thus Rupa and Sanatana always used to hear of this from him.
Lord Caitanya gave Raghunatha a Govardhana-shila that He would place over His eyes or close to His heart. He also gave him a gunja-mala, a garland of red and black berries, that He would wear around His neck.

Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami lived at Radha Kunda. He arranged to have Radha Kunda dug out and enlarged, and arranged to built the ghatas around Radha Kunda. Many people would come and listen to Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami describe the pastimes of Lord Caitanya. Krishna dasa Kaviraja would come to listen to him. Krishna dasa lived with him most of the time and would also serve him. Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami left his body around 1595 and his samadhi is at Radha Kunda. He lived at Radha Kunda for forty (some say 49) years. When Srinivasa Acarya went to see Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami, Raghunatha embraced by him. Srinivasa Acarya requested his blessings for preaching in Bengal.

Sri Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami’s daily activities included chanting 64 rounds of japa (100,000 names), worshiping his Govardhana-shila, bathing thrice in Radha Kunda, offering 1,000 obeisances to Krishna, and offering 2,000 obeisances to the devotees, plus embracing them. For three hours a day he discoursed about Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. As soon as he found a Vaishnava residing in Vrindavana, he would embrace him and give him all respect. He rested ninety minutes a day and some days not at all. It is said that his eyes were always full of tears. Throughout his life, Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami never ate anything for sense gratification. He only ate fruit and milk. After Sanatana Gosvami left this world he only ate a leaf cup of buttermilk every day or two. When Rupa Gosvami left he gave up eating and drinking.
He wrote 3 books named Dana-carita (Dana-keli-cintamani), Mukta-carita, and Stava-mala (Stavavali). In the Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika (verse 186) it is stated that Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami was formerly the gopi named Rasa-manjari. Sometimes it is said that he was Rati-manjari.

Sri Ramananda Raya
He was a most confidential devotee of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, “Although I am a sannyasi, My mind is sometimes perturbed when I see a woman. But Ramananda Raya is greater than Me, for he is always undisturbed, even when he touches a women.”

Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya advised Lord Caitanya to meet Ramananda Raya when he went to South India. He told Him that there was no devotee as advanced in understanding the conjugal love of Krishna with the gopis. While touring South India Lord Caitanya met Ramananda Raya by the bank of the Godavari, and in their long discourses the Lord took the position of a student, and Ramananda Raya instructed Him. Although Lord Caitanya refused to see Maharaja Prataparudra because he was a king, Ramananda Raya arranged a meeting between the Lord and the king.
Lord Caitanya considered Ramananda Raya and Sanatana Gosvami to be equal in their renunciation. He was one of the three and a half persons with whom Lord Caitanya discussed the most confidential topics of Krishna consciousness. Both Ramananda Raya and Svarupa Damodara would recite suitable verses from Srimad Bhagavatam to pacify the Lord’s ecstatic feelings of separation from Krishna.

Pradyumna Misra was born in a brahmana family and Ramananda Raya in a non-brahmana family, yet Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu advised Pradyumna Misra to take instructions from Ramananda Raya.

In the Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika it is stated that Ramananda Raya was formerly Arjuna. He is also considered to have been an incarnation of Lalita gopi, but in the opinion of others he was an incarnation of Vishaka Devi. He was the author of Jagannatha-vallabha-nataka.

Sri Ramanujacarya
He was born in 1017 AD in a small village near Kanchipuram. He was initiated by Mahapurna, the disciple of Yamunacarya. He took the sannyasa name Yatiraja. He lived the later part of his life in Sri Rangam, a large temple located on an island by Tiruchirappalli. He lived to the age of 120. He established 74 Sri Vaisnavas centers and converted thousands of followers including several kings. Besides householders his followers included 700 sannyasis, 12,000 brahmacaris, and 300 ketti ammais (ladies who have taken a vow of renunciation). He left his body in the month of Magha, 1137 AD in Sri Rangam.

He taught that there is a difference between the Supreme Brahman and the individual soul. He taught that by God’s grace the jiva (individual soul) can get out of the material world and attain the eternal abode of Lord Vishnu. He always defeated any scholar who preached the impersonal school of thought.

Sri Rupa Gosvami
He was born in 1489 (there are different years given by different historians) and he left his body in 1564, the same year as Sanatana Gosvami (some say later). They are believed to have passed away 27 days apart from each other. Rupa Gosvami’s samadhi is in the Radha Damodara Temple.
Sri Rupa Gosvami gave up all family connections, joined the renounced order of life, and divided his money. He gave fifty percent to the brahmanas and Vaishnavas, twenty-five percent to his family members and kept twenty-five percent for personal emergencies.

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu used to praise the handwriting of Rupa Gosvami, stating that it was like a row of pearls. Sri Rupa Gosvami could compose verses according to the desires of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and by His direction he wrote two books named Lalita-madhava and Vidagdha-madhava

He came to Vrindavana to fulfill four orders of Lord Caitanya: (1) Uncover the lost pastime places of Krishna, (2) install Deities, (3) write books about devotional service (bhakti-sastras), (4) propagate the rules of bhakti-yoga. He was a learned scholar and was proficient in Sanskrit, Bengali, Persian and Arabic. He found the Deity of Govinda at the present location of the Govindaji Temple.

Rupa Gosvami performed bhajana at Seva Kunja, Radha Kunda, Ter Kadamba (near Nandagram) and Varsana. He would live under a tree, under a thorny thicket or in a cave. When Rupa Gosvami lived at Seva Kunja (present day downtown Vrindavana) there were no temples and buildings, just forest. In Sadhana Dipika it says that Rupa Gosvami could make Deities, draw expertly, was a master of astrology and mathematics, and he was a great Gaudiya Vaishnava philosopher and scholar.
In the Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika (verse 180) Sri Rupa Gosvami is described as the gopi named Sri Rupa-manjari. In the Bhakti-ratnakara there is a list of the books Srila Rupa Gosvami compiled.

Sri Sanatana Gosvami
Srila Sanatana Gosvami was born into a Sarasvata-brahmana community in Bengal. His father was named Kumara Deva and mother was named Revati. His mother was the daughter of Hari Narayan Visarad of Madhaipur. Jiva Gosvami traces their ancestry to Sarvajna Jagadguru, the king of Karnata in the twelfth century. Sanatana appeared in 1484, five years before Rupa Gosvami.

In their childhood Sanatana and Rupa were named Amra and Santos. They studied nyaya from Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya. They then studied in the tola (Sanskrit school) of the younger brother of Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya, Vidyavacaspati. It is generally believed that Vidyavacaspati was the diksa-guru of Sanatana. While engaged in studying, Sanatana would also read Srimad Bhagavatam.

Sanatana and Rupa were forced to become ministers in the Muslim government. When they worked for the king of Bengal, Hussain Shah, Sanatana was given the title Sakara Mallik, which means Prime Minister and Rupa was given the title Dabir Khas, which means Private Secretary. They became the right and left hand men of Hussain Shah and he would not do anything without consulting them. During the day they would dress like Muslims and speak in Arabic and Persian. In the evening they would purify themselves by taking bath and engage in their religious duties of japa, studying the scriptures and engaging in religious discourses.

Both Sanatana and Rupa had written Lord Caitanya and asked Him to deliver them from the bondage of the world. He came to Ramakeli to deliver them. After meeting Lord Caitanya in 1516 in Ramakeli, they were renamed Sanatana and Rupa. Sanatana was ostracized from the Hindu community because he accepted a post as a minister in the government of Hussain Shah.
When Hussain Shah attacked Orissa and destroyed the temples there, Sanatana decided that he had to get out of being Prime Minister. After meeting Lord Caitanya he quit his post as a minister. He lived as a grihasta for 27 years (some say longer). Rupa Gosvami first left his responsibilities. He left 10 thousand gold coins with a merchant in case Sanatana needed it to escape his service to Hussain Shah. Sanatana gave up his duties and was then imprisoned by Hussain Shah, who was greatly in need of his services. Sanatana escaped from jail by paying the jailer the large amount of money which was left by Rupa.

After escaping from prison Sanatana Gosvami traveled to Benares (Varanasi) and met Lord Caitanya there. Lord Caitanya then instructed him on the science of Krishna consciousness. Sanatana then went to Vrindavana and Lord Caitanya went to Jagannatha Puri. When he arrived in Vrindavana he met Lokanatha Gosvami, Bhugarbha Gosvami and Subuddhi Raya. He lived in a solitary place on the bank of the Yamuna, at Aditya Tila. Because hardly anyone lived in Vrindavana he would go to Mathura for madhukari (begging). He would also collect whatever leaves or vegetable that were in the forest and cook them without salt or spices.
After staying in Vrindavana for a year he went to Jagannatha Puri. He stayed in Jagannatha Puri for about a year in the association of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Lord Caitanya then sent him back to Vrindavana.

He spent 43 years going from village to village in Vrindavana. His worshipable Deity was Madana Mohana. There are several places in the Braja-mandala area where Sanatana Gosvami did his bhajana. He did bhajana near Cakalesvara Mahadeva Siva temple on the bank of Manasi Ganga. When he stayed at Govardhana Hill, he would do parikrama of Govardhana Hill daily.
He left this world on Guru Purnima, the full moon day in the month of Asadha (June-July) in 1564. At this time he was residing at Govardhana Hill, where He spent the last days of his life. His body was brought to Vrindavana and placed in samadhi behind the Madana Mohana Temple.

“When Srila Sanatana Gosvami came to Vrindavana there were no temples. The city was lying like an open field. Sanatana Gosvami sat down on the bank of the Yamuna, and after some time he gradually constructed the first temple; then other temples were constructed, and now the city is full of temples, numbering about five thousand.” (Caitanya Caritamrita, Adi 7.160 purport)
He is described in Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika (verse 181) as being Labanga-manjari or sometimes Rati-manjari in Krishna-lila. Some books written by Sanatana Gosvami are Hari-bhakti-vilasa, Dasama-tippani, Brihad-Bhagavatamrita, Dasama-carita. Hari-bhakti-vilasa was written by Sanatana Gosvami, but was published in the name of Gopala Bhatta, who edited it. It is said that this was done out of humility and also because of the caste ridden society. Sanatana Gosvami was supposedly converted to being a Muslim, because he served in the Muslim government.

Sri Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya
The original name of Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya was Vasudeva Bhattacarya. He was born in 1460 in Vidyanagara, near Navadvipa. It is said that Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya was the greatest logician of his time in India. His father’s name was Mahesh Visharad and his younger brother was Vidyavacaspati. In Gaura Ganoddessa Dipika it is stated that he was an incarnation of Brihaspat, the priest of the heavenly planets.

When Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya was young he studied logic at Mithila from a great professor named Paksadhara Misra and became expert at nava nyaya (new logic). He tried to bring the manuscripts of nava nyaya philosophy back to Vidyanagar with him, but the pandits of Mithila did not allow any nyaya philosophy literature to leave Mithila. Because Sarvabhauma had a photographic memory he memorized the entire texts. This is called sruti dhara. When he returned to Vidyanagar he wrote out the nava nyaya philosophical literatures and their explanations. He established a school in Navadvipa Dham teaching the study of logic, thus diminishing the importance of Mithila. Students from various parts of India still come to Navadvipa to study logic. Although he was married, he even taught many sannyasis in the knowledge of logic.

Jagannatha Misra was a close friend of Sarvabhauma before Lord Caitanya birth. Before Lord Caitanya was born Sarvabhauma had already departed to live in Jagannatha Puri.
When Lord Caitanya first went to see Lord Jagannatha He fell on the floor unconscious. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu exhibited the eight types of bhava on His body. Seeing this Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya considered Lord Caitanya a great personality. Sarvabhauma made sure the guards did not disturb Him and he had Lord Caitanya brought to his house. When Lord Nityananda and Gadadhara arrived they explained to Sarvabhauma that the person that he helped was Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Sri Sivananda Sena
He was an extremely confidential servant of Lord Caitanya. Everyone who went to Jagannatha Puri to visit Lord Caitanya took shelter and guidance from him. Every year he took a party of devotees from Bengal to Jagannatha Puri to visit Sri Caitanya. Due to Vasudeva Datta’s lavish spending, Sivananda Sena was engaged to supervise his expenditures. He had three sons named Caitanya Dasa, Ramadasa and Paramananda (Kavi Karnapura). His spiritual master was Srinatha Pandita, who was Sivananda Sena’s priest.

He maintained the entire party as they traveled to Puri. Sivananda Sena took care of everyone and gave each devotee a place to stay. One day when the path was being checked by a toll collector, the devotees were allowed to pass, and Sivananda Sena remained behind alone to pay the taxes. The party went into a village and waited beneath a tree because no one but Sivananda Sena could arrange for their residential quarters. Nityananda Prabhu became very hungry and upset. “Sivananda Sena has not arranged for My residence,” He complained, “and I am so hungry I could die. Because he has not come, I curse his three sons to die. Hearing this curse, Sivananda Sena’s wife began to cry. Just then, Sivananda returned from the toll station. Crying His wife informed him, “Lord Nityananda has cursed our sons to die because His quarters have not been provided. Sivananda Sena replied. “You crazy woman! Why are you needlessly crying? Let my three sons die for all the inconvenience we have caused Nityananda Prabhu.” After saying this, Sivananda Sena went to Nityananda Prabhu, who then stood up and kicked him. Very pleased at being kicked, Sivananda Sena quickly arranged for a milkman’s house to be the Lord’s residence. Sivananda Sena touched the lotus feet of Nityananda Prabhu and led Him to His residence. Sivananda Sena then said. “Today You have accepted me as Your servant and have properly punished me for my offense. Today I have achieved the fulfillment of religious principles, economic development, satisfaction of the senses and ultimate devotional service to Lord Krishna.”

Once Sri Sivananda Sena invited Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu to his home and fed Him so much that the Lord got indigestion. His sons then gave the Lord some medicine for His digestion, and thus Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu was very pleased.
He is the father of Kavi Karnapura. Kavi Karnapura wrote in Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika that the two gopis named Vira and Duti combined to become his father.

Sri Srinivasa Acarya
Caitanya Dasa and his pregnant wife visited Lord Caitanya at Jagannatha Puri. Lord Caitanya told Caitanya Dasa, “Soon your wife will give birth to a son named Srinivasa and through Srinivasa all the bhakti sastras of Rupa and Sanatana will be distributed.”

When his father passed away, Srinivasa visited the remaining associates of Lord Caitanya at Navadvipa and Jagannatha Puri. He then went to Vrindavana and took diksa initiation from Gopala Bhatta Gosvami. Srila Jiva Gosvami instructed him on the philosophy of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. Jiva Gosvami gave him the title “Acarya” because of his vast scholarship.

Srinivasa along with Narottama dasa Thakura and Syamananda Prabhu traveled to Bengal and Orissa with the books of the Gosvamis.

Sri Srivasa Pandita
Srivasa Pandita is a member of the Panca Tattva and is one of the main branches of Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s tree. He was Lord Caitanya’s main assistant during the Lord’s pastimes as a householder in Navadvipa. He represents the marginal living entity (tatastha jiva).
Srivasa Pandita was born in Sri Hatta, but he later moved to Navadvipa, near the residence of Sri Jagannath Misra to render devotional service to Lord Caitanya. Srivasa Pandita is an incarnation of Narada Muni. Lord Caitanya and His associates used to have kirtana at his house all night long.
His wife’s name was Malini Devi. When Lord Nityananda came to Navadvipa from Vrindavana He stayed in the house of Srivasa Pandita.
His large palatial house was located about 200m north of Lord Caitanya’s house. Lord Caitanya and the devotee performed many ecstatic pastimes at the house of Srivasa Pandita. At his house the Chand Kazi broke a mridanga in an attempt to stop the kirtana in his house.
When the Lord took sannyasa and went to Jagannatha Puri, Srivasa Pandita left Navadvipa and moved with his family to Kumar Hatta.

Sri Subhuddhi Raya
Subuddhi Raya was advised to go to Vrindavana by Lord Caitanya. King Hussain Shah, of Bengal, put some water from his pot on Subuddhi Raya and therefore according to orthodox Hindus, he was considered converted to being a Muslim. He was thus advised to kill himself. Lord Caitanya instead advised him to go to Vrindavana. In Vrindavana he used to associate with Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami, Kasisvara Pandita and other Vaishnavas.

Sri Svarupa Damodara
He was born in Navadvipa. His residence was near the house of Mahaprabhu. The exact location of his house is unknown now. His previous name was Purushottama Acarya. His father Sri Padmagarbha Acarya took initiation from Srila Laksmipati, the guru of Madhavendra Puri. When Lord Caitanya accepted sannyasa, Purushottama Acarya went to Kasi (Varanasi) and accepted sannyasa there, receiving the name Svarupa Damodara. He studied the Vedas at Kasi, but he had no attraction for the impersonal interpretations of the scriptures given by the Kasi pandits or the teachings of Sankaracarya. Therefore he went to Jagannatha Puri and became one of the intimate associates of Lord Caitanya.

In Krishna-lila he was Lalita Sakhi. During the last 18 years of Lord Caitanya manifested pastimes, Svarupa Damodara was one of the three and half most intimate associates of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The three were Svarupa Damodara, Ramananda Raya and Sikhi Mahiti. The half was Sikhi Mahiti’s sister, Madhavidevi.

Svarupa Damodara was the original person to record the pastimes of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, which he composed in Sanskrit slokas. These slokas were spoken to Krishna Dasa Kaviraja by Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami. Based on these slokas Krishna Dasa Kaviraja wrote Caitanya Caritamrita.

He would recite the songs of Vidyapati, Candidas and Gita Govinda by Jayadeva Gosvami to Lord Caitanya. No literary composition, song or poem could be presented to Lord Caitanya unless it was at first approved by Svarupa Damodara. If the composition contained even the slightest hint of inharmonious transcendental mellow, rasabhasa, Svarupa Damodara would reject it. This was because such deviations would cause pain to Lord Caitanya if He heard them.

Sri Syamananda Prabhu
Syamananda Prabhu was previously known as Duhkhi Krishnadasa. He was born in the village of Dharanda Bahadurpur, in the Balasore District in Orissa. He left his home at the age of 20 to go on pilgrimage. When he went to the village of Ambika Kalna, in the Burdwan District of Bengal, he became attracted to the Deities of Gauranga (Sri Caitanya) and Nityananda. He was initiated by Hridaya Caitanya. He became attracted to Vrindavana by hearing from his guru.

He came from Bengal to Vrindavana. He became a follower of Jiva Gosvami and studied under him at the Radha Damodara Temple. Jiva Gosvami’s favorite students were Narottama dasa Thakur, Srinivasa Acarya and Syamananda. Jiva Gosvami put Syamananda in charge of sweeping Nidhivana. He did his service with utter enthusiasm. Syamananda Prabhu traveled to Orissa to spread Krishna consciousness. Many of the kings in Orissa became his disciples. After leaving Vrindavana to preach he never returned. He left this world at Udanda Roy Bhuiya’s place in Nivas-Kanpur.

Syamananda’s most famous disciple was Rasikananda. Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana was the fourth successor to him.

Sri Tapana Mishra
Tapana Mishra was from the village of Rampur which is on the bank of the Padma (Ganges) River in Bengal. Tapana Mishra is the father of Sri Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami. When Lord Caitanya came to Rampur, Lord Caitanya instructed Tapana Mishra to go to Varanasi and told him they would meet again. When Lord Caitanya went to Varanasi he took prasada at the house of Tapana Mishra.

Sri Vakresvara Pandita
He was expert at singing and dancing. He joined Caitanya Mahaprabhu from the beginning of His Navadvipa sankirtana pastimes. One time in the house of Srivasa Thakura Vakresvara Pandita danced wonderfully continuously for 72 hours. When Lord Caitanya played in dramatic performances in the house of Srivasa Pandita, Vakresvara Pandita was one of the chief dancers, and he danced continually for that length of time. Devananda Pandita was freed from the offenses he committed against Srivasa Pandita because of the blessings of Vakresvara Pandita.

When Lord Caitanya moved to Jagannatha Puri, Vakresvara Pandita also went there. There are many disciples of Vakresvara Pandita in Orissa, including Gopala Guru Gosvami. Vakresvara Pandita established the Deities of Radha Kantha in the house of Kasi Misra next to the Gambhira in Jagannatha Puri. In Gaura Ganoddessa Dipika it is stated that Vakreswara Pandita was an incarnation of Aniruddha, one of the quadruple expansions of Vishnu.

Sri Vasudeva Datta
Sri Vasudeva Datta was an intimate associate of Sri Caitanya and was the brother of Sri Mukunda Datta. He was a resident of Chanhara in the Chattagram district. He was extremely generous and would spend his money to serve the Deity. He would not save for the future and would therefore get into financial difficulties. Lord Caitanya instructed Sivananda Sen to manage the finances of Vasudeva Datta so that his family would not be put into difficulty. The initiating guru of Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami, Yadunandanacarya was the disciple of Vasudeva Datta.

Vasudeva Datta requested Lord Caitanya to transfer all the sinful reactions of the conditioned souls onto him to relieve them of their sufferings. At this time Lord Caitanya said that Vasudeva was an incarnation of Prahlad Maharaja.

Vasudeva Datta was a great personality and a confidential devotee of the Lord. One cannot describe his qualities with thousands of mouths. Srila Vasudeva Datta wanted to suffer for the sinful reactions of all the people of the world, so that Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu might deliver them. He told Caitanya Mahaprabhu, “My dear Lord, You incarnate just to deliver all conditioned souls. My Lord, my heart breaks to see the sufferings of all conditioned souls; therefore I request You to transfer the karma of their sinful lives upon my head. My dear Lord, let me suffer perpetually in a hellish condition, accepting all the sinful reactions of all living entities. Please finish their diseased material life.”

Vasudeva Datta spent money very liberally; therefore Lord Caitanya asked Sivananda Sen to act as his secretary, in order to control his extravagant expenses. Vasudeva Datta stayed at Srivasa Pandita’s house.

“Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was so pleased with Vasudeva Datta and so affectionate towards him that He used to say, “I am only Vasudeva’s Datta’s man. My body is only meant to please Vasudeva Datta, for he can sell me anywhere. He vowed that this was a fact and nobody should disbelieve these things. O my dear devotees, I tell you the truth that My body is only meant for Vasudeva Datta.”

Sri Virabhadra
He is the son of Sri Nityananda Prabhu. He is the main branch of the tree of Nityananda Prabhu. In Gaura Ganoddessa Dipika it is said that he is an incarnation of Ksirodakasayi Vishnu. Although He was the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He presented Himself as a great devotee. He is the main pillar in the hall of devotional service erected by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

He initiated hundreds of disciples wherever he went. At one time he converted 1000 tantic Buddhist, called Nedas to Gaudiya Vaisnavism. He had three disciples who are celebrated as his sons—Gopijana-vallabha, Ramakrishna and Ramacandra.

Srimati Vishnupriya Devi
She was the second wife of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. She was the daughter of Sanatana Misra, who was the priest of the local Zamindar. He was King Satrajit, the father of Satyabhama in Krishna-lila. The Supreme Lord has three internal potencies (saktis), Sri, Bhu and Nila. Srimati Vishnupriya Devi is non-different than the Bhu sakti.

After Laksmipriya Devi, the first wife of Lord Caitanya died, Nimai Pandita married Srimati Vishnupriya Devi. The elaborate wedding is described in Caitanya Bhagavata and Caitanya Mangala. Buddhimanta Khan paid for all the expenses of the opulent wedding.

After Lord Caitanya took sannyasa, Vishnupriya adopted an austere and devout life. She would set aside one grain of rice for every round of Hare Krishna japa mala that she chanted. In the evening she would cook the rice and offer it to her personal Deity of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. This Deity is now located in the present city of Navadvipa and is called Dhamesvara Mahaprabhu. Caitanya Mangala describes the parting of Lord Caitanya and Vishnupriya.

Sri Visvarupa
He is the elder brother of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He is an incarnation of Lord Balarama. When arrangements were made for His marriage, He took sannyasa and left home. He took the sannyasa name of Sankararanya. He left his body in Pandhapur in Maharashtra. He is an incarnation of Sankarsana, who is one of the quadruple manifestations of the caturvyuha. In the Gaura Candrodaya it is said that Visvarupa, after leaving His body, remained mixed within Nityananda Prabhu.

Sri Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura
He was born in 1654 (some say 1638) in a Radhiya brahmana family in Devagrama, in the district of Murshidabad. He studied in Saidabad under Sri Krishna Carana Cakravarti, who was in the disciplic succession from Sri Narottama Thakura. He was initiated by his son, Sri Radha Ramana Cakravarti. Visvanatha Cakravarti was married, but he renounced the world while still young, and went to Vrindavana. He was known to be a great philosopher, scholar and poet. He wrote over forty Sanskrit books. He wrote commentaries on many of Rupa Gosvami’s works. Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana was his disciple.
Visvanatha Cakravarti’s Deity of Gokulananda is worshiped in the Radha Gokulananda Temple in Vrindavana. His samadhi is located in the courtyard of the Radha Gokulananda Temple, next to the samadhi of Lokanatha Gosvami. He left this world on Vasant Pancami, in the month of Magh, in 1730 at Radha Kunda.

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