PASTIMES OF GREAT ACHARYA - 8

In the Gaura-ganoddesa-dipikä, verse 195, it is said that Srila Jiva
Gosvämi was formerly Viläsa-manjari gopi in vraja-lila. From his very
childhood Jiva Gosvämi was greatly fond of Srimad-Bhägavatam. He later
came to Navadvipa to study Sanskrit, and, following in the footsteps
of Sri Nityänanda Prabhu, he circumambulated the entire Navadvipa-dhäma.
After visiting Navadvipa-dhäma he went to Benares to study Sanskrit
under Madhusüdana Väcaspati, and after finishing his studies in Benares
he went to Vrndävana and took shelter of his uncles, Sri Rüpa and
Sanätana. This is described in the Bhakti-ratnäkara. As far as our
information goes, Srila Jiva Gosvämi composed and edited at least
twenty-five books. They are all very celebrated, and they are listed as
follows: (1) Hari-nämämrta-vyäkarana, (2) Sütra-mälikä, (3)
Dhätu-sangraha, (4) Krsnärcä-dipikä, (5) Gopäla-virudävalé, (6)
Rasämrta-sesa, (7) Sri Mädhava-mahotsava, (8) Sri Sankalpa-kalpavrksa,
(9) Bhävärtha-sücaka-campü, (10) Gopäla-täpani-öikä, (11) a commentary
on the Brahma-samhitä, (12) a commentary on the Bhakti-rasämrta-sindhu,
(13) a commentary on the Ujjvala-nilamani, (14) a commentary on the
Yogasära-stava, (15) a commentary on the Gäyatri-mantra, as described in
the Agni Puräna, (16) a description of the Lord+s lotus feet derived
from the Padma Puräna, (17) a description of the lotus feet of Srimati
Rädhäräni, (18) Gopäla-campü (in two parts) and (19/25) seven
sandarbhas: the Krama-, Tattva-, Bhagavat-, Paramätma-, Krsna-, Bhakti-
and Priti-sandarbha. After the disappearance of Srila Rüpa Gosvämi and
Sanätana Gosvämi in Vrndävana, Srila Jiva Gosvämi became the äcärya of
all the Vaisnavas in Bengal, Orissa and the rest of the world, and it is
he who used to guide them in their devotional service. In Vrndävana he
established the Rädhä-Dämodara temple, where Srila Prabhupada had the
opportunity to live and retire until the age of sixty-five. When Jiva
Gosvämi was still present, Srila Krsnadäsa Kaviräja Gosvämi compiled his
famous Caitanya-caritämrta. Later, Srila Jiva Gosvämi inspired Sriniväsa
Äcärya, Narottama däsa Thäkura and Duùkhi Krnadäsa to preach Krsna
consciousness in Bengal. Jiva Gosvämi was informed that all the
manuscripts that had been collected from Vrndävana and sent to Bengal
for preaching purposes were plundered near Visnupura, in Bengal, but
later he received the information that the books had been recovered. Sri
Jiva Gosvämi awarded the designation Kaviräja to Rämacandra Sena, a
disciple of Sriniväsa Äcärya+s, and to Rämacandra+s younger brother
Govinda. While Jiva Gosvämi was alive, Srimati Jähnavi-devi, the
pleasure potency of Sri Nityänanda Prabhu, went to Vrndävana with a few
devotees. Jiva Gosvämi was very kind to the Gaudiya Vaisnavas, the
Vaisnavas from Bengal. Whoever went to Vrndävana he provided with a
residence and prasäda. His disciple Krsnadäsa Adhikäri listed all the
books of the Gosvämis in his diary.

The sahajiyäs level three accusations against Srila Jiva Gosvämi. This
is certainly not congenial for the execution of devotional service. The
first accusation concerns a materialist who was very proud of his
reputation as a great Sanskrit scholar and approached Sri Rüpa and
Sanätana to argue with them about the revealed scriptures. Srila Rüpa
Gosvämi and Sanätana Gosvämi, not wanting to waste their time, gave him
a written statement that he had defeated them in a debate on the
revealed scriptures. Taking this paper, the scholar approached Jiva
Gosvämi for a similar certificate of defeat, but Jiva Gosvämi did not
agree to give him one. On the contrary, he argued with him regarding the
scriptures and defeated him. Certainly it was right for Jiva Gosvämi to
stop such a dishonest scholar from advertising that he had defeated
Srila Rüpa Gosvämi and Sanätana Gosvämi, but due to their illiteracy the
sahajiyä class refer to this incident to accuse Srila Jiva Gosvämi of
deviating from the principle of humility. They do not know, however,
that humility and meekness are appropriate when one+s own honor is
insulted but not when Lord Visnu or the äcäryas are blasphemed. In such
cases one should not be humble and meek but must act. One should follow
the example given by Sri Caitanya Mahäprabhu. Lord Caitanya says in His
Siksästaka (3):
trnäd api sunicena
taror api sahisnunä
amäninä mänadena
kirtaniyah sadä harih
One can chant the holy name of the Lord in a humble state of mind,
thinking himself lower than the straw in the street. One should be more
tolerant than a tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige, and should
be ready to offer all respect to others. In such a state of mind one can
chant the holy name of the Lord constantly. Nevertheless, when the Lord
was informed that Nityänanda Prabhu was injured by Jagäi and Mädhäi, He
immediately went to the spot, angry like fire, wanting to kill them.
Thus Lord Caitanya has explained His verse by the example of His own
behavior. One should tolerate insults against oneself, but when there is
blasphemy committed against superiors such as other Vaisnavas, one
should be neither humble nor meek; one must take proper steps to
counteract such blasphemy. This is the duty of a servant of a guru and
Vaisnavas. Anyone who understands the principle of eternal servitude to
the guru and Vaisnavas will appreciate the action of Sri Jiva Gosvämi in
connection with the so-called scholar+s victory over his gurus, Srila
Rüpa and Srila Sanätana Gosvämi.
Another story fabricated to defame Srila Jiva Gosvämi states that after
compiling Sri Caitanya-caritämrta, Srila Krnadäsa Kaviräja Gosvämi
showed the manuscript to Jiva Gosvämi, who thought that it would hamper
his reputation as a big scholar and therefore threw it into a well.
Srila Krsnadäsa Kaviräja Gosvämi was greatly shocked, and he died
immediately. Fortunately a copy of the manuscript of Sri
Caitanya-caritämrta had been kept by a person named Mukunda, and
therefore later it was possible to publish the book. This story is
another ignominious example of blasphemy against a guru and Vaisnava.
Such a story should never be accepted as authoritative.
According to another accusation, Srila Jiva Gosvämi did not approve of
the principles of the pärakiya-rasa of Vraja-dhäma and therefore
supported svakiya-rasa, showing that Rädhä and Krsna are eternally
married. Actually, when Jiva Gosvämi was alive, some of his followers
disliked the pärakiya-rasa of the gopis. Therefore Srila Jiva Gosvämi,
for their spiritual benefit, supported svakiya-rasa, for he could
understand that sahajiyäs would otherwise exploit the pärakiya-rasa, as
they are actually doing at the present. Unfortunately, in Vrndävana and
Navadvipa it has become fashionable among sahajiyäs, in their
debauchery, to find an unmarried sexual partner to live with to execute
so-called devotional service in pärakiya-rasa. Foreseeing this, Srila
Jiva Gosvämi supported svakiya-rasa, and later all the Vaisnava äcäryas
also approved of it. Srila Jiva Gosvämi was never opposed to the
transcendental pärakiya-rasa, nor has any other Vaisnava disapproved of
it. Srila Jiva Gosvämi strictly followed his predecessor gurus and
Vaisnavas, Srila Rüpa Gosvämi and Sanätana Gosvämi, and Srila Krsnadäsa
Kaviräja Gosvämi accepted him as one of his instructor gurus.
The Vaisnavas are by far the greatest philosophers in the world, and the
greatest among them was Srila Jiva Gosvämi Prabhu, whose philosophy was
again presented less than four hundred years later by Srila
Bhaktisiddhänta Sarasvati Thäkura Mahäräja.
Srila Jiva Gosvämi, in his thesis Bhakti-sandarbha (202), has stated
that uncontaminated devotional service is the objective of pure
Vaisnavas and that one has to execute such service in the association of
other devotees. Sri Jiva Gosvämi advises that one not accept a spiritual
master in terms of hereditary or customary social and ecclesiastical
conventions. One should simply try to find a genuinely qualified
spiritual master for actual advancement in spiritual understanding.

Srila Jiva Gosvämi has explained the word bhagavän in his
Bhagavat-sandarbha. The Personality of Godhead, being full of all
conceivable and inconceivable potencies, is the absolute Supreme Whole.
Impersonal Brahman is a partial manifestation of the Absolute Truth
realized in the absence of such complete potencies.