Adi-lila, Chapter 10 303

Gosvami, after meeting SriCaitanya Mahaprabhu, resigned from government service,
and when he went to Vrndavana to meet Lord Caitanya, Vallabha accompanied
him. The meeting of Ripa Gosvami and Vallabha with Caitanya Mahaprabhu at
Allahabad is described in the Madhya-/ila, Chapter Nineteen.

Actually, it is to be understood from the statement of Sanatana Gosvami that
Sri Ripa Gosvami and Vailabha went to Vrndavana under the instructions of Sri
Caitanya Mahaprabhu. First they went to Mathura, where they met a gentleman
named Subuddhi Raya who maintained himself by selling dry fuel wood. He was
very pleased to meet Sri Ripa Gosvami and Anupama, and he showed them the
twelve forests of Vrndavana. Thus they lived in Vrndavana for one month and then
again went to search for Sanatana Gosvami. Following the course of the Ganges,
they reached Allahabad, or Prayaga-tirtha, but because Sanatana Gosvami had come
there by a different road, they did not meet him there, and when Sanatana
Gosvami came to Mathura he was informed of the visit of Ripa Gosvami and
Anupama by Subuddhi Raya. When Ripa Gosvami and Anupama met Caitanya
Mahaprabhu at Benares, they heard about Sanatana Gosvami’s travels from Him,
and thus they returned to Bengal, adjusted their affairs with the state and, on the
order of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, went to see the Lord at Jagannatha Puri.

In the year 1436 sakdbda, the youngest brother, Anupama, died and went back
home, back to Godhead. He went to the abode in the spiritual sky where Sri
Ramacandra is situated. At Jagannatha Puri, Sri Ripa Gosvami informed Sri
Caitanya Mahaprabhu of this incident. Vallabha was a great devotee of Sri
Ramacandra; therefore he could not seriously consider the worship of Radha-
Govinda according to the instructions of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Yet he directly
accepted Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu as an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of
Godhead Ramacandra. In the Bhakti-ratnakara there is the following statement:
“Vallabha was given the name Anupama by Sri Gaurasundara, but he was always
absorbed in the devotional service of Lord Ramacandra. He did not know anyone
but Sri Ramacandra, but he knew that Caitanya Gosafii was the same Lord
Ramacandra.”

In the Gaura-ganoddesa-dipika (180) Sri Ripa Gosvami is described to be the
gopi named Sri Rapa-manjari. In the Bhakti-ratndkara there is a list of the books
Sri Ripa Gosvami compiled. Of all his books, the following sixteen are very popular
among Vaisnavas: (1) Hamsadiita, (2) Uddhava-sandesa, (3) Krsna-janma-tithi-vidhi,
(4 and 5) Ganoddesa-dipikd, Brhat (major) and Laghu (minor), (6) Stavamaia, (7)
Vidagdha-madhava, (8) Lalita-ma@dhava, (9) Odna-keli-kaumud?, (10) Bhakti-
rasamrta-sindhu (this is the most celebrated book by Sri Rupa Gosvami), (11)
Ujjvala-nilamani, (12) Akhydta-candrikd, (13) Mathura-mahima, (14) Padyavalt, (15)
Nataka-candrikG and (16) Laghu-bhdgavatamrta. Sri Ripa Gosvami gave up all
family connections, joined the renounced order of life and divided his money,
giving fifty percent to the brahmanas and Vaisnavas and twenty-five percent to his
kutumbas (family members) and keeping twenty-five percent for personal emergen-
cies. He met Haridasa Thakura in Jagannatha Puri, where he also met Lord Caitanya
and His other associates. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu used to praise the handwriting
of Ripa Gosvami. Srila Rapa Gosvami could compose verses according to the de-
