Appearance Day of Srila Jiva Gosvami

What is the appearance day of Srila Jiva Gosvami?

In 2027 devotees honour Srila Jiva Gosvami, one of the six Gosvamis of Vrindavana, on Sunday, 12 September, the day of his appearance. Sri Vamana Dvadashi, the appearance day of Lord Vamanadeva, falls on the same date.

Significance

Srila Prabhupada called Jiva Gosvami one of the very important acaryas of our sampradaya. As a boy he left home, studied Sanskrit in Varanasi and then came to Vrindavana, where his guru (and uncle) Srila Rupa Gosvami initiated him. He assisted Rupa Gosvami, and after hearing from him he wrote the Sat-sandarbha, six books that present Vaishnava philosophy, from the Absolute Truth to Krishna, the Bhagavata and love of Krishna.

Srila Prabhupada also told of a scholar who came demanding a debate. Rupa Gosvami gave him a paper admitting defeat, but Jiva Gosvami then defeated the scholar himself. The lesson, Srila Prabhupada said, is that a disciple must never let his spiritual master be defeated. Jiva Gosvami later established the Radha-Damodara temple in Vrindavana. Of the Sat-sandarbha, Srila Prabhupada said:

These Ṣaṭ-Sandarbha are recognized as the most scholarly work in the world.

Conversation, Vaisnava Calendar Description, Calcutta, 2 September 1970

How to observe it

Srila Prabhupada asked for an evening meeting on the life and work of Srila Jiva Gosvami, especially his Sandarbhas. If the books are not at hand, someone can simply tell his life story. Sit together, read from Srimad-Bhagavatam or Caitanya-caritamrta, and reflect on his devotion to his guru, Srila Rupa Gosvami.