Srila Madhupandita Samadhi

The temple of Radha Gopinatha is one of the ‘Seven Goswami Temples’ and was established by Shrila Madhu Pandita Goswami who was an important follower of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Although he was not directly one of the Six Goswamis, he is one of the important Gaudiya Goswamis of Vrindavana. The deity of Lord Gopinatha was originally established by Vajranabha Maharaja at Vamsi Vata five thousand years earlier. Then during the period of the Six Goswamis the deity of Lord Gopinatha was rediscovered at Vamsi Vata lying buried in the ground near the famous banyan tree. Madhu Pandita Goswami came to Vrindavana and was searching everywhere for the deity of Lord Gopinatha. Not finding the deity anywhere, and feeling great sorrow, Madhu Pandita gave up eating food and sat at Vamsi Vata while shedding a constant stream of tears.

As it was the monsoon season there was a great flood in Vrindavana and the River Yamuna overflowed her banks. The force of the flood waters apparently swept away the old banyan tree that stood at Vamsi Vata and when the flood waters receded, the deity was seen half buried in the ground by Madhu Pandita’s close friend and companion named Paramananda Bhattacharya, just beneath where the old banyan tree had once stood. Paramanaru:la immediately called his friend Madhu Pandita who retrieved the deity. The deity was then moved to the spot where the present Gopinatha temple now stands. The original Gopinatha Mandira is believed to have opened in 1589, and was built by Raja Saganji, one of the Shekawat princes of Rajasthana.

After being desecrated by Aurangzeb’s soldiers in 1670, a new temple was constructed next to the original one. The samadhi of Madhu Pandita Goswami can also be seen near the eastern gate of the Gopinatha Mandira.

Vrajanabha, Lord Krishna’s great-grandson, installed the original Gopinatha Deity in Vrndavana over five-thousand years ago. About five-hundred years ago, Paramananda Bhattacarya discovered the Deity in the earth at Vamsivata on the banks of the Yamuna. Madhupandit Gosvami, a disciple of Sri Gadadhara Pandit, worshiped the Gopinatha Deity.
Bhakti-ratnakar says that Sri Gopinathaji, who is an ocean of mercy, forever sports along the enchanting banks of the Yamuna at Vamsivata. His bodily luster steals the mind of whoever sees Him. When the soothing sweetness of Gopinathaji’s charming form enters the heart it immeditately extinguishes the burning fire of material existence. Now the original Gopinatha Deity stays in Jaipur, Rajasthan.
Madhupandit Gosvami blessed Srinivasa Acarya with Gopinatha’s garland before Srinivasa, Narottama, and Syamananda took the bullock cart of Gosvami granthas from Vrndavana. In Goloka Vrndavana, Madhupandit Gosvami serves as Mandali-sakhi in the group of Campakalata-sakhi. The samadhi of Madhupandit Gosvami is on the right side of the entrance within the compound of the Radha-Gopinatha temple in Vrndavana.