The Concept of Bhagavån in Bengal Vaishnavism as found in Jiva Goswami’s Bhagavat-sandarbha: Journal of Vaishnava Studies

Abstract

Srî Chaitanya Mahåprabhu, who was born in 1486 CE in West Bengal, India, is the founder of the Vedånta school of Bengal Vaishnavism. Although a great scholar, he did not himself write any philosophical works or commentaries on the prasthåna-trayî1 as was done by the founders of other Vedånta schools such as Srî Shankaråchårya or Srî Råmånujåchårya.
From Chaitanya Charitåm®ta, it is understood that Chaitanya taught the intricate details of his system to some intimate followers, such as srî Rüpa Goswåmî and srî Sanåtan Goswåmî. He deputed some of these disciples to Vrindavan, one of India’s most holy places (where Lord Krishna lived about 5,200 some years ago), in order to establish his school by writing treatises delineating his
philosophical system, teaching it to qualified students, establishing temples and places of practice, and discovering the areas related to Lord Krishna’s activities that had been forgotten over the course of time.