Krishna Chaitanya, honorific: "Mahāprabhu", , was a Bengali Hindu mystic, saint, and the chief proponent of the Achintya Bheda Abheda and Gaudiya Vaishnavism tradition within Hinduism. He also expounded the Vaishnava school of Bhakti yoga, based on Bhagavata Purana and Bhagavad Gita. Of various forms and direct or indirect expansions of Krishna such as Lord Narasimha, Maha-Vishnu and Garbhodakshaya Vishnu respectively, he is Krishna in the mood of a devotee. He popularised the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra and composed the Siksastakam in Sanskrit. His followers, Gaudiya Vaishnavas, revere him as a Krishna with the mood and complexion of his source of inspiration Radha. His birthday is celebrated as Gaura-purnima.
Bhaktisiddhanta SaraswatiGoswami Prabhupad, born Bimala Prasad Datta, also referred to as Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Gosvami Prabhupad, was a Hindu guru and spiritual reformer of Gaudiya Vaishnavism in the early 20th century in India.
Narottama Dasa Thakura, also known as Thakura Mahasaya, is a Gaudiya Vaishnava saint who was responsible for spreading Vaishnava bhakti throughout Odisha in and outside of Bengal in India. Narottama dasa was the son of King Krishnananda Datta and Narayani Devi who resided in Gopalpur Pargana of the Rajsahi district of Bangladesh. According to some, after the death of his father he entrusted his royal duties to the eldest paternal uncle's son and left for Vrindavan.
Bhaktivinoda Thakur, also written Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura), born Kedarnath Datta, was a Hindu philosopher, guru and spiritual reformer of Gaudiya Vaishnavism who effected its resurgence in India in late 19th and early 20th century and was hailed by contemporary scholars as the most influential Gaudiya Vaishnava leader of his time. He is also credited, along with his son Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, with pioneering the propagation of Gaudiya Vaishnavism in the West and its eventual global spread.
Visvanatha Chakravarti Thakura was a Gaudiya Vaishnava acharya born in the village of Devagram within Nadia district, West Bengal, India. His parents were Radhi Sreni brahmanas. He also had two brothers named Rambhadra and Raghunatha.
Baladeva Vidyabhushana was an Indian Gaudiya Vaishnava acharya .Despite being renowned all over the world as the Gaudiya Vedanta Acarya, the scarcity of available authentic biodata has led misinformed authors to spread incorrect information about his life incidents. There is no known historical evidence regarding either his birth place or date, nor any known reference to it in his works. Some wrongly believe that he disappeared in 1768. Yet his Aisvarya-kadambini is dated 1779. The original manuscript is preserved at the City Palace in Jaipur. While his birth date is unknown, a document preserved at the Jaipur Archives dated the fourteenth day of the Bhadra month of Saṁvat 1850 describes his ceremony of condolence presided by King Pratap Singh of Jaipur. On the basis of this evidence, it is unrealistic to assume that he was born much before 1700 AD.
Krishna Dasa Kaviraja Goswami was the author of the Chaitanya Charitamrita, a hagiography on the life of the mystic and saint Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1533), who is considered by the Gaudiya Vaishnava school of Hinduism to be an incarnation of Radha and Krishna combined.
The Chaitanya Charitamrita is one of the primary biographies detailing the life and teachings of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1534), a Vaisnava saint and founder of the Gaudiya Vaishnava Sampradaya. It was written by Krishna Das Kaviraja, primarily in the Bengali language, but also including a great number of Sanskrit verses within its devotional, poetic construction, including Siksastakam. Intertwined with the stories of Caitanya Mahaprabhu's life are philosophical conversations detailing the process of Bhakti yoga, with special attention given to congregational chanting of Krishna's names and the Hare Krishna Maha Mantra.
Jagannātha Dāsa Bābājī (1776–1894) was an influential leader (guru) in the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism, and is respected as a Mahatma or saint by followers of his lineage. He accepted initiation (diksha) from Jagadananda Goswami of Vrindavan, and later accepted Babaji initiation from Madhusudana dasa Babaji. For the rest of his life, his example as a Gaudiya Vaishnava devotee was an inspiration to many in the community. Bhaktivinoda Thakur is quoted calling him "the commanding chief of the devotees".
Svami Sadananda Dasa (1908–1977) was born as Ernst-Georg Schulze in Germany. He met Swami Bhakti Hridaya Bon, a disciple of a Hindu spiritual reformer, named Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. Sadananda received diksa or formal initiation into the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition through Swami Bon from Bhaktisiddhanta and later received the name "Sadananda Dasa" by Bhaktisiddhanta directly after he had joined the Gaudiya Mission in Calcutta, India. He was one of the first known individuals who was not of Asian origin to embrace the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition.
The Chaitanya Bhagavata is a hagiography of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (b.1486), the Supreme Personality of Godhead Krishna incarnation in Kaliyuga, written by Vrindavana Dasa Thakura. It was the first full-length work regarding Chaitanya Mahaprabhu written in Bengali language and documents his early life and role as the founder of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition. The text details Chaitanya's theological position as a combined Avatar of both Radha and Krishna within the belief of his close associates and followers. The writing of Chaitanya Bhagavata was commissioned by Nityananda, who was the guru of Vrindavana Dasa Thakura and close friend of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
Vrindavana Dasa Thakura or Brindaban Das was the author of the Chaitanya Bhagavata, the first full-length biography of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu written in the Bengali language.
Bhakti Hridaya Bon, also known as Swami Bon was a disciple of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura and a guru in the Gaudiya Math following the philosophy of the Bhakti marg, specifically of Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Gaudiya Vaishnava theology. At the time of his death, he left behind thousands of Bengali disciples in India.
No See Also Rudra Sampradaya
Haridasa Thakur was a prominent Hindu Vaishnava saint known for being instrumental in the initial propagation of the Hare Krishna movement. He is considered to be the most famous convert of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, apart from Rupa Goswami and Sanatana Goswami. His story of integrity and unflinching faith in the face of extreme adversity is told in Chaitanya Charitamrita, Antya lila. Besides being an ex-Muslim, he is famous because of his dedication to the religious practice of constantly chanting the names of God. Haridasa Thakura and Advaita Acharya, two senior and well-respected religious personalities of Gaudiya Vaishnavism in the local area of Mayapur, prayed for the descent of the yugavatara, believed to be Chaitanya. As an associate of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, he is named the acharya, or guru, of the holy name. Due to his constant prayer and meditation on the names of God, he personified compassion, while being brutally beaten by Muslim aggressors he prayed incessantly that The Lord may forgive them. It is believed that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu himself designated Haridasa as nāmācarya, meaning the 'teacher of the Name'. Haridasa Thakura, was a devotee of God, Krishna, and had practiced chanting the names of the Lord, Hare Krishna, 300,000 times daily.
Vaiṣṇava Carana dāsa was a Vaishnava guru. A Vaidya by caste, his real name was Gokulananda Sen. His Sripata was located at Tena Vaidyapura about six miles from the Jhamatpura subdivision of Katwa. He compiled the Padakalpataru in 1718-1723 AD. He also wrote the preface for the Mahā-vandanā.
ISKCON guru is permitted to initiate disciples in the system that is being used in International Society for Krishna Consciousness; this ISKCON Guru System has undergone a considerable evolution and reform since its beginnings in the 1960s. Upanayana as a traditional "sacred thread ceremony" of the Gayatri Mantra, commonly known Hindu Samskara, is complemented by Pancaratric mantras of the Gaudiya Vaishnava sampradaya and follows the principal initial nama initiation ceremony, referred to respectively as brahmana diksa and Hari nama diksa.
Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji (1838–1915) is a well-known acharya from the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism, and is regarded as a Mahatma or saint by followers of his lineage. During his lifetime Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji became famous for his teachings on the process of Bhakti Yoga and for his unorthodox avadhuta like behaviour as a sadhu, or babaji in Vrindavan.
The Upadesamrta, or Nectar of Instruction, is an important Gaudiya Vaishnava spiritual text, composed by Rupa Goswami. The Upadesamrta was translated into English in its entirety by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Prabhupada also gives extensive commentaries on each translated verse within the Upadesamrita.
