Combining Knowledge and Devotion

Gopal Bhatta accepted his uncle, Prabodhananda Saraswati, as his spiritual master. From him, Gopal Bhatta learned

1. Poetry,


2. Rhetoric,


3. Sanskrit grammar, and


4. Vedanta.

Remembrance of Shri Chaitanya, however, was the central driving force in his life, and he was thus able to defeat all opposing views to the theistic conclusions of the Gaudiya Vaishnavas. The Bhakti-ratnakara describes that with the combined assets he acquired from Prabodhananda Saraswati’s vast learning and the inspirational memory of Shri Chaitanya’s example and instructions, Gopal Bhatta became wellknown for his advanced knowledge and devotion.