When Shri Govinddas ji recited the Bhaktamal, every syllable fell from his lips with perfect uchcharan. Short vowel or long, rising svara or falling, not a single sound was misplaced. Listeners sat spellbound, as though the santas themselves had walked into the room.
He was a man of exceedingly beautiful shila, devoted heart and soul to the lila of Shri Ghanshyam Sundar ji, and an ocean of noble intellect. He bore deep anuraga for many bhaktas and knew their true charitra so vividly that when he spoke of them, they came alive.
He held constant vishvasa in the Bhagavan who pervades the entire vishva. And when describing the santas, he would unfold at length whatever qualities and bhavas had become manifest in them, so that every listener could taste the sweetness.
Seeing all these shubha gunas, Shri Narayandas ji, that is Shri 108 Nabha Swami ji, recognized Govinddas ji as one who serves the welfare of all beings in the jagat. Regarding him as equal to himself, Nabha ji personally bestowed upon him the Bhaktaratnamala, that priceless garland of gems in the form of bhakta names, fame, and virtues. He taught him the entire Bhaktamal complete with its meanings and narratives. And Shri Govinddas ji committed every word to memory, then recited it all in a voice so sweet it melted the hridaya.
The Carrier of the Teaching
Not every devotee leaves behind miracles or public renunciations. Some carry. Shri Govinddas Ji devoted his entire life to holding the Bhaktamal in his body, his breath, and his memory. He memorized the full garland of bhakta names and stories, and then gave it back to others with such sweetness and precision that the teaching remained alive across generations. The tradition calls this kanthasth: held in the throat, flowing naturally, without effort or hesitation. There is a form of bhakti in this that is easily overlooked. The person who carries a sacred teaching faithfully, who refuses to let it become distorted or flat, offers a gift as durable as any miracle. Miracles arrive in a moment and pass. A voice that loves what it speaks can keep a teaching breathing for centuries.
Bhaktamal, Chhappay 192, Tilak of Shri Govinddas Ji
Shila: The Character That Practice Builds
The tilak describes Shri Govinddas Ji as rachir shilghanneel: a person of exceedingly beautiful shila, dense like a dark monsoon cloud. Shila is not merely good behavior. It is the natural form that a person grows into through years of sat-sanga, sincere practice, and proximity to truth. A stone tumbled long enough by a river becomes smooth and clear. In the same way, a devotee shaped over time by genuine bhakti develops a character that no longer has to try to be good. Goodness becomes their natural movement. The teaching here is patient: shila is not performed, it is grown. Every hour spent in honest practice, every moment of choosing company that points toward Bhagavan, every small act of integrity in recitation or study, adds to the density of that beautiful inner cloud.
Bhaktamal, Chhappay 192, Tilak of Shri Govinddas Ji
Ruchi: Devotion as Appetite, Not Duty
Govinddas Ji is described as having ruchi in the lila of Shri Ghanshyam Sundar Ji. Ruchi means taste, relish, appetite. It is not obligation or discipline. A person with ruchi for the divine lila cannot help returning to it again and again, the way a person with real hunger reaches for food naturally, without being told. This is the inner sign of a devotion that has taken root. You do not need to remind yourself. The Lord's stories, the names of the bhaktas, the flavor of satsang: these things become genuinely sweet to you, and you seek them the way you seek anything you truly love. If that sweetness feels distant in your own practice, it is not a sign of failure. It is a sign that more proximity is needed: more listening, more company of those who carry ruchi within them.
Bhaktamal, Chhappay 192, Tilak of Shri Govinddas Ji
The Teacher Who Became Equal
Shri Nabhaji, the author of the Bhaktamal and a realized saint of the Ramanandi Sampradaya, saw in Govinddas Ji a soul he considered saman: equal to himself in the work of serving the world. He gave him the Bhaktaratnamala with its full artha and akhyayikas, the text and its living meanings. In a tradition where the relationship between guru and shishya is deeply asymmetrical, this was a recognition of the highest order. What called it forth was not a single dramatic event but the accumulation of qualities the tilak names carefully: beautiful character, love for the bhaktas, true knowledge of their lives, pure recitation, broad intellect, trust in Bhagavan's presence everywhere. The teacher recognized the student not by a test but by the fragrance of everything the student had quietly become.
Bhaktamal, Chhappay 192, Tilak and Mool commentary of Shri Govinddas Ji
Knowing the Saints by Loving Them
Govinddas Ji had anuraga, deep attachment and love, for many bhaktas across the full breadth of the Bhaktamal. The tilak says he knew their charitra yathartha spasht: truly, clearly, authentically. This is a teaching about how spiritual knowledge actually arrives. You do not come to really know a saint by analyzing them from a distance. You come to know them by loving them. The heart that loves moves close. It attends to particulars. It notices the specific flavor of someone's inner life, the precise nature of their yearning, the texture of their devotion. Govinddas Ji could unfold the parichay of each bhakta in depth because his love had made him an intimate and generous witness. To know the saints, begin by loving them. The knowledge will follow.
Bhaktamal, Chhappay 192, Tilak of Shri Govinddas Ji
Hindi text from OCR scan (Khemraj Shrikrishnadas Prakashan, CC0). May contain errors.