Appearing as the nephew of Sri Rupa and Sanatana Gosvamis, Sri Jiva Gosvami displayed all the charming features of a mahapurusa (divine person). He had lotus eyes, a high nose and forehead, broad chest, long arms, and a radiant golden body.
In his boyhood he made a deity of Krishna-Balarama. Expressing his pure devotion, he would often cry while worshiping Them. After offering clothes, chandana, flowers, ornaments, and tasty sweets to Krishna-Balarama, he would take some and give that maha-prasadam to his playmates. From the beginning Jiva showed his kindness to other jivas (living entities). Jiva was so much attached to Krishna-Balarama that at bedtime he would embrace his Deities and fall asleep. His parents thought he was only playing. But the villagers rejoiced to see Jiva’s love for Krishna-Balarama.
In school he quickly mastered Sanskrit grammar, poetry, logic, philosophy. Srimad-Bhagavatam gave life to his life. Krishna-katha filled him with happiness. No one dared to speak to him about anything but Krishna. He toured Navadvipa-dhama with Sri Nityananda Prabhu, studied Sanskrit in Benares, and then traveled to reside in Vrindavana. After humbly serving Sri Rupa Gosvami by washing his feet, preparing his manuscripts, and editing his books, he received diksa, initiation.
Once the aging Vaishnava Vallabhacharya gave critical advice to Sri Rupa Gosvami on his writing. Although much younger than the venerable Vallabha, Sri Jiva brazenly spoke in defense of his guru. Sri Rupa Gosvami scolded Sri Jiva telling him to leave Vrindavana. Living in an abandoned crocodile hole in Nanda Ghat (45 minutes from Sri Rupa’s bhajana kutir, Sri Jiva Gosvami began fasting. He subsisted on wheat flour, which he begged, mixed with Yamuna water. Seeing his strict self-denial, Sanatana Gosvami brought him back to the service of Sri Rupa Gosvami.
Srila Prabhupada once commented on this guru-disciple pastime: “Sri Rupa Gosvami cast out Jiva Gosvami to teach us, the devotees of today, a lesson. It was not done to teach or punish Sri Jiva Gosvami, who is a perfectly liberated, eternal associate of Lord Krishna. Rupa Gosvami sent Jiva Gosvami out of Vrindavana to teach all jivas what he wrote in Upadesamrta: vaco vegam man-sah krodah vegam, jihva vegam… At all times, a devotee should control his tongue, his speech, and always remain humble, trnad api sunicena.”
After the disappearance of Sri Rupa and Sri Sanatana Gosvamis, Sri Jiva Gosvami became the Gaudiya Sampradaya acharya to guide all Vaishnavas in Navadvipa, Vrindavana, and Jagannatha Puri. Although he was the undisputed leader, he always acted as a humble servant of all the jivas. Whenever Bengali Vaishnavas visited Vrindavana, he would lovingly receive them, arrange for prasadam and comfortable rooms, an even guide them on Vraja-mandala parikrama, tours of the sacred places.
A superexcellent Sanskrit scholar, Sri Jiva Gosvami would compose Sanskrit verses in his mind and write them down without changing anything. Write them down means he used a metal stylus to permanently etch them in palm leaves. This inscription method left no room for erasing, editing, rewriting, or running a spell-check. Yet, each verse was a priceless gem of perfect meter, rhythm, poetry, and meaning. He was the greatest philosopher in all of Indian history. Contemporary Sankritists call him the greatest scholar who ever lived.
Sri Jiva Gosvami was the youngest but most prolific writer among the Gosvamis. He wrote an astounding half million Sanskrit verses (about 25 books). His books prove that Sri Chaitanya’s philosophy gives the essence of Vedic wisdom and the perfection of religion. Gopala Campu, Sat Sandarbhas, and Had Nama-vyakarana are three of his most famous works. The Sandarbhas firmly establish the transcendental truths of Srimad-Bhagavatam. They also confirm that Lord Sri Krishna is the Supreme Absolute Truth (svayam bhagavan), the cause of everything, and the source of all avataras. Anyone who faithfully reads these books will become a devotee of Krishna.
The following quote comes from Sri Jiva Gosvami’s nectarean Gopala Campu, which describes the playful Vrindavana pastimes of Radha Damodara. “From Govardhana Hill a large form of Govardhana manifested. All the Vrajavasis along with Krishna Himself then offered obeisances to that towering form. As Sri Krishna stood by with folded hands, that great personality Govardhana bellowed, ‘I shall eat all your offerings.’ He ate and drank water by emptying all the kunds around the hill. While eating all the preparations made by the Vrajavasis with his right hand, he snapped the fingers on his left hand. The cowherd men ran out of the way when Govardhana stretched out His hands to take more and called out, Aniyor! Aniyor! Aniyor! ‘bring more, bring more, bring more.’”
At the request of Acharyarani Jahnava Devi Thakurani, Sri Jiva Gosvami had Srinivasa Acharya, Narottama Dasa Thakura, and Syamananda Prabhu take the Gosvami’s writings from Vrindavana to Bengal. They translated them into Bengali and distributed them throughout Bengal and Orissa. They also preached extensively and initiated hundreds of devotees. In 1542, Sri Jiva Gosvami established the worship Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara in Seva Kunja, Vrindavana. His samadhi stands in the temple compound. Sri Jiva Gosvami is Vilasa-manjari in Radha-Damodara’s nitya Vrndavana lila, the eternal pastimes of Goloka Vrindavana.
Reference:
https://www.stephen-knapp.com/jiva_gosvami.htm