---
type: Reference
title: "Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (Rūpa Gosvāmī)"
description: "Rūpa Gosvāmī's systematic theology of bhakti-rasa; defines uttamā bhakti and maps the five primary rasas."
darshana:
  - Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava
tags:
  - primary-source
  - bhakti
  - rasa
timestamp: "2026-06-25"
okf_version: "0.2"
license: "CC BY-SA 4.0"
---

# Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (Rūpa Gosvāmī)

## What It Is

Rūpa Gosvāmī's sixteenth-century systematic treatise that gives bhakti a complete aesthetic-theological architecture. It defines the highest devotion (*uttamā bhakti*) as the cultivation of favorable service to Kṛṣṇa, free of ulterior desire and uncovered by jñāna or karma (1.1.11). It charts the progression śraddhā -> sādhana -> bhāva -> prema and the five primary devotional moods (rasas): śānta, dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya, mādhurya.

## Why It Matters Here

The grounding text for `bhava`, `prema`, the rasa taxonomy, and the sādhana-to-prema progression. Cited where the Gauḍīya formalization of devotional emotion is needed.
