Govindswami

(late 16th c.) One of the poets of the ashtachap, a group of eight northern Indian
bhakti (devotional) poets. The compositions of these eight poets are used for
liturgical purposes by the Pushti Marg, a
religious community whose members
are devotees (bhakta) of Krishna. The
Pushti Marg named all eight poets as
members of the community and associates of either the community’s founder,
Vallabhacharya, or his successor
Vitthalnath. Govindswami is believed to
have been an associate of Vitthalnath. In
his poetry, Govindswami writes from the
perspective of a companion (sakhi) to
Krishna’s consort Radha, and in this
voice not only gives a picture of the
divine activities, but also an extremely
detailed picture of everyday village life.