Gopi is a word of Sanskrit

Sanskrit

Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...

 (गोपी) origin meaning 'cow-herd girl'. In Hinduism

Hinduism

Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...

 specifically the name gopi (sometimes gopika) is used more commonly to refer to the group of cow herding

Herding

Herding is the act of bringing individual animals together into a group , maintaining the group and moving the group from place to place—or any combination of those. While the layperson uses the term "herding", most individuals involved in the process term it mustering, "working stock" or...

 girls famous within Vaishnava Theology for their unconditional devotion (Bhakti

Bhakti

In Hinduism Bhakti is religious devotion in the form of active involvement of a devotee in worship of the divine.Within monotheistic Hinduism, it is the love felt by the worshipper towards the personal God, a concept expressed in Hindu theology as Svayam Bhagavan.Bhakti can be used of either...

) to Krishna

Krishna

Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...

 as described in the stories of Bhagavata Purana

Bhagavata purana

The Bhāgavata Purāṇa is one of the "Maha" Puranic texts of Hindu literature, with its primary focus on bhakti to the incarnations of Vishnu, particularly Krishna...

 and other Puranic

Puranas

The Puranas are a genre of important Hindu, Jain and Buddhist religious texts, notably consisting of narratives of the history of the universe from creation to destruction, genealogies of kings, heroes, sages, and demigods, and descriptions of Hindu cosmology, philosophy, and geography.Puranas...

 literatures. Of this group, one gopi known as Radha

Radha

Radha , also called Radhika, Radharani and Radhikarani, is the childhood friend and lover of Krishna in the Bhagavata Purana, and the Gita Govinda of the Vaisnava traditions of Hinduism...

 (or Radhika) holds a place of particularly high reverence and importance in a number of religious traditions, especially within Gaudiya Vaishnavism

Gaudiya Vaishnavism

Gaudiya Vaishnavism is a Vaishnava religious movement founded by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in India in the 16th century. "Gaudiya" refers to the Gauḍa region with Vaishnavism meaning "the worship of Vishnu"...

.

Prominent Gopis

The gopis of Vrindavan total one hundred and eight in number, they are generally divided into three groups: Gopi friends

Friendship

Friendship is a form of interpersonal relationship generally considered to be closer than association, although there is a range of degrees of intimacy in both friendships and associations. Friendship and association are often thought of as spanning across the same continuum...

 of the same age as Krishna; maidservants; and gopi messenger

Courier

A courier is a person or a company who delivers messages, packages, and mail. Couriers are distinguished from ordinary mail services by features such as speed, security, tracking, signature, specialization and individualization of express services, and swift delivery times, which are optional for...

s. The first group are the most exalted, Krishna's contemporary gopi friends, the second group are the maidservants and are the next most exalted, and the gopi messengers come after them. The primary eight gopis are considered the foremost of Krishna's devotees after Srimati Radharani. Their names are as follows :

• Lalita (gopi)
  Lalita (gopi)
  Lalita the name of one of the principal gopis within traditional Gaudiya Vaishnava worship of Radha and Krishna.-Among the gopis:Within Vaishnava theology and Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition, Lalita is included amongst the eight principle gopis, known as 'sakhis' or friends of Srimati Radharani, Lord...
  
   Sakhi
• Vishakha Sakhi
• Campakalata Sakhi
• Citra Sakhi
• Tungavidya Sakhi
• Indulekha
  Indulekha
  Indulekha is a Malayalam novel about a beautiful, well educated lady of a Nair tharavadu by Chandu Menon-Title:Indulekha, refers to the main character in this novel, a beautiful, well educated Nair lady of 18 years.-Background:...
  
   Sakhi
• Rangadevi Sakhi
• Sudevi Sakhi

Unconditional love

According to Hindu Vaishnava theology the stories concerning the gopis are said to exemplify Suddha-bhakti which is described as 'the highest form of unconditional love for God' (Krishna). Their spontaneous and unwavering devotion is described in depth in the later chapters of the Bhagavata Purana, within Krishna's Vrindavan

Vrindavan

Vrindavan also known as Vraj is a town in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India...

 pastimes and also in the stories of the sage Uddhava

Uddhava

Uddhava is a character from the Puranic texts of Hinduism, who is the friend and counsellor of Krishna the Avatar. He plays a significant role in the Bhagavata Purana, being taught the processes of yoga and bhakti directly by Krishna...

.

Other meanings of Gopi

• Gopi is a popular India
  India
  India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
  
  n given name
  Given name
  A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
  
  .
• Gopi
  Bharath Gopi
  V. Gopinathan Nair, popularly known as Bharath Gopi was an Indian film actor, producer, and director. He was one of the first actors to be associated with the New Wave cinema movement in Kerala....
  
  is a popular Malayali
  Malayali
  Malayali is the term used to refer to the native speakers of Malayalam, originating from the Indian state of Kerala...
  
   India
  India
  India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
  
  n actor, director, and producer.

See also

• Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
  Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
  Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was a Vaishnava saint and social reformer in eastern India in the 16th century, believed by followers of Gaudiya Vaishnavism to be the full incarnation of Lord Krishna...
  
  
• Gita Govinda
  Gita Govinda
  The Gita Govinda is a work composed by the 12th-century poet, Jayadeva, who was born in Kenduli Sasan near Puri in Orissa. It describes the relationship between Krishna and the gopis of Vrindavana, and in particular one gopi named Radha...
  
  
• Six Goswamis
• Holy Basil
  Tulsi
  Ocimum tenuiflorum Ocimum tenuiflorum Ocimum tenuiflorum (also tulsi, tulasī, or Holy Basil is an aromatic plant in the family Lamiaceae which is native throughout the Old World tropics and widespread as a cultivated plant and an escaped weed. It is an erect, much branched subshrub 30–60 cm...
  
   (Tulsi)
• Maenads

External links

• The Residents of Eternal Vrindavana (including Srimati Radharani & the Gopis)
• The Eight Main Gopis (Asta Sakhis)
• Deity Gallery: Radha-Madhava & the Eight Gopis
• Diagram of the Yoga Pitha in Vrindavana
• Srimati Radharani and other Personalities