Gita Govinda

The Gita Govinda (Sanskrit: गीतगोविन्दम्; IAST: gītagovindam) is a work composed by the 12th-century Hindu poet, Jayadeva. It describes the relationship between Krishna, Radha and gopis (female cow herders) of Vrindavan.

The Gita Govinda is organized into twelve chapters. Each chapter is further sub-divided into one or more divisions called prabandhas, totalling twenty-four in all. The prabandhas contain couplets grouped into eights, called ashtapadis. The text also elaborates the eight moods of Heroine, the Ashta Nayika, which has been an inspiration for many compositions and choreographic works in Indian classical dances. Every night in the Jagannatha temple, the Gitagovinda of Jayadeva is sung in the style of Odissi music, a tradition that has continued unbroken since the time of Jayadeva himself. Musicians of Kerala have adapted the ashtapadis into a musical form performed in temples called sopana sangeetham. Jayadeva's hymns are also included in the Guru Granth Sahib.