Verse 8

July 27:

Verse 8: Siksastakam

July 26:

Verse 7: Feelings of love in separation, to Krishna

July 25: Caitanya Mahaprabhu is going through feelings of separation. The whole world is becoming void, when someone close passes away. Here the same thing you apply to Krishna. By that way if you are feeling with Krishna... means you can't tolerate the feelings of separation from Krishna. Imaging the height of separation Caitanya Mahaprabhu is feeling from Krishna.

Example: Lover and loved. Still it is a material example. When one goes away, the separation is there but it lasts only for a few days in the material world.
But separation from Krishna, in the spiritual world it is the height of joy in separation.

Everyone is suggesting to Sachimata that Caitanya Mahaprabhu has gone mad. But Advaita Acharya tells that His madness is divine madness, and is praying as to when will I achieve this madness.

This is Gopi's love. It is our parampara, if we chant nicely, we automatically please Guru and Krishna and we attain devotion and love to Krishna. But we do not artificially try to manifest the symptoms exhibited by Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Verse 6: Ecstatic symptoms of Bhava

July 24: Verse 6 - As we start chanting Hare Krishna Mahamantra, serving devotees, serving Guru and Krishna, then after anartha nivrutti, we come to nishta, then we enter the stage of bhava. These are all the symptoms of ecstasy. This verse tells about this bhava stage.

We should not artificially show this, but CM is explaining as to when will the day come when I am completely Krishna Conscious and feel separation from you.
Pastime: Mahaprabhu directly going into Ganga, shouting Krishna Krishna. CM says: I don't have any love for Krishna. It is a fact that I am living means I don't have any love for Krishna.

This was Mahaprabhu's ecstasies. Devotees then did not know what to do. That is a stage of bhava. But we are all very very conditioned. We should not imitate.

Srila Rupa Goswami is saying, when we do bhajana kriya, we should not do mechanically. The days are running by. We should do it sincerely from our side we should chant properly, do your sadhana and follow spiritual master's instruction, it is Krishna who will take care of everything, He will reveal everything then. That too very soon, as soon as we deserve.

That's why our chanting should be with feeling!

Verse 5: Urgency, Intense Greed for Devotional Service

July 23: Explanation of Verse 5
....
This cycle of birth and death is so difficult for anyone to cross. But if we take shelter of Krishna, then it is possible. But what do we need for that. We need to log on to the mercy, by holding on to the feet to Guru and Krishna. We need to be connected to the flowing mercy.

Here one quality to be noticed:
Krpaya tava pada pankaja...
What is the quality that is required to attain this mercy... that is Loulyam, intense greed (Bhagavatam explains).

Somehow I have fallen into this cycle of birth and death, the truth is that I am into this material existence, somehow please pick me up from this ocean of birth and death.

To attain this state, accept the favorable things for Devotional Service and reject those that are unfavorable. Our chanting should be intense for this. The urgency should be shown in our chanting. If we are making progress, that depends on the urgency.

Please chant in the helpless mood.
But we need to understand that this world is designed to frustrate everyone. So whatever state we are in, our chanting should be done with this urgency.

Verse 4: 3 Impediments for the Sadhaka

July 22: After giving the solution in verse 3, Mahaprabhu is describing further.
1st verse: thesis (all the 6 qualities that will take place when we chant are given)
2nd verse: anti-thesis (problem describing ineffective chanting of conditioned souls)
3rd verse: solution ( being humbler than a blade of grass, more tolerant than a tree, give respect to all, expect no respect)
If we chant with enthusiasm, some taste comes, then purification happens. Then what...

4th verse: What are the other problems that might occur... money, opposite sex, adoration or prestige
Even if we chant being humble, these 3 impediments can cause trouble. We are chanting Hare Krishna Mahamantra, somebody might give us money, some might like to follow us, some may be attracted... but if we do not reject it, then it is very tough.
Of all the three, prestige is very dangerous.

We should never compare ourselves with anybody, should be grateful to Krishna for whatever He gave us. We should aim only for Krishna Prema, Love of God.

These are the 3 impediments for the sadhaka. Especially false prestige is hard to beat and we become miserable. That is the conditioned mind. If we want to make progress, we have to fight with this conditioned mind. Thats why we should chant sincerely and pray to Krishna to protect us from the onslaught of Maya.

Srila Prabhupada: If you don't chant attentively, then we will become victims to Maya.

Verse 3 of Siksastakam, Solution

July 21: 3rd Verse
Actually 1st sloka has all the wonderful benefits that chanting offers. Krishna is non-different from His holy name, still Caitanya Mahaprabhu is expressing that I don't have a taste for the holy name. Here Caitanya Mahaprabhu is taking the place of a conditioned soul.
So how to develop this taste?
Solution: Humbler than a blade of Grass, more tolerant than a tree, not expecting respect and giving all respect to others.

Every conditioned soul in this world, is a controller. In order to get rid of this mentality, and get a mood of servant of servant of servant of Krishna, that is only through chanting.

Chanting means begging for service. Because only through service our heart changes. In a very humble way, we should chant.

Srila Prabhupada, Srila Bhaktisiddanta Saraswati Thakur (SBSST) and sannyasi's in our movement applied in their life this principle.

SBSST said that our siddhapranali mantra is: Trnad api...sadha hari!
If we string this to the garland of holy name, then we will attain the perfection of our life.