Ecstatic (CC Madhya-lila 16 - 20)

Expressions researched:
"ecstatic" |"ecstatically" |"ecstaticized"

CC Madhya-lila

CC Madhya 16.14-15, Translation:

Although the Lord told Nityānanda Prabhu to stay in Bengal and spread ecstatic love of God, Nityānanda left to go see Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Who can understand Nityānanda Prabhu's ecstatic love?

CC Madhya 16.170, Translation:

The Muslim secretary came to see Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. When he offered his respects to the Lord's lotus feet and uttered the holy name of the Lord, "Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa," he also was overwhelmed with ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 16.179, Translation:

Upon seeing Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu from a distant place, the Muslim governor fell to the ground and offered obeisances. Tears came to his eyes, and he was jubilant with ecstatic emotions.

CC Madhya 16.200, Translation and Purport:

Finally Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu bade the governor farewell. The intense ecstatic love exhibited by the governor cannot be described.

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu bade farewell to the Muslim governor at Pichaldā. Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī herein states that the governor experienced symptoms of ecstatic love due to being separated from Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. These symptoms, he admits, cannot be described.

CC Madhya 16.224, Translation:

When Raghunātha dāsa went to see Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, he fell at the Lord's lotus feet in ecstatic love. Showing him mercy, the Lord touched him with His feet.

CC Madhya 16.227, Translation:

After bidding farewell to Raghunātha dāsa, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu returned to Jagannātha Purī. After returning home, Raghunātha dāsa became mad with ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 16.253, Translation:

All the devotees then came and met the Lord with great happiness. The Lord embraced each of them in great ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 16.279, Translation:

Being encouraged by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's words, Gadādhara Paṇḍita became absorbed in ecstatic love. Immediately clasping the lotus feet of the Lord, he began to speak with great humility.

CC Madhya 17 Summary:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu next passed through Prayāga and Mathurā and then took His lunch at the home of a Sānoḍiyā brāhmaṇa, a disciple of Mādhavendra Purī. He bestowed His blessings upon the brāhmaṇa by accepting lunch at his place. Thereafter the Lord visited the twelve forests of Vṛndāvana and was filled with great ecstatic love. As He toured the Vṛndāvana forests, He heard the chirping of parrots and other birds.

CC Madhya 17.1, Translation:

On His way to Vṛndāvana, Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu passed through the forest of Jhārikhaṇḍa and made all the tigers, elephants, deer and birds chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and dance. Thus all these animals were overwhelmed by ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 17.28, Translation:

One day a tiger was lying on the path, and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, walking along the path in ecstatic love, touched the tiger with His feet.

CC Madhya 17.47, Translation:

In all the villages through which the Lord passed and in all the places He rested on His journey, everyone was purified and awakened to ecstatic love of God.

CC Madhya 17.51, Translation and Purport:

Although Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu did not manifest His natural ecstatic love, everyone became a pure devotee simply by seeing and hearing Him.

Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has described Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu as mahā-vadānya-avatāra, the most munificent incarnation. Although Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is not physically present now, simply by chanting His holy name (śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda) people throughout the world are becoming devotees. This is due to the ecstatic chanting of the holy name of the Lord. It is said that a pure devotee can see the Lord at every moment, and because of this he is empowered by the Lord.

CC Madhya 17.54, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu gave even the Bheels an opportunity to chant the holy name and come to the platform of ecstatic love. Thus He delivered all of them. Who has the power to understand the transcendental pastimes of the Lord?

CC Madhya 17.56, Translation:

Similarly, whenever Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu saw a river, He immediately accepted it as the river Yamunā. Thus while in the forest He was filled with great ecstatic love, and He danced and fell down crying.

CC Madhya 17.81, Translation:

In this way Balabhadra Bhaṭṭācārya offered his prayers to the Lord. By rendering service unto Him in ecstatic love, he pacified the Lord's mind.

CC Madhya 17.101, Translation:

At Vārāṇasī there was a Maharashtriyan brāhmaṇa who used to come daily to see Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. This brāhmaṇa was simply astonished to see the Lord's personal beauty and ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa.

CC Madhya 17.116, Purport:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was considered bhāvuka (sentimental) because He was always seen in the bhāva stage. That is, He always exhibited ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa. However, foolish people considered Him sentimental. In the material world, so-called devotees sometimes exhibit emotional symptoms. Caitanya Mahāprabhu's ecstatic love cannot be compared to the imitative emotional exhibitions of pretenders. Such exhibitions do not continue for very long. They are temporary. We actually see that some emotional imitators exhibit certain symptoms, but immediately after their exhibition, they are attracted to smoking and other things. In the beginning, when Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī heard of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's activities, he considered them to be those of a pretender.

CC Madhya 17.144, Translation:

“I have come here to sell My emotional ecstatic sentiments in this city of Kāśī, but I cannot find any customers. If they are not sold, I must take them back home.

CC Madhya 17.148, Translation:

Feeling separation from the Lord, the three used to meet and glorify the holy qualities of the Lord. Thus they were absorbed in ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 17.149, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then went to Prayāga, where He bathed at the confluence of the Ganges and the Yamunā. He then visited the temple of Veṇī Mādhava and chanted and danced there in ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 17.151, Translation:

The Lord stayed at Prayāga for three days. He delivered the holy name of Kṛṣṇa and ecstatic love. Thus He delivered many people.

CC Madhya 17.152, Translation:

Wherever the Lord stopped to rest on the way to Mathurā, He delivered the holy name of Kṛṣṇa and ecstatic love of Kṛṣṇa. Thus He made the people dance.

CC Madhya 17.155, Translation:

When He approached Mathurā and saw the city, He immediately fell to the ground and offered obeisances with great ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 17.157, Translation:

When Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu chanted, danced and made loud vibrations, all the people were astonished to see His ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 17.158, Translation:

One brāhmaṇa fell at the lotus feet of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and then began to dance with Him in ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 17.159, Translation:

The two of them danced in ecstatic love and embraced each other. Raising their arms, they said, "Chant the holy names of Hari and Kṛṣṇa!"

CC Madhya 17.165, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, "You are an elderly brāhmaṇa, you are sincere, and you are advanced in spiritual life. Wherefrom have you gotten this transcendental opulence of ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa?"

CC Madhya 17.172, Translation:

“Upon seeing Your ecstatic love, I can just imagine that You must have some relationship with Mādhavendra Purī. This is my understanding.

CC Madhya 17.173, Translation:

"This kind of ecstatic love can be experienced only when one has a relationship with Mādhavendra Purī. Without him, even a scent of such transcendental ecstatic love is impossible."

CC Madhya 17.189, Translation:

When the people assembled, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu raised His arms and said very loudly, "Haribol!" The people responded to the Lord and became ecstatic. As if mad, they began to dance and to vibrate the transcendental sound "Hari!"

CC Madhya 17.193, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu visited the different forests, including Madhuvana, Tālavana, Kumudavana and Bahulāvana. Wherever He went, He took His bath with great ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 17.195, Translation:

Seeing the herds approach Him, the Lord was stunned with ecstatic love. The cows then began to lick His body out of great affection.

CC Madhya 17.203, Translation:

Seeing their affection, the Lord was moved by ecstatic love. He began to sport with them exactly as a friend sports with his friends. Thus He voluntarily came under the control of His friends.

CC Madhya 17.215, Translation:

Then the female parrot began to speak jokingly to the male parrot, and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was struck with wonderful ecstatic love to hear her speak.

CC Madhya 17.218, Translation:

When the Lord saw the bluish necks of the peacocks, His remembrance of Kṛṣṇa immediately awakened, and He fell to the ground in ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 17.223, Translation:

The mind of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu wandered in ecstatic love of Kṛṣṇa. He immediately stood up and said, "Chant! Chant!" Then He Himself began to dance.

CC Madhya 17.225, Translation:

The brāhmaṇa was astounded to see the symptoms of ecstatic love exhibited by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He then became anxious to give the Lord protection.

CC Madhya 17.226, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mind was absorbed in ecstatic love at Jagannātha Purī, but when He passed along the road on the way to Vṛndāvana, that love increased a hundred times.

CC Madhya 17.227, Translation:

The Lord's ecstatic love increased a thousand times when He visited Mathurā, but it increased a hundred thousand times when He wandered in the forests of Vṛndāvana.

CC Madhya 17.228-229, Translation:

When Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was elsewhere, the very name of Vṛndāvana was sufficient to increase His ecstatic love. Now, when He was actually traveling in the Vṛndāvana forest, His mind was absorbed in great ecstatic love day and night. He ate and bathed simply out of habit.

CC Madhya 17.230, Translation:

Thus I have written a description of the ecstatic love Lord Caitanya manifested in one of the places He visited while walking through the twelve forests of Vṛndāvana. To describe what He experienced everywhere would be impossible.

CC Madhya 17.231, Translation:

Lord Ananta writes millions of books elaborately describing the transformations of ecstatic love experienced by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu in Vṛndāvana.

CC Madhya 18 Summary:

When Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu took His bath at Akrūra-ghāṭa, He submerged Himself in the water for a long time. Balabhadra Bhaṭṭācārya decided to take Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu to Prayāga after visiting the holy place known as Soro-kṣetra. While stopping near a village on the way to Prayāga, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu fainted in ecstatic love. Some Pāṭhāna soldiers who were passing through saw Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and falsely concluded that the Lord's associates, Balabhadra Bhaṭṭācārya and others, had killed the Lord with a poison named dhuturā and were taking His wealth. Thus the soldiers arrested them. However, when Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu regained His senses, His associates were released. He talked with a person who was supposed to be a holy man in the party. From the Koran, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu established devotional service to Kṛṣṇa. Thus the leader of the soldiers, named Vijulī Khān, surrendered to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and he and his party became devotees of Lord Kṛṣṇa. The same village today is known as the village of Pāṭhāna Vaiṣṇavas. After bathing in the Ganges at Soro, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu arrived at Prayāga, at the confluence of three rivers-the Ganges, Yamunā and Sarasvatī.

CC Madhya 18.10, Translation:

“Indeed, Lord Kṛṣṇa gives ecstatic love like that of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī to whoever bathes in that lake even once in his life.

CC Madhya 18.13, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu thus offered prayers to Rādhā-kuṇḍa. Overwhelmed by ecstatic love, He danced on the bank, remembering the pastimes Lord Kṛṣṇa performed on the bank of Rādhā-kuṇḍa.

CC Madhya 18.17, Translation:

Mad with ecstatic love, the Lord came to the village known as Govardhana. There He saw the Deity named Harideva and offered His obeisances unto Him.

CC Madhya 18.19, Translation:

Mad with ecstatic love, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu began to dance before the Harideva Deity. Hearing of the Lord's wonderful activities, all the people came to see Him.

CC Madhya 18.20, Translation:

The people were astonished when they saw Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's ecstatic love and personal beauty. The priests who served the Harideva Deity offered the Lord a good reception.

CC Madhya 18.33, Translation:

Just by seeing Govardhana Hill, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu became ecstatic with love of Kṛṣṇa. While dancing and dancing, He recited the following verse.

CC Madhya 18.36, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then went to the village of Gāṅṭhuli-grāma and saw the Lord Gopāla Deity. Overwhelmed by ecstatic love, He began to chant and dance.

CC Madhya 18.37, Translation:

As soon as the Lord saw the beauty of the Gopāla Deity, He was immediately overwhelmed by ecstatic love, and He recited the following verse. He then chanted and danced until the day ended.

CC Madhya 18.42, Translation:

This is the way of Lord Gopāla's kind behavior to His devotees. Seeing this, the devotees were overwhelmed by ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 18.56, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's touring Vṛndāvana has been previously described. In the same ecstatic way, He traveled all over Vṛndāvana.

CC Madhya 18.57, Translation:

After visiting the places of Kṛṣṇa's pastimes at Kāmyavana, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu went to Nandīśvara. While there, He was overwhelmed with ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 18.62, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu offered His respects to Nanda Mahārāja and mother Yaśodā, and with great ecstatic love He touched the body of Lord Kṛṣṇa.

CC Madhya 18.63, Translation:

Every day the Lord chanted and danced in ecstatic love. Finally He went to Khadiravana.

CC Madhya 18.68, Translation:

Upon seeing the place where the twin arjuna trees had been broken by Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was moved to great ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 18.72, Translation:

After seeing the holy place called Praskandana, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu went to Dvādaśāditya. From there He went to Keśī-tīrtha, and when He saw the place where the rāsa dance had taken place, He immediately lost consciousness due to ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 18.84, Translation:

Upon seeing the Lord's personal beauty and ecstatic love, Kṛṣṇadāsa was very much astonished. Out of ecstatic love, he offered his respectful obeisances unto the Lord.

CC Madhya 18.88, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then bestowed upon Kṛṣṇadāsa His causeless mercy by embracing him. Kṛṣṇadāsa became mad with ecstatic love and began to dance and to chant the holy name of Hari.

CC Madhya 18.120, Translation:

“Indeed, Your characteristics are uncommon and beyond the imagination of an ordinary living being. Simply by seeing You, the entire universe becomes mad with ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa.

CC Madhya 18.123, Translation:

“Apart from seeing You, whoever listens to Your holy name is made mad with ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa and is able to deliver the three worlds.

CC Madhya 18.127, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then bestowed His causeless mercy upon all the people there, and everyone became ecstatic with love of God. Finally they all returned to their homes.

CC Madhya 18.128, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu remained for some days in Akrūra-tīrtha. He delivered everyone there simply by distributing the holy name of Kṛṣṇa and ecstatic love for the Lord.

CC Madhya 18.141, Translation:

“Now there is a crowd of people here, and these invitations are causing much disturbance. In addition, the Lord is always ecstatic and emotional. I do not find the situation here very good.

CC Madhya 18.155, Translation:

The next morning, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu got up early. After taking His bath, He became ecstatic with love, knowing that He now had to leave Vṛndāvana.

CC Madhya 18.156, Translation:

Although the Lord did not exhibit any external symptoms, His mind was filled with ecstatic love. At that time, Balabhadra Bhaṭṭācārya said, "Let us go to Mahāvana (Gokula)."

CC Madhya 18.161, Translation:

Suddenly a cowherd boy blew on his flute, and immediately the Lord was struck with ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 18.162, Translation:

Filled with ecstatic love, the Lord fell to the ground unconscious. He foamed about the mouth, and His breathing stopped.

CC Madhya 18.177, Translation:

Coming to His senses, the Lord very loudly began chanting the holy name, "Hari! Hari!" The Lord raised His arms upward and began to dance in ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 18.178, Translation:

When the Lord shouted very loudly in ecstatic love, it appeared to the Muslim soldiers that their hearts were struck by thunderbolts.

CC Madhya 18.206, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then told all the Muslims there, "Chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa! Chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa!" As they all began to chant, they were overwhelmed by ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 18.219, Translation:

Whoever got to see Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu would feel himself overwhelmed with ecstatic love and would begin to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra.

CC Madhya 19.40, Translation:

Prayāga is located at the confluence of two rivers—the Ganges and the Yamunā. Although these rivers were not able to flood Prayāga with water, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu inundated the whole area with waves of ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa.

CC Madhya 19.41, Translation:

Seeing the great crowd, the two brothers remained standing in a secluded place. They could see that Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was ecstatic to see Lord Bindu Mādhava.

CC Madhya 19.42, Translation:

The Lord was loudly chanting the holy name of Hari. Dancing in ecstatic love and raising His arms, He asked everyone to chant "Hari! Hari!"

CC Madhya 19.47, Translation:

Both brothers were overwhelmed with ecstatic emotion, and reciting various Sanskrit verses, they stood up and fell down again and again.

CC Madhya 19.63, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu felt great ecstatic love when they began discussing Kṛṣṇa, but the Lord checked His feelings because He felt shy before Vallabha Bhaṭṭa.

CC Madhya 19.64, Translation:

Although the Lord restrained Himself externally, ecstatic love raged within. There was no checking that. Vallabha Bhaṭṭa was astonished to detect this.

CC Madhya 19.73, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was very pleased to hear Vallabha Bhaṭṭa quoting from śāstra about the position of a devotee. The Lord praised him personally, and, feeling ecstatic love of Godhead, began to quote many verses from śāstra.

CC Madhya 19.76, Translation:

When he saw the Lord's ecstatic love, Vallabha Bhaṭṭācārya was certainly very much astonished. He was also astonished by the Lord's knowledge of the essence of devotional service, as well as by His personal beauty and influence.

CC Madhya 19.78, Translation:

While crossing the river Yamunā, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu saw the glossy black water and was immediately bewildered with ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 19.82, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu tried to restrain Himself as far as possible before Vallabhācārya, but although He tried to keep calm, His ecstatic love could not be checked.

CC Madhya 19.95, Translation:

When Raghupati Upādhyāya was requested to describe Kṛṣṇa, he began to recite some verses he had personally composed about Kṛṣṇa's pastimes. Hearing those verses, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was overwhelmed with ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 19.99, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu requested Raghupati Upādhyāya to continue speaking about the pastimes of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Thus the Lord was absorbed in ecstatic love, and His mind and body slackened.

CC Madhya 19.100, Translation:

When Raghupati Upādhyāya saw Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's ecstatic symptoms, he decided that the Lord was not a human being but Kṛṣṇa Himself.

CC Madhya 19.102, Purport:

Those who are filled with ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa always see the form of Śyāmasundara within their hearts. Raghupati Upādhyāya confirms that the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, has many incarnations—Nārāyaṇa, Nṛsiṁha, Varāha and others—but Kṛṣṇa is distinguished as the supermost. According to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.3.28), kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam: "Kṛṣṇa is the original Personality of Godhead." Kṛṣṇa means Śyāmasundara, who plays His flute in Vṛndāvana. Of all forms, this form is the best of all. Kṛṣṇa lives sometimes in Mathurā and sometimes in Dvārakā, but Mathurā is considered the better place. This is also confirmed by Rūpa Gosvāmī in his Upadeśāmṛta (9): vaikuṇṭhāj janito varā madhu-purī. "Madhu-purī, or Mathurā, is far superior to the Vaikuṇṭhalokas in the spiritual world."

CC Madhya 19.107, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then embraced Raghupati Upādhyāya in ecstatic love. Raghupati Upādhyāya also was overwhelmed by love, and he began to dance.

CC Madhya 19.111, Translation:

Vallabha Bhaṭṭa then decided not to keep Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu at Āḍāila because the Lord had jumped into the river Yamunā in ecstatic love. Therefore he decided to bring Him to Prayāga.

CC Madhya 19.120, Translation:

"From the very beginning, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī was deeply attracted by the transcendental qualities of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Thus he was permanently relieved from family life. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī and his younger brother, Vallabha, were blessed by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Although the Lord was transcendentally situated in His transcendental eternal form, at Prayāga He told Rūpa Gosvāmī about transcendental ecstatic love of Kṛṣṇa. The Lord then embraced him very fondly and bestowed all His mercy upon him."

CC Madhya 19.121, Translation:

“Indeed, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, whose dear friend was Svarūpa Dāmodara, was the exact replica of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and he was very, very dear to the Lord. Being the embodiment of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's ecstatic love, Rūpa Gosvāmī was naturally very beautiful. He very carefully followed the principles enunciated by the Lord, and he was a competent person to explain properly the pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu expanded His mercy to Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī just so he could render service by writing transcendental literatures.”

CC Madhya 19.154, Purport:

"I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord. He resides in His own realm, Goloka, with Rādhā, who resembles His own spiritual figure and who embodies the ecstatic potency (hlādinī). Their companions are Her confidantes, who embody extensions of Her bodily form and who are imbued and permeated with ever-blissful spiritual rasa." In the spiritual world, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, has expanded Himself by His spiritual potency. He has His eternal form of bliss and knowledge (sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha (Bs. 5.1)). Everything in the Goloka Vṛndāvana planet is a spiritual expansion of sac-cid-ānanda. Everyone there is of the same potency—ānanda-cinmaya-rasa. The relationship between the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His servitor is cinmaya-rasa.

CC Madhya 19.155, Purport:

In Goloka Vṛndāvana the devotees have very intimate relationships with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The devotee engages in the Lord's service in great ecstatic love. Such love was exhibited personally by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu in His teachings to the people of the material world. The fruit of the devotional creeper is the pure desire to serve and please the senses of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Kṛṣṇendriya-prīti-icchā dhare "prema" nāma. (Cc. Ādi. 4.165) In the spiritual world one has no desire other than to please the senses of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The conditioned soul within the material world can neither understand nor appreciate how a pure devotee in the material world can render confidential service to the Lord out of feelings of ecstatic love and always engage in pleasing the Supreme Lord's senses. Although seen within this material world, the pure devotee always engages in the confidential service of the Lord. An ordinary neophyte devotee cannot realize this; therefore it is said, vaiṣṇavera kriyā-mudrā vijñeha nā bujhaya (CC Madhya 23.39). The activities of a pure Vaiṣṇava cannot be understood even by a learned scholar in the material world.

CC Madhya 19.155, Purport:

The bhakti-latā continues to grow until it reaches the topmost planetary system, Goloka Vṛndāvana, where Kṛṣṇa lives. There the creeper takes shelter at the lotus feet of the Lord, and that is its final destination. At that time the creeper begins to grow the fruits of ecstatic love of God. It is the duty of the devotee who nourishes the creeper to be very careful. It is said that the watering of the creeper must continue: ihāṅ mālī sece nitya śravaṇādi jala. It is not that at a certain stage one can stop chanting and hearing and become a mature devotee. If one stops, one certainly falls down from devotional service. Although one may be very much exalted in devotional service, he should not give up the watering process of śravaṇa-kīrtana. If one gives up that process, it is due to an offense. This is described in the following verse.

CC Madhya 19.177, Purport:

This can be divided into many different parts, including faith, association with devotees, initiation by the spiritual master, engagement in devotional service under the instructions of a spiritual master, steadiness in devotional service and the awakening of a taste for devotional service. In this way, one can become attached to Kṛṣṇa and His service, and when this attachment is intensified, it results in ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa. The word rati is explained in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (1.3.41) as follows:

vyaktaṁ masṛṇatevāntar-lakṣyate rati-lakṣaṇam

mumukṣu-prabhṛtīnāṁ ced bhaved eṣā ratir na hi

"When a tenderness of the heart is manifested, there is rati, or attachment. But those who are interested in being liberated from material bondage will not manifest this tenderness." This attachment is not like material attachment. When one is free of material contamination, attachment for Kṛṣṇa's service awakens and is called rati. In the material world there is attachment for material enjoyment, but this is not rati. Transcendental rati can be awakened only on the spiritual platform. Ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa (prema)

CC Madhya 19.181, Translation:

“When the higher standard of ecstatic love is mixed with the symptoms of sāttvika and vyabhicārī, the devotee relishes the transcendental bliss of loving Kṛṣṇa in a variety of nectarean tastes.

CC Madhya 19.185, Purport:

When śānta-rati (neutral attraction) exists continuously and is mixed with ecstatic emotion, and when the devotee relishes that neutral position, it is called śānta-bhakti-rasa. Śānta-bhakti-rasa devotees generally relish the impersonal feature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Since their taste of transcendental bliss is incomplete, it is called aghana, or not concentrated. A comparison is made between ordinary milk and concentrated milk. When the same devotee goes beyond the impersonal and tastes the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His original form as sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha (Bs. 5.1) (His transcendental, blissful body, complete in knowledge and eternity), the taste is called concentrated (ghana) transcendental bliss. Sometimes the devotees in śānta-rasa relish transcendental bliss after meeting the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but this is not comparable to the transcendental bliss relished by the devotees situated in dāsya-rasa, the transcendental mellow in which one renders service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

CC Madhya 19.185, Purport:

“According to one's original consciousness, ecstatic emotions may be exhibited as continuously existing in fraternity. When this stage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is mature, it is called preyo-rasa or sakhya-bhakti-rasa.”

CC Madhya 20.51, Translation:

As soon as Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu saw Sanātana Gosvāmī in the courtyard, He immediately went up to him with great haste. After embracing him, the Lord was overwhelmed with ecstatic love.

CC Madhya 20.52, Translation:

As soon as Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu touched Sanātana Gosvāmī, Sanātana was also overwhelmed with ecstatic love. In a faltering voice, he said, "O my Lord, do not touch me."

CC Madhya 20.341, Translation:

“Lord Kṛṣṇa, the son of Nanda Mahārāja, personally introduces the occupational duty of the Age of Kali. He personally chants and dances in ecstatic love, and thus the entire world chants congregationally.