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Shikshashtakam

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Shikshashtakam

The Shikshashtakam (IAST: Śikṣāṣṭakam) is a 16th-century Gaudiya Vaishnava Hindu prayer of eight verses composed in the Sanskrit language. They are believed to be the only verses left personally written by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486 – 1534) with the majority of his philosophy being codified by his primary disciples, known as the Six Goswamis of Vrindavan. The Shikshashtakam is quoted within the Chaitanya Charitamrita, Krishnadasa Kaviraja Goswami's biography of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, written in Bengali. The name of the prayer comes from the Sanskrit words Śikṣā, meaning 'instruction', and aṣhṭaka, meaning 'consisting of eight parts', i.e., stanzas. The teachings contained within the eight verses are believed to contain the essence of all teachings on Bhakti yoga within the Gaudiya tradition.

Contents

Text

The first eight verses of the following are the complete text of the Shikshashtakam, as written in Sanskrit by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and as translated by Srila Prabhupada. They are found in Krishnadasa Kaviraja's Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita (Antya-līlā, сhapter 20, verses 12, 16, 21, 29, 32, 36, 39 and 47). The final verse is a Bengali quotation from Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita, Antya-līlā 20.65 - it is not part of the actual Shikshashtakam, but is often appended to the end when it is recited, describing the result of reciting the Shikshashtakam faithfully.

Verse 1

ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇaḿ

śreyaḥ-kairava-candrikā-vitaraṇaḿ vidyā-vadhū-jīvanam

ānandāmbudhi-vardhanaḿ prati-padaḿ pūrṇāmṛtāsvādanaḿ

sarvātma-snapanaḿ paraḿ vijayate śrī-kṛṣṇa-sańkīrtanam

Synonyms

cetaḥ — of the heart; darpaṇa — the mirror; mārjanam — cleansing; bhava — of material existence; mahā-dāva-agni — the blazing forest fire; nirvāpaṇam — extinguishing; śreyaḥ — of good fortune; kairava — the white lotus; candrikā — the moonshine; vitaraṇam — spreading; vidyā — of all education; vadhū — wife; jīvanam — the life; ānanda — of bliss; ambudhi — the ocean; vardhanam — increasing; prati-padam — at every step; pūrṇa-amṛta — of the full nectar; āsvādanam — giving a taste; sarva — for everyone; ātma-snapanam — bathing of the self; param — transcendental; vijayate — let there be victory; śrī-kṛṣṇa-sańkīrtanam — for the congregational chanting of the holy name of Kṛṣṇa.

Translation

Glory to the Sri Krishna sankirtana, which cleanses the heart of all the dust accumulated for years and extinguishes the fire of conditional life, of repeated birth and death. This sankirtana movement is the prime benediction for humanity at large because it spreads the rays of the benediction moon. It is the life of all transcendental knowledge. It increases the ocean of transcendental bliss, and it enables us to fully taste the nectar for which we are always anxious.

Verse 2

nāmnām akāri bahudhā nija-sarva-śaktis

tatrārpitā niyamitaḥ smaraṇe na kālaḥ

etādṛśī tava kṛpā bhagavan mamāpi

durdaivam īdṛśam ihājani nānurāgaḥ

Synonyms

nāmnām — of the holy names of the Lord; akāri — manifested; bahudhā — various kinds; nija-sarva-śaktiḥ — all kinds of personal potencies; tatra — in that; arpitā — bestowed; niyamitaḥ — restricted; smaraṇe — in remembering; na — not; kālaḥ — consideration of time; etādṛśī — so much; tava — Your; kṛpā — mercy; bhagavan — O Lord; mama — My; api — although; durdaivam — misfortune; īdṛśam — such; iha — in this (the holy name); ajani — was born; na — not; anurāgaḥ — attachment.

Translation

O my Lord, Your holy name alone can render all benediction to living beings, and thus You have hundreds and millions of names like Krishna and Govinda. In these transcendental names You have invested all Your transcendental energies. There are not even hard and fast rules for chanting these names. O my Lord, out of kindness You enable us to easily approach You by chanting Your holy names, but I am so unfortunate that I have no attraction for them.

Verse 3

tṛṇād api sunīcena

taror api sahiṣṇunā

amāninā mānadena

kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ

Synonyms

tṛṇāt api — than downtrodden grass; su-nīcena — being lower; taroḥ — than a tree; iva — like; sahiṣṇunā — with tolerance; amāninā — without being puffed up by false pride; māna-dena — giving respect to all; kīrtanīyaḥ — to be chanted; sadā — always; hariḥ — the holy name of the Lord.

Translation

One should chant the holy name of the Lord in a humble state of mind, thinking oneself lower than the straw in the street; one should be more tolerant than a tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige, and ready to offer all respect to others. In such a state of mind one can chant the holy name of the Lord constantly.

Verse 4

na dhanaḿ na janaḿ na sundarīḿ

kavitāḿ vā jagad-īśa kāmaye

mama janmani janmanīśvare

bhavatād bhaktir ahaitukī tvayi

Synonyms

na — not; dhanam — riches; na — not; janam — followers; na — not; sundarīm — a very beautiful woman; kavitām — fruitive activities described in flowery language; vā — or; jagat-īśa — O Lord of the universe; kāmaye — I desire; mama — My; janmani — in birth; janmani — after birth; īśvare — unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead; bhavatāt — let there be; bhaktiḥ — devotional service; ahaitukī — with no motives; tvayi — unto You.

Translation

O almighty Lord, I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor do I desire beautiful women, nor do I want any number of followers. I only want Your causeless devotional service birth after birth.

Verse 5

ayi nanda-tanūja kińkaraḿ

patitaḿ māḿ viṣame bhavāmbudhau

kṛpayā tava pāda-pańkaja-

sthita-dhūlī-sadṛśaḿ vicintaya

Synonyms

ayi — O My Lord; nanda-tanuja — the son of Nanda Mahārāja, Kṛṣṇa; kińkaram — the servant; patitam — fallen; mām — Me; viṣame — horrible; bhava-ambudhau — in the ocean of nescience; kṛpayā — by causeless mercy; tava — Your; pāda-pańkaja — lotus feet; sthita — situated at; dhūlī-sadṛśam — like a particle of dust; vicintaya — kindly consider.

Translation

O son of Maharaja Nanda (Krishna), I am Your eternal servitor, yet somehow or other I have fallen into the ocean of birth and death. Please pick me up from this ocean of death and place me as one of the atoms of Your lotus feet.

Verse 6

nayanaḿ galad-aśru-dhārayā

vadanaḿ gadgada-ruddhayā girā

pulakair nicitaḿ vapuḥ kadā

tava nāma-grahaṇe bhaviṣyati

Synonyms

nayanam — the eyes; galat-aśru-dhārayā — by streams of tears running down; vadanam — mouth; gadgada — faltering; ruddhayā — choked up; girā — with words; pulakaiḥ — with erection of the hairs due to transcendental happiness; nicitam — covered; vapuḥ — the body; kadā — when; tava — Your; nāma-grahaṇe — in chanting the name; bhaviṣyati — will be.

Translation

O my Lord, when will my eyes be decorated with tears of love flowing constantly when I chant Your holy name? When will my voice choke up, and when will the hairs on my body stand on end at the recitation of Your name?

Verse 7

yugāyitaḿ nimeṣeṇa

cakṣuṣā prāvṛṣāyitam

śūnyāyitaḿ jagat sarvaḿ

govinda-viraheṇa me

Synonyms

yugāyitam — appearing like a great millennium; nimeṣeṇa — by a moment; cakṣuṣā — from the eyes; prāvṛṣāyitam — tears falling like torrents of rain; śūnyāyitam — appearing void; jagat — the world; sarvam — all; govinda — from Lord Govinda, Kṛṣṇa; viraheṇa me — by My separation.

Translation

O Govinda! Feeling Your separation, I am considering a moment to be like twelve years or more. Tears are flowing from my eyes like torrents of rain, and I am feeling all vacant in the world in Your absence.

Verse 8

āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāḿ pinaṣṭu mām

adarśanān marma-hatāḿ karotu vā

yathā tathā vā vidadhātu lampaṭo

mat-prāṇa-nāthas tu sa eva nāparaḥ

Synonyms

āśliṣya — embracing with great pleasure; vā — or; pāda-ratām — who have fallen at the lotus feet; pinaṣṭu — let Him trample; mām — Me; adarśanāt — by not being visible; marma-hatām — brokenhearted; karotu — let Him make; vā — or; yathā — as (He likes); tathā — so; vā — or; vidadhātu — let Him do; lampaṭaḥ — a debauchee, who mixes with other women; mat-prāṇa-nāthaḥ — the Lord of My life; tu — but; saḥ — He; eva — only; na aparaḥ — not anyone else.

Translation

I know no one but Krishna as my Lord, and He shall remain so even if He handles me roughly in His embrace or makes me brokenhearted by not being present before me. He is completely free to do anything and everything, for He is always my worshipful Lord unconditionally.

Extra verse 9

prabhura ‘śikṣāṣṭaka’-śloka yei paḍe, śune

kṛṣṇe prema-bhakti tāra bāḍe dine-dine

Translation

If anyone recites or hears these eight verses of instruction by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, their ecstatic love and devotion for Krsna increases day by day.

Significance

Within his Shikshashtakam, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu stresses the importance of singing (bhajan) and chanting (japa) the Names of God. This is the primary feature of Gaudiya Vaishnava spiritual practice (sadhana). This is particularly evident in the first three verses of the Shikshashtakam.

The starting verse of Shikshashtakam states a number of reasons why sankirtana (congregational chanting of the holy names of the Lord, which in Gaudiya Vaishnavism especially refers to Hare Krishna) should be emphasized in spiritual practice.

"The first reason is because it cleanses the heart of all the dust that’s been there for many years. This refers to an internal cleansing process. If we neglect to clean a room, soon dust will appear on the furniture and under the bed. But the dirt that the chanting of Hare Krishna cleans is the dirt of material desires within the heart. Whenever we desire something and forget the pleasure of Krishna , the Supreme Personality of Godhead, that is a “dirty” desire. Otherwise, nothing is innately good or bad. But if we desire anything other than pleasing the Supreme Personality of Godhead, that is inauspicious."

References

Shikshashtakam Wikipedia