Text 68
sannyāsī ha-iyā kara nartana-gāyana
bhāvuka saba saṅge lañā kara saṅkīrtana
sannyāsī — the renounced order of life; ha-iyā — accepting; kara — You do; nartana-gāyana — dancing and chanting; bhāvuka — fanatics; saba — all; saṅge — in Your company; lañā — accepting them; kara — You do; saṅkīrtana — chanting of the holy name of the Lord.
“You are a sannyāsī. Why then do You indulge in chanting and dancing, engaging in Your saṅkīrtana movement in the company of fanatics?
This is a challenge by Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura writes in his Anubhāṣya that Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who is the object of Vedānta philosophical research, has very kindly determined who is an appropriate candidate for study of Vedānta philosophy. The first qualification of such a candidate is expressed by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu in His Śikṣāṣṭaka:
tṛṇād api su-nīcena taror iva sahiṣṇunā
amāninā māna-dena kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ
This statement indicates that one can hear or speak about Vedānta philosophy through the disciplic succession. One must be very humble and meek, more tolerant than a tree and more humble than the grass. One should not claim respect for himself but should be prepared to give all respect to others. One must have these qualifications to be eligible to understand Vedic knowledge.