231 The Nectar of Devotion

There are eight symptoms of existential ecstatic love: becoming
stunned, perspiring, standing of the hairs on the body, faltering of
the voice, trembling of the body, changing bodily colors, shedding
tears, and devastation. \

The scientific explanation of these eight symptoms is given by
Rupa Gosvami as follows: When the vital force of life is in contact
with the earth, it is called stunning. When the same force comes into
contact with water, there is the shedding of tears. When the same
force comes into contact with fire, there is perspiration. When the
same force comes into contact with the sky, there is complete devas-
tation. And when that force comes into contact with the air, there is
trembling, failing of the voice and standing of the hairs on the body.

These symptoms are sometimes manifested internally and some-
times externally. The pure devotee always feels such symptomatic
expressions within himself, but being afraid of outsiders he does not
generally manifest them externally.

Becoming Stunned

The symptom of becoming stunned is caused by ecstatic tribula-
tion, fearfulness, astonishment, lamentation and anger. This symp-
tom is exhibited by a stoppage of talking, a stoppage of movement, a
feeling of voidness and an extreme feeling of separation.

When Uddhava was describing Krsna’s pastimes to Vidura, he said,
“One day the gopis became stunned when Krsna, in the dress of a
gardening maid, entered the greenhouse and enlivened them with
joking and laughter. Then when Krsna left the greenhouse, the gopis
were seeing Krsna so ecstatically that it was as though both their
minds and eyes were following Him.” These symptoms signify that
although the gopis’ business was not finished, they had become
stunned with ecstatic love.

Another example of being stunned took place when Krsna was
surrounded by various wrestlers in the sacrificial arena of Kamsa. His
mother, Devaki,* then became stunned, and her eyes dried up when
she saw Krsna amongst the wrestlers.

* Devaki was the “natural” mother of Krsna, His father being Vasudeva. In order
to protect the divine baby from Devaki’s brother Karnsa, Vasudeva delivered
Krsna to Nanda and Mother Yagoda in Vrndavana, and it was there that He
