Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī is painfully eager and thus he laments out of strong desire for the service of Śrī-Śrī Rādhā-Mādhava. The aspirants will also get some of this eagerness while hearing and chanting the great words of the Gosvāmīs. He submits his heart’s anxious prayers to the feet of his beloved deity. I have no peace if I just practise smaraṇa or see You in visions or dreams – I want You directly! When a sādhaka hears and chants these eager prayers of the Gosvāmīs some of their eagerness will also be infused into his heart. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī is the guru of the sampradāya, and the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas do bhajana following in his footsteps. Śrīla Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī has written:

ābhīra pallipati putra kāntā dāsyābhilāṣāti balāśvavāraḥ
śrī rūpa cintāmala sapti saṁstho mat svānta durdānta hayecchur āstām
(Stavāvalī)

“The desire to serve the lover of the son of the king of the cowherd-village is like a strong rider. May he mount the spotless horse of remembrance of Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī. This should be the desire of the wild horse of my heart.” In other words: Let my desire for Śrī Rādhā’s devotional service be in faithful adherence to the longings of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī. As much as the heart of a sahṛdaya (sensitive rasika) sādhaka thus associates with the mind of a great soul and attains the same feelings, to that amount eagerness will be infused into it, and to that amount he will relish the sweetness of the beloved deity.

Srila Ananta das Babaji