WHAT IS GOING ON?

How can I understand this?
It is a major issue for me spiritually.
I have been hearing from our godbrother Gaurahari Das prabhu. He is advocating a specific avenue of approach to transcendental devotional service to the Lord. He appears to be in a constant state of ecstasy.

Definition #1 ecstasy: an overwhelming feeling of great happiness or joyful excitement.
"there was a look of ecstasy on his face"
synonyms: rapture, bliss, elation, euphoria, transports, rhapsodies; joy, jubilation, exultation
"the ecstasy of loving him"
Definition #2 ecstasy: an emotional or religious frenzy or trancelike state, originally one involving an experience of mystic self-transcendence.

Gaurahari Das claims the only way to attain love of God is from someone who has it. To hear from them and serve them. Such an ecstatic person can be identified by their symptoms. Their ecstasy will be visible.

I am wrestling with this. Is Gaurahari Das actually who he says he is? An ecstatic devotee? A pure devotee? An uttama adhikari? Or is he crackpot? A self-made Jesus, and I have met many, especially in the loony bin. But what is going on with Gaurahari Das?

His realizations are profound and his knowledge of the Vaishnava literature are extensive. Coupled with his knowledge of the teachings of Christ he presents the teachings of both in such a way that they complement and support each other, tying everything into a conclusion of the truth, love of God for no other purpose than love of God.

Last night I attended a gathering of Vaishnavas. Healthy kirtan with dancing and sincere calling out to the Lord and Srila Prabhupada to be with us. During the reading of Chaitanya Charitamrta, one advanced disciple commented on the pastime of Devananda Pandit and Srivas Acharya. This disciple's version was slightly different from Gaurahari Das prabhu's version. This pastime being one of Gaurahari Das prabhu's favorite to quote to establish the superiority of ecstatic devotion.

According to Gaurahari Das during a presentation of Srimad Bhagavatam by Devananda pandit a respected brahmana teacher Srivasa Acharya began to manifest symptoms of love of Krishna and some tears and other bodily symptoms began to manifest. Devananda pandit had him removed from the class identifying him as merely a disturbance. Which support Gaurahari Das's preaching point of how the vaidhi bhakta does not accept the validity or the significance of ecstatic symptoms and rejects those who are developing them thereby committing offense to the pure devotee.

But according to the disciple last night Srivas acharya simply walked out of the class indicating that Devananda Pandit was injecting some speculation into his presentation. Devananda pandit became angry and cursed Srivas. This completely by-passes anything about ecstasy and simply indicates a "somehow" unbonafide recitation.

Which raises the question for me... what is unbonafide? Is simply repeating by rote any guarantee of bonafide? We know parrot-like chanting is not a very good idea. What about parrot-like reading? We also know that the sweetness of the message of Godhead is there due to the reciter himself tasting the sweetness there.

Sukadeva goswami having fully realized and relished the message of Bhagavatam was then able to actually present Bhagavatam. Interestingly enough Suka means parrot and the example is given that if a parrot pecks its beak into a mango the mango becomes very sweet.

So parrot-like without tasting, just repeating or as the Christian says, vain repetition is condemned. The tenth offense for the Vaishnava...inattentive chanting. Or the parrot who actually tastes and then repeats.

But what is going on with Gaurahari Das prabhu. Is he deluding himself into believing he is a pure devotee and that he has been given the order to save the world with his message of ecstatic emotions, crying and laughing and goosebumps. Or is he really onto something?

I just read something on the dust cover introduction to Nectar of Devotion, which is now not being printed even in the unedited reprints, it was on the dust cover. Yes it was not written by Srila Prabhupada, or at least we do not know if he wrote it or not. But it was approved and has appeared on the dust cover. An excerpt reads like this...

.... It [Nectar of Devotion]
elaborately explains the philosophical
background behind the many
rules and regulations that devotees of
Krishna voluntarily follow, and it probes
deeply into the thoughts and emotions
that motivate a Krishna conscious devotee.
Most importantly, The Nectar of
Devotion goes beyond the limitations
of both empty religious sentiment and
dry, impersonal philosophy. It brings
the reader to a factual understanding
of the eternal activities of the spiritual
world and offers practical step-by-step
instructions which can enable the
serious student to actually enter into
these pastimes, in a personal, face-to-face
loving relationship with Krishna,
the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

"Enable the serious student to 'actually enter into these pastimes,' in a personal, face-to-face loving relationship with Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead."

Whose version of the pastime of Devananda pandit and Srivas Acharya is bonafide? Srivas was rejected due to his ecstatic presence and an offense was committed to a pure devotee or Srivas walked out not wanting to hear a materialistic or impersonal presentation of Bhagavatam and was cursed by Devananda pandit?

Again is Gaurahari Das prabhu simply projecting his own delusion of spiritual grandeur onto the pastimes or is he actually uncovering the deeper significance in the them?

Here is an account of the pastime taken from Stephen Knapp's website.
https://www.stephen-knapp.com/devananda_pandit.htm

Here is a presentation by Gaurahari Das