Ata eva namābhāse sarva pāpa vināṣa āra samsara kṣaya
(Sri Bhakti-Rasamrita-Sindhu, Dakshin Part, 1/52)

Therefore, the glow of the Holy Name (namābhās) can destroy all sins and worldly bondage. But namābhās is also not so easy. Because of ten-fold offences namābhās could not be manifested. Śuddha-nāma will self-manifest on the spiritually inclined senses—'sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ' (Chaitanya Charitamrita Madhya 17.136). When there will be relation with Krishna and we will become inclined to serve Krishna and His devotees then the Name may be manifested. The difficulty is this.

taṁ nirvyājam bhaja guṇa-nidhe pāvanaṁ pāvanānāṁ
śraddhā-rajyan-matir atitarām uttamaḥ-śloka-maulim
prodyann antaḥ-karaṇa-kuhare hanta yan-nāma-bhānor
ābhāso ‘pi kṣapayati mahā-pātaka-dhvānta-rāśim

Hey guṇa-nidhe, you worship Sri Krishna who is the Supreme Redeemer of all redeemers, who is worshiped by realized souls and who is the crown of all avatāras—uttama-śloka-mauli with faith that is without deceitfulness, immediately and with simple-heartedness. Because His Name, like the glow of the Sun manifesting in the cave of the heart destroys the darkness, removes all sins and nescience. Even namābhās is very rare. Here, the person who has got the aptitude to do Harināma, Krishna-nāma, the crown of all avatāras, the original Supreme Lord, worshiped by realized souls, the Supreme Redeemer of all redeemers, is addressed as guṇa-nidhe. But the condition is to do Harināma with firm faith i.e. without deceitfulness, and at the earliest with simple-heartedness. There should not be any crookedness. Why? As the glow of the Sun removes darkness like that the glow of the Holy Name, not the śuddha-nāma, even the glow of the Holy Name entering into the cave of the heart destroy all great sins and nescience. Śuddha-nāma is very difficult. When the Name is chanted without offences and with the knowledge of relation with the Lord then śuddha-nāma can be manifested.

parama pāvana kṛṣṇa tānhānra charaṇa,
niskapata śraddhā saha karaha bhajan,
jānra nāma suryābhās antare praveśi,
dhvaṁsa kare mahāpāp andhakārarāśi,
ei śikṣāṣṭake kahe kṛṣṇalīlā-kram,
ihāte bhajan krame līlāra udgam,
prathame prathama śloka bhaja kichu din,
dvitīya ślokete tabe hauta pravīṇ
chāri śloke kramaśaḥ bhajana pakkva kara,
pañcam ślokete nija siddha deha vara,
ei śloke siddhadehe rādhāpadāśraya,
ārambha kariyā krame unnati udaya

How can we get the realization of the pastimes of RadhaKrishna? The gradual procedure has been given here. Unless we have got our realized state we cannot enter into the transcendental pastimes.

chaya śloka bhajite anartha dure gela,
tabe jāna siddhadehe adhikāra haila,
adhikāra nā labhiyā siddhadeha bhāve,
viparjya buddhi janme śaktira abhāve

By material mind we cannot think of these transcendental pastimes. They will be revealed in the heart. They are transcendental and atma is also transcendental. When the real eternal nature of atma —the transcendental nature of the transcendental soul is manifested, then the transcendental pastimes will be revealed.

adhikāra nā labhiyā siddhadeha bhāve,
viparjya buddhi janme śaktira abhāve
sāvdhāne krama dhara yadi siddhi cāo,
sādhura carita dekhi śuddha buddhi pāo,
siddhadeha peye krame bhajana karile,
aṣṭakāla sevāsukha anāyāse mile,

After getting the realized state, you can relish the bliss of transcendental pastimes.

śikṣāṣṭaka cinta kara smaraṇa kīrtan,
krame aṣṭakāla-sevā habe uddīpana,
sakala anartha jābe pābe premadhana,
caturvarge phalguprāya habe adarśana

ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanaṁ
bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇaṁ
śreyaḥ-kairava-candrikā-vitaraṇaṁ
vidyā-vadhū-jīvanam
ānandāmbudhi-vardhanaṁ
prati-padaṁ pūrṇāmṛtāsvādanaṁ
sarvātma-snapanaṁ
paraṁ vijayate śrī-kṛṣṇa-saṅkīrtanam

You can get all kinds of attainments by Nāma Saṅkīrtan. The seven principal attainments are mentioned here: cleansing of the mirror of the heart, extinguishing the forest fire of birth, death and threefold afflictions, bestowing eternal soothing benefit like moonlight, life of spiritual learning i.e. awakening of the real self, increasing of the ocean of bliss, bestowing at every step sweet taste of complete transcendental ambrosia, and holy immersion of body-mind-real self. All glories to Sri Krishna Saṅkīrtan!!

I am doing Harināma but undergoing tremendous threefold afflictions then it is not actual Harināma. If there be actual Harināma then the forest fire of all these worldly miseries will be finished. If it is not finished, we have to understand that actual Harināma is not manifested.

saṅkīrtana haite pāpa-saṁsāra-nāśana
citta-śuddhi, sarva-bhakti-sādhana-udgama
kṛṣṇa-premodgama, premāmṛta-āsvādana
kṛṣṇa-prāpti, sevāmṛta-samudre majjana
(Chaitanya Charitamrita Antya 20.13-14)

Thinking of Krishna-lila (pastimes of Krishna)

niśante kirtane kuñja bhaṅga kare dhyana
krame krame citta lagne rasera vidhān

When one is established in Shikshashtaka then he will get the eligibility to think and meditate on the transcendental pastimes of Sri Krishna. So Shikshashtaka is read with great attention and repeatedly because unless one is established in Sikshastaka, he cannot think about the transcendental pastimes. We have to be well-established in the teachings of Shikshashtaka given by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. By the material mind we cannot meditate on the transcendental pastimes. So emphasis is given on Shikshashtaka. We have heard that earlier only Shikshashtaka was being read and discussed, because unless one is established in Shikshashtaka no benefit accrues by listening to the narrations of the pastimes of the Lord. Reading of the pastimes was introduced later.

You can meditate on the awakening pastimes of RadhaKrishna when you are well-established in the teachings of Shikshashtaka. Then you can relish the transcendental bliss of the pastimes.

rātryante trastavṛnderita bahu-vira-vaibodhitau kirasārī
padyair-hṛdhyair api sukha-śayanād-utthitau tau sakhibhiḥ
dṛṣṭau hṛṣṭau tadātvoditarati-lalitau kakkhaṭīgīḥ saśaṅkau
rādhā-kṛṣṇau satṛṣṇāv api nija-nija dhāmnyāpta talpau smarāmi
(Govindalilamrita)

Vrinda Devi apprehending day-break sends Suk-Sarika (male and female parrots) and other birds to start chirping to awaken RadhaKrishna. The birds have the special eligibility to understand when the day breaks. Awakening of RadhaKrishna should be at proper time, not in the night. Awakening in the night is considered as an offence. Awakening should be at proper time.

Scriptures prohibit taking bath in the night. Once in Purushottam Dham during Kartik-vrata, a group of devotees came to me. They started speaking to me. One lady said she took bath at 4.00 AM another said at 3.30 AM and the two other ladies said at 3.00 AM, and 2.30 AM, respectively. They were having competition on who took bath earlier. But taking bath in the night is prohibited. What can be done? Everybody wants to use lavatory, and have to wait in the queue and are forced to take bath in the night.

Birds have this capacity, at proper time of day-break they will start chirping and not before that. That is their special quality. They do not require to see watch (clock), human beings have to see watch. And their chirping is not ordinary chirping. They are transcendental realized souls. They sing the glories of RadhaKrishna. There is competition between them. And along with them the Gopis are also singing slowly with sweet voice, not by loud sound so that RadhaKrishna may wake up willingly, at Their desire, not forcibly. Hearing their sweet singing, Radharani opens Her eyes. Waking Them up like this is good. Krishna has His attention on all. And so does Radharani’s aslo. As Radharani has awakened the worries of the Gopis are over. They feel relieved and peaceful. Now it is Radharani's responsibility to wake up Krishna. What can She do? She cannot wake up Krishna by pushing or shaking Him. It is not correct. But Krishna's sleep is not in tamo-guna, deep sleep. He is just acting as if He is sleeping. Till the time the female monkey (vānari) is not given the service to wake Him up, He will not open His eyes. We have so much benefit in performing Krishna-bhajan. Even on those who perform a small little service, Krishna has His attention on them. So feeling compelled, as soon as the Gopis give permission to the female monkey, she screams making loud sound and Krishna opens His eyes. For Him, her harsh sound is very sweet. For us it is harsh and for Him it is sweet.

Our Prabhupad also performed a pastime. He asked one devotee who has not so good voice to sing kirtan, indicating that his kirtan is good because he has devotion.

With wistful eyes both are seeing each other and it is the high time so They run towards Their respective houses and go to Their beds to sleep.