Live Caitanya Caritamrta · CC Madhya 2.72
Transcendental Joy Transforms the Body
“There were different transformations of the body of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu: being stunned, trembling, perspiring, fading away of color, weeping, and choking of the voice. In this way His whole body was pervaded by transcendental joy. As a result, sometimes Caitanya Mahāprabhu would laugh, sometimes cry, sometimes dance and sometimes sing. Sometimes He would get up and run here and there, and sometimes fall on the ground and lose consciousness.”
What the purport teaches
- Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s whole body was pervaded by transcendental joy. He sometimes laughed, cried, danced or sang, and sometimes fell unconscious.
- Stambha, being stunned, refers to the mind becoming transcendentally absorbed, with speech and bodily movement stopping. Such symptoms are visible in an advanced devotee.
- The purport explains trembling, perspiration, changes of color, tears, a choking voice and hair standing on end. These arise from differing combinations of emotions such as joy, fear, anger, astonishment and moroseness.
Try this today
Choose one bodily transformation described here and reread its explanation in the purport.
Ask yourself
How does the purport’s explanation of transcendental absorption deepen your understanding of these bodily changes?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport; the practice and question are plain words for trying the verse today.