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Study a Verse

Read one verse of Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta with its Bengali, transliteration, word meanings, translation and study points.

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How to study this verse, in six steps
  1. 1Say the verse. Read the transliteration aloud, slowly.
  2. 2Read the word meanings. Go through each word and its meaning.
  3. 3Read the translation. Ask: what is happening here, and who is it about?
  4. 4Read the purport slowly. Read it twice. Don't rush.
  5. 5See Lord Caitanya as Kṛṣṇa. Remember who is acting in the pastime.
  6. 6Take one thing into your day. Note one point and one practice.
Read the full guide: how to read Caitanya Caritamrta ›
Ādi-līlā · Chapter 1: The Spiritual Masters
Ādi 1.10Ādi 1.12

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Ādi 1.11

যস্যাংশাংশাংশঃ পরাত্মাখিলানাং

পোষ্টা বিষ্ণুর্ভাতি দুগ্ধাব্ধিশায়ী ।

ক্ষৌণীভর্তা যৎকলা সোঽপ্যনন্ত–

স্তং শ্রীনিত্যানন্দরামং প্রপদ্যে ॥ ১১ ॥

yasyāṁśāṁśāṁśaḥ parātmākhilānāṁ

poṣṭā viṣṇur bhāti dugdhābdhi-śāyī

kṣauṇī-bhartā yat-kalā so ’py anantas

taṁ śrī-nityānanda-rāmaṁ prapadye

Translation

I offer my respectful obeisances unto the feet of Śrī Nityānanda Rāma, whose secondary part is the Viṣṇu lying in the ocean of milk. That Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu is the Supersoul of all living entities and the maintainer of all the universes. Śeṣa Nāga is His further subpart.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Supersoul and Maintainer of All

  1. 1

    The author offers respectful obeisances unto the feet of Śrī Nityānanda Rāma. His secondary part is Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, who lies in the ocean of milk.

  2. 2

    Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu is the Supersoul of all living entities and the maintainer of all the universes.

  3. 3

    Śeṣa Nāga is a further subpart of Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu.

How it feels

Reverence and gratitude. The narrator takes shelter of the guru-paramparā; receptivity begins with humility.

The mood of Ādi 1 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Ādi 1: The Spiritual Masters

From Śrīla Prabhupāda's chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

He belongs to the transcendental plane beyond the reach of the imperfect sense perception of a living being. Even the most erudite mundane scholar cannot approach the transcendental plane unless he submits himself to transcendental sound with a receptive mood, for in that mood only can one realize the message of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 1
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. yasyawhose
  2. aṁśa-aṁśa-aṁśaḥa portion of a portion of a plenary portion
  3. para-ātmāthe Supersoul
  4. akhilānāmof all living entities
  5. poṣṭāthe maintainer
  6. viṣṇuḥViṣṇu
  7. bhātiappears
  8. dugdha-abdhi-śāyīKṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does it mean to you that Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu is the Supersoul of all living entities?

Practice

Pause for a moment today to remember Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu as the Supersoul and maintainer.

4

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

1 lecture given on it. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Live this todayThe Supersoul and Maintainer of AllThis verse's lesson: one practice and one question for today

Study points are short summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport on Vedabase.

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