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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 1.8Ādi 1.10

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Ādi 1.9

মায়াভর্তাজাণ্ডসংঘাশ্রয়াঙ্গঃ

শেতে সাক্ষাৎ কারণাম্ভোধিমধ্যে ।

যস্যৈকাংশঃ শ্রীপুমানাদিদেব–

স্তং শ্রীনিত্যানন্দরামং প্রপদ্যে ॥ ৯ ॥

māyā-bhartājāṇḍa-saṅghāśrayāṅgaḥ

śete sākṣāt kāraṇāmbhodhi-madhye

yasyaikāṁśaḥ śrī-pumān ādi-devas

taṁ śrī-nityānanda-rāmaṁ prapadye

Translation

I offer my full obeisances unto the feet of Śrī Nityānanda Rāma, whose partial representation called Kāraṇodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, lying on the Kāraṇa Ocean, is the original puruṣa, the master of the illusory energy, and the shelter of all the universes.

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.

Nityānanda Rāma and the Shelter of Universes

  1. 1

    The author offers full obeisances unto the feet of Śrī Nityānanda Rāma.

  2. 2

    Kāraṇodakaśāyī Viṣṇu is His partial representation, lying on the Kāraṇa Ocean.

  3. 3

    Kāraṇodakaśāyī Viṣṇu is the original puruṣa, the master of the illusory energy, and the shelter of all the universes.

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:

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura accepted Śrīla Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī, the spiritual master of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, who in turn accepted Śrīla Gaurakiśora dāsa Bābājī, the spiritual master of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Mahārāja, the divine master of our humble self. Since we belong to this chain of disciplic succession from Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, this edition of Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta will contain nothing newly manufactured by our tiny brains, but only remnants of food originally eaten by the Lord Himself.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 1
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. māyā-bhartāthe master of the illusory energy
  2. aja-aṇḍa-saṅghaof the multitude of universes
  3. āśrayathe shelter
  4. aṅgaḥwhose body
  5. śeteHe lies
  6. sākṣātdirectly
  7. kāraṇa-ambhodhi-madhyein the midst of the Causal Ocean
  8. yasyawhose
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Śaraṇāgati · Taking shelter

    Turning toward Kṛṣṇa through shelter, surrender, dependence on guru, and unconditional devotional fidelity. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “shelter”

Concept links are an editorial study map; only the verse is the text itself.

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does this description of Śrī Nityānanda Rāma’s partial representation deepen your respect for Him?

Practice

Offer a brief prayer of obeisance to Śrī Nityānanda Rāma, remembering the shelter described in this verse.

5

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 todayNityānanda Rāma and the Shelter of UniversesThis 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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