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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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Ādi-līlā · 17 chapters

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 ›

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Ādi 14.22

ক্রন্দনের ছলে বলাইল হরিনাম ।

নারী সব ‘হরি’ বলে,—হাসে গৌরধাম ॥ ২২ ॥

krandanera chale balāila hari-nāma

nārī saba ‘hari’ bale, — hāse gaura-dhāma

Translation

The Lord caused all the ladies to chant the holy names of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra on the plea of His crying, and while they chanted the Lord would smile.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Crying Inspires Holy Name Chanting

  1. 1

    The Lord would cry but stop immediately upon hearing the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. Through His crying, He caused the ladies to chant the holy names.

  2. 2

    Understanding this pattern, the ladies regularly chanted and clapped their hands whenever He cried.

  3. 3

    Ladies from neighboring houses gathered at Śacīmātā’s home to join in saṅkīrtana twenty-four hours a day. As long as they chanted, the Lord smiled pleasingly upon them.

Key points from the purport
  • When the ladies, understanding the fun of the Lord, discovered that He would cry and then stop upon hearing the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, they all took it as a clue to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa as soon as the Lord cried.
  • The Lord would cry, and the ladies would begin chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, clapping their hands.
  • As long as the ladies continued to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, the Lord would not cry but would very pleasingly smile upon them.”

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

How it feels

Parental tenderness and play. Nimāi’s childhood alternates affection, mischief, and revelations.

The mood of Ādi 14 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Ādi 14: Lord Caitanya’s Childhood Pastimes

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

Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has given a summary of this chapter in his Amṛta-pravāha-bhāṣya: “In the fourteenth chapter there is a description of how Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu enjoyed His childhood pastimes — crawling, crying, eating dirt and giving intelligence to His mother, favoring a brāhmaṇa guest, riding on the shoulders of two thieves and misleading them to His own house, and, on the plea of being diseased, taking prasādam in the house of Hiraṇya and Jagadīśa on the Ekādaśī day.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 14
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Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. krandaneraof crying
  2. chaleon the pretense of
  3. balāilacaused to speak
  4. hari-nāmathe holy name of the Lord
  5. nārīladies
  6. sabaall
  7. ‘hari’ balechant the holy name of the Lord
  8. hāselaughs
  9. gaura-dhāmaLord Śrī Caitanya as a child
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Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Nāma-saṅkīrtana · The holy name shared together

    Chanting the holy names as the yuga-dharma, the Lord’s public movement, and the opening prayer of Śikṣāṣṭaka. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “chant”, “names of”, “saṅkīrtana”

  • Vipralambha · Love in separation

    Separation that intensifies remembrance and longing; especially central to the confidential pastimes at Purī. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “crying”

  • Kīrtana community · A movement of shared hearts

    Devotional community as a living network of branches, service, festivals, care, and collective chanting. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “gathered”

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

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does the Lord’s smile encourage you to chant the holy names?

Practice

Set aside a few minutes today to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, remembering the Lord’s pleased smile.

Live this todayThe Lord’s Crying Inspires Holy Name ChantingThis 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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