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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 16.38

তোমার কবিতা শ্লোক বুঝিতে কার শক্তি ।

তুমি ভাল জান অর্থ, কিংবা সরস্বতী ॥ ৩৮ ॥

tomāra kavitā śloka bujhite kāra śakti

tumi bhāla jāna artha kiṁvā sarasvatī

Translation

“Your poetry is so difficult that no one can understand it but you and mother Sarasvatī, the goddess of learning.

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 Is Master of Learning

  1. 1

    The Lord said that only the poet and mother Sarasvatī could understand his difficult poetry. This sarcastic reply indirectly minimized its value.

  2. 2

    Keśava Kāśmīrī was a favorite devotee of mother Sarasvatī, the goddess of learning, and was proud of her favor.

  3. 3

    He did not know that Sarasvatī is controlled by Caitanya Mahāprabhu Himself, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As her master, the Lord has the right to speak sarcastically of her devotees.

Key points from the purport
  • Replying to Keśava Kāśmīrī sarcastically, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu indirectly minimized the value of his poetry by saying, “Yes, your compositions are so nice that no one but you and your worshipable mother, the goddess of learning, can understand them.”
  • Keśava Kāśmīrī was a favorite devotee of mother Sarasvatī, the goddess of learning, but Caitanya Mahāprabhu, as the master of the goddess of learning, has the right to speak sarcastically of her devotees.
  • In other words, although Keśava Kāśmīrī was proud of being favored by the goddess of learning, he did not know that she is controlled by Caitanya Mahāprabhu Himself because He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

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

Grief and transformed pride. Lakṣmīdevī’s departure brings sorrow; Keśava Kāśmīrī’s pride yields to surrender.

The mood of Ādi 16 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Ādi 16: The Pastimes of the Lord in His Childhood and Youth

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

In this prayer the Lord found five kinds of literary ornaments and five kinds of literary faults, thus defeating the paṇḍita. Later the Kāśmīrī Paṇḍita, who was known to have been victorious all over the country, submitted himself to the goddess of learning, and by her order he met Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu on the morning of the next day and surrendered unto Him.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 16
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Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. tomārayour
  2. kavitāpoetry
  3. ślokaverses
  4. bujhiteto understand
  5. kārawhose
  6. śaktipower
  7. tumiyou
  8. bhālawell
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Kṛpā & transformation · Mercy changes a life

    Transformative encounters with grace, from scholars and travelers to renunciants and householders. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “favorite”

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 recognizing Caitanya Mahāprabhu as the master of learning challenge pride in my own knowledge?

Practice

Before studying today, pause to remember that Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and master of the goddess of learning.

Live this todayThe Lord Is Master of LearningThis 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.

Ask Caitanya CaritamrtaHave a question about CC Ādi 16.38? Get an answer from the verses themselves.