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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 17: The Pastimes of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu in His Youth
Ādi 17.177Ādi 17.180

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Texts Ādi 17.178-179

কাজী কহে,—যবে আমি হিন্দুর ঘরে গিয়া ।

কীর্তন করিলুঁ মানা মৃদঙ্গ ভাঙ্গিয়া ॥ ১৭৮ ॥

সেই রাত্রে এক সিংহ মহাভয়ঙ্কর ।

নরদেহ, সিংহমুখ, গর্জয়ে বিস্তর ॥ ১৭৯ ॥

kājī kahe, — yabe āmi hindura ghare giyā

kīrtana kariluṅ mānā mṛdaṅga bhāṅgiyā

Translation

The Kazi said, “When I went to the Hindu’s house, broke the drum and forbade the performance of congregational chanting, in my dreams that very night I saw a greatly fearful lion, roaring very loudly, His body like a human being’s and His face like a lion’s.

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.

A Fearful Dream After Forbidding Chanting

  1. 1

    The Kazi recounts going to a Hindu’s house and breaking the drum.

  2. 2

    He also forbade congregational chanting. That very night, he saw a greatly fearful lion in his dreams.

  3. 3

    The lion roared very loudly, with a body like a human being’s and a face like a lion’s.

How it feels

Public courage and ecstatic joy. The saṅkīrtana movement confronts opposition and moves toward recognition and expansion.

The mood of Ādi 17 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Ādi 17: The Pastimes of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu in His Youth

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

When Kṛṣṇa in His form of Nārāyaṇa saw Rādhārāṇī, He could not keep His position as Nārāyaṇa and again assumed the form of Kṛṣṇa. The King of Vrajabhūmi is Nanda Mahārāja, and the same person in Navadvīpa is Jagannātha Miśra, the father of Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 17
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. kājī kahethe Kazi replied
  2. yabewhen
  3. āmiI
  4. hinduraof a Hindu
  5. gharein the house
  6. giyāgoing there
  7. kīrtanachanting of the holy name
  8. kariluṅmade
3

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: “chanting”, “congregational”

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 account prompt me to consider my attitude toward congregational chanting?

Practice

Take a moment today to reflect on the Kazi’s account before chanting the holy name.

Live this todayA Fearful Dream After Forbidding 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.

Ask Caitanya CaritamrtaHave a question about CC Ādi 17.178-179? Get an answer from the verses themselves.