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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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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 17.283

নিভৃতনিকুঞ্জে বসি’ দেখে রাধার বাট ।

অন্বেষিতে আইলা তাহাঁ গোপিকার ঠাট ॥ ২৮৩ ॥

nibhṛta-nikuñje vasi’ dekhe rādhāra bāṭa

anveṣite āilā tāhāṅ gopikāra ṭhāṭa

Translation

Kṛṣṇa was sitting in a solitary bush, waiting for Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī to pass by. But while He was searching, the gopīs arrived there, like a phalanx of soldiers.

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 gopīs arrive as Kṛṣṇa waits

  1. 1

    Kṛṣṇa was sitting in a solitary bush.

  2. 2

    He was waiting for Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī to pass by.

  3. 3

    While He was searching, the gopīs arrived there like a phalanx of soldiers.

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:

The same Absolute Truth who enjoys as Kṛṣṇa, Śyāmasundara, who plays His flute and dances with the gopīs, sometimes takes birth in a brāhmaṇa family and plays the part of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, accepting the renounced order of life. It appears contradictory that the same Kṛṣṇa accepted the ecstasy of the gopīs, and of course this is very difficult for an ordinary person to understand.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 17
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. nibhṛtasolitary
  2. nikuñjein a bush
  3. vasi’sitting
  4. dekhewaiting to see
  5. rādhāraof Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī
  6. bāṭathe passing
  7. anveṣitewhile searching
  8. āilācame
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Rādhā-bhāva · The confidential inner purpose

    The Lord’s desire to taste the love and perspective of Śrī Rādhā, illuminated by later ecstatic pastimes. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “rādhārāṇī”

  • Vraja-smaraṇa · Remembrance of Vṛndāvana

    The remembered sweetness of Vraja that colors Mahāprabhu’s pilgrimage, Ratha-yātrā, and later states of separation. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “gopīs”

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

What contrast do I notice between Kṛṣṇa’s solitary waiting and the gopīs’ arrival?

Practice

Recall the scene in three steps: Kṛṣṇa sitting, waiting for Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, and the gopīs arriving.

Live this todayThe gopīs arrive as Kṛṣṇa waitsThis 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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