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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 17.304

সেই কৃষ্ণ, সেই গোপী,—পরম বিরোধ ।

অচিন্ত্য চরিত্র প্রভুর অতি সুদুর্বোধ ॥ ৩০৪ ॥

sei kṛṣṇa, sei gopī, — parama virodha

acintya caritra prabhura ati sudurbodha

Translation

He is Kṛṣṇa, yet He has accepted the mood of the gopīs. How is it so? It is the inconceivable character of the Lord, which is very difficult to understand.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa’s Inconceivable Energy Reconciles Contradictions

  1. 1

    Although He is Kṛṣṇa Himself, the Lord accepts the mood of the gopīs and feels separation from Kṛṣṇa.

  2. 2

    This appears contradictory by mundane calculations. The Supreme Personality of Godhead has inconceivable energy that makes the impossible possible.

  3. 3

    Such contradictions are very difficult to understand unless a devotee strictly follows Vaiṣṇava philosophy under the direction of the Gosvāmīs.

Key points from the purport
  • Kṛṣṇa’s accepting the part of the gopīs is certainly contradictory according to any mundane calculations, but the Lord, by His inconceivable character, may act like the gopīs and feel separation from Kṛṣṇa, although He is Kṛṣṇa Himself.
  • Such contradictions are very difficult to understand unless a devotee strictly follows the Vaiṣṇava philosophy under the direction of the Gosvāmīs.
  • Therefore Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī ends every chapter with this verse:

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

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:

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. But if we accept the inconceivable energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, we can understand that everything is possible.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 17
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Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. sei kṛṣṇathat Kṛṣṇa
  2. sei gopīthat gopī
  3. parama virodhavery contradictory
  4. acintyainconceivable
  5. caritracharacter
  6. prabhuraof the Lord
  7. ativery
  8. sudurbodhadifficult to understand
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Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • 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”

  • 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: “separation”

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

Am I willing to learn under the direction of the Gosvāmīs when the Lord’s character exceeds my understanding?

Practice

Write down the purport’s explanation that the Lord’s inconceivable energy can make the impossible possible.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa’s Inconceivable Energy Reconciles ContradictionsThis 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 17.304? Get an answer from the verses themselves.