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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 · Texts Ādi 17.37-38

একদিন বিপ্র, নাম—‘গোপাল চাপাল’ ।

পাষণ্ডি–প্রধান সেই দুর্মুখ, বাচাল ॥ ৩৭ ॥

ভবানী–পূজার সব সামগ্রী লঞা ।

রাত্রে শ্রীবাসের দ্বারে স্থান লেপাঞা ॥ ৩৮ ॥

eka-dina vipra, nāma — ‘gopāla cāpāla’

pāṣaṇḍi-pradhāna sei durmukha, vācāla

Translation

One night while kīrtana was going on inside Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura’s house, a brāhmaṇa named Gopāla Cāpāla, the chief of the nonbelievers, who was talkative and very rough in his speech, placed all the paraphernalia for worshiping the goddess Durgā outside Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura’s door.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Envy Seeks to Defame a Devotee

  1. 1

    Gopāla Cāpāla wanted to defame Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura by making him appear to be a worshiper of Bhavānī who was only posing as a Vaiṣṇava.

  2. 2

    Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura was a well-known and respected Vaiṣṇava in Navadvīpa. Gopāla Cāpāla sought to reduce his prestige.

  3. 3

    To create this false impression, Gopāla Cāpāla placed articles for worshiping Bhavānī outside Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura’s door while kīrtana was going on inside.

Key points from the purport
  • This brāhmaṇa, Gopāla Cāpāla, wanted to defame Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura by proving that he was actually a śākta, or a worshiper of Bhavānī, the goddess Durgā, but was externally posing as a Vaiṣṇava.
  • Therefore outside Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura’s door he placed various paraphernalia for worshiping Bhavānī, the wife of Lord Śiva, such as a red flower, a plantain leaf, a pot of wine, and reddish sandalwood paste.
  • In the morning, when Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura saw all this paraphernalia in front of his door, he called for the respectable gentlemen of the neighborhood and showed them that at night he was worshiping Bhavānī.

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:

Vivid descriptions of some portions of His pastimes are seen in this chapter, however, because Vṛndāvana dāsa Ṭhākura has not elaborately described them. In this chapter we shall find descriptions of the mango distribution festival and Lord Caitanya’s discourses with Chand Kazi.
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. eka-dinaone day
  2. vipraone brāhmaṇa
  3. nāmanamed
  4. gopāla cāpālaGopāla Cāpāla
  5. pāṣaṇdi-pradhānathe chief of the non-believers
  6. seihe
  7. durmukhaferocious, using strong words
  8. vācālatalkative
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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: “kīrtana”

  • Bhāva & rasa · The language of sacred feeling

    Transcendental devotional moods and relationships, discussed explicitly in Rāmānanda’s dialogue and the teachings on prema. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “bhavānī”

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

Do my words about others protect the truth, or seek to lower their reputation?

Practice

Refrain today from repeating an accusation about someone that you have not verified.

Live this todayEnvy Seeks to Defame a DevoteeThis 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 17.37-38? Get an answer from the verses themselves.