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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 2.89

দীপ হৈতে যৈছে বহু দীপের জ্বলন ।

মূল এক দীপ তাহা করিয়ে গণন ॥ ৮৯ ॥

dīpa haite yaiche bahu dīpera jvalana

mūla eka dīpa tāhā kariye gaṇana

Translation

“When from one candle many others are lit, I consider that one the original.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Equal Expansions Have an Original Source

  1. 1

    One burning lamp can light innumerable others without their being inferior. Still, the lamp that lights the others is considered the original.

  2. 2

    The Supreme Personality of Godhead expands Himself in plenary forms of the viṣṇu-tattva. These forms are equally powerful, yet the original Personality of Godhead remains their source.

  3. 3

    Lord Śiva, who is in charge of the mode of ignorance, is compared to a lamp covered with carbon. His power cannot compare to that of the Viṣṇu principle.

Key points from the purport
  • The Brahma-saṁhitā, chapter five, verse 46, states that the viṣṇu-tattva, or the principle of the Absolute Personality of Godhead, is like a lamp because the expansions equal their origin in all respects.
  • A burning lamp can light innumerable other lamps, and although they will not be inferior, still the lamp from which the others are lit must be considered the original.
  • Therefore the power of Lord Śiva cannot compare to that of the Viṣṇu principle.”

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

Revelatory awe. The identity of Caitanya as Kṛṣṇa is established; wonder becomes theological confidence.

The mood of Ādi 2 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Ādi 2: Śri Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead

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

Because Lord Kṛṣṇa Caitanya is not different from Lord Kṛṣṇa, He is the cause of all causes; there is no cause beyond Him. He is eternal, and His form is spiritual.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 2
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Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. dīpaa lamp
  2. haitefrom
  3. yaichejust as
  4. bahumany
  5. dīperaof lamps
  6. jvalanalighting
  7. mūlathe original
  8. ekaone
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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does the lamp example help me understand equal power alongside an original source?

Practice

Sketch one lamp lighting several others, and write beneath it: “Equal expansions; original source.”

Live this todayEqual Expansions Have an Original SourceThis 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 2.89? Get an answer from the verses themselves.