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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 4: The Confidential Reasons for the Appearance of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu
Ādi 4.274Ādi 4.276

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Ādi 4.275

অপারং কস্যাপি প্রণয়িজনবৃন্দস্য কুতুকী

রসস্তোমং হৃত্বা মধুরমুপভোক্তুং কমপি যঃ ।

রুচং স্বামাবব্রে দ্যুতিমিহ তদীয়াং প্রকটয়ন্‌

স দেবশ্চৈতন্যাকৃতিরতিতরাং নঃ কৃপয়তু ॥ ২৭৫ ॥

apāraṁ kasyāpi praṇayi-jana-vṛndasya kutukī

rasa-stomaṁ hṛtvā madhuram upabhoktuṁ kam api yaḥ

rucaṁ svām āvavre dyutim iha tadīyāṁ prakaṭayan

sa devaś caitanyākṛtir atitarāṁ naḥ kṛpayatu

Translation

“Lord Kṛṣṇa desired to taste the limitless nectarean mellows of the love possessed by one of His multitude of loving damsels [Śrī Rādhā], and so He has assumed the form of Lord Caitanya. He has tasted that love while hiding His own dark complexion with Her effulgent yellow color. May that Lord Caitanya confer upon us His grace.”

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa Becomes Lord Caitanya to Taste Love

  1. 1

    Lord Kṛṣṇa assumed the form of Lord Caitanya to taste the limitless nectarean mellows of Śrī Rādhā’s love.

  2. 2

    He tasted that love while hiding His own dark complexion with Her effulgent yellow color.

  3. 3

    The verse prays for Lord Caitanya’s grace. It is the third verse of the second Caitanyāṣṭaka in Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Stava-mālā.

Key points from the purport
  • This is the third verse of the second Caitanyāṣṭaka of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Stava-mālā.

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

Profound longing. Kṛṣṇa desires to taste Rādhā’s love, His own sweetness as She sees it, and Her joy.

The mood of Ādi 4 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Ādi 4: The Confidential Reasons for the Appearance of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu

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

The transactions of Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā are completely different from material lust. Therefore the author has very clearly distinguished between them.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 4
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. apāramboundless
  2. kasya apiof someone
  3. praṇayi-jana-vṛndasyaof the multitude of lovers
  4. kutukīone who is curious
  5. rasa-stomamthe group of mellows
  6. hṛtvāstealing
  7. madhuramsweet
  8. upabhoktumto enjoy
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: “rādhā”, “rādhā’s”

  • Prema · Love of Godhead

    The culminating devotional purpose that unites the narration: bestowed, cultivated, taught, celebrated, and tasted. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “love”

  • 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: “mellows”

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 knowing Lord Caitanya’s desire to taste Śrī Rādhā’s love shape your prayer for His grace?

Practice

Offer the verse’s prayer today: “May that Lord Caitanya confer upon us His grace.”

Live this todayKṛṣṇa Becomes Lord Caitanya to Taste LoveThis 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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