1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

Read one verse of Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta with its Bengali, transliteration, word meanings, translation and study points.

Or browse by līlā and chapter

Ādi-līlā · 17 chapters

How to study this verse, in six steps

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Ādi 7.11

কৃষ্ণমাধুর্যের এক অদ্ভুত স্বভাব ।

আপনা আস্বাদিতে কৃষ্ণ করে ভক্তভাব ॥ ১১ ॥

kṛṣṇa-mādhuryera eka adbhuta svabhāva

āpanā āsvādite kṛṣṇa kare bhakta-bhāva

Translation

The transcendental mellow of conjugal love of Kṛṣṇa is so wonderful that Kṛṣṇa Himself accepts the form of a devotee to relish and taste it fully.

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

1
Although Kṛṣṇa is the reservoir of all pleasure, He accepts the form of a devotee to taste Himself.
2
The transcendental mellow of conjugal love of Kṛṣṇa is so wonderful that He wishes to relish it fully. Although Lord Caitanya appears as a devotee, He is Kṛṣṇa Himself.
3
Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa assumed oneness in the form of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Key points from the purport

Although Kṛṣṇa is the reservoir of all pleasure, He has a special intention to taste Himself by accepting the form of a devotee.
It is to be concluded that although Lord Caitanya is present in the form of a devotee, He is Kṛṣṇa Himself.
And as Śrī Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī has said, caitanyākhyaṁ prakaṭam adhunā tad-dvayaṁ caikyam āptam: Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa assumed oneness in the form of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

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

Collective delight. The Pañca-tattva gives divine love a relational and communal form.

The mood of Ādi 7 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Learn the words of the verse.

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

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: “mellow”, “conjugal”
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 of krsna”
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”

Concept links are an editorial study map; only the verse is the text itself.

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

How does Kṛṣṇa’s wish to taste love as a devotee deepen your appreciation of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu?

Pause over the statement that Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are combined in Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and read it slowly twice.

Study points are short summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport on Vedabase.