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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 8.25

তদশ্মসারং হৃদয়ং বতেদং

যদ্‌গৃহ্যমাণৈর্হরিনামধেয়ৈঃ ।

ন বিক্রিয়েতাথ যদা বিকারো

নেত্রে জলং গাত্ররুহেষু হর্ষঃ ॥ ২৫ ॥

tad aśma-sāraṁ hṛdayaṁ batedaṁ

yad gṛhyamāṇair hari-nāma-dheyaiḥ

na vikriyetātha yadā vikāro

netre jalaṁ gātra-ruheṣu harṣaḥ

Translation

“If one’s heart does not change, tears do not flow from his eyes, his body does not shiver, and his bodily hairs do not stand on end as he chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, it should be understood that his heart is as hard as iron. This is due to his offenses at the lotus feet of the Lord’s holy name.”

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Real Change Appears in Our Activities

  1. 1

    Offenses to the Lord’s holy name keep the heart hard even while one chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra.

  2. 2

    A very advanced devotee may not show tears, while a beginner may display them artificially. Outward symptoms alone do not show spiritual advancement.

  3. 3

    The real test of a changed heart is detachment from material enjoyment. This change must appear in one’s actual activities.

Key points from the purport
  • Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, commenting on this verse, which is a quotation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.3.24), remarks that sometimes a mahā-bhāgavata, or very advanced devotee, does not manifest such transcendental symptoms as tears in the eyes, whereas sometimes a kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, a neophyte devotee, displays them artificially.
  • The test of the real change of heart that takes place when one chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra is that one becomes detached from material enjoyment.
  • If it is sometimes found that a kaniṣṭha-adhikārī (neophyte devotee) shows artificial tears in his eyes while chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra but is still completely attached to material things, his heart has not really changed.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Connected verses· 2

The purport of CC Ādi 8.25 quotesSB 2.3.24

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, commenting on this verse, which is a quotation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.3.24), remarks that sometimes a mahā-bhāgavata, or very advanced devotee, does not manifest such transcendental symptoms as tears in the eyes, whereas sometimes a kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, a neophyte devotee, displays them artificially.

The purport of CC Ādi 8.25 quotesSB 11.2.42

Bhaktiḥ pareśānubhavo viraktir anyatra ca. If one is actually advancing in spiritual life, he must become very much detached from material enjoyment.

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

How it feels

Vulnerability and obedience. Kavirāja writes by mercy and command rather than personal self-assertion.

The mood of Ādi 8 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Ādi 8: The Author Receives the Orders of Kṛṣṇa and Guru

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

In this chapter the glories of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Nityānanda are described, and it is also stated that one who commits offenses in chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra does not achieve love of Godhead, even after chanting for many years. In this connection, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura warns against artificial displays of the bodily symptoms called aṣṭa-sāttvika-vikāra.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Ādi 8
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. tatthat
  2. aśma-sāramas hard as iron
  3. hṛdayamheart
  4. bataO
  5. idamthis
  6. yatwhich
  7. gṛhyamāṇaiḥin spite of taking the chanting
  8. hari-nāma-dheyaiḥmeditating on the holy name of the Lord
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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: “chants”, “holy name”

  • Śaraṇāgati · Taking shelter

    Turning toward Kṛṣṇa through shelter, surrender, dependence on guru, and unconditional devotional fidelity. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “lotus feet”

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

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What changes in my daily activities show that I am becoming less attached to material enjoyment?

Practice

Today, notice one choice involving material enjoyment and consider whether it reflects a real change of heart.

Live this todayReal Change Appears in Our ActivitiesThis 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 8.25? Get an answer from the verses themselves.