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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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Antya-līlā · 20 chapters

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How to study this verse, in six steps

1Say the verse. Read the transliteration aloud, slowly.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each word and its meaning.
3Read the translation. Ask: what is happening here, and who is it about?
4Read the purport slowly. Read it twice. Don't rush.
5See Lord Caitanya as Kṛṣṇa. Remember who is acting in the pastime.
6Take one thing into your day. Note one point and one practice.

Read the full guide: how to read Caitanya Caritamrta ›

Antya-līlā · Chapter 16: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Tastes Nectar from the Lips of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa

Antya 16.142 Antya 16.144

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Antya 16.143

গোপীগণ, কহ সব করিয়া বিচারে ।

কোন্ তীর্থ, কোন্ তপ, কোন্ সিদ্ধমন্ত্র-জপ, এই বেণু কৈল জন্মান্তরে ? ১৪৩ ।। ধ্রু ।। ॥ ১৪৩ ॥

gopī-gaṇa, kaha saba kariyā vicāre

kon tīrtha, kon tapa, kon siddha-mantra-japa,

ei veṇu kaila janmāntare?

Translation

“ ‘My dear gopīs, fully consider how many pious activities this flute performed in his past life. We do not know what places of pilgrimage he visited, what austerities he performed, or what perfect mantra he chanted.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Wondering at the Flute’s Pious Activities

1
The gopīs urged one another to consider how many pious activities the flute must have performed in his past life.
2
They wondered what places of pilgrimage he had visited and what austerities he had performed.
3
They also wondered what perfect mantra he had chanted. They did not claim to know the answers.

How it feels

Sweetness amidst longing. Jagannātha’s prasādam awakens intense awareness of Kṛṣṇa’s sweetness.

The mood of Antya 16 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Antya 16: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Tastes Nectar from the Lips of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa

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

When Kavi-karṇapūra was only seven years old, he was initiated by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu into the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. He later became the greatest poet among the Vaiṣṇava ācāryas.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in Antya 16

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

gopī-gaṇaO gopīs
kahasay
sabaall
kariyā vicāreafter full consideration
konwhat
tīrthaholy places
konwhat
tapaausterities

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: “chanted”
Vraja-smaraṇa · Remembrance of Vṛndāvana
The remembered sweetness of Vraja that colors Mahāprabhu’s pilgrimage, Ratha-yātrā, and later states of separation. · In the Prema Atlas
In this verse: “gopīs”

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

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How do these unanswered questions express the gopīs’ wonder at the flute’s fortune?

Practice

List the three kinds of activity the gopīs wonder about, noting that the verse does not identify any specific one.

Live this todayWondering at the Flute’s Pious 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.

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