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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
  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 ›
Antya-līlā · Chapter 17: The Bodily Transformations of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu
Antya 17.15Antya 17.17

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Antya 17.16

পেটের ভিতর হস্ত-পদ — কূর্মের আকার ।

মুখে ফেন, পুলকাঙ্গ, নেত্রে অশ্রুধার ॥ ১৬ ॥

peṭera bhitara hasta-pada — kūrmera ākāra

mukhe phena, pulakāṅga, netre aśru-dhāra

Translation

His arms and legs had entered the trunk of His body, exactly like those of a tortoise. His mouth was foaming, there were eruptions on His body, and tears flowed from His eyes.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

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

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Extraordinary Bodily Signs of Ecstasy

  1. 1

    Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s arms and legs had entered the trunk of His body, exactly like those of a tortoise.

  2. 2

    His mouth was foaming, and there were eruptions on His body.

  3. 3

    Tears flowed from His eyes as He lay unconscious among the cows, following His departure in great ecstasy.

How it feels

Inconceivable ecstatic absorption. The Lord’s overwhelming love manifests extraordinary bodily changes.

The mood of Antya 17 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Antya 17: The Bodily Transformations of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu

Śrīla Prabhupāda's summary of this chapter:

Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura gives the following summary of the seventeenth chapter in his Amṛta-pravāha-bhāṣya. Absorbed in transcendental ecstasy, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu went out one night without opening the doors to His room. After crossing over three walls, He fell down among some cows belonging to the district of Tailaṅga. There He remained unconscious, assuming the aspect of a tortoise.
Back to this verse in Antya 17
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. peṭerathe abdomen
  2. bhitarawithin
  3. hasta-padathe arms and legs
  4. kūrmera ākārajust like a tortoise
  5. mukhein the mouth
  6. phenafoam
  7. pulaka-aṅgaeruptions on the body
  8. netrein the eyes
  9. aśru-dhāraa flow of tears
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does this detailed description affect your understanding of the Lord’s extraordinary ecstasy?

Practice

Reread the description respectfully, keeping in mind His longing to see Lord Kṛṣṇa.

Live this todayExtraordinary Bodily Signs of EcstasyThis 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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