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Study a Verse

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 18: Rescuing the Lord from the Sea

Antya 18.94 Antya 18.96

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Antya 18.95

চক্রবাক-মণ্ডল, পৃথক্ পৃথক্ যুগল, জল হৈতে করিল উদ্গম ।

উঠিল পদ্মমণ্ডল, পৃথক্ পৃথক্ যুগল, চক্রবাকে কৈল আচ্ছাদন ॥ ৯৫ ॥

cakravāka-maṇḍala, pṛthak pṛthak yugala,

jala haite karila udgama

uṭhila padma-maṇḍala, pṛthak pṛthak yugala,

cakravāke kaila ācchādana

Translation

“When the raised breasts of the gopīs, which resembled the globelike bodies of cakravāka birds, emerged from the water in separate couples, the bluish lotuses of Kṛṣṇa’s hands rose to cover them.

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.

Kṛṣṇa’s Hands Are Compared to Blue Lotuses

1
The gopīs’ breasts emerged from the water in pairs.
2
They are compared to the rounded bodies of cakravāka birds.
3
Kṛṣṇa’s hands, compared to bluish lotuses, rose to cover them.

How it feels

Desperate longing and relief. Mistaking the sea for Yamunā, the Lord enters it; devotees find and revive Him.

The mood of Antya 18 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Antya 18: Rescuing the Lord from the Sea

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

Mistaking the sea for the Yamunā River, He jumped into it, hoping to see the water pastimes Kṛṣṇa enjoyed with Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and the other gopīs. As He floated in the sea, however, He was washed away to the Koṇārka temple, where a fisherman, thinking that the Lord’s body was a big fish, caught Him in his net and brought Him ashore.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in Antya 18

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

cakravāka-maṇḍalathe globes of cakravāka birds
pṛthak pṛthakseparate
yugalacouples
jala haitefrom the water
karilamade
udgamaappearance
uṭhilaarose
padma-maṇḍalathe circle of lotus flowers

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

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”, “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 the bird and lotus comparisons shape the description of this water play?

Practice

Write down the two comparisons in this verse and what each describes.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa’s Hands Are Compared to Blue LotusesThis 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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