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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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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 19: The Inconceivable Behavior of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu
Antya 19.97Antya 19.99

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Antya 19.98

মদনমোহন-নাট, পসারি গন্ধের হাট, জগন্নারী-গ্রাহকে লোভায় ।

বিনা-মূল্যে দেয় গন্ধ, গন্ধ দিয়া করে অন্ধ, ঘর যাইতে পথ নাহি পায় ।।” ৯৮ ।। ॥ ৯৮ ॥

madana-mohana-nāṭa, pasāri gandhera hāṭa,

jagan-nārī-grāhake lobhāya

vinā-mūlye deya gandha, gandha diyā kare andha,

ghara yāite patha nāhi pāya”

Translation

“The dramatic actor Madana-mohana has opened a shop of scents that attract the women of the world to be His customers. He delivers the scents freely, but they make the women all so blind they cannot find the path returning home.”

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.

Madana-mohana Freely Gives His Captivating Fragrance

  1. 1

    Madana-mohana is pictured as a dramatic actor who has opened a shop of scents.

  2. 2

    His scents attract the women of the world, and He gives them freely.

  3. 3

    The fragrance so overwhelms the women that they cannot find their way home. The image conveys its captivating power.

How it feels

Longing beyond ordinary categories. Extreme separation alternates with moments of visionary encounter.

The mood of Antya 19 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Antya 19: The Inconceivable Behavior of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu

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

This chapter further describes how Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu entered the Jagannātha-vallabha garden during the full-moon night of Vaiśākha (April-May) and experienced various transcendental ecstasies. Overwhelmed with ecstatic love at suddenly seeing Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa beneath an aśoka tree, He exhibited various symptoms of spiritual madness.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Antya 19
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. madana-mohana-nāṭathe dramatic player Madana-mohana
  2. pasāria dealer
  3. gandhera hāṭain a market of scents
  4. jagat-nārīof the women of the whole world
  5. grāhaketo the customers
  6. lobhāyaattracts
  7. vinā-mūlyewithout a price
  8. deyadistributes
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Audārya · Love that moves outward

    The freely offered gift of bhakti and prema, especially through nāma-saṅkīrtana and Mahāprabhu’s compassionate dealings. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “freely”

  • Kṛpā & transformation · Mercy changes a life

    Transformative encounters with grace, from scholars and travelers to renunciants and householders. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “delivers”

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

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does the image of freely given scents help you understand Madana-mohana’s attraction?

Practice

Spend a minute reflecting on the words “He delivers the scents freely.”

Live this todayMadana-mohana Freely Gives His Captivating FragranceThis 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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