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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 20: The Śikṣāṣṭaka Prayers
Antya 20.35Antya 20.37

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Antya 20.36

নয়নং গলদশ্রুধারয়া, বদনং গদ্গদ-রুদ্ধয়া গিরা ।

পুলকৈর্নিচিতং বপুঃ কদা তব নাম-গ্রহণে ভবিষ্যতি ॥ ৩৬ ॥

nayanaṁ galad-aśru-dhārayā

vadanaṁ gadgada-ruddhayā girā

pulakair nicitaṁ vapuḥ kadā

tava nāma-grahaṇe bhaviṣyati

Translation

“ ‘My dear Lord, when will My eyes be beautified by filling with tears that constantly glide down as I chant Your holy name? When will My voice falter and all the hairs on My body stand erect in transcendental happiness as I chant Your holy name?’

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.

Longing to Chant in Ecstatic Love

  1. 1

    The prayer longs for eyes beautified by tears flowing while chanting the holy name.

  2. 2

    A faltering voice and hairs standing erect are described as expressions of transcendental happiness.

  3. 3

    The repeated question “When?” expresses eagerness to chant the Lord’s holy name in ecstatic love.

How it feels

Unconditional devotion. Eight prayers move from cleansing the heart to love that endures even without reciprocation.

The mood of Antya 20 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Antya 20: The Śikṣāṣṭaka Prayers

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

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu passed His nights tasting the meaning of the Śikṣāṣṭaka prayers in the company of Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī and Rāmānanda Rāya. Sometimes He recited verses from Jayadeva Gosvāmī’s Gīta-govinda, from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, from Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya’s Jagannātha-vallabha-nāṭaka or from Śrī Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhākura’s Kṛṣṇa-karṇāmṛta.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Antya 20
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. nayanamthe eyes
  2. galat-aśru-dhārayāby streams of tears running down
  3. vadanammouth
  4. gadgadafaltering
  5. ruddhayāchoked up
  6. girāwith words
  7. pulakaiḥwith erection of the hairs due to transcendental happiness
  8. nicitamcovered
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Why this verse matters

    The sixth prayer: longing for deeply felt devotion during the chanting of the name.

  • 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: “chant”, “holy name”, “chanting”

  • Prema · Love of Godhead

    The culminating devotional purpose that unites the narration: bestowed, cultivated, taught, celebrated, and tasted. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “ecstatic love”

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

What does this prayer teach you about the love sought through chanting?

Practice

Read this prayer slowly before chanting the holy name today.

5

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

Quoted in 2 lectures. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Quoted in 2 lectures

In each of these he quotes this verse while speaking on another verse or subject. "Find the quote" opens the transcript at that spot.

Live this todayLonging to Chant in Ecstatic LoveThis 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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