1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

Read one verse of Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta with its Bengali, transliteration, word meanings, translation and study points.

Or browse by līlā and chapter

Antya-līlā · 20 chapters

1234567891011121314151617181920
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 7: The Meeting of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Vallabha Bhaṭṭa
Antya 7.31Antya 7.33

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Antya 7.32

ইত্থং সতাং ব্রহ্মসুখানুভূত্যা দাস্যং গতানাং পরদৈবতেন ।

মায়াশ্রিতানাং নরদারকেণ সাকং বিজহ্রুঃ কৃতপুণ্যপুঞ্জাঃ ॥ ৩২ ॥

itthaṁ satāṁ brahma-sukhānubhūtyā

dāsyaṁ gatānāṁ para-daivatena

māyāśritānāṁ nara-dārakeṇa

sākaṁ vijahruḥ kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ

Translation

“ ‘Neither those who are engaged in self-realization, appreciating the Brahman effulgence of the Lord, nor those engaged in devotional service while accepting the Supreme Personality of Godhead as master, nor those who are under the clutches of Māyā, thinking the Lord an ordinary person, can understand that certain exalted personalities, after accumulating volumes of pious activities, are now playing with the Lord in friendship as cowherd boys.’

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Extraordinary Friendship of the Cowherd Boys

  1. 1

    Certain exalted personalities, after accumulating volumes of pious activities, play with the Lord in friendship as cowherd boys.

  2. 2

    Those appreciating the Lord’s Brahman effulgence and those serving Him as master cannot understand this friendship.

  3. 3

    Those under the clutches of Māyā, who think the Lord an ordinary person, also cannot understand it.

How it feels

Pride softened by grace. Humor and correction lead toward humility and a relationship of devotion.

The mood of Antya 7 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Antya 7: The Meeting of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Vallabha Bhaṭṭa

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

There was some joking behavior between these two personalities, and finally Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu corrected Vallabha Bhaṭṭa and sympathetically accepted an invitation from him. Before this, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu saw that Vallabha Bhaṭṭa was greatly attached to Gadādhara Paṇḍita.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Antya 7
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. itthamin this way
  2. satāmof persons who prefer the impersonal feature of the Lord
  3. brahmaof the impersonal effulgence
  4. sukhaby the happiness
  5. anubhūtyāwho is realized
  6. dāsyamthe mode of servitude
  7. gatānāmof those who have accepted
  8. para-daivatenawho is the supreme worshipable Deity
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Sevā · Love translated into service

    Devotional service expressed through cleansing, caring, teaching, honoring others, and living as Kṛṣṇa’s servant. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “service”, “serving”

  • 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: “cowherd”

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 this verse help you appreciate the cowherd boys’ friendship without treating the Lord as ordinary?

Practice

Pause over the phrase “playing with the Lord in friendship” and write one reason this friendship is extraordinary.

Live this todayThe Extraordinary Friendship of the Cowherd BoysThis 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.

Ask Caitanya CaritamrtaHave a question about CC Antya 7.32? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
  1. Learn
  2. Live
  3. Lead
Next in Learn · 5 of 9 · 2 minAsk Caitanya CaritamrtaBring your own question. Get an answer drawn only from the book's translations, with every verse shown.Back · LearnLīlās & chapters