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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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Madhya-līlā · 25 chapters

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 ›

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 1.171

কেশব-ছত্রীরে রাজা বার্তা পুছিল ।

প্রভুর মহিমা ছত্রী উড়াইয়া দিল ॥ ১৭১ ॥

keśava-chatrīre rājā vārtā puchila

prabhura mahimā chatrī uḍāiyā dila

Translation

When the Muslim king asked his assistant, Keśava Chatrī, for news of the influence of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Keśava Chatrī, although knowing everything about Caitanya Mahāprabhu, tried to avoid the conversation by not giving any importance to Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s activities.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Careful Speech to Protect the Lord

  1. 1

    Keśava Chatrī knew about Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu but became diplomatic when the Muslim king questioned him.

  2. 2

    He feared that the king might become the Lord’s enemy.

  3. 3

    He gave no importance to the Lord’s activities so that the king would consider Him an ordinary man and not trouble Him.

Key points from the purport
  • Keśava Chatrī became a diplomat when questioned about Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
  • Although he knew everything about Him, he was afraid that the Muslim king might become His enemy.
  • He gave no importance to the Lord’s activities so that the Muslim king would take Him to be an ordinary man and would not give Him any trouble.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

How it feels

Anticipation and hidden longing. The author previews later pastimes, including the inner Vraja mood expressed at Ratha-yātrā.

The mood of Madhya 1 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 1: The Later Pastimes of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu

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

There is also a description of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s ecstasy that occurred when He recited the verse beginning yaḥ kaumāra-haraḥ, as well as a description of how that ecstasy was explained in the verse beginning priyaḥ so ’yaṁ kṛṣṇaḥ, by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī. Because he wrote that verse, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī was specifically blessed by the Lord.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 1
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Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. keśava-chatrīrefrom the person named Keśava Chatrī
  2. rājāthe king
  3. vārtānews
  4. puchilainquired
  5. prabhuraof the Lord
  6. mahimāglories
  7. chatrīKeśava Chatrī
  8. uḍāiyāattaching no importance
  9. dilagave
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Sādhu-saṅga · Love grows through association

    Spiritual association shapes the movement, empowers disciples, and reveals truths through loving conversations. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “conversation”

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 can concern for another’s safety make me more careful in speaking?

Practice

Before speaking about someone today, consider whether your words could bring them unnecessary trouble.

Live this todayCareful Speech to Protect the LordThis 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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