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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 1.198

মোর কর্ম, মোর হাতে-গলায় বান্ধিয়া ।

কু-বিষয়-বিষ্ঠা-গর্তে দিয়াছে ফেলাইয়া ॥ ১৯৮ ॥

mora karma, mora hāte-galāya bāndhiyā

ku-viṣaya-viṣṭhā-garte diyāche phelāiyā

Translation

The two brothers, Sākara Mallika and Dabira Khāsa, very humbly submitted that due to their abominable activities they were now bound by the neck and hands and had been thrown into a ditch filled with abominable, stoollike objects of material sense enjoyment.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Devotional Service Frees Us From Material Entanglement

  1. 1

    The brothers humbly describe themselves as bound and thrown into a filthy ditch of material sense enjoyment. Sense gratification entangles us in the laws of material nature.

  2. 2

    Sense enjoyment through pious activity is called su-viṣaya, while enjoyment under sinful conditions is called ku-viṣaya. Both are material activities and are to be avoided.

  3. 3

    Freedom from both comes through transcendental loving service to Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Devotional service is free from the contamination of material qualities.

Key points from the purport
  • Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has explained ku-viṣaya garta as follows: “Because of the activities of the senses, we become subjected to many sense gratificatory processes and are thus entangled by the laws of material nature.
  • When the sense gratificatory activities are performed under sinful conditions, they are called ku-viṣaya, bad sense enjoyment.
  • In either case, either ku-viṣaya or su-viṣaya, these are material activities.

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:

Because he wrote that verse, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī was specifically blessed by the Lord. There is also a description of the many books written by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī and Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 1
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. moraour
  2. karmaactivities
  3. moraour
  4. hāteon the hand
  5. galāyaon the neck
  6. bāndhiyābinding
  7. ku-viṣayaof abominable objects of sense gratification
  8. viṣṭhāof the stool
  9. gartein the ditch
  10. diyāche phelāiyāhave been thrown
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”

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

Am I seeking merely better material enjoyment, or freedom through loving service to Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Set aside a few minutes normally spent on sense enjoyment and use them to offer a sincere prayer of service to Kṛṣṇa.

Live this todayDevotional Service Frees Us From Material EntanglementThis 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 Madhya 1.198? Get an answer from the verses themselves.