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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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Madhya-līlā · 25 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 ›
Madhya-līlā · Chapter 13: The Ecstatic Dancing of the Lord at Ratha-yātrā
Madhya 13.120Madhya 13.122

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 13.121

যঃ কৌমারহরঃ স এব হি বরস্তা এব চৈত্রক্ষপা-

স্তে চোন্মীলিতমালতীসুরভয়ঃ প্রৌঢ়াঃ কদম্বানিলাঃ ।

সা চৈবাস্মি তথাপি তত্র সুরতব্যাপারলীলাবিধৌ

রেবা-রোধসি বেতসীতরুতলে চেতঃ সমুৎকণ্ঠতে ॥ ১২১ ॥

yaḥ kaumāra-haraḥ sa eva hi varas tā eva caitra-kṣapās

te conmīlita-mālatī-surabhayaḥ prauḍhāḥ kadambānilāḥ

sā caivāsmi tathāpi tatra surata-vyāpāra-līlā-vidhau

revā-rodhasi vetasī-taru-tale cetaḥ samutkaṇṭhate

Translation

“ ‘That very personality who stole away my heart during my youth is now again my master. These are the same moonlit nights of the month of Caitra. The same fragrance of mālatī flowers is there, and the same sweet breezes are blowing from the kadamba forest. In our intimate relationship, I am also the same lover, yet still my mind is not happy here. I am eager to go back to that place on the bank of the Revā under the Vetasī tree. That is my desire.’”

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Heart Longs for That Place

  1. 1

    The personality who stole away the speaker’s heart during youth is again the speaker’s master.

  2. 2

    The moonlit nights, fragrance of mālatī flowers, and sweet breezes from the kadamba forest are the same. Yet the speaker’s mind is not happy here.

  3. 3

    The speaker longs to return to the bank of the Revā under the Vetasī tree.

How it feels

Public ecstasy with inward longing. The festival’s collective joy carries the profound Vraja mood of meeting and separation.

The mood of Madhya 13 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 13: The Ecstatic Dancing of the Lord at Ratha-yātrā

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

When the cars reached the place known as Balagaṇḍi, the devotees offered the deities simple food. At this time, in a nearby garden, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His devotees took a brief rest from the dancing.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 13
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. yaḥthat same person who
  2. kaumāra-haraḥthe thief of my heart during youth
  3. saḥhe
  4. eva hicertainly
  5. varaḥlover
  6. tāḥthese
  7. evacertainly
  8. caitra-kṣapāḥmoonlit nights of the month of Caitra
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Why this verse matters

    A poetic expression of the desire to return to the former place of intimate association, used within the Ratha-yātrā narration.

  • 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: “lover”

  • Bhāva & rasa · The language of sacred feeling

    Transcendental devotional moods and relationships, discussed explicitly in Rāmānanda’s dialogue and the teachings on prema. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “relationship”

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 longing reveal about the difference between familiar surroundings and the heart’s satisfaction?

Practice

Reread the verse slowly, noticing what remains the same and what the speaker still desires.

Live this todayThe Heart Longs for That PlaceThis 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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