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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

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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 14: Performance of the Vṛndāvana Pastimes
Madhya 14.180Madhya 14.182

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 14.181

বাষ্পব্যাকুলিতারুণাঞ্চলচলন্নেত্রং রসোল্লাসিতং

হেলোল্লাসচলাধরং কুটিলিতভ্রূযুগ্মমুদ্যৎস্মিতম্ ।

রাধায়াঃ কিলকিঞ্চিতাঞ্চিতমসৌ বীক্ষ্যাননং সঙ্গমা-

দানন্দং তমবাপ কোটিগুণিতং যোঽভূন্ন গীর্গোচরঃ ॥ ১৮১ ॥

bāṣpa-vyākulitāruṇāñcala-calan-netraṁ rasollāsitaṁ

helollāsa-calādharaṁ kuṭilita-bhrū-yugmam udyat-smitam

rādhāyāḥ kila-kiñcitāñcitam asau vīkṣyānanaṁ saṅgamād

ānandaṁ tam avāpa koṭi-guṇitaṁ yo ’bhūn na gīr-gocaraḥ

Translation

“ ‘Agitated by tears, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s eyes were tinged with red, just like the eastern horizon at sunrise. Her lips began to move with jubilation and lusty desire. Her eyebrows curved, and Her lotuslike face smiled mildly. Seeing Rādhārāṇī’s face exhibit such emotion, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa felt a million times happier than when He embraced Her. Indeed, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s happiness is not at all mundane.’”

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa’s Happiness Is Not Mundane

  1. 1

    Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s tear-agitated eyes were red like the eastern horizon at sunrise.

  2. 2

    Her lips moved with jubilation and lusty desire, Her eyebrows curved, and Her lotuslike face smiled mildly.

  3. 3

    Seeing these emotions made Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa a million times happier than embracing Her. His happiness is not at all mundane.

How it feels

Intimacy and ecstatic play. Mercy to Pratāparudra and discussion of the gopīs reveal deep relational sweetness.

The mood of Madhya 14 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 14: Performance of the Vṛndāvana Pastimes

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

Seeing this, Lord Caitanya began to push the car from behind with His head, and the car began moving. Then the devotees began pulling the car with ropes.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 14
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. bāṣpaby tears
  2. vyākulitaagitated
  3. aruṇa-añcalawith a reddish tinge
  4. calanmoving
  5. netrameyes
  6. rasa-ullāsitambecause of being agitated by transcendental mellows
  7. hela-ullāsabecause of neglectful jubilation
  8. cala-adharammoving lips
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Rādhā-bhāva · The confidential inner purpose

    The Lord’s desire to taste the love and perspective of Śrī Rādhā, illuminated by later ecstatic pastimes. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “rādhārāṇī’s”

  • Kṛpā & transformation · Mercy changes a life

    Transformative encounters with grace, from scholars and travelers to renunciants and householders. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “embraced”

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 the statement that Kṛṣṇa’s happiness is not mundane guide my reading of this description?

Practice

Pause over the final sentence and remind yourself that the happiness described is not mundane.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa’s Happiness Is Not MundaneThis 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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