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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 14: Performance of the Vṛndāvana Pastimes
Madhya 14.188Madhya 14.190

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 14.189

পুরঃ কৃষ্ণালোকাৎ স্থগিতকুটিলাস্যা গতিরভূৎ

তিরশ্চীনং কৃষ্ণাম্বরদরবৃতং শ্রীমুখমপি ।

চলত্তারং স্ফারং নয়নযুগমাভুগ্নমিতি সা

বিলাসাখ্য-স্বালঙ্করণবলিতাসীৎ প্রিয়মুদে ॥ ১৮৯ ॥

puraḥ kṛṣṇālokāt sthagita-kuṭilāsyā gatir abhūt

tiraścīnaṁ kṛṣṇāmbara-dara-vṛtaṁ śrī-mukham api

calat-tāraṁ sphāraṁ nayana-yugam ābhugnam iti sā

vilāsākhya-svālaṅkaraṇa-valitāsīt priya-mude

Translation

“ ‘When Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī saw Lord Kṛṣṇa just before Her, Her progress stopped and She assumed an attitude of opposition. Although Her face was slightly covered by a blue garment, Her two starry eyes were agitated, being wide and curved. Thus She was decorated with the ornaments of vilāsa, and Her beauty increased to give pleasure to Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.’

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Rādhārāṇī’s Vilāsa Gives Kṛṣṇa Pleasure

  1. 1

    Seeing Lord Kṛṣṇa just before Her, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī stopped and assumed an attitude of opposition.

  2. 2

    Her face was slightly covered by a blue garment. Her starry eyes were agitated, wide and curved.

  3. 3

    These ornaments of vilāsa increased Her beauty to give pleasure to Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

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:

When Lord Jagannātha was seated at Sundarācala, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu saw it as Vṛndāvana. He performed sporting pastimes in the water of the lake known as Indradyumna.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 14
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. puraḥin front of Her
  2. kṛṣṇa-ālokātby seeing Lord Kṛṣṇa
  3. sthagita-kuṭilāstopped and assumed an attitude of crookedness
  4. asyāḥof Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī
  5. gatiḥthe progress
  6. abhūtbecame
  7. tiraścīnambeing crooked
  8. kṛṣṇa-ambaraby a blue cloth
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”

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

Whose pleasure is served by the increase in Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s beauty?

Practice

Reread the final sentence and pause over the words “to give pleasure to Śrī Kṛṣṇa.”

Live this todayRādhārāṇī’s Vilāsa Gives Kṛṣṇa PleasureThis 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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