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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 17.153

পূর্বে যেন ‘দক্ষিণ’ যাইতে লোক নিস্তারিলা ।

‘পশ্চিম’-দেশে তৈছে সব ‘বৈষ্ণব’ করিলা ॥ ১৫৩ ॥

pūrve yena ‘dakṣiṇa’ yāite loka nistārilā

‘paścima’-deśe taiche saba ‘vaiṣṇava’ karilā

Translation

When the Lord toured South India, He delivered many people, and when He traveled in the western sector, He similarly converted many people to Vaiṣṇavism.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Mercy Reaches Every Place

  1. 1

    Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu delivered many people during His travels in southern and western India, bringing them to Vaiṣṇavism.

  2. 2

    Similarly, the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement delivers people in the Western world wherever devotees chant the holy names. This is all done by the Lord’s mercy.

  3. 3

    Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu predicted that He would deliver people in every city and village of the world by giving them a chance to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra.

Key points from the purport
  • Formerly Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu converted people when He toured southern and western India.
  • Similarly, the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement is now delivering the people of the Western world wherever devotees are chanting the holy names.
  • Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu predicted that He would deliver people in every city and village of the world by giving them a chance to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra.

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

Wonder and contagious joy. Even forest animals chant; nature seems drawn into the saṅkīrtana movement.

The mood of Madhya 17 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 17: The Lord Travels to Vṛndāvana

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

Prakāśānanda made various accusations against the Lord. The Maharashtriyan brāhmaṇa was very sorry about this, and he brought the news to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, inquiring from Him why the Māyāvādī sannyāsīs did not utter the holy name of Kṛṣṇa.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 17
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Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. pūrveformerly
  2. yenaas
  3. dakṣiṇaSouth India
  4. yāitegoing to
  5. lokathe people
  6. nistārilāHe delivered
  7. paścima-deśein the western countries
  8. taichesimilarly
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Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • 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: “delivered”, “mercy”

  • Nāma-saṅkīrtana · The holy name shared together

    Chanting the holy names as the yuga-dharma, the Lord’s public movement, and the opening prayer of Śikṣāṣṭaka. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “chant”

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 seeing the spread of chanting as the Lord’s mercy shape your wish to share it?

Practice

Offer one willing person a chance to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra with you today.

Live this todayThe Lord’s Mercy Reaches Every 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.

Ask Caitanya CaritamrtaHave a question about CC Madhya 17.153? Get an answer from the verses themselves.