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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

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 19.162

‘প্রেমফল’ পাকি’ পড়ে, মালী আস্বাদয় ।

লতা অবলম্বি’ মালী ‘কল্পবৃক্ষ’ পায় ॥ ১৬২ ॥

‘prema-phala’ pāki’ paḍe, mālī āsvādaya

latā avalambi’ mālī ‘kalpa-vṛkṣa’ pāya

Translation

“When the fruit of devotional service becomes ripe and falls down, the gardener tastes the fruit and thus takes advantage of the creeper and reaches the desire tree of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa in Goloka Vṛndāvana.

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.

Taste the Ripened Fruit of Devotion

  1. 1

    The fruit of devotional service ripens and falls down.

  2. 2

    The gardener tastes this fruit and thus takes advantage of the devotional creeper.

  3. 3

    The gardener reaches the desire tree of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet in Goloka Vṛndāvana.

How it feels

Empowerment and hope. The seed of bhakti is received, planted, and watered; intimate realization becomes transmissible.

The mood of Madhya 19 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 19: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Instructs Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī

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

After this, a brāhmaṇa scholar named Raghupati Upādhyāya arrived and discussed Kṛṣṇa consciousness with the Lord. Kavirāja Gosvāmī then extensively describes the living condition of Śrī Rūpa and Sanātana at Vṛndāvana.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 19
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. prema-phalathe fruit of love of God
  2. pāki’becoming mature
  3. paḍefalls down
  4. mālīthe gardener
  5. āsvādayatastes
  6. latā avalambi’taking advantage of the growing bhakti-latā
  7. mālīthe gardener
  8. kalpa-vṛkṣa pāyareaches the desire tree in Goloka Vṛndāvana
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Śaraṇāgati · Taking shelter

    Turning toward Kṛṣṇa through shelter, surrender, dependence on guru, and unconditional devotional fidelity. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “lotus feet”

  • 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”

  • Vraja-smaraṇa · Remembrance of Vṛndāvana

    The remembered sweetness of Vraja that colors Mahāprabhu’s pilgrimage, Ratha-yātrā, and later states of separation. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “vṛndāvana”

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

Do I see reaching Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet as the goal of my devotional service?

Practice

Before one act of devotional service today, pause to remember its goal: shelter at Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet.

Live this todayTaste the Ripened Fruit of DevotionThis 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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