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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 19.210

পতিসুতান্বয়ভ্রাতৃবান্ধবা-

নতিবিলঙ্ঘ্য তেঽন্ত্যচ্যুতাগতাঃ ।

গতিবিদস্তবোদ্‌গীতমোহিতাঃ

কিতব যোষিতঃ কস্ত্যজেন্নিশি ॥ ২১০ ॥

pati-sutānvaya-bhrātṛ-bāndhavān

ativilaṅghya te ’nty acyutāgatāḥ

gati-vidas tavodgīta-mohitāḥ

kitava yoṣitaḥ kas tyajen niśi

Translation

“ ‘Dear Kṛṣṇa, we gopīs have neglected the order of our husbands, sons, family, brothers and friends and have left their company to come to You. You know everything about our desires. We have come only because we are attracted by the supreme music of Your flute. But You are a great cheater, for who else would give up the company of young girls like us in the dead of night?’

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa Tests the Gopīs’ Sincerity

  1. 1

    Attracted by Kṛṣṇa’s flute, the gopīs left the company of friends and relatives and went to the forest in the dead of night. They came for Kṛṣṇa’s enjoyment in the rāsa dance.

  2. 2

    Kṛṣṇa knew their desires but superficially tried to avoid them with so-called good instructions. Having first attracted them, He was addressed by them as kitava, a great cheater.

  3. 3

    The gopīs expressed great disappointment, and their lamentation was appropriate. In this way, Kṛṣṇa tested their sincerity.

Key points from the purport
  • He is therefore addressed by the gopīs as kitava, a great cheater, because He first attracted them to come dance with Him, and yet when they actually came, neglecting the orders of their friends and relatives, He tried to avoid them by giving them so-called good instructions.
  • These cunning instructions were too much for the gopīs to tolerate; they therefore had a right to address Kṛṣṇa as kitava, a great cheater.
  • The gopīs therefore expressed great disappointment in this verse.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Connected verses· 1

The purport of CC Madhya 19.210 quotesSB 10.31.16

This verse, quoted from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.31.16), describes how the gopīs went to the forest for Kṛṣṇa’s enjoyment in the dead of night.

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

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:

During this time, Vallabha Bhaṭṭa extended an invitation to the Lord with great respect. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu introduced Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī to Vallabha Bhaṭṭa.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 19
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Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. patihusbands
  2. sutasons
  3. anvayafamily
  4. bhrātṛbrothers
  5. bāndhavānfriends
  6. ativilaṅghyawithout caring for
  7. teYour
  8. antidear shelter
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Sādhu-saṅga · Love grows through association

    Spiritual association shapes the movement, empowers disciples, and reveals truths through loving conversations. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “company of”

  • 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: “gopīs”

  • 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: “rāsa”

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 in the gopīs’ words reveals the sincerity of their desire to be with Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Choose one sentence from the gopīs’ appeal and reflect for a minute on the longing it expresses.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa Tests the Gopīs’ SincerityThis 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 19.210? Get an answer from the verses themselves.