1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

Read one verse of Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta with its Bengali, transliteration, word meanings, translation and study points.

Or browse by līlā and chapter

Madhya-līlā · 25 chapters

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425
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 19: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Instructs Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī
Madhya 19.95Madhya 19.97

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 19.96

শ্রুতিমপরে স্মৃতিমিতরে ভারতমন্যে ভজন্তু ভবভীতাঃ ।

অহমিহ নন্দং বন্দে যস্যালিন্দে পরং ব্রহ্ম ॥ ৯৬ ॥

śrutim apare smṛtim itare bhāratam anye bhajantu bhava-bhītāḥ

aham iha nandaṁ vande yasyālinde paraṁ brahma

Translation

Raghupati Upādhyāya recited, “Those who are afraid of material existence worship the Vedic literature. Some worship smṛti, the corollaries to the Vedic literature, and others worship the Mahābhārata. As far as I am concerned, I worship Kṛṣṇa’s father, Mahārāja Nanda, in whose courtyard the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth, is playing.”

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Worshiping the Father of the Supreme Lord

  1. 1

    Raghupati Upādhyāya described those who, afraid of material existence, worship the Vedic literature. Some worship smṛti, its corollaries, and others worship the Mahābhārata.

  2. 2

    He himself worshiped Kṛṣṇa’s father, Mahārāja Nanda. In Nanda’s courtyard, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth, is playing.

  3. 3

    This verse was later included in Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Padyāvalī.

Key points from the purport
  • This verse recited by Raghupati Upādhyāya was later included in Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Padyāvalī (126).

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

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. śrutimVedic literature
  2. aparesomeone
  3. smṛtimcorollary to the Vedic literature
  4. itareothers
  5. bhāratamthe Mahābhārata
  6. anyestill others
  7. bhajantulet them worship
  8. bhava-bhītāḥthose who are afraid of material existence
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks 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: “nanda”

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 strikes you about the Absolute Truth playing in Mahārāja Nanda’s courtyard?

Practice

Spend a quiet minute remembering Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, playing in His father’s courtyard.

5

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

Quoted in 1 lecture. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Quoted in 1 lecture

In each of these he quotes this verse while speaking on another verse or subject. "Find the quote" opens the transcript at that spot.

Live this todayWorshiping the Father of the Supreme LordThis 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 19.96? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
  1. Learn
  2. Live
  3. Lead
Next in Learn · 5 of 9 · 2 minAsk Caitanya CaritamrtaBring your own question. Get an answer drawn only from the book's translations, with every verse shown.Back · LearnLīlās & chapters