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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 20.135

পূর্বদিকে তাতে মাটী অল্প খুদিতে ।

ধনের ঝারি পড়িবেক তোমার হাতেতে ॥ ১৩৫ ॥

pūrva-dike tāte māṭī alpa khudite

dhanera jhāri paḍibeka tomāra hātete

Translation

“ ‘However, if you dig up a small quantity of dirt on the eastern side, your hands will immediately touch the pot of treasure.’

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Bhakti-yoga Opens the Hidden Treasure

  1. 1

    The Vedic literatures describe different processes according to the conditioned soul's position: karma-kāṇḍa, jñāna-kāṇḍa, yoga and bhakti-yoga.

  2. 2

    Karma-kāṇḍa is compared to biting wasps and drones, and speculative knowledge to a disturbing ghost. Mystic yoga is compared to a black snake that devours through the impersonal cultivation of kaivalya.

  3. 3

    Taking to bhakti-yoga brings quick success. Like digging a little on the eastern side, it allows one's hands to touch the hidden treasure without difficulty.

Key points from the purport
  • The Vedic literatures, including the Purāṇas, state that according to the position of the conditioned soul, there are different processes — karma-kāṇḍa, jñāna-kāṇḍa, the yogic process and the bhakti-yoga process.
  • However, if one takes to bhakti-yoga, he becomes quickly successful.
  • In other words, through bhakti-yoga, one’s hands touch the hidden treasure without difficulty.

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

Humility and restored identity. A seeker relinquishes status, asks fundamental questions, and receives sambandha knowledge.

The mood of Madhya 20 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 20: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Instructs Sanātana Gosvāmī in the Science of the Absolute Truth

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

Sanātana Gosvāmī, however, asked his servant how much money he had, and taking seven of the gold coins, Sanātana offered them to the hotel owner. Thus the owner helped them cross the hilly tract and proceed toward Vārāṇasī.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 20
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. pūrva-dikeon the eastern side
  2. tātethere
  3. māṭīthe dirt
  4. alpasmall quantity
  5. khuditedigging
  6. dhaneraof the treasure
  7. jhārithe pot
  8. paḍibekayou will get
  9. tomārayour
  10. hātetein the hands
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does this comparison encourage me to take up bhakti-yoga?

Practice

Set aside a few minutes today for devotional service rather than merely speculating about spiritual life.

4

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

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

1 lecture given on it. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Live this todayBhakti-yoga Opens the Hidden TreasureThis 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 20.135? Get an answer from the verses themselves.