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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

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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 20: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Instructs Sanātana Gosvāmī in the Science of the Absolute Truth
Madhya 20.159Madhya 20.161

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 20.160

যস্য প্রভা প্রভবতো জগদণ্ডকোটি-

কোটিষ্বশেষবসুধাদিবিভূতিভিন্নম্‌ ।

তদ্ব্রহ্ম নিষ্কলমনন্তমশেষভূতং

গোবিন্দমাদিপুরুষং তমহং ভজামি ॥ ১৬০ ॥

yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi-

koṭiṣv aśeṣa-vasudhādi-vibhūti-bhinnam

tad brahma niṣkalam anantam aśeṣa-bhūtaṁ

govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

Translation

“ ‘I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who is endowed with great power. The glowing effulgence of His transcendental form is the impersonal Brahman, which is absolute, complete and unlimited and which displays the varieties of countless planets, with their different opulences, in millions and millions of universes.’

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Govinda’s Effulgence Is Unlimited Brahman

  1. 1

    Govinda is worshiped as the primeval Lord, endowed with great power.

  2. 2

    The glowing effulgence of His transcendental form is the impersonal Brahman, which is absolute, complete and unlimited.

  3. 3

    This effulgence displays countless planets with different opulences in millions and millions of universes.

Key points from the purport
  • For an explanation, refer to Ādi-līlā, chapter two, verse 14.

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:

While discussing the Absolute Truth, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Lord analyzed Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān, as well as the expansions of the Lord called svayaṁ-rūpa, tad-ekātma and āveśa, which are divided into various branches known as vaibhava and prābhava. Thus the Lord described the many forms of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 20
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. yasyaof whom
  2. prabhāthe effulgence
  3. prabhavataḥof one who excels in power
  4. jagat-aṇḍaof universes
  5. koṭi-koṭiṣuin millions and millions
  6. aśeṣaunlimited
  7. vasudhā-ādiwith planets and other manifestations
  8. vibhūtiwith opulences
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does this description help you appreciate about Govinda’s greatness?

Practice

Pause today and thoughtfully repeat the words, “I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord.”

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 todayGovinda’s Effulgence Is Unlimited BrahmanThis 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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