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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 20.221Madhya 20.223

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 20.222

দক্ষিণাধো হস্ত হৈতে বামাধঃ পর্যন্ত ।

চক্রাদি অস্ত্রধারণ-গণনার অন্ত ॥ ২২২ ॥

dakṣiṇādho hasta haite vāmādhaḥ paryanta

cakrādi astra-dhāraṇa-gaṇanāra anta

Translation

“The procedure for counting begins with the lower right hand and goes to the upper right hand, the upper left hand, and the lower left hand. Lord Viṣṇu is named according to the order of the weapons He holds in His hands.

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.

The Order of Lord Viṣṇu’s Weapons

  1. 1

    The counting begins with the lower right hand and then moves to the upper right hand.

  2. 2

    It continues to the upper left hand and ends with the lower left hand.

  3. 3

    Lord Viṣṇu is named according to the order of the weapons He holds.

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:

Caitanya Mahāprabhu called him in and ordered him to change his dress so that he would look like a gentleman. For his garment, he used an old cloth of Tapana Miśra’s.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 20
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. dakṣiṇa-adhaḥthe lower right
  2. hastahand
  3. haitefrom
  4. vāma-adhaḥthe lower left hand
  5. paryantaup to
  6. cakra-ādibeginning with the disc
  7. astra-dhāraṇaof holding the weapons
  8. gaṇanāraof counting
  9. antathe end
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How can learning this counting order help me distinguish Lord Viṣṇu’s forms?

Practice

Write the four hand positions in order and read them aloud once.

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 todayThe Order of Lord Viṣṇu’s WeaponsThis 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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