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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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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 20.255Madhya 20.257

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 20.256

অহঙ্কারের অধিষ্ঠাতা কৃষ্ণের ইচ্ছায় ।

গোলোক, বৈকুণ্ঠ সৃজে চিচ্ছক্তিদ্বারায় ॥ ২৫৬ ॥

ahaṅkārera adhiṣṭhātā kṛṣṇera icchāya

goloka, vaikuṇṭha sṛje cic-chakti-dvārāya

Translation

“That original Saṅkarṣaṇa [Lord Balarāma] is the cause of both the material and the spiritual creation. He is the predominating Deity of egotism, and by the will of Kṛṣṇa and the power of the spiritual energy, He creates the spiritual world, which consists of the planet Goloka Vṛndāvana and the Vaikuṇṭha planets.

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.

Saṅkarṣaṇa Creates by Kṛṣṇa’s Will

  1. 1

    The original Saṅkarṣaṇa, Lord Balarāma, is the cause of both the material and the spiritual creation.

  2. 2

    He is the predominating Deity of egotism. By Kṛṣṇa’s will and the power of the spiritual energy, He creates the spiritual world.

  3. 3

    The spiritual world consists of the planet Goloka Vṛndāvana and the Vaikuṇṭha planets.

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:

He also described the incarnations of God within the material world, incarnations such as the puruṣa-avatāras, manvantara-avatāras, guṇa-avatāras and śaktyāveśa-avatāras. The Lord also discussed the divisions of Kṛṣṇa’s different ages, such as bālya and paugaṇḍa, and the different pastimes of the different ages.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 20
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. ahaṅkāreraof egotism
  2. adhiṣṭhātāthe source, or predominating Deity
  3. kṛṣṇeraof Lord Kṛṣṇa
  4. icchāyaby the will
  5. golokathe supreme spiritual planet, known as Goloka
  6. vaikuṇṭhaother, lower planets, known as Vaikuṇṭhas
  7. sṛjecreates
  8. cit-śakti-dvārāyaby the spiritual energy
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: “vṛndāvana”

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

How does this verse connect Saṅkarṣaṇa’s creative role with Kṛṣṇa’s will?

Practice

Write one sentence naming the will and the energy by which Saṅkarṣaṇa creates the spiritual world.

5

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 todaySaṅkarṣaṇa Creates by Kṛṣṇa’s WillThis 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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