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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 20.267Madhya 20.269

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 20.268

সেই পুরুষ বিরজাতে করেন শয়ন ।

‘কারণাব্ধিশায়ী’ নাম জগৎকারণ ॥ ২৬৮ ॥

sei puruṣa virajāte karena śayana

‘kāraṇābdhiśāyī’ nāma jagat-kāraṇa

Translation

“That original Personality of Godhead, named Saṅkarṣaṇa, first lies down in the river Virajā, which serves as a border between the material and the spiritual world. As Kāraṇābdhiśāyī Viṣṇu, He is the original cause of the material creation.

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 Original Cause Lies in the Virajā

  1. 1

    The original Personality of Godhead, named Saṅkarṣaṇa, first lies down in the river Virajā.

  2. 2

    The Virajā serves as a border between the material and the spiritual world.

  3. 3

    As Kāraṇābdhiśāyī Viṣṇu, He is the original cause of the material creation.

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:

Thus the Lord described the many forms of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He also described the incarnations of God within the material world, incarnations such as the puruṣa-avatāras, manvantara-avatāras, guṇa-avatāras and śaktyāveśa-avatāras.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 20
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. sei puruṣathe Supreme Personality of Godhead
  2. virajāteon the border known as Virajā
  3. karena śayanalies down
  4. kāraṇa-abdhi-śāyīKāraṇābdhiśāyī
  5. nāmanamed
  6. jagat-kāraṇais the original cause of material creation
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Sevā · Love translated into service

    Devotional service expressed through cleansing, caring, teaching, honoring others, and living as Kṛṣṇa’s servant. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “serves”

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 with the original cause of material creation?

Practice

Write one sentence connecting Saṅkarṣaṇa, the Virajā, and Kāraṇābdhiśāyī Viṣṇu.

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 todayThe Original Cause Lies in the VirajāThis 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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