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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 20.322Madhya 20.324

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 20.323

অনন্ত ব্রহ্মাণ্ডে ঐছে করহ গণন ।

মহাবিষ্ণু একশ্বাসে ব্রহ্মার জীবন ॥ ৩২৩ ॥

ananta brahmāṇḍe aiche karaha gaṇana

mahā-viṣṇu eka-śvāse brahmāra jīvana

Translation

“The number of manvantara-avatāras for only one universe has been given. One can only imagine how many manvantara-avatāras exist in the innumerable universes. And all these universes and Brahmās exist only during one exhalation of Mahā-Viṣṇu.

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.

Innumerable Universes Within One Exhalation

  1. 1

    The number of manvantara-avatāras given applies to only one universe.

  2. 2

    The universes are innumerable. One can only imagine how many manvantara-avatāras exist within them.

  3. 3

    All these universes and Brahmās exist only during one exhalation of Mahā-Viṣṇu.

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. ananta brahmāṇḍein innumerable universes
  2. aichein that way
  3. karaha gaṇanajust try to count
  4. mahā-viṣṇuLord Mahā-Viṣṇu
  5. eka-śvāseby one exhalation
  6. brahmāra jīvanathe duration of life of one Brahmā
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What happens to your sense of scale when you consider innumerable universes within one exhalation of Mahā-Viṣṇu?

Practice

Pause for a moment over the final sentence, reflecting on all these universes existing during one exhalation of Mahā-Viṣṇu.

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 todayInnumerable Universes Within One ExhalationThis 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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