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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 20.343Madhya 20.345

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 20.344

কলের্দোষনিধে রাজন্নস্তি হ্যেকো মহান্ গুণঃ ।

কীর্তনাদেব কৃষ্ণস্য মুক্তবন্ধঃ পরং ব্ৰজেৎ ॥ ৩৪৪ ॥

kaler doṣa-nidhe rājann

asti hy eko mahān guṇaḥ

kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya

mukta-bandhaḥ paraṁ vrajet

Translation

“ ‘My dear King, although Kali-yuga is full of faults, there is still one good quality about this age. It is that simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, one can become free from material bondage and be promoted to the transcendental kingdom.’

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kali-yuga’s Good Quality: Freedom Through Chanting

  1. 1

    Although Kali-yuga is full of faults, it has one good quality.

  2. 2

    Simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, one can become free from material bondage.

  3. 3

    Through this chanting, one can be promoted to the transcendental kingdom.

Connected verses· 1

The purport of CC Madhya 20.344 quotesSB 12.3.51

As mentioned above, this verse is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 12.3.51.

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

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. kaleḥof the Age of Kali
  2. doṣa-nidhein the ocean of faults
  3. rājanO King
  4. astithere is
  5. hicertainly
  6. ekaḥone
  7. mahānvery great
  8. guṇaḥgood quality
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Nāma-saṅkīrtana · The holy name shared together

    Chanting the holy names as the yuga-dharma, the Lord’s public movement, and the opening prayer of Śikṣāṣṭaka. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “chanting”

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

What hope does this good quality of Kali-yuga offer you?

Practice

Chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra today, remembering its power to free one from material bondage.

5

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

1 lecture given on it · quoted in 1 more lecture. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Quoted in 1 other lecture

In each of these he quotes this verse while speaking on another verse or subject. "Find the quote" opens the transcript at that spot.

Live this todayKali-yuga’s Good Quality: Freedom Through ChantingThis 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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