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Read one verse of Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta with its Bengali, transliteration, word meanings, translation and study points.
Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 20.373
জ্ঞানশক্ত্যাদিকলয়া যত্রাবিষ্টো জনার্দনঃ ।
ত আবেশা নিগদ্যন্তে জীবা এব মহত্তমাঃ ॥ ৩৭৩ ॥
jñāna-śakty-ādi-kalayā
yatrāviṣṭo janārdanaḥ
ta āveśā nigadyante
jīvā eva mahattamāḥ
“ ‘Whenever the Lord is present in someone by portions of His various potencies, the living entity representing the Lord is called a śaktyāveśa-avatāra — that is, an incarnation invested with special power.’
Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.ioThree study points drawn from the translation and purport.
The Lord can be present in someone by portions of His various potencies.
The living entity representing the Lord in this way is called a śaktyāveśa-avatāra.
This means an incarnation invested with special power. The purport identifies the quotation as coming from the Laghu-bhāgavatāmṛta.
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
From Śrīla Prabhupāda's chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:
First they discussed the constitutional position of the living entities, and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu explained to Sanātana Gosvāmī how the living entity is one of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s energies. After this, the Lord explained the way of devotional service.Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 20
Learn the words of the verse.
Take one thing from this verse into your day.
How does the phrase “invested with special power” help you understand a śaktyāveśa-avatāra?
Write a one-sentence definition of śaktyāveśa-avatāra using the words “representing the Lord” and “special power.”
His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.
1 lecture given on it. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.
Study points are short summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport on Vedabase.
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