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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

1Say the verse. Read the transliteration aloud, slowly.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each word and its meaning.
3Read the translation. Ask: what is happening here, and who is it about?
4Read the purport slowly. Read it twice. Don't rush.
5See Lord Caitanya as Kṛṣṇa. Remember who is acting in the pastime.
6Take one thing into your day. Note one point and one practice.

Read the full guide: how to read Caitanya Caritamrta ›

Madhya-līlā · Chapter 21: The Opulence and Sweetness of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa

Madhya 21.106 Madhya 21.108

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 21.107

চড়ি’ গোপী-মনোরথে, মন্মথের মন মথে,

নাম ধরে ‘মদনমোহন’ ।

জিনি’ পঞ্চশর-দর্প, স্বয়ং নবকন্দর্প,

রাস করে লঞা গোপীগণ ॥ ১০৭ ॥

caḍi’ gopī-manorathe, manmathera mana mathe,

nāma dhare ‘madana-mohana’

jini’ pañcaśara-darpa, svayaṁ nava-kandarpa,

rāsa kare lañā gopī-gaṇa

Translation

“Favoring the gopīs, Kṛṣṇa rides on the chariots of their minds, and just to receive loving service from them, He attracts their minds like Cupid. Therefore He is also called Madana-mohana, the attractor of Cupid. Cupid has five arrows, representing form, taste, smell, sound and touch. Kṛṣṇa is the owner of these five arrows, and with His Cupid-like beauty He conquers the minds of the gopīs, though they are very proud of their superexcellent beauty. Becoming a new Cupid, Kṛṣṇa attracts their minds and engages in the rāsa dance.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa Attracts the Gopīs’ Loving Service

1
Favoring the gopīs, Kṛṣṇa rides on the chariots of their minds. He attracts their minds to receive loving service from them.
2
He is called Madana-mohana, the attractor of Cupid. He owns Cupid’s five arrows: form, taste, smell, sound and touch.
3
Though the gopīs are very proud of their superexcellent beauty, Kṛṣṇa conquers their minds with His Cupid-like beauty. Attracting them as a new Cupid, He engages in the rāsa dance.

How it feels

Awe becoming attraction. The Lord’s vast opulence is placed beside the intimate sweetness of Kṛṣṇa.

The mood of Madhya 21 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Madhya 21: The Opulence and Sweetness of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa

From Śrīla Prabhupāda's chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

In this chapter the author of the Caitanya-caritāmṛta has presented some nice poems about the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa’s superexcellent beauty. Throughout the rest of the chapter, our intimate relationship ( sambandha ) with Kṛṣṇa is described.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in Madhya 21

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

caḍi’riding
gopī-manaḥ-ratheon the chariots of the minds of the gopīs
manmatheraof Cupid
manathe mind
mathechurns
nāmathe name
dhareaccepts
madana-mohanaMadana-mohana, the deluder of Cupid

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

Bhāva & rasa · The language of sacred feeling
Transcendental devotional moods and relationships, discussed explicitly in Rāmānanda’s dialogue and the teachings on prema. · In the Prema Atlas
In this verse: “rāsa”
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: “gopīs”
Kṛpā & transformation · Mercy changes a life
Transformative encounters with grace, from scholars and travelers to renunciants and householders. · In the Prema Atlas
In this verse: “favoring”

Concept links are an editorial study map; only the verse is the text itself.

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What stands out to you about Kṛṣṇa attracting the gopīs in order to receive their loving service?

Practice

Write down the name Madana-mohana and its meaning, then reflect briefly on the loving service described here.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa Attracts the Gopīs’ Loving ServiceThis 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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