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Study a Verse

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 21: The Opulence and Sweetness of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa
Madhya 21.123Madhya 21.125

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 21.124

অটতি যদ্ভবানহ্নি কাননং ক্রটির্যুগায়তে ত্বামপশ্যতাম্‌ ।

কুটিলকুন্তলং শ্রী মুখঞ্চ তে জড় উদীক্ষতাং পক্ষ্মকৃদ্‌দৃশাম্ ॥ ১২৪ ॥

aṭati yad bhavān ahni kānanaṁ

truṭir yugāyate tvām apaśyatām

kuṭila-kuntalaṁ śrī-mukhaṁ ca te

jaḍa udīkṣatāṁ pakṣma-kṛd dṛśām

Translation

“ ‘O Kṛṣṇa, when You go to the forest during the day and we do not see Your sweet face, which is surrounded by beautiful curly hair, half a second becomes as long as an entire age for us. And we consider the creator, who has put eyelids on the eyes we use for seeing You, to be simply a fool.’

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Separation Makes Half a Second an Age

  1. 1

    The gopīs speak to Kṛṣṇa about His going to the forest during the day.

  2. 2

    Without seeing His sweet face surrounded by beautiful curly hair, half a second seems as long as an entire age.

  3. 3

    They consider the creator a fool for placing eyelids on the eyes with which they see Kṛṣṇa.

Key points from the purport
  • This verse is spoken by the gopīs in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.31.15).

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Connected verses· 1

The purport of CC Madhya 21.124 quotesSB 10.31.15

This verse is spoken by the gopīs in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.31.15).

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

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

Further reading

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 summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 21
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. aṭatigoes
  2. yatwhen
  3. bhavānYour Lordship
  4. ahniin the day
  5. kānanamto the forest
  6. truṭiḥhalf a second
  7. yugāyateappears like a yuga
  8. tvāmYou
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • 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”

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 does the gopīs’ experience of time show about how much they cherish seeing Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Read the gopīs’ words aloud once, giving special attention to their longing for Kṛṣṇa’s sweet face.

Live this todaySeparation Makes Half a Second an AgeThis 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.

Ask Caitanya CaritamrtaHave a question about CC Madhya 21.124? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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