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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

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 23: Life’s Ultimate Goal — Love of Godhead

Madhya 23.3 Madhya 23.5

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 23.4

কৃষ্ণে রতি গাঢ় হৈলে ‘প্রেম’-অভিধান ।

কৃষ্ণভক্তি-রসের এই ‘স্থায়িভাব’-নাম ॥ ৪ ॥

kṛṣṇe rati gāḍha haile ‘prema’-abhidhāna

kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rasera ei ‘sthāyi-bhāva’-nāma

Translation

“When affection for Kṛṣṇa becomes deeper, one attains love of Godhead in devotional service. Such a position is called sthāyi-bhāva, permanent enjoyment of the mellows of devotional service to Kṛṣṇa.

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.

Deepening Affection Becomes Love of Godhead

1
When affection for Kṛṣṇa becomes deeper, one attains love of Godhead in devotional service.
2
This position is called sthāyi-bhāva.
3
Sthāyi-bhāva means permanent enjoyment of the mellows of devotional service to Kṛṣṇa.

How it feels

Theological emotional crescendo. Bhāva, prema, the devotional rasas, and mahābhāva are systematically expounded.

The mood of Madhya 23 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Madhya 23: Life’s Ultimate Goal — Love of Godhead

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

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then describes those candidates who are eligible to taste the mellows of devotional service. Their fundamental natures and their varieties are also described.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in Madhya 23

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

kṛṣṇeunto Lord Kṛṣṇa
ratiaffection
gāḍhadeep
hailewhen it becomes
prema-abhidhānacalled love of God
kṛṣṇa-bhakti-raseraof the mellows of devotional service to Kṛṣṇa
eithis
sthāyi-bhāva-nāmacalled sthāyi-bhāva.

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

Prema · Love of Godhead
The culminating devotional purpose that unites the narration: bestowed, cultivated, taught, celebrated, and tasted. · In the Prema Atlas
In this verse: “love of godhead”
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: “mellows”
Sevā · Love translated into service
Devotional service expressed through cleansing, caring, teaching, honoring others, and living as Kṛṣṇa’s servant. · In the Prema Atlas
In this verse: “service”

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

Am I giving attention to deepening my affection for Kṛṣṇa in devotional service?

Practice

Before one act of devotional service today, pause and remember that its aim is deeper affection for Kṛṣṇa.

Live this todayDeepening Affection Becomes Love of GodheadThis 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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