1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

Read one verse of Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta with its Bengali, transliteration, word meanings, translation and study points.

Or browse by līlā and chapter

Madhya-līlā · 25 chapters

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425
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 24: The Sixty-One Explanations of the Ātmārāma Verse
Madhya 24.16Madhya 24.18

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 24.17

মূর্খ, নীচ, ম্লেচ্ছ আদি শাস্ত্ররিক্তগণ ।

ধনসঞ্চয়ী — নির্গ্রন্থ, আর যে নির্ধন ॥ ১৭ ॥

mūrkha, nīca, mleccha ādi śāstra-rikta-gaṇa

dhana-sañcayī — nirgrantha, āra ye nirdhana

Translation

“ ‘Nirgrantha’ also refers to one who is illiterate, lowborn, misbehaved, unregulated and devoid of respect for the Vedic literature. The word also refers to one who is a capitalist and to one who has no riches.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

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

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Nirgrantha Has Several Different Meanings

  1. 1

    “Nirgrantha” can refer to someone who is illiterate or lowborn.

  2. 2

    It can also describe someone who is misbehaved, unregulated or without respect for the Vedic literature.

  3. 3

    The word can refer both to a capitalist and to someone who has no riches. Its meaning is not limited to one kind of person.

How it feels

Intellectual wonder humbled. Many explanations converge on the attractiveness of devotion; a hunter’s heart is transformed.

The mood of Madhya 24 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 24: The Sixty-One Explanations of the Ātmārāma Verse

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

He analyzed all the words and described each word with its different connotations. Adding the words ca and api, He described all the different meanings of the verse.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 24
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. mūrkhafoolish, illiterate persons
  2. nīcalowborn
  3. mlecchaunclean persons with no principles
  4. ādiand others
  5. śāstra-rikta-gaṇapersons devoid of all regulative principles stated in the śāstra
  6. dhana-sañcayīa capitalist (one who gathers wealth)
  7. nirgranthacalled nirgrantha
  8. āraalso
  9. yeanyone who
  10. nirdhanawithout riches
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does this range of meanings encourage me to read “nirgrantha” carefully?

Practice

Write down two contrasting meanings of “nirgrantha” given in this verse.

Live this todayNirgrantha Has Several Different MeaningsThis 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 24.17? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
  1. Learn
  2. Live
  3. Lead
Next in Learn · 5 of 9 · 2 minAsk Caitanya CaritamrtaBring your own question. Get an answer drawn only from the book's translations, with every verse shown.Back · LearnLīlās & chapters