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

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 ›

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 24.213

উদরমুপাসতে য ঋষিবর্ত্মসু কূর্পদৃশঃ

পরিসরপদ্ধতিং হৃদয়মারুণয়ো দহরম্ ।

তত উদ্‌গাদনন্ত তব ধাম শিরঃ পরমং

পুনরিহ যৎ সমেত্য ন পতন্তি কৃতান্তমুখে ॥ ২১৩ ॥

udaram upāsate ya ṛṣi-vartmasu kūrpa-dṛśaḥ

parisara-paddhatiṁ hṛdayam āruṇayo daharam

tata udagād ananta tava dhāma śiraḥ paramaṁ

punar iha yat sametya na patanti kṛtānta-mukhe

Translation

“ ‘Those who follow the path of great, saintly mystic yogīs take to the yogic gymnastic process and begin worshiping from the abdomen, where it is said that Brahman is located. Such people are called śārkarākṣa, which means that they are situated in the gross bodily conception. There are also followers of the ṛṣi known as Āruṇa. Following his path, they observe the activities of the arteries. Thus they gradually rise to the heart, where subtle Brahman, Paramātmā, is situated. They then worship Him. O unlimited Ananta! Better than these persons are the mystic yogīs who worship You from the top of their heads. Beginning with the abdomen and proceeding through the heart, they reach the top of the head and pass through the brahma-randhra, the hole at the top of the skull. Thus these yogīs attain the perfectional platform and do not enter the cycle of birth and death again.’

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Stages of Worship Within the Body

  1. 1

    This quotation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam describes yogīs who begin worshiping Brahman in the abdomen. Called śārkarākṣa, they are situated in the gross bodily conception.

  2. 2

    Followers of Āruṇa observe the activities of the arteries and gradually rise to the heart. There they worship Paramātmā, described as subtle Brahman.

  3. 3

    The verse praises as better those mystic yogīs who worship unlimited Ananta from the top of the head. Passing through the brahma-randhra, they attain perfection and do not return to the cycle of birth and death.

Connected verses· 1

The purport of CC Madhya 24.213 quotesSB 10.87.18

This is a quotation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.87.18).

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

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 then concluded that different classes of transcendentalists ( jñānīs, karmīs, yogīs ) utilize this verse according to their own interpretation, but if they would give up this process and surrender to Kṛṣṇa, as indicated by the verse itself, they would be able to comprehend the real meaning 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. udaramthe abdomen
  2. upāsateworship
  3. yethose who
  4. ṛṣi-vartmasuon the path marked out by the great saintly persons
  5. kūrpa-dṛśaḥwhose vision is grossly situated in the bodily conception of life
  6. parisara-paddhatimfrom which the system of the arteries comes
  7. hṛdayamthe heart
  8. āruṇayaḥsaintly persons headed by Āruṇa Ṛṣi
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Kīrtana community · A movement of shared hearts

    Devotional community as a living network of branches, service, festivals, care, and collective chanting. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “followers”

  • Sādhu-saṅga · Love grows through association

    Spiritual association shapes the movement, empowers disciples, and reveals truths through loving conversations. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “saintly”

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

How does the verse distinguish bodily conceptions from the perfection of worship?

Practice

Write a brief outline of the stages described: abdomen, heart, and top of the head, noting the stated final result.

Live this todayStages of Worship Within the BodyThis 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 24.213? Get an answer from the verses themselves.