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 24.28Madhya 24.30

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 24.29

এই যাঁহা নাহি, তাহা ভক্তি — ‘অহৈতুকী’ ।

যাহা হৈতে বশ হয় শ্রীকৃষ্ণ কৌতুকী ॥ ২৯ ॥

ei yāṅhā nāhi, tāhā bhakti — ‘ahaitukī’

yāhā haite vaśa haya śrī-kṛṣṇa kautukī

Translation

“Causeless devotional service is unmotivated by sense enjoyment, perfection or liberation. When one is freed from all these contaminations, he can bring Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is very funny, under control.

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.

Unmotivated Devotion Can Bring Kṛṣṇa Under Control

  1. 1

    Causeless devotional service is not motivated by sense enjoyment.

  2. 2

    It is also free from the desire for perfection or liberation. These motives are described as contaminations.

  3. 3

    One who is free from these contaminations can bring Lord Kṛṣṇa under control through devotional service.

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:

According to Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī’s request, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu explained the well-known Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam verse beginning ātmārāmāś ca munayaḥ. He explained this verse in sixty-one different ways.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 24
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. eithese
  2. yāṅhāwhere
  3. nāhinot existing
  4. tāhāthat
  5. bhaktithe platform of devotional service
  6. ahaitukīunmotivated
  7. yāhā haiteby which
  8. vaśa hayacomes under control
  9. śrī-kṛṣṇaLord Śrī Kṛṣṇa
  10. kautukīthe most funny
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • 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.

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What reward am I still hoping to receive from my devotional service?

Practice

Perform one small act of devotional service today without asking for enjoyment, perfection or liberation in return.

Live this todayUnmotivated Devotion Can Bring Kṛṣṇa Under ControlThis 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 24.29? 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