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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 24: The Sixty-One Explanations of the Ātmārāma Verse
Madhya 24.329Madhya 24.331

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 24.330

গুরুলক্ষণ, শিষ্যলক্ষণ, দোঁহার পরীক্ষণ ।

সেব্য — ভগবান্, সর্বমন্ত্র-বিচারণ ॥ ৩৩০ ॥

guru-lakṣaṇa, śiṣya-lakṣaṇa, doṅhāra parīkṣaṇa

sevya — bhagavān, sarva-mantra-vicāraṇa

Translation

“Your book should describe the characteristics of the bona fide guru and the bona fide disciple. Then, before accepting a spiritual master, one can be assured of the spiritual master’s position. Similarly, the spiritual master can also be assured of the disciple’s position. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, should be described as the worshipable object, and you should describe the bīja-mantra for the worship of Kṛṣṇa, as well as that for Rāma and for other expansions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Understand the Guru, Disciple, and Worshipable Lord

  1. 1

    The characteristics of both the bona fide guru and the bona fide disciple should be described. Before acceptance, each should be assured of the other’s position.

  2. 2

    Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, should be described as the worshipable object.

  3. 3

    The book should describe the bīja-mantra for worshiping Kṛṣṇa, Rāma and other expansions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The purport identifies the Padma Purāṇa as a source describing the guru’s characteristics.

Key points from the purport
  • In the Padma Purāṇa, the characteristics of the guru, the bona fide spiritual master, have been described:

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

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. guru-lakṣaṇathe symptoms of a bona fide spiritual master
  2. śiṣya-lakṣaṇathe symptoms of a bona fide disciple
  3. doṅhāraof both
  4. parīkṣaṇathe testing
  5. sevya-bhagavānthe Supreme Personality of Godhead is worshipable
  6. sarva-mantra-vicāraṇaconsideration of the different types of mantras.
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does mutual understanding help make the relationship between guru and disciple a thoughtful commitment?

Practice

Write down the verse’s instruction that both guru and disciple should understand each other’s position before acceptance.

Live this todayUnderstand the Guru, Disciple, and Worshipable LordThis 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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