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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

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 25.148

জন্মাদ্যস্য যতোঽন্বয়াদিতরতশ্চার্থেষ্বভিজ্ঞঃ স্বরাট্

তেনে ব্রহ্ম হৃদা য আদিকবয়ে মুহ্যন্তি যৎ সূরয়ঃ ।

তেজোবারিমৃদাং যথা বিনিময়ো যত্র ত্রিসর্গোঽমৃষা

ধাম্না স্বেন সদা নিরস্তকুহকং সত্যং পরং ধীমহি ॥ ১৪৮ ॥

janmādy asya yato ’nvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñaḥ svarāṭ

tene brahma hṛdā ya ādi-kavaye muhyanti yat sūrayaḥ

tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ yathā vinimayo yatra tri-sargo ’mṛṣā

dhāmnā svena sadā nirasta-kuhakaṁ satyaṁ paraṁ dhīmahi

Translation

“ ‘O my Lord, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, son of Vasudeva, O all-pervading Personality of Godhead, I offer my respectful obeisances unto You. I meditate upon Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa because He is the Absolute Truth and the primeval cause of all causes of the creation, sustenance and destruction of the manifested universes. He is directly and indirectly conscious of all manifestations, and He is independent because there is no other cause beyond Him. It is He only who first imparted the Vedic knowledge unto the heart of Brahmājī, the original living being. By Him even the great sages and demigods are placed into illusion, as one is bewildered by the illusory representations of water seen in fire, or land seen on water. Only because of Him do the material universes, temporarily manifested by the reactions of the three modes of nature, appear factual, although they are unreal. I therefore meditate upon Him, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who is eternally existent in the transcendental abode, which is forever free from the illusory representations of the material world. I meditate upon Him, for He is the Absolute Truth.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Meditate on Kṛṣṇa, the Absolute Truth

  1. 1

    Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the Absolute Truth and the primeval cause of creation, sustenance, and destruction. He knows all manifestations and is independent, with no cause beyond Him.

  2. 2

    He first imparted Vedic knowledge into the heart of Brahmājī. By Him, even great sages and demigods are placed into illusion.

  3. 3

    The temporary material universes appear factual only because of Him. Kṛṣṇa exists eternally in His transcendental abode, forever free from material illusion.

Connected verses· 1

The purport of CC Madhya 25.148 quotesSB 1.1.1

This is the opening invocation of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.1.1).

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

Reconciliation and broad mercy. Opponents turn toward bhakti; the Lord returns to Purī and embraces devotees.

The mood of Madhya 25 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 25: How All the Residents of Vārāṇasī Became Vaiṣṇavas

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

One day Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu went to take a bath at Pañcanada, and afterwards all His devotees began chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra in front of the temple of Bindu Mādhava. At this time Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī and all his devotees approached the Lord.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 25
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Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. janma-ādicreation, maintenance and dissolution
  2. asyaof this (the universe)
  3. yataḥfrom whom
  4. anvayātdirectly from the spiritual connection
  5. itarataḥindirectly from the lack of material contact
  6. caalso
  7. artheṣuin all affairs
  8. abhijñaḥperfectly cognizant
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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Which quality of Śrī Kṛṣṇa described here helps me focus my meditation on Him?

Practice

Offer respectful obeisances to Śrī Kṛṣṇa and spend one minute reflecting on Him as the Absolute Truth.

Live this todayMeditate on Kṛṣṇa, the Absolute TruthThis 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 25.148? Get an answer from the verses themselves.