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 25.78

প্রভু কহে, — ‘বিষ্ণু’ ‘বিষ্ণু’, আমি ক্ষুদ্র জীব হীন ।

জীবে ‘বিষ্ণু’ মানি — এই অপরাধ-চিহ্ন ॥ ৭৮ ॥

prabhu kahe, — ‘viṣṇu’ ‘viṣṇu’, āmi kṣudra jīva hīna

jīve ‘viṣṇu’ māni — ei aparādha-cihna

Translation

When Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī supported himself by quoting the verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu immediately protested by uttering the holy name of Lord Viṣṇu. The Lord then presented Himself as a most fallen living entity, and He said, “If someone accepts a fallen conditioned soul as Viṣṇu, Bhagavān, or an incarnation, he commits a great offense.”

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Do Not Mistake Ordinary People for God

  1. 1

    Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu protested by uttering the holy name of Lord Viṣṇu and presenting Himself as a most fallen living entity.

  2. 2

    Although He was Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He denied belonging to the Viṣṇu category to teach us a lesson.

  3. 3

    Posing as an incarnation is most offensive. Accepting an ordinary person as an incarnation of God is also a very great offense.

Key points from the purport
  • Although Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, to teach us a lesson He nonetheless denied belonging to the Viṣṇu category.
  • People do not know that posing oneself as an incarnation is most offensive.
  • People should not accept an ordinary man as an incarnation of God, for this also is a very great offense.

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

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:

By and by, one of the disciples of the great sannyāsī Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī became devoted to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and this devotee explained Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu to Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī and supported His views with various arguments. 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.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 25
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. prabhu kaheLord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu said
  2. viṣṇu viṣṇuthe holy name of Viṣṇu
  3. āmiI
  4. kṣudrainfinitesimal
  5. jīvaa living entity
  6. hīnabereft of all good qualities
  7. jīvesuch a low-grade living entity
  8. viṣṇu māniaccepting as Lord Viṣṇu or the Personality of Godhead
  9. ei aparādha-cihnathis is a great offense
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Dainya & humility · Making room for grace

    The humility expressed by the author, devotees, transformed scholars, renunciants, and the Śikṣāṣṭaka. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “fallen”

  • Nāma-saṅkīrtana · The holy name shared together

    Chanting the holy names as the yuga-dharma, the Lord’s public movement, and the opening prayer of Śikṣāṣṭaka. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “holy name”

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 Lord's example teach me caution about claims of divinity?

Practice

Reread the purport today and note its warning against both claiming divinity and accepting an ordinary person as God.

Live this todayDo Not Mistake Ordinary People for GodThis 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 25.78? Get an answer from the verses themselves.