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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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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 6: The Liberation of Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya
Madhya 6.181Madhya 6.183

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 6.182

মায়াবাদমসচ্ছাস্ত্রং প্ৰচ্ছন্নং বৌদ্ধমুচ্যতে ।

ময়ৈব বিহিতং দেবি কলৌ ব্রাহ্মণমূর্তিনা ॥” ১৮২ ॥

māyāvādam asac-chāstraṁ

pracchannaṁ bauddham ucyate

mayaiva vihitaṁ devi

kalau brāhmaṇa-mūrtinā

Translation

“[Lord Śiva informed goddess Durgā, the superintendent of the material world:] ‘In the Age of Kali I take the form of a brāhmaṇa and explain the Vedas through false scriptures in an atheistic way, similar to Buddhist philosophy.’”

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

False Scriptures Obscure Transcendental Knowledge

  1. 1

    Lord Śiva tells goddess Durgā that in the Age of Kali he takes the form of a brāhmaṇa and explains the Vedas in an atheistic way. The purport identifies this form as Śaṅkarācārya, the founder of Māyāvāda philosophy.

  2. 2

    Māyāvāda philosophy states that the Supreme Lord, the living entities and the cosmic manifestation are all transformations of illusory energy.

  3. 3

    The purport says that false scriptures are cited to support this theory. They deprive people of transcendental knowledge and make them addicted to fruitive activities and mental speculation.

Key points from the purport
  • The word brāhmaṇa-mūrtinā in this verse-refers to the founder of Māyāvāda philosophy, Śaṅkarācārya, who was born in the Mālabara district of southern India.
  • Māyāvāda philosophy states that the Supreme Lord, the living entities and the cosmic manifestation are all transformations of illusory energy.
  • To support this atheistic theory, the Māyāvādīs cite false scriptures, which make people bereft of transcendental knowledge and addicted to fruitive activities and mental speculation.

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

Doubt transformed to devotion. Intellectual resistance gives way to a profound change of heart.

The mood of Madhya 6 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 6: The Liberation of Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya

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

It is also accepted that the Absolute Truth has His transcendental, blissful, eternal form. According to the Vedas, the Lord and the living entity are equal in quality but different quantitatively.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 6
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. māyāvādamthe philosophy of Māyāvāda
  2. asat-śāstramfalse scriptures
  3. pracchannamcovered
  4. bauddhamBuddhism
  5. ucyateit is said
  6. mayāby me
  7. evaonly
  8. vihitamtaught
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Does my study help me seek transcendental knowledge, or draw me further into mental speculation?

Practice

Reread the purport and write down the effects it attributes to relying on false scriptures.

Live this todayFalse Scriptures Obscure Transcendental KnowledgeThis 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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