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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 6: The Liberation of Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya
Madhya 6.84Madhya 6.87

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Texts Madhya 6.85-86

যদ্যপি জগদ্‌গুরু তুমি — শাস্ত্র-জ্ঞানবান্ ।

পৃথিবীতে নাহি পণ্ডিত তোমার সমান ॥ ৮৫ ॥

yadyapi jagad-guru tumi — śāstra-jñānavān

pṛthivīte nāhi paṇḍita tomāra samāna

Translation

Gopīnātha Ācārya then addressed Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya: “You are a great scholar and a teacher of many disciples. Indeed, there is no other scholar like you on earth. Nonetheless, because you are bereft of even a pinch of the Lord’s mercy, you cannot understand Him, even though He is present in your home.

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.

Scholarship and Nearness Do Not Replace Mercy

  1. 1

    Gopīnātha Ācārya acknowledged Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya as a great scholar and a teacher of many disciples.

  2. 2

    Despite his unmatched scholarship, he could not understand the Lord because he lacked even a pinch of His mercy.

  3. 3

    The Lord was present in his home, yet that nearness did not bring understanding without mercy.

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:

Because of His silence, the Bhaṭṭācārya asked Him whether He was understanding the Vedānta philosophy, and the Lord replied, “Sir, I can understand Vedānta philosophy very clearly, but I cannot understand your explanations.” There was then a discussion between the Bhaṭṭācārya and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu concerning the authority of the Vedic scriptures, specifically the Upaniṣads and Vedānta-sūtra.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 6
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. yadyapialthough
  2. jagat-gurua teacher of many disciples
  3. tumiyou
  4. śāstra-jñānavānwell versed in Vedic knowledge
  5. pṛthivīteon this earth
  6. nāhithere is not
  7. paṇḍitaa learned scholar
  8. tomārayour
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Kṛpā & transformation · Mercy changes a life

    Transformative encounters with grace, from scholars and travelers to renunciants and householders. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “mercy”

  • Vraja-smaraṇa · Remembrance of Vṛndāvana

    The remembered sweetness of Vraja that colors Mahāprabhu’s pilgrimage, Ratha-yātrā, and later states of separation. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “gopīnātha”

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

Do I assume that learning or closeness to religious life automatically gives me understanding of the Lord?

Practice

Pause today to ask for the Lord’s mercy rather than relying on what you already know.

Live this todayScholarship and Nearness Do Not Replace MercyThis 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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