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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 7: The Lord Begins His Tour of South India
Madhya 7.72Madhya 7.74

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 7.73

বজ্রাদপি কঠোরাণি মৃদূনি কুসুমাদপি ।

লোকোত্তরাণাং চেতাংসি কো নু বিজ্ঞাতুমীশ্বরঃ ॥ ৭৩ ॥

vajrād api kaṭhorāṇi

mṛdūni kusumād api

lokottarāṇāṁ cetāṁsi

ko nu vijñātum īśvaraḥ

Translation

“The hearts of those above common behavior are sometimes harder than a thunderbolt and sometimes softer than a flower. How can one accommodate such contradictions in great personalities?”

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.

Great hearts can hold apparent contradictions

  1. 1

    The hearts of those above common behavior can sometimes be harder than a thunderbolt.

  2. 2

    Those same hearts can sometimes be softer than a flower.

  3. 3

    The verse asks how we can accommodate these apparent contradictions in great personalities.

How it feels

Expansive compassion. The Lord carries nāma and mercy from village to village, including deliverance of Vāsudeva.

The mood of Madhya 7 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 7: The Lord Begins His Tour of South India

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

When Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was beginning His tour, Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya gave Him four sets of clothes and requested Him to see Rāmānanda Rāya, who was residing at that time on the bank of the river Godāvarī. Along with other devotees, Nityānanda Prabhu accompanied the Lord to Ālālanātha, but there Lord Caitanya left them all behind and went ahead with the brāhmaṇa Kṛṣṇadāsa.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 7
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. vajrāt apithan a thunderbolt
  2. kaṭhorāṇiharder
  3. mṛdūnisofter
  4. kusumāt apithan a flower
  5. loka-uttarāṇāmpersons above the human platform of behavior
  6. cetāṁsithe hearts
  7. kaḥwho
  8. nubut
  9. vijñātumto understand
  10. īśvaraḥable
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How willing am I to leave room for qualities in great personalities that I cannot easily reconcile?

Practice

Read the verse’s closing question aloud and pause before trying to answer it.

Live this todayGreat hearts can hold apparent contradictionsThis 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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