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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

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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 8: Talks Between Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Rāmānanda Rāya
Madhya 8.88Madhya 8.90

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 8.89

ময়ি ভক্তির্হি ভূতানামমৃতত্বায় কল্পতে ।

দিষ্ট্যা যদাসীন্মত্‌স্প্তেহো ভবতীনাং মদাপনঃ ॥ ৮৯ ॥

mayi bhaktir hi bhūtānām

amṛtatvāya kalpate

diṣṭyā yad āsīn mat-sneho

bhavatīnāṁ mad-āpanaḥ

Translation

“Lord Kṛṣṇa told the gopīs, ‘The means of attaining My favor is loving service unto Me, and fortunately you are all thus engaged. Those living beings who render service unto Me are eligible to be transferred to the spiritual world and attain eternal life with knowledge and bliss.’

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Devotional Service Leads to Eternal Life

  1. 1

    Lord Kṛṣṇa tells the gopīs that loving service is the means of attaining His favor, and they are already engaged in it.

  2. 2

    Those who serve Him are eligible to enter the spiritual world and attain eternal life with knowledge and bliss.

  3. 3

    Bhakti means devotional service, and amṛtatva means eternal life. The aim of human life is to attain its natural position of eternal life, which is achieved only by devotional service.

Key points from the purport
  • The fulfillment of human life is summarized in this verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.82.44).
  • The aim of human life is to attain the natural position of eternal life.
  • This eternal life can be achieved only by devotional service.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Connected verses· 1

The purport of CC Madhya 8.89 quotesSB 10.82.44

The fulfillment of human life is summarized in this verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.82.44).

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

Deepening intimacy and revelation. Their exchange ascends from duty to pure love and the confidential moods of Vraja.

The mood of Madhya 8 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 8: Talks Between Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Rāmānanda Rāya

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

He then spoke of detached action, knowledge mixed with devotional service, and finally the spontaneous loving service of the Lord. After hearing Śrīla Rāmānanda Rāya recite some verses, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu accepted the principle of pure devotional service devoid of all kinds of speculation.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 8
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. mayiunto Me
  2. bhaktiḥdevotional service
  3. hicertainly
  4. bhūtānāmof all living entities
  5. amṛtatvāyafor becoming eternal
  6. kalpateis meant
  7. diṣṭyāfortunately
  8. yatwhat
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Sevā · Love translated into service

    Devotional service expressed through cleansing, caring, teaching, honoring others, and living as Kṛṣṇa’s servant. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “service”, “serve”

  • 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: “favor”

  • 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: “gopīs”

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 can I give loving service to Kṛṣṇa a more deliberate place in my day?

Practice

Set aside a few minutes today for an act of devotional service to Kṛṣṇa, remembering the aim of eternal life.

Live this todayDevotional Service Leads to Eternal LifeThis 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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