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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

1Say the verse. Read the transliteration aloud, slowly.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each word and its meaning.
3Read the translation. Ask: what is happening here, and who is it about?
4Read the purport slowly. Read it twice. Don't rush.
5See Lord Caitanya as Kṛṣṇa. Remember who is acting in the pastime.
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 8.94 Madhya 8.96

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 8.95

তত্রাতিশুশুভে তাভির্ভগবান্ দেবকীসুতঃ ।

মধ্যে মণীনাং হৈমানাং মহামরকতো যথা ॥ ৯৫ ॥

tatrātiśuśubhe tābhir

bhagavān devakī-sutaḥ

madhye maṇīnāṁ haimānāṁ

mahā-marakato yathā

Translation

“ ‘Although the son of Devakī, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the reservoir of all kinds of beauty, when He is among the gopīs He nonetheless becomes more beautiful, for He resembles a marakata jewel surrounded by gold and other jewels.’”

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa’s Beauty Among the Gopīs

1
The son of Devakī is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
2
He is the reservoir of all kinds of beauty, yet He becomes more beautiful among the gopīs.
3
His beauty in their company is compared to a marakata jewel surrounded by gold and other jewels.

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

Madhya 8: Talks Between Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Rāmānanda Rāya

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

After hearing Śrīla Rāmānanda Rāya recite some verses, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu accepted the principle of pure devotional service devoid of all kinds of speculation. After this, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu asked Rāmānanda Rāya to explain the higher platform of devotional service.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in Madhya 8

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

tatrathere
ati-śuśubhewas very beautiful
tābhiḥby them
bhagavānthe Supreme Personality of Godhead
devakī-sutaḥson of Devakī
madhyein the midst
maṇīnāmof valuable jewels
haimānāmlined with gold
mahā-marakataḥthe jewel of the name marakata
yathāas

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

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.

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does the image of a jewel surrounded by gold help me appreciate about Kṛṣṇa among the gopīs?

Practice

Spend a quiet minute reflecting on the jewel comparison given in the translation.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa’s Beauty Among the GopīsThis 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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