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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 9: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s Travels to the Holy Places
Madhya 9.116Madhya 9.118

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 9.117

সিদ্ধান্ততস্ত্বভেদেঽপি শ্রীশ-কৃষ্ণস্বরূপয়োঃ ।

রসেনোৎকৃষ্যতে কৃষ্ণরূপমেষা রসস্থিতিঃ ॥ ১১৭ ॥

siddhāntatas tv abhede ’pi

śrīśa-kṛṣṇa-svarūpayoḥ

rasenotkṛṣyate kṛṣṇa-

rūpam eṣā rasa-sthitiḥ

Translation

Veṅkaṭa Bhaṭṭa continued, “ ‘According to transcendental realization, there is no difference between the forms of Nārāyaṇa and Kṛṣṇa. Yet in Kṛṣṇa there is a special transcendental attraction due to the conjugal mellow, and consequently He surpasses Nārāyaṇa. This is the conclusion of transcendental mellows.’

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa’s Special Transcendental Attraction

  1. 1

    According to transcendental realization, there is no difference between the forms of Nārāyaṇa and Kṛṣṇa.

  2. 2

    Yet Kṛṣṇa has a special transcendental attraction due to the conjugal mellow.

  3. 3

    In this attraction, Kṛṣṇa surpasses Nārāyaṇa. Veṅkaṭa Bhaṭṭa quoted this conclusion of transcendental mellows, also found in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu.

Key points from the purport
  • This verse quoted by Veṅkaṭa Bhaṭṭa is also found in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (1.2.59).

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

Wonder and inclusion. Meetings across sacred places display the broad reach of devotional mercy.

The mood of Madhya 9 as a whole, an editorial reading, not the text itself. See the emotional atlas

Further reading

Madhya 9: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s Travels to the Holy Places

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

Finally the Lord went to Śrī Raṅga-kṣetra, where He converted a brāhmaṇa named Veṅkaṭa Bhaṭṭa, who, along with his family, took up devotional service to Kṛṣṇa. After leaving Śrī Raṅga, Caitanya Mahāprabhu reached Ṛṣabha-parvata, where He met Paramānanda Purī, who later arrived at Jagannātha Purī.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 9
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. siddhāntataḥin reality
  2. tubut
  3. abhedeno difference
  4. apialthough
  5. śrī-īśaof the husband of Lakṣmī, Nārāyaṇa
  6. kṛṣṇaof Lord Kṛṣṇa
  7. svarūpayoḥbetween the forms
  8. rasenaby transcendental mellows
3

Key ideas in this verse

The themes of love and mercy this verse speaks of.

  • Bhāva & rasa · The language of sacred feeling

    Transcendental devotional moods and relationships, discussed explicitly in Rāmānanda’s dialogue and the teachings on prema. · In the Prema Atlas

    In this verse: “mellow”, “conjugal”

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

What does this verse identify as Kṛṣṇa’s special transcendental attraction?

Practice

Read the verse twice, noting first the statement of no difference and then the statement of special attraction.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa’s Special Transcendental AttractionThis 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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