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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

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 ›

Śrī Caitanya Caritamrta · Text Madhya 9.78

কুম্ভকর্ণ-কপালে দেখি’ সরোবর ।

শিব-ক্ষেত্রে শিব দেখে গৌরাঙ্গসুন্দর ॥ ৭৮ ॥

kumbhakarṇa-kapāle dekhi’ sarovara

śiva-kṣetre śiva dekhe gaurāṅga-sundara

Translation

At Kumbhakarṇa-kapāla, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu saw a great lake and then the holy place named Śiva-kṣetra, where a temple of Lord Śiva is located.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Visiting lakes and holy temples

  1. 1

    At Kumbhakarṇa-kapāla, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu saw a great lake. The city is now known as Kumbhakonam, twenty-four miles northeast of Tanjore.

  2. 2

    Kumbhakonam has twelve temples of Lord Śiva, four temples of Lord Viṣṇu, and one temple of Lord Brahmā.

  3. 3

    The Lord also saw Śiva-kṣetra, within Tanjore, near the large lake Śiva-gaṅgā. Its large temple of Lord Śiva is called Bṛhatīśvara-śiva-mandira.

Key points from the purport
  • There are twelve temples of Lord Śiva located at Kumbhakonam, as well as four Viṣṇu temples and one temple of Lord Brahmā.
  • Śiva-kṣetra, within the city of Tanjore, is situated near a big lake known as Śiva-gaṅgā.
  • At this place is a large temple of Lord Śiva known as Bṛhatīśvara-śiva-mandira.

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:

After leaving Vidyānagara, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu visited such places of pilgrimage as Gautamī-gaṅgā, Mallikārjuna, Ahovala-nṛsiṁha, Siddhavaṭa, Skanda-kṣetra, Trimaṭha, Vṛddhakāśī, Bauddha-sthāna, Tirupati, Tirumala, Pānā-nṛsiṁha, Śiva-kāñcī, Viṣṇu-kāñcī, Trikāla-hasti, Vṛddhakola, Śiyālī-bhairavī, the Kāverī River and Kumbhakarṇa-kapāla. 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.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in Madhya 9
2

Word for word

Learn the words of the verse.

  1. kumbhakarṇa-kapāleat Kumbhakarṇa-kapāla
  2. dekhi’after seeing
  3. sarovarathe lake
  4. śiva-kṣetreat Śiva-kṣetra
  5. śivaLord Śiva
  6. dekhesees
  7. gaurāṅga-sundaraLord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu
3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Which detail helps you picture the holy places described here?

Practice

Write down the name Śiva-kṣetra with its nearby lake and temple to help remember this place.

Live this todayVisiting lakes and holy templesThis 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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