Madhya9.1

TEXT 1

nana-mata-graha-grastan

daksinatya-jana-dvipan

krparina vimucyaitan

gauras cakre sa vaisnavan

SYNONYMS

nana-mata—by various philosophies; graha—like crocodiles; grastan—captured; daksinatya-jana—the inhabitants of South India; dvipan—like elephants; krpa-arina—by His disc of mercy; vimucya—liberating; etan—all these; gaurah—Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; cakre—converted; sah—He; vaisnavan—to the Vaisnava cult.

TRANSLATION

Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu converted the inhabitants of South India. These people were as strong as elephants, but they were in the clutches of the crocodiles of various philosophies, such as the Buddhist, Jain and Mayavada philosophies. With His disc of mercy the Lord delivered them all by converting them into Vaisnavas, devotees of the Lord.

PURPORT

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s converting the people of South India into Vaisnavas is compared herein to Lord Visnu’s delivering Gajendra the elephant from the attack of a crocodile. When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu visited southern India, almost all the residents were within the jaws of the crocodiles of Buddhist, Jain and Mayavada philosophy. Here Kaviraja Gosvami states that although these people were as strong as elephants, they were almost in the clutches of death because they were being attacked by the crocodiles of various philosophies. However, as Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu in the form of Visnu mercifully saved the elephant Gajendra from the clutches of a crocodile, so He saved all the people of South India from the clutches of various philosophies by converting them into Vaisnavas.

Madhya9.2

TEXT 2

jaya jaya sri-caitanya jaya nityananda

jayadvaita-candra jaya gaura-bhakta-vrnda

SYNONYMS

jaya jaya—all glories; sri-caitanya—to Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu; jaya—all glories; nityananda—unto Nityananda Prabhu; jaya advaita-candra—all glories to Advaita Prabhu; jaya—all glories; gaura-bhakta-vrnda—to the devotees of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

TRANSLATION

All glories to Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu! All glories to Lord Nityananda Prabhu! All glories to Sri Advaita Prabhu! And all glories to the devotees of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu!

Madhya9.3

TEXT 3

daksina-gamana prabhura ati vilaksana

sahasra sahasra tirtha kaila darasana

SYNONYMS

daksina-gamana—touring in South India; prabhura—of the Lord; ati—very; vilaksana—extraordinary; sahasra sahasra—thousands and thousands; tirtha—holy places; kaila—did; darasana—visit.

TRANSLATION

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s tour of South India was certainly very extraordinary because He visited many thousands of places of pilgrimage there.

Madhya9.4

TEXT 4

sei saba tirtha sparsi’ maha-tirtha kaila

sei chale sei desera loka nistarila

SYNONYMS

sei saba—all those; tirtha—holy places; sparsi’-touching; maha-tirtha—into great places of pilgrimage; kaila—made them; sei chale—under that plea; sei desera—of those countries; loka—the people; nistarila—He delivered.

TRANSLATION

On the plea of visiting all those holy places, the Lord converted many thousands of residents and thus delivered them. Simply by touching the holy places, He made them into great places of pilgrimage.

PURPORT

It is said: tirthi-kurvanti tirthani.  A tirtha, or holy place, is a place where great saintly personalities visit or reside. Although the holy places were already places of pilgrimage, they were all purified by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s visit. Many people go to these holy places and leave their sinful activities there, thus becoming free from contamination. When these contaminations pile up, they are counteracted by the visit of great personalities like Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His strict followers. Many kinds of patients come to a hospital, which may be infected by many types of disease. Actually the hospital is always infected, but the expert physician keeps the hospital sterilized by his expert presence and management. Similarly, places of pilgrimage are always infected by the sins left by the sinners who go there, but when a personality like Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu visits such a place, all contaminations vanish.

Madhya9.5

TEXT 5

sei saba tirthera krama kahite na pari

daksina-vame tirtha-gamana haya pherapheri

SYNONYMS

sei saba—all those; tirthera—of holy places; krama—the chronological order; kahite—to tell of; na pari—I am unable; daksina-vame—left and right; tirtha-gamana—visiting the holy places; haya—is; pherapheri—going and coming back

TRANSLATION

I cannot chronologically record all the places of pilgrimage visited by Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. I can only summarize everything by saying that the Lord visited all holy places right and left, coming and going.

Madhya9.6

TEXT 6

ataeva nama-matra kariye ganana

kahite na pari tara yatha anukrama

SYNONYMS

ataeva—therefore; nama-matra—only as a token record; kariye ganana—I count; kahite—to tell; na pari—I am unable; tara—of that; yatha—as; anukrama—chronological order.

TRANSLATION

Because it is impossible for me to record all these places in chronological order, I simply make a token gesture of recording them.

Madhya9.7-8

TEXTS 7-8

purvavat pathe yaite ye paya darasana

yei grame yaya, se gramera yata jana

sabei vaisnava haya, kahe ’krsna’ ’hari’

anya grama nistaraye sei ’vaisnava’ kari’

SYNONYMS

purva-vat—as done previously; pathe—on the way; yaite—while going; ye—anyone who; paya—gets; darasana—audience; yei—which; grame—in the village; yaya—Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu goes; se—that; gramera—of the village; yata—all; jana—people; sabei—all of them; vaisnava haya—become devotees; kahe—say; krsna hari—the holy names of Lord Krsna and Hari; anya grama—other villages; nistaraye—delivers; sei—He; vaisnava—devotees; kari’-making.

TRANSLATION

As previously stated, all the residents of the villages visited by Lord Caitanya became Vaisnavas and began to chant “Hari” and “Krsna.” In this way, in all the villages visited by the Lord, everyone became a Vaisnava, a devotee.

PURPORT

The holy names of Krsna and Hari, or the chanting of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, are so spiritually powerful that even today, as our preachers go to remote parts of the world, people immediately begin chanting Hare Krsna. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself. There cannot be anyone who can compare to Him or His potencies. However, because we are following in His footsteps and are also chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, the effect is almost as potent as during the time of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Our preachers mainly belong to European and American countries, yet by the grace of Lord Caitanya they have tremendous success wherever they go to open branches. Indeed, everywhere people are very seriously chanting Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

Madhya9.9

TEXT 9

daksina desera loka aneka prakara

keha jnani, keha karmi, pasandi apara

SYNONYMS

daksina desera—of South India; loka—people; aneka—many; prakara—varieties; keha—someone; jnani—philosophical speculator; keha—someone; karmi—fruitive worker; pasandi—nondevotees; apara—innumerable.

TRANSLATION

In South India there were many types of people. Some were philosophical speculators, and some were fruitive workers, but in any case there were innumerable nondevotees.

Madhya9.10

TEXT 10

sei saba loka prabhura darsana-prabhave

nija-nija-mata chadi’ ha-ila vaisnave

SYNONYMS

sei saba loka—all those people; prabhura—of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; darsana-prabhave—by the influence of His visit; nija-nija—their own; mata—opinion; chadi’-giving up; ha-ila—became; vaisnave—devotees.

TRANSLATION

By the influence of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, all these people abandoned their own opinions and became Vaisnavas, devotees of Krsna.

Madhya9.11

TEXT 11

vaisnavera madhye rama-upasaka saba

keha ’tattvavadi’, keha haya ’sri-vaisnava’

SYNONYMS

vaisnavera madhye—amongst Vaisnavas; rama-upasaka saba—all worshipers of Lord Sri Ramacandra; keha—someone; tattva-vadi—followers of Madhvacarya; keha—someone; haya—is; sri-vaisnava—devotees following the disciplic succession of Sri Ramanujacarya

TRANSLATION

At the time, all the South Indian Vaisnavas were worshipers of Lord Ramacandra. Some were Tattvavadis, and some were followers of Ramanujacarya.

PURPORT

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura points out that the word “Tattvavadi” refers to the followers of Srila Madhvacarya. To distinguish his disciplic succession from the Mayavadi followers of Sankaracarya, Srila Madhvacarya named his party the Tattvavadis. Impersonal monists are always attacked by these Tattvavadis, who attempt to defeat their philosophy of impersonalism. Generally, they establish the supremacy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Actually the disciplic succession of Madhvacarya is known as the Brahma Vaisnava sect; that is the sect coming down from Lord Brahma. Consequently the Tattvavadis, or followers of Madhvacarya, do not accept the incident of Lord Brahma’s illusion, which is recorded in the Tenth Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam. Srila Madhvacarya has purposefully avoided commenting on that portion of Srimad-Bhagavatam in which brahma-mohana, the illusion of Lord Brahma, is mentioned. Srila Madhavendra Puri was one of the acaryas in the Tattvavada disciplic succession, and he established the ultimate goal of transcendentalism to be attainment of pure devotional service, love of Godhead. Those Vaisnavas belonging to the Gaudiya-sampradaya, the disciplic succession following Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, are distinct from the Tattvavadis, although they belong to the same Tattvavada-sampradaya. The followers of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu are therefore known as the Madhva-Gaudiya-sampradaya.

The word pasandi refers to those who are opposed to pure devotional service. In particular, these are the Mayavadis, the impersonalists. A definition of pasandi is given in the Hari-bhakti-vilasa (1.73), wherein it is stated:

yas tu narayanam devam
brahma-rudradi-daivataih
samatvenaiva vikseta
sa pasandi bhaved dhruvam

A pasandi is one who thinks that the Supreme Lord Narayana, the Personality of Godhead, is on the same level with the demigods, headed by Lord Brahma and Lord Siva. The devotee never considers Lord Narayana to be on the same platform with Lord Brahma and Lord Siva. The Madhvacarya-sampradaya and Ramanuja-sampradaya are mainly worshipers of Lord Ramacandra, although the Sri Vaisnavas are supposed to be worshipers of Lord Narayana and Laksmi and the Tattvavadis are supposed to be worshipers of Lord Krsna. At present, in most of the monasteries belonging to the Madhva-sampradaya, Lord Ramacandra is worshiped.

In the book known as Adhyatma-ramayana, there are statements in Chapters Twelve to Fifteen about the worship of the Deities Sri Ramacandra and Sita. There it is stated that during Lord Ramacandra’s time there was a brahmana who took a vow to fast until he saw Lord Ramacandra. Sometimes, due to business, Lord Ramacandra was absent from His capital for a full week and could not be seen by citizens during that time. Because of his vow, the brahmana could not take even a drop of water during that week. Later, after eight or nine days, when the brahmana could see Lord Ramacandra personally, he would break his fast. Upon observing the brahmana’s rigid vow, Lord Sri Ramacandra ordered His younger brother Laksmana to deliver a pair of Sita-Rama Deities to the brahmana. The brahmana received the Deities from Sri Laksmanaji and worshiped Them faithfully as long as he lived. At the time of his death, he delivered the Deities to Sri Hanumanji, who, for many years, hung Them around his neck and served Them with all devotion. After many years, when Hanumanji departed on the hill known as Gandha-madana, he delivered the Deities to Bhimasena, one of the Pandavas, and Bhimasena brought Them to his palace, where he kept Them very carefully. The last king of the Pandavas, Ksemakanta, worshiped the Deities in that palace. Later, the same Deities were kept in the custody of the kings of Orissa known as Gajapatis. One of the acaryas, known as Narahari Tirtha, who was in the disciplic succession of Madhvacarya, received these Deities from the King of Orissa.

It may be noted that these particular Deities of Rama and Sita have been worshiped from the time of King Iksvaku. Indeed, they were worshiped by the royal princes even before the appearance of Lord Ramacandra. Later, during Lord Ramacandra’s presence, the Deities were worshiped by Laksmana. It is said that just three months before his disappearance, Sri Madhvacarya received these Deities and installed them in the Udupi temple. Since then the Deities have been worshiped by the Madhvacarya-sampradaya at that monastery. As far as the Sri Vaisnavas are concerned, beginning with Ramanujacarya, they also worshiped Deities of Sita-Rama. Sita-Rama Deities are also being worshiped in Tirupati and other places. From the Sri Ramanuja-sampradaya there is another branch known as Ramanandi or Ramat, and the followers of that branch also worship Deities of Sita-Rama very rigidly. The Ramanuja-sampradaya Vaisnavas prefer the worship of Lord Ramacandra to that of Radha-Krsna.

Madhya9.12

TEXT 12

sei saba vaisnava mahaprabhura darsane

krsna-upasaka haila, laya krsna-name

SYNONYMS

sei saba—all those; vaisnava—devotees; mahaprabhura—of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; darsane—by seeing; krsna-upasaka—devotees of Lord Krsna; haila—became; laya—took; krsna-name—the holy name of Lord Krsna.

TRANSLATION

After meeting Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, all those different Vaisnavas became devotees of Krsna and began chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra.

Madhya9.13

TEXT 13

rama! raghava! rama! raghava! rama! raghava! pahi mam

krsna! kesava! krsna! kesava! krsna! kesava! raksa mam

SYNONYMS

rama—O Rama; raghava—O descendant of Raghu; pahi—please protect; mam—me; krsna—O Krsna; kesava—O killer of Kesi; raksa—protect; mam—me.

TRANSLATION

“ ’O Lord Ramacandra, descendant of Maharaja Raghu, kindly protect me! O Lord Krsna, killer of the Kesi demon, kindly protect me!’ ”

Madhya9.14

TEXT 14

ei sloka pathe padi’ karila prayana

gautami-gangaya yai’ kaila ganga-snana

SYNONYMS

ei sloka—this Sanskrit verse; pathe—on the way; padi’-reciting; karila—did; prayana—going; gautami-gangaya—to the bank of the Gautami-ganga; yai’-going; kaila—did; ganga-snana—bathing in the Ganges.

TRANSLATION

While walking on the road, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu used to chant this Rama Raghava mantra. Chanting in this way, He arrived at the banks of the Gautami-ganga and took His bath there.

PURPORT

The Gautami-ganga is another branch of the river Godavari. Formerly a great sage named Gautama Rsi used to live on the bank of this river opposite the city of Rajamahendri, and consequently this branch was called the Gautami-ganga.

Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura says that Srila Kaviraja Gosvami has recorded the names of the holy places visited by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu but that there is no chronological order of the places visited. However, there is a notebook of Govinda dasa’s containing a chronological order and references to geographical positions. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura requests the readers to refer to that book. According to Govinda dasa, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu went to Trimanda from the Gautami-ganga. From there He went to Dhundirama-tirtha, another place of pilgrimage. According to this book, after visiting the Gautami-ganga, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu went to Mallikarjuna-tirtha.

Madhya9.15

TEXT 15

mallikarjuna-tirthe yai’ mahesa dekhila

tahan saba loke krsna-nama laoyaila

SYNONYMS

mallikarjuna-tirthe—to the holy place known as Mallikarjuna; yai’-going; mahesa—the deity of Lord Siva; dekhila—He saw; tahan—there; saba loke—all the people; krsna-nama—Lord Krsna’s holy name; laoyaila—He induced to chant.

TRANSLATION

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu then went to Mallikarjuna-tirtha and saw the deity of Lord Siva there. He also induced all the people to chant the Hare Krsna maha-mantra.

PURPORT

Mallikarjuna is also known as Sri Saila. It is situated about seventy miles south of Karnula on the right bank of the Krsna River. There are great walls all around the village, and within the walls resides the deity known as Mallikarjuna. It is a deity of Lord Siva and is one of the Jyotirlingas.

Madhya9.16

TEXT 16

ramadasa mahadeve karila darasana

ahovala-nrsimhere karila gamana

SYNONYMS

rama-dasa—Ramadasa; maha-deve—of Mahadeva; karila—did; darasana—seeing; ahovala-nrsimhere—to Ahovala-nrsimha; karila—did; gamana—going.

TRANSLATION

There he saw Lord Mahadeva [Siva], the servant of Lord Rama. He then went to Ahovala-nrsimha.

Madhya9.17

TEXT 17

nrsimha dekhiya tanre kaila nati-stuti

siddhavata gela yahan murti sitapati

SYNONYMS

nrsimha dekhiya—after seeing the Lord Nrsimha Deity; tanre—unto Him; kaila—did; nati-stuti—offering of various prayers; siddhavata—to Siddhavata; gela—He went; yahan—where; murti—the Deity; sita-pati—Lord Ramacandra.

TRANSLATION

After seeing the Ahovala-nrsimha Deity, Caitanya Mahaprabhu offered many prayers unto the Lord. He then went to Siddhavata, where He saw the Deity of Ramacandra, the Lord of Sitadevi.

PURPORT

Siddhavata, also known as Sidhauta, is ten miles east of the village Kudapa. Previously this place was also known as southern Benares. There is a great banyan tree there, and it is therefore known as Siddhavata. Vata means banyan tree.

Madhya9.18

TEXT 18

raghunatha dekhi’ kaila pranati stavana

tahan eka vipra prabhura kaila nimantrana

SYNONYMS

raghu-natha dekhi’-after seeing Lord Ramacandra, the descendant of Maharaja Raghu; kaila—offered; pranati—obeisances; stavana—prayers; tahan—there; eka—one; vipra—brahmana; prabhura—to Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; kaila—did; nimantrana—invitation.

TRANSLATION

After seeing the Deity of Lord Ramacandra, the descendant of King Raghu, the Lord offered His prayers and obeisances. Then a brahmana invited the Lord to take lunch.

Madhya9.19

TEXT 19

sei vipra rama-nama nirantara laya

’rama’’rama’ vina anya vani na kahaya

SYNONYMS

sei vipra—that brahmana; rama-nama—the holy name of Lord Ramacandra; nirantara—constantly; laya—chants; rama rama—the holy names Rama Rama; vina—without; anya—other; vani—vibration; na—does not; kahaya—speak.

TRANSLATION

That brahmana constantly chanted the holy name of Ramacandra. Indeed, but for chanting Lord Ramacandra’s holy name, that brahmana did not speak a word.

Madhya9.20

TEXT 20

sei dina tanra ghare rahi’ bhiksa kari’

tanre krpa kari’ age calila gaurahari

SYNONYMS

sei dina—on that day; tanra ghare—the house of that brahmana; rahi’-staying; bhiksa kari’-accepting prasada; tanre—unto him; krpa kari’-showing mercy; age—ahead; calila—departed; gaura-hari—Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

TRANSLATION

That day, Lord Caitanya remained there and accepted prasada at his house. After bestowing mercy upon him in this way, the Lord proceeded ahead.

Madhya9.21

TEXT 21

skanda-ksetra-tirthe kaila skanda darasana

trimatha aila, tahan dekhi’ trivikrama

SYNONYMS

skanda-ksetra-tirthe—in the holy place known as Skanda-ksetra; kaila—did; skanda darasana—visiting Lord Skanda (Karttikeya, son of Lord Siva); trimatha—at Trimatha; aila—arrived; tahan—there; dekhi’-seeing; trivikrama—a form of Lord Visnu, Trivikrama.

TRANSLATION

At the holy place known as Skanda-ksetra, Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu visited the temple of Skanda. From there He went to Trimatha, where He saw the Visnu Deity Trivikrama.

Madhya9.22

TEXT 22

punah siddhavata aila sei vipra-ghare

sei vipra krsna-nama laya nirantare

SYNONYMS

punah—again; siddha-vata—to the place known as Siddhavata; aila—returned; sei—that; vipra-ghare—in the house of the brahmana; sei vipra—that brahmana; krsna-nama—the holy name of Lord Krsna; laya—chants; nirantare—constantly.

TRANSLATION

After visiting the temple of Trivikrama, the Lord returned to Siddhavata, where He again visited the house of the brahmana, who was now constantly chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra.

Madhya9.23

TEXT 23

bhiksa kari’ mahaprabhu tanre prasna kaila

’’kaha vipra, ei tomara kon dasa haila

SYNONYMS

bhiksa kari’-after accepting lunch; mahaprabhu—Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; tanre—unto him; prasna kaila—asked a question; kaha vipra—My dear brahmana friend, please say; ei—this; tomara—your; kon—what; dasa—situation; haila—became.

TRANSLATION

After finishing His lunch there, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu asked the brahmana, "My dear friend, kindly tell Me what your position is now.

Madhya9.24

TEXT 24

purve tumi nirantara laite rama-nama

ebe kene nirantara lao krsna-nama’’

SYNONYMS

purve—formerly; tumi—you; nirantara—constantly; laite—used to chant; rama-nama—the holy name of Lord Ramacandra; ebe—now; kene—why; nirantara—constantly; lao—you chant; krsna-nama—the holy name of Krsna.

TRANSLATION

“Formerly you were constantly chanting the holy name of Lord Rama. Why are you now constantly chanting the holy name of Krsna?”

Madhya9.25

TEXT 25

vipra bale,--ei tomara darsana-prabhave

toma dekhi’ gela mora ajanma svabhave

SYNONYMS

vipra bale—the brahmana replied; ei—this; tomara darsana-prabhave—by the influence of Your visit; toma dekhi’-after seeing You; gela—went; mora—my; a-janma—from childhood; svabhave—nature.

TRANSLATION

The brahmana replied, "This is all due to Your influence, sir. After seeing You, I have lost my lifelong practice.

Madhya9.26

TEXT 26

balyavadhi rama-nama-grahana amara

toma dekhi’ krsna-nama aila eka-bara

SYNONYMS

balya-avadhi—since the days of my childhood; rama-nama-grahana—chanting the holy name of Lord Ramacandra; amara—my; toma dekhi’-upon seeing You; krsna-nama—the holy name of Lord Krsna; aila—came; eka-bara—once only.

TRANSLATION

"From my childhood I have been chanting the holy name of Lord Ramacandra, but upon seeing You I chanted the holy name of Lord Krsna just once.

Madhya9.27

TEXT 27

sei haite krsna-nama jihvate vasila

krsna-nama sphure, rama-nama dure gela

SYNONYMS

sei haite—since that time; krsna-nama—the holy name of Lord Krsna; jihvate—on the tongue; vasila—was seated tightly; krsna-nama—the holy name of Lord Krsna; sphure—automatically comes; rama-nama—the holy name of Lord Ramacandra; dure—far away; gela—went.

TRANSLATION

"Since then, the holy name of Krsna has been tightly fixed upon my tongue. Indeed, since I have been chanting the holy name of Krsna, the holy name of Lord Ramacandra has gone far away.

Madhya9.28

TEXT 28

balya-kala haite mora svabhava eka haya

namera mahima-sastra kariye sancaya

SYNONYMS

balya-kala haite—from my childhood; mora—my; svabhava—practice; eka—one; haya—there is; namera—of the holy name; mahima—concerning the glories; sastra—the revealed scriptures; kariye sancaya—I collect.

TRANSLATION

"From my childhood I have been practicing this chanting and have been collecting the glories of the holy name from revealed scriptures.

Madhya9.29

TEXT 29

ramante yogino ’nante

satyanande cid-atmani

iti rama-padenasau

param brahmabhidhiyate

SYNONYMS

ramante—take pleasure; yoginah—transcendentalists; anante—in the unlimited; satya-anande—real pleasure; cit-atmani—in spiritual existence; iti—thus; rama—Rama; padena—by the word; asau—He; param—supreme; brahma—truth; abhidhiyate—is called.

TRANSLATION

" ’The Supreme Absolute Truth is called Rama because the transcendentalists take pleasure in the unlimited true pleasure of spiritual existence.’

PURPORT

This is the eighth verse of the Sata-nama-stotra of Lord Ramacandra, which is found in the Padma Purana.

Madhya9.30

TEXT 30

krsir bhu-vacakah sabdo

nas ca nirvrti-vacakah

tayor aikyam param brahma

krsna ity abhidhiyate

SYNONYMS

krsih—the verbal root krs; bhu—attractive existence; vacakah—signifying; sabdah—word; nah—the syllable na; ca—and; nirvrti—spiritual pleasure; vacakah—indicating; tayoh—of both; aikyam—amalgamation; param—supreme; brahma—Absolute Truth; krsnah—Lord Krsna; iti—thus; abhidhiyate—is called.

TRANSLATION

“ ’The word ”krs“ is the attractive feature of the Lord’s existence, and ”na“ means spiritual pleasure. When the verb ”krs“ is added to the affix ”na,“ it becomes ”Krsna," which indicates the Absolute Truth.’

PURPORT

This is a verse from the Mahabharata (Udyoga-parva 71.4).

Madhya9.31

TEXT 31

param brahma dui-nama samana ha-ila

punah ara sastre kichu visesa paila

SYNONYMS

param brahma—the Absolute Truth; dui-nama—two names (Rama and Krsna); samana—on an equal level; ha-ila—were; punah—again; ara—further; sastre—in revealed scriptures; kichu—some; visesa—specification; paila—is found.

TRANSLATION

"As far as the holy names of Rama and Krsna are concerned, they are on an equal level, but for further advancement we receive some specific information from revealed scriptures.