Monday Morning Greetings 2026 #10 – The Mystery Verse

I loved the verse.

“In great jubilation, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, ‘My dear Svarūpa Dāmodara and Rāmānanda Rāya, know from Me that chanting the holy names is the most feasible means of salvation in this Age of Kali.’” Antya-līlā 20.8

Although I loved the verse, I also had a problem with it. It came out of nowhere, so to speak, as it just didn’t seem to follow what was being described and discussed before it. I thus couldn’t fully understand the verse’s context and purport.

This Monday morning will explore why in the context of what is being discussed it is so mysterious and then offer an explanation to resolve that mystery.

I will begin by looking closely at the verses before Text 8 in Chapter 20 to see if I can unlock its context and thus meaning. I therefore will start my investigation in the previous chapter.

The beginning of Chapter 19 tells the story of Śrī Caitanya receiving a cryptic message in sonnet form from Advaita Ācārya, the head of the Vaiṣṇavas in Bengal. It was his sincere prayer that had been the cause of the Lord’s appearance.

“Please inform Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who is acting like a madman, that everyone here has become mad like Him. Inform Him also that in the marketplace rice is no longer in demand.

“Further tell Him that those now mad in ecstatic love are no longer interested in the material world. Also tell Him that one who has also become a madman in ecstatic love [Advaita Prabhu] has spoken these words.” Antya-līlā 19.20 and 21

Everyone hearing the message was left flummoxed. What in the world was he talking about? Even Śrī Caitanya feigned ignorance of its meaning, although He indirectly expressed that He understood it. This is what He surmised.

There were two basic reasons for His appearance; the external cause (why He came for the benefit of others) and the internal cause (why He came for himself). For others, He came to spread the holy name and infuse spontaneous devotion into the world. For Himself, He came to experience the feelings of love felt by His topmost devotee, Śrī Radha, at the height of Her love. When Advaita therefore wrote that there was no demand for rice in the market, he was hinting that Śrī Caitanya’s external mission was successful. The world was flooded with pure devotion. People therefore no longer had demand for what they had already received by His mercy. The proof of this idea is confirmed in the next stanza, “[…] those mad with ecstatic love were all liberated and had no interest in the world.”

In simple terms, it was Śrī Advaita who petitioned Him to come and save the world. As that external mission has been successfully completed, it was now Advaita indirectly calling Him back.

Since He no longer had to be concerned with the external reason for His appearance, He could now singularly focus on His internal mission, to taste the love of His topmost devotee, Śrī Radha, at the height Her love, Her separation from Krishna. And He did:

“From that day on, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s emotional state changed markedly; His feelings of separation from Kṛṣṇa doubled in intensity.” Antya-līlā 19.30

The remainder of Chapter 19 describes the intensity of Śrī Caitanya’s internal pursuit after receiving Śrī Advaita’s message and order:

“As His feelings of separation in the ecstasy of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī increased at every moment, the Lord’s activities, both day and night, were now wild, insane performances.” Antya-līlā 19.31

Chapter 20, where our mystery verse rests, gives us a bird’s eye view of Śrī Caitanya in the Gambhīra (His cave-like room) where He did his bhajan, His deep spiritual practice. He spends day and night overwhelmed in ecstasy tasting the verses and songs of Śrī Radha’s deep feelings of separation. And please note that He remains absorbed in the holy name in that mood. He is totally lost in Śrī Radha’s intense feelings of separation. Now back to our mystery verse:

“In great jubilation, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, ‘My dear Svarūpa Dāmodara and Rāmānanda Rāya, know from Me that chanting the holy names is the most feasible means of salvation in this Age of Kali.’”

Do you now see why its placement in the chapter is such an apparent anomaly? Śrī Caitanya had completed His preaching mission and was now totally absorbed in the most intense experience in the mood of Śrī Radha. Why now, deep in the fulfillment of His internal mission, was He again involved in His external mission? Hadn’t Śrī Advaita indicated that this part of His life was now finished? My proposed resolution to this quandary is as follows.

When feeling mercy, it’s natural to feel gratitude for the cause of one’s mercy. What is the mercy that Śrī Caitanya is experiencing? His two missions, both His preaching mission and his cultivation of rādhā-bhāva, have both been successfully completed due to the mercy of the holy name. How can He forget that, especially as it only due the mercy of the holy name that He is experiencing the height of Śrī Radha’s love? Our mystery verse is thus a natural expression of gratitude for the holy name and what it has given him.

That’s my mystery verse. That’s my resolution. And I hope you enjoyed this rather long journey on my Monday post!