The Ten Fundamental Principles
amnayah praha tattvam harim iha paramam sarva-saktim rasabdhim
tad-bhinnamsams cha jivan prakrti-kavalitan tad-vimuktams cha bhavat
bhedabheda-prakasam sakalam api hareh sadhanam suddha-bhaktim
sadhyam tat-pritim evety upadisati janan gaurachandrah svayam sah
iha–In this world; amnayah–knowledge revealed through Guru-parampara; praha–states; tattvam–the Truth; harim paramam–Sri Hari is supreme; sarva-saktim–He possesses all potencies; rasabdhim–He is an ocean of rasa. jivan cha–Also, the souls; tad bhinnamsan–are His separated parts. prakrti-kavalitan–They are covered by maya; tad vimuktan cha–or liberated from maya; bhavat–by desire. sakalam api–Yet everything — the entire spiritual and material creation; bhedabheda-prakasam–is a different and nondifferent manifestation; hareh–of Sri Hari. suddha-bhaktim–Pure devotion; sadhanam–is the means; tat pritim–love for Sri Hari; eva sadhyam–is the only goal. iti–This; sah–He; gaurachandrah–Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu; svayam–Himself; upadisati–teaches; janan–the souls.
«Sri Gaurachandra personally teaches the souls that (1) revealed knowledge establishes the Truth: (2) Hari is supreme, (3) He is omnipotent, (4) He is an ocean of rasa, (5) the souls are His separated parts, (6) they are either covered by material energy, (7) or liberated from material energy by devotion, (8) everything is a manifestation distinct and non-distinct from Hari, (9) pure devotion is the way, and (10) love for Hari is the goal.»
Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj:
«Within this one verse, which conveys the gist of the Dasa-mula-tattva, Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur has given us everything. He has given us the whole conception of Mahaprabhu Sri Chaitanyadev and Krishna consciousness. If you can read and memorise this verse, then everything will be within you: the full conception of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur, Srila Guru Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj, and Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math. Everything, the gist of all revealed knowledge (amnaya), is within this one verse.
«But don’t try to understand this verse by yourself. Hear it from an expert. Everywhere throughout all the scriptures this advice is given: ‘You must hear from an expert.’ So hear this verse from an expert who knows its meaning. If you hear from him with full faith, you will understand properly what is what, and you will get everything.»