Ämi — eka bÄtula, tumi — dvitÄ«ya bÄtula
ataeva tomÄya ÄmÄya ha-i sama-tula

 Ämi - I; eka - one; bÄtula - madman; tumi - you; dvitÄ«ya - second; bÄtula - madman; ataeva - therefore; tomÄya - you; ÄmÄya - Me; ha-i - are; sama-tula - on an equal level.


Text

Caitanya MahÄprabhu then said, “Indeed, I am a madman, and you are also a madman. Therefore we are on the same platform.â€

Purport

All these conversations between RÄmÄnanda RÄya and ÅšrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu appear ludicrous to a common man who is not a devotee. The entire world is filled with material conceptions, and people are unable to understand these conversations due to the conditioning of mundane philosophy. Those who are overly attached to mundane activities cannot understand the ecstatic conversations between RÄmÄnanda RÄya and Caitanya MahÄprabhu. Consequently the Lord requested that RÄmÄnanda RÄya keep all these conversations secret and not expose them to the general populace. If one is actually advanced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he can understand these confidential talks; otherwise they appear crazy. ÅšrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu therefore informed RÄmÄnanda RÄya that they both appeared like madmen and were therefore on the same platform. It is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gÄ«tÄ (2.69):

yÄ niÅ›Ä sarva-bhÅ«tÄnÄá¹ tasyÄá¹ jÄgarti saá¹yamÄ«
yasyÄá¹ jÄgrati bhÅ«tÄni sÄ niÅ›Ä paÅ›yato muneḥ

“What is night for all beings is the time of awakening for the self-controlled, and the time of awakening for all beings is night for the introspective sage.â€

Sometimes Kṛṣṇa consciousness appears like a type of madness to mundane people, just as the activities of mundaners are considered a form of madness by Kṛṣṇa conscious men.