Respectful obeisance to all vaishnavas!
I'm a undergraduate student seeking for Krishna consciousness. Since last 4 months I have been chanting 16 rounds. Since there is restrictions of my parents i used to chant in their absence. I get distracted by bad thoughts everyday though they are somewhat reduced nowdays. Sometimes I feel very happy due to chanting and when i avoid chanting i caught by bad thoughts of mind which i have to suffer the whole day. After 16 rounds they go away, but i cannot get confidence to chant the next day due to which i cannot chant neatly again and so on each day.
I have iskcon center in city but i cannot go there due to my parents. Now i suffer during initial round and do offences. So please kindly help me "How many rounds should i chant and How?"
I complete my 16 rounds for the happiness i feel for some moments during the end rounds. I don't want to forget Krishna and i want his love!
Replies
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Hare KRsna Prabhuji,
PAMHO.
Welcome to ISKCON Desire Tree.
Please continue to chant 16 rounds of mahamantra every single day. The day you dont eat AND the day you dont sleep is the day you dont chant.
Even after decades of chanting, we still get distracted. What to speak of 4 months of chanting. Of course, you will get distracted. Continue to chant.
Regarding parents putting restrictions, it is natural. Ensure that your acedamic results are good and improving. Then slowly the resistance will go. They are only concerned that you shoudl not neglect your studies and use this as a distraction. Persevere. They will come around.
Always be very respectful towards parents and elders. Now you are ambassador of Krsna and parents are future devotees. How soon they come to devotion will depend on how you behave with them. When they see genuine change in you (will happen gradually, with a lot of chanting), they will appreciate you a lot more and eventually come on this path.
Remember one thing - obstacles on the path of spirituality is to make our resolve stronger.
Haribol,
Your servant,
Radha Rasamayi DD
Thanks for your kind response at me.
What do you mean by "The day you don't eat and the day you don't sleep is the day you don't chant!"
Mataji, I know that krishna is very kind at me and he is trying to reeduce by offences through many ways.I can experience it.
To my surprise, I scored highest marks in engineering entrance exam and Board exam. This is only due to the grace of KRISHNA!
But I am unable to remove the fear in my mind about those wrong thoughts. Nowdays i even hear kirtans before chanting to stabilize my mind.
should I chant in one go though my mind disturb? or should I chant in intervals when my mind is calm?
Hare Krishna!
Hare Krsna prabhu,
Sorry, saw now only.
Regarding the day you dont eat and the day you dont sleep - it shows the importance chanting has in our lives. Whatever the circumstances, we eat and/ or sleep. There is never any day when we dont do both. We have to give the same importance to chanting.
Regarding hearing kritan before chanting, if you have the time, it is very good. However, I reiterate that mind is disturbed and will continue to play tricks, especially when we chant. Do not be deterred, CHANT. Just continue to chant.
Regarding whether you should chant in one go or with breaks, again depends on your circumstances. Ideally, same time of the day, same place, we should sit and complete our rounds in one sitting. At the same time, understand that situation can vary from day to day and adjust.
Chanting should not become a chore. It is to be done with a lot of happiness and gratitude in heart. We should pray in humble mood, asking for " O Radha, O Krsna, O Ram, please engage me in Your service".
Haribol,
Your servant,
Radha Rasamayi DD
Depends what those bad thoughts are related to. If they are about everyday problems with some people around you, mishaps etc., that happens to most of us. As we progress, this gets reduced.
But if they are specifically negative to everything spiritual, they may be coming from negative subtle entities. Quoting from my earlier reply: "Chant 21 times in one sitting the prayer of Avalokitesvara (Mahayana form of Laksmi) to Hari-Hara (a combined form of Visnu and Siva) called Mahakarunika citta dharani or Nilakantha dharani. It has a long article on en wiki and many versions in Sanskrit, Tibetan and Chinese are found on YT."
Hari Hari
ys J.