Srila Prabhuapada in the "Nectar of Devotion":
"When a mantra or hymn is chanted softly (but audibly) and slowly, that is called japa. The same mantra, when chanted loudly is called kirtana. For example, the Maha-mantra (Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare) when uttered very softly (but audibly) only for one's own hearing is called japa. The same mantra, when chanted loudly for being heard by all others is called kirtana. The Maha-mantra can be used for japa and kirtana also. When japa is practiced it is for the personal benefit of the chanter, but when kirtana is performed it is for the benefit of all others who may hear."
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Adi-lila 17.32 purport:
"Chanting involves the activities of the upper and lower lips as well as the tongue. All three must be engaged in chanting the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. The words "Hare Krishna" should be very distinctly pronounced and heard. Sometimes one mechanically produces a hissing sound instead of chanting with the proper pronunciation with the help of the lips and tongue. Chanting is very simple, but one must practice is seriously."
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Antya-lila 11.24 purport:
"The first regulative principle is that one must chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra loudly enough so that he can hear himself, and one must vow to chant a fixed number of rounds."
Srila Prahlada states in the Naradiya Purana:
"When a mantra or hymn is chanted softly (but audibly) and slowly, that is called japa. The same mantra, when chanted loudly is called kirtana. For example, the Maha-mantra (Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare) when uttered very softly (but audibly) only for one's own hearing is called japa. The same mantra, when chanted loudly for being heard by all others is called kirtana. The Maha-mantra can be used for japa and kirtana also. When japa is practiced it is for the personal benefit of the chanter, but when kirtana is performed it is for the benefit of all others who may hear."
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Adi-lila 17.32 purport:
"Chanting involves the activities of the upper and lower lips as well as the tongue. All three must be engaged in chanting the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. The words "Hare Krishna" should be very distinctly pronounced and heard. Sometimes one mechanically produces a hissing sound instead of chanting with the proper pronunciation with the help of the lips and tongue. Chanting is very simple, but one must practice is seriously."
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Antya-lila 11.24 purport:
"The first regulative principle is that one must chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra loudly enough so that he can hear himself, and one must vow to chant a fixed number of rounds."
Srila Prahlada states in the Naradiya Purana:
| japato hari namani, sthane sata-gunadhikah; atmanan ca punaty-uccair-japan srotrn-punati ca. |
"Compared to that person who is attached to chanting mentally or silently, the person who performs loud chanting of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra is one hundred times better. This is because the person who chants mentally purifies only himself, whereas the person who chants the Maha-mantra loudly purifies himself, all those who are with him, and everyone who hears the Holy vibration."
Thakura Haridasa in Hari-nama-cintamani:
| kona bhagya kona jivera sraddha jadi haya; tabe tiho harinama grahana karaya. |
"If due to some unknown good fortune, a living entity develops faith in the chanting process, then he will take up the chanting of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
| bhaktyunmukha jiva suddha gurura krpaya; sri yugula-brahma-nama saubhagyete paya. |
"The living entity who becomes attracted to chanting due to heaps and heaps of past pious activities receives the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, which is called 'sri yugula-brahma-nama' as it is non-different from the Names of Sri Sri Radha-Krishna, by the mercy of a pure spiritual master."
| yatna kari smare nama sankhyara sahita; tabe name anuraga hayata udita |
"After receiving the Name, if he chants with great care and attention a fixed number of rounds daily, then he will be able to awaken his dormant attraction for the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
| je paryanta anuraga na haya udaya; se parjyanta yatna kori nama sada laya. |
"Till he does not develop the attraction for the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra he should take very special care in chanting."
| tulasi malaya nama sankhya kari smare; athava kirtana kare parama adare. |
"He should vow to chant and remember a fixed quantity of rounds daily on a rosary made of 108 tulasi beads. He can also chant or sing some part of his daily quota in kirtana (with musical instruments, etc). He should do so with great respect."
Purport by Srila Thakura Bhaktivinoda:
"Once an aspirant develops faith in chanting, the biggest obstacle is the attraction of the senses to the sense-objects. To overcome this obstacle and realize the full power of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, the spiritual master gives the disciple instructions on the method of sadhana. The primary upasana (method of worship) is to chant a fixed number of rounds of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra everyday on tulasi beads. This method of worship will gradually reward the aspirant with all that which is to be attained. Therefore, in the beginning the chanter should sit in a solitary place for a very short time (start with four rounds) and chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra with great concentration. Gradually, as he keeps on increasing the quantity of his chanting, the cultivation of the chanting will become continuous and all the obstacles will surely be destroyed.
"Once an aspirant develops faith in chanting, the biggest obstacle is the attraction of the senses to the sense-objects. To overcome this obstacle and realize the full power of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, the spiritual master gives the disciple instructions on the method of sadhana. The primary upasana (method of worship) is to chant a fixed number of rounds of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra everyday on tulasi beads. This method of worship will gradually reward the aspirant with all that which is to be attained. Therefore, in the beginning the chanter should sit in a solitary place for a very short time (start with four rounds) and chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra with great concentration. Gradually, as he keeps on increasing the quantity of his chanting, the cultivation of the chanting will become continuous and all the obstacles will surely be destroyed.
| krame kala-vrddhi kori sei nama smare; ati sighra visayera chanda haite tare. |
"If a sadhaka gradually increases the time period (quantity) of his chanting and meditation on the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, then very soon he will become delivered from the entanglements of material desire."
| eka grantha sankhya kori arambhire nama; krame tina laksa smari pure manaskama. |
"One should begin chanting with a minimum of four rounds of the Maha-mantra. He should gradually increase the chanting to the point of chanting and remembering 300,000 Names (174 rounds) of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra which will ensure the complete fulfillment of all his desires."
| mane habe---aja laksa nama je karibo; krame krame tina laksa nama je smaribo mahagraha habe citte namera sankhyaya; acire jabe jadya sadhura krpaya. |
"When one's mind becomes very determined and eager to complete the daily quota of chanting and resolves that from today I will chant sixty-four rounds of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, and gradually will try to achieve the stage of chanting 300,000 Names daily, then at that time the inertia (laziness) for chanting will disappear by the mercy of the devotees.
| sankalpita nama-sankhya purna karibare; na haya ayatna kedhi bare bare. |
"The sadhaka should be very very careful at all times that he completes the chanting of the fixed number of rounds daily without fail."
Purport by Srila Thakura Bhaktivinoda:
"When one chants on tulasi beads, keeping a fixed count daily, then he will experience that he will develop a desire to gradually increase the quantity of his chanting."
Purport by Srila Bhaktiratna Sadhu Swami Gaurangapada:
The recommended daily quantity of chanting of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra:
"When one chants on tulasi beads, keeping a fixed count daily, then he will experience that he will develop a desire to gradually increase the quantity of his chanting."
Purport by Srila Bhaktiratna Sadhu Swami Gaurangapada:
The recommended daily quantity of chanting of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra:
- For Beginners Four rounds
- Minimum for serious sadhakas: Sixteen rounds
- Intermediate for serious sadhakas: Thirty-two rounds
- Actual goal for serious sadhakas: Sixty-four rounds
Four rounds is called a "grantha", thus it is a good number for all to begin with. Srila Prabhupada prescribed the minimum chanting of sixteen rounds of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra daily for all initiated devotees.
Srila Prabhupada states in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Adi-lila 17.23:
"Therefore our request to all our students is that they daily chant at least sixteen rounds of this harer nama maha-mantra offenselessly and following the regulative principles. Thus their success will be assured without a doubt."
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta adi-lila 10.43:
"Certainly the chanting of 300,000 Holy Names of the Lord is wonderful. No ordinary person can chant so many Names, nor should one artificially imitate Haridasa Thakura's behavior. It is essential, however, that everyone fulfill a specific vow to chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. Therefore we have prescribed in our Society that all our students must chant at least sixteen rounds daily. Such chanting must be offenseless in order to be of high quality. Mechanical chanting is not as powerful as chanting of the Holy Name without offenses."
From the above statements of Srila Prabhupada, we understand that the minimum quota of chanting sixteen rounds daily is to be chanted offenselessly to get the maximum benefit. By following Srila Prabhupada's instructions of chanting at least sixteen rounds daily, trying to avoid the ten offenses and by trying to increase the quality and quantity of chanting, one can gradually perfect one's life and go back to Godhead. According to Srila Prabhupada and all the Vedic scriptures, by constant chanting or by increasing one's chanting to thirty-two or sixty-four rounds, one can speed up the process of clearing the offenses. In fact it is the only way to successfully counteract the ten offenses. As we have seen in section (VII), according to Srila Prabhupada, Padma-purana, Hari-nama-cintamani, etc, the constant or increased chanting is the most effective way to completely and quickly destroy the ten offenses. That is why Srila Prabhupada mentions in a conversation that if the material fever of sense-gratification is not coming down by chanting sixteen rounds, one should increase the chanting to sixty-four rounds daily. We feel that this statement is applicable to almost everyone of us.
Srila Prabhupada prescribed a minimum of sixteen rounds especially because of the Western devotees inability to chant for long periods on beads but he still encouraged everyone to increase the chanting to the stage of chanting constantly (see chapters VII and VIII). From the important purports and verses from Hari-nama-cintamani (given in this book), we can conclude that a serious aspirant should not take sixteen rounds as the maximum but always try to increase the quantity of his chanting without compromising on the quality of course. He should distinctly pronounce, hear and meditate on every syllable of the Maha-mantra with rapt attention.
It is very clear from the above verses directly being told by the Namacraya Haridasa Thakura to Lord Caitanya that for a serious chanter there is no other way but to increase both the quality and quantity of his chanting more and more. If someone is totally averse to the process of increasing the quantity of his chanting beyond the bare minimum of chanting sixteen rounds (Srila Prabhupada said that he has minimized the minimum which was sixty-four to sixteen rounds), then he will not achieve anything auspicious due to such a mentality according to Srila Saravati Thakura (see Sri Caitanya-bhagavata, Antya-khanda 9.122 purport). Like we have seen in Chapter VIII, Srila Prabhupada encourages even new devotees to increase their chanting. Even if a devotee is not able to increase his chanting to more than sixteen rounds immediately, he should constantly endeavour in that direction. If he has a strong desire he will surely become successful. Chanting thirty-two rounds daily (50,000 Names) can be an intermediate stage for those who can't make it to sixty-four rounds. It is my personal realization that chanting thirty-two rounds daily gives one unimaginable additional spiritual strength and disinfects one even more from the onslaught of the illusory energy (maya) on a day to day basis.
Every spiritual aspirant should ultimately aim to reach the standard of chanting sixty-four rounds (100,000 Names) daily which was the minimum prescribed by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu Himself. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Prabhupada used to say that our 'laksya' (goal) should be to reach the standard of 'laksa' (100,000) nama.
After sincerely chanting for many years with a fixed quota, one will become fixed in the chanting. The chanting will then grant the chanter with the divine remembrance of the Lord and the consequential unlimited bliss at every second. At an advanced stage in life when one retires from active devotional service and resides in the dhama, the chanter can increase the daily as prescribed in the Hari-nama-cintamini. At that time the chanter will experience the fulfillment of his most cherished desires of rendering direct service to Lord Sri Nitai-Gauranga and Sri Sri Radha-Krishna in the spiritual realm.
As one practices chanting for some times, his speed of chanting will gradually increase according to Srila Prabhupada. One can achieve the speed of chanting one round (108 times Maha-mantra) in six minutes. Thus he will take around one and a half hours for sixteen rounds and six hours to chant sixty-four rounds. We personally feel that to give six hours a day (1/4 of the day) to the highest and the most sublime process of chanting which will perpetually put an end to our cycle of birth and death in this material world (which is going on for millions and millions of lives) and which will ensure our entry into the spiritual world of Vaikuntha (where there is no birth, old age, disease and death) to enjoy the personal association with Lord Krishna in our original spiritual bodies, is not such a big sacrifice and should be done without hesitation by at least those devotees who want to make this their last life in this material world. The unlimited benefits and results we are going to get in return for the vow of chanting 100,000 Names (64 rounds) daily cannot even be estimated. And one will start experiencing these benefits of increasing one's chanting for the very first day itself.
According to Hari-nama-cintamani, one should not increase the chanting abruptly to sixty-four rounds, but should gradually increase from four to sixteen to thirty-two to forty-eight and then to sixty-four rounds daily. This is the recommendation to Srila Haridasa Thakura, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura and also Srila Sanatana Gosvami in the Hari-bhakti-vilasa. Although 100,000 Names of Krishna are completed by chanting fifty-eight rounds of the Maha-mantra, the sixty-four round standard is given by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura as it is in the multiple of 'grantha' (four rounds). Also, chanting the additional six rounds makes up for any lapse or loss in the pronunciation of the fifty-eight rounds.
The most munificent Supreme Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu accepts foodstuffs only in the home of those devotees who chant 100,000 Names everyday as told by the Lord Himself. According to the repeated statements of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura Prabhupada in his purports (Chapter VII), if one does not chant 100,000 Names everyday then such a person is sure to gradually become attached to sense-objects due to his increasing material desires and thus loose his qualification to serve Lord Gaurasundara and His devotees. He also runs the risk of not being able to obtain Krishna prasadam because Krishna does not accept any kind of offering from him. Also, even if such a person may invent many varieties of devotional service in order to justify his not chanting sixty-four rounds everyday, he cannot achieve anything auspicious by sacrificing his prime most service to Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, which is to chant sixty-four rounds daily. Thus such a person is called patita or fallen, this is the estimation of Srila Sarasvati Thakura Prabhupada.
Srila Prabhupada also accepts this calculation of his spiritual master in the "Nectar of Instruction" and prays to Lord Caitanya on our behalf. By the causeless mercy of Srila Prabhupada, we are able to get entry into the family of Lord Caitanya's devotees by beginning our chanting with a minimum of sixteen rounds. But we should never commit the grave mistake of thinking that the chanting of sixteen rounds is the maximum and thus criticize other devotees who want to raise themselves to the standard of chanting sixty-four rounds while actively performing their respective preaching services and participating in the morning and evening programs given by Srila Prabhupada. According to Srila Prabhupada and all the acharyas, a real preacher of the Holy Name is one who fully realizes and understands that the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra is non-different from Krishna Himself. And to come to this level, one should himself chant offenselessly, which in turn is only possible by chanting constantly. And chanting constantly means to chant at least sixty-four rounds (100,000 Names) daily. The preaching will be effective to the extent the preacher is chanting the pure Name. Thus, the preachers of Krishna consciousness who want to actually deliver others by giving vaikuntha-nama or spiritually pure sound vibration, should understand this important point, "some" people criticize the very mentality of trying to increase the chanting beyond sixteen rounds as an attempt to imitate Srila Haridasa Thakura. Such a neophyte mentality is very detrimental to the very process of chanting and can spell the spiritual doom of the person who engages in such activities. Of course as pointed out earlier, chanting sixty-four rounds daily should not be an excuse used by lazy devotees to avoid doing other services. If a devotee is sincere, he will find the time, way and means to chant sixty-four rounds daily without disturbing his other services. As the saying goes, where there is a will there is a way!
Also, chanting sixty-four rounds while engaged in active preaching can never be considered nirjana-bhajana. Of course the devotees who chant sixty-four rounds should not get puffed up and look down on other devotees who don't chant sixty-four rounds. They should feel themselves as so contaminated and fallen that chanting sixty-four rounds daily is the only hope for them to steadily remain in Krishna consciousness.
If one chants sixty-four rounds of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra daily with attachment then it automatically brings a great upsurge of humility and spiritual ecstasy in one's heart. All good qualities manifest in the body of such a devotee. One becomes jubilant in deep remembrance of the Lord's pastimes and constantly aspires to become the servant of the servant of the Lord's devotees. One becomes severely pained by seeing the miseries of other living entities (jive doya) and thus he becomes totally enthusiastic to vigorously preach the importance of chanting the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra through his words as well as his example. One's preaching becomes unlimitedly more effective and one can convert sinful people into devotees simply by one's association or by preaching only a little. Through the process of sincerely chanting sixty-four rounds everyday, one can very quickly achieve the stage of nistha (firm faith) or madhyama-adhikari (intermediate) platform by crossing the state of anartha-nivrtti (freedom from unwanted things in the heart). The process from the stage of nistha to prema(pure love of God) is quite fast if one sticks to this process of constant chanting. One should beg from the bona fide self-realized guru, his permission and blessings to chant sixty-four rounds. If one gets it, then one will be successful very quickly in this chanting process.
Even if one is not able to immediately increase the chanting beyond the minimum of sixteen rounds daily, one should sincerely work on improving the quality and attentiveness while chanting the minimum quota of sixteen rounds. Thus, one day he will surely develop an intense desire to increase his daily quota of chanting. I will end this note with a beautiful quote from Srila Prabhupada in the Nectar of Instruction, Chapter Seven:
Srila Prabhupada states in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Adi-lila 17.23:
"Therefore our request to all our students is that they daily chant at least sixteen rounds of this harer nama maha-mantra offenselessly and following the regulative principles. Thus their success will be assured without a doubt."
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta adi-lila 10.43:
"Certainly the chanting of 300,000 Holy Names of the Lord is wonderful. No ordinary person can chant so many Names, nor should one artificially imitate Haridasa Thakura's behavior. It is essential, however, that everyone fulfill a specific vow to chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. Therefore we have prescribed in our Society that all our students must chant at least sixteen rounds daily. Such chanting must be offenseless in order to be of high quality. Mechanical chanting is not as powerful as chanting of the Holy Name without offenses."
From the above statements of Srila Prabhupada, we understand that the minimum quota of chanting sixteen rounds daily is to be chanted offenselessly to get the maximum benefit. By following Srila Prabhupada's instructions of chanting at least sixteen rounds daily, trying to avoid the ten offenses and by trying to increase the quality and quantity of chanting, one can gradually perfect one's life and go back to Godhead. According to Srila Prabhupada and all the Vedic scriptures, by constant chanting or by increasing one's chanting to thirty-two or sixty-four rounds, one can speed up the process of clearing the offenses. In fact it is the only way to successfully counteract the ten offenses. As we have seen in section (VII), according to Srila Prabhupada, Padma-purana, Hari-nama-cintamani, etc, the constant or increased chanting is the most effective way to completely and quickly destroy the ten offenses. That is why Srila Prabhupada mentions in a conversation that if the material fever of sense-gratification is not coming down by chanting sixteen rounds, one should increase the chanting to sixty-four rounds daily. We feel that this statement is applicable to almost everyone of us.
Srila Prabhupada prescribed a minimum of sixteen rounds especially because of the Western devotees inability to chant for long periods on beads but he still encouraged everyone to increase the chanting to the stage of chanting constantly (see chapters VII and VIII). From the important purports and verses from Hari-nama-cintamani (given in this book), we can conclude that a serious aspirant should not take sixteen rounds as the maximum but always try to increase the quantity of his chanting without compromising on the quality of course. He should distinctly pronounce, hear and meditate on every syllable of the Maha-mantra with rapt attention.
It is very clear from the above verses directly being told by the Namacraya Haridasa Thakura to Lord Caitanya that for a serious chanter there is no other way but to increase both the quality and quantity of his chanting more and more. If someone is totally averse to the process of increasing the quantity of his chanting beyond the bare minimum of chanting sixteen rounds (Srila Prabhupada said that he has minimized the minimum which was sixty-four to sixteen rounds), then he will not achieve anything auspicious due to such a mentality according to Srila Saravati Thakura (see Sri Caitanya-bhagavata, Antya-khanda 9.122 purport). Like we have seen in Chapter VIII, Srila Prabhupada encourages even new devotees to increase their chanting. Even if a devotee is not able to increase his chanting to more than sixteen rounds immediately, he should constantly endeavour in that direction. If he has a strong desire he will surely become successful. Chanting thirty-two rounds daily (50,000 Names) can be an intermediate stage for those who can't make it to sixty-four rounds. It is my personal realization that chanting thirty-two rounds daily gives one unimaginable additional spiritual strength and disinfects one even more from the onslaught of the illusory energy (maya) on a day to day basis.
Every spiritual aspirant should ultimately aim to reach the standard of chanting sixty-four rounds (100,000 Names) daily which was the minimum prescribed by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu Himself. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Prabhupada used to say that our 'laksya' (goal) should be to reach the standard of 'laksa' (100,000) nama.
After sincerely chanting for many years with a fixed quota, one will become fixed in the chanting. The chanting will then grant the chanter with the divine remembrance of the Lord and the consequential unlimited bliss at every second. At an advanced stage in life when one retires from active devotional service and resides in the dhama, the chanter can increase the daily as prescribed in the Hari-nama-cintamini. At that time the chanter will experience the fulfillment of his most cherished desires of rendering direct service to Lord Sri Nitai-Gauranga and Sri Sri Radha-Krishna in the spiritual realm.
As one practices chanting for some times, his speed of chanting will gradually increase according to Srila Prabhupada. One can achieve the speed of chanting one round (108 times Maha-mantra) in six minutes. Thus he will take around one and a half hours for sixteen rounds and six hours to chant sixty-four rounds. We personally feel that to give six hours a day (1/4 of the day) to the highest and the most sublime process of chanting which will perpetually put an end to our cycle of birth and death in this material world (which is going on for millions and millions of lives) and which will ensure our entry into the spiritual world of Vaikuntha (where there is no birth, old age, disease and death) to enjoy the personal association with Lord Krishna in our original spiritual bodies, is not such a big sacrifice and should be done without hesitation by at least those devotees who want to make this their last life in this material world. The unlimited benefits and results we are going to get in return for the vow of chanting 100,000 Names (64 rounds) daily cannot even be estimated. And one will start experiencing these benefits of increasing one's chanting for the very first day itself.
According to Hari-nama-cintamani, one should not increase the chanting abruptly to sixty-four rounds, but should gradually increase from four to sixteen to thirty-two to forty-eight and then to sixty-four rounds daily. This is the recommendation to Srila Haridasa Thakura, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura and also Srila Sanatana Gosvami in the Hari-bhakti-vilasa. Although 100,000 Names of Krishna are completed by chanting fifty-eight rounds of the Maha-mantra, the sixty-four round standard is given by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura as it is in the multiple of 'grantha' (four rounds). Also, chanting the additional six rounds makes up for any lapse or loss in the pronunciation of the fifty-eight rounds.
The most munificent Supreme Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu accepts foodstuffs only in the home of those devotees who chant 100,000 Names everyday as told by the Lord Himself. According to the repeated statements of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura Prabhupada in his purports (Chapter VII), if one does not chant 100,000 Names everyday then such a person is sure to gradually become attached to sense-objects due to his increasing material desires and thus loose his qualification to serve Lord Gaurasundara and His devotees. He also runs the risk of not being able to obtain Krishna prasadam because Krishna does not accept any kind of offering from him. Also, even if such a person may invent many varieties of devotional service in order to justify his not chanting sixty-four rounds everyday, he cannot achieve anything auspicious by sacrificing his prime most service to Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, which is to chant sixty-four rounds daily. Thus such a person is called patita or fallen, this is the estimation of Srila Sarasvati Thakura Prabhupada.
Srila Prabhupada also accepts this calculation of his spiritual master in the "Nectar of Instruction" and prays to Lord Caitanya on our behalf. By the causeless mercy of Srila Prabhupada, we are able to get entry into the family of Lord Caitanya's devotees by beginning our chanting with a minimum of sixteen rounds. But we should never commit the grave mistake of thinking that the chanting of sixteen rounds is the maximum and thus criticize other devotees who want to raise themselves to the standard of chanting sixty-four rounds while actively performing their respective preaching services and participating in the morning and evening programs given by Srila Prabhupada. According to Srila Prabhupada and all the acharyas, a real preacher of the Holy Name is one who fully realizes and understands that the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra is non-different from Krishna Himself. And to come to this level, one should himself chant offenselessly, which in turn is only possible by chanting constantly. And chanting constantly means to chant at least sixty-four rounds (100,000 Names) daily. The preaching will be effective to the extent the preacher is chanting the pure Name. Thus, the preachers of Krishna consciousness who want to actually deliver others by giving vaikuntha-nama or spiritually pure sound vibration, should understand this important point, "some" people criticize the very mentality of trying to increase the chanting beyond sixteen rounds as an attempt to imitate Srila Haridasa Thakura. Such a neophyte mentality is very detrimental to the very process of chanting and can spell the spiritual doom of the person who engages in such activities. Of course as pointed out earlier, chanting sixty-four rounds daily should not be an excuse used by lazy devotees to avoid doing other services. If a devotee is sincere, he will find the time, way and means to chant sixty-four rounds daily without disturbing his other services. As the saying goes, where there is a will there is a way!
Also, chanting sixty-four rounds while engaged in active preaching can never be considered nirjana-bhajana. Of course the devotees who chant sixty-four rounds should not get puffed up and look down on other devotees who don't chant sixty-four rounds. They should feel themselves as so contaminated and fallen that chanting sixty-four rounds daily is the only hope for them to steadily remain in Krishna consciousness.
If one chants sixty-four rounds of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra daily with attachment then it automatically brings a great upsurge of humility and spiritual ecstasy in one's heart. All good qualities manifest in the body of such a devotee. One becomes jubilant in deep remembrance of the Lord's pastimes and constantly aspires to become the servant of the servant of the Lord's devotees. One becomes severely pained by seeing the miseries of other living entities (jive doya) and thus he becomes totally enthusiastic to vigorously preach the importance of chanting the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra through his words as well as his example. One's preaching becomes unlimitedly more effective and one can convert sinful people into devotees simply by one's association or by preaching only a little. Through the process of sincerely chanting sixty-four rounds everyday, one can very quickly achieve the stage of nistha (firm faith) or madhyama-adhikari (intermediate) platform by crossing the state of anartha-nivrtti (freedom from unwanted things in the heart). The process from the stage of nistha to prema(pure love of God) is quite fast if one sticks to this process of constant chanting. One should beg from the bona fide self-realized guru, his permission and blessings to chant sixty-four rounds. If one gets it, then one will be successful very quickly in this chanting process.
Even if one is not able to immediately increase the chanting beyond the minimum of sixteen rounds daily, one should sincerely work on improving the quality and attentiveness while chanting the minimum quota of sixteen rounds. Thus, one day he will surely develop an intense desire to increase his daily quota of chanting. I will end this note with a beautiful quote from Srila Prabhupada in the Nectar of Instruction, Chapter Seven:
"For example, it may be said that one should chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra at least one hundred thousand times daily on his beads. But if this is not possible, then one must minimize his chanting according to his own capacity. Generally, we recommend our disciples to chant at least sixteen rounds on their japa beads daily, and this should be completed. But, if one is not even able to chant sixteen rounds, then he must make it up the next day. He must be sure to keep his vow. If he does not strictly follow this out, then he is sure to be negligent. That is offensive in the service of the Lord. If we encourage offenses, we shall not be able to make progress in devotional service. It is better if one fixes up a regulative principle according to his own abilities and then follows that vow without fail. That will make him advanced in spiritual life." (Purport ends)
| sankhya-madhye kichu nama koribe kirtana; tahe sarvendriya sphurti ananda nartana. |
"One can sing (kirtana) some rounds from his daily quota of chanting accompanied by clapping or musical instruments like karatals and mrdangas. At that time he will experience the enlightenment and enlivenment of all his senses and he will dance in supreme joy."
| name navavidha anga karaya asraya; tathapi kirtana-smrti sarva-srestha haya. |
"All the nine processes of devotion are present in the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. And the remembrance of Krishna achieved especially during the kirtana (alone or together) of the Maha-mantra is the topmost kind of worship of God."
| edagra manase nirjanete svalpa ksana; nama-smrti-abhyasa koribe bhakta jana. |
"By sitting in a solitary place for a short time to begin with, devotees should practice chanting and remembering the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
| athava nirjane basi smari sadhu-riti; indriya-pidhana kari name kare mati. |
"Another process is to chant in a solitary place with an advanced devotee or while remembering his attachment to chanting. In this way one should control the mind and senses and fix his consciousness on the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
Purport by Srila Thakura Bhaktivinoda:
" 'Indriya-pidhana' or controlling the senses can be facilitated by sitting in a solitary place free from all sensual distractions. One should close the door of the room in which one sits to chant. One can also cover the eyes, ears, nose, etc, with a cloth and chant in order to avoid distractions and to fully concentrate on the transcendental sound of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
" 'Indriya-pidhana' or controlling the senses can be facilitated by sitting in a solitary place free from all sensual distractions. One should close the door of the room in which one sits to chant. One can also cover the eyes, ears, nose, etc, with a cloth and chant in order to avoid distractions and to fully concentrate on the transcendental sound of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
| sadhu-sange svalpa kala chadiya visaya; nirjane laile nama ei dosa ksaya. |
"By associating with advanced devotees for some time and after giving up sense enjoyment in their association, one can sit in a solitary place to chant. In this way he will lose his apathy to chanting."
Purport by Srila Thakura Bhaktivinoda:
"One can begin with by chanting in a solitary place for twenty-four minutes (one danda) or four rounds. Then by gradually observing the mood of the devotees who are absorbed in chanting without wasting a single moment, one will develop the desire to follow in their footsteps. In this way one will get rid of his apathy to chanting and the Maha-mantra will dance on his tongue."
"One can begin with by chanting in a solitary place for twenty-four minutes (one danda) or four rounds. Then by gradually observing the mood of the devotees who are absorbed in chanting without wasting a single moment, one will develop the desire to follow in their footsteps. In this way one will get rid of his apathy to chanting and the Maha-mantra will dance on his tongue."
| krame krame krsna-name citta haya sthira; nirantara nama-rase ta adhira. |
"Gradually the mind will become fixed in the Maha-mantra and become restless to constantly taste the nectarine mellows of the Maha-mantra."
| tulasira sannikate, krsna-lila-sthane; sadhu-sannidhane basi satvata-vidhane. |
"One should sit near the tulasi plant, devotees or in the Holy dhama (place where the Lord preforms His manifest pastimes) to chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
Purport by Srila Thakura Bhaktivinoda:
" 'Satvata-vidhane' means the process by which the previous devotees have relished the chanting of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. The period of chanting and remembering the Maha-mantra will gradually increase from twenty-four minutes to forty-eight minutes and then to ninety-six minutes. One will then gradually come to the stage of chanting sixty-four rounds and then ultimately 300,000 Names daily."
Purport by Srila Bhaktiratna Sadhu Maharaja:
A sincere spiritual aspirant should offer the cooked foodstuffs to the Lord before eating everyday. Then he or she should partake the divine remnants (prasadam) of the Lord. He or she should not eat gains, cereals, beans, pulses and other grain food twice a month on the most Holy Days of Ekadasi. As per the Vedic scriptures, on Ekadasi, the combined sins of the whole universe are present in grains. The importance, practice and pastimes of Ekadasi-vrata will be described also in another book. One should also fast on the most auspicious days of the year like Sri Guru Purnima, Sri Janmastami, Sri NItyananda Trayodasi, Sri Rama Navami, Sri Advaita Saptami, ect.
Every spiritual aspirant should also follow the four regulative principles (do-nots) which are the pillars of sinful activity,
1. No meat eating, including meat, fish, eggs and other non-vegetarian food.
2. No intoxication, including drinking, smoking, drugs, tea, coffee, ect.
3. No gambling.
4. No illicit sex.
These are compared to four sharp, deadly teeth in the treacherous and merciless jaws of Maya. They have been mentioned in the Srimad Bhagavatam 1.17.38:
" 'Satvata-vidhane' means the process by which the previous devotees have relished the chanting of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. The period of chanting and remembering the Maha-mantra will gradually increase from twenty-four minutes to forty-eight minutes and then to ninety-six minutes. One will then gradually come to the stage of chanting sixty-four rounds and then ultimately 300,000 Names daily."
Purport by Srila Bhaktiratna Sadhu Maharaja:
A sincere spiritual aspirant should offer the cooked foodstuffs to the Lord before eating everyday. Then he or she should partake the divine remnants (prasadam) of the Lord. He or she should not eat gains, cereals, beans, pulses and other grain food twice a month on the most Holy Days of Ekadasi. As per the Vedic scriptures, on Ekadasi, the combined sins of the whole universe are present in grains. The importance, practice and pastimes of Ekadasi-vrata will be described also in another book. One should also fast on the most auspicious days of the year like Sri Guru Purnima, Sri Janmastami, Sri NItyananda Trayodasi, Sri Rama Navami, Sri Advaita Saptami, ect.
Every spiritual aspirant should also follow the four regulative principles (do-nots) which are the pillars of sinful activity,
1. No meat eating, including meat, fish, eggs and other non-vegetarian food.
2. No intoxication, including drinking, smoking, drugs, tea, coffee, ect.
3. No gambling.
4. No illicit sex.
These are compared to four sharp, deadly teeth in the treacherous and merciless jaws of Maya. They have been mentioned in the Srimad Bhagavatam 1.17.38:
| suta uvaca abhyarthitas tada tasmai,sthanani kalaye dadau; dyutam panam striyah suna, yatradharmas catur-vidhah. |
Suta Goswami said: "Maharaja Pariksit, thus being petitioned by the personality of Kali, gave him permission to reside in places where gambling, drinking, prostitution and animal slaughter were performed."
Gambling destroys truthfulness. Intoxication destroys austerity. Illicit sex destroys cleanliness, and mercy is destroyed by eating meat, fish and eggs. The four virtues which destroy sins are the very supports or pillars (legs) of religion (dharma) personified. Thus the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra is the medicine and Krishna prasadam and the regulative principles are the diet for the spiritual practitioner. Both are necessary for achieving success in the chanting process. (Purport ends)
| ataeva spasta nama bhava-lagna mane; sada haya, e-prarthana tomara carane. |
"Therefore, O Lord Caitanyadeva, I (Thakura Haridasa) pray at Your lotus feet that I can constantly chant the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra distinctly and with a mind filled with intense devotion."
| apana yatnete keho kichu nahi pare; tomara prasada vina e-bhava-samsare. |
"Ultimately no one in this material world can achieve this stage of offenseless chanting by the dint of his own efforts. Only Your mercy will enable one to effortlessly reach this stage of pure chanting. Hence, it is absolutely necessary for one to chant while constantly petitioning the Lord for His causeless mercy."
| The Complete Process of Chanting |
Srila Thakura Bhaktivinoda in Hari-nama-cintamani:
"The process of nama-sadhana is as follows:
In the beginning, the introspective spiritual aspirant should cultivate the continuous chanting and remembrance of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra while endeavouring to give up the ten offenses. By loudly and distinctly uttering the Maha-mantra, he should chant and remember the meaning. Gradually the chanting will become clear, steady and blissful. At that point one should meditate on the three-fold bending form Lord Syamasundara while chanting. While turning the beads with the fingers and reciting the Maha-mantra, one should search out the meaning of the Names with the mind. Then one will be able to meditate on the transcendental form of the Lord while chanting. Another procedure is to sit in front of the Deity of the Lord and behold His beautiful form while chanting and meditating on the Maha-mantra. When the Maha-mantra and the form of the Lord become one while chanting, one should voluntarily practice to remember the sixty-four transcendental qualities of Lord Krishna.
Therefore, when the Maha-mantra, the form and the qualities of Krishna become one by regular practice, one should begin meditating on the pastimes (mantra-dhyana-mayi lila) of Lord Krishna and gradually make the pastimes one with the Maha-mantra, the form and the qualities of Krishna. As the meditation on the pastimes of the Lord while chanting becomes firmly established, the sadhaka can start meditating on the eight-fold daily pastimes of Sri Sri Radha and Krishna in the spiritual world as per one's eternal constitutional position (svarasiki) and thus gradually but fully arouse the (rasa) mellow of pure love of God. IN the beginning of this process of chanting, the sadhaka was a neophyte. But if he cultivates the above process of chanting the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, especially in the association of first-class (uttama) devotees, then very soon he will raise himself to the platform of an intermediate (madhyana) devotee and thereafter he will achieve the topmost platform of an uttama-vaishnava (defined earlier). when one practices chanting as a neophyte while chanting in namabhasa (without much faith), the unwanted things (anarthas) in his heart are destroyed and he gradually gets the qualification to chant the Maha-mantra purely and serve the devotees.
"The process of nama-sadhana is as follows:
In the beginning, the introspective spiritual aspirant should cultivate the continuous chanting and remembrance of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra while endeavouring to give up the ten offenses. By loudly and distinctly uttering the Maha-mantra, he should chant and remember the meaning. Gradually the chanting will become clear, steady and blissful. At that point one should meditate on the three-fold bending form Lord Syamasundara while chanting. While turning the beads with the fingers and reciting the Maha-mantra, one should search out the meaning of the Names with the mind. Then one will be able to meditate on the transcendental form of the Lord while chanting. Another procedure is to sit in front of the Deity of the Lord and behold His beautiful form while chanting and meditating on the Maha-mantra. When the Maha-mantra and the form of the Lord become one while chanting, one should voluntarily practice to remember the sixty-four transcendental qualities of Lord Krishna.
Therefore, when the Maha-mantra, the form and the qualities of Krishna become one by regular practice, one should begin meditating on the pastimes (mantra-dhyana-mayi lila) of Lord Krishna and gradually make the pastimes one with the Maha-mantra, the form and the qualities of Krishna. As the meditation on the pastimes of the Lord while chanting becomes firmly established, the sadhaka can start meditating on the eight-fold daily pastimes of Sri Sri Radha and Krishna in the spiritual world as per one's eternal constitutional position (svarasiki) and thus gradually but fully arouse the (rasa) mellow of pure love of God. IN the beginning of this process of chanting, the sadhaka was a neophyte. But if he cultivates the above process of chanting the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, especially in the association of first-class (uttama) devotees, then very soon he will raise himself to the platform of an intermediate (madhyana) devotee and thereafter he will achieve the topmost platform of an uttama-vaishnava (defined earlier). when one practices chanting as a neophyte while chanting in namabhasa (without much faith), the unwanted things (anarthas) in his heart are destroyed and he gradually gets the qualification to chant the Maha-mantra purely and serve the devotees.
| nama smarile rupa aise sange sange; rupa nama bhinna naya nace nana range. |
"When one remembers the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, the transcendental form of Lord Krishna appears in the heart and mind along with the chanting. When one realizes that the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra and Krishna's form are non-different then the Maha-mantra dances on the tongue enabling the chanter to taste a variety of ecstatic mellows at every second."
Srila Jiva Goswami describes the chanting process in detail in Krama Sandarbha:
| tac-ca nama-rupa-guna-lilamaya-sabdanam srotasparisah. |
"Hearing of the Name, Form, Qualities, and Pastimes of Lord Krishna and His devotees is called shravana."
| prathamam namnah sravanam-antah- karana-suddhyartham-peksam. |
"The practice of sadhana-bhakti depends on hearing the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. It begins with shravana (hearing) of the Maha-mantra which purifies the heart of the devotee and gives one liberation from the filthiness of sense gratification."
| suddhe cantah-karane rupa-sravena tad-udaya-yogyata bhavati. |
"In this way, by constant hearing of the transcendental sound of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, gradually the transcendental Form of Lord Krishna awakens within the purified heart along with the chanting."
| samyudite ca rupe gunanam sphuranam sampadyeta, sampanne ca. |
"When the Form of the Lord is firmly established within the heart while chanting, then gradually the sixty-four qualities of the Lord arise within the heart and get established there."
| gunanam sphurane parikara-vaisisthyena tad-vaisisthyam. |
"As the Lord's qualities fully manifest themselves, His different specific characteristics and those of His eternal associates gradually awaken."
| sampadyate tatas-tesu nama-rupa-guna-parikaresu samyak sphuritesu lilanam sphuranam susthu bhavati. |
"In this way when the Lord's form, qualities, and characteristics are manifest in the heart in their full splendor while chanting the Maha-mantra, the ultimate transcendental pastimes of the Lord gradually appear and gradually impart the chanter with the qualification of directly participating in those loving pastimes with the Lord."
What follows are some wonderful extracts from Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura's essay entitled "Nam Bhajan" which vividly explain the process of chanting:
"When the sincere thrills of joy and tears trickling down the cheeks the devotees constantly chant, hear and remember the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, they gradually reach the stage of Bhava. Appearing in the heart, Krishna erases their spots out from their mind, and thus cleansing their heart graciously blessed them with His own Prema. Extreme humbleness and utter devotion are necessary to call Krishna to the heart. Then when earthly knowledge, reasonings and strivings are completely burnt to ashes, the souls eyes can perceive Bhagavan and His associated counter-parts.
"The fortunate ones who earnestly long to ascend the terrace of Prema, do sincerely and incessantly chant the Maha-mantra in the company of sadhus. They do not have any appetite for any other feature of devotion. When in a short time, by the grace of the Maha-mantra, the heart becomes closely attentive, the fruits of religious forbearance, control over sensual appetites, religious observances, withholding the breath by way of religious austerity, abstract religious contemplation, steady abstraction of the mind and indifference to external impressions are very easily gained without paying the least heed to all these. The Maha-mantra alone is a complete suspension of the fleeting mental operations. The more the heart is pellucid, the more diverse pastimes of the Spiritual Kingdom play in it. The flow of milk of this felicity is so very fast running that no other means can give even the smallest drop of it. Jivas have no other wealth than the grace of Krishna.
"Devotees who are desirous of ascending the terrace of Prema should remember a few points even before entering the field of chanting the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. Firstly, they should know it for certain that the form of Krishna, the form of the Maha-mantra, the form of the service to Krishna and the form of Krishna's servants are eternally free, eternally spiritual! Krishna, His abode and His paraphernalia are all spiritual and beyond the grasp of Maya, the illusory energy. No mundane consideration exists in seva or service. The seat, room, garden, forest, the Yamuna and every other thing of Krishna are spiritual and hence untouchable by matter. They are further aware of the fact that this, their belief is not a blind worldly faith, it is absolutely true and eternal. The exact forms of all these do not in truth manifest on this earth. Such ideas perpetually reign in the pure hearts of pure devotees.
"Devotees who thirst for Prema and are on the way to it sing and realize this Hare Krishna Nama by counting. While chanting and remembering the Maha-mantra incessantly, they remember His spiritual characteristics by the way of explaining to the mind the meanings of the Maha-mantra. By this means their heart is very soon freed from every spot of scrapes and becomes pure and stainless; and with the morning twilight of the Maha-mantra, as the heart is purified by constant remembrance, the Maha-mantra downs in the horizon of the pellucid heart with full shining rays.
"Those who have accepted the Maha-mantra are either self-realized devotees or are still trotting onward to self-realization. Of these, the latter class of devotees are divided according to their early and advanced stages. Devotees, besides these, who are eternally free, no more confound the soul with the body, never identify themselves with the body and mind. Devotees in their early stage begin to chant the Maha-mantra by a fixed number, and as they gradually increase the counting they come to the stage when their tongue stops not for a moment from singing the Maha-mantra. Though choler tongued by avidya, devotees in their first stage have no taste for the Maha-mantra, still a patient and continuous utterance of the Maha-mantra proves to be the only remedy; now they feel uneasy if stopped from singing the Maha-mantra, and a constant and regard full chanting produces a supreme liking for Him (the Lord). Zeal and earnestness to avoid sacrileges to the Maha-mantra are very needful in the first stage, which can be done only by an avoidance of the worldly-minded men and the company of devotees. Incessant chanting of the Maha-mantra will, when the first flow has passed way, naturally create a love for the Maha-mantra and kindness to the jivas. In this karma, jnana and yoga have nothing to do. In their workings be even then strong, they may help the devotees of the Maha-mantra in maintaining their livelihood. If the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra be sung with a firm inclination, it will ere long cleanse the heart and burn avidya and when avidya vanishes, the brighter illumination of the true unbiased abnegation and a sense of the relationship between Krishna and the jivas will appear in the heart. Numberless times has this been proven to be true among the wise.
"With a happy heart one should recollect the meaning and form of the Maha-mantra and should pray to Krishna with a heart-rendering lamentation. This will draw the grace of Krishna, which will lead him onward in the path of bhajan, or else, births will pass in vain like karmis and frustrated jnanis.
"The case is different with those few lucky ones who have an exclusively firm faith in the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. They take by the unbounded grace of Krishna, the shelter at the feet of such a spiritual guide who is an ontologist of the Maha-mantra, i.e, who has realized and does see the Swarupa (form) of the Maha-mantra. Of the rights of such a preceptor, Sri Mahaprabhu says that though formal initiation may not be necessary, still a guide is essential in the bhajan of the Maha-mantra. The mere letters of the Maha-mantra may be had at any placed and from anybody, but the profound and unknown truth that is lurking behind those letters can only be exposed by the grace of a true preceptor who is purely devoted to Krishna. By the grace of the spiritual guide alone, one can pass over from the early twilight of the Maha-mantra to the pure light of it and can save them from the ten sacrileges hindering the true service of the Maha-mantra.
"These premarurukshu (earnest desiring pure love for Lord Krishna) devotees chant and tell their beads three lacs (300,000) of times in twenty-four hours, and such felicity they find in the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra that a moment they cannot spare without him, then when no time can be kept in time of sleep etc. they become incessant in their bhajan. Repeated remembrance of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra as explained by Sri Gopal Guru Goswami will by degrees, drive out every scrap from the nature of man and then the Maha-mantra appears in person before the spiritual eyes of the devotee. when the swarupa (form) of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra fully appears, it is identical with the spiritual form of Krishna-the appearance of the Swarupa of the Maha-mantra is the appearance of the swarupa of Krishna. The more clearly and purely is the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra visible, the more the bhajan proceeds in the presence of His swarupa, the more do the three elements of which primordial matter is said to be composed, namely sattva (the stand of goodness), rajas (the stand of activity) and tamas (the gloom of pride, haughtiness, etc. of the the lowest inherent principle), disappear and there appear the spiritual attributes of Krishna in the heart of the devotee. Then again, when there is a happy union of the Name, Form, and Attributes of Krishna, and devotees in their bhajan see them, the Lila (pastimes) of Krishna is awakened by the grace of Krishna in their pure heart as soon as they are absorbed in deep and easy natural meditation. Incessantly then does the Maha-mantra dance on their tongue, the form of Krishna is then visible to their soul's eye, all the attributes of Krishna are then observed in their heart and the bud of lila blooms in their soul while they are buried in meditation. In this stage, five conditions of the practising devotee are to be noticed:
"The happy mood which the devotee feels at the time of listening to the object of pursuit and the means to hear from the lips of a true Spiritual Preceptor may be called Shravana dasha. In this stage, every bit of knowledge about how to take the Maha-mantra without committing any sacrilege to Him and of the processes and fitness of taking the Maha-mantra is gained. This facilitates the continuity of the Maha-mantra.
"When fit to receive, the strung together beads of Nama-prema can be had of Sri Gurudeva, i.e. the disciple with every delight and from the deepest recesses of his heart cordially welcomes the boon of surrendering himself to the feet of Sri Guru for pure and unalloyed bhajan and receiving invigorating strength and faculty from him. This is Varana-dasha (i.e, the choice of Sri Guru for bhajan by the acceptance of the Maha-mantra and strength from him).
"remembrance, contemplation, concentration, constant meditation and trance (final beatitude) are the five processes of smarana. From the remembrance of the Maha-mantra, the devotee thinks of the form which gives him a steady conception of the attributes. This steady conception of the attributes gives him a firm conviction of pursuing the lila of Krishna and having entrance in the lila he is completely absorbed in Krishna-Rasa. This is Apana dasha. By these smarana and apana, the devotee can know and adore the eternal and daily lila of Krishna at eight different periods of the day. When he is deeply absorbed in it, he realizes his own self and that of Krishna. These self-realized devotees are Paramhamsas.
"Then at the time of departure from this world, the devotee, by the grace of Krishna becomes an associated counter-part of ideal object of his worship in Vraja and thus attains the summum-bonum of the bhajan of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
In Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura's Jaiva Dharma, Chapter 23, the intricacies of the process of chanting the Maha-mantra are explained:
"The saintly Babaji said: "The Supreme Personality of Godhead has two kinds of Names:
Names that show His relation to the material creation and the material modes of nature are all secondary Names. 'Srsti-karta' (the Creator of the material world), 'Jagat-pata' (the maintainer of the material world), 'Visva-niyanta' (the Controller of the material world), "Visva-palaka' (the protector of the material world), and 'Paramatma' (the Supersoul present everywhere in the material world) are examples of some of these many secondary Names. Some other Names, although beyond the touch of the material modes of nature, are also counted among these secondary Names. 'Brahma' (Brahman) is an example of these Names. When they are chanted, these secondary Names bring many different kinds of benefits, but they do not directly or quickly bring the highest spiritual benefit, (i.e, pure love of God). The Names that describe the Lord as He is manifested in the spiritual world, which is beyond material time and space, and where time is manifested as an eternal present (nitya-vartamana) are Names that are all spiritual and primary. 'Narayana', 'Vasudeva', Janardana', 'Hrsidesa', 'Hari', 'Acyuta', 'Govinda', 'Gopala', 'Rama', 'Gauranga', 'Nitai', 'etc, are examples of these primary Names. All these primary Names are identical with the form of the Supreme Lord Himself, and therefore they exist in the eternal present in the spiritual world. Attracted by devotional service, these Holy Names dance on the tongues of certain very fortunate souls in the material world. These Names have no connection at all with the material aorld. When It descends to the material world, the Holy Names of the Lord, which has all the Lord's powers, destroys the illusions of maya. The individual souls in the material world have the Holy Name of the Lord Hari as their only friend. They have no other true friend.
Vijaya-kumara: "O master, the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra is spiritual. I have faith in that truth. However, so that my faith may be free from doubts, I need to understand how it is that the Maha- mantra, which is a series of syllables, is spiritual. Please be merciful and explain."
Babaji: "The scriptures (Padma Purana) declare: "The Maha-mantra is transcendentally blissful. It bestows all spiritual benedictions, for It is Krishna Himself, the reservoir of all pleasure. The Hare Krishna Maha-mantra is complete, and it is the Form of all transcendental mellows. It is not a material Name under any condition, and it is no less powerful than Krishna Himself. Since the Maha-mantra is not contaminated by the material qualities, there is no question of Its being involved with Maya. The Maha-mantra is always liberated and spiritual. It is never conditioned by the laws of material nature. This is because the Maha-mantra and Krishna Himself are identical."
Vijaya-kumara: "How can a mantra, which is after all a series of syllables, be different from other sounds in this material world?
Babaji: "The Hare Krishna Maha-mantra does not take its birth in the material world. Only when one is situated in his original spiritual body, which is dormant in the individual soul, who is a tiny particle of spirit, is one eligible to pronounce the pure Maha-mantra. The material senses of a soul imprisoned in Maya's world have no power to pronounce the pure Maha-mantra. However, by the mercy of the Lord's hladini-shakti, such a pure soul can be situated in his original form. Then the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra will appear before him. By the mercy of the pure chanting, the mantra enters the devotee's thinking process, and then descends to the tongue if the tongue is purified by devotional service. On that tongue the Maha-mantra dances. The Maha-mantra is not a series of material syllables. It only seems to be material syllables when it dances on the tongue made of matter. That is the secret of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
Vijaya-kumara: "What is the path of chanting the Maha-mantra?"
Babaji: "Using tulasi beads, or, in the absence of beads, counting on your fingers, and carefully avoiding the ten offenses, you should always chant the Maha-mantra. By chanting the Maha-mantra purely, one attains prema (pure love of God). The purpose of counting is to know whether or not the number of Names chanted is gradually increasing. Tulasi is very dear to Lord Hari, therefore touching Tulasi beads as one chants the Maha-mantra brings a better result. When one chants one should meditate that the Maha-mantra is not different from the Transcendental Form of Lord Krishna Himself."
Vijaya-kumara: "O master, there are nine processes of devotional service, and sixty-four categories of devotional activities. If one constantly chants the Maha-mantra, which is only one of the activities of devotional service, how will one find time to preform any other devotional activity?"
Babaji: "What is the difficulty? The sixty-four devotional activities are actually included within the nine devotional processes. One may worship the Deity of the Lord, or one may chant the maha- mantra in a solitary place. One can practice the nine processes of devotional service in an y situation. IN the presence of the Deity one can purely hear, chant, remember, and in other ways serve the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. All these activities may be counted together as devotion to the Holy Name. If one has no opportunity to see the Deity, one may remember the Deity and in this way be in the presence of the Deity, one may practice the nine devotional activities beginning with hearing and chanting the Maha-mantra. IF in the past one has performed many pious deeds, then he will naturally yearn to chant the Maha-mantra. By constantly chanting the Maha-mantra, one automatically performs all the activities of different limbs of devotional service. OF the none processes of devotional service, beginning with hearing and chanting, chanting the Maha-mantra is the most powerful. If on can taste bliss by chanting the Maha-mantra, that is enough. It is not that one must perform every devotional activity."
Vijaya-kumara: "What does 'to always chant the Maha-mantra mean?"
Babaji: "Aside from the time when one sleeps and other basic bodily activities, one should chant the Maha-mantra throughout the day and night. That is called 'constant chanting the Maha-mantra'. One can chant the Maha-mantra in any place, at any time, or in any situation. There are no restrictions."
Vijaya-kumara: "Please describe to us the pure Hare Krishna Maha-mantra and all other things we should know."
Babaji: "When the Maha-mantra appears in a person who has full faith and who practices unalloyed devotional service, that is said to be the 'true Holy Name of Lord Krishna'. When the Maha-mantra appears in any other situation the chanting is either 'namabhasa' (a glimpse of the Holy Name) or 'namaparadha' (The Holy Name chanted with offense)."
Vijaya-kumara: "O master, should we call the Maha-mantra the goal (sadhya) or the means (sadhan) to attain the goal?"
Babaji: "When a devotee practices sadhan-bhakti, his chanting of the Maha-mantra may be said to be the means for attaining the goal (sadhan). However, when one practices bhava-bhakti or prema- bhakti, his chanting of the Maha-mantra is said to be the goal (sadhya) itself. In this way the mantra appears according to the devotee's stage of spiritual advancement."
Vijaya-kumara: "Is Lord Krishna really not different from the Maha-mantra? Or is this not really true?"
Babaji: "There is not the slightest difference. However, there is one secret difference: 'The Maha- mantra is more merciful than Lord Krishna Himself.' If one commits an offense to Him, Lord Krishna will not forgive. But, if one commits an offense to Lord Krishna, or even the Maha-mantra Itself, then the maha-mantra will be merciful and forgive. One should thus carefully understand the ten offenses in the chanting of the Maha-mantra. Carefully avoiding these offenses, one should chant the Maha-mantra. Why should one avoid them? A person who is not free from offenses cannot chant the Maha-mantra purely."
Jaiva Dharma, Chapter 24
Babaji: "To understand the Maha-mantra, you should first understand three things:
Vijaya-kumara: "What kind of reflection is it, and how many kinds of reflections are there?"
Babaji: "The word 'abhasa' has three definitions:
Vijaya-kumara: "How are bhakty-abhasa, bhavabhasa, namabhasa, and vaisnavabhasa related to each other?"
Babaji: "A Vaishnava chants the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. If he chants the Maha-mantra with bhakty-abhasa, then the Maha-mantra manifests before him as namabhasa, and he himself is a Vaishnavabhasa. The words bhava and bhakti refer to the same thing. They are called by different names because one is contracted and the other is expanded."
Vijaya-kumara: "In what condition of life is one a Vaishnavabhasa?"
Babaji: "In Srimad Bhagavatam (11.2.47) it is said: 'A prakrta, or materialistic devotee does not purposefully study the shastra and try to understand the actual standard of pure devotional service. Consequently he does not show proper respect to advanced devotees. He may, however, follow the regulative principles learned from his own spiritual master or from his family who worships the Deity. He is to be considered on the material platform, although he is trying to advance in devotional service. Such a person is a bhakti-praya (neophyte devotee), or bhaktabhasa, for he is a little enlightened by Vaishnava philosophy."
"When the sincere thrills of joy and tears trickling down the cheeks the devotees constantly chant, hear and remember the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra, they gradually reach the stage of Bhava. Appearing in the heart, Krishna erases their spots out from their mind, and thus cleansing their heart graciously blessed them with His own Prema. Extreme humbleness and utter devotion are necessary to call Krishna to the heart. Then when earthly knowledge, reasonings and strivings are completely burnt to ashes, the souls eyes can perceive Bhagavan and His associated counter-parts.
"The fortunate ones who earnestly long to ascend the terrace of Prema, do sincerely and incessantly chant the Maha-mantra in the company of sadhus. They do not have any appetite for any other feature of devotion. When in a short time, by the grace of the Maha-mantra, the heart becomes closely attentive, the fruits of religious forbearance, control over sensual appetites, religious observances, withholding the breath by way of religious austerity, abstract religious contemplation, steady abstraction of the mind and indifference to external impressions are very easily gained without paying the least heed to all these. The Maha-mantra alone is a complete suspension of the fleeting mental operations. The more the heart is pellucid, the more diverse pastimes of the Spiritual Kingdom play in it. The flow of milk of this felicity is so very fast running that no other means can give even the smallest drop of it. Jivas have no other wealth than the grace of Krishna.
"Devotees who are desirous of ascending the terrace of Prema should remember a few points even before entering the field of chanting the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. Firstly, they should know it for certain that the form of Krishna, the form of the Maha-mantra, the form of the service to Krishna and the form of Krishna's servants are eternally free, eternally spiritual! Krishna, His abode and His paraphernalia are all spiritual and beyond the grasp of Maya, the illusory energy. No mundane consideration exists in seva or service. The seat, room, garden, forest, the Yamuna and every other thing of Krishna are spiritual and hence untouchable by matter. They are further aware of the fact that this, their belief is not a blind worldly faith, it is absolutely true and eternal. The exact forms of all these do not in truth manifest on this earth. Such ideas perpetually reign in the pure hearts of pure devotees.
"Devotees who thirst for Prema and are on the way to it sing and realize this Hare Krishna Nama by counting. While chanting and remembering the Maha-mantra incessantly, they remember His spiritual characteristics by the way of explaining to the mind the meanings of the Maha-mantra. By this means their heart is very soon freed from every spot of scrapes and becomes pure and stainless; and with the morning twilight of the Maha-mantra, as the heart is purified by constant remembrance, the Maha-mantra downs in the horizon of the pellucid heart with full shining rays.
"Those who have accepted the Maha-mantra are either self-realized devotees or are still trotting onward to self-realization. Of these, the latter class of devotees are divided according to their early and advanced stages. Devotees, besides these, who are eternally free, no more confound the soul with the body, never identify themselves with the body and mind. Devotees in their early stage begin to chant the Maha-mantra by a fixed number, and as they gradually increase the counting they come to the stage when their tongue stops not for a moment from singing the Maha-mantra. Though choler tongued by avidya, devotees in their first stage have no taste for the Maha-mantra, still a patient and continuous utterance of the Maha-mantra proves to be the only remedy; now they feel uneasy if stopped from singing the Maha-mantra, and a constant and regard full chanting produces a supreme liking for Him (the Lord). Zeal and earnestness to avoid sacrileges to the Maha-mantra are very needful in the first stage, which can be done only by an avoidance of the worldly-minded men and the company of devotees. Incessant chanting of the Maha-mantra will, when the first flow has passed way, naturally create a love for the Maha-mantra and kindness to the jivas. In this karma, jnana and yoga have nothing to do. In their workings be even then strong, they may help the devotees of the Maha-mantra in maintaining their livelihood. If the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra be sung with a firm inclination, it will ere long cleanse the heart and burn avidya and when avidya vanishes, the brighter illumination of the true unbiased abnegation and a sense of the relationship between Krishna and the jivas will appear in the heart. Numberless times has this been proven to be true among the wise.
"With a happy heart one should recollect the meaning and form of the Maha-mantra and should pray to Krishna with a heart-rendering lamentation. This will draw the grace of Krishna, which will lead him onward in the path of bhajan, or else, births will pass in vain like karmis and frustrated jnanis.
"The case is different with those few lucky ones who have an exclusively firm faith in the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. They take by the unbounded grace of Krishna, the shelter at the feet of such a spiritual guide who is an ontologist of the Maha-mantra, i.e, who has realized and does see the Swarupa (form) of the Maha-mantra. Of the rights of such a preceptor, Sri Mahaprabhu says that though formal initiation may not be necessary, still a guide is essential in the bhajan of the Maha-mantra. The mere letters of the Maha-mantra may be had at any placed and from anybody, but the profound and unknown truth that is lurking behind those letters can only be exposed by the grace of a true preceptor who is purely devoted to Krishna. By the grace of the spiritual guide alone, one can pass over from the early twilight of the Maha-mantra to the pure light of it and can save them from the ten sacrileges hindering the true service of the Maha-mantra.
"These premarurukshu (earnest desiring pure love for Lord Krishna) devotees chant and tell their beads three lacs (300,000) of times in twenty-four hours, and such felicity they find in the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra that a moment they cannot spare without him, then when no time can be kept in time of sleep etc. they become incessant in their bhajan. Repeated remembrance of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra as explained by Sri Gopal Guru Goswami will by degrees, drive out every scrap from the nature of man and then the Maha-mantra appears in person before the spiritual eyes of the devotee. when the swarupa (form) of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra fully appears, it is identical with the spiritual form of Krishna-the appearance of the Swarupa of the Maha-mantra is the appearance of the swarupa of Krishna. The more clearly and purely is the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra visible, the more the bhajan proceeds in the presence of His swarupa, the more do the three elements of which primordial matter is said to be composed, namely sattva (the stand of goodness), rajas (the stand of activity) and tamas (the gloom of pride, haughtiness, etc. of the the lowest inherent principle), disappear and there appear the spiritual attributes of Krishna in the heart of the devotee. Then again, when there is a happy union of the Name, Form, and Attributes of Krishna, and devotees in their bhajan see them, the Lila (pastimes) of Krishna is awakened by the grace of Krishna in their pure heart as soon as they are absorbed in deep and easy natural meditation. Incessantly then does the Maha-mantra dance on their tongue, the form of Krishna is then visible to their soul's eye, all the attributes of Krishna are then observed in their heart and the bud of lila blooms in their soul while they are buried in meditation. In this stage, five conditions of the practising devotee are to be noticed:
- Shravana dasha
- Varana dasha
- Smarana dasha
- Apana dasha
- Prapana dasha
"The happy mood which the devotee feels at the time of listening to the object of pursuit and the means to hear from the lips of a true Spiritual Preceptor may be called Shravana dasha. In this stage, every bit of knowledge about how to take the Maha-mantra without committing any sacrilege to Him and of the processes and fitness of taking the Maha-mantra is gained. This facilitates the continuity of the Maha-mantra.
"When fit to receive, the strung together beads of Nama-prema can be had of Sri Gurudeva, i.e. the disciple with every delight and from the deepest recesses of his heart cordially welcomes the boon of surrendering himself to the feet of Sri Guru for pure and unalloyed bhajan and receiving invigorating strength and faculty from him. This is Varana-dasha (i.e, the choice of Sri Guru for bhajan by the acceptance of the Maha-mantra and strength from him).
"remembrance, contemplation, concentration, constant meditation and trance (final beatitude) are the five processes of smarana. From the remembrance of the Maha-mantra, the devotee thinks of the form which gives him a steady conception of the attributes. This steady conception of the attributes gives him a firm conviction of pursuing the lila of Krishna and having entrance in the lila he is completely absorbed in Krishna-Rasa. This is Apana dasha. By these smarana and apana, the devotee can know and adore the eternal and daily lila of Krishna at eight different periods of the day. When he is deeply absorbed in it, he realizes his own self and that of Krishna. These self-realized devotees are Paramhamsas.
"Then at the time of departure from this world, the devotee, by the grace of Krishna becomes an associated counter-part of ideal object of his worship in Vraja and thus attains the summum-bonum of the bhajan of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
In Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura's Jaiva Dharma, Chapter 23, the intricacies of the process of chanting the Maha-mantra are explained:
"The saintly Babaji said: "The Supreme Personality of Godhead has two kinds of Names:
- Mukhya (primary) and,
- Gauna (secondary).
Names that show His relation to the material creation and the material modes of nature are all secondary Names. 'Srsti-karta' (the Creator of the material world), 'Jagat-pata' (the maintainer of the material world), 'Visva-niyanta' (the Controller of the material world), "Visva-palaka' (the protector of the material world), and 'Paramatma' (the Supersoul present everywhere in the material world) are examples of some of these many secondary Names. Some other Names, although beyond the touch of the material modes of nature, are also counted among these secondary Names. 'Brahma' (Brahman) is an example of these Names. When they are chanted, these secondary Names bring many different kinds of benefits, but they do not directly or quickly bring the highest spiritual benefit, (i.e, pure love of God). The Names that describe the Lord as He is manifested in the spiritual world, which is beyond material time and space, and where time is manifested as an eternal present (nitya-vartamana) are Names that are all spiritual and primary. 'Narayana', 'Vasudeva', Janardana', 'Hrsidesa', 'Hari', 'Acyuta', 'Govinda', 'Gopala', 'Rama', 'Gauranga', 'Nitai', 'etc, are examples of these primary Names. All these primary Names are identical with the form of the Supreme Lord Himself, and therefore they exist in the eternal present in the spiritual world. Attracted by devotional service, these Holy Names dance on the tongues of certain very fortunate souls in the material world. These Names have no connection at all with the material aorld. When It descends to the material world, the Holy Names of the Lord, which has all the Lord's powers, destroys the illusions of maya. The individual souls in the material world have the Holy Name of the Lord Hari as their only friend. They have no other true friend.
Vijaya-kumara: "O master, the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra is spiritual. I have faith in that truth. However, so that my faith may be free from doubts, I need to understand how it is that the Maha- mantra, which is a series of syllables, is spiritual. Please be merciful and explain."
Babaji: "The scriptures (Padma Purana) declare: "The Maha-mantra is transcendentally blissful. It bestows all spiritual benedictions, for It is Krishna Himself, the reservoir of all pleasure. The Hare Krishna Maha-mantra is complete, and it is the Form of all transcendental mellows. It is not a material Name under any condition, and it is no less powerful than Krishna Himself. Since the Maha-mantra is not contaminated by the material qualities, there is no question of Its being involved with Maya. The Maha-mantra is always liberated and spiritual. It is never conditioned by the laws of material nature. This is because the Maha-mantra and Krishna Himself are identical."
Vijaya-kumara: "How can a mantra, which is after all a series of syllables, be different from other sounds in this material world?
Babaji: "The Hare Krishna Maha-mantra does not take its birth in the material world. Only when one is situated in his original spiritual body, which is dormant in the individual soul, who is a tiny particle of spirit, is one eligible to pronounce the pure Maha-mantra. The material senses of a soul imprisoned in Maya's world have no power to pronounce the pure Maha-mantra. However, by the mercy of the Lord's hladini-shakti, such a pure soul can be situated in his original form. Then the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra will appear before him. By the mercy of the pure chanting, the mantra enters the devotee's thinking process, and then descends to the tongue if the tongue is purified by devotional service. On that tongue the Maha-mantra dances. The Maha-mantra is not a series of material syllables. It only seems to be material syllables when it dances on the tongue made of matter. That is the secret of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra."
Vijaya-kumara: "What is the path of chanting the Maha-mantra?"
Babaji: "Using tulasi beads, or, in the absence of beads, counting on your fingers, and carefully avoiding the ten offenses, you should always chant the Maha-mantra. By chanting the Maha-mantra purely, one attains prema (pure love of God). The purpose of counting is to know whether or not the number of Names chanted is gradually increasing. Tulasi is very dear to Lord Hari, therefore touching Tulasi beads as one chants the Maha-mantra brings a better result. When one chants one should meditate that the Maha-mantra is not different from the Transcendental Form of Lord Krishna Himself."
Vijaya-kumara: "O master, there are nine processes of devotional service, and sixty-four categories of devotional activities. If one constantly chants the Maha-mantra, which is only one of the activities of devotional service, how will one find time to preform any other devotional activity?"
Babaji: "What is the difficulty? The sixty-four devotional activities are actually included within the nine devotional processes. One may worship the Deity of the Lord, or one may chant the maha- mantra in a solitary place. One can practice the nine processes of devotional service in an y situation. IN the presence of the Deity one can purely hear, chant, remember, and in other ways serve the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. All these activities may be counted together as devotion to the Holy Name. If one has no opportunity to see the Deity, one may remember the Deity and in this way be in the presence of the Deity, one may practice the nine devotional activities beginning with hearing and chanting the Maha-mantra. IF in the past one has performed many pious deeds, then he will naturally yearn to chant the Maha-mantra. By constantly chanting the Maha-mantra, one automatically performs all the activities of different limbs of devotional service. OF the none processes of devotional service, beginning with hearing and chanting, chanting the Maha-mantra is the most powerful. If on can taste bliss by chanting the Maha-mantra, that is enough. It is not that one must perform every devotional activity."
Vijaya-kumara: "What does 'to always chant the Maha-mantra mean?"
Babaji: "Aside from the time when one sleeps and other basic bodily activities, one should chant the Maha-mantra throughout the day and night. That is called 'constant chanting the Maha-mantra'. One can chant the Maha-mantra in any place, at any time, or in any situation. There are no restrictions."
Vijaya-kumara: "Please describe to us the pure Hare Krishna Maha-mantra and all other things we should know."
Babaji: "When the Maha-mantra appears in a person who has full faith and who practices unalloyed devotional service, that is said to be the 'true Holy Name of Lord Krishna'. When the Maha-mantra appears in any other situation the chanting is either 'namabhasa' (a glimpse of the Holy Name) or 'namaparadha' (The Holy Name chanted with offense)."
Vijaya-kumara: "O master, should we call the Maha-mantra the goal (sadhya) or the means (sadhan) to attain the goal?"
Babaji: "When a devotee practices sadhan-bhakti, his chanting of the Maha-mantra may be said to be the means for attaining the goal (sadhan). However, when one practices bhava-bhakti or prema- bhakti, his chanting of the Maha-mantra is said to be the goal (sadhya) itself. In this way the mantra appears according to the devotee's stage of spiritual advancement."
Vijaya-kumara: "Is Lord Krishna really not different from the Maha-mantra? Or is this not really true?"
Babaji: "There is not the slightest difference. However, there is one secret difference: 'The Maha- mantra is more merciful than Lord Krishna Himself.' If one commits an offense to Him, Lord Krishna will not forgive. But, if one commits an offense to Lord Krishna, or even the Maha-mantra Itself, then the maha-mantra will be merciful and forgive. One should thus carefully understand the ten offenses in the chanting of the Maha-mantra. Carefully avoiding these offenses, one should chant the Maha-mantra. Why should one avoid them? A person who is not free from offenses cannot chant the Maha-mantra purely."
Jaiva Dharma, Chapter 24
Babaji: "To understand the Maha-mantra, you should first understand three things:
- Nama (the pure chanting of the Maha-mantra),
- Namabhasa (the reflection of the Maha-mantra),
- Namaparadha (offenses to the Maha-mantra).
Vijaya-kumara: "What kind of reflection is it, and how many kinds of reflections are there?"
Babaji: "The word 'abhasa' has three definitions:
- kanti (light),
- Chaya (shadow),
- pratibimba (reflection).
Vijaya-kumara: "How are bhakty-abhasa, bhavabhasa, namabhasa, and vaisnavabhasa related to each other?"
Babaji: "A Vaishnava chants the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra. If he chants the Maha-mantra with bhakty-abhasa, then the Maha-mantra manifests before him as namabhasa, and he himself is a Vaishnavabhasa. The words bhava and bhakti refer to the same thing. They are called by different names because one is contracted and the other is expanded."
Vijaya-kumara: "In what condition of life is one a Vaishnavabhasa?"
Babaji: "In Srimad Bhagavatam (11.2.47) it is said: 'A prakrta, or materialistic devotee does not purposefully study the shastra and try to understand the actual standard of pure devotional service. Consequently he does not show proper respect to advanced devotees. He may, however, follow the regulative principles learned from his own spiritual master or from his family who worships the Deity. He is to be considered on the material platform, although he is trying to advance in devotional service. Such a person is a bhakti-praya (neophyte devotee), or bhaktabhasa, for he is a little enlightened by Vaishnava philosophy."
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