The Necessity of Hare Krishna Mantra Japa
The most important thing we do each day is to chant at least 16 rounds of Hare Krishna mantra japa on our japa beads. Srila Prabhupada has given us many instructions about chanting japa. Here are a few of them:
"While chanting Hare Krishna Hare Krishna you should always feel the presence of Krishna in Person and as soon as you remember Krishna in Person you can remember also about His talks with Arjuna. If you cannot remember Krishna in Person you should try to hear attentively the word Krishna, Hare as you go on chanting."
"As soon as the mind wanders, we should immediately drag it back to concentrate on Krishna. While chanting, our mind sometimes wanders far away, but when we become conscious of this, we should immediately bring the mind back to hear the sound vibration of "Hare Krishna." That is called yoga-abhyasa, the practice of yoga. We should not allow our mind to wander elsewhere. We should simply chant and hear the Hare Krishna mantra, for that is the best yoga system."
"Chanting japa should be done early in the morning with full concentration preferably during the Brahma Muhurta time. Concentrate fully on the sound vibration of the mantra, pronouncing each name distinctly and gradually your speed in chanting will increase naturally. Do not worry so much about chanting fast, most important is the hearing."
If we can master the art of chanting the Hare Krishna without offense we be blessed to be able to see Krishna face to face and to be able to make the whole world Krishna conscious. The difficulty is that we are still chanting with offenses. Here are the offenses to be avoided as listed in the Nectar Devotion:
"The offenses against the chanting of the holy name are as follows:
(1) To blaspheme the devotees who have dedicated their lives for propagating the holy name of the Lord.
(2) To consider the names of demigods like Lord Śiva or Lord Brahmā to be equal to, or independent of, the name of Lord Viṣṇu. (Sometimes the atheistic class of men take it that any demigod is as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu. But one who is a devotee knows that no demigod, however great he may be, is independently as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore, if someone thinks that he can chant 'Kālī, Kālī!' or 'Durgā, Durgā!' and it is the same as Hare Kṛṣṇa, that is the greatest offense.)
(3) To disobey the orders of the spiritual master.
(4) To blaspheme the Vedic literature or literature in pursuance of the Vedic version.
(5) To consider the glories of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa to be imagination.
(6) To give some interpretation on the holy name of the Lord.
(7) To commit sinful activities on the strength of the holy name of the Lord. (It should not be taken that because by chanting the holy name of the Lord one can be freed from all kinds of sinful reaction, one may continue to act sinfully and after that chant Hare Kṛṣṇa to neutralize his sins. Such a dangerous mentality is very offensive and should be avoided.)
(8) To consider the chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa one of the auspicious ritualistic activities offered in the Vedas as fruitive activities (karma-kāṇḍa).
(9) To instruct a faithless person about the glories of the holy name. (Anyone can take part in chanting the holy name of the Lord, but in the beginning one should not be instructed about the transcendental potency of the Lord. Those who are too sinful cannot appreciate the transcendental glories of the Lord, and therefore it is better not to instruct them in this matter.)
(10) To not have complete faith in the chanting of the holy names and to maintain material attachments, even after understanding so many instructions on this matter.
Every devotee who claims to be a Vaiṣṇava must guard against these offenses in order to quickly achieve the desired success."
It is also offensive to be inattentive while chanting.
Let us all now become offenseless chanters of at least 16 rounds of japa every day without fail. If for some reason we cannot finish our quota on a particular day, we must make it up the following day by chanting the missing rounds in addition to the 16 rounds for that day.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
I live in Assam, India. Will I have to do chanting with original tulsi mala? Also I don't know how to chant on beads. Can you teach me, Gurudeva? I really want to make a change in my life.
Your student,
Rishmita
Please accept my blessings.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
Here I instruct you how to chant japa: https://youtu.be/zXwANt0cwno
For purchasing tulasi japa mala beads contact our ISKCON temple in Guwahati, Assam: http://centers.iskcondesiretree.com/guwahati/
I hope this meets you in the best of health.
Your ever well-wisher,
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Sankarshan Das Adhikari is one of the spiritual masters of the worldwide Hare Krishna Movement. He has dedicated the last 50 years of his life for bringing a spiritual revolution to planet earth by spreading the teachings of Lord Sri Krishna all over the world. He is based in Austin, Texas and when there is no pandemic he regularly travels all over the world teaching his audiences how to attain Krishna consciousness, the highest stage of spiritual awakening. He is available for media interviews and to speak to groups and organizations either in person or via the internet.
"While chanting Hare Krishna Hare Krishna you should always feel the presence of Krishna in Person and as soon as you remember Krishna in Person you can remember also about His talks with Arjuna. If you cannot remember Krishna in Person you should try to hear attentively the word Krishna, Hare as you go on chanting."
"As soon as the mind wanders, we should immediately drag it back to concentrate on Krishna. While chanting, our mind sometimes wanders far away, but when we become conscious of this, we should immediately bring the mind back to hear the sound vibration of "Hare Krishna." That is called yoga-abhyasa, the practice of yoga. We should not allow our mind to wander elsewhere. We should simply chant and hear the Hare Krishna mantra, for that is the best yoga system."
"Chanting japa should be done early in the morning with full concentration preferably during the Brahma Muhurta time. Concentrate fully on the sound vibration of the mantra, pronouncing each name distinctly and gradually your speed in chanting will increase naturally. Do not worry so much about chanting fast, most important is the hearing."
If we can master the art of chanting the Hare Krishna without offense we be blessed to be able to see Krishna face to face and to be able to make the whole world Krishna conscious. The difficulty is that we are still chanting with offenses. Here are the offenses to be avoided as listed in the Nectar Devotion:
"The offenses against the chanting of the holy name are as follows:
(1) To blaspheme the devotees who have dedicated their lives for propagating the holy name of the Lord.
(2) To consider the names of demigods like Lord Śiva or Lord Brahmā to be equal to, or independent of, the name of Lord Viṣṇu. (Sometimes the atheistic class of men take it that any demigod is as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu. But one who is a devotee knows that no demigod, however great he may be, is independently as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore, if someone thinks that he can chant 'Kālī, Kālī!' or 'Durgā, Durgā!' and it is the same as Hare Kṛṣṇa, that is the greatest offense.)
(3) To disobey the orders of the spiritual master.
(4) To blaspheme the Vedic literature or literature in pursuance of the Vedic version.
(5) To consider the glories of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa to be imagination.
(6) To give some interpretation on the holy name of the Lord.
(7) To commit sinful activities on the strength of the holy name of the Lord. (It should not be taken that because by chanting the holy name of the Lord one can be freed from all kinds of sinful reaction, one may continue to act sinfully and after that chant Hare Kṛṣṇa to neutralize his sins. Such a dangerous mentality is very offensive and should be avoided.)
(8) To consider the chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa one of the auspicious ritualistic activities offered in the Vedas as fruitive activities (karma-kāṇḍa).
(9) To instruct a faithless person about the glories of the holy name. (Anyone can take part in chanting the holy name of the Lord, but in the beginning one should not be instructed about the transcendental potency of the Lord. Those who are too sinful cannot appreciate the transcendental glories of the Lord, and therefore it is better not to instruct them in this matter.)
(10) To not have complete faith in the chanting of the holy names and to maintain material attachments, even after understanding so many instructions on this matter.
Every devotee who claims to be a Vaiṣṇava must guard against these offenses in order to quickly achieve the desired success."
It is also offensive to be inattentive while chanting.
Let us all now become offenseless chanters of at least 16 rounds of japa every day without fail. If for some reason we cannot finish our quota on a particular day, we must make it up the following day by chanting the missing rounds in addition to the 16 rounds for that day.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Srila Pabhupada Chanting Japa
Answers According to the Vedic Wisdom
Question: Can You Teach Me How to Chant Japa?
Dear Srila Gurudeva,I live in Assam, India. Will I have to do chanting with original tulsi mala? Also I don't know how to chant on beads. Can you teach me, Gurudeva? I really want to make a change in my life.
Your student,
Rishmita
Answer: Here's How
My Dear Rishmita,Please accept my blessings.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
Here I instruct you how to chant japa: https://youtu.be/zXwANt0cwno
For purchasing tulasi japa mala beads contact our ISKCON temple in Guwahati, Assam: http://centers.iskcondesiretree.com/guwahati/
I hope this meets you in the best of health.
Your ever well-wisher,
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Sankarshan Das Adhikari is one of the spiritual masters of the worldwide Hare Krishna Movement. He has dedicated the last 50 years of his life for bringing a spiritual revolution to planet earth by spreading the teachings of Lord Sri Krishna all over the world. He is based in Austin, Texas and when there is no pandemic he regularly travels all over the world teaching his audiences how to attain Krishna consciousness, the highest stage of spiritual awakening. He is available for media interviews and to speak to groups and organizations either in person or via the internet.
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