How Old Are You?
Even though we routinely say the age of our bodies when we are asked how old we are, this is not actually true. Our actual age is infinity. But in the spite of this we are ever-fresh youths. This is of course on the spiritual platform, the plane of our factual identities. If we become Krishna conscious, we can return to our original identities. Otherwise we suffer here in this material existence misidentifying with these temporary material bodies which suffer birth, death, old age, and disease lifetime after lifetime through the 8,400,000 different species of life.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
I am in the UK and I love reading your Thought for the Day first thing in the morning to start my day. Could you please explain why the specific number of 16 rounds? And when you say 16 rounds do you mean 16 times about the string of chanting beads or 16 times of chanting the Hare Krishna mantra?
Please clarify for me and maybe for many others.
My heartily gratitude for this course šš½š
Many thanks šš½And Pranam
Heena šš½
My Dear Heena,
Please accept my blessings.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
We chant the Hare Krishna mantra 16 times around the string of 108 chanting beads. This means that we chant the Hare Krishna at least 1,728 times daily.
In verse 37 and purport of the Sri Caitanya Caritamrita, Madhya Lila, Chapter 7 we read as follows:
tomÄra dui hasta baddha nÄma-gaį¹ane
jala-pÄtra-bahirvÄsa vahibe kemane
Translation: [Lord Nityananda to Lord Caitanya]: "Since Your two hands will always be engaged in chanting and counting the holy names, how will You be able to carry the water pot and external garments?"
Purport:
From this verse it is clear that Caitanya MahÄprabhu was chanting the holy names a fixed number of times daily. The GosvÄmÄ«s used to follow in the footsteps of ÅrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu, and HaridÄsa į¹¬hÄkura also followed this principle. Concerning the GosvÄmÄ«s—ÅrÄ«la RÅ«pa GosvÄmÄ«, ÅrÄ«la Sanatana GosvÄmÄ«, ÅrÄ«la RaghunÄtha Bhaį¹į¹a GosvÄmÄ«, ÅrÄ«la JÄ«va GosvÄmÄ«, ÅrÄ«la GopÄla Bhaį¹į¹a GosvÄmÄ« and ÅrÄ«la RaghunÄtha dÄsa GosvÄmÄ«-ÅrÄ«nivÄsa ÄcÄrya confirms: saį¹ khyÄ-pÅ«rvaka-nÄma-gÄna-natibhiįø„. (į¹¢aįø-gosvÄmy-aį¹£į¹aka, 6) In addition to other duties, ÅrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu introduced the system of chanting the holy name of the Lord a fixed number of times daily, as confirmed in this verse (tomÄra dui hasta baddha nÄma-gaį¹ane). Caitanya MahÄprabhu used to count on His fingers. While one hand was engaged in chanting, the other hand kept the number of rounds. This is corroborated in the Caitanya-candrÄmį¹ta and also in ÅrÄ«la RÅ«pa GosvÄmÄ«'s Stava-mÄlÄ:
badhnan prema-bhara-prakampita-karo granthÄ«n kaį¹Ä«įøorakaiįø„
saį¹ khyÄtuį¹ nija-loka-maį¹ gala-hare-kį¹į¹£į¹eti nÄmnÄm japan
(Caitanya-candrÄmį¹ta, 9)
hare kį¹į¹£į¹ety uccaiįø„ sphurita-rasano nÄma-gaį¹anÄ
kį¹ta-granthi-Åreį¹Ä«-subhaga-kaį¹i-sÅ«trojjvala-karaįø„
(CaitanyÄį¹£į¹aka, 5)
Therefore devotees in the line of ÅrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu must chant at least sixteen rounds daily, and this is the number prescribed by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. HaridÄsa į¹¬hÄkura daily chanted 300,000 names. Sixteen rounds is about 28,000 names. There is no need to imitate HaridÄsa į¹¬hÄkura or the other GosvÄmÄ«s, but chanting the holy name a fixed number of times daily is essential for every devotee.
--------end of quote--------
In the beginning of ISKCON Srila Prabhupada asked his American disciples to chant 64 rounds daily. But this was too much for them. So as a concession he reduced the number to 32 rounds. But this was still too much for them. So he reduced the required number of rounds to 16. Thus this 16 rounds was established by Srila Prabhupada as the minimum number of rounds required for every ISKCON devotee.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
We Are Inhabitants of the Spiritual World
Answers According to the Vedic Wisdom
Question: Why 16 Rounds?
Jay Shree KrishnaI am in the UK and I love reading your Thought for the Day first thing in the morning to start my day. Could you please explain why the specific number of 16 rounds? And when you say 16 rounds do you mean 16 times about the string of chanting beads or 16 times of chanting the Hare Krishna mantra?
Please clarify for me and maybe for many others.
My heartily gratitude for this course šš½š
Many thanks šš½And Pranam
Heena šš½
Answer: Minimization of the Actual Standard
From: ISKCON Austin, Texas USAMy Dear Heena,
Please accept my blessings.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
We chant the Hare Krishna mantra 16 times around the string of 108 chanting beads. This means that we chant the Hare Krishna at least 1,728 times daily.
In verse 37 and purport of the Sri Caitanya Caritamrita, Madhya Lila, Chapter 7 we read as follows:
tomÄra dui hasta baddha nÄma-gaį¹ane
jala-pÄtra-bahirvÄsa vahibe kemane
Translation: [Lord Nityananda to Lord Caitanya]: "Since Your two hands will always be engaged in chanting and counting the holy names, how will You be able to carry the water pot and external garments?"
Purport:
From this verse it is clear that Caitanya MahÄprabhu was chanting the holy names a fixed number of times daily. The GosvÄmÄ«s used to follow in the footsteps of ÅrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu, and HaridÄsa į¹¬hÄkura also followed this principle. Concerning the GosvÄmÄ«s—ÅrÄ«la RÅ«pa GosvÄmÄ«, ÅrÄ«la Sanatana GosvÄmÄ«, ÅrÄ«la RaghunÄtha Bhaį¹į¹a GosvÄmÄ«, ÅrÄ«la JÄ«va GosvÄmÄ«, ÅrÄ«la GopÄla Bhaį¹į¹a GosvÄmÄ« and ÅrÄ«la RaghunÄtha dÄsa GosvÄmÄ«-ÅrÄ«nivÄsa ÄcÄrya confirms: saį¹ khyÄ-pÅ«rvaka-nÄma-gÄna-natibhiįø„. (į¹¢aįø-gosvÄmy-aį¹£į¹aka, 6) In addition to other duties, ÅrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu introduced the system of chanting the holy name of the Lord a fixed number of times daily, as confirmed in this verse (tomÄra dui hasta baddha nÄma-gaį¹ane). Caitanya MahÄprabhu used to count on His fingers. While one hand was engaged in chanting, the other hand kept the number of rounds. This is corroborated in the Caitanya-candrÄmį¹ta and also in ÅrÄ«la RÅ«pa GosvÄmÄ«'s Stava-mÄlÄ:
badhnan prema-bhara-prakampita-karo granthÄ«n kaį¹Ä«įøorakaiįø„
saį¹ khyÄtuį¹ nija-loka-maį¹ gala-hare-kį¹į¹£į¹eti nÄmnÄm japan
(Caitanya-candrÄmį¹ta, 9)
hare kį¹į¹£į¹ety uccaiįø„ sphurita-rasano nÄma-gaį¹anÄ
kį¹ta-granthi-Åreį¹Ä«-subhaga-kaį¹i-sÅ«trojjvala-karaįø„
(CaitanyÄį¹£į¹aka, 5)
Therefore devotees in the line of ÅrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu must chant at least sixteen rounds daily, and this is the number prescribed by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. HaridÄsa į¹¬hÄkura daily chanted 300,000 names. Sixteen rounds is about 28,000 names. There is no need to imitate HaridÄsa į¹¬hÄkura or the other GosvÄmÄ«s, but chanting the holy name a fixed number of times daily is essential for every devotee.
--------end of quote--------
In the beginning of ISKCON Srila Prabhupada asked his American disciples to chant 64 rounds daily. But this was too much for them. So as a concession he reduced the number to 32 rounds. But this was still too much for them. So he reduced the required number of rounds to 16. Thus this 16 rounds was established by Srila Prabhupada as the minimum number of rounds required for every ISKCON devotee.
I hope this meets you in the best of health.
Your ever well-wisher,
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
ISKCON Founder-Acharya, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, ordered his disciples to become gurus and deliver the world. Sankarshan Das Adhikari has taken this order very seriously and is thus accepting disciples all over the world and has dedicated himself fully to the mission of making the entire world Krishna conscious as soon as possible. He requests your help in this most urgent world deliverance mission to save the suffering humanity from gliding down to the animal kingdom in their next births.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari email: sd@worldleader.com
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
The Most Urgent World Deliverance Mission
ISKCON Founder-Acharya, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, ordered his disciples to become gurus and deliver the world. Sankarshan Das Adhikari has taken this order very seriously and is thus accepting disciples all over the world and has dedicated himself fully to the mission of making the entire world Krishna conscious as soon as possible. He requests your help in this most urgent world deliverance mission to save the suffering humanity from gliding down to the animal kingdom in their next births.
Sankarshan Das Adhikari email: sd@worldleader.com
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