08 One must chant the holy name constantly
The chief object of constant remembrance for all living entitles is the holy name (etc.) of the Lord:
[Lord Caitanya to Ramananda Raya]: Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu asked, "What should all living entities constantly remember?" Ramananda Raya replied, "The chief object of remembrance is always the holy name of the Lord, His qualities and pastimes."
– Sri Caitanya caritamrta Madhya lila 8.252
Following the Lord's order, a devotee chants His holy name incessantly:
One day Vallabha Bhatta said to Advaita Acarya, "Every living entity is female [prakrti] and considers Krsna her husband [pati]. It is the duty of a chaste wife, devoted to her husband, not to utter her husband's name, but all of you chant the name of Krsna. How can this be called a religious principle?" Advaita Acarya responded, "In front of you is Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the personification of religious principles. You should ask Him, for He will give you the proper answer." Hearing this, Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, "My dear Vallabha Bhatta, you do not know religious principles. Actually, the first duty of a chaste woman is to carry out the order of her husband. The order of Krsna is to chant His name incessantly. Therefore one who is chaste and adherent to the husband Krsna must chant the Lord's name, for she cannot deny the husband's order. Following this religious principle, a pure devotee of Lord Krsna always chants the holy name. As a result of this, he gets the fruit of ecstatic love for Krsna."
– Sri Caitanya caritamrta Antya lila 7.103−8
Krsna, in the Bhagavad gita, recommends constant chanting:
My dear Professor Staal: I am surprised to see that in the last paragraph of your letter you say, "It is an indisputable fact that the Bhagavad gita (not to mention the Vedas) does not require such constant chanting." I think that you have missed the following verse in the Bhagavad gita, apart from many other similar verses:
satatam kirtayanto mam yatantas ca drdha−vratah
namasyantas ca mam bhaktya nitya−yukta upasate
[Bhagavad gita 9.14]
The engagement of the great souls, freed from delusion and perfect in their realization of God, is described here: satatam kirtayanto mam−they are always (satatam) chanting (kirtayantah) My glories and−nitya−yukta upasate−always worshiping Me (Krsna). So I do not know how you can say "indisputable." By devotional service, by understanding well the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one can go to His abode and never come back again to this material condition. How is it possible? The answer is, simply by chanting His name constantly. This is accepted by the exemplary disciple, Arjuna, who has perfectly learned the conclusion of spiritual science from the yogesvara, the master of mystic knowledge, Krsna. Recognizing Krsna to be the Supreme Brahman, Arjuna addresses Him, sthane hrsikesa "The world becomes joyful hearing Your name, and thus do all become attached to You." [Bg. 11.36]
– The Science of Self Realization
One should chant the holy name of the Lord constantly:
[Lord Siva to the sons of King Pracinabarhi]: Therefore, O sons of the King, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, is situated in everyone's heart. He is also within your hearts. Therefore chant the glories of the Lord and always meditate upon Him continuously.
The word asakrt is significant, for it means not just for a few minutes but continuously. That is the instruction given by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu in His Siksastaka. Kirtaniyah sada harih: [Cc. adi 17.31] "The holy name of the Lord should be chanted twenty−four hours daily." Therefore in this Krsna consciousness movement we request the devotees to chant at least sixteen rounds on their beads daily. Actually one has to chant twenty−four hours daily, just like thakura Haridasa, who was chanting the Hare Krsna mantra three hundred thousand times daily. Indeed, he had no other business. Some of the Gosvamis, like Raghunatha dasa Gosvami, were also chanting very rigidly and also offering obeisances very rigidly. As stated in Srinivasacarya's prayer to the six Gosvamis (Sad−gosvamy−astaka): sankhya−purvaka−nama−gana−natibhih kalavasani−krtau. The word sankhya−purvaka means "maintaining a numerical strength." Not only was Raghunatha dasa Gosvami chanting the holy name of the Lord, but he was also offering obeisances in the same prolific numbers.
– Srimad Bhagavatam 4.24.70
One should aspire to chant the Hare Krsna mantra constantly:
In our Krsna consciousness movement we are teaching our followers to chant the Hare Krsna mantra continuously on beads. Even those who are not accustomed to this practice are advised to chant at least sixteen rounds on their beads so that they may be trained. Otherwise, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu recommended:
trnad api sunicena taror iva sahisnuna
amanina manadena kirtaniyah sada harih
[Cc. adi 17.31]
"One should chant the holy name of the Lord in a humble state of mind, thinking oneself lower than the straw in the street. One should be more tolerant than a tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige, and ready to offer all respect to others. In such a state of mind one can chant the holy name of the Lord constantly."
Sada means "always." Haridasa thakura says, nirantara nama lao: "Chant the Hare Krsna mantra without stopping."
– Sri Caitanya caritamrta Antya lila 3.137
A devotee always has a taste for chanting Hare Krsna:
There is a verse in which Srila Rupa Gosvami says, avyartha−kalatvam: [Cc.Madhya 23.18−19] a devotee should be very much careful to see whether his time is being spent unnecessarily. He should ask himself, "Am I now engaged in maya's service or Krsna's service?" This is a symptom of an advanced devotee. Nama−gane sada rucih: such a devotee is never tired of chanting, singing, or dancing. The word sada means "always," and ruci means "taste." A devotee always has a taste for chanting Hare Krsna: "Oh, very nice.
Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
" This is taste. Of course, this taste takes time to awaken, but when Rupa Gosvami was chanting he was thinking, "I have only one tongue and two ears. What can I appreciate of chanting? If I could have millions of tongues and trillions of ears, then I could relish something by chanting and hearing." Of course, we should not imitate him, but the devotees of the Krsna consciousness movement must at least be very careful to complete their sixteen rounds, their minimum amount of prescribed chanting. Nama−gane sada rucih: we have to increase our taste for singing and chanting Hare Krsna.
– Teachings of Queen Kunti
To always remember Krsna and never forget Him is possible by constantly chanting the holy name:
"'Krsna is the origin of Lord Visnu. He should always be remembered and never forgotten at any time. All the rules and prohibitions mentioned in the sastras should be the servants of these two principles.'"
This verse is a quotation from the Padma Purana. There are many regulative principles in the sastras and directions given by the spiritual master. These regulative principles should act as servants of the basic principle−that is, one should always remember Krsna and never forget Him. This is possible when one chants the Hare Krsna mantra. Therefore one must strictly chant the Hare Krsna maha mantra twenty−four hours daily.
– Sri Caitanya caritamrta Madhya lila 22.113
Constant chanting of the maha mantra is the means for continuously remembering Krsna:
Those who are intelligent, however, are not concerned with the four−fold miseries of material life, but with elevation to the spiritual planets. One who is continuously in trance (nitya−yuktasya yoginah) does not divert his attention to anything else. He is always situated in trance. His mind is always filled with the thought of Krsna, without deviation (ananya−cetah satatam). Satatam refers to anywhere and anytime.
In India I lived in Vrndavana, and now I am in America, but this does not mean that I am out of Vrndavana, because if I think of Krsna always, then I'm always in Vrndavana, regardless of the material designation. Krsna consciousness means that one always lives with Krsna on that spiritual planet, Goloka Vrndavana, and that one is simply waiting to give up this material body. Smarati nityasah means "continuously remembering," and for one who is continuously remembering Krsna, the Lord becomes tasyaham sulabhah−easily purchased. Krsna Himself says that He is easily purchased by this bhakti−yoga process. Then why should we take to any other process? We can chant
Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
twenty−four hours daily. There are no rules and regulations. One can chant in the street, in the subway, or at his home or office. There is no tax and no expense. So why not take to it?
– Beyond Birth and Death
To become free from offenses to the holy name, one must continue to chant constantly:
While chanting the holy name of the Lord, one should be careful to avoid ten offenses. From Sanat kumara it is understood that even if a person is a severe offender in many ways, he is freed from offensive life if he takes shelter of the Lord’s holy name. Indeed, even if a human being is no better than a two-legged animal, he will be liberated if he takes shelter of the holy name of the Lord. One should therefore be very careful not to commit offenses at the lotus feet of the Lord’s holy name.
The offenses are described as follows:
(a) to blaspheme a devotee, especially a devotee engaged in broadcasting the glories of the holy name,
(b) to consider the name of Lord Siva or any other demigod to be equally as powerful as the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (no one is equal to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, nor is anyone superior to Him),
(c) to disobey the instructions of the spiritual master,
(d) to blaspheme the Vedic literatures and literatures compiled in pursuance of the Vedic literatures,
(e) to comment that the glories of the holy name of the Lord are exaggerated,
(f) to interpret the holy name in a deviant way,
(g) to commit sinful activities on the strength of chanting the holy name,
(h) to compare the chanting of the holy name to pious activities,
(i) to instruct the glories of the holy name to a person who has no understanding of the chanting of the holy name,
(j) not to awaken in transcendental attachment for the chanting of the holy name, even after hearing all these scriptural injunctions.
There is no way to atone for any of these offenses. It is therefore recommended that an offender at the feet of the holy name continue to chant the holy name twenty−four hours a day. Constant chanting of the holy name will make one free of offenses, and then he will gradually be elevated to the transcendental platform on which he can chant the pure holy name and thus become a lover of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is recommended that even if one commits offenses, one should continue chanting the holy name. In other words, the chanting of the holy name makes one offenseless. In the book Nama−kaumudi it is recommended that if one is an offender at the lotus feet of a Vaisnava, he should submit to that Vaisnava and be excused; similarly, if one is an offender in chanting the holy name, he should submit to the holy name and thus be freed from his offenses.
– Srimad Bhagavatam 7.5.23−24
Repeated chanting brings one to the stage of offenseless chanting:
The chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra is recommended even for persons who commit offenses, because if they continue chanting they will gradually chant offenselessly. By chanting the Hare Krsna mantra without offenses, one increases his love for Krsna. Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti thakura quotes this verse from the Padma Purana:
namaparadha−yuktanam namany eva haranty agham
avisranti−prayuktani tany evartha−karani ca
Even if in the beginning one chants the Hare Krsna mantra with offenses, one will become free from such offenses by chanting again and again. Papa−ksayas ca bhavati smaratam tam ahar−nisam: one becomes free from all sinful reactions if one chants day and night, following the recommendation of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
– Srimad Bhagavatam 6.3.24
Sankirtana yajna, the chanting of the holy name, should be performed constantly, all over the world:
Maharaja Barhisat dived very deeply into the fruitive activities of sacrifice. This means that as soon as he finished one yajna in one place, he began performing another yajna in the immediate vicinity. At the present moment, there is a similar need to perform sankirtana yajna all over the world. The Krsna consciousness movement has started performing sankirtana yajna in different places, and it has been experienced that wherever sankirtana yajna is performed, many thousands of people gather and take part in it. Imperceptible auspiciousness achieved in this connection should be continued all over the world. The members of the Krsna consciousness movement should perform sankirtana yajnas one after another, so much so that all the people of the world will either jokingly or seriously chant
Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
and thus they will derive the benefit of cleansing the heart. It is not possible at the present moment to perform repeated yajnas as Maharaja Barhisat performed, but it is within our means to perform sankirtana yajna, which does not cost anything. One can sit down anywhere and chant
Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
If the surface of the globe is overflooded with the chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra, the people of the world will be very, very happy.
– Srimad Bhagavatam 4.24.10
An advanced devotee (madhyama−bhagavata) is distinguished from a neophyte by his constant chanting of the holy name (and by his stressing the importance of chanting):
[Inhabitant of Kulina−grama to Lord Caitanya]: The inhabitant of Kulina−grama said, "Please let me know who is actually a Vaisnava and what his symptoms are." Understanding his mind, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu smiled and gave the following reply. "A person who is always chanting the holy name of the Lord is to be considered a first−class Vaisnava, and your duty is to serve his lotus feet."
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati thakura says that any Vaisnava who is constantly chanting the holy name of the Lord should be considered to have attained the second platform of Vaisnavism. Such a devotee is superior to a neophyte Vaisnava who has just learned to chant the holy name of the Lord. A neophyte devotee simply tries to chant the holy name, whereas the advanced devotee is accustomed to chanting and takes pleasure in it. Such an advanced devotee is called madhyama−bhagavata, which indicates that he has attained the intermediate stage between the neophyte and the perfect devotee. An intermediate devotee is greatly attracted to chanting the holy name, and by chanting he is elevated to the platform of love. If one chants the holy name of the Lord with great attachment, he can understand his position as an eternal servant of the spiritual master, other Vaisnavas and Krsna Himself. Thus the intermediate Vaisnava considers himself krsna−dasa, Krsna's servant. He therefore preaches Krsna consciousness to innocent neophytes and stresses the importance of chanting the Hare Krsna maha mantra.
– Sri Caitanya caritamrta Madhya lila 16.71−72
Pure devotees in the renounced order should have no other occupation than chanting the holy name:
[Lord Caitanya to Govinda dasa]: "A person in the renounced order should always chant the holy name of the Lord. He should beg some alms to eat, and he should sustain his life in this way."
As stated in the Hari−bhakti−vilasa at the end of the Twentieth Vilasa (366, 379, 382):
krtyany etani tu prayo grhinam dhaninam satam
likhitani na tu tyakta− parigraha−mahatmanam
prabhate cardha−ratre ca madhyahne divasa−ksaye
kirtayanti harim ye vai te taranti bhavarnavam
evam ekantinam prayah kirtanam smaranam prabhoh
kurvatam parama−pritya krtyam anyan na rocate
A well−to−do householder Vaisnava cannot live like a person in the renounced order who completely takes shelter of the holy name. Such a householder should chant the holy name of Krsna in the morning, at midday and in the evening. Then he will be able to cross beyond nescience. Pure devotees in the renounced order, however, who fully surrender to the lotus feet of Krsna, should chant the holy name of the Lord with great love and faith, always thinking of Krsna's lotus feet. They should have no other occupation than chanting the holy name of the Lord. In the Bhakti−sandarbha, Srila Jiva Gosvami says:
yadyapi sri−bhagavata−mate panca
ratradivad−arcana−margasyavasyakatvam
nasti, tad vinapi saranapatty−adinam
ekatarenapi purusartha−siddher abhihitatvat.
– Sri Caitanya caritamrta Antya lila 6.223
One who chants the holy name of the Lord constantly during one's life can, at the time of death, return home, back to Godhead:
[Sukadeva Gosvami to King Pariksit]: While suffering at the time of death, Ajamila chanted the holy name of the Lord, and although the chanting was directed toward his son, he nevertheless returned home, back to Godhead. Therefore if one faithfully and inoffensively chants the holy name of the Lord, where is the doubt that he will return to Godhead?
At the time of death one is certainly bewildered because his bodily functions are in disorder. At that time, even one who throughout his life has practiced chanting the holy name of the Lord may not be able to chant the Hare Krsna mantra very distinctly. Nevertheless, such a person receives all the benefits of chanting the holy name. While the body is fit, therefore, why should we not chant the holy name of the Lord loudly and distinctly? If one does so, it is quite possible that even at the time of death he will be properly able to chant the holy name of the Lord with love and faith. In conclusion, one who chants the holy name of the Lord constantly is guaranteed to return home, back to Godhead, without a doubt.
– Srimad Bhagavatam 6.2.49
At ISKCON's world center in Mayapur, there should be constant chanting of the holy names of the Lord:
When the sankirtana movement thus started, no one in Navadvipa could hear any other sound than the words "Hari! Hari!" and the beating of the mrdanga and clashing of hand bells.
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness now has its world center in Navadvipa, Mayapur. The managers of this center should see that twenty−four hours a day there is chanting of the holy names of the Hare Krsna maha mantra, with the addition of haraye namah, krsna yadavaya namah, for this song was a favorite of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. But all such sankirtana must be preceded by the chanting of the holy names of the five tattvas−sri−krsna−caitanya prabhu nityananda sri−advaita gadadhara srivasadi−gaura−bhakta−vrnda. We are already accustomed to chant these two mantras
sri−krsna−caitanya prabhu nityananda
sri−advaita gadadhara srivasadi−gaura−bhakta−vrnda
and
Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Now, after these, the other two lines−namely, haraye namah, krsna yadavaya namah/ gopala govinda rama sri−madhusudana−should be added, especially in Mayapur. Chanting of these six lines should go on so perfectly well that no one there hears any other vibration than the chanting of the holy names of the Lord. That will make the center spiritually all perfect.
– Sri Caitanya caritamrta Adi lila 17.123
Instead of closing the churches, they could be given to the devotees, who would chant the holy name there twenty−four hours a day:
Instead of keeping the churches closed, why not give them to us? We would chant the holy name of God there twenty−four hours a day. In many places we have bought churches that were practically closed because no one was going there. In London I saw hundreds of churches that were closed or used for mundane purposes. We bought one such church in Los Angeles. It was sold because no one came there, but if you visit this same church today, you will see thousands of people.
– The Science of Self Realization
