Special release for the participants of the Varsana Japa Retreat 2007.

Dear devotees this is part 2 of Çacénandana Swamis forth coming book Näma-rahasya.
Part 1 & 3 are going to be printed together with part 2 within two months in a fantastic
publication.

To order entire book please visit us on www.saranagati-publishing.net or write to

[email protected]. for ordering details.

Your humble servants from Saranagati publishing team.

PS.
We wish you many deep insights in reading part 2 “Unlocking the secret of the Holy
Name”

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 Part II
The Keys to Unlocking the Secret of the Holy Name
After understanding in brief what happens as devotees approach the ocean of the holy
name, it is of great benefit to hear further instructions on the secret science of developing
love of Godhead by chanting.

1. Avoid the Stumbling Blocks

Progress in chanting can be compared to a journey that can come to an abrupt halt if
serious obstacles present themselves—landslides or mad elephants on the road, for
example. The main obstacles that stop our spiritual progress are the three A’s: avidyä
(ignorance), anarthas (unwanted habits), and aparädhas (offenses).

It is absolutely necessary that devotees avoid offenses to the holy name. If they
focus the mind on the task of not offending the holy name, the remaining two A’s are
likely to disappear automatically. In Bhägavata-ärka-maréci-mälä (thirteenth ray, text 51),
Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura translates Çrémad-Bhägavatam 6.1.12 as follows:

Just as a disease is activated if proper food and medicine are not

administered in a disciplined manner, so one will never obtain the result of
chanting if one does not chant the holy names under the proper rules and
regulations, such as chanting a prescribed daily number of rounds. The
process of chanting is that one should always chant the holy name without any
offense or duplicity while trying to progressively increase the number of rounds.
Following the prescribed method for chanting, hearing, and remembering
the Lord’s names, forms, qualities, and pastimes yields the most auspicious
results (Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura, trans., ÇB. 6.1.12, emphasis added).

The holy name is certainly the most merciful of all forms of Lord Kåñëa, but just as
a master may withhold his mercy from an offensive servant, so the holy name may choose
to withhold His mercy from an offensive chanter.

Scripture tells us that there are ten offenses to be avoided while chanting Hare
Kåñëa. Most readers are probably familiar with them. (For those who are not, I have dealt
with them in detail in my book The Nectarean Ocean of the Holy Name.) Each of these
offenses is stated in the negative; they are “do nots.” But each therefore indirectly points
to a positive injunction. The prohibitions presented as the ten aparädhas can thus be seen
as instructions for us to develop specific saintly qualities and to do certain things.
Expertise in one’s practice or bhajan is defined as the ability to avoid these stumbling
blocks. What follows is a list of the positive injunctions related to the ten offenses as they
are presented in Harinäma Cintämaëi (ch. 13, texts 38–41):

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 1. Diligently give up all blasphemy of Vaiñëava sädhus by praising them. (Lord
Caitanya Mahäprabhu also advises that the same mouth that has blasphemed
devotees should be used to praise them. When someone drinks with the mouth
a dangerous poison, he can be cured by drinking with the same mouth life-
giving nectar.)

2. Adopt the pure understanding that Viñëu is the only truth.

3. Accept the guru that promotes the holy name with utmost sincerity.

4. Accept the scriptures that glorify the holy name as supreme.

5. Believe in your heart that the holy name is completely pure and spiritual.

6. Have faith that the holy name is identical with the Lord.

7. Attentively discard all the motivations that lead to sins, because it is

motivation, not action, that is the seed of sin.

8. Preach the glories of the pure holy names only to those who possess faith in the
names.

9. Entirely give up all impious and self-serving ritualistic activities.

10. Meditate on the holy name without distraction.

Let me add one helpful personal perspective to help us avoid offenses: Always
consider yourself a humble servant of Çré Kåñëa, of the Vaiñëavas, and of all living entities
by giving up the erroneous conception of “I” and “mine.” These ideas are based on the
false understanding of ourselves as enjoyers and controllers. Repeating “I am a servant” as
if it were a mantra can effectively destroy the basis of offenses, the false ego.

By adopting these positive mental attitudes we can successfully avoid all ten
offenses and soon awaken the kinds of feelings for Kåñëa that lead to pure love.

Other Ways to Successfully Stop Nämäparädha, Offenses Against the

Holy Name
It can be quite troublesome to counteract offenses against the holy name once they have
been committed; therefore, intelligent chanters move carefully through life, taking no
risks. If one pinpoints the sources of offenses and diligently avoids them, the happy day
will soon arrive where the pure holy name will appear.

Ultimately there is only one way to overcome all the namäparädhas—either those
committed in the past or those we are committing in the present:

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 nämäparädha-yuktänäà
nämäny eva haranty agham
aviçränti-prayuktäni
täny evärtha-karäëi ca

“Only incessant chanting of hari-näma can effect the purification of one who is
infected with nämäparädha. Indeed, the tireless chanting of hari-näma is the only way to
achieve the goal of human life, love of Kåñëa.” (Padma Puräna, Svarga-khäëòa, 48–49)

Only tireless chanting can completely remove the effects of past offenses and prevent
them from raising their ugly heads again.

Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura tells us what tireless chanting means in our practice:

Tireless chanting means that other than the time needed for eating and
sleeping or other activities related to bodily maintenance, one should chant
with feeling [here he uses the word karkuti, which literally means “intense
contrition”]. Such chanting will lead to the destruction of the ten offenses.
No other auspicious activity or penance is effective in this regard.
(Harinäma Cintämaëi, ch. 13)

We can become offenseless chanters only if we avoid bad association and accept
the association of devotees who are single-mindedly focused on the holy name. It is
contact with pure devotees that helps us direct our full attention and intention toward
developing pure love for Kåñëa.

Good chanting does not depend on our adherence to mechanical rules. It is not a
matter of just doing the do’s and avoiding the don’ts and then our job is done. No, not at
all! Chanting is an offering of the heart—a heart filled with feelings of humility, a desire
to surrender, and a sincere service attitude. It is ultimately a loving call to Çré Çré Rädhä
and Kåñëa. This means we need to chant with a firm understanding of our relationship
with Them (sambandha). “My Lord, I have a relationship with You. I have lost my way in
the world of temporary relationships, but my real life is with You. My real home is with
You. You are my real safety.”

To put our heart into the chanting, in other words, we must feel separation from
the Divine Couple. We want to be with Çré Çré Rädhä and Kåñëa again and serve Them.
And we pray for that through our chanting of the holy name. But how can we feel
separation if our hearts are dry? If we cannot cry for Kåñëa, cry to cry for Kåñëa. That’s all!

We must understand all these things if, in due course, we wish to awaken to the
heart of a sincere sädhaka and then from there step forward toward advanced and
affectionate chanting. Only affectionate chanting can lead us into deep practice, and only
if we find shelter in the depths of the ocean of chanting will we be saved from the

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disturbing waves of offenses (nämäparädha) that can completely push us away from our
goal.

We learn the art of chanting with affection from affectionate chanters, pure
devotees who can teach us by their example and who can show us how to personally serve
the Lord.

Çréla Jéva Gosvämé explains in his Krama Sandharba-öékä on Çrémad-Bhägavatam

6.2.19 the benefit of affectionate chanting:

The holy name can be chanted in two ways: ordinarily or with affection.
The ordinary, offenseless chanter will reach the Lord’s divine abode, but the
Lord comes near only to an affectionate chanter, so an affectionate chanter
attains the Lord’s personal service.

2. Anarthas and Avidyä: Cure the Twisted Heart

Before beginning to ascend to the platform of steadiness (niñöhä), devotees have not yet
been able to full-heartedly and exclusively devotee themselves to the service of Kåñëa and
therefore find it difficult to absorb themselves in the chanting. As described earlier, they
are torn between their old attachments and the increasing light of their new convictions.
According to Çréla Bhaktisiddhänta Sarasvaté Öhäkura (in Näma-bhajana), devotees who
have yet to reach niñöhä suffer from four afflictions:

1. they have strong love for the fleeting world;

2. they identify the soul with the material body made of flesh and blood, and with the
subtle body made of mind, intelligence, and false ego;

3. they have knowledge of, and attachment to, things other then Kåñëa; and

4. they have an extremely subservient mood toward mäyä.

These four inner dispositions do not allow them to fly freely in the winds of the divine
breeze brought by the holy name but force them to struggle against gravity. What should
they do? It is extremely helpful for such persons to worship the Lord’s deity. It may be too
demanding for “earth-bound” devotees to worship Kåñëa only in His name, but their
perturbed minds may be strengthened by the acceptance and love they will feel when they
worship Kåñëa’s deity. Deity worship will help them increase their attachment to Kåñëa.

In his Bhajana-rahasya Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura offers the same powerful

solution for gaining affection for the Lord. “Worship Him in His Deity Form!”

Arcana (deity worship) gives devotees who have not yet been able to develop one
hundred percent faith in näma-bhajana a sublime feeling of having a relationship with the
Lord. They feel their service is accepted and even feel loved by the Lord.

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 They may also become more acquainted with the Lord’s divine form! All these are
wonderful results that can help practitioners feel closer to Kåñëa and overcome their
apathy, allowing them to actually turn to Him with genuine feeling when chanting.

Another powerful way to increase attachment to Kåñëa is to chant the prayers

spoken by great spiritual masters. By their mercy these great souls have left us with a
treasure house of añöakas and prayers by which we can develop our attachment to Çré Çré
Rädhä Kåñëa and the holy name. Here, I will quote one of my favorites by Çréla Rüpa
Gosvämé:

agha-damana-yaçodä-nandanau nanda-süno
kamala-nayana-gopé-candra-våndävanendräù
praëata-karuëa-kåñëäv ity aneka-svarüpe
tvayi mama ratir uccair vardhatäà nämadheya

O çré hari-näma! You manifest in many forms, like Aghadamana (the

subduer of the Agha demon), Yaçodänandana (the son of Yaçodä),
Nandasüna (the son of Nanda Mahäräja), Kamalanayana (the lotus-eyed),
Gopécandra (the moon of the gopés), Våndävanendra (the Lord of
Våndävana), Praëatakaruëa (the compassionate master of the surrendered
souls), and Kåñëa. O holy name, let my attachment for you increase more
and more.

The Six Gosvämés were always reciting prayers and bowing down in a scheduled
way while devoting themselves to their sädhana. By following their methods we will
certainly enter into their stream of feelings for Kåñëa.
The best way to help ourselves to fly free is to seek the company of true devotees,
because if we listen to the narrations of Lord Kåñëa and the holy name from such persons,
our heart can quickly be straightened and healed of its twisted condition. We can be
purified simply by receiving such persons’ mercy and powerful blessings. Neophyte
devotees will thus learn how to chant correctly and quickly come to the stage where they
sincerely aspire for prema.

This is the second time in this book that we have discussed the power of Vaiñëava
association. One might therefore wonder, “Where can I find such pure devotees? I do not
see any pure devotees where I live.” Some readers might even be the only persons in their
town who aspire for pure bhakti.

But take courage! These great souls are not like you and me. They are never
inaccessible—not even after they have left their physical bodies! In Bhägavata-ärka-
maréci-mälä Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura records a nice verse about taking shelter at the lotus
feet of the nämäcärya, Çréla Haridäsa Öhäkura. Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu declared for all
time that anyone who has even a slight contact with Haridäsa Öhäkura is very dear to Him

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and will get His full support. Haridäsa Öhäkura is not dead. He is very much alive! And
his sincere followers live in his company!

I offer my humble obeisances to Çré Haridäsa Öhäkura, who by Lord

Caitanya’s mercy revealed the devotional service of chanting the Lord’s holy
names without deviation, and who is the spiritual master for awarding
happiness to the devotees. (Bhägavata-ärka-maréci-mälä, thirteenth ray,
introduction)

Haridäsa Öhäkura spoke a powerful prayer for näma-kåpa (the mercy of the holy
name). Devotees who enter the spirit of this prayer in a regular way will find it an amazing
support in their chanting:

kåpã kari’ nãma-rüpe ãmãra jihvãya

nirantara nãca prabhu dhari tava pãya

O Lord! Be merciful and appear on my tongue in Your holy name; dance

there constantly, O Lord! I fall at Your lotus feet and beg You.

rãkha iìhã lao tãìhã tava icchã mata

yãìhã rãkha deha more kåñëa-nãmãmåta

You may keep me in this world or take me to Your abode as You please, but
whatever You do with me, feed me the divine nectar of Your names.

jagajjane nãma dite tava avatãra

jagajjana-mãjhe more kara aìgékãra

You have descended to this world to distribute the holy name,

so kindly also consider me one of those You intended to bless.

ãmi ta adhama tumi adhama tãraëa

ubhaye sambandha ei patita pãvana

I am the most lowly, whereas You are committed to the uplift of the lowest;
this is our eternal relationship, O Savior of the fallen!

acchedya sambandha ei tomãya ãmãya

yãra bale nãmãmêta e adhama cãya

On the strength of this unbreakable connection between us, O Lord,

I beg You to shower me with the nectar of the holy name.

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 (Harinäma Cintämaëi, 11.53–57)

If we live far from great devotees—either ancient or current—we can certainly

listen to their recorded words and derive the benefit of associating with them through
their väëé. Many devotees around the world have reported how associating with Çréla
Prabhupäda through his books and listening to his recorded lectures has opened long-
locked doors in their spiritual advancement.

Also, we can install one of Kåñëa’s greatest devotees, Tulasé Devé, in our home. Of
course, when there is an opportunity to have “direct contact” with “walking saints,” we
should avail ourselves of this rare blessing.

(We will hear more on this important point in part III of this book, where a
comprehensive manual for näma-bhajana will be revealed and in which Lord Caitanya will
be introduced as the “sädhu par excellence.”)

3. Humility Is the Key

As devotees become more and more purified in heart, tears of genuine humility will wash
the remaining impurities from their eyes. As they look at their previous ego state, where
they solidly identified with their universe of self-created illusions, they will naturally feel
drawn to Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu’s glorious instructions, which relieve one from the
dictatorship of ahaìkära. These instructions advise us how to approach constant and
affectionate chanting:

tåëäd api sunécena

taror api sahiñëunä
amäninä mänadena
kértanéyaù sadä hariù

One should chant the holy name of the Lord in a humble state of mind,
thinking himself 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 respects to others. In such a state of mind one can chant the holy name
of the Lord constantly. (Çikñäñöaka 3)

Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura composed a beautiful song about this third Çikñäñöaka
verse in which he encourages us to do everything in our power to develop the four
qualities necessary to practice näma-bhajana. His words offer us practical guidelines on
how to become qualified for constant chanting.

Çré Kåñëa kértan

çré-kåñëa-kértane jadi mänasa tohär

parama jatane tähi labho adhikär

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If you desire to engage in chanting Kåñëa’s names and glories, then do
everything you can to gain the qualifications necessary to do so.

tånädhika héna, déna, akiïcana chär

äpane mänobi sadä chäòi’ ahaìkär

You should give up all false pride and always consider yourself to be
insignificant, without possessions, and lower and more humble than a blade
of grass.

våkña-sama kñamä-guna korobi sädhan

prati-hiàsä tyaji’ anye korobi pälan

Practice the virtue of tolerance by emulating the trees. Give up all

vindictiveness and look after other creatures.

jévana-nirvähe äne udvega nä dibe

para-upakäre nija-sukha päsaribe

Do not give distress to any other being in order to maintain your body;
forget your own selfish concerns by serving others.

hoile-o sarva-gune guné mahäçoy

pratiñöhäçä chäòi’ koro amani hådoy
Even if you possess all good qualities, do not try to profit from them by
seeking prestige. Keep your heart simple.

kåñëa-adhiñöhäna sarva-jive jäni’ sadä

korobi sammäna sabe ädare sarvadä

Know that all living beings carry Kåñëa in their hearts, so you should offer
them respect under all circumstances.

dainya, doyä, anye mäna, pratiñöhä-varjan

cäri gune guné hoi’ koroha kértan

Cultivate the four qualities of humility, tolerance and compassion, respect

for others, and indifference to worldly honors, and chant the holy name.

bhakativinoda käìdi’, bole prabhu-päy

heno adhikära kabe dibe he ämäy

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 Bhaktivinoda cries out with the following plea at the Lord’s lotus feet:
“When, O when will You make me qualified to chant Your holy name?” (Çré
Çikñäçtaka, Song 3, from Gétävalé)

Much has been said about humility, but how do we develop tolerance? How to
develop the right mind-set? The Çrémad-Bhägavatam (5.1.16) gives us a clue by pointing
out that the body we have received is the product of our karma. Everything else in this
world works automatically by the material energy’s power. We cannot avoid the
enjoyment or suffering due us. We have earned them; they come according to our
previous karma. When we suffer unpleasantness or mishap, we are exhausting our bad
karma, and if something good comes, we should know that it is coming from the
storehouse of our good karma—a stock we are also exhausting as we enjoy.

But we should also know that it is a useless endeavor to try to accrue only good
karma. Both types of karma keep us bound to this world. Bad karma is simply an iron
chain, while good karma a golden one.

Those who understand this will naturally become tolerant. But such tolerance
should not be confused with fatalism, or the blind acceptance of destiny. While it is a fact
that each of us has a large stock of karmic reactions waiting to mature and take effect—
reactions we will not avoid— it is also a fact that the vast and free kingdom of our
spiritual life, our soul’s right to practice bhakti, awaits us. And the çästra promises that the
karma of those who become empowered by the holy name—even the karma that has
already manifest in them—will gradually become completely extinguished.

4. Guideline for All Devotees: More on Tolerance

In what manner should devotees wishing to advance perform their devotional service,
including chanting their japa? What should their attitude be when relating to happiness
and distress, conditions that tend to visit the mind repeatedly and disturb it? Neophyte
practitioners are often carried on waves of materialistic feelings that agitate the mind and
make it difficult to concentrate on the holy name. Çréla Prabhupäda calls the following
verse the “guideline for all devotees”:

tat te ’nukampäà susamékñamäëo

bhuïjäna evätma-kåtaà vipäkam
håd-väg-vapurbhir vidadhan namas te
jéveta yo mukti-pade sa däya-bhäk

My dear Lord, one who earnestly waits for You to bestow Your causeless
mercy upon him, all the while patiently suffering the reactions of his past
misdeeds and offering You respectful obeisances with his heart, words, and
body, is surely eligible for liberation, for it has become his rightful claim.
(ÇB. 10.14.8)

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 According to the general understanding of this verse, devotees should tolerate the
disturbing reactions of their own misdeeds and remain fixed in devotion. They should
also expect the Lord’s glance of mercy and offer Him their respectful obeisances with
heart, words, and body.

But Çréla Viçvanätha Cakravarté Öhäkura offers a deeper understanding. He says

that both happiness and distress are the results of bhakti. Happiness comes when bhakti is
performed correctly, and suffering arises when devotees commit aparädhas (offenses).
However, both the sweet and the bitter results are simply Kåñëa’s mercy. “It is just like a
father who sometimes makes his son drink milk and sometimes the bitter juice made from
nimba leaves. The devotee thinks, ‘I do not know, but the Lord, like a father, knows what
is good and bad for me. Sometimes He embraces and kisses me, and sometimes He slaps
me. I, His devotee, have no power at all over karma and time. He alone, by His mercy,
makes me experience happiness and distress and makes me serve Him.’” Such a devotee
considers his situation in the same way King Påthu considered his when he said: “O Lord,
please bestow upon me whatever You think is best for me like a father who doesn’t wait
for the son’s demand but who does everything for his son’s benefit.” (ÇB. 4.20.31)

In other words, the devotee should remain tolerant and steady in bhakti. Çréla
Viçvanätha Cakravarté Öhäkura explains further: As remaining alive is the cause of a good
son receiving his inheritance, the devotee’s staying alive in this world with steadiness on
the path of bhakti is the cause of his receiving freedom from saàsära and service to the
Lord. (from Viçvanätha Cakravarté Öhäkura’s commentary on Bhakti-rasämåta-sindhu
1.2.174).

As long as we are living in this world, we have to expect disturbances, distractions,

and tests of our tolerance and persistence. It, therefore, helps to keep this encouraging
verse in mind when we are forced to cope with difficulties. This verse offers a useful
guideline to keep us focused on the right understanding and give us steadiness in our
näma-bhajana.

5. Three Most Powerful Rules

A. Chant with a feeling of connection and eagerness

While chanting we should maintain the mood expressed in this wonderful prayer:

May my mind always be eager to see You, just as unfledged birds cannot
live without their mother’s presence, as hungry calves anxiously wait to
drink their mother’s milk, and as a wife remains absorbed in thoughts of
her husband when he is away from home. (ÇB. 6.11.26)

This text expresses a devotee’s great eagerness to experience a relationship with

Kåñëa and ultimately to serve Him as a wife serves her husband. It also refers to chanting
with gratitude and appreciating the mercy we have already received, as expressed in the

11
first two analogies. And it certainly expresses the key to advancing in Kåñëa
consciousness: eagerness.

B. Contemplate the meaning of the mantra while chanting

Çréla Prabhupäda informed the world of the root meaning of the mahä-mantra—a meaning
that includes all other meanings: “My dear Çrématé Rädhäräëé, my dear Kåñëa, please
engage me in Your service.” At other times he told us that the mantra is simply a prayer
for acceptance. In his master work, Çré Caitanya Çikñämåta, Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura
recommends that we use Çréla Gopäla-guru Gosvämé meditations while chanting. Careful
analysis of these short meditations reveals that they are intended to help us achieve the
different levels of devotional service as enumerated by Çréla Rüpa Gosvämé. Such prayers
and meditations also prove that chanting is the practice by which devotees are guided
from initial faith (çraddhä) to pure love of God (prema).

How do we use these meditations?

We may chant our rounds and progress slowly from one meditation to the next.
There are no hard and fast rules as to how to use them. Perhaps we will go from one
meditation to the next each time we begin a round. Perhaps we alter the meditations every
two or three or four rounds. As we become more familiar with them, personal experience
will dictate how to progress through the meditations. Remain open to the dynamics of
your own practice!

HARE: he hare, mac-cittaà håtvä bhava-bandhabän mocaya

Hare! O Hari, please steal my mind and deliver me from the bondage of
material life.

KÅÑËA: he kåñëa, mac-cittam äkarñaya

Kåñëa! O Kåñëa, please attract my mind to You.

HARE: he hare, sva-mädhuryeëa mac-cittaà hara

Hare! O Hari, please steal my heart with Your sweetness.

KÅÑËA: he kåñëa, sva-bhakta-dvärä bhajana-jïäna-dänena mac-cittaà

çodhaya
Kåñëa! O Kåñëa, please purify my mind by giving me knowledge of how to
worship You through Your devotees.

KÅÑËA: he kåñëa, rucir bhavatu me

Kåñëa! O Kåñëa, please may I develop taste for You.

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 KÅÑËA: he kåñëa, näma-rüpa-guëa-lélädiñu man-niñöhäà kuru
Kåñëa! O Kåñëa, please make me steady in hearing about Your name, form,
qualities, and pastimes.

HARE: he hare, nija-sevä-yogyaà mäà kuru

Hare! O Harä, Rädhä, please make me suitable for serving You.

HARE: he hare, sva seväm ädeçaya

Hare! O Harä, Rädhä, kindly reveal my own service to You.

HARE: he hare, sva-preñöhena saha sväbhéñöa-léläà çrävaya

Hare! O Harä, Rädhä, please let me hear Your cherished pastimes with Your
consort Kåñëa.

RÄMA: he räma, preñöhayä saha sväbhéñöa-léläà mäà çrävaya

Räma! O Räma, please let me hear Your cherished pastimes with Your
consort, Rädhä.

HARE: he hare, sva-preñöhena saha sväbhéñöa-léläà darçaya

Hare! O Harä, Rädhä, please let me see Your pastimes with Your beloved.

RÄMA: he räma, preñöhayä saha sväbhéñöa-léläà mäà darçaya

Räma! O Räma, please let me see Your pastimes with Rädhä.

RÄMA: he räma, näma-rüpa-guëa-lélä-smaraëädiñu mäà yojaya

Räma! O Räma, please engage me in remembering Your name, form,
qualities, and pastimes.

RÄMA: he räma, tatra mäà nija-sevä-yogyaà kuru

Räma! O Räma, please make me qualified for service in Your pastimes.

HARE: he hare, mäà sväìgékåtya ramasva

Hare! O Hari, making me Your servant, please enjoy.

HARE: he hare, mayä saha ramasva

Hare! O Hari, please enjoy with me.

C. Chant with Heart-rending Lamentation

Sincere chanters of the holy name realize quite early in their practice that they cannot
attain real kåñëa-bhakti by their own endeavor. Whatever they try to achieve by using their

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speculative abilities, their knowledge, or any other endeavor just does not bring about
love of Godhead. What can they do?

Seeing no alternative, the devotees cry for the mercy of sädhu and guru,
calling out to the Lord: ‘O Kåñëa, deliverer of the fallen souls! I am Your
eternal servant. Yet I have fallen into this material ocean only to suffer. O
Lord, be merciful and bestow the shelter of the dust of Your lotus feet.’ At
that moment the merciful Lord places the devotee at His feet and offers
comfort.
(Çré Caitanya Çikñämåta, sixth rainfall, third shower)

This comfort is especially offered by the most merciful incarnation of the Lord Çré
Caitanya Mahäprabhu. Here is a very suitable prayer to the incarnation of unconditional
mercy:

Now it is the age of Kali. My enemies, the senses, have become very strong.
The splendid path of pure devotional service is blocked by millions of
thorny bushes. I’m weak and agitated. Alas! Alas! Where can I go? O Lord
Caitanyacandra, if You will not give me your mercy now, what can I do?
(Çré Caitanya-candrämåta 6)

And in another prayer from the same book:

Alas, alas! How will the desire-creeper of pure devotional service sprout in
the desert of my heart? In my heart there is only one hope. I shall call out
the name of Lord Caitanya. Then I shall never again lament. (Caitanya-
candrämåta 43)

By Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu’s merciful glance, which can still be received today if
we call sincerely for His mercy, the exalted stage of pure devotion, which is sought after
by the greatest souls, will not be far away.

Kåñëadäsa Kaviräja Gosvämé deals with the need to take shelter at the lotus feet of
Lord Caitanya in his Caitanya-caritämåta. Particularly instructive for our present
discussion is the section in Ädi-lélä, ch. 8, verses 29–31.

If one chants the exalted holy name of the Lord again and again and yet his
love for the Supreme Lord does not develop and tears do not appear in his
eyes, it is evident that because of his offenses in chanting, the seed of the
holy name of Kåñëa does not sprout. But if one chants, with only slight
faith, the holy names of Lord Caitanya and Nityänanda, very quickly he is
cleansed of all offenses. Thus as soon as he chants the Hare Kåñëa mahä-
mantra, he feels the ecstasy of love for God.

Çréla Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvaté Öhäkura gives a lucid explanation of these Three Most
Powerful Rules in his booklet Näma-bhajana:

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 With a happy heart one should recollect the meaning and form of the
Näma. Also one should pray to Kåñëa, which will lead one onward on the
path of bhajan. If one does not do this, many births will pass by in vain and
one will lead life in frustration like the karmis and jïänés.

6. Enter the School of Surrender

When we have reached the stage of developing intense longing for the unattained prema,
it is imperative that we enter the school of surrender in order to become qualified for such
a rare treasure. If devotees do not develop a deep desire to take shelter in full surrender
under Kåñëa’s lotus feet, they will not experience love of Godhead. Of course, it is not
easy to surrender fully while we are still materially conditioned. But at least we should
have a conscious intention to practice the six processes of surrender. By sincerely desiring
to increase our surrender to Kåñëa, our intention will strengthen like the growing light of
a steadily increasing fire. And as the fire of surrender strengthens, it will proportionally
devour any remaining corners of darkness in the heart until full surrender takes over.

The six symptoms of surrender are the devotees’ well-protected treasures.

Surrendered devotees:

• dedicate themselves, body, mind and soul, to Çré Çré Rädhä and Kåñëa’s service;

• accept things that are favorable to the path of devotional service;

• reject everything—whatever it is—that opposes devotional service;

• accept Kåñëa as their only protector; in other words, they know that nothing
and no one else can save or protect them;

• have not the least doubt that Kåñëa alone maintains them;

• and firmly and sincerely believe that they are very insignificant and therefore
feel genuinely humble.

In other words, surrendered devotees consign themselves to Kåñëa’s merciful

hands, knowing well that not a blade of grass or a grain of dust moves without His will
and power. This understanding increases the devotees’ inclination to take exclusive
shelter in that form of the Lord that has so mercifully agreed to appear on their tongues as
the holy name.

For those who wish to increase their mood of complete surrender, I would highly
recommend they read Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura’s song collection, Çaraëägati. To help us
enter the spirit of these prayers, I will quote one song here:

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 Acceptance of the Lord as One’s Sole Maintainer

1. By what personal understanding or by what power has one such as me come

into Your shelter? Surely it is Your mercy alone, for as Doyä-moya [He who is
filled with mercy] and Patita-pävana (savior of fallen souls) You are ever-engaged
in delivering the fallen.

2. My only hope, O Lord, is that You are full of compassion and mercy. There is no
one more in need of Your mercy than me. You will surely drive away all my fears.

3. No one else in the world has the power to rescue me. O merciful Lord! By Your
decree, kindly deliver this vile and lowly sinner!

4. I have given up everything and come to Your lotus feet, O Lord. I am Your
eternal servant and You are my maintainer. You are my sole protector, O Lord of
the universe!

5. Everything is Yours. I am merely Your menial servant, so it is certain that You

will deliver me. I have chosen Your lotus feet as my only shelter. I no longer
belong to myself.

6. Bhaktivinoda weeps as he humbly takes shelter of Your feet. Forgiving all his
offenses and affording him a taste for the holy name, now please kindly maintain
him. (Çaraëägati 3.1)

Let me ask you a question: Don’t you think that Kåñëa will become mercifully
inclined toward you if He hears you sincerely praying in the mood established by this or
similar songs? When devotees take the holy name in this mood, the remnant of their
material vision and futile self-centered endeavors will be wiped from their hearts.
Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura’s powerful words can open their spiritual eyes and create a mood of
devotion in their hearts – a mood highly conducive to chanting with true humility. When
we chant with humility, we can then full-heartedly concentrate on the short meditations
given by Gopäla-guru Gosvämé.

And what is the ultimate result of chanting with such meditations? Listen to Çréla
Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura’s enlivening words as he inspires us to chant with true humility:

Thus when the tongue glorifies the Lord with counted or uncounted names,
the mind sees Kåñëa’s form, the heart perceives Kåñëa’s qualities, and the
soul in trance sees Kåñëa’s pastimes. (Çré Caitanya Çikñämåta, sixth rainfall,
third shower)

7. Aspire for Prema while You Chant

If we wish to attain any goal, we have to remain mindful of it while we are engaged in
whatever activities bring it about. Even though it seems, often, that most of our attention

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must be used just to keep ourselves on course, somewhere in the back of the mind we
have to remain aware of our destination. After all, reaching the destination is the only
reason we have undertaken the journey.

We must remain conscious of the goal of our spiritual practice: to attain prema-
bhakti. Such awareness is called nirbandhiné-matiù, “undivided attention.” Only those who
focus their attention in this undivided way can hope to attain perfection.

Or, to say it differently: while performing sädhana (spiritual practices) we must

remain aware of the sädhya (the goal of those practices). Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura insists
that we must maintain this awareness from the beginning of our spiritual journey. “From
the very beginning of this practice, the devotee must adopt this concentrated attention,
and he should be careful not to give it up because of distraction or inattention.” (Çré
Caitanya Çikñämåta, first rainfall, seventh shower). In this connection he quotes:

aciräd eva sarvärthaù

sidhyaty eñäm abhépsitaù
sad-dharmasyävabodhäya
yeñäà nirbandhiné matiù

Those who are eager to awaken their spiritual consciousness and who thus
have unflinching, undeviating intelligence or concentration on their goal
certainly attain the desired goal of life very soon.” (Näradéya Puräëa, quoted
in Caitanya-caritämåta, Madhya 20.106)

When discussing this important verse in relation to chanting the holy name, the verse
would read: While chanting the holy names, fix your mind on the perfection of chanting:
prema. Then you will quickly attain your goal: pure love of God.

Mental concentration (dhäraëä) is but one step on the gradually ascending

añöäìga-yoga ladder, and it always follows pratyähära, the retraction of the attention from
distractions.

A chanter well trained in the science of japa will learn to develop this
concentration without having to practice añöäìga-yoga. By the holy name’s mercy the
mind will become completely still—the end result of all yoga practice. Once the lake of
the mind becomes free from the constant waves of acceptance and rejection, it begins to
resemble the calm surface of a lake on a windless day. When devotees chant with this
calm and focused attention, the splendors of the spiritual world, including Kåñëa’s form
and qualities, become reflected in the mind and the devotees experience deep happiness.
It is impossible to compare this happiness with any other type of happiness, because other
types of happiness appear just like insignificant straw on the street, totally ashamed to
appear before hari-nämänanda (the pleasure of chanting Hari’s name).

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 8. The Magic Formula
In his Çré Harinäma Cintämaëi, Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura gives us a magic formula that
summarizes how to cultivate chanting and to attain our original position. His formula has
three aspects:

• the company of saintly devotees;

• a peaceful and secluded place to chant; and
• a determined attitude.

“One attains his natural glory on the strength of these three things.” (Harinäma Cintämaëi
15.103)

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