4: Hearing and Chanting
Spiritual life begins with hearing and chanting. And they together they form the essence of the means of advancement.
By hearing and chanting:
one's heart and mind are purified and elevated- one gains spiritual strength
- one pleases Krishna
In the beginning it may be difficult, but with constant practice one gradually develops a taste. Just as sugar candy will taste bitter to a person with jaundice in the begining but it remains the Ayurvedic cure.
Action: Most people hear and speak about mundane topics
Result: Their minds become absorbed in mundane thoughts.
Action: Keep the natural tendency to hear and speak, but change the subject to Krishna.
Result: One's mind will become spiritually enlightened.
Hearing
- The Vedanta-Sutra 4.4.22 says anavrtti sabdat, "one is liberated by sound."
- Sound is the subtlest element that we can perceive. Therefore transcendental sound can most effectively enter the mind and heart to produce change.
- When a man is sleeping, he can be awakened by sound. Similarly, the conditioned souls sleeping in illusion can be awakened to knowledge of God by hearing transcendental sound.
Chanting
People always want to see God, but we cannot see God with our blunt material senses. however if we please Krishna with our devotional service, He reveals Himself. The sastra states that such devotional service begins with the tongue: through chanting and taking prasadam. Thus seeing God begins with the tongue — a rather unusual principle! The yuga-dharma (process of religion for this age) consists of chanting:
- the holy name congregationally (nama-sankirtana) and
- the glories of the Lord and His holy name (nama-pracara).
Two main categories of hearing and chanting:
- Knowledge and glorification
- Explanations of Krishna consciousness
- Glorification of the Lord
- Preaching
- Reading/Writing about Krishna
- The holy names
- Private meditation (japa)
- Singing out loud while dancing (kirtana)
- Sitting and singing with instruments (bhajans)
- Singing the holy names in public (harinam)
When transcendental knowledge is:
- Received (heard)
- One learns to see things differently
- One's doubts and illusions are destroyed
- Given (chanted)
- One gains deeper understanding and assimilates the knowledge he has received
- One gains the special mercy of Krishna
Conditions for proper transmission of spiritual knowledge:
- Must be heard with the right attitude
- with humility and respect
- open-minded, not challenging
- with desire to learn and understand
- Must come from the right source
- from a genuine devotee
- not Mayavadi or professional speaker
- from someone who has controlled senses and sufficient knowledge
Both the hearer and the speaker must be qualified.
Chanting the holy names of the Lord
Chanting the holy names of the Lord is the central practice of Lord Caitanya's followers. Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya once asked Lord Caitanya, "Which item is most important in the execution of devotional service?" The Lord replied that the most important item was the chanting of the holy name of the Lord.
harer nama harer nama
harer namaiva kevalam
kalau nasty eva nasty eva
nasty eva gatir anyatha
"In this age of quarrel and hypocrisy, the only means of deliverance is the chanting of the holy names of the Lord. There is no other way. There is no other way. There is no other way." (Brhan-naradiya Purana, thirty-eighth chapter, verse 126)
- Chanting is a preparation to call out to the Lord at death (see the story of Ajamila)
- Trnad api sunicena ( one must chant with a humble state of mind)
- For control of the mind and tongue
- Includes processes of hearing, chanting, remembering, praying, meditation, service, sacrifice
- In this age all other processes must be accompanied by the chanting
- whatever one does in executing devotional service must be accompanied with the chanting of the holy name of the Lord.
- Hearing and chanting the names of God. Can also be Allah or Jehovah.
- Name, form, qualities, pastimes
- Taste for chanting attained by full surrender
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