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Source: The Hindu (http://www.hinduonnet.com)

 

Efficacy of chanting the Divine names

 

CHENNAI, SEPT. 26. The goal of liberation from rebirths has been

described in the scriptures as the purpose of human birth and

various methods are elaborated in them to suit the conditions of

the age and the propensity of different individuals. In earlier

ages when Dharma was advocated by one and all, it was incumbent

on everyone to follow the mandatory prescriptions of the

scriptures to realise this end. In this Kali Yuga because of the

all-round declension in righteousness, simpler methods have been

prescribed for achieving the same goal. These practices can be

subsumed under devotion to God and among them the efficacy of

chanting the Divine names has been proven time and again in the

lives of devotees.

 

An interesting feature of this efficacious method of realising

God has been described by Bhattatri in the Narayaneeyam by

contrasting the manner in which both Gajendra, the king of

elephants, and Ajamila attained liberation by chanting the Divine

name. While it was as an expression of devotion to God that His

various names in the form of hymns and Mantras were chanted by

devotees, the case of Ajamila proved beyond doubt that the same

end was gained even when His name was uttered unintentionally,

said Damal Sri Ramakrishnan and Smt. Perundevi Seshadri in their

discourse.

 

Gajendra was a great devotee of the Lord and everyday it gathered

flowers for worship and offered them to Him with great devotion

and it was during one such occasion that an alligator caught its

leg. It turned for succour instinctively to God when its life was

threatened and the Lord rushed to its rescue. Thus by its

devotion it earned the privilege of envisioning the Lord and also

liberation from bondage ultimately. In Ajamila's case though he

belonged to a good lineage and was a pious man he fell into bad

company and deserted his family. Entreaties to change his ways

fell on deaf ears and he continued to lead a licentious life till

his end.

 

By a quirk of destiny he had named his youngest son Narayana and

he called out to this child playing near his side when he

breathed his last. Though he did not by design chant the Divine

name during his last moments he was liberated because it happened

to be His name. A mystic-saint in his hymn shifts the onus of

remembering Him during his last moments on God by appealing to

Him that He should acknowledge the instances when he had chanted

His names during his lifetime. Vedanta Desika also in his hymn

Abhitistava voices a similar plea to the Lord.

 

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