The Power of Lord's Holy Names

[Guest guest]

harE krShNa! AzhwArgaL thiruvadigaLE sharaNam!

 

Dear Sri Sampath Kumar Padmanaban Swami,

 

My humble praNAms to you. Thanks for your involvement. Actually up to now I do

not belong to any sampradhAyams, but just follow strict vEdhic injunctions

given by lord viShNu, his forms and his devotees, whether they be in South

India or North India or even let the devotees be Westerns. So whatever lord

krShNa and his pure devotees says, I will try to follow. So I am not

specifically pointing to any vaiShNava sampradhAyams.

 

So if the vEdhic scriptures (which is written by shrI vEdha vyAsa) or lord

viShNu is telling something then it is our duty to follow. So if one who

doesn't follow the words of our ultimate and supreme father - lord viShNu, what

is the use of being called as a 'devotee or vaiShNava'. vaiShNava means one who

follows lord viShNu (means lord viShNu's instructions).

 

And anything we speak must with scriptural references and authorized verses of

our AchAryAs. You have stated:

 

Anything not mentioned or accepted by them is not only to be against your own

acharyas, but that practice would be fruitless.

 

You are right. But the chanting of harE krShNa mahA manthram is clearly

mentioned in the vEdhic scriptures (that too at this age of kali). So it is not

at all against our AchAryAs. And take it granted that those who oppose the

chanting of this harE krShNa mahA manthram cannot be an AchArya. What to speak

of AchArya, he cannot be called even as a human being. Because opposers of lord

krShNa's names are considered as demons according to vEdhic scriptures.

 

In last sentence, you have also told:

 

Requesting followers from other schools of Vaishnavam, especially Sri

Vaishnavas, to chant different mantras.

 

When our beloved 'mother' shrI rAmAnujAchArya and shrI annamaAchArya themself

gave 'devotional rights' to everyone, why are you concentrating on single

category called 'shrI vaiShNavam'? You have to address to every one to chant

different manthrAs of lord viShNu. And I have never asked anyone to stop other

manthrAs. I just requested to chant harE krShNa mahA manthram and the holy

names of lord hari.

 

So my request is kindly don't differentiate from one vaiShNava to another

vaiShNava. These different sampradhAyams are different ways to reach vaikunTam.

And no where stated that each sampradhAyam has its own different manthram to

reach vaikunTam. So if anything like this stated, I am ready to accept it.

Kindly provide me scriptural proofs or authorized verses stating, "There are

different manthrAs for each sampradhAyam". So that even I can learn to

differente between one vaiShNava to another vaiShNava.

 

In a nutshell, I want to notify once again what I meant:

 

1) Chant harE krShNa mahA manthram (or harE rAmA mahA manthram...whatever it may

be) as stated in vEdhic scriptures.

2) Chant the holy names of lord hari continously as stated in vEdhic scriptures.

3) I never asked anyone to stop chanting other manthrAs of lord viShNu.

4) I am not at all specific to any sampradhAyAs and it is in general to all humans.

5) I never want to discourage any sampradhAyams because if we dig back and find

the leader of each sampradhAya, they will be our own beloved mother lakShmi

(shrI sampradhAya), lord krShNa (gaudIya sampradhAya), lord shiva (rudhra

sampradhAya...who are also devotees of lord viShNu), etc. So I love all the

vaiShNavAs.

 

So if I was wrong any where or against scriptures and authorized verses, I

humbly request to point out them so that I can learn the perfect path of

achieving the holy feet of lord viShNu.

 

My great thanks to Sri Sampath Kumar Padmanaban Swami for raising this

devotional topic. My humble praNAms to him for making me to think of mother

lakShmi, lord viShNu and other vaiShNavAs.

 

Let us discuss more on the divine topics of lord viShNu so that we get the real knowledge.

 

- Balaji - The Servant of Devotees!

 

 

On 2/15/06, Sampath Kumar Padmanaban <janasampath > wrote:

Sri: Srimathe Ramanujaya Nama: Srimath Varavara Munaye Nama: Dear Sri.

Balaji Swamin,

Kindly accept adiyen's humble pranams. It is beyound doubt and with no

ambiguity vedas and upanishads have specified the supremacy of Sriman

Narayanan. It is also clear that the means to attain Him is only Him. And

chanting His divine names (which are nothing but His auspicious qualities)

must be the only past time of all the chetanas.

Having stated this, it is well known to all of us that the various vaishnava

sampradhayams have different variations of approaches and put emphasis on

different mantrams and practices. In this regard, the Hare Krishna mantram is

something Sri Vaishnavas do not follow. In each school, our poorvacharyas have

prescribed us specific steps to be followed. Anything not mentioned or accepted

by them is not only to be against your own acharyas, but that practice would be

fruitless. Hence, with due respect to Gaudiya Vaishnava and their beliefs and

practices, adiyen beg to differ with you in requesting followers from other

schools of Vaishnavam, especially Sri Vaishnavas, to chant different mantras.

Adiyen Ramanuja Dasan.Sampath Kumar Padmanaban Azhvar Emberumanar Jeeyar

Thiruvadikale Saranam Jeeyar Thiruvadikale SaranamBalaji A <

balajimails > wrote: harE krShNa! AzhwArgaL thiruvadigaLE

sharaNam!Dear Sri Ramkumar, very perfectly said and I want to add few more

lines.Dear Sri Anoop, anything we follow, must be questioned as, "Why should I

do? Why should I not do?" So the same thing we must apply here and think,

"Why should I chant the holy names of lord hari and this harE krShNa mahA

manthram specifically? Why not other manthrAs 108 times?" The answer is:

In kalisantharaNa upanishadh, it is stated:harE krShNa harE krShNa krShNa krShNa

harE harEharE rAma harE rAma rAma rAma harE harE |ithi shOdashaka nAmnAm kali

kalmaSha nAshanamnAthaha paratharOpAyaha sarva vEdhEshu dhrshyathE ||

(Proof Link: http://www.hindunet.org/alt_hindu/1995_Jan/msg00223.html )"This

collection of sixteen names (of lord nArAyaNa) destroys the evils of the Kali

Yuga. There is no, any other effective means (of liberation) if we look in all

sections of the Vedas." - lord brahma to shrI nAradha, in kalisantharaNa

upanishadh.

[Note: Some consider first harE rAma and then harE krShNa. And some consider,

first harE krShNa and then harE rAma. However you chant, it doesn't matter and

kindly don't bother too much about this. You will get the same result in

whichever way you chant. To read full history for the reason for reversing,

kindly read in the following link:

http://www.hindunet.org/alt_hindu/1995_Jan/msg00223.html ]So it is

recommended to chant this at least 16 rounds (108 x 16 rounds) as our past

devotees has specifically stressed "at least 16 rounds are must". And in

general time also, if possible one can continue the same. Or else a person can

always utter the holy names of lord viShNu, as stated in brhadh nAradhIya

purANam:

harErnAma harErnAma harErnAmaiva kEvalam |kalou nAsthi kalou nAsthi kalou

nAsthyEva gathiranyatha ||(Proof Link 1:

http://www.bvashram.org/articles/93/1/Prophecy-of-the-Golden-Age

)(Proof Link 2: http://www.ramanuja.org/sv/bhakti/archives/aug97/0031.html

)(Proof Link 3:

http://www.sssct.org/Discourses/2004/ramanavami.htm )"In the age of Kali there

is no other way to achieve the supreme, other than by chanting the holy names

of Lord Hari. There is no other way, no other way, no other way."

So once if something is stressed for 3 times, one has to take seriously. It is

like "Order! Order! Order!". So kindly do practice continuous chanting of the

holy names of lord hari/viShNu, so that we all can go that undying and

everblissful world where there is no birth, no death, no pains, etc. as

confirmed by lord krShNa in BhagavadhgItha in so many shlOkams:

One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does

not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but

attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna. (BhagavadhgIthA 4.9)

After attaining Me, the great souls, who are yogis in devotion, never return to

this temporary world, which is full of miseries, because they have attained the

highest perfection. ( BhagavadhgIthA 8.15)

>From the highest planet in the material world down to the lowest, all are

places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place. But one who

attains to My abode, O son of Kunti, never takes birth again. ( BhagavadhgIthA

8.16)Yet there is another nature, which is eternal and is transcendental to

this manifested and unmanifested matter. It is supreme and is never

annihilated. When all in this world is annihilated, that part remains as it

is. That supreme abode is called unmanifested and infallible, and it is the

supreme destination. When one goes there, he never comes back in this material

world. ( BhagavadhgIthA8.20-21)Those who know the Supreme Brahman (God) pass

away from the world during the influence of the fiery god, in the light, at an

auspicious moment, during the fortnight of the moon and the six months when the

sun travels in the north, never returns in this material world. (

BhagavadhgIthA 8.24)One who is free from illusion, false prestige, and false

association, who understands the eternal, who is done with material lust and

is freed from the duality of happiness and distress, and who knows how to

surrender unto the Supreme Person, attains to that eternal kingdom. That abode

of Mine is not illumined by the sun or moon, nor by electricity. One who

reaches it never returns to this material world. ( BhagavadhgIthA 15.5-6)So

initially, continuously chanting may be bit difficult and you may find cuts or

gaps in between the chants. But once you practice this activity for just 1 to 2

months continuously, your chanting comes automatically with your breath. Try to

concentrate on the chanting. If not possible, don't get frustrated.

Because in shrImadhBhAgavatham 1.1.14, it is stated, "Living beings who are

entangled in the complicated meshes of birth and death can be freed

immediately by even unconsciously chanting the holy name of Krishna, which is

feared by fear personified."

(Proof Link: http://srimadbhagavatam.com/1/1/14/en)So I request everyone to

chant on the holy names of lord krShNa and harE krShNa mahA manthram and just

depend primarily on these two, instead of depending on any other means for any

kinds of solutions.

- Balaji - The Servant of Devotees! Azhvar EmberumAnAr JeeyAr ThiruvadigalE

Saranamhttp://www.vedics.net