Pujya Ramsukhdasji Maharaj

[Guest guest]

On Chanting and Reciting God's Name

 

If you turn to God, all the sins of previous births will be washed

away.

 

" Sanmukh hoyi jeev mohi jabhi, Janam koti agh naasahin tabhi. "

 

You commit sins only when you turn away from God. Therefore seek

refuge at His lotus feet saying " O Lord, I am only Yours and only

You are mine. " This feeling that you belong to God and God belongs

to you is the essence of true devotion. God cannot be easily

attainable by performing rituals. However He is easily attainable

by those who develop love for Him. Performing good deeds like -

sacrifice (yagnas), doing charity, visiting holy places

(pilgrimage), studying the scriptures are all useful, but none of

these are as powerful as the feeling of belonging to God - God is

mine and I am His.

 

Let us take the example of a millionnaire simply to illustrate this

point. The millionnaire has a manager who gets a decent salary each

month. The millionnaire's son is a useless and does nothing. He is

incapable of earning even minimum wages. But when the rich man

dies, his riches will be inherited not by the able manager, but by

the worthless son, for the simple reason that the later is the

millionnaire's son. Thus in this matter the inheritor's abilities

do not count. What really matters is that the inheritor is the rich

man's own son. Like the millionnaire's son, we are all the children

of God, irrespective of our ability or inability. It is an

established fact that we belong to Him. God always regards us as

His children.

 

" Mamaivaansho jeeva loke jeeva bhoota sanaatanah. " (Gita 7:19)

 

The only requirement is that we accept this relation with God and

develop the feeling that we are His very own.

 

This world will deceive you in the end. It will desert you and this

body that you consider your own will not live forever. That too

will desert you. It is sheer ignorance to regard this world and

this body as your own. Turn away from them, say to God, " O Lord, I

am Your very own and You are mine " . If you develop this feeling,

you will attain Eternal Bliss.

 

Practice chanting /reciting His name " Nama-Japa " with a feeling

that you belong to God. Whatever name you like of God, whether it

be " Ram Ram " or " Radhe Radhe " or any divine / holy name and form of

God that you believe in. Whether you are literate or illiterate,

sick or healthy, you have equal right to chanting His name " Nama

Japa " , just as we have a right to inherit our father's property.

Similiarly, we are entitled to the property of our Divine Father,

i.e. we are entitled to chant His Holy Name.

 

This has been described in details in the Upanishads when Saint

Narada approached Lord Brahma and enquired on how one could achieve

salvation in Kali yug (age) ? and Brahmaji's reply was - through

chanting / reciting God's Divine Name.