T here are seven stages of transcendental purification and elevation that takes place when we chant the Holy Names of Krishna.
SEVENTH PURIFICATION
“Param vijayate Sri Krishna sankirtanam.” Lord Caitanya says, go on with this chanting, go on with this Sri Krishna Sankirtan. Let it be victorious in all directions. This is His benediction. That the Holy Name alone of the Lord when it is chanted by sincere devotees, it spreads out and expands to create victory over illusion, maya, and throughout the world. Wherever the Holy Name is chanted by the Lord’s sincere devotees, these seven effects will take place. Param vijayate or supreme victory is accomplished through the chanting of Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare,Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. And this was Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s great desire. Srila Prabhupada, our beloved Guru Maharaj, as Lord Caitanya desired, as the humble servant of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, wanted to expand this great victory throughout the world through the chanting of Krishna’s Holy Name. Param vijayate Sri Krishna sankirtanam. Sri means Radharani, the pleasure potency of the Lord. Sri Krishna Sankirtanam means the full congregational chanting of Radha and Krishna. So there is no greater opportunity in all of this human existence that is being given to us by the Lord than the chanting of the names of Krishna — hare nama hare nama hare nama eva kevalam. In this age of Kali Yuga, there is no other possible way of deliverance or save, except for the chanting of the Holy Names of Lord Hari.
“Kaler dosa-nidhe rajann asti hy eko mahan gunah kirtanad eva krsnasya mukta-sangah param vrajet.”
This age of Kali Yuga is an ocean of faults. But there is one benediction. That simply by chanting the Holy Name of Krishna we can achieve the perfection of liberation. What could be attained in Satya Yuga through thousands of years of celibacy, tapasya, and strict meditation, in Treta Yuga by elaborate yajnas, in Dvapara Yuga by worshipping the Lord through various rituals, and forms of devotion can be easily attained in Kali Yuga by chanting the Holy Names. Therefore, the Bhagavat explains that the great sages worship this Kali Yuga as the best of all ages. It is an age of quarrel and hypocrisy, where friction and conflict can come about between anybody and at any time unless we keep Krishna in the centre. Kali kale nama rupe krsna avatar. Krishna has descended in His name in such a way that we can always keep Him in the centre. The only protection from the evils of this age of Kali is the sincere chanting of the Holy Names of the Lord. This chanting must be done sincerely. We must have the association of the Lord.
Without keeping the company of the devotees of the Lord, we can’t properly have the consciousness to chant the Holy Name that is required. And we must have a spiritual master to guide and train us in such a way that we are approaching the Holy Name in the proper way. To achieve the full benefits of the Holy Name, we have to approach in the mood of being a servant. Krishna in His name will reveal Himself as you approach Him.
Sometimes impersonalists chant the Holy Name of Krishna. Sometimes people who are too much aspiring for material enjoyment approach the Holy Name. But Krishna doesn’t properly reveal himself to people who don’t have the proper devotion. So we must be very sincere. It is so simple. Lord Nityananda Prabhu and Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu have induced us in this way: chant the Holy Name of Krishna, worship Krishna, hear about Krishna, and give this message to others. Krishna is your mother, Krishna is your father. Krishna is your true wealth and your very life and soul.
We are all looking for wealth and working so hard in our occupations to find wealth. But we don’t know that there is an unlimited treasure of wealth right within the heart of your own soul and the chanting of the Holy Names of the Lord is the key that opens your own heart and reveals the supreme treasure of transcendental bliss. Therefore chanting this Name in the association of other devotees is the ultimate benediction for all humanity. Veda Vyasa is Krishna Himself. He descended and wrote the Vedas. It was Veda Vyasa, with the help of Ganapathi, who wrote the entire Mahabharat which includes the Bhagavad Gita at Badrik ashram. It was him who wrote the four Vedas — rig, yathur, atharva, and the sama. He wrote the Upanishads, Puranas, itihasas, and various histories.
Vedic literature is meant to elevate the consciousness of humanity to its ultimate perfection. And after this most extensive and exhaustive expression of His mercy to humanity by writing all these scriptures, he was not satisfied. In his ashram in Badrinath, sitting at the banks of Saraswati, Narada Muni approached him and told him you have not exclusively presented a scripture which speaks nothing but pure unalloyed devotion to the supreme Lord Krishna. That is the ultimate culmination of all transcendental knowledge. So the last written statement of Veda Vyasa was the Srimad Bhagavatam. The most perfect, spotless Purana. The culmination of all knowledge. His own commentary on the Vedanta Sutra, the essence of the Vedas. And after describing the pure devotion of so many great devotees, mahajans, and then describing the personal leela of Krishna in Vrndavan, in Mathura, in Dwaraka. Krishna’s instructions to Uddhava, the last verse of Veda Vyasa is:
“Nama-sankirtanam yasya sarva-papa pranasanam pranamo duhkha-samanas tam namami harim param.”
In this age of Kali Yuga, the chanting, the congregational chanting of the Holy Names of Krishna will relieve you from all sinful reactions and award you the perfection of life. Srimad Bhagavatam ends, concludes, and culminates with this glorification of the Sankirtan movement and in the Gaudiya Vaisnava sampradaya. We understand how Caitanya Caritamrta begins where Srimad Bhagavatam ends.
Bhagavad Gita ends with surrender to Krishna. It begins with you should not be in illusion. Understand the difference between body and spirit and ultimately you should surrender to Krishna by always remembering Him. So where Bhagavad Gita ends, Srimad Bhagavatam begins. It is the graduate study of the Gita. It begins by describing the pure devotee’s lives and how they are surrendering to Krishna.
What is Prahlad’s surrender? What is Ambarisa Maharaj’s surrender? What is the Pandavas surrender? What are Sukadeva Goswami and Pariksit Mahraj’s surrender? Srimad Bhagavatam is a collection of the pure devotees reciprocating their love with Krishna. And then it reaches its heights when it reaches the 10th canto, where it describes Krishna personally descending in His original form and having beautiful rasa with the Gopis in Vrndavan, the most intensified relationship with His devotees and the Bhagavatam concludes nama sankirtanam yasya — this will all be realised through the congregational chanting of the Holy Name.
Where Bhagavatam ends, Lord Caitanya begins. The first thing that He teaches is chant the Holy Names of Krishna. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is considered to be non-different from the personification of the teachings of Srimad Bhagavatam. It can all be realized in perfection through the sincere chanting of Krishna’s Holy Names. And here in the beautiful verse, Siksastakam, Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is personally glorifying the unlimited virtues of this sankirtan movement. The ultimate benedictions come through the chanting of the Holy Names. I hope this shed some glimmers of light on the unlimited ocean of light that is emanating from the first verse of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s siksastakam.
If we offer the oblations of our faith and devotion into the seven flames of this fire of Harinam sankirtan, we will attract the unlimited mercy of Krishna. To share this message with others is the greatest of all service to humanity. So please let us chant Hare Krishna loudly and be happy.
‘Let there be all victory for the chanting of the Holy Name of Lord Hari, Lord Krishna, which can cleanse the mirror of the heart and stop the miseries of the blazing fire of material existence. That chanting is the waxing moon that spreads the white lotus of good fortune for all living entities. It is the life and soul of all education. The chanting of the Holy Name of Krishna expands the blissful ocean of transcendental life. It gives a cooling effect to everyone and enables one to taste full nectar at every step.’ Sri Harinam Sankirtan Ki Jaya.
This is the last part of the four-part series.
Gauranga Sundar Das is Iskcon Inc Communication Director and Social media IT Head.