Hari Bol...
54. Listen to Heart – Japa Yoga is Scientific…
In the article ‘Listen to Heart – Chanting is Better Than Chatting…’ we have discussed that we should focus on chanting. The mantra could be any depending on us or our spiritual master of our religion or other religion if we would like to follow. As per Hindu religion the ‘maha-mantra’ is a 16 word Vaishnava mantra which is mentioned in the Kali-Santarana Upanishad. It is also called as Hare Krishna mantra.
The Hare Krishna mantra is composed of Sanskrit names in the singular vocative case: Hare, Krishna, and Rama (in Anglicized spelling). The transliteration from the Devanagari (devanāgarī) script of the three vocatives is hare, kṛṣṇa and rāma. ‘Hare’ can be interpreted as the vocative of Hari, another name of Vishnu meaning ‘he who removes illusion’, or as the vocative of ‘Harā’, a name of Rādhā, Krishna's eternal consort or Shakti. According to A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Harā refers to ‘the energy of God’ while ‘Krishna’ and ‘Rama’ refer to God himself, meaning ‘He who is All-Attractive’ and ‘He who is the Source of All Pleasure’. Rama refers to Ramachandra Lord Ram which is one of the incarnations of Krishna. In the hymn Vishnu Sahasranama spoken by Bhishma in praise of Krishna after the Kurukshetra War, Krishna is also called Rama. Rama can also be a shortened form of Balarama, Krishna's first expansion. This sound vibration of maha-mantra surpasses all lower strata of consciousness - namely sensual, mental, and intellectual. These sixteen names are destructive of the evil effects of Kali. No better means than this is to be seen in all the Vedas. The mantra was popularized by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
Srila Jiva Gosvami reveals the meaning of each of the sixteen Names in the Hare Krishna Mahaamantra
· (1-Hare): Krishna steals the minds of everyone, yet Radha steals even His mind by Her divine expertise. Thus She is known as Haraa.
· (2-Krishna): He forcibly attracts Sri Radha with the sweet sound of His flute, therefore that Lord of all enchanting qualities is known as Krishna.
· (3-Hare): It has been heard that during the rasa-lila, doe-eyed Radha was stolen away by Krishna to be alone with Him in a secret forest bower. She is therefore known as Haraa.
· (4-Krishna): When Krishna sports with Radha, Her golden hue takes on the dark complexion of Krishna's skin. He is thus known as Krishna.
· (5-Krishna): In order to please Sri Radha, Krishna manifested the most wonderful lake (Syama-kunda) in Vrndavana. He then called all the holy rivers to fill it. He is thus known as Krishna.
· (6-Krishna): By Her unsurpassed love, Radha charms He who performs wonderful lilas on the banks of the Yamuna. Therefore, those who are sober know Him as Krishna.
· (7-Hare): While in Gokula, Sri Hari (Krishna) killed the demon known as Aristasura. During that time, Radha cried out to Him with great feeling and by doing so, She stole His mind. She is thus known as Haraa.
· (8-Hare): Filled with ecstatic love, Radha sometimes sings the glories of Hari’s exploits quietly and sometimes She sings them aloud. Those who are expert in the secrets of divine sentiments call Her Haraa.
· (9-Hare): Due to the intense love of Sri Radha, Sri Hari becomes so captivated that His flute falls from His hand. With the desire to enjoy in the forest bowers with Krishna, Radha steals His flute. That goddess is thus famous as Haraa.
· (10-Raama): Krishna, who is expert at embracing, sports with Radha in the forest groves or in the caves of Govardhana. Thus He is known as Raama
· (11-Hare): That most merciful Radha destroys the miseries of Her devotees and gives them great happiness every day. Therefore that goddess is known as Haraa.
· (12-Raama): The minds of the devotees are continuously drowned in an ocean of supreme joy by seeing the beautiful dark form of Krishna. Therefore He is known by the Name Raama.
· (13-Raama): Radharani is known as Raama because She enjoys loving pastimes with Acyuta (Krishna) in a secret forest pavilion. Since He is always by Her side, He is known as Raama.
· (14-Raama): When the residents of Gokula were crying due to fear of the forest fire, Krishna immediately swallowed it and gave His devotees great joy. In this way, He is known as Raama.
· (15-Hare): Sri Krishna went to Mathurapuri in order to destroy the demons. However, due to being captivated by the love of Radha, He later returned. Therefore She is known as Haraa.
· (16-Hare): When the son of Maharaja Nanda returned to Vraja, He took away the suffering of all the Vrajavasis. By His wonderful exploits, He steals the heart of Sri Radha. Thus He is known as Hari.
Maha means “great” and mantra means “sacred chant for deliverance.” The words “Hare” (pronounced ha-ray), “Krishna” (pronounced krish-na), and “Rama” (rhymes with “drama”), are Sanskrit words. “Hare” is an address to God’s energy and directly addresses the energy of the Lord known as Radha, and “Krishna” is name of God meaning i.e. Supreme Personality of Godhead, “He who is attractive to everyone.” “Rama” means “reservoir of pleasure; one who gives pleasure and enjoys life.” When chanted the maha-mantra is a petition to God: “O Krishna, O energy of Krishna, please engage me in Your service.”
The repeating of Maha-mantra every day for fixed number of times is called Japa. The meaning of the word ‘man-tra’ is to release the mind. The word ‘man’ means mind and ‘tra’ means to release. So maha-mantra releases the mind from all sorts of troubles. The word ‘Yoga’ means connection. In Maha-Mantra Japa Yoga, the yogi is connected to the Lord by Maha-Mantra Japa. While chanting let the concentration of all the five senses be on the Lord. Before starting each round of maha-mantra get the blessing of Pancha Tattva.
Sri Krishna Caitanya Prabhu Nithyananda
Sri Advaida Gadhadara Srivasadi Gaura Bhakta Vrinda
1. Let the mouth chant clearly
2. Let the ear hear clearly
3. Let the eyes see the Lord’s form
4. Let the body touch the Tulsi beads
5. Let the nose smell the garland and paraphernalia offered to the Lord
Hold the bead in the right hand. There is one head bead, a bead that is bigger than all the rest. Grasp the first bead to one side of the head bead with right thumb and middle finger of the right hand. The index finger should not touch the bead. Roll the bead back and forth between thumb and middle finger and chant the ‘maha-mantra’. Say each word clearly and concentrate on the sound of each word of mantra. After chanting the complete mantra, move the thumb and middle finger to the next and chant again. Repeat for 108 times and complete 1st round. Do not chant on the head bead and do not cross over. Instead turn the whole set of beads around in the hand and chant in the other direction. The last bead of the first round is the first bead of the next round. Continue in the similar manner and complete the 2nd round and again follow the same steps and start the 3rd round and so on and on.
Maha-Mantra Japa Yoga is unconditional. No hard and fast rules for practicing. Practice anywhere any time in any situation. No bar for caste, color, creed or religion. Practice with or without liking. Any stage of pure or impure, confused or clear is acceptable. Need not to be in sacred place. Do it standing, walking, sitting, as you like. No guidance is required. The effect is always positive. No negative effect even if done wrongly. Have a self-correcting procedure. Train the practitioner not to control the senses but to dovetail or regulate the senses for higher purpose. So we should chant as much as we can to be closer to Krishna. We should also read articles and listen to the glories of Krishna. We should try to practice chanting at fixed time of the day. At that particular time the mind would be attracted to get the taste of chanting as it lead to addiction. No addiction can be stronger and better than the addiction of Hari. Chant each round in fixed duration. Try to control the agitated and running mind. Maha-mantra Japa Yoga is perfectly scientific in nature. If more than one sense out of five is engaged or involved in a particular object then the mind will automatically concentrate on it. During the japa of maha-mantra all the 5 senses are engaged so the mind concentrate on the Lord so it is scientific.
You can make incredible advancement during japa. Good japa is like flying down the highway in fourth gear. Good japa produces inspiration, realization, detachment, increased desire to serve, attraction to study scripture, and an ability to see maya's workings more clearly. And there are so many more gifts good japa delivers.
All Glories to Lord Krishna & All His Loving Devotees….. Hari Bol……
Courtesy: Bhagavad-Gita As It Is (by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ) , Srimad Bhagavad-Gita ( by A. Parthasarathy & www.gitadaily.com ), http://www.krishna.com/maha-mantra, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hare_Krishna_(mantra) http://www.iskcondesiretree.net/forum/topics/powerful-meaning-of-the-hare
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