Efficacy of chanting Lord's names

While reciting the names of God has been prescribed as one of the easy steps to wipe out one's sins, it should be understood that a person cannot get away with the consequences by continuously and deliberately committing misdeeds hoping that the Divine recipe suggested will suffice. God will certainly excuse our mistakes if we adopt any of the means but what is to be understood is that when it is not possible to resort to an act of atonement, he can pray that he has no other way except to seek His pardon. None should repeat the mistakes knowingly and claim immunity by the process of chanting. The repentance should be genuine and to the best of his ability, a person should uphold the rules of good conduct and refrain from doing prohibited acts. There should be no misapprehension that elaborate and extravagant worship will please God. What God expects of a devotee is his sincerity and faith. Otherwise, the procedures adopted will only indicate the worshipper's hypocrisy.

The extraordinary value of the Divine names has been made known in the Bhagavatam in the Ajamila episode. A scholar of repute, he fell a victim to the charms of a woman. As he was about to die, he uttered the name of his last child, which was also that of the Lords'. The reward was in the form of pardon. By retracing his steps and being devoted in the next life, he was liberated. This only reveals that God's names carry immense power.

Pointing out how human beings should express their gratitude to God for the mercy He has shown to them, Sri Vishwesha Thirtha Swami referred to the refusal by some holy men to part with the offerings intended to be given to God through a religious rite, to hungry youngsters sent by Krishna whereas the wives of these saintly men gave the same unhesitatingly to the boys, as they knew that the purpose of observing the rite would be served when God-incarnate Himself is present in their midst, ready to receive the offerings. The Upanishads say that God is within each one of us and that we should feel His presence at all times. We should return to the Almighty what He has granted to us. On that score, what was earned through unrighteous methods should not be submitted to Him. God will be with us if we entertain pure thoughts in our minds.

To reach God, spiritual knowledge (about His supreme powers and of the Self and its limitations), devotion and detachment are necessary. Vadiraja humourously says that men know how to make money, are devoted towards their families but detached when it relates to God (They shy way from Him). The foster mother of the Divine child Krishna while attempting to tie Him to a stone to prevent His mischief had abundant love but not spiritual knowledge. God will get bound when we equip ourselves with these requirements.
                                                                         July 23, 1994

Chanting of God's names efficacious

The goal of human life has been clearly specified in our sacred texts, viz, to attain salvation, and they also indicate the method for achieving it. The prescription pinpoints the need to uphold the Law of righteous conduct which, prescribes that one's thoughts, utterances and actions should be identical and one should eschew anger and other evils. The religious injunctions permit earning wealth to meet the day-to-day needs, but it should be acquired only through legitimate methods. Man is also permitted to enjoy comforts but he should not be avaricious.

To observe these duties, a person need not retire to a secluded spot. He should follow with sincerity, the path shows by sages and seers. What men should learn, what type of knowledge they should acquire, how they should conduct themselves and what constitutes the salient features of the Law of Virtue have been placed before humanity. The Azhwars have propagated their message, in Tamil, which is collectively called Divya Prabhandam or "Dravida Veda".

The Jeeyar Swami of Vanamamalai Math in a discourse, said the Lord in His incarnation as Rama had declared in His own words that He was an ordinary human being, and had demonstrated how everyone could observe the Law of Virtue. The Azhwars have extolled all the incarnations, but Nammazhwar has laid stress in one verse, on the life of Rama because He had shown the way to lead a perfect life. The Ramayana has been adapted by many illustrious personalities like Kamban, Tulsidas and Vedanta Desika (in his Raghuveera Gadyam). Rama never deviated from the path of righteousness.

Though Rama lived long ago, yet humanity worships Him through idols and pictures even today. Should a person find it difficult to visit a temple or perform worship to His image, he has been shown as easy way to receive His grace, through recitation of His name "Rama". When the syllable "Ra" is uttered, bad thoughts within one will be erased, while the other syllable "Ma" will ensure prevention of their re-entry. In North India, Rama is described as "Maryada Purushothama"(the Revered).

The chanting of the name "Narayana" may be slightly long for some and hence the name "Govinda" which has only three letters (in Sanskrit) is easier for recitation. While leaving this world after completing His mission, Lord Krishna said, that He could not re-pay His dept to Draupadi, who at a critical juncture invoked His help by uttering His name "Govinda". But simpler than this name is the two syllable antidote for all ills, "Rama". Outstanding personalities derived benefit by chanting "Rama" and have transmitted the spiritual power they acquired to humanity for peace and prosperity.
                                                                         January 26, 1995

Sacred name which purifies our mind

One of the essential lessons a man of devotion should learn from the study of the Ramayana is to maintain equanimity even amidst the pairs of opposites – joy and sorrow. It is not easy but the life of Rama, God-incarnate, will teach a person how to achieve it.

The Lord, in His manifestation as Krishna also, emphasizes this aspect (through the Bhagavad Gita). The spiritual culture of India is reflected in the Ramayana and the Gita and in the other epic, the Mahabharatha. The very utterance of the word "Rama" will purify our mind. It also destroys the sin accrued by the use of unpalatable words.

After the original work on Rama's life in Sanskrit by Valmiki, several versions in other languages have been written by other poets and the outstanding contribution in Hindi has been by Tulsidas, a bard of Uttar Pradesh of the 16th century. This inspired apostle has given humanity an intimate perspective of Divinity. Throughout his narration in his Book Divine, called Ramcharitamanasa, Tulsidas reminds us that the purpose of the Lord's incarnation as Rama was to demonstrate how to uphold virtue. Even an enemy (Mareecha) glorifies Him as the embodiment and the very image of Righteousness. The bard's expressions are steeped in overwhelming emotions; they are soaked in sorrow when Rama is banished and soar into ecstatic joy when it was decided to crown Him as the emperor-successor.

In his lecture, Swami Thejomayananda (Chinmaya Mission) said Tulsidas reveals the identity of Rama as Hari who makes us experience Supreme Bliss by the elimination of sorrows. Our worldly bondage will be snapped and we can easily cross the ocean of mundane existence by holding to His feet. The bard describes the Lord's charm, His wisdom, His compassion and His love for the helpless. He grants liberation even to demons. The immortal poet says that though he (Tulsidas) was dull-witted, the grace of the Lord and his spiritual mentor motivated him to write this poem. He says he composed the poem for his own joy. It reveals the nature of the Divinity and teaches us our duties in this world. "Goswami" Tulsidas offers his obeisance to Lord Siva who represents faith. The prayer describes Siva and Parvati by his side, Ganga on His head, deadly poison held in the throat, the king of snakes upon His chest, and pleads that He should protect him. The Ramayana of Tulsidas is thus an elixir of devotion and a poem sung rapturously.
                                                                         October 1, 1996

Lord's name the panacea

The greatest blunder that a man invariably commits is to become over-confident of his own powers and to presume that he can by himself achieve anything, not realising his own limitations and that all his actions are being monitored by a Supreme unseen force. Man's pride usually arises out of three factors – possession of wealth, his pedigree which may be high and his acquisition of knowledge and intellectual attainment. He feels that, his planning being meticulous, he has succeeded in every scheme he has conceived and executed. The same person will curse God when his attempts fail. Scriptures remind humanity that not a blade of grass grows unless God so decides and approves. "Submit yourself to the Almighty, He will extend all guidance in all your efforts," advise the scriptures.

"Parents are no protectors of a child in this world; a medicine is no remedy for an ailing person and a vessel is no protection to a person drowning in the ocean, in as much they are all seen to fail in numerous cases. Whatever being, high or low, and possessing a distinctive nature produces or transforms an object, and by whomsoever it is prompted to do so, all that is you and nothing other than you" are the prayers of a young child-devotee who totally relief on God when tortured and even administered poison, for his only crime that he recognized no human being as powerful as God and holding that God alone is Supreme who never fails to protect a devotee who has entrusted himself to Him and surrendered at His feet. That was Prahlada who defied his father, who through a penance obtained a boon not to be killed by anyone. His cleverness failed before God who took a special man-lion form to destroy him.

In his Harikatha, Sri R. Aravamudan said the child proved that faith can move mountains and that the chanting of the Lord's name is the panacea for all our ills and can remove all obstacles in life. There should be obsolutely no doubt that God, in whom one has placed one's confidence, will save one from perilous situations. A tale is told of two persons (narrated by Sringeri Acharya) facing the problem of crossing a river. One uttered God's name and reached the other shore safely. The other, who also restored to chanting, doubted, while in midstream, whether the mantra would prove effective and he was washed away.
                                                                         December 12, 1997