Category:Engaging in Chanting About God
Theme Analysis
The process of engaging in chanting about God is the fundamental activity of a pure devotee and the easiest path to spiritual perfection. According to Vedic philosophy, the defining symptom of a mahātmā, or great soul, is that they are constantly engaged in glorifying the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, without any other business. This constant engagement, known as kīrtana, operates in tandem with hearing about the Lord. When one sincerely hears the transcendental pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the natural subsequent action is to enthusiastically chant and broadcast those glories to others.
This transcendental engagement is so powerful that it immediately elevates the practitioner above all material designations. Even if a person is born in the lowest of families, if they engage in chanting the holy name, they are considered to have surpassed the study of Vedānta philosophy and all ritualistic austerities. By keeping the mind and tongue completely absorbed in the mahā-mantra, a devotee naturally transcends the bodily conception of life, becoming immune to the material pangs of hunger, thirst, fear, lamentation, and illusion.
The great authorities of devotional service, such as Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and the Six Gosvāmīs of Vṛndāvana, practically demonstrated this principle. Their entire lives were dedicated to hearing, chanting, and writing about the pastimes of the Lord twenty-four hours a day. Whether one is a brahmacārī, a royal king like Svāyambhuva Manu, or a liberated paramahaṁsa, the universal recommendation for this age is to take shelter of the holy name. By strictly following this process and associating with those who are deeply engaged in chanting, any conditioned soul can safely navigate the ocean of nescience and return back home, back to Godhead.
- The Symptom of a Mahātmā: The primary business of a great soul is to be constantly engaged in the glorification of the Supreme Lord.
- Transcending the Body: Chanting about God liberates the practitioner from the bodily concept of life, extinguishing fear, illusion, and material lamentation.
- Surpassing Rituals: Anyone who engages in chanting the holy name automatically achieves the results of all Vedic studies and austerities, regardless of their birth.
- The Perfect Example: The greatest spiritual authorities, including Lord Caitanya and the Gosvāmīs, dedicated their lives entirely to hearing and chanting about Kṛṣṇa.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Engaging in Chanting About God - The Supreme Spiritual Occupation.
Pages in category "Engaging in Chanting About God"
The following 23 pages are in this category, out of 23 total.
A
- A brahmacari hears only words concerning Krsna consciousness; hearing is the basic principle for understanding, and therefore the pure brahmacari engages fully in harer namanukirtanam-chanting and hearing the glories of the Lord. BG 1972 purports
- A mahatma is always engaged in chanting the glories of the Supreme Lord Krsna, the Personality of Godhead. He has no other business. He is always engaged in the glorification of the Lord. BG 1972 purports
- A person who always chants the holy name of the Lord is already beyond the ocean of nescience, and thus even a person born in a low family who engages in chanting the holy name of the Lord is considered to be beyond the study of Vedanta philosophy
- A pure devotee is interested only in devotional service, not in material affairs. To execute devotional service, one should always engage in hearing and chanting about Krsna, or Lord Visnu. The process of temple worship is called arcana
- After personally talking with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, King Citraketu enjoyed life in his airplane with the women of the Vidyadhara planet. Engaging in the congregational chanting of the glories of the Lord, he began flying his plane
- Although his (Svayambhuva Manu) duration of life gradually came to an end, his long life, consisting of a Manvantara era, was not spent in vain, since he ever engaged in hearing, contemplating, writing down and chanting the pastimes of the Lord
- Anyone engaged in Deity worship should chant this mantra, as quoted above (in SB 6.19.7), beginning with om namo bhagavate maha-purusaya
- As stated by Srinivasa Acarya in his prayers to the Gosvamis: nama-gana-natibhih. A paramahamsa devotee is always engaged in chanting and rendering loving service to the Lord
E
- Even if one has no assets of favorable austerity, if he nevertheless takes shelter of the mahatmas, who are engaged in chanting and hearing the glories of the Lord, he is sure to make progress on the path back home, back to Godhead
- Expecting that Krsna must return to them, they (the gopis) simply engaged in chanting the glories of Sri Krsna - Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare
I
T
- The best thing is that you engage yourself in chanting the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra as many times as possible and Krishna will save you. I wish that all your family members should chant, your wife especially, for your prolonged life
- The conclusion is that a devotee engaged in the unalloyed service of the Lord, specifically in hearing and chanting of His transcendental glories, becomes simultaneously spiritually enlightened by the divine grace, as confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita
- The word abhiksnasah indicates that these engagements (hearing, chanting and preaching) should go on continuously, twenty-four hours a day without stopping
- Their business was, these Gosvamis, krsnotkirtana-gana-nartana-parau: they were always engaged in chanting "Krsna." That is the real purpose of human life, especially in this age