Maha Mantra

HARE KÅÑËA HARE KÅÑËA KÅÑËA KÅÑËA HARE HARE
HARE RÄMA HARE RÄMA RÄMA RÄMA HARE HARE

by

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupäda

Purport

The transcendental vibration established by the chanting of Hare Kåñëa,Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare/ Hare Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare is the sublime method of reviving our Kåñëa consciousness. As living spiritual souls we are all originally Kåñëa conscious entities, but due to our association with matter from time immemorial, our consciousness is now polluted by the material atmosphere. The material atmosphere, in which we are now living, is
called mäyä, or illusion. Mäyä means "that which is not." And what is this illusion? The illusion is that we are all trying to be lords of material nature, while actually we are under the grip of her stringent laws. When a servant artificially tries to imitate the all-powerful master, this is called illusion. In this polluted concept of life, we are all trying to exploit the
resources of material nature, but actually we are becoming more and more entangled in her complexities. Therefore, although we are engaged in a hard struggle to conquer nature, we are ever more dependent on her. This illusory struggle against material nature can be stopped at once
by revival of our Kåñëa consciousness.

Kåñëa consciousness is not an artificial imposition on the mind; this consciousness is the original energy of the living entity. When we hear the transcendental vibration, this consciousness is revived. And this process is recommended for this age by authorities. By practical experience also, one can perceive that by chanting this mahä-mantra, or
the Great Chanting for Deliverance, one can at once feel a
transcendental ecstasy coming through from the spiritual stratum. And when one is factually on the plane of spiritual understanding-surpassing the stages of senses, mind, and intelligence-one is situated on the transcendental plane. This chanting of Hare Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare/ Hare Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare is
directly enacted from the spiritual platform, and thus this sound vibration surpasses all lower strata of consciousness–namely sensual, mental, and intellectual. There is no need, therefore, to understand the language of the mantra, nor is there any need for mental speculation or any intellectual adjustment for chanting this mahä-mantra. It springs
automatically from the spiritual platform, and as such, anyone can take part in the chanting without any previous qualification, and dance in ecstasy.

We have seen this practically. Even a child can take part in the chanting, or even a dog can take part in it. Of course, for one who is too entangled in material life, it takes a little more time to come to the standard point, but even such a materially engrossed man is raised to the spiritual platform very quickly. When the mantra is chanted by a pure
devotee of the Lord in love, it has the greatest efficacy on the hearers, and as such, this chanting should be heard from the lips of a pure devotee of the Lord, so that immediate effects can be achieved. As far as possible, chanting from the lips of nondevotees should be avoided. Milk touched by the lips of a serpent has poisonous effects. The word Harä is the form of addressing the energy of the Lord, and the words Kåñëa and Räma are forms of addressing the Lord Himself. Both
Kåñëa and Räma mean "the supreme pleasure," and Harä is the supreme pleasure energy of the Lord, changed to Hare in the vocative. The supreme pleasure energy of the Lord helps us to reach the Lord. The material energy, called mäyä, is also one of the multi-energies of the Lord. And we, the living entities, are also the energy–marginal energy– of the Lord. The living entities are described as superior to material
energy. When the superior energy is in contact with the inferior energy, an incompatible situation arises; but when the superior marginal energy is in contact with the superior energy, called Harä, the living entity is established in his happy, normal condition.

These three words, namely Hare, Kåñëa, and Räma, are the
transcendental seeds of the mahä-mantra. The chanting is a spiritual call for the Lord and His internal energy, Harä, to give protection to the conditioned soul. This chanting is exactly like the genuine cry of a child for its mother. Mother Harä helps the devotee achieve the grace of the supreme father, Hari, or Kåñëa, and the Lord reveals Himself to the
devotee who chants this mantra sincerely. No other means of spiritual realization, therefore, is as effective in this
age as chanting the mahä-mantra: Hare Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare/ Hare Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare.

Sri Caitanya – caritamrta Adi lila 1.16

Çré Caitanya-caritämåta, Ädi-lélä 1.16

Srila Prabhupada
—
Mäyäpur, April 9, 1975

Santoña: "In a temple of jewels in Våndävana, underneath a desire tree, Çré Çré Rädhä-Govinda, served by Their most confidential associates, sit upon an effulgent throne. I offer my humble obeisances unto Them."

Prabhupäda:

dévyad-våndäraëya-kalpa-drumädhah-
çrémad-ratnägära-siàhäsana-sthau
çrémad-rädhä-çréla-govinda-devau
preñöälébhiù sevyamänau smarämi
[Cc. Ädi 1.16]

So, description of Våndävana, Våndävana and Rädhä and Kåñëa situated there. The Våndävana... Vana means forest, and vånda means tulasé. Mostly there are tulasé plants and other trees also, but all the trees are living desire trees, spiritual. They can serve Kåñëa in any way, desire. They have become trees by their voluntary desire. They're all spiritual beings—there is no force—but everyone has got a particular tendency to serve Kåñëa in a different way. So these trees and plants, they are also living beings. They are not ordinary living beings, but they have decided to serve Kåñëa by supplying fruits and flowers. They want that service. Everyone has got his particular propensity. So someone is serving as the land there, someone is serving as the throne, someone is serving as the supplying agent of fruits and flowers, someone is engaged in His service as the gopés, confidential servitors. The cows, calves, everything—they are all different living entities. They are not made of these material things, material body. Änanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhävitäbhis täbhir ya eva nija-rüpatayä kaläbhiù [Bs. 5.37]. They are all also expansion of Kåñëa's pleasure potency. In one sense they are also Kåñëa; they are not different from Kåñëa. Çakti-çaktimatayor abheda: "The power and the powerful, they are not different, identical." Just like the sun and the sunshine. So in the sun globe there is heat and light, and the sunshine, there is heat and light. So, so far heat and light is concerned, they are one. Similarly, Kåñëa and Kåñëa's pleasure potency, änanda-cinmaya, ahlädiné... It is already described, rädhä kåñëa-praëaya-vikåtir hlädiné-çaktir asmät.

So whatever description is there of Våndävana, that is expansion of Kåñëa's pleasure potency. They are not different. Therefore in the beginning it is said, dévyad, "shining," or "divine," "transcendental." So we should not consider Våndävana as ordinary forest. Here we have got Våndävana on this planet. That is also not ordinary forest. The exactly the same Våndävana as it is Goloka Våndävana... There is no difference. Therefore Narottama däsa Öhäkura says that

viñaya chäòiyä kabe çuddha ha 'be mana
kabe häma herabo, çré-våndävana
Viñaya chäòiyä.

Our present position is that we are materially diseased, so we have to become free from the material disease. Material disease means sense gratification, and the most formidable disease is sex. This is called material disease. So viñaya chäòiyä. We have to be, become free from the contamination of viñaya, material enjoyment. This is the statement of Narottama däsa Öhäkura.

viñaya chäòiyä kabe çuddha ha 'be mana
kabe häma herabo çré-våndävana

"When my mind will be cleansed of all material desires, then I shall be able to see what is Våndävana." It is very difficult to see Våndävana with material desires. Bhakti means the first qualification is to become free from all material desires.

Sarvopädhi-vinirmuktam.
sarvopädhi-vinirmuktaà
tat-paratvena nirmalam
håñékena håñékeça-
sevanaà bhaktir ucyate
[Cc. Madhya 19.170]

anyäbhiläñitä-çünyaà
jïäna-karmädy-anävåtam
änukülyena kåñëänu-
çélanaà bhaktir uttama
[Brs. 1.1.11]

You know all these definition of bhakti given in our Nectar of Devotion. So spiritual life means free from material desires. And material desires mean just to hanker after sense gratification. This is material desire. When we have no more desire for sense gratification, then we should think that we are on the spiritual platform.

So this description of Våndävana is spiritually described; therefore in the beginning the word is used, dévyad. Dévyad means divine. Kåñëa says, janma karma ca me divyam [Bg. 4.9]. This is not ordinary material thing. So desire tree also described in the Brahma-saàhitä: Cintämaëi-prakara-sadmasu kalpa-våkña [Bs. 5.29]—the same kalpa-våkña-lakñävåteñu surabhér abhipälayantam, lakñmé-sahasra-çata-sambhrama-sevyamänam. This lakñmé-sahasra-çata-sevyamänam is described here as preñöhälébhiù sevyamänau. Preñöha-älébhiù. Preñöha means very dear, and älé means gopés, associates of Rädhäräëé, friends. So they are all Lakñmés, goddess of fortune. Lakñmé... You have heard the name Lakñmé, Lakñmé-Näräyaëa, associates of Näräyaëa. Kåñëa is Näräyaëa. So all these gopés, they are expansion of Çrématé Rädhäräëé, the original Lakñmé. This is spiritual world. It is not impersonal, neither niräkära, formless. Everything form, but that form is different from this form. That form is sat-cid-änanda form—eternal, full of bliss, full of knowledge. This is not this material form. When we speak of formless, that means without any material form. Formless does not mean Kåñëa and His expansion, they are formless. They are not of material form. Aprakåta, not material. Here everything is prakåta. It is not, neither, eternal nor blissful nor full of knowledge. It is temporary, full of ignorance and always miserable, this form. We can understand it.

So that is just opposite. This form is temporary. Everyone knows this form will be finished. Antavanta ime dehä [Bg. 2.18], Kåñëa says. This body is antavat. Antavat means it will be finished. It grew at a certain date, and it will increase, it will stay, then it will dwindle, then it will produce some by-products and then vanish. This is called ñaò-vikära, six kinds of changes of the material body. Of the spiritual body there is no such change. That is the difference between spiritual body and material body. Therefore it is called sat. Sat means eternal; there is no change. Just like Kåñëa. His body is sac-cid-änanda; therefore He never grows old. You'll never find a picture of Kåñëa that He has grown old. No. There is no change. Advaitam acyutam anädim ananta-rüpam ädyaà puräëa-puruñam [Bs. 5.33]. Puräëa-puruñam means the oldest person. Because Kåñëa is the origin of everything... Sometimes they consider, "Because God is very old, therefore He must have big, big beard and..." That is imagination. Here you find the real description of God: advaitam acyutam anädim ananta-rüpam ädyam [Bs. 5.33], "Original," Puräëa-puruñam, "the oldest of all," nava-yauvanaà ca, "but His bodily feature is just like a fresh young man." That is Kåñëa. You'll never find Kåñëa... Kåñëa, when He was in the battlefield of Kurukñetra, He was a great-grandfather, but you'll find a young boy. That is Kåñëa. So that is eternal.
Now our body is not sat. Kåñëa's body is sat, cid, änanda. Our, this material body—asat. And because we have got... Asat means temporary, that will not exist. And because we have accepted this material body, therefore we are full of anxiety. Ultimately, what is our anxiety? We are always trying to... This is called struggle for existence, survival of the fittest. So we are trying to become the fittest, to exist. But that is not possible in this body. That is not possible, because it is asat; it is not sat. And because the struggle is that we want to exist in this body, therefore there is anxiety. Asad-grahät sadä samudvigna-dhiyäm asad-grahät [SB 7.5.5]. The çästra says that we are always full of anxieties. Why? Now, asad-grahät: "We have accepted this body, which will not exist." Asad-grahät. These are facts. Study çästra in that way. Why we are full of anxiety? Because we have accepted this body.

So our main business is how to get out of this entanglement of this temporary body. The people are not very seriously thinking, neither they have got sufficient knowledge how the temporary body is obtained, how it is changed, another temporary body, and there are 8,400,000 different forms of body, and we are changing one after another. Why this disease? "If I am, my position is, as I understand from Bhagavad-gétä, na hanyate hanyamäne çarére [Bg. 2.20]—I am not destroyed after the destruction of this body—why I am in this position that I have to change my body?" Tathä dehäntara-präptiù [Bg. 2.13]. This is intelligence. When you come to this intelligence, then athäto brahma jijïäsä; then the inquiry about spiritual life begins. But unfortunately, we are in such a civilization that we have no time to think of this great dangerous position of changing body one after another, and we have accepted it that "There is no remedy; we have to change or die for good." These theories, this ignorance, is going on, and Kåñëa consciousness movement is the only movement which is trying to educate man to this standard of knowledge, that he may at least think that "I am not this body, as I understand from the çästras. I am within the body. So how I can become free of this material body?" That is our real problem. Janma-måtyu-jarä-vyädhi-duùkha-doñänudarçanam [Bg. 13.9].

So if we take it very seriously, then we become gradually advanced and eligible or fit candidate to go into the spiritual world—dévyad-våndäraëya-kalpa-drumädhaù. We can go there. That is wanted. Be serious. Don't be misled by the allurement of mäyä. Remain strong. And then, in this life, you'll be able to become fit candidate to go back to home, back to Godhead. Dévyad-våndäranya-kalpa-drumädhaù. You'll also be one of the associates of Kåñëa, as you desire. Kåñëa will give you the opportunity to serve Him as you desire. If you want to serve Him as a gopé, you'll get that position. If you want to serve Him as cowherds boyfriend, you'll get that opportunity. If you want to serve Kåñëa following the footsteps of mother Yaçodä, accepting Kåñëa as your son, you'll get it. Accepting Kåñëa as your son, Nanda Mahäräja following... We have to follow their principles, not that "I shall become Nanda Mahäräja" or "I shall become Yaçodä," "I shall..." No, that is Mäyäväda. You have to follow how they are loving Kåñëa. You have to learn that. Then you'll get the chance of Kåñëa's association.

Dévyad-våndäraëya-kalpa-drumädhaù, preñöälébhiù sevyamänau smarämi. The Gauòéya Vaiñëava, generally, following the footsteps of Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu, they aspire to become one of the assistants of the gopés. There are others also who like to be the assistants of the cowherd boys. So our Gosvämés, Rüpa Gosvämé, çré rüpa sanätana bhaööa raghunätha, they were all the assistants of the gopés. Gopé-bhäva-rasämåtäbdhi-laharé-kallola-magnau muhur vande rüpa-sanätanau raghu-yugau çré-jéva-gopälakau. These six Gosvämés, rüpa sanätana bhaööa raghunätha çré jéva gopäla bhaööa däsa raghunätha, they were all very, very big men, not ordinary men—ministers, zamindars, learned scholars. They were not ordinary men. And they gave up everything. Tyaktvä türëam açeña-maëòala-pati-çreëéà sadä tucchavat. Just like Rüpa Gosvämé, Sanätana Gosvämé, he was, they were ministers in the government of Hussain Shah.

Raghunätha däsa Gosvämé was the only son of his father and uncle, very, very big zamindar, landholder. Twelve lakhs of rupees' income. Five hundred years twelve lakhs—twelve crores now. He was so rich man. Similarly, Gopäla Bhaööa Gosvämé, Çréla Jéva Gosvämé, they were very, very learned. Jéva Gosvämé was the nephew of Rüpa Gosvämé, very learned scholar. So either scholar, rich men, big politician—all of them gave up their occupational, material occupational duty and joined Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu in His saìkértana movement. So they were always absorbed in the gopés' activities, always thinking. Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu was always thinking of Çrématé Rädhäräëé's activities, and the Gosvämés, they were also thinking of the gopés' activities. Gopés' activities means to assist Çrémad-Rädhäräëé how to serve Kåñëa. Preñöälébhiù sevyamänau. They are always ready.
So in this way there is the description of the spiritual world. You just have a glimpse of the spiritual world, how they are perpetually enjoying blissful life with full knowledge. That is described here. Dévyad-våndäraëya-kalpa-drumädhah-çrémad ratnägära-siàhäsana-sthau. There the siàhäsana, the throne, that is also spiritual. That is not material. Everything spiritual. Simply in different capacity they are serving. There the water is also spiritual. So this spiritual realization, if we get the opportunity fortunate enough, then naturally we shall aspire to enter into the spiritual world. Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura said, kåñëera saàsära kara chäòi' anäcära: "If you want to enter into this association of spiritual kingdom, then practice here the family of Kåñëa." Just like here we are trying to be family members of Kåñëa. Here Kåñëa is sitting, Rädhä-Mädhava is sitting on the throne. He is the enjoyer, and we are trying to serve Him so that He may very nicely enjoy. This is called Kåñëa family-center, Kåñëa. Just like in ordinary family the head man is there, and he is the chief man, and all other—his wife, children, servants, and other friends, associates, even animals, cats, dogs, cows—everyone is serving the center point, master. Similarly, our Kåñëa family means Kåñëa is the master, and He is the supreme enjoyer. Bhoktäraà yajïa-tapasäà sarva-loka-maheçvaram [Bg. 5.29]. And if we understand this point, that Kåñëa is the center, He is the enjoyer, and we are meant for serving Him for His enjoyment, that is Kåñëa family….