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.