A ‘prapanna’ should have ‘maha viswasa’ (unshakable faith) towards his Acharya (Master). He should not worship any other deity than Vishnu and should always chant the ‘Dhvaya’ and the ‘Ashtakshara’ Mantras.
And how should he spend the rest of his life? It has been said that he has to eagerly await the day of going to Vaikunta just as an engaged couple wait for the day of marriage.
His life has to be spent singing the glory of Sriman Narayana always — singing His praise without taking on any other Guru or Acharya.
Maha Mantra is nothing but the glory of Sriman Narayana, and does not need initiation. While the mantras that are given during initiation have restrictions for chanting, Maha Mantra does not have any!
So it is absolutely fine for a prapanna to chant the Maha Mantra.
MAHAMANTRA
Can one attain self-realization in this birth itself just by chanting the mahamantra? How should the Mahamantra be chanted so that realization happens?
Chanting the Maha Mantra for attaining liberation is not a process.
We believe in the soul, life after death, sins, karma, punya, other lokas, re-birth, liberation and similar concepts. Why? Because it has been prescribed in the Shastras. Why do we believe in the Shastras? Because that is verily God’s mouthpiece Hence anything prescribed in the Shastras, should be taken as the eternal law and the final verdict, without questioning it any further.
One should not apply his intellect here.
Let me give you this illustration. A beggar comes to our door and begs for alms. What do we do? Do we care about his pitch and intonation or the number of times he calls out? No. If we are merciful enough and are in a position to help, we provide alms. That is all. Is it not?
In exactly the same way, by chanting the Mahamantra, we declare our incapacity to overcome this ignorance called ‘Maya’ by our own efforts and condescendingly beseech Him for His divine grace and help.
The Lord Almighty is an infinite ocean of love and mercy. After you are done with enjoying the fruits of your karma according to your ‘prarabdha’, in your deathbed, He will give you Jnana and Vairagya in a fraction of a second and liberate you, just as Bhagavan Ramana liberated his own mother and the cow Lakshmi.
When I chant Maha Mantra I meditate on the thoughts of my Guru who initiated me into the Mantra rather than Lord Krishna. I wish to meditate in the same way. Is it okay?
You can meditate in any way that you feel comfortable.
During Upanayanam, the child is initiated into Gayatri Mantra and it is said that chanting the Gayatri Mantra is good. If Mahamantra is really powerful and can do good to anyone who chants it, why not give Mahamantra as the Upadesa?
There are two distinct Dharmas prescribed– the Vaideeka Dharma and the Bhagavata Dharma.
In Ramayana, we see that Rama protected the ‘Yagna’ (austerities) of the rishis This is Vaideeka Dharma. We also see that Rama blessed Ahalya. This is Bhagavata Dharma.
The most sacred sound in Vaideeka Dharma is ‘Om’. ‘Rama’ is the equivalent in Bhagavata Dharma. While Vaideeka Dharma talks about rituals and rites, Bhagavata Dharma talks about love for God. The former is for a few to follow, while the latter is meant for everyone.
Gayatri Mantra is a very powerful Mantra in the Vaideeka Dharma. Mahamantra is a very powerful Mantra in the Bhagavata Dharma. Thus one cannot substitute the other. They cannot be mixed.
Which is the best option to concentrate while chanting the Mahamantra? 1. Concentrate on the sound of the holy names 2. Thinking of Lord Rama or Lord Krishna or both in some shape or form. 3. Meditating on my ‘kula deivam’ in addition to Rama and Krishna
Don’t strain too much on your meditation. Concentrate on any form that you feel comfortable with and gives you joy. Once you decide on that form, stick to it forever.
I chant the Mahamantra whenever I get time, either at home or at work. A part of my job is to pull up people who shirk their duty. However this is not liked by my colleagues and they cause disturbances. What should I do?
What you are doing is right. Be as you are. Pray sincerely to God to bring change in others so as to enable you to carry out your job in a perfect manner. Continue to chant the Mahamantra. Everything will be alright.
How does mere chanting of Mahamantra lead one to the ultimate truth? If we are chanting it mechanically most of the time, how can one realize the self? To chant means to have a mind and a memory. So, does this not contradict the fact that Mahatmas have no minds?
Mahatmas talk! Don’t they? Does it disqualify them as mahatmas, because as per your idea, talking can happen only when there is mind and memory, so if they talk they cease to be Mahatmas! If a Mahatma’s teaching made you think so, he has talked too! So, if that would disqualify him as a Mahatma, there is no need to read his teachings further! So something is wrong in the assumption? Is it not?
The ego, the mind has to be made silent. Chanting works on ego and dissolves it into its source. Mechanical chanting is the starting phase. It will soon graduate to mental chanting and soon this mental one-pointed chanting will lead to the source of the chant, which is the truth. So just like mere mechanical reading of books, soon starts working as understanding or ‘doubt’ in the mental level, chanting mechanically also leads to mental absorption.
Many saints have realized with the help of God’s grace just by chanting Mahamantra. There are infinite paths to infinite bliss. Truth is pathless. Infinity and zero are but two ways of telling this fact. In geometry, a theoretical question of how many sides does a perfect circle have, has two answers to depict the same truth – zero and infinity!
Understand that great sages like JK, Ramana Maharshi, Yogi Ramsuratkumar all have realized that one truth and are only speaking in different tones. Yogi Ramsuratkumar Maharaj says chanting is sufficient to realize. Easier way for normal people is to chant, even if it appears mechanical to start with.
The Mahamantra itself is so pure that you can take it any where but my friend was singing a Kirtan when he was in the wash room. Is it alright?
Yes. There is nothing wrong in it.
I chant the Mahamantra daily, but even then, there is no purity in my mind and thought. I can very well realize that the Almighty knows about my thoughts and impurities in my mind. How do I overcome these impurities?
First of all, expecting results immediately is wrong. Doing so will make you give up your practice very soon. You have to understand that the change will come only slowly.
A person is extremely devoted. At the same time, he has some nasty habits. Can it be said that his Bhakti itself is fraudulent? No. His Bhakti is true; and so are his bad qualities.
When cattle devours a newly planted mango sapling, it struggles to live and grow more leaves. But surpassing these struggles, when the plant grows into a tree, then the cattle is no more a threat to the tree.
Likewise, when your devotion is in its initial stages, the ills of the world affect you to a great extent. When you continues to chant, with patience and perseverance, your bhakti becomes strong enough and the ills of the world don’t affect you any more.
This will take time. But you can rest assured that your efforts will never go in vain.
I am chanting the Nama with Mala. I chant whenever I get time. In the evening I perform it as a Kirtan. Is it the right way to do it? Is there any special procedure that I need to follow? While chanting, I am not able to control my mind it starts moving here and there. Why does this happen?
Nama Kirtan has absolutely no restrictions. You can chant it with mala or without Mala. There are no prescribed procedures, no rules or regulations. Hence you can chant it any way, at any time and any place.
When someone plans to travel abroad, he needs to apply for his passport, get his visa stamped and book his tickets in advance. Similarly, chanting the Nama is the preparation for our journey towards God. Don’t bother about difficulties, road blocks or miseries on your path. Come what may, if you continue to chant the Divine name with steadfast faith and devotion, one day, you will definitely reap the sweet fruit!
