Friday, June 1, 2007

Maha Periyava on glory of Namasankirtan

Nama article May 30th 2007

Sri Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati [Maha Periyava] of Kaanchi Kaamakoti Peetam on the glory of Namasankirtan

Like dhyana, japa, puja, yajna and pilgrimage, the practice of getting together to sing the Divine Name of the Lord is a long standing practice in our country.

Singing the Divine Name of the Lord is being practiced in our country since ancient times, as a great means for the 'jivAtma' [the ordinary soul] to commune with the 'ParamAtma' [the Lord]. The existence of rich tradition of Bhajan [Nama Sankirtan] in our country can be deduced from the fact that almost in every Village and Town a Bhajan mutt/hall has been established. Every Saturday and on every Ekadasi people would get together in this Bhajan mutt/hall and do Bhajan [Nama Sankirtan], i.e. sing the Divine Names of the Lord.

In temples, we watch the performance of puja; we meditate on the Deity; whereas, in Bhajan we fix our mind on the Lord by singing His Divine Names, His 'gunas' [dispositions] and His Lilas [Divine Plays]. Bhajan has the unique feature of doing Bhakti involving the whole community. Even though the Hindu Religion is predominantly structured on individual basis [ i.e. every individual should attain the Self and thus bring about the welfare of humanity] there is also congregational worship as in Temples, Utsavs and Bhajans.

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