It is the compassion of Mahatmas that we have been blessed with the simplest and easiest path of Namakirtan. Having been initiated in this path, it is futile for one to engage in debates on different philosophies

Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

Sri Swamiji then instructs us to stay away from arguments and gossip - "vAdham seidho vambu pEsiyo". It is the compassion of Mahatmas that we have been blessed with the simplest and easiest path of Namakirtan. Having been initiated in this path, it is futile for one to engage in debates on different philosophies. Once when Sri Yogiramsuratkumar was questioned on which siddhAnta (philosophy) he believed in, he answered in simple words, "Philosophy is for the great masters. For you and me, Ram Naam is enough."

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan : 

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

If there is ego, then Lord Hari is not there. If Lord Hari is there, then ego cannot be there

Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

 

Sant Rahim says:

 

रहिमन गली है सान्करि, दूजो ना ठहराहिं ।

आपु अहै तो हरि नहीं, हरि तो आपुन नाहिं ||

'The road of mind is a narrow one and hence, two people can never travel on it together. If there is ego, then Lord Hari is not there. If Lord Hari is there, then ego cannot be there.'

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan : 

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

More than the mantra japa, what is important for spiritual progress is from whom we are blessed with the mantra upadesha

Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

Which Mantra Japa will give results immediately?

HH Maharanyam Sri Sri Muralidhara Swamiji’s reply:

A beautiful question! We can see the answer to this question through an incident in the divine life of Mother Krishnabai.

A sadhak received Narayana mantra upadesha from a Vaishnava sadhu who visited his house. He was continuously doing japa of that mantra. After some time, according to the advice of some others, he took diksha of the same mantra from a Vaishnava Guru. He did japa of the mantra consistently and continuously.

Days turned into months. Months became a couple of years. Even though he had been practicing this japa continuously, he did not feel any progress. He started feeling a little dejected. Then he heard about Mother Krishnabai, who was an ardent devotee of Papa Ramdas in Kasargod Ashram. He believed that he could progress if he got a powerful mantra from Mother Krishnabai. He approached Mataji and described his sadhanas. He prayed for mantra upadesha from Mataji. Out of compassion, Mataji also agreed to give him mantra diksha. With great interest to experience progress in his sadhanas by receiving a powerful mantra from Mataji, he got ready. When Mataji called him and gave mantra upadesha, his heart felt heavy because of disappointment. Because the mantra that Mataji gave him was the same Narayana mantra that he had received and had been chanting for a few years!

Mataji said, "Repeat the mantra again". He repeated it. Mataji made him repeat the mantra another time. When the sadhaka repeated the mantra the ninth time, his eyes were filled with tears. His voice was shaken. He had horripilation all over his body. His heart felt blissful. He felt this spiritual experience like never before. He prostrated to Mataji. The experience that never occurred to him all these years by repetition of the same mantra, happened now when he repeated after Mataji for the ninth time! Spiritual progress is not only in the mantra that is being repeated. More than the mantra japa, what is important for spiritual progress is from whom we are blessed with the mantra upadesha.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan : 

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

We spend our time always serving Him or always thinking of Him in some way or the other, either by chanting His Name, or listening to His katha

 Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

 When Lord Rama completed His avatara on earth and returned to Vaikunta, He invited all - even a mosquito to accompany Him. But Hanumanji refused! He asked, "Do we have Rama katha in Vaikunta? Do we have bhajan, Nama kirtana, and Divyanama there? If not, I do not wish to come to Vaikunta!"

What does this mean? It means that wherever we find all these is where Vaikunta truly is!

What is Vaikunta? Just pause to think.

When we travel in a train, what do we observe? Some are moving around selling tea, calling out, "Chaaya! Chaaya!"

Another is selling water, while yet another is selling food. We find one person reading the newspaper, another chatting away with co- travelers, others playing cards, and so on.

But instead, how has Bhagavan placed us? We are blessed to chant Nama, listen to stories about Him, and serve Him. We are linked to Him constantly, in one way or another! There is one thing certain in our life. His krupa (grace). That alone is His krupa.

"tanmanaskA: tadAlApA: tadvich EshTA: tadAtmikA: tadguNAneva gAyantyo nAtmAgArANi sasmaru:" This is how the Gopis are. Always thinking of Him, singing His praises, ever remembering Him.

And we have been blessed with this! That is only 'krupa'! If one has been blessed with this kind of life, then Moksha or Vaikunta is not something that is to be endeavored for. Can there be any doubt that we shall certainly be blessed with it?

We spend our time always serving Him or always thinking of Him in some way or the other, either by chanting His Name, or listening to His katha, or doing puja, or going to kshetras connected with Him. Even when we get together, we talk only about Him. We do not know of any other talk. Even if anyone speaks about something else, we do not enjoy it. There is someone who has transformed us like this! Prostrations to Him. What is the name of that 'someone'? It is GURUNATHA! Is it not indeed Guru Krupa that transforms one's life in this manner? Valmiki was a hunter who plundered and killed people. Such a one was completely transformed by the grace of his Guru, Sage Narada.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan : 

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

Sambandhar is saying that the Panchaksharam, which is the basis of Shiva bhakti, is the essence of the Vedas

Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

In Thirugnanasambandhar's Thevaram, it says:

"vEdam nAnginum meipporuLAvadhu nAthan nAmam namacchivAyavE"

The five holy syllables "nama shivAya" is the divine name of Lord Shiva, who is the true purport of the four Vedas and the Lord of all! Here Sambandhar is saying that the Panchaksharam, which is the basis of Shiva bhakti, is the essence of the Vedas.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan : 

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

It is upto you to believe me; I do not want to engage in unnecessary debate. Because my Guru has given me his Name to chant incessantly

 Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

To be blessed with a comfortable human birth and the grace of the Guru who has come to ensure that he carries our baggage - absolutely sans any condition; can it get any better? Yes, it does.

The Guru also gives us his satsanga association. Satsang makes it so easy for us to remain focused on our pursuit towards God. Sri Swamiji would say, being in satsang is like traveling in a train. We just have to board the train (be a part of the satsang). After we board it, no effort is required from our end. We just need to sit there and enjoy the ride. It will take us to the destination.

Sri Oothukadu Venkata Kavi sings how beautifully the appearance of the Guru transformed his life, and made it satsang-filled and blissful.

"vambuLLa mAyaiyil piRandEn - guru vazhangum karuNaiyil siRandEn

nambinAl nambungal ennaiyE maRandEn,

nAn ini vINAna vAdatthil porundEn

nAvAra tArakamenum gurunAmamum uNDu,

rAmAyaNa bhAgavata pArAyaNam uNDu

AvAvena gurunAthanin aruLamudam kaNDukoNDu,

harinAma kathA goshaNa sambhAshaNa sadAnanda..."

Having been born in this illusive world, I was able to elevate myself due to my Guru's compassion. It is upto you to believe me; I do not want to engage in unnecessary debate. Because my Guru has given me his Name to chant incessantly, he has given me Ramayana and Bhagavatam to do parayanam of, he keeps blessing me with his nectarine upadeshas - thus filling my life with the eternal bliss of Hari

Nama, Hari Katha, Hari Ghoshana, and Hari Sambhashana.

Thus, Sri Swamiji, in the anupallavi of His Madhurageetham "nalla samayamidhai nazhuva viDAdhE", reminds us as to how the situation cannot get more opportune than this, and urges us to make the best use of it.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan : 

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

"Having been blessed with this world, and enjoying all its comforts, one who does not chant Nama is betraying Bhagavan."

Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

God did not give me this human birth because He did not have any other choice. Our scriptures say, there are 84 lakh species of living organisms in this world. He had 83,99,999 other choices.

But out of immense compassion He has bestowed this human birth on me - one in which I can follow the easy path of Nama Kirtan and attain the highest goal. This would not have been a possibility in any other birth.

They said to him, "Nanda! You are forever singing Nama. nAmam pADikkonDirundhAl sOru kiDaikkumA? Will singing Nama earn food?"

Nanda replied, "nAyum kUDa sOru thinnum nAmam pADumO? Even the dog eats food. But can it chant Nama?"

The great saint Nandanar gathered the people in his neighborhood and pleaded with them to sing the Divine Name. He pleaded, "Chant Namah Shivaya! Namah Shivaya!" The people resisted. All of them together approached Nandanar.

With this, he encapsulated the whole purpose of human birth in a single line. The 'EAT- SLEEP-REPEAT' pattern is an animal way of living.

One can make utmost use of the human birth only by chanting the divine names of Bhagavan. Bhagavan has not blessed us with just 'a' human birth, but 'a comfortable' one. He has ensured that we have a healthy body, a comfortable life in a peaceful place - where we are not in the midst of war or strife and unsure of our existence the very next moment of our lives. Sri Swamiji would say, "Having been blessed with this world, and enjoying all its comforts, one who does not chant Nama is betraying Bhagavan."

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan : 

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

So is singing devoid of Hari smarana (thinking of Lord Hari) a mere wail in the woods

 Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

In one such ugabhoga, Sri Purandaradasa says,

chorage chandrOdaya sogasuvude 

jArage sUryOdaya sogasuvude 

shrl ramaNana katheyu kaLLage mecchuvude

nArige nayavillada cheluvikeyu

harismaraNavillada hADikeyu

araNyarOdana purandara viTThala

"A thief does not cherish the rise of moon, nor does a paramour the sunrise. Would one with malice in heart relish listening to the pastimes of the Lord of Shri? O Purandara Vittala, as is beauty to a woman without modesty, so is singing devoid of Hari smarana (thinking of Lord Hari) a mere wail in the woods!"

Sri Andal teaches us the right way to do bhajan, in Tiruppavai. She says ' பாடி மனதினால் (vAyinAl pADi manadhinAl sing with the lips, and ' sindhikka) contemplate on Him with the mind. This indeed is the right way of singing. It is the thought of Bhagavan which ultimately purges all the sins.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan :

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

We can only aspire and pray sincerely to Srimati Radharani to bless us with such devotion and love

Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

This verse indirectly conveys how a person must feel upon hearing or singing Bhagavan's divine names. A commentator for this verse says that it is indeed an indication of sins, that a person doesn't experience all these bhAvAs even chanting or hearing the divine names multiple times! after

If the heart melts, then naturally there will be changes in facial expressions, tears in the eyes, and horripilation in the body. We can see from the charitra of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu that he always experienced all these, whenever he sang or heard the divine names of Bhagavan Sri Hari.

These are called bhAva lakshaNAs in devotion, and there are said to be 19 such bhAvA lakshaNAs. It is said that only Srimati Radha Rani experiences all of these!

Many devotees even faint, losing their consciousness, when the divine names and glories of Bhagavan are being sung. Maybe we cannot rise up to such a high state of ecstasy. But we can consider ourselves fortunate enough if we at least experience horripilation while singing the names and glories of Bhagavan. We can only aspire and pray sincerely to Srimati Radharani to bless us with such devotion and love

मातः समस्तजगतां मधुरानाथमोहिनि ।

माधुर्यरससुप्रीते प्रेमभिक्षां प्रयच्छ मे ॥

(from the Laghustotramala of Paranur Mahatma Sri Sri Krishnapremi Maharaj)

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan :

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

That person's heart (हृदयं) is indeed a hard iron rock ..............whose body does not experience horripilation (गात्ररुहेषु हर्षः), upon singing or hearing the Divine Names of Lord Hari (गृह्यमाणैः हरिनामधेयैः)!

 Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

 तदश्मसारं हृदयं बतेदं यद् गृह्यमाणैर्हरिनामधेयैः ।

न विक्रियेताथ यदा विकारो नेत्रे जलं गात्ररुहेषु हर्षः ।।

(Srimad Bhagavatham 2.3.24)

Alas! That person's heart (हृदयं) is indeed a hard iron rock (तद् अश्मसारं बत) which does not melt (न विक्रियेत), whose face does not reflect expressions of joy or bliss (यदा विकारो), whose his eyes do not swell with tears (नेत्रे जलं), and whose body does not experience horripilation (गात्ररुहेषु हर्षः), upon singing or hearing the Divine Names of Lord Hari (गृह्यमाणैः हरिनामधेयैः)!

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan :

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

Once the cool breeze of Guru's Grace starts blowing on our mind, bhakti arises. And in course of time, that bhakti itself destroys the mind

Source : Global Organisation for Divinity

HH Maharanyam Sri Sri Muralidhara Swamiji

When iron is exposed to moist air, it rusts. The rust produced from iron gradually corrodes and destroys the iron itself. Similarly, once the cool breeze of Guru's Grace starts blowing on our mind, bhakti arises. And in course of time, that bhakti itself destroys the mind.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan :

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

Narrating this story, Sri Swamiji would say, that is how we are whiling away our time. Every second wasted is a precious gem thrown into the vast sea - irretrievable.

 Source : Madhuramurali English Edition

There was once a boatman who was about to set off to fish in the dark hours of the morning. When he got into the boat, to keep the weight balanced, he looked for some object around to load in the other corner of the boat. He found a sack full of stones. He set into the sea. He had a good catch that day. He was overjoyed and as he rowed back, since the bag of stones were now replaced by the weight of the fish, he began throwing the stones out, one by one. As the sun began to rise at the horizon, and there was light, he was shocked at what he saw.

The sack that he thought was filled with stones, was actually one full of precious gems. Unaware of this, he had thrown most of of them out into the sea. What a waste! A waste due to ignorance! Narrating this story, Sri Swamiji would say, that is how we are whiling away our time. Every second wasted is a precious gem thrown into the vast sea - irretrievable.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan :

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

One could be with the world keeping a fire burning – the 'FIRE OF HIS NAME'.

 Source : Global Organisation for Divinity

SRI ANANDAMAYI MA

There is no need to renounce the world and run away.

One could be with the world keeping a fire burning – the 'FIRE OF HIS NAME'. The 'Fire of the Divine Name of the Lord' will burn down all impurities and lead the purified soul to Him.

Live your life in this world but keep Him along.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan :

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

However, if one's mind does not co-operate, all of these favourable factors will be rendered futile.

 Source : Global Organisation for Divinity

HH Maharanyam Sri Sri Muralidhara Swamiji

One desires to do a task. Time, God, family, wealth, and health favour fulfillment of the task. However, if one's mind does not co-operate, all of these favourable factors will be rendered futile.

Please check these: Excerpts from a discourse by our Sri Sri Muralidhara Swamiji

When we are idle, mind starts to play its game. If we do not want the mind to go astray, one should chant the Mahamantra kirtan incessantly. This is the easiest path.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan :

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

Those in satsang, face all troubles with ease, and journey towards Bhagavan's Feet, undeterred by challenges.

 Source : Global Organisation for Divinity

HH Maharanyam Sri Sri Muralidhara Swamiji

Those treading a spiritual path are not necessarily exempt from troubles in life. While we find it difficult to swim in the ocean, fishermen, out of practice, combat the waves easily and swim effortlessly. 

Similarly, those in satsang, face all troubles with ease, and journey towards Bhagavan's Feet, undeterred by challenges.

Chant the Mahamantra Nama kirtan :

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare