English
Hare Krishna to you all chanters. You will be pleased to know that, ISKCON Pune distributed 200000 Bhagavad-Gitas this marathon.
For our chanting session we had 307 participants today, which is the maximum till now. You are seeing me most of the time, but I get to see all of you, on a bigger screen. Seeing you all chanting from all over the world is a kind of ‘Vishwarup-darsans’. This kind of chanting is becoming more and more popular. I am seeing devotees from New Jersey and Burma today. I met devotees from Bangalore at the airport while coming to Pune. They were discussing among them that they saw each other in the chanting session. They told me that they are becoming my fans. I have some fans. Kirtana Mela fan, this kind of fan or that kind of fan and now Japa session fans. So keep chanting.
I saw some of you are chanting together and talking with each other in between. Don't talk in-between unless it is an emergency that you must talk to devotee sitting next to you. Don’t do that. You are already busy. Chanting means you are busy. You are occupied. You are with Krsna. Just focus, concentrate on the business of chanting. CHANT WHILE CHANTING. Don't mix it with anything else. Let it be the exclusive business of chanting only. Be with Krsna. I know it's not easy, but at least we should try to hear the complete mantra. We are saying, but not listening. Then the circuit is not complete and there will be a short circuit when we say but do not hear the complete mantra. Hear with concentration. Do not waste even a drop of the nectar.
It has 16 names. ‘ iti sodashaka namnam kali klalmash nashanam.’ (Kali Santaran Upanishad- text 6).Hear all the names. And remember while hearing those names. Srvanam kirtanam has to result in remembrance. Meditative chanting is remembering. You are meditating on Krsna. Krsna’s form. You have to do mananam of this. You are meditating on the qualities of Krsna, pastimes of Krsna. Devotees , associates of Krsna. I am meditating upon you- the devotees, the chanters. Meditating on the 'Virat-rupa’. Souls are chanting. I have to make you all pure devotees of Sri Krsna. That is remembrance of the devotees. That is the part of my meditation.
Japa as we understand from the scriptures that you have to do ‘mananam’. You repeat over again and again the names of the Lord - utter and recite , hear and contemplate, reflect i.e. mananam. Try to digest, assimilate Krsna. Make Krsna part of your consciousness. Part of you. They say animals eat two times. First they gobble up, and then they sit down and chew the food. When animals eat the second time, that is assimilated. That enters their system or blood and that gives them energy , life. They thrive on that. So while chanting, that kind of reflection, contemplation, assimilation is ‘mananam’. That is what he did. In Bhagavat- Mahatmya it is mentioned, Gokarna was doing Katha. At the end of it the celestial plane from Vaikuntha landed and Dhundakari was told to take a seat by air-hosts - Visnudutas. Gokarna asked why they were taking only one person back home. Visnudutas explained that every one listened but this person did ‘mananam’. Only one person assimilated the Katha, digested the Katha. Made the Katha and Lila as part of his life. Katha consists of all the aspects of Krsna i.e. Nama-Kirtana, roop- Kirtan, Leela-kirtan of Krsna. So only one person, digested and assimilated the Katha. They also mentioned other aspects like 'Faith’. They said that only this person had genuine faith in what he was hearing. He also had faith in reciter. But they mainly stressed on the 'Manan’ part. Even when the Katha ended , he kept thinking and remembering the Katha which he heard. He was trying to make that as part of him, make that as his consciousness.
So with the chanting also we have to do this 'mananam’ part, remembrance part, 'smaranam’ part. That is why it is called as 'Naam-smaran’. You have to remember the name. How do you remember the name? Name is Krsna. abhinnatvat ma'am namino. (C.C. madhya Leela. ? text.)So remember to “Remember” , by chanting of 'Hare Krishna’. So keep practicing this chanting day in and day out, every day. You have to make endeavor to hear, and Chant and remember.
Hare Krishna! Gaur premande Hari Haribol !!
