NATURE OF THE
HOLY NAME
slokas
Given by: Dayavan das
etan nirvidyamānānām
icchatām akuto-bhayam
yoginā n pa nir īta
harer nāmānukīrtanam
etat — it is; nirvidyamānānām — of those who are completely free
from all material desires; icchatām — of those who are desirous of all
sorts of material enjoyment; akuta -bhayam — free from all doubts
and fear; yoginām — of all who are self-satisfied; n pa — O King;
nir ītam — decided truth; hare — of the Lord, Śrī K a; nāma —
holy name; anu — after someone, always; kīrtanam — chanting.
O King, constant chanting of the holy name of the Lord after
the ways of the great authorities is the doubtless and fearless
way of success for all, including those who are free from all
material desires, those who are desirous of all material
enjoyment, and also those who are self-satisfied by dint of
transcendental knowledge. (SB 2.1.11)
2
tasmād bhārata sarvātmā
bhagavān īśvaro hari
śrotavya kīrtitavyaś ca
smartavyaś cecchatābhayam
tasmāt — for this reason; bhārata — O descendant of Bharata; sarvātmā — the
Supersoul; bhagavān — the Personality of Godhead; īśvara — the controller;
hari — the Lord, who vanquishes all miseries; śrotavya — is to be heard;
kīrtitavya — to be glorified; ca — also; smartavya — to be remembered; ca —
and; icchatā — of one who desires; abhayam — freedom.
O descendant of King Bharata, one who desires to be free
from all miseries must hear about, glorify and also remember
the Personality of Godhead, who is the Supersoul, the
controller and the savior from all miseries. (SB 2.1.5)
3
gītvā ca mama nāmāni vicaren mama sannidhau iti
bravīmi te satya krīto’ha tasya cārjuna
K a says in the Ādi Purā a:
“By singing My Holy Names, a person will attain a position
close to Me.
I make this promise. That person, O Arjuna, purchases Me.”
(Bhakti rasamrta sindhu 1.2.231, NOD 12 chapter)
4
kali-kāle nāma-rūpe k a-avatāra
nāma haite haya sarva-jagat-nistāra
kali-kāle — in this Age of Kali; nāma-rūpe — in the form of the holy name; k a —
Lord K a; avatāra — incarnation; nāma — holy name; haite — from; haya —
becomes; sarva — all; jagat — of the world; nistāra — deliverance.
“In this Age of Kali, the holy name of the Lord, the Hare K a
mahā-mantra, is the incarnation of Lord K a. Simply by
chanting the holy name, one associates with the Lord directly.
Anyone who does this is certainly delivered. (CC Adi 17.22)
5
harer nāma harer nāma
harer nāmaiva kevalam
kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva
nāsty eva gatir anyathā
hare nāma — the holy name of the Lord; hare nāma — the holy name of the Lord;
hare nāma — the holy name of the Lord; eva — certainly; kevalam — only; kalau —
in this Age of Kali; na asti — there is none; eva — certainly; na asti — there is none;
eva — certainly; na asti — there is none; eva — certainly; gati — progress; anyathā
— otherwise.
“ ‘For spiritual progress in this Age of Kali, there is no alternative,
there is no alternative, there is no alternative to the holy name,
the holy name, the holy name of the Lord.’ (CC Adi 7.76)
6
nāma cintāma i k aś
caitanya-rasa-vigraha
pūr a śuddho nitya-mukto
’bhinnatvān nāma-nāmino
nāma — the holy name; cintāma i — transcendentally blissful giver of all spiritual
benedictions; k a — not different from K a; caitanya-rasa-vigraha — the form of all
transcendental mellows; pūr a — complete; śuddha — pure, without material contamin-
ation; nitya — eternal; mukta — liberated; abhinnatvāt — due to not being different; nāma
— of the holy name; nāmino — and of the person who has the name.
“ ‘The holy name of K a is transcendentally blissful. It bestows all
spiritual benedictions, for it is K a Himself, the reservoir of all pleasure.
K a’s name is complete, and it is the form of all transcendental
mellows. It is not a material name under any condition, and it is no less
powerful than K a Himself. Since K a’s name is not contaminated
by the material qualities, there is no question of its being involved with
māyā. K a’s name is always liberated and spiritual; it is never
conditioned by the laws of material nature. This is because the name
of K a and K a Himself are identical.’ (CC Madhya 17.133)
7
syāt k a-nāma-caritādi-sitāpy avidyā-
pittopatapta-rasanasya na rocikā nu
kintv ādarād anudina khalu saiva ju ā
svādvī kramād bhavati tad-gada-mūla-hantrī
syāt — is; k a — of Lord K a; nāma — the holy name; carita-ādi — character,
pastimes and so forth; sitā — sugar candy; api — although; avidyā — of ignorance; pitta
— by the bile; upatapta — afflicted; rasanasya — of the tongue; na — not; rocikā —
palatable; nu — oh, how wonderful it is; kintu — but; ādarāt — carefully; anudinam —
every day, or twenty-four hours daily; khalu — naturally; sā — that (sugar candy of the
holy name); eva — certainly; ju ā — taken or chanted; svādvī — relishable; kramāt —
gradually; bhavati — becomes; tat-gada — of that disease; mūla — of the root; hantrī
— the destroyer.
The holy name, character, pastimes and activities of K a are all
transcendentally sweet like sugar candy. Although the tongue of one
afflicted by the jaundice of avidyā [ignorance] cannot taste anything
sweet, it is wonderful that simply by carefully chanting these sweet
names every day, a natural relish awakens within his tongue, and his
disease is gradually destroyed at the root. (NOI, 7)
8
ceto-darpa a-mārjana bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpa a
śreya -kairava-candrikā-vitara a vidyā-vadhū-jīvanam
ānandāmbudhi-vardhana prati-pada pūr ām tāsvādana
sarvātma-snapana para vijayate śrī-k a-sa kīrtanam
Glory to the Sri Krishna Sankirtana which cleanses the heart of all
the dust accumulated for years together. Thus the fire of conditional
life, of repeated birth and death, is extinguished. This Samkirtan
movement is the prime benediction for humanity at large because
it spreads the rays of the benediction Moon. It is the life of all
transcendental knowledge, it increases the ocean of transcendental
bliss, and it helps to have a taste of the full nectar for which we are
always anxious. (Sri Siksastaka, 1)
9
nāmnām akāri bahudhā nija-sarva-śaktis
tatrārpitā niyamita smara e na kāla
etād śī tava k pā bhagavan mamāpi
durdaivam īd śam ihājani nānurāga
O my Lord! Your Holy Name alone can render all benediction upon the
living beings, and therefore You have hundreds and millions of Names,
like Krishna, Govinda, etc. In these transcendental Names You have
invested all Your transcendental energies, and there is no hard and fast
rule for chanting these Holy Names. O my Lord! You have so kindly
made approach to You easy by Your Holy Names, but, unfortunate as
I am, I have no attraction for Them. (Sri Siksastaka, 2)
10
t ād api su-nīcena
taror api sahi unā
amāninā māna-dena
kīrtanīya sadā hari
One can chant the Holy Name of the Lord in a humble state of mind,
thinking himself lower than the straw in the street, more tolerant than
the tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige, and ready to offer all
respects to others. In such a state of mind one can chant the Holy
Name of the Lord constantly. (Sri Siksastaka, 3)
11
na dhana na jana na sundarī
kavitā vā jagad-īśa kāmaye
mama janmani janmanīśvare
bhavatād bhaktir ahaitukī tvayi
O almighty Lord! I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor I have
any desire to enjoy beautiful women; neither do I want any number of
followers of mine. What I want only is that I may have Your causeless
devotional service in my life—birth after birth. (Sri Siksastaka, 4)
12
ayi nanda-tanūja ki kara
patita mā vi ame bhavāmbudhau
k payā tava pāda-pa kaja-
sthita-dhūlī-sad śa vicintaya
O Son of Maharaj Nanda, I am Your eternal servitor, and although I
am so, somehow or other I have fallen in the ocean of birth and death.
Please, therefore, pick me up from this ocean of death, and fix me as
one of the atoms of Your Lotus Feet. (Sri Siksastaka, 5)
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