Discussion includes; Offenses, nama aparadha, nama abhasa, shuddha nama: what they are, what they do, what is the result.
Three general stages of advancement are found among the chanters of Hare Krsna mantra. These are 1 Nama aparadha, 2 nama abhasa, and 3 shuddha nama. ie offensive stage, clearing stage, and pure stage.
The holy Names reward varying results, dependent upon the motivation, and thus the chanter is restricted or awarded due to proper understanding and motivation, or not, of the chanter. Due to ill-conceived notions and duplicity in spiritual undertakings, the chanter may be chanting for reasons not in his or her real best interests. For example, a person thinking the Name to be equal to pious activities or sacrifice desires material rewards, such as heaven or wealth etc., and is rewarded same, which is actually a punishment for offenses committed. Material gains further entangle the self and deviate it from its true best interests, which are not in the realm of temporary happiness in material pleasures. Such is nama aparadha, or offensive chanting. It is always contaminated by material misconcepts.
"The Divine Logos is generated by the vibration of the tongue and the lips when such vibration is caused by the mind that has been liberated from all inclination to physical enjoyment. Such activity of the mind is due to the spiritual impulse that transcends all selfish enjoyment. This impulse comes from the immaculate soul as soon as it begins to function untrammeled by the physical mind and body. As soon as the divine Logos is generated, it dispels the darkness of the state of bondage of the hearers and brings about the rise of the Sun of the holy Names.
The domination of the physical body, and mind is strenghtend if the Sun of the holy Name is shut out by the intervening screen of the mirage of the physical body, including earthly treasures, great assemblies of men, and greed for material objects. The erroneous notion that the Name of Krishna is on a level withthe names of objects other than Krishna, is due to the belief that Krishna or the Divinity cam be equalled by objects other than Krishna, etc. But as soon as this interval is eliminated, the self-refulgent Sun of the holy Names stands manifest as the object of the perennial devotion of the jiva, who is in their true nature the eternal servant of Krishna" Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura, from the booklet Thakura Haridasa
Nama abhasa, or the dim reflection of the Names, the second or clearing stage, is achieved when one is guileless, non-duplicitous, and has heard from and sincerely attempting to act upon the instructions of the Sri Guru. Such chanting is rewarded with liberation even up to Vaikuntha, and also as a mere by-product, full mystic powers arise.
Nama abhasa, the clearing stage of chanting, then rewards the chanter with pure chanting, shudddha nama. This is the real benefit, one to be sought after with great desire. Bhavas can arise in even impure chanters. The holy Names in nama abhasa stage gives the chanter eventual admittance into the realm of bhavas or ecstasies and acts to purify one, even up to shuddha nama chanting, or pure chanting. It is not that one has to become perfect and pure, and only then the result is bhavas. Bhavas or ecstasies are Divine Mercy, not a mechanical result of a process . Nama abhasa or the dim reflection of pure nama , is merciful to the sincere chanter.
Shudddha Nam is pure Nam, and rewards love of God, and all the soulful pleasures that are the soul's natural inheritance, though the pure souls desire only loving services to Radha-Krishna, not selfish pleasures per se. Such chanting is achieved via the mood of spiritual blues, a yearning for association with the Supreme Beloved and His servitors in one.s original spiritual identity.
"Sri Krishan Nama is a Divine Panacea for all ills. The process of chanting the Divine Name (Sri Nama Sankirtana) is very easy and at the same time most difficult, to acquire and get habituated to, if the highest aim of gaining Sri Krsna Prema forms the be-all and end-all of one.s life. As in the holy word of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Who is aptly described as the Explanation of the Mystery of Sri Krishna, every aspirant after Krishna Prema must be 1. humbler than a blade of grass being simultaneously respectable, 2. more forbearing than even a tree, 3. eschew all craving for name and fame, 4. respect all others as his superiors, and 5., incessantly chant the Name "Krishna" with a feeling of love-sickness as that of a beloved seperated from her lover." SBSS, Thakura Haridas
Due to ignorance of our relationship with Krishna we are liable to committ ten varieties of offenses in chanting at the feet of Divinity in the form of the holy Name.
Thakur Haridas has given his elaboration of the ten offenses as follows;
"The first offense is slandering sadhus. The holy Name has to be taken without committing this grave offense.
The second offense is committed if we suppose tht the other gods exist independently of Sri Krishna.
The third offense arises if Sri Gurudeva who knows Krishna is disregarded in any way.
The fourth offense is the fatal consequence of decrying the holy scriptures.
The fifth offense is caused if one supposes the glories of the holy Name are merely eulogistic ( mythical) and also by incredulity in regard to the infinite results mentioned in the scriptures that flow from the holy Name.
The sixth offence occurs if sin is committed through confidence in the power of the holy Name to save from the consequences of sinful acts.
The seventh offense is committed by instructing a disbeliever in the mystery of the holy Name.
8 The holy Name should never be considered as being on a level with other good deeds. Such an attitude is held by inexperienced devotees to constititue the eight offense.
The ninth offense is inattentiveness. It is a very great obstacle and effectively prevents the attainment of loving devotion with the mighty obstructive force of an infuriated elephant.
The tenth offense is very difficult to get rid of. It prevents the very beggiunnings of the love for the Name. The apostle of the holy Name, Brahma Haridas, calls it the offense of "I" and "mine".
By serving the holy Name avoiding carefully these ten offenses the nama abasa, dim glow of the holy Nme manifests itself. (clearing, nama abhasa stage). The dim glow of the Name, (nama abhasa clearing stage) removes all sinfulness whereupon the unalloyed Name, ( Shuddha nam or pure Name) makes its appeance and bestows love of God."
Haridāsa Ṭhākura said that liberation and freedom from the reactions of sinful activities are only by-products of chanting the holy name of the Lord. If one chants the holy name of the Lord purely, he attains the platform of loving service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In this regard Haridāsa Ṭhākura gave an example comparing the power of the holy name to sunshine.
ei ślokera artha kara paṇḍitera gaṇa"
sabe kahe,—'tumi kaha artha-vivaraṇa'
He placed a verse before all the learned scholars present, but the learned scholars asked him to state the purport of the verse.
haridāsa kahena,—"yaiche sūryera udaya
udaya nā haite ārambhe tamera haya kṣaya
Haridāsa Ṭhākura said that as the sun begins to rise, it dissipates the darkness of night, even before the sunshine is visible.
caura-preta-rākṣasādira bhaya haya nāśa
udaya haile dharma-karma-ādi parakāśa
Before the sunrise even takes place, the light of dawn destroys the fear of the dangers of the night, such as disturbances by thieves, ghosts and Rākṣasas, and when the sunshine actually appears, one engages in his duties.
aiche nāmodayārambhe pāpa-ādira kṣaya
udaya kaile kṛṣṇa-pade haya premodaya
Similarly, even before one's chanting of the holy name is pure, one is freed from all sinful reactions, and when he chants purely he becomes a lover of Kṛṣṇa.
'mukti' tuccha-phala haya nāmābhāsa haite
ye mukti bhakta nā laya, se kṛṣṇa cāhe dite"
A devotee never accepts mukti, even if Kṛṣṇa offers it. Mukti, freedom from all sinful reactions, is obtained even by nāmābhāsa, or a glimpse of the light of the holy name before its full light is perfectly visible.
The nāmābhāsa stage is between that of nāma-aparādha, or chanting of the holy name with offenses, and pure chanting. There are three stages in chanting the holy name of the Lord. In the first stage, one commits ten kinds of offenses while chanting. In the next stage, nāmābhāsa, the offenses have almost stopped, and one is coming to the platform of pure chanting. In the third stage, when one chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra without offenses, his dormant love for Kṛṣṇa immediately awakens. This is the perfection."
Srila Prabhupada Srimad Bhagavatam, 5.24.20, Purport
We will enter into a further description in part three to follow shortly...
Comments
From an email conversation;
YES, ACARYAS TEACH ACCORDING TO TIME AND CIRCUMSTANCES, THEN IT IS A QUESTION OF INDIVIDUAl ITEMS. so far as we are discussing siddhantic absolute, that does not vary. Only a liberated soul makes such determinations, hence the reqUIREMENT tO CONSULT THEM. For me, i consult Srila Prabhupada, and if others seem to differ, it is my limited understanding, and i do not concern myself much with anyone elses conclusions except those of my spiritual master.
"The Divine Logos is generated by the vibration of the tongue and the lips when such vibration is caused by the mind that has been liberated from all inclination to physical enjoyment. Such activity of the mind is due to the spiritual impulse tht transcends all selfish enjoyment. This impulse comes from the immaculate soul as soon as it begins to function untrammeled by the physical mind and body. As soon as the divine Logos is generated, it dispels the darkness of the state of bondage of the hearers and brings about the rise of the Sun of the holy Names. The domination of the physical body, earthly treasures, great assemblies of men, greed for material objects. The erroneous notion that the Name of Krishna is on a level with names of objects other than Krishna is due to the belief that that Krishna or the Divinity cam be equalled by objects other than Krishna, etc. But as soon as this interval is eliminated, the self-refulgent Sun of th holy Names stands manifest as the object of the perennial devotion of the jiva, who is in their true nature the eternal servant of Krishna"
ie Krishna is eternal, the soul is eternal servant of Krishna, this has no begining in spiritual state, the notion of beggining and end is specualtive reasonning, it is the mind attempting to stretch by speculation, therefore to curb such speculative offense, some acaryas have said the unmanifest state of Narayana in cosmic sleep is the origin of the souls, while in spiritual truth jivera svarupa haya nitya krsnadasa. Although great acaryas have arisen, Srila Prabhupada is the summum bonum as he is a pure student of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta in fullest measure and the Great General come to dispel all influences of maya as predicted by Locanadas Thakura. so he has given something more than a nice trick to stop the speculators. he has presented a longer time span for our understanding than our latest falldown and entrance into Narayana and then small scale time to say we come from there. Before there, we were with Krsna if one goes back or forward as it were, to eternal time. This is reality untouched by mundane tainted reasonning.
You point out some instances of application of pancaratiki viddhi, ie rules of worshipthat differ in India versus Western iskcon, etc but that is not siddhanta,it is application of practices according to time and circumstances, so is not an argument in favor that the siddhanta is varied East versus West.
Gour Govinda Swami liked to point out srutis saying one must physically hear the mantra through the ear from living gurus, but we know that the word of guru is living, therefore tapes etc can be used in Prabhupada.s case. Krishna accepts this as truth, despite there being some seeming contradiction in behaviorswith previous acaryas statements in terms of our accepting gayatri etc through tapes. Srila Prabhupada is an extension of Mahaprabhus Divine Mercy, and as such oversteps the limits imposed and Krshna accepts this, so it is not relative truth but absolute . SP is and was more than the other acaryas, certainly so far as th world is concerned. They like to end there, but actually GGS further stated that SP i more merciful, therrefore we use tapes, and he also used tapes for his lecture etc. so mercy and love rule, not logic nor limited presentations with a purpose towards preaching to mayavadis etc.
If it is impossible to actually find an ideal relationship with a wife or husband etc in this world, then a perfect relationship with a great variety of tastes and beautiful perfections is available to those who fully and sincerely and with committment contemplate worship love and serve the Divine Couple.
By mercy of Nitai Gauranga, Jaya Sri Sri Radha Krishna!
In our sojourn on this planet, we do not always have the opportunity to meet many great devotees from the transcendental realm. Nevertheless, there is no reason to be disappointed; the dialogues and pastimes of Śrīman Mahāprabhu and His associates are eternally present in the form of spiritual literature. If I perpetually immerse myself in bhagavad-kathā while residing in this world, I shall, without a doubt, be benefited, and nothing shall ever cause me any harm.
By the sweet will of Bhagavān, we shall realize His mercy, the subject of His bhakti, and remembrance of Him, no matter where we stay – even amidst all sorts of worldly talks and activities – if we simply continue to hear and discuss harikathā. In whatever state Bhagavān is satisfied and pleased to keep His devotees, it is appropriate for them to stay in that very state and to forget all of their sorrows.
When the inclination to serve Śrī Bhagavān arises in the heart by associating with the devotees and regularly hearing harikathā, one is able to remember Śrī Hari, the Supreme Lord, in all circumstances.
In order to test us, the Supreme Lord remains just behind the veil of the material world. By perceiving the presence of Bhagavān’s mercy in every event and circumstance, no distress shall remain in our life. In fact, this material world is specifically the place where the Supreme Lord examines us. In order to pass this exam, one must listen to harikathā spoken by the pure devotees of the Lord. Presently, even though we may not always get the opportunity to hear harikathā in the physical association of the devotees, if we listen to harikathā in the form of reading sacred books, we will not feel the deficiency of physical association so much.
The devotees of the Lord are able to have darśana of the Lord everywhere, while the non-devotees, who are envious of the Lord, do not even believe that the Supreme Lord exists.
We are presently situated midway. That is, sometimes we show an inclination towards hari-seva, but in the next moment we busy ourselves in sense enjoyment. Only when the desire to be immersed in hari-seva becomes dominant in us can we find relief from sense enjoyment. Within material sense objects, we may find temporary happiness and distress for ourselves, but hari-seva is meant for the pleasure of the Supreme Lord. Therefore, we shall eternally strive to remain engaged in His service solely for the purpose of giving Him that pleasure.
SBSS
It just gets better right to the end of the series. You will be benefitted, I guarantee.
Hare Krsna, nice question. Well, We never had such things as japa workshops in Srila Prabhupada's time. The Radha gopi bhava club also arose at that time, and Srila Prabhupada shut it down with vehemence. There is a preferred tendency amongst our acaryas to keep it simple and not concoct unnecessary things. I suppose these japa workshops should be examined individually, but on the whole, the idea is bogus. Our japa workshops are every day. Do they charge money for them?
Also, Srila Prabhupada was very displeased with devotees who took up chanting 64 rounds instead of doing devotional services. He knows that Westerners cannot do this, generally, barring many from even joining the Movement, and also that there needs to be time for sankirtan activities, not sitting and quote, "japa-ing" in the temple all day.
Certainly it is not the case that chanting more japa is bad, but we are a parivrajakacarya ie preaching movement, soldiers. We do not sit back like Babajis all day japaing. One wants to chant 24 hours nonstop, but this is done as in conjunct with our other essential world-saving services, not seperately. On ekadasi, Srila Prabhupada said we can chant 24 rounds, but to reduce sleeping and eating, not services, to do so. Also, Babajis, sick person, etc can chant more, as they are incapable of other more active services.
The following excerpt indicates his priorities to us;
BY HIS DIVINE GRACE A. C. BHAKTIVEDANTA SWAMI PRABHUPADA My advice to you under the circumstances is that at least for one hour you must all go to have sankirtana outside on the streets or in the park. That is your life and soul, first business. The next business is completing the chanting of 16 rounds every day. The next business is your editing. And if you find extra time then you can attend the temple ceremonies. Otherwise you can stop these activities. But outdoor kirtana, your editing work, and chanting of 16 rounds must be done. Outdoor kirtana must be done, even at the cost of suspending all editorial work. That is your first and foremost business. Temple worship is not so important. If need be, the whole temple can be locked. But the outdoor kirtana cannot be stopped. (Letter to Rayarama, 17 May 1969)
So we see, spreading the chanting is our prime focus.
Of course, for a lay person, someone new, such workshops could be revolutionarily fine, good association, and good preaching. But for regular devotees ? Only in special circumstances, not as a regular function, that is sure.
Editing is the personal service of one of the devotees who Srila Prabhupada is writing to. Editing and printing of books is also high priority,as it supports the sankirtan efforts. Books provide income, and carry the revolutionary messages to everyone. In this case, editing would include typing out, spell checks of translated lectures etc and/or recorded purports on the tape machine, and to be put in the required formats for printing the paper. Pictures would also be inserted.