Sri Sanmodana Bhasyam, Part 9

Sri Sanmodana Bhasyam, Part 9

BY: SUN STAFF

Jun 26, 2010 — CANADA (SUN) — A commentary on Lord Caitanya’s ‘Siksastakam’ by HDG Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur, with a Bengali song for each verse that expands upon Mahaprabhu’s devotional moods (Sanskrit, 1886).

 

The jiva was imprisoned in the illusory, ephemeral kingdom of maya due to his turning away from Lord Krsna. Thus the conditioned soul has brought great misfortune upon himself; that misfortune is first and foremost his reluctance to serve the Lord.

 

Anyabhilasita means the base material desires which, when engaged in the karma and jnana processes, lead to different levels of material enjoyments. Thus his base desires for sense gratification, karma and jnana have deluded the jiva into forgetting his real svarupa (transcendental identity); they have propelled him into a whirlpool of misery.

 

Under the spell of anyabhilasita he is intoxicated by immediate sensual pleasures. Pious activities goad him to yearn for heavenly pleasures; his enjoyment of matter leads to frustration, and so he becomes engrossed in striving to realize the impersonal, non-differentiated Brahman.

 

The jiva’s own eternal desire is to engage in Lord Krsna’s service, but the residue of the practice of these three paths has smothered this proclivity and hidden his good fortune. Now he is caught up in the endless pursuit of religiosity, material wealth, and sense gratification; thereafter, being harassed by the frustrations of his own sins, anarthas and lust, he pursues liberation.

 

In this way he has become the choice candidate for committing namaparadhas. If he takes up chanting, he is unable to avoid the ten offenses. Due to his offenses, he cannot chant purely.

 

He first gets the opportunity to chant when he soberly reviews the hopeless chaos of the never ending conflict in his life; such introspection forces the jiva to deeply consider his own good. The yearning for a peaceful solution to the endless torment of the unquenchable thirst for enjoyment draws him to the shelter of the holy name of the Lord.

 

Thus he begins to chant, initially indifferent to the proper understanding of sambandhajnana (knowledge of the relationship between God, His sakti, and the jiva). Such chanting is known as namabhasa or the semblance of the pure name. Namabasa is not the holy name proper, but it results in the severance of the jiva’s ties with the material mentality: he no longer sees everything materially. Gradually he becomes eligible to render transcendental devotional service to the Supreme Lord. But only very elevated souls who have become completely immune to the onslaught of misfortune and offense can obtain pure love of Krsna by inoffensive chanting.

 

Lord Caitanya, knowing the ill fate of the conditioned souls of this age, descended to spread the message of the chanting the holy name of God. He saw in the jivas their apathy to the holy name, and gave voice to it in this verse. Yet even in such depths of human misfortune the Lord’s causeless mercy is available.

 

There is indeed a way to escape the steely clutches of namaparadha. First one must recognize and isolate his offenses; he must conscientiously avoid them, simultaneously chanting continuously. This will keep namaparadha at bay, allowing one to reap the benefit of namabhasa chanting.

 

Namabhasa chanting elevates one to actual mukti or liberation, meaning freedom from the influence of and dependence upon matter; only thereafter does one become competent to chant the pure name.

 

The opportunity afforded to us by namabhasa chanting is but an indication of the Lord’s unlimitedly flowing compassion. Thus, the simple chanting of the principal names of God brings about the best and only real benediction to humanity.

 

When the jiva attempts to grasp at insignificant, evanescent material fruits, he is enmeshed in stringent regulations, the factors of time, place and circumstance, and the struggle with the limitations of his own ability to perform the complicated rituals. But one who chants the holy name of the Supreme Lord faces no such insurmountable obstacles, by the Lord’s causeless mercy. In the Caitanya Bhagavat we find this statement: “Always remember to chant the holy name in the sleeping, eating or waking hours. There are no hard and fast rules of chanting, so chant all the time.” The same instruction is repeated in the Sri Caitanya Caritamrita.

 

In the Skandha Purana it is stated:

 

“The potency to destroy sin, the all auspicious potency, the potencies residing in pious acts of charity, vows, penances etc., the potencies of all the places of pilgrimage, the potencies in the asvamedha and raja-suya yajnas, the potency in knowledge of the Absolute – these potencies have been assembled together by the Supreme Lord Hari and channeled into His holy name, making it all powerful.”

 

From the Vaisvanara Samhita:

 

“There are no fixed times or considerations of cleanliness and uncleanliness regarding the chanting of the holy name. Simply the repeated utterance of Rama, Rama is enough to liberate the jiva from his material bondage.”

 

Srimad Bhagavatam 3.9.3) states:

 

“O my Lord, persons who are bereft of the all-auspicious performance of chanting and hearing about Your transcendental activities are certainly unfortunate and are also bereft of good sense. They engage in inauspicious activities, enjoying sense gratification for a very little while.”

 

“One who thinks himself lower than the grass, who is more tolerant than a tree, and who does not expect personal honor but is always prepared to give all respect to others, can very easily always chant the holy name of the Lord.”