A nice idea to keep quality control with your Japa is to record them. Change the breathing pattern. Remember, you are doing this to please Radha Govinda. You can imagine They are listening to you, and you are offering Them to hear the names of Their Beloved. When you say Hare you think of Krishna. When you say Krishna and Rama you think of Sri Radhika. According to Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Rama means Radha Ramana, One who gives pleasure to Sri Rai.
Also in the Nectar Of Devotion it is stated 48 times to meditate on Krishna’s lotus feet This can be done while you are chanting Hare Krishna. These three instructions are the most important instructions of the Guru and the Sastras;
1) Remember Radha Krishna,
2) associate with advanced devotees and
3) to meditate on Krishna’s lotus feet.
And of course the chanting of Hare Krishna Maha Mantra.
Once you have your Japa perfect, then you can advance to the next level of incorporating the meditation of those lotus feet.
While chanting your Japa, you begin with the barleycorn and in the order given above chant one Maha Mantra per sign. There are the 4 swastikas, 4 rose apples and 4 water pots. Adding up all the impressions there are 27 in total. Twenty- seven times 4 comes to be 108.So in this way as you chant each Mantra, you visualize these signs.
At the end of just one round, what to speak of all 16, these signs will become branded in the brain, so that every time you simply touch your beads the lotus feet of Sri Murlidara will come to your conciousness. Always remembering this is to be done to please your Istha deva Everything is for Radha Gopijanavallabha’ s pleasure! Now probably for the first time you will be controlling the mind, as the mind will be having a job; to go from one sign to another. And because you have been practicing to chant the Names in a mood of devotion, You will be attentive and will feel a sense of completion of a monumental task, like swimming across a lake.
Now you will soon be finished with offensive chanting and now move into the Nama abhasa category, thus you will experience a significant changing of your consciousness. This is so much very important. For now the stages of sraddha, will become very strong because of the association (which is Sadhu Sanga)of the Rasika Acaryas via their books.
This is a section of the book “For Their Pleasure”.
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