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chitown82

chanting hare krishna, hare rama...silently?

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Guest love_alliance18

 

it is said the chanting of hare krishna, hare rama etc is quite powerful. i was wondering if one must chant out loud or can you obtain the same effects from chanting silently (in your head)?

 

Respected chitown82,

 

You can chant mantras as you want. There are no restrictions on chanting mantras. Still, i would suggest you to chant mantras silently as there are several instances in holy books where we can find that mantras shall be chanted silently.

 

With Best Regards,

 

God Bless All!!

 

Om Namah Shivaya!!

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traditonally mantras are considered as guhya (secret) because they are the gateways to liberation . so there are a number of rules while dealing with mantras . traditional hinduism(and vaishnavism) did not allow loud public chanting of mantras . although it is not explicitely forbidden , it is definately considered an inferior form of chanting. speaking the mantra audibly is called baachik jap , chanting it in a extremely low tone , so as only you can hear to yourself is called vaikhari jap and mental uninterrupted chanting is called manasik jap and is considered the best of all .

 

chaitanya mahaprabhu brought about this change in hinduism through his congretional kirtan and loud chanting . he argued that although mental jap is uttama , nowhere it is forbidden to chant loudly . infact chanting loudly helps other fallen souls and animals to listen and be delivered . so it is even more selfless and meritorious than silent japa .

 

if you can maintain the concentration there is no difference between mental and audible japa . but low voice japa sometimes helps us in proper concentration to the mantrartha !

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The samkirtana movement which embraces the congregational chanting of hare krsna is a "selfless service" movement. The vaisnava is not just engaged in a process for liberation, in fact, liberation is considered a selfish motive. Therefore, the main proponant of samkirtana, Srila AC Bhaktivedanta Swami, did not think that silent chanting is valid. Now whispering, silent, thats okay, but mental? No way, this is not even meditation in this age, because the mind is in constant turmoil, and other things are constantly invading.

 

We engage our senses in the performance of bhakti yoga. Its okay to think about krsna and the mantra, but no senses are engaged in samkirtana yajna. The lips must move, and since hearing is primary, one must hear the mantra for ultimate effect. "Chant" does not mean "think, chant means certain volume is employed, so others may hear as well.

 

Hare Krsna, ys, mahaksadasa

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The vaisnava is not just engaged in a process for liberation, in fact, liberation is considered a selfish motive

 

Why not doesnt this mantra eradicate sins also,a way of eradicating karma.

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Haribol. Bhakti yoga is not goal-oriented. Lord Chaitanya is the perfect example. There is nothing in Krsna Consciousness for him, all he does is for His Lord. The acaryas are this way as well, no self-motivation. Salvation may be fully awarded the devotee, but this is never any reason whatsoever for a devotee to undertake his bhakti (devotional SERVICE). Lord Chaitanya does not reject liberation (You may embrace me), but his feeling is that rejection or acceptance by the object of his Love is of no consequence, he remains steadfast devoted either way.

 

Maya cannot exist in the presence of the Holy Name, therefore, you are correct in saying eradication of sins and karma takes place. But eradication of karma also means eradication of good reaction, which is exactly what is meant by liberation. Liberation is the freedom from the shackles of the material realm. But one also considers what is on the mind of the nitya siddha, one who is already eternally liberated. They descend into hell to retrieve, in service to the object of their love, those who are burdened there. They actually reject liberation because they are quite bored with all the good fortune they personally enjoy.

 

In other words, in modern lingo, its not about ME. Liberation is all about me, how my suffering and how my desire to end my suffering in the world of birth and death and all the horror in between (and in common sense fairness, all the enjoyment in between as well) is the priority of my life. A Vaisnava has only one desire, steadfast, that Krsnas needs are met, about how his feet must be protected against the hard stones he walks upon, for the vaisnava, there is no one whose needs take priority over krsna, be it family, race, nation, religion system, self awareness or even the shanti stage of santarasa. The devotee is actually beyond all self motivation. If Krsna needs a grotesque demon to slaughter on some planet, his liberated devotees all quickly volunteer to be ravana, duryodhana, or any raksa rascal at all, even if his very existance is the disgust of all future generations of his planetary peers. If Krsna needs a competitor, his devoteesd are the first to want to give him what he desires. Rasa is also chivalrous. Krsna doesnt really kill demons, demons never get such opportunity, only pure unalloyed liberated devotees can get such honor as to be skewed by a spear thrown by Rama.

 

Hope ya get my gist here, hare krsna, ys, mahaksadasa

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yes thanks

i got that earlier only from your previous post-'devotees want to serve'

my fault.

Thanks for elaborating.

But tell me one more thing isnt ones nature of the self.

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