Today (19th May 2025) in the Srimad Bhagavatam class at Iskcon Newtown Kolkata, HG Maharas Prabhu spoke about the importance of offenseless chanting. Prabhuji was speaking on the verse SB 11.03.25.
Translation of the Srimad Bhagavatam verse 11.03.25
“One should practice meditation by constantly seeing oneself to be an eternal cognizant spirit soul and seeing the Lord to be the absolute controller of everything. To increase one’s meditation, one should live in a secluded place and give up false attachment to one’s home and household paraphernalia. Giving up the decorations of the temporary material body, one should dress himself with scraps of cloth found in rejected places, or with the bark of trees. In this way one should learn to be satisfied in any material situation.”
Below is what prabhuji said in the class.
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu saves Sanatana Goswami
One of the senior Iskcon sanyasi said that we dress neat and clean because we have to meet people so that we can preach to them and inspire them. Srila Prabhupada allowed HH Bhakti Swaroop Damodar Swami Maharaja to wear coat and pant because he had to meet scientists and preach them.
Sanatana Goswami was very detached. He was so absorbed in chanting the names of Krishna, that he did not care for touchstone. He was living in Vrindavan, was trained by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in Prayag for 2 months. But once something strange happens. He starts feeling that something is missing.
So, he travels to Jagannath Puri to meet Lord Chaitanya. On the way, he drinks contaminated water and because of which he gets disease. His body gets filled with blood and pus. He thinks that since my body has become impure there is no use of this body. So, let be commit suicide and get a fresh body to serve Lord Chaitanya.
In Puri, he meets Lord Chaitanya. The Lord lovingly chastises him. He says to Haridas Thakura, “O Haridas, Sanatana Goswami thinks that his body belongs to him, so he is thinking of committing suicide. He has forgotten that his body now belongs to me.” Mahaprabhu further says, “If one would attain Krishna prem by committing suicide then I would have committed suicide many times. Only way to attain Krishna prem is by chanting the names of Krishna without any offenses.” Mahaprabhu then sits with Sanatana Goswami and says the same old things which he had already spoken to him earlier in Prayag.
In this age of Kaliyuga, chanting is the only way to attain Krishna. And chanting should be done without offenses.
Three steps to follow to chant the names of Krishna without any offenses
1. Regularly hear from vaisnavas i.e. devotees of Krishna
We see Sanatana Goswami heard from Chaitanya Mahaprabhu for 2 months in Prayag. Even though we may know the subject matter, might have heard it many times, may know the slokas, might have read about the same topic in Srila Prabhupada’s books but still we should hear regularly.
2. Blessings of Guru and Vaisnavas
Bhakti without blessing is like phone without sim. The phone without sim is of no use. Similarly without the blessings of devotees especially pure devotees it is not possible to chant without offenses.
Srila Prabhupada writes in the purport of SB 1.8.19, “…Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam asserts that one who chants the holy name of the Lord under the direction of a pure devotee can at once get free from the disadvantages due to a lower-caste birth. A pure devotee of the Lord does not commit any offense while chanting the holy name of the Lord. There are ten different offenses in the chanting of the holy name of the Lord. To chant the holy name under the direction of a pure devotee is offenseless chanting. Offenseless chanting of the holy name of the Lord is transcendental, and therefore such chanting can at once purify one from the effects of all kinds of previous sins. This offenseless chanting indicates that one has fully understood the transcendental nature of the holy name and has thus surrendered unto the Lord.”
The Holy name of the Lord is more powerful than the Lord. We see that when Lord appears then he kills the demons, but the holy name of the Lord purifies the heart of the demons. We should try to endeavor for higher values and try to serve the vaisnvas.
My experience in Iskcon Ujjain
In Iskcon Ujjain temple, I saw how devotees are caring for the vaisnavas. If you need some support and ask, then that is called help. Like asking for a glass of water and getting it. But if you need something and you get it without asking then it is called care. We become experts in getting blessings when we start caring others.
Even though I was going to Iskcon Ujjain for the first time and no one knew me, and I did not know them but still they were continuously asking me what I want. During the next day of my visit during Mangala arati, pujari asked me to come his room at 7:30 am. When I went to his room, he began feeding me mahaprasad a lot. During Tulasi arati, I was sweating. Immediately HH Bhakti Prem Swami Maharaja came to me and asked me to go and stand under the fan. This was care. These people actual know bhakti yoga. I cannot bless them but I was helplessly giving my good wishes to them. They were teaching us how to get blessings of vaisnavas.
3. Applying effort in chanting the names of Krishna
We see in Damodara Lila, rope was two fingers short. One finger indicates effort, and the other finger indicates mercy of Krishna. We have to apply effort to chant the names of Krishna.
In one of the lectures HH Radhanath Swami Maharaja says, “If one chants attentively then when maya strikes he will not be disturbed. And even if he gets disturbed then it will not remain for long time because holy name will protect him.” But if he has chanted inattentively like while chanting scrolling mobile, reading newspapers etc then he will be disturbed.
Once Bhakti Vinod Thakura was warned to not stay in lodge which was connected to temple. People said that place is haunted by a ghost. But Bhakti Vinod Thakura stayed there. Next morning when people asked him, “Did ghost haunt you?” He said, “Yes, but since I chanted the Hare Krishna Mahamantra, the ghost got delivered.”
He further said that the ghost was a pujari of the temple but because he chanted offensively so he became a ghost. As soon as we apply effort in chanting then it comes to namabhasa stage. Sadhakas i.e the practicing devotees should apply effort to at least come to the stage of namabhasa.
Few practical steps for offenseless chanting:
- Sleep early
- Eat less at night.
- Make sure that the place where we are chanting is neither too comfortable nor too uncomfortable.
- Best to chant in place where everyone is chanting.
- Dealing properly with others: During 2 hours of our chanting, we are offering our consciousness to the Lord. For preparing bhoga, it takes lots of time but offering to the Lord takes just 10 minutes. For example, if the wheat flour has sand particles, then bhoga will have the same. So, the whole day what we have done affects our chanting. Lord Chaitanya says that if one has not criticized any vaisnavas and have chanted then I will take him Back to Godhead. 22 hours of conduct is reflected in 2 hours of our chanting. So, how we are dealing with others is very important.
- Srila Prabhupada says the best place to chant is in dham.
- We should chant at a place where there is illumination and proper ventilation.
- Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakura says, “I regularly read the glories of holy name.” He chanted daily 64 rounds or 108 rounds of Hare Krishna Mahamantra. And after that he preached also.
Offenseless chanting is the goal of sadhana bhakti.
Three stages of chanting
The three stages of chanting and the destination one achieves in each stage of chanting.
- Nama-aparadha – At this stage of chanting our material desires gets fulfilled. But one may become a ghost too.
- Namabhasa – It is the stage where we start putting our efforts in chanting. One can attain anything from namabhasa stage in this world. One’s material desires gets fulfilled, one can go to heaven and can even go to vaikuntha. Except krishna prem one can get everything.
- suddha-nama – At the stage of suddha-nama, one gets Krishna prem
At least Namabhasa is in our control and so we can apply effort for that.
