The Nature Of The

Hare Kṛṣṇa Mahā-mantra –

The Loving Ecstasy for Kṛṣṇa
Under The Section
How All the Residents of Vārāṇasī
Became Vaiṣṇavas
Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 7.83
প্রভুর শ্রীনাম-মাহাত্ম্য-বর্ণ ন :—

কৃষ্ণনাম–মহামন্ত্রের এই ত’ স্বভাব

যেই জন্ত্রে, তার কৃন্ত্রষ্ণ উেজন্ত্রে ভাব

“ ‘It is the nature of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra that anyone

who chants it immediately develops his loving ecstasy for
Kṛṣṇa.
Purport
In this verse it is explained that one who chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa
mantra develops bhāva, ecstasy, which is the point at which
revelation begins. It is the preliminary stage in developing
one’s original love for God.
Lord Kṛṣṇa mentions this bhāva stage in the Bhagavad-gītā
(10.8):
ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo
mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate
iti matvā bhajante māṁ
 budhā bhāva-samanvitāḥ
“I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds.
Everything emanates from Me. The wise who know this
perfectly engage in My devotional service and worship Me
with all their hearts.” A neophyte disciple begins by hearing
and chanting, associating with devotees and practicing the
regulative principles, and thus he vanquishes all of his
unwanted bad habits. In this way he develops attachment for
Kṛṣṇa and cannot forget Kṛṣṇa even for a moment. Bhāva is the
almost successful stage of spiritual life.
A sincere student aurally receives the holy name from the
spiritual master, and after being initiated he follows the
regulative principles given by the spiritual master. When the
holy name is properly served in this way, automatically the
spiritual nature of the holy name spreads; in other words, the
devotee becomes qualified in offenselessly chanting the holy
name. When one is completely fit to chant the holy name in
this way, he is eligible to make disciples all over the world, and
he actually becomes jagad-guru. Then the entire world, under
his influence, begins to chant the holy names of the Hare Kṛṣṇa
mahā-mantra. Thus all the disciples of such a spiritual master
increase in attachment for Kṛṣṇa, and therefore he sometimes
cries, sometimes laughs, sometimes dances and sometimes
chants. These symptoms are very prominently manifest in the
body of a pure devotee. Sometimes when our students of the
Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement chant and dance, even in India
people are astonished to see how these foreigners have learned
to chant and dance in this ecstatic fashion. As explained by
Caitanya Mahāprabhu, however, actually this is not due to
practice, for without extra endeavor these symptoms become
manifest in anyone who sincerely chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-
mantra.
Many fools, not knowing the transcendental nature of the Hare
Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, sometimes impede our loudly chanting
this mantra, yet one who is actually advanced in the fulfillment
of chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra induces others to
chant also. Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī explains, kṛṣṇa-śakti
vinā nahe tāra pravartana: unless one receives special power of
attorney from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he cannot
preach the glories of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. As devotees
propagate the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, the general
population of the entire world gets the opportunity to
understand the glories of the holy name. While chanting and
dancing or hearing the holy name of the Lord, one
automatically remembers the Supreme Personality of Godhead,
and because there is no difference between the holy name and
Kṛṣṇa, the chanter is immediately linked with Kṛṣṇa. Thus
connected, a devotee develops his original attitude of service
to the Lord. In this attitude of constantly serving Kṛṣṇa, which
is called bhāva, he always thinks of Kṛṣṇa in many different
ways. One who has attained this bhāva stage is no longer under
the clutches of the illusory energy. When other spiritual
 ingredients, such as trembling, perspiration and tears, are
added to this bhāva stage, the devotee gradually attains love of
Kṛṣṇa.
The holy name of Kṛṣṇa is called the mahā-mantra. Other
mantras mentioned in the Nārada-pañcarātra are known
simply as mantras, but the chanting of the holy name of the
Lord is called the mahā-mantra.
Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 7.84
কৃষ্ণববষেক যেমা—েরম েু রুষার্থ

োর আন্ত্রে তৃণতুল্য চাবর েু রুষার্থ

“ ‘Religiosity, economic development, sense gratification and

liberation are known as the four goals of life, but before love of
Godhead, the fifth and highest goal, these appear as
insignificant as straw in the street.
Purport
While chanting the holy name of the Lord, one should not
desire the material advancements represented by religiosity,
economic development, sense gratification and ultimately
liberation from the material world. As stated by Caitanya
Mahāprabhu, the highest perfection in life is to develop one’s
love for Kṛṣṇa (premā pum-artho mahān śrī-caitanya-
mahāprabhor matam idam). When we compare love of
Godhead with religiosity, economic development, sense
gratification and liberation, we can understand that these
achievements may be desirable objectives for bubhukṣus, or
those who desire to enjoy this material world, and mumukṣus,
or those who desire liberation from it, but they are very
insignificant in the eyes of a pure devotee who has developed
bhāva, the preliminary stage of love of Godhead.
Dharma (religiosity), artha (economic development), kāma
(sense gratification) and mokṣa (liberation) are the four
principles of religion that pertain to the material world.
Therefore in the beginning of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is
declared, dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo ’tra: cheating religious
systems in terms of these four material principles are
completely discarded from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, for Śrīmad-
Bhāgavatam teaches only how to develop one’s dormant love
of God.
The Bhagavad-gītā is the preliminary study of Śrīmad-
Bhāgavatam, and therefore it ends with the words
sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja:
“Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me.”
(Bg. 18.66)
To adopt this means, one should reject all ideas of religiosity,
economic development, sense gratification and liberation and
fully engage in the service of the Lord, which is transcendental
to these four principles. Love of Godhead is the original
function of the spirit soul, and it is as eternal as the soul and
the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This eternity is called
sanātana. When a devotee revives his loving service to the
Supreme Personality of Godhead, it should be understood that
he has been successful in achieving the desired goal of his life.
At that time everything is automatically done by the mercy of
the holy name, and the devotee automatically advances in his
spiritual progress.
Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 7.85
েঞ্চম েু রুষার্থ —যেমানন্দামৃ তবিন্ধু

যমাক্ষাবি আনন্দ োর নন্ত্রহ এক ববন্দু

“ ‘For a devotee who has actually developed bhāva, the

pleasure derived from dharma, artha, kāma and mokṣa appears
like a drop in the presence of the sea.
Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 7.86
কৃষ্ণনান্ত্রমর ফল্—‘যেমা’, িবথ শান্ত্রে কে

ভান্ত্রেয যিই যেমা যতামাে কবরল্ উিে

“ ‘The conclusion of all revealed scriptures is that one should

awaken his dormant love of Godhead. You are greatly
fortunate to have already done so.
Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 7.87
যেমার স্বভান্ত্রব কন্ত্রর বচত্ত–তনু যক্ষাভ

কৃন্ত্রষ্ণর চরণ–োন্ত্রযয উেজাে যল্াভ

“ ‘It is a characteristic of love of Godhead that by nature it

induces transcendental symptoms in one’s body and makes
 one more and more greedy to achieve the shelter of the lotus
feet of the Lord.
Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 7.88
যেমার স্বভান্ত্রব ভক্ত হান্ত্রি, কান্ত্রন্দ ,োে

উন্মত্ত হইো নান্ত্রচ, ইবত–উবত ধাে

“ ‘When one actually develops love of Godhead, he naturally

sometimes cries, sometimes laughs, sometimes chants and
sometimes runs here and there just like a madman.
Purport
In this connection Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī says that
sometimes persons who have no love of Godhead at all display
ecstatic bodily symptoms. Artificially they sometimes laugh,
cry and dance just like madmen, but this cannot help one
progress in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Rather, such artificial
agitation of the body is to be given up when one naturally
develops the necessary bodily symptoms. Actual blissful life,
manifested in genuine spiritual laughing, crying and dancing,
is the symptom of real advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness,
which can be achieved by a person who always voluntarily
engages in the transcendental loving service of the Lord. If one
who is not yet developed imitates such symptoms artificially,
he creates chaos in the spiritual life of human society.
Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 7.89-90
যস্বি, কম্প, যরামাঞ্চাশ্রু, েদ্‌েি, বববণথ য
 উন্মাি, ববষাি, বধেথ , েবথ , হষথ , বিনয

এত ভান্ত্রব যেমা ভক্তেন্ত্রণন্ত্রর নাচাে

কৃন্ত্রষ্ণর আনন্দামৃ তিােন্ত্রর ভািাে

“ ‘Perspiration, trembling, standing on end of one’s bodily

hairs, tears, faltering voice, fading complexion, madness,
melancholy, patience, pride, joy and humility — these are
various natural symptoms of ecstatic love of Godhead, which
causes a devotee to dance and float in an ocean of
transcendental bliss while chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra.
Purport
Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, in his Prīti-sandarbha (66), explains this
stage of love of Godhead:
bhagavat-prīti-rūpā vṛttir māyādi-mayī na bhavati. kiṁ tarhi,
svarūpa-śakty-ānanda-rūpā, yad-ānanda-parādhīnaḥ śrī-
bhagavān apīti.
Similarly, in the 69th text he offers further explanation:
tad evaṁ prīter lakṣaṇaṁ citta-dravas tasya ca roma-
harṣādikam. kathañcij jāte ’pi citta-drave roma-harṣādike vā na
ced āśaya-śuddhis tadāpi na bhakteḥ samyag-āvirbhāva iti
jñāpitam. āśaya-śuddhir nāma cānya-tātparya-parityāgaḥ prīti-
tātparyaṁ ca. ata evānimittā svābhāvikī ceti tad viśeṣaṇam.
Transcendental love of Godhead is not under the jurisdiction of
the material energy, for it is the transcendental bliss and
pleasure potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Since
the Supreme Lord is also under the influence of transcendental
bliss, when one comes in touch with such bliss in love of
Godhead, one’s heart melts, and the symptoms of this are
standing of the hairs on end, etc. Sometimes a person thus
melts and manifests these transcendental symptoms yet at the
same time is not well behaved in his personal transactions.
This indicates that he has not yet reached complete perfection
in devotional life. In other words, a devotee who dances in
ecstasy but after dancing and crying appears to be attracted to
material affairs has not yet reached the perfection of
devotional service, which is called āśaya-śuddhi, or the
perfection of existence. One who attains the perfection of
existence is completely averse to material enjoyment and
engrossed in transcendental love of Godhead. It is therefore to
be concluded that the ecstatic symptoms of āśaya-śuddhi are
visible when a devotee’s service has no material cause and is
purely spiritual in nature.
These are characteristics of transcendental love of Godhead, as
stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.2.6):
sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo
yato bhaktir adhokṣaje
ahaituky apratihatā
yayātmā suprasīdati
“That religion is best which causes its followers to become
ecstatic in love of God that is unmotivated and free from
material impediments, for this alone can completely satisfy the
self.”
Thus Ends the Chapter Entitled
The Nature Of The
Hare Kṛṣṇa Mahā-mantra –
The Loving Ecstasy for Kṛṣṇa
Under The Section
How All the Residents of Vārāṇasī
Became Vaiṣṇavas