Playing Fast And Loose With The No Hard And Fast

“My Lord, O Supreme Personality of Godhead, in Your holy name there is all good fortune for the living entity, and therefore You have many names, such as Krishna and Govinda, by which You expand Yourself. You have invested all Your potencies in those names, and there are no hard and fast rules for remembering them. My dear Lord, although You bestow such mercy upon the fallen, conditioned souls by liberally teaching Your holy names, I am so unfortunate that I commit offenses while chanting the holy name, and therefore I do not achieve attachment for chanting.” (Lord Chaitanya, Chaitanya Charitamrita, Antya 20.16)

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नाम्नाम् अकारि बहुधा निज-सर्व-शक्तिस्
तत्रार्पिता नियमितः स्मरणे न कालः
एतादृशी तव कृपा भगवन् ममापि
दुर्दैवम् ईदृशम् इहाजनि नानुरागः

nāmnām akāri bahudhā nija-sarva-śaktis
tatrārpitā niyamitaḥ smaraṇe na kālaḥ
etādṛśī tava kṛpā bhagavan mamāpi
durdaivam īdṛśam ihājani nānurāgaḥ

“One look at the landscape today is enough to make you shake your head. You lose all hope for the future. You think that humanity is on course for extinction, from the worst kind of self-inflicted wound. You wonder what hope is left. It is impossible to wake someone up who has their face down the entire time, eyes glued to their phone. While they are sleeping. While they are supposed to be studying. While they are eating dinner with a friend. While they are driving. While they are crossing the street, at a busy intersection.

“To me, this further highlights the benevolence of the teachers within the line of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who is the golden avatara. They push forward the sankirtana movement, which is a valid and appropriate yajna for the current period of time. They engage in prachara, in preaching, adjusted to the time and circumstance. One aspect to the prachara is encouraging others to chant the holy names. With enthusiasm, they say, ‘Haribol’! No, they do not mean ‘horrible.’ Just stop with your jokes. They are asking you to say the names of Hari, which is one way to address God.

“Unlike with other mantras of the Vedic tradition, here there is no requirement for perfection in the pronunciation. There is no exclusivity. The eligibility is the very embodiment of inclusivity. Anyone can chant the holy names, as they are found in the maha-mantra: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

“There are no hard and fast rules. Keep that in mind, as I relate the following. It is my complaint. This is a confidential matter. Keep this between us. Don’t you find that some of these kirtana singers are really taking things too far? I only know of these singers because of recommendations. People tell me, ‘Oh, Prabhu, you just have to see this one person. Oh, that kirtana was ecstatic last night. You should have been there.’

“Well, the times that I have been in attendance I was underwhelmed, to say the least. Honestly, I was falling asleep. So was most of the audience. I could try to do a parody of the singing style, but it might too closely resemble the reality. The singer extends out the first words over thirty seconds. It is so drawn out that you forget where you are in the mantra. To that end, the audience has a difficult time responding. The singer then gets upset. You might think that the tempo speeds up after ten to twenty minutes. Nope. The entire presentation is this really difficult to follow singing style.

“Hello? We are trying to get people to chant. How about you sing in a way that people can participate? What the hell is wrong with you? What the hell is wrong with these people recommending such singers to me? I am not supposed to say anything, either. No, that is offensive, you see! I would be a bad Vaishnava. Well, at least I am not putting people to sleep.”

To be honest, there are much worse offenses that can be committed. There are much worse ways to spend half an hour. If the mantra is too difficult to discern, if the singing style is not to my liking, I can always try something else. At least someone is out there making an attempt. At least they are putting on the uniform, so to speak, in trying to help others out of the slumber of ignorance, which might date back many lifetimes.

The key is to be engaged. The secret to success is to maintain a connection. Always keep the lights on, so to speak. Maintain steadiness, in what Shri Krishna describes as dridha-vrata. The devoted souls follow almost out of second-nature. They do not have to be encouraged in the matter. They consider that there is not enough time to sufficiently cover the infinite glories of the Almighty, who is known as Achyuta since He never falls down.

सततं कीर्तयन्तो मां
यतन्तश् च दृढ-व्रताः
नमस्यन्तश् च मां भक्त्या
नित्य-युक्ता उपासते

satataṁ kīrtayanto māṁ
yatantaś ca dṛḍha-vratāḥ
namasyantaś ca māṁ bhaktyā
nitya-yuktā upāsate

“Always chanting My glories, endeavoring with great determination, bowing down before Me, these great souls perpetually worship Me with devotion.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 9.14)

As there are no hard and fast rules, I can chant by myself. I can take a string of beads, known as a japa mala, and repeat the mantra in a routine or system. No droning sound to put me to sleep. No agitation triggered by a singing style I do not prefer. I can also try singing for myself. I can try remembering the gunas, the transcendental features, of the person that the holy name represents. In this way, I can work on keeping my resolve steady, with a singular focus. Otherwise, outside of this endeavor, which is known as bhakti-yoga, the intelligence drifts off in multiple directions.

व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिर्
एकेह कुरु-नन्दन
बहु-शाखा ह्य् अनन्ताश् च
बुद्धयो ऽव्यवसायिनाम्

vyavasāyātmikā buddhir
ekeha kuru-nandana
bahu-śākhā hy anantāś ca
buddhayo ‘vyavasāyinām

“Those who are on this path are resolute in purpose, and their aim is one. O beloved child of the Kurus, the intelligence of those who are irresolute is many-branched.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 2.41)

In Closing:

How attention to keep?
When ready to sleep.

By this heralded singer,
More like boredom bringer.

Sure, but why insist on others to rely?
When myself can try.

With japa bead regularly to chant,
The routine steadiness to grant.