Sharanagati

(from a lecture of Swami Tirtha, 07.05.2018, Rila)

(continues from the previous Monday)

On this occasion, I think we had many different inputs. For example, philosophy, right? And then theology, right? And then when we were lost in the maze of theories – some guidance from our masters. Also, if you remember what Shrila Shridhara Maharaj said, that lies poison the air and the water around – when we were up there in the mountains and we were singing and chanting and praying, that sound purifies the air, that sound purifies the water that is running down.

And sometimes we want to understand and study the holy name, so we take big books like this and we connect to the Internet to find out everything about the holy name. Sorry, my dear ones, when we shall pass, we shall leave all this theoretical stuff here. We don’t need the theories about the holy name. We need the blessings of the holy name. And if you have that firm faith that through this mantra, through this chanting, through this calling out for God by the name ‘I can win, I can cross the ocean of samsara’, then you are safe. Because there are many different ways of how people express their religious feelings. And there are different religious, even spiritual practices. But we need to find that very specific contribution that we can give to this picture. And therefore our prayer, our mantra, our japa should be the holy name – with this firm conviction and hope.

Let me quote some of Gurudev’s teaching about the chanting. You know, when Gurudev was present, somehow for us it was very difficult to open up and to feel too relaxed. And some devotees were even chanting in a very reserved way. So Gurudev was sitting in one room and outside one lady devotee was chanting. And she was very humble, so she was chanting very softly. Then Gurudev told her to stop this hissing and to pronounce the holy names properly. And he said, “Because this will change your life.” So he didn’t give a very high and very elaborate explanation on this, but he pointed out, “Do it properly, because this will change your life.”

So, to accomplish the many pieces of information that we have collected during these days and these lectures, please remember this advice. Somehow, due to the holy association and the blessings and the holy name, the change will start in our life.