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Always Chant:

Hare Krishna,
Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna,
Hare Hare
Hare Rama,
Hare Rama
Rama Rama,
Hare Hare


We've all heard the Hare Krishna mantra at some time, but what the
heck is so special about this mantra? Why are we supposed to spend
time chanting it? What can it do for us?

First of all, let me explain a little about mantra-yoga. Mantra-yoga
is actually a tradition found in almost every spiritual path and
religion in the world. It may involve the softly spoken repetition of
a prayer or mantra for one's own meditation, or it may be the
congregational singing of spiritually uplifting songs, prayers, or
the sacred names of the Supreme Being. It all involves the same
process, but in the Eastern tradition it is called mantra-yoga
because it is the easy process of focusing our minds on the Supreme,
which helps spiritualize our consciousness. Man means the mind, tra
means deliverance. Therefore, a spiritual mantra is the pure sound
vibration for delivering the mind from material to spiritual
consciousness. This is the goal of any spiritual path. Although all
spiritual traditions have their own prayers or mantras, the Vedic
mantras are especially powerful and effective in uniting us with the
spiritual realm.

Many years ago the brahmana priests could accomplish many kinds of
wondrous deeds simply by correctly chanting particular mantras. Many
of these mantras still exist, but it is very difficult to find those
who can chant them accurately. This is actually a safety measure
because if the wish-fulfilling mantras were easily chanted, there
would no doubt be many people who would misuse them. But other
mantras that are available can easily help purify one's
consciousness, give spiritual enlightenment, and put one in touch
with the Supreme.

In Bhagavad-gita (10.25) Sri Krishna explains that He is the
transcendental om mantra and that the chanting of japa (chanting a
mantra quietly for one's own meditation) is the purest of His
representations and sacrifices. It is understood that by chanting
japa and hearing the holy sounds of the mantra, one can come to the
platform of spiritual realization. The energy in the sound vibration
of the mantra prepares and opens one's consciousness to higher levels
of reality. This is the process of mantra-yoga. Even though the
mantra is powerful in itself, when the mantra is chanted by a great
devotee, it becomes more powerful. This is the effect when a disciple
is fortunate enough to take initiation from a spiritually powerful
master who gives him a mantra for spiritual purposes. Then the
disciple can make rapid progress by utilizing the mantra.

In this age of Kali-yuga the process of chanting japa or mantra
meditation is much more effective than practicing other spiritual
paths that include meditating on the void or Brahman effulgence, or
trying to control the life air within the body as in raja-yoga. Only
a very few can become perfect at moving the life air up to the top of
the head or raising the kundalini force up through the various
chakras. And meditating on the void becomes useless as soon as there
is the slightest external distraction, which in this age of Kali is a
continuous thing. Therefore, the most effective means of focusing the
consciousness is to concentrate on the sound vibration of a mantra.

There are two mantras that are especially recommended in the Vedic
literature. One is omkara or the om mantra, and the other is Hare
Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama, Hare
Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, which is known as the maha or great
mantra. It is explained that these two mantras can deliver one to the
realm beyond material existence.

Omkara (pranava) is considered to be the sound incarnation of the
Supreme Personality of God and is identical with the Supreme Lord.
The Narada-pancaratra states: "When the transcendental sound
vibration is practiced by a conditioned soul, the Supreme Lord is
present on his tongue." The Atharva-veda and the Mandukya Upanishad
both mention the importance of omkara. Omkara is said to be the
beginning, middle, and end, and is eternal, beyond all material
restrictions. Omkara is unlimited, transcendental, and
indestructible. As such, it is not so easy for the average person to
understand all the intricacies of omkara or to chant om properly.

Actually, the chanting of omkara is generally practiced by
impersonalists and those engaged in the mystic yoga process. By
chanting om and controlling the breathing perfectly, which is mostly
a mechanical way of steadying the mind, one is eventually able to go
into trance or samadhi. Through this system, one gradually changes
the tendencies of the materially absorbed mind and makes it
spiritualized. But this takes many years to perfect and such a slow
process is not practical in this age. If one is not a brahmana, he
will not understand omkara and will not be able to get the desired
results from chanting it. Therefore, it is not advised that people
chant omkara in this age of Kali-yuga because they are generally not
qualified to chant it properly. The mantra for Kali-yuga is the maha-
mantra, or great mantra for deliverance, which is Hare Krishna, Hare
Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama,
Hare Hare.