Meditations on Transcendence

 अमरत्व का प्रवाह बहे, हरिनाम सरिता संग। ज्ञान-विज्ञान उजास हो, मिटे अज्ञान का रंग॥ ह्लादिनी आनंद छुए, सूखे मन का छोर। रामरस कहे हरिनाम से, जागे जीवन भोर॥ Purport: The holy name is not a material vibration but the Supreme Lord Himself appearing as sound. Therefore amaratva flows with harināma, because the soul is eternal and the name awakens that forgotten eternity. As A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada repeatedly emphasized, chanting is both philosophy and realization together. Jñāna reveals what we are not, and vijñāna confirms what we truly are through direct experience. The hlādinī-śakti manifests as causeless joy, drying up the desert of material life. One need not be qualified; contact itself purifies. Thus by harināma, ignorance retreats, consciousness revives, and the real morning of life begins.

 (Verse 1)   Out here in the heartland where the river bends,   Life’s a wild ride with its twists and turns, my friends.   When you’re caught in the grind and the world’s got you down,   Just listen close, there’s a voice that’ll turn it around. (Chorus)   Hear the acarya’s words, let the wisdom flow,   In that sacred sound, you’ll find a way to go.   Beyond the modes and the stormy night,   In the light of faith, you’ll find your guiding light.   (Verse 2)   Even a Prabhupada tape, playin’ soft and true,   Can lift you up high, help you see right through.   So grab that message, let it set you free,   With every word, you’ll cross the modes and be.   (Chorus)   Hear the acarya’s words, let the wisdom flow,   In that sacred sound, you’ll find a way to go.   Beyond the modes and the stormy night,   In the...

Srila Prabhupada tirobhava tithi maha mahotsava ki jaya His divine grace name in his earlier asrama was 'Abhaya caran' which means fearless lotus feet. Whose lotus feet? this is addressed in the kirtan 'Bhaja hure mana, Sri Nanda Nandana, abhaya caranaravinda re'. The fearlessness is found at the lotus feet of son of Nanda Maharaja. Srila Prabhupada's mission is to help living beings of the world experience true fearlessness by developing bhakti at the lotus feet of Nandanandana Sri Krishna. All the higher attainments of spirituality like Prem, bliss, happiness, eternity are built on the foundation of 'Abhaya' or fearlessness. Fear is always due to the unknown. As finite entities when we see the vast world, there remains so much unknown and this causes fear. Fear is the primary destroyer of wellbeing. It corrodes at the most fundamental level and shakes up the whole foundation of existence. Fear also eats up our life span (ayur vyaya). In response to the Que...