Govindāya namah

Vishnu’s attendants continued, “By uttering the Lord’s name at the time of death Ajāmila has atoned for all his sins. Hence you cannot drag him to hell.

Sāṅketyaṁ pārihāsyaṁ vā stobhaṁ helanam eva vā Vaikuṇṭha-nāma-grahaṇam aśeṣāgha-haraṁ viduḥ

Mahatmas are well versed with the truth that if Lord Vishnu’s name is uttered even accidently, routinely, jokingly, teasingly or to address any one, the person is absolved of all his sins.”

Swamiji explains: Let us suppose that a bhajan session is taking place. With rapt attention the assembled devotees chant, “Sri Rama Jaya Rama Jaya Jaya Rama”. A few young boys who are passing by happen to hear the mantra. They ridicule the devotees by teasingly chanting the same mantra. Next, a passerby happens to listen to this mantra although his thoughts are elsewhere. Yet another neighbor grumbles in his home- ‘I am tired of these sessions. Every day they chant ‘Sri Rama Jaya Rama Jaya Jaya Rama’.

In this above example, the children jokingly chanted the mantra; the passerby casually heard/ repeated it while the neighbor resentfully chanted it.

The same experience is obtained in Shuka vana. Absolute atheists who come to the park to see the parrots, call out to the birds,- “Rama, Datta, Rama”, with the hope that the birds will respond. My body horripilates observing this. I feel happy that at least these atheists are chanting the Lord’s name although unknowingly.

It is said that by listening to the chirping of the birds our sins are destroyed. Through every chirp the bird actually calls the Lord! It meditates upon the formless Almighty. It eternally strives to merge into the formless Lord who exists as space. For this reason, as soon as we see the birds we forget ourselves. We are filled with joy. In our happiness and excitement, we unknowingly chant ‘Rama, Datta’ along with them. Seeing this wonder, I am filled with happiness.

These birds are filled with refined samskāras. That is why they properly learn mantras taught to them. One bird chants ‘Om namo Narayana Krishna’ while another says, ‘Om namo Narayana Datta’. It can be said that they are taught the mantras. Even if the bird is taught, it should have the ability to learn the same. The birds have the good samskāras (subtle impressions of past deeds) due to which they are able to learn the mantras. Hence, even if they dirty my hair or my clothing I do not take offence. I love to hear the mantras they chant. To me it is as if they are bringing to me some important messages and whispering in my ears.

Have we not heard stories wherein a spider, snake, peacock, elephant offered services to the Lord? From this we understand that at times devotion to the Lord sprouts even in animals, birds and insects. The Lord who shines within every living entity, makes himself clearly visible in some of them.

“The person who chants Lord Hari’s name when he has met with an accident, or when his limbs are broken, or when he is falling down, or when he is bitten by any insect, or is unable to tolerate intense heat during summers, or when he is beaten by clubs or other weapons, is unfit to undergo hellish experiences even if he had uttered the Lord’s name unintentionally”.

Swamiji explains: This is declared by Bhagavatam! When our limbs are broken we groan ‘O my back, it hurts, Oh! How painful it is! Oho.. ouch’. Instead, why can’t we chant, “Krishna, Datta, Rama” at times of intense pain? Instead we will be filled with vengeance towards the person who has broken our limbs.

In general people moan and groan on earth just as they would do in hell. It appears they are preparing for hellish tortures. Since anyways they love to groan, why can’t they chant Datta or Narayana mantra in the same moaning tune? They will have the satisfaction of groaning while accumulating merit for having chanted the Lord’s name. ‘O Narayana. O Hanuman’- how wonderful these words sound. Instead, on the death bed people groan, “Oh, my eldest son did not even bother to pay a visit. My daughter-in-law is troubling me. My younger son has seized my entire property”.

Madhusudanaya namah