8.24
’krsna-nama’ kare aparadhera vicara
krsna balile aparadhira na haya vikara
SYNONYMS
krsna-nama—the holy name of Lord Krsna; kare—takes; aparadhera—of offenses; vicara—consideration; krsna—Lord Krsna; balile—if one chants; aparadhira—of the offenders; na—never; haya—becomes; vikara—changed.
There are offenses to be considered while chanting the Hare Krsna mantra.
Therefore simply by chanting Hare Krsna one does not become ecstatic.
PURPORT
It is very beneficial to chant the names sri-krsna-caitanya prabhu-nityananda before chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra because by chanting these two holy names-sri-krsna-caitanya prabhu-nityananda-one immediately becomes ecstatic, and if he then chants the Hare Krsna maha-mantra he becomes free of offenses.
There are ten offenses to avoid in chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra.
The first offense is to blaspheme great personalities who are engaged in distributing the holy name of the Lord.
It is said in the sastra (Cc.Antya 7.11), krsna-sakti vina nahe tara pravartana: one cannot distribute the holy names of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra unless he is empowered by the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Therefore one should not criticize or blaspheme a devotee who is thus engaged.
Sri Padma Purana states:
satam ninda namnah paramam aparadham vitanute
yatah khyatim yatam katham u sahate tad-vigarham To blaspheme the great saintly persons who are engaged in preaching the glories of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra is the worst offense at the lotus feet of the holy name.
One should not criticize a preacher of the glories of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra.
If one does so, he is an offender.
The Nama-prabhu, who is identical with Krsna, will never tolerate such blasphemous activities, even from one who passes as a great devotee.
The second namaparadha is described as follows:
sivasya sri-visnor ya iha guna-namadi-sakalam
dhiya bhinnam pasyet sa khalu hari-namahita-karah In this material world, the holy name of Visnu is all-auspicious.
Visnu’s name, form, qualities and pastimes are all transcendental, absolute knowledge.
Therefore, if one tries to separate the Absolute Personality of Godhead from His holy name or His transcendental form, qualities and pastimes, thinking them to be material, that is offensive.
Similarly, to think the names of demigods such as Lord Siva to be as good as the name of Lord Visnu-or, in other words, to think Lord Siva and the other demigods to be other forms of God and therefore equal to Visnu-is also blasphemous.
This is the second offense at the lotus feet of the Lord.
The third offense at the lotus feet of the holy name, which is called guror avajna, is to consider the spiritual master to be material and therefore envy his exalted position.
The fourth offense (sruti-sastra-nindanam) is to blaspheme Vedic scriptures such as the four Vedas and the Puranas.
The fifth offense (artha-vadah) is to consider the glories of the holy name to be exaggerations.
Similarly, the sixth offense (hari-namni kalpanam) is to consider the holy name of the Lord to be imaginary.
The seventh offense is described as follows:
namno balad yasya hi papa-buddhir
na vidyate tasya yamair hi suddhih To think that since the Hare Krsna mantra can counteract all sinful reactions one may therefore go on with his sinful activities and at the same time chant the Hare Krsna mantra to neutralize them is the greatest offense at the lotus feet of hari-nama.
The eighth offense is stated thus:
dharma-vrata-tyaga-hutadi-sarva-
subha-kriya-samyam api pramadah It is offensive to consider the chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra to be a religious ritualistic ceremony.
Performing religious ceremonies, following vows and practicing renunciation and sacrifice are all materialistic auspicious activities.
The chanting of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra must not be compared to such materialistic religiosity.This is an offense at the lotus feet of the Lord.
The ninth offense is described as follows:
asraddadhane vimukhe ’py asrnvati
yas copadesah siva-namaparadhah It is an offense to preach the glories of the holy name among persons who have no intelligence or no faith in the subject matter.
Such people should be given the chance to hear the chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra, but in the beginning they should not be instructed about the glories or the spiritual significance of the holy name.
By constant hearing of the holy name, their hearts will be purified, and then they will be able to understand the transcendental position of the holy name.
The tenth offense is as follows:
srute ’pi nama-mahatmye yah priti-rahito narah
aham-mamadi-paramo namni so ’py aparadha-krt If one has heard the glories of the transcendental holy name of the Lord but nevertheless continues in a materialistic concept of life, thinking “I am this body and everything belonging to this body is mine (aham mameti),” and does not show respect and love for the chanting of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, that is an offense.