THE LORD SHOULD ALWAYS BE PRAISED

official source: A'nanda Vacana'mrtam Part 8

cross-references: none

this version: is the printed A'nanda Vacana'mrtam Part 8, 1st edition, version 
	(spelling mistakes only may have been corrected). I.e., this is the most 
	up-to-date version as of the present Electronic Edition.

      It is said, `Kiirttaniiyah sada'harih'. What do we mean by `kiirttaniiyah'? When someone's qualities are sung aloud and highly praised, it is called `kiirttaniiyah'. In Sam'skrta, the root verb `kiirt' means `to utter something loudly in praise of someone'. It is something that is uttered loudly enough to be audible to others. If uttered very softly, it will be audible to oneself, and if uttered mentally, it will be audible to one's own mind, but will not be audible to others. Kiirtana should be sung loudly enough to be heard by others.

      `Kiirttaniiya' sada'harih'. Kiirtana should be done on Hari and on no other entity. One should not praise oneself or any other person. There are many people who are very fond of praising themselves by telling everyone what wonderful things they have done, but, as mentioned in this sloka, kiirtana is not for one's own self but for Hari. Even though people are taught to do kiirtana for Hari, they still make the mistake of praising themselves too much. Sometimes their self-praise is so intense that others are obliged to say, `Please stop praising yourself so much.' They forget that their self-applause is rather boring for others. Human beings should realise that no one likes to hear the self-praise of others.

      What is the actual meaning of Hari? Hari and Hara are the two functional expressions of Parama Purus'a that humans usually come in contact with. The word `Hara' is a combination of two acoustic roots or biija mantras. What is a biija mantra? Every action and every existence are characterised by certain particular sounds. While you sit in one place, you exist, and because of your existence various waves get buffeted and altered. Light waves, for example, are either reflected or refracted, after which they go back into the air. The existential acoustic root is a prerequisite for all the functions of existence. Through existence, through action, you are always engaged in some type of work.

      What is work? Work, or action, means to change the location of an object. Suppose we move a pillow from one place to another: the pillow changes its position. This is what we call an action. Every action has a sound of its own which may or may not be audible to the human ear. Suppose someone is walking on tiptoe: the sound produced is so soft that it is inaudible; but some sound is produced nevertheless. Some people make a lot of noise when they walk. Some people smile silently, whereas other people laugh loudly. In Sam'skrta, smiling silently is called `smita', and laughing loudly is called `ha'sya'. Though it seems that smiling is a silent action, it does produce a sound. While smiling, one's mouth and lips move slightly, causing a little stir in the air which creates a very faint sound. That minute sound of every action is called `acoustic root' in English and `biija mantra' in Sam'skrta. Ether is the subtlest factor in this quinquelemental world. It, too, having existence, produces a certain sound.

      Mental thoughts create a vibration in your mind (a sound) which in turn vibrates the nerve cells and nerve fibres. Some people think of football games even while sleeping. Thinking while sleeping is called `dreaming'. If one thinks during the wakeful state it is called `thinking.' As the conscious mind does not function during sleep, the objects thought of are considered real; but when the conscious mind is active during the state of wakefulness people think, `I'm thinking this.' But during sleep, the conscious mind remains suspended and one's thoughts appear to be real. If a sleeping football fan thinks deeply about football, he may shout, `Goooaaal!' and kick the person sleeping next to him. Why does this happen? It happens when a thought is `flicked' into action during the state of sleep. The letter `ha' is the acoustic root of the etherial factor, the subtlest of the five fundamental factors; and the letter `ra' is the acoustic root of energy. In the Indo-Aryan alphabet all fifty letters, from `a' to `ks'a' are acoustic roots of one action or another, and the totality of all these fifty acoustic roots constitutes the alphabet, called `aks'a ma'la'.

      A kind of mixed Tantra was evolved out of three different spiritual texts: the Pura'na's, Tantra and Atharva Veda. In this mixed Tantra, the aks'a ma'la' was held by a Ta'ntrik deity known as Bhadra Ka'lii (who is not the four-armed goddess depicted in mythology). When idol worship first started, human beings had not yet learnt how to write or recognise the letters of the alphabet. To symbolise those fifty sounds, therefore, a garland of fifty human heads was placed around the neck of the effigy of goddess Ka'lii, as it is the human mouth which utters words. The acoustic root of creation is `a', the acoustic root of preservation is `u', and the acoustic root of destruction is `ma'. So, `a', being the acoustic root of creation, was made the first letter. That is why the deity Bhadra Ka'lii holds the first letter `a' in her hand while the remaining 49 letters, from `a'' to `ks'a', are suspended from her neck. Of course, in the idols made nowadays, just fifteen to twenty faces are placed in the garland. The artists who make these effigies today are not aware of the philosophical significance, nor are the worshippers.

      `Ra' is the acoustic root of energy. There are various types of energy - mechanical, electrical, magnetic and so on - which are the manifestations of the Supreme Operative Principle within His vast cosmos. At any one time something is being constructed, something is being destroyed -- by earthquakes, floods, cyclones and so many other catastrophes. This takes place within the scope of `ha' and `ra' and is nothing but the divine play of Parama Purus'a. When Parama Purus'a plays this sort of divine game, He is known as Hara (ha + ra). Another of Shiva's names is Hara. That is why some people utter, `Hara Hara vyom vyom'.

      `Harati pa'pa'niityarthe harih'. `Harana' means `to steal', so Hari means `one who steals'. How strange! Why should Hari steal? This is something very bad as it goes against the fundamental principles of yama and niyama. One would never expect that He would break these principles.So why does He do it? Parama Purus'a certainly wants the prosperity and well-being of all created beings. Human beings have been accumulating sins life after life, and to exhaust them all may take as many as twenty lives. Then should we assume that the future of humanity is dark? It is difficult enough to carry the load of sins of only one life, so just imagine how difficult it is to carry the sins accumulated in twenty lives. How can people be expected to carry such a heavy load?

      There is one hope for redemption,and that hope is Parama Purus'a who cares deeply for His loving disciples. What does He do in this case? He tells His devotees, `My children, give me all your sins; otherwise there is no future before you. For how many lives will you be able to carry such a heavy burden? It is better for you to give your load to me.' The question, though, is will the devotees agree to give the load of their sins to the Lord? No, they will not. Instead, they will say, `We are ready to give you sweets, but how can we give you our sins? We can offer garlands to you, but not our sins!' No devotee would ever agree to do that. If ever the thought to do it were to cross a devotee's mind, he or she would certainly say, `No, no, I can't give my sins.' Yet the fact is that the Lord belongs to the devotees and will certainly do what is needed for their spiritual progress. Therefore, He will have no other choice but to steal their sins. He will have to take away their sins without their knowledge. What do we call taking something belonging to others without their permission? We call it stealing. So, He steals, and as He steals sins, He is called Hari. What happens to the devotees after the sins are stolen? Their minds become pure. Usually the human mind has different weaknesses and frailties. But as people continue to refine their intellect and perfect their spiritual practices, their minds move upwards through the different kos'as (layers): kamamaya, manomaya, atimanasa, vijinanamaya and hiranyamaya, resulting in the crude portion of the mind becoming increasingly subtle. Take the case of cream: when churned, its essence (butter) is separated from the non-essential part (whey). Similarly, once the sins are stolen the real essence of the mind, which is called a'tman, is separated from the mind. That is why Hari is nicknamed `makhan cor' -- the butter thief. It is wrong to take these words literally. Take it for granted that Krs'n'a never stole the cream or butter from the milkmaids'houses.

      `Ama'ninama ma'na deyam' kiirtanya'h sada' harih.' Give respect to those who are not respected by others, and to those who are not even recognised as human beings, give recognition. Go to them and say, `Don't worry, I will always help you. As long as I am here you need not feel unnecessarily concerned.' Give hope and consolation to human beings -- give them respect, give them recognition as human beings. Tell them, `You are also human beings and worthy to be treated with respect and dignity.'

      These are the real signs of a genuine devotee, an ideal sa'dhaka. I want you all to try to become genuine devotees like this.

11 January 1979, Kalika'ta'