Hari-nāma Cintāmaṇi – Chapter 13

śrute’pi nāma‑māhātmye yaḥ prīti‑rahito naraḥ
ahaṁ‑mamādi‑paramo nāmni so’py aparādha‑kṛt

That person who is so fallen that, even after hearing the glories of the Name, is still devoid of love for the Name, but maintains the idea of ‘I’ and ‘mine’ makes an offence.

(1)
gadāi-gaurāṅga jaya jāhnavā jīvana
sītādvaita jaya jaya gaura-bhakta-jana

Glories to Gadāi-Gaurāṅga and the Life of Jāhnavā (Nityānanda). Glories to Sītā and Advaita and the devotees of Gaura.

(2)
preme gada gada hari-dāsa mahāśaya
śeṣa nāma aparādha prabhu-pade kaya

With his voice choked with prema, Hari Dāsa Mahāśaya presented the final nāmāparādha at the feet of the Lord.

(3)
śuna prabhu ei aparādha sarvādhama
ei doṣe nāma prema nā haya udgama

“O Lord, please hear about the lowest offence of all. Nāma–prema will never appear while this fault is present. (1)

(1) Even after accepting dīkṣā, many people who are materially attached to the physical body, maintain the mentality of ‘I’ and ‘mine’ and fall from the path of bhakti. “I am a brāhmaṇa, I am a Vaiṣṇava, I am a king, this is my body, my house, my children, my grandchildren, my wealth, my followers” – such an arrogant, false conception (abhimāna) does not lead to a desire to cultivate nāma-bhajana. This is a heinous offence. One who is surrendered to the Name will never commit such an offence.

Nāme śaraṇāpattira prayojanīyatā (The Necessity of Surrendering to the Name)

(4)
anya naya aparādha kariyā varjjana
nāmete śaraṇāpanna haibe sajjana

“Rejecting the nine offences, a true devotee (sajjana) will surrender to the Holy Name.

(5)
ṣaḍ-vidha śaraṇāgati sarva śāstre kaya
vistārita balite āmāra sādhya naya

“All the śāstra describes the six types of surrender. It is not feasible for me to explain them in detail now.

Śaraṇāpattira prakāra (The Various Kinds of Surrender)

(6)
saṁkṣepe caraṇe tava kari nivedana
ānukūlye saṅkalpa prātikūlya visarjana

“I will offer this summary at Your feet – making a vow to accept that which is favourable, and rejecting that which is unfavourable. (2)

(2) Anukūlye saṅkalpa – “I will only accept those things in life that are favourable to bhakti” – with this vow, one accepts those things that are favourable. “I will completely reject those things that are unfavourable to bhakti” – With this vow, one rejects those things that are unfavourable.

(7)
kṛṣṇe rakṣā-kārī buddhi pālaka bhāvana
nije dīna buddhi āra ātma-nivedana

“Having the understanding that Kṛṣṇa will give protection and maintain you, considering oneself to be insignificant, and surrendering oneself completely.

(8)
e jīvana nā rahile nā haya bhajana
jīvana rakṣāya mātra viṣaya grahaṇa

“If one cannot preserve his life, he cannot engage in bhajana, so only to maintain life should one accept material things.

(9)
bhakti anukūla ye viṣaya yatakṣaṇa
tāhe rocamāna-vṛttye jīvana yāpana

“At every moment, one should continue one’s life by developing an interest in those things that are favourable to bhakti. (3)

(3) Rocamāna-vṛtti (developing an interest) – having a taste which is conducive to establishing a relationship with Kṛṣṇa.

(10)
bhakti pratikūla ye viṣaye yabe haya
tāhāte aruci tāhā varjibe niścaya

“When something is unfavourable for bhakti, one has no taste for it, and totally rejects it.

(11)
kṛṣṇa vinā rakṣā-kartā nāhi keha āra
kṛṣṇa se pālaka mātra jānibe āmāra

“One will think, ‘Apart from Kṛṣṇa, no one else is my protector. I know that Kṛṣṇa is my only maintainer.

(12)
āmi dīna akiñcana sakalera chāra
adhama durgata kichu nāhika āmāra

” ‘I am insignificant and poverty-stricken. I am the most useless person of all. No one is as fallen or as miserable as me.

(13)
kṛṣṇera saṁsāre āmi āchi cira dāsa
kṛṣṇa icchā mata kriyā āmāra prayāsa

“‘I am an eternal servant in the family of Kṛṣṇa, I only endeavour to act according to the desire of Kṛṣṇa.

(14-16)
āmi kartā āmi dātā āmi pālayitā
āmāra e deha geha santāna vanitā

āmi vipra āmi śūdra āmi pitā pati
āmi rājā āmi prajā santānera gati

ei saba buddhi chāḍi kṛṣṇe kari mati
kṛṣṇa kartā kṛṣṇa icchā mātra balavatī

“‘I am the doer. I am the benefactor. I am the maintainer. This body and house are mine. These are my children, this is my wife. I am a brāhmaṇa. I am a śūdra. I am a father. I am a husband. I am a king. I am a subject. I am the shelter of my children.’ – I will reject all these ideas and only think of Kṛṣṇa. He is the doer, and His desire alone is the greatest.

(17)
kṛṣṇera ye haya icchā tāhāi kariba
nija icchā anusāre kichu nā cintiba

“‘I will do whatever Kṛṣṇa desires. I will not even think about anything according to my own desires.

(18)
kṛṣṇa icchā mate haya āmāra saṁsāra
kṛṣṇa icchā mate āmi hai bhava-pāra

“‘By the desire of Kṛṣṇa I have been placed in saṁsāra, and by Kṛṣṇa’s desire I will be delivered from this material world.

(19)
duḥkhe thāki sukhe thāki āmi kṛṣṇa dāsa
kṛṣṇecchāya sarva jīve dayāra prakāśa

“‘Whether in distress or in happiness, I am a servant of Kṛṣna. It is by Kṛṣṇa’s desire that I show compassion to all jīvas.

(20)
mama bhoga karma-bhoga kṛṣṇa icchā mata
āmāra vairāgya kṛṣṇa icchā anugata

“‘My experiences and the experience of my karmika reactions are dependent upon Kṛṣṇa’s desire. My renunciation is also dependent upon Kṛṣna’s desire. (4)

(4) My experience of the results of karma within this world, and my renunciation of that are both dependent upon Kṛṣṇa.

Śaraṇāpatti haile ātma-nivedana haya (When One Surrenders, One Dedicates Oneself Completely)

(21)
sarala bhāvete yabe ei bhāva haya
ātma nivedana tāre bali mahāśaya

“O Mahāśaya, when a mood of sincerity arises, this is known as ātma–nivedana (full dedication of the self).

Śaraṇāpatti vyatīta nāmāśraye yāhā haya (Taking Refuge in the Name without Surrender)

(22)
ṣaḍ-vidha śaraṇāgati nāhika yāhāra
se adhama ahaṁ mama buddhi doṣe chāra

“Whoever does not follow the six divisions of śaraṇāgati (surrender) becomes most fallen and useless, due to the defect of thinking in terms of ‘I’ and ‘mine.’

(23)
se bale āmi ta kartā saṁsāra āmāra
nija karma phala bhoga sukha duḥkha āra

“They declare, ‘I am the doer! This is my clan! I only experience happiness and distress because of my own actions.

(24)
āmāra rakṣaka āmi, āmi ta pālaka
āmāra vanitā bhrātā bālikā bālaka

“‘I am my own protector, and I am the support for my wife, brothers, daughters, and sons.

(25)
āmi ta arjana kari āmāra ceṣṭāya
sarva kārya siddha haya sarva śobhā pāya

“‘My achievements are due to my hard work, and because of that, everything is perfect and beautiful.’

(26)
ahaṁ mama buddhi krame bahirmukha jana
nija jñāna bale bahu karaye mānana

“Owing to their mentality of ‘I’ and ‘mine,’ such persons are actually averse to the Supreme because they stress great importance on their own knowledge.

(27)
sei jñāna bale śilpa vijñāna vistāre
īśvarera īśitā nā māne duṣṭācāre

“They develop knowledge about certain crafts and sciences, but, as a result of their bad conduct, they cannot recognise the hand of the Supreme. (5)

(5) Those who are averse think, “We are very intelligent in improving various arts, sciences etc. and this has increased our happiness.” The truth is that everything happens by Kṛṣṇa’s desire, yet such persons never remember this.

(28)
śrī-nāma-māhātmya śuni viśvāsa nā kare
loka vyavahāre kabhu kṛṣṇa-nāmoccāre

“They may hear the glories of śrī–nāma but they have no faith in them. However, due to social obligations they may sometimes chant kṛṣṇa-nāma.

(29)
kṛṣṇa-nāma kare tabu nāhi pāya prīti
dharma-dhvajī śaṭha jana jīvane e rīti

“They chant kṛṣṇa-nāma, but still do not attain prīti. This is the behaviour of those who live the deceitful life of a dharma–dhvajī (a hypocrite wrapped in the flag of religion).

(30)
helāya uccāre nāma kichu puṇya haya
prīti phala nāhi phale sarva-śāstre kaya

“By chanting the Name neglectfully one acquires some puṇya, but not the actual result of prīti. This is declared by all the śāstra.

Ihāra mūla ki? (What is the Basis of This?)

(31)
māyā baddha haite ei aparādha haya
ihāte niṣkṛti lābha kaṭhina niścaya

“This offence is due to being conditioned by māyā. To achieve freedom from it is certainly very difficult.

(32)
śuddha-bhakti phale yāṅra virakti haila
saṁsāra chāḍiyā sei nāmāśraya nila

“Those who have attained the result of śuddha–bhakti and are detached, have given up the material world and taken shelter of the Name.

Ei doṣa tyāgera upāya (The Method of Giving Up this Fault)

(33)
niṣkiñcana bhāve bhaje śrī kṛṣṇa caraṇa
viṣaya chāḍiyā kare nāma saṅkīrtana

“Accepting the mood of a niṣkiñcana (one who has no desire for material wealth), they worship the feet of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. They abandon mundane sense objects and perform nāma-saṅkīrtana.

(34)
sei sādhu jane anveṣiyā tāṅra saṅga
karibe sevibe chāḍi viṣaya taraṅga

“Such persons seek out the association of sādhus and serve them, rejecting the waves of mundanity.

(35)
krame krame nāme mati haibe sañcāra
ahaṁtā mamatā yābe māyā habe pāra

“By doing this, eventually, the Name will manifest in one’s mind and the concept of ‘I’ and ‘mine’ will disappear, and you will transcend māyā.

(36)
nāmera māhātmya śuni ahaṁ mama bhāva
chāḍiyā śaraṇātai bhaktera svabhāva

“It is natural for a devotee to surrender when he hears the glories of the Name and he will give up the mood of ‘I’ and ‘mine’.

(37)
nāmera śaraṇāgata yei mahājana
kṛṣṇa nāma kare pāya prema mahā-dhana

“That mahājana who is surrendered to the Name chants kṛṣṇa-nāma and attains the great wealth of prema.

Daśāparādha śūnya vyaktira lakṣaṇa (The Symptoms of One who is Free from the Ten Offences)

(38)
ataeva sādhu-nindā yatane chāḍiyā
para-tattva viṣṇu śuddha manete jāniyā

“Therefore, carefully giving up any criticism of sādhus, knowing within his purified mind that Viṣṇu is the Supreme Truth (para–tattva)… (6)

(6) One does not achieve everything just by giving up the ten offences. Apart from the ten offences there are also ten activities that one must perform. These are located in the instructions to give up the offences.

(39)
nāma-guru nāma-śāstra sarvottama jāni
viśuddha cinmaya nāma hṛdayete māni

…knowing that the nāma–guru (the guru gives the Holy Name) and the nāma–śāstra (those texts that glorify the Name) are supreme, considering within the heart that the Name is transcendentally pure and spiritual…

(40)
pāpa-spṛhā pāpa-bīja tyajiyā yatane
pracāriyā śuddha-nāma śraddhānvita jane

…endeavouring to reject the desire to engage in pāpa, which is the seed of pāpa, teaching those persons who have śraddhā about śuddha–nāma…

(41)
anya śubha-karma haite laiyā virāma
smare ye śaraṇāgata apramāde nāma

…and ceasing all other auspicious activities, one who is surrendered remembers the Name, free from inattention.

Niraparādhe nāme laile alpa dine bhāvodaya haya (After a Few Days Chanting Without Offence, Bhāva Arises)

(42)
sei dhanya tri-jagate sei bhāgyavān
kṛṣṇa kṛpā yogya sei guṇera nidāna

“Such a person is blessed within the three worlds and most fortunate. He is eligible to receive Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. He is an abode of good qualities.

(43)
ati alpa dine tāṅra śrī-nāma-granaṇe
bhāvodaya haya āra pāya prema-dhane

“In a few days, by chanting śrī–nāma, bhāva will manifest and they will attain the wealth of prema.

Unnati krama (The Stages of Advancement)

(44-45)
evambhūta janera sādhana-daśā prāya
ati svalpa dine yāya kṛṣṇera icchāya

bhāva-daśā haite haite prema daśā haya
prema daśā sarva-siddhi sarva-śāstra kaya

“After a few days, by the will of Kṛṣṇa, a person at the stage of sādhana (sādhana–daśā) comes to the stages of bhāva (bhāva-daśā) and then the stage of prema (prema–daśā). All the śāstra declares that this is the highest perfection. (7)

(7) If one takes refuge in the Name according to the teachings of Śrī Hari Dāsa Ṭhākura, one will cross the stage of sādhana–daśā in a few days.

(46)
tumi baliyācha nāma yei mahājana
laibe niraparādhe pābe prema-dhana

“You have stated that a mahājana who chants the Name without any offence will attain the wealth of prema.

Vyatireka bhāve ihāra cintā (Considering the Opposite of This)

(47)
aparādha nāhi chāḍi’ nāma yadi laya
sahasra sādhane tāra bhakti nāhi haya

“If one chants the Holy Name but does not give up these offences, then even by engaging in thousands of sādhanas, one will never achieve bhakti.

(48)
jñāne mukti karme bhukti jñānī karmī jane
sudurlabhā kṛṣṇa bhakti nirmala sādhane

“The jñānī and karmī know that through jñāna one attains mukti, and through karma one attains bhukti (material enjoyment), but it is extremely rare for them to attain kṛṣṇa–bhakti even by performing pure sādhana.

(49)
bhukti mukti śukti-sama bhakti muktā-phala
jīvera mahimā bhakti-prāpti su-nirmala

“Bhukti and mukti are like oysters, whereas the result of bhakti is like a pearl. The jīva achieves glory when he attains pure unalloyed bhakti.

(50)
sādhane naipuṇya-yoge atyalpa-sādhane
bhakti-latā prema-phala dena bhakta-jane

“When devotees are expert in the state of sādhana, the bhakti–latā (creeper of bhakti) awards them the fruit of prema, even after engaging in a little sādhana. (8)

(8) By engaging in sādhana expertly, devotees will attain prema, the fruit of the bhakti-latā, even after a little sādhana.

Bhajana naipuṇya (Expertise in Bhajana)

(51)
daśa aparādha chāḍi nāmera grahaṇa
ihāi naipuṇya haya sādhana bhajana

“Avoiding the ten offences while chanting the Holy Name is considered to be expertise in sādhana and bhajana.

Nāmāparādhera gurutā (The Severity of Nāmāparādha)

(52)
ataeva bhakti lābhe yadi lobha haya
daśa aparādha chāḍi kari nāmāśraya

“Therefore, if one has greed to attain bhakti, one should avoid the ten offences, and take shelter of the Name.

(53)
eka eka aparādha satarka haiyā
yatanete chāḍi citte vilāpa kariyā

“One must be careful about each of the offences, and lament in his heart for not giving them up.

(54)
nāmera caraṇe kari dṛḍha nivedana
nāma kṛpā hale aparādha vidhvaṁsana

“By firmly dedicating oneself at the feet of the Holy Name, the Name will be merciful and one’s offences will be eradicated.

(55)
anya śubha-karme nāma aparādha kṣaya
kona prāyaścitta yoge kabhu nāhi haya

“Other auspicious activities or various types of atonement can never destroy these offences.

Nāmāparādha parityāgera upāya (The Method to Give Up Nāmāparādha)

(56)
aviśrānta nāme nāma aparādha yāya
tāhe aparādha kabhu sthāna nāhi pāya

“By continuous chanting of the Name, nāmāparādha disappears. Then those offences never find any place (in the sādhaka). (9)

(9) Aviśrānta-nāma (continuous chanting of the Name) – nāmāparādha will be destroyed if one chants the Name at all times, apart from when one needs to sleep in order to perform one’s daily functions. Nāmāparādha is not destroyed by any other auspicious deeds or atonement.

(57)
divārātra nāma laya anutāpa kare
tabe aparādha yāya nāma phala dhare

“Day and night, one should chant the Name and feel remorse. Then the offences will disappear, and one will achieve the result of nāma.

(58)
aparādha gate śuddha-nāmera udaya
śuddha-nāma bhāvamaya āra premamaya

“When the offences have gone, śuddha-nāma appears. Śuddha–nāma overflows with bhāva and prema.

(59)
daśa aparādha yena hṛdaye nā paśe
kṛpā kara mahāprabhu maji nāma rase

“O Mahāprabhu, be merciful and immerse me in nāma-rasa, so that these ten offences never enter my heart, ”

(60)
e bhaktivinoda hari-dāsa kṛpā bale
hari-nāma-cintāmaṇi gāya kutūhale

By the mercy of Hari Dāsa, this Bhaktivinoda chants Hari-nāma Cintāmaṇi with astonishment.

iti śri-hari-nāma-cintāmaṇau ahaṁ-mama-bhāvāparādha-vicāro nāma
trayodaśaḥ paricchedaḥ

Thus ends the Thirteenth Chapter of Śrī Hari-nāma Cintāmaṇī entitled,
‘A Deliberation Upon the Offence to the Name by Maintaining the Mentality of ‘I’ and ‘Mine’.’