A Second Chance:
The Story of a Near-Death Experience
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Chapter 16
Awakening Love of God
The Visnudutas continued: “By following the Vedic ritualistic ceremonies or undergoing atonement, sinful men do not become as purified as by once chanting the holy name of Lord Hari. Although ritualistic atonement may free one from sinful reactions, it does not awaken devotional service, unlike the chanting of the Lord’s names, which reminds one of the Lord’s fame, qualities, attributes, pastimes, and paraphernalia.
“The ritualistic ceremonies of atonement recommended in the religious scriptures are insufficient to cleanse the heart absolutely because after atonement one’s mind again runs toward material activities. Consequently, for one who wants liberation from the fruitive reactions of material activities, the chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra, or glorification of the name, fame, and pastimes of the Lord, is recommended as the most perfect process of atonement because such chanting completely eradicates the dirt from one’s heart.
“At the time of death, Ajamila helplessly and very loudly chanted the holy name of Narayana. That chanting alone has already freed him from the reactions of all sinful life. Therefore, O servants of Yamaraja, do not try to take him to your master for punishment in hellish conditions.
“One who chants the holy name of the Lord is immediately freed from the reactions of unlimited sins, even if he chants the holy name jokingly, for musical entertainment, neglectfully, or even to indicate something else. This is accepted by all learned scholars of the scriptures.
“If a person somehow or other chants the holy name of Hari while dying because of an accident, such as falling from the top of a house, slipping and suffering broken bones while traveling on the road, being bitten by a snake, being afflicted with pain and high fever, or being injured by a weapon, he is immediately absolved from having to enter hellish life, even if he was sinful throughout his life.
“Learned scholars and sages have carefully ascertained that one should atone for the heaviest sins by undergoing a heavy process of atonement and one should atone for lighter sins by undergoing lighter atonement. But chanting the Hare Krsna mantra vanquishes all the effects of sinful activities, regardless of whether heavy or light.
“Although one may neutralize the reactions of sinful life through austerity, charity, vows, and other such methods, these pious activities cannot uproot the material desires in one’s heart. However, one who serves the lotus feet of the Personality of Godhead is immediately freed from all such contaminations.
“As a fire burns dry grass to ashes, so the holy name of the Lord, whether chanted knowingly or unknowingly, unfailingly burns to ashes all the reactions of one’s sinful activities.
“Even if a person is unaware of the potency of a certain medicine, if he takes that medicine or is forced to take it, it will act even without his knowledge, for its potency does not depend on the patient’s understanding. Similarly, even though one does not know the value of chanting the holy name of the Lord, if one chants the holy name—knowingly or unknowingly—the chanting will be very effective.”
Sri Sukadeva Gosvami continued speaking to King Pariksit: My dear king, having thus perfectly judged the principles of devotional service with reasoning and arguments, the order-carriers of Lord Visnu released the brahmana Ajamila from the bondage of the Yamadutas and saved him from imminent death. Then the Yamadutas went to Yamaraja and explained to him everything that had happened.
The brahmana Ajamila was now free from fear, having been released from the nooses of Yamaraja’s servants. Coming to his senses, he immediately offered obeisances to the Visnudutas by bowing his head at their lotus feet. He was extremely pleased by their presence, for he had seen them save his life from the hands of the servants of Yamaraja. But when the Visnudutas saw that Ajamila was attempting to say something, they suddenly disappeared from his presence. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.2.11–23)
Atonement vs. Chanting the Holy Name
Here the Visnudutas say that the Vedic scriptures recommend various means of atonement, by which a person may be delivered from the reactions of his sinful activities. In Christianity there is also a means of atonement. If a Catholic commits a sin, for example, he is instructed to go to a priest and confess: “I have committed such-and-such sin.” The priest is supposed to be an authorized representative of God, and so if he excuses the sinner, the sin becomes nullified.
However, such atonement cannot purify the sinful man as much as the purifying process of chanting the holy name of Lord Krsna. The man who confesses to having sinned leaves the church and often commits the same sin again. In other words, there is no question of becoming purified by this process of atonement.
Still, atonement of various kinds is recommended in the Vedas for those who are not ready to take up the process of pure devotional service. These methods of atonement are proportional to the the severity of the sin they are meant to counteract. For example, if we fall sick with a cough or influenza, the cost of medicine prescribed by the doctor may be little, but if we are stricken with tuberculosis, the medicine will be more costly. Likewise, prayascitta, or the ritualistic ceremonies for counteracting sinful activities, is proportionately less or greater according to the gravity of the sin. If we commit a grievous sin, then the penance will be severe. These are the prescriptions given by great sages like Parasara Muni and Manu. The sages have composed twenty kinds of scriptures, constituting the dharma-sastra, and these scriptures are meant for atoning for one’s sins and elevating one to the heavenly planets. For example, it is said that if one has committed certain crimes, he must vow to fast for a certain number of days or give charity. Or, a businessman who has earned a million dollars by sinful activities must give in charity accordingly.
There are many such prescribed methods of atonement, but here the Visnudutas say, “Although these prescribed methods of atonement are authorized and true, they cannot purify the heart.” We can see that even though the adherents of Hinduism, Mohammedanism, and Christianity perform such rituals of atonement, they cannot refrain from again committing the same sins. One who practices these principles of atonement is like a rascal patient who goes to a physician for treatment. The physician gives him medicine and instructs him how to take it, but the foolish patient takes the medicine according to his own whims, and so his condition worsens. Again he goes to the physician, crying “Doctor, please give me more medicine.”
In this regard, Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura describes an incident that took place when Samba, one of Lord Krsna’s sons, was rescued from the punishment of the Kauravas. Samba fell in love with Laksmana, the daughter of Duryodhana, and since according to ksatriya custom one is not offered a ksatriya’s daughter unless he displays his chivalrous valor, Samba abducted her. Consequently Samba was arrested by the Kauravas. Later, when Lord Balarama came to rescue him, there was an argument about Samba’s release. Since the argument was not settled, Balarama showed His power in such a way that all of Hastinapura trembled and would have been vanquished as if by a great earthquake. Then the matter was settled, and Samba married Duryodhana’s daughter. The purport is that one should take shelter of Krsna and Balarama, whose protective power is so great that it cannot be equaled in the material world. However powerful the reactions of one’s sins, they will immediately be vanquished if one chants the name of Hari, Krsna, Balarama, or Narayana.
Therefore such rituals of atonement as fasting and giving charity are not accepted by the Visnudutas. They say, “Such prescribed ritualistic ceremonies cannot purify a man as effectively as chanting the holy name of God.” Undoubtedly one becomes free from all contamination of sinful life by executing particular religious principles, but these are ultimately insufficient, because the mind is so disturbed that even after being freed from the contamination of sinful reactions, the mind again becomes attracted to sinful activity.
The purificatory power of devotional service to Krsna, beginning with the chanting of the holy name, is stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam (11.2.42): bhaktih paresanubhavo viraktir anyatra ca. “Devotional service to the Lord is so powerful that one who performs it is immediately freed from all material desires.” All desires within this material world are sinful because material desire means sense gratification, which always involves action that is more or less sinful. But pure devotional service is anyabhilasita-sunya, free from material desires. One who is situated in devotional service no longer has material desires, and thus he is beyond sinful life. Material desires should be completely stopped. Otherwise, although one’s austerities, penances, and charity may free one from sin for the time being, one’s desires will reappear because his heart is impure. Thus he will act sinfully and suffer. The special advantage of devotional service is that it frees one of all material desires.
One cannot purify one’s heart by atonement alone. A patient suffering from syphilis goes to the doctor, who gives him an injection and charges a high fee. Yes, he may be cured, but when he again engages in illicit sex, he once again contracts syphilis. So his heart was not purified of the desire for illicit sex. But if one takes to Krsna consciousness, he forgets illicit sex. That is the test of one’s Krsna consciousness. A sincere devotee never commits sin, because his heart has become purified by chanting the holy name and engaging in devotional service.
Of course, there are pseudodevotees who commit sinful activities on the strength of chanting Hare Krsna. They are great offenders against the holy name. We should not use the holy name like a machine, thinking that because the chanting process consumes sinful reactions we can freely commit more sin. This is the greatest offense against the holy name of Krsna. Whatever sins we may have previously committed are immediately eradicated by offenseless chanting of the holy name of the Lord, even just once. But we must not sin again. Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu forgave the sinful Jagai and Madhai, who had been drunkards, woman-hunters, meat-eaters, and gamblers. But these two sinners fell down at the lotus feet of Lord Caitanya and Nityananda Prabhu and cried, “Sirs! We are so sinful! Kindly deliver us.” Lord Caitanya agreed on the condition that they promise not to commit any more sins. He said, “Whatever you have done I shall excuse, but do not do it again.” Thus Jagai and Madhai vowed, “This is the end of our sinful activities. We shall not do them anymore.” When a person is initiated by a spiritual master, the reactions of his sins immediately become nullified. But that does not mean he can again commit sins.
Krsna consciousness means following in the footsteps of Lord Caitanya, and so we initiate disciples according to the principle he showed in the case of Jagai and Madhai. We accept many people into our Society as duly initiated disciples, but only if they vow to observe these regulations: no more illicit sex, no more gambling, no more intoxication, and no more animal-killing or meat-eating. These regulations are necessary, because if one takes up spiritual life and at the same time goes on committing sinful activities, he will never be able to make progress. As Krsna clearly says in the Bhagavad-gita (7.28),
yesam tv anta-gatam papam
jananam punya-karmanam
te dvandva-moha-nirmukta
bhajante mam drdha-vratah
“Persons who have acted piously in previous lives and in this life and whose sinful actions are completely eradicated are freed from the dualities of delusion, and they engage themselves in My service with determination.”
If we are actually serious about entering into the kingdom of God, Vaikuntha, then we should be very careful to follow the four regulative principles mentioned above. One must not have any sex except to have children within marriage. One must not indulge in intoxication. One must not gamble. And one must not eat meat, fish, or eggs or anything else beyond the foods established for human beings—grains, fruits, vegetables, milk, and sugar. Such foodstuffs are sattvika, or pure and good, and they are allotted for human consumption. One should not imitate the cats and dogs, reasoning that because the animals are eating meat, human beings can do likewise. If everything eatable is food, why not eat stool? Stool is also food—hogs eat stool. But human beings should not eat like hogs, who will eat all kinds of unclean foods. We have to discriminate. If we want to enter into spiritual life, we must observe these four principles of restriction. This may mean undergoing some austerity, but this is the purpose of human life. When we have purified our existence through austerity, we will be eligible to enter into the kingdom of God, but without being purified, we can never enter.
Meditation on Krsna’s Form
If one chants the holy name of God—Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare—eventually he will see Krsna’s form, realize Krsna’s qualities, and remember Krsna’s pastimes. That is the effect of the pure chanting of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra.
Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura comments that the chanting of the holy name of the Lord has special significance that distinguishes it from the Vedic ritualistic ceremonies of atonement for severe, more severe, or most severe sins. There are twenty types of religious scriptures called dharma-sastras, beginning with the Manu-samhita and Parasara-samhita, but herein it is stressed that although one may become free from the reactions of the most sinful activities by following the religious principles of these scriptures, this cannot promote a sinful man to the stage of loving service to the Lord. On the other hand, chanting the holy name of the Lord even once not only frees one immediately from the reactions of the greatest sins, but also begins to raise one to the platform of rendering loving service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus one serves the Lord by remembering His form, attributes, and pastimes.
Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti explains that it is because of the Lord’s omnipotence that this is all possible simply by chanting His holy name. What cannot be achieved through the performance of Vedic rituals can easily be achieved through the chanting of the Lord’s holy name. To chant the holy name and dance in ecstasy is so easy, sublime, and effective that one can readily achieve all the benefits of spiritual life simply by following this process. Therefore Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu declares, param vijayate sri-krsna-sankirtanam: “All glories to the congregational chanting of Lord Krsna’s holy name!” The sankirtana movement we have started offers the best process for immediately becoming purified of all sinful reactions and coming to the platform of spiritual life.
Although Ajamila became fallen in his later days, in his youth he was a brahmacari and was properly trained by his father. He knew the name, form, and pastimes of Narayana, but by bad association he forgot them. However, as soon as he chanted the name of Lord Narayana on his deathbed, he again remembered all his past pious activities, and therefore he was saved.
That chanting and hearing the Lord’s name and glories is the best means of purifying the heart of sinful propensities is confirmed at the beginning of the Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.2.17):
srnvatam sva-kathah krsnah
punya-sravana-kirtanah
hrdy antah stho hy abhadrani
vidhunoti suhrt satam
“Sri Krsna, the Personality of Godhead, who is the Supersoul in everyone’s heart and the benefactor of the truthful devotee, cleanses desire for material enjoyment from the heart of the devotee who relishes His messages, which are in themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted.”
It is the special mercy of the Supreme Lord that as soon as He sees a person glorifying His name, form, and pastimes, He personally cleanses the dirt from that person’s heart. Even if one does not understand the meaning of the Lord’s name, form, and pastimes, one is purified simply by hearing or chanting them.
One’s main purpose in human life should be to purify one’s existence and achieve liberation. As long as one has a material body, one is understood to be impure. In such an impure, material condition, one cannot enjoy a truly blissful life, although everyone seeks it. Therefore everyone requires purification. As Lord Rsabhadeva says in the Srimad-Bhagavatam (5.5.1), tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam suddhyed yasmad brahma-saukhyam tv anantam: “My dear sons, you must perform tapasya, austerity, to purify your existence; then you will come to the spiritual platform and enjoy unending spiritual happiness.” The tapasya of chanting and glorifying the name, form, and pastimes of the Lord is a very easy purifying process by which everyone can become happy. Therefore everyone who desires the ultimate cleansing of his heart must adopt this process. Other processes, such as karma, jnana, and yoga, cannot cleanse the heart absolutely.
Mayavadis, or impersonalists, cannot glorify the name, form, and pastimes of the Lord because they think that God has no form and that His pastimes are maya, illusory. Why should God not have a form? We have a form because our father has a form. So why should the supreme father not have a form? In the Bhagavad-gita (14.4) Krsna says, aham bija-pradah pita: “I am the seed-giving father of all beings.” The Christians also believe that God is the supreme father. If the sons all have forms, how is it that the father has no form? We cannot be born of a father who is formless. Isvarah paramah krsnah sac-cid-ananda-vigrahah: “Krsna is the supreme controller and the cause of all causes, and He possesses an eternal form of knowledge and bliss.” (Brahma-samhita 5.1) Vigraha means “form.” If God is the cause of all causes, the creator, and He is creating all these forms, how can He be formless?
God has a form, but it is not a form like ours. His form is sac-cid-ananda, but ours is just the opposite. God’s form is sat, eternally existing, while man’s form is asat, temporary. God’s form is cit, full of knowledge, but ours is acit, full of ignorance. And His form is full of ananda, bliss, but ours is full of nirananda, misery. It is only because we cannot conceive of a form so different from ours that sometimes it is said God is nirakara, without form.
God’s form is transcendental. That means His body is not material but spiritual. His form is of a different nature than that to which we are accustomed. In the Vedas it is said that God sees but that He has no eyes. This means that God’s eyes are unlike ours—they are spiritual, not material. We can see only so far, whereas God can see everything because He has eyes everywhere. His eyes, His form, His hands and legs are of a different nature than ours.
Unlike our knowledge, Krsna’s knowledge is unlimited. As He says in the Bhagavad-gita (7.26), “I know past, present, future—everything.” Earlier (Bhagavad-gita 4.5) He reminds Arjuna, “Both you and I have taken many births. I remember them all, but you have forgotten them.” Thus there is no limit to His knowledge. His knowledge, His body, and His happiness are completely different from our knowledge, body, and happiness. Therefore it is only out of ignorance that some people say the Absolute Truth is nirakara, formless.
Thinking that God has no form is just imagination. It is material thought. We have a form, so He must have a form, though not a form like ours. Only fools think God is ultimately formless. Krsna declares this in the Bhagavad-gita (7.24): avyaktam vyaktim apannam manyante mam abuddhayah. “Unintelligent men think that I was impersonal before and have now assumed this personality.” In another place in the Bhagavad-gita, those who deride the personal form of God are called mudhas, or asses. God certainly has a form, but His form is entirely different from ours. That is the real understanding of nirakara.
And just as Krsna’s form is not like our material forms, so His pastimes are also not of this material nature. Anyone who knows this is immediately liberated. Krsna confirms this in the Bhagavad-gita (4.9),
janma karma ca me divyam
evam yo vetti tattvatah
tyaktva deham punar janma
naiti mam eti so ’rjuna
“One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains my eternal abode.” Simply by chanting the holy name of Krsna purely, one can come to understand the pastimes of the Supreme Lord and thus become liberated. Chanting is easy and sublime. One who offenselessly chants Hare Krsna will always remember Krsna’s form, pastimes, qualities, and entourage, and that remembrance will liberate him from all sinful reactions and all material bondage.
The Visnudutas here declare that although there are many methods prescribed in the Vedas for attaining liberation from sinful reactions, these methods are all insufficient, because they cannot elevate a person to the standard of absolute purity. Those who practice other methods of purification mentioned in the Vedas generally desire some material benefit, such as elevation to the heavenly kingdom. But a devotee does not care for elevation to the heavenly planets. A devotee doesn’t care a fig for any planet in this material world, because he knows that the benefit of entering into the heavenly kingdom is temporary. We may live for thousands of years on a higher planet and enjoy a very high standard of life, complete with beautiful wife, abundant wealth, and the finest wine, but there is no permanent benefit. For a devotee, such a life is hellish, because he does not wish to live without Krsna. That is genuine spiritual realization.
We simply care for Krsna and how Krsna will be happy. That is real happiness. We try to please Krsna. Kamsa was also Krsna conscious, insofar as he was always thinking of Krsna, but his meditation was unfavorable. His meditation was on how to kill Krsna. He was thinking of Krsna, but he thought of Him as his enemy. That is certainly not bhakti, or devotion. Thinking of Krsna but being opposed to His desire, opposed to satisfying Him, is not bhakti. One must act favorably in Krsna consciousness. Arjuna was a devotee because he acted favorably, for the satisfaction of Krsna. Materially speaking, Arjuna’s actions appear unfavorable, but they were favorable as far as Krsna was concerned. Therefore they were perfect and free from all sin.
Lord Krsna’s Transcendental Pastimes
It is important to understand the difference between activities of bhakti and ordinary pious activities. Cultivation of knowledge and pious activities is on the material platform. Piety does not amount to liberation. A pious man is situated on the platform of goodness, but he remains a conditioned soul, bound up by good reactions. One may even become a brahmana, a very pious man, but that does not mean he has become a devotee. And sometimes a devotee appears to act against the rules of mundane piety. Arjuna, for example, was an exalted devotee of Lord Krsna, but he killed his relatives. Ignorant people may say, “Arjuna is not a good man. Look, he killed his grandfather, his teacher, and his nephews, devastating the entire family.” But in the Bhagavad-gita (4.3) Krsna says to Arjuna, bhakto ’si me: “You are My very dear friend.” In the estimation of the material world Arjuna may not be a good man, but because he is a soul surrendered to the desire of the Supreme Lord, he must be accepted as a devotee. While it is true that Arjuna killed his own kinsmen, in the eyes of Krsna he remained a dear friend and devotee. That is the difference between a devotee and a good man of this world: A good man of this world tries to always act piously, for he knows that if he acts badly he will suffer sinful reactions; but a devotee, although naturally a very good man, can act like a bad man on Krsna’s order and still not fall down: he remains a pure devotee and is very dear to the Lord.
As mentioned above, hearing Krsna’s pastimes is very purifying, but such hearing has to be done with the right attitude. Some persons with material vision are very much attracted to Krsna’s rasa-lila—His pastimes with His cowherd girlfriends—but they do not appreciate His fighting and killing the demons. They do not know that the Absolute Truth, Krsna, is good in any and all circumstances. Whether He is enjoying in the company of His devotees or killing the demons, He remains the Absolute Truth, and therefore all His pastimes are equally purifying to hear.
Generally people go to hear the Srimad-Bhagavatam from professional reciters, who are especially fond of describing the rasa-lila. The people think, “Oh, Krsna is embracing a girl—this is very nice.” At times ten thousand people will gather to hear the rasa-lila, and in this way the reciters earn a nice profit. Thus people come to think that the Srimad-Bhagavatam means the Tenth Canto, which contains the rasa-lila and other pastimes, but what they don’t realize is that there are so many important instructions in the other cantos as well. Lord Krsna, the summum bonum, is described in the Tenth Canto, and the other nine cantos are especially meant for purifying the heart so that one may understand Krsna.
Therefore we instruct everyone first of all to read the first nine cantos of the Srimad-Bhagavatam very carefully. Then one may read the Tenth Canto with proper understanding. Those who hear about Krsna’s rasa-lila and take it as an ordinary story cannot know Krsna in truth. The rasa-lila is not an affair of lust. It is a transcendental pastime of love between Radha and Krsna. According to Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the chapters of the Srimad-Bhagavatam describing the rasa-lila are not meant for ordinary persons; they are meant for liberated persons only. Therefore these descriptions of the rasa-lila should not be described to ordinary people. Those who are advanced devotees, liberated from material contamination, can try to understand Krsna’s rasa-lila. One must not try to imagine the rasa-lila of Radha and Krsna in mundane terms.
But even though ordinary hearers of Srimad-Bhagavatam do not know the deep significance of Krsna’s rasa-lila, because they hear about Krsna’s pastimes they become purified. And if they hear from authorized sources, they will be promoted to the transcendental devotional platform. The disease within the heart is lust, the desire to enjoy, and by hearing from authorized sources about Krsna’s pastimes of loving exchanges with the gopis, the deep-rooted lusty desires in the heart will be completely eradicated.
Unfortunately, most people do not hear the Srimad-Bhagavatam from authoritative sources. They hear only from professional reciters. Therefore they remain materially diseased, full of lusty desires. Some become sahajiya, pretending to be Krsna and Radharani and Her gopi friends. In this way they behave as if they were the supreme enjoyer.
The pure devotee’s business is to satisfy Krsna, and as soon as he chants the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, he remembers how to do so. In the material world, the living entities are inclined to go astray. The mind and senses generally become attracted to material objects of desire. But one should draw one’s mind to the eternal by the practice of bhakti-yoga. Otherwise, one’s mind and senses will force one to perform karma, activities for personal sense gratification. And as soon as a person engages in sense gratification, he commits sin. Therefore to avoid karmic activities, which quickly entangle one in the process of repeated birth and death, one must take to the process of Krsna consciousness.
Here the Visnudutas advise us in the same way: If we want to be freed from the reactions of karma, we should glorify the Supreme Lord twenty-four hours a day. That will purify us. Srila Sridhara Svami says, “Instead of taking to prescribed ritualistic ceremonies, simply engage your mind in describing or glorifying the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” This is the process of Krsna consciousness.
In Krsna consciousness, or devotional service, there are nine processes: hearing about the transcendental name, form, qualities, and pastimes of the Lord, chanting about these, remembering these, serving the lotus feet of the Lord, offering Him respectful worship, offering Him prayers, becoming His servant, considering Him one’s friend, and surrendering everything to Him. One who practices one or more of these processes of devotional service throughout his life is sure to remember Krsna at the time of death. That is the art of Krsna consciousness. We cannot abandon all activities and simply chant Hare Krsna; therefore we keep ourselves constantly engaged in practical devotional service so that our mind is fixed upon Krsna. Then, at the time of death, we are sure to attain total liberation from material existence.
One who is not practiced in devotional service cannot all of a sudden chant the holy name of Narayana at the time of death. He must have prior practice in order to chant effectively. Therefore Caitanya Mahaprabhu has recommended, kirtaniyah sada harih: [Cc. adi 17.31] “One should chant the holy name of the Lord constantly.” This is the best way of remembering Krsna in this age, and always remembering Krsna ensures our return home, back to Godhead. As the Lord promises in the Bhagavad-gita (8.8),
abhyasa-yoga-yuktena
cetasa nanya-gamina
paramam purusam divyam
yati parthanucintayan
“He who meditates on Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, his mind constantly engaged in remembering Me, undeviated from the path, is sure to reach Me.”
That Ajamila remembered Krsna was not accidental. He had chanted the name of Lord Narayana earlier in his life, but he forgot the Lord due to bad association. Nevertheless, the transcendental effect of his earlier practice was there at the time of his death, even though he was calling out the name of his youngest son, not intending to call for Krsna.
Indiscriminate Mercy
As stated in the Bhagavad-gita (8.6):
yam yam vapi smaran bhavam
tyajaty ante kalevaram
tam tam evaiti kaunteya
sada tad-bhava-bhavitah
“Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, that state he will attain without fail.”
One who practices chanting the Hare Krsna mantra is naturally expected to chant Hare Krsna when he meets with some accident. Even without such practice, however, if one somehow or other chants the holy name of the Lord when he meets with an accident and dies, he will be saved from hellish life after death. For example, if a person falls from a high rooftop but somehow or other cries out “Hare Krsna!” that cry will be heard by the Lord. Or, if in our sleep we dream that a tiger is coming to eat us and we chant Hare Krsna in our sleep, the Lord hears that also.
Although Ajamila indirectly chanted the holy name of Lord Narayana through the medium of the name of his youngest son, he at once remembered Lord Narayana. Therefore in Vedic society children are given God’s names. It is not that the child becomes God. If we name a child Narayana, it is understood that he is Narayana dasa, the servant of Lord Narayana. Similarly, we give our disciples spiritual names, such as Visnu dasa, Vamana dasa, or Krsna dasa. That Ajamila remembered Lord Narayana by calling his son of the same name is confirmed in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, which says that the power of the sound vibration of the holy name is absolute.
One attains freedom from all sinful reactions immediately upon recitation of the holy name, even if one does not understand the potency of the name. Whether one is chanting with devotion and reverence or without any faith, more sinful reactions are vanquished than a sinful man can commit. Krsna’s name has such unlimited potency. When Caitanya Mahaprabhu was chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra in Navadvipa, the people used to imitate the Lord and His associates. At that time the land was ruled by Mohammedans, and sometimes the people would go to one of the government officials and complain, “The Hindus are chanting ‘Hare Krsna! Hare Krsna!’ dancing wildly, and thrashing their arms about.” In this way they imitated the sankirtana of Lord Caitanya. In Western countries the onlookers also imitate our chanting of Hare Krsna when we go out to chant on the street. Even by imitating, however, they become purified. The holy name is so powerful that if someone derides us, saying, “Why are you chanting Hare Krsna—it is nonsense!” he also gets spiritual benefit.
The chanting of Krsna’s holy name is like the sun rising in one’s darkened heart. This universe is full of darkness, and only by Krsna’s arrangement for sunshine do we see light. As soon as the sun sets, the world comes under the influence of darkness. Likewise, our heart is full of the darkness of ignorance, but there is a light to dispel the darkness, and that light is Krsna consciousness. Due to impious activities we are in ignorance, but to those who constantly engage in the service of the Lord with love and affection, Krsna reveals Himself in the heart. By Krsna’s special mercy, the devotees are always kept in the light of Krsna consciousness. Krsna knows everyone’s intention or motive, and His mercy is especially meant for those who are sincerely engaged in His service.
Krsna is equal to everyone, and as such, His mercy is unlimited. However, He is very much inclined toward His devotees. If one is prepared to accept His mercy unlimitedly, then He is prepared to give it unlimitedly. On account of our envious nature, however, we are not prepared to take His mercy. In the Bhagavad-gita (18.66) Krsna says, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja/ aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami: “Just give up all other so-called religions and surrender to Me alone. I shall protect you from all sinful reactions.” He openly offers His protection, but we do not take it. Sunlight is also equally distributed throughout the universe, but if we close the door and do not come out to take advantage of it, that is our own fault. Sunlight and moonlight do not discriminate, illuminating the houses of brahmanas while leaving candalas’ [dogeaters’] houses in darkness. No, the light is distributed indiscriminately. Similarly, the mercy of Krsna is equally available to everyone, but it is up to each individual to accept God’s freely distributed mercy.
Naturally Krsna bestows more mercy upon His devotee, because the devotee has the capacity to accept that mercy through service. The process of receiving the causeless mercy of the Lord is to render more and more service. We should be very enthusiastic to render service to the Lord. That enthusiasm will come when we chant Hare Krsna with faith and determination.
Someone may argue, “I can see how chanting the holy name with faith is purifying, but if a man has no faith, then how will the holy name act?” Here are some examples: If an innocent child touches fire, knowingly or unknowingly, it will burn him. Or, if we give medicine to a child, it acts, even though he does not know the potency of the medicine or how it is acting. Poison also acts in this way. Similarly, the Hare Krsna mantra acts, even though we may not know how or why. Even ignorant lower creatures are benefited when we chant loudly. This is confirmed by Srila Haridasa Thakura: “When one chants Hare Krsna loudly, every living entity, moving or nonmoving, benefits.” (Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya–lila 3.69)
The potency of the chanting of Hare Krsna is confirmed by the spread of the Krsna consciousness movement. In countries where the Hare Krsna movement is spreading, learned scholars and other thoughtful men are realizing its effectiveness. For example, Dr. J. Stillson Judah, a learned scholar, has been very much attracted to this movement because he has actually seen that it is turning hippies addicted to drugs into pure Vaisnavas who voluntarily become servants of Krsna and humanity. Even a few years ago, such hippies did not know the Hare Krsna mantra, but now they are chanting it and becoming pure Vaisnavas. Thus they are becoming free from all sinful activities, such as illicit sex, intoxication, meat-eating, and gambling. This is practical proof of the effectiveness of the Hare Krsna mantra. One may or may not know the value of chanting the Hare Krsna mantra, but if one somehow or other chants it, he will immediately be purified, just as one who takes a potent medicine will feel its effects, regardless of whether he takes it knowingly or unknowingly.
Another analogy: fire will act, regardless of whether handled by an innocent child or by someone well aware of its power. If a field of dry grass is set afire, either by a man who knows the power of fire or by a child who does not, the grass will be burned to ashes. Similarly, a person may or may not know the power of chanting the Hare Krsna mantra, but if he chants the holy name, he will become free from all sinful reactions. This is the correct conclusion of the Visnudutas.
Extended Lease on Life
The servants of Yamaraja are so powerful that generally they cannot be hindered anywhere, but this time they were baffled and disappointed in their attempt to take away a man they considered sinful. Therefore they immediately returned to Yamaraja and described to him everything that had happened. They thought that it was unnatural that Ajamila, who had seemed eligible to be brought before Yamaraja, had been released by the Visnudutas.
Now Ajamila was fully Krsna conscious. By the divine association of the Visnudutas, who were highly elevated Vaisnavas, Ajamila came to his full consciousness. He had been arrested, but then he had been released, and now he was free from all fear. This is liberation. When one is situated in Krsna consciousness by the association of Vaisnavas, or devotees of the Lord, one becomes free from all fear. This position is eternal. Ajamila became fearless due to being reinstated in his constitutional position. At once he began to offer nice prayers to the Visnudutas: vancha-kalpatarubhyas ca krpa-sindhubhya eva ca: “I offer my respectful obeisances unto the devotees of the Lord, who are just like desire trees and oceans of mercy.” This is the life of a devotee: he is always offering prayers to other devotees. First he offers respects to his spiritual master, next to his grand–spiritual master, next to his great-grand–spiritual master, and then to all devotees of Lord Krsna.
Vaisnavas are also Visnudutas because they carry out the orders of Krsna. Lord Krsna is very eager for all the conditioned souls rotting in this material world to surrender to Him and be saved from material pangs in this life and punishment in hellish conditions after death. A Vaisnava therefore tries to bring conditioned souls to their senses. Those who are fortunate like Ajamila are saved by the Visnudutas, or Vaisnavas, and thus they return home, back to Godhead.
Good examples of merciful Vaisnavas are the six Gosvamis. They scrutinizingly studied all kinds of scriptures to establish the principles of Krsna consciousness. In the Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu (The Nectar of Devotion) Srila Rupa Gosvami quotes many verses from different scriptures in support of the principles of bhakti. Why did he and the other Gosvamis go to so much trouble and research? It is very laborious to research the Vedic literature in search of authoritative statements, and then to assimilate them in order to support the Vedic conclusions. But the six Gosvamis took up that laborious work out of compassion for humanity.
Spreading Krsna consciousness, as the six Gosvamis did, is the best welfare work for all humanity. There seem to be many other welfare activities, but their benefit is only temporary. The great welfare work of spreading Krsna consciousness, undertaken by exalted personalities such as the six Gosvamis of Vrndavana, has real value for all men because it is based upon substantial spiritual truth. The Vaisnavas are just like desire trees (kalpa-vrksa), for they can fulfill all one’s spiritual desires. And thus they are also oceans of mercy (krpa-sindhu).
Ajamila heard the conversation between the Yamadutas and the Visnudutas, and simply by hearing he was completely cleansed of all material contamination. Such is the purifying effect of hearing about Krsna. Anyone who regularly hears the Srimad-Bhagavatam, the Bhagavad-gita, the Caitanya-caritamrta, the Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, or any other Vaisnava literature gets the same benefit as Ajamila and becomes free of all material contamination.
Ajamila was very grateful to the Visnudutas, and he immediately offered his respects by bowing down before them. Similarly, we have to make firm our relationships with the servants of Lord Visnu. As Caitanya Mahaprabhu has said, gopi-bhartuh pada-kamalayor dasa-dasanudasah: “One should consider oneself the servant of the servant of the servant of Krsna.” Without offering respects to the servant of Krsna, no one can approach Krsna.
After Ajamila had offered his respects to the Visnudutas, he prepared to say something out of gratitude. But they immediately took their leave because they preferred that he glorify the Supreme Lord instead. Since all his sinful reactions had been vanquished, Ajamila was now prepared to glorify the Lord. Indeed, one cannot glorify the Lord sincerely unless one is free from all sinful activities. This is confirmed by Krsna Himself in the Bhagavad-gita (7.28):
yesam tv anta-gatam papam
jananam punya-karmanam
te dvanda-moha-nirmukta
bhajante mam drdha-vratah
“Persons who have acted piously in previous lives and in this life and whose sinful actions are completely eradicated are freed from the duality of delusion, and they engage themselves in My service with determination.” The Visnudutas made Ajamila aware of devotional service so that He might soon become fit to return home, back to Godhead. To increase his eagerness to glorify the Lord, they disappeared so that he would feel separation in their absence. In the mood of separation, glorification of the Lord is very intense.