Tan manye adhītam uttamam. Prahlada Mahārāja said one who is engaged in these activities, śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ, hearing and chanting . . . hearing means to hear about somebody else—his activities, his form, his quality, his entourage, so many things. If I want to hear about you, you must have some activities. Just like history. We hear about history. What is the history? History means the record of activities of different persons in different ages. That is history.
So as soon as there is the question hearing, then the next question will be, "To hear what? Or what about? What is the subject matter?" So that is said: Viṣṇu. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ. The activities of Lord Viṣṇu or Lord Kṛṣṇa. That is hearing. Not that hearing the news in the newspaper, not that sort of hearing. Brahma-jijñāsā. These things are statement in the Vedas. Inquiry about Brahman. Hearing about Brahman. Just like here, we are also hearing and chanting. What is the subject matter? The subject matter is Kṛṣṇa. We are not hearing here any market report: what is the price of this, what is the price of this share or that share. No. We are hearing about Kṛṣṇa. And when there is question of hearing, there must be speaking or chanting. So we are speaking and chanting about Kṛṣṇa. That is bhakti-yoga. Simply always be engaged in hearing and chanting about Kṛṣṇa. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ.
Then further. As soon as you become expert in hearing and chanting, then the next stage is smaraṇam. Smaraṇam: thinking of. Anything you speak or hear, later on you contemplate, you meditate, smaraṇam. So smaraṇam is the third stage. First of all, one must begin with hearing, śravaṇam. Otherwise what about, meditation? If you do not know the subject matter of meditation, where is the question of meditation? Therefore we must first of all hear about the subject matter of meditation. And that is chanting. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ (SB 7.5.23). About Lord Viṣṇu.
Actually, yoga meditation means to see the form of the Lord, four-handed viṣṇu-mūrti, within the heart. That is real meditation. Now these rascals, they have manufactured so-called meditation. That is not meditation. Meditation means to see the form of the Lord within your heart. Because in the heart there is the Lord. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). So by controlling all the senses . . . the senses are very restless. They are going this way and that way, this way and that way. Mind is going this way, that way. So by this aṣṭāṅga-yoga system, by sitting posture, by controlling the breathing, by modes of different posture of seeing—so many things there are—the real thing is to control the mind and concentrate it on the form of Viṣṇu. That is Hare Kṛṣṇa. That is called samādhi. Pratyāhāra samādhi.