Ten offenses against the holy name (Conversations)

Expressions researched:
"discussions about offenses committed while chanting the holy name" |"offenses against the chanting of the holy name are as follows" |"offenses are mentioned in the Padma Purana as being ten in number" |"offenses at the feet of the holy name" |"offenses when rendering devotional service and chanting the holy names" |"ten basic offenses" |"ten different offenses" |"ten kinds of offenses" |"ten offenses" |"ten principal offenses" |"ten types of offenses"

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Those who are not interested to speak them about Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we offense. One of the ten offenses.

Room Conversation -- July 4, 1972, New York:

Prabhupāda: Not hitting. By otherwise engage.

Devotee (4): Like if he doesn't...

Prabhupāda: "Don't you see your other friends are taking bath. Why shall you not take bath? Very nice, you are so intelligent boy, you are not like that."

Ātreya Ṛṣi: Positive.

Prabhupāda: By sweet words. They are after all children. Forcing is not good. (pause) What it this?

Devotee (4): Oh, I just wrote... My brother was in the hospital, so I just wrote a little letter to him. I'm going to send him some...

Prabhupāda: This is the letterheading, latest?

Devotee (4): Yes, this is New York society. I don't have any envelopes, but...

Prabhupāda: This printing in our press?

Devotee (4): I don't know. This is the first I've seen of it, just now.

Ātreya Ṛṣi: Would you like some, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: No.

Devotee (4): I'm sending over some tulasī leaves.

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Devotee (4): Little tulasī leaf?

Prabhupāda: No.

Devotee (4): Eat? No, shouldn't send.

Prabhupāda: He's not a devotee. He'll "Oh, what is this?" Throw away.

Devotee (4): Hm.

Prabhupāda: Just like the tulasī plant is here, somebody will think that it is decoration. We put it here, devotion, but those who are not interested to speak them about Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we offense. One of the ten offenses.

Devotee (4): Yeah. I was wondering about that. I didn't know whether to do it or not.

Prabhupāda: They should be asked ordinary question: What is the life? What is the aim of life?

Devotee (4): Hm.

Prabhupāda: What is consciousness? Philosophy, which is understandable by everyone (indistinct).

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

If he is chanting without offense, then it is all right, but if he is committing offenses, it will not be effective. There are ten kinds of offenses. Whether he is strictly offenseless? Then it is all right. If he is offender, then it will not be fruitful. It will be fruitful; it will take long time because first of all you have to become offenseless.

Morning Walk -- February 3, 1975, Hawaii:

Rāmeśvara: I have heard there is a philosophy here amongst some of the devotees that if you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, you can go back to the spiritual world even if you do not give up your independence.

Prabhupāda: What is that?

Rāmeśvara: Many devotees who have moved outside of the temple are feeling that if they just continue to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, they can go back to the spiritual world, but they are not giving up their independence.

Prabhupāda: So? What is your philosophy?

Rāmeśvara: Well, it seems somewhat hypocritical because chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa means you are praying to Kṛṣṇa to please be engaged eternally in His service and to become completely dependent on Him. So we try to explain like that. And to follow all the teachings and instructions, attending maṅgala āratik and morning and evening class.

Prabhupāda: So they are doing that or not?

Guru-kṛpa: No. They are not even following regulative principles.

Prabhupāda: Then?

Rāmeśvara: They think just by chanting, they will go back to the spiritual world. That is enough.

Prabhupāda: Then what is the meaning of the ten kinds of offenses? If he is chanting without offense, then it is all right, but if he is committing offenses, it will not be effective. There are ten kinds of offenses. Whether he is strictly offenseless? Then it is all right. If he is offender, then it will not be fruitful. It will be fruitful; it will take long time because first of all you have to become offenseless. Then you will be admitted. (aside:) Don't come very near. That's it. So they are committing offenses, so how they can become perfect? He is committing not following the rules and regulation. That means he is thinking that "Whatever I do, it will be adjusted by chanting the name." Is it not?

Guru-kṛpa: Yes. That's one of the offenses.

Rāmeśvara: That is their philosophy.

Prabhupāda: That is their philosophy. That is the greatest offense, nāmnad balād yasya hi pāpa-buddhiḥ, that "I can go on committing sinful activity, but by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, it will be adjusted." That is the greatest offense. So explain to them.

Guru-kṛpa: So they say, "Then my chanting is useless? So I should stop?" That's what they say.

Prabhupāda: No, not useless. But just like if you kindle fire and at the same time pour water, it will take long time. To kindle fire, make it dry, keep it dry. Then it will be very quickly successful. So you are committing offenses, at the same time chanting, so by chanting effect, you will come to that stage, but it will take time. If you want to be transferred to the spiritual world quickly, just like if you want to ignite the fire very quickly, you must keep it dry. If you simply put on the wet wood, then the fire will not be very powerful. It will be... It will take time. The fire will be blazing fire. Then it will dry. It will take... Better put dry wood to make it successful. This is the process. The effect of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa will not go in vain, but it will take time. Nāmnad balād yasya hi pāpa-buddhiḥ. Because he is thinking "By the strength of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, I can do anything, all sinful activities, and it will be adjusted," that is the greatest offense, not only offense, the greatest offense. Nāmnad balād yasya hi pāpa-buddhiḥ.

Siddha-svarūpa: It is very difficult to put everyone who is living outside of the temple in one category. Some people, they are, many people that I know living outside are following strictly the regulative principles, and they are...

Prabhupāda: Huh?

Siddha-svarūpa: They are strictly following regulative principles and chanting their rounds and having morning āratik in their homes. And evening also, they are chanting. So instead of fighting, I think we should only try to encourage everybody to chant and follow the regulative principles.

Prabhupāda: No, that is... Whether you live in temple or outside temple, the rules and regulation and the process must be followed. Then you are successful. It doesn't matter that you have to live in the temple. Gṛhe thāko vane thāko, 'hā gaurāṅga' bo'le ḍāko. Not that everyone has to live in the temple. If he does not agree with other Godbrothers, friends, he can live separately. But he must follow the rules and regulation. That is wanted. But if you live with devotees, it will be automatically done.

Siddha-svarūpa: Easy.

Prabhupāda: Therefore it is recommended that you live with devotees. But if you cannot agree with the devotees, you have got your own opinion, then you cannot make a new opinion so far the process is concerned. That must be followed. This is not good idea, that "Whatever I do, it is my independence, and I will chant." So that is good in sense that some day he will come to senses. Otherwise, for the time being, the chant is not very powerful. The fire in wet wood is not powerful. It will create some smoke. Although the fire is there. But if you put dry wood, immediately it will be blazing, and your business will be quickly done. This is intelligence. There are many examples. A patient suffering from disease, a doctor said, "You should do; you should not do." So if we follow "You should not do," then it becomes quickly recovered. But if he becomes under the treatment of the doctor at the same time he does all nonsense, then how it can be successful? It will take time. That is stated in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta. Pāpi jane aparādha āchāya pracūra. Pāpi jane aparādha āchāya... Offenseless chanting is the ultimate goal. In the beginning we are not offenseless, but by chanting, chanting, by practice, we gradually become offenseless. But this is necessary, that you should be offenseless.

Devotee (3): Śrīla Prabhupāda, it's very difficult to control my mind when I chant. It wanders.

Prabhupāda: So what is the controlling of mind? You have to chant and hear, that's all. You have to chant with your tongue, and the sound you hear, that's all. What is the question of mind?

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

And those who are too sinful, they cannot chant...these ten kinds of offenses.

Morning Walk -- May 15, 1976, Honolulu:

Rādhāvallabha: They say, "You cannot be successful unless you accept Jesus Christ like us." But they were smoking.

Prabhupāda: We accept. Rather, you do not accept. Jesus Christ said "Thou shall not kill." We strictly observe that, but you kill. You are not a Christian.

Hari-śauri: "But that's just an ideal, the Ten Commandments. You're not expected to follow."

Prabhupāda: No, that is your explanation. That is your concoction. (break) ...take it. As soon as you disobey Ten Commandments, you are not a Christian. You are heathen. (break) And the thing is that religious faith should not be discussed on philosophy because everyone has got some, his own concocted faith. That is not philosophy. Faith is different. "I believe," "You believe," "I do not believe"—that is not philosophy. (break) ...philosophy in Bhagavad-gītā that asmin dehe.... Dehino 'smin yathā dehe (BG 2.13), there is soul. This is philosophy. Religion without philosophy is sentiment, and philosophy without religion is mental concoction. So both of them should be combined. Then it is perfect.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: (break) ...can be given, though, that man's logic is so tiny, pea brain, and God's logic is so great, so how can actually man discuss the logic of God?

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: The argument is given that God is infinitely great.

Prabhupāda: Then don't discuss. Sleep. If you cannot understand God's logic and God's philosophy, then don't discuss. Stop discuss.

Rādhāvallabha: Jewish people say that you can't chant the name of God because it is too sacred.

Prabhupāda: Yes, too sacred, that's.... Actually that's a fact. And those who are too sinful, they cannot chant. (break) ...these ten kinds of offenses.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

They may chant, but they must understand that the chanting process, that will be more effective. That they must know. Chanting is open. Anyone can chant, but they must know it, that "If I chant in the proper process, then it will be effective."

Room Conversation With Artists and About BTG -- February 25, 1977, Mayapura:

Hari-śauri: If you advertise the mahā-mantra gives some material benefit, isn't that an offense?

Prabhupāda: Then that is aparādha.

Hari-śauri: Yes.

Prabhupāda: That is aparādha.

Hari-śauri: One of the ten offenses.

Rāmeśvara: 'Cause sometimes when we interview these people who are chanting, they speak from their own realization, and it is not exactly the version of Śukadeva Gosvāmī, it is not..., but it is their own realization, whatever little bit they have realized.

Prabhupāda: No, no. They may chant, but they must understand that the chanting process, that will be more effective. That they must know. Chanting is open. Anyone can chant, but they must know it, that "If I chant in the proper process, then it will be effective."

Rāmeśvara: It must be clear to them that the goal is love of God, not something material.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Premā pum-artho mahān. That is wanted. There is one word by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, nāmākṣara bahir haya nāma nāhi haya: "The... Simply the alphabets are coming, but that is not nāma." Nāmākṣara, Hare Kṛṣṇa, the alphabets, are coming out, but it is not the holy name.

Rāmeśvara: Suppose someone says that Caitanya Mahāprabhu has given freely this holy name with no rules and regulations... (break)

Brahmānanda: We wanted to make a distinction that a nondevotee chanting is different from when a pure devotee chants.

Rāmeśvara: So that distinction should be there.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Rāmeśvara: We were thinking that somehow this magazine...

Prabhupāda: No, another thing, it is aparādha... Nāmno balād yasya hi pāpa-buddhiḥ. Unless he is in the process he'll think, "I am chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, so whatever sinful activities I am..., it will be controlled."

Brahmānanda: That's the worst offense.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is very bad offense.

Hari-śauri: So we're actually advertising the process of devotional service, not just simply haphazard chanting.

Prabhupāda: First of all we are chanting just to make him little attracted. Ādau śraddhā.

Rāmeśvara: Just to popularize it.

Prabhupāda: Yes, that's it. Then, if the heart is little cleansed, then they will understand. It will be effective, but when it is done properly it will give real effect. Outsider, those who are chanting, we don't discourage him.

Rāmeśvara: We want then to chant more.

Prabhupāda: Yes. But we must... They must know the science also.

Rāmeśvara: Just like this Alice Coltrane. She has done her small part. She made this record album with Govinda Jaya Jaya and Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Prabhupāda: That is... That will be a good thing. But when he (she) does it properly it will be more effective, because there is... If one does not chant in the process, then gradually it degrades. The offense will increase. There is chance.

There are ten kinds of offenses. So in the beginning there may be offenses. It doesn't matter. It will be rectified.

Evening Darsana -- May 13, 1977, Hrishikesh:

Prabhupāda: So all these persons who are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa according to the prescribed rules and regulations, without any offense... There are ten kinds of offenses. So in the beginning there may be offenses. It doesn't matter. It will be rectified. Offenseless chanting means mukti, and then pure chanting means love of Godhead. There are three stages. In the beginning, when one begins chanting, it is not pure. There are so many offenses. But chanting, chanting, the offenses become purified. Offenseless chanting is not purified completely, but it is offenseless. So offenseless chanting makes one liberated, and then pure chanting makes one lover of God. This is the process. So chanting is definite mystic power. Caitanya Mahāprabhu has recommended, ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam: (CC Antya 20.12) "By chanting, your heart becomes purified."