# Āśrama Considerations The pure brahmacārī engages fully in the chanting of the holy name. Householders can achieve perfection by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra at home. However, neophyte devotees should not retire to a secluded place to chant but should engage in preaching. --- ## The Pure Brahmacārī **The pure brahmacārī engages fully in harer nāmānukīrtanam:** ![[bg/4/26#purport|A brahmacārī hears only words concerning Kṛṣṇa consciousness; hearing is the basic principle for understanding, and therefore the pure brahmacārī engages fully in harer nāmānukīrtanam—chanting and hearing the glories of the Lord. He restrains himself from the vibrations of material sounds, and his hearing is engaged in the transcendental sound vibration of Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa]] —Bg. [[bg/4/26|4.26]] Purport --- **The brahmacārī must chant the holy name upon rising in the morning:** ![[sb/3/21/45#purport|In the early morning hours (known as brāhma-muhūrta) one should get up and immediately chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, or, at least, \"Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa.\"...The brahmacārī must rise early in the morning and, after placing himself, should chant the holy name of the Lord]] —SB [[sb/3/21/45|3.21.45-47]] Purport --- ## Householders Can Chant at Home **Even householders can achieve perfection by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra:** ![[sb/7/15/74|The process of chanting the holy name of the Lord is so powerful that by this chanting even householders can very easily gain the ultimate result achieved by persons in the renounced order]] —SB [[sb/7/15/74|7.15.74]] **Anyone who takes part in this movement, regardless of what he is, can gain the topmost result achieved by a perfect sannyāsī**, namely brahma-jñāna (spiritual knowledge). Even more important, he can advance in devotional service. Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira thought that because he was a gṛhastha there was no hope of his being liberated, and therefore he asked Nārada Muni how he could get out of material entanglement. But Nārada Muni, citing a practical example from his own life, **established that by associating with devotees and chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, any man in any condition of life can achieve the highest perfection without a doubt.** —SB [[sb/7/15/74|7.15.74]] Purport --- **Rather than leave his family, a householder can purify his household situation by regularly chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra:** ![[cc/madhya/7/128#purport|It is not advisable in this Age of Kali to leave one's family suddenly, for people are not trained as proper brahmacārīs and gṛhasthas. Therefore Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu advised the brāhmaṇa not to be too eager to give up family life. It would be better to remain with his family and try to become purified by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra regularly under the direction of a spiritual master]] —Cc. [[cc/madhya/7/128|Madhya 7.128]] Purport --- **One can make home life pleasant by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa:** ![[bg/13/8#purport|The best process for making the home pleasant is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If one is in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he can make his home very happy because this process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is very easy. One need only chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare / Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare, accept the remnants of foodstuffs offered to Kṛṣṇa, have some discussion on books like Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and engage oneself in Deity worship. These four things will make one happy]] —Bg. [[bg/13/8|13.8-12]] Purport --- **Kṛṣṇa conscious householders should hold saṅkīrtana festivals in their homes:** ![[cc/madhya/3/203#purport|If one has the proper means and wealth, he should occasionally invite the devotees of Lord Caitanya, who are engaged in preaching all over the world, and hold a festival at home simply by distributing prasāda and talking about Kṛṣṇa during the day and holding congregational chanting for at least three hours in the evening]] —Cc. [[cc/madhya/3/203|Madhya 3.201-3]] Purport --- **One who feels he cannot live in the temple can practice Kṛṣṇa consciousness at home by chanting the mahā-mantra:** ![[cc/madhya/3/190#purport|One who feels that he is not yet ready to live in a temple or undergo strict regulative principles in the temple—especially householders who live with wife and children—can start a center at home by installing the Deity, worshiping the Lord morning and evening, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and discussing Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Anyone can do this at home without difficulty]] —Cc. [[cc/madhya/3/190|Madhya 3.190]] Purport --- ## Neophytes Should Not Retire to a Secluded Place **Sitting in a solitary place to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra is not recommended for neophytes:** ![[cc/madhya/11/176#purport|Neophyte students are not to imitate sitting in a solitary place and remembering the lotus feet of the Lord by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. We should always remember that it was Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Himself who wanted such a place, either for Himself or Haridāsa Ṭhākura. No one can suddenly attain the level of Haridāsa Ṭhākura and sit down in a solitary place to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and remember the lotus feet of the Lord]] —Cc. [[cc/madhya/11/176|Madhya 11.176]] Purport --- **The neophyte devotee must not give up preaching to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa in solitude:** ![[sb/4/28/44#purport|Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura never advised a neophyte devotee to go to a solitary place to engage in devotional service]] —SB [[sb/4/28/44|4.28.44]] Purport Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has written a song in this connection: *duṣṭa mana, tumi kisera vaiṣṇava?* *pratiṣṭhāra tare, nirjanera ghare,* *tava hari-nāma kevala kaitava* **"My dear mind, what kind of devotee are you? Simply for cheap adoration you sit in a solitary place and pretend to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, but this is all cheating."** Thus Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura advocated that **every devotee, under the guidance of an expert spiritual master, preach the bhakti cult, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, all over the world.** —SB [[sb/4/28/44|4.28.44]] Purport --- **One should not merely chant in a secluded place (and fall down) but should preach:** There are many Vaiṣṇavas in Vṛndāvana who do not like preaching; they chiefly try to imitate Haridāsa Ṭhākura. **The actual result of their so-called chanting in a secluded place, however, is that they sleep and think of women and money.** —SB 4.29.1b Purport --- **One should not retire prematurely to Vṛndāvana for pretentious solitary chanting of the holy name:** One who goes prematurely to Vṛndāvana to live in pursuance of the instructions of Śukadeva Gosvāmī again falls victim of māyā, even while residing in Vṛndāvana. To check such unauthorized residence in Vṛndāvana, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has sung a nice song in this connection, the purport of which is as follows: **"My dear mind, why are you so proud of being a Vaiṣṇava? Your solitary worship and chanting of the holy name of the Lord are based on a desire for cheap popularity, and therefore your chanting of the holy name is only a pretension. Such an ambition for a cheap reputation can be compared to the stool of a hog because such popularity is another extension of the influence of māyā."** —*Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead* --- **Unless one is extremely advanced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one will be influenced by the modes of nature if one tries to chant in a solitary place:** ![[sb/7/9/46#purport|There are many who like to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra in a silent, solitary place, but if one is not interested in preaching, talking constantly to the nondevotees, the influence of the modes of nature is very difficult to surpass. Therefore unless one is extremely advanced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one should not imitate Haridāsa Ṭhākura]] —SB [[sb/7/9/46|7.9.46]] Purport --- **One should not try to imitate exalted personalities like Haridāsa Ṭhākura by chanting in a solitary place:** ![[cc/adi/7/92#purport|A person who has attracted the attention of the spiritual master by his sincere service likes to dance and chant with similarly developed Kṛṣṇa conscious devotees. The spiritual master authorizes such a devotee to deliver fallen souls in all parts of the world. Those who are not advanced prefer to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra in a solitary place]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/7/92|Ādi 7.92]] Purport One should not attempt to imitate such exalted devotees. Rather, **everyone should endeavor to preach the cult of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu in all parts of the world and thus become successful in spiritual life.** —Cc. [[cc/adi/7/92|Ādi 7.92]] Purport --- **Kṛṣṇa consciousness does not mean to become inert and to chant the holy name in a secluded place:** ![[bg/3/1#purport|Sometimes Kṛṣṇa consciousness is misunderstood to be inertia, and one with such a misunderstanding often withdraws to a secluded place to become fully Kṛṣṇa conscious by chanting the holy name of Lord Kṛṣṇa. But without being trained in the philosophy of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it is not advisable to chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa in a secluded place where one may acquire only cheap adoration from the innocent public]] —Bg. [[bg/3/1|3.1]] Purport --- **[← Back to Śrī Nāmāmṛta](wiki/compile/sri-namamrita)**