# The Ten Offenses There are ten offenses to avoid in chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. Simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa one does not become ecstatic if one commits these offenses. Every devotee who claims to be a Vaiṣṇava must guard against these offenses in order to quickly achieve the desired success. --- ## The Ten Offenses Against the Holy Name ![[cc/adi/8/24#purport|The first offense is to blaspheme great personalities who are engaged in distributing the holy name of the Lord...The second nāmāparādha...The third offense at the lotus feet of the holy name, which is called guror avajñā, is to consider the spiritual master to be material...The fourth offense (śruti-śāstra-nindanam) is to blaspheme Vedic literatures...The fifth offense (tathārtha-vādaḥ) is to consider the glories of the holy name to be exaggerations...the sixth offense (hari-nāmni kalpanam) is to consider the holy name of the Lord to be imaginary...The seventh offense...To think that since the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra can counteract all sinful reactions one may therefore go on with his sinful activities...The eighth offense...It is offensive to consider the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra to be a religious ritualistic ceremony...The ninth offense...It is an offense to preach the glories of the holy name among persons who have no intelligence or no faith...The tenth offense...continues in a materialistic concept of life]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/8/24|Ādi 8.24]] Purport --- **Summary of the ten offenses:** The offenses against the chanting of the holy name are as follows: **(1)** To blaspheme the devotees who have dedicated their lives for propagating the holy name of the Lord. **(2)** To consider the names of demigods like Lord Śiva or Lord Brahmā to be equal to, or independent of, the name of Lord Viṣṇu. **(3)** To disobey the orders of the spiritual master. **(4)** To blaspheme the Vedic literature or literature in pursuance of the Vedic version. **(5)** To consider the glories of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa to be imagination. **(6)** To give some interpretation on the holy name of the Lord. **(7)** To commit sinful activities on the strength of the holy name of the Lord. **(8)** To consider the chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa one of the auspicious ritualistic activities offered in the Vedas as fruitive activities (karma-kāṇḍa). **(9)** To instruct a faithless person about the glories of the holy name. **(10)** To not have complete faith in the chanting of the holy names and to maintain material attachments, even after understanding so many instructions on this matter. **Every devotee who claims to be a Vaiṣṇava must guard against these offenses in order to quickly achieve the desired success.** —*The Nectar of Devotion* --- ## Comments on Individual Offenses ### Offense 1: Blaspheming Devotees **One should neither engage in, nor hear, blasphemy of devotees:** ![[sb/2/1/11#purport|one should neither blaspheme the devotee of the Lord nor indulge in hearing others who are engaged in belittling a devotee of the Lord]] —SB [[sb/2/1/11|2.1.11]] Purport --- ### Offense 2: Equating Names of Demigods with the Lord **One should not equate the name of the Lord with those of the demigods:** ![[sb/2/1/12#purport|By chanting the Lord's holy name, one can derive all the stipulated energy synchronized from all sources. Therefore, one should not equalize the supreme holy name of the Lord with any other name]] —SB [[sb/2/1/12|2.1.12]] Purport --- ![[sb/3/33/7#purport|Anyone who compares the holy name of the Supreme Lord to the names of the demigods is called pāṣaṇḍī or an offender]] —SB [[sb/3/33/7|3.33.7]] Purport --- ### Offense 3: Disobeying the Spiritual Master **Guru-aparādha is the most grievous offense against the holy name:** ![[sb/4/21/37#purport|The most grievous type of vaiṣṇava-aparādha is called guru-aparādha, which refers to offenses at the lotus feet of the spiritual master. In the chanting of the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, this guru-aparādha is considered the most grievous offense]] —SB [[sb/4/21/37|4.21.37]] Purport --- **A disciple who lacks faith in his spiritual master cannot attain success in chanting:** It appears from the talks of Lord Caitanya that **a person who cannot keep his faith in the words of the spiritual master and who acts independently cannot attain the desired success in chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa.** In the Vedic literatures it is stated that the import of all transcendental literature is revealed to one who has unflinching faith in the Supreme Lord and his spiritual master. —*Teachings of Lord Caitanya* --- ### Offense 4: Blaspheming Vedic Literature **Worshipers of impersonalists are guilty of the offense of blaspheming the Vedic literature:** ![[cc/madhya/18/115#purport|Worshipers of impersonalists like Dattatreya are also pāṣaṇḍis]] —Cc. [[cc/madhya/18/115|Madhya 18.115]] Purport --- ### Offenses 5 & 6: Exaggeration or Interpretation **To think that glorification of the holy name is an exaggeration or to interpret the glories of the holy name are offenses:** ![[cc/adi/17/72|When a student interpreted the glories of the holy name as a prayer of exaggeration, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, greatly unhappy, immediately warned everyone not to see the student's face henceforward]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/17/72|Ādi 17.72-73]] --- **Māyāvādīs offend the holy name by differentiating it from the Lord Himself:** ![[cc/adi/7/74#purport|Although Māyāvādīs profess monism, they differentiate between the holy name of the Supreme Lord and the Lord Himself. For this offense of nāmāparādha they gradually glide down from their exalted position]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/7/74|Ādi 7.74]] Purport --- ### Offense 7: Sinning on the Strength of the Holy Name **One must not sin with the intention of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa to neutralize the reactions:** ![[sb/6/3/31#purport|One should not conclude that one may continue to sin with the intention of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa to neutralize the reactions. Rather, one should be very careful to be free from all sins and never think of counteracting sinful activities by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, for this is another offense]] —SB [[sb/6/3/31|6.3.31]] Purport --- ![[sb/6/13/8#purport|The Lord's holy name certainly has the potency to neutralize all sinful activities, but if one repeatedly and intentionally commits sins while chanting the holy name, he is most condemned]] —SB [[sb/6/13/8|6.13.8-9]] Purport --- **One should not think chanting will nullify repeated sinful acts:** One should not think that because the holy name of Kṛṣṇa can nullify sinful activities, one may commit a little sinful activity and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa to nullify it. **This is the greatest offense (nāmno balād yasya hi pāpa-buddhiḥ).** The members of some religious orders go to church and confess their sins, but then they again commit the same sinful activities. What then is the value of their confession? —*Teachings of Queen Kuntī* --- **The powerful holy name cannot be used for sinister activities:** ![[sb/2/1/12#purport|The powerful holy name of the Lord can certainly deliver one from sinful effects, but one who desires to utilize this transcendental potency of the holy name of the Lord in one's sinister activities is the most degraded person in the world]] —SB [[sb/2/1/12|2.1.12]] Purport --- ### Offense 8: Equating Holy Name with Pious Activities **It is an offense to consider the holy name to be an ordinary pious activity:** ![[cc/adi/3/79|One who says that ten million aśvamedha sacrifices are equal to the chanting of the holy name of Lord Kṛṣṇa is undoubtedly an atheist]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/3/79|Ādi 3.79]] --- ![[cc/adi/17/212#purport|To consider the chanting of the holy name of the Lord equal to the execution of some auspicious religious ceremony is an offense]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/17/212|Ādi 17.212]] Purport --- **While chanting the holy name, one should not desire material advancement:** ![[cc/adi/7/84#purport|While chanting the holy name of the Lord, one should not desire the material advancements represented by economic development, religiosity, sense gratification and ultimately liberation from the material world]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/7/84|Ādi 7.84]] Purport --- ## Effects of Offensive Chanting **The holy name eradicates sins, but if one offends the holy name, he will not be delivered:** The chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa is beneficial for eradicating all sins; **but if one becomes an offender to the holy names of the Lord, then he has no chance of being delivered.** —*The Nectar of Devotion* --- **An offense at the lotus feet of the holy name is extremely dangerous:** ![[cc/adi/17/72#purport|There are many kinds of offenses, but the offense known as nāmāparādha, an offense at the lotus feet of the holy name, is extremely dangerous. The Lord therefore warned everyone not to see the face of the offender]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/17/72|Ādi 17.72-74]] Purport --- **Without chanting offenselessly, one cannot properly advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness:** **One should know for certain that without chanting the holy name of the Lord offenselessly, one cannot be a proper candidate for advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.** —*The Nectar of Instruction* Text 5 --- **If one commits offenses against the holy name, he will not achieve attachment for chanting:** ![[cc/antya/20/16|My dear Lord, although You bestow such mercy upon the fallen conditioned souls by liberally teaching Your holy names, I am so unfortunate that I commit offenses while chanting the holy name, and therefore I do not achieve attachment for chanting]] —Cc. [[cc/antya/20/16|Antya 20.16]] --- **If one chants the holy name offensively, one does not achieve love for the Supreme Lord:** ![[cc/adi/8/29|If one chants the exalted holy name of the Lord again and again and yet his love for the Supreme Lord does not develop and tears do not appear in his eyes, it is evident that because of his offenses in chanting, the seed of the holy name of Kṛṣṇa does not sprout]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/8/29|Ādi 8.29-30]] --- **If one chants with offenses, even many lifetimes of chanting will not bring love of Godhead:** ![[cc/adi/8/16|If one is infested with the ten offenses in the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, despite his endeavor to chant the holy name for many births, he will not get the love of Godhead which is the ultimate goal of this chanting]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/8/16|Ādi 8.16]] --- **If one chants without proper understanding, just to make a show, he will never attain perfection:** ![[cc/adi/7/95#purport|Lord Caitanya never tried to be the master of the holy name; rather He taught us how to be servants of the holy name. If one chants the holy name of the Lord just to make a show, not knowing the secret of success, he may increase his bile secretion, but he will never attain perfection in chanting the holy name]] —Cc. [[cc/adi/7/95|Ādi 7.95-96]] Purport --- **One should avoid those who offend the chanting of the holy name:** ![[cc/madhya/22/131#purport|One should avoid...those who offend the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra]] —Cc. [[cc/madhya/22/131|Madhya 22.131]] Purport --- **[← Back to Śrī Nāmāmṛta](wiki/compile/sri-namamrita)**