770312 - Letter to Turiya (Alice Coltrane) written from Mayapur

Letters by Date, 1977

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

March 12, 1977

Turiya (Alice Coltrane)
c/o Ramesvara Swami
ISKCON
3764 Watseka Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90034

Sri Mayapur Chandradoya Mandir,
P.O. Sreedham Mayapur,
Dist. Nadia, W. Bengal, India.

My dear Turiya,

Please accept my blessings. I have listened to your new record album, "Radha-Krsna Nama-Sankirtana," and am very pleased with your chanting. You have become transcendental. Now continue to keep yourself in that transcendental state and your life will be successful. As soon as you chant Govinda Jaya Jaya and Hare Krishna Mahamantra you are no longer in the material world. These are the Vedic verses in favor of chanting:

yan-namadheya-sravananukirtanad /
yat-prahvanad yat-smaranad api kvacit /
svado'pi sadyah savanaya kalpate /
kutah punas to bagavan nu darsanat

ahe bata sva-pacc'to gariyan /
yaj-jihvagre vartata nama tubhyam /
epus tapas te juhuvuh sasnur arya /
brahmanucur nama grnanti ye

"To say nothing of the spiritual advancement of persons who see the Supreme Person eye to eye, even a person born in the family of dog-eaters immediately becomes eligible to perform Vedic sacrifices if he once utters the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, or chants about Him, hears about His pastimes, offers Him obeisances or even remembers Him. Oh how glorious are they whose tongues are chanting Your holy name! Even if born in the families of dog-eaters, such persons are worshipable. Persons who chant the holy name of Your Lordship must have executed all kinds of austerities and fire sacrifices and achieved all good manners of the Aryans. To be chanting the holy name of Your Lordship, they must have bathed at holy places of pilgrimage, studied the Vedas and fulfilled everything required." (Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 3, Ch. 33, v6-7) [missing text]

So here the spiritual potency of chanting the holy name of the Supreme Lord is greatly stressed. The holy name has to be chanted to please the Supreme Lord, and not for any sense gratification. If this pure mentality is there then you become so glorious that not only do you become purified yourself, but you become competent to deliver others. So go on doing this nicely and Krishna will help you make advancement in Krishna consciousness.

I hope this meets you in good health.

Your ever well-wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

ACBS/tkg