Looking at the Cultural Background
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am  the compiler of  Vedānta , and I know  Veda  as it is.” The Supreme Lord, seated in everyone’s heart, is described in both the  Muṇḍaka  and  Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣads :  dvā suparṇā sayujā sakhāyā ... The Supreme Lord and the individual soul are sitting in the body like two friendly birds in a tree. One bird is eating the fruits of the tree, or reactions of material activities, and the other bird, the Supersoul, is witnessing.
The goal of Vedantic study, therefore, is to know the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. This point is stressed in the  Bhagavad-gītā , Chapter Eight, verse 13, where it is stated that by the mystic yoga process, ultimately vibrating the sacred syllable  oṁ , one attains to His supreme spiritual planet. In the  Vedānta-sūtras , which you have certainly read, the Fourth Chapter,  adhikaraṇa 4 ,  sūtra 22 , states positively,  anāvṛttiḥ śabdāt : “By sound vibration one becomes liberated.” By devotional service, by understanding well the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one can go to His abode and never come back again to this material condition. How is it possible? The answer is, simply chanting His name constantly.
This is accepted by the exemplary disciple, Arjuna, who has perfectly learned the conclusion of spiritual science from the  yogeśvara , the master of mystic knowledge, Kṛṣṇa. Recognizing Kṛṣṇa to be the Supreme Brahman, Arjuna addresses Him,  sthāne hṛṣikeśa ...: “The world becomes joyful hearing Your name, and thus do all become attached to You.” [Bg. 11.36] The process of chanting is herein authorized as the direct means of contacting the Supreme Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead. Simply by chanting the holy name Kṛṣṇa, the soul is attracted by the Supreme Person, Kṛṣṇa, to go home, back to Godhead.
In the  Nārada-pañcarātra  it is stated that all the Vedic rituals, mantras, and understanding are compressed into the eight words Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare. Similarly, in the  Kali-santaraṇa Upaniṣad  it is stated that these sixteen words, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare, are especially meant for counteracting the degrading and contaminating influence of this materialistic age of Kali.
All these points are elaborately presented in my book  Teachings of Lord Caitanya .
The process of chanting is, therefore, not only the sublime method for practical perfection of life, but the authorized Vedic principle inaugurated by the greatest Vedic scholar and devotee, Lord Caitanya (whom we consider an incarnation of Kṛṣṇa). We are simply following in His authorized footsteps.
The scope of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is universal. The