Looking at the Cultural Background 95

am the compiler of Vedanta, and I know Veda as it is.”’ The Supreme
Lord, seated in everyone’s heart, is described in both the Mundaka and
Svetdsvatara Upanisads: dvd suparnd sayuja sakhdya... 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,
Krsna. This point is stressed in the Bhagavad-gita, Chapter Eight, verse
13, where it is stated that by the mystic yoga process, ultimately vibrating
the sacred syllable om, one attains to His supreme spiritual planet. In the
Vedanta-sutras, which you have certainly read, the Fourth Chapter,
adhikarana 4, stitra 22, states positively, andvrttih sabdat: ‘‘By sound
vibration one becomes liberated.’’ By devotional service, by understand-
ing 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 by chanting His name constantly.

This is accepted by the exemplary disciple, Arjuna, who has perfectly
learmed the conclusion of spiritual science from the yogesvara, the master
of mystic knowledge, Krsna. Recognizing Krsna to be the Supreme Brah-
man, Arjuna addresses Him, sthdne hrsikesa...:‘‘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 Krsna, the soul is attracted
by the Supreme Person, Krsna, to go home, back to Godhead.

In the Ndarada-pancaratra it is stated that all the Vedic rituals, mantras,
and understanding are compressed into the eight words Hare Krsna,
Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare. Similarly, in the Kali-santarana
Upanisad it is stated that these sixteen words, Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna,
Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare
Hare, are especially meant for counteracting the degrading and con-
taminating 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 con-
sider an incarnation of Krsna). We are simply following in His authorized
footsteps.

The scope of the Krsna consciousness movement is universal. The
