A Second Chance: The Story of a Near - Death Experience -- Prabhupada Books by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Author:A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada [Prabhupada, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Philosophy
Publisher: Prabhupada Living Archive
Published: 2010-12-08T13:30:00+00:00

Chapter 15

Atonement

The Viṣṇudūtas continued: "Ajāmila has already atoned for all his sinful actions. Indeed, he has atoned not only for sins performed in one life but for those performed in millions of lives, for in a helpless condition he chanted the holy name of Nārāyaṇa. Even though he did not chant purely, he chanted without offense, and therefore he is now pure and eligible for liberation.

"Even previously, while eating and at other times, Ajāmila would call his son, saying, 'My dear Nārāyaṇa, please come here.' Although calling the name of his son, he nevertheless uttered the four syllables nā-rā-ya-ṇa. Simply by chanting the name of Nārāyaṇa in this way, he sufficiently atoned for the sinful reactions of millions of lives.

"The chanting of the holy name of Lord Viṣṇu is the best process of atonement for one who steals gold or other valuables, for a drunkard, for one who betrays a friend or relative, for one who kills a brāhmaṇa, or for a man who indulges in sex with the wife of his guru or another superior. It is also the best method of atonement for a man who murders his father, the king, or women, for one who slaughters cows, and for all other sinful men. Simply by chanting the holy name of Lord Viṣṇu, such sinful persons attract the attention of the Supreme Lord, who then considers, 'Because this man has chanted My name, My duty is to give him protection.' " (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 6.2.7–10)

Absolute Absolution

The Viṣṇudūtas charged that the Yamadūtas did not know whom to arrest and whom not to arrest. The Yamadūtas regularly arrest sinful persons, but in this case the Yamadūtas came to arrest Ajāmila, who had been released from all sinful reactions simply by chanting "Nārāyaṇa!" The Viṣṇudūtas criticized the Yamadūtas, saying, "You do not know whom to punish and whom not to punish. Even though Ajāmila committed so many sinful activities, he is now freed from the reactions to his sins. He has completely counteracted all those sins by chanting the holy name of Nārāyaṇa. Why are you now attempting to arrest this person as if he were a criminal? Although he had no intention of chanting the holy name, still he has chanted it, and therefore he is now free of sin."

The Yamadūtas had considered only the external situation of Ajāmila. Since he was extremely sinful during his life, they thought he should be taken to Yamarāja. They did not know that he had become free from the reactions of all his sins. The Viṣṇudūtas thus instructed them that because he had chanted the name Nārāyaṇa at the time of his death-and also throughout his life-he was freed from all sinful reactions. In this regard Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura quotes the following verses from the scriptures:

nāmno hi yāvatī śaktiḥ

pāpa-nirharaṇe hareḥ

tāvat kartuṁ na śaknoti

pātakaṁ pātakī naraḥ

"Simply by chanting one holy name of Hari, a sinful man can counteract the reactions to more sins than he can commit." (Bṛhad-viṣṇu Purāṇa)

avaśenāpi yan-nāmni

kīrtite sarva-pātakaiḥ

pumān vimucyate sadyaḥ

siṁha-trastair mṛgair iva

"If

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.