EFFECT OF GOD'S NAME

EFFECT OF GOD’S NAME

Totally immersed in the shoreless sea of samsara, man has no time to think of God! His attachment  to his wife, children, property and other things leads him astray. But in this Kaliyuga the best way to attain salvation is to repeat the name of God. Unless he cultivates and practices bhakthi from his early life it is impossible for him to utter the name of God! It is all the more difficult to think of God and call out to God in the terminal stage when man is afflicted with disease and loses his consciousness! That is why Kulasekhara Azwar says that he has, in the beginning, offered his heart and soul at the lotus feet of the Lord! The name of God is capable of warding off all sins of man if uttered before one breathes his last! The Bhagavata Purana establishes this fact in the story of a brahmin and how he was emancipated through calling out the name ‘Narayana’, though it happened to be the name of his dear son!

In the land of Kanyakubja lived a brahmin, Ajamila. But he went astray, forgot all the righteous ways in which a brahmin has to conduct himself, and lived with a low caste woman! He indulged in sinful deeds, became a gambler and a thief also! He had ten sons of whom the last was named Narayana. Ajamila was extremely fond of him and never wanted to be separated from him. In fact he doted on him, ate with him and did everything in his company! As days passed he grew old, senile and death scared him! Even then, he did not think of God or feel sorry for the evil life he had spent. All his thoughts were on his last son. In his indescribable attachment to his last son, he called “Narayana, come to me” and breathed his last! Soon the kinkaras of Yama,the God of Death came to take him away to their world for punishment! He had to suffer  in hell for his evil life on earth. But they were shocked to see divine beings who had come to take Ajamila to heaven.

The Yama kinkaras argued that Ajamila did not deserve heaven as he was unrighteous and led a sinful life. He was a slave to his passion and lust and lived with a low caste woman. He had deserted his wife and aged mother to satisfy his lust and indulged in sinful deeds. He was a drunkard, and a thief also! Hence he should be subjected to severe punishment. But those from heaven contradicted their statement. Ajamila was absolved of all his sins as he had called out to  Lord Narayana even as he breathed his last! Though he called out to his dear son, that happened to be the Lord’s name Narayana. That name is capable of annihilating all the sins accumulated during the previous births! Hence the effects of his evil karma have melted away  like the snow that dissolves after sunrise! It is immaterial whether the name is uttered knowingly or unknowingly!  They asked the Yama Kinkaras to seek clarification from their Lord Yama Dharmaraja on this point.

Yama pointed out that namasmarana is otherwise called Bhakthi yoga. There is nothing superior to it on earth. It is the name of Hari alone that brings salvation to man! “ Harair nameiva nameiva nameiva mama jivanam kalau nasthaiva nasthaiva nasthaiva gathi ranyatha.” If by repeating the Lord’s name once can get man salvation, what about those who perform japa always?  Yama said that Lord Narayana is the Supreme Absolute on whose mandate he and all other Gods perform their duties! He admonished his men and directed them not to approach the devotees of Lord Narayana henceforth!

Bhakthi or devotion and spirituality cannot come to a person suddenly or by magic! It has to be cultivated assiduously even from childhood. It depends upon the bringing up that the child has. Moving in good company, association with the wise and saintly and the pious will go a long way in developing spirituality and devotion among children! Sathsang is very important for everyone. As Adi Sankara says there is no point in memorising grammatical rules with one foot in the grave! The thought of God does not come to man in his last moments as his attachments are innumerable. He is worried about his wife, children, property and so many things at the moment of his demise! He has not contemplated on God seriously during his lifetime! How can the name of God come to him suddenly in his last moments? We have to think seriously about this so that the Lord’s name is always on our lips!