Kirtan - The Final Destination

Our final destination is praising the Lord….Kirtan.

As I stood at a baggage claim at the airport waiting for my bags to arrive, I just realized in the spur of the moment how much energy goes into preparation of a trip till the conclusion of a trip. Somehow in that moment there were many flights arriving at the same time and the bags were delayed. There were people pacing the floor impatiently huffing and puffing expressing to the person next to them, some were on a different flight who had lost their bags and were complaining while most others were standing gathered around waiting anxiously. I realized that at the beginning of any trip we need to pack, maybe shop for some things to take along like special clothes or food or other necessities, then we may need gifts for people, tickets to be bought, hotels to be booked, car rental, inquiry of places to visit and people to see, etc. I could understand that if i just divert some of this energy in preparation for my final destination than for my temporary one here, my life would be successful. How does one start to do that ? What is our final destination?

The destination of the eternal soul is what we need to worry about. The material body will finish its existence here in this material world. So at the time of death the destination of the soul will be decided. What will be our consciousness at that moment when we leave this body behind is what our destination will be. Now that is tough as whatever you have practiced your entire lifetime is what will be in your consciousness. In Srimad Bhagavad Gita Krishna mentions in chapter 8 verse 6 “Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, O son of Kuntī, that state he will attain without fail.” He also goes on to say in verse 8 “ He who meditates on Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, his mind constantly engaged in remembering Me, undeviated from the path, he, O Pārtha, is sure to reach Me.” Now this may sound easy that all we need to do is remember Krishna , our dear Lord, undeviated and knowing Him to be the supreme Personality of Godhead. But I can see how many attachments I have at this very moment when I have been practicing on this path for many years now. So needless to say we have numerous attachments to things, people and places and it takes time for the cleansing of the heart. The quick solution is given to us by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who is Krishna Himself appearing as a devotee in this age of Kaliyuga. Caitanya Mahaprabhu gave us this beautiful method of meditation “Kirtan”. Kirtan is glorification of the Lord usually by using a mantra. One can sing or recite the mantra in a call and response method and attain the benefits of hearing, chanting, and remembering the Lord . Kirtan also can be done by speaking about the Lord in glorification about His pastimes. The mantra given by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the Mahamantra:

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare,

Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare

The beauty of this method of meditation is that you can sing along anywhere and anyplace with just about anything that you may be doing. Krishna says “constantly engaged” which may not be possible by other methods of meditation. The instruction of Krishna for us here is to be in constant remembrance of Him. The damsels (Gopis) of Vrindavan who are the dearmost girl friends of Krishna are also singing the glories of Krishna in the mood of separation. It is mentioned in the glorious Gopi geet …

tava kathāmṛtaṁ tapta-jīvanaṁ
 kavibhir īḍitaṁ kalmaṣāpaham
śravaṇa-maṅgalaṁ śrīmad ātataṁ
 bhuvi gṛṇanti ye bhūri-dā janāḥ

The nectar of Your words and the descriptions of Your activities are the life and soul of those suffering in this material world. These narrations, transmitted by learned sages, eradicate one’s sinful reactions and bestow good fortune upon whoever hears them. These narrations are broadcast all over the world and are filled with spiritual power. Certainly those who spread the message of Godhead are most munificent.

Just as the gopis are in the mood of separation, so are we. We are separated from the Lord and in that mood we remember Him and His activities. It gives us relief from the pangs of material miseries. We are singing the glories here and we will be singing the glories there in the spiritual world as a service to Sri Sri Radha Krishna. Radha Krishna love to hear the Hare Krishna Mahamantra as Krishna is reminded of His beloved Radha and Radha is reminded of His beloved Krishna. Kirtan is an eternal service that we perform here and there in the spiritual world.

Singing the glories is our Final Destination.

This weeks Kirtan Tunes

Govinda Jai Jai Gopal Jai Jai

Radha Raman Hari Govinda Jai Jai