What is more important: japa or kirtan?

From: varun

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
Question from Varun Chawla Prabhu.
What is more important, japa or kirtan? Answer, we don’t have to impose our materialistic logic, which is sometimes like digital logic, zero or one, on spiritual conceptions. So, which is more important is a typical question that comes from material logic, which makes a particular person think of things which are aesthetic and emotional in terms of quantitative, mathematical, logical terms. Ultimately, in its highest level, love is beyond logic.
And the whole process of bhakti is meant to develop a relationship with Krishna. So, there are various realms of bhakti, and all of them help us to develop our relationship with Krishna. So, we have to understand the ultimate principle that we are trying to develop a relationship with Krishna, and that relationship is essentially a relationship of love.
So, we can’t have a mathematical sort of debating about is this more important, that is more important. Ultimately, whatever invokes our love for Krishna best is the best for us. So, it need not be the best for everyone else.
Some devotees may find, say, shravanam most attractive, others may find pada-sevanam most attractive, some other nine limbs of devotional service. Like the different devotees in the Bhagavatam itself, and in Bhakti-samhita-sindhu, it will describe the different devotees attain perfection by following different processes. So, now among these processes, yuga-dharma is Sankirtan.
So, in that sense, we can say that is the most important. And what does Sankirtan actually mean? It essentially means chanting the holy names of the Lord, Sankirtan, in the association. So, we can do japa in association, we can do kirtan in association.
So, as important as the limbs of devotional service are, equally important is the principle of surrender and obedience to the Lord and his representatives and to the Sikh scriptures, guru sadhu shastra, which manifests the will of the Lord. So, our acharyas have given us a process in which we have both japa and kirtan together. But Srila Prabhupada explained that, based on the scriptures, that the japa is something that we commit ourselves to.
So, we take initiation of chanting 16 rounds every day. We also participate in kirtans and that is wonderful. Kirtans may give us immediate and more evident feelings of devotion, but all these feelings need not always be spiritual.
You know, you may delight in the kirtan because of its musical sense, because of the melody, because of the facility to dance with others, because of the kinesthetic pleasure that we are getting by just moving around our body and gyrating in different ways. Of course, all this is also within the realm of devotional service and it is also purifying. But we may not necessarily be remembering Krishna per se when we are doing kirtans.
So, we should not get misled by our mind into thinking that because I enjoy kirtans more, so and yuga dharma is sankirtan, so let me just do kirtans, I will not do japa. Ultimately, it is the principle of surrender and service that will purify us. So, even if we get some pleasure in kirtan, that if we are not really purifying ourselves, then that pleasure will disappear over a period of time.
We will start thinking, oh, this is the same old tune again and again and again. I need some new tune. And then if we have a new tune, I want to have new dance steps.
I want some new dance steps. Then I want some new instruments. And then after some time say, I want some new mantra only.
And after some time we will say, I want a new God. So, where will this end? So, what we need to do is that rather than caving into the mind’s superficial hunger for newness, we need to go deep in what is the oldest relationship. That is the relationship of soul with Krishna.
And when we go deep within this old relationship, we will find ever-increasing newness. Because Krishna is because he is everlastingly and ever pleasingly at all attractive. So, he manifests newer and newer qualities to us as we become intense and deep in our relationship with him.
So, we will develop our relationship with Krishna primarily by harmonizing our lives with the instructions and guidelines given by the devotees of Krishna who represent his will. Therefore, we need to diligently chant the 16th round of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra every day. And if we get taste in kirtan, we can do kirtan also.
If you like to sing kirtans, participate in kirtans, hear kirtans, that is also wonderful. We can do that. That is also important.
At the same time, rather than trying to do a mathematical comparison, we try to understand the principle. Principle is that we are trying to develop love. And if any limb of devotional service inspires us to connect with Krishna more and more, surely we can do that.
And that is wonderful. Now, how will we know whether our attraction to that limb is material or spiritual? Even if it is material because it is connected with Krishna, it will purify us. But the real test will be that even if we stop liking that limb of devotional service temporarily, do we continue doing it? And if there are other limbs of devotional service which we don’t like so much, like say I like kirtan, but I don’t like japa, then do I still do japa? Because the devotees and spiritual master and the sampradaya, acharyas are telling me to do it.
So if we get pleasure, that’s fine. But the test of love is that we continue doing it even when we don’t get pleasure. And when we do that to serve Krishna, ensure Krishna that I am actually doing japa and doing kirtan, both for pleasing you, then when we express our love for Krishna in that way, then Krishna will be so pleased by that expression of love, by the awakening of purity in our relationship with him, that he will reveal his beauty more and more.
And then both japa and kirtan and other limbs of devotional service will also become sources of enriching fulfillment for us.