Satsang 4 : Benefits of chanting (Namjap)

Let us understand what are the benefits of chanting (Namjap). In material life, one takes a particular task seriously if one comes to know the benefits of doing that task. Instead of telling a student to just ‘study well’, if we tell him about ‘benefits of studying and the harms of not studying’ or tell him that ‘if you study well, you will be able to progress to a higher class’, then the student’s perspective towards his studies changes. It works in the same way in spirituality. If we understand the importance and benefits of Namjap, then we can achieve quantitative and qualitative increase in our Namjap.

Japa

Japa means ‘Jakarojanmavicchedakah pakaropapanashakah’, meaning ‘Japa is that which releases us from the vicious cycle of birth and death after destroying sins’. What is special about Naamjap is that it benefits both good and bad people! It is stated in Shrimad Bhagwat that just as fire that is knowingly or unknowingly thrown on a piece of wood is sufficient to burn it down, similarly, chanting of God’s name, whether done with full understanding of God’s name or casually, destroys man’s sins!

Many people think that Namjap gives only spiritual benefits, but that is not the case. Just as it gives spiritual benefits, it also provides many mental and physical benefits.

1. Psychological benefits

Let us understand the psychological benefits of chanting. Namjap increases mental strength. Mental strength is needed for achieving anything in life. In today’s world, we see that from a small child to an old person, everyone is under mental stress. School going children are stressed about studies, whereas housewives are stressed about household chores. The working class is always stressed about many things like their work, incurring their seniors’ displeasure, salary rise, etc. Older people are stressed about their diseases, future of their children, etc. The rich are concerned about how to make more money whereas the poor are concerned about how to run their daily lives.

According to the World Health Organization, about 79% of the world’s population reports feeling less confident due to mental stress and feels negative and depressed. According to a study in 2018 in India, about 89% of the population is under mental stress whereas another study in 2019 depicts about 6.5% of the population suffering from serious mental issues. The numbers of those depressed may have increased this year due to corona. External situations are responsible only for 8-10% of mental stress. About 90-95% factors responsible for mental stress are internal. Stress affects both mind and body. Chanting helps reduce this stress to a great extent and is beneficial to overcome psychological illnesses.

1. Constant Namjap keeps creating impressions of God’s name in the subconscious mind, thereby increasing concentration.

2. Since Namjap decreases the amount of thoughts in the mind, it calms the mind.

3. Namjap is a very effective tool for reducing obsession or unwanted thoughts.

4. As Namjap calms the mind, physical ailments caused due to mental stress are reduced and body becomes healthier.

5. Most of the problems a person faces in life are due to inappropriate speech. Namjap is another form of silence and reduces such problems.

6. Many vices such as lying, getting angry, and personality defects can be overcome by Namjap.

7. It is necessary to have qualities like introversion and introspection in order to increase the number of virtues in self. Namjap makes it possible to increase both these qualities.

2. Physical Benefits

Let us understand the physical benefits of Namjap. Physical, mental, or spiritual distress becomes evident only when its presence in a person becomes 30% or above. However, due to Namjap, we can detect the symptoms of a disease much before it manifests itself. Since we get positive spiritual energy from Namjap, it becomes easy to overcome serious diseases that have spiritual reasons as the root cause. Namjap is beneficial in many physical ailments and diseases.

If one has burning sensation in one’s body or mental stress, one can chant ‘Shri ChandraayaNamah’ to cool the body and mind. For bleeding disorders, chant the name of the deity Mars, ‘Shri MangalayaNamah’. If one has urinary disorders, coughing, or swelling in the body due to accumulation of toxins, then one can chant the name of the deity Sun. Because the heat created due to this chant is directed towards these organs, the toxins accumulated there are destroyed. However, it is important to take medical advice and take medicines along with these chants.

Sanatan Sanstha has published a text called ‘Chants for curing ailments’ pertaining to this. It is doubtful if medical facilities will be available to each one of us in the coming adverse times. You must have heard news about sufferings of people not getting sufficient medical care during these corona times. Chants for curing ailments can prove helpful at such times. Details regarding the different chants to use for different diseases are available in this text. This text is available for online purchase on the website www.sanatanshop.com.

The purpose of this article is not to teach which name to chant for which disease but to explain the science behind Naamjap. Hence, if you have any doubts regarding which name to chant for your illnesses, kindly read the text ‘Chants for curing ailments’ and understand the spiritual remedies available for your illnesses.

3. Spiritual benefits

We have understood the mental and physical benefits of Naamjap. There are many spiritual benefits of Naamjap. The root cause of several physical and mental ailments that man suffers from is spiritual. If the root cause of a problem is a spiritual one, then the remedy of that problem should also lie in spirituality. Naamjap is an excellent spiritual remedy. Many of us might have experienced at some time that a person is ill, but nothing is diagnosed by a medical doctor. The medical tests also come out to be normal. In this context, we must understand that destiny is the important factor behind diseases of the mind and body. Naamjap can help overcome mild destiny, lessen the severity of moderate destiny, and give the strength to endure severe destiny.

Many a times, due to mental stress or due to the surrounding environment, a person experiences the presence of distressing aura covering all over his body. For removing that as well as for removing the distress due to one’s dissatisfied ancestors, Naamjap is beneficial. For removing defects in the Vaastu of one’s residence, rituals like Vaastu Shanti, Udaka Shanti, etc., are conducted. Even then, to prevent the formation of distressing vibrations in the Vaastu, chanting is very beneficial.

Attachment to material things in life is reduced due to Naamjap. Attachment is the root cause of all sorrows and the foundation of all diseases. Since God is bliss personified, holding on tightly to the name of God will drive away all sorrows. Because of chanting God’s name, love towards God is increased and attachment towards material things decreases and sorrow vanishes. Hence, many saints have glorified chanting the name of God. Let us try to chant the name of God with more focus, love, and from the bottom of our hearts.