Morning Rounds: Opening Up the World of Bhakti Through Japa Meditation
In short, Morning Rounds is: How to make the most of our most important practice.
Like a doctor making rounds to support healing, Morning Rounds is about tending to the soul. Through the chanting of the Holy Names, we gradually quiet the mind, soften the pull of the ego, and reconnect with our deeper spiritual nature.
Drawn from our weekly japa meditation gatherings at Upbuild, these reflections offer a few minutes of inspiration to support your meditation and begin your day with greater clarity, humility, and joy.
In the Bhagavad-Gita, Krishna describes japa, the chanting of the Holy Names, as the highest form of sacrifice. This timeless practice has the power to transform our consciousness through the simple act of returning, again and again, to the sound of the Holy Names.
Whether you are new to chanting or have an established practice, these reflections are an invitation to deepen your relationship with the maha-mantra:
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare
Through consistent practice and the support of community, we begin to experience a deepening sense of joy and connection that arises simply from hearing and chanting these sacred names.
Morning Rounds: Opening Up the World of Bhakti Through Japa Meditation
4 - Pronunciation: The Strength of Uttering the Sound Properly
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This episode centers on the importance of pronunciation in chanting the Hare Krishna mantra, emphasizing that while perfect pronunciation isn't essential, a sincere desire to connect with Krishna is. The discussion explores how Western influences can impact the enunciation of Sanskrit words, and what it means to truly have attentiveness to the syllables.
Quotes
- "The most essential [thing] is devotion… to actually feel, 'I want you, Krishna. I want to be with you.'"
- "Sanskrit is actually a divine language… it means the language of God."
- "If you don't get the 'R' roll perfectly, no problem. Just try your best."
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Our heartfelt thanks to Jahnavi Harrison for graciously allowing us to feature her recording, "Divine Maha Mantra," in our intro and outro. Learn more about her divine music: https://www.jahnavimusic.com/.
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In short, Morning Rounds is: How to make the most of our most important practice.
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare. Welcome to Morning Rounds. These are short 5 to 15 minute episodes from our weekly Japa meditation program with the Upbuild community, offering guidance and inspiration for your chanting practice. Rooted in years of monastic training, the study and teaching of the Phagavad Gita, coaching, and our own spiritual practices, these teachings are meant to support you in the most important journey there is the journey from the ego to the true self. You can also join us for the live version of this program by visiting upbuild.com forward slash morning-rounds.
SPEAKER_00Today we are going to focus on pronunciation. So hopefully you all are interested in how we can make the most of enunciating the Maha mantra. So this is not something to be intimidated by. So it's like a U sound, ha and re Hare. And Krishna, it's there's you'll notice there's a little R rolling. It's called an alveolar trill. It means you have the tongue at the roof of the mouth and you roll, just like in Italian or Spanish. So if you don't get the R roll perfectly, no problem, no problem. If it's hard to remember or hard to pronounce, no problem. But it's helpful just to have a baseline to understand. So Krishna and then Rama. So Rama has a long A and a short A. The first A is long, Ra, like A, and then the short A at the end, Rama, Rama. So it's Hare, Krishna, and Rama. So try to say that. You can stay on mute, but try to repeat after me. Hare, Hare, Hare, Krishna, Krishna, and Rama. Rama. Wonderful. So again, we want to focus the mind on the pronunciation. And this is something which my guru, Sachinandan Swami, uh, will emphasize a lot: that it helps to stay grounded, it helps to stay connected by trying our best. If we don't get it right, no problem. But trying your best and staying with the potency of the mantra. So we will chant now around trying sincerely to pronounce, to enunciate the mantra, to unlock that potency and keep the mind fixed and grounded in each syllable. Good.
SPEAKER_01Thank you so much for listening to Morning Rounds. Upbuild is a leadership and spiritual development organization that offers courses, workshops, coaching, and other services to help you on the path toward being your best self. Free from the shackles of the ego. Please join us for the live version of this program by visiting Upbuild.com forward slash morning dash rounds.