Svami Sadananda Dasa in two letters to Vamandas in 1960 and 1972
Into English and © Kid Samuelsson 2006
Dear Vamandas, […] One thing made me very astonished, though, that you (in your lecture) played the record “Hare Krishna”. You must have forgotten that the gift of Mahamantra also depends on the qualification of the listener, and that we don’t have the power to convey the ENERGY of bhakti to the listeners, which makes them qualified to listen to the Name in the form of the 16 Names of the MANTRA. People may listen to the Name, by no means the Mahamantra! The record was intended for you and a few advanced bhakta friends, by no means for the public. One is NOT allowed to present etc. the Mahamantra to THOSE, who lack shraddha, who lack the inner conviction and resolution that seva for Bhagavan, for the sake of pleasing Him only, is one’s eternal path and goal – that is APARADHA! When it is said that there are no rules for the Name, this is not true, if one thinks about the 9th Nama-aparadha, i.e. to give instructions about the Name to someone, who lacks the inner conviction and resolution that seva for Bhagavan, for the sake of pleasing Him only, is one’s eternal path and goal. A vaishnava on the highest level, a parama-bhakta, can bestow the gift of shaktisancara, can transfer bhakti-shakti, but as long as he is not more than a vaishnava on the middle level, a madhyama-vaishnava, he is not able to bestow shakti-sancara and consequently he cannot offer the maha-mantra, let alone its artha, its import. Otherwise he becomes an aparadhi. Only Krishna-Caitanya Himself could request His Own, to sing the maha-mantra without prior instructions in sambandha-jnanam, the knowledge of the main tattvas, principles, and their interrelation, i.e. the clear knowledge of Bhagavan, atma, maya etc., but (as a record) in a lecture or in the streets by groups – completely impossible – Yes, Krishna’s Name, but not the mahamantra. Radhe! Radhe!
Always from my heart Sadananda