10 Offenses To The Holy Name.

According to Brahma Khanda 25.15-18 of Holy Scripture Padma Purana, the following are the 10 offences that should be avoided by devotees who wish to progress in spirituality by chanting the holy names of the Lord.

 1

sri sanat kumar uvacha:-

satam ninda namnah paramam aparadham vitanute

yatah khyatim yatam katham u sahate tad-vigarham

Meaning-Sri Sanat Kumar said: To blaspheme devotees who have dedicated their lives to chanting the holy name of the Lord. The holy name, who is identical with Krsna, will never tolerate such blasphemous activities.

 2

sivasya sri-visnor ya iha guna-namadi-sakalam

dhiya bhinnam pasyet sa khalu hari-namahita-karah

Meaning:-To consider the names of demigods like to be on an equal level or different than the holy name of Lord Visnu. Do not compare them.

 3

guror avajna

Meaning:-To disobey the orders of the spiritual master or to consider him an ordinary person.

 4

sruti-sastra-nindanam

Meaning:-To blaspheme the Vedic works of literature or literature in pursuance of the Vedic version.

 5

artha-vadah

Meaning:-To give some interpretation on the holy name of the Lord.

 6

hari-namni kalpanam

Meaning:-To consider the glories of the holy name of the Lord as imagination.

 7

namno balad yasya hi papa-buddhir

na vidyate tasya yamair hi suddhih

Meaning:-While chanting of the holy name of the Lord can counteract all the past sinful reactions but it is the greatest offence to commit sinful activities on the strength of chanting the holy name of the Lord.

 8

dharma-vrata-tyaga-hutadi-sarva-

subha-kriya-samyam api pramadah

Meaning:-To consider the chanting of the Holy Name to be one of the auspicious ritualistic mantras mentioned in the Vedas as fruitive activity.

 9

asraddadhane vimukhe ‘py asrnvati

yas copadesah siva-namaparadhah

Meaning:-It is an offence to preach the glories of the holy name of the Lord to the faithless.

 10

srute ‘pi nama-mahatmye

yah priti-rahito narah

aham-mamadi-paramo

namni so ‘py aparadha-krt

Meaning:-If one has heard the glories of the transcendental holy name of the Lord but nevertheless continues in a materialistic concept of life, thinking “I am this body and everything belonging to this body is mine [aham mameti],” and does not show respect and love for the chanting of the Holy Name, that is an offence.