If we can touch that region of absorption and experience, just for one second, then the controlling of senses is not an issue—because it's a higher taste. And it takes a lot of practice, because the mind has been controlling us since time immemorial—not just this lifetime, but previous lifetimes as well. It keeps forcing us to do things. It's like an overlord. Kṛṣṇa tells that to Uddhava in the 11th Canto of the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, that we've been under no other master except for the mind since time immemorial, and it has fearsome, god-like powers over us—as in, practically nobody can do this. We can only do it with the help of Kṛṣṇa.

So, the chanting of Kṛṣṇa’s names—calling out to Him for help—and the ways that He has extended Himself to us The Holy Name, if we extend back.. Attention, It has the word ten in it. It’s the same root as in the word tendon, which comes from Latin tendere, “to stretch.” It means to hold on to something, just like a tendon holds muscle and bone together. So that’s our attention: we have to extend ourselves back to Kṛṣṇa.

And just from this one process—there is no other process: "harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam," eva kevalam --nothing else. It’s only one thing. So don’t think you have to go shopping anywhere else for some other process. That’s just another trick of the mind—to say, “This is too hard,” or “I’ll go find something easier,” or “There must be something fancier or more rasika.” No—the rasika is in The Holy Name, and the real rasikas are the ones who do the hard work. They try it every day.

That’s why I called you stalwarts: you show up with your lunch box, and you sit down, and you do your work—and that’s sādhana-bhakti. No excuses. No cutting class. You show up for your japa, and you make sure that you extend yourself as much as possible and keep practicing. And at some point, the mind becomes attracted to The Holy Name. It starts to sound sweet. Even before that, in nāmābhāsa, there’s this radiation from The Holy Name that is described in the Harināma cintāmaṇi—that is bringing us unlimited benefits and preparing us for continuance in the process of chanting The Holy Names.

So, nothing is lost in the process. And then, if we can really try to avoid the offenses—especially being inattentive—don’t be lazy. Really try to work at it. Do the heavy lifting that nobody else wants to do. Everyone wants to scroll. "Just let the mind do it and maybe figure it out at the time of death." It won’t work. You have to do it now. You have to do it when you’re young. And you’ve gotta get really strong now. Then everything else becomes easy. The only thing that makes it hard is the mind.

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