Sometimes people, owing to a limited perspective on the scope of spiritual practices, are overly obsessed in clinging on to their japa-mala (rosary) to squeeze in a few more rounds of mantras into their daily quotas, to turn the count of 150.000 names into 200.000 and so on and so forth. This obsession, while the essence of the underlying thought and aspiration is sublime without a doubt, frequently leads to forcible and inattentive chanting in distracted circumstances, to prayers that do not touch the heart. Then, revise your perspective.

When times are peaceful, take your mala and chant with your fullest heart. Let every syllable be an expression of your divine yearning. Let no moment go wasted in chanting. Envision your innermost aspirations unfolding before your eyes. You'll find yourself thrilled at the very thought, the premonition of future success will energize you. With this chanting, your progress will be made in leaps, you'll meet your sublime aspirations soon.

When times are turbulent, let your mala rest and transform your environment. Is not the same ista-deva whose names you chant omnipresent, in the hearts of all and at the source of all? Understand the flow of events to unfold with the divine will of your lord, take every instant as an impetus for remembrance. Observe him and her in each moment, in each object, and at all times within you. You do not lose a fraction of a moment in this.

It is not a question of mental superimposition. It is a question of unearthing the existing reality buried under layers and layers of ignorance. Transform your consciousness through constant internal practice into a ceaseless, natural flow of divine contemplations. Your world will be altered. You will be fundamentally altered. Nay, you will attain the unaltered self, your self-conception will undergo a revolution, the minuscule mundane ego will vanish and give way to the consciousness of an eternal, spiritual being.

With the shifted perspective, there is no loss for you in letting your mala rest at times of action and in confronting the world you are faced with, for the same divinity you seek in the name and the mantra is now before your eyes in countless forms. Let not your aspirations for sadhana allure you from the underlying truths of existence and your spiritual pursuit, understand each moment of your life as an opportunity for the most powerful of all sadhanas. Do not become a separatist, for all that is perceived as separate from the lord is nothing but a facade of his mighty illusions.

Remembrance and realization of Radha and Krishna are the heart and substance of reality. Integrate this. It is not a vain, utopian hope. What you believe as attainable is within your grasp, for it is only you who determines the limits of your reach. Surrender under the weight of your karmic situation leaves you hopelessly crippled. Persevere and prevail, for earnest endeavors never go unfulfilled.