References to the Hare Krishna Mahamantra
Ananta-Saṁhitā:
hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare
hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare
ṣoḍa-śaitāni nāmāni dvātrinśad varṇa kāni hi
kalau yuge mahā-mantraḥ sammato jīva tāraṇe
“Hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare.This hari-nāma mahā-mantra consists of sixteen names and thirty-two syllables. In Kali-yuga this mantra can deliver all jīvas.”
In the Brahma Yāmala, Lord Śiva states:
hariṁ binā nāsti kińcat pāpani-stārakaṁ kalau
tasmāl-lokod-dhārāṇa-ārthaṁ hari-nāma prakāśayet
sarvatra mucyate loko mahā-pāpāt kalau yuge
hare-kṛṣṇa-pada-dvandvaṁ kṛṣṇeti ca pada-dvayam
tathā hare-pada-dvandvaṁ hare-rāma iti dvayam
tad-ante ca mahā-devī rāma rāma dvayaṁ vadet
hare hare tato brūyād harināma samud dharet
mahā-mantraṁ ca kṛṣṇasya sarvapāpa praṇāṣakamiti
“He Mahādevī! Look! In Kali-yuga there is no easier way to eradicate sins than by śrī hari-nāma. It is therefore essential to propagate śrī hari-nāma among the general populous. The people in Kaliyuga can be easily liberated from the greatest hell by performing saṅkīrtana of this mahā-mantra. To chant the mahā-mantra, first chant hare kṛṣṇa twice, then chant kṛṣṇa twice, then hare twice. After that, chant hare rāma twice, then rāma twice and again hare twice. One should chant, articulate and perform sankīrtana etc., of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s mahā-mantra, which destroys all sins.”
In the Rādhā Hṛdya Khaṇḍa of the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa, Romaharṣaṇa Sūta prays to Śrī Veda Vyāsa as follows:
yattvayā kīrtitaṁ nātha hari-nāmeti sanjitam
mantraṁ brahma-padaṁ siddhi karaṁ-tad-vad-no-vibho
“He Vibho! He Prabhu! Please instruct me in the brahma svarūpa nāma mantra of Śrī Hari which is the bestower of all perfections.”
In reply, Śrī Veda Vyāsa gives the following instruction:
gṛhaṇād yasya mantrasya dehī brahma-mayo bhavet
sadhyaḥ pūtaḥ surāpo ‘pi sarva-siddhi-yuto bhavet
tad-ahaṁ te bhidhā-syāmi mahā-bhāgavato hamsi
hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare
hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare
iti ṣoḍaśakaṁ nāmnāṁ tri-kāla kalmaṣāp-aham
nātaḥ parataropāyaḥ sarva vedeṣu vidhyate
“O my son, I will certainly instruct you in that mahā-mantra, the acceptance of which a person in the bodily conception of life can be liberated and even a drunkard can quickly become purified and attain all perfection. I will instruct you because you are a mahābhāgavata and a suitable candidate. Just see! The sixteen word mahā-mantra, hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare, can destroy the sins of the three worlds. The four Vedas do not mention a method for achieving liberation from material bondage superior to the chanting of this mahā-mantra.”
Ananta Saṁhitā also states:
hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare
hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare
soḍasautāni nāmāni dvātriṁ-śad varṇa-kāṇi hi
kalāu yuge mahā-mantraḥ sammato jīva-tāraṇe
utsṛa-jyaitan-mahā-mantraṁ ye tvanyat kalpitaṁ padam
mahā-nāmeti gāyanti te śāstra-guru-laṅi-ghanah
“All śāstras agree that the hare kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, which is composed of sixteen names and thirty-two syllables, is the illustrious mantra to deliver the jīvas in Kali-yuga. Those who neglect this mahā-mantra and accept any other process, due to their own imagination or the imagination of others, are actually disobeying guru and śāstra. If someone asks, ‘Why is this sixteen word hare kṛṣṇa mantra the mahā-mantra?’ then the following answer is given.
‘Among all of Kṛṣṇa’s names’ no name other than Hari can easily take away sins, great misfortune and ignorance. No name other than Kṛṣṇa can deliver prema. And no name other than Rāma can bestow liberation.’ This is why the mahā-mantra is composed of these three primary names. Secondly, these sixteen names are an invocation. Oṁ, namaḥ, klīṁ, svāhā, etc., are not required to make the mantra more potent. For this reason it is called the mahā-mantra.”