Question: In Srila Bhakti Siddhantha Sarasvati Thakur’s letter to his disciple regarding chanting the Holy Name, he wrote “Through chanting, the distinction that exists between the self, and the gross and subtle bodies, is gradually effaced and one realizes one’s own spiritual form.” What does he mean by this? (question during Japa Retreat)
Answer from Romapada Swami:
During the question answer session, I explained this example. The word “efface” means “to reduce the distinctions between”. A commonplace example of efface is how coins, when they rub together over a period of time, the distinction of the date and the face of the person on the coin, etc., becomes diminished.
Similarly, there is a clear distinction between the body, both subtle and gross, and the self. As spiritual consciousness becomes awakened, both the gross body with its senses, as well as the subtle body (both mind and intelligence} become spiritualized – up to the point of acting ‘as if fully spiritual’! This is the way to understand how the distinctions between these different categories of covering and the soul itself become gradually diminished, namely through the spiritualization process that comes from the chanting of the holy name.
