On the practice of Namajapa in Kaliyuga

Indian scriptures mention that in the Age of Kaliyuga, neither yoga nor dhyana nor Jnana are sufficient, while simply repeating the Name of the Lord is enough. The reason cited is that it is an Age when man’s consciousness sinks to the lowest abysses of material life. It is an age when our vision turns blind towards deeper spiritual things and the will and faith are usurped by powers of darkness and obscurity. Besides it is said that in this age man’s lifespan progressively becomes less and less and hence he has hardly anytime left for spiritual practices.

Whatever it is be, the nature of our modern life has certainly taken a turn towards the fulfilment of desire-self and the assertion of the ego. It did sink in abysses of despair, selfishness, falsehood and ingratitude. What could rescue it from there except the Lord’s Name? This Name provides the needed support to link up to Him from our side. Once we connect then His Grace pulls us out slowly but steadily. Sri Krishna confirms the same and so do Sri Aurobindo and The Mother reveal the power of Namajapa as below:

Namajapa or Repetition of the Name of the Divine is usually called in for protection, for adoration, for increase of bhakti, for the opening up of the inner consciousness, for the realisation of the Divine in that aspect.
As far as it is necessary to work in the subconscious for that, the Name must be effective there.
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It [the effectiveness of namajapa] depends on the person and how he does it. The Name of the Divine is in itself a power, if it is taken with the right faith and in the right attitude.
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Namajapa has a great power in it.
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Namochcharana has power but only if it comes from the heart and the soul; mere repetition with the mind is not enough.
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Whatever name is called the Power that answers is the Mother. Each name indicates a certain aspect of the Divine and is limited by that aspect; the Mother’s Power is universal.
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Naturally, whatever name one concentrates on [while awake] will repeat itself [in sleep], if any does. But the calling of Mother in sleep is not necessarily a repetition—it is the inner being that often calls to her in difficulty or in need.
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I did not encourage the name with the breathing because that seemed like pranayam. Pranayam is a very powerful thing, but if done haphazardly it may lead to the raising of obstructions and even in extreme cases illness in the body.
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A divine Name or a Mantra (like the So’ham) can enter the adhara and move in the breathing as in your experience. When it does so, that is not the opening of which I speak in the sentence you quote, but it may come to make the aspiration effective by helping in the opening—by removing something that prevents the opening and by leading to the experience it carries in it.

The Mother has also spoken about it with a certain degree of emphasis as one of the principle means for the practice of this sadhana. Having said that it is not something to be done exclusively, especially for this yoga which opens upon a many sided endeavour towards the Divine. Exclusive japa can lead to a progressive withdrawal from life. But here since transformation is the real Goal, the Name of the Divine Mother taken with faith and devotion, though the main support of the sadhak, should be complemented with some self-enabling sadhana such as practice of inner concentration, cultivating equanimity and peace, persistent aspiration and surrender, growth of sincerity, a refusal to concede to lower movements by standing back from them and offering them to Her for transformation.

Yet it is Her Name must remain the main support singing behind as the rejuvenating music of life, running with our breath as the nectarous stream into which we can dip whenever we have a little time amidst all we do, our work and exercise and rest.