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devotees. Why do such persons hold open class? It is explained here that although not everyone is a devotee,
still there are many men who are not envious of Kṛṣṇa. They have faith in Him as the Supreme Personality of
Godhead. If such persons hear from a bona fide devotee about the Lord, the result is that they become at once
free from all sinful reactions and after that attain to the planetary system where all righteous persons are
situated. Therefore simply by hearing Bhagavad-gītā, even a person who does not try to be a pure devotee
attains the result of righteous activities. Thus a pure devotee of the Lord gives everyone a chance to become free
from all sinful reactions and to become a devotee of the Lord.” (Bg 18.71 – purport)

By the mercy of pure devotees many people receive the causeless blessing of transcendental knowledge.
Therefore, pure devotees focus on explaining the utmost importance of chanting the Hare Krishna Mantra in
this age of Kali, the age of hypocrisy and quarrel. The names of Krishna are transcendental and pure. They are
non-different than the Lord Himself. This is confirmed in the Padma Purana and also quoted in the Caitanya
Caritamrita Madhya 17.133.
nāma cintāmaṇiḥ kṛṣṇaś / caitanya-rasa-vigrahaḥ
pūrṇaḥ śuddho nitya-mukto / 'bhinnatvān nāma-nāminoḥ
"The holy name of Kṛṣṇa is transcendentally blissful. It bestows all spiritual benedictions, for it is Kṛṣṇa Himself,
the reservoir of all pleasure. Kṛṣṇa's name is complete, and it is the form of all transcendental mellows. It is not
a material name under any condition, and it is no less powerful than Kṛṣṇa Himself. Since Kṛṣṇa's name is not
contaminated by the material qualities, there is no question of its being involved with māyā. Kṛṣṇa's name is
always liberated and spiritual; it is never conditioned by the laws of material nature. This is because the name
of Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa Himself are identical.” (Padma Purana)

More evidence from the Upanisads validate the absolute necessity to chant the holy mantra Hare Krishna Hare
Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare / Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare to overcome all the negative
effects of this present age that are stumbling blocks on the path of knowledge and spiritual realization.

The Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra is specifically mentioned in many Upaniṣads, such as the Kali-santaraṇa
Upaniṣad, where it is said:
hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare
hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare

iti ṣoḍaśakaṁ nāmnāṁ kali-kalmaṣa-nāśanaṁ
nātaḥ parataropāyaḥ sarva-vedeṣu dṛśyate
“The sixteen words of the Hare Krishna mantra are especially meant for counteracting the sins of the age of Kali.
To save oneself from the contamination of this age there is no other alternative but to chant the Hare Krishna
mantra. After searching through all the Vedic literature, one cannot find a method of religion more sublime for
this age than the chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa.”

The Upanisads are considered the highest authoritative Vedic scriptures by academic scholars of the Vedas. We
should not ignore the explicit statement of the above verse that unequivocally advocates the chanting of the
Hare Krishna Mahamantra in this present age.

Lord Caitanya, the most recent incarnation (avatara) of Lord Krishna stressed the importance of chanting Hare
Krishna by quoting a verse from the Brhad-naradiya Purana:

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