PURPORT

It is said in the -visnu Purana:

namno hi yavati saktih
papa-nirharane hareh
tavat kartum na saknoti
patakam pataki narah

Also, in the Prema-vivarta [19.33] by Jagadananda Pandita it is said:

eka krsna-name papira yata papa-ksaya
bahu janme sei papi karite naraya

This means that by once chanting the holy name of the Lord, one can be freed from the reactions of more sins that he can even imagine performing. The holy name is so spiritually potent that simply by chanting the holy name one can be freed from the reactions to all sinful activities. What, then, is to be said of those who chant the holy name regularly or worship the Deity regularly? For such purified devotees, freedom from sinful reaction is certainly assured. This does not mean, however, that one should intentionally commit sinful acts and think himself free from the reactions because he is chanting the holy name. Such a mentality is a most abominable offense at the lotus feet of the holy name. Namno balad yasya hi papa-buddhih: the Lord's holy name certainly has the potency to neutralize all sinful activities, but if one repeatedly and intentionally commits sins while chanting the holy name, he is most condemned.

These verses name the performers of various sinful deeds. In the Manu-samhita the following names are given. A son begotten by a brahmana and born from the womb of a sudra mother is called a parasava or nisada, a hunter accustomed to stealing. A son begotten by a nisada in the womb of a sudra woman is called a pukkasa. A child begotten by a ksatriya in the womb of the daughter of a sudra is called an ugra. A child begotten by a sudra in the womb of the daughter of a ksatriya is called a ksatta. A child begotten by a ksatriya in the womb of a lower-class woman is called a svada, or dog-eater. All such offspring are considered extremely sinful, but the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is so strong that all of them can be purified simply by chanting the Hare Krsna mantra.

The Hare Krsna movement offers everyone a chance to be purified, regardless of birth or family. As confirmed in Srimad-Bhagavatam (2.4.18):

kirata-hunandhra-pulinda-pulkasa
abhira-sumbha yavanah khasadayah
ye 'nye ca papa yad-apasrayasrayah
sudhyanti tasmai prabhavisnave namah

"Kiratas, Hunas, Andhras, Pulindas, Pulkasas, Abhiras, Sumbhas, Yavanas, members of the Khasa races, and even others addicted to sinful acts can be purified by taking shelter of devotees of the Lord, for He is the supreme power. I beg to offer my respectful obeisances unto Him." Even such sinful persons can certainly all be purified if they chant the holy name of the Lord under the direction of a pure devotee.

Herein the sages encourage King Indra to kill Vrtrasura even at the risk of brahma-hatya, the killing of a brahmana, and they guarantee to release him from sinful reactions by performing an asvamedha-yajna. Such purposefully devised atonement, however, cannot relieve the performer of sinful acts. This will be seen from the following verse.