go-koṭi-dānaṁ grahaṇe khagasya prayāga-gaṅgodaka-kalpa-vāsaḥ yajñāyutaṁ meru-suvarṇa-dānaṁ govinda-kīrter na samaṁ śatāṁśaiḥ

"Even if one distributes ten million cows in charity during an eclipse of the sun, lives at the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna for millions of years, or gives a mountain of gold in sacrifice to the brahmanas, he does not earn one hundredth part of the merit derived from chanting Hare Krsna." In other words, one who accepts the chanting of Hare Krsna to be some kind of pious activity is completely misled. Of course, it is pious; but the real fact is that Krsna and His name, being transcendental, are far above all mundane pious activity. Pious activity is on the material platform, but chanting of the holy name of Krsna is completely on the spiritual plane. Therefore, although pasandis do not understand this, pious activity can never compare to the chanting of the holy name.