Sankirtana is the yajña of Kali-yuga that delivers sinners and fulfills human life's highest purpose.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Lecture and Initiation — July 10, 1975, Chicago 750710IN-CHICAGO [14:58 Minutes] Initiations_750710IN-CHICAGO Prabhupāda: anarpita-carīṁ cirāt karuṇayāvatīrṇaḥ kalau samarpayitum unnataḥ ujjvala-rasāṁ sva-bhakti-śriyam hariḥ puraṭa-sundara-dyuti-kadamba-sandīpitaḥ sadā hṛdaya-kandare... [break] ...śacī-nandana [Cc. Ādi 1.4] This verse is given by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī about Caitanya Mahāprabhu, anarpita-carīṁ cirāt karuṇayāvatīrṇaḥ kalau. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, has many expansion, or incarnation, but this expansion, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, is unique, because in other incarnation the duty is paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām [Bg. 4.8]. In Kṛṣṇa avatāra, Kṛṣṇa had to fight with the so many demons, but this incarnation, there is no question of fighting with the demons, but simply by mercy they were delivered, just like Jagāi-Mādhāi.
Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura has sung, vrajendra-nandana yei, śacī-suta hoilo sei: "The same Personality of Godhead who was formerly the son of Nanda Mahārāja, Vrajendra-nandana, He has now appeared as the son of mother Śacī." Balarāma hoilo nitāi: "And Balarāma, Devakī..., Rohiṇī-nandana, He has become Nityānanda." The same Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma has become Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Nityānanda Prabhu. So what is Their business? The business is: pāpī-tāpī yata chilo, hari-nāme uddhārilo. They delivered, simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, all people who were sinful and suffering.
In the material world we are suffering. This is a place of suffering. Duḥkhalayam aśāśvatam [Bg. 8.15], Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā. So there are different methods of mitigating suffering, but in this age, Kali-yuga, simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, the pāpī-tāpī, those who are sinful and suffering, they can be delivered.
This is the unique contribution of this incarnation, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. This is composed by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī. There are many other verses, and there is special one verse in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Eleventh Canto: kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi su-medhasaḥ [SB 11.5.32] Yajña, sacrifice... Yajña-dāna-tapaḥ-kriyā. Human life is meant for performing yajña, give in charity and practice austerities—three things.
Human life means that. Human life does not mean to live like cats and dogs. That is failure. That kind of civilization, dog civilization, is failure of human life.
Human life is meant for three things: yajña-dāna-tapaḥ-kriyā. One should know how to perform sacrifices, how to give in charity and how to practice austerities. This is human life. So yajña-dāna-tapasya, in other ages they were performing according to the means.
Just like in the Satya-yuga, Vālmīki Muni, he practiced austerities, meditation, for sixty thousands of years. At that time people were living one hundred thousands of years. That is not possible now. Meditation was possible in those ages, but now it is not possible.