The document discusses how physical and mental stresses in life lead to desires, hopes, and despair. It recommends beginning the practice of chanting names of God (Namasmaran) from a young age to help deal with these stresses and anxieties. Namasmaran is emphasized because other daily activities are followed without resistance, but they are elusive without devotion to God. True bhakti or devotion to God through Namasmaran results in benevolence, freedom from fear and stress, and benefits the entire universe.

1. STRESS
AND
BHAKTI
DR.
SHRINIWAS
KASHALIKAR

2. The activities in body cells, various exocrine and endocrine
glands go one and contribute to peculiar activities in nervous
system. These contribute to our body consciousness, pains and
pleasures. These pains and pleasures; in turn lead to desires,
ambitions, hopes and despair or pride.
The sum total of these; however eludes most of us. Hence we
remain discontent and disturbed irrespective of failures and
successes.
The body however undergoes aging in the course of time and
our restlessness and anxiety begin to deepen in view of
impending end of our body.
This is the reason the saints have repeatedly preached to begin
the activity of self realization in the form of NAMASMARAN;
right from childhood; irrespective of whether we understand
the essence of it or not.
NAMASMARAN has been emphasized also because; other
activities e.g. exercise, diet, social norms, career building,
etiquettes, manners, customs, traditions, conventions, rituals,
festivals, hobbies, art, entertainment; are generally followed
without much resistance and without much reluctance! But all
these in absence of NAMASMARAN; are elusive and illusive.
BHAKTI is not mere subjective feeling. It is an objective
benevolence to entire universe. It is true freedom. It is true

3. selflessness and true fearlessness. Hence it is the real conquest
of stress; and is the greatest “gain” from NAMASMARAN.
Hence emergence of BHAKTI makes us richest source of
ambrosia to blossom the whole universe.