Why the mantras or stotras are not showing you results

One of the biggest dilemmas new sadhaks have is, how to get results from mantras or stotras. 

Today, I will mention all the possible reasons that stop people from getting results from mantras and what to do instead. 

1. Diksha & Mantra Siddhi/Asiddhi - The first, biggest, and foremost reason why the mantra is not showing results is diksha. If you do not have diksha of the mantra, it will not give you results no matter how much you try. 

There is no reason in the world that will ever allow you to chant mantras without diksha - no matter what kind of difficulty you think you are in. For stotras, if they are common, like Hanuman Chalisa, Gajendra Moksha, Mahalakshmi Ashtak, Shiva Mahimna Stotra, Rudra Ashtak, etc. you can chant them without diksha. But you cannot chant advanced stotras; or stotras of advanced gods like Tara, Dhumavati, Kali, Bhairav,Kamala, Lalita,etc. without diksha. 

First-time sadhaks should start with stotras of easy-to-please gods first, such as Hanuman Chalisa, Lakshmi Ashtak, Saraswati Ashtak, Shiva Panchakshar Stotra, etc. Then, you will start getting mantras or stotras in dreams, or, you will find a guru. 

When you enter the sadhana world for the first time, you should chant the stotra of the god towards whom you feel the most inclination. If you don't feel inclined towards any god, look at the lord of your 9th house and worship the lord of the house, its adhi devta, or its pratyadhi devta. Then, you should choose any easy stotra of that god and chant it for the next 6,12, or 24 months as per your wish. In the initial days, you should only chant the stotra 9,11,12,21 times per day. You can increase the chant after a few months. Now, diksha is of 2 types - one given by a guru and one gotten in dreams. 

Diksha gotten in dreams - It can be chanted whenever you want. For them, you don't even have to look at shad-chakra or the 6 chakras to check the siddhi/asiddhi of the mantra. 

Diksha from guru - Normally it doesn't happen, but if your guru accidentally gives diksha of an ari-mantra or adev-mantra i.e. mantra that is not favorable or of someone who's not god, you can do visarjan of the mantra. You can do so by energizing a lota full of water mixed with yellow chandan and rice, energizing it with the ari mantra 108 times, and then pouring the water in a river or at a tree. 

Om, Shreem & Other Beej mantras, Gayatri Mantra - These mantras cannot be chanted by women and shudras. Women cannot chant Shreem because beej and Gayatri mantras because both of these mantras enhance the energy of that god within us. They are chanted by humans to attract the god or goddess' energy within them whereas women already have goddess lakshmi/gayatri residing within them. Chanting shreem will be like worshipping yourself. Om is not allowed for women because stri dharma is living the worldly life with their husband, whereas Om mantra creates vairagya and makes you detached. That is why, women as well as men who follow grihast dharma, cannot chant Om. You can still perform prayogs related to it, but you can't do purascharan of it. 

The reason why these 3 mantras cannot be chanted by shudras is that these mantras require lot of purity, cleanliness and discipline. In the older yugas, when people followed their own varna, the work of shudras included cleaning houses, washing dirty clothes, carrying people in paalkhi,etc. They also used to work as servants of kings and queens. All of this meant that they couldn't maintain the cleanliness, hygiene, and discipline necessary for these mantras. In today's yuga, shudra includes anybody who does cleanliness related work. If you are one of those, and if you can follow strict cleanliness, do trikaal sandhya, etc. you can still chant these mantras. 

Except when doing a certain prayog, Om shouldn't be chanted by any man or woman living a worldly life.

2. Lack of devotion and belief in oneself - The 2nd most important thing is faith in god. Many people, even after having a mantra in front of their eyes, doubt it. They look for other mantras for the same purpose and then sit and wonder about which mantra to chant. They make a feature list that how many wishes each of these mantras can fulfill, and try to find which one is the most powerful. 

Even though, it is normal for a person to look for mantras for a particular wish, comparing different mantras is wrong. Out of the 2,3 or 5 mantras in front of you, always choose the mantra of god you have the most belief or devotion in. Don't choose a mantra just because it sounds more powerful. 

Sometimes, people are confused between different mantras of the same god. In both the above-mentioned situations, the problem is that you have faith neither in yourself nor in god. You don't find yourself worthy of getting the results or blessings and that is why believe that a mantra will compel God to give you results. There is no devotion here. You're also more focused on results than devotion. 

It also means that instead of being concerned about your actions, you're being concerned about the result of your actions. You are in essence trying to control the direction of your life without having to do the work that will be required to give the right direction to your life. You are also trying to control the effect of the mantra, instead of letting God give the direction he wants to give to your life. In your head, the thoughts of fructification of the mantra are going on, not all-around growth in life. Your sadhana days are filled with anxiousness and constant worry that when will the mantra show results. 

If you want to get more customers, you're not thinking about how you can give the best quality product or service, but more concerned about how much money they'll give you. And laws of karma don't work that way. In order to get something, we must first give. 

Sadhaks, even a simple god can give you lacs of money if you are fair in your duty. This is because mantras only create opportunities. No god will ever come directly in front of you and rain 2000 rupee notes. They will only create yog for you to make that much money. This law applies to everything that is related to the material world - like love, getting a good house, etc. God will only create yog. To seize and sustain them will be dependent on your karmas. 

Devotion means to surrender to him and believing in his power. When you are devoted, you won't feel the need to even look for mantras to become rich like kuber and powerful like Hanuman. Simple, easy-working mantras like Gayatri will be enough for you. Getting blessings of god is of central importance during sadhana days, not the fructification of the wish. When the sun sets, the moon automatically rises. Nobody has to work to make the moon rise every day. Fulfillment of the wish is the byproduct of pleasing god and focus on work in the real world. 

Keep in mind that God listens to his devotees first, not to the person who is chanting the most powerful mantra.  

But what if you are a new sadhak and can't decide which mantra to chant or which god to worship? Or what if your devotion isn't deep-rooted? Here too sadhaks, faith in the power of god is important. Any god, no matter how small you may consider him, is far more powerful, far more capable than any human being or problem in your life. 

Once you properly understand and accept this, focus on any one mantra or stotra that you find easy to chant or if popular for that god. Don't search for multiple mantras and sit to compare. Blessings of God are important. Not mantras. 

Those who are stuck in the cycle of comparing multiple mantras and are not able to chant any mantra with stability for even 30 days, could try this solution: 

• First, stop all mantra chanting for at least 21 days. During these days, only light diya and agarbatti at home. Every day, attend aarti of a local temple which has many gods. If you are going through some problem, do daan. But avoid any kind of mantra/stotra paath or vrat. After aarti, bow in front of every god and accept every god's blessings. 
  
  
• During these days, read about the life stories of the gods. How were they born, what did they do, etc. Then, choose any 2-3 gods whose story inspires you the most and towards whom you feel the most inclination. 
  
  
• Then, read about the significance of worshipping each of those gods. Out of them all, choose any one god you feel the most inclination towards. Choose the one you feel emotionally connected to and not the one you think is the more powerful one.
  
  
• Choose any popular stotra of that god and recite it every day 5-11 times every day for at least 40 days. During these days, visit the temple every day and pray to god daily. Chant only one stotra and don't search for other gods or other mantras. This will remove the downward cycle of constantly comparing one god/mantra with another.
  
  

3. Dharma - The next important rule is following dharma. Now, shastras have mentioned different punishments for different sins. But it is not possible to track every action in the outside world. The only thing we can control in this Kaliyuga is our mind. 

That is why, the best way to be nishpaap or do the least number of sins is by following 5 yam & 5 niyam. 

The 5 yamas: 

• Non-violence - Unnecessary violence, violence to show your power,etc. should be stopped. But non-violence doesn't mean to not stand up for yourself. 
  
  
• Honesty and truthfulness - Honesty means to live an honest life, to live in accordance with the laws of nature. Don't think that you have some special ability to bend the laws of karma to your own accord. Be honest with yourself, be honest for yourself, be honest in your work and duty, be honest in love and with friends, and be honest even when nobody is watching. Give up the illogical belief shared by the previous generations that honesty will destroy you.
  
  The entire world, irrespective of religion, works on laws of karma. What you give out into the world, you will get it back. Like attracts like. If you start deceiving and manipulating people or even just think of manipulating people who are honest with you, within 2-3 months your life will be flipped and you will be surrounded by people who are just like you - dishonest and manipulative. Laws of Karma don't allow a person's bad actions to affect an honest person. If you are dishonest, god will bring you to people who are like you so that you both cancel out each other's bad karmas. But, there will be no peace of mind with these kinds of people. Truthfulness means to say the truth in every situation. But truthfulness can only be practiced by those who are living an honest life.
  
  
• No stealing - materially or mentally - Don't steal or think of stealing something that is not yours. 
  
  
• Brahmacharya - Following celibacy doesn't mean life-long celibacy. If celibacy was this important, God wouldn't have allowed grihastha dharma. But what it means is giving up on the habit of too much sex and uncontrolled sex. Celibacy will radically transform your health, intelligence, and strength. It revitalizes the aging organs; removes laziness, fear and gives intelligence, youthfulness, and courage.
  
  
• Non-greed - Not having greed for money doesn't mean you shouldn't work to become rich, wealthy, or abundant. That is stupidity. But it means that you shouldn't hoard it or think that I will have all the money in the world and not let single rupee go out of my pocket. The money that has come from somewhere will go somewhere - this is the nature of money. You can't change it. 
  
  

5 Niyam:

• Cleanliness - Live clean physically and mentally. In Hinduism, sins done even in dreams are recorded by god. The reason is that our dreams are a representation of the thoughts in our subconscious mind. Even thoughts manifest in our life. If you think that you'll do so-and-so bad towards someone, the results of the wrong actions will manifest as if you had actually done those wrong actions. Physical cleanliness is also important. Lack of cleanliness creates lethargy, negative thoughts, and increases anger, lust, ego, etc. 
• Santosh or Contentment - Don't build expectations. Expectations and attachment to outcome is the root of all suffering. When have attachment and expect people and events to behave or turn out a certain way, your whole life will fill with anguish, frustration, sorrow, anger, and sleepless nights. 
• Tapa - Do penance - in work and in the spiritual world. Tapa is what will break the downward spiral, or stagnation in your life. Simply reacting to what is happening in life and implementing a temporary solution may remove the problem, but it will not stop the stagnation. To grow means to flourish completely and in a way that the old problems don't come back. For this, you need to do tapa. Sacrifice is necessary in the sadhana world and for growth in life. That is why, you have to sacrifice everything that is acting as an obstacle to your growth, including bad habits, impulsive behaviors, constantly complaining people, jealous people, laziness, etc. 
  
  
• Study - Study good literature - spiritual as well as worldly. So that you become an overall good and skilled person for sadhana world as well as the material world. This will help you realize your values, morals, and give direction to your life purpose.
  
  
• Ishwar Pranidhan - Surrender to the will of God. Accept the obstacles and difficulties as opportunities to learn. Accept that certain things had to happen the way it happened - so that you could learn from the pain. Don't be stubborn, that things should happen only in so-and-so way. Pray to God and let God lead you.
  
  

In my experience, all the sins, sorrow, difficulties, depression, poverty, diseases in the world come from not following these 5 yamas & niyams. Following them brings health, peace, abundance, prosperity, courage, and success in all tasks. 

4. Aasan - The next important thing is aasan. You can sit on either kush aasan or red velvet aasan. They are accepted by every god. However, when you do purascharan sadhanas, you should aasan of the color loved by the god. Like yellow for Narayan and Lakshmi, white for Shiva, etc. If you are a sadhak, you should do siddhi over your aasan so that you can sit for a long time. Click here to see the aasan siddhi sadhana vidhi. 

Yoga asana - You can sit in sukhasan, siddhasana or padmasan. If you are a beginner, start with sukhasana, then go for siddhasana and later padmasana. Padmasan is an advanced aasan so do not attempt it forcefully if you're unable to sit that way. Practice it first. 

5. Mudra - The next important thing is keeping mudras. For each god, there are certain mudras. Click here to download a book which has mudras of all the gods. 

6. Dhyaan - Dhyaan means to meditate on a certain form of god. Along with mudra, Dhyaan has a lot of importance for getting results from mantras. Without mudra, you will not be successful in dhyaan. Dhyaan portrays a certain form of god depending on the wish that you have. If you wish for money or anything materialistic, you'd meditate on a form of god that is calm. If your wish is the destruction of enemies, you'd meditate an angry form of god. Certain people have the habit of meditating on angry forms of god when their wish is not of that kind. It is wrong and the mantra will not show results. We must only meditate on the form of god that is specified for the mantra or stotra. If you are chanting a common stotra which doesn't have dhyaan, meditate on the most popular form of that god. 

7. Discipline - the next thing important is discipline in chanting all day every day. It means that when you have decided to chant at 7 pm, then chant at the same time every day. Decide a time when you are sure you'll be free and then chant at that time every day. A difference of ±20 minutes is okay, but not more than that. This discipline also applies to other things like aasan, diya, etc. If you were sitting on kush aasan on the first day, use it for all days. Dont use kushaasan on one day and red aasan on the other. Similarly, if you're using oil diya, use oil diya on all the days. Maintain consistency in your method of prayer. It also means to remain stable during japa. Many people complain that they are not able to sit longer than so-and-so minutes. The solution to it is that unless you sit for longer times, you will not be able to sit for longer times. The only reason you feel uncomfortable sitting for longer times is that you don't have the habit of it. When you start feeling uncomfortable, pause the japa and keep the mala aside for a few minutes. Next, keep your palms on your knees and sit with closed eyes. Observe your breath and the sounds around you. Without trying too hard, take deep breaths. Do this for 5-10 minutes and you will feel at ease again. 

8. Energised Yantra or Idol - Idol or yantra is important if you want to get results from your mantras/stotras. For the gods, the idol is significant. For the goddesses, yantra is significant. Still, yantra is supreme for both of them. Also, do not worship both the yantra and idol of a god simultaneously. Worship either one of them. 

9. Panchopchar Puja - The next and one of the most important things is panchopchar puja. For every god that you worship, there has to be some form of bhautik puja. Now some believe that Shiva, Surya, and certain other gods don't need puja. It may be true that they may not need panchopchar puja, yet you are worshipping them in some or the other material way. For Shiva, we do abhishek with water. For Surya, we give arghya. For Hanuman, we give chola. This way, for every god, some or the other material form of puja exists. Unless you are doing sadhanas for getting moksha, bhautik puja is necessary for all gods. For material desires, a panchopchar puja is compulsory. It is not to say that God won't bless if you don't do panchopchar puja, but the results will come after a very long time. 

10. Absence of distraction - After puja, lack of distraction is an important factor that affects the results from mantras. During japa, keep the phone away. Don't browse social media and chant mantras on the other side. Don't sit in a room where there is a lot of noise. If you have the habit of browsing the phone during japa, the best way is to keep the phone far away from reach before you start the japa. This way you won't feel the urge to get your phone when the japa starts. Also, try to do japa with closed eyes. Closed eyes bring far better results and spiritual experiences. 

11. Delayed results - Unless and until you have been a devotee of a god for many years, a mantra/stotra can't show you instant results. That is why patience is very necessary. When we chant the mantra of a god whom we've been worshipping for a long time, their mantras will show results when you reach 50% of the sadhana days. The reason is that each day's chant creates energy. When enough amount of energy is built, that is when it can act against all the negative vibrations within and around us. When you are worshipping a god for the first time, it takes at least 21-30 days to see results. It takes time for a new god's energy to grow within you. 

12. Aarti & Pradakshina - Attending aarti, listening to the sounds of ghanta, doing pradakshina of the god you're worshipping - all these have a lot of power. They burn your sins, clean your heart, and bring you to true devotion. 

13. Daan - The last and the most powerful thing is daan. Donation of any kind accrues an unbelievable amount of punya in Kali-yuga. Daan brings instant, leapfrog changes in life. 

14. Worship of the 9th lord - Worshipping the 9th house lord or the planets sitting in your 9th house helps you get quick and uplifting changes in your life. His worship will guide you towards true bhakti, increase your luck, and make your life auspicious. 

Jay Shri Rama