Japa Opens Inner Doors
One who performs japa properly will realize what he knows. You see, japa opens up the inner mind and focuses the energies of certain chakras, which are consciousness encased within the psychic nerve ganglia of the nāḍī network. Therefore, if he is a divine person, he will realize that Divinity. If he is an angry, selfish person, then he will realize that. We would want him to realize the former but not the latter. Through karma yoga, Sivathondu, the angry, hateful, contentious, competitive person will face himself through a series of small situations in which small realizations will occur. The instinctive nature and habits will be corrected until the individual is able to work smoothly over long periods of time. We would not want to open up his mind to the impurities, lest he become depressed or even morose and suicidal. Therefore, japa yoga obviously is an initiation that should come a little down the road, farther down the path.
Generally, those who want to practice japa yoga and do have impurities working within them fall away from repetitive mantras very quickly, becoming a little afraid of what might happen if they are successful. Their own soul is watching after them in this early stage. Then there are those who are ardent, fanatical, you might say, who want to get results in a limited period of time and have no sense of the consequences. They work tirelessly to do this. The wise guru would discourage much practice of intense mantras or meditating alone, and would instead encourage karma yoga, giving to others, working for work’s sake, serving for service’s sake, not looking for rewards. Group meditations and group chanting are fine at this stage, as is temple worship, until the purification process has had time to work its magic.
In short, there are two kinds of Hindus—a majority who worship in the temples without a philosophical background and those who do have such a background and take part in their religion, discussion of the higher knowledge and meditation upon it, feeling no need for the Gods or for temple worship. The Pañchākshara Mantra, Aum Namaḥ Śivāya, the center of the Vedas, is the link between the two, between Siddhānta and Vedānta, because it makes the mind realize what it knows. Every Siddhāntin knows a little about Vedānta and disregards it. And every Vedāntin knows a bit about Siddhānta and disregards it. Through chanting Aum Namaḥ Śivāya, finally you will realize what you know, including what you previously disregarded, and that blends the two—makes the whole person. The purusha becomes satisfied living in the physical body. The jīva becomes Śiva.
Initiation is essential for the ultimate results in chanting Aum Namaḥ Śivāya, though the uninitiated can and do say Aum Namaḥ Śivāya. Within them it won’t have much of an effect, but there will be an effect. This effect will be more potent and powerful once you have dīkshā, having studied and purified yourself through the purificatory process of sādhana. It would be so much better to chant Aum Śaravaṇabhava at this time, invoking Lord Murugan to bring the guru forth in your life who will initiate you. Murugan is the first guru, the first swāmī and renunciate. This is the preparatory stage.