Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 6.5.26

tad-upasparśanād eva

vinirdhūta-malāśayāḥ

japanto brahma paramaḿ

tepus tatra mahat tapaḥ

SYNONYMS

tat — of that holy place; upasparśanāt — by bathing regularly in the water; eva — indeed; vinirdhūta — completely purified; mala-āśayāḥ — of all the dirt within the heart; japantaḥ — chanting or murmuring; brahma — mantras beginning with oḿ (such as oḿ tad viṣṇoḥ paramaḿ padaḿ sadā paśyanti sūrayaḥ); paramam — the ultimate goal; tepuḥ — performed; tatra — there; mahat — great; tapaḥ — penances.

TRANSLATION

At Nārāyaṇa-saras, the second group of sons performed penances in the same way as the first. They bathed in the holy water, and by its touch all the dirty material desires in their hearts were cleansed away. They murmured mantras beginning with oḿkāra and underwent a severe course of austerities.

PURPORT

Every Vedic mantra is called brahma because each mantra is preceded by the brahmākṣara (aum or oḿkāra). For example, oḿ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Lord Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (7.8), praṇavaḥ sarva-vedeṣu: "In all the Vedic mantras, I am represented by praṇava, or oḿkāra." Thus chanting of the Vedic mantras beginning with oḿkāra is directly chanting of Kṛṣṇa's name. There is no difference. Whether one chants oḿkāra or addresses the Lord as "Kṛṣṇa," the meaning is the same, but Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu has recommended that in this age one chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra (harer nāma eva kevalam [Adi 17.21]). Although there is no difference between Hare Kṛṣṇa and the Vedic mantras beginning with oḿkāra, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the leader of the spiritual movement for this age, has recommended that one chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness