POWER OF THE HOLY NAME

A KING who was guilty of the heinous sin of
killing a brahmana went to the hermitage of a Rishi
to learn what penance he must perform in order to
be purified. The Rishi was absent, but his son was
in the hermitage.
Hearing the case of the king, he said, "Repeat the
'name' of God (Rama) three times, and your sin
will be expiated."
When the Rishi came back and heard of the
penance prescribed by his son, he remarked
indignantly, "Sins committed in myriads of births
are purged immediately by uttering the 'name' of
the Almighty but once. How weak must be your
faith, O fool, since you have ordered the holy
'name' to be repeated thrice? For this weakness of
your faith, you shall become an outcaste." And the
son became Guhaka of the Ramayana.