“Although in this age there are so many faults – it is truly an ocean of faults – still, there is one very great advantage: simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, one becomes fully purified and is liberated from all material miseries.” So this smṛti injunction we should take up, and actually we see all over the world how it is purifying all sections of people. Take to this chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa; then śruti, smṛti, everything will be fulfilled. This is the easiest method. Kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet: chant the Lord’s holy name and you’ll be liberated.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: So the śrutis are eternally relevant and constant?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes, everything is based on the śrutis. As the Vedānta-sūtra says, anāvṛttiḥ śabdāt: simply by chanting the Lord’s names and instructions – His sound vibration – one becomes spiritually realized. Śabda brahman means “spiritual sound vibration,” and as the Vedānta-sūtra instructs us, by chanting this spiritual sound vibration – the instructions and holy name of the Lord – one can become liberated.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Also, the smṛtis are directly based on the original śrutis?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes, for instance, Bhagavad-gītā is considered smṛti. And Bhagavad-gītā also says, satatāṁ kīrtayanto māṁ yatantaś ca dṛḍha-vratāḥ: “Fully endeavoring with determination, the great souls are always chanting My glories.” And as the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, which is also considered smṛti, explains: śruti-smṛti-purāṇādi – the great devotees heed both the śrutis and the smṛtis. Another smṛti, Bṛhan-nāradīya Purāṇa, enjoins, harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam: “In this age of quarrel, the only way to realize the Lord is to chant His holy name, chant His holy name, chant His holy name.” So because He was in the role of a great devotee, Lord Caitanya followed these injunctions of śruti and smṛti. Kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam. Kṛṣṇaṁ varṇayati: Lord Caitanya was always chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. These examples are evidence that the smṛtis are directly based on the śrutis. So introduce this Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. Everyone will be purified.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Is smṛti more than just rules of conduct?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. Here is what smṛti means:

The four original Vedas are considered śruti. But simply by hearing them, one cannot understand fully. Therefore, the smṛtis have explained further. Purayati iti purāṇa: by hearing the Purāṇas and other smṛtis, one makes his understanding complete. The Vedic mantras are not always understood. For instance, the Vedānta, which is śruti, begins with the mantra janmādy asya yataḥ: “The Supreme is that being from whom everything has emanated.” This is very abbreviated. But the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which is smṛti, explains, janmādy asya yato ’nvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñāḥ sva-rāt: “The Supreme Being, from whom everything has emanated, is directly and indirectly cognizant of everything and is fully independent.” In this way the smṛti explains the śruti.

So whether you take śruti or smṛti, the subject matter is the same. Both śruti and smṛti are spiritual evidence. We cannot do without either of them. As Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī says in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu [1.2.101],