20250513 Initiation Address

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānandaṁ mādhavaṁ śrī caitanya iśvaram
hariḥ oṁ tat sa

Jayapatākā Swami: Haribol! Are you all well now? There is prasāda for them right? After initiation they will get prasāda right?

This is a sacrifice. You have to have prasāda.  Can you do this sacrifice? You have to avoid meat, fish, eggs and onion and garlic, and have to eat prasāda. I have been told that all of you will be served prasāda after initiation. Many years before, I was going to London and on a flight, there was a Gauḍīya Maṭha Mahārāja. The British Airways gave a kind of biscuit and the Gauḍīya Maṭha Mahārāja ate it. I checked what the ingredients were in it and there was egg! In the Western countries, the ingredients are written on the package. Those who are in the West know this and check the ingredients, if there are onions, garlic, etc. Anyway, I carry my prasāda and have that only. In the airplane I only eat fruits or some salad only. Because we cannot depend on them! I heard that the Indian Railways have a vegetarian counter and a non-vegetarian counter. But inside there is one kitchen! So, in South India, in the sāmbār there is onion! Here we eat dal, sāmbār with rice, there is tamarind and other things, but in South India there is onion in the sāmbār as well. In the train there is iḍli, dosa, there is coconut chutney which does not have onion or garlic in it. Why I am saying this is that there are four regulative principles we have to follow. And whatever we are given outside, there is nothing written on all, but if we search we can find out. So we have to be careful. I hope that all of you will follow that you will not have non vegetarian food, no illicit sex, no gambling, on intoxication, and the married people are with their wives. There are many brahmacārīs in our Nāma-haṭṭa. So they have to be living a restricted life. I hope that if it is possible that in the future the gṛhasthas can do service in the Nāma-haṭṭa. Now the members of the Nāma-haṭṭa, who are gṛhasthas, need money to take care of their family. Those who are working, there should be nothing they do that is not allowed by our society. I want that the devotees develop attachment for Kṛṣṇa, and after attachment, there is ruci and then rati. Rati is before prema. Lord Caitanya gave prema and Lord Nityānanda also distributed prema. They did not think who is qualified, who is not qualified to receive this prema. They gave it freely to all. This is the mercy of Lord Caitanya and Panca-tattva’s mercy!

Many of you have come from Medinipur. I have said earlier that Śrīla Prabhupāda has given me many instructions. But I have not been able to follow one instruction that was to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness, preaching, unlimitedly! I need your help, I cannot do it alone. When you meet some colleagues, neighbors, friends, relatives, preach about Kṛṣṇa’s teachings. Lord Caitanya said: yāre dekha, tāre kaha ‘kṛṣṇa’-upadeśa [Cc. Madhya 7.128]. This way you can help me! Who all want to help me? Please raise your hands. Then I have some hope that I will be able to follow Śrīla Prabhupāda’s instruction!

I will chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and then you will all follow it. Please keep your right ears open especially mātājīs:

Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare /
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare!

I was saying that there is Digha Jagannātha Dhāma. There are thousands and thousands of pāṇḍās in Jagannātha Purī. But in Digha they do not have many pūjārīs for sevā. I was saying that devotees from East Medinipur, West Medinipur, Jhargram, Odisha, from each cakra, can depute devotees to go to Digha to do service. You will get prasāda and also some money there. You can do kīrtana and cooking there. If you do this, it will be very nice!

Now they will announce your new initiated name, and I will hand over the beads to you.