Question: What is the process of atonement when a disciple commits an offense towards guru? Also, how to rid ourselves of such offenses?
Author: Lalitāṅgī Rādhā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-04
Jayapatākā Swami: That is why we offer daily guru-pūjā
and on the Vyāsa-pūjā we offer the puṣpāñjali three times.
That way we pray that we may be forgiven for any knowing or unknowing offences.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Related Questions
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-13
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda always told us we should not try to see Kṛṣṇa but act in such a way that Kṛṣṇa will see us.
It was devastating to lose Śrīla Prabhupāda’s personal association.
But he gave me a lot of different services to perform to him.
So, that kept me busy in serving Śrīla Prabhupāda.
How many of you are disciples of Caitanya Candra Caraṇa dāsa? (Almost all)
How many of you have the Jayapatākā Swami App?
(a few) You can download it.
It is in various languages, and you can choose Russian.
So, there are various programs in the App like offering ārati, like seeing what I do, seeing Śrīla Prabhupāda lectures.
Then you can ask, to put out something about Caitanya Candra Caraṇa dāsa also.
Have you visited any of the holy places around Navadvīpa dhāma?
(Yes, the house of Śrīvāsa Aṅgana.) Śrīvāsa Aṅgana. (Yoga-pīṭha, House of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, Jagannātha Mandir, Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura samādhi, Viṣṇu-priyā temple, and also TOVP construction site)
Have you seen the TOVP site?
Is there are anyone who is an IT person, we are doing a Museum in the West Wing, we could use help for the Exhibits.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-12-07
If you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa,
you surrender to Kṛṣṇa,
Kṛṣṇa says mokṣya,
that He’ll protect you from all the sins.
sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ
‘Sarva-pāpebhyo’,
all pāpa He’ll protect you from.
There’s no other way to get free from your sin except for taking shelter of the Lord Kṛṣṇa.
Even if you do pious activity that doesn’t get rid of the sin.
Only by serving Kṛṣṇa you’d be get free from all the sin
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-12-07
If you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa,
you surrender to Kṛṣṇa,
Kṛṣṇa says mokṣya,
that He’ll protect you from all the sins.
sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ
‘Sarva-pāpebhyo’,
all pāpa He’ll protect you from.
There’s no other way to get free from your sin except for taking shelter of the Lord Kṛṣṇa.
Even if you do pious activity that doesn’t get rid of the sin.
Only by serving Kṛṣṇa you’d be get free from all the sin
Questioner: Bhaktin Pūjā
Date: 2022-09-30
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, this material world is like a prison house.
And if you serve Kṛṣṇa, you get out of this prison.
If you serve guru and Kṛṣṇa, you will be free!
Do you think that the jail keeper will let you go so easy?!
She tests you first to see that you are really sincere.
And when you pass the test, she will offer you her obeisances.
Thank you, you can go back to Godhead!
Category: [Anarthās], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Emotions / Enthusiasm], [Emotions / Stress/Anxiety], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
An initiated neophyte has vowed to follow the regulative principles, chant daily 16 rounds and to help you and help Śrīla Prabhupāda in spreading Kṛṣṇa consciousness all around the world. Say, such a neophyte has broken this vow in an attempt to meet the demands of his competitive world due to his past bad karma, how can such a person be attractive and inspiring to the common man plus come back to the spiritual life and resume to his guru’s pleasure?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-19
Jayapatākā Swami: You see that is why taking first initiation
it is described as taking a new birth.
Naturally when you are taking birth as a baby,
a toddler,
you may fall down a few times.
Then gradually you learn to walk.
So at your first initiation
it is expected that
there may be a few mistakes.
And one should pick up and continue to practice,
in this way they can progress.
When one takes the second initiation,
they should be more considered like 9 or 12 years old.
If at that time they are sleeping in the lap of the mother
and passing stool or something,
then something is wrong!
A little baby it is expected.
But not in a 9 or 12-year-old boy!
Category: [Anarthās], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Sādhanā / Regulative Principles], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-05-13
Jayapatākā Swami: You see if you are mood is such that you go back to Godhead,
that means you got some mercy from your guru.
I spent so many weeks giving class so that people could get an idea of my mood.
What do you think?
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Pastimes], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Spiritual World / Dhāma]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-05-13
Jayapatākā Swami: I mean if the husband or someone has to go out working,
then they may wear their working clothes and bow down to the Lord.
There should be some reason.
Vaiṣṇava clothes are more relaxing.
But everyone may have some particular situation.
So, accordingly they may dress.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Etiquette / Sadācāra], [Vigraha Āradhana (Deity Worship)]
As we grow in Kṛṣṇa consciousness and become devotees who are in senior positions, and at the phase of becoming mature devotees, we still tend to make vaiṣṇava-aparādhā while having that position and naturally when we have power and position that is what the people instead of having humility, because of their power and position, people, they tend to make or have the tendency to make vaiṣṇava-aparādhā. How do we correct that?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-04
Jayapatākā Swami: You were not here last night. We talked that sometimes a father, a senior devotee, may have to correct a junior devotee.
It is not considered an offence.
The criticizing or laughing at Lord Brahmā that is something offensive.
If you have to correct a junior devotee, if you have to correct someone do that in private
so that their ego won’t be troubled.
And if we have to do it, then do as a sandwich,
do you know what it means sandwich?
You first of all praise them,
and then say what you want to say criticizing them,
then you praise them again.
That way, they don’t feel that the person doesn’t love me.
But we should not criticize, laugh at some senior devotee.
That may be there in ISKCON, but we should not do that.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-13
Jayapatākā Swami: By keeping on chanting,
gradually your chanting becomes offenseless.
And at first it starts as offensive chanting,
then clearing chanting,
then offenseless chanting.
The more we chant, we gradually overcome all the anarthas.
Link: 20221023 Evening Darśana
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Aparādha (Offenses) / Nāma-aparādha], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Balavān Śrīnivāsa dāsa
Date: 2022-08-24
Jayapatākā Swami: Hope you never reach that stage!
And that always try to avoid offences.
I don’t know what the limit of Lord Caitanya’s mercy is but
I don’t want to take it that far!
Especially Lord Caitanya. He did not want anyone to offend the Vaiṣṇavas.
Cāpāla Gopāla offended Śrīvāsa and He said you have to suffer.
But then Cāpāla Gopāla begged Śrīvāsa for forgiveness.
Lord Caitanya embraced Cāpāla Gopāla and saved him.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses) / Vaiṣṇava-aparādha], [Aparādha (Offenses) / Nāma-aparādha], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Anarthās / Sinful activities]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-05-11
Jayapatākā Swami: When we chant Hare Kṛṣṇa
we chant Pañca-tattva before that.
śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda
śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda
śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda
Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare
The thing is that the teachings of Caitanya-caritāmṛta are very advanced.
Therefore, as far as the teachings are concerned we may be able to understand it better there.
Now we know in principle, basic, that Lord Caitanya is very merciful,
and we can know basic things about Lord Caitanya.
But to read Caitanya-caritāmṛta there are some pastimes which are very advanced
and we may not understand all the nectar.
So we study something before,
something after.
We know that Lord Caitanya, He has given us the special mercy.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
He (Vrajeśvara Gaura dāsa) is reminding me that in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam introduction Śrīla Prabhupāda has given description of Lord Caitanya in about 50 pages, and you can read that too.
Haribol!
I am finishing my class quickly so you can have your prasāda soon!
Srila Jayapataka Swami Gurumaharaja Ki! Jay!
Srila Prabhupada Ki! Jay!
Gaur Premanande!
Questioner: Maṅgalamayī Mālinī devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-15
Jayapatākā Swami: The point is that, if you are an initiated devotee,
then it is very beneficial for you, and not so much trouble for the devotee.
But sometimes people who are not devotees take the dust, and sometimes devotees distribute their guru’s prasāda remnants
to non-devotees.
That may cause great trouble for the devotee.
What is being said is true,
but it may cause some trouble for the devotee,
if the person is not a devotee himself.
So, that was the thing that Śrīla Prabhupāda said,
that we should not give it out to non-devotees,
or to uninitiated devotees.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Etiquette / Sadācāra]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-21
Jayapatākā Svāmī: Without being married.
Ah, there is no such stipulation that liberation is dependent upon getting married.
But it has been recommended very strongly that women should be married.
But as far as being… What if a girl dies when she is twelve, or something?
It’s not, it’s not lean on the soul that you have to get married to go back to Godhead.
It’s a question of what consciousness you’re in when you leave your body.
If you’re in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, you’ll go back to Godhead.
In a general sadhana practice of devotional service,
it’s conducive for women to be married and have a Kṛṣṇa conscious husband.
If the husband is not Kṛṣṇa conscious, then there is a problem.
But actually, the husband should be Kṛṣṇa conscious and the wife should be Kṛṣṇa conscious.
In this way, they give each other association.
I can elaborate.
But we’re on short of time right now.
But it’s not contingent on going back to Godhead, per se.
That is not contingent on any material thing.
It’s contingent on chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, serving the spiritual master, following his instructions.
Hare Krsna.
Category: [Day-to-day Life / Married life], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Spiritual World / Dhāma], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Women]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-12-13
Jayapatākā Swami: I don’t know if there is a system to take others’ faults.
You can donate some of your merits to others.
That is in the Padma Purāṇa
that one lady she was donating some of her merits to a bull
who was being mistreated and who died.
So the ātmā from the bull took birth as a brāhmaṇa boy
and he remembered that he was a bull from his previous life.
Normally people are very greedy to get more merit, and they don’t give it away.
So he was curious how she was giving away her merit.
So he went to see her,
and said, you don’t know me but I know you.
Remember the bull who would be beaten and you gave some merit to the bull?
So I was that bull and now I took birth as a brāhmaṇa boy
and she revealed that she was reading the Bhagavad-gītā regularly.
Therefore, she gave half of her merit to the bull
and the bull took birth as a brāhmaṇa boy
and he started to read the Bhagavad-gītā also
and he went back to Godhead!
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Mercy]
Can someone who is endeavoring to follow his guru’s instructions sincerely and is making efforts to take his guru’s instructions and his desire as his life and soul, but hasn’t got the chance to take formal initiation, can such a person go back to Godhead and achieve the highest goal of kṛṣṇa-prema in this very life? Can he also achieve his guru’s service eternally?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-19
Jayapatākā Swami: Since the name of Kṛṣṇa is not different from Kṛṣṇa,
somehow by chanting the names of Kṛṣṇa,
one may also achieve the highest perfection.
But a sure way is if possible, is for you to take initiation from the authorized guru-paramparā,
and then in that way serve Kṛṣṇa.
You see Kṛṣṇa gives you the opportunity to take initiation.
If out of false ego you don’t do it,
then it is not really Kṛṣṇa’s fault.
So if He is giving us some help, we should take it.
During this lockdown period
I am also giving initiation on the internet by zoom.
And other gurus are also doing the same thing.
So if one is qualified, they could take initiation.
Don’t have to wait for the guru to physically come there.
Category: [Dīkṣā (Initiation)], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Spiritual World / Dhāma]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-05-13
Jayapatākā Swami: If you are sick, you cannot take bath, this Kṛṣṇa can understand.
First if you want you can take an ācamana and take a mantra-snāna, mental bath, chanting the śuci-mantra.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-12-02
Jayapatākā Swami: You see in Guruvayūr the head priest or Nambhūthirī is not told if his close relative has passed away.
So he is not affected.
The questions is: if you are affected, if you are lamenting, then it is not good to go before the Deities.
If you are not affected,
then the aśauca period is considered to be less.
I mean like for the brāhmaṇas something like 11 days and śudras 30 days or something.
Vaiṣṇavas are considered to be detached, considered to be on the brahmanical platform.
That you can see your consciousness, how you feel.
Category: [Material Sufferings / Death], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Saṁskāras / Antima-saṁskāras]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-13
Jayapatākā Swami: Seems so! Seems that they describe, if we take sesame on Sat-tila Ekādaśī, we get the mercy.
Normally we don’t take sesame, we use that in havan.
We think of it as a grain although it is not.
Sat-tila Ekādaśī, I read that you should tila, sesame in many ways.
So it would seem alright then,
since it is written in the scripture.
Link: 20221023 Evening Darśana
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vratās (Austerities)], [Vratās (Austerities) / Ekādaśī-vratā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-05-13
Jayapatākā Swami: You should take the advice of pūjārīs like Sevatulya Prabhu, who are very senior and experienced here.
I think that on Dvādaśī there is a restriction to not pluck tulasī leaves.
But you should ask the head pūjārīs.
That is all I know that on Dvādaśī we do not pick.
I did not hear there is restriction on any other days.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-23
Jayapatākā Swami: In our major temples in Vṛndāvana and Māyāpur, in Bombay
we don’t purchase any store-bought fruits uh these where store-bought sweets.
In the smaller temples sometime, they purchase.
Of course, purchasing is that has got some other implications.
Purchasing is sometime allowed.
but that would be considered to be not as perfect as if we could make the things ourselves,
because, they are not having any pure standard.
We don’t know what type of, actually technically speaking store-bought things which are made outside by non-devotees,
they are not… even in the West, we don’t also offer fruit juice.
We make the juice ourselves,
because whether that people are washing their hands after they are going in bathroom,
or something like that, or what they’re doing, you don’t know, what standard they have.
There are many rules, you see.
If you go to the bathroom, you have to take an entire shower.
The same cloth you shouldn’t use, if you are going to cook for the Deity.
If people are negligent of this, they will get worse than sinful reactions.
They will get offensive reactions from Kṛṣṇa.
Their devotion will be stuck up.
And for preaching sometime, you can pray to Kṛṣṇa that for preaching sometimes, we have to just do these things,
and there is no alternative.
But normally one should be very careful.
It’s an opportunity to get the blessing; it’s an opportunity at the same time if you are not careful to also get punished.
So, we should be very careful when we do these things to do it properly.
Category: [Day-to-day Life / Food], [Prasāda and Bhoga], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vigraha Āradhana (Deity Worship)]
Questioner: Cārurūpa Mādhava dāsa:
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: Generally, we read the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam first and then the Caitanya-caritāmṛta.
But we can start reading Bhāgavatam and simultaneously read Caitanya-caritāmṛta.
But usually Caitanya-caritāmṛta philosophy is very high and one may not understand it.
I am trying to write a Kṛṣṇa type book
on Lord Caitanya’s pastimes
and keep the philosophy down;
so that then, one can go and read the Caitanya-caritāmṛta and get all the philosophy.
So it is good we know a little bit of Caitanya-caritāmṛta but
it is not that you leave aside Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam totally.
You should have a regular routine of reading the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
If you have time, then you can read a little bit of the Caitanya-caritāmṛta as well
or the Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book that I am compiling.
Questioner: Mādhavī Śyāmasundarī devī dāsī
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: All the services to the Deities in this temple or any temple of ISKCON will be very pleasing to me.
So you can ask the temple leaders what service you can do.
Lord Caitanya said, yāre dekha, tāre kaha ‘kṛṣṇa’-upadeśa.
Whoever you see, tell them the glories of Kṛṣṇa.
That will make me very happy.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Mādhavī Śyāmasundarī devī dāsī
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: All the services to the Deities in this temple or any temple of ISKCON will be very pleasing to me.
So you can ask the temple leaders what service you can do.
Lord Caitanya said, yāre dekha, tāre kaha ‘kṛṣṇa’-upadeśa.
Whoever you see, tell them the glories of Kṛṣṇa.
That will make me very happy.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Mādhavī Śyāmasundarī devī dāsī
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: All the services to the Deities in this temple or any temple of ISKCON will be very pleasing to me.
So you can ask the temple leaders what service you can do.
Lord Caitanya said, yāre dekha, tāre kaha ‘kṛṣṇa’-upadeśa.
Whoever you see, tell them the glories of Kṛṣṇa.
That will make me very happy.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Haridhvani devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: The highest form of prayer is to sing or chant the name of the Lord.
If we pray, it maybe not a very good prayer.
So that is why the saṅkīrtana or chanting of the holy name is recommended
If one chants the name of Narasiṁhadeva 21 times, they can get delivered from various sufferings.
“Śrī Narasiṁha! Jaya Narasiṁha! Jaya jaya jaya Narasiṁha!” 21 times.
Otherwise, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.
You can chant 54 times or 108 times.
So, the name of Kṛṣṇa is worth 3000 names of Viṣṇu.
And the name Rāma is worth 1000 names of Viṣṇu.
So, by this Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Rāma mantra,
you get so much spiritual benefit.
And the side benefits are the material suffering is mitigated.
But the real benefit is that one awakens one’s love of Godhead.
Please ask the people to chant one of the mantras,
and since there may be offence in our chanting, one can chant the Pañca-tattva mantra before chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu nityānanda śrī advaita gadādhara śrīvasādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛndā.
Despite all adversities, you have always continued to serve Śrīla Prabhupāda without any interruption, and we see sometimes devotees, they get upset on small things. And they leave their services. And that really compromises everybody’s service to Śrīla Prabhupāda. So how can we continue in your mood, that not to leave services when offended and work together? Any instructions, any guidance you can give us about that?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-21
Jayapatākā Swami: Well, as I said,
we owe everything to Śrīla Prabhupāda.
He could have stayed in Vṛndāvana.
He would have easily got liberation.
But he took a great headache,
he came to the USA,
came to Canada,
and he gave us Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
So who thinks that they have paid their debt fully?
I don’t think so!
I have to do so much,
still the debts are not paid for.
As long as I have breath in the body,
as long as I have any abilities,
I will try to serve Śrīla Prabhupāda.
When I was in Canada
I asked Śrīla Prabhupāda,
whether I should join the USA army,
because my father said he would turn my name.
Then Śrīla Prabhupāda told me
better you join Kṛṣṇa’s army.
So I am still in Kṛṣṇa’s army,
and I haven’t taken retirement yet.
So as a serving officer in Kṛṣṇa’s army,
I have to continue! Ha!
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Association (Sādhu-saṅga)], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Cooperation]
Questioner: Shivam
Date: 2022-08-27
Jayapatākā Swami: That is why Śrīla Prabhupāda he would teach us to avoid the ten offences to the holy name.
The first offence is not to offend or blaspheme a devotee.
So it is worse to offend a devotee than being sinful.
So, you should avoid offending a devotee.
At the same time naturally, we want to try to come to the pure platform.
So, before you take initiation, you should be sure you can follow the principles.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-12-06
Jayapatākā Swami: In Kali-yuga normally you get reaction for activities performed.
In other yugas just by thinking about something, you get the reaction.
So Kali-yuga, normally by thinking you do not get a reaction.
If you take second initiation, then you may be more responsible for your mind.
If you think of something bad, then you beg for forgiveness and replace it with some Kṛṣṇa conscious thought.
Category: [Anarthās], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Material World / Mind / Intelligence], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Pūjā
Date: 2022-09-22
Jayapatākā Swami: That is what Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī said
in the Hari-bhakti-vilāsa.
He cited some Purāṇas
that say watching the ārati of Lord Kṛṣṇa,
we get the same result as a person who does the ārati.
Questioner: Ānandamayī Gopīnātha dāsa
Date: 2022-09-22
Jayapatākā Swami: It costs money for higher education.
Basically, you want to equip your child to deal with this world.
But the most important thing,
the real duty of a parent,
is to promote the child’s affection for Kṛṣṇa.
At the same time, basic education and things,
parents should take care of.
Not just make a lot of money and give it to the child.
Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, he divided his wealth - 25%
for emergencies,
25% for his family,
for his children
and 50% for Kṛṣṇa’s bhaktas.
Haribol!
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-08-08
Jayapatākā Swami: No! The point is, say a devotee, tries to become Kṛṣṇa conscious and doesn’t make it; senses take him off; interested into material life again
but whatever time a person spent in doing Kṛṣṇa conscious activity, for that, they get heavenly planet or they get a very good birth in the future.
They don’t lose anything you see.
The sinful reaction doesn’t affect; the sinful life delays your going back to Godhead but doesn’t stop it because that your credit is in like a fixed account.
But what happens is when you do offenses, this is whole different thing.
Offenses are directly...just like you are working for someone, you build up a good credit history and then you steal from him,
then you get fired and that person never wants to see you again, right?
But say that you know, you work for a person, just somehow you go away, you quit, then whatever you do, but with him your relationship, you know, is the same.
This is a little gross kind of material example, it is not fully appropriate.
In a higher sense our relationship with Kṛṣṇa is independent of all the other activities.
But an offense against Him or His devotee directly, you see even He can forgive an offense against Him;
but when you offend His devotee who is just trying in helping people to come to Him that becomes intolerable for Him.
He has a policy that He doesn’t personally forgive anyone for that. If the devotees themselves forgive then He considers a pardon.
So, of all the offenses, the blaspheming of one’s spiritual master who is a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa and is considered to be the worst.
So, the Caitanya-caritāmṛta says that, it takes millions of births before one ever gets a chance to have a guru again.
Why Kṛṣṇa will bring you up to a guru if you are going to blaspheme?
If you are so envious, then you get put in an envious species of life.
So, that way, Śrīla Prabhupāda says that it is much better to fall down from Kṛṣṇa consciousness and just fall into sinful or materialistic activities than to become a blasphemer.
You shouldn’t ever resent the guru.
If you couldn’t make it, why resent the guru, it is not his fault,
you couldn’t make it.
You tried, you got as far as you could, or you have that much determination, you lost faith and you lost.
So, why resent the guru? Guru didn’t do any harm to you.
Guru was trying to help you.
You go to a doctor; you have an incurable disease, or you are hooked on to some kind of drug, the doctor tries to help you to break your habit,
but you can’t take the withdrawal pains, so you just go back in and then you continue taking heroin or something until you OD (overdose) and die.
Why blaspheme the doctor?
It is not his fault; you didn’t have the determination or the patience to get out.
He was going to help you through the whole thing, through your shakes and your problems and everything just to bring you up to a point where you could be a healthy person.
Like that kind of a thing.
Jayapatākā Swami: Oh yeah. Lord Caitanya said that,
yadi vaiṣṇava-aparādha uṭhe hātī mātā
That the offense of blaspheming a devotee is called mad elephant offense.
Because one’s spiritual progress is compared to a creeper, a plant.
So, when you blaspheme pure devotees, that mad elephant can go into a garden, uproot the whole plants, tear apart, you can just demolish the garden.
So, the comparison given that all the other things are like weeds; they don’t actually kill the original plant, they just compete with it.
They stunt its growth by taking away the energy, just stays at whatever level it is.
But it is very hard for the weeds all to completely smother out the original plant unless it just completely overcomes the thing.
But the offenses, those are considered like wild elephants which come in and trrrrp (tearing sound), rip out the thing, put it on the ground and stomp on it.
And then even for a while it may seem that the person is spiritually situated;
they pull out a plant, still the leaves stay green for a few days but then they gradually dry and fall off.
The relationship with the guru is never cut even you fall down; it’s not cut just by material activities;
but if you blaspheme the guru, then it is cut off, it’s like disowning.
Disciple disowns his guru by blaspheming.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-08-08
Jayapatākā Swami: No! The point is, say a devotee, tries to become Kṛṣṇa conscious and doesn’t make it; senses take him off; interested into material life again
but whatever time a person spent in doing Kṛṣṇa conscious activity, for that, they get heavenly planet or they get a very good birth in the future.
They don’t lose anything you see.
The sinful reaction doesn’t affect; the sinful life delays your going back to Godhead but doesn’t stop it because that your credit is in like a fixed account.
But what happens is when you do offenses, this is whole different thing.
Offenses are directly...just like you are working for someone, you build up a good credit history and then you steal from him,
then you get fired and that person never wants to see you again, right?
But say that you know, you work for a person, just somehow you go away, you quit, then whatever you do, but with him your relationship, you know, is the same.
This is a little gross kind of material example, it is not fully appropriate.
In a higher sense our relationship with Kṛṣṇa is independent of all the other activities.
But an offense against Him or His devotee directly, you see even He can forgive an offense against Him;
but when you offend His devotee who is just trying in helping people to come to Him that becomes intolerable for Him.
He has a policy that He doesn’t personally forgive anyone for that. If the devotees themselves forgive then He considers a pardon.
So, of all the offenses, the blaspheming of one’s spiritual master who is a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa and is considered to be the worst.
So, the Caitanya-caritāmṛta says that, it takes millions of births before one ever gets a chance to have a guru again.
Why Kṛṣṇa will bring you up to a guru if you are going to blaspheme?
If you are so envious, then you get put in an envious species of life.
So, that way, Śrīla Prabhupāda says that it is much better to fall down from Kṛṣṇa consciousness and just fall into sinful or materialistic activities than to become a blasphemer.
You shouldn’t ever resent the guru.
If you couldn’t make it, why resent the guru, it is not his fault,
you couldn’t make it.
You tried, you got as far as you could, or you have that much determination, you lost faith and you lost.
So, why resent the guru? Guru didn’t do any harm to you.
Guru was trying to help you.
You go to a doctor; you have an incurable disease, or you are hooked on to some kind of drug, the doctor tries to help you to break your habit,
but you can’t take the withdrawal pains, so you just go back in and then you continue taking heroin or something until you OD (overdose) and die.
Why blaspheme the doctor?
It is not his fault; you didn’t have the determination or the patience to get out.
He was going to help you through the whole thing, through your shakes and your problems and everything just to bring you up to a point where you could be a healthy person.
Like that kind of a thing.
Jayapatākā Swami: Oh yeah. Lord Caitanya said that,
yadi vaiṣṇava-aparādha uṭhe hātī mātā
That the offense of blaspheming a devotee is called mad elephant offense.
Because one’s spiritual progress is compared to a creeper, a plant.
So, when you blaspheme pure devotees, that mad elephant can go into a garden, uproot the whole plants, tear apart, you can just demolish the garden.
So, the comparison given that all the other things are like weeds; they don’t actually kill the original plant, they just compete with it.
They stunt its growth by taking away the energy, just stays at whatever level it is.
But it is very hard for the weeds all to completely smother out the original plant unless it just completely overcomes the thing.
But the offenses, those are considered like wild elephants which come in and trrrrp (tearing sound), rip out the thing, put it on the ground and stomp on it.
And then even for a while it may seem that the person is spiritually situated;
they pull out a plant, still the leaves stay green for a few days but then they gradually dry and fall off.
The relationship with the guru is never cut even you fall down; it’s not cut just by material activities;
but if you blaspheme the guru, then it is cut off, it’s like disowning.
Disciple disowns his guru by blaspheming.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-08-08
Jayapatākā Swami: No! The point is, say a devotee, tries to become Kṛṣṇa conscious and doesn’t make it; senses take him off; interested into material life again
but whatever time a person spent in doing Kṛṣṇa conscious activity, for that, they get heavenly planet or they get a very good birth in the future.
They don’t lose anything you see.
The sinful reaction doesn’t affect; the sinful life delays your going back to Godhead but doesn’t stop it because that your credit is in like a fixed account.
But what happens is when you do offenses, this is whole different thing.
Offenses are directly...just like you are working for someone, you build up a good credit history and then you steal from him,
then you get fired and that person never wants to see you again, right?
But say that you know, you work for a person, just somehow you go away, you quit, then whatever you do, but with him your relationship, you know, is the same.
This is a little gross kind of material example, it is not fully appropriate.
In a higher sense our relationship with Kṛṣṇa is independent of all the other activities.
But an offense against Him or His devotee directly, you see even He can forgive an offense against Him;
but when you offend His devotee who is just trying in helping people to come to Him that becomes intolerable for Him.
He has a policy that He doesn’t personally forgive anyone for that. If the devotees themselves forgive then He considers a pardon.
So, of all the offenses, the blaspheming of one’s spiritual master who is a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa and is considered to be the worst.
So, the Caitanya-caritāmṛta says that, it takes millions of births before one ever gets a chance to have a guru again.
Why Kṛṣṇa will bring you up to a guru if you are going to blaspheme?
If you are so envious, then you get put in an envious species of life.
So, that way, Śrīla Prabhupāda says that it is much better to fall down from Kṛṣṇa consciousness and just fall into sinful or materialistic activities than to become a blasphemer.
You shouldn’t ever resent the guru.
If you couldn’t make it, why resent the guru, it is not his fault,
you couldn’t make it.
You tried, you got as far as you could, or you have that much determination, you lost faith and you lost.
So, why resent the guru? Guru didn’t do any harm to you.
Guru was trying to help you.
You go to a doctor; you have an incurable disease, or you are hooked on to some kind of drug, the doctor tries to help you to break your habit,
but you can’t take the withdrawal pains, so you just go back in and then you continue taking heroin or something until you OD (overdose) and die.
Why blaspheme the doctor?
It is not his fault; you didn’t have the determination or the patience to get out.
He was going to help you through the whole thing, through your shakes and your problems and everything just to bring you up to a point where you could be a healthy person.
Like that kind of a thing.
Jayapatākā Swami: Oh yeah. Lord Caitanya said that,
yadi vaiṣṇava-aparādha uṭhe hātī mātā
That the offense of blaspheming a devotee is called mad elephant offense.
Because one’s spiritual progress is compared to a creeper, a plant.
So, when you blaspheme pure devotees, that mad elephant can go into a garden, uproot the whole plants, tear apart, you can just demolish the garden.
So, the comparison given that all the other things are like weeds; they don’t actually kill the original plant, they just compete with it.
They stunt its growth by taking away the energy, just stays at whatever level it is.
But it is very hard for the weeds all to completely smother out the original plant unless it just completely overcomes the thing.
But the offenses, those are considered like wild elephants which come in and trrrrp (tearing sound), rip out the thing, put it on the ground and stomp on it.
And then even for a while it may seem that the person is spiritually situated;
they pull out a plant, still the leaves stay green for a few days but then they gradually dry and fall off.
The relationship with the guru is never cut even you fall down; it’s not cut just by material activities;
but if you blaspheme the guru, then it is cut off, it’s like disowning.
Disciple disowns his guru by blaspheming.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-24
Jayapatākā Swami: Prabhupāda said, if a person follows the process of Kṛṣṇa conscious then they can.
If one wants to take birth again in the material world, no.
How free you are from things like offences, may dictate how high you can go in spiritual world.
Whether we get place in Vaikuntha? Whether we get a place in Goloka Vṛndāvana? How I am will able to go?
Or, I mean if a person, I had one person, approached me in India, he was a real strange character.
He said that, “I have been chanting 32 or 20 or 16 rounds for 26 years.
But never gave up eating fish.”
Neutral position that we were discussing today, he reciprocates with the person so perfectly,
that if someone would do something like that because of their offences to chanting, while chanting the holy name,
but they don’t actually make advancement, towards pure love for Kṛṣṇa.
They are getting some benefit from chanting,
but at the same time they are material heart, their material desires aren’t going due to being absorbed in sense gratification like that.
So I advised him that, you should chant the names of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu,
and by His mercy you may be able to overcome this desire of eating fish.
And sure enough after chanting Lord Caitanya’s names for some period of time, he got some spiritual intelligence, and he could stop eating fish.
Even though for 26 years he was on his weird practice, where although chanting he never tried to avoid breaking that,
you know, stopping breaking that regulative principle.
So if a person, I mean if he is determined, you know, alright, I am going to chant 16 rounds and I am going to follow the four principles,
but if they take things in an attitude that I’m determined not to give up my material attachments,
then that’s anachronism, you know.
From our side it should be not just externals, but it should be internal, that we are trying to follow the process.
We are trying from our part to give up our attachments.
If we have the proper attitude, we are trying to give up our attachments, we are trying to avoid, even if we arenot fully successful.
Prabhupāda said, “There is… That Kṛṣṇa is so merciful, that Lord Caitanya is so merciful,
even though we may not at the point of death have been a hundred percent successful.
We can still get delivered.”
[Aside: How long I should go on ?]
I was in Montreal, and Prabhupāda was giving a lecture, that time we had a vyasāsana for him was very high.
I mean, very, it was like, when we would stand up, we would be facing Prabhupāda eye to eye,
or he would still be even higher than that.
It was a very high vyasāsana, and you have to kind of crawl up, steps going up.
[Aside: It was more like a kind of a culpit.
Culpit or something?
Devotee: Pulpit]
Pulpit, Pulpit.
So he would be up there, he would have a seat there and would even have prasādathere.
On a feast they would bring him a big plate of prasāda, we will all be sitting down,
and he would take Prasad from there and sometimes he would give prasāda out from there.
So one day he was giving his lecture from up there naturally,
and on this point he was just preaching very hard, we have to be a 100% Kṛṣṇa conscious,
we have to try, we have to be 100% Kṛṣṇa conscious, we have to try for that,
we have to become, if we are 100% Kṛṣṇa conscious, then we can get pure love for Kṛṣṇa, then our lives will be completely successful.
He was hammering this point.
The devotees you know thinking, 100%! Their heads gradually started to hanging down and they became very thoughtful,
that 100% was like such an objective that never seem that this ever possible, even you know, to get real close to a 100%.
But Prabhupāda was very emphatic on this point.
The devotees were very thoughtful at that time.
Then Prabhupāda, he ended the class, there was just a heavy silence, there was no question,
he ended the class, said become cent percent Kṛṣṇa conscious.
There was just like a death.
I mean there was a silence so thick you could swim through it.
And Prabhupāda was just sitting there on this, that raised
vyasāsana and said that, even if you are 90% Kṛṣṇa conscious, Kṛṣṇa is so kind that you may still be delivered.
Then he started to get down, and he was about halfway down,
just as he was getting off that vyasāsana, he turned to the devotees, said, “Even 90% you can be delivered.”
He started walking off, then he turned and then his cādara fell off.
I remember that it was such a dramatic, almost like you know what you see in those movies;
Julies Caesar his chaddar just blew like that you know.
“Even 70%”, he took his cādara and threw it over his shoulders, raised his head and walked off…
(laughter)
Śrīla Prabhupāda Ki!
Devotees: Jaya!
Jayapataka Swami: But the purport is that try for the 100%.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Spiritual World / Dhāma], [Material Sufferings / Death], [Mercy], [Sādhanā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-11-28
Jayapatākā Swami: When we are envious against other Vaiṣṇavas,
they become intolerant when another Vaiṣṇava is praised,
and they think, “Oh, why I am not getting the praise?
I worked harder! I worked more!
I should be appreciated!
Why am I not appreciated?”
That girl is a oohhh
and you commit some Vaiṣṇava-aparādha!
So we have to be very, very careful.
We are trying to please guru, Gaurāṅga and Kṛṣṇa and we don’t care if others get more glory,
we simply want to please the Lord.
And sometimes people will see it and sometimes they won’t. But the Lord sees it.
So we are not working for popularity.
Like that some politicians they get their names published in newspapers or newscast
and therefore an insignificant person becomes famous.
We just want to please the Lord
and if we recognize that is nice and if not doesn’t matter.
We still go on with our service.
Questioner: Atula Kṛṣṇa dāsa
Date: 2023-04-13
Jayapatākā Swami: I used to travel 5 or 6 times around the world every year.
I have lifetime-gold-membership in United Airways.
British Airways I have Emerald membership, it is like Gold.
I don’t have to fly, I get every year automatically.
But this was initially Śrīla Prabhupāda said as a sannyāsī, I should travel.
But now I spend more time in Māyāpur.
Śrīla Prabhupāda told me also remain in Māyāpur and do your activities through your assistants.
So, at different times, he told me different things.
So, I think I did my travelling enough.
Now I spend more time in Māyāpur, India.
I only travel once or twice around the year every year!
But that way, I think I used to travel to all the countries, South Africa, Poland, Nigeria, Ghana, etc.
Bhakti Tīrtha Swami had asked me to go to West Africa sometimes.
I went two or three times.
So like that. During the pandemic I stayed all the time in Māyāpur.
That is the thing, I am trying to carry out Śrīla Prabhupāda’s instructions.
Questioner: Saṅgītamayī Gopī devī dāsī
Date: 2022-09-02
Jayapatākā Swami: That is why we read in the pastimes of Lord Caitanya
when Lord Caitanya was in Vṛndāvana,
one gṛhastha approached Him
and he said, I am a very very fallen gṛhastha.
So like that he got the mercy from Lord Caitanya.
Now Śrīla Prabhupāda said as gṛhasthas we should try to keep our goal higher.
But as you said, maybe we are not able to achieve that right away.
But we try.
That is why the śāstra gives us different vratās, different systems that we can follow.
Like the Bhīṣma Pañcaka is optional.
So there are many things which are optional.
If you think you need more purification, you can do these optional vratās.
A brahmacārī may consider, these are not for me, I don’t have any problem.
But they can also preach to the gṛhasthas.
And if they do, no harm.
I asked Śrīla Prabhupāda what should we do in the Dāmodara month?
He said, this is especially for the new customers!
Like a store has a sale.
To encourage new customers,
but you are a regular customer.
All the months, all the days, whether sale or not sale, you are a regular customer.
So this is the answer Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-23
Jayapatākā Swami: Only Jagannātha Purī and the temples connected with Jagannātha Purī have this restriction.
Some devotees have gone and opened up the other temples.
Some temples like Guruvayoor you have to officially accept Hinduism.
You go to Calicut, you do a yajña and pay 35 rupees.
You get a certificate.
I did not do the yajña, but someone got me the certificate.
But I did not need it because I had already gone to Guruvayoor many times.
Like the Śiva in Vāranāsi, the Viśvanātha Deity,
he allows everyone.
But generally, devotees are allowed to go,
except Jagannātha Purī and Sākṣī Gopāla also.
Actually. In 1970 I had darśana of Sākṣī Gopāla.
Since then, they are more strict.
Śrīla Prabhupāda asked me to somehow get permission for devotees to enter.
But I have not been able to do so as yet.
We are trying.
And, we have given some gifts, some books,
and you see, the king of Purī, the hereditary king, he said to go to the Śaṅkarācārya,
as he is the final authority.
The brāhmaṇas don’t listen to him because the king is a kṣatriya.
But right now, the Śaṅkarācārya of Purī is not favorable to the devotees.
His junior is a bit more favorable.
The previous Śaṅkarācārya, I went to him in 1970s to try to get his permission.
And he said, oh yes, boil one kilo of ghee and drink it!
I will die I said.
Yes, but then you will be born again as a Hindu,
and then they will let you into enter the temple!
Anyway, we are working on it.
There are many places connected to Lord Caitanya in Jagannātha Purī.
In Tirupati, if the devotees of our temple arrange, then you can go.
But otherwise, if someone comes and wants to go in, then they must sign a declaration that they accept Bālājī as God.
For the devotees, that is no problem.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-23
Jayapatākā Swami: Normally, a Vaiṣṇava is not supposed to leave remnants.
But a guru may leave some remnants for disciples.
But there is no hard and fast rule regarding mahā-prasāda.
Śrīla Prabhupāda gave a Gulab jamun to Tamāla Kṛṣṇa Goswami.
He kept it on his plate and he was looking at it.
He was very proud and was thinking that I have got Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Gulab jamun wow! Wow! Gulab jamun! Wow!
Someone reached over and ate it!
He said, you took my Gulab jamun!
And Tamāla Kṛṣṇa Goswami was very angry.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, he said, actually there are no rules when it comes to mahā-prasāda.
And even if you take from my plate, what can I do?
But please let me finish!
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Prasāda and Bhoga], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Etiquette / Sadācāra]
Here Puṇḍarīka Vidyānidhi understood his mistake when Lord Jagannātha and Lord Balarāma enacted Their punishment pastime. But I commit many offences, and sometimes I cannot even understand my offences. So in such circumstances how am I to ask for forgiveness from you and from Lord Kṛṣṇa so that you may completely forgive me?
Questioner: Bhāgyaśrī devī dāsī
Date: 2023-07-10
Jayapatākā Swami: We should pray to Kṛṣṇa that
I have committed many offences, knowingly or unknowingly,
please forgive me.
Questioner: Madhusmita Indulekhā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-01-05
Jayapatākā Swami: Interesting question.
I always think how much mercy I received from Śrīla Prabhupāda,
and if I hadn’t received his mercy, where would I be today?
So Madhusmita Indulekhā devī dāsī,
I don’t know if you received any mercy from your spiritual master.
But whether you think your situation today is better than what it would have been if you had not been Kṛṣṇa conscious and met
your spiritual master.
What situation you would be then?
I had a nightmare
two nights ago.
Suddenly, I thought I was the body.
It was so horrible!
So horrible!
To be deprived from the association of devotees.
To be deprived from the association of Kṛṣṇa!
I never, never, never, want to be in such a situation!
One of the most worst dreams I have ever had.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-03-15
Jayapatākā Swami: Of course, one way is to ask him! Ha! Ha!
Otherwise by observing him
and hearing his instructions,
you can know what he wants.
And every guru may be different because we are all persons, we may have differences.
But we are united in serving Kṛṣṇa
and serving Śrīla Prabhupāda.
So like that we want all the devotees to be united
in serving guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-03-15
Jayapatākā Swami: Of course, one way is to ask him! Ha! Ha!
Otherwise by observing him
and hearing his instructions,
you can know what he wants.
And every guru may be different because we are all persons, we may have differences.
But we are united in serving Kṛṣṇa
and serving Śrīla Prabhupāda.
So like that we want all the devotees to be united
in serving guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Questioner: Siddhāntamaṇi Prabhupāda dāsa
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: If one is initiated and breaks the principles,
they are guilty of one of the offences to the holy name
disrespecting the order of the spiritual master.
So there is no higher atonement than devotional service.
So in that case one should repent for their misdeed
and then again take up the practice of devotional service,
as sincerely as possible, and gradually they can regain their status.
But, of course they have ceased their progress for some time, but they can start again
and there is no other way recommended by the śāstras.
Category: [Anarthās], [Anarthās / Bad association], [Anarthās / Māyā], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Emotions / Enthusiasm]
Questioner: Abhirāma Gopa dāsa
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: The third verse of the Śikṣāṣṭakam
is that, if we practice those principles, we can always chant the holy names.
Amāninā mānadena kīrtanīyā sadā hari
offer respect to others, don’t expect any respect for yourself.
Be more humble than a blade of grass, and more tolerant than a tree,
then you can always chant the holy name
kīrtanīyā sadā hari.
Questioner: Kṛṣṇasevinī Rādhā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-12-02
Jayapatākā Swami: The whole practice of bhakti-yoga is to develop our love for guru and Kṛṣṇa.
It is not a different process.
Same process delivers us
and we should perform devotional service
and naturally if you help the spiritual master
then Kṛṣṇa will be very pleased.
Category: [Emotions / Faith], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead)]
Questioner: Kṛṣṇasevinī Rādhā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-12-02
Jayapatākā Swami: The whole practice of bhakti-yoga is to develop our love for guru and Kṛṣṇa.
It is not a different process.
Same process delivers us
and we should perform devotional service
and naturally if you help the spiritual master
then Kṛṣṇa will be very pleased.
Category: [Emotions / Faith], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead)]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-04-27
Jayapatākā Swami: Try!
Why cannot you read the books?
Why cannot you preach?
One lady, she brought seven women to take shelter.
Anybody can preach.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-10
Jayapatākā Swami: That question has been asked to me many times.
And there are like 15 questions that you could ask yourself.
But basically, you pray to Kṛṣṇa, you pray to Śrīla Prabhupāda
to reveal, who you should take shelter of.
And whose preaching you feel more connected with Śrīla Prabhupāda and Kṛṣṇa.
Maybe he is your spiritual master.
Sometimes you feel connected to several people’s preaching,
then you can take more than one as your śikṣā-guru,
as the instructing spiritual master.
Since there is no limit to how many instructing spiritual masters we can have.
And then the one we feel most connected with, we take him as the dīkṣā-guru.
I have an application, the Jayapatākā Swami App.
Maybe I can try to answer the questions.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-03-15
Jayapatākā Swami: The disciple, if they follow the guru correctly, then naturally he will be pleased.
If they are chanting their 16 rounds, following the regulative principles, if they are preaching,
so naturally the guru will be pleased.
If one has a doubt you can ask the guru.
But generally guru will be happy is following the orders of the guru.
But we should not commit any vaiṣṇava-aparādha,
that is very dangerous.
Questioner: Vijaya Rādhā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: While the guru is present,
you shouldn’t feel any doubt.
You can always ask the guru
if your idea is correct or not.
I asked Prabhupāda several times about different things like this
and somethings he said, they are sent by Kṛṣṇa,
somethings not.
To be sure, that is why we have a guru,
because we cannot connect directly with Kṛṣṇa in our conditioned state.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Category: [Emotions / Confusion], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead)], [Material World / Mind / Intelligence], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-13
Jayapatākā Swami: Depends on what gives you faith.
I mean, some people have faith by reading the scripture,
since it tells us that the holy name is Absolute and non-different from Kṛṣṇa.
Some people have faith by realization.
If you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, you may become peaceful and ecstatic.
And that may increase your faith.
Some people commit offences to the holy name.
So they don’t get the full result of chanting.
And you should tell them to be very careful to follow the order of the spiritual master.
I think the third offence to the holy name is to disobey the order of the spiritual master.
We must have a spiritual master and follow his instructions.
There is no question but to accept the spiritual master.
So Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura had everyone in the temple chant 64 rounds.
Those who went for book distribution and preaching, they should chant 16 rounds.
So Śrīla Prabhupāda said that for the Western rounds it would be difficult to chant 64 rounds.
So he had them chant 16 and preach.
So by following Śrīla Prabhupāda’s instructions, one can advance.
Link: 20221023 Evening Darśana
Category: [Emotions / Faith], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-13
Jayapatākā Swami: Depends on what gives you faith.
I mean, some people have faith by reading the scripture,
since it tells us that the holy name is Absolute and non-different from Kṛṣṇa.
Some people have faith by realization.
If you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, you may become peaceful and ecstatic.
And that may increase your faith.
Some people commit offences to the holy name.
So they don’t get the full result of chanting.
And you should tell them to be very careful to follow the order of the spiritual master.
I think the third offence to the holy name is to disobey the order of the spiritual master.
We must have a spiritual master and follow his instructions.
There is no question but to accept the spiritual master.
So Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura had everyone in the temple chant 64 rounds.
Those who went for book distribution and preaching, they should chant 16 rounds.
So Śrīla Prabhupāda said that for the Western rounds it would be difficult to chant 64 rounds.
So he had them chant 16 and preach.
So by following Śrīla Prabhupāda’s instructions, one can advance.
Link: 20221023 Evening Darśana
Category: [Emotions / Faith], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Yamuneśvarī devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-22
Jayapatākā Swami: Well, if you chant and dance,
that in itself would be very inspiring.
Gaurāṇgī Gandharvikā, she sent me a video
of how they were chanting and dancing…
very nice!
And I think..
the way to inspire more people to chant
is to chant yourself.
Naturally by having a group, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa
and inspiring other people to join in.
I saw in New Orleans,
before the Mardi Gras,
Mardi Gras.
Christians
went.. and they had signs...
"TURN OR BURN!".
Such were the signs.
"Accept Jesus or burn in hell!".
I did not see anyone joining in.
But when we went with our kīrtana,
people were buying roses and throwing at our feet
Some people
joined with the kīrtana.
So they see, they like..
how we were performing, singing and dancing.
Category: [Emotions / Enthusiasm], [Sādhanā / Preaching], [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-04
Jayapatākā Swami: We should rather try to see the good qualities in other devotees.
Like, there are two insects, there are the flies and the bees.
The flies are looking for infections or sores.
And the bees are looking for the honey.
Try to see the good qualities in devotees and you won’t have time to see any bad qualities.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-19
Jayapatākā Swami: One of the qualifications of the uttama-adhikārī
is that he cannot be understood.
It may not be completely possible for you to understand the mood of Śrīla Prabhupāda.
But in principle you can understand a little bit about his mood
by reading his books.
And those books are available in Spanish,
I see that you are in Bogota, Colombia.
You can read the books and feel and see how Śrīla Prabhupāda
is so much attached to Kṛṣṇa and Lord Gaurāṅga!
Then you can start to be very grateful for all the help he has given to you.
Then naturally, you can advance.
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-19
Jayapatākā Swami: One of the qualifications of the uttama-adhikārī
is that he cannot be understood.
It may not be completely possible for you to understand the mood of Śrīla Prabhupāda.
But in principle you can understand a little bit about his mood
by reading his books.
And those books are available in Spanish,
I see that you are in Bogota, Colombia.
You can read the books and feel and see how Śrīla Prabhupāda
is so much attached to Kṛṣṇa and Lord Gaurāṅga!
Then you can start to be very grateful for all the help he has given to you.
Then naturally, you can advance.
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
How did Śrīla Prabhupāda instill a very strong sambandha-jñāna in you and his other disciples? We see a strong sense of identity which Śrīla Prabhupāda had with Kṛṣṇa. What was so different in Śrīla Prabhupāda’s preaching that is so rare to come across nowadays. How you all feel such a strong sense of belonging to Śrīla Prabhupāda and to Kṛṣṇa?
Questioner: Rādhe Śyāma Dāsa
Date: 2022-08-24
Jayapatākā Swami: As I said, I was looking what is the purpose of life
and a visiting professor from Harvard
had told, about the life of Lord Buddha.
And that inspired me, he told, about reincarnation and so many things.
Being in the West, we had no access to.
I don’t know how much Indian students have.
But it lit a spark in me, to find a guru, to find a teacher.
Of course, Śrīla Prabhupāda said that in my previous life I was a devotee.
Maybe there are some people who were devotees in their previous life, I don’t know,
and some people may be coming new.
So one has to be ready for different kinds of situations.
Now when I came to the temple nobody had any time for me.
They were all busy.
And then I was sent to Jayānanda Prabhu.
He was building a ratha cart.
He asked me if I knew how to hold a nail.
I held it.
Then he got it into the wood, and I took my hand away.
He said, very good!
Because that is the whole trick, how you hold the nail!
You should leave space so that you don’t get your thumb smashed.
And he said, “Do you know how to hit a nail?”
“Sure”
I said, because my uncle had a wood shop in his basement.
And then I hammered some nails,
and he said, “Okay!”, I passed the preliminary exam
and then he engaged me in service.
That service was something I liked to do, it was nice.
So, I think that is the trick for the youth. Whether it is prasāda distribution or something but engage them in something.
And with doing service, they hear from more senior devotees
and that way they get purified.
I was engaged in a lot of different services.
Questioner: Anon
Date: 2022-08-01
Jayapatākā Swami: For that purpose, I am thinking of making a video.
You have to break the vrata on Caturdaśī.
That day you have to offer 33 mālpuas
and give it to a gṛhastha brāhmaṇa.
And that day you have to different services and donations.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vratās (Austerities) / Kārtika-māsa-vratā], [Vratās (Austerities) / Puruṣottama-māsa-vratā]
Questioner: Nandagopīpriyā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: There is no reason not to reveal your mind to guru.
If you have had some trouble with one of the principles, you could get some advice from your spiritual master.
But if you have recovered, then all the better to tell him that you had difficulty but now you have come back to the strict standard.
And sometimes one is started to difficulty with a principle, but it is not as serious as they think.
It is better to reveal to the spiritual master.
Category: [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Emotions / Enthusiasm], [Aparādha (Offenses)]
Questioner: Nandagopīpriyā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: There is no reason not to reveal your mind to guru.
If you have had some trouble with one of the principles, you could get some advice from your spiritual master.
But if you have recovered, then all the better to tell him that you had difficulty but now you have come back to the strict standard.
And sometimes one is started to difficulty with a principle, but it is not as serious as they think.
It is better to reveal to the spiritual master.
Category: [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Emotions / Enthusiasm], [Aparādha (Offenses)]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: If you want you can take it without water.
But I personally never saw Śrīla Prabhupāda observe the Ekādaśī with a complete fast.
But Ekādaśīs, you get more fruit, if you observe it
fully by no water,
stay up the whole night, and then break your fast next day with some milk,
and then some grains.
I asked my secretary to read me the glories of the Ekādaśī tomorrow.
But he didn’t answer.
He said, “He sent a message to another secretary, to tell him how to do it!”
So just to hear the glories of Ekādaśī, it usually tells you that the fruitive listening to the Ekādaśī is donating a thousand cows.
Every Ekādaśī is different.
One Ekādaśī I heard twice
from two different Purāṇas.
Each Purāṇa said
“Just hear [about] the Ekādaśī,
you get the karma of giving a thousand cows.
” So, I gave 2000 cows!
Without even observing the Ekādaśī!
But then I observed it also.
So, I asked, I wanted to hear the glories.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vratās (Austerities)], [Vratās (Austerities) / Ekādaśī-vratā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-04-27
Jayapatākā Swami: Sometimes in the year, write to me a report of your preaching,
and write to me if you are facing problem.
But naturally if you preach, if you help me to fulfill my orders from Śrīla Prabhupāda, your connection will be closer.
This year after Gaura Pūrṇimā, we go on our yearly Safari.
This year we are going to Vṛndāvana dhāma.
We are going to establish the lotus footprints of Lord Caitanya in the various places that He visited.
And we seek help from devotees, from His Holiness Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Goswami.
And anyone else who would like to help and sponsor a place set of the lotus footprints or otherwise you want to help please talk to Śyāma Rasika dāsa.
And we are going… Of course Vṛndāvana anyone can go, otherwise to go on the Safari, you can talk to Marīci dāsa.
I put the lotus footprints of Lord Caitanya in Rādhā-kuṇḍa and Śyāma-kuṇḍa.
Also the lotus footprints in the place, where Lord Caitanya had taken initiation,
in Gayā and many places.
But this year, we desire to establish Lord Caitanya’s footprints in Vṛndāvana.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: Pray to Śrīla Prabhupāda, pray to your guru and do your sevā correctly.
Passion means lust. To do it to get some material benefit.
Ignorance means crazy, lazy.
Anger – I will show you that I am the best devotee! I will kill you by my bhakti! And some crazy thing!
So avoid passion and ignorance, and what is left is goodness.
So we do devotional service – hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate –
to please the senses of Kṛṣṇa, not for ourselves.
Questioner: Ritvik, ISKCON Baroda
Date: 2022-10-15
Jayapatākā Swami: If the guru is able to help you if you feel that Śrīla Prabhupāda is talking to you through the guru and you are able to cross over māyā,
then that is the right guru for you.
So you also get help from various śikṣā-gurus and Vaiṣṇavas.
I have fifteen questions you should ask yourself,
to help you understand if it is the right guru.
Questioner: Ritvik, ISKCON Baroda
Date: 2022-10-15
Jayapatākā Swami: If the guru is able to help you if you feel that Śrīla Prabhupāda is talking to you through the guru and you are able to cross over māyā,
then that is the right guru for you.
So you also get help from various śikṣā-gurus and Vaiṣṇavas.
I have fifteen questions you should ask yourself,
to help you understand if it is the right guru.
Questioner: Keśava Kṛpā Sindhu dāsa
Date: 2022-09-27
Jayapatākā Swami: I know that His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
what he told me to do.
So trying to execute his instructions,
I have to make various decisions.
But I always keep in my mind, pleasing Śrīla Prabhupāda.
So, this has always served me well.
Śrīla Prabhupāda said that in one case,
I did what he would have done.
I don’t know
if everything I do is pleasing to Śrīla Prabhupāda.
But I am trying to do that.
And I know that that itself is pleasing to Śrīla Prabhupāda.
But we may make some mistakes on the way.
But then we can also correct. that.
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-12-19
Jayapatākā Swami: Nice question!
Because we should do service to please guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Now certain things the guru has said, he would like to be done.
Just like I told Nāma-niṣṭhā
that I would like a temple to be constructed.
So doing that sevā, constructing a temple,
he knows that it is pleasing to the guru.
Right?
Nāma-niṣṭhā dāsa: Actually, I went to meet Guru Mahārāja and this was in Tirupati.
And he was being very kind to me.
He told me, “Construct a temple.”
So I said, “Please put your hand and order.”
That was the time he put his hand on my head and ordered,
“Make a beautiful temple with all the facilities.”
At that moment we were only three devotees and no money!
And I remember next detail he told me, on June 5th Pānihāṭi 2020 that what are you doing?
That was an online visit.
We hardly had any devotees and I said, “There was nothing to do because everything is closed.”
“Why don’t you do like Chennai, Guru Mahārāja”, said. “6,000 devotees attended their course online.”
So I thought Sumitra Kṛṣṇa dāsa did 6,000, Nāma-niṣṭhā will do 10,000!
And I tried, within four days, 10,000 people registered.
And we don’t even know where the money came from, we don’t even know, in fact all the devotees Guru Mahārāja initiated yesterday,
all came from online and it is unbelievable.
Jayapatākā Swami: Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-06-10
How to develop favourable devotional attitude?
we should accept everything for devotional service and give up everything which is unfavourable.
If we really understand what is our self interest?
What is helping us?
And we understand serving Kṛṣṇa and serving his devotees are our own self interest and then we know what is the favourable for that we accept the favourable things and we avoid the unfavourable automatically we can.
Start to get lined up.
Now what is very important is to develop that is by associating with the devotees already have their attitude.
Not that every devotees is equally developed in his favourable attitude such those who are especially ball pointless those who are in bitter mood they may be advancing but in a slow track.
Those who are seeing good qualities in others enthusiastic cheerful and they don’t hold any grudges on anyone they are in mode of fast track.
So we look for devotees that we can relate with a better situation we are and associating with them and in this way we can progress by the good association and this leads to the next question which is sādhu-saṅga which is one of most if not the most important limbs of devotional principles is offensive be six certain devotee association to avoid others,
So we select the associating just associating of any devotees so we can read the questions super souls.
Lord Caitanya said that there are three kinds of devotees those who are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa but they are not following the principles we can help them otherwise we don’t associate with them very intimately but those who are initiated and following very strictly we can accept them in a very we can respect them and offer respect to them and associate with them.
And those who are very advanced who are fully fixed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness who are in the level of guru we can take shelter from them.
Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura said that we can seek out association with the likely minded devotees.
Of course hopefully the like minded should be a good mind but its all right we may be more intimate with some than the others.
Absolutely yes.
Specially keep crying for Kṛṣṇa.
So in one sentence nothing wrong.
And people surely benefit something by hearing them.
But usually for the initiated devotees prefer to hear singing by someone more spiritually developed.
These are especially songs sung by attracting the new people by music aspect but not spiritual aspect.
In public programs we use these more but for personal purification it is recommended to hear Prabhupāda and some other pure devotee chanting.
But its nothing wrong but that is the guideline.
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-21
Hṛdayānanda Dāsa Goswami: Yes, (laughing)
if he is actually bonafide.
If he is actually bonafide.
You understand?
If someone is not a bonafide spiritual master, someone is only pretending to be a spiritual master,
then how can the relationship be eternal?
So therefore, the disciple has to know the real symptoms.
Just like for example, in the case I was just mentioning, there were some symptoms which were very unusual, that were not the normal symptoms.
So, some of the people in in England they were not, of course the young devotees they didn't know,
but they were not very strict and serious and seeing that the same standard was kept.
Do you understand?
In other words, just like we are… we are always preaching, that is the duty of our disciple to see, to select a bonafide spiritual master.
So, the point is that anyone who joins this movement sincerely will get Kṛṣṇa and will get a bonafide spiritual master.
And the symptom that is getting one that is he will get Kṛṣṇa.
If you are getting a bonafide spiritual master, then you are getting the proper instruction.
Any guru in ISKCON who is presenting Prabhupāda as he is, or presenting the standard program, he is a bonafide guru.
Just like if I tell my disciples, "Read these books."
So, I am giving them the right knowledge, you understand?
Now, if someone is actually a bonafide spiritual master, then that relationship is eternal.
So it’s not that, it’s not that, because one particular person had some difficulty therefore I will become doubtful.
This is also a foolish idea.
Just like in the Gauḍīya Maṭha, all of them deviated except Prabhupāda.
I mean fifty of them or something like that, there were 100 or something, I don’t know how many... do you understand?
And every last one of them, every single one of them, deviated from Bhaktisiddhānta's order.
And out of the movement of hundreds and thousands of people, Prabhupāda was the only one who actually
carried it out exactly as Bhaktisiddhānta wanted, do you understand?
So, it’s not that when we heard about Gauḍīya Maṭha, we begin to doubt our spiritual master.
No, we become more proud of our spiritual master.
So, it’s just like my parents always used to tell me, "You should be glad that your parents don’t drink or smoke…
or… tell me that, some parents beat their children, some parents do this, some parents do that.”
So, in that way Kṛṣṇa has given these historical examples. Kṛṣṇa has given these examples,
so you should be happy if you have a guru who doesn’t drink or smoke. (Laughter)
Yes, actually, we accept that Śrīla Prabhupāda among his godbrothers…
not that all they fell down to sinful activities,
but they deviated from the preaching mission and Prabhupāda told us that, none of them actually really captured the purport completely.
So, it's in the līlāmṛta, all.
Prabhupāda's frustration trying to work with them.
So, does that make us doubt Śrīla Prabhupāda? No, it makes us glorify him more.
That if others have failed, that means it must be very difficult.
Because someone has not… could not do it, that means it must be a very difficult thing.
It must be... So, therefore, it made us more attached to our spiritual master.
So, Prabhupāda said, "If you see, if you try to see the guru without Kṛṣṇa then that’s bad.
If you try to see Kṛṣṇa without the guru, that is also bad.
If we see guru as the representative of Kṛṣṇa,
then we will never be deviated.”
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-21
Hṛdayānanda Dāsa Goswami: Yes, (laughing)
if he is actually bonafide.
If he is actually bonafide.
You understand?
If someone is not a bonafide spiritual master, someone is only pretending to be a spiritual master,
then how can the relationship be eternal?
So therefore, the disciple has to know the real symptoms.
Just like for example, in the case I was just mentioning, there were some symptoms which were very unusual, that were not the normal symptoms.
So, some of the people in in England they were not, of course the young devotees they didn't know,
but they were not very strict and serious and seeing that the same standard was kept.
Do you understand?
In other words, just like we are… we are always preaching, that is the duty of our disciple to see, to select a bonafide spiritual master.
So, the point is that anyone who joins this movement sincerely will get Kṛṣṇa and will get a bonafide spiritual master.
And the symptom that is getting one that is he will get Kṛṣṇa.
If you are getting a bonafide spiritual master, then you are getting the proper instruction.
Any guru in ISKCON who is presenting Prabhupāda as he is, or presenting the standard program, he is a bonafide guru.
Just like if I tell my disciples, "Read these books."
So, I am giving them the right knowledge, you understand?
Now, if someone is actually a bonafide spiritual master, then that relationship is eternal.
So it’s not that, it’s not that, because one particular person had some difficulty therefore I will become doubtful.
This is also a foolish idea.
Just like in the Gauḍīya Maṭha, all of them deviated except Prabhupāda.
I mean fifty of them or something like that, there were 100 or something, I don’t know how many... do you understand?
And every last one of them, every single one of them, deviated from Bhaktisiddhānta's order.
And out of the movement of hundreds and thousands of people, Prabhupāda was the only one who actually
carried it out exactly as Bhaktisiddhānta wanted, do you understand?
So, it’s not that when we heard about Gauḍīya Maṭha, we begin to doubt our spiritual master.
No, we become more proud of our spiritual master.
So, it’s just like my parents always used to tell me, "You should be glad that your parents don’t drink or smoke…
or… tell me that, some parents beat their children, some parents do this, some parents do that.”
So, in that way Kṛṣṇa has given these historical examples. Kṛṣṇa has given these examples,
so you should be happy if you have a guru who doesn’t drink or smoke. (Laughter)
Yes, actually, we accept that Śrīla Prabhupāda among his godbrothers…
not that all they fell down to sinful activities,
but they deviated from the preaching mission and Prabhupāda told us that, none of them actually really captured the purport completely.
So, it's in the līlāmṛta, all.
Prabhupāda's frustration trying to work with them.
So, does that make us doubt Śrīla Prabhupāda? No, it makes us glorify him more.
That if others have failed, that means it must be very difficult.
Because someone has not… could not do it, that means it must be a very difficult thing.
It must be... So, therefore, it made us more attached to our spiritual master.
So, Prabhupāda said, "If you see, if you try to see the guru without Kṛṣṇa then that’s bad.
If you try to see Kṛṣṇa without the guru, that is also bad.
If we see guru as the representative of Kṛṣṇa,
then we will never be deviated.”
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-13
Jayapatākā Swami: Depends what you are thinking!
Generally, I would chant in front of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mūrti.
And I would chant the mantra but I would also be seeing Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Everything connected with Kṛṣṇa is also Kṛṣṇa.
It is not really Kṛṣṇa, but it is not different from Kṛṣṇa.
When we clean the temple, the temple is connected with Kṛṣṇa, therefore we clean our heart.
Śrīla Prabhupāda said, in any part of the temple Kṛṣṇa is there.
So guru is connected to Kṛṣṇa
and if you see guru while chanting you will be connected to Kṛṣṇa.
Link: 20221023 Evening Darśana
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-13
Jayapatākā Swami: Depends what you are thinking!
Generally, I would chant in front of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mūrti.
And I would chant the mantra but I would also be seeing Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Everything connected with Kṛṣṇa is also Kṛṣṇa.
It is not really Kṛṣṇa, but it is not different from Kṛṣṇa.
When we clean the temple, the temple is connected with Kṛṣṇa, therefore we clean our heart.
Śrīla Prabhupāda said, in any part of the temple Kṛṣṇa is there.
So guru is connected to Kṛṣṇa
and if you see guru while chanting you will be connected to Kṛṣṇa.
Link: 20221023 Evening Darśana
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-17
In this regard, Śrīla Prabhupāda was quoting Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
that the disciple should take the order of the spiritual master as their life and soul.
If you are not able
to follow the instruction of your spiritual master,
then you can ask him
what to do in that case.
Category: [Emotions / Enthusiasm], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-17
In this regard, Śrīla Prabhupāda was quoting Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
that the disciple should take the order of the spiritual master as their life and soul.
If you are not able
to follow the instruction of your spiritual master,
then you can ask him
what to do in that case.
Category: [Emotions / Enthusiasm], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-02
Jayapatākā Swami: Just like we say we are not the body.
We also say we are not the mind.
Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura said that we should beat the mind in the morning with shoes 108 times.
In the evening beat with a broomstick 108 times.
Who is the boss here, mind or you?
You are the eternal spirit soul and you are the real person.
Not the mind.
We have to tell the mind, who is the boss!
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead)], [Material World / Mind / Intelligence], [Sādhanā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-10-22
Jayapatākā Swami: Offense.. is a spiritual thing.
While preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness why would you offend new people ?
We should not refer to anyone
depending on their gender, race.. or color,
anything material.
but encourage people to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and be happy.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-10-22
Jayapatākā Swami: Offense.. is a spiritual thing.
While preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness why would you offend new people ?
We should not refer to anyone
depending on their gender, race.. or color,
anything material.
but encourage people to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and be happy.
Questioner: Hari Hara Kṛṣṇa Caitanya dāsa
Date: 2022-07-30
Jayapatākā Swami: An ISKCON guru is naturally pleased if you are satisfying the desires of Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Śrīla Prabhupāda wants to satisfy his guru’s desires, his guru wants to satisfy his guru’s, like that
it goes up to Lord Brahmā, and he wants to satisfy Lord Kṛṣṇa.
So in that way, we try to please guru and Kṛṣṇa.
And that will be the success of our spiritual life.
But maybe the spiritual master gives some specific instruction, which are applicable for us.
Just like His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
he gave certain service to his devotees,
based on their abilities sand potentials.
So in this way the spiritual master may give you some particular service.
Or maybe a general service.
Generally, we try to serve our Temple President or our spiritual authorities.
But sometimes, we may receive some specific instruction from the spiritual master.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
Questioner: Girijā
Date: 2023-07-10
Jayapatākā Swami: Vaiṣṇava-aparādha is described as a mad elephant.
It can destroy our devotional creeper –
it is very dangerous
to have offensive mentality.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Aparādha (Offenses) / Vaiṣṇava-aparādha], [Emotions / Fault-finding]
Questioner: Satyabhāmā Sādhvī devī dasī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: Very glorious question.
We want to always remember guru and Kṛṣṇa.
So if we do everything as an offering to guru and Kṛṣṇa,
then we will be constantly thinking of Guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Like, if you buy a gift for your loved one,
now you may be thinking what does that person like?
And you pick up some gift,
so it maybe that you are thinking about the gift,
but you are thinking in the context what does this person like?
So therefore, you are always thinking about the person.
Even though technically you may not always thinking about him, but all your action is offered to him.
So therefore, your thought process is centered around the person you love.
So if you love Kṛṣṇa, if you love the guru,
it is very easy to think always about guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings]
Questioner: Satyabhāmā Sādhvī devī dasī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: Very glorious question.
We want to always remember guru and Kṛṣṇa.
So if we do everything as an offering to guru and Kṛṣṇa,
then we will be constantly thinking of Guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Like, if you buy a gift for your loved one,
now you may be thinking what does that person like?
And you pick up some gift,
so it maybe that you are thinking about the gift,
but you are thinking in the context what does this person like?
So therefore, you are always thinking about the person.
Even though technically you may not always thinking about him, but all your action is offered to him.
So therefore, your thought process is centered around the person you love.
So if you love Kṛṣṇa, if you love the guru,
it is very easy to think always about guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings]
Questioner: Anonymous
Date: 2022-07-28
Jayapatākā Swami: If one unjustly criticizes the devotee has to get forgiveness from that devotee or touch that devotee’s lotus feet.
If he touches his feet, then that can forgive him of all the offence.
Apart from that by worshipping Caitanya Mahāprabhu and feeling repentful,
repentful or sorry for what he has done, one can also overcome offences.
There is no loss or diminution in devotional service.
The only way to avoid offences or to overcome offences is by the mercy of Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
If one falls down into other type of offences, the only hope is to serve Kṛṣṇa.
Again, restart the service.
But for offences, one should try to get forgiveness from those who he has offended;
otherwise, touch their feet, otherwise simply pray to Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Tulasī devī
and other such great devotees of the Lord for being forgiven from these offences.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-11-28
Jayapatākā Swami: Good question.
So it is important if they are senior devotees talk to them privately.
Speak to them how you tried to enthuse these new people but if the older devotees express their doubts to the younger devotees that creates a bad taste.
Explain to him how his negative comments are influencing the younger people badly.
If it is not comments, he only has a bad mood, then talk to me, I can help him, I don’t have a bad mood.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Association (Sādhu-saṅga)], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Etiquette / Sadācāra]
Questioner: Premeśvarī Śrī Rādhā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-09-21
Separation from guru and Kṛṣṇa is something that we encounter
and Kṛṣṇa.
So Lord Caitanya said that we can get a closer devotion
by feeling separation.
So if we feel separation that is to the body of the guru,
if we feel separation that is to the instructions of the guru
and just try to follow his instructions.
By following his instructions, we can advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Serving the guru personally is vapu-sevā
and serving his instructions is vāṇī-sevā.
So vāṇī-sevā is more important.
Category: [Emotions / Sorrow], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings]
Questioner: Premeśvarī Śrī Rādhā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-09-21
Separation from guru and Kṛṣṇa is something that we encounter
and Kṛṣṇa.
So Lord Caitanya said that we can get a closer devotion
by feeling separation.
So if we feel separation that is to the body of the guru,
if we feel separation that is to the instructions of the guru
and just try to follow his instructions.
By following his instructions, we can advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Serving the guru personally is vapu-sevā
and serving his instructions is vāṇī-sevā.
So vāṇī-sevā is more important.
Category: [Emotions / Sorrow], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings]
Questioner: Ati Sundara Jagannātha dāsa
Date: 2023-12-19
Jayapatākā Swami: When it is some puja time, say Dīpāvalī or something,
you buy something for your sister, your mother, your loved ones.
So while you are buying that you are thinking what does this person like? What should I get?
Like that, the act of shopping
becomes an act of love.
And so in the same way when you want to do something for the spiritual master,
you think like that, what will be pleasing? What can be used?
And that way, it is an act of love for your spiritual master.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Category: [Emotions / Enthusiasm], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
Questioner: Ati Sundara Jagannātha dāsa
Date: 2023-12-19
Jayapatākā Swami: When it is some puja time, say Dīpāvalī or something,
you buy something for your sister, your mother, your loved ones.
So while you are buying that you are thinking what does this person like? What should I get?
Like that, the act of shopping
becomes an act of love.
And so in the same way when you want to do something for the spiritual master,
you think like that, what will be pleasing? What can be used?
And that way, it is an act of love for your spiritual master.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Category: [Emotions / Enthusiasm], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
Questioner: Bhaktin Ambika
Date: 2022-08-04
Jayapatākā Swami: Naturally when you are serving guru and Kṛṣṇa,
then you will be connected to guru and Kṛṣṇa
and you can feel that.
So, we try if we can either serve the guru directly
or by following his instructions.
And that way we can feel connected.
Questioner: Bhaktin Ambika
Date: 2022-08-04
Jayapatākā Swami: Naturally when you are serving guru and Kṛṣṇa,
then you will be connected to guru and Kṛṣṇa
and you can feel that.
So, we try if we can either serve the guru directly
or by following his instructions.
And that way we can feel connected.
Questioner: Antīmā devī dāsī.
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: You see we should have the vision of Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura,
seeing the difference from material relationship,
and the spiritual reality.
If we have this knowledge,
naturally we can transcend the suffering and troubles of the material world.
But since we are conditioned, and we lament over things which should not be lamented for,
therefore, say one family member dies,
different varṇas have different times or periods, when we are not supposed to go to the temple.
I think brāhmaṇas have 11 days and śūdras 30 days.
So, the more one has spiritual knowledge,
they may be able to recover.
Now I heard that the head priest of the Guruvāyur temple,
if someone dies in his family,
they wouldn’t tell him.
Because if they told him,
he would have to stop worship for so many days.
So, while he is in the six months as head priest.
He would not hear about any misfortune in his family.
Fixing your mind on guru and Kṛṣṇa, is a matter of spiritual wisdom.
Category: [Emotions / Stress/Anxiety], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead)], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Sivaprasad (Sheltered)
Date: 2022-09-10
Jayapatākā Swami: Sambandha, abhideya and prayojana are the three things to be remembered.
If we are engaged in abhideya in devotional service, then naturally our relationship with guru and Kṛṣṇa is strong.
If we are not engaged in devotional service, then there is somewhat distance.
So the solution for that is to engage in devotional service.
Questioner: Sivaprasad (Sheltered)
Date: 2022-09-10
Jayapatākā Swami: Sambandha, abhideya and prayojana are the three things to be remembered.
If we are engaged in abhideya in devotional service, then naturally our relationship with guru and Kṛṣṇa is strong.
If we are not engaged in devotional service, then there is somewhat distance.
So the solution for that is to engage in devotional service.
Questioner: Sivaprasad (Sheltered)
Date: 2022-09-10
Jayapatākā Swami: Sambandha, abhideya and prayojana are the three things to be remembered.
If we are engaged in abhideya in devotional service, then naturally our relationship with guru and Kṛṣṇa is strong.
If we are not engaged in devotional service, then there is somewhat distance.
So the solution for that is to engage in devotional service.
Questioner: Akshaj, Bhopal
Date: 2022-10-15
Jayapatākā Swami: Usually, bhajana-kriyā stage is the time we take initiation.
Then after that with the guidance of the guru, we get anartha-nivṛitti.
We may hear from the guru or we may have śikṣā-gurus
who help us to overcome these anarthas.
One book I translated Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura’s book, Vaiṣṇava Ke?
He prayed to his mind, what kind of Vaiṣṇava are you? By doing solitary bhajana you seek name and fame.
That book, it is a small book. You read that to find out how to control and train the mind.
Also, there is another bhajana by Śrīnivāsa Ācārya
and that helps one to control the mind.
Anarthas are in the mind.
Anartha-nivṛtti means mind is purified.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-10
Jayapatākā Swami: The abhideya is devotional practice of devotional service.
And
so thinking of practicing devotional service is one thing.
But if you are thinking something against devotional service,
that is aparādhā.
To atone an aparādhā there is no higher atonement than devotional service.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-10
Jayapatākā Swami: The abhideya is devotional practice of devotional service.
And
so thinking of practicing devotional service is one thing.
But if you are thinking something against devotional service,
that is aparādhā.
To atone an aparādhā there is no higher atonement than devotional service.
Questioner: —Susevinī Guru Gaurāṅga devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: Kṛṣṇa is in everyone’s heart as the Supersoul, or Paramātmā,
the Christians know as the Holy Ghost.
So, one is actually talking through the Paramātmā in the heart of the living entity and to the Spirit Soul.
So with the help of the Paramātmā we want to help the jīva to get out his illusion.
The word preaching has kind of a negative connotation.
The word in Sanskrit or Bengali is pracāra,
pracāra means to glorify the Lord and the process of His devotional service.
It means how to encourage someone to take up devotional service.
Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhupāda Ṭhākura said that there is no scarcity in the material world,
only scarcity is devotional service.
Everywhere you see this scarcity.
People work so hard to win some athletic competition,
they work so hard to get some academic degree,
they work very hard to get a raise.
But actually even if a little effort they give to serve Kṛṣṇa,
they would actually be able to perfect their lives.
Who remembers the one athletic event five years ago?
And some people leave and some people break their bones and die,
but if we render some devotional service we never lose the result,
it stays with us life after life.
But all the things we achieve in this material world, the material things we achieve this life we leave behind us.
Say we earn millions of dollars;
we cannot take one paisa to the next birth or one cent.
But any devotional service you do,it stays to your credit.
If you have enough credit, you leave this material world
and go back to the spiritual world where you can serve the Lord constantly,
where there is no birth, death, old age or disease. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Preaching], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
Questioner: Harshita Sharma
Date: 2022-08-04
Jayapatākā Swami: While balancing all these things,
there is not much time for māyā.
So that is very good,
and you need two hours or so at one point
every day to chant your 16 rounds.
With some experience you can do a little faster.
Then you have to read every day something,
of Śrīla Prabhupāda books.
The other activities,
the material activities
and cultivating the Bhakti-vṛkṣa members,
that will keep you out of māyā.
And so it is a very nice activity,
that you are taking so much responsibilities.
Category: [Day-to-day Life / Workplace], [Sādhanā], [Sādhanā / Preaching], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, bhakti-yoga is a powerful practice.
And if you just say stop something, what do you do? Your mind, your senses do not stop.
So we do yukta-vairāgya.
Everything we do, we do to please Kṛṣṇa.
So just like we have to eat. So instead of eating nonsense, we eat kṛṣṇa-prasāda.
We replace what we are doing materially bad habits with positive kṛṣṇa-sevā.
People may have the bad habit of illicit sex.
But those who want sex they have to be married.
And we bring up our children also in devotional service.
Questioner: Dīpā, London
Date: 2023-12-13
Jayapatākā Swami: My dear spiritual daughter Dīpā,
congratulations on your election as a counselor in the Municipality, in London.
If you know who you offended,
you can ask them to forgive you.
If you don’t know or if they don’t want to forgive you,
you can take the dust from their feet,
or you can take the dust from their shoes outside the temple,
or if you don’t know who you offended,
you can pray to the devotees to please forgive you,
and you can chant Hare Kṛṣṇa very seriously and with attention,
and avoid future offences as far as possible.
Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Questioner: Kiśorī Yoginī devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-05
Jayapatākā Swami: There is no higher atonement than Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
So if one makes a mistake,
then the best remedial method is serving Kṛṣṇa.
So, if you make mistakes,
then you should be more diligent actually, at serving.
The point is that, one should not make sense gratification as the goal of our life.
When we have senses, there will be some sense of pleasure and some suffering.
So Kṛṣṇa explains that, you regulate the activities.
Just like you take prasādam,
just like we have married life,
try to produce Kṛṣṇa conscious children.
Different activities are regulated.
But the goal is not sense gratification,
the goal is to please Kṛṣṇa.
This world unfortunately is beginning, middle and end is all sense gratification.
They don’t understand anything about Kṛṣṇa in most cases.
Even if they are God conscious, they pray to God to give them some material gratification.
But we should rather want to serve the Lord.
Well, it is expected that you will make some mistakes.
That is why we should be more careful,
after making mistakes,
to practice more sincerely.
Just like a child learning how to walk.
Naturally they will fall down a few times,
but eventually they learn to walk, run, everything.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Thank you!
Questioner: Rasapriya Gopikā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: Well there are two parts to your question.
One, how do I know if my service is pleasing to guru?
If we are doing something which he has asked us to do,
then it is usually pleasing to him.
If we are doing something which is for our authorities requested us to do
and it doesn’t go in contradiction with anything that guru told us;
and that something that is completely against our nature,
then usually it is very pleasing.
If it is something that is against our nature;
but it is something that is urgently needed;
and sometimes by fulfilling that one gets some special mercy from the guru.
What was the second part?
If our services are not pleasing does it affect our taste in chanting?
If you do not carry out the order of your guru,
then that is the third offence to the holy name
and naturally that will be something that hampers our tastes.
Category: [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Gaurāṇga], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Guru (Spiritual Master)]
Questioner: Rasapriya Gopikā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: Well there are two parts to your question.
One, how do I know if my service is pleasing to guru?
If we are doing something which he has asked us to do,
then it is usually pleasing to him.
If we are doing something which is for our authorities requested us to do
and it doesn’t go in contradiction with anything that guru told us;
and that something that is completely against our nature,
then usually it is very pleasing.
If it is something that is against our nature;
but it is something that is urgently needed;
and sometimes by fulfilling that one gets some special mercy from the guru.
What was the second part?
If our services are not pleasing does it affect our taste in chanting?
If you do not carry out the order of your guru,
then that is the third offence to the holy name
and naturally that will be something that hampers our tastes.
Category: [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Gaurāṇga], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Guru (Spiritual Master)]
Questioner: Jayacaran
Date: 2023-12-19
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, my experience was even before the first time!
His secretary gave me a set of beads.
So I went out in the park and I was chanting.
I chanted about 26 rounds, nonstop!
And I was feeling so much ecstasy,
I had never felt anything like this before.
At that time, I was in San Francisco
and Śrīla Prabhupāda was in Montreal.
I came back to the temple
and Śrīla Prabhupāda’s secretary was waiting for me.
He asked me do you have the beads?
I said, “Yes, of course.”
He said, “I was not supposed to give those to you,
those were Śrīla Prabhupāda’s beads!”
So I gave him back.
Other beads were not quite the same!
So, even before I met Śrīla Prabhupāda for the first time, I had an introduction.
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-02
Jayapatākā Swami: Of course, it is good to feel like that.
Rādhārāṇī feels She is not doing enough, as much as She could.
But we think that She is 100% best,
but She is thinking what more I should do?
That is the Kṛṣṇa conscious attitude.
Not that, oh! I am doing everything I can.
Then we won’t try to do more.
If we cannot think of how to increase, you could also always ask what more can I do?
Or if you have some idea, then you can suggest, can I do this, will this be pleasing?
We always should be eager to do something more for Kṛṣṇa.
Parents, your children ever come up and say, mom dad, can I do some service for you? Ha!
You think, what do they want from me! Ha!
But actually if they don’t want anything that would be super!
If you think what more you could do and you want permission, then suggest that.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-05-13
Jayapatākā Swami: I am trying to convince many of my senior disciples to take up the service of dīkṣā-guru.
And when I do that, then except in some cases I may stop giving initiation except for those who have taken shelter.
So people who have taken shelter I will give them.
Those who took initiation, they have already taken.
As of now, I have not yet stopped.
Still, sometime I may stop.
So, better chant 16 rounds and take shelter.
Category: [Dīkṣā (Initiation)], [Guru (Spiritual Master)]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-01
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was watching some video of his departure,
and all the devotees, most of the devotees were feeling you know, very separated.
One devotee came in front of the camera and started chanting, clapping, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Śrīla Prabhupāda said, he is not very advanced.
It is natural that you feel separation from the guru, naturally devotees felt separation when Śrīla Prabhupāda left.
Śrīla Prabhupāda appreciated
that that kind of intense feeling is a sign of spiritual advancement
and there are emotions that devotees feel.
And some circumstances are suitable for chanting, dancing in happiness.
But when the spiritual master is departing,
most of the devotees are feeling heavy hearted.
If some devotes smiling, laughing, Haribol!
Śrīla Prabhupāda he did not appreciate that.
So they were not really conscious what was happening.
Not conscious of Śrīla Prabhupāda.
In the same way, to see Kṛṣṇa, multiply that, and there is nothing you can explain,
that words will not do justice.
If we hear what Lord Caitanya was experiencing, to whatever extent that touches our heart,
that by this feeling, by this meditation on Lord Caitanya’s ecstasy at that time,
we get the shelter of Kṛṣṇa.
So, someone was saying that the greatest separation in the world is to be separated from a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa.
Questioner: Purabi Das
Date: 2022-08-04
Jayapatākā Swami: Of course, if we take water used by non-devotees,
then that may compromise our Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
At the same time, if people and devotees take water from us, which we offer to Kṛṣṇa, they get blessings.
So maybe in this situation, you take two bottles.
One for the staff
and one for yourself.
And we would like to give non-devotees kṛṣṇa-prasāda.
Category: [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Etiquette / Sadācāra], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Sādhanā / Preaching], [Day-to-day Life / Workplace]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-04-27
Jayapatākā Swami: Many people ask this question.
This is one thing that every disciple, every devotee has to choose.
After some time, I will stop initiating.
But at the present time I am still taking.
But who you will choose, is truly up to you.
Who you think Kṛṣṇa is speaking thru to you.
And many gurus, they can be your śikṣā-gurus.
You have to choose one as your dīkṣā-guru.
So, dīkṣā-guru has the responsibility to take care of your karma.
And you can pray to Śrīla Prabhupāda, you can pray to the Deities,
to reveal to you who your guru is.
Questioner: Phaneśvarī Lakṣmī devī dāsī, San Diego
Date: 2023-09-01
Jayapatākā Swami: You can take from any pure devotee.
Because if you take that of a guest or someone and you get sick that is not very auspicious.
But even if we get sick taking from some pure devotee that is glorified.
So, the prasāda or mahā-prasāda can be taken from someone, even if he is not your dīkṣā-guru.
Thank you Phaneśvarī Lakṣmī devī dāsī.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Prasāda and Bhoga]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-12-05
Jayapatākā Swami: May be good fortune, I don’t know.
One of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s servants gave me a set of beads to chant on.
I was practicing yoga before that.
So I sat in the ardha-padmāsana and started meditating and chanting
and I chanted six hours nonstop.
I was chanting 32 rounds or something.
And I was feeling so much ecstasy,
I never felt that in the yoga practice.
So I was convinced that Kṛṣṇa consciousness works.
The secretary was waiting for me to come back.
He asked, “Do you still have those beads?”
I said, “Yes!” “Those are Śrīla Prabhupāda’s beads” he said!
But he said he was not supposed to give that to anyone, but I did not know it at that time.
So he took the beads back from me.
Next day was not quite the same!
But I had a glimpse!
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Pastimes]
Questioner: Soundarya Rādhikā devī dāsī, New Rājāpur Dhāma, Bengaluru
Date: 2022-10-04
Jayapatākā Swami: You seem to have realized that when you don’t follow
the advice of the senior devotees,
you get attacked by māyā.
So that should convince you
that to avoid being attacked by māyā,
follow the more advanced devotees’ advice.
Category: [Anarthās], [Anarthās / Māyā], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Śikṣā-guru], [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings]
Questioner: Soundarya Rādhikā devī dāsī, New Rājāpur Dhāma, Bengaluru
Date: 2022-10-04
Jayapatākā Swami: You seem to have realized that when you don’t follow
the advice of the senior devotees,
you get attacked by māyā.
So that should convince you
that to avoid being attacked by māyā,
follow the more advanced devotees’ advice.
Category: [Anarthās], [Anarthās / Māyā], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Śikṣā-guru], [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-02
Jayapatākā Swami: It is just causeless mercy!
We see that Vṛndāvana dāsa Ṭhākura, he offered prayers to Lord Caitanya and Lord Nityānanda.
So, that is the devotional process called vandanam.
Offering prayers, obeisances.
So, by desiring, praying for, by Their mercy, it can be achieved.
Category: [Emotions / Faith], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Pastimes]
I was wondering that in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta we find that there is lot of stress on separation between men and women and there is lot of criticism of any kind of intermixing between men and women? How much of what we hear in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam regarding separation between men and women today is applicable at the present moment?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-02
Jayapatākā Swami: If one is in one of the renounced orders then it is imperative that one show a good example.
That is why in this Age of Kali sannyāsa is generally prohibited,
and we see that Lord Caitanya is very positive to the gṛhasthas.
Like, it is said that gṛhe thāko vane thāko, sadā hari bole ḍāko -
wherever you are, in the home or in the renounced order everyone should chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.
So in fact, Śrīla Prabhupāda was saying that all the members of the Pañca-tattva were one time gṛhasthas.
So the gṛhastha-āśrama is more applicable for today’s situation.
If someone is in the renounced order, then they have to follow these rules.
In the Gajendra-mokṣa, 8th canto of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam,
Śrīla Prabhupāda said that in the fight between the elephant and the crocodile,
the elephant was the land animal, but he was in the water.
And that the crocodile was a water animal and he was in his element.
So Śrīla Prabhupāda was saying that we have to have strong senses and mind, to fight against Māyā.
We have declared war on material illusion.
Therefore, the situation at the present time that people they are mainly gṛhasthas
and, I told this before, Śrīla Prabhupāda was saying that he wants all his gṛhastha followers to be paramahaṁsas,
and he said that Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was a gṛhastha guru
and he had a son who was an ācārya.
So he said that he hoped that all his gṛhasthas would have ācāryas as children.
I am encouraging people to read Śrīla Prabhupāda books. Lord Caitanya said kibā vipra, kibā nyāsī, śūdra kene naya yei kṛṣṇa-tattva-vettā, sei ‘guru’ haya (Cc. Madhya 8.128).
So we want everybody should know the science of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Questioner: Dīpadātri Gaurāṅgī devī dāsī
Date: 2022-08-04
So, anyway, we would like to see everybody
chant Hare Kṛṣṇa
and engage in devotional service.
Lord Nityānanda is the original guru.
So the spiritual master
is naturally in connection with Lord Nityānanda.
So it is not so difficult to get guru-kṛpā
and if one tries to get guru-kṛpā,
by preaching, by giving Kṛṣṇa
to the conditioned souls,
Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā 18th chapter
that those who preach
this message of Mine,
they are the dearest to Me.
So naturally,
we get the kṛpā.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Mercy]
Questioner: Dīpadātri Gaurāṅgī devī dāsī
Date: 2022-08-04
So, anyway, we would like to see everybody
chant Hare Kṛṣṇa
and engage in devotional service.
Lord Nityānanda is the original guru.
So the spiritual master
is naturally in connection with Lord Nityānanda.
So it is not so difficult to get guru-kṛpā
and if one tries to get guru-kṛpā,
by preaching, by giving Kṛṣṇa
to the conditioned souls,
Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā 18th chapter
that those who preach
this message of Mine,
they are the dearest to Me.
So naturally,
we get the kṛpā.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Mercy]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-14
Jayapatākā Swami: Some people, they have some inclination to someone.
If one cannot understand, they can take them as their śikṣā-guru
and amongst the śikṣā-gurus they can decide who will be their dīkṣā-guru.
Otherwise, I have 15 questions and one can ask themselves and thus choose who is their dīkṣā-guru.
So if you have the Jayapatākā Swami App I can send those questions out.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-04-16
Jayapatākā Swami: He should seek pardon from gurudeva
and there is no other way to be in kṛṣṇa-bhakti other than by this way.
He should take the instructions from his gurudeva and do devotional service again.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-12-06
Jayapatākā Swami: We hope that you are not poisoned.
You should hear from a pure devotee and read Śrīla Prabhupāda books and take the mistaken thoughts from your mind.
Category: [Anarthās], [Anarthās / Bad association], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Mādhurī Mamatāmayī devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-17
Jayapatākā Swami: It can be an offence.
If it is presented in such a way that we respectfully say that this particular thing should not be followed,
the devotee is otherwise is very good, but this particular habit is something that we do not follow.
It is presented in a very constructive way
like Prabhupāda in the 12th chapter of Ādi-līlā Cc. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta) has given the details of the Gauḍīya Maṭhas
break up,
and failure to maintain the instructions of the founder.
So Prabhupāda gave those details to warn us, that we should not do the same thing.
So some of the Gauḍīya Maṭha leaders asked us to take out the 12th chapter.
But we said that we don’t have the right to take out Prabhupāda’s writings.
So depending on how you do it,
if it is to warn someone,
not to follow this example;
then it maybe alright.
You see Prabhupāda was talking about his godbrothers.
If one is a junior devotee is talking about someone who is very advanced or more senior;
it maybe, what you call mariyāda-laṅgana, the transgression of seniority.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Aparādha (Offenses) / Vaiṣṇava-aparādha], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Etiquette / Sadācāra]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-08-08
Jayapatākā Swami: How can it have exactly the same effect?
We might be chanting Kṛṣṇa’s names but we are not chanting the mahā-mantra.
You chant any name of Kṛṣṇa, that will have effect but especially powerful is the mahā-mantra: 16 words, 32 syllables.
So, when you leave out a few syllables and names then you are chanting indifferent mantra.
You are chanting 14 words, 30 syllable or 28 syllable mantra or something else.
So, that will reduce some of the effectiveness,
but of course because Kṛṣṇa’s name is Kṛṣṇa, it is very hard to put all that into equations what percent it will be reduced to and so and so forth.
But one should try to say the mantra as it is given; if one is inattentive while chanting, it can’t help, but affect.
Jayapatākā Swami: You listen to the spiritual masters, how they say it, that is the way you should try to say it.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-06-05
There’s different,
if you chant mantra in certain places you get more benefit.
If you chant by the sacred rivers and if you chant the,
I’m not,
exactly not sure about the river and the land.
You chant by the side of the sacred river you get so many times more benefit.
And if you chant in a holy place,
the pilgrimage you get so many times.
So once like,
a thousand and others like,
hundred thousand,
what figure which is which.
And you chant in front of the tulasī then you get,
like a million times.
So if you chant in the Ganges you get many times more.
And if you chant in front of the deities,
installed deities you say your Gayatri you get unlimited times of benefit.
Everyone should say the Gayatri mantra.
So that’s why the sages say in the Ganges.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-18
Jayapatākā Swami: You see the spiritual maser is supposed to be very dear to Lord Nityānanda.
And he gives Lord Nityānanda’s mercy.
By Lord Nityānanda Prabhu’s mercy
we get the mercy of Rādhārāṇī.
And Rādhārāṇī is very hard to approach.
But Nitāi-Gaura, They are more easy to approach.
The spiritual master is easier.
Now śrī śrīla and śrīmān.
Śrī, is the goddess of fortune,
we put śrī in front of someone’s name it means someone is very auspicious.
Śrīman is usually used for someone junior,
who is very - sometimes Śrīla Prabhupāda would address with śrīman in the name.
I don’t know the actual dictionary meaning, I am not a Sanskrit scholar.
Just, I have seen it used,
and śrīla is apparently used for someone who is like a guru or a very elevated devotee.
Sometimes the guru is called an ācārya like Śrīla Prabhupāda, He is śrī-śrīmad,
His Divine Grace.
You can ask a Sansrkit scholar, and they can give more of the meaning.
But actually, that is how I see it has been used.
Hare Kṛṣṇa! Thank you very much!
He is saying I should say something about the Dallas congregation and temple.
I think the congregation is very nice!
We saw the devotees at the Ratha-yātrā yesterday, I was very impressed
by their enthusiasm!
Something I did not understand, what DIY mean?
Someone told me oh, it is Do It Yourself!
Anyway, very nice to see the devotees.
I know Bengali if someone wants to speak in Bengali,
I know a little Hindi and I can speak in Hindi with you.
I have been living in India since 1970
and I joined in 1968.
I saw every temple in ISKCON in 1968,
all three!
San Francisco, New York, and Montreal.
After that there are so many temples.
So now it is not possible to see all the temple.
Of course, I have seen quite a few.
I have been given a lifetime Gold by United Star Alliance
and American and from British Airways, lifetime Emerald.
So I visited all the temples around.
But I was thinking I have not seen all of them.There are about 800 or a thousand now,
it not so easy.
But I thought we should call all the temples which were started by by Śrīla Prabhupāda, he did 108, we should call them as śrīpāṭs.
Like Dallas, should be śrīpāṭ Dallas.
These Deities were worshiped by Śrīla Prabhupāda.
They are very special.
This temple was established by Śrīla Prabhupāda.
There may be about a thousand now and in the future, there may be tens of thousands of temples
but there were 108 established by Śrīla Prabhupāda
and this is one of them.
We would like all the devotees to stay as part of Kṛṣṇa consciousness
and take advantage of the mercy of Rādhā-Kālacāndajī and Nitāi-Gaura and Jagannātha Baladeva Subhadrā.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Pastimes], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī]
Questioner: Saṅkīrtana Manohara dāsa, Dacca, Bangladesh.
Date: 2022-10-04
Jayapatākā Swami: The point is that if you do the maṅgala-ārati at 4.30,
we should do the tulasī-pūjā when the Deities are closed.
So, you have the choice to do tulasī-pūjā before maṅgala-ārati, or after.
So I think it is difficult enough for devotees to attend maṅgala-ārati at 4.30 am!
That is why they do it later in the morning.
But in the afternoon, when the deity is being offered bhoga,
they do the tulasī-āratī,
because after the sandhyā-ārati,
the deities are not closed.
But we have to offer worship to tulasī, when the deities are closed.
Or you can do tulasī-pūjā at 8.30 at night,
when the deities are closed.
Then it is too late,
if you have to get up for maṅgala-ārati.
Category: [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vigraha Āradhana (Deity Worship) / Temple Deity Worship]
In the third canto when Brahmājī becomes very pleased with Kardama Muni’s service, Śrīla Prabhupāda writes in the purport that the disciple should get the instructions from the master and execute it word by word. I understand that in terms of sādhana chanting, reading, following regulative principles, that needs to be done. So how much devotees should have their own initiative in Kṛṣṇa consciousness because we may or may not have the association of the spiritual master?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-08-16
Jayapatākā Swami: How many people here have the Jayapatākā Swami App?
How many read it regularly?
I put up daily things on the Jayapatākā Swami App.
And that way you can have your association with me as closely as you associate with your mobile phone.
I see people talking on their mobile phones often.
They can see the App rather.
I don’t know.
Also, someone told me that I should ask Śrīla Prabhupāda a question.
I should glorify Śrīla Prabhupāda,
humble myself
and ask a question and blessings.
So I was doing that every day.
And then it became like a ritual.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, you are all merciful,
Śrīla Prabhupāda, I am very fallen.
I want to serve you eternally,
life after life.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, he said one day, why do you want to make me come back?
I thought I was saying the right thing.
Then I said, I want to serve you even life after life.
If I don’t make it back to Godhead then I want to serve you here.
In this pastime we see Indra committed an offence against Lord Kṛṣṇa. And then he realized that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. But later in Kṛṣṇa līlā, he gain starts fighting with Lord Kṛṣṇa when he was provoked by his wife. I want to know why this type of situation happened and how do we overcome this? And in case of Dakṣa Prajāpatī we see he offended Lord Śiva, then he offended Nārada Muni. How do we not do such things and avoid such things?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-02
Jayapatākā Swami: We understand from this that if we get married, it is very important to have a Kṛṣṇa conscious wife!
If the wife is not Kṛṣṇa conscious then she may have you fight with Kṛṣṇa!
This reminds me Śrīla Prabhupāda, in a lecture he was giving in London,
observing his Vyāsa-pūjā.
He said he wanted all his gṛhastha followers to be paramahaṁsas.
And he said how Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was a gṛhastha had many children.
One was Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda.
And Śrīla Prabhupāda said we need many personalities like this.
So the gṛhasthas should have such pure devotee children.
Although Lord Indra in the caitanya-līlā pastime, he joined in the kīrtana.
By then he seemed to have learned his lesson!
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Aparādha (Offenses) / Vaiṣṇava-aparādha], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Pastimes]
Questioner: Vraja Kīrtana dāsa
Date: 2022-10-14
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva.
And someone came and talked to him.
He looked away; he was listening to the devotee.
And the guru said, “You no need to hear?”
So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them.
So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Link: 20200909 Although Being in a Predicament, the Barber Receives a Boon of Residence in Goloka (Part 2)
Category: [Anarthās], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Sādhanā], [Sādhanā / Reading / Śāstra], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
Questioner: Gaurāṅgī Gopī devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-05
Jayapatākā Swami: Why not?
A devotee never dies, he appears and disappears.
The word jayantī is reserved for Kṛṣṇa’s appearance,
because His appearance is very special.
But everyone else appears and disappears.
Of course, for the great saintly devotees, we celebrate their appearance and disappearance.
So rather than saying happy birthday, you can say happy appearance day! Haribol!!
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Etiquette / Sadācāra]
Questioner: Mādhava Kṛṣṇa dāsa
Date: 2022-10-24
Jayapatākā Swami: An initiated devotee should wear minimum two rounds
and maximum five
That's what I've heard.
Questioner: Kaivalya Sundarī devī dāsī
Date: 2023-12-11
Jayapatākā Swami: They are all Absolute,
at least the first four.
They can have unlimited personal relationship
but whether one is qualified,
we want to be the servant of the servant of the Lord,
not to be directly in the service of the Lord.
So, by being the servant of the servant. of the servant of the Lord,
we get to serve the Lord!
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-08-29
Jayapatākā Swami: Even if they chant offensively, it is better than not chanting at all.
I was in South India and once, you get these real intellectual type people there.
And he came up to me and said that, “Every religion says that theirs is the only way, you must have faith.
Isn’t there one religion that you don’t need faith? (Laughter).
Will it work even without faith, even you don’t believe?”
I said, “Yes, we have it.
This chanting of the Holy names.
ku Ratnākara, who became Vālmīkī, he had no faith.
He was asked to chant the name of Rāma.
He said I can’t chant any name of anything holy, he couldn’t even say God, nothing like that.
He was told to then chant murder-murder-murder in Sanskrit, mara-mara-mara.
If only that much faith, somehow or another chant, do what the guru ordered, that much minimal faith is required, then do it.
But he had no faith in the holy name as such.
He could not even say it, what to speak of have faith in it.
He was chanting marā-marā-marā-marā-marā.
By chanting marā-marā-marā-marā, because Rāma-Rāma-Rāma-Rāma was being spoken from his lips and as a result he became Vālmīki.
He realized Rāmacandra.
He had the eyes that could see the entire Rāmāyaṇa, 10,000 years before Rāma appeared on this earth.
He was so pure.”
“Ajāmila, he just chanted his son’s name Nārāyaṇa, NĀRĀYAṆA, when he was dying.
Then, just because of that he was saved.
He wasn’t chanting with some great faith, with accident, practically speaking.
If someone chant even just mechanically, without faith, somehow or another they chant, it will gradually have effect.
Obviously, if someone chants with faith, with devotion, with concentration then how much quicker we are at it.
It took Vālmīki a long time of chanting marā-marā-marā to get the same effect.
But nonetheless, there will be some effect.”
Why even Haridāsa Ṭhākura, when Lord Caitanya said that,
“How will all these mlecchas and yavanas will be delivered,
these fishermen, and all these various type of students who always arguing, and never want to get down to the actual reality,
just want to be on a mental platform and so man?
So then, what did Haridāsa Ṭhākura say, “By Your mercy, by this chanting, a nāmābhāsa,
the reflection of the name, it is like when the sun rises, there is a little light before that is called the ābhāsa,
it is just the dim reflection of the, dim reflection of the name, just by that they will be purified.
And like for instance, the Muhammadans when they say harām, they don’t mean hey Rāma,
they mean oh you offensive person, but somehow, they are saying harām.
When the Americans are seeing Ramāyaṇa or something Rāma, so many Rāmas they have in America, Tamil Rāma,
somehow or another, they are already getting the blessings, knowingly or unknowingly.
So, if they actually would chant:
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare,
even without much faith, even just as an experiment, just as out of hopelessness or something, out of just why not, tried everything else,
well…
So many people, actually lots of people said to me,
but… Then, by chanting, by gradually see a change in themselves and they try to see that there is something a higher reality,
become a little purified.
Then when they read, when they come in the association of devotees, naturally, they can appreciate more.
Of course, if someone is very offensive to the devotees, very offensive, then it is more difficult.
One place I have Prabhupāda told that, “Just have them chant Sri Kṛṣṇa Caitanya,
because they are so simple that it will be more effective than chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Even if they are offensive, better they chant, than not chant.
Of course, we have to show the standard of offenseless chanting and preach against committing offenses.
Because if they are committing offenses, they won’t get pure love of God,
they may get liberation, or they may remain as human being, but they won’t get the ultimate goal.
So, want to bring them to the highest benefit, we have to show ourselves,
by our personal example, what is offensive chanting and try to bring people up to that platform.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses) / Nāma-aparādha], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Rasasindhu Śacīsuta dāsa:
Date: 2022-08-05
Jayapataka Swami: As far as benefit of taking initiation directly or virtually,
if you feel initiated you feel connected to the guru, that is what counts.
Śrīla Prabhupāda had initiated many devotees by letter.
And now sometimes due to the pandemic we have initiations virtually.
So, if the spiritual master is accepting you, you are accepting him, then what is the difference?
Link: 20220221 Īśvara Purī Instructs His Disciple Nimāi Paṇḍita to Chant and Preach Kṛṣṇa-Nāma, Part 1
Category: [Day-to-day Life / Technology], [Dīkṣā (Initiation)], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
Questioner: Rasasindhu Śacīsuta dāsa:
Date: 2022-08-05
Jayapataka Swami: As far as benefit of taking initiation directly or virtually,
if you feel initiated you feel connected to the guru, that is what counts.
Śrīla Prabhupāda had initiated many devotees by letter.
And now sometimes due to the pandemic we have initiations virtually.
So, if the spiritual master is accepting you, you are accepting him, then what is the difference?
Link: 20220221 Īśvara Purī Instructs His Disciple Nimāi Paṇḍita to Chant and Preach Kṛṣṇa-Nāma, Part 1
Category: [Day-to-day Life / Technology], [Dīkṣā (Initiation)], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
Questioner: Anon
Date: 2022-08-02
Jayapatākā Swami: The guru takes responsibility for their karma.
And depending upon how the disciple surrenders then that karma is either taken away directly by Kṛṣṇa withdrawing it,
or by giving the disciple some tokens, to help the disciple to come to the proper frame of mind, which will allow all the karma to be removed.
The total responsibility is taken away by the spiritual master, and therefore the karma is not given to the disciple at face value.
But some momentum from the previous uh… from the previous activities is there, some desires are there.
And also, even after taking initiation sometimes devotees, they are also performing sinful activities against their oath, so for various reasons the person is put into difficulty.
One time, Srila Prabhupāda cut his finger, and one drop of blood came out.
He said that, “I should have had my head cut off, but instead Kṛṣṇa has just given me this token, just to remind me and I was released from such a big sinful reaction.”
So, once we surrender to the spiritual master then we’re under the care of Kṛṣṇa; once we take initiation.
But then we have to also practically practice devotional service and then more and more for relieve from all these reactions.
Just after initiation, we come into what is called the clearing stage where all these reactions are cleared away.
It is not that just immediately everything is gone, unless we can immediately completely fix our mind, every thought word and deed completely, without any material attachment,
we can completely absorb ourselves in the service of guru, then we are completely free.
But just after initiation, it is not that people suddenly forget their parents and forget their everything material.
They may get a different, may become more detached, they may become, still there may be some slight attachments there.
So how to get free from those?
Whatever attachments we have those are linked with reactions.
As detached as we become that is as free as we become from the reactions.
These two things are told today.
The 3 modes are there and their reactions, these are linked.
As we have attachments within the 3 modes of nature those attachments are linked with reactions.
As we get rid of the reactions of fruitive activities, we get rid of these attachments also.
Just like a person is very attached to getting a $1,000,000.
Once they get $1,000,000 they are not so attached any more, then either they want $2,000,000 or they want something else.
Just like in Hong Kong, in Japan, people they get very attached to material things.
They want to get a brand-new tape recorder.
They get the tape recorder.
After a while they get tired of the it, they just throw.
A perfectly good tape recorder, they throw it away in the garbage.
Just fed up, that’s the mood they are in.
They just throw it away.
You can find good tape recorders lying in the garbage, you see.
When you get the thing, that means that now your desire is fulfilled.
That is one way of getting your material fruitive action is you get what you want.
That’s one, that’s called the reaction for pious activities.
That also makes you detached, in some cases.
You get tired of it, you want something else.
And another way of getting rid of attachment is by suffering.
When that thing you want causes some pain you become detached.
So, both these reactions, pain as well as pleasure the devotee becomes detached to.
Because now, both of them simply cause material attachment.
They want spiritual ecstasy, spiritual bliss.
So, already the plug has been pulled out, you are not creating any more karmas, you’ve been freed.
And Kṛṣṇa promises that, “According to how you surrender that is how you will be rewarded.”
So, already you are free from any direct reaction of karma.
If any karma is given it means that you still have some attachments, and this is to help you become more and more advanced.
And you are only getting a small token of what you deserve.
Category: [Material Sufferings], [Karma], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Dīkṣā (Initiation)]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-18
Jayapatākā Swami: There is a poem by Śrīla Narottama dasa Ṭhākura,
where he sings śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu dayā kara more – You have come down to deliver the fallen, Patita-pāvana, there is no one more fallen than me. Please have Your mercy on me!
Then he prays to Lord Nityānanda, hā hā prabhu nityānanda, premānanda sukhī: You are always filled with spiritual bliss of love of Kṛṣṇa,
please have mercy on me I very sad, duḥkhī.
You have Nitāi-Gaura here! You pray to them,
that I need mercy,
I am fallen,
I need your mercy more than anyone!
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Mercy]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-01
Jayapatākā Swami: Is that in the verse today?
Questions should be especially on the verses today.
If anyone has any doubt or question on the verses today, otherwise it will just open up to anything.
You have a question on the verse? I chastised you! Ha! Ha!
So I answered your question.
Ha! Ha! How do you feel? Ha! Ha!
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Mercy]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-25
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-24
Jayapatākā Swami: You should win, not lose!
Anyway, that is why Kṛṣṇa consciousness, Śrīla Prabhupāda said is a gradual process.
When you are a little baby, you will fall down a few times
but as you grow up you should not fall down.
A three-year-old child will fall
but if you are a 12-year-old child you should not fall.
As you advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness you get stronger.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-04-13
Jayapatākā Swami: Someone asked me yesterday what do I do, how do I control my anger when my servants do not do what I want?
I could not remember a time when I lost my temper like that!
So, but there must have been a time long ago!
But I said that we commit so many offences to Kṛṣṇa, knowingly or unknowingly,
we want Kṛṣṇa to forgive us.
So, like that if we don’t forgive others, then how can we expect Kṛṣṇa to forgive us?
Your question, what is the root reason for your question?
If one hates another person that is an offence.
If such kind of hatred or violence is not there, then why should it be considered an offence?
This way, if we see the good qualities in others, if we praise them, then how will be commit offence?
If we are intolerant of the different qualities of people, then there is possibility of offences.
If you see an offence to Vaiṣṇavas or guru then you need to get angry.
Just like Kṛṣṇa, if you offend Him, He usually forgives you.
But if you offend His devotee, He is very angry.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-02
Jayapatākā Swami: What would you preach if you don’t read Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books.
You know, we don’t say that by reading, you do not do any preaching.
But if you don’t read, what do you preach?
Would you speculate something?
It is important to read at least in the beginning.
Śrīla Prabhupāda told me that to get first initiation, I had to read the Bhagavad-gītā ten times.
Then I had these lines marked, one, two, three, four, strike. One, two, three, four, strike.
I read ten times and got my first initiation.
But by reading Bhagavad-gītā ten times I had so much knowledge of the Gītā that I was giving accredited courses in the university.
Although I was a college drop out!
And in the McGill University I gave a course but there was no credit.
So then, Śrīla Prabhupāda gave us a test, I got Bhakti-śāstrī.
Recently I want to encourage my disciples, my followers, devotees in general
to read Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books.
Then the Māyāpur Institute offered me the honorary degrees,
because I had read the books so many times.
But I thought if I get honorary degree,
then that would not encourage the devotees to read.
I said, no, I will take the test.
And now I have finished the 5th canto of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. I got one more canto to go to get my Bhakti-vaibhava.
After that I will go for the Bhakti-vedānta.
Then I am very glad that I am doing that.
It is nice that if you are reading Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books and are getting tested then you read it more carefully.
But it doesn’t mean I don’t preach.
In fact preaching is going on.
Link: 20221024 Evening Darśana
One of the challenges we face while going to the college youth is getting the suitable time between the preacher and the student. The preachers are ready to give instruction but the students seem to have less time. And getting them to the center is also becoming challenging. So how do we make our association impactful given the shortage of time?
Questioner: Rādhe Śyāma Dāsa
Date: 2022-08-24
Jayapatākā Swami: Caitanya Avatārī dāsa in Bengaluru is working on this.
Instead of having discovery and reading of some verse,
he is putting the verse in the video format,
like a 3-minute short video,
snippet.
Then he shows that
and have people go directly to the understanding.
What are the two or three most important points?
And then have people discuss,
go around the room,
and how you apply this knowledge in daily life.
Like six different ways it could be applied.
So, in this way, you don’t need to read eight pages, one page is enough.
We have more knowledge than they can absorb.
So, this aspect of discussion could be completed in 45 minutes’ time.
Maybe less, I don’t know,
I did not try but also like in the beginning some kind of icebreaker may be good.
Something less philosophical, some variety of ice breakers.
What do you like to eat or something, there is a whole book on icebreakers.
So that will let them loosen up in the classroom
So a ten-minute icebreaker, five minutes chanting
and half hour discussion.
A full Bhakti-vṛkṣa takes about two hours.
But they have also like they call mañjarīs
which takes like an hour.
If you can see how much time they can tolerate.
Whether we should have a mañjarī or a Bhakti-vṛkṣa.
Questioner: Rukmiṇī devī dāsī
Date: 2023-12-19
Jayapatākā Swami: So, first we should know what Vaiṣṇava-aparādha is.
That is why at the time of initiation, we tell the ten offences.
Then, the second thing is that we avoid committing them!
You see, someone may say, oh! I did not know it was an offence!
So first thing you should know these are the offences.
Just like the first offence is to offend a devotee of the Lord.
So you should avoid doing that.
And if you do, then you should get forgiven.
Like Mother Śacī, she committed an offence against Lord Advaita.
So then Lord Caitanya and many associates, they went to see Advaita Ācārya.
He asked what brings everybody here?
Then Lord Caitanya said, “Mother Śacī committed an offence against you, therefore she has come to get your forgiveness.”
And Advaita Ācārya said, “Mother Śacī, Mother Śacī?!!
How can she offend Me?!
She is such a wonderful devotee!
She carried Lord Caitanya in her womb!”
And He started to glorify Mother Śacī for all her devotional service.
And then He was so ecstatic glorifying Mother Śacī,
that He fainted!
Then Lord Caitanya said, “He is not going to forgive you.
So what you can do is take the dust from His lotus feet.
By taking His dust, you will get forgiven.
But if you ask Him to forgive you, He will not do it.”
So then, she took the dust from Advaita Ācārya’s lotus feet
and then everybody chanted Haribol!
The girls, the ladies, did ulu-dhvanī.
Ladies only do that.
I cannot do that!
So like this, then Lord Caitanya, He forgave His mother for her Vaiṣṇava-aparādha.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-03-15
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, all the devotees of the Lord
are very dear to Kṛṣṇa
and even the wife she is very dear to Kṛṣṇa.
So if someone maltreats the wife
or feels envious against another devotee,
Kṛṣṇa will get pain by that.
So we don’t want to give Kṛṣṇa pain, we want to give Him pleasure.
So we should avoid envying anyone.
So you can say that is the only vice that cannot be dovetailed in Kṛṣṇa conscious.
We can dovetail greed,
we can be greedy to make more devotees for Kṛṣṇa! Ha!
We can be angry,
angry against those who offend guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Every vice can be somehow dovetailed, except envy.
So envy is such an evil and detrimental thing.
We should see the good qualities of others,
like Caitanya Mahāprabhu says in the third verse of His Śikṣāṣṭakaṁ,
amānīna mānadena,
offer all respect to others,
don’t expect any respect for yourself.
Questioner: Tāriṇī Rādhikā devī dāsī, UK.
Date: 2022-10-04
Jayapatākā Swami: You can also learn the process
from the Māyāpur Academy on Deity Worship.
And also from the minister of Deity worship.
Śrīla Prabhupāda personally taught Jananivāsa Prabhu
how to worship the śālagrāma-śilā.
The śālagrāma should be worshiped every day.
At least bathe with water and put tulasī leaf on it.
But if you want you can also bathe with milk or pañca-gavya or pañcāmṛta.
And draw a smiling face on the śālagrāma-śilā with a tilaka.
More details you can get from the Deity Worship ministry.
Category: [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vigraha Āradhana (Deity Worship) / Home Deity Worship]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-08-25
You
try do that and by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness,
always praying to the spiritual master, previous ācāryas, Kṛṣṇa,
to be able to do that, that is the principal desire in one’s life,
well by their mercy the impossible can be possible.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-08-25
You
try do that and by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness,
always praying to the spiritual master, previous ācāryas, Kṛṣṇa,
to be able to do that, that is the principal desire in one’s life,
well by their mercy the impossible can be possible.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
Questioner: Bhaktin Śrīdevī
Date: 2022-08-05
Jayapatākā Swami: By reading Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Bhagavad-gītā,
one should naturally obtain spiritual qualities.
And so by reading naturally one gets association with different spiritual personalities,
so we try to obtain these qualities.
And eventually we can achieve many things.
The other qualities that one should have like patience, tolerance,
usually that automatically comes through reading.
Category: [Dīkṣā (Initiation)], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Etiquette / Sadācāra]
Regarding the dust of the lotus feet of the pure devotee, often we are encouraged to touch the feet of the pure devotee, especially our Gurudeva’s, but then we see that when Guru Mahārāja goes to public places it is not encouraged to let other people touch the lotus feet of Guru Mahārāja, so could you give a bit of an insight into why this distinction is there? Or should we also should be careful?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-01
Jayapatākā Swami: When someone touches your feet, they give their karma to you.
And we see that - Śrīla Prabhupāda, actually once the home minister of Bengal, who is in charge of the Police and things,
he went and put his head on Śrīla Prabhupāda’s lotus feet,
Brahmānanda wanted to punch him!
Śrīla Prabhupāda stopped him, said it is their culture.
Would have been a big mess to punch the Home Minister!
There are different circumstances.
And we see that some people, they want to touch the feet of the guru.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, when they would touch the feet, he would touch them on the head,
like giving them back the karma ha!
but also they were taking the blessing.
Sometimes the way devotees they prohibit people may be too much.
You have to see the situation.
I saw that in South India and different places, the ladies would pour the water and the husband would touch the lotus feet,
that ladies should not touch a sannyāsīs,
but they are allowed to pour the water.
That was the system that was apparently practiced when Lord Caitanya visited South India.
That the wife would pour the water and the husband would massage it.
So it is very late now.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings]
Questioner: Ānandavihārī Kṛṣṇa dāsa
Date: 2022-12-02
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda said that one doesn’t have to have second initiation.
But no harm in having it.
Then you can do some confidential service to guru and the Deities.
But you go back to Godhead even after the first initiation.
Category: [Dīkṣā (Initiation)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Spiritual World / Dhāma], [Sādhanā], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Keśava-kṛpā Sindhu dāsa
Date: 2022-09-22
Questioner: Caturā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-08-04
Jayapatākā Swami: Any opportunity we can give out prasāda,
that is good.
And normally people observe birthdays for other reasons.
If you can invite people over and give them prasāda,
that is something auspicious.
You have to think how to take advent of birthdays and different celebrations.
So, the next generation, I often feel that the kind of affection and loyalty and dedication like a sold-out-servant as all of you are, I feel that is greatly lacking in the next generation, Mahārāja. So, we feel in our generation many people, they get initiated officially and after that they do not feel such a great commitment to Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mission and in expanding the movement the way. I am sure that your expanding the movement has happened because you are strongly rooted in Śrīla Prabhupāda. So how can the grand disciples of Śrīla Prabhupāda have such feelings for him and a sense of belonging with him and thereby a sense of love and dedication for his mission?
Questioner: Rādhe Śyāma Dāsa
Date: 2023-12-05
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda kī jaya!
You see Śrīla Prabhupāda, he gave us the science of bhakti-yoga.
So everyone should read Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books, attend the Śrīla Prabhupāda daily guru-pūjā.
I mean, what does it take for people to be committed to Śrīla Prabhupāda?
When I first came to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we did not have many books.
So Śrīla Prabhupāda said we could read Professor Sanyal’s Teachings of Lord Caitanya
and there was a section on Haridāsa Ṭhākura.
He said that whenever he would think of anything else, he would chant louder.
So I was a new bhakta
and I had so many thoughts.
So I would end up chanting louder and louder!
All the devotees, they went to Śrīla Prabhupāda and said, “This Bhakta Jay, he shouts so loudly while chanting
and we cannot concentrate!”
Śrīla Prabhupāda called me
and he asked me, “Why you chant so loud?”
I told him,
he said, “Hmmm, that is not bad,
but you are disturbing all the other devotees.
So I give you permission to chant in the park.”
That was the pre joggers’ period, now we have many joggers.
I saw birds, and squirrels.
They all heard the holy name when I was shouting!
Anyway, by Kṛṣṇa’s mercy devotional service is so nice
that we start experiencing some bliss
and I don’t think that is a big secret.
Anyone who does Kṛṣṇa consciousness sincerely,
they can also experience bliss!
I have seen some new people
coming and they are very blissful and very happy.
We should be you know, grateful
that Śrīla Prabhupāda gave us such a nice process
that works.
It is not a theory or just a faith, it works!
If you do it then you will not regret
it and then you feel grateful
that Śrīla Prabhupāda gave us such a wonderful thing.
If he hadn’t come, he hadn’t preached, where would we be today!
I wrote a song yadi prabhupāda nā haita, tabe kī haita.
If there was no Śrīla Prabhupāda, what would there be today?
It is something terrifying,
to think back,
what I was
and what I am today,
what bliss I am experiencing by following Śrīla Prabhupāda’s instructions.
I think everybody should realize
that what they have
is all due to ultimately Śrīla Prabhupāda starting this movement.
Category: [Emotions / Faith], [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Association (Sādhu-saṅga)]
So, the next generation, I often feel that the kind of affection and loyalty and dedication like a sold-out-servant as all of you are, I feel that is greatly lacking in the next generation, Mahārāja. So, we feel in our generation many people, they get initiated officially and after that they do not feel such a great commitment to Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mission and in expanding the movement the way. I am sure that your expanding the movement has happened because you are strongly rooted in Śrīla Prabhupāda. So how can the grand disciples of Śrīla Prabhupāda have such feelings for him and a sense of belonging with him and thereby a sense of love and dedication for his mission?
Questioner: Rādhe Śyāma Dāsa
Date: 2023-12-05
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda kī jaya!
You see Śrīla Prabhupāda, he gave us the science of bhakti-yoga.
So everyone should read Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books, attend the Śrīla Prabhupāda daily guru-pūjā.
I mean, what does it take for people to be committed to Śrīla Prabhupāda?
When I first came to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we did not have many books.
So Śrīla Prabhupāda said we could read Professor Sanyal’s Teachings of Lord Caitanya
and there was a section on Haridāsa Ṭhākura.
He said that whenever he would think of anything else, he would chant louder.
So I was a new bhakta
and I had so many thoughts.
So I would end up chanting louder and louder!
All the devotees, they went to Śrīla Prabhupāda and said, “This Bhakta Jay, he shouts so loudly while chanting
and we cannot concentrate!”
Śrīla Prabhupāda called me
and he asked me, “Why you chant so loud?”
I told him,
he said, “Hmmm, that is not bad,
but you are disturbing all the other devotees.
So I give you permission to chant in the park.”
That was the pre joggers’ period, now we have many joggers.
I saw birds, and squirrels.
They all heard the holy name when I was shouting!
Anyway, by Kṛṣṇa’s mercy devotional service is so nice
that we start experiencing some bliss
and I don’t think that is a big secret.
Anyone who does Kṛṣṇa consciousness sincerely,
they can also experience bliss!
I have seen some new people
coming and they are very blissful and very happy.
We should be you know, grateful
that Śrīla Prabhupāda gave us such a nice process
that works.
It is not a theory or just a faith, it works!
If you do it then you will not regret
it and then you feel grateful
that Śrīla Prabhupāda gave us such a wonderful thing.
If he hadn’t come, he hadn’t preached, where would we be today!
I wrote a song yadi prabhupāda nā haita, tabe kī haita.
If there was no Śrīla Prabhupāda, what would there be today?
It is something terrifying,
to think back,
what I was
and what I am today,
what bliss I am experiencing by following Śrīla Prabhupāda’s instructions.
I think everybody should realize
that what they have
is all due to ultimately Śrīla Prabhupāda starting this movement.
Category: [Emotions / Faith], [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Association (Sādhu-saṅga)]
Questioner: Kackuly Rāṇī
Date: 2022-08-27
Jayapatākā Swami: You just stick to the Vedas.
Show them what the Bhagavad-gītā says
and then if the bābā has said something different,
we cannot deal with that.
We say we follow the Vedas.
So then, that way some people they want to follow some false avatāras.
In Rajahmundry there was a person and he claimed to be an avatāra of Kalki.
Then they showed how in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam Kalki avatāra comes at the end of Kali.
And Kali has only just started.
There are 4,27,000 years to go.
Isn’t it not a little off time?
He said I may not be Kalki, but I am an avatāra!
So there are many people like this they are bogus.
And gradually you have to just stick to the Vedas.
We are basically followers of the Vedas.
If someone preaches something against the Vedas,
what can we do?
We can show them that what they are saying is against the Vedas.
Therefore, the sincere people will follow us.
There was one guru in Bengal, he was a sahajiyā.
He said that the devotee, he or she I forgot, was coming to the Nāmahaṭṭa.
And they learnt that Vaiṣṇavas take kṛṣṇa-prasāda.
So she gave the vegetarian food to the kula-guru.
He said, “What is this? What is this?
I am your guru.
I should be given opulent food.
These vegetables are cheap.
Fish, meat are expensive.
Give me the dāmi food! I don’t want this cheap food.”
Then she realized that this guru was bogus.
So, that way we have to stick to the Vedas and gradually we convince people.
Some people may choose a bābā because they want to eat fish or meat or something.
What can we do?
Then we try to present how eating prasāda is better
and by eating meat we get the bad karma.
And become a cat or
dog
or tiger.
Category: [Anarthās], [Anarthās / Apasampradāya], [Anarthās / Bad association], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Emotions / Hypocrisy]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-02
Jayapatākā Swami: First of all, if you find that you have offended a devotee or offended the spiritual master, then you should bow down or something and beg for forgiveness.
And in the future, you have to be careful to pray for forgiveness, and avoid this habit.
Questioner: Sumukhi Hariṇī devī dāsī
Date: 2023-07-10
Jayapatākā Swami: It is not that they offer starched wool.
They are offering a cotton cloth,
which is starched,
at the Oḍana-ṣaṣṭhī they just offer the cotton chadars, cotton cloths.
When it is colder, then they use woolen.
Questioner: Keya Rāṇī
Date: 2023-07-10
Jayapatākā Swami: So there are three options:
Like Satī devī, you can immediately burn yourself up
and if that is not possible,
then you can protest and defeat that person.
If that is not possible,
then leave the place.
Questioner: Bhāgyaśrī
Date: 2023-07-10
That we can always respectfully ask the devotee
why they are doing something like that.
If we know that they are new devotees, they don’t know what they are doing,
but if we have to correct them, they may feel embarrassed or something.
So it depends on the situation,
whether it is a senior devotee,
equal or new devotee.
So accordingly, if it is a senior devotee, we will ask first,
if he is equal devotee,
maybe in a more friendly way,
depending on the status
and our relationship,
we should act accordingly.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Aparādha (Offenses) / Vaiṣṇava-aparādha], [Emotions / Fault-finding]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: Interesting question.
We don’t want to be a kṛpaṇa – a miser.
You are saying how you understand the guru is doing so much for you!
But you don’t feel grateful!
Is that the way to feel?
If someone saves you from a car accident, should you feel grateful?
If someone is saving you from repeated birth and death, should you feel grateful?
If you don’t feel grateful, definitely you should be crying.
If you are not crying, Śrīla Prabhupāda said, you should cry that you are not crying!
And if you are not crying that you are not crying, then you should crying, that you are not crying for crying!
It goes on like that!
Category: [Anarthās], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Mercy]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: Interesting question.
We don’t want to be a kṛpaṇa – a miser.
You are saying how you understand the guru is doing so much for you!
But you don’t feel grateful!
Is that the way to feel?
If someone saves you from a car accident, should you feel grateful?
If someone is saving you from repeated birth and death, should you feel grateful?
If you don’t feel grateful, definitely you should be crying.
If you are not crying, Śrīla Prabhupāda said, you should cry that you are not crying!
And if you are not crying that you are not crying, then you should crying, that you are not crying for crying!
It goes on like that!
Category: [Anarthās], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Mercy]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-21
Jayapatākā Swami: Some of the instructions are work-in-progress.
I am trying to fulfill them.
I don’t say that I fulfilled all of them.
Maybe some of them,
to some extent.
But Śrīla Prabhupāda took so much sacrifice, took so much trouble
to bring Kṛṣṇa consciousness to the West.
So we owe Śrīla Prabhupāda, unlimitedly.
So whatever he asked me to do,
or instructed me to do,
I am trying to do that.
I don’t say that I have done it,
but I am trying to do it.
Seven days before his departure,
he established the Bhaktivedanta Swami Charity Trust,
and he made me the lifetime chairman.
That meant that my lifetime service
was to see the fulfillment of this Trust objective.
So it is basically to develop Navadvip dhāma,
develop Gaura-maṇḍala-bhūmi,
and also to unite the Saraswat disciplic family.
So we have established the Sārasvata Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava Association,
and many Gauḍīya members are members of this organization.
Some people, they keep separate.
But we are trying to work on it.
And Śrīla Prabhupāda, in the BSCT,
he had established two of his god brothers
and 5 ISKCON devotes.
So now the god brother are no longer there,
so we are having the disciples of those god brothers.
So like that there are many different services.
We would like to see the completion of the TOVP.
I have a minor role, maybe.
Ambarīśa Prabhu is doing the major thing.
I am overseeing the Western wing,
which is the planetarium and exhibitions.
So we are trying to do what Śrīla Prabhupāda desired. [paragraph
It is very interesting to be serving Śrīla Prabhupāda.
I hope that the generations that follow will continue this service.
Bhakti Cāru Swami, he wanted that his followers would
also serve Śrīla Prabhupāda.
In fact, he saw the whole ISKCON family as one.
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Pastimes]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-02
Jayapatākā Swami: As I said, any offence is multiplied a thousand times in Vṛndāvana.
In Māyāpur Śrīla Prabhupāda said it is especially good for gṛhasthas.
The material world is designed in such a way that even if you don’t want to, you are obliged to commit some offences, some sins.
So that is why we recommend that people stay a short time in Vṛndāvana and then go out.
In the short time they can be very careful.
But if they stay here permanently,
then they may commit some sinful activities.
That is just the fact.
Link: 20221024 Evening Darśana
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-07-07
Jayapatākā Swami: First we should read all the translations and purports of Śrīla Prabhupāda.
They are what inspires me.
And what I know, is simply by the mercy of Śrīla Prabhupāda.
The youth are seen to be indulging in various undesirable activities and thus are not capable of appreciating the Kṛṣṇa conscious philosophy. However, when using bridge-level preaching tactics (such as anger/stress management etc.), there is a feeling that the teachings of paramparā may be compromised. How then do we strike the balance ?
Questioner: IYF
Date: 2022-08-24
Jayapatākā Swami: I mean somehow, there was a presentation how to be happy.
That was very interesting because
I was not happy.
I had sense gratification
but it wasn’t satisfying.
So somehow if we want to tell those people that
by practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness
they can become happy.
The bridging programs can somehow bring them to Kṛṣṇa consciousness
then that would be ideal.
If anger management can include some aspect of Kṛṣṇa consciousness,
some practices that they could do.
Some ways they can control their anger
by dovetailing it.
So bridge is to take us over the bridge to the other side of the river.
That means, take us to Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
So at the end of the bridge there should be something Kṛṣṇa conscious.
Although the attraction is okay, anger management for instance,
we learn that we can practice, we can control anger through bhakti-yoga.
So the bridge program actually does that, it bridges us to Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
At least to some extent.
Like you are saying people have many lusty desires and bad habits,
I saw today on the Tv
that in some states 3 or 5 states in the USA,
they do a referendum and made marijuana smoking for recreation legal.
It was previously legal for medicinal use.
But now it is legal for recreation in some states.
So, all kinds of bad habits people have –
not only drinking, smoking,
illicit sex.
Actually, we know that none of these things give one satisfaction.
But we cannot directly attack these things.
Rather, we try to present the positive thing of chanting, meditation,
and then when they are more ready,
when they ask appropriate questions,
we may reveal that bad habits should be controlled.
That is a gradual process.
That is what Śrīla Prabhupāda said that it takes buckets of blood,
not easy to make a devotee.
Do you think only people now are addicted to bad habits?
Ha! I think before I was 12-I had already broken all the regulative principles!!
Category: [Anarthās], [Anarthās / Sinful activities], [Sādhanā / Preaching], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Youth]
The youth of today are looking for recreational activities such as meditation, yoga and so on and if we try to provide them with those, they entertain themselves with the same and leave, never to come back. Also one of the pressing problems of the youth is that they come with a lot of lusty propensities and thus face a lot of challenges in dealing with the opposite sex.
Questioner: Rādhe Śyāma Dāsa
Date: 2022-08-24
Jayapatākā Swami: As far as light activities, the thing is that chanting, singing is very light.
Actually, that is much more effective and much more purifying than these breathing exercises.
Art of Living all that, they promote this breathing exercise.
But if we get the people to chant and sign,
dance,
that can loosen them up.
That way, they actually get more purified
and because people are seeing themselves as the body,
they think that the body, the senses have to be satisfied.
Therefore, lusty desires are very prominent.
And so how to engage their energy
in such a way that their energy would be better utilized.
That is why we see that many people they may not be interested in being brahmacārīs.
And like in the West, somehow the ladies they are actively preaching
and therefore many men are attracted.
And if the men are preaching, the ladies are attracted.
Now, I heard that in the Indian universities it is quite open.
Maybe more than the West.
So it could be a big challenge.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-18
Jayapatākā Swami: I mean, at the time of initiation, we usually have someone give a class on the ten offences to the holy name
That is very important.
The other offences he does not consider so much and He usually forgives someone.
There was this Cāpāla Gopāla he had put lot of things, blood and things outside the house of Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura.
So, he got leprosy.
And at that time he was staying outside the city of Navadvīpa.
Lord Caitanya with His kīrtana party happened to go there.
He fell at Lord Caitanya’s feet and said, “Please have mercy on me!”
He said, “No you cannot have any mercy.
I will not give any mercy, you have offended My devotee.”
So the devotees went to Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura and said, “You have to forgive this Cāpāla Gopāla.
Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura said, “How can I be offended?I am lower than the stool!
I am lowest of the low.”
They said, “Listen Śrīvāsa, you want someone to suffer because of you?”
“No, no, no, no!
No one should suffer because of me.”
“Whether you think you are a devotee or not, you have to forgive Cāpāla Gopāla.
Otherwise, his destiny is very bad.”
“Alright, then I will do that.”
So then Śrīvāsa went
and then Cāpāla Gopāla pleaded, “Please forgive me for my offences.”
Then Śrīvāsa said, “Yes, I forgive you.”
As soon as he said, Lord Caitanya appeared out of nowhere
and He embraced Cāpāla Gopāla. Haribol! Haribol!
So we have to be careful
of offending devotees.
But Lord Caitanya is very merciful. If we get forgiven by the devotee, He will forgive you.
He told Mother Śacī that since she had offended Advaita Gosāñī she will not get love of Godhead.
Devotees, were like, “Mother Śacī, she is Your mother, how she cannot love of Kṛṣṇa?”
Lord Caitanya said, “When My brother took sannyāsa she said, maybe because of Advaita Ācārya’s preaching.
So, in this way she had offended Him.”
So He took Mother Śacī over to Advaita Ācārya and Advaita Ācārya asked, “What are all these devotees here about?”
“Śacīmātā has offended You and You have to forgive her.”
“She cannot offend Me, she is a very good devotee!” He started glorifying Śacīmātā
and He became so ecstatic glorifying Śacīmātā
that He fainted.
Lord Caitanya told Śacīmātā, “He is never going to forgive you.
He did not think that you can offend Him.
You take the dust from His lotus feet
and that way you will be forgiven.”
So Śacīmātā took the dust
from Advaita Ācārya’s lotus feet
and put it on her head
and she was forgiven!
And after that she got love of Godhead!
Any other question.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Mercy]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-25
Jayapatākā Swami: You see in nava-vidha-bhakti the first two are śravaṇam and kīrtanam – hearing and chanting.
You can chant the holy names you and listen.
The other sevā is pāda-sevanam.
If you can give some of the fruits of your work to serve the Lord.
This way, you remember the Lord – smaraṇam.
When you worship the Deities, that is arcanam.
When you pay obeisances, that is vandanam.
So, Ambarīṣa Mahārāja, he did all the nine practices of devotion that is ātma-nivedanam.
Category: [Day-to-day Life / Workplace], [Sādhanā], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
We have been following Kṛṣṇa consciousness for so many years. Generally, devotees we see that in the process we have ups and downs. So when we take the case of Bharata Mahārāja, he was so sincere, he was so renounced, and he did his Kṛṣṇa consciousness so carefully, but there we hear that in the bhāva stage he was attracted and had to take another birth because of the offence that he did in a previous birth which he did not even know about. How to come out of it and what is the remedy when we do not know what offences we have committed?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-08-16
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, even Bharata Mahārāja who fell down took birth as a deer.
But Kṛṣṇa was merciful on him, and he could remember his previous lives.
The next birth he birth as a brāhmaṇa,
Jaḍa Bharata
and he was taken by some dacoits to be offered to Bhadra-Kālī as a balidāna, sacrifice.
But Bhadra-Kālī, she was so angry because he was a pure devotee.
She killed all the dacoits
and saved Jaḍa Bharata.
So we should just do our devotional service and even if we have done some unknown offence,
Kṛṣṇa will protect us if we do devotional service.
Now, this planet is known as Bhārata-varṣa.
And still India is called as Bhārata.
It is named after the king Bharata.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-13
Jayapatākā Swami: We are trying to have some joint programs
on the appearance disappearance days of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura.
And that time everybody speaks for ten minutes.
And we have various speakers.
That way we are cooperating.
But we don’t really associate, one on one, individually,
because it may expose us to some criticism.
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Gauḍīya maṭḥa], [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Association (Sādhu-saṅga)]
Questioner: Anon
Date: 2022-08-01
Jayapatākā Swami: We offer it to Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa, but just show it to the guru-paramparā.
After showing the guru-paramparā, we offer to Rādhā Kṛṣṇa or Gaura-Nitāi.
Then offering to guru-paramparā as a prasāda is not an offence.
If tulasī is offered to Kṛṣṇa, then we can eat that tulasī, that is kṛṣṇa-prasāda.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-16
Jayapatākā Swami: See, if you read Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam,
it tells you how the material world is a kind of a jungle
and the pleasure here is temporary.
So we should side by side render devotional service.
I was thinking how in this age of Kali it is recommended that most people should get married
and how will they be Kṛṣṇa conscious.
We see that people normally are very much attached to their material desires.
But we realize that these material desires, these material things are all temporary,
and if they render devotional service, it is not temporary.
So devotees need to render devotional service and material life won’t be so much important for us.
Since it is illusory or temporary,
we want to do all our activities in such a way that Kṛṣṇa is pleased.
I was thinking how when one has children, we try to bring up the children to be devotees,
and all our activities we try to do in a Kṛṣṇa conscious way.
Say we like to eat,
we offer the bhoga to Kṛṣṇa
and we take the prasāda.
That is a different thing than just eating for our enjoyment.
And we have Deities in our house,
we do worship of the Deities,
we read the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam regularly
and then we understand what the difference is between temporary happiness and real happiness.
We want devotees to actually achieve this happiness.
Maybe temporarily the temporary happiness is considered important
but gradually one develops higher taste.
Just like Lord Caitanya, He would chant and dance,
sometimes in great ecstasy He would cry,
His hairs stood on ends
various symptoms of love of Kṛṣṇa would manifest.
So we want all the devotees to experience that love of Kṛṣṇa,
it may take some time
but then naturally the material desires diminish.
Category: [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions], [Material Sufferings], [Karma / Desires], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Emotions / Enthusiasm]
Questioner: Bhagyasri
Date: 2022-11-28
Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has recommended
that when one wakes up in the morning
you should beat their mind with shoes 100 times.
And before we go to bed beat your mind 108 times with a broom stick.
In this way, you are not the mind, your mind should cooperate with you.
You have to tell the mind who is the boss.
Instead of the mind bossing you around, you tell the mind what to do.
If you don’t want to think about that pray to Kṛṣṇa He will help
and pray that you want to think about Kṛṣṇa.
Category: [Anarthās], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Material World / Mind / Intelligence], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Nandakumāra Kṛṣṇa dāsa, USA
Date: 2023-07-10
Jayapatākā Swami: In a very respectful way, you can always ask the devotee
how, what they are doing can be accepted.
And if they have a good answer,
then that is alright.
If they say, it is my mistake,
then they stand corrected.
But we should not jump
to conclude that they are wrong.
First we ask them,
why they are doing that
and see what they say.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-11-28
Jayapatākā Swami: In the 18th chapter of Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ.
So, there He says He will destroy all the sinful reactions.
If you have offended any devotees,
then you should see how you can beg forgiveness and touch their lotus feet.
Or do something which will help others to be Kṛṣṇa conscious and get forgiven for the offences.
Like Mādhāi he apologized to Nitāi
that, “I hit You!”
But Nityānanda said, “No, I took it like a mother kicked the baby.”
Then Mādhāi said, “I have offended many other Vaiṣṇavas of the dhāma,
how can I get forgiven for that?”
So, then Nityānanda Prabhu advised him to build a bathing ghāṭa
so that he will facilitate people to go and take bath in the Ganges,
and thereby he would get forgiven for his offences.
So one of the ghāṭas in Navadvīpa is Mādhāi-ghāṭa.
Questioner: Anon
Date: 2022-08-01
Jayapatākā Swami: In Māyāpur we sing the Yugalāṣṭakam.
Jīva Gosvāmī had sung this song and that song is sung here.
If you want to sing the Caurāṣṭakam, I don’t forbid that.
Someone questioned that did any ācārya recommend to sing this Caurāṣṭakam?
I told our paṇḍita to check on this.
And he said that in puṣṭi-mārga they sing this song.
We should especially sing the songs of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa.
But puṣṭi-mārga they don’t sing the songs of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa, they sing this song.
This song is not bad, we can do that, but this is not in praise of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa, it is only in praise of Kṛṣṇa.
Name of Rādhā comes only once.
Kṛṣṇa stole the heart of Rādhā it says.
In this month you can sing any song on Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.
I saw that the song by Jīva Gosvāmī is very easy.
Everyone can sing it.
If we sing any Rādhā Kṛṣṇa song, the worshipable Deities in Puruṣottama month are Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.
In Dāmodara month, Dāmodara Yaśodā are the worshipable Deities.
Śrīla Prabhupāda said to sing saccidānanda rūpam.
But no ācāryas have not specifically said to say any prayer.
But they said that worship of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa should be done.
That way we agreed to sing the Yugalāṣṭakam.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: That we have them promise to avoid breaking the four principles at the time of initiation.
They should avoid not chanting 16 rounds.
They should avoid the ten offences to the Holy Name.
Category: [Anarthās], [Aparādha (Offenses)]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-23
So dīkṣā means…
Once they surrender to Kṛṣṇa and say, “Kṛṣṇa my life is Yours.
I want to serve You eternally.”
The way that one does that is through Kṛṣṇa’s pure devotee.
One has to surrender to a devotee of Kṛṣṇa as a spiritual master,
and accept initiation, and serve that spiritual master following his instruction as being the absolute representative of Kṛṣṇa.
So, initiation we give normally after a devotee is in the temple for six months.
A devotee can cook, means he can prepare the thing like cutting vegetables, rolling the chapāti, or making the batter and things like that.
But actually, fire work the putting the thing on the fire, and the final action that should be done by people who are initiated,
when you are offering it to the Deities.
Because this is the [pañca-tantrika] pañcarātrika ruling is there that the someone who is initiated they are able to serve Kṛṣṇa.
They are… there Kṛṣṇa says, “I accept someone who is initiated on My same spiritual level.”
We can’t approach Kṛṣṇa.
We are born human being.
Human being means that’s a material position.
Kṛṣṇa is not human.
He is on transcendental platform.
When we accept dīkṣā that means we accept a new birth, dvijatva.
Second birth means that mother is śāstra, and father is guru.
You see.
Then Kṛṣṇa accepts us that now you are on a spiritual platform.
That time we accept that we are not the body, we are the soul.
Body is only our vehicle, and we are serving in this way.
So all these thing are many implications for dīkṣā.
Dīkṣā also means to become a śiṣya.
Śiṣya means to follow the discipline of the guru.
Category: [Dīkṣā (Initiation)], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-23
So dīkṣā means…
Once they surrender to Kṛṣṇa and say, “Kṛṣṇa my life is Yours.
I want to serve You eternally.”
The way that one does that is through Kṛṣṇa’s pure devotee.
One has to surrender to a devotee of Kṛṣṇa as a spiritual master,
and accept initiation, and serve that spiritual master following his instruction as being the absolute representative of Kṛṣṇa.
So, initiation we give normally after a devotee is in the temple for six months.
A devotee can cook, means he can prepare the thing like cutting vegetables, rolling the chapāti, or making the batter and things like that.
But actually, fire work the putting the thing on the fire, and the final action that should be done by people who are initiated,
when you are offering it to the Deities.
Because this is the [pañca-tantrika] pañcarātrika ruling is there that the someone who is initiated they are able to serve Kṛṣṇa.
They are… there Kṛṣṇa says, “I accept someone who is initiated on My same spiritual level.”
We can’t approach Kṛṣṇa.
We are born human being.
Human being means that’s a material position.
Kṛṣṇa is not human.
He is on transcendental platform.
When we accept dīkṣā that means we accept a new birth, dvijatva.
Second birth means that mother is śāstra, and father is guru.
You see.
Then Kṛṣṇa accepts us that now you are on a spiritual platform.
That time we accept that we are not the body, we are the soul.
Body is only our vehicle, and we are serving in this way.
So all these thing are many implications for dīkṣā.
Dīkṣā also means to become a śiṣya.
Śiṣya means to follow the discipline of the guru.
Category: [Dīkṣā (Initiation)], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship]
Questioner: Golokapriya Gaurāṅgī devī dāsī
Date: 2023-07-07
Jayapatākā Swami: Since the guru is a pure devotee, always thinking of his guru and Kṛṣṇa,
therefore by thinking of the spiritual master,
one can also achieve Kṛṣṇa.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Material Sufferings / Death], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Kackulī Rāṇī
Date: 2022-09-21
Jayapatākā Swami: It depends on how bad he is
and if he is slightly offensive or fully offensive.
We don’t want liberation by the impersonal method,
and that is something we reject.
I don’t know what type of liberation that person gets.
So the guru is giving instructions to help us
so that we can achieve the spiritual perfection
and we should appreciate what the spiritual master tells us.
Questioner: Kackulī Rāṇī
Date: 2022-09-21
Jayapatākā Swami: It depends on how bad he is
and if he is slightly offensive or fully offensive.
We don’t want liberation by the impersonal method,
and that is something we reject.
I don’t know what type of liberation that person gets.
So the guru is giving instructions to help us
so that we can achieve the spiritual perfection
and we should appreciate what the spiritual master tells us.
Questioner: Kackulī Rāṇī
Date: 2022-09-21
Jayapatākā Swami: It depends on how bad he is
and if he is slightly offensive or fully offensive.
We don’t want liberation by the impersonal method,
and that is something we reject.
I don’t know what type of liberation that person gets.
So the guru is giving instructions to help us
so that we can achieve the spiritual perfection
and we should appreciate what the spiritual master tells us.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-22
Jayapatākā Swami: What is real compassion?
You know, the mercy given out
which actually regenerates the relationship with Kṛṣṇa,
that is really the highest compassion.
Because we read how different Purāṇas,
someone does some particular sacrifice
(isn’t tomorrow Ekādaśī?)
Pāpamocani Ekādaśī.
So by observing Ekādaśī, by doing some penance,
one may get freed of all the sinful reactions.
So, if someone they worship some devas,
they go to svarga
but for a devotee
svarga is like a ghoḍa-dīm – horse’s egg.
Horse doesn’t produce egg!!
So a kind of an ākāśa-puṣpa,
a flower in the sky
that one is in the heavenly planet for some years
and then one comes down.
So that is not kind of permanent benediction.
So the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
tells us about the permanent relationship with Kṛṣṇa.
And that allows us to have an eternal life.
And what pleases me the most?
I am most pleased
when devotees develop pure love for Kṛṣṇa.
Haribol!
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Mercy]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-22
Jayapatākā Swami: What is real compassion?
You know, the mercy given out
which actually regenerates the relationship with Kṛṣṇa,
that is really the highest compassion.
Because we read how different Purāṇas,
someone does some particular sacrifice
(isn’t tomorrow Ekādaśī?)
Pāpamocani Ekādaśī.
So by observing Ekādaśī, by doing some penance,
one may get freed of all the sinful reactions.
So, if someone they worship some devas,
they go to svarga
but for a devotee
svarga is like a ghoḍa-dīm – horse’s egg.
Horse doesn’t produce egg!!
So a kind of an ākāśa-puṣpa,
a flower in the sky
that one is in the heavenly planet for some years
and then one comes down.
So that is not kind of permanent benediction.
So the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
tells us about the permanent relationship with Kṛṣṇa.
And that allows us to have an eternal life.
And what pleases me the most?
I am most pleased
when devotees develop pure love for Kṛṣṇa.
Haribol!
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Mercy]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-04-27
Jayapatākā Swami: I was there when Śrīla Prabhupāda said this.
He was in Montreal, 1968.
And all the devotees were thinking, “Oh, 100%, that is very high!”
But as he was coming down, 90%, 80%.
Then, he was walking away,
taking his cadāra behind him.
He said even 70%. [paragraph]
In my class His Holiness Girirāja Swami, he said he knew the secret!
That one devotee said to Śrīla Prabhupāda, even if I don’t achieve 70%, what is my hope then?
Śrīla Prabhupāda said, “Stay with me, I have the key to the backdoor!”
Questioner: Pūja mātājī
Date: 2022-07-30
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, material separation is due to identifying with the body.
Say we have a body, it came from a mother or father.
But from the same father and mother came brothers and sisters.
Like that, if we feel separation due to some bodily relationship,
that is something material.
Because in every birth we have different mother and father, different brother and sister,
sometimes we would be born in a lady’s body, sometime in a man’s body,
and we also may be born in some other species.
Indra was once offensive to his guru.
The guru cursed him be a pig,
and then he was in this planet as a pig.
He had many wives, many piglets, and he was lying in his mud.
The guru came to take him back,
but he did not want to go.
He was feeling separation from the piggy wives and piglets.
Then the guru gave him the memory of who he was.
He was thinking, ah! how I am in this horrible place?
So that is material separation.
And spiritual separation is where we are connected with the Lord,
it is a spiritual heart to heart, spirit to spirit relationship.
And naturally we feel a kind of separation to guru or Vaiṣṇavas,
that is something transcendental,
and they are not based on the body.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Gaurāṇga], [Material Sufferings / Death]
Questioner: Vinoda Kṛṣṇa and Nandapriya Padmā
Date: 2022-09-16
Jayapatākā Swami: Obviously you can only reveal your mind to very close devotees.
And so we would hope that you don’t have any offensive thoughts.
But in the case of Puṇḍarīka Vidyānidhi,
his doubt,
we are going to hear what the result of that is.
So if you have doubt on the Lord or His devotee,
it may be dangerous.
He would say that
to Svarūpa Dāmodara
and then Svarūpa Dāmodara would correct him.
So if you are in a position, if someone reveals their mind to you,
and they have some doubt,
then you have to answer their doubt.’
Category: [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Association (Sādhu-saṅga)], [Material World / Mind / Intelligence], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Anarthās]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-03-13
Jayapatākā Swami: Combination of separation when we miss the devotee,
and because they went back to Godhead, so
some feeling of bliss.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-12-05
Jayapatākā Swami: Interesting!
We should be very cautious about māyā.
Māyā tries to take us away.
She is very strict.
One devotee when he joined ISKCON, his father offered him a million dollars
to leave Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
He did not leave!
I mean, how many here would be tempted by eight crores?
So, sometimes māyā gives one some incentives,
sometimes māyā gives one suffering,
and so we have to be very cautious.
So we should always keep ourselves surrendered at Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet.
What we should be conscious about is to do everything for the service of Kṛṣṇa.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Sādhanā]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-06-05
Naivedya-mantra,
you
to guru,
to Gaurāṅga and to Kṛṣṇa.
And some
mantra
is there for offering
naivedya.
You see,
if you want to offer the prasāda in your house then we can teach you this mantra also because in India we are not having the same radio station
(laughing)
.
So we’ll give you the
mantra.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Guṇagrāhi Gaurāṅga dāsa
Date: 2023-01-27
Jayapatākā Swami: We may commit mistakes, but we should beg for forgiveness,
and we should continue to do our devotional service, being more and more careful.
If we realize we did a mistake, we can ask for forgiveness.
I saw that even in one of the prayers to Lord Kṛṣṇa, the devotee says,
I have committed innumerable offences, please forgive me and engage me in Your service.
I surrender to Your lotus feet!
So, there are offences we commit knowingly or unknowingly,
but we should be humble, try to correct any mistakes we make and continue to render devotional service.
Haribol!
Questioner: Sucitra Revatī devī dāsīT
Date: 2023-07-07
Jayapatākā Swami: That means approaching in great humility.
So holding a blade of grass in your teeth
means you are taking a very humble position.
Questioner: Akshay, Vadodara
Date: 2022-10-15
I feel very grateful for all that Śrīla Prabhupāda did for me
and so to repay him I try to preach.
And in 2008 I had a stroke.
And the right side of my body is not paralyzed fully but paresis, partially paralyzed.
And the left side of my face.
But the teachings of Lord Caitanya are very blissful.
It says that normal people if they eat grains and milk, you get strong,
but for devotees even if you have one drop of nectar
then you feel so much energy.
Lord Caitanya gives this nectar.
We hope that your visit to Māyāpur was very nice.
This is known as audārya-dhāma,
the merciful dhāma.
Vṛndāvana is mādhurya-dhāma, very sweet.
Jagannātha Purī and Dvārakā are aiśvarya-dhāmas,
very opulent.
This is the place to have mercy
and Caitanya Mahāprabhu is Kṛṣṇa but He is in the mood of devotee, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī.
So that is why it is the special mercy we get
and we want to serve Lord Caitanya and Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-03-15
Jayapatākā Swami: What pleases me the most? Pleasing Śrīla Prabhupāda! Ha! Ha!
He asked me to distribute books,
expand the congregation,
to expand Kṛṣṇa consciousness pracāra unlimitedly,
to develop Māyāpur Dhām,
to unite the Saraswat family,
to develop Navadvīpa-dhāma,
to develop Gaura Maṇḍala Bhūmī,
and many other things.
So you can do any of these things,
which one will you do?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-19
Jayapatākā Swami: Naturally, we should serve the spiritual master as the representative of his guru, the guru-paramparā and Kṛṣṇa.
So, in this way Kṛṣṇa is watching
and how we satisfy our spiritual master
that Kṛṣṇa sees.
He blesses accordingly.
Now how to develop proper attitude.
It happens naturally as we progress in our spiritual life.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Questioner: Śrījīva Gosvāmī dāsa
Date: 2022-10-04
Jayapatākā Swami: If they are taking minimal amount,
what they need for maintaining their family,
so if the temple thinks it is worthwhile,
then one should do that.
And that would be considered as selfless service.
Of course, if one is taking a huge amount and saving a lot,
then he may consider if it is selfless.
Category: [Day-to-day Life / Workplace], [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Varṇāśrama / Gṛhastha]
Questioner: Ānandinī Śacīmātā devī dāsī
Date: 2022-10-15
Jayapatākā Swami: Well, you can either jump into the Ganges,
or you can touch that person’s feet back.
We found that Lord Nityānanda and
Lord Caitanya, were dancing in such a way, They tried to touch each other’s feet.
They were so expert at dancing
that They avoided.
So, sometimes the associates of Lord Caitanya would do this type of
transcendental competition,
to touch each other’s feet.
If someone touches your feet, you touch their feet.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Etiquette / Sadācāra]
Questioner: Keya Rani
Date: 2022-10-15
Jayapatākā Swami: 1. We should observe it after that.
And plead to Kṛṣṇa for forgiveness.
Questioner: Keya Rani
Date: 2022-10-15
Jayapatākā Swami: 1. We should observe it after that.
And plead to Kṛṣṇa for forgiveness.
Questioner: Nitāi Līleśvara dāsa
Date: 2022-08-04
Jayapatākā Swami: I hear different emails every day
and I have certain corresponding secretaries.
Like Rādhāramaṇa Sevaka dāsa and others.
So you write to me and don’t get a reply in a week,
then you could write a WhatsApp message to my corresponding secretary
that why you are not getting a reply.
And usually, you will get a reply.
But at least you will be told why you are not getting a reply.
And right now, we also have the Jayapatākā Swami Disciples’ e-Care
and you can write to them also.
So I am trying to make myself available
and I don’t know who is the śikṣā-guru you have faith in.
You can ask or suggest a śikṣā-guru
and get some authorization.
Otherwise, try to contact me as I mentioned.
Category: [Vaiṣṇava Dealings / Association (Sādhu-saṅga)], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Śikṣā-guru], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Emotions / Confusion]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-19
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, Śrīla Prabhupāda called me to LA,
at that time I was in Toronto,
and he told me that he would send me to India
as soon as Acyutānanda had his own place.
I went and opened up the Chicago temple,
along with Bhagavān dāsa.
Then I was called up and Śrīla Prabhupāda told me to go to India.
I flew to London
and then I went to India.
I arrived in Calcutta,
but Acyutānanda did not have his own place.
So for some time, we were staying in the Gauḍīya Maṭha.
And then we found our own place.
Śrīla Prabhupāda flew in from Japan
and he went to that place in South Calcutta.
After a while Śrīla Prabhupāda said he had given sannyāsa to nine devotees in LA.
He asked Acyutānanda and myself, if we wanted to take sannyāsa.
At that time, I thought it was a very glorious thing!
I still think
but I see it is very difficult to be a sannyāsī in the West.
I was fortunate that I was in India!
Where it was not so difficult.
Anyway on Rādhāṣṭamī day Śrīla Prabhupāda gave Acyutānanda and myself sannyāsa.
He said Acyutānanda was the 10th sannyāsī and I was the 11th.
Now I think I am the oldest sannyāsī still alive.
Basically, that is what happened.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: Of course, I heard about Śrīla Prabhupāda first.
And I heard great things!
Then I went to Montreal to see Śrīla Prabhupāda.
At that time, I could see auras around people.
When I saw Śrīla Prabhupāda his aura filled up the whole room, yellow!
So what was the first thing I thought when I saw Śrīla Prabhupāda – WOW!
And he said, “Who is that?” Pointing to me.
I was shaved up and there were not so many devotees there.
Garga Muni who was there from San Francisco, he said, he is a bhakta.
Śrīla Prabhupāda said, “Bring him for lunch tomorrow!”
Category: [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Pastimes]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-05-11
Jayapatākā Swami: Firstly, we should avoid doing aparādhas.
At the time of initiation, you read the ten offences of the holy name.
This is the system so that we don’t break the regulative principles.
First, if we commit an offence to someone knowingly,
then we can pray for forgiveness.
In Māyāpur, there is a place where specially we go we get freed from Vaiṣṇava aparādha.
Aparādha-bhañjanera-kuliyā-pāḍa
And if you did some aparādhā it can get forgiven by touching the feet of the devotee you offended.
And I have seen many shoes outside. I see devotees touching those shoes.
You should try to avoid committing offences.
Questioner: Anon
Date: 2022-08-02
Jayapatākā Swami: Pulling out the weeds?
Well, just like for instance uh, the first weed is described as niṣiddhācāra - unauthorized behavior.
Say that a person uh, is habituated to uh, eating meat,
but chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, friend of Kṛṣṇa coming, but you know still he eats meat.
So, then the person gradually stops eating meat, that is pulling the weed out, say, in the beginning stage.
But then say something that might even attack an older person that’s in devotional service - kuṭīnāṭī or lābha, pratiṣṭhā, pūjā.
Kuṭīnāṭī means diplomatic behavior.
Just like say a neophyte devotee, not very strong, he is trying to practice devotional service, he is practicing.
But somehow, he got mislead… miss… you know, like waylaid.
Went out, did something wrong, maybe went out, got drunk or something, you know.
Just fall.
Say, met some old friends.
They said, “Come on!” Next thing you know, had a beer can in his hand, whatever; and so, got in trouble.
So, then I met a devotee like that.
That is not a devotee, initiated, but just like a bhakta type person.
And then he had something like that happen.
Then he got picked up for drunken driving.
Very… He was come by and he was apologizing.
He was going to really try to be Kṛṣṇa conscious again.
So, the thing was that if a person… say that a person does something like that,
and some senior person is there to help him, some spiritually advanced person, and then if tries to like lie about it, hide the truth,
so or… that’s one form of kuṭīnāṭī, being devious you know.
Well, if the person was just straight forward, “Yeah, I had this problem, can you help me?”
Then he gets some good advice, and that gives him some more inspiration, some more strength to just stay on the path, you see.
So that lack of being straightforward of you know, confiding in uh, people who are actually there to help you spiritually, that’s one form of kuṭīnāṭī.
There are many others.
Like different have diplomatic behavior.
So if one, one gives up that behavior
and then takes the uh, you know, straight forward path, takes the consequences whatever it may be, you see,
there is no consequences like that in devotional service, no one is going to uh,
put anyone unnecessarily on the spot, rather one is compassionate, trying to help someone if they are having difficulties.
So, that’s how you pull the weed.
It’s just that, when you, you have to isolate, you have to recognize,
“This is the defect, this is a mistake, this is a wrong thing.”
And then you… then you work at uh, not doing it anymore.
That’s how you pull it.
That’s the meaning of pulling it.
Just like you know, some people they show you, “Look at my garden.
Look at my lawn.
It’s so beautiful; everything is green, right?” Before… If I look at the lawn, I’ll think it’s great.
But then if some you know, horticulturist comes, he says, “Well that’s crabgrass, that’s too… this is you know, this is uh, hog… hog… hog grass,
and this is not you know you supposed to have all you know Kentucky blue or something.
You got all this other garbage grass in there.”
You see.
For an ordinary, layman, it’s all grass, you know, who cares?
But you know, if you really get into it, it’s all some kind of grass that are ultimately weeds that don’t help the…
They are going to take over the whole thing and make it very scrubby looking.
But it looks the same, it looks similar, you see.
So, all you do, you pull it out, take it out.
So, you have to isolate it first, what is the weed and what is the real plant?
Weed means it looks like a real plant.
It is not… It is a plant also.
It looks similar.
It is not you know necessarily a lot different, it might be a lot different or might even be similar, it’s a plant anyway.
So, some of the things are just a slight difference, some of them are really different.
Just like an oak tree and a piece of grass, same type of living entity: plant, you see, vegetation.
But it’s not that completely different, may be in the beginning stages it looks similar,
when it’s just like a 3 inches ha… high, but in the end, you know, it becomes completely different.
So how you pull it out in terms of practicality, just you guys stopping doing that particularly,
or at least trying to stop.
First you isolate what it is, then you work at pulling it out.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-17
That is our connection with our spiritual master,
to serve him
and carry out his instructions,
the vāṇī-sevā.
It is definitely very difficult
but there is nothing else we can do.
We have to keep our connection with the spiritual master,
by carrying out his instructions, his vāṇī,
and this way we will be connected with our spiritual master.
Category: [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Spiritual World / Dhāma], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Guru (Spiritual Master)]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2022-09-17
That is our connection with our spiritual master,
to serve him
and carry out his instructions,
the vāṇī-sevā.
It is definitely very difficult
but there is nothing else we can do.
We have to keep our connection with the spiritual master,
by carrying out his instructions, his vāṇī,
and this way we will be connected with our spiritual master.
Category: [Sādhanā / Sevā], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Spiritual World / Dhāma], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Guru (Spiritual Master)]
Questioner: Anon
Date: 2022-08-01
Jayapatākā Swami: Why were you able to read more earlier and not now?
Please try that you do not commit any Vaiṣṇava-aparādhā amongst each other and forgive each other.
You can chant the Pañca-tattva mantra and Nitāi-Gaura names and thus make advancement in spiritual life.
Category: [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Aparādha (Offenses) / Vaiṣṇava-aparādha], [Sādhanā], [Vaiṣṇava Dealings]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-01-20
Jayapatākā Swami: I don’t know who your guru is but for my disciples, if they have to, they can use the counting machine.
Since I had a stroke in 2008, my right side doesn’t fully cooperate.
So I have to chant by my left hand.
And Rādhānātha Swami gave me some chanting machine.
Now I do more than 16 rounds.
But I have to like do exercises in the morning and when I exercise, I also chant and keep track of that.
When I walk in the pool, I chant, each step is half a mantra.
So I promised Śrīla Prabhupāda I would chant 16 rounds of 108 mantras each.
That is 1,728.
Category: [Day-to-day Life / Workplace], [Sādhanā], [Sādhanā / Chanting (Japa)], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-29
Jayapatākā Swami: If the guru gives instruction
to accept disciples,
then one has to follow the instructions of the guru.
In the Remuna for instance, there is a Deity of Rasikānanda
and his guru is Śyāmānanda.
So he was a guru in the presence of his guru.
Because he got instruction from Śyāmānanda Paṇḍita to accept disciples.
I have in Russia, Caitanya Candra Caraṇa dāsa
and I asked him to be a guru.
He has thousands of disciples,
and he is preaching in Russia.
Similarly, I am asking other disciples who are qualified,
and unless one is asked by the guru
it is true that they should not accept disciples.
But if the guru asks,
if he orders then that has to be carried out by the disciple.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-23
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, we got the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-prasāda-mantra through the mercy of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu
and the Pañca-tattva.
So, we want to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra by invoking the mercy of the Pañca-tattva.
Because in this chanting of the Pañca-tattva mantra, there is no offence considered.
And therefore, we chant Pañca-tattva first.
In Africa there is some tribe instead of drinking the milk, they cut a vein of the cow and drink the blood.
Anyway, Śrīla Prabhupāda said that from now chanting the name of the Pañca-tattva it would be more effective
because it would not be a great offence.
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-04-27
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, of course chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa we are not saying it is not enough.
But every avatāra has got a particular mood.
And Narasiṁhadeva, His mood is to help people from danger, from sickness.
We started chanting Narasiṁha mantra when Śrīla Prabhupāda was sick.
That is Narasiṁhadeva’s specialty.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Annu Prasad
Date: 2022-10-15
In Kali-yuga, one doesn’t get a reaction
for mentally creating some offence.
You have to do that practically.
Since the mind is not very easily controlled in the Kali-yuga,
it may think many weird things.
So Gadādhara Prabhu,
He was thinking that Puṇḍarīka Vidyānidhī
was a materialistic,
later He realized that he was a pure devotee.
So therefore, He accepted him as His guru,
because the guru always forgives his disciples’ offences.
So, if someone offends a guru mentally,
and later surrenders and becomes the guru’s disciple,
that is authorized in the process, example set by Gadādhara Prabhu.
Category: [Anarthās], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Material World / Kali yuga], [Material World / Mind / Intelligence]
Yesterday we saw while you were reading the Caitanya-caritāmṛta you were experiencing extreme such separation even while reading, from Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Lord Kṛṣṇa. We could tell from just what was going on. In addition to that you were experiencing extreme physical pain and today in the medical meeting you mentioned that you are missing Gaura, Kṛṣṇa and that you are also missing Śrīla Prabhupāda. How are you able to handle such seeming diametric feelings, all at once?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-25
Jayapatākā Swami: Just like when the lady climbed on Lord Caitanya’s shoulder holding the Garuḍa-stambha,
then Lord Caitanya said that Lord Jagannātha has not blessed Me with such eagerness.
So, He was praying that this lady would give Him blessing
so He would have so much eagerness to see the Lord.
I don’t have so much intense separation,
that I am surviving
is due to my lack of intense love for Kṛṣṇa.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
I will try to take lunch early and come for my evening class earlier
so that everybody can take rest early!
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-10
Jayapatākā Swami: You see having a material body includes having disease and old age.
And I asked Śrīla Prabhupāda once, should we desire to live for a long time?
He said why do you want to live old age
because old age means lot of trouble.
I have many disciples.
So I have to take their karma.
So, although the doctors said that I had zero chance of survival,
I am still here!
And unfortunately, not every disciple follows all the rules that they vow to follow.
So, I have the opportunity to serve my spiritual master,
I am very happy with that.
And since the stroke and since the other diseases,
I also have a liver and a kidney transplant,
I got cancer
although that was cured.
So I am still in the war.
I asked Śrīla Prabhupāda, “What I should do.
My father wanted to turn me down to the Vietnam war draft.”
Śrīla Prabhupāda said, “Better than serving the American army, serve in Kṛṣṇa’s Army!”
And I came to India, he told me to be an Indian citizen.
So I have been an Indian citizen since 1978.
So that is going on.
So we all have to die,
eventually that happens to everybody.
I want to take as many people as possible back to the spiritual world!
Haribol!
I need your help!
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-02-20
Jayapatākā Swami: This is Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mercy that I am living in Māyāpur dhāma.
And I had a lot of service to Kṛṣṇa.
I engrossed myself totally in that service.
I had no time to think of Māyā.
Śrīla Prabhupāda said, I am giving you the spiritual world, now develop it.
That is why I had a lot of service.
If we have service, then that helps.
Most of the people will become gṛhasthas.
You have to be in one place
then with family, children, you have to give them association.
But Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me sannyāsa at a young age. He told me that being a sannyāsī I have to travel.
I was in Māyāpur and then I toured the world.
Some years I travelled around the world 5 or 6 times in one year.
This way the British Airways and United Airways gave me Life Gold card.
So I can go by plane.
But this is for Kṛṣṇa’s service.
As I had so much service, there was no time for Māyā for me.
Those who work and stay in a place, they should get married to a devotee girl.
Those who stay as a brahmacārī in the temple and do there then they can stay that way.
It depends on their service.
And their nature.
Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me so much service that I have no time for anything else.
How will I accomplish these services that is my worry.
Śrīla Prabhupāda had told me that I should distribute 10,000 Mahā-big books and 100,000 small books every month.
Now I have to see how many books were distributed in all my zones.
Śrīla Prabhupāda said that the Sārasvata family should be united.
And develop the Navadvīpa dhāma parikramā, he said.
And develop the Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi he said.
Lots of service.Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me so much service that I don’t have time for anything else.
Category: [Emotions / Enthusiasm], [Gauḍīya History / Śrīla Prabhupāda], [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Varṇāśrama / Sannyāsī]
You have dedicated your life to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and Śrīla Prabhupāda. 74 years. From 19 to 74 now, you have dedicated your tan, mana, dhana.
For us we are gṛhasthas, you are our role model and if we want to take even 0.01 per cent of you, as a gṛhastha, you have dedicated your life. What we are doing only is a fraction of maybe what you have dedicated to Śrīla Prabhupāda. You have lot of wealth but we have dedicated a little wealth, you have a lot of time but we have dedicated very little time, but you have given 100% maybe more than 100%. Rūpa Gosvāmī said for gṛhasthas we should give 50% to Kṛṣṇa, 25% for family, how we can dedicate like you? What percentage we should dedicate? You have given 100% 1000% Guru Mahārāja, but percentage wise, how much like funds, energy, our talent, etc. Please bless us and guide us how you want all of us to surrender?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-02
Jayapatākā Swami: Of course, these questions are answered in Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books.
That as a sannyāsī, I have to give 100% if I give 99% I am fallen. As a gṛhastha 50%, you are doing great!
But sometimes as we were discussing, even if the gṛhasthas, they give 5% or 10% that would be so much.
Anyway, the point is actually I have seen like some gṛhasthas, we were hearing this from the Hospital Manager this morning,
she wants to serve the GBC.
Be a coordinator for all the ministries
and all the standing committees.
So she is saying in the hospital we have like 34 or 35 specialties.
So I want to see each ministry, see what their purpose is and try to help them to do that.
She has two kids, one 8 and one 11,
she has a job.
Naturally she has a husband,
but she wants to serve.
And she is a disciple of His Holiness Kadamba Kānana Swami Mahārāja, who recently passed away.
And he was instructing her how ISKCON should be managed.
With the husband’s support she thinks she can do it.
It is very impressive. you don’t have to be a sannyāsī in fact a sannyāsī may not have the proper qualifications.
So she has the vision how to serve ISKCON.
Also, she is chanting her 16 rounds and following the principles.
So that is the kind of people we need.
People who are very dedicated who want to serve ISKCON.
We heard that Kālacāndajī restaurant is the best in Dallas, something like that.
Sanātana Kṛṣṇa said not just in Dallas, in the whole world.
So, there are different – His Grace Nityānanda Prabhu’s wife she had a team and helped in cooking,
she says she doesn’t cook anymore but she does the original menu for it.
Like that, don’t hesitate, I am not a sannyāsī, I am not anything, whatever you can do, do it!
Haribol!
In Detroit they have cow cuddling program.
So many people come to cuddle the cows, and they don’t know what to do.
But there is special, particular way if they touch the cow, they are happy.
The people sign up they say they will never eat cow again.
So you can serve Kṛṣṇa, not stereotype, different ways.
Some people may give money in dollars, some may cook nice preparations.
Some may cuddle cows, or some may do home ārati.
Everyone should have this service attitude.
If Kṛṣṇa is pleased, guru and Kṛṣṇa are pleased, that is our purpose in life. Haribol!
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-01
Jayapatākā Swami: Of course, we have to desire to be there.
We also have to do favorable devotional service.
The two things together, I mean it is Kṛṣṇa’s causeless mercy
that there is nothing we can do that will deserve that.
But if we desire and engage in devotional service then Kṛṣṇa, if He pleases will give His mercy.
Sometimes Śrīla Prabhupāda said that Rādhārāṇī would say to Kṛṣṇa, this is a very nice devotee.
If Rādhārāṇī indicates that Kṛṣṇa should give His mercy,
then He will do it.
So that is why we say it is causeless mercy.
There is nothing we can do that actually we would deserve it.
We try and if Kṛṣṇa gives us the causeless mercy, we can have it.
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Gaurāṇga], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Pastimes], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Spiritual World / Dhāma]
Questioner: Neha
Date: 2022-12-06
Jayapatākā Swami: Normally we visit the holy dhāma just for a few days.
That time we are very careful not to commit any offence.
And if we stay longer for some parikramā or something,
then we try to hear from the devotees.
Category: [Anarthās], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Kṛṣṇa (Godhead) / Spiritual World / Dhāma], [Sādhanā / Philosophical questions]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-04-10
Jayapatākā Swami: You see in Māyāpur in Dāmodara you get 100, in Ekādaśī you get another hundred and near the Ganges you get a thousand or a lac times, so in this way its mentioned. But Kolkata is part of Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi.
I think that Śrīla Prabhupāda, he said something.
He said he couldn’t stay in Kolkata, but those who stay in his birthplace they will get special mercy.
So, I don’t remember how many times but Śrīla Prabhupāda said something.
I will look it up.
You talked about the four regulative principles. During initiation we vow to follow these regulative principles. My question is after initiation if a disciple breaks any one of these regulative principles, what is the method of atonement and please tell the way out so that one does not make the same mistake again.
Questioner: Saṅkīrtana Priya Nitāi dāsa
Date: 2022-12-06
Jayapatākā Swami: We should beg for forgiveness from guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Then we should perform devotional service directly.
There is no higher atonement than bhakti-yoga.
Category: [Anarthās], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Sādhanā / Regulative Principles], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
You talked about the four regulative principles. During initiation we vow to follow these regulative principles. My question is after initiation if a disciple breaks any one of these regulative principles, what is the method of atonement and please tell the way out so that one does not make the same mistake again.
Questioner: Saṅkīrtana Priya Nitāi dāsa
Date: 2022-12-06
Jayapatākā Swami: We should beg for forgiveness from guru and Kṛṣṇa.
Then we should perform devotional service directly.
There is no higher atonement than bhakti-yoga.
Category: [Anarthās], [Aparādha (Offenses)], [Sādhanā / Regulative Principles], [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2024-03-15
Jayapatākā Swami: Well, that is why when we gather together for programs,
we bow down to all the Vaiṣṇavas.
We say vāñchā-kalpatarubhyaś ca kṛpā-sindhubhya eva ca patitānāṁ pāvanebhyo vaiṣṇavebhyo namo namaḥ.
We try to forgive everyone for any knowing or unknowing offences.
Because if we don’t know about it, we don’t know! Ha!
So we may have inadvertently offended someone.
So we want to be forgiven for that.
Śrīla Prabhupāda said that generally if we ask questions, that is not an offence.
Like if we ask an advanced Vaiṣṇava some question,
even if it is a personal question.
Prabhu, actually you are a very senior devotee and I have been following you.
But I see that sometimes you just do this,
so I was wondering if I should follow that or not? Ha!
So in that way you are asking a question,
it is not offensive.
But if you say, PRABHU!
YOU ARE AN OFFENDER, YOU ARE SMOKING BEHIND THE CAR!
Maybe it is not true,
or maybe it is true but not something we should present in that way.
So, we try to ask questions rather than accuse anyone.
Unless you are in a very senior position
and you are advising some disciple who is junior.
I was made a temple president two weeks after my initiation.
So everyone in the temple, many were more senior than me! Ha!
So if told them, PRABHU, GO TO THE STORE!
They would look at me and say, who are you to tell me?
So I would go to people and say,
Prabhu, how would you like to go the store?
The deities need apples or something! Ha!
So if they said no,
I would keep asking them! Ha!
But I wouldn’t tell them,
I would ask them.
So somehow that became the thing that I learnt since I was a young president.
And it is hard for me to stop that even now!!
I am very happy to see that your house is very clean,
I feel very devotional in your house!
You were mentioning yesterday in class about demarcation of Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi. And you mentioned the different directions it reaches in West Bengal, Odisha and some parts of Bangladesh. But we also know there were many close associates of Lord Caitanya who have taken birth in other parts of India like South India and Maharashtra, also Lord Caitanya had gone and had pastimes in South India, Maharashtra, Vṛndāvana and other places. How do we consider Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi demarcation and what is part of Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-10-29
Jayapatākā Swami: You see Lord Caitanya went to many places.
He went to Bangladesh, He went all over South India,
He went to Maharashtra, Gujarat.
So He also went to Uttara Pradesh, Vṛndāvana.
Vṛndāvana is Vraja
and Jagannātha Purī is Śrī Kṣetra.
Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi is 168 km from Māyāpur.
So that means up to Remuṇā in the south.
To the South-east we have Puṇḍarika dhāma.
And North-east is Advaita Ācārya birthplace.
And North-west is beyond Kānāi-Naṭaśālā to the hills. Forgot the name of the hills.
So that particular area is known as Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi.
And in Odisha it is known as Śrī Kṣetra.
And in Vṛndāvana it is known as Vraja dhāma.
So maybe the associates of Lord Caitanya were from some other place,
the holy place around Kāverī river and Śrīraṅgam,
that may not be Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi
but that is a holy place.
Like that India has lots of holy rivers, holy places
and they are not necessarily Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi.
Category: [Sādhanā / Technicalities]
You were saying how all these great devotees of the Lord are helping Lord Nityānanda and Lord Caitanya in preaching. So do you have any general answer to devotees who ask you like, Guru Mahārāja, I don’t know, you have not given me any instruction, please tell me an instruction. Is there a general answer that you would give to devotees, if they don’t have any specific service given?
Questioner: Devotee
Date: 2023-09-05
Jayapatākā Swami: You see, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda he gave me many instructions. I mean, at least 30 things to do, at least. And maybe more. And what I have done in my Jayapatākā Swami App, I have listed all of those. And of course, some of those things are instructions that Śrīla Prabhupāda gave to everybody, and some things he gave specifically to me, or to a few others. I asked any disciples, śikṣā disciples, well-wishers if they can you help me to fulfill these instructions. And you may help in one or help in five or many more.
So I gave all these instructions that Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me and requested the people to help me.
So, I give them a free will to choose from any of those instructions.
Hare Kṛṣṇa!
Category: [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Dīkṣā-guru], [Guru (Spiritual Master) / Guru Disciple Relationship], [Sādhanā], [Sādhanā / Sevā]
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