20211023 Q&A Session

Akhila Bandhu Gopāla dāsa, Bhopal: As you said that in this material world, at every step there is danger, and we should give this hope that it would be a nice place. But Guru Mahārāja, if the whole world becomes a devotee of Kṛṣṇa just like Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu predicted that in every town and village My name will be chanted, then still this material world would act in its own way, and remain a dangerous place? Or will it become better?

Jayapatākā Swami: If the whole world chants Hare Kṛṣṇa, then the whole world becomes Vaikuṇṭha. Just like when Rāma was the king, the whole world became Rāma conscious. But the Ayodhyā-vāsīs, they were transcendentally situated. When Rāmacandra left the world, they went with Him to Ayodhyā in the spiritual world. So we hope for that day, when the whole world would chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. But in the meantime, we will try to get everyone to chant, and at the end of the life Kṛṣṇa will accept us in the spiritual world.

Śrī, Sydney: How should a Vaiṣṇava behave when facing imminent threat to one’s safety?

Jayapatākā Swami: Of course, we should take shelter in Kṛṣṇa and use our intelligence to try to save ourselves. Like, Vasudeva, when Kaṁsa wanted to kill his wife Devakī, he tried various ways to save her. Finally, when he said he would give all the children to Kaṁsa, he accepted.

Saṅgītā Viśākhā devī dāsī: Bengali: We have two twins who age is 10 months. And I am not able to chant and do my services to the deities properly any longer. Sometime back I had a dream in which Lord Jagannātha came and said you don’t need us any more, you have a son and daughter. what should I do? Please guide me.

Jayapatākā Swami: One lady had written a letter to Śrīla Prabhupāda that because of I have a child, therefore I have some problem in serving the Deities. Śrīla Prabhupāda said, that the Lord has given you a child, if you are not able to do both the services, child and the Deities then you may stop serving the Deities for the time being and take care of the child. Because parents have to give love to the children that the children become devotees. That is their service to the Deity. Śrīla Prabhupāda said that these children are given by Kṛṣṇa.

So, with regard to your question, you can tell Lord Jagannātha that you have given me the children, I have to give my love to the children and that way offer my service to You. Children’s service is my service to You. You have to feed the child kṛṣṇa-prasāda. And in your house, I think that you have to give the bhoga to Kṛṣṇa and give the prasāda to your children. If you think your children are not your service to Kṛṣṇa, then that is a problem. So, we should always be thinking of Kṛṣṇa and we should think that by cultivating my children to become devotees, that is my actual service.

I just received a letter from a śikṣā disciple how she has a 17-year-old daughter and a 14-year-old daughter. But she has to prepare them to face the material world and make them Kṛṣṇa consciousness. I understood that Lord Jagannātha is telling you that now that you have your children, now you don’t think of serving us anymore. You should think that this service to my children is also my service to Lord Jagannātha.