20250419 Question-and-Answer Session

Question: Sometimes during Deity darśana I have seen devotees displaying symptoms of crying, smiling in bliss, which are sometimes hard to control. Is there a way to control these feelings in front of others, or is it okay? If it outpours as a cry for Kṛṣṇa? Please enlighten us.

Jayapataka Swami: Because the sahajiyās, they display their emotions as a sign that they are very advanced devotees, but they are actually cheaters! For that reason, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda, Śrīla Prabhupāda, they tried to control their emotions. But I saw Śrīla Prabhupāda break down several times. It was not that he was trying to show off, but sometimes we cannot control it. So, we try to control it. We heard that sometimes Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda, he would leave the class because he could not control it. So we try to suppress it because that is our policy. Because people, if they display their emotions, then it may get misunderstood. The situation in the previous eras like the time of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, there were a lot of sahajiyās. I mean Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura wrote a song, and he mentions āula, bāula, kartābhajā, different types of sahajiyās. Now in the present situation there may be not so many sahajiyās but ISKCON devotees. So we want you all to feel the ecstasy but not necessarily to display it, because you may feel ecstasy and display it, to show off and some kind of pratiṣṭāśā. So that is the thing. It is a good sign if it is sincere. If seeing the Deity, one cries or feels something, that is good! But the downside is that if you show it off it is not good. Because of the material aspect. Sometimes even great ācāryas like previous acaryas, even Śrīla Prabhupāda could not help it. And Śrīla Prabhupāda, you can hear the class in Gorakhpur, in Uttar Pradesh, there he gave a class how Lord Caitanya embraced Sanātana Gosvāmī. And he said it was like meeting of Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs. And at that time, he actually broke up! So, I mean, I saw in Māyāpur, on the disappearance day of  Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura.

Question: The determination and dedication you have, we are not able to get even a little drop of it. Can you give a tip how and what inspires you?

Jayapatākā Swami: By my telling you what inspires me, would that be sufficient to inspire you? I mean, I have been practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness since 1968. At that time Śrīla Prabhupāda told me to read the Bhagavad-gītā ten times if I wanted to be initiated. After I was initiated, I had a book, Bhagavad-gītā ten times – 1,2,3,4,5 cross, 1,2,3,4,5 cross. And I still got that Bhagavad-gītā. So I am very inspired by Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books. I don’t know, from when. But now everything to do with Krsna, inspires me! I am inspired, just talking about Kṛṣṇa! I am inspired hearing about Kṛṣṇa! Thank you very much!

Everybody should be at least a śikṣā-guru and eventually I hope a dīkṣā-guru!

The books distributed from my transcendental book table were 1000 books, 2000 books earlier, yesterday only 18 books!