20260201 Fortnightly Message (19 Jan - 1 Feb 2026) Mādhava Māsa

Fortnightly Message (19 January - 1 February 2026)

Mādhava Māsa, Gaura Pakṣa, Purnima, 539 Gaurābda

My dear dīkṣā, sheltered, aspiring, śikṣā, grand-disciples, and well-wishers,

Please accept my blessings, best wishes, and praṇāms as appropriate.
All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Written from my Home Base: Śrī Māyāpur Candrodaya Mandir.
Date: 1 February 2026

Highlights

Today is Pūrṇimā, and the next Pūrṇimā will be the appearance day of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Śrī Māyāpur dhāma is getting ready for the festival. Recently, we celebrated Advaita Saptamī, Varāha Dvādaśī, and Nityānanda Trayodaśī.

Today is my eighth day of gradually coming out of my steroid treatment. According to the advice of the nephrologist, I was on a high dose of steroids for two weeks, and now they are being gradually reduced. During this time, I could not sleep much at night, which is one of the side effects of the medicine that I was told earlier. So I was thinking about the instructions that Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me and also how to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness unlimitedly. Śrīla Prabhupāda, at times, would call me at 1 a.m. or 2 a.m. to tell me something. So now I sometimes dictate messages in the middle of the night or early in the morning, whenever ideas come, and I send them to my correspondence secretary. I don’t know how much time I have left, so I don’t want to leave any chance to serve and please Śrīla Prabhupāda. I am also trying to organize the various secretariats and coordinators that I have in order to be more efficient.

Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Message

Śrīla Prabhupāda, many times mentioned the three types of devotees or the three stages of devotional platform: kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, madhyama-adhikārī, and uttama-adhikārī. Uttama-adhikārī or a mahā-bhāgavata is the topmost.

“The kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, or the devotee in the lowest stage of Vaiṣṇava life, has firm faith but is not familiar with the conclusions of the śāstras. The devotee in the second stage, the madhyama-adhikārī, is completely aware of the śāstric conclusion and has firm faith in his guru and the Lord. He, therefore, avoiding nondevotees, preaches to the innocent. However, the mahā-bhāgavata or uttama-adhikārī, the devotee in the highest stage of devotional life, does not see anyone as being against the Vaiṣṇava principles, for he regards everyone as a Vaiṣṇava but himself.” —Cc. Ādi 7.51 purport

“So everyone has got the potency to become mahā-bhāgavata, provided he tries. Sādhana-siddha and nitya-siddha. So Prahlāda Mahārāja is nitya-siddha, and there are sādhana-siddhas, just like we are. We are trying to approach the topmost goal of life by bhajana, by sādhana. So anyone has got the potency to come to the stage of mahā-bhāgavata, provided he follows the mahājana.” (Lecture, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.9.4 - February 11th 1976 Māyāpur)

My Message

Sometimes disciples write to me about their problems and their sufferings. They become discouraged, wondering why they are facing difficulties even though they are practicing devotional service. But the goal of devotional service is to please Kṛṣṇa. We want to go back to Lord Kṛṣṇa. As long as we are in the material world, these things are unavoidable. But we have to come to the level of a mahā-bhāgavata. We have to fight our war with māyā and be victorious.

So, at the time of difficulties, to actually depend on Kṛṣṇa, to take shelter of Kṛṣṇa, is the best training for us: to chant more intensely, chant the Gāyatrī mantra with full attention, to hear more carefully, to read the śāstras, and to absorb ourselves in devotional service.

If we learn to depend on Lord Kṛṣṇa during difficulty, then at the time of death, when we face our final exam, we will simply surrender to Kṛṣṇa, and then we will go back to Kṛṣṇa.

Śrīla Prabhupāda wanted us to read his books daily and to study and learn them just as a lawyer learns law books. He said we must know everything, chapter and verse.

I have different physical problems. One Āyurvedic doctor humbly told me that my body is a museum of diseases! But I have been practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness for 58 years, and I am very enthusiastic to perform various services.

For the last fortnight, I chanted 413 rounds of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, so that is around 30 rounds per day. And after reading Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books for one more time, now, I am reading Hari-bhakti-vilāsa daily.

Inspirational Stories

I received many encouraging reports about the book distribution marathon month. In Michigan, a group of 30 gṛhastha devotees, including children, led by my disciples Santuṣṭa Vrajanātha dāsa, Tulasī Sugopī devī dāsī, and Saccidānanda Giridhārī dāsa, distributed 11,631 books in December. They distributed books daily at the Great Lakes Crossing Mall, which is one of the largest outlet malls in Michigan. Since it was freezing cold outside, they used this indoor opportunity to distribute books. They mentioned that it was inspired by Śrīla Prabhupāda’s instructions to me to distribute 10,000 big books a month. So they collectively wanted to do this service in helping me fulfill Śrīla Prabhupāda’s instructions. (https://iskconnews.org/10000-book-sankirtan-challenge-surpassed-at-michigan-mall/)

Another disciple wrote to me that she has a three-year-old daughter, so she could not go out and do physical book distribution. So she took a pledge of getting 108 Bhagavad-gītā sponsorships, and through her contacts, she was able to get 118 Bhagavad-gītās sponsored.

Like this, I received many reports. It is very inspiring how devotees find various ways to distribute books, and this is certainly pleasing to Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Now, the Gaura-Pūrṇimā festival is coming up, and the GBC meetings will begin on the 4th March. Soon, we will have so many leaders and thousands of devotees arriving in Māyāpur. As the world spiritual headquarters of ISKCON, devotees in Śrī Māyāpur should welcome and serve all the visiting devotees.

Jaya Nitāi! Jaya Gaura!

Your well-wisher always,
Jayapatākā Swami

JPS/rrsdb