19840610 Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 2.10.12

The following is an Ekādaśī lecture given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami on June 10, 1984. The class begins with a reading from the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 2nd Canto, Chapter 10, Verse 12.

dravyaṁ karma ca kālaś ca/ svabhāvo jīva eva ca/ yad-anugrahataḥ santi/ na santi yad-upekṣayā [SB 2.10.12]

*repetition*

Translation (by His Divine Grace Śrīla Prabhupāda): One should definitely know that all material ingredients, activities, time and modes, and the living entities who are meant to enjoy them all, exist by His mercy only, and as soon as He does not care for them, everything becomes nonexistent.

*repetition*

Jaya Nitāi Gauracandra, Jaya Śrī Śrī Jagannātha Subhadrā Balarāma!

Purport: The living entities are the enjoyers of the material ingredients, time, modes, etc., because they want to lord it over the material nature. The Lord is the supreme enjoyer, and the living entities are meant to assist the Lord in His enjoyment and thus participate in the transcendental enjoyment of everyone. The enjoyer and the enjoyed both participate in enjoyment, but, deluded by the illusory energy, the living entities want to become the enjoyer like the Lord, although they are not meant for such enjoyment. The jīvas, the living entities, are mentioned in the Bhagavad-gītā as the Lord’s superior nature, or parā-prakṛti, and so also it is mentioned in the Viṣṇu Purāṇa. Therefore, the living entities are never the puruṣas, or the factual enjoyers. As such, the spirit of enjoyment by the living entity in the material world is false. In the spiritual world the living entities are pure in nature, and therefore they are associates in the enjoyment of the Supreme Lord. In the material world the spirit of enjoyment of the living entities by dint of their own actions (karma) gradually fades by the laws of nature, and thus the illusory energy dictates in the ears of the conditioned souls that they should become one with the Lord. This is the last snare of the illusory energy. When the last illusion is also cleared off by the mercy of the Lord, the living entity again becomes reinstated in his original position and thus becomes actually liberated. For this attainment of liberation from the material clutches, the Lord creates the material world, maintains it for some time (one thousand years of His measurement, as stated in the previous verse), and then again annihilates it by His will. The living entities are therefore completely dependent on the mercy of the Lord, and all their so-called enjoyments by scientific improvement are crushed into dust when the Lord desires.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, everyone is coming from the Lord. janmādy asya yataḥ. He is the origin, He is ādi - original, He is the cause of all causes, He is the parama puruṣa. He is the supreme enjoyer. In the material world there are many, many enjoyers. This is not the real position of the jīva or living entity. Living entity is not meant to be an enjoyer, it is meant to, the living entity is meant to be enjoyed.

In the spiritual world, whether the devotees have male or female form, they are all prakṛti or energies of the Lord, and they help to give the Lord enjoyment, and therefore they also enjoy transcendental bliss, beyond what to speak of this material happiness, beyond even the bliss of liberation. In fact, liberation is described to be just like a small, little uh cup of water as compared to the ocean. Literally the Vedas describe that the calf of a cow’s hoof in the water, in the mud, the amount of water that that little hoof print holds you compare that to how much water does the ocean hold like the Pacific Ocean. And that is how much more happiness there is in serving Kṛṣṇa and giving Him happiness.

mamaivāṁśo jīva-loke jīva-bhūtaḥ sanātanaḥ - Because we are parts and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, we are His minute fragment, therefore when Kṛṣṇa is pleased, we automatically become satisfied. We achieve transcendental happiness. So in the spiritual world everyone is prakṛti, parā-prakṛti are the spiritual energies of the Lord. But in this material world, whether in a material male body or female body everyone is falsely assuming the attitude of enjoyers. That is why you see, especially in the West, where this spirit of enjoyment has been promoted irregardless of caste, color, creed, sex, religion, whatever. Spirit of enjoyment has been promoted so much that everyone has entered into the field of competition for who is going to be the greater enjoyer. And if anyone stands in the way then that is a matter for which mass movements, political uprisings and so on can be held in the name of so-called liberation movements of various kinds.

So the basic idea is everyone wants equal enjoyment, equal opportunity to enjoy. That means everybody is competing to be an enjoyer. Ultimately that is why we are in this material world, is because somehow or another we want to also be an equal enjoyer with God. Why should God enjoy more than us? Why should He be the Supreme Person? But the original Supreme Person is always original and supreme. There is nothing you can do about it. It’s not a democratic process. We happen to be His eternal parts and parcel.

And in this false position as enjoyers actually there is no happiness. So after getting bored with trying to enjoy in an unnatural situation, then māyā seeing that we are trying to lose our enthusiasm to enjoy the senses, whispers in our ear that you can merge in the existence of the Lord, you can become one with God. Then they become very so called renounced, detached from gross material things. But actually their nature is, their condition is to become much more fallen because then, one thing is to be an enjoyer, imitating the Lord, the other thing is to actually want to become one with the Lord. That is a greater offense, you see. So, these are different stages of illusion.

So, although we respect sometimes these jñāna-yogīs as transcendentalists, actually impersonalists were not very, they were not appreciated by Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu at all. In fact, He said, māyāvādī kṛṣṇe aparādhī - that an impersonalist is actually, an offender of Kṛṣṇa. Because the impersonalists they are directly trying to become one with Kṛṣṇa, or they say, “Well we are one with God, everyone is God.” So, in this way they are actually insulting Kṛṣṇa’s transcendental and absolute position.

And in so many other ways when they preach to establish their false philosophies they have to also, whenever the idea of the Supreme Personality of Godhead comes up, they have to denounce that in order to maintain their impersonal idea. So, in this way they become offenders of Kṛṣṇa. So why does Kṛṣṇa come down amongst all these competitors, and offenders, and someone? Because in this material world there are all also many devotees of the Lord. Kṛṣṇa describes that there are two kinds of living entities, even those who want to enjoy, there are those who want to enjoy but at the same time they have respect and devotion for the Lord, and actually they approach the Lord to help them in their material conquests.

Similarly, on the other side of the coin there are those who are wanting to enjoy but they are demons and they want to do so at any cost even against the sanctioned methods given by the Lord. So, amongst those devotees who are trying to enjoy there are devotees who are at different stages of purity. That devotee who is worshipping Kṛṣṇa directly simply for the desire to please Kṛṣṇa, and not for any other material motive, not for any material motive, that devotee is considered to be a pure devotee. And to satisfy them Kṛṣṇa comes down as well as to attract the other devotees what is the real purpose of life, what is the real happiness in life? That trying to enjoy this dead material energy is actually a futile attempt, which leads one into deeper and deeper stages of frustration until one contemplates committing spiritual suicide known as merging. It’s a spiritual suicide.

So Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Lord Kṛṣṇa they came down to attract the living entities, to give them an opportunity that, “You are looking for happiness, this is where the real happiness is in transcendental exchanges with the Lord.” When Kṛṣṇa came down, everyone in the entire world became Kṛṣṇa conscious. Whenever Kṛṣṇa is present, it polarizes things. Devotees they immediately become attracted and they all want to discuss Kṛṣṇa, and the demons they also become immediately attracted, they also want to discuss Kṛṣṇa but they are envious.

So, all of the demons they came forward, and those who became fully Kṛṣṇa conscious they got the opportunity of being annihilated by Kṛṣṇa materially, and spiritually liberated, which is what they wanted. But they didn’t have to go through any more birth. And the devotees they were able to leave this material world and to transfer themselves somewhere to Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes, and to… and in this way also achieve liberation from the influence of the three modes of material nature in the association of the Supreme Lord.

Now many souls were there who did not get that opportunity, they were not humans or otherwise available for being liberated by the Lord. So again, the Lord came as His own devotee as Caitanya Mahāprabhu to attract, and to uplift, and to send off these fallen souls back to home, back to Godhead.

So Lord Caitanya was just a small baby only two years old… Because today is Ekādaśī, there was a story how Lord Caitanya He was crying and crying as little Nimāi. Normally whenever Lord Nimāi would cry His parents and other neighbor women they start to clap their hands and chant

Haribol! Haribol! Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare!

Different chants and in this way Kṛṣṇa would, Kṛṣṇa Caitanya in His baby form, He would stop crying. But this day no matter how hard they chanted He wouldn’t stop. It was very puzzling for them. Finally, they called Jagannātha Miśra, and he came, and he asked, “Nimāi why You are crying?” So Nimāi this little… He was only like two years old, in His broken voice He is saying that, “I want to go to Jagadīśa Paṇḍita and Hiraṇya Paṇḍita’s house.”

Jagannātha Miśra was very surprised, “Why He wants to go there?” Two of his intimate friends but they live about two miles away on the other side of the river. On the other side in what today is very near the house of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura behind there. Why does He want to go there?

“Why do You want to go there?”

“Because today they are having a big feast.”

Jagannātha Miśra didn’t know they are having a big feast. “Why they are having a big feast?”

“It’s because it is Hari-vāsāra, it’s the Lord’s day. Its Ekādaśī.”

“Today is Ekādaśī?!”

“Yes!”

“How did little Nimāi know that today, even what Ekādaśī was, what two year old child knows what Ekādaśī is? And how did He know that Jagadīśa Paṇḍita and Hiraṇya were having a big festival? Was it real? Were they really having a festival?”

Then Lord Nimāi saw His father was hesitating, He started crying again. So that became so unbearable, “All right, I’ll take you.” He is laughing, He stopped. [Aside: leave seat for him] And He was laughing, and He was so happy. So Jagannātha Miśra, he carried little Nimāi over to the house of…

[Aside: Just give that seat, at least.]

…the house of Hiraṇya and Jagadīśa Paṇḍita. Sure enough because for us it’s a fast day but for the Lord it’s not a fast day. We can offer Him grains. So, they had so many sixty, hundred preparations, all spread out in front of the, in a decorative way in front of the Lord’s altar.

Actually, we want to do that for the Pānihāṭi festival but well we did as well as we could. One time we were invited, it’s just off the point slightly. We were invited to one Vaiṣṇava’s house, he had a, not his house, but his Lord Caitanya temple for Jhūlana, and for Jhūlana it is customary in Bengal to put out little dioramas, moving dioramas, they brought… or excuse me, for rāsa-līlā. And they have rāsa… they have everyone all the big people is ready, come into find mechanical rāsa-līlā where they have Rādhā Kṛṣṇa, Rādhā in the center and then little gopīs, or Rādhā gopī, I mean Kṛṣṇa gopī or just single gopīs but at least eight and swish, spinning around and some of them were more intricate, they have the gopīs turning this way and they have them going that way is like orbiting Rādhā Kṛṣṇa swinging, they have all kinds of little arrangements. And then they show other dioramas of different avatāras.

So we were invited to Tushar Kanti… Tarun Kanti Ghosh’s temple. He was… His grandfather was the famous Vaiṣṇava who wrote books on Lord Caitanya and was a contemporary of Bhaktivinoda. He was the founding editor of the, at that time the largest English newspaper and the largest Bengali newspaper. Now they are the second largest, but to combine they have more circulation. So anyway, he is very prominent, very prominent family. His grandfather used to say that, “Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was the seventh Gosvāmī.” So Prabhupāda was very kind to them, and he said, we should go there, patronize that temple.

So, we went, and there he had a big Deity of Lord Caitanya, they kept twenty-four-hour kīrtana going on all the time. Any Vaiṣṇava would come by was hungry or something, they could stay there, he would feed them, but they would have to take shifts in chanting to keep... Somehow, he always had twenty-four-hour kīrtana going on. So, whenever you would drive by you could stop you can hear. His house is just by the road to Māyāpur, you can hear, “Hare Kṛṣṇa” (singing) you know (laughter), little saṅkīrtana going on. One man or usually even one man or two men going on. Bababum going on…

So they offered, this time they had say about twenty devotees. And for each devotee, for each preparation say they had about sixty-four preparations per devotee, I mean sixty-four different preparations. And for each devotee they had little clay cups, about this big, like little flat ones, and then they put all the preparations that were going to be given to all the devotees in the cups, and they spread it all out in a huge triangle in front of the Deity. And then they had of course a big curtain in front, and they were offering, and when the offering was over, and they opened the curtain we saw literally thousands of little clay cups. Of course, it wasn’t a good process to keep the prasāda hot, but the visual effect was fantastic. It was an amazing thing.

So like this Hiraṇya, Jagadīśa Paṇḍita they had somehow or another arranged all the preparations in a very decorative way in front of the Lord, and you could see it was something very special. So I have seen a few like this nice decorative things, so I have some idea, but I am sure that we couldn’t really describe how wonderfully they did it because they are all being pure devotees, and it must have been so special, because Kṛṣṇa Himself came there in the form of Nimāi.

And then Jagannātha Miśra he explained to them, “Well, this is why I have come here that little Nimāi He is a, He is a, has said that you are having a big festival and He was crying because you did not invite, He wanted to go, He wanted to go there.” And they hadn’t told anybody, because it was Ekādaśī, so no one could eat the prasāda anyway.

And Nimāi said, “I want the feast!” A little two-year old. And they thought, “Well, He is two years.” Then they said, “Well listen if… He must be like, somehow Kṛṣṇa must be speaking through Him, we didn’t tell anybody, but the Deity and He knows. So, if He takes the prasāda, we take it that this is…” I am not sure whether they offered Him the bhoga too or is it the prasāda?!

They took it as some very special sign that the Lord has sent over Nimāi, little did they know that actually it was the Lord Himself came over to accept their offering. We may make some special offering and the Lord Himself may come like this and accept it. There is this saying in the, in the Purāṇas that Athithi Nārāyaṇa - That an unknown unexpected guest who just shows up should be treated like Nārāyaṇa. Because in the hiding purport is that sometimes even Nārāyaṇa has come in disguise to His devotee’s house.

And just like that time when… there was that Rikti… was that Rikti, Mahārāja? Rikti? was the one who was so, Ranti, Ranti, he was so charitable, I think this is mentioned in the Bhāgavatam, Ranti Mahārāja? That… Rantideva, that he, he was so charitable that he was fasting for some time or something, he had his meal, and then they offered, and then immediately just when he was about to take, well, who was that came? Different personalities came. A dog eater came, “I am starving.” So, then he gave him half. Then he was about to eat, he had been fasting a long time, he was really ravenously hungry and then who came? Just one after another people, old lady came, and this one, that one, they all. So finally, he had just had one glass of water left, and then some came, “I am really…”, somehow some person, ”I am starving for water, I am going to die.” He gave the water away. And he was about ready to die, that time all these people who had come they all assembled, and then they changed their form to the original form, and they were different demigods. And even I think, Viṣṇu Himself came. I am not sure, can’t remember all the details. And they benedicted him.

So the unknown guest, someone just comes, in India still today, when I used to go on saṅkīrtana with even up to twenty devotees we would never make any arrangements where to stay, of course they don’t have any KO, KIO camps, KOA camps, whatever, they don’t have any arrangements. We just drive off and at 4 in the afternoon or 3 in the afternoon wherever you were we go to the, we ask around who is the person in this town that has big religious festivals or does harināma in his house or something like that and then we find out who the, or who the wealthiest person in the town is, and we would drive up, go to his door and ask if you know any where we could stay, we have come to the town to preach harināma. And invariably they would say, “No you must stay here!” (laughter) That was the wonderful thing about India. So then he give us, if they were very big they have special guest rooms that they keep just for guests, little bit on the outside of, not within their house and if… Sometimes they even would bring you right into their house and their whole family would move out of rooms because they spread out naturally nobody leaves the rooms empty unless normally, they would empty out the rooms, they put you in.

So, then we were on a low-budget program. So, what we would do is, I give up for shopping plus we don’t like to eat their food. They always want to give you food cooked by them and then we don’t, it’s embarrassing to ask if they eat onions or drink coffee. So all these, you know, we have all these rules. So, we normally cook ourselves and we carry Deities and offer to our Deities. So, then we send the shopper to the gentleman and ask him that, “Where is the marketplace? We want to go out and buy food for our Deity.” And he get all of a sudden, he get all excited and “What!?” He grabs the list and say, “What do you want? (laughter). You can’t, when you are a guest in my house how can I allow you to go to the market and buy? What will people say? I will get these things.” (laughs) And that was very exciting.

Sometimes we just had to depend upon Kṛṣṇa. Sometimes you know they’d be out and say but usually we’ll try. We never went a day without somehow or another finding a place to stay. (laughs) It was really just depending on Kṛṣṇa. Even and that was with ten, fifteen, eight people, twenty people, we got a little shook up, but we usually kept it under a dozen so. Today we have 450 people for... But we didn’t stay long, we just stay one or two days and go on. Prabhupāda said, “Guests shouldn’t stay too long.” And in this way, we gave the opportunity to the gṛhasthas that they could do some Kṛṣṇa sevā. And in many cases, they became life members, or they became favorable because of that association, seeing having ārati in their house, and devotees chanting japa, and their children would come forward and we would teach them how to chant japa. It was very wonderful.

So in this way they were treating atithi, or unexpected guests just like Nārāyaṇa, or just like as if the Lord Himself had come. They would say so. “No, no, atithi Nārāyaṇa, we must.” In fact, one time I came I went to a temple when I was doing research for hidden tīrthas I was looking for the birthplace of Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja. And nobody knew where it was. So I had a friend who is a head priest and the descendant of Gadādhara dāsa Paṇḍita, dasa Gadādhara at Katwa, Nandananda Gosvāmī. And so, I went to him to ask if he could give one of his followers or associates to guide us because I heard it was in that area and no one could tell us where it was.

He said, “No you have to cross over a river and there is no bridge.” So, I had to put our jeep on a bamboo boat which was just like, pshew. And many had thought that the jeep would fall in the river but… Like this, he said, “yeah, you have to take the… he show… I’ll give you someone don’t worry.”

So that time it was twelve noon. So we said, “Well we have… It’s a long way from Māyāpur, we’ve been going since the morning, so you kindly, if you can give the person as soon as possible we’ll be off.”

He said, “No way! You are not going until you take prasāda.”

I said, “No, no, it’s so late, we have to go on, you know, we have to do the Lord’s service you know, we can’t think about ourselves.”

He said, “I am the pūjārī here, you’ve come in the Lord’s house, you are the Lord’s guest, you are doing the Lord’s work, but the Lord He also has His business, His business is to serve His devotee, you are not leaving unless you take prasāda.” (laughter) “Will you disobey or refuse the Lord’s mercy?”

“If you say it that way, then…” (laughs)

And it just happened that day they had a very special prasāda, four five different types of green leafy vegetables, especially the Lord likes the things from the forest and just wild type of vegetables. And they had very many special preparations. So in this way sometimes we were prevailed upon.

So Caitanya Mahāprabhu here He just suddenly showed up in their house, you know. They could think well He is an unexpected visitor, atithi Nārāyaṇa. But in this case, He is actually Kṛṣṇa Himself (laughs), He was Nārāyaṇa. And that was the special mercy. But they took it that how could He know of these offerings. He must be actually the Lord Himself. Or He must be inspired by the Lord so this is like a special auspicious sign, we should take it as something very extraordinary.

So somehow or another the more that we can develop this service attitude that is actually beneficial to us. The enjoying attitude is kind of a perverted situation which ultimately doesn’t satisfy us. That is why māyā then when knows that we are not going to be satisfied, so her last trick is that, “All right you now merge, now become one with God, you become God yourself.” Which is a big trick of māyā. When you become frustrated from enjoying, then we should actually change our attitude and become active in serving the Lord. But because we already have this enjoying attitude, this idea to become one with God is just a type of extension of that enjoying attitude. So, we should be very fearful about this impersonal concept of God realization.

That concept is very very dangerous. It is disguised as something very detached, very good, very auspicious or renounced. But actually, it is a greater kind of enjoying, selfish, and actually non beneficial attitude. But it is disguised, so person thinks, “Well I am now very detached.” And people think, like I was on a radio show New Orleans and the person said, “Well you are coming here, and isn’t this, you have so many big temples, you are giving out prasāda, you are doing so many, but is it the real purpose of Kṛṣṇa consciousness to lose your ego, to become nothing, to… ?” you know, he started speaking all Zen Buddhist ideas, which is the void, and we had to over the radio, we had to somehow or another try to steer him on the right track.

But this is the general, that was Joe, Joe somebody, the announcer, famous announcer in New Orleans, twenty-one years he did that program, Joe something, forget, Joe. He said his friends call him Joe. So we called him Joe. “Joe.” So, we find this general misunderstanding people think that Kṛṣṇa consciousness means to renounce everything and give everything away.

And in India it’s not uncommon to find people with millions of rupees and so many possessions, they think, “Well before I become a devotee, I should give it all away to my relatives. And then I will come empty handed, as I am to Kṛṣṇa.” Prabhupāda used to say that, “Why give it all away to your relatives? You should give to Kṛṣṇa at least 50%. In fact, even keep 25% for emergency, for yourself. Family members don’t need more than 25%.” So that was the example given by Rūpa and Sanātana. Because we use all of these energies in Kṛṣṇa’s service. So therefore, we are not going to be put into difficulty.

Normally people wanting material things to enjoy it. They think that they are giving that up that is the opposite of enjoyment, therefore they are transcendental, but that’s actually the impersonal idea. We take material things instead of trying to enjoy them, we offer them to the service of Kṛṣṇa for His enjoyment. In this way, we should think of so many ideas how to expand the devotional service of the Lord for His enjoyment, and that will be the most purifying for us. And of course, Kṛṣṇa is especially satisfied when His devotee is served.

jaya śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda
śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda

Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare 

So one point of course is that, even at the age of two Lord Caitanya was preaching Ekādaśī, the importance of following Ekādaśī. So this Ekādaśī is very beneficial because on this day its easier by chanting more and hearing, and practicing our devotional service carefully, it’s easier to develop spontaneous devotional symptoms. So here on Ekādaśī when we have the presence of a great devotee, we can request Rupānuga prabhu, Mahārāja to speak something for our purification.

Rupānuga Swami: So, I feel like a kāmadhuk, by on demand producing so much nectar, but actually I am not a kāmadhuk. In the spiritual world because everyone is centered, their consciousness is completely centered on Kṛṣṇa. Actually they, all their desires are fulfilled by Kṛṣṇa’s grace. But Kṛṣṇa wants us to see, wants us to make progress in this material world to become eligible to return back home back to Godhead. So He has given us Ekādaśī as a day to increase our consciousness of Him. And like I can just recall the original Ekādaśī preparations in ISKCON, I think that will be my most valuable contribution.

I remember when I was first introduced to Ekādaśī, it was in New York, at 26 Second Avenue, and the original Ekādaśī preparations were the following: peanuts and raisins with all spices, that means everything. (laughter) I once saw Śrīla Prabhupāda, what I will tell you a outside story here. Of course, this is about another preparation which we don’t eat on Ekādaśī but we offer. One day Śrīla Prabhupāda, I came in the store front and all the devotees were very excited, “Śrīla Prabhupāda is cooking breakfast.”

So, I said, “Cooking breakfast? What is Śrīla Prabhupāda cooking?”

“He is cooking this.” It was a grain cereal that we will take for breakfast before we go to work and do our duties. “So, what you can come up.” And so we were all up there watching Śrīla Prabhupāda cook. So Śrīla Prabhupāda was frying in a pan and I was watching him going to the spice shelf. Everything in the spice shelf was coming out, everything, all the hot stuff, the nutmeg, everything was coming out. So but one thing I noticed was that it was a very small amount and the small pan, the small amount and I was thinking of course wow we are all going to be hungry, we are going to work, Satsvarūpa Mahārāja is going to office, Brahmānanda is going, I am going, all devotees were going to start their activities and we were used to big breakfast, big pot of cereal and fruit and milk. So, I was thinking that, “Śrīla Prabhupāda is preparing such a little bit but you know we’ll see.” So, then Śrīla Prabhupāda said, “You will be…” The devotees had told me, before that Śrīla Prabhupāda had said, “A little of this cereal will be very satisfying.” So, I went downstairs. Later on, this small amount came down and truly I took one bite and I was completely satisfied. (laughs)

Devotees: Haribol!

Rupānuga Swami: And so that reminded me because Śrīla Prabhupāda every spice in the cabinet into this. So peanuts and raisins, fried peanuts with all spices. Then the next preparation which was always there was, fruit salad with yogurt, different fruits mixed with yogurt. And the other preparation was coconut and potatoes, this was a very nice preparation. Actually, what we would do is boil a pot of potatoes, peel them. We never offered anything to the Lord unless it was unpeeled. Never offered potatoes with peels. And Śrīla Prabhupāda said, “Actually the skin is only to protect the vegetable from the ground.” So, we took that seriously. So, we had potatoes and then we would separate the potatoes. Some potatoes we mix in coconut shavings and salt and pepper and butter, that was basically that preparation. And another preparation we would put in turmeric and yogurt. So we had coconut potatoes, and we had… Oh there was a third preparation was another potato preparation that was sweet potatoes. This is called, “Sweet, sweet potatoes.” And that was again simply boiled, peeled and boiled and then mixed with brown sugar or molasses.

So, there were three potato preparations, the fruit salad preparation and the peanuts and raisins. That was it. And the point was that you could take as much as you wanted one time. Everyone was served once as much as you like but you had to finish your plate in no seconds. And that was our, that was our feast.

Actually, everyone looked forward to Ekādaśī for these preparations, because everyone loved these preparations, we never got them any other time. So whenever Ekādaśī came we never looked at Ekādaśī… Śrīla Prabhupāda was so kind.

Comment: Carrot, Pumpkin?

Rupānuga Swami: I don’t know. That came in about 1970, I think. But we always, actually we looked forward to Ekādaśī. The other thing was we used to chant 25 rounds, because Śrīla Prabhupāda said, “On that day we should try to increase your chanting.” So encouraged, it wasn’t like hard and fast rule. But we used to try and chant extra rounds. He said, “On this day working is not so encouraged more, just preaching and chanting, and extra reading.” It was a day that Kṛṣṇa has given for increased facility for developing Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So, I am reminded of that, that Ekādaśī…

And then of course over the years gradually these things. I would like to see that reinstituted. It was very nice, simple preparations. Everybody was always very satisfied. Even though we were only allowed one helping. It was sort of like a discipline. (laughs) That we all liked that. So that’s about all I can remember about Ekādaśī for now. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Any other questions?

Rupānuga Swami: I want to request the cooking department next Ekādaśī we have those preparations.

Devotee: Jaya.

Rupānuga Swami: And it would be a great, great thing for me. I remember all that and I think everyone will enjoy them.

Devotee: Jaya!

Rupanuga Swami: I can help prepare them; they are very simple. You don’t miss, you don’t even think about grains when that those nice preparations… Potato is the king of vegetable, we always took that seriously. Whenever we could prepare potatoes different ways, isnt it? In this country people think potatoes are like third class or something, but actually in Vedic culture potatoes are considered to be first class. So many different potato preparations. So, we had three potato preparations on Ekādaśī.

Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Devotees: Haribol!

Jayapatākā Swami: Any questions?

Devotee: Is Ekādaśī looked forward to as a day of more hearing and chanting, or of those preparations?

Rupanuga Swami: If you fix those preparations, you look forward to them. (laughter) There is no problem. Ekādaśī is supposed to be a very auspicious day for spiritual advancement. And Śrīla Prabhupāda emphasized not so much work, he didn’t mean, we wouldn’t do… he emphasized on reading, extra chanting, preaching.

Jayapatākā Swami: Ekādaśī is an opportunity to make advancement in devotional service. So, we look forward to every opportunity.

Rupanuga Swami: Also, we used to fast. We have to fast. Skip breakfast. The meal just I mentioned was a noon meal.

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda said, “For us feasting and fasting its all the same. (laughter) Our fast are feast. Every fast ends with a feast and every… (laughs). But even the fasting itself is a feast for us, it’s all one, it’s all for the service of Kṛṣṇa.

Rupanuga Swami: It’s all a festival.

Jayapatākā Swami: It’s all a festival.

Comment: Actually, by your coming, you have increased the festival, Ekādaśī… (inaudible)

Devotees: Jaya!

Devotees: Jaya!

Comment: (inaudible) He’d bring this festive mood, and since I missed the last festival, (inaudible) (laughter)

Jayapatākā Swami: They had it decorated it with paper and tinsels and...

Devotee: (inaudible)

Jayapatākā Swami: There’s not enough festivals. Now we need travelling festival also.

Devotee: Jaya! And there is another festival about to start too in New Tālavana. I remember the festival of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s visit. Devotees carry Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Deity to all the different places where he went when he came to New Talavan.

Jayapatākā Swami: Very nice.

Devotee: Wonderful. (inaudible) it’s a very big festival.

Jayapatākā Swami: Actually, we had a Prabhupāda līlā-smaraṇa here, but that would be a very nice thing actually before that to take Prabhupāda all over procession. Can Śrīla Prabhupāda fit through any of the doors easily here? Can he fit through the door?

Devotees: Yeah. (inaudible)

Jayapatākā Swami: Well sometimes… you know you want to take him out dignified. (laughs) don’t know how he came in (laughs).

Reply: Brought him through the porch.

Jayapatākā Swami: But that’s… that was very nice in New Tālavana. That you took him on a morning walk with all the devotees. In both places you were present when Prabhupāda was there. So…

Devotee: No, I wasn’t in New Talavan.

Jayapatākā Swami: I saw your picture here in Atlanta. So you would know where…

Devotee: (inaudible)

Jayapatākā Swami: Here you can tell us where Śrīla Prabhupāda went.

Reply: If I can remember. (laughter)

Any other questions? Yes?

Devotee: (inaudible)

Jayapatākā Swami: No, they have already announced me going to Toronto. We are going to meet, I think Harikeśa Swamī will be there. We’re going to meet him and then, and some disciples there that need to get second initiation or something so they are asking if I could come up before I left.

Nitāi-Gaura premānande Hari Haribol!

Today the Deities look happy.

Devotees: Jaya!

Devotee: Jaya Śrīla Prabhupāda ki jaya!