20160114 An Evening Talk

20160114 - 720 - H.H.Jayapatākā Swāmi gives an evening talk in Chennai.

Gurumahārājā:

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ

paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim

yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande

paramānanda-mādhavam

Śrī Caitanya Iswaram

Hari Oṁ Tat Sat.

Let me wish everyone su-swāgatam. We are very happy that you are here tonight. This 2016 ratha yatra in Chennai is very significant. This is the beginning of the golden jubilee anniversary year. 

Fifty years ago His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda registered ISKCON. Last year was the fiftieth anniversary of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s voyage on the Jaladuta-2 tour from India to America. He started his voyage in Calcutta, he stopped in Colombo, and he stopped in Cochin where he received some boxes of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam first Canto. So, the Kerala based devotees celebrated the complete Bhāgavatam last year. This year is the fiftieth anniversary of ISKCON’s registration. That means that before this, 50 years ago there was no ISKCON. ISKCON came to be by the registration of ISKCON. 

Now predicted in Purāṇas and century old books on Lord Caitanya; Lord Kṛṣṇa and Caitanya predicted that they would send someone who would preach the names of Kṛṣṇa in the lands outside of India. But we take this opportunity to wish you all a vanakkam. 

So, Śrīla Parbhuapada, he went through so many difficulties. He had heart attacks on the ship. He thought he would not survive to reach U.S.A. Kṛṣṇa appeared in a dream and told him not to worry. Kṛṣṇa showed He would be the majhi (the captain) of the ship. So, the rest of the journey became very peaceful and smooth, but in New York crazy people attacked him, and he had… in 1967 he had a stroke. He was paralysed from the neck down, but usually if one is paralysed neck down, they usually just lie there and gradually recover. But Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was non-stop instructing the devotees what to do. He was determined to carry out the order of his spiritual master.

So, every one of us is deeply indebted to His Divine Grace for all his sacrifices. So, it appeared that he was alone. One person looked through the window and saw swāmiji making… giving a class, making some emphatic points… So, that devotee ended into the store front, in the front room; and he was surprised. There was nobody there, only Śrīla Prabhupāda, but he was giving class. He was shaking his hand making a point. Prabhupāda said, “Oh! Come in. Vango. Vango.” (applause) 

Kuncham kuncham tamil…. Little, little Tamil. (laughter) 

So, that devotee said, “There is nobody here.” 

“No, there are so many here. All the Devās from the higher planets.” So, Śrīla Prabhupāda was giving class for the devās. 

Like this when I joined it was 1968, one year later. At that time I saw every centre in India… in the world. There were only three. There was San Francisco, New York and Montreol. At that time there was the World Fair at Montreol. The name of the world’s fair was, “Man and his world.” Prabhupāda was saying, “How is this the world of man? This is the world of Jagannātha.”  (applause)

Jagannātha Swāmi Nayana Patha Gami

Nayana Pata gāmi Bhawate me…. (repeated by devotees)

So, although it appeared that Śrīla Prabhupāda was alone and that his movement was just a few centres, he was saying that he would make one hundred eight centres himself, and that after him his followers would continue to make more and more centres. 

Today we have more than six hundred centres. (applause), thousands of Bhakti Vrksha groups, Namhatta groups etc. In fact last time I was told how here in Chennai we have Bhakta Prahlād schools in fifty or more houses, and at least ten students per house. Then I was also show how in some schools we have hundreds of students who chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. So, like this by Prabhupāda’s mercy the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra is reaching so many people, and here in Tamil Nāḍu we have the Prison Outreach Program. 

I went to some of the prison programs. In Chennai, also near Trichi, men’s prison, ladies prison. So, some of the men, they chanted and played mridanga very nice. So, like this there are lots of programs that you can do. 

There is Krishna Kīrtan here. He is willing to teach others how to chant the bhajan’s. (applause) We have an Academy in Māyāpur for playing on instruments and singing. Today the honourable justice, he told a story about a man who was throwing star fish into the ocean, and the person with him said, “There are thousands of star fish all drying and dying on the fish. How will your throwing a few hundred back into the ocean, how will that make any difference?” He said a very profound thing. He said, “For the star fish I threw back into the ocean, it made a big difference.” Now in Chennai not too long ago there were heavy floods, and different people were helping others. ISKCON gave sixty thousand plates of prasādam. (applause) But considering that Chennai has almost one crore people, maybe it didn’t make so much difference, but for those who got the Prasad it made a big difference. (applause) Like that if you can give one person the Harinām, and then they don’t have to take birth again. (applause) Our param guru said that then the whole movement is a success. 

So, everyone doesn’t have to have thousands or millions. If you can help some people; one devotee came and said, “Gurudev! I am sorry, I am sorry, I didn’t make many devotees this year.” So, I asked, “How many devotees have you made?” She said, “I am very embarrassed. I only made seventy six devotees this year.” (applause) I thought, “That is not too bad. Infact  pretty good.” But she said that her goal was a hundred and eight. 

So, I met one bhaktin; she was teaching at Bhakta Prahlād school, plus Bhakti Vksha, plus helping in the temple. So, every one of you can make a big difference. Just try. Go to your temple President or one of the senior devotees and tell them, “I have more time to do services. Can I have some service?” Everybody who you can inspire to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, everybody whom you can inspire to sell some books; this year they have a program, “Sell atleast one book in a week. Fifty books for the year as a minimum.” And with every fifty books you get a certificate. So, what can you do this year, plan it out; teaching Prahlād School or Bhakti Vkshā or the temple service or book distribution or prison preaching or college preaching. The thing is, tonight we all have to do a supreme sacrifice. Are you ready? Before leaving you have to eat Prasad – the supreme sacrifice. 

Some people are smiling. 

Jagannātha, He has blessing that His hands will never dry as we will always be offering Him prasādam, offering Him bhoga. So, that means that you have to eat what he leaves… you have to eat. So, please… this year, I hope you will be very joyful, this year has been named the joy of devotion. 

Hare Kṛṣṇa. 

I can go on speaking but I think that we would like to hear Kṛṣṇa kīrtan’s kīrtan. 

Ok, one dedication ceremony.

(Announcement) speaking: For the pleasure of Śrīla Prabhupāda and previous acharya’s, for the pleasure of Śrī Śrī Jagannātha, Baladevā, Śrī Subhadrā Māi, Gāndharvikā Giridhārī, Śrīmān Mahāprabhu and Śrī Śrī Laxmī Narasiṁha deva, and for the pleasure of all the ISKCON acharya’s and senior leaders, on behalf of the ISKCON Nṛṣmha-giridhari mandir I would like to offer the book marathon for the year 2016.

So, we had a target of fifty thousand book points considering that this is the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the Jaladuta Yātra, and the temple has nine circles. We split the target to nine circles, and I would like to present the scores right now. I would like to congratulate the Bhakti Vṛkṣa circle leaders and other devotees for enthusiastically participating in this marathon. The scores as follows. We have a Nityānanda circle lead by Bhandu Mādhavā Prabhu who scored four thousand six hundred book points; Rūpānuga circle headed by Harikshetra Prabhu. Circle servants who are here, please come to the Dias, headed by Harikshetra Prabhu. This is basically the youth forum circle scoring three thousand two hundred and twenty two book points, and we have the Rādhā-Govinda circle headed by Prema Data Caitanya scoring two thousand nine hundred and forty four book points. 

Rādhā Madana Mohana circle headed by Vikram Baladeva Prabhu scoring two thousand five hundred and thirty nine book points. Śrīvāsa Paṇḍita circle headed by Venudhari Prabhu scoring two thousand four hundred points, Gadādhara circle headed by Śiva Gaura Hari scoring one thousand five hundred and forty book points, Rādhā Gopīnāth circle headed by Mathurā Pati Prabhu; a new circle which is formed a few months back scoring one thousand two hundred book points; and the top three performers of last year’s marathon are like this: Advaita Circle headed by Vasudhā Mātājī scoring six thousand three hundred and twenty two book points. (applause) Giridhārī circle headed by Adidev Giridhārī Das scoring nine thousand eight hundred and eighty four book points, and the top honours go to the temple Brahmachāri team. The temple Brahmachāri team scored fifteen thousand book points. (applause) For a total of forty nine thousand six hundred and forty one book points, which fell short by about five hundred book points. So, we would like to thank all the devotees who enthusiastically participated. This is one of the promises we made that  we would have the dedication ceremony of this results in the presence of His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja Gurumahārāja. 

So, we would like to offer this results into his lotus hands, so that he can in turn pass on this results to the Guruparampara. 

Thank you very much Gurumahārāja. We would beg you to kindly pass on small few words of encouragement to the devotees in Bangalore.

By the way this score is I understand; the score of forty nine thousand six hundred and forty one book points – we have beaten the Hare Kṛṣṇa hill temple in Bangalore with our book distribution. 

Gurumahārāja: So, Śrīla Prabhupāda said that preaching is the essence and books are the basis. So, while distributing books, people can read the books and get so much enlightenment. So, in December all the temples of world do a marathon in book distribution. I am sure Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, all the temples in Tamil Nāḍu also did book distribution. 

We are all very inspired how Bangalore Laxmī Nṛṣṁha temple was enthusiastically doing book distribution. So, this is one of the areas where every devotee can try to do more this year. If you carry some books with you, you might be surprised how many people are looking for those books. So, keep this as a habit, carry some books with you all the time.

And I thank you all the devotees from Bangalore for their enthusiastically distributing Śrīla Prabhupāda books..