20170527 Initiation Address

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pu1gz0iRTs

20170527 His. Holiness. Jayapatākā Swami gave an initiation talk in Detroit, Michigan.

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ

paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim

yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande

paramānanda-mādhavam

Śrī Caitanya Iswaram 

Hari Oṁ Tat Sat.

Gurumahārāja: Thanks to all the devotees who are present tonight. Some have come from Detroit, some from Toronto and others from different parts, Illinois Wisconsin, Philadelphia, etc. etc.

So here we are under the auspices of His Grace Jagatguru Das, celebrating an initiation ceremony. We want that all the devotees be connected to His Divine Grace Śrīla Prabhupāda, and he instructed that in the future devotees would be the disciples of his disciples, and this is how the guru paramparā system continues. We are now concerned with the succession. 

After Śrīla Prabhupāda’s directly initiated disciples leave the planet, how the movement will go on, and how the Kṛṣṇa consciousness philosophy will continue to spread; it’s very encouraging to see so many disciples of different spiritual masters cooperating and working together to spread this Krishna consciousness. 

The Brahmā Baivarta Purāṇa tells how all the holy rivers and kunda’s approached Lord Kṛṣṇa in Dwarakā, and they said, “Soon your pastimes on this planet of this universe will end, and you will go back to the spiritual world, and Kali Yuga will begin. So, we want you to please take us with You, otherwise sinful people will just bathe in our waters, and we will get overloaded with the bad karmas.” Lord Kṛṣṇa smiled. He said, “Let the sinful people bathe in your waters for five thousand years. Then I will send someone who will spread the Harinām all over the world, and many people will come and bathe in your waters. This will start a golden age for ten thousand years, where the people will chant the names of Godhead, and thus they will be liberated from the material conditional life. After ten thousand years the golden age comes to an end, and the black, dark kali begins. At that time you can go underground like the Saraswati river, and stay out of touch till the end of the Kali Yuga, and then in Satya Yuga you can come back again.” So, Lord Kṛṣṇa had given this prediction and there were many repetitions of this prediction. 

In the Caitanya Mangal, written about four hundred and fifty years ago in Bijoy Kṛṣṇa Goswāmi of Advaita Achārya’s paramparā. He predicted that the chanting of the holy names will be all over the world, and the sound of mridanga’s would be everywhere.

Bhakti Vinod Thakur predicted that someone will come who will easily go from one continent to another, and spread the Hare Kṛṣṇa Mahāmantra. And Bhaktisiddhantha Saraswati Ṭhākura at the turn of the century in 1900 predicted that one of his disciples would come to the Western countries to spread the holy name, and bring people back to participate in the Nabadwipa Parikrama. He said, I will not live to see it, but it will happen.” So all these and many more predictions were there, and therefore we see that this all points to His Divine Grace Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda. But he said that he only did part of the work. And there is another great part that needs to be done. So, all the congregational members, some of them are book warriors, some are offering their services to the temple in different ways. It is very encouraging. It is what is needed to spread the Harinām in every town and village. 

Prabhupāda had faith that this will happen, and that the prediction of Lord Caitanya would come true. 

So taking initiation means that one takes as a service serving the previous acharya’s, and in this case to establish the golden age. That is a continual process. It will take some years. But the devotees by their effort, they will become purified, and thus they can also encourage others. So this taking of initiation is to the whole Guru Paramparā. 

The Guru acts as a representative, but the initiation is actually connecting one to Kṛṣṇa and the Guruparampara. 

So one may have different desires with their personal careers, with their activities. Just like simultaneously one can think, how can I be useful in serving Śrīla Prabhupāda. What can I do? How can I be more integrated and helpful instrument of Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. So, we hope that this is taken up very seriously. Of course while one server Kṛṣṇa, one also feels spiritual bliss. I think Prabhupāda said, “Make more devotees, make happier devotees”, and many times they ask Prabhupāda, “What can we do for you?” He said, “If you appreciate, then give this to others.” So he wants you all to be happy and also to give out the happiness out the others. 

Hare Kṛṣṇa.