20200911 Zoom Session with Bangladesh National Youth Gathering

The following is a Zoom meeting with His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on September 11th,2020 in Śrī Dhāma Māyāpur, India. Zoom meeting was held with the Bangladesh National Youth Gathering

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānandaṁ mādhavaṁ śrī caitanya iśvaram

Hariḥ oṁ tat sat!

Jayapatākā Swami: Today I am very happy to be present at the Youth Gathering in Bangladesh program. My good wishes to all the youth who have joined. Today we had been hearing from the caitanya-līlā a little while ago. In the Mahābhārata, in the Viṣṇu Sahasranāma, there is a mention that one of the avatāras of Lord He will take sannyāsa. He will be peaceful and equal to all. Now other than Lord Caitanya, which other avatāra has taken sannyāsa? He had gone to Bangladesh and many of His associates appeared in Bangladesh. You are all residing in Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi and therefore have many opportunities for doing devotional service.

gauḍa-maṇḍala-bhūmi, yebā jāni cintāmaṇi tāra haye vraja-bhūmi vāsa

If you think that the Lord had roamed this land and His foot dust is here, this is a sacred place of pilgrimage of the Lord, and you are residing in Vṛndāvana! Others might view in a different way. If someone considers this to be the place where the Lord enacted His pastimes, then they will be residing in vraja-bhūmi.

Now students mean to see how to get ahead in the material path. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī before he met his spiritual master was studying in a university. He thought that why should he go empty handed to the spiritual master. I will study a lot and then I will go to serve my spiritual master he thought. If you think that you will put your education in the service of the Lord, this will be a part of the arms of devotional service to Kṛṣṇa. I hope that if all do this way, they will have an attraction to Lord Kṛṣṇa. Your education, you can use this in many ways in the service of Lord Kṛṣṇa. This is one thing.

We want to go ahead in the material path a lot. But there are sometimes obstacles. Like you have the exams in your college. The same way on the path of devotion to advance you will have exams. And if you pass in them then you will go ahead. Just because you have exams does not mean you should be less enthusiastic in any way. There will be exams. You are going back to God, will there be no exams for that? You are in a jail, the jail keeper will see whether you are doing your service to God properly or you are doing something else. He will supervise that. If someone does proper service to God, then Mahāmāyā, Devī, will offer obeisances to them and they will go back to Goloka Vṛndāvana.

Very soon the Puruṣottama month will be coming. In the month of Puruṣottama you should offer a lamp to Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa every day. This way, you will get the Lord’s unlimited mercy. Whatever sukṛti or benefit we get in the 12 months, it is not even 1/16th of the benefit we get by doing devotional service in Puruṣottama month. But Puruṣottama month is not for going to Svargaloka. Puruṣottama month is for going back to Vaikuṇṭha or Goloka Vṛndāvana. It is not possible so easily in any other month. Taking this opportunity, do devotional service to the Lord, whatever chanting you are doing, do a little more. If you chant 16 rounds it is alright, read more scriptures, then hear, and participate in kīrtana, and avoid participating in gossip or unnecessary discussions involving sense gratification. Devotion to Kṛṣṇa and His glories are talked about in this month. Kṛṣṇa says that whatever you can get from Me, you can get the same by following this Puruṣottama month. This way, our devotees take kṛṣṇa-prasāda. You have to be a vegetarian in the month of Puruṣottama. And whatever rules are followed in Kārtika, we follow the same in the Puruṣottama month. But in the month of Puruṣottama, there is worship of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. In Dāmodara month, baby Kṛṣṇa and Mother Yaśodā are worshiped.

Anyway, kṛṣṇa-bhakti is our special focus. There was a prediction about Lord Caitanya that for 24 years He would be gṛhastha and 24 years a sannyāsī. Now, we are reading that He went to Katwa and took sannyāsa from Keśava Bhāratī. He told Keśava Bhāratī Mahārāja that He had had a dream in which a person came up to Me and gave Me this sannyāsa mantra, is this okay? That mantra Lord Caitanya conveyed in the ears of Keśava Bhārati Mahārāja. This way, Keśava Bhārati Mahārāja became Lord Caitanya’s disciple. After that Keśava Bhāratī Mahārāja gave the mantra back to Lord Caitanya. Then the two did a lot of kīrtana and were in bliss. We hope that all the students will do kīrtana and become happy. Now because of the pandemic presently, we are doing classes through Zoom. Besides through Facebook, YouTube, etc. This way all of you try that everyone chants the names of Kṛṣṇa. This way we want to make everyone fortunate. It is mentioned in the Vedas that we should chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. In the Qur’an it is said that Allah’s name is sacred, so chant Allah’s name. If someone does not want to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra in Sanskrit, they could chant the name of Allah in Arabic or something. We desire that everyone in this Kali-yuga should chant and do kīrtana of the holy name. Many people secretly try to see what happens when they chant Hare Kṛṣṇa! There is only one God and chanting the holy name of Kṛṣṇa gives one bliss!

Anyway, human birth is a rare birth. In this lifetime itself we can go back to Godhead. The animals cannot question who am I? The dog things I am a dog. The cat thinks also I am a cat. Try as much as you can you cannot make the dog and cat understand. But the human can understand that I am not this body, I am a soul. I am Kṛṣṇa’s eternal servant.

jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya-kṛṣṇera ‘nitya-dāsa’
(Cc. Madhya 20.108)

This way we attain perfection. We serve the Lord Parameśvara and our lives are perfected. Generally, people think that if their senses are satisfied, they have attained perfection of life. But if we serve the Lord through these senses that is bhakti. Hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate (Cc. Madhya 19.170). These senses can give us both happiness and distress. Now the pandemic is going on and many are in distress. One cat is watching the class! But the cat cannot understand what I am saying. The cat is only searching for a rat! So getting this human birth is very rare. Generally, the education we get in the school, college, university is for getting a job. If this education, you can dovetail in the service of the Lord, that would be good. This college, university, sometimes you can preach here so that other students can also come in this path. This is the special goal of our life. I hope that all of you will be happy, and I hope that all of you will be in the service of Kṛṣṇa. Study the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Chant every day. This way you got education and use this education in the service of the Lord. There are many disciples of mine in the Middle East. To live there they have to work. They work and they preach. I tell them they should work and also preach. They have this opportunity that some may be brahmacārīs and some may be gṛhasthas and preach. But everyone will have to do devotional service to Kṛṣṇa. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

If you have any questions, you may ask now.

Question: I am unable to concentrate and chant. My heart is very hard. And my mind is not focused. What to do?

Jayapatākā Swami: You have to chant more the names of Lord Caitanya more. Nitāi-Gaura! These names will melt the hard hearts. The animals in Jhārikhaṇḍa also started chanting with Lord Caitanya. Pāṣāṇa vidare!

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

You chant this and then chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra.

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Question: Sometimes I have more to study, but I do want to do my devotional service as well. But my studies make me anxious. How to keep a balance?

Jayapatākā Swami: I had said during the class if we study as a service to the Lord, then there will be service and study as well. This way, to have taste for service you have to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra more. If you do that way, the mind will work well. Any studies you do you can offer as a service to the Lord. And it will also help in understanding the economics as well. You can study and do service in the temple as well. Some will become engineer, or doctor, they can help the devotees. In Bangladesh there are about 100-temples and you can help in building new temples, guest houses, youth hostels. That is why we need engineers. Right?

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Question: When we go to university to study, I do bhakti but my fellow students do not do bhakti. I want to preach to them as I don’t feel good about this. How do I make them understand?

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda said that the path of devotional service happens gradually. First, you have to say something easy for them. Chant the name of Kṛṣṇa once and you will be happy. If someone is interested in doing service to Kṛṣṇa, give them that. From 17th September to 23rd September the ‘World Holy Name Week’ is being celebrated. That is why they want many people to get together and chant the holy name. Those who have smart phone, make a video in which one time you say that I am from Bangladesh and I am chanting for world peace and happiness and chant:

Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare

And send this. If you chant these names, you will get love for Kṛṣṇa. There is no need to give much details. Just say you will be fortunate, just chant the holy name. We will send the video to America. Fortunatepeople.com

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Question: Every day I make a resolve that I will do so many rounds of chanting, this much reading of scriptures and then do my studies. But I am not able to keep this program steadily.

Jayapatākā Swami: Why you are not able to keep the program? What is it that your mind gets attracted to and does not let you do your daily routine properly? That is your enemy. You have to hear from the senior devotees about which is the obstacle that stops you.With the weapon of knowledge, you have to cut that. Doing this you will become strong. Doing exercise, in one day suddenly you cannot lift 100 kilos! Slowly 20, 30, 40, 60, and finally in the future you can life 100 kilos. Maybe more also. Now His Holiness Bhānu Swami can lift a lot of weight! I cannot! He does exercise every day. You are trying, that is good. You should not feel disappointed. Just keep going.

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Question: After finishing studies, what āśrama should I take? Should I be a gṛhastha or join the temple?

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda said that if someone thought whether I should be a gṛhastha or a brahmacārī, being a brahmacārī is a difficult proposition. If they think that let me try being a brahmacārī for some time that is one thing. But now when you are studying to think immediately after studies should I be a brahmacārī or a gṛhastha, how is that possible? Śrīla Prabhupāda said that you need to be determined and firm to become a brahmacārī. This is called bṛhad-vrata. I see some devotees stay as a brahmacārī for five years and after that discuss with the guru what should I do. When I joined the movement, I was only 19 years. The temple president’s wife in the temple I was in told me that if you want to go back to Godhead, you should become a gṛhastha. Then I went to Śrīla Prabhupāda and asked him, “What should I do?” I did not think that at this age I want to be a gṛhastha. Śrīla Prabhupāda said, “You be a brahmacārī for 25 years and after that discuss with your guru and he will decide.” Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me sannyāsa when I was 21 years old. Now I have completed 50 years of sannyāsa. Anyway, from 25 to 30 one should think, if they think that which āśrama they will be stronger in. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam there is the Gajendra-mokṣa episode where Gajendra is the king of elephants. He was fighting with the king of crocodiles in the water. The fight went on for many days. Because elephant is a land animal and crocodile is a water animal and is in the water, the crocodile is having some more strength. Gajendra understood that I am slowly getting weak. In the purport Śrīla Prabhupāda said we should see in which situation will we be stronger to serve Kṛṣṇa. Being a gṛhastha or a brahmacārī, we have to think. But why should you do it right now? You have to make up your mind that some days I will be a brahmacārī and then will think. But if someone thinks that I will be stronger as a gṛhastha, the purpose is that we should do service to Kṛṣṇa. Then it is advisable to get married to a Kṛṣṇa conscious girl. Many non-devotee girls will say, “I will eat veg.” There was a case in Māyāpur. The devotee after discussion with me, married a non-devotee. They had a child and then the girl started eating nonveg. The devotee said, “You promised that you will not eat nonveg.” The girl said, “You know what family I come from, I was trying but I cannot. I will eat chicken.”

One thing is that I will not be a brahmacārī, I will be a gṛhastha. And then being a gṛhastha, you have to be in such a situation that you can be Kṛṣṇa conscious. If you get married to a non-devotee, then there will be lot of inconvenience. Anyway, stay a brahmacārī till the age of about 25 and then after that decide. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

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Question: You like us to do Nāmahaṭṭa preaching. I am a youth preacher. What is the future for youth preaching? Please guide us. I think now and then that you like preaching in Bhakti-vṛkṣa or Nāmahaṭṭa, and I feel that maybe I should go into that?

Jayapatākā Swami: What do I not like? In the path of devotion, being a brahmacārī in the temple and preaching, youth preaching, Nāmahaṭṭa, Bhakti-vṛkṣa, all I like! When there were no brahmacārīs in the temple there were no programs. So that all the people do service to Kṛṣṇa, Lord Nityānanda and Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura had established the Nāmahaṭṭa and I reestablished that. In the villages it is possible to have Nāmahaṭṭa but in the cities it is a bit inconvenient. That is why I created the Bhakti-vṛkṣa. Not that I am attached to something because I started it. I was a BBT trustee, Śrīla Prabhupāda had ordered me to distribute books. I like all services. Śrīla Prabhupāda said that we need educated devotees in the future. They will be leaders on the path of devotion. And Śrīla Prabhupāda said that we need educated devotees. That way, educated youth is very useful. We need ordinary people and educated people as well. I do a variety of service. That way I want to follow the special instructions of Lord Caitanya.

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Question: You have been a sannyāsī for 50 years. What was the secret? Someone told you that if you don’t get married you will not go back to Godhead. But you have managed to be a sannyāsī for 50 years. What is the secret that you have been steadily serving Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Jayapatākā Swami: This is Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mercy that I am living in Māyāpur dhāma. And I had a lot of service to Kṛṣṇa. I engrossed myself totally in that service. I had no time to think of Māyā. Śrīla Prabhupāda said, I am giving you the spiritual world, now develop it. That is why I had a lot of service. If we have service, then that helps. Most of the people will become gṛhasthas. You have to be in one place then with family, children, you have to give them association. But Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me sannyāsa at a young age. He told me that being a sannyāsī I have to travel. I was in Māyāpur and then I toured the world. Some years I travelled around the world 5 or 6 times in one year. This way the British Airways and United Airways gave me Life Gold card. So I can go by plane. But this is for Kṛṣṇa’s service. As I had so much service, there was no time for Māyā for me. Those who work and stay in a place, they should get married to a devotee girl. Those who stay as a brahmacārī in the temple and do there then they can stay that way. It depends on their service. And their nature. Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me so much service that I have no time for anything else. How will I accomplish these services that is my worry. Śrīla Prabhupāda had told me that I should distribute 10,000 Mahā-big books and 100,000 small books every month. Now I have to see how many books were distributed in all my zones. Śrīla Prabhupāda said that the Sārasvata family should be united. And develop the Navadvīpa dhāma parikramā, he said. And develop the Gaura-maṇḍala Bhūmi he said. Lots of service.Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me so much service that I don’t have time for anything else.

Haribol!