20200913 Zoom Session with Melbourne Devotees

The following is a Zoom meeting given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on September 13th,2020 in Śrī Dhāma Māyāpur, India. Zoom meeting was given with the Melbourne Devotees.

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: I am very happy to be here in Melbourne, Australia.

I hear that Victoria is a red zone for COVID-19.

I hope that all the devotees are healthy and safe.

This is a good opportunity for us to preach using the internet, YouTube, Facebook, Zoom.

And recently in India they found that actually, during the lockdown most people are interested in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

They had a program in Thiruvananthapuram for new people.

They were expecting 50 or 60 people.

But 500 signed up! Similarly, they were doing a program in Chennai, Tamil Nadu – ‘Bhagavad-gītā Made Easy’ 18 days, 18 chapters.

9,000 people signed up!

I gave this news around South India and Mangaluru was inspired, in Karnataka state.

They organized a program but did not have enough money for Zoom, they got from Microsoft Meeting 25 programs free because they are a non-profit organization.

They organized between 10 to 11 thousand people three times.

We are finding that during this COVID-19 pandemic more people are interested.

India has a huge population, maybe Australia does not have so much.

But still 100 people or 200 or 500 people may join.

So you actually get more contacts.

So we should not stop preaching, rather use our intelligence to see how to do outreach.

We see how the Saṅkīrtana Ministry is promoting the ‘Holy Name Week’, from 17th September to 23rd.

They are producing many videos, and they want people to take small videos of first timers chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa!

And dedicating that to World Peace and Love, saying where they are from. 

We know that devotional service cannot be impeded by anything material.

It might be a little late, 7pm at night Indian time, we are having a class on Caitanya-līlā and how Lord Caitanya, He gave out His mercy without discriminating.

He gave everyone love for Kṛṣṇa.

In fact, He expressed to Haridāsa Ṭhākura how the meat eaters and the Yavanas would get the mercy.

Lord Caitanya was very interested in helping the most fallen.

And in the Mahābhārata in Viṣṇu-sahasranāma, one of the names of the Lord is that He takes sannyāsa and be very peaceful.

Who else of the Lord’s avatāras took sannyāsa? Lord Caitanya is a form of Lord Viṣṇu who took sannyāsa.

And that was a great separation for the devotees of Navadvīpa.

But He went to South India, and He said He would go all over India.

And that later He would send His senāpati-bhakta who would preach in the western countries.

So Lord Caitanya had predicted that He would send someone who would spread His message in the Western countries.

He said, distant countries.

So, Australia is also distant country.

Śrīla Prabhupāda, he came and he stayed in Melbourne and he preached all over the world to spread this message of Lord Caitanya.

Actually, we can see how this is a great blessing.

How by chanting the Lord’s name, by hearing His pastimes, we actually associate with the Lord.

Since He is the Absolute Truth, there is no difference between His name, His form, and pastimes.

So, we can directly get His association by hearing His pastimes.

We get His association by chanting His names.

Also, in a few days, on 18th September, comes the Puruṣottama month which Kṛṣṇa says that He adopts as His month.

Whatever power He has that is also in this month.

If you worship this month, you will get the blessing.

But according to the smārtas, karma-kāṇḍīs, this month is no good.

It is correct.

There is no karma-miśra-bhakti in this month.

If you worship in this month you cannot go to Svarga.

You go straight to Goloka Vṛndāvana or the spiritual world.

If you want to go to Goloka it is alright.

But if you want to go to Svarga then wait till Dāmodara month! 

The Deity of this month is Rādhā Kṛṣṇa.

That means you worship Rādhā Vallabha and get their special blessings.

Every day you offer Them a lamp.

And eat prasāda.

If you are chanting 16 rounds and already eating prasāda, it is alright.

If you are chanting less rounds, then you can chant more for this Puruṣottama month.

You can get up every morning and attend maṅgala-ārati. I don’t know if you have the online service for the Melbourne temple.

If you do, then you can rise early and see the maṅgala-ārati.

It says to bathe in a holy river or the ocean.

But if that is not practical because of COVID, then chant the name of Gaṅgā three times: Gaṅgā! Gaṅgā! Gaṅgā!

And take your bath.

And it will be considered that you bathed in the Ganges.

Like this I hope that everyone takes advantage of this special mercy. 

There was a brāhmaṇa who was very harsh in his dealings.

So he was cast out from his family, cast out from his city, and he lived in a forest.

So there somehow, he met a Vaiṣṇava who had fainted on the ground.

He picked him up and gave him water and fanned him.

He was going to Puṣkara-tīrtha.

And he was very grateful for the service.

He asked why are you living in this horrible situation?

And he told him I am very sinful.

Because I dealt with my family members in a bad way, they threw me out of the city.

Please tell me a way, how can I get free from this bad karma?

He said, well in a few days is coming the month with the name Puruṣottama.

Normally you offer a ghee lamp to Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa every day.

But since you are living in a forest you may not get ghee.

So then you can offer also sesame oil or something.

So he did that, at the end of the month a spiritual airplane came and took him to the spiritual world.

I cannot say that will happen to everyone, but Kṛṣṇa says that a person happily, peacefully lives their life and at the end of their life they go to the spiritual world.

Of course, from the spiritual world you cannot come back here.

If you want to go to Svarga and come back here, then this month is not good for you!

Like that Kṛṣṇa is giving – Śrīla Prabhupāda wrote me a letter, he said you are a regular customer.

So whether some bonus is given in some month, like in a store it is to attract new customers.

But you are regular customer, whether sale or not, you are a regular customer.

So, you chant 16 rounds, you eat prasāda, no problem.

But say that someone is not chanting or chanting one or two rounds or four, they can increase a little this month.

If they are not vegetarians, for this month they should be pure vegetarian and not take onion and garlic.

So like that this is a special bonus to give people a chance to go back to Godhead. 

Anyway, like that we take advantage of the Lord’s mercy and this way we can quickly make advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Hare Kṛṣṇa!

We see that there are many questions. 

Question: Last month my material uncle passed away.

For his spiritual benefit I decided to offer the results of my one week’s devotional service such as daily WhatsApp, YouTube, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam hearing, chanting, tulasī-parikramā, weekly Bhagavad-gītā śravaṇam classes, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam study etc. all dedicated.

Then I started to see my other loved ones in my dream who passed away many, many years ago.

So I thought perhaps they are trying to remind me and I started to offer the results, one week each for each of them as well.

I am not sure how it works because I have been offering one round of chanting to yourself daily, plus tulasī-parikramā.

My offering to my relatives clashes with yours.

Also, I am not sure whether I am doing this whimsically.

Please advise Guru Mahārāja. 

Jayapatākā Swami: You have a basic thing you should offer, which you have to offer to your guru.

Additional things you do, you can offer that for the benefit of others.

You chant extra rounds, do extra parikramās of tulasī you can offer that.

But all your devotional service how can you offer all? Anyway, your debt to your guru is to offer him service.

So some additional service that you can offer.

That is why I say that one for himself or herself they should circumambulate tulasī four times and then they can offer or whoever you want to offer, circumambulate tulasī another four times.

Like that, of course, if you do the Ekādaśī fast, you can offer the results to your forefathers.

Like the Indira Ekādaśī which is coming tomorrow, the glories of that is that one king Indrasena, he was visited by Nārada Muni and he told Nārada Muni that I am blessed by your visit.

“Why have you come?” Nārada Muni said, “I have travelled from Brahmaloka to Patālaloka.

In Patālaloka in Yamaloka, I saw your father.

He told me to tell you that due to not following Ekādaśī properly that he was in Yamaloka.” And if he would practice Indirā Ekādaśī very carefully, automatically his forefathers would get blessings.

So by that practice he would be saved from Yamaloka.

So then that king followed the Indirā Ekādaśī, full fast very carefully and automatically his father achieved the spiritual world.

And flowers were showing down on him.

Also, by practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness, your forefathers get blessings.

Question: Firstly, I would like to thank you for giving us your valuable time.

We are really amaze, how you are able to take out so much time in answering so many questions through the Jayapatākā Swami App and live darśanas.

Feel really indebted.

Our question is with the current pandemic situation, there is a lot of stress going on in families in general due to increase in materially demanding situations, like economic recession and increasing work demands from workplace.

In these situations, what should be a devotee’s attitude towards work, specially following gṛhastha-āśrama.

What is the practical extent of endeavor one can put in?

Jayapatākā Swami: Difficult for me to say.

Since I being a sannyāsī I don’t know exactly the pressures on a gṛhastha.

I don’t really understand what the pressure is that you are talking about.

I heard that many businesses allow their workers to work from home.

And that seems to be an advantage.

Of course, I also heard that by staying in the home, it increases the pressure on the family members living in close proximity for extended time, increases the potential for misunderstanding.

Of course, we have our goal in life which is to be Kṛṣṇa conscious.

And chant our rounds and read Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books and preach.

But in order to survive in this material world we also have to work and make a certain income.

Since that is a necessary evil, we have to see how we can balance both.

Question: How one can maintain spiritual practices and be enthusiastic in the service in these trying circumstances? What are the practical considerations?

Jayapatākā Swami: Practically, if you are not enthusiastic and don’t maintain the spiritual practices then you have to come back again to this material situation.

That should be enough impetus to make you think I don’t want to come back to this horrible situation. 

Question: Should we aim to go back to Godhead or stay here to serve Guru Mahārāja in fulfilling Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mission? 

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda wanted his disciples to go back to Godhead.

But we want to go back only if there is service we want to go back.

We don’t want to just be there, we want to be there to serve.

So naturally if your desire is to serve, then you will be taken wherever is a place where your service will be.

I asked Śrīla Prabhupāda I wanted to serve him life after life.

Then he replied to me, why do want to make me come back?

I thought I said the right thing.

I said, I would like to serve you even life after life!

So you can pray like that.

That we want to serve even staying in this material world but we want to serve.

So in that way if that is the Lord’s desire He will take you back to the spiritual world.