20200429 Zoom Session with Māyāpur Residents

20200429 Jayapatākā Swami Guru Maharaj, Addresses Māyāpur Community Devotees and Zoom Visit to Their Homes, Śrī Māyāpur Dham, India.

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ

paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim

yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande

paramānanda-mādhavam

Śrī Caitanya Īśvaram

Audio started abruptly.

..and the devotees are used to attending the temple programs and the Prabhupāda pūjā and the various festivals. So, I want to thank you for taking this austerity in observing the lockdown. We have bad news that was mentioned in the morning announcement that 37 of our devotees in Dhaka, Swamibag temple in Bangladesh tested positive with corona virus.  They are taking the different Russian and Chinese cures.

Audārya dham from Russia and some devotees from China are giving them some treatment. Let us see how it works.

So far, Audārya dham prabhu’s treatment has been very successful. I got the news that from UK they had 99% success. We hope the same holds true for Bangladesh. This shows that the corona virus can also affect devotees, it is not that we are immune or something. We may recover if we take some treatment, but it is very dangerous. Five devotees have passed away in Europe. Therefore, you may find it unnatural not to be able to go out and chant together. But it just takes one person to get the virus and then there is the whole community spread. We are used to being close together, when you touch someone who has it, you get it! That is why they say, wash your hands, wear a mask. Observe social distancing because they don’t have a cure, they don’t have a vaccine. You know, it seems to be a virus from animals. Some even say that maybe the Chinese were developing some kind of biological warfare, but who knows!

But anyway, this virus definitely comes from animals. And we don’t eat animals. We are not the cause of this virus. But once it enters into human society we can be affected. Therefore, we want people to chant, to inspire Kṛṣṇa to give mercy on them. I was reading today that if one chants even once the name of Kṛṣṇa or Hari, they can get unlimited spiritual benefit. So, anyone you know please, encourage them to chant the holy names. If they don’t want to chant the names in Sanskrit, at least you can ask them to chant some name of God in their scripture. Actually, even if one accidentally chants the name of Kṛṣṇa or Rāma, they get special mercy. Like, I was travelling in South America and I was teaching English.

So, this is called a knee (gesturing to his knee). What you wear here (gesturing to his neck) is a tie. So, knee tie. Nitāi. Like that we are teaching English. I taught some more words. You know how the wind blows. The way the wind goes, in winter we have the wind from the north and in summer the wind from the south.

So, you see Go Wind, go wind is one way of saying Govind! Like that our Dr. Binay Gauracandra he is doing some studies. And he found that people chant the mantra it helps to overcome addiction. So, run in Bengali is daur. So, we tell people Go run go, Gorungo, in this way they are chanting Gaurāṅga. So, he has them pronounce like that. So even if they accidentally chant the names of Gaurāṅga or Nitāi.

Lord Caitanya told Haridāsa Ṭhākura, he was worried about the yavanas, how will they be delivered? And Haridāsa Ṭhākura he said, oh, if they are attacked by a pig, they chant Ha Ram Ha Ram, that way they are saying O my dear Lord Ram. Ha Ram. So somehow or another people consciously or accidentally chant they also get benefit. So, I was thinking how special you all are to chant the names of Hari consciously. We chant every day certain number of rounds.

Of course, Haridāsa Ṭhākura who chant 12 times per day more than what we do. But he was praying to Lord Caitanya that I have no qualification because I don’t remember You! If he doesn’t remember Kṛṣṇa, he almost chants 20 hours a day, so, where are we? So, he teaches us by his being so humble, he actually follows the third verse of the Śikṣāṣṭakam – more humble than a blade of grass. He was really humble. And Haridāsa Ṭhākura he was beaten in 22 marketplaces. And he was praying, Kṛṣṇa came, Lord Caitanya said, I came with My Sudarśana cakra, in my hand.  I would have killed those executioners, but you were praying for their forgiveness. So, I couldn’t kill them. So, then I took the hits on My back. He showed His back and He had the beating marks on His back. So Haridāsa Ṭhākura fainted.

Some people say Haridāsa is the avatar of Brahmadeva. Some say he is Prahlāda maharaj. But spiritually he could be both. Anyway, he wanted to see the number of devotees increase. That is what we all want.

Śrīla Prabhupāda said ISKCON is basically a ghoṣṭi ānandī movement. We want to increase the number of devotees and we know that unless we have a strong greed or desire for love of Kṛṣṇa, we won’t get it. Having money, having a big house, having any kind of material position or anything, that is of no use. Having a strong desire to serve and love Kṛṣṇa, that is all that counts.

So, we are living in this holy dham of Lord Caitanya, we have a great opportunity to serve the Lord. Sorry that we cannot dance in ecstasy with each other, because of this present pandemic. But at least we can go on our windows or doorways and we could do the Hari dhwani, we can do the spiritual vibrations. I said before the chanting would be at 5.30 but because the Boat Festival is going on, I moved it to 7.10 pm. Class is 5 minutes after sunset. Now sunset is at 6.04. 5 minutes conch blowing, bell rings, Hari dhwani and ulu dhwani.

Actually, even when Śrīla Prabhupāda was here, at sunset Jananivas would take the dhuñā and bells and someone would blow the conch. So that was happening at sunset. Sunset used to be at 5.59 or something. Now it is 6.04. It gets later and later until June 21st and then it will start getting earlier again, at the summer solstice. Anyway, we have a great opportunity to be here in the holy dham of Lord Caitanya. Anything we do has 1000 times more benefit. So, we should try to do as much devotional service as we can. Being in lockdown, I mean, you have plenty of opportunity to read and chant, to watch the deity worship, and to preach using internet. But we don’t have much opportunity to associate except by phone!

So, I am giving some days three or four classes. And meetings – today I had the Māyāpur Administrative Council meeting. I was asking if they have some sort of medicare insurance for all of you. They wanted to increase that, next week they will present a detailed proposal. But apparently now if anyone has to be hospitalized, they are covered by medicare. I don’t know who is covered and who is not covered. But they have some system. They were also discussing if we should have video conferencing, world class.

So, like that, yesterday we had the TOVP Exhibits management meeting. And we were discussing how the exhibits could be done at the entry level and fourth level. Last night we went to Vijayawada and Guntur. On Friday we went to Kanhai desh, Kuwait. So, every day we go to different places. Tonight, I am in Māyāpur! Ha! I thank you again, be Kṛṣṇa conscious, be healthy and if anyone wants to know the holistic treatments then talk to Dr. Binay Gauracandra.

Any questions?

 We heard some possibility that the state may extend the lockdown for three more weeks. It was supposed to be over on the 3rd of May but apparently there is a possibility that the state may extend it. So, it is a great difficulty for the devotees. But this is most likely going to be the system till they find a cure.

Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Any questions, you can ask on the chat.

If anyone needs help, see your MCS person or brahmacārī counsellor. So, they can tell us and we can do something. I think that tomorrow they are distributing more aid to the local devotees. We have a list of devotees who are not getting much allowance. So, we give them but if anyone else is in need, please tell us. Some of you are contributing to the Māyāpur Food for Life and Devotee Care.

Thank you very much!

Is there a question?

Devotee: Recently one transgender lady wrote me a letter that what is her hope in Kṛṣṇa bhakti? And can she get the mercy of Mahāprabhu?

How to invite and fit transgender persons in our devotee community?

-Your servant, Padma Mukha Nimāi das.

His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya said that no matter how fallen one is, how many sinful acts they have performed, He can deliver them. The only thing is that if the person is a blasphemer of a vaiṣṇava, je vaiṣṇava nindā kore, Lord Caitanya said, He won’t deliver them, until he gets forgiven. So transgender, I don’t see that as a big problem. But after taking initiation or after coming to Kṛṣṇa consciousness they have to follow certain rules. I know one couple; they are both transgender. The man was previously a woman and the woman was previously a man. Now they are transgender and married each other and practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We don’t recommend it but there is still hope to get the mercy of Lord Caitanya.

 Devotee: What is Māyāpur management plan in case we find a corona case? Can she or he be quarantined in Māyāpur guest house?

-Prema Gaurasundar das.

 His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami: They can be quarantined somewhere in Māyāpur, whether guest house or flat. I think we discussed that. But it would depend on the person. So, a whole family is [positive, they might have the flat quarantined and someone has to bring them bhoga to cook. If it is one person, then accordingly we put them in some quarantine and deliver them prasādam. I don’t know if, it is not the time to go to hospital. Going to Indian hospitals is not ideal. I don’t know if the person who is positive, what they do with you? In some places you have to go to the local quarantine, but it is a good question. What will they do? Whether they will allow us. I don’t want to go to the hospital. Unless it is beyond hope.

It is 9 o clock now. We will take one more question and then go on a house-to-house visit.

Devotee: Māni Gopal Das: Guru maharaj you mentioned that anything good we do in Māyāpur we get 1000 times the benefit, however what if someone offends residing in Māyāpur and become lazy thinking just because I am in Māyāpur, and everything will work fine. How do we see it?

 His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda was saying, what is a thousand times zero? If we don’t do any devotional service, then we get 1000 times 0. Being here we should do as much service as we can. Then it makes sense if we get thousand times the benefit. But if we don’t do anything, we won’t get much benefit.

But if they commit offenses to vaiṣṇavas, then Lord Caitanya said He won’t deliver them. Lord Nityānanda was saying that He was asked that some people were seem to be performing sinful acts in the dham, so He was saying that some people actually don’t live in the dham, they live on the crust of the dham, just on the top. So, they don’t actually get the mercy of the Lord. Therefore, we should pray to Prauda Māyā, to Vridha Śiva, to enter into the dham. And the great vaiṣṇavī, great vaiṣṇava, they can bless us to enter into the dham. We hope that everybody is a true dham vasi and that they take advantage of living in the dham and do as much devotional service as possible.

Haribol! Ok! Let us visit some houses!

 Guru mahārāja then visited the homes of the participants, along with His Grace Mahavara das prabhu.