20200615 Zoom Session with Mysore Devotees

The following is a Zoom darśana given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Maharaja on June 25, 2020 in Śrī Māyāpur dhāma, India for ISKCON Chennai Congregation.

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-gurun dina tāriṇam
paramānanda-mādhavam śrī caitanya īśvaram
Harihi oṁ tat sat

Jayapatākā Swami: So he will translate into Kannada when I speak in English? So Lord Caitanya travelled for six years in South India and He visited Uḍupī and many holy places. So, He also took initiation in the Madhva line. This is confirmed by the Pejāvara Swami, while he was alive. So, Lord Caitanya is Kṛṣṇa Himself. He came in the mood of a devotee. Rukmiṇī devī told Him, “You know everything, You know what Brahmā is doing, what Śiva is doing, but the one thing that you don’t know, Rādhārāṇī knows. But You don’t know.” Kṛṣṇa… no one ever told Kṛṣṇa that something that He doesn’t know. He said, “What is that?” And Rukmiṇī said, “You don’t know, how much Your devotees love You. And then what way we love You. Rādhārāṇī knows, I know, You don’t know.” So Lord Kṛṣṇa came as Caitanya Mahāprabhu to find out what love His devotees have for Him. He took the mood of Rādhārāṇī. Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa combine together, and Lord Caitanya has the heart of Rādhārāṇī. So He is Kṛṣṇa Himself with the heart of Rādhārāṇī. So, He gives out the special mercy of love for Kṛṣṇa. If you want kṛṣṇa-prema it is very hard to get, very hard. But by Lord Caitanya’s mercy is very easy. And Māyāpur dhāma is known as audārya-dhāma – the adobe of dhāma. So, I am calling you from Māyāpur dhāma.

And I am very happy we are talking to devotees from Mysore, by the sacred river of Kāverī and you are blessed to various place[?]. We went on the way to Mysore, we stopped in Melkote, we saw the Yoga Narasiṁha Deity and also the Nārāyaṇa, which lay on the ground. Which, one princess of Nawab used to worship. [Yuvarāṇī!]

So I went many times to Mysore and many devotees there, it is very nice place. So I don’t get a chance to visit all the houses of devotees, not normally. By the Zoom I am been able to make virtual visits. Of course, during this time of the pandemic and lockdown, we are trying to utilize the opportunity it gives us to expand the preaching. We preach using the internet. In Chennai we started a class on “Bhagavad-gītā for the Beginners”. They expected that 100 people would join, but 9,000 registered. So much interest now in spiritual life. I asked the doctor, “What should I do if I get Corona virus?” My secretaries asked. He said, “Don’t get it! There is no treatment, there is no vaccine. And best thing, don’t get it.” So I am here in lockdown, and I am trying to avoid getting it. But, I am using this opportunity to preach, so here we are having different classes every day. 6:30pm – 7:30pm I have a class on the pastimes of Lord Caitanya and after that 8:15pm or so I have the Zoom meetings with different devotees and 5:45pm we have the Food Relief meeting. And 11:30am we have other meetings like that in one day 4 to 6 meetings. I like to hear what you are also doing to spread the Harināma.

Actually, in this Age of Kali the only sacrifice recommended is the chanting the holy name. In Kali-santaraṇa Upaniṣad, it gives the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. And it says: iti ṣoḍaśakaṁ nāmnāṁ – these sixteen names, kali-kalmaṣa-nāśanaṁ – all the evil effects of Kali-yuga are destroyed. So we encourage everyone to chant, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.