20220515 Question and Answer Session

The following is a Question & Answer Session given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on May 15th, 2022 in Śrī Dhāma Māyāpur, India. 

Jayapatākā Swami: Since we think that we need the mercy of guru and Kṛṣṇa, then naturally all the activities we do are in a prayerful mood. Because we want the mercy of Kṛṣṇa in all that we do.

Question: How to develop taste for reading Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books daily?

—Sundara Nitāi dāsa, Ujjain.

Jayapatākā Swami: Sundara Nitāi dāsa, If you read the books every day, your taste will increase. And I was reading last night, Śrīla Prabhupāda said that those who are somehow in connection with the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, they should read all of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books – Bhagavad-gītā, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Caitanya-caritāmṛta, and others. Otherwise, one may fall down and leave Kṛṣṇa consciousness because of inadequate knowledge. So you can pray to Kṛṣṇa that you can read the books without offence. And by regularly reading, then you will gradually increase your taste.

♦ ♦ ♦

Question: I am struggling with anarthas. How to do anartha-nivṛitti?

—Your servant, Akshaj, Bhopal.

Jayapatākā Swami: Usually, bhajana-kriyā stage is the time we take initiation. Then after that with the guidance of the guru, we get anartha-nivṛitti. We may hear from the guru or we may have śikṣā-gurus who help us to overcome these anarthas. One book I translated Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura’s book, Vaiṣṇava Ke? He prayed to his mind, what kind of Vaiṣṇava are you? By doing solitary bhajana you seek name and fame. That book, it is a small book. You read that to find out how to control and train the mind. Also, there is another bhajana by Śrīnivāsa Ācārya and that helps one to control the mind. Anarthas are in the mind. Anartha-nivṛtti means mind is purified. 

♦ ♦ ♦

Question: How do we get enough intelligence so that we can protect ourselves from bewilderment of māyā because māyā is more intelligent than us?

—Darsh

Jayapatākā Swami: Māyā is stronger than we are but Kṛṣṇa is stronger than māyā. If we take shelter of Kṛṣṇa we can cross over māyā. That is why we try to engage ourselves in Kṛṣṇa’s service. So there is a competition. Māyā tests us, but if we are successful in following Kṛṣṇa, then māyā will offer her praṇāmas to us. But if we succumb to her tests, then we will remain in the material world.

♦ ♦ ♦

Hare Kṛṣṇa! Gurumaharaj!

Question: How can we select the right guru?

—Ritvik, ISKCON Baroda:

Jayapatākā Swami: If the guru is able to help you if you feel that Śrīla Prabhupāda is talking to you through the guru and you are able to cross over māyā, then that is the right guru for you. So you also get help from various śikṣā-gurus and Vaiṣṇavas. I have fifteen questions you should ask yourself, to help you understand if it is the right guru.

♦ ♦ ♦

Question: What keeps you motivated to preach even with so many difficulties, especially with your old age?

—Akshay, Vadodara

Jayapatākā Swami: How many are from Vadodara? Vadodara is in Gujarat. Vadodara, I have many disciples from Vadodara. They are in the bhakti-vṛkṣa. I feel very grateful for all that Śrīla Prabhupāda did for me and so to repay him I try to preach. And in 2008 I had a stroke. And the right side of my body is not paralyzed fully but paresis, partially paralyzed. And the left side of my face. But the teachings of Lord Caitanya are very blissful. It says that normal people if they eat grains and milk, you get strong, but for devotees even if you have one drop of nectar then you feel so much energy. Lord Caitanya gives this nectar. We hope that your visit to Māyāpur was very nice. This is known as audārya-dhāma, the merciful dhāma. Vṛndāvana is mādhurya-dhāma, very sweet. Jagannātha Purī and Dvārakā are aiśvarya-dhāmas, very opulent. This is the place to have mercy and Caitanya Mahāprabhu is Kṛṣṇa but He is in the mood of devotee, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. So that is why it is the special mercy we get and we want to serve Lord Caitanya and Śrīla Prabhupāda. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

♦ ♦ ♦

Question: I have very deep rooted desire to enjoy so it hurdles my spiritual desire. How to get desire to serve?

—Murāri Hari dāsa

Jayapatākā Swami: You see everybody wants to enjoy, they want to be happy. But actually, the real happiness is from the spiritual kingdom. In the material world everything is temporary. So it is not possible to get permanent happiness, and to get some happiness we have to get a lot of suffering also. Like, old age, disease, studying, spend so much time to study, if you are working, and other people in your workplace may be envious and they want to screw you, so they can look good, so then can be the General Manager. So we find that Quality Control, Operations, Marketing, they are actually trying to create problem for others. So real happiness that you get is from Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then you chant and dance. Sometimes Lord Caitanya said one feels so much bliss that they cry, laugh. So like this they feel very happy. Everyone wants to feel happy. But māyā eludes us, she kicks us that we be, will be happy in material life. That if we have lot of sense gratification, we will happy. But actually, that doesn’t give real happiness. So one should use this human birth, to be Kṛṣṇa conscious. So, if you think you are the body, then this deep-rooted desire to enjoy the body will come. But if you realize that you are not the body, then you will try to enjoy by giving pleasure to Kṛṣṇa. And by giving Kṛṣṇa pleasure we feel happier.

♦ ♦ ♦

Question: I want to offer myself in the mission of Śrīla Prabhupāda but I am afraid of my attachments to material things and conditioning.

—Milan, ISKCON Youth Forum, Baroda

Jayapatākā Swami: You see Lord Caitanya, He taught that you can achieve perfection whether you are a vairāgī or a householder. So, if you are a householder you should try to keep Kṛṣṇa in the center. I saw one drama from the Chennai youths. One girl and one boy were playing Yamadūtas and one lady, girl was playing Yamarāja. She painted her mustache as Yamarāja. The Yamadūtas they were complaining. Yamarāja! What do we do? These Kṛṣṇa conscious devotees have deities in the houses, they chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, they read Bhagavad-gītā, what do we do? We cannot take them to hell! Maybe need a way to find another chākrī, another job! So it was very interesting to see the Yamadūtas complaining. Actually, one family in Kolkata, the mother, children, were all initiated. Everyone but the father. He was dead against. But then he was diagnosed with cancer. He was in bed , and he saw two hairy people with leather ropes, walk through the wall. He said, “No, no, no, no! No, no!” Somehow they left. He called his wife, “I want the neck bead. I want the Bhagavad-gītā, I want the japa-mālā.” What we were trying so long, the Yamadūtas in few minutes they changed him. So he became very Kṛṣṇa conscious after that.

♦ ♦ ♦

Question: How to stop loose talk with other devotees because it harms our spiritual consciousness?

—Nikhil Raj, Bhopal

Jayapatākā Swami: We have some very serious devotees in Māyāpur. You can ask the residents of Māyāpur and they will confirm. One is Jananivāsa Prabhu. Whenever he would come and talk Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but if the discussion became a bit different, he would leave. You turn around he is gone. As long as you are Kṛṣṇa conscious he will be there. Loose talk and he is gone. Also, some people they are able to change the topic. If someone is talking loose talk, they know how to change the topic. And bring them around to serious talk. Then if people are very addicted to loose talk they won’t like to stay around you.

♦ ♦ ♦

Question: How to remain enthusiastic despite challenges we face in serving Kṛṣṇa?

—Bhakta dāsa, ISKCON Baroda

Jayapatākā Swami: You see there will always be some tests. Māyā will test you, are you really sincere? You want to serve Kṛṣṇa or you are just playing around. So many devotees here. I give class every day, more or less every day. Wherever you are, Bhopal, Vadodara, you can watch the class, either by Facebook or Zoom.

♦ ♦ ♦

Question: How to overcome the enjoyment mentality?

Jayapatākā Swami: We maintain our enthusiasm when we have a taste for spiritual life. Like in different stages of devotional service like bhajana-kriyā, anartha-nivṛtti, niṣṭhā, ruci, ruci means taste. You have a taste, you want to do more and more service. And one time, in Montreal, mother and father came to see the son. Put their arm around him talked to him nicely. But when they got to the doorway, they grabbed him and told him to go home. Then he held on the door and they were pulling his feet and Śrīla Prabhupāda when he heard he said he is attached. After ruci comes āsakti, attachment. You have to be attached to resist your parents like that. So anyway, by devotional service we gradually get taste, we get attached and in this way we desire to render devotional service more and more.

♦ ♦ ♦

I was discussing with a devotee today. He told me that for every sevā or preaching project we are engaged in we must have a vision for that. Guru Mahārāja, my question is..

Question: if I am serving under the authority, can I have a vision for the project? What if our authority has different ways or visions?

—Amṛteśa Gaura dāsa, Bhubaneswar

Jayapatākā Swami: You see it may be different it may be the same. If you have a vision that you want to serve Kṛṣṇa, you want to spread the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, maybe some individual differences. But if your reason is Kṛṣṇa conscious then it doesn’t matter.

♦ ♦ ♦

So thank you for asking so many questions