20220619 Question and Answer Session

Question: Is it a good practice to understand that everything good is happening in our life due to Kṛṣṇa’s mercy and everything bad is because of our bad karma. How to understand this right?

Jayapatākā Swami: You see it depends whether you are a devotee or not. If you are not a devotee, then it may be due to karma. If you are a devotee, you will think I should have suffered a lot but Kṛṣṇa only gave me a token something. So like that He may reduce it to show us we don’t want to stay here. There are different reasons why He allows us to suffer a little bit. I will give shorter answers so I can answer more questions.

Question: Why do we need to practice Kṛṣṇa consciousness so seriously that we go back to Godhead in this life only? We could practice it little by little and in the next lifetime we can get devotee parents? Why not this way?

Jayapatākā Swami: I told the history of Bharata Mahārāja this morning. He took birth as a deer. There is no guarantee what your next life will be. Especially if you think like that, oh let me take it easy, next life I could practice more if I have devotee parents. This is the seventh offence of the holy name, to commit sin on the strength of the holy name. Let me do a little sin and a little bhakti and I will get a good birth in the next life. Don’t try to cheat Kṛṣṇa, you cannot out trick Him! Even if you try to follow Kṛṣṇa consciousness sincerely, then next life you will start where you left off in the present life.

Question: I am doing bhakti in all possible ways but still my anarthas are not going. Please advise me.

Jayapatākā Swami: Usually if you look back we see that many anarthas you have overcome. Anartha-nivṛtti starts to kick in very strongly after we take initiation. If you are initiated or you have a śikṣā-guru, then you can ask him how to overcome any anarthas that you see. I was in our temple āśrama in Montreal, Canada, and there was a devotee who was talking in his sleep. So, I felt he was disturbing my sleep. I went to listen to what he was saying. He was saying Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare! And then I thought alright, I won’t disturb him. He is chanting in his sleep.

Question: Externally we can see you are undergoing so many challenges and unstoppable. Is it because of your love for Śrīla Prabhupāda? Why cannot we develop such qualities to serve guru even 0.001 per cent?

Jayapatākā Swami: Why not? Śrīla Prabhupāda underwent so many difficulties to save us. I think I am not able to do enough to repay him! He wants to save everybody suffering in this material hell. So, that is the way I think.

In 1989, in Madrid, one person cut my throat. The doctor who operated on me said that it just missed your carotid artery by 1mm, we could not have saved you in the hospital, only God saved you. Then I had a stroke in October 2008, the doctor said he has zero chance of survival. If by some miracle he survives, he will be a vegetable case he won’t be able to move or talk. I can give so many other examples. Kṛṣṇa has allowed to stay so that is all I can say.