20220623 Dīkṣā Ceremony address

The following is an initiation address given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on June 23rd, 2022 at ISKCON Coimbatore, India.

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānanda-mādhavam śrī caitanya iśvaram

Hariḥ oṁ tat sat!

Jayapatākā Swami: Today we are having the initiation ceremony. And some people are taking their preparation to initiation - aspiring and shelter. All those taking initiation, they have taken their vows? Raise your hands! Anyone who has not taken their vows? So, you should practice these vows for the rest of your life. We want to always remember Kṛṣṇa and never forget Him. We don’t want to do impious acts and we don’t want to do pious acts. We want to serve Lord Kṛṣṇa. Bhakti-yoga is practicing the nine practices of devotional service. Hearing, śravaṇam chanting, kīrtanam, remembering the Lord, smaraṇam; rendering service, pāda-sevanam; vandanam offering obeisances and prayers; arcanam worshiping the Deities; dāsyam, considering one’s self as a servant of the Lord; sakhyam, considering the Lord as your friend; ātma-nivedanam, offering everything to the Lord.

Ambarīṣa Mahārāja, he did all the nine practices, and therefore he is the emblem of ātma-nivedanam. If we do pious activities, then we take rebirth. The result of pious activity is good birth, rich family, good education. Freedom from litigation and other problems. But you still have to take rebirth. If your mother is a rich mother or a poor mother, you still have to be in her womb for nine or ten months. By the practice of bhakti-yoga, this initiation, you can go back to Godhead. But we have to be very careful to avoid offences and to avoid material activities. We practice yukta-vairāgya. That means we can do anything, but we do it for Kṛṣṇa. And follow these four principles. Those you cannot do for Kṛṣṇa. ? So, it is not very difficult, but one has to be sincere. There is a saying, do not drink water underwater on a fast day! Some fasts are nirjala fasts. But one devotee, went under the river and taking a dip, he thought no one can see me and he drank some water underwater, on fasting day! But Kṛṣṇa is in our heart as Supersoul! He can see everything we do! If we try to cheat Kṛṣṇa, we will be cheated.

So, I would like all the wives to help their husbands remember Kṛṣṇa. All the parents to help their children to remember Kṛṣṇa. This way, always keep Kṛṣṇa in the center of your house and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa every day. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Hare Kṛṣṇa!