20220918 Evening Address

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
hariḥ oṁ tat sat

Jayapatākā Swami: I will speak only in Bengali now. Because I had a stroke my voice is not very clear and so whatever I speak will be repeated. Please sit near Mādhava Kānta Prabhu and hear.

Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu when He was Nimāi Paṇḍita in Navadvīpa dhāma, initially He was not in devotional service. He was the incarnation of God, but first He took education. Once, there was a Digvijaya Paṇḍita, Keśava Kāśmīrī who came to Navadvīpa dhāma. And he announced, that who is there who is a learned paṇḍita here, I can debate with them and defeat all of them. He came with all fanfare, elephants, horses, in a palanquin in procession. All the paṇḍitas of Navadvīpa seeing him were scared. But Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He understood that this kind of arrogance was not right. He thought I will use such a strategy that he is not harmed in any way. If He openly debated with that paṇḍita and defeated him then the residents would take away everything from him, and Lord Caitanya did not want this. He wanted to defeat him and bring on the path of devotion. Then Keśava Kāśmīrī when he came to have a bath in the Ganges, he saw that Nimāi Paṇḍita had come with thousands of His students. Then he got introduced to Nimāi Paṇḍita. Nimāi Paṇḍita said, “I am Nimāi Paṇḍita”. To which Keśava Kāśmīrī said, “Oh! I have heard of You, You teach children simple grammar.” The arrogant Keśava Kāśmīrī wanted to dishonor Nimāi Paṇḍita. But Nimāi Paṇḍita did not pay heed to this. Then Nimāi Paṇḍita said, “I have heard you are a very famous paṇḍita. Could you compose some poetry and speak the glories of the Ganges?” Then Keśava Kāśmīrī said, “Sure I will!” He started rattling out ślokas on the glories of the Ganges. The students of Nimāi Paṇḍita heard this and were amazed at the way he composed and recited the verses. This way he composed about 150 ślokas. Nimāi Paṇḍita then said, “Your poetry is very nice but now please tell Me. What is good and what is bad about your ślokas?” Keśava Kāśmīrī said, “What could be wrong with any of my ślokas?” Then Nimāi Paṇḍita said, what is good about the ślokas. Kesava Kasmiri could not understand what could be wrong. Then Nimāi Paṇḍita spoke the 57^th śloka that He had by hearted. Keśava Kāśmīrī had not by hearted that. He said, “How have You by hearted this śloka?” Nimāi Paṇḍita said that, “Just as God has given you the ability to compose these verses, the same way He has given Me the blessing to by heart them.” Then He found seven good qualities of the śloka and about 7-8 mistakes. There were many but one of them is the word Bhavānī-bharta – Bharta means husband. Bhavānī means wife of Śiva. Bhavānī-bharta is not easily understood. Śiva’s wife’s husband. That means that she has one more husband. This way He pointed out many mistakes. Keśava Kāśmīrī could not give any valid reasons for this. Then he went and prayed to Sarasvatī and asked her, “How did this child defeat me?” Sarasvatī said, “I cannot do anything because the person who was talking to you, Nimāi Paṇḍita, is my husband! He is Viṣṇu, incarnation of Viṣṇu.” Then Keśava Kāśmīrī went to Nimāi Paṇḍita’s house and surrendered to Nimāi Paṇḍita. Then there were many pastimes and he gave up his paṇḍita status, surrendered to Nimāi Paṇḍita and then became a Vaiṣṇava ācārya. This way, Caitanya Mahāprabhu, as Nimāi Paṇḍita, He performed many pastimes.

One time, Nimāi Paṇḍita’s father left his body. Then after one-year Nimāi Paṇḍita said I will go to Gayā and offer piṇḍi-dāna, sacrifice. Then in Gayā He happened to meet the disciples of Mādhavendra Purī, Īśvara Purī. He told him that my father is no more, I want to take initiation. Īśvara Purī said, “You are a great paṇḍita, how can I give you initiation?” There was some discussion and then Nimāi Paṇḍita said that, “If you don’t give Me initiation, I will commit suicide.” That way, Īśvara Purī agreed and gave Him initiation. After taking initiation, love of Godhead awakened in His heart. He sang and danced in kīrtana there. Then He crossed the Phalgu river and decided He wanted to go to Vṛndāvana. But then there was a voice which spoke from the sky which said, now is not the time for You to go to Vṛndāvana, You may go later. You now go to Navadvīpa and start the saṅkīrtana-yajña. Then Nimāi Paṇḍita went to Gayā and from there He went to Kānāi-Nāṭaśālā. This is on the bank of the Ganges. There from far He saw a child playing the flute and came up to Him dancing. Then when He came closer Nimāi Paṇḍita could see that the child had a peacock feather on His head. His form was three-fold bending and He wore a yellow colored dhoti and wore garland of flowers and beautiful jewelry. Then Nimāi Paṇḍita could understand that this is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa came close and embraced Him! Then He went away. Nimāi Paṇḍita ran after but Kṛṣṇa went behind a tree and hid. Nimāi Paṇḍita searched a lot but could not find Him. Now Kānāi-Nāṭaśālā is under service of ISKCON. The Mahanta who was there previously handed over this to us and left. Then ISKCON installed the Deities of Rādhā Kṛṣṇa and Gaurāṅga Mahāprabhu there.

Then Caitanya Mahāprabhu came to Navadvīpa and He was completely transformed. He became Gaura Hari from Nimāi Paṇḍita. He saw all the devotees and said I got Kṛṣṇa, in Kānāi-Nāṭaśālā, I found Him, but immediately after that He disappeared! You don’t know what misery is there when you get Kṛṣṇa and then you lose Him. Then He did kīrtana with all the devotees. Gadādhara Paṇḍita was there and Caitanya Mahāprabhu praised Gadādhara Paṇḍita. You are a devotee from birth, I was not a devotee, but now I understand what I missed being a devotee. Then He inaugurated the Harināma saṅkīrtana-yajña in Navadvīpa. Then, Nitāi came. Amazing pastimes! Then He did kīrtana in Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura’s residence. There were not outsiders available. Only the devotees who were known to Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura were allowed to join the kīrtana. People were outside hearing the kīrtana and chanting of Haribol! Haribol! They were speculating that probably the devotees were drinking wine and dancing with women! What are they doing? One man came up to Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura’s home door and said, what are you all doing? Don’t you have anything else to do? Are you crazy? They said we are doing Harināma. Then the man left. This way kīrtana began.

The Chand Kazi obstructed the chanting of the Harināma saṅkīrtana. He said that if he heard anyone chant Harināma, he would have them killed. Then Caitanya Mahāprabhu was told about this and He said that no one can stop our Harināma. Then He took out four groups of devotees doing kīrtana on the streets of Navadvīpa. One group was headed by Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura, Advaita Gosāñi one group, Haridāsa Ṭhākura one group and Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Nitāi and Gadādhara in one group. Nitāi and Gadādhara were on either side of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. This was because Śacīmātā had requested Nitāi and Gadādhara that in case Caitanya Mahāprabhu fell, They could hold Him. There were lakhs and lakhs of people doing kīrtana. All the demigods also came to witness the kīrtana. They saw Caitanya Mahāprabhu dancing, the Lord was crying, and they fainted watching this. When they got consciousness, then they took the form of humans and joined the kīrtana. This kīrtana was heard all over the universe. Till Vaikuṇṭha! All the damsels of the Svargaloka were showering rains of flower on the kīrtana parties. There were some atheists and were cursing them. But when then saw Caitanya Mahāprabhu dancing, they also started dancing! Haribol! Some were rolling on the ground. This kīrtana was similar to the Kurukṣetra war in kṛṣṇa-līlā, so many armies of soldiers were killed there. Now Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He as Gaura Hari, He did such kīrtana that the whole universe joined. Then the Chand Kazi heard the sound of the kīrtana. He said, “What is this? Is someone getting married?” Then he asked his soldiers to go and stop the kīrtana. The soldiers seeing lakhs and lakhs of people chanting, got scared and they took off their turbans and raised their hands and started doing kīrtana so no one would recognize them. In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta it is said that the Chand Kazi said, “Your grandfather used to call me uncle, so why are You getting angry with me?” This way the Chand Kazi invited Him in. They discussed. Then Caitanya Mahāprabhu asked the Kazi “Why do you eat your mother and father? The cow gives us milk, she is our mother.” The Chand Kazi said that, “You do yajña Gomedha where you sacrifice cows.” But Caitanya Mahāprabhu said that, “In Kali-yuga this Gomedha yajña is forbidden. In previous yugas such sacrifices were done when old or sick cows were sacrificed to give them new bodies, not for eating them.” Lot of discussion took place. The Chand Kazi said I saw a fearful dream yesterday. “A very fearful man came in my dream and He was half lion half man. He said that if you stop the saṅkīrtana, I will kill you. Then He scratched his chest with His nails.” The Chand Kazi showed the marks of the scratches to Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Ordinarily when one dreams one cannot see these marks on waking up but here the marks were visible. Then the Kazi declared that, “Neither me nor anyone in my family will ever stop the saṅkīrtana-yajña.” This way Caitanya Mahāprabhu came back from Gayā and started the saṅkīrtana-yajña. And this is the dharma of Kali-yuga.

kṛte yad dhyāyato viṣṇuṁ
tretāyāṁ yajato makhaiḥ
dvāpare paricaryāyāṁ
kalau tad dhari-kīrtanāt

[SB 12.3.52]

For the various yugas there are specified yajñas. But in Kali-yuga the sacrifice recommended is Harināma saṅkīrtana.

I was hearing when I came how all of you were doing Harināma saṅkīrtana and I am very happy. Caitanya Mahāprabhu will surely bestow His mercy on all of you! Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the most merciful incarnation.

parama karuṇa, pahuṅ dui jana,
nitāi-gauracandra
saba avatāra-, sāra-śiromaṇi,
kevala ānanda-kāṇḍa

Now, Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s sacrifice is doing Harināma, dancing and singing. Eat kṛṣṇa-prasāda. Someone came back from his vacation back to work and his colleagues asked him what did he do in his vacation? He said, oh I went to festival, danced, sang and feasted. It was very nice. This is our Harināma yajña – doing kīrtana, dance, eat kṛṣṇa-prasāda. This is our renunciation, nothing else. Generally, people do not do this. If they do this what bliss, we experience – Śrīla Rūpa Goswami said that the bliss of saying the name Kṛṣṇa is unlimited and cannot be explained. Haribol! I hope that all of you are all working but hope that as much as possible you will chant the holy names. If you do this then after this life all of you will go back to Godhead.

In Chennai I watched a drama performed by small children. There was a girl who acted as Yamarāja and she had stuck a mustache. Two children were Yamadūtas. They Yamadūtas were complaining to Yamarāja – “We are seeing the ISKCON devotees. They have Deities in their homes, they eat prasāda, read Bhagavad-gītā, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and chant the holy names. What can we do? We cannot do anything. We cannot take them to hell and make them suffer. If this goes on then we will lose our jobs.” Do you all pity the Yamadūtas? Or you want to give them a holiday? So then you all do Harināma.

If you have any questions, you can ask.

Question: Gurudeva please explain the importance of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

Jayapatākā Swami: Some days ago, we celebrated Bhādra Pūrṇimā. It is said about Bhādra Pūrṇimā in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that if we donate a Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam placed on a golden throne to someone on that day, they will go back to Godhead. This is the importance of Bhāgavata Dharma. All homes which have Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam there can be no inauspiciousness there. Now Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the literary incarnation of the Lord.

Question: When I was a new devotee and used to preach, I used to get tears in my eyes. But now after my Guru Mahārāja His Holiness Bhakti Cāru Mahārāja left his body, I am finding it difficult to do Harināma, feel lazy.

Jayapatākā Swami: Bhakti Cāru Swami was a very dear friend of mine. He never ever got tired or lazy of doing Harināma. He chanted the Harināma saṅkīrtana right till the end. I am not sure what the reason could be for you to be lazy to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. All have seen that Śrīla Prabhupāda took Bhakti Cāru Swami by the hand and took him. He did very nice service to Śrīla Prabhupāda. So Śrīla Prabhupāda took him away as he wanted him. I pray for all his disciples every day and hope that there is no laziness or difficulty for anyone to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Bhakti Cāru Mahārāja desired that everyone should chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. If we do not like chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, that could be due to some offence. If you have committed any offence, then there will be no taste to chant the names of God. Disrespecting a Vaiṣṇava or guru, that could be a Vaiṣṇava aparādhā.

Question: My father is not well, and I request you Guru Mahārāja to please pray for him that he leaves his body remembering the Lord. Caitanya Mahāprabhu went to Gayā and did piṇḍa-dāna one year after His father left his body. So should we also do the same or can we do it earlier?

Jayapatākā Swami: He did piṇḍa-dāna in Navadvīpa a few days after His father left the body, so you should consult the pūjārī and do the piṇḍa-dāna appropriately. Caitanya Mahāprabhu He went to Gayā after a year. But Gayā is a special place where you go once a year. Piṇḍi can be offered every year otherwise. If the boy does proper dāna then he is called putra – pu means hell and tra means liberating from – putra means liberating the father from hell. So the putra can do the piṇḍi for the father, that is good for the father. Or mother.

Question: What about Śrīla Prabhupāda keeps you going and what do you remember about him that makes you more and more absorbed in this movement?

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda he underwent so much difficulties, so much sacrifice to give us bhakti. I think of that and think how indebted we are to Śrīla Prabhupāda. That debt we have to clear and that makes me enthusiastic to serve better. Śrīla Prabhupāda the way he went through so many difficulties to give us devotional service, that is why my enthusiasm increased more.