20221030 Address to Bhaktivedanta Swami National School Anniversary Program

The following is a Bhaktivedanta National School program class given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on October 30th, 2022 in Śrī Dhāma Māyāpur, India.

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

Hariḥ oṁ tat sat!

Jayapatākā Swami: Although this is an English medium school, I will speak in Bengali. Since many of the parents may not know English. I will give a short talk in Bengali because a drama is going on. I was seeing and hearing about the future plans for your school and felt very good. They showed here that there are many nice future plans. Here first-class education is being given. Generally, in villages this standard of education is not given. But here very good education is being imparted. I hear that there are not a thousand but almost thousand students are there in the school. Students come from many villages to study here. And they are being given very good education. And children from all castes and creed are given education.

Śrīla Prabhupāda wanted that the education should be such that everyone can take advantage of. That is why we have this facility. Śrīla Prabhupāda said that there are many isms – Hinduism, Christianism, Muslimism, Buddhism but the main thing is to love Lord Kṛṣṇa. Whatever religion one follows, if they have devotion to the Lord, that religion is very good. We have faith in all religions and Lord Caitanya wanted that we should do devotion to Lord Kṛṣṇa or Bhagavān. Keeping this in mind, education is given to all here.

I offer my obeisances to all the teachers and students here. I hope that here the education program will go on nicely. Hare Krishna! This is the effort of His Holiness Bhakti Puruṣottama Mahārāja because of which we have seen these developments in the school and I offer my obeisances to all those who are taking efforts in this endeavor. I would have come earlier but I had many things to do.

Hare Kṛṣṇa!