20230510 Question And Answer Session

Question: You mentioned the different relations with Kṛṣṇa, how do we know which relationship we should be serving him in and how do we develop that love for Kṛṣṇa? 

Jayapataka Swami: In due course of time, this thing is revealed to you. And sometimes, Śrīla Prabhupāda would tell different disciples what rasa they were experiencing. These things are revealed at some point. If you are attracted by the pastimes of Lord Caitanya that is one thing, or Lord Nityananda that is another thing. Like that different symptoms for different rasas. But first of all we need to develop our Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Service is common to all. And as you go up, the different rasas, like conjugal has all the other rasas included. Friendship includes dāsya and śānta. And paternal includes all the others except mādhurya. So like that. First of all, we need to develop our service attitude to Kṛṣṇa.

Last night someone was saying how we can ask Kṛṣṇa for service, not asking for some material benediction. I was explaining how we don’t want to do business with Kṛṣṇa, that I serve You, and You give me something back material. We are serving and we want to continue serving. Like HH Kadamba Kānana Swami before he passed away, I saw him virtually and he said in my lifetime I have been doing service to Kṛṣṇa, and when I leave the body, I will just have another service. A devotee always wants to engage in service. Like that, they build up different rasas but service is common to all. 

Question: How can we chant attentively and not get distracted while chanting? 

Jayapataka Swami: Interesting. Being a manager I always had, thoughts that would come in my mind. That I have to do this I have to do that. I would keep a small notebook in my pocket and would just write down and that way would not be distracted by my thoughts. I would chant looking at Śrīla Prabhupāda’s lotus feet or at some Deities or some pictures and would try to concentrate. At the end of the chanting, I would look at my note book and see what I had to do. So I don’t know if that is useful, but some different methods to keep the mind on chanting. 

Question: You said there are different rasas we serve. When we do devotional service, we call them pitā-mātā, Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. Is that ok? When serving the Deities at home. 

Jayapataka Swami: Who taught you this? Is it given in any śāstra? To consider Kṛṣṇa like our father, probably would be in śānta-rasa. Because we are just appreciating Kṛṣṇa . But actually to serve Kṛṣṇa, that is dāsya-rasa. So, there we see Kṛṣṇa as our Master. In sakhya-rasa we see Kṛṣṇa as our friend and in paternal rasa we see Kṛṣṇa as our child. In mādhurya-rasa we see Kṛṣṇa as our lover or husband. So to consider Kṛṣṇa like father, is like śānta-rasa. There is a song where it says Kṛṣṇa is everything to us. In that way it is alright. But that song was Kṛṣṇa-mātā, Kṛṣṇa-pitā Kṛṣṇa-dhana-prāṇa, He is our life and soul. So He is everything. Any other question? 

Question: Do we need to have initiation and surrender to go back to Godhead?

Jayapataka Swami: I answered this question yesterday. So many are here on Zoom. If we have initiation and follow the bona fide guru, then our road to Kṛṣṇa is sure. If one meets a bona fide guru, but he does not take initiation out of false ego, then that is an obstacle. If one does not meet a guru and he reads Śrīla Prabhupāda books, follows, then there is no problem. Some people think I don’t need a guru and if they meet a bona fide guru they don’t take shelter. So, that could be an obstacle. There are all kinds of circumstances. Generally, one should have a bonafide spiritual master and should take initiation. In this way, should perform their devotional service following the instructions of their guru. Haribol! 

Question: Candramohana Prabhu is from the Śrī Sampradāya and is following Chinna Jeeyar Swami, there they have different way of initiating. Would you like to comment on that? Bona fide ācārya and the different methods of initiation, what is your recommendation, what do you think about that? Is that also proper initiation and proper paramparā, and he will go back to Kṛṣṇa through that route? 

Jayapataka Swami: Śrī Sampradāya is one of the four sampradāyas mentioned in the Padma Purāṇa. And so it is a bona fide sampradāya. But I was trying to analyze what is their process of initiation, and it seems like the actual initiation is given to the sannyāsīs and gṛhasthas who are very intimate with the association. Actually, it is not clear to me that they give this branding of the body, with śankha and cakra, how that is initiation? Because normally initiation is, we receive some mantra, name change. So they give everybody this śankha cakra, I don’t know if that is really considered initiation? I mean, Gopala Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī he was in Śrīrangam, but he took the shelter of Lord Caitanya. And he became one of the six Gosvāmīs. So, he had would have normally received that śankha cakra, but he took shelter from Lord Caitanya and got the mantra from him. It is a bona fide sampradāya but they only go up to Vaikunṭha. Like Andal Devi, she seemed to have a kind of a special rasa with Kṛṣṇa. The Jiyar in Śrīrangam said you are all representatives of Andal Devi.