20260329 Vyasa-puja Special Fortnightly Message

Vyasa-puja Special Fortnightly Message (20 March – 29 March 2026)

Viṣṇu Māsa, Gaura Pakṣa, Ekādaśī, 540 Gaurābda

My dear dīkṣā, sheltered, aspiring, śikṣā, grand-disciples, and well-wishers,

Please accept my blessings, best wishes, and praṇāms as appropriate.

All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Written from my Home Base: Śrī Māyāpur Candrodaya Mandir.

Date: 29 March 2026

Usually, I send a message on every Pūrṇimā and Amāvāsyā, but since my disciples are celebrating the Vyāsa-pūjā festival today, I want to send the fortnightly message today on this Kāmada Ekādaśī.

In one of his Vyāsa-pūjā offerings to Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, Śrīla Prabhupāda mentioned that Kṛṣṇa is the spiritual master of everyone, but He is working through the unlimited forms, through His devotees who are acting as spiritual masters. Every guru has a spiritual master. So, by observing Vyāsa-pūjā, it actually means we worship the entire guru-paramparā. And whatever honour the spiritual master receives, he passes it to the guru-paramparā. He doesn’t accept it for himself.

I joined the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement when I was 19, and Śrīla Prabhupāda mercifully accepted me as his disciple and he awarded me sannyāsa when I was 21. He gave me the name Jayapatākā, which means Victory Flag, and he also gave me many instructions. Whatever I am able to do is simply by the mercy of Śrīla Prabhupāda. But in many ways, I feel that I am not as successful as Prabhupāda desired.

Following Śrīla Prabhupāda’s order, I started initiating when I was 29. At the time of initiation, the disciple takes the vows of chanting 16 rounds minimum and following the four regulative principles, and at the same time, the guru also takes a vow in front of the Lord that he will take this soul back to Godhead. So it is my responsibility not only to initiate so many disciples, but also to care about them; I have to see that all my disciples go back to Godhead. The initiation ceremony is easy, but it is a lifelong commitment. So I need you to help to reciprocate, to be very wonderful in your devotional service. I want you all to advance to the rati stage, and I hope that some of you will achieve kṛṣṇa-prema. We want every devotee to be very strict in chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and following the regulative principles and to go back to Godhead.

I was reading many of the verses that glorify the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. One of those verses was that to chant three rounds – morning, noon, and night, at three sandhyā, one round each, like we do Gāyatrī. I want to encourage all the devotees, people who are Harināma initiated, that they should chant three rounds during three sandhyās until they get the Gāyatrī.

“Whether once, twice, thrice, according to one’s capacity, or throughout life – whoever chants, even a dog-eater, becomes my devotee without doubt.” (Vāyu Purāṇa Chapter 14 The rise of the moon-like Gaurānga, Verse 38)

A mortal man, being self-controlled and established in the rules of discipline, should perform japa (chanting/muttering) at the three junctions of the day (dawn, noon, and dusk). For him, the fruit of a horse-sacrifice (Aśvamedha) arises; of this, there is no doubt.” Padma Purāṇa, Bhūmi-khaṇḍa, Chapter 87, Hundred Names of Viṣṇu, Verses 27

I am chanting all the time; every moment. I do various activities throughout the day, but whatever activities I may be doing, along with that, I always chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. Even when I go to the bathroom, I chant on my fingers. I chant all the time. It is not difficult to chant 16 rounds. It is not that we can only chant formally when sitting down, but you can chant all the time. We have to at least chant 16 rounds. That’s what Śrīla Prabhupāda said. We should constantly chant, always think of Kṛṣṇa.

Also, I want each of my disciples to make a commitment on how many new people he/she would get to chant in a year, in a month, and how many people would be fully dedicated to take up devotional service in a year.

I am trying to use all the modern technology in preaching and serving Śrīla Prabhupāda. Now, I haave got two smartboards installed in my room. So I want to give some special classes during the week. I have responsibility of many different zones, and I have disciples all over the world. So I want to give classes during different times so that everyone will be able to attend at least one class a week. The daily classes I give, the timing will be late for devotees in the far east. So when devotees cannot see it live, they can see it later from my channel. And in this way more devotees can connect to me through my classes.

Śrīla Prabhupāda said that your love for me will be shown in how well you cooperate with one another. So I want devotees to work together, in a cooperative spirit, not in silos. When someone is doing good, we should learn from them, and do that in our own service. And we want devotees to stay in ISKCON, to work with the GBC, local authorities, temple presidents and so on.

We want to fulfill Śrīla Prabhupāda’s request. We want to dynamically do the needful for Śrīla Prabhupāda’s request.

I hope this finds you all in good health and blissful Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Your well-wisher always,

Jayapatākā Swami