Jayapatākā Swami: In the 18th chapter of Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ.

So, there He says He will destroy all the sinful reactions.

If you have offended any devotees,

then you should see how you can beg forgiveness and touch their lotus feet.

Or do something which will help others to be Kṛṣṇa conscious and get forgiven for the offences.

Like Mādhāi he apologized to Nitāi

that, “I hit You!”

But Nityānanda said, “No, I took it like a mother kicked the baby.”

Then Mādhāi said, “I have offended many other Vaiṣṇavas of the dhāma,

how can I get forgiven for that?”

So, then Nityānanda Prabhu advised him to build a bathing ghāṭa

so that he will facilitate people to go and take bath in the Ganges,

and thereby he would get forgiven for his offences.

So one of the ghāṭas in Navadvīpa is Mādhāi-ghāṭa.

Jayapatākā Swami: We want to take shelter of Nitāi-Gaura.

Also, Lord Kṛṣṇa.

And if we are harassed with memories of our previous mistakes,

we should pray for forgiveness,

and proceed with devotional service.

It is not worth giving attention to these sinful memories.

Jayapatākā Swami: You see, this material world is like a prison house.

And if you serve Kṛṣṇa, you get out of this prison.

If you serve guru and Kṛṣṇa, you will be free!

Do you think that the jail keeper will let you go so easy?!

She tests you first to see that you are really sincere.

And when you pass the test, she will offer you her obeisances.

Thank you, you can go back to Godhead!

Jayapatākā Swami: You were not here last night. We talked that sometimes a father, a senior devotee, may have to correct a junior devotee.

It is not considered an offence.

The criticizing or laughing at Lord Brahmā that is something offensive.

If you have to correct a junior devotee, if you have to correct someone do that in private

so that their ego won’t be troubled.

And if we have to do it, then do as a sandwich,

do you know what it means sandwich?

You first of all praise them,

and then say what you want to say criticizing them,

then you praise them again.

That way, they don’t feel that the person doesn’t love me.

But we should not criticize, laugh at some senior devotee.

That may be there in ISKCON, but we should not do that.

Jayapatākā Swami: By keeping on chanting,

gradually your chanting becomes offenseless.

And at first it starts as offensive chanting,

then clearing chanting,

then offenseless chanting.

The more we chant, we gradually overcome all the anarthas.

Jayapatākā Swami: Hope you never reach that stage!

And that always try to avoid offences.

I don’t know what the limit of Lord Caitanya’s mercy is but

I don’t want to take it that far!

Especially Lord Caitanya. He did not want anyone to offend the Vaiṣṇavas.

Cāpāla Gopāla offended Śrīvāsa and He said you have to suffer.

But then Cāpāla Gopāla begged Śrīvāsa for forgiveness.

Lord Caitanya embraced Cāpāla Gopāla and saved him.

Jayapatākā Swami: Hope you never reach that stage!

And that always try to avoid offences.

I don’t know what the limit of Lord Caitanya’s mercy is but

I don’t want to take it that far!

Especially Lord Caitanya. He did not want anyone to offend the Vaiṣṇavas.

Cāpāla Gopāla offended Śrīvāsa and He said you have to suffer.

But then Cāpāla Gopāla begged Śrīvāsa for forgiveness.

Lord Caitanya embraced Cāpāla Gopāla and saved him.

Jayapatākā Swami: We should not be attracted by temporary things.

Temporary things only last for short time, so we should not be distracted by them.

If we are attracted by some temporary things, we should think how to do that in the service of Kṛṣṇa.

In this way, we can naturally develop our love for Kṛṣṇa.

So, developing love for Kṛṣṇa is a gradual process.

And step by step we develop our love for Kṛṣṇa. Just like if we want to have a child, we pray to have a Kṛṣṇa conscious child.

We do everything in such a way that Kṛṣṇa will be pleased.

And naturally like we were reading how the king and his queen were praying to Kṛṣṇa and then they got a Kṛṣṇa conscious child, they actually got an avatāra, Ṛṣabhadeva as their child who was the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Jayapatākā Swami: I don’t know if there is a system to take others’ faults.

You can donate some of your merits to others.

That is in the Padma Purāṇa

that one lady she was donating some of her merits to a bull

who was being mistreated and who died.

So the ātmā from the bull took birth as a brāhmaṇa boy

and he remembered that he was a bull from his previous life.

Normally people are very greedy to get more merit, and they don’t give it away.

So he was curious how she was giving away her merit.

So he went to see her,

and said, you don’t know me but I know you.

Remember the bull who would be beaten and you gave some merit to the bull?

So I was that bull and now I took birth as a brāhmaṇa boy

and she revealed that she was reading the Bhagavad-gītā regularly.

Therefore, she gave half of her merit to the bull

and the bull took birth as a brāhmaṇa boy

and he started to read the Bhagavad-gītā also

and he went back to Godhead!

Jayapatākā Swami: That is why Śrīla Prabhupāda he would teach us to avoid the ten offences to the holy name.

The first offence is not to offend or blaspheme a devotee.

So it is worse to offend a devotee than being sinful.

So, you should avoid offending a devotee.

At the same time naturally, we want to try to come to the pure platform.

So, before you take initiation, you should be sure you can follow the principles.

Jayapatākā Swami: In Kali-yuga normally you get reaction for activities performed.

In other yugas just by thinking about something, you get the reaction.

So Kali-yuga, normally by thinking you do not get a reaction.

If you take second initiation, then you may be more responsible for your mind.

If you think of something bad, then you beg for forgiveness and replace it with some Kṛṣṇa conscious thought.

Jayapatākā Swami: When we are envious against other Vaiṣṇavas,

they become intolerant when another Vaiṣṇava is praised,

and they think, “Oh, why I am not getting the praise?

I worked harder! I worked more!

I should be appreciated!

Why am I not appreciated?”

That girl is a oohhh

and you commit some Vaiṣṇava-aparādha!

So we have to be very, very careful.

We are trying to please guru, Gaurāṅga and Kṛṣṇa and we don’t care if others get more glory,

we simply want to please the Lord.

And sometimes people will see it and sometimes they won’t. But the Lord sees it.

So we are not working for popularity.

Like that some politicians they get their names published in newspapers or newscast

and therefore an insignificant person becomes famous.

We just want to please the Lord

and if we recognize that is nice and if not doesn’t matter.

We still go on with our service.

Jayapatākā Swami: We should pray to Kṛṣṇa that

I have committed many offences, knowingly or unknowingly,

please forgive me.

Jayapatākā Swami: If one is initiated and breaks the principles,

they are guilty of one of the offences to the holy name

disrespecting the order of the spiritual master.

So there is no higher atonement than devotional service.

So in that case one should repent for their misdeed

and then again take up the practice of devotional service,

as sincerely as possible, and gradually they can regain their status.

But, of course they have ceased their progress for some time, but they can start again

and there is no other way recommended by the śāstras.

Jayapatākā Swami: The third verse of the Śikṣāṣṭakam

is that, if we practice those principles, we can always chant the holy names.

Amāninā mānadena kīrtanīyā sadā hari

offer respect to others, don’t expect any respect for yourself.

Be more humble than a blade of grass, and more tolerant than a tree,

then you can always chant the holy name

kīrtanīyā sadā hari.

Jayapatākā Swami: We should rather try to see the good qualities in other devotees.

Like, there are two insects, there are the flies and the bees.

The flies are looking for infections or sores.

And the bees are looking for the honey.

Try to see the good qualities in devotees and you won’t have time to see any bad qualities.

Jayapatākā Swami: There is no reason not to reveal your mind to guru.

If you have had some trouble with one of the principles, you could get some advice from your spiritual master.

But if you have recovered, then all the better to tell him that you had difficulty but now you have come back to the strict standard.

And sometimes one is started to difficulty with a principle, but it is not as serious as they think.

It is better to reveal to the spiritual master.

Jayapatākā Swami: Offense.. is a spiritual thing.

While preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness why would you offend new people ?

We should not refer to anyone

depending on their gender, race.. or color,

anything material.

but encourage people to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and be happy.

Jayapatākā Swami: Vaiṣṇava-aparādha is described as a mad elephant.

It can destroy our devotional creeper –

it is very dangerous

to have offensive mentality.

Jayapatākā Swami: If one unjustly criticizes the devotee has to get forgiveness from that devotee or touch that devotee’s lotus feet.

If he touches his feet, then that can forgive him of all the offence.

Apart from that by worshipping Caitanya Mahāprabhu and feeling repentful,

repentful or sorry for what he has done, one can also overcome offences.

There is no loss or diminution in devotional service.

The only way to avoid offences or to overcome offences is by the mercy of Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

If one falls down into other type of offences, the only hope is to serve Kṛṣṇa.

Again, restart the service.

But for offences, one should try to get forgiveness from those who he has offended;

otherwise, touch their feet, otherwise simply pray to Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Tulasī devī

and other such great devotees of the Lord for being forgiven from these offences.

Jayapatākā Swami: Usually, bhajana-kriyā stage is the time we take initiation.

Then after that with the guidance of the guru, we get anartha-nivṛitti.

We may hear from the guru or we may have śikṣā-gurus

who help us to overcome these anarthas.

One book I translated Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura’s book, Vaiṣṇava Ke?

He prayed to his mind, what kind of Vaiṣṇava are you? By doing solitary bhajana you seek name and fame.

That book, it is a small book. You read that to find out how to control and train the mind.

Also, there is another bhajana by Śrīnivāsa Ācārya

and that helps one to control the mind.

Anarthas are in the mind.

Anartha-nivṛtti means mind is purified.

Jayapatākā Swami: The abhideya is devotional practice of devotional service.

And

so thinking of practicing devotional service is one thing.

But if you are thinking something against devotional service,

that is aparādhā.

To atone an aparādhā there is no higher atonement than devotional service.

Jayapatākā Swami: You see, bhakti-yoga is a powerful practice.

And if you just say stop something, what do you do? Your mind, your senses do not stop.

So we do yukta-vairāgya.

Everything we do, we do to please Kṛṣṇa.

So just like we have to eat. So instead of eating nonsense, we eat kṛṣṇa-prasāda.

We replace what we are doing materially bad habits with positive kṛṣṇa-sevā.

People may have the bad habit of illicit sex.

But those who want sex they have to be married.

And we bring up our children also in devotional service.

Jayapatākā Swami: My dear spiritual daughter Dīpā,

congratulations on your election as a counselor in the Municipality, in London.

If you know who you offended,

you can ask them to forgive you.

If you don’t know or if they don’t want to forgive you,

you can take the dust from their feet,

or you can take the dust from their shoes outside the temple,

or if you don’t know who you offended,

you can pray to the Deities to please forgive you,

and you can chant Hare Kṛṣṇa very seriously and with attention,

and avoid future offences as far as possible.

Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Jayapatākā Swami: There is no higher atonement than Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

So if one makes a mistake,

then the best remedial method is serving Kṛṣṇa.

So, if you make mistakes,

then you should be more diligent actually, at serving.

The point is that, one should not make sense gratification as the goal of our life.

When we have senses, there will be some sense of pleasure and some suffering.

So Kṛṣṇa explains that, you regulate the activities.

Just like you take prasādam,

just like we have married life,

try to produce Kṛṣṇa conscious children.

Different activities are regulated.

But the goal is not sense gratification,

the goal is to please Kṛṣṇa.

This world unfortunately is beginning, middle and end is all sense gratification.

They don’t understand anything about Kṛṣṇa in most cases.

Even if they are God conscious, they pray to God to give them some material gratification.

But we should rather want to serve the Lord.

Well, it is expected that you will make some mistakes.

That is why we should be more careful,

after making mistakes,

to practice more sincerely.

Just like a child learning how to walk.

Naturally they will fall down a few times,

but eventually they learn to walk, run, everything.

Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Thank you!

Jayapatākā Swami: You seem to have realized that when you don’t follow

the advice of the senior devotees,

you get attacked by māyā.

So that should convince you

that to avoid being attacked by māyā,

follow the more advanced devotees’ advice.

Jayapatākā Swami: He should seek pardon from gurudeva

and there is no other way to be in kṛṣṇa-bhakti other than by this way.

He should take the instructions from his gurudeva and do devotional service again.

Jayapatākā Swami: You see here someone eats non veg.

Non veg is sinful.

You are killing animals, causing them suffering and you are eating their flesh.

Some are doing selfless service to society, they are helping other people, they may be doing some, of course selfless service to society.

But we have to see what the Vedas say.

Whether that service is puṇya or pāpa.

Like someone may do selfless service and make a new abattoir, means a new slaughter house for society.

He thinks I am doing selfless service.

But according to the Vedas, he is also doing pāpa, he is doing sinful activity.

Someone may be doing selfless service of distributing free tea or whisky to all the people, I am not considering those kinds of selfless service.

I am saying like he is feeding the poor, he is making hospital, such service where the people are getting material benefit in a sāttvika sense, that is called puṅya.

So according to Vedas we get two accounts in the material world.

We get a puṅya account and a pāpa account.

And we are putting deposit in both.

Because someone does puṇya, it does not cross out the pāpa.

Some people think that ok, I will do many pious activities and I will do little sin and the pious will cross out the sin.

It doesn’t work that way.

Both you get.

That is why even if you find someone very rich, have a big car, big house, lot of money, but the wife got breast cancer.

But the son ran away with someone and married out of caste and the whole family is suffering.

So many things happen.

Income tax is raiding.

I am feeding the poor, I am giving so much to charity, why I am not –

because both the accounts are there – pāpa and puṇya. If you do pāpa you have to suffer, you do puṇya you have to enjoy. Material activities, you know they are not free, you have to take all the reactions. Usually the puṇya you get first and the pāpa you get later. But there is some mixing going on. Now the other thing is that he is greatly devoted to the Lord. Now that devotion to the Lord, the Lord is beyond the material world. He is saying mām ca avyabhicāreṇa bhakti-yogena sevate, sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahma-bhuyāya kalpate. (Bg 14.26) That those who do my bhakti-yoga, their activities are beyond the three guṇas. So if someone does bhakti that can clear out the path. But it is dangerous to tell this to people. Because if you tell to people who are not devoted, they will say, very good, I will pray in the temple, then I will do more pāpa. And then Kṛṣṇa takes that as an offence, you are trying to cheat Me. So He doesn’t save them. That is why we don’t tell people about this glory of the Lord that if you worship the Lord it takes away your sin very much. Of course we have to tell but we try to tell them. They should not think I can do more sin, that they shouldn’t do. What people should do is come and pray and chant the name of Kṛṣṇa and try to avoid sin. They may do some sin but they should try to reduce it, try to avoid it. They should not think that by doing my Kṛṣṇa conscious activity, I can do more sin. Whatever sin I am doing, I have to suffer. But let me chant, let me worship, some day I can get free from this. Then it is ok. So if they are devoted to the Lord, they should try to do what the Lord wants. What is the meaning of I am devoted to the Lord, the Lord is saying don’t do these things. I am devoted to the Lord, what does that mean? Lord, I want to please You. If I am Your servant, I want to do what You want me to do. Like if you have a servant in the house, you tell the servant, clean the floor. He says no, I won’t clean the floor, I want to clean the wall. But I want you to clean the floor first. You can clean the wall later. He says, no, I want to clean the wall and then the floor. How would that servant keep the job? If you have a servant and you tell him, cook me breakfast. And he says no, I want to cook you lunch. I want you to cook me vegetarian and he says no I want to cook you non veg! Then you wont keep such a servant, servant, who is this servant! So if we are already devoted to the Lord, we should do what the Lord wants us to do. And the Lord is telling us don’t do these things. Don’t take intoxication, don’t eat non veg, don’t do gambling and don’t do illicit sex. Don’t go to prostitutes. Don’t leave your good wife or husband, and do extra marital sex. So when we are devoted to the Lord we should do what the Lord wants. We are devoted to the Lord, we come and pray and then we go. That is called hāthī-snāna. Like the elephant is having a bath and coming out and throwing the dirt. So we should not worry what others are doing. Someone says he is vegetarian but he is cheating.

If you do pāpa you have to suffer, you do puṅya you have to enjoy.

Material activities, you know they are not free, you have to take all the reactions.

Usually the puṇya you get first and the pāpa you get later.

But there is some mixing going on.

Now the other thing is that he is greatly devoted to the Lord.

So therefore I can be nonveg and I won’t cheat.

Not much, little bit.

We should avoid everything like that.

Don’t settle for that.

Don’t judge.

It is just like if you want to judge gold, you want to judge it with pure gold.

You don’t judge it with some mixed gold, my gold is better than that gold.

What is that?

That is 10 carat mine is 4 carat.

You judge gold by 24 carat.

This is not a good decision that I am better than that so it is okay.

That person is going to hell no. 5 and you are going no. 4.

So what is the difference?

?

We want to go back to Kṛṣṇa.

So therefore what is the standard paramahaṁsa?

We see what gurudeva, what the pure devotee is doing.

We try to lead our life and follow the Mahājanas.

Mahājana yena gatā sa panthā.

We follow the great souls or Mahājanas, like Prahlāda, Nārada, Śiva, Brahma.

All the devas, Svāyambhuva Manu, all the great souls, we follow in their footsteps.

Not that we are following some ordinary person and we are saying oh that person, he is not so great.

I am not so bad.

This is all mental concoction.

He is not so great, I am not so bad.

So I can live with my sin.

Yamarāja doesn’t pick all these things.

What your neighbor was doing.

What you did he has all the account here.

You did this, this is your karma.

Now you enjoy, now you suffer.

If you see the animatronic works you can see the Yamadūtas and the Viṣṇudutas.

You can decide who you want to be the customer for.

Jayapatākā Swami: We hope that you are not poisoned.

You should hear from a pure devotee and read Śrīla Prabhupāda books and take the mistaken thoughts from your mind. 

Jayapatākā Swami: It can be an offence. 

If it is presented in such a way that we respectfully say that this particular thing should not be followed, 

the devotee is otherwise is very good, but this particular habit is something that we do not follow. 

It is presented in a very constructive way 

like Prabhupāda in the 12th chapter of Ādi-līlā Cc. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta) has given the details of the Gauḍīya Maṭhas

break up, 

and failure to maintain the instructions of the founder. 

So Prabhupāda gave those details to warn us, that we should not do the same thing. 

So some of the Gauḍīya Maṭha leaders asked us to take out the 12th chapter. 

But we said that we don’t have the right to take out Prabhupāda’s writings. 

So depending on how you do it, 

if it is to warn someone, 

not to follow this example; 

then it maybe alright. 

You see Prabhupāda was talking about his godbrothers. 

If one is a junior devotee is talking about someone who is very advanced or more senior; 

it maybe, what you call mariyāda-laṅgana, the transgression of seniority.

Jayapatākā Swami: We understand from this that if we get married, it is very important to have a Kṛṣṇa conscious wife!

If the wife is not Kṛṣṇa conscious then she may have you fight with Kṛṣṇa!

This reminds me Śrīla Prabhupāda, in a lecture he was giving in London,

observing his Vyāsa-pūjā.

He said he wanted all his gṛhastha followers to be paramahaṁsas.

And he said how Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was a gṛhastha had many children.

One was Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda.

And Śrīla Prabhupāda said we need many personalities like this.

So the gṛhasthas should have such pure devotee children.

Although Lord Indra in the caitanya-līlā pastime, he joined in the kīrtana.

By then he seemed to have learned his lesson!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva. And someone came and talked to him. He looked away; he was listening to the devotee. And the guru said, “You no need to hear?” So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them. So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on. Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he was sitting in the class of his Gurudeva.

And someone came and talked to him.

He looked away; he was listening to the devotee.

And the guru said, “You no need to hear?”

So, he thought that as a great blessing, because the guru noticed them.

So definitely we want to give our full concentration while class is going on.

Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Jayapatākā Swami: There is a poem by Śrīla Narottama dasa Ṭhākura,

where he sings śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu dayā kara more – You have come down to deliver the fallen, Patita-pāvana, there is no one more fallen than me. Please have Your mercy on me!

Then he prays to Lord Nityānanda, hā hā prabhu nityānanda, premānanda sukhī: You are always filled with spiritual bliss of love of Kṛṣṇa,

please have mercy on me I very sad, duḥkhī.

You have Nitāi-Gaura here! You pray to them,

that I need mercy,

I am fallen,

I need your mercy more than anyone!

Jayapatākā Swami: You should win, not lose!

Anyway, that is why Kṛṣṇa consciousness, Śrīla Prabhupāda said is a gradual process.

When you are a little baby, you will fall down a few times

but as you grow up you should not fall down.

A three-year-old child will fall

but if you are a 12-year-old child you should not fall.

As you advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness you get stronger.

Jayapatākā Swami: Someone asked me yesterday what do I do, how do I control my anger when my servants do not do what I want?

I could not remember a time when I lost my temper like that!

So, but there must have been a time long ago!

But I said that we commit so many offences to Kṛṣṇa, knowingly or unknowingly,

we want Kṛṣṇa to forgive us.

So, like that if we don’t forgive others, then how can we expect Kṛṣṇa to forgive us?

Your question, what is the root reason for your question?

If one hates another person that is an offence.

If such kind of hatred or violence is not there, then why should it be considered an offence?

This way, if we see the good qualities in others, if we praise them, then how will be commit offence?

If we are intolerant of the different qualities of people, then there is possibility of offences.

If you see an offence to Vaiṣṇavas or guru then you need to get angry.

Just like Kṛṣṇa, if you offend Him, He usually forgives you.

But if you offend His devotee, He is very angry.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, first we should know what Vaiṣṇava-aparādha is.

That is why at the time of initiation, we tell the ten offences.

Then, the second thing is that we avoid committing them!

You see, someone may say, oh! I did not know it was an offence!

So first thing you should know these are the offences.

Just like the first offence is to offend a devotee of the Lord.

So you should avoid doing that.

And if you do, then you should get forgiven.

Like Mother Śacī, she committed an offence against Lord Advaita.

So then Lord Caitanya and many associates, they went to see Advaita Ācārya.

He asked what brings everybody here?

Then Lord Caitanya said, “Mother Śacī committed an offence against you, therefore she has come to get your forgiveness.”

And Advaita Ācārya said, “Mother Śacī, Mother Śacī?!!

How can she offend Me?!

She is such a wonderful devotee!

She carried Lord Caitanya in her womb!”

And He started to glorify Mother Śacī for all her devotional service.

And then He was so ecstatic glorifying Mother Śacī,

that He fainted!

Then Lord Caitanya said, “He is not going to forgive you.

So what you can do is take the dust from His lotus feet.

By taking His dust, you will get forgiven.

But if you ask Him to forgive you, He will not do it.”

So then, she took the dust from Advaita Ācārya’s lotus feet

and then everybody chanted Haribol!

The girls, the ladies, did ulu-dhvanī.

Ladies only do that.

I cannot do that!

So like this, then Lord Caitanya, He forgave His mother for her Vaiṣṇava-aparādha.

Jayapatākā Swami: You see, all the devotees of the Lord

are very dear to Kṛṣṇa

and even the wife she is very dear to Kṛṣṇa.

So if someone maltreats the wife

or feels envious against another devotee,

Kṛṣṇa will get pain by that.

So we don’t want to give Kṛṣṇa pain, we want to give Him pleasure.

So we should avoid envying anyone.

So you can say that is the only vice that cannot be dovetailed in Kṛṣṇa conscious.

We can dovetail greed,

we can be greedy to make more devotees for Kṛṣṇa! Ha!

We can be angry,

angry against those who offend guru and Kṛṣṇa.

Every vice can be somehow dovetailed, except envy.

So envy is such an evil and detrimental thing.

We should see the good qualities of others,

like Caitanya Mahāprabhu says in the third verse of His Śikṣāṣṭakaṁ,

amānīna mānadena,

offer all respect to others,

don’t expect any respect for yourself.

Jayapatākā Swami: You just stick to the Vedas.

Show them what the Bhagavad-gītā says

and then if the bābā has said something different,

we cannot deal with that.

We say we follow the Vedas.

So then, that way some people they want to follow some false avatāras.

In Rajahmundry there was a person and he claimed to be an avatāra of Kalki.

Then they showed how in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam Kalki avatāra comes at the end of Kali.

And Kali has only just started.

There are 4,27,000 years to go.

Isn’t it not a little off time?

He said I may not be Kalki, but I am an avatāra!

So there are many people like this they are bogus.

And gradually you have to just stick to the Vedas.

We are basically followers of the Vedas.

If someone preaches something against the Vedas,

what can we do?

We can show them that what they are saying is against the Vedas.

Therefore, the sincere people will follow us.

There was one guru in Bengal, he was a sahajiyā.

He said that the devotee, he or she I forgot, was coming to the Nāmahaṭṭa.

And they learnt that Vaiṣṇavas take kṛṣṇa-prasāda.

So she gave the vegetarian food to the kula-guru.

He said, “What is this? What is this?

I am your guru.

I should be given opulent food.

These vegetables are cheap.

Fish, meat are expensive.

Give me the dāmi food! I don’t want this cheap food.”

Then she realized that this guru was bogus.

So, that way we have to stick to the Vedas and gradually we convince people.

Some people may choose a bābā because they want to eat fish or meat or something.

What can we do?

Then we try to present how eating prasāda is better

and by eating meat we get the bad karma.

And become a cat or

dog

or tiger.

Jayapatākā Swami: First of all, if you find that you have offended a devotee or offended the spiritual master, then you should bow down or something and beg for forgiveness.

And in the future, you have to be careful to pray for forgiveness, and avoid this habit.

Jayapatākā Swami: So there are three options:

Like Satī devī, you can immediately burn yourself up

and if that is not possible,

then you can protest and defeat that person.

If that is not possible,

then leave the place.

That we can always respectfully ask the devotee

why they are doing something like that.

If we know that they are new devotees, they don’t know what they are doing,

but if we have to correct them, they may feel embarrassed or something.

So it depends on the situation,

whether it is a senior devotee,

equal or new devotee.

So accordingly, if it is a senior devotee, we will ask first,

if he is equal devotee,

maybe in a more friendly way,

depending on the status

and our relationship,

we should act accordingly.

Jayapatākā Swami: As I said, any offence is multiplied a thousand times in Vṛndāvana.

In Māyāpur Śrīla Prabhupāda said it is especially good for gṛhasthas.

The material world is designed in such a way that even if you don’t want to, you are obliged to commit some offences, some sins.

So that is why we recommend that people stay a short time in Vṛndāvana and then go out.

In the short time they can be very careful.

But if they stay here permanently,

then they may commit some sinful activities.

That is just the fact.

Jayapatākā Swami: I mean somehow, there was a presentation how to be happy.

That was very interesting because

I was not happy.

I had sense gratification

but it wasn’t satisfying.

So somehow if we want to tell those people that

by practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness

they can become happy.

The bridging programs can somehow bring them to Kṛṣṇa consciousness

then that would be ideal.

If anger management can include some aspect of Kṛṣṇa consciousness,

some practices that they could do.

Some ways they can control their anger

by dovetailing it.

So bridge is to take us over the bridge to the other side of the river.

That means, take us to Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

So at the end of the bridge there should be something Kṛṣṇa conscious.

Although the attraction is okay, anger management for instance,

we learn that we can practice, we can control anger through bhakti-yoga.

So the bridge program actually does that, it bridges us to Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

At least to some extent.

Like you are saying people have many lusty desires and bad habits,

I saw today on the Tv

that in some states 3 or 5 states in the USA,

they do a referendum and made marijuana smoking for recreation legal.

It was previously legal for medicinal use.

But now it is legal for recreation in some states.

So, all kinds of bad habits people have –

not only drinking, smoking,

illicit sex.

Actually, we know that none of these things give one satisfaction.

But we cannot directly attack these things.

Rather, we try to present the positive thing of chanting, meditation,

and then when they are more ready,

when they ask appropriate questions,

we may reveal that bad habits should be controlled.

That is a gradual process.

That is what Śrīla Prabhupāda said that it takes buckets of blood,

not easy to make a devotee.

Do you think only people now are addicted to bad habits?

Ha! I think before I was 12-I had already broken all the regulative principles!!

Jayapatākā Swami: I mean, at the time of initiation, we usually have someone give a class on the ten offences to the holy name

That is very important.

The other offences he does not consider so much and He usually forgives someone.

There was this Cāpāla Gopāla he had put lot of things, blood and things outside the house of Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura.

So, he got leprosy.

And at that time he was staying outside the city of Navadvīpa.

Lord Caitanya with His kīrtana party happened to go there.

He fell at Lord Caitanya’s feet and said, “Please have mercy on me!”

He said, “No you cannot have any mercy.

I will not give any mercy, you have offended My devotee.”

So the devotees went to Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura and said, “You have to forgive this Cāpāla Gopāla.

Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura said, “How can I be offended?I am lower than the stool!

I am lowest of the low.”

They said, “Listen Śrīvāsa, you want someone to suffer because of you?”

“No, no, no, no!

No one should suffer because of me.”

“Whether you think you are a devotee or not, you have to forgive Cāpāla Gopāla.

Otherwise, his destiny is very bad.”

“Alright, then I will do that.”

So then Śrīvāsa went

and then Cāpāla Gopāla pleaded, “Please forgive me for my offences.”

Then Śrīvāsa said, “Yes, I forgive you.”

As soon as he said, Lord Caitanya appeared out of nowhere

and He embraced Cāpāla Gopāla. Haribol! Haribol!

So we have to be careful

of offending devotees.

But Lord Caitanya is very merciful. If we get forgiven by the devotee, He will forgive you.

He told Mother Śacī that since she had offended Advaita Gosāñī she will not get love of Godhead.

Devotees, were like, “Mother Śacī, she is Your mother, how she cannot love of Kṛṣṇa?”

Lord Caitanya said, “When My brother took sannyāsa she said, maybe because of Advaita Ācārya’s preaching.

So, in this way she had offended Him.”

So He took Mother Śacī over to Advaita Ācārya and Advaita Ācārya asked, “What are all these devotees here about?”

“Śacīmātā has offended You and You have to forgive her.”

“She cannot offend Me, she is a very good devotee!” He started glorifying Śacīmātā

and He became so ecstatic glorifying Śacīmātā

that He fainted.

Lord Caitanya told Śacīmātā, “He is never going to forgive you.

He did not think that you can offend Him.

You take the dust from His lotus feet

and that way you will be forgiven.”

So Śacīmātā took the dust

from Advaita Ācārya’s lotus feet

and put it on her head

and she was forgiven!

And after that she got love of Godhead!

Any other question.

Jayapatākā Swami: You see, even Bharata Mahārāja who fell down took birth as a deer.

But Kṛṣṇa was merciful on him, and he could remember his previous lives.

The next birth he birth as a brāhmaṇa,

Jaḍa Bharata

and he was taken by some dacoits to be offered to Bhadra-Kālī as a balidāna, sacrifice.

But Bhadra-Kālī, she was so angry because he was a pure devotee.

She killed all the dacoits

and saved Jaḍa Bharata.

So we should just do our devotional service and even if we have done some unknown offence,

Kṛṣṇa will protect us if we do devotional service.

Now, this planet is known as Bhārata-varṣa.

And still India is called as Bhārata.

It is named after the king Bharata.

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has recommended

that when one wakes up in the morning

you should beat their mind with shoes 100 times.

And before we go to bed beat your mind 108 times with a broom stick.

In this way, you are not the mind, your mind should cooperate with you.

You have to tell the mind who is the boss.

Instead of the mind bossing you around, you tell the mind what to do.

If you don’t want to think about that pray to Kṛṣṇa He will help

and pray that you want to think about Kṛṣṇa.

Jayapatākā Swami: That we have them promise to avoid breaking the four principles at the time of initiation.

They should avoid not chanting 16 rounds.

They should avoid the ten offences to the Holy Name.

Jayapatākā Swami: You see, whatever one does for Kṛṣṇa, for that he is never the loser; he always gains.

If one gets money by sinful means, you see, then if he offers to Kṛṣṇa he can get forgiven for that but Kṛṣṇa doesn’t want that the person should go on committing sinful activities.

That’s why, people who are committing the sinful activities, they generally speaking, don’t give to Kṛṣṇa.; they may give to some demigod.

They know that if they give to Kṛṣṇa, then Kṛṣṇa say, “Oh! this living entity wants to get my shelter,”

then Kṛṣṇa puts him in such a position, He takes away the opportunity to commit such sinful activity

and gives opportunity to more fully devote in Kṛṣṇa’s service; so they avoid Kṛṣṇa.

These… generally speaking the people doing heavily sinful activity and they approach some demigod, where they think that, “Well, I will give and I’ll get back some more opportunity to enjoy sinful life,

without any... In other words, someone who is sinning very heavily, usually unless he gets put in some very difficult position he won’t like to get out.

So, but if one somehow or another gives to Kṛṣṇa, then he is freed from that sin, no doubt.

Kṛṣṇa takes the reaction.

But Kṛṣṇa does not want that one should earn money by unfair means and give to Him.

So, then Kṛṣṇa will try to give some good instruction to that person.

But if one is actually, you see, getting money by any means and giving to Kṛṣṇa, then he is like a tax collector; you see.

Because everything is belonging to Kṛṣṇa, actually everyone should be giving to Kṛṣṇa.

Other sinful people they are not giving to Kṛṣṇa.

So, if one is actually taking, giving to Kṛṣṇa, where is the question of sinful activity?

The problem is that if someone who is engaging in illicit activity and then said,

“I am going to give to Kṛṣṇa” generally due to such a tamasic association, they never get… they get contaminated and cannot give to Kṛṣṇa.

Therefore, it is recommended that the Vaiṣṇava should not perform activity which is, you see, against the regulative principles.

But in this material world every work is sinful, every work has got some bad part to it.

If you do business, you must tell lie and cheat; there is no way out of it.

That’s why if a man is doing business, he must be giving to Kṛṣṇa; if he doesn’t, definitely he will be defeated by this material energy,

because you have to tell lies to do business.

If you tell a person who is buying something, this thing is not very good.

You bought it someone who told you is very good.

You bought it and say, “Oh, is not good.”

But you tell everyone this is not good but you should buy any way, no one would buy; You have to say this is first class,

it may have a rip in it, may have a defect; it’s a very good thing you must say if you want to make your money back.

You’ll make no profit.

So business means, to some extent, you see, there has to be little bit of misrepresentation;

you can say at least not complete representation of all the defects; otherwise how you can make money? You see.

So, what is the question of degree?

A person is putting a poison in the oil, giving mobile oil, killing people and then giving the money to Kṛṣṇa,

he may, you see, get some relief, but he may also, you see, have to suffer for the reactions and then he will get the results of giving to Kṛṣṇa.

How Kṛṣṇa would do? Unless one fully surrenders, he does not get full shelter.

Once when one is fully surrendered, he cannot do that, he cannot poison people with mobile oil, because that is against the regulative principles.

So, until one is fully surrendered, he will get both the puṇya and the pāpa; he won’t get the spiritual shelter.

So that means you have to suffer for his misdeed, and he will have to… you see… to get the enjoyment for his good deeds.

Jayapatākā Swami: It depends on how bad he is

and if he is slightly offensive or fully offensive.

We don’t want liberation by the impersonal method,

and that is something we reject.

I don’t know what type of liberation that person gets.

So the guru is giving instructions to help us

so that we can achieve the spiritual perfection

and we should appreciate what the spiritual master tells us.

Jayapatākā Swami: Obviously you can only reveal your mind to very close devotees.

And so we would hope that you don’t have any offensive thoughts.

But in the case of Puṇḍarīka Vidyānidhi,

his doubt,

we are going to hear what the result of that is.

So if you have doubt on the Lord or His devotee,

it may be dangerous.

He would say that

to Svarūpa Dāmodara

and then Svarūpa Dāmodara would correct him.

So if you are in a position, if someone reveals their mind to you,

and they have some doubt,

then you have to answer their doubt.’

Jayapatākā Swami: Interesting!

We should be very cautious about māyā.

Māyā tries to take us away.

She is very strict.

One devotee when he joined ISKCON, his father offered him a million dollars

to leave Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

He did not leave!

I mean, how many here would be tempted by eight crores?

So, sometimes māyā gives one some incentives,

sometimes māyā gives one suffering,

and so we have to be very cautious.

So we should always keep ourselves surrendered at Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet.

What we should be conscious about is to do everything for the service of Kṛṣṇa.

Jayapatākā Swami: That is why we offer daily guru-pūjā

and on the Vyāsa-pūjā we offer the puṣpāñjali three times.

That way we pray that we may be forgiven for any knowing or unknowing offences.

Jayapatākā Swami: We may commit mistakes, but we should beg for forgiveness,

and we should continue to do our devotional service, being more and more careful.

If we realize we did a mistake, we can ask for forgiveness.

I saw that even in one of the prayers to Lord Kṛṣṇa, the devotee says,

I have committed innumerable offences, please forgive me and engage me in Your service.

I surrender to Your lotus feet!

So, there are offences we commit knowingly or unknowingly,

but we should be humble, try to correct any mistakes we make and continue to render devotional service.

Haribol!

Jayapatākā Swami: 1. We should observe it after that. 

And plead to Kṛṣṇa for forgiveness.

Jayapatākā Swami: Firstly, we should avoid doing aparādhas.

At the time of initiation, you read the ten offences of the holy name.

This is the system so that we don’t break the regulative principles.

First, if we commit an offence to someone knowingly,

then we can pray for forgiveness.

In Māyāpur, there is a place where specially we go we get freed from Vaiṣṇava aparādha.

Aparādha-bhañjanera-kuliyā-pāḍa

And if you did some aparādhā it can get forgiven by touching the feet of the devotee you offended.

And I have seen many shoes outside. I see devotees touching those shoes.

You should try to avoid committing offences.

Jayapatākā Swami: Pulling out the weeds?

Well, just like for instance uh, the first weed is described as niṣiddhācāra - unauthorized behavior.

Say that a person uh, is habituated to uh, eating meat,

but chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, friend of Kṛṣṇa coming, but you know still he eats meat.

So, then the person gradually stops eating meat, that is pulling the weed out, say, in the beginning stage.

But then say something that might even attack an older person that’s in devotional service - kuṭīnāṭī or lābha, pratiṣṭhā, pūjā.

Kuṭīnāṭī means diplomatic behavior.

Just like say a neophyte devotee, not very strong, he is trying to practice devotional service, he is practicing.

But somehow, he got mislead… miss… you know, like waylaid.

Went out, did something wrong, maybe went out, got drunk or something, you know.

Just fall.

Say, met some old friends.

They said, “Come on!” Next thing you know, had a beer can in his hand, whatever; and so, got in trouble.

So, then I met a devotee like that.

That is not a devotee, initiated, but just like a bhakta type person.

And then he had something like that happen.

Then he got picked up for drunken driving.

Very… He was come by and he was apologizing.

He was going to really try to be Kṛṣṇa conscious again.

So, the thing was that if a person… say that a person does something like that,

and some senior person is there to help him, some spiritually advanced person, and then if tries to like lie about it, hide the truth,

so or… that’s one form of kuṭīnāṭī, being devious you know.

Well, if the person was just straight forward, “Yeah, I had this problem, can you help me?”

Then he gets some good advice, and that gives him some more inspiration, some more strength to just stay on the path, you see.

So that lack of being straightforward of you know, confiding in uh, people who are actually there to help you spiritually, that’s one form of kuṭīnāṭī.

There are many others.

Like different have diplomatic behavior.

So if one, one gives up that behavior

and then takes the uh, you know, straight forward path, takes the consequences whatever it may be, you see,

there is no consequences like that in devotional service, no one is going to uh,

put anyone unnecessarily on the spot, rather one is compassionate, trying to help someone if they are having difficulties.

So, that’s how you pull the weed.

It’s just that, when you, you have to isolate, you have to recognize,

“This is the defect, this is a mistake, this is a wrong thing.”

And then you… then you work at uh, not doing it anymore.

That’s how you pull it.

That’s the meaning of pulling it.

Just like you know, some people they show you, “Look at my garden.

Look at my lawn.

It’s so beautiful; everything is green, right?” Before… If I look at the lawn, I’ll think it’s great.

But then if some you know, horticulturist comes, he says, “Well that’s crabgrass, that’s too… this is you know, this is uh, hog… hog… hog grass,

and this is not you know you supposed to have all you know Kentucky blue or something.

You got all this other garbage grass in there.”

You see.

For an ordinary, layman, it’s all grass, you know, who cares?

But you know, if you really get into it, it’s all some kind of grass that are ultimately weeds that don’t help the…

They are going to take over the whole thing and make it very scrubby looking.

But it looks the same, it looks similar, you see.

So, all you do, you pull it out, take it out.

So, you have to isolate it first, what is the weed and what is the real plant?

Weed means it looks like a real plant.

It is not… It is a plant also.

It looks similar.

It is not you know necessarily a lot different, it might be a lot different or might even be similar, it’s a plant anyway.

So, some of the things are just a slight difference, some of them are really different.

Just like an oak tree and a piece of grass, same type of living entity: plant, you see, vegetation.

But it’s not that completely different, may be in the beginning stages it looks similar,

when it’s just like a 3 inches ha… high, but in the end, you know, it becomes completely different.

So how you pull it out in terms of practicality, just you guys stopping doing that particularly,

or at least trying to stop.

First you isolate what it is, then you work at pulling it out.

Jayapatākā Swami: Why were you able to read more earlier and not now?

Please try that you do not commit any Vaiṣṇava-aparādhā amongst each other and forgive each other.

You can chant the Pañca-tattva mantra and Nitāi-Gaura names and thus make advancement in spiritual life.

In Kali-yuga, one doesn’t get a reaction 

for mentally creating some offence. 

You have to do that practically. 

Since the mind is not very easily controlled in the Kali-yuga, 

it may think many weird things. 

So Gadādhara Prabhu, 

He was thinking that Puṇḍarīka Vidyānidhī 

was a materialistic, 

later He realized that he was a pure devotee. 

So therefore, He accepted him as His guru, 

because the guru always forgives his disciples’ offences. 

So, if someone offends a guru mentally, 

and later surrenders and becomes the guru’s disciple, 

that is authorized in the process, example set by Gadādhara Prabhu.

Jayapatākā Swami: Normally we visit the holy dhāma just for a few days.

That time we are very careful not to commit any offence.

And if we stay longer for some parikramā or something,

then we try to hear from the devotees. 

Jayapatākā Swami: We should beg for forgiveness from guru and Kṛṣṇa.

Then we should perform devotional service directly.

There is no higher atonement than bhakti-yoga. 

Jayapatākā Swami: Well, that is why when we gather together for programs,

we bow down to all the Vaiṣṇavas.

We say vāñchā-kalpatarubhyaś ca kṛpā-sindhubhya eva ca patitānāṁ pāvanebhyo vaiṣṇavebhyo namo namaḥ.

We try to forgive everyone for any knowing or unknowing offences.

Because if we don’t know about it, we don’t know! Ha!

So we may have inadvertently offended someone.

So we want to be forgiven for that.

Śrīla Prabhupāda said that generally if we ask questions, that is not an offence.

Like if we ask an advanced Vaiṣṇava some question,

even if it is a personal question.

Prabhu, actually you are a very senior devotee and I have been following you.

But I see that sometimes you just do this,

so I was wondering if I should follow that or not? Ha!

So in that way you are asking a question,

it is not offensive.

But if you say, PRABHU!

YOU ARE AN OFFENDER, YOU ARE SMOKING BEHIND THE CAR!

Maybe it is not true,

or maybe it is true but not something we should present in that way.

So, we try to ask questions rather than accuse anyone.

Unless you are in a very senior position

and you are advising some disciple who is junior.

I was made a temple president two weeks after my initiation.

So everyone in the temple, many were more senior than me! Ha!

So if told them, PRABHU, GO TO THE STORE!

They would look at me and say, who are you to tell me?

So I would go to people and say,

Prabhu, how would you like to go the store?

The deities need apples or something! Ha!

So if they said no,

I would keep asking them! Ha!

But I wouldn’t tell them,

I would ask them.

So somehow that became the thing that I learnt since I was a young president.

And it is hard for me to stop that even now!!

I am very happy to see that your house is very clean,

I feel very devotional in your house!