Srila Prabhupada in Calcutta

Host: Hare Krishna! So, with Maharaja’s permission, very humbly I would like to introduce Maharaja to all of you. Maharaja was born in Chicago in a very affluent family. His father was a lawyer, later he was promoted to a judge. In 1969, Maharaja, while studying in Brandeis University, Boston, he first met His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada. And then when he interacted with Prabhupada for the first time, Maharaja felt that whatever he had learned in his whole life is less than what he learned from Srila Prabhupada in one interaction. Then after graduation, Maharaja accepted formal initiation and became Giriraj dasa. And then he joined Boston temple and he was assisting there in that temple. In 1970, Srila Prabhupada actually called all the devotees, many devotees from the West. So Maharaja writes that all the devotees were practically second in command. In each of the temples were called in to assist Srila Prabhupada. So Maharaja was there in that team and Maharaja came with Srila Prabhupada in India.

In 1972, Prabhupada appointed Maharaja as President of ISKCON Bombay and Trustee of Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. Since then Maharaja is making significant contributions in Prabhupada’s mission, most notably the development of Hare Krishna land in Juhu and managing the worldwide movement. In 1978, after Srila Prabhupada’s disappearance, Maharaja had taken sannyasa and in 1982 Maharaja was appointed as ISKCON’s governing body commissioner and his zones were in Bombay, Mauritius, South Africa, Spain, Portugal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan. Presently, Maharaja is an emeritus member of GBC and an initiating guru. He was also instrumental in the acquisition and development of Bhaktivedanta ashram in Govardhana and a kirtan ashram for the women, Bhaktivedanta Hospice, Vrindavan Institute of Palliative Care. All these things are in Vrindavan. Maharaja is very known for his love, care, and fundraising abilities throughout the world. He is also one of the very beginning preachers of VIHE—Vrindavan Institute of Higher Education.

What instruction personally Maharaja got from Srila Prabhupada was to write books. So right now Maharaja is based in Carpentaria, California, and he is focusing on writing books. Maharaja has written many books, like Watering the Seed, Many Moons, Life’s Final Exam—Death,” and obviously, I’ll Build You a Temple. So we are so very happy, grateful, and jolly, feeling blessed to invite, to have Maharaja’s holy association in this temple. Maharaja writes that in front of this window, Maharaja had a long discussion with that time His Holiness Tamal Krishna Prabhu. For a long time, late night, Maharaja writes in this book, in this temple. So we are so very happy and so very grateful and feeling spiritually enriched by having Maharaja. We will welcome Maharaja in our traditional way by three times, loudly chanting, Haribol! Haribol! Haribol!

So I will request all the devotees to keep their phones in silent mode. And those devotees who need translation in Bengali, His Grace Aradhya-Bhagavan Prabhu is translating in Bengali in front of the new lift. You can go there and listen to the translation in Bengali. Thank you. Please keep your phones in silent mode.

Giriraj Swami: Hare Krishna, my dear devotees. I will begin by singing the maṅgala-ācaraṇa prayers and leading a short kirtan. And then I will speak about my experiences with Srila Prabhupada in Calcutta.

[Prayers and kirtan]

Hare Krishna, my dear devotees. So, I will read some excerpts from my book, Watering the Seed, and comment. These excerpts will relate to my interactions with Srila Prabhupada in Calcutta.

READING from Watering the Seed

In October of 1971, my parents came to see me in Calcutta. I wasn’t really sure how to deal with my parents’ visits and I asked Srila Prabhupada and he said you have to spend time with them, so I did. We visited some tourist places and I introduced them to meet some of my friends.

In October of 1971, my parents came to see me in Calcutta. While Srila Prabhupada was talking with some of his disciples in his quarters, my parents entered. Srila Prabhupada received them warmly. Srila Prabhupada spoke in such a skillful and expert way to remove my father’s prejudices. He said that he had a pharmacy. And one of his customers in Allahabad was Motilal Nehru, the father of Jawaharlal Nehru, who became the Prime Minister of India. He said that Motilal Nehru was a made in England man. Srila Prabhupada could have the same product made in India and in England, and the product made in England would cost two or three of four times more than the product made in India. But Motilal was a made in England man, so he would purchase the product made in England. And in a subtle way Srila Prabhupada was pointing out the prejudice in favor of the West over India.

Then he told my father, (I say ‘my father, both of my parents) that he had a son named Jawaharlal who was useless, so he was thinking of giving him to the freedom movement. So this also worked on my father’s prejudices. He might have thought that, Prime Minister is a big man, he must have some special qualification. But Srila Prabhupada was saying, that is not necessarily the case. It could be quite the opposite.

So, after hearing Srila Prabhupada speak for some time, my parents finally came to the point. They wanted me back. I said, I want to stay with Srila Prabhupada. My father said, we want to set up a big trust for my son and we want him to come home to sign the papers. Srila Prabhupada replied, “Yes, he can sign.” My parents said that they had no objection to my remaining in the movement, but they did not want my health to deteriorate. So they wanted me to be stationed near home. In those days, people such as my parents thought if you didn’t eat meat, you wouldn’t get enough protein.

So my parents said that they had no objection to my remaining in the movement, but that they did not want my health to deteriorate. So they wanted me to be stationed near home. My parents were still apprehensive, so Srila Prabhupada said, let him stay with me in India for some months more and I will take personal care of him. Then when I return to America in April, he can come with me. With my parents somewhat relieved, I said, just see how intelligent Srila Prabhupada is. In the winter, when the western countries are cold and dark, Srila Prabhupada stays in India. And in the summer, when the west is warm and sunny, Srila Prabhupada goes there.

My father was becoming enlivened by Srila Prabhupada and he affirmed, yes, he is very intelligent. Srila Prabhupada said, “No, your son is intelligent. He has understood my strategy.” My father said, “No, you are intelligent, actually.” Srila Prabhupada replied, “. . . otherwise, how could I attract so many intelligent young men like your son?” My mother was still thinking of my poor health and long absence from home, and she began to cry. To cheer her, Srila Prabhupada gave her a sandesh. He keeps sweets on his table and especially in Calcutta, he would have sandesh and rasagullā.

To cheer her, Srila Prabhupada gave her a sandesh. At first, my mother wouldn’t accept, but Srila Prabhupada’s kind and gentle persistence prevailed. Then he told her, these sweets, sandesh and rasagullā, are made of cheese and are very high in protein. Then he said, Giriraj, you must eat at least two dozen sandesh and rasagullā every day, which I am still working on. Then Srila Prabhupada assured my parents, “I will personally see that he is supplied with sufficient sandesh. Do not worry.” Everyone was thoroughly pleased and satisfied by Srila Prabhupada’s loving dealings.

As my father was leaving the room, he said to me, “Well, I can say two things about your master. He is a brilliant organizer and he really knows how to deal with people.” And in my father’s value system, those were the highest compliments. Then as a postscript to this, from Calcutta I went to Madras. And in Madras, I was staying at different people’s homes and eating a lot of idlis, dosa, and sambar. And I put on weight. Then I arranged a program for Srila Prabhupada, he came to Madras. And when he came and he saw that I had gained weight, he said I should take a picture of myself and send it to my mother, so she would feel satisfied that I was healthy.

So then, now we will come to another significant conversation with Srila Prabhupada.

The first Bombay pandal was a great success, and almost immediately, Srila Prabhupada sent Tamal Krishna and me to Calcutta to organize a similar program there. After Srila Prabhupada instructed me to write, I had more questions about my service. I had other duties and also realized that I wasn’t able to just sit down and write all day. I really wanted to understand what I should do. Although I thought about it carefully, I felt that only Srila Prabhupada could answer my questions.

But the devotee’s mood was that one should not disturb Srila Prabhupada or approach him directly. Still, many questions weighed on my mind. Finally, one day at the site of the pandal, I told Yamuna devi that I had some questions to ask Srila Prabhupada, but that I didn’t want to disturb him. And I told her what the questions were. “No,” she replied, “You are just the type of devotee Srila Prabhupada would want to spend time with. And these are just the types of questions he would want to answer.” Encouraged by Yamuna’s words, I approached Srila Prabhupada in his room in Calcutta, here, and began. “Before joining the movement, I made movies. And I had a film and a film I made won an award. So I was thinking, maybe I should make movies about Krishna consciousness.”

Prabhupada replied, that others are doing. At the time, all we had were some rough movies made by Damodar. So I thought, well, if Prabhupada thinks that is enough, making movies must not be very important. Then Prabhupada explained, our main medium is books. And I said, I also think of cultivating important people. Oh, that is very important, Prabhupada replied. You should do that. Then I asked, suppose in the course of time, by the gradual development of Krishna consciousness, I become expert at everything. Suppose I become a perfect preacher and at the same time a perfect manager. Srila Prabhupada replied, “You should preach.” Srila Prabhupada had given me the clear direction I needed, and I left the room feeling much lighter.

I also asked one other important question. “Srila Prabhupada, now you are here, so everything is all right. But what if in the course of time when you are not here, ISKCON falls from the standard? What should I do?” Srila Prabhupada replied, “You are also one of the important members of this society, so you work for the correction. But don’t leave.” I did not consider myself an important member of the society. Still, I knew that Srila Prabhupada had given an important instruction for the future.

During the course of the pandal, I was struck by the fact that Srila Prabhupada preached the same way to every audience. So I approached him to clarify one thought. This is me asking Srila Prabhupada. “Krishna consciousness is the perfection of every discipline and endeavor. Yet I see you preach more or less the same to everyone. Why don’t we explain Krishna consciousness is the perfect communism, or Krishna consciousness is the perfect welfare work, or psychology, or social, or economic, or political system? Why do we just present the same philosophy, the same general philosophy every time?”

Srila Prabhupada replied, “Unless someone is convinced of the philosophy and has practical experience of it in his personal life, he will not feel the inspiration to apply it in his occupational duty.” So he preached to convince everyone that he is not the body, that he is the eternal servant of Krishna, and that he can realize Krishna by chanting the holy names. Srila Prabhupada’s answer made sense and entered my heart.

Srila Prabhupada gave us so much service we hardly had time to chant our rounds, what to speak of read his books. Although I knew that by serving Srila Prabhupada I was doing the best for myself and for all living entities, I still lamented that I had so little time to read his books. Srila Prabhupada must have understood my concern, so one day he spoke to me. I didn’t articulate my concern or my anxiety, but he must have read my mind and he addressed my concern without my even bringing it up. So he quoted this verse, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.2.18,

naṣṭa-prāyeṣv abhadreṣu
 nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā
 bhagavaty uttama-śloke
 bhaktir bhavati naiṣṭhikī

By reading the book Bhāgavata or by serving the person bhāgavata, one gets the same result. Just by serving the person bhāgavata, this isn’t the translation from the Bhāgavatam, this is Srila Prabhupada speaking to me. By reading the book Bhāgavata, or by serving the person bhāgavata, one gets the same result. Just by serving the person bhāgavata, all the truths of the book Bhāgavata are revealed, even if you do not read the book. Thus, I continued my service to the person bhāgavata, Srila Prabhupada, with full conviction and enthusiasm.

There was a minister in the government of West Bengal named Tarun Kanti Ghosh, who came from a family of great devotees of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. When we greeted him with Hare Krishna, he would respond with Jaya Gore. His family’s daily newspaper, Amrita Bazar Patrika, had publicized Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s efforts to build a temple and regularly feature discourse by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura and reported on his activities. Is that newspaper still there, Amrita Bazar Patrika?

Being wealthy and influential, Tarun Kanti Ghosh went into politics and became successful. One afternoon, Tarun Kanti came to visit Srila Prabhupada at the Calcutta temple. He told Prabhupada that he had gone to a yogi who had mystic powers and that the yogi had materialized an apple and given him a slice. Tarun Babu, as Prabhupada called him, was quite impressed. But Prabhupada gave a different perspective.

“Yes, he can produce one apple, but what about Krishna? Krishna can produce an apple tree that will produce so many apples. And within every apple are so many seeds. And every seed can produce another tree that in turn can produce so many apples and so many more seeds and trees. And there are so many apple trees, not just on our planet, but on many other planets. That is Krishna’s mystic power.”

Then Srila Prabhupada said, “If we make friends with Krishna, Krishna can give us any number of apples. And practically it is happening. We have so many centers all over the world with so many devotees and so many guests coming daily. And every day we are offering and distributing so many apples. Where are the apples coming from? Our devotees are not going to the factory or the office to work. Where are the apples coming from? Krishna is supplying them. So we are not interested in making friends with some yogi who can give us one slice of apple. We are interested in becoming friends with Krishna, who can give us any number of apples.”

After the discussion in his room, Prabhupada was going to a program to give a lecture, and Tarun Kanti wanted to accompany him. We all went in the same car. Srila Prabhupada in the front with the driver, and I in the back with Tarun Babu. He asked, “I don’t know what to do about my political career. Sometimes I think I should just get out of politics and concentrate more on devotion, and sometimes I think I can use my political position to serve Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and His devotees. What should I do?”

I was just a young man and didn’t really know what to say. So I began, “It could be good if you can use your position to serve Krishna, but then again. . .”

Srila Prabhupada overheard us, turned around, and said, “No, politics is a dirty game. You should get out.” Srila Prabhupada ki jaya.

After I joined in Boston, Srila Prabhupada formed the GBC. And somehow I thought the GBC members were in a different category from the rest of us. Then one of the GBC members fell down. Still, I thought it was a fluke and tried to discount it. Later, when another GBC member fell, I had some doubt. So I asked Srila Prabhupada.

“Srila Prabhupada, you know everything about us. You know us better than we know ourselves. Yet sometimes we see you put someone in an exalted position and then he falls down. How is that?”

Srila Prabhupada replied, “The living entity is always marginal. So whatever position he is in, he can use it either for Krishna’s service or for personal sense gratification. In other words, the spiritual master places the disciple in the best position for devotional service. But the disciple can always misuse the position for personal gratification and fall down.”

One day, while Srila Prabhupada was taking his massage on the balcony in Calcutta, I humbly approached him. “Srila Prabhupada, I have been trying to understand what you want of us, what your desire is.”

Srila Prabhupada was so pure, he took every word into his heart. “Yes?”

“Two things seem to please you the most,” I suggested, “distributing your books and building the big temple in Mayapur.”

Prabhupada’s face lit up, his eyes opened wide, and he smiled. “Yes, you have understood.”

Then I responded, “And I want you to know that I am ready to give my life to help fulfill your desires.”

Prabhupada smiled and said, “Thank you very much.”

I felt so satisfied by His Divine Grace. I had understood what He desired.

So the next incident in Calcutta in a way relates to a verse from Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta Ādi-līlā, Chapter 1, Text 5. The translation is:

“The loving affairs of Sri Radha and Krishna are transcendental manifestations of the Lord’s internal pleasure-giving potency. Although Radha and Krishna are one in their identity, they separated themselves eternally. They have again united in the form of Sri Krishna, Chaitanya. I bow down to him who has manifested Himself with the sentiment and complexion of Srimati Radharani, although He is Krishna Himself.”

So once in Calcutta, Achyutananda had a conversation with our landlord, a Bengali gentleman named Mr. Raya. The landlord told Achyutananda his version of Radha and Krishna and Lord Chaitanya. He said that Lord Chaitanya is the original and that Radha and Krishna come from him. And he said that Lord Chaitanya is even greater and more beautiful than Radha and Krishna, as rasagullā is better than milk and sugar. A true philosophy.

So he approached Srila Prabhupada to understand the truth. (I was in the room during this conversation). The whole discussion was done to Prabhupada. Then, the whole discussion was done to Srila Prabhupada. He asked, “Who comes first?”

Srila Prabhupada replied that Radha and Krishna come first and that when they combine together, the combination is Lord Chaitanya. “The same example. First milk and sugar exist separately and then they combine together to make rasagullā.”

Then Achyutananda asked, “Well, who is greater?”

Srila Prabhupada paused for some moments, closed his eyes, and then answered, “Radharani is greater.”

Where Srimati Radharani was sitting on a raised platform and Krishna was kneeling at her feet trying to appease her. And Srila Prabhupada said, “Srimati Radharani is the greatest.” Then he pointed to another picture where baby Krishna was carrying the shoes of Nanda Maharaja on his head and said, “ Nanda Maharaja is the greatest.” Then there was even a picture of mother Yasoda with a stick and little Krishna cowering in fear. “The devotee is the greatest.”

So this, in a way, it reminds me of a conversation, the Ardh Khumba-mela in Allahabad. And there was a discussion between Madhavisa Prabhu and Yamuna devi. And Madhavisa Prabhu said that there is no difference between Krishna and Balarama, just Krishna is black and Balarama is white.

“No, there is another difference because Krishna is the only enjoyer of Srimati Radharani.”

COMMENT

Sri Sri Radha-Govinda ki jaya!

Sri Jagannatha Baladeva Sri Subhadra ki jaya!

Sri Prabhupada ki jaya!

READING (continued)

Yamuna devi said there is another different. . . So Tamal Krishna brought the discussion to Sri Prabhupada and he said, “Madhavisa Prabhu says that there is no difference between Krishna and Balarama, just that Krishna is black and Balarama is white.”

And Prabhupada said, “Yes, he is right.”

And then Tamal Krishna said, “But Yamuna devi says there is another difference because Krishna is the only enjoyer of Srimati Radharani.”

And Srila Prabhupada said, “Yes, she is right.”

And Tamal Krishna said, “But Srila Prabhupada, they are both saying different things, they both can’t be right.”

And Prabhupada said, “Yes, you are right.”

And then Tamal Krishna said, “Well, then who is right?”

And Prabhupada said, “You decide.”

COMMENT

All right, my dear devotees. Oh yes, this is very, very important. This was after the Calcutta pandal program, that was in Delhi. Okay. So this wasn’t in Calcutta, this was in Delhi, but it is an important instructive incident.

READING (continued)

The father of Rajiv Gupta, a young student who was translating Prabhupada’s books into Hindi, came to visit. He had a bad habit; smoking.

So, Srila Prabhupada asked the father, “Have you given up smoking?”

The father looked down and said, “No. But isn’t there some special mercy? Can I get some special mercy to give up smoking?” And Srila Prabhupada replied, “Special mercy? Yes, there is special mercy,” yasyāham anugṛhṇāmi hariṣye tad-dhanaṁśanaiḥ. The Lord can give special mercy. And when He does, the first thing He does is He takes away all the devotee’s material opulence. Then, when the devotee becomes poverty-stricken, his friends and relatives reject him. Because he has lost his opulence, his so-called friends and family rebuke and neglect him. So yes, there is special mercy. Do you want some special mercy?”

“No, no,” Mr. Gupta replied. “That is all right. I don’t want any special mercy. I will do it by my own efforts.”

COMMENT

My dear devotees, thank you for listening so patiently and attentively. And now, if any of you want to ask any questions or make any comments, share any reflections, you can raise your hand. Yes, do we have a microphone that can go to the back there?

Devotee: Thank you, Maharaja, for giving such a nice experience of your conversation with Srila Prabhupada. And I just want to know a little about the events that happened during the pandal program that you and Tamal Krishna Goswami Maharaja attended in the Calcutta pandal program. So can you give some details?

Giriraj Swami: Yes, actually something very significant happened. I hope it is here. Well anyway, it was like this. So at the time, Calcutta was sort of in the grips of Naxalites, young communists. And so we had the pandal program at Chowringhee Maidan, and twenty thousand people were coming like at the first Bombay pandal. And before the pandal program began, there was a press conference with Srila Prabhupada. Because they were of that sort of communist mindset, someone asked Srila Prabhupada, ‘What is the point of spending all this money for this pandal program when you could use the money to feed poor people?’ And Srila Prabhupada replied, ‘The whole point is to give people a chance to hear. Because these young boys and girls, my disciples heard, now they are. . .’

So anyway, during the pandal program, as was common, there were daris on the ground. And then on one side, we had chairs, folding chairs, for life members, which may cost more one or two rupees. So the Naxalites took objection that why some people get to sit on chairs and other people have to sit on the ground. So they started clapping the chairs together and making a big noise so people couldn’t hear Srila Prabhupada speak. Most of the devotees were on the stage with Srila Prabhupada, so I looked to Srila Prabhupada to see what he would do. And he just leaned into the microphone and start singing, “govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi.” It seemed to me almost mystically, by the influence of Srila Prabhupada’s pure sound vibration, that those Naxalites who were creating the disturbance, they just stopped what they were doing and they walked away. They just left. So I thought it was very instructive how Srila Prabhupada always depended on Krishna and also how the potency of the pure sound coming from his mouth, from his heart, had such a powerful effect on these troublemakers.

So, that was tense for a little while, and then it dissolved itself. And there was also, yes, before the pandal program, Srila Prabhupada received a note, presumably from these communist youth, saying “fly or die.” The note was put together by cutting out different letters from the newspaper so no one could trace their handwriting or even their typewriter. But they cut out different letters and put together this note, “fly or die.” And Srila Prabhupada didn’t do either. He didn’t fly away, and he didn’t die. But yes, there was a lot of undercurrents against Srila Prabhupada’s preaching at that time. The deities were at the pandal program, and then on the last night, there was a procession, and the deities were brought back to the temple here. One other little incident. One day, Yamuna devi, who was the pujari, put Krishna’s flute in backwards. So one devotee noticed and complained, “Yamuna devi put in Krishna’s flute backwards.” And Yamuna devi replied by quoting the verse, [Unintelligible 01:14:45], that Krishna can perform the activities of all the senses with any one of His senses. So, that disciple was not very happy with Yamuna devi’s answer. So, that devotee went to Srila Prabhupada and complained that Yamuna devi put in Krishna’s flute backwards. And Srila Prabhupada replied by quoting the exact same verse. So, yes, the transcendental.

Any other questions or comments? Yes?

Devotee: Under the influence of modes of passion and ignorance, we may waste our whole day and neglect the study of Srila Prabhupada’s books. And the mind may justify saying, somehow we are engaged in serving the person bhāgavata. So, how to save ourselves from that trap?

Giriraj Swami: We were really serving the person bhāgavata under his direct instructions. That was exceptional. Ordinarily, we should read Srila Prabhupada’s books. He gave repeated instructions that we should read his books every day. Sometimes he even said three hours a day. But at least every day, we should read Srila Prabhupada’s books. And I don’t think under the present circumstances, we can use the excuse that we are serving the person bhāgavata. You are also serving the person bhāgavata by following his instructions to read his books. Once I said to Srila Prabhupada, way back, maybe 1970, at a program in Bombay, that I read that the only price that we have to pay for getting Krishna is intense eagerness. So if we have intense eagerness then we don’t need to read your books.” And Srila Prabhupada replied, “Well, if you have intense eagerness, then you will also want to read the books.” So that would be my advice to you.

Devotee: Thank you, Maharaja. So happy to have your darshan. Maharaja, I wanted to ask that Srila Prabhupada gave the instruction to “Read my books scrutinizingly.” So what is the correct way of studying the books so that we fulfill Srila Prabhupada’s instruction?

Giriraj Swami: Well, Srila Prabhupada said intelligence means to see the same thing from different angles of vision. And so, yes, we study it both scrutinizingly, which means we should think about what we are reading and see it from different angles of vision. My dear godbrother, Bhurijana dasa, has written an article called “Prayerful Reading.” His point there is that while we are reading, we should pray to understand what Srila Prabhupada is trying to tell us personally. And then we should apply it in our personal lives. So yes, the books are not just ink on paper, but they are living. So we should pray to understand what Srila Prabhupada is trying to tell us personally and then apply it in our lives.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja, grateful to you for your association. Maharaja, you were discussing that you asked once Prabhupada that what if after your physical disappearance, the standard of ISKCON falls, then Prabhupada said that you are also an integral part of ISKCON. So correct the situation but don’t leave. So what exactly does it mean to be in ISKCON and not to leave ISKCON?

Giriraj Swami: Are you in ISKCON? Yes, you are. And what makes you say that you are in ISKCON?

Devotee: Many times, we heard or we say that someone is saying that I am following Prabhupada, but they may or may not be directly in contact with the organization. In that sense, how to see it or. . . This is actually what I wanted to ask actually Maharaja. I hope I have cleared my question.

Giriraj Swami: Well, Srila Prabhupada said Krishna consciousness is 90 percent association. And he also said he formed the International Society for Krishna Consciousness to give people the association of devotees. And so I would say being a member of ISKCON or being a part of ISKCON means associating with the devotees in ISKCON. And association includes hearing from them and also rendering service to them. In the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, Srila Rupa Gosvami has enumerated sixty-four items of devotional service. Of the sixty-four, he says that five are most potent and even a slight association with even one of them can awaken dormant love for Krishna. So the five are sādhu-saṅga, nāma-kīrtana, bhāgavata-śravaṇa, mathurā-vāsa, and mūrtira śraddhāya sevana. The first item is sādhu-saṅga, and Rupa Gosvami gives a specific definition of sādhu-saṅga. Sajātīyāśaye snigdhe sādhau saṅga svato vare. So, sajātīyā, in a literal sense means belonging to the same caste or community. In our context, it would mean followers of Srila Prabhupada. Sajātīyāśaye snigdhe. snigdhe means the sadhu should be affectionate to you. Sajātīyāśaye snigdhe sādhau saṅga svato vare. And svato vare means the sadhu should be more advanced than you are. So, that is the actual definition of sādhu-saṅga. And we should avail of the opportunity for sādhu-saṅga in ISKCON. That will nourish our spiritual lives.

Devotee: Hare Krishna, Maharaja. Thank you for inspiring class. My question is, when we are practicing Krishna consciousness or serving spiritual master, we face some challenges like personal weakness or health issues or many services or weak sadhana. So, how to remain fixed in the service of spiritual master and practice Krishna consciousness very solidly?

Giriraj Swami: Again, I would say good association. Good association is the most important factor in our spiritual lives. But I mean if you are sick, you also have to take care of your health. Srila Prabhupada once said, first health, then sadhana, then service. And another time he said, first health, then chanting, then service, then reading. So health is important. He wrote me a letter when I was sick in India and he said, “You must take care of your body. It is dedicated to the service of Krishna. And so the best course is to take rest along with the doctor’s prescription and chant Hare Krishna. Hare Krishna is bhavaushadi. It is the cure for the material disease.” So we have to take care of our health. That is also part of our service to guru and Krishna. We shouldn’t pamper our bodies, obviously, but we should maintain body and soul together in a healthy way so we can do service.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja. We have been told that we should judge ourselves and see in which mode of nature we are. Are we guided by mode of ignorance or mode of passion, and then we should take necessary steps to elevate our consciousness? But we do have a cheating propensity. For example, I might have anger issues but I am bent on proving it to myself that I do not have anger issues. So in that case, how do we ensure that we are outright honest with ourselves and we are actually striving to elevate our consciousness and not cheating ourselves?

Giriraj Swami: Well, the Third Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam describes devotional service influenced by the different modes of nature, and Srila Prabhupada has paraphrased it. And he says that a devotee influenced by the mode of ignorance will think, I am the only devotee, everyone else is nonsense. A devotee influenced by the mode of passion will think, I want to be known as the best devotee. A devotee influenced by the mode of goodness will think, I want to go back home, back to Godhead. And a devotee who is transcendentally situated will think, I just want to serve Krishna and please Krishna. So, we can guess what mode we are being influenced by. And at different times, we might be influenced by different modes, certainly. But we should try to elevate ourselves. And in that effort, sincere attentive japa is crucial. And then along with that, reading Srila Prabhupada’s books and sharing the knowledge the Srila Prabhupada’s books, either by distributing his books or by repeating the message in Srila Prabhupada’s books. That will help you elevate your consciousness.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja. What to do in situations when in student life, you are not able to get association of devotees or get time for reading Prabhupada’s books. So, how to handle ourselves, how to make our devotion life still go in an upward graph and not go in a downward graph?

Giriraj Swami: Well, balance is very important in Krishna consciousness. So, we have to balance our studies with our sadhana. We can’t neglect our studies, but at the same time, we don’t want to neglect our sadhana. And students all have time for recreation. And so a student who’s a devotee can use that time that the other students use for recreation in mundane ways. He can use the time for bhakti-yoga. So yes, that has to be part of your life as a student, along with your studies. And, people may know you are a devotee, so if you do well in your studies, it will reflect well on Krishna consciousness. And if you don’t do well in your studies, it will be a bad reflection on Krishna consciousness. You can also see it as a service to do well in your studies so that people get a positive impression of Krishna consciousness. One Mataji here, she had her hand up for a long time.

Devotee: Can you tell me what color Radha-Rasabihari chose to wear the day Hare Krishna and was inaugurated?

Giriraj Swami: It is probably in the book. I don’t recall off hand, but yes, it was a glorious occasion for sure.

Devotee: I have one more question. When somebody narrates Bhāgavatam to us, they sing the verses instead of speaking them. So, did Krishna and Arjuna also converse like that? Were they singing the tone?

Giriraj Swami: Yes, they were.

Devotee: So it was never spoken, it was always sung?

Giriraj Swami: Yes. Gītā means song.

Devotee: I have one more question. So my family is always complaining that I don’t have time for them. By the time they return from work, I sleep so that I can wake up for maṅgala-ārati. And when I come back from the morning program, they have already left for work. So how do I give them time and also give Krishna time?

Giriraj Swami: Are you talking about your children?

Devotee: No, my parents.

Giriraj Swami: Oh, your parents. Okay, so now I get it. So repeat the question. Now that I know you are talking about your parents.

Devotee: My parents are always complaining that I don’t have time for them because by the time they return home from work, I have slept so that I can wake up at three. And when I return home from the morning program, they have already left for work. So in the meantime, I don’t have any time to give them. How can I form a balance?

Giriraj Swami: What about having them come with you to the morning program?

Devotee: They don’t come.

Giriraj Swami: Well, once in a while, it is a sacrifice, but we also don’t want our parents to blame Krishna consciousness. So once in a while, you can maybe miss the morning program or something so that you can spend time with them. Because yes, we don’t want them to blame Krishna consciousness for taking their daughter away from them.

Devotee: Hare Krishna, all my obeisances to your lotus feet, Maharaja. How long were you associated with Tarun Kanti Ghosh?

Giriraj Swami: Oh, Tarun Kanti Ghosh. Well, I think I probably met him in 1970. Yes. So, some decades.

Devotee: When one day, or just want to raise the chanting it is quite considerably better than the previous day or when someone asks questions and we just give one or two slokas as reference then something a pride sort of comes in and it is disturbing the pride that the chanting is so good so I am probably the chosen one. So this sort of feeling comes; so how to save myself from that?

Giriraj Swami: Well, you should not take credit for yourself. We have to make our effort, but if there is some good result, we should take it as Krishna’s mercy, Prabhupada’s mercy, the mercy of the paramparā, not take credit for ourselves and not be proud, obviously. Yes, we are not the doers. We make our effort, but the main factor in our success is mercy. We should always be aware of that fact.

Devotee: Hare Krishna guru Maharaja. My question is that last year’s Pushpa-Abhishek festival at ISKCON Chowpatty, His Holiness Indradyumna Swami Maharaja shared that you and he have a pact that you won’t go to the spiritual world without each other. I would like understanding how these vows are fulfilled. Please give some understanding.

Giriraj Swami: Yes, so he and I were taking prasāda together one day in Mauritius. We just came out like that, that neither of us would go back to Godhead without the other. So I guess if someone is eligible to go back to Godhead, he is in a position to help someone else go back to Godhead. So that was our pact. Another time we were having prasāda together in South Africa. And our hosts, they kept bringing more prasāda, and I kept saying, let us know what else is coming so we know how to pace ourselves. And then he would say, well this is the last one, but then he would bring more. So I turned to Indradyumna Swami, and I said, “What is going on? How do we deal with this?”

Sri Sri Radha-Govinda ki jaya!

Sri Jagannatha Baladeva Sri Subhadra ki jaya!

Sri Prabhupada ki jaya!

So, Indradyumna Swami replied, as Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gītā, one should not eat too much or eat too little. So, today we are focusing on not eating too little.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja. So Maharaja, sometimes I don’t have the clarity about the way I am conducting my spiritual life. Then the solution which is given is that consult the seniors. But then I am not able to put absolute trust on the seniors because of various reasons. One of the reasons is that their advice may not just appeal to me. Second reason is that different seniors seem to have seemingly opposite opinions. And then the solution is given just here to one. And that one may be your spiritual master, but we don’t have access to a spiritual master. The solution is given that hearing lectures. And by hearing lectures, we are not able to get the clarity. So what is the solution? How to work out this?

Giriraj Swami: Well, Srila Prabhupada said that if a group of mature devotees who are your well-wishers give you an instruction, you should take it as coming from Krishna. So, you are facing difficulties because the different authorities who are giving you different instructions are not together. So it might take a little effort, but it would be worth the exercise if you could have them, as your well-wishers, sit together and jointly tell you what they want of you. That would be the best solution. Otherwise, you are going to be caught with all these different opinions coming from all these different seniors. Or at least get the majority of them, if you can’t get all of them, at least get the majority of them.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja. Thank you for connecting our consciousness to Krishna’s lotus feet again with your golden and divine words. Maharaja, I have a simple question. How to attain Krishna and Radharani’s love and mercy in the quickest, easiest, and shortest way? And stay connected with them.

Giriraj Swami: Srila Prabhupada said, the way to develop the love of the gopīs for Krishna is to spread Krishna consciousness all over the world.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja, my obeisances. Maharaja, how do we increase our lālasā, our eagerness to serve the Lord and His devotees, like Rupa Gosvami says?

Giriraj Swami: Yes. Well, good, sincere, attentive japa and reading Srila Prabhupada’s books. There is a beautiful quotation in The Nectar of Devotion. It is actually a paraphrase of a verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam which says, “Let me become a sincere servant of the devotees.” By serving the devotees, one becomes freed from all material inauspiciousness and develops devotional love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And there are so many verses about the benefit of serving devotees. And by reading about the benefits of serving devotees, then you should naturally become more eager to serve them. And also, it is said that you acquire the qualities of a person whom you serve. So, we want to serve all the devotees, but if we see some devotee who has some particular quality that we want to get, then we can make a special effort to serve that devotee, those devotees. I have so many verses; mahat-sevāṁ dvāram āhur vimuktes, by serving great souls, the door to liberation is opened.

Devotee: Praṇāma Maharaja, I have a question. How to decrease the tendency of the mind to commit offenses, that I want to commit lesser offenses. How to do that, Maharaja?

Giriraj Swami: You mean mental offenses?

Devotee: Mental offenses.

Giriraj Swami: Well, fortunately in Kali-yuga. . . Let’s start with Satya-yuga. In Satya-yuga, if you think of doing something good, you don’t get any benefit. But if you think of something bad, you get the result. But in Kali-yuga, if you think of something bad, you don’t get the result. You actually have to do something bad. But if you just think of doing something good, even if you don’t do it, you get the benefit. So it is a special condition, special concession for us fallen souls in Kali-yuga. But another solution, in a way, is to chant loudly. Once I mentioned to Srila Prabhupada, I had trouble controlling my mind while I was chanting. He said, chant loudly. So, that is another approach. Hare Krishna.

Devotee: Thank you Maharaja for giving this wonderful class. My question is, as a devotee one must follow four regulative principles and chant sixteen rounds. So doing this, that desperateness is not there to get love of God. So, how to develop the desperateness to develop the love of God in Maharaja? This is my question.

Giriraj Swami: Well, what you described is the minimum requirement to be initiated, to chant a minimum of sixteen rounds daily and follow the four regulative principles. But the ultimate goal is to develop love of Godhead, premā pum-artho mahān. And there is, in the Nectar of Instruction, the Upadeśāmṛta, Srila Rupa Gosvami Swami lists six items that are favorable for devotional service and six items that spoil devotional service. One of the items that spoils devotional service is niyamāgrahaḥ, which can be divided in two ways, niyam-āgrahaḥ and niyama-agrahaḥ. One means to follow the rules and regulations fanatically without knowing the purpose. So yes, the purpose ultimately is to develop love of God. And so if we don’t have that purpose in mind, then it is like niyam-āgrahaḥ. And then the other meaning is to not follow the rules and regulations and to act independently and whimsically. So, either way, niyaṁ-āgrahaḥ will spoil our devotional service.

Devotee: Please accept my humble obeisances, Srila guru Maharaja. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful experiences and all the nectarean memories from Srila Prabhupada’s times. I have one question in my mind. Srila Prabhupada traveled the entire globe. He went to different countries to preach. He must have adopted different strategies in preaching in the West. And when he came to India maybe he had some different measures. When he sent you to Madras, you had to face many challenging circumstances because of the impersonalist philosophies prevailing over there. So what was Prabhupada’s strategy in spreading Krishna consciousness in Bengal or places in and around Calcutta? Because here also, Prabhupada preached and when he sent devotees for preaching, any specific instruction did he give to you, how to deal with people and how to put across our message of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu?

Giriraj Swami: He didn’t give any specific instructions as such. But I was cultivating some big people, and he said that I should give them prasāda. So yes, when I would meet them, I would always give them some prasāda. Another thing he said, because many Bengalis eat fish, so in one talk he said that eating fish is worse than eating cow’s flesh. He said, if you want, you can eat cow’s flesh, but don’t eat fish. So of course, they are not going to eat cow’s flesh, but he was really making the point about that they should not eat fish.

Devotee: Hare Krishna guru Maharaja, thank you very much for the class. You mentioned the importance of serving devotees, and you also mentioned that by serving, we also take something from them. And service to the spiritual master is perfect. Yet we also like to serve the devotees and we are not perfect, yet we love to serve the devotees. So how to handle that? Because you mentioned the importance of serving the devotees and how other things from the devotees may affect our consciousness.

Giriraj Swami: No, you love to serve the devotees. That is wonderful. What is the problem?

Devotee: I understood that we get some, it depends on the devotees, it depends on whom we are.

Giriraj Swami: Well, you get their good qualities. You are not going to get their bad qualities.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja, daṇḍavat praṇāma. I have this question that Krishna consciousness teaches us to be nice to everyone, but this world is full of hypocrisy and one cannot survive if one is always nice to everyone. So how to deal with this world’s hypocrisy while maintaining our nice attitude to everyone? Or if circumstances oblige us to be rude to someone sometimes, then how should one deal with it? How to be smart enough so that the materialistic people are not able to cheat or bully us and at the same time setting an example before others as a source of inspiration to choose so that they are also able to choose this path of Krishna consciousness?

Giriraj Swami: Well, you can be nice to people, but it doesn’t mean that you let them cheat you or take advantage of you. Be nice means that in your interaction you should be nice to them. But not let them cheat you or take advantage of you. Yes, be nice means, you should be pleasant in your interactions with them, but it doesn’t mean that you let them take advantage of you or cheat you.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja, thank you for the class. Maharaja, generally we are expected to cooperate so that this movement can go forward. But generally, it is seen that when we protest against others’ sense gratification, they get offended. And cooperation basically means that we assist in others’ sense gratification. So how do we ensure that we are humble at the same time, we cooperate in a way that the movement is going forward in the right direction?

Giriraj Swami: I didn’t follow the question.

Devotee: Maharaja, cooperation, we should do so that this movement can go ahead. But generally, we see that in the name of cooperation, it is more or less that you supply my sense gratification. You allow, then I will feel that you are cooperating else we say that we are not cooperating when we protest against someone doing sense gratification. So how do we properly present so that, in the right direction we are cooperating.

Giriraj Swami: Well, cooperation means that we work together to serve Srila Prabhupada and spread Krishna consciousness. If someone is indulging in sense gratification and you want to advise them not to do so. Srila Prabhupada said if criticism is offered with sympathy, it is more likely to be accepted. So if you have genuine care and concern for the person and advise the person to give up his sense gratification then it should be appreciated. Yes, cooperate doesn’t mean you let them do nonsense. That is not the meaning of cooperation, it is misinterpretation.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja, I have a question. While chanting our mind gets distracted, so what to do to concentrate on the holy name of Krishna, how to chant constantly?

Giriraj Swami: Yes, as Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gītā, whenever and from wherever the mind wanders, you should bring it under the control of the self. So our minds will wander when we chant, but when it wanders we have to bring it back, we have to make the effort. It is a battle, but that battle has to be fought. We can’t just surrender and let the mind go everywhere. And there are good books about japa. His Grace Bhurijana dasa has written a book. The name of the book is Japa. So reading that book will help you. His Holiness Sacinandana Swami has written a number of books about japa. And of course, rising early in the morning, chanting in front of Tulasi, chanting in front of deities, chanting with other devotees who are sincere chanters, all those things will help you with your chanting.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja, please accept my humble obeisances. I wanted to ask you that you have served Srila Prabhupada personally and you must have felt some anxiousness while you were serving; it has to be perfect. When we serve our spiritual master, we feel so much anxiety while you serve the deities. How do you overcome those anxieties and serve them nicely without that anxiety taking over?

Giriraj Swami: Well, anxiety can mean, anxiety is a bad thing, that you are in anxiety, or it can mean that you are anxious to do the best you can. So we should be anxious to do the best we can. But we shouldn’t be in anxiety, because we should know that the spiritual master is merciful. He will appreciate our effort, even if it is not perfect. And depending on the circumstances, if we make some mistake, he might correct us for our benefit. So yes, but we shouldn’t be in anxiety in a negative sense, because the spiritual master is kind. So one last question.

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaja. Maharaja, we have been taught that we are servant of the servants and we have to remain servant of the servants. So, while serving our śikṣā-guru or our spiritual master, we at times get very close to them by serving them regularly, by being their associates. Invariably many times, we tend to forget that we are also servant of the servant. And unconsciously we make mistakes and do vaiṣṇava-aparādha. So how do we be careful that we do not make such mistakes?

Giriraj Swami: You are serving your śikṣā-guru s or your dīkṣā-guru. Then where does the question of vaiṣṇava-aparādha come?

Devotee: At times when we are serving our śikṣā-guru, we are hurting other devotees by thinking that we are pleasing our śikṣā-guru, but we are invariably hurting other devotees, which we do not come to know also, which we do not realize. It is later on that sometimes when we come to know from other devotees that this all had happened, we really feel very sad and that unknowingly we have committed a mistake.

Giriraj Swami: Well, I guess just approach the devotee and say you heard that you hurt the devotee. You didn’t intend to do so and you are sorry and ask if you can do anything to make it up to them and ask them to forgive you.

Devotee: Thank you Maharaja. Thank you. We are really blessed. Thank you.

Giriraj Swami: Thank you.

Devotee: Good evening, Maharaja. I was unable to come due to unforeseen circumstances since my mother is very ailing and old, she is eighty-seven, so I have left her alone and come. I have managed to know how, managed only I know. The thing I will share is, I read this Bhagavad-gītā As It Is three times, and I was searching for certain extracts, I had three full questions. I was wanting somebody to help me find that particular extracts of those three fold questions. That is my only problem. If you can also guide me, I will show you the one which I have read. This one. So this is the one I have read, all from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. If all those three four questions which I have, if I can get it on WhatsApp, that extract, that will really help me. Otherwise, I have pretty good knowledge about this.

Giriraj Swami: So, do you have any learned devotees here in Calcutta who can. . . What is your name? This is Puri dasa. He is said to be a very learned devotee. And whatever questions you have, you ask him.

Devotee: Okay. But Maharaja Ji, you seem very seasoned, a very old-time devotee. So you would know much more than him. It is not that I doubt him. It is not that I doubt him.

Giriraj Swami: You can email me.

Devotee: You will be lost in the highway. Yes, but really lost in the highway, I have ten thousand emails. WhatsApp is the best which I am on the social media. So it will be very close and near and dear to me. Okay, let him try first. The other devotees have failed, by the way, just to let you know.

Host: Hare Krishna Maharaja, we are feeling that you have come like a cloud and showering out Srila Prabhupada’s mercy in Srila Prabhupada’s birthplace. We are so very grateful to you. So we will thank you once more by chanting Hare Krishna maha-mantra once.

Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare
Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare

We are very happy that we have got Maharaja’s association this evening. Those who want to take Maharaja in their homes, you can take Maharaja’s books. There are books like Watering the Seed, Many Moons, Life’s Final Exam—Death, I’ll Build Your Temple, and the most recent book Dancing White Elephants. And very mercifully, Maharaja will sign if you take the book. And prasādam is there for all the devotees in the temple kitchen. There is no requirement of any coupon. You can just go and have your prasādam.

His Holiness Giriraj Swami guru Maharaja ki jaya!

Srila Prabhupada ki jaya!