DAY ONE

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: I intend to introduce this topic through the work of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, translated by Śrīla Prabhupāda in this short but wonderful and profound book, Upadeśāmṛta (The Nectar of Instruction). And later we will hear Radhanath Swami’s realizations on this subject.

I would like to begin with my own realization, namely that I feel a great deal of enthusiasm about the opportunity to participate in this program with Radhanath Swami, especially when I remember how, two years ago, I was in His wonderful association in Varanasi in India. In a certain sense I was wandering through that ancient holy city when, to My good fortune, I ran into His Divine Grace, who, as it turned out, is a wonderful, first-class guide to that city, since he has spent quite a lot of time there. That was wonderful.

I also read some statements of Śrīla Prabhupāda regarding enthusiasm, with the help of the devotees, who searched in the Bhaktivedanta Vedabase computer system for the word “enthusiasm.” Fortunately, in this system we have practically all the recorded words of Śrīla Prabhupāda, so it is very easy to check what he said on any given subject. I noticed that in most cases, when Śrīla Prabhupāda spoke about enthusiasm, he referred to a statement of Rūpa Gosvāmī in which he presents enthusiasm together with other elements favorable for progress in devotional service. Very often he stresses the need for enthusiasm, and he often says that to be enthusiastic is the same as to be serious. People who are not practicing devotional service can also be enthusiastic and serious, but they will be enthusiastic and serious about things other than Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So the principle of enthusiasm and of living seriously is something we basically know, but Rūpa Gosvāmī expanded this idea of enthusiasm in order to give us a conception of how to go back to God. So I thought I would read the third of his eleven verses. The third verse describes utsāha, that is, enthusiasm. I also checked this word in the dictionary; it also means “steadiness,” “courage.” That is interesting; these things go together.

I will read the Sanskrit, the translation, and perhaps a piece of the purport. I will not read the whole thing; it is rather a long purport.

utsāhān niścayād dhairyāt
tat-tat-karma-pravartanāt
saṅga-tyāgāt sato vṛtteḥ
ṣaḍbhir bhaktiḥ prasidhyati

“There are six principles favorable to the execution of pure devotional service: (1) being enthusiastic; (2) endeavoring with confidence; (3) being patient; (4) acting according to regulative principles, such as hearing, chanting and remembering Kṛṣṇa (śravaṇaṁ, kīrtanaṁ, viṣṇoḥ smaraṇam); (5) abandoning the association of non-devotees; and (6) following in the footsteps of the previous ācāryas. These six principles undoubtedly assure the complete success of pure devotional service.”

PURPORT: Devotional service is not a matter of sentimental speculation or imaginary ecstasy. Its substance is practical activity. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī in Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (1.1.11) defines devotional service as follows:

anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ
jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam
ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu-
śīlanaṁ bhaktir uttamā

“‘Uttamā-bhakti, or unalloyed devotion unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, involves the rendering of devotional service in a way that is favorable to the Lord. This devotional service should be free from any extraneous motives and devoid of fruitive karma, impersonal jñāna and all varieties of selfish desires.’”

Later Prabhupāda goes on to define in more detail what bhakti is. He says that it is a kind of cultivation composed mainly of these nine processes: śravaṇaṁ, kīrtanaṁ (hearing and chanting); viṣṇu-smaraṇam (remembering Viṣṇu or Kṛṣṇa); pāda-sevanam (serving the Lord’s lotus feet); arcanaṁ (formal service in the form of worshiping the Deity in the temple); vandanam, dāsyaṁ (becoming the Lord’s servant, or accepting and becoming absorbed in the Lord’s mission). And what else? Sakhyam – yes, becoming the Lord’s friend. And the last one? Ātma-nivedanam – what does that mean? Surrender!!! “No, not me…” Yes, surrender. Kṛṣṇa wants us to surrender to Him.

The verse that Śrīla Prabhupāda quotes at the beginning of the purport, anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam, always reminds me of the time when I had the opportunity to ask Śrīla Prabhupāda a question at the end of a lecture. He gave a wonderful lecture on the fourteenth verse of the second chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā, which speaks about tolerance, about how essential tolerance of all sorts of difficulties is for progress in spiritual life. He stressed the necessity of giving up material attachments. So I asked the classic “How can we…?” question: “How can we give up material attachments?” He replied:

anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ
jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam
ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu-
śīlanaṁ bhaktir uttamā

“You must understand what the goal is.” The goal is described in this verse – the goal is pure devotional service, and that means an attitude free from obstacles, that is, free from whatever keeps us from our natural enthusiasm to serve Kṛṣṇa. It was quite a long answer. Śrīla Prabhupāda went deeply into this verse for quite some time, and after explaining it he concluded by saying that in fact any skill can be engaged in devotional service, in pure bhakti. One can perform many different kinds of service for Kṛṣṇa. Then he listed various activities that one could do. He said, “You can cook for Kṛṣṇa, you can distribute books for Kṛṣṇa, you can clean the temple for Kṛṣṇa, there are so many things.” He gave this list, and at the very end he said, “You can drive a car for Kṛṣṇa.” That was especially significant for me because at that time I was the temple driver in that temple. And I don’t think anyone had informed Śrīla Prabhupāda about that beforehand. That is, it is not something that one would draw to the attention of Śrīla Prabhupāda in a large temple where there are so many devotees and where he had arrived only the day before. In any case, he knew that I was the temple driver… I was impressed.

In any case, through this verse of Rūpa Gosvāmī, Prabhupāda suggests how to attain success by understanding our goal. The beginning of enthusiasm in any field is the ability to foresee that we will attain the goal we are striving for, isn’t it so? If you are a successful businessman, you are enthusiastic in your endeavors, knowing that by making steady efforts in your business you will profit from it. It is similar with bhakti. But in the case of bhakti there is a special challenge, because the result that we attain is nothing material. There is nothing material in it; it is entirely spiritual, and for that reason this result is not very tangible. In a certain sense it is tangible, and Śrīla Prabhupāda often quotes a particular statement from the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as a test. He gives the example of eating: if you are hungry and you eat, you do not need anyone to tell you that you are satisfied. Right? We are hungry; we eat wonderful Kṛṣṇa-prasādam; we do not have to ask someone sitting next to us, “Excuse me sir, am I satisfied?” We know that when we eat, we are nourished, hunger is reduced, and we are satisfied. In the same way, with bhakti, when we progress toward the attainment of our goal, we become free from material hankerings, material attachment, we become full of satisfaction, and we attain our real position – the position of the Lord’s eternally beloved servants. But we must clearly remember that this bhakti, this devotion we are talking about, is not something material. And for this reason, sometimes maintaining enthusiasm is a certain challenge, because we must maintain enthusiasm and determination in devotion throughout our whole life.

(...) It is easy to maintain enthusiasm for something for a short time, but to keep it throughout one’s whole life – that is the real art. But it can be done. One way is to constantly remember our goal. And how to remember the goal? One way that I can recommend is to observe advanced souls who are able to remember this goal constantly. And a first-class example in this regard, whom we can follow, is His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Śrīla Prabhupāda. There is no doubt about his enthusiasm in devotional service. Throughout his life, in the face of all sorts of difficulties, challenges, disappointments or situations that we might consider disappointing, he was always fully determined and enthusiastic, and remaining in this mood he advised us to be like him. Sometimes we think, “Well yes, that is Śrīla Prabhupāda, but who am I?” But we must also remember that Śrīla Prabhupāda is our ācārya, our Founder-ācārya, and ācārya means “one who teaches by his own example.” Teaching by one’s example means that we should follow that example; and the first thing we should take as an example is Śrīla Prabhupāda’s enthusiasm. We can also draw enthusiasm from many devotees whom we observe and with whom we associate.

I like to often remember the short time that I spent in the association of one of my Godbrothers, Bhakti-Tīrtha Swami. Before he became a sannyāsī I had the opportunity to travel with him in East Germany (now it is one country, but at that time it was communist East Germany), Austria and Yugoslavia. He was distributing Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books, especially in libraries and at universities. He was very enthusiastic in this regard, and therefore he was very successful. I can add that one element of his sādhana that certainly helped him maintain that enthusiasm, sometimes even in very dangerous situations, was that every day he chanted japa, the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, not less than forty rounds daily (at least when I was with him). The question arises, how can someone find time to chant forty-two rounds a day? Well, he would get up no later than 2:30 in the morning. Yes, after a whole day of distributing Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books. He ate once a day and not very much at that. And he gave me a certain hint which over the years has helped me to maintain enthusiasm. It was that wherever you are, in whatever situation, sometimes you may be inclined to think, “What am I doing here? I should be there, in some other situation. Why am I here?” He said that when he was distributing books among professors, sometimes their reaction was contrary to his expectations, but he always had the feeling that somehow or other Kṛṣṇa had placed him in that situation deliberately. “What that purpose is – I may not know at this moment, but there is some purpose.” With that conviction, he was always very enthusiastic in performing devotional service. “Somehow or other I have ended up in this situation. All right, I will serve Kṛṣṇa here.”

I think we can apply this in our lives, because it is a fact that Kṛṣṇa places all of us in different situations. And then, instead of doing what we might like to do – lamenting or thinking, “Oh, I would rather be in such and such a situation. I think that would be better for my devotional service, for my Kṛṣṇa consciousness” – we can think, “No, Kṛṣṇa has placed me in this situation. He wants something to happen. So let me find out what this is about; I want to continue serving Kṛṣṇa.” And then we can be enthusiastic and also acquire two other elements among the six mentioned by Rūpa Gosvāmī, namely niścaya, which means “firm conviction,” and dhairya – “patience.” We can be patient and confident, confident that “If I simply follow this process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness properly and chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra properly, listening attentively, knowing that this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra is Kṛṣṇa Himself, and if I am patient…” Prabhupāda gives the example of a newly married wife. She should not expect to have a child immediately after marriage. That takes time. Similarly, the process of devotional service takes time. How long have we been in this material world – no one knows. So now, in this life, we can use our time to go back to Godhead. We can be patient. For me this was a wonderful lesson: wherever we are – OK, somehow or other Kṛṣṇa has put me here, so I will do for Him what I can, and I will be enthusiastic.

I think I will stop here so that we can listen to His Holiness Radhanath Swami. Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Śrīla Radhanath Swami:

oṁ ajñāna-timirāndhasya...
vañchā-kalpa-tarubhyaś ca...
śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda...
hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa...

We are very grateful to Śrī Kṛṣṇa-Kṣetra Prabhu for his extraordinarily enlightening talk on the real essence of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, which is constant enthusiasm to serve. I will not speak too long, out of fear that we might forget some of the wonderful lessons that we have just heard from Kṛṣṇa-Kṣetra Prabhu.

Once one devotee asked Śrīla Prabhupāda how to be enthusiastic when we do not feel enthusiasm, and Śrīla Prabhupāda explained that if we do not feel enthusiasm, we should practice enthusiastic activity as an austerity – as a sacrifice for Kṛṣṇa’s pleasure. Because such exalted qualities are actually the qualities of the soul. Enthusiasm to serve Kṛṣṇa is the eternal nature of the soul. There is only one way to awaken these qualities within ourselves – by pleasing Kṛṣṇa. If Kṛṣṇa is pleased with your service through how you please your spiritual master and the great Vaiṣṇavas, then He awakens the soul’s real, spiritual, exalted nature. Therefore we should practice enthusiastic activity as an austerity, even if we do not feel it.

Prabhupāda gave the example that if you live in a temple, you should get up for maṅgala-ārati. And sometimes we are not very enthusiastic at 3:30 in the morning to get up for maṅgala-ārati. But we should practice enthusiastic activity as an austerity – we should jump up, take a shower, and come to the temple. And when we are already before the Deities, sometimes we do not have much enthusiasm for singing and dancing. We are tired, lazy, in our mind there are lots of thoughts agitating us. But as an austerity we practice enthusiastic activity – we dance, we sing, we glorify the Lord. In this way enthusiasm is meant to be an austerity. One day we feel enthusiasm; another day we do not – but our service should still be the same.

He explained that wonderful fourteenth verse of the second chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā. There it is said that we must tolerate the mind and senses. And Prabhupāda explained that this means that we must continue our service with enthusiasm and determination regardless of what we feel. By acting in this way, we actually show guru and Kṛṣṇa that we want to be enthusiastic in service. And then they give us real enthusiasm. Śrīla Prabhupāda demonstrated this kind of enthusiasm. No matter what obstacle stood before him in the path of his spiritual master’s mission, he was always equally enthusiastic to continue that service. That is the essence of detachment. Detachment means that whatever fruits come, or do not come, in exchange for our service, whatever results appear, we always remain enthusiastic to continue, knowing that this will please guru and Kṛṣṇa. That is perfection of life. Not the results, but giving pleasure. And we can please Kṛṣṇa by our desire and our efforts.

When Śrīla Prabhupāda, on the order of his spiritual master, wanted to begin this movement in the Western world, he travelled from Vṛndāvana to Bombay, and there he went to Sumati Morarji, who was a very wealthy lady and the owner of a fleet of cargo ships carrying various goods across the ocean. He asked her, “Please give me free passage to New York.” And she replied, “That is impossible. I cannot do that because I respect you and I like you. You are an old man, you are sixty-nine years old, and you have never been to the West. It is very cold and dangerous there, and there is no suitable food there for a sādhu. You will die. I cannot give you the ticket. That would be like giving you a ticket to death. No, Swamiji, preach here, in Bombay, in India.”

Prabhupāda… Here is the paramahaṁsa-ācārya, sent by Kṛṣṇa to bring the highest wealth of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. He came with the message and mercy of Goloka Vṛndāvana; he was the greatest transcendental aristocrat of Kṛṣṇa consciousness in the world. He did not leave Sumati Morarji in peace; he waited for her practically every day and begged, “Please give me this ticket.” And she would say, “Swamiji, please, do not ask me anymore. I am not going to give you the ticket.” Until one day he simply became adamant and said, “I will not leave until you give me the ticket.”

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: A protest strike…

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: Yes. And she gave him the ticket. And during the journey, we all know this story, we know how he suffered from seasickness, two heart attacks. And he was alone. There was no one who could help him except Kṛṣṇa. Nevertheless, when he arrived in New York, he was fully enthusiastic to make the world Kṛṣṇa conscious. He was sent to Butler, Pennsylvania, where there was a small house in which he stayed, and he completely amazed the people he lived with. Sometimes we meet Sally Agarwal, who says, “He was such a wonderful man, but we were not able to understand him.” It was a completely foreign culture. No one wanted to hear his message. He had to cook in a kitchen where meat was cooked. For a sādhu from Vṛndāvana this was a terrifying situation, but he was completely enthusiastic. His Guru Mahārāja had told him, “Spread the teachings of Lord Caitanya in the English language all over the world,” and he intended to do it! Whether he was successful or not, he intended to die serving his guru with great enthusiasm. And when he saw that Butler, Pennsylvania, was not the ideal place to establish a world movement, he went alone to New York. He had no money and no support. No one was really listening to his message. He met a yoga teacher, Dr. Mishra, who understood that Prabhupāda was a very, very great saintly person. So he said to him, “You can come and give a lecture in my Yoga Institute.” But there was one problem, because Dr. Mishra was a Māyāvādī. He would say something, and Prabhupāda would give completely opposite arguments. [laughter] For Dr. Mishra this was very embarrassing, because he could not answer Prabhupāda’s arguments. So after some time he said to him (they often held philosophical discussions), “It is better that you do not speak in my Yoga Institute because it creates too much confusion, but you can lead kīrtanas.” So Prabhupāda would sit in the back – can you imagine? Śrīla Prabhupāda, such a personality, and this was the only facility he was given; he was not even allowed to speak, but he was completely enthusiastic. Completely enthusiastic. He would lead his kīrtana sitting in the back. Some people would come, some of Dr. Mishra’s students would come to see him, and he would invite them to his place. He would prepare prasādam and preach. Whenever he got any chance, he was enthusiastic to take it. And later on the Bowery, one of the boys became very interested in him.

I once met one of the persons whom he was preaching to in the very beginning, in 1965. He told me that in the entire institute of Dr. Mishra he was the only person interested in Śrīla Prabhupāda. Prabhupāda took him to his place. He was the only boy. And on top of that, from a medical point of view he was mad. Even today he is not completely sound in mind, and at that time it was even more pronounced.

Prabhupāda simply took him home and showed him how to do kīrtana and how to chant japa, he instructed him, he gave him personal, private lectures on the Bhagavad-gītā. This man would take him to the market, where Prabhupāda would buy vegetables and grains and, as he said, Prabhupāda did it in a very strange way. Because in India everyone bargains. You go to the merchant, he gives you a price, and you offer a lower one, and you negotiate until finally… that is how it always is. So they went to a huge supermarket in New York, where everything has a price tag and there are cash registers; they went to the checkout, and they (imitating the register) rang up the bill and said, “You owe six dollars.” Prabhupāda said, “I will give you two dollars.” [laughter] And this boy who was with him said, “Swamiji, what are you doing?” And he replied, “We cannot waste Kṛṣṇa’s money.” [laughter] So he argued with this woman. He was a very gentle and humble sādhu, but firm in his determination that he would pay only two of the six dollars written on the bill. In the end she was so charmed by Prabhupāda that she took four dollars out of her own purse and said, “Here.” [laughter]

And then Prabhupāda cooked! He cooked an entire feast for that one mad boy! He had a whole Sunday feast program for one person, and after cooking he would serve him and they would eat together. Then Prabhupāda would wash everything, and both of them would lie down on their left side. He taught him how sādhus lie on their left side after prasādam and preached to him. He was so enthusiastic.

Somehow this boy disappeared. But then the next one appeared. He had his own apartment, a studio, and he invited Prabhupāda to live with him. And Prabhupāda moved in there. This boy listened to him somewhat, although he was taking drugs and so on. Prabhupāda was so enthusiastic to give this person Kṛṣṇa consciousness that this became the beginning of the world mission. He even wrote to his Godbrothers, his friends in India, saying, “It seems that we already have a place to establish the first center of the International Society.” He was so enthusiastic. One day this boy took LSD, went mad, and threatened to kill Prabhupāda, so Prabhupāda had to move out.

In another place where he stayed he was typing his book, but thieves stole his typewriter. He had nothing, but still he was enthusiastic; nothing could hurt him. He wrote to his Godbrothers, to certain persons who were heads of great, great maṭhas in India: “Please send some men, and let us devote our money to establishing a center. This center can be under your jurisdiction, but let us establish it in New York and begin to fulfill the desire of our Guru Mahārāja and Lord Caitanya to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness all over the world.” And his Godbrother replied, “No, we do not believe in your success; in our opinion it is impossible. You should rather come back to India and help us preach here.”

Complete disappointment. Then he wrote to Sumati Morarji, who was a devotee of Śrī Nathjī – he said, “I will establish a temple of Śrī Nathjī in New York, just send me money to open a center.” And she said, “Swamiji, that is impossible. You cannot establish a temple of Kṛṣṇa in the West.”

No one sent any money; no one sent any people to help. Only disappointment. And yet he remained all the time so enthusiastic to serve his Guru Mahārāja. Whether it brought results or not, he was enthusiastic, because he knew: this pleases Kṛṣṇa. That is enthusiasm. It is easy to be enthusiastic when everyone praises you and your service brings great results. But will you be just as enthusiastic when everyone blames you for something, forgets about you, and there are no results? Śrīla Prabhupāda was enthusiastic having nothing. He maintained his enthusiasm throughout all the years of struggle – even before he left India, he spent a whole year in Jhansi creating an entire center, the League of Devotees, with tremendous enthusiasm. One day some organization threw them out of there, and he had nothing left… nothing except enthusiasm for service. Kṛṣṇa placed him in such situations to show who a Vaiṣṇava is. What is the qualification for Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That qualification is enthusiasm for service. And patience. Rūpa Gosvāmī said that these are the symptoms of true surrender – enthusiasm and patience. Patience means that I will always be completely enthusiastic in my service, and whether the result – whether a physical result, or the result in the form of cleansing of the heart and love of Kṛṣṇa – comes today or in ten million births, it does not matter. Kṛṣṇa will be pleased; my Guru Mahārāja will be pleased.

Because Mukunda Datta associated with impersonalists, Lord Caitanya said, “I will never allow him to see Me again.” So Mukunda began to cry and to call out, “Will He ever allow me to see Him again?” And Śrīvāsa said to Lord Caitanya, “Mukunda wants to know if You will ever reveal Yourself to him.” And Lord Caitanya, in great anger, said, “He will see Me after ten million births.” And when Mukunda Datta heard this, he began to dance in ecstasy. “I will see… in only ten million births I will see the Lord!” He was incredibly happy, very joyful; he had something to eagerly look forward to. In Kṛṣṇa consciousness, seeing Lord Caitanya is a tremendous blessing. Compared to that, ten million births are nothing. To wait ten million births is nothing when we understand what we will be able to behold then. That is why he danced so joyfully. And Lord Caitanya, seeing his enthusiasm and patience, immediately became merciful and said to Śrīvāsa, “Bring him NOW; right NOW I want to reveal Myself to him.” So Śrīvāsa went to him and said, “Gaurāṅga Mahāprabhu wants to see you, He wants to reveal Himself to you NOW!” But Mukunda was in such ecstasy thinking that it was only ten million births that he did not even hear Śrīvāsa. Śrīvāsa was saying, “Come, come! Now! Now!” And he only, “In ten million births I will see!” They had to somehow calm him down and bring him to Lord Caitanya, who placed His lotus feet on his head. He said, “You have pleased Me by your enthusiasm, your patience and your surrender.”

These are examples showing that we must struggle so that this becomes the goal of our life. The perfection of life is simply to please Kṛṣṇa. Saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam. That is the only way we can satisfy Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura said that in preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness the most important quality is enthusiasm. He says, “If the preacher has no enthusiasm, he is dead.” Without enthusiasm for service, we are spiritually dead. Devotional service is the greatest happiness. It is the greatest blessing in all of creation. And when this opportunity to serve comes to us, we should show Kṛṣṇa how much we want it by our enthusiasm to serve. So do not worry about what you feel. Use your intelligence and understand what the goal of life is and how to attain it, and put feelings aside. One day you feel enthusiasm for chanting, for service, for reading, for being in the association of devotees, and another day it is just the opposite. All that is the flickering of the mind. We must put the mind aside. Under the guidance of guru, sādhu and śāstra, in all circumstances we must be enthusiastic in performing devotional service, enthusiastic in serving guru, serving the Vaiṣṇavas, serving Kṛṣṇa and chanting the Holy Names. Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare, Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.

Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Prabhu is a wonderful example of such enthusiasm in devotional service. Preaching in communist countries, facing many difficulties and dangers, even the risk of death, he remained fully enthusiastic to preach Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Such examples are the most precious gifts of Kṛṣṇa in our lives. Therefore we are very grateful; we offer our obeisances to Śrī Kṛṣṇa-Kṣetra Prabhu…

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: Viṣṇu! Viṣṇu! [laughter]

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: ...He is always chanting the names of Viṣṇu… [laughter] If there are any questions, both of us can try to answer. Would anyone like to ask a question? I will give you the microphone; maybe then they will ask questions. [laughter]

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: You had a question, but I think it was a question for Mahārāja.

Bhakta 1: Someone is doing what he can and [inaudible] enthusiastically, and some devotees think that his enthusiasm is something mechanical. The enthusiasm of some devotees is misunderstood. What can be done about that? At first I did [inaudible], but someone had a different opinion about it. Should we stop doing funny things in front of him? Or can we do it secretly, because the person who is [inaudible] may become angry with us, etc. What should we do? Should we not do it in front of him? [the questions are not very clearly recorded].

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: Hmm, two different styles of enthusiasm. Ha – Ha. I will comment on this from the technical side, and then Mahārāja may be able to give a more practical… [break] There are twenty-five so-called taṭastha-lakṣaṇas, that is, external characteristics. But there is only one fundamental characteristic, called svarūpa-lakṣaṇa. And this primary one among the twenty-six qualities is surrender to Kṛṣṇa, the desire to surrender to Kṛṣṇa, from which, in due course, all the other qualities will manifest. When we see the efforts of other devotees in the practice of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it is best for all of us if we remember this. Because when we remember that everyone is making an effort to engage in devotional service, even if it is very imperfect, there is always this svarūpa-lakṣaṇa, this most important quality, which we should admire, praise and cultivate. And all the imperfections that may appear with respect to the other twenty-six qualities, or whatever shortcomings – that is not a problem. In time those qualities will manifest.

So you have enthusiasm to serve Kṛṣṇa, and you yourself know that your desire is to surrender to Kṛṣṇa. I think, therefore, that you should not lose faith in that. Perhaps you could somehow communicate to this person, who thinks that it is… whatever he may think about it, that in what you do there is something more than what is seen externally. Anything to add? [to Radhanath Swami].

Maybe we could move this… obstacle. [moving the microphone]

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: May I ask you one question?

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: No. [laughter]

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: Maybe you will continue? I like your answer.

Bhakta 1: I did not understand everything.

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: You did not understand?

Bhakta 1: It is probably my fault…

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: Haribol. That is probably also the cause of your question. [laughter]

Our enthusiasm for devotional service will be tested in many ways, but we must remain enthusiastic. But at the same time, when some devotee claims that your enthusiasm is caused more by your selfish motives than by service to Kṛṣṇa – is that what you mean?

Bhakta 1: Yes.

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: I would advise you to take that devotee’s words as a message coming from Kṛṣṇa and to become more humble. But you should also be more enthusiastic. We should not renounce something in an artificial way, because enthusiastic service is the medicine that cures the false ego. If someone accuses you of serving on the platform of ego…

Actually, there is always some ego in your service, in my service, or in anyone’s service. Unless you are a completely pure paramahaṁsa. There is always some ego, and we should always try to make progress by becoming more humble, free from ego. But enthusiastic service is the medicine. If, because of someone’s complaints, we give up that enthusiasm to serve, there is no chance that we will ever overcome our faults. So we must be more enthusiastic and never under any circumstances give up service, if we have the blessings of great souls.

But at the same time, we should always be very grateful to anyone who tries to improve the quality of our devotional service – because we all desire recognition, glorification and prestige for what we do. And the principle of Lord Caitanya’s teachings is:

tṛṇād api sunīcena
taror iva sahiṣṇunā
amāninā mānadena
kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ

To be humble like a blade of grass on the street, tolerant like a tree, always ready to offer all respect to others, not expecting respect in return. So if someone accuses us in this way, we should take a humble attitude and say, “Yes, thank you, prabhu. You are trying to improve the quality of my devotional service. Please pray for me,” and continue our devotional service. And Kṛṣṇa will help. Does that answer your question? Do you understand?

Bhakta 1: Yes, thank you. No problem. Thank you very much, Mahārāja.

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: I am not speaking only to you. I am speaking to myself and to everyone, but that includes you. [laughter]

Bhakta 2: …in the instructions of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam, he describes pure devotional service. I am wondering, at the beginning stages of devotional service it is easier to be enthusiastic. If you do something… [inaudible]… you do anything with pure devotion, whatever has to be done, you do it with enthusiasm. At the beginning that can be very difficult. So is it better to do something for which we feel more natural enthusiasm, or to struggle with something that is beyond our capacity? Or perhaps to do something gradually [inaudible]… will that purify us so that we will be able to do things for which we were less inspired in previous conditions?

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: Your turn…

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: [laughs] I will not be able to answer, I was not listening very attentively. [laughter] But I will try anyway.

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: I am sure you will do it well.

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: You should chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and be happy. [laughter] There are various levels of surrender. Doing what we want, when we want and how we want for Kṛṣṇa is certainly Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but on a very low level. Acting in this way, we make only minimal progress. Surrender to Kṛṣṇa means putting what Kṛṣṇa wants above everything else. The Bhagavad-gītā was spoken from this platform. Arjuna was inclined to give up fighting, to go away and peacefully chant harināma somewhere else. And Kṛṣṇa said to him, “My desire is that you fight this battle. And now do as you wish.” And Arjuna’s perfection is that he wanted to put aside his own conception and accept Kṛṣṇa’s desire as his way of life. That is surrender. So it is better to do what we want, when we want, how we want and with whom we want, than to leave Kṛṣṇa consciousness – provided we are able to do it for Kṛṣṇa. One should never discourage anyone from that. That is the level at which he himself wants to be. But as for those who are really serious about Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we want to teach them to reach a higher stage. And my advice in this regard to a sincere devotee is this: There are devotees under whose guidance we work; we should have some spiritual guidance. We can present to such persons our conception and ask, “This is what comes from my heart, this is my desire, this is what I would like to do. And now please tell me how I can best serve.” That is the higher platform; that pleases Kṛṣṇa more. And then one must do it.

Now Kṛṣṇa-Kṣetra Prabhu will give us a technical understanding of this question.

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare, Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: Haribol. Those were your own words. In the previous question you said that you would give the technical…

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: No. Hmm. Well. One thing comes to my mind.

Your question indicates that there appears some uncertainty, that I am not able to do what I am being asked to do. Could it be like that?

Bhakta 2: It happens… Like Arjuna. That is, Arjuna is a great warrior. He was not asked to do something that he was not able to do.

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: …that he was not able to do. That is exactly my point. If we really have faith in Kṛṣṇa and guru, we should be convinced that, “I have been asked to do something that I can actually do, even if I do not know how.” It seems to me that in a certain way this is connected with the example of Bhakti-Tīrtha Swami that I gave.

You may find yourself in some situation; you have no idea what you are really doing there, but you have a kind of mission, or service, something you have been asked to do. So, all right: Kṛṣṇa has put me here; I will see what I can do.

It turns out that this is part of the formula that Rūpa Gosvāmī gives (now I am getting into technical details). It is utsāhān niścayād dhairyāt – this conviction.

One aspect of conviction is thinking that by engaging in devotional service I will attain Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is conviction on a larger scale. But there is also a more immediately accessible aspect: “Kṛṣṇa wants me to perform this service. All right. I want to do what I can. Perhaps I would have a greater inclination or ability to do something else. According to my own assessment I may have no ability for what I have been asked to do. Still, all right, I will try.” That is another very important aspect of conviction.

Bhakta 3: … [inaudible] Śrīla Prabhupāda… [inaudible] many disciples in letters. There are letters in which Śrīla Prabhupāda chastises some of his representatives for being too harsh [inaudible] toward others. Does this indicate that there is some element of… [?] being surrendered to enthusiasm [inaudible]? In other words [inaudible]… like authority rather than [?]. Because you say that Kṛṣṇa wants us to be enthusiastic. My question is: Is it only a matter of enthusiasm… [inaudible]?

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: In this example you gave, does Prabhupāda chastise the managing devotees who were chastising the junior devotees? I am not entirely sure.

Bhakta 3: I understand that if the enthusiasm of a junior devotee is sustained, he will not be disturbed by whatever difficulties he may find himself in, but he will see them as Kṛṣṇa’s arrangements. In that case maybe Śrīla Prabhupāda was chastising the managers for misusing his authority.

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: Yes. And he certainly saw it in a perfect way. He saw that there are young devotees who are enthusiastic, but their flame of devotional service, of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, is very small, and therefore it has to be carefully fanned. He also saw that some devotees, perhaps not out of malice, but out of their own immaturity, want to extinguish that small flame, that spark. So Śrīla Prabhupāda restrained them from doing that. It is not hard to understand. I am still not entirely sure what you are asking, whether the junior devotee is considered too little enthusiastic?

Bhakta 3: Yes. Is it only a question of his enthusiasm?

Śrīla Kṛṣṇa Kṣetra Dāsa: Aha. It is not only his enthusiasm, but also his position as a beginner in devotional service, and therefore it is not expected that he will cope with excessive chastisement. Any comment?

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: Any other questions? Yes.

Indian Guest: Mahārāja: Hare Kṛṣṇa; Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa-Kṣetra Prabhu. My question is probably quite complicated… [inaudible]. I simply want to serve as the servant of the servant of the servant [inaudible], but [inaudible] proper… The associates of Rādhārāṇī serve Kṛṣṇa, they receive less enjoyment than those servants who assist Rādhārāṇī in Her service to Kṛṣṇa. These are the gopīs and mañjarīs. They either receive Her own love directly from Kṛṣṇa, to a greater extent than the associates of Kṛṣṇa. So on my level, is it natural to serve the servants who serve only guru, the disciples of Śrīla Prabhupāda, or to seek a spiritual master and receive initiation? [inaudible] about that?

Śrīla Radhanath Swami: The conch shell is about to sound. [the conch shell sounds, laughter] So I will answer very briefly. To be the servant of the servant of the servant means to pass down the instructions from master to his master to his master. And what are those instructions? To surrender and accept vows from a suitable spiritual master. We must understand that service means humbly hearing and applying those instructions in our life. Another important instruction is to chant the Holy Names of the Lord. Shall we have kīrtana now?

Devotees: Yes, Haribol!