Initiation Lecture

Prabhupāda: Caitanya Mahāprabhu has said that this kṛṣṅa-saṅkīrtana—Hare Kṛṣṅa, Hare Kṛṣṅa, Kṛṣṅa Kṛṣṅa, Hare Hare / Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare—paraṁ vijayate: "All glories." Paraṁ vijayate śrī-kṛṣṅa-saṅkīrtanam. Ānandāmbudhi-vardhanam. Because the śrī-kṛṣṅa-saṅkīrtana will increase the ocean of transcendental bliss.

Now, here in this meeting we are present. I am an old man of seventy-four years old, and here is a child, one year old. So beginning from this child—abala-vṛddha-vanita[?], the Sanskrit word—beginning from the child, woman, up to the old man, everyone can take part in this saṅkīrtana movement. Actually we can see practically that everyone can take part in it. This is such a nice yoga system. There is no need of any material qualification. But we don't neglect material qualification. We can dovetail material qualification to render service to Kṛṣṅa, and that will make our all material possession, assets, successful.

[child making noises like japa] He is trying to...

Brahmānanda: Yes. He's reaching.

Prabhupāda: [chuckles] He is seeing mother's. You see? Therefore such child, they are all fortunate child. You see? He is learning automatically how to chant, how to keep the beads. Śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe yoga-bhraṣṭo sañjāyate [Bg 6.41].

[The unsuccessful yogī, after many, many years of enjoyment on the planets of the pious living entities, is born into a family of righteous people, or into a family of rich aristocracy.]

It is very nice that you have got tendency for Kṛṣṅa consciousness, and this is the duty of father and mother, to raise children in that Kṛṣṅa consciousness so that this child can be saved from further bondage of birth and death.

Bhāgavata says that "One should not become father, one should not become mother, unless they are able to save the child from the impending mouth of death." And hariṁ vinā na mṛtiṁ taranti: "Without Kṛṣṅa consciousness, nobody can be saved from the cycle of birth and death." That is not possible.

There are many Vedic version. Yāvan na prītir mayi vāsudeve na mucyate deha-yogena tāvat [SB 5.5.6].

[When the living entity is covered by the mode of ignorance, he does not understand the individual living being and the supreme living being, and his mind is subjugated by fruitive activity. Therefore, until one has love for Lord Vāsudeva, who is none other than Myself, he is certainly not delivered from having to accept a material body again and again.]

Deha-yoga means contacting this material body. We are not this material body, but we have contacted. Just like we contact some infectious disease, similarly, we have somehow or other contacted. Deha-yogena. And that is the cause of all our misery.

So Bhāgavata says, yāvan na prītir mayi vāsudeve. So long one does not develop this Kṛṣṅa consciousness, there is no chance of getting out of this contact of material body. We can get very nice body or very bad body. That doesn't matter. We can get a dog's body, or we can get a demigod's body. We can live for five minutes. There are many insects and germs which live for five minutes, and there are living entities in Brahmaloka who live for five millions of years. All varieties of life there are within this universe.

By Kṛṣṅa's creation, you will find, aṅor aṅīyān mahato mahīyān: the bigger than the biggest and the smaller than the smallest. You will find. Just see in this New Vrindavan: there are big trees, also small, very insignificant, so small tree that you are trampling over it. So in the living condition there are so many varieties, 8,400,000's of species. But the problem is not to promote ourself from this small body to big body, from the ant's body to elephant's body. That is not our problem. Not to accept this material body—to have our spiritual body, sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha [Bs 5.1].

[Kṛṣṅa who is known as Govinda is the Supreme Godhead. He has an eternal blissful spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin and He is the prime cause of all causes.]

Just like Kṛṣṅa has sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha, Nārāyaṅa has got sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha. So that is our problem.

So this Kṛṣṅa consciousness will give us that opportunity, and those who are gṛhasthas, family men, their duty is to raise their children to this Kṛṣṅa consciousness so that actually the child will have full advantage of having a nice parent, nice father and mother. So this New Vrindavan we have selected to grow a community of such nice father and mother. There is sannyāsī also, brahmacārī, gṛhastha. We have no such distinction. Yei kṛṣṅa bhaje sei guru haya. Anyone who is in Kṛṣṅa consciousness and full in the understanding of science of Kṛṣṅa, he can become a spiritual master, a teacher.

So in this Vrindaban, New Vrindavan, you should live in such a way, ideal way, that people will learn that what is actually human life, what is human civilization, how..., what is, it is meant for. That we have to teach to the world. So those who are conducting this institution, my request is that you develop this place in such a nice way. And you can practically see. If you train... That this child is dancing. This child is trying to chant Hare Kṛṣṅa with beads. Simply they are to be instructed. They must have the association. Then there will be a new growth of population, not like cats and dogs, but actually demigods, devatā.

Demigods means devotees of Kṛṣṅa. That's all. And asura means nondevotee. So there is enough population of asura in this world. And the people are not happy, because āsuriṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ. This demonic civilization is killing the human race. So it is the responsibility of the members of the Kṛṣṅa consciousness to save so many ignorant, innocent people. They have got this human form of life to end all miserable condition of material existence. They are being misguided simply just like animals. It is not a good civilization.

So this place is out of contact. It is very... It is Kṛṣṅa's desire that here no man of ordinary interest will come here. It is in a very nice location. It is beyond the reach of the ordinary class of men. [laughter] Just like Howard's father said that "I'll never come here." [laughter]

Kīrtanānanda: Hṛṣīkeśa's lawyer, he just walked up here two miles looking for his dog.

Prabhupāda: Oh, his dog lost?

Kīrtanānanda: Yes. And he is all upset.

Prabhupāda: Oh. So it is Kṛṣṅa's grace. [laughter] He had some affection for the dog. Now he can turn his affection for Kṛṣṅa. The dog is lost... No, dog will not be lost. He will reach. The dog, they are very... They will soon smell and find out the way. Dog will never be lost.

So our Mr. D.D. [referring to Dvārakādhiṣa] is in samādhi. Let him take rest. You can take rest. Go. [laughs] Yes. You are feeling samādhi, Mr. Ekendra? No, you can go and take rest. Yes. You are very good. So these children, they are coming. I especially request Swami Kīrtanānanda to take care of them. And here is a nice, motherly girl, Satyabhāmā, and her husband. They are all... So take care of these children. If you can make one child Kṛṣṅa conscious, it is a great service. Kṛṣṅa will be very pleased. So, so many children will come. This place is nice. And Kṛṣṅa will give us all opportunity.

So I will also come again, and I like this place. So... Because I have come to preaching work, so let me finish whatever little work is still remaining. I want to go once to London and Germany. Then I will entrust the whole thing to you. So let us cooperate in this movement very nicely, and here in this spot, New Vrindavan, the woman's business will be to take care of the children, cooking, cleansing, and churning butter. [laughter] And those who have the knowledge of typing can help in typing also. No other hard work. That's all. This is for woman.

And for men, hard work, field work, taking care of the cows, of the animals, to go to collect wood, to construct building. In this way cooperate. The girls who are here, they should prepare nice prasādam so that the boys, in time, they can get their prasādam timely. This is the duty. And they must be given timely breakfast, lunch prasādam. They will work hard. And the churning business is for the girls. That will keep your health very nice.

Mā Yaśodā, the mother of Kṛṣṅa, just see how exalted she was. She was... Materially, she was rich also. She had many maidservants. Still, she took pleasure in churning. You have seen the picture. Recently in Los Angeles they had the festival dadhi-maṅḍa... What is called? Butter, butter ceremony. So people took part in churning, and there were twelve pounds of butter churned in the meeting. Yes. And they collected good amount by churning.

So our Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement is very nice. We churn butter and have festival and live nicely and dance, Hare Kṛṣṅa. It is very nice life. So just cooperate and try to improve. It will improve if you be sincere. Kṛṣṅa will send all help. And some day it will be actually replica of that Vṛndāvana. And our Kīrtanānanda Swami, he was in Vṛndāvana; he has got the ideas. Here is Keśighāṭa also. And try. Cooperatively you can do. Kṛṣṅa will help. So... And Jack and you... You have decided to remain here? Very nice. You have got very nice child. And now Mr. Ekendra is feeling samādhi. He can also take... [laughter] Let him take rest. You take rest. Ekendra? You take rest. Go. He is...

Devotee: He says he wants to stay.

Prabhupāda: No. You are feeling samādhi. Take rest. Yes. That will be nice. Then I shall call you again.

Ekendra: [indistinct]

Prabhupāda: No? All right. Let him sit down. Hare Kṛṣṅa. Let us begin. Chant Hare Kṛṣṅa. Do it like that, as I have done. Little, little. Yes. [devotees chanting japa; initiation ceremony beginning?]

Kīrtanānanda: Three times. Three times. Three times. Now like this.

Brahmānanda: Drink. Drink.

Kīrtanānanda: And now once and throw.

Prabhupāda: Once, twice. Yes. That's all. You take. [end]