On Initiation

I liked the following lines on initiation

 

“This is a very serious commitment, not to be taken lightly. Instead, really look deep within your heart and seriously consider the nature of the commitment, and the surrender, and the spiritual benefits of taking initiation. And see if it’s something that you want to do. Remember, Srila Prabhupada got initiated when he was thirty-six years old, and Bhaktivinode Thakura when he was in his forties. So there’s no rush.”

 

“As a generation, we’ve often been ‘fair weather’ devotees,” says Manorama. “We turn up when everything’s fine and dandy, at festival times or Sunday Feasts, maybe when there’s a kirtaniya in town we like. Personally, after a while I found that not getting initiated was becoming an excuse to not surrender, to never actually promise to chant sixteen rounds a day. I loved kirtan—we do as a generation—and I had no problem with the four regulative principles—but japa was hard for me. Some days would be good, some bad, and sometimes there’d be weeks or months of slacking and neglecting my rounds. There would always be something else that came up. Finally I thought, no more excuses.”

At the same time, Manorama began reading Srila Prabhupada’s purports to the Bhagavad-gita and Chaitanya Charitamrita more, and was struck by how many times taking shelter from a guru was mentioned as a foundational principle, and as the proper medium through which to surrender to Krishna.

A few years later, he began attending japa retreats led by Sacinandana Swami to work on his chanting, and reconnected with him for the first time since the guru had visited his house and introduced him and his parents to Krishna consciousness in Germany when he was just six years old.

Now that he is initiated, Manorama feels like he has undergone a complete spiritual renewal.

“It’s a deep commitment,” he says. “I’m no longer serving Krishna whimsically, I’m actually committing and taking responsibility. My relationship with Krishna has to become my number one priority. Now I don’t just chant when I feel like it—the first thing I do every morning when I wake up is prioritize my day so that I can fulfill my initiation vows. And in doing so, my respect has grown tremendously for all of the other devotees in the world who are able to do that every day.”

For Manorama, initiation means going deeper into Krishna consciousness, and trying to rearrange his life in a way that prioritizes Krishna’s pleasure, rather than his own.

 

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Why the jiva will be indifferent to Holy Name if it is so great and wonderful?

 

Why the jiva will be indifferent to Holy Name if it is so great and wonderful?

 

It is because the jivatma has not yet realized that he is part and parcel of Krishna.
Whatever we consider ourselves as part and parcel of to be , that will cause intense attraction in our heart.
 e.g.. Somebody feels to be part of India - he becomes Patriot,
     Somebody feels to be part of Cricket - he checks cricket scores regularly.

 

So similarly if we see ourselves to be part and parcel of Krishna, Then the Holy name will attract us.

 

Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur (BVT) says,
in this material world every jiva is searching something nice to engage in, something nice to associate with.
Everyone is searching for some satisfaction and pleasure.
So everybody identifies with some momentary or some longer pleasure and gets stuck there.

 

but Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur says there is nothing better that Holy Name that can award highest satisfaction and greatest pleasure to the soul.
But because the soul has not yet realized that he is part and parcel of Krishna, he is not able to appreciate the Holy Name.

 

He says in fact chanting of Holy Names has potency to give resemblance of Spiritual World even when present in the material world.
When one keeps on chanting Holy Name for long period of time, gradually one feels that material world is resembling the spiritual world.
Gradually one losses that material tendencies and material consciousness. That is the potency of Holy Name, even while chanting in the material world.

 

So how can one be so indifferent?
So Srila BVT says indifference to holy name is a very great curse.

 

Practical tips to counteract this Indifference to Holy Name.

 

[1] Go to a QUIET place and secluded place and chant Holy Name.

 Generally we say we should seek association, thats true, 
 But In Association we derive inspiration, in solitude we surrender. As everybody has to fly ones plane.
 Everybody has to surrender to Krishna, nobody can surrender on our behalf.

[2] Chant mantra DISTINCTLY, clearly, loudly - gradual endeavor to listen to Holy Name.

 

[3] Despite all the endeavors it is only by mercy of Krishna, that Holy Name reveals itself to us.
    So Pray INTENSELY to Holy Name to empower us to chant the Holy Name.
    We have to depend on Holy Name to chant the Holy Name.

 

If we want to improve our chanting, we can take note of these points and work on it.

 

 

- From Japa Talk of HG Radheshyam Prabhu quoting Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakura.

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