Meet the Monk: A journey of Transformation
21st February 2021

Nandini [The program host]: Krishna consciousness is from the east and we take you to the eastern scripture eastern wisdom. And today, we have the opportunity to hear from, in fact some banker or publishers or editors how much of you have got the opportunity to hear from a monk and today we provide you with the opportunity very very fortunate to announce we have His Holiness Lokanath Maharaj. Lokanath Maharaj is in India right now and he has been a monk in the Krishna consciousness movement for over forty five years he travelled to Europe he travel to Asia he travelled to Africa and India hosting too all about this with them. We are so very fortunate have him here with us today and Jagannath Kirtananda Iskcon north project manager as profession but he undergoes a lot of help in many projects and help care well-being. So, please have your camers on interact with you and if you have any question please post it in the chat or to me or also directly he will answer your question so you will enjoy this session today, Thank for coming with us today, for a Sunday now I will pass to Lokanth Swami, Jagannath Kirtananada thank you so much.

Jagannath Kirtanananda: Hare Krishna everyone. Thank you so much for joining and wow we speak into His Holiness Lokanath Swami Maharaj. How are you doing today Maharaja and how is everything in India?
LNS [Lokanath Swami Maharaja]: I am happy.

JK [Jagannath Kirtanananda]: It is so nice to have you and today the group we have got. We have got university students I can see some other members coming joining so enthusiastically. So, we want to talk about some of the members that have not met a monk before and you are a living breathing monk as well.

LNS: Am surprised that make me a Monk as at be.
Jagannath Kirtanananda: It’s so nice to have you in life as for me it’s so nice to talk to you again. And before we start, because we got lot of university students on, like I love yourself and I would love to hear about your youth, your upbringing. So, I wanted to talk about if I can, please tell us about your academic side. You moved from Aravada to Sangali, and then in Mumbai. You went to Kirti College as they we call it what know as university here where you studied chemistry and it would be so nice to hear what your thoughts were of all this type of age and what you were doing and so, please love to hear your thoughts about your early life in education.
LNS: That a big question and lot to talk about. I was born and brought up in a village in Maharashtra and born in a devotee family where they still sing bhajans.

‘Jay Jay Ram Krishna Hari …Jay Jay Ram Krishna Hari’
Not exactly Hare Krishna Hare Krishna but similar mantra and I used to sit and enjoy participate and that my father used to go on pilgrimage walking to, walking hundred kilometers to take darsana of Pandhurang Vithala in Pandharpur and we used to wait back in the village eagerly awaiting specially for my parents, father would bring some prasadam from Pandharpur Vithala prasad. So like that, then I moved for education from village to Tasagaon bigger town high school and in a college education in Sangli the district town and moved to then it was a Bombay now is Mumbai for my university education then I was studying chemistry and physics.

Of course, I wanted to be Engineer, I wanted to be Doctor, I thought of being Lawyer. All those days, I was thinking of how I could serve the society, people, the nation, the humanity and so throughout my upbringing I was thinking. These thoughts was always on my mind. There are different things I’ve heard, I used to read biographies of great leaders Mahatma Gandhi or Vivekananda swami or Jesus Christ, Abraham Lincoln and so I always thought of being useful to the society to the country to humanity though this is how far.

Jagannath Kirtanananda: I heard that you were very bright student. You were top of your class, so academically and quite naturally to you and of course right now from academia you utilizing it in the spiritual movement as we call Krishna Consciousness. So, how did that swap happened? Was it like utopian moment like some mess me not, some type of thought that will help serve what you were saying. So, how that transition happened?

LNS: Well, as I said in our, I went Sangli for my higher education and I had a access to the library and I was studying and I was reading all these books about the leaders and social welfare workers of how they serve. So, although I always top notched the top students in primary school in high school but in the college, then I was getting diverted and even at one time I became a dropped out. I wanted to join Mahatma Gandhi’s only disciple called Vinoba Bhave. He was in some town some thousand kilometers from Sangli so I went there to join him. But I was almost there but then Krishna saved me. Later I realized, Krishna saved me because Krishna did not want me to join this Vinoba Bhave but Krishna wanted me to join Bhaktivendanta Swami Srila Prabhupada.

So I was brought back and then I decided to go to Mumbai for higher education and then I was losing my interest in higher education I was realizing that there is something higher that what I am being educated in something higher something beyond this and I was looking for that. And then, the Hare Krishnas came to the town Mumbai. They were organizing Hare Krishna festival in Mumbai and they advertised that the American Sadhus are in the town!!European Sadhus are here!!So this, can’t imagine of folks in Bombay including myself American and Sadhus forget it, you know American scientists is okay, European’s scientists but American Sadhus, no!! no!! This was unheard of. So, everybody was coming to check out, I also went there and I realized that there they are the monks, I saw the monks. I saw the Sadhus HARE KRSNA Sadhus.

Jagannath Kirtanananda: The rest is history like they say isn’t it like the way. So, you know, in your youth itself; you mentioned about this aspect of wanting to serve humanity what came out you know you wanted this aspect of serving what were any other factors in your life that help you come to this spiritual path that you are on so many year when you were a young if I may ask

LNS: As I said, during early days of my life, childhood days. I was exposed to this bhajans and kirtans, so that was in me. And as I was, I had that urge to serve humanity and I was reading. One of my hobby, it became a hobby of reading, study the lives of the great leaders and that was pushing me inspiring me to something similar to what they had done in the past and what they were still doing till around so that got me going and as I said the Hare Krishna festival I joined in Mumbai Srila Prabhupada was very much there of course he was this center of that festivity.

The Cross Maidan Festival 1971, March April. One of the top that Prabhupada, well he was in everyday and one day Prabhupada talked about serving the people serving humanity and I thought he has the answers to my question. I wanted to serve but I did not know where to begin, I had no resources I did not know how to proceed. So Prabhupada said,

yatha taror mula nisechanena
He said an example from Srimad Bhagvatam he said by pouring the water and the root of the tree or putting fertilizer at the root of tree then the trunk ,the branches ,sub branches ,the leaves ,flowers ,fruits everything is nourishes. And here Prabhupada was explaining how, the Lord his name is Krishna they are other names also beautiful name by serving Him he is the root he is the source of all of us we are all connected with Him. So, by serving Him then simultaneously and automatically everybody everyone get served. So I got it and I thought that this is what I was looking for and I decided to join Hare Krishnas and I became Hare Krishnas monk.
Jagannath Kirtanananda: It seems like that was there. That was another question there were so many paths so you knew the path like the Cross Maidan festival 1971 when we heard this from Srila Prabhupada who is the founder acarya for those who may not know, it was like turning out point for yourself. I would like to ask you if I may Now, you coming to the Hare Krishna movement and how did you come from a lovely village in India, your parents are there and how did they take the news that suddenly now you are joining this Krishna conscious movement ,going in a spiritual path way, studies are one side now how did they take the news it would be love to here as am sure who are on this call that might be thinking about spirituality try to put their lives or might have the similar type of question coming up. How do I deal with this or how do I make them understand how was it for yourself if I may ask for your parents.

LNS: They were very shocked. And from village my brothers came looking for me because I used to reside with the villagers from my village they were staying in Bombay I was sharing room. They were my roommates, they sent the news that Raghunath, my name was Raghunath. Raghunath is not around, we have not seen him for days, so news went back to village and my brother came running because they came to know I had told them in fact that I have gone to join the Vinoba bhave Mahatma Gandhi disciple and renounce and be part of his organization. So, they were anticipating something like this, what Raghunath may do and now I was no more to be seen in my room by room mates. So my bother came looking for me and looking here and there. They got a clue that I have been going to some Hare Krishna Festival that the second festival 1972 and there was some advertisement, little ad that I left behind. I had left behind something in which there was Hare Krishna festival Juhu from such and such date. So, my brother came running and news I had received you have to come back!! You have to come back!! Otherwise mother may leave her body. You have to come back!! So, I, what to do, I did go back. I took permission from my president Giriraj Dasa brahmachari now Giriraj Swami Maharaja, temple president, he allowed me and I went back. But I had promised my temple president I’ll be back!! I’ll be back!! So, while I was back in my village a lot of things happened. They used to think, they were talking. Such a nice boy. He used to be such a nice boy. So that not nice he used to be nice but now he is mahatma, not nice. They were not even happy I was wearing dhoti and kurta. Although my parents and my brothers that was their attire. They wore it all lifelong but they wanted me to be the modern man be an Engineer this and that. Instead I became a Sadhu. So, they were not happy.

Jagannath Kirtanananda: So they were not happy. And am wondering those that join in, we have got over hundreds of you that are online right now on zoom chat I know through the other; Facebook channels we have got quite a few more had joined . and I just want to hear from the students if you agree when you do the spiritual pathway and your feeling what my parents going to think am going to renounce everything of course spiritual life you got two ways of renunciation and also dove tailed it into your life as well. So, the two path so does anybody else have this though that how do I explain it to my parents to this type of spiritual activity.

So, this question Maharaja, I would say it’s quite important and is something is nice that they hear it. It’s not just to say everybody when it comes to it because at the end of the day people do not know what it is about. So, can I ask you Maharaja was there a turning point for your parents at some points where they started to accept it and they were more okay about it?

LNS: Well this is what happens parents turn anti and against and as more time passes on and then they become neutral, some more time passes on and they become favorable and as a result you know, now all my three brothers have become devotees they became my disciples and my sister and my whole village so many of my friends are my disciples. My parents, they were not again me practicing the Krishna Consciousness or going to the temple and then they say do this at home we will build a temple for you in the village why you are. This is a foreign organization they did not know what this international society is, who are these people these are some westerners you have join them. They have no knowledge of they all wanting me to become a normal person. You practice Krishna consciousness, this and that, be Hindu so that was fine but Krishna consciousness was though beyond that.

Jagannath Kirtanananda: Actually one comment came through from Vrindavani. My parent freaked out, I had to practice secretly for long time. Well done for your dedication, you know that saying, “You can take the village out of the boy but we cannot take the boy out of village.” Here I’ve got a nice picture of yourself and wanted to share with everyone. You are doing Hari Nama Sankirtan, youthful age with all these children, can you explain a little bit here Lokanath Maharaja.

LNS: This is Hare Krishna land Juhu Bombay and the first thing I was most impressed with Hare Krishna movement or Hare Krishnas was this Kirtana. That festival that I joined the American sadhus some European sadhus some English sadhus and chanting and dancing. And, they are doing all that with all their heart with all the strength and they are perspiring and they are totally oblivious to the surrounding and thousands of people watching but they do not care they were in their own world, so that impressed me the most. And so this is what I took away from this festival and this has become my life chanting and dancing and drumming and am serving those little children they are souls. So, Prabhupada taught me how to serve humanity. So, those children I am serving chanting, getting them to chant and dance. As I was even new devotee there.

JK: So one thing what’s nice you told by Srila Prabhupada just want to come into it as I see some questions that Srila Prabhupada coming up. I would like to ask if I may is when it comes to Srila Prabhupada what it that struck you the most about Srila Prabhupada.

LNS: I think I already said one thing that, he showed me the way I wanted to serve I did not know how to serve and where to start all that. So, Prabhupada gave me the clue or the answer of my question, this was a big question and Prabhupada had answered or Krishna delivered that answer through Prabhupada. And the whole world including myself was impressed with Prabhupada’s achievements that Prabhupada had gone to America and then all over and he had made Krishna devotee in 14 land and this is amazing thing. Even Prabhupada once said, Narada muni was amazed, Narada muni appeared in New York and as devotees was doing street kirtanA and Prabhupada was laughing. And why this smiling Prabhupada. So, Narada muni was amazed to see this westerners taking to Krishna consciousness and practicing Krishna consciousness now Prabhupada had come with them. So India, imitating and following blindly the western lifestyle and the westerners and western values and here you go the westerners they are going for. They are going for, they are grabbing ancient India’s culture I would say not the modern presently India culture is even worse than English culture or European American, am talking ancient culture Prabhupada got to practice that and they have become sadhus and no intoxication so these folks drink whatever instead of water drinking wine whisky or vodka for breakfast for lunch for dinner and they are only drinking charnamrita or only eating,

patram pushpam phalam toyam

No more matanam chikanam and this was amazing this so Prabhupada was revolutionary, he brought about revolutionary in consciousness the way people was thinking so, the whole display demonstration. So, that was very impressive what Prabhupada have achieved so, I was impressed now, then I decided right there that am going to follow this Swamiji. He is my guru he is my guide.

JK: The nice thing is that even here in the UK and different parts of Europe we have the Krishna consciousness society. So following Krishna Consciousness. So I would like to ask you what do you think Srila Prabhupada would say to this university group if he would speak to them right now?

LNS: You could have also say, you know, you English man you came to India and you have ruled India and while ruling you thought this is the wealth of India, these are some valuable items of India whatever you are viceroys, the ruler in India would think this is valuable you are grabbing bringing transporting that back to England you are looting India but Prabhupada would say, you know while doing that you know you English man or youth of England you viceroys you rulers. They are left behind with the most valuable items of India. There are left behind and I have come to do the home delivery or use of, Europe England please accept those gifts. And they may ask what are those gifts what is such a valuable thing that our viceroys could not acknowledge or recognized and then Prabhupada would say again the ancient culture of India I have brought here. I have the knowledge. The wealth of knowledge of Gita, Bhagavatam, Vedas , Puranas this is the most ancient and not just revealed revelation to some sages, this was spoken directly by the Lord to Arjuna there is no revelation there is no instruction the knowledge that is in Bhagavad Gita, like Bhagavatam like Puranas like Vedas like. So I have come with that and I also have a this Maha Mantra for you.

‘Golokera Prema Dhan Hari Naam Sankirtanam’

500 years ago Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu came down from spiritual sky down to the earth and he chanted and he propagated the holy name and he also predicted that one day this holy name is going to reach every town every village of the world so I also have come with that gift of the holy name for you English man, English folk, English youth so please accepts these gift from India or Bharatvarsha I should say.

India is not one gentleman’s getting the mike, he going to address the audience when he said I want to introduce myself I am not Indian I am Bharatiya I belong to Bharat Varsha not to India like any other country now. But Bharat is different.

Question: What is so good about ancient scripture why one study should or accept them?
Answer: That is the original source of knowledge there are different authorities, pramans and the Vedas is the praman and there is also pratiyeksha praman ; all that you got to see ,hear and how you get to know things that is called pratyaksha praman empiric knowledge, there is inference also ; pratyaksha anuman, and the Shastra prahman , Vedas praman or shruti pramans so all evidences, the best one is Shruti praman you know by hearing by reading this is puruso vedas, one become knowledgeable by reading those scriptures but Krishna says, god spoke. So, there is mundane knowledge vidya and avidya that kind of discrimination or distinction is made, but here knowledge and spiritual knowledge so what you are study we all study I also learnt , learnt the matter ,the knowledge of the matter, you study in college the physics chemistry would teach you cosmology or biology or all this is mundane material inferior but there is something spiritual superior knowledge and that source of knowledge is the scriptures, the Sastras.

Question: People practicing different faiths. So, if somebody is practicing Christianity, practicing Jewdesum, Islam, can we still connect to Krishna consciousness or is it that you have to practice Krishna Consciousness and that’s it.

LNS : Well, again going back to 1971 pandal program the Hare Krishan festival, there were question answer sessions also going on there. And one Indian gentleman, he has to question to European sadhu and that Indian Hindu said ‘oh these Hare Krishnas have converted you, you were Christian before now he have become a Hindu, and they have made you a Hindu’. And I remembered that European Sadhu very smart very impressive answer ‘no no no I have become better Christian and he explained by practicing Krsna consciousness.

JK: So, Maharaj we’ve covered a bit about your life. We also talk about your upbringing and talked about this place to cross maidan festival which was of Pemital in your Krishna conscious life and your time with Srila Prabhupada and we are talking about just now different places. They if you belong to another faith guru then how can you utilize Krishna consciousness in those space and I think you were talking about that regardless our faith ,you can utilize this process to help you go stronger in your own faith. So, your faith is being amazing you have been a spiritual leader for 45 years

LNS: I want to say is that there is nothing like your faith my faith or anyone else faith. Now this world have made your faith my faith Christian faith Hindu faith we are all spirit souls we are all part and parcel and children of same god one god and there are different names and that we are born under different cultures and so called different religions these are external and temporary designations . So, Krishna consciousness other faith also will revive when you are involving revolving and Krishna consciousness is the goal of all faith that’s why they have to get there is 100% others Prabhupada is to say reading other scriptures, we have bible if there is a trust is the science of God explained there that is for everybody, everybody on earth, so is Bhagavad Gita Science for everybody. There is physics chemistry biology, this is English chemistry you know, and the Indian chemistry and this is European, no, like mundane science is the same H2O oxygen this is everywhere so similarly if there is a science of God explain science of soul explain whatever this is explained.

It has to be the same, at some point the one God, we are all children of that one god and I guess as it going to say Prabhupada said some scripture are like a pocket dictionary and the Gita Bhagavatam Vedas Puranas are complete. Large volume, big dictionary. So all that is find in Bible or Khuran and all those scriptures that is in Vedas but also planned that is something in Vedas only and you cannot find them anywhere else. So there is some additional things more elaborate things. God is great, God is great!! Everyone says and Prabhupada would say somehow to find out how god is great and how great, why is he great, then he had to turn to Gita Bhagavad Puran there is a lot more information knowledge in depth you could find. So, the entrance, you enter through Bible, Khuran and keep going and you’ve reached Gita Bhagavad and keep moving.

JN: So please keep that faith and keep going make sure you do that with love and devotion. And talking about devotion, yourself Lokanath Maharaj, you’ve been a spiritual leader for 45 years you’ve been like a renunciate for that time what is this secret, what is any tips for all of us out there that can help us in our spiritual life to keep going that would be very great to hear from yourself.

LNS: Well, as I met my spiritual master His Divine Grace Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada ki jay. And I was around him for 6 – 7 years. He gave me lots of instructions, lot of services, lot of homework to do. So I had good site list, and I am just trying to follow his command, his wish is my command. So, he ask me to chant minimum 16 rounds daily and I keep doing that, I love to do that as he asked me to follow four regulative principles, am happily following those. Prabhupada gave me sanyasa made me monk and he asked me to travel and preach so sky is the limit when it comes to travelling and preaching I am doing the global chating, I do this because Prabhupada instructed me to do this or Lord wanted, the holy name of Lord spreads all over, I am pushing, I am playing my role to bring the holy name to more town to more village more countries. That’s keeping me busy, Prabhupada wanted me to be exemplary and those who are under your care and ill set example before them and take care of them , look after them, see to their welfare. So, the hare Krishna movement is a big family so I have many of them to take care of. And I have thousands of disciples also more than 40 countries spread and taking care of them.

Srila Prabhupada wanted his disciples to write books so I keep doing that as Prabhupada asked me to do this padayatra festival and then we had padayatra going within India and once Prabhupada wrote to his disciple – my god brother Nityananda Prabhu from one farm in America he said Lokanath swami is travelling with a bullock cart sankirtana all over India very successfully we could have we could have millions of such carts all over the world.
Prabhupada was a big thinker. so that is keeping me busy to organize this bullock cart sankirtanan padayatra festival and one time during 1996 when we were celebrating 100th birth anniversary of Srila Prabhupada my spiritual master, we did organize padayatra over 100 countries so like than on and on there was so much to do. So I think this what is keeping me busy and maybe this is a secret if you want to call it and that is keeping me on and on busy for us for 45 close to 50 now and counting.

JK: Yes its truly spectacular and such an inspiration for those that are starting their spiritual life or have been in spiritual life for some time and and I have a few really nice questions coming on…apology we can’t get through all the questions but we are trying to get through as many as possible so please do keep them coming in. And this is from Parikshit das and he says and I can see him right now, I can see you right now there and he says: he says as many people are mentally struggling now with loneliness and social isolation during this lockdown, he says something that can help us deal with this?

LNS: We Hare Krishna are looking for opportunity to communicate with all those specially those who are feeling lonely, why be lonely. Be with Hare Krishna devotees or be with Krishna in fact be with god. So we Hare Krishna are just a click away a telephone call away. The world is like that in fact. Even if you are in the midst of lots of people you still feel lonely because you are missing something to something vacancy you are feeling vacancy feeling so, if you could fill in that gap and add Krishna in your life are and add some Hare Krishna devotees association to their lives. One could get rid of such loneliness and in the spiritual sky, kingdom of god we are surrounded or we are bombarded with association with the devotees with the souls. We are souls. So what we are really missing is that lifestyle. Be in the midst of other devotees of Krishna. Have Krishna consciousness that would be happier.

Souls that are missing and thirsty hungry for that but stop getting the right drink and right food we end up getting something else and.I was in Bombay several years ago and I saw holding big billboard and I just looked at it and there was a young man-youth and what was he doing? He was. When he opened his chest and I looked inside, there was a limca bottle not Ram Lakshman Hanuman. Hanuman opened his heart there was Ram there. So we are missing Ram we are missing Krishna, we are Jehovah we are missing Allah. Devotees we are missing and not having met we feel lonely we feel vacancy and that has to be filled in and we are at service of such folks.

JK: I think it’s been really great recently because of this pandemic is here but firstly I felt the world has come closer together because of zoom and all this internet activity- like how often everybody on this course would you get the chance to speak to a living breathing saintly person like Lokanatha Maharaj. This is for us this is the absolute real opportunity and maybe that is still the silver lining in the cloud right now. And so on this point that we are talking about. Association is key and so nice to have and a very auspicious number here Lokanatha Maharaj we’ve got on our zoom call a 108.

So we have 108 amazing individuals on this course so thank you to all of you for joining and if anything is resonating with you. Lokanath Maharaj is out there. Srila Prabhupada you’ll have the padayatra and you’ll have the kirtana ministry which we’ll go on a bit afterward. I want to share a beautiful picture to you all. I just want to make sure before i do that because of the lovely wonders of technology. Keep on changing screen. Right ok here we go. Here we have you mentioned padayatra so just when going to someone initiative as you mentioned about Srila Prabhupada reaction to you doing padayatra – you were talking about that a bit as well. What is padayatra? I know it’s happening in India but is there anywhere else in the world it’s happening and what does it mean padayatra?

LNS: So, pad is feet and yatra is a festival so that is a walking festival and we make it a festival and we chant and dance, not just walk. It’s not a parade. We sing and chant and dance and as we meet people on the way we encourage them to chant and dance so we share this

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna
Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

This maha mantra for deliverance. Well we want to make people wealthy by giving them this holy name. This is Prabhupada project. As Prabhupada grandchild, was thinking ways to propagate the holy name of the lord but how could Chaitanya Mahaprabhu prediction could come true.

Krishna appeared 500years ago as Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and he established this practice and propagated the dharma the religion for this age of kali which chanting the holy name of the Lord and all scriptures will say the same thing also. So Chaitanya Mahaprabhu want this to go to every towns and every villages all over the world on this planet we are talking. So, Srila Prabhupada came out with this project of padayatra walking festival. Here you see. Only vehicle I could drive is a bullock cart (laugh). My parents were also looking forward to you know. One day our son will become engineer he will ride a motorbike and he will come back riding on a motorbike and come back to the village but then you know one fine morning or one day, I came with so many hare Krishna devotees drove back in to my village on a bullock cart and so this is what I’ve been doing. My parents, I was kind of disappointed them when I came back in a bullock cart but this is Mahaprabhu this is god’s program and that’s the best program this the best means also transportation also-oxcart bullock cart ox power.
There is no pollution as a result. The global warming you know what’s not happening. So this is padayatra-walking festival.

JK: How many kilometers since the birth of the padayatra festival-I talking about India you’ve been doing kilometers. How many kilometers do you think the padayatra walking festival has covered so far to date.

LNS: Close to 300000 kms

JN: Wow that’s a lot of walking. You know you have got those devices we people can track their movement – how many steps they’ve done. I tell all people doing padayatra walk could break the world recorded.

LNS: people would loves. Parsurama in England and in 1992 we started one walk. We started from Glasgow you know where that one is, we have to go to Moscow. One large group of European devotees-that padayatra was for European padayatra so 5 years to walk. I was there in the beginning I also was joining in the middle from time to time I was there to receive them in Moscow and that was one padayatra then we are the American padayatra and like all 100 countries padayatra and everyone loves padayatra. And this is the monks lifestyle so they’ll like hare krishna style. They are impressed with hare krishna.

JK: I think one point was it that some devotees thinking “oh we’ll have Volkswagen buses going around and Srila Prabhupada said no bullock cart” something like that came about.

LNS: We had 2 German buses we were already travelling with those buses but then those buses have to go back to Germany. They expired the car visa. So we were left with no other alternatives and our means of transportation that Prabhupada has. Bullock cart

LNS: Padayatra and sankirtana, I happily got down from the luxurious buses. I was back to where I belonged bullock cart. I was very happy and I am happy

JK: Simple living high thinking as the philosophy goes and you’re practicing that even with then padayatra right now. And i may come on to. There’s many questions coming through and really loving the questions, ok Maharaj there’s a question coming here- you joined Hare Krishna of your prime youth. How the same can be done today with the youth specially the current generation of Hare Krishna. Because talking about delusion or doing other things.. How can they have that kind of focus to do something great for the world or great for spiritual life or for themselves? So you say your motivation was humanity if I’m correct

LNS: Well you know we are GOD’s we are Krishna’s we are all souls. We should be giving ourselves back to Krishna. And don’t foreseen it when i get old when, well when you get old you became rotten. And is that what you want to make rotten mango rotten things all things like that I will enjoy then. No give prime youth. Prahlada maharaja advise was you should be beginning from childhood .the whole social system social order of life. And life begins, practicing begins, at early age, as a youth, everyone but begin earlier. You cannot become monk like me, you could become grihasta you could become married man and still practice Krishna Consciousness. We are thousands and thousands of married youth couples that are practicing Krishna Consciousness and they are leading happy life. Hari Hari

JN: we have covered some points here. Maharaj, some people can be thinking okay signs me up that sounds great, let’s do it but it’s the Krishna conscious process is a hard process.

LNS: You want to listen to Krishna consciousness, ‘su sukham kartamam gayam’ happily perform Krishna consciousness Srila Prabhupada said ‘nacho gao khao’. Dance, Sit down and listen to some Hari katha or Krishna Katha and enjoy Krishna Prasad. and for souls, soul enjoys and Krishna consciousness is for the soul not the body. There inconvenience but you know in Maharashtra the padayatra are very popular. So many groups they come five hundred thousand million people walk to Pandharpur. So, one of the devotee was interviewing he said: Asked the question how are the facilities for the question on this walk that you are doing and what is the facilities and the gentleman said no facilities very miner facilities but I am happy. He said back in pune lots of facilities but i was not happy. Happiness doesn’t depend on the facilities. He performs some tapasya voluntary some inconvenience that would purified you and then unlimited joy happiness waiting for you. To remind you folks and friends If you want not suffer then do not go for enjoyment if you enjoy be prepared for suffering it’s a complete package. You cannot get only enjoyment the tag goes along with sufferings. Sooner or later you will be suffering, the source of suffering is enjoying spirits. But that doesn’t mean we don’t want you to enjoy, yeah, the call is to enjoy but that enjoyment is Krishna Consciousness that makes you joyful, the joy process. We are happy, we make you happy and always happy. That’s the beauty of this Krishna consciousness god consciousness. In the world happy unhappy sukkah dukkha this that ups downs but Krishna consciousness is only up you’re happy forever. Stay high forever. That is your goal and that is every soul’s goal to be happy forever.

JN: just for the university students, saying stay high doesn’t mean we are not talking about the illegal substances just make it that clear. We are talking about chanting mantra meditation so stay high forever and in that point what you made about enjoyment means suffering has really touched many individuals. This is so great to have someone like yourself to speak about this spiritual life.

Question: when you meditate Lokanath Swami Maharaj how do you feel and what do you feel
LNS: I feel good waken up. And we talk of meditation. So, when I meditate when the Krishna devotees mediate we mediate on Krishna or we mediate on Radha Krishna. And who doesn’t meditate, every individual in the world is meditating. Only choice is, whether you are meditating on Krishna or Maya. That’s is the only difference otherwise you cannot, every single person must meditate. There is a whole list of as you do meditation on object or sences the worldly objects. Then you develop attachment and the lust arises and the when you cannot fulfill that lust and never it could never be fulfilled. The fire become blazing fire and you cannot fulfill then you become angry and then you are lost and bewildered and lining down instead if you are meditation on Krishna then you are influenced by Krishna. Krishna’s qualities. He is peace He is source of peace, so everyone meditate on him he is peaceful most peaceful person you also become peaceful. So that, during meditation there is a flow there is an energy there is a reciprocation between the meditator and the object of meditation and this is also called yoga or bhakti yoga. When you are meditating upon Lord form. So the whole influence the Lord is Sad Cit Ananda Vigraha He is personification of Ananda happiness the source of joy. So as you meditate even if you get few drops that is good enough we could get drown in those drops of nectar or joy or happiness. We may not also have that kind of reunion or complete fully absorbed or perfection of meditation but whenever or whatever degree we are able to focus communicate reciprocate. So that degree, then we develop that qualities of god we are children of god like father like son or like father like daughter also. And you experienced life that is experienced by those eternally liberated souls on the spiritual sky , high thinking also there and you got happy with that, you don’t look for anything beyond that , there is nothing beyond.

JN: Thank you so much
LNS: So if you are feeling lonely, get in touch, if doesn’t get in touch with me for your information there are lots of monks around you and your country by god’ grace, or around the corner from you or just across the street find out. And that’s what you need. And your soul is looking for that. And try chanting the Hare Krishna Maha Mantra, there are Bhagavad Gita for you check out, you’ll see the difference of the depth and the details you’ll find in the Gita and honor Krishna prasada you ll love it and devotee association monk association or hare Krishna devotees sadhus, or householders ladies and gentleman they could also guide you and inspire you. You must need guidance. We are Hare Krishna there that can counsel you or guide you excels some helping hands. Remember whenever you are.