Questions on today’s Swami call:

How can a sadhaka get a glimpse of their potential? How can we stay motivated when it feels like no effort in this path is enough?

Can you say something about the nature of friendship between Vaishnavas and how we can reciprocate appropriately to a Vaishnava’s affection?

How can I make amends to Vaishnavas who have passed away since I offended them?

How would you define a spiritual personality?

Is it possible to attain Vraja-bhakti in other ages than Kali-yuga?

Are Iskcon gurus bona fide? Are ritvik gurus bona fide? Can they bring us back to Godhead?

If Iskcon is the only sanga available in a certain location, and one might lose that sanga by looking for a guru outside that institution, is it worth it?

Questions on today’s Swami call:

How are we to think of our participation in Gaura-lila as it unfolds in the present day?

Will Jaya and Vijaya appear in Kali-yuga?

How can I attain perfection despite the distractions that are there and given the fact that one could get burnt out by trying too hard? Could you also explain what the fifth dimension is?

Are there unconventional ways to get absorbed in bhakti?

What does it mean to have an eternal spiritual master?

There is a strong emphasis in today’s society to not care about what others think of oneself. To me it makes more sense to consider whose opinions we care about and for what reason. Could it be seen as part of sadhana to see oneself through the eyes of Sri Guru and Sri Krishna?

Questions on today’s Swami call:

What is the importance of the order in which the name, form, qualities, and pastimes of Sri Krishna are realized?

If it’s easier for me to meditate on harinama while seated in kirtana, is it best if I remain seated even if others get up and dance?

In the Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, dancing before the deities is listed among the angas of sadhana-bhakti. Can you comment on this?

Regarding the three aspects of the absolute—Brahman, Paramatma, and Bhagavan corresponding with sat, cit, and ananda—it is said that in realization of the Paramatma feature, cognizance is prominent. What is lacking in terms of cognizance in the Brahman feature? Also, it is sometimes said that a sadhaka passes through the realizations of Brahman and Paramatma on the way to Bhagavan realization. What does this mean, given that a bhakta is not focused on the Brahman and Paramatma features?

If Krishna is present in his name, what stops him from appearing in his complete form when his name is chanted?

If the distinct realizations of Brahman, Paramatma, and Bhagavan are final for their respective aspirants, how do we explain cases like Sukadeva Goswami or the four Kumaras who first realized Brahman and later Bhagavan?

What is the significance of name we receive at initiation?

Questions on today’s Swami call:

Is it okay to pray to Sri Krishna and the higher Vaisnavas for help when we are in bad physical health or feel down emotionally?

There is an idea that since the guru-disciple relationship is eternal, if the guru rejects the disciple, the guru cannot be bona fide. Can you comment on this?

When did misogyny become prevalent in ISKCON? Did it originate with Srila Prabhupada? I have heard that he said things like “women are less intelligent” but also that he was very respectful to his female disciples.

Is it better to try to think of the form of Sri Krishna or to simply call out to him through harinama and trust that he will reveal himself in time, as the mind can anyway not touch Krishna directly as only the soul can?

Why do some disciples and grand-disciples of Srila Prabhupada believe that Srila Prabhupada is serving in madhurya-rasa?

Questions on today’s Swami call:

Can you clarify about the tattva of Sri Balaram? Would he pacify the gopis in the aprakat-lila the way he does in the pratat-lila? Can he be said to be the best friend of the jivas?

Does the diksa-guru and the siksa-guru have to be the same person?

Is it known what kind of initiation Srila Saraswati Thakura was given by Srila Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji?

Should we feel bad for having fear? Is fear more detrimental than other material emotions? Will it hold us back from attaining love for Sri Krishna?

What exactly is healthy fear for a devotee living in the world desiring to be serious about advancement?

Why do some acharyas sometimes teach that there is a progression through the bhakti-rasas?

Would Sri Uddhava be an example in whom the rasas of santa, dasya, and sakhya are all present?

Is there a Krishna conscious way to use the tendency in the conditioned jiva to control things?

If the guru is the captain of the ship and the godsiblings are the crew, how important is it to assess the crew when choosing a guru?

Questions on today’s Swami call:

Why don’t we follow all that is in the Vedas? Why do we focus only on Sri Krishna?

Sometimes, material suffering is too overwhelming for one to be able to practice. How to remember Krishna in such times?

Some say we should always strive to improve ourselves, and others say that we are good as we are. How do these views relate to the practice of bhakti?

Even if Buddhism is a different practice from ours, wouldn’t devotees also strive to follow the eightfold path of the Buddha?

Can you please say something about the sameness between Sri Navadvipa dhama and Sri Vrindavana dhama?

What are some methods to keep us humble and to guard us against feelings of elitism directed towards non-devotees and other religions and even other sanghas?

Questions on today’s Swami call:

Is it okay to see Sriman Mahaprabhu and Sri Krishna as the same person, that is, more the same person than Lord Ramachandra and Sri Krishna are the same person?

If Sanskrit is a holy language, does it mean the other languages are ungodly? Is there a Vedic version of the Tower of Babel?

How can we harmonize the ideal of universal compassion with our feelings of anger towards offensive people?

Can Sri Krishna’s names be chanted in other languages than Sanskrit with the same effect?

How does a householder sadhaka in the stage of nistha look like in our current society? How do they think, feel, and behave? What kind of anarthas may they still be dealing with?

Questions on today’s Swami call:

Some pastimes of Sri Krishna are intimate and secret. Yet an infinite number of sadhakas are aspiring to attain them. How does this fit together?

Can you explain about the ways of saranagati?

Can you share something about Sri Balarama and his group of cowherd boys and what they do in relation to the pastimes with Srimati Radharani?

Some say that Sriman Mahaprabhu was introduced to Radha-bhava by Sri Nityananda Prabhu when the latter came to Navadvipa. Can you comment on this?

Questions on today’s Swami call:

Sometimes animals come into the lives of devotees, and they seem special and inclined to bhakti in some ways. Could it be that they come to devotees because it’s their last birth before they will take on a human form?

How is it that material opulence makes people forget about spiritual life, especially if material opulence comes as a result of previous pious acts?

If one prematurely imagines one’s siddha-deha, what problems could arise and how can one solve them?

What does being surrendered actually mean?

Questions on today’s Swami call:

What does it mean to have a soft heart?

Is the uttama-bhagavata’s vision more true than that of the madhyama-bhagavata? If so should the kanistha-bhagavata follow the uttama perspective because it’s more real or follow the madhyama perspective as it is more close to their own?

Some people argue that Srila Prabhupada engaged his disciples beyond their qualification. What would you respond to that?

Which edition of Jaiva Dharma would you recommend?

Can you say something about repetition and competition in the lila?

Can one become a sakha in the lila but be disposed towards peacefulness rather than wrestling, etc?