Siksha Event | HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj | ISKCON Chennai | 27 September 2026
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
jaya śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda
śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj:
The Vedic scriptures are very vast. They have many statements and many rules. And consequently people become very confused. We have four Vedas. We have Brahma Sutras. We have Ramayana and Mahabharata. We have eighteen Puranas. As well as that we have many other scriptures like Smritis. And they state many things. Consequently it is very difficult to find a simple spiritual process. So this has been made simpler by the appearance of Srimad Bhagavatam.
Srimad Bhagavatam summarizes all the different paths. And then it indicates most practical method for us and the practical goal. And in the Bhagavatam, then finally the ultimate process is Bhakti Yoga. This of course is also the conclusion of Bhagavad Gita. So we do have to base our activities upon scriptural conclusions. And for that reason more than other spiritual movements we put an emphasis upon understanding scriptures.
So Bhakti Yoga is established as the best process. And worship of Krishna is established as the best worship. And within Bhakti Yoga chanting the name of Krishna is considered to be the best mantra. So all of this is presented by Caitanya Mahaprabhu. So it is very fortunate if a person is willing to accept the teachings of Caitanya Mahaprabhu. However in this instruction we can go on different levels. We can simply accept the statements as true. That’s one step, that’s called faith. However a better step is we put that faith into action by performing some of the instructions. And the nature of Bhakti and Nama Sankirtana is such that we can follow these instructions a little bit or a lot.
Of course the more serious we are about achieving the goal of Bhakti, which is Prema, then the more seriously we will practice. So if one is quite expert from the beginning, one can simply start and increase and increase and increase. However in this age of Kali, people are a little bit confused and they can’t quite advance nicely unless we give them some standards to follow. Of course one standard we have is initiation. But for many people beginning, it is quite difficult. But before that we have a gradual increase in standards.
So we have the system starting with Sraddhavan and ending with Prabhupada Asraya. And by following this, gradually you can increase your standards. One standard of course is that we increase our chanting. Nama Sankirtana is the Yuga Dharma, so the more we can chant His name, the better it is. But along with chanting, we need proper knowledge.
So we need knowledge of aparadhas. If we constantly commit aparadhas, this will destroy the Bhakti. And on the positive side, we have to know the identity of Krishna. And we also have to understand what is pure Bhakti and what is impure Bhakti. And we will get this knowledge from scriptures. And therefore we encourage everyone to read the scriptures. And of course you can gradually increase.
In the beginning you can read little, later on you can read more. And along with it, we have things which are favorable for our devotional development. So we have certain rules. Which is called sadachara or proper conduct. And this helps us maintain a pure standard. So all of this can be done in a gradual manner.
Along with this, of course, we should do some practical service to the deities. And therefore we should try to regularly serve the deities in some way or other. And in this way, gradually we can begin to progress more quickly. So that is the actual purpose of defining these different stages.
Hare Krishna!
Devotees: HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj ki jai!!! Srila Prabhupada ki jai!!! Nitai Gaura Premanande Hari Haribol!!!