Spiritual FAQs

Q. Why prabujis keep sikha ? Is there any specific reason? What are the advantages of sikha? – Ganesh Parvatkar

A. Sikha is an integral part of a Vaishnava’s appearance. Just as a policeman has his uniform that distinguishes him from ordinary citizens, or a businessman has his own business attire, the sikha along with other things, distinguishes a Vaishnava from ordinary people, especially Mayavadis. The Puranas explain that the spiritual master rescues his disciple by pulling his sikha when he sees the disciple slipping into maya.

Q.  Is it true  that amongst Their Lordships Sri Sri Gaura Nitai, Gaura means Lord Gauranga who is considered  Lord Krishna himself and Nitai means Lord Nityananda, incarnation of Lord Balarama? – Anil Sathe

A.  Yes.  Lord Gauranga is Lord Krishna Himself and Lord Nityananda is Lord Balarama.  Both of them appeared in Kaliyuga to spread the chanting of the holy names:

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

which is the most powerful way of reviving our God consciousness.

Q. I have heard that in kaliyuga mentally if someone does any sin it will not give any reaction.Also in this yuga, auspicious activities produce result immediately. What are the special advantages of law of karma in this yuga? – Vikram Gupta

A. The special advantage is just by chanting the holy names especially Hare Krsna Mahamantra by  the mercy of Lord Caitanya any one, even the most sinful will go back to the spiritual world and achieve love of godhead.

This is the only special advantage. All other so called points are illusory and fruitive in nature. What you think today you will do tommorrow. So if you are not punished for your thoughts, you will be punished for action as we are going to do what we think.

Q. Kindly tell me why we chant “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram Hare Hare” instead of “Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevay” or “Om Krishnay Namaha”. – Rajesh

A. All bonafide scriptures instruct us to chant the holy names of God. In some traditions, the followers do chant the mantras mentioned by you viz. “Om Krishnay Namaha” etc.

We, the devotees of ISKCON are followers of Lord Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who specifically recommended the chanting of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra viz.
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

So, we chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra.

Q. What is the law of karma in kaliyuga? – Vikram

A.  The Law of Karma in all the yugas is the same – that is every action has equal and opposite reaction.

Q. Why we assume that Krishna is the only Lord while infact Krishna is also one of the incarnations of Vishnu?Krishna has also taken birth & if we think that in Bhagavad Gita Krishna is declared as God,then in Shiv purana,Shiva is the Lord and in Vishnu purana Vishnu is the Lord.Then how can we know that Krishna is the only Lord? – Ravindra N Dubey

A. Our accepting Krishna as God is not an assumption or a fanatical declaration. It is based on authoritative scriptures and the statements of great acaryas coming in disciplic succession.
The entire Vedic literature consisting of several Upanishads and Puranas are meant to address specific groups of people according to their consciousness levels. All of them do not belong to the same group. Primarily they are classified into three: some of them are meant for people in the mode of goodness, some for people in the mode of passion, and others for those in the mode of ignorance. So when there are differences of opinion among Puranas regarding the identity of God, it is not a contradiction; they are speaking with reference to a particular context and a group of people.
An example: in preliminary arithmetic we are taught that two minus five does not exist, whereas in advanced mathematics, this is a perfectly valid expression. This is not to say that mathematicians are contradicting each other, but actually the concepts are revealed according to the capacity of the student. Similarly the Vedas speak of many subjects some of which may appear contradictory, but they are meant for different levels of readers according to the material modes they are situated in.
Having said this, the risk of someone misinterpreting and twisting the meaning of the Vedas still remains nevertheless. Therefore we need the guidance of the acaryas, spiritual teachers, who are connected to God in an unbroken disciplic succession. When we receive knowledge from them, we can rest assured that there is no error.

The Bhagavad-gita is considered the essence of all Upanishads and the Srimad-Bhagavatam the essence of all Puranas. Both these scriptures emphatically declare that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And these statements are confirmed by all the great spiritual teachers.

Regarding Vishnu and Krishna: Essentially there is no difference between the two; they are just two different forms. Vishnu is like God in office (Vaikuntha), whereas Krishna is God at home (Vrindavan).  Krishna’s pastimes are more intimate and sweet, whereas Vishnu’s dealings are mainly based on awe and reverence.

Scriptures like Brahma-samhita give the example of a candle from which many other identical candles are lit. Although each candle has the same power as the original, the first candle still remains original, being the source of light for all candles. Krishna is like the original candle while all the other incarnations are like the other candles. Although both Vishnu and Krishna have the same potential, Krishna still remains the original person.
Generally all incarnations come through Vishnu who is in charge of maintaining law and order within the universe. However, Krishna is not just another incarnation; He is the original Supreme Personality of Godhead, the source of all incarnations including Vishnu. When He appears (only once in a kalpa, or a day of Lord Brahma), He continues to maintain the same protocol of coming through Vishnu. That’s the reason why people incorrectly call Him an incarnation of Vishnu.

Q. How can the unconcious person realise that all this is due to karma ?How does he rectify it? – Prachi

A. Every living entity, at every point of time, has his free will—to use it properly or misuse it. If he is sincere and seeks out for real knowledge, even though he may be ignorant at present, he will be guided by Krishna as Supersoul within his heart, toward the right direction.

Q. I want to start chanting.Could u tell me what are the benifits or advantages of chanting the Holy name?(like to control senses,to go back to Godhead).Please explain in details. – Prachi

A. Chanting the holy names of Krishna is the religion for this Kali-yuga. This means this is the only process of self-realization in this age. The other processes that were practiced during previous ages are not practical during today’s times.

What are the advantages of chanting? Unlimited. Besides developing sense control, mental peace and more focus in our daily activities, one becomes indifferent to the pleasures and pains, honor and dishonor, and other dualities of this world. One starts developing all good qualities that can be seen in a saintly person. And if you continue to practice it diligently, carefully avoiding offense against devotees, you will, in due course of time, attain pure love for Krishna, the ultimate goal of life.

Please do not delay. Take up the process immediately and make your life sublime.

For a more elaborate discussion on this topic, you may refer to the book Chant and Be Happy, published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. You can purchase this book from any ISKCON temple.

Q. Hare Krsna…I wanna know is reincarnation realy true?And if yes is there any scientificaly proven cases for this?Can u forward some of the articles on this topic and some proved cases.-Pritam G B

A. Reincarnation is a logically acceptable fact. Just as our body is changing at every moment even though the individual remains the same, so the body when it is totally useless is given up and a new body is awarded to the person after death. It is as simple as removing an old set of clothes and putting on a new one.

Dr. Ian Stevenson, a psychiatrist at the University of Virginia, in his book Twenty Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation (1966), has documented and verified past-life memories in young children. Many other scientists in India and abroad have recorded cases of past-life memories. The Vedic scriptures, especially the Srimad-Bhagavatam, also mention several cases of reincarnation.

If you wish to know more about this subject, I suggest you to read Coming Back—The Science of Reincarnation, a book published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. You can purchase this book from any ISKCON temple.

Q. Please tell me, how many days the the Mahabharata was going on? In those days,was all the world working as it is? When Krishna was telling the Gita to Arjuna, were all others means kauravas stopped there? – Kanhaiyya

A. The Mahabharata War lasted for eighteen days. This war (like all the wars during Vedic times) was fought only between ksatriyas, or military men. Common innocent people, like women, children and old men, were not forcibly dragged into such fights. Nor were there lives affected by the war in any way. Everyone continued with their daily activities while the Pandavas and Kauravas fought among themselves.

When Krishna was speaking the Bhagavad-gita to Arjuna, everyone—including Kauravas and their whole army—listened to the transcendental message. Some accepted it, others did not.