Transcript [EN]: How Boredom helps in Spiritual Life? | ABC Class 15 | Vraja Bihari Das

Har Krishna, thank you very much for joining. And uh today's topic is how boredom helps in spiritual life. So anybody ever has got bored while chanting japa feeling bus there's nothing I feel like doing. Now today I'm going to share with you how this boring japa is actually trying to tell you something. And whenever we are bored in Krishna consciousness, there is something sacred that we are being told. There is some hidden gift which is waiting behind the struggle that we are going through and that is what we're going to explore today. So I want to discuss two topics on how boredom is good for us and how it can help us and secondly if we have time I also want to share my own story and even if I can't share my story is not so important but the principles and topic regarding this is very important so um let us not deny this devotees do get bored and uh what actually it means what happens when we chant um So sometimes devotees say pro I don't have anything to do in life and then we say okay then do some sava when we have nothing to do that is not boredom. Boredom is when there are many things to do but we don't feel like doing anything. Means we just can't kick our bottom to get moving or let us say you are doing many things or you're doing something but you're not feeling satisfaction in anything. Nothing in Krishna consciousness is able to capture our attention and we feel a sense of emptiness or a lack of purpose or restless or unfulfilled. Basically nothing is appealing and everything seems to be dragging. It seems as if I'm just dragging myself. So bor boredom happens when there is a big gap between what I wish to experience and uh what is a reality. I'll repeat there is a gap between what I wish to experience and between what actually is reality. What should be and what is these two are two different things. So, so I'll tell you how it works. So, what what is our wish? What what what we what is what should be the ideal? What what is it that we are seeking? We want to experience Krishna's love. And what is the reality? Reality is Krishna is very far away. So, we have heard so much in classes that we should make Krishna happy and Krishna will give us Krishna pre. Now the reality is I don't have Krishna Pre. The reality is I'm attracted to material life. So the gap between what I should be experiencing and what I am experiencing this gap is very frustrating. This gap is very obvious and therefore spiritual activities become boring. I'll give an example. You are hearing a lecture hopefully not this one where you get very very bored. Let's say the class is very slow and the speaker is repeating the same point. So the so the reality is the class is slow repetitive that is a reality. Okay. But what is the desire in the heart? The desire is we want to be entertained. We want to be energized. We want to be engaged. So the gap between these two creates a kind of boredom because we want something stimulating we are not getting it like for example um you know like I don't know if you experience I think you all experience hunger for example so hunger is what hunger is a gap between let's say the current state is the stomach is empty and I'm really really wanting some food the desired state is I want food I want satisfaction but the reality is there is nothing in the stomach so the so so that gap is hunger similarly there is a current state mentally which I'm which is unstimulating which is like I'm hungry for some action some feelings some some excitement but the desire that is a desired state I want some interesting thing happening some meaningful some engagement but the reality is my life is very very unstimulated. See remember very very important thing now boredom doesn't mean you are not active you're not alert so you are bored means you're very alert you want to do something but you can't find anything that feels satisfying or meaningful basically my attention is not captured by environment I'm just sitting dull and um so what that experience is not something which we don't like it's called unpleasant experience Now I want to clarify this is not depression. Depression is when you lack energy entirely. There is absolutely no energy. That is depression. But when you're bored you have energy but you are not finding it. You're not finding anything worth doing. You're not excited about anything. And boredom is also not relaxation. See relaxation is when you are not stimulated but you are happy not being stimulated. Whereas boredom is when you are not stimulated but you want you want action. So what happens at such times? Any guesses? When we want to be stimulated and um you are wanting stimulation but you are not feeling it. So what do you think devotees land up doing at such times? Any answer? Engage in material distractions. Yes. To be specific. We will watch movies. Scrolling. Scrolling is the right answer. We start watching Netflix, advertisements, reals and we keep checking phone. I don't know if I've experienced this. No, we keep checking phone like this. So, we check phone not because it is important or we are expecting a message or it's not that something very interesting is happening. No, yes, also WhatsApp. So basically the phone we keep checking not because it is important or we interested but because the silence is uncomfortable because when you are bored there is silence there is uh there is lack of interest and this lack of interest is painful and we can't face that pain. So we keep picking up the phone. I'm sure all of us at some point of time have just picked up the phone not because we are expecting a phone call. We just picked up the phone because we just are scared to just sit quietly. Now I want to ask you or I want to share rather share with you is this bad? No. See uh movies, YouTube does not help but boredom is not bad. See boredom is actually very good. I'll tell you how how movies YouTube Netflix see what they do is they give instant dopamine right so what happens bi activities appear dull because Krishna consciousness is not meant for giving us a stimulation right Krishna consciousness is not for giving us a dopamine kickrishna if there is stimulation and there is satisfaction and we have two gadgets two things in front of us phone and the bead bag. So if you want stimulation, which one will you pick up? Phone or the bead bag? The phone any day. If you want satisfaction, then I I remember asking this question in Dallas last year in the Japa retreat, Japa workshop. I asked if you want to be stimulated, what will you pick up? And one lady said the bead bag. I get excited. She's an exception. I think for most of us, for satisfaction, we will take bead bag. For stimulation we will take phone. So what happens? By activities doesn't give stimulation. It gives satisfaction. And for satisfaction one of the most important ingredients or or important prerequisites for satisfaction is austerity. Tapasa. Bhagat Gita calls for us to perform tapasia austerities. only then we can experience sustained satisfaction, contentment because satisfaction, happiness is not cheap. So we we need to know that. Now what happens if you are spending too much time on electronic gadgets then boredom is also natural because compared compared to the electronic gadget the the beaded bag will not give us that spiritual activities will not give us that kick. So naturally if we are addicted to dopamine then spiritual life will appear boring and then what happens when we are bored in spiritual activities then that will lead us to spend more time on the phone and when we spend more time then we become more disconnected from spiritual activities. Are you getting it? It's a vicious cycle. And then we have seen that recently I think Namas Prau did a podcast. I have not seen it yet. I have to see it. I think he did a he did a podcast on how there is a very big epidemic of pornography and in devotey circles he was saying this because I don't know the I not it's a two-hour podcast. I have to yet to see it but I'm suspecting it's because of this the I don't know how they have diagnosed it but it is generally because we want stimulation and stimulation we don't get from spiritual activities and then the more we get engaged in electronic gadgets the more disconnected we feel from spiritual activities it's a vicious cycle so the simple solution is reduce stimulation if you reduce stimulation boredom will also values you will say all this is theory great but the practical reality is right now I'm bored what do I do let us say because of past karma because of past misuse of too much of electronic gadgets you are leading a very boring spiritual life and uh so if you are kind of bored often then I have something to share with you there is something this boredom is teaching us and the boredom is telling you that your mind is ready now for growth It is ready for change. You are ready for reflection. See mind is wandering is um and we are bored and then devotees have problem. Many materialistic people my school friends when they meet me they tell me that we get bored but they engage in watching movies and all of that. But devotees I've seen when they get bored and they engage in distractions their boredom doesn't go but they get a new problem. Any guesses what is the new problem they get? Yes. Any answers? Guilt. Yes, Suri. Yes. Guilt. Guilt is the main thing. Guilt. So, devotees have double problem. Devotees have more problems than non-devotees. Non-devotees engage in wasteful activities and they feel miserable that they wasted time. But devotees feel miserable they wasted time. But they also feel guilty that being a devotey how could I do it? So, so okay if your mind is wandering, you are bored. But let us say you relax, you don't do anything and you release the guilt and you allow the mind to wander for some time. Now let me tell you something interesting. When you relax and your mind is wandering, that's when many creative ideas, spiritual insights and problem solving breakthroughs happen. Some of the greatest noble laureates have confessed that the best ideas they got was when they were on a walk when they were relaxing. I know some of you immediately get scared when you hear this. You are thinking, "Oh, prauji is saying we should relax all the time. Then when we'll be giant, we'll become lazy. Maya will catch us one moment of intention and Maya catches us." I am not denying any of that. All of that is true. I'm just saying instead of spending time on the phone, let us say you are spending 1 hour watching WhatsApp or YouTube. I'm just saying the time that you're anyway wasting, why not spend that time simply relaxing and just watching the rain outside your window or just just relaxing, not doing anything. Let us Okay, now try this. When you're really really bored, try this. Um, just relax. Don't do anything. See, okay. First of all, you remember that when you are bored, what it means that what it means is you are unable to sit with yourself. You just can't sit. You can't be with yourself. So, and Krishna is telling you very important point. When you are bored, Krishna wants you to sit alone. Krishna wants you to be alone. Don't escape with your phone. Don't pick up the phone. Phone will distract you. See phone is a recent phenomenon. I when I joined the ashroom we didn't have smartphones and when I used to get bored we had interesting things to do. I remember I went to a dentist when I joined the ashram one day I completed 16 rounds. I had also completed extra rounds and I was sitting in the dentist's waiting room and we didn't have smartphones during those days and he had kept old BTG magazines in his clinic. Muridar prau is a devoted dentist and I remember picking up the magazine not to read. Okay, please understand this. I I don't know if you have experienced this. I picked up those old magazines not to read but because I'd rather look at something than face the discomfort of doing nothing. See, I just had to sit quietly like this. I had to wait for my my turn in the dental appointment. But I just couldn't sit like this relax. So because that silence makes me restless. So I pick up the magazine. Not that I'm really interested to read. I just go through it. See nowadays we don't need magazine. Recently when I was in his clinic I was thinking oh I came here 25 years ago also. And now also there are magazines kept but now instead of the magazine I picked up my phone and I started sending messages. Then I realized hey I was here some time ago that time I opened magazine for getting just not just just to ensure that I I'm not quiet I'm I'm I'm busy. So now instead of the magazine I'm picking up my phone. This is the modern day magazine. This is basically the way we escape from facing ourselves. We escape restlessness through the phone. Let us say instead of picking up the phone, you when you are really bored, you just sit with that boredom. Just sit, take a deep breath. You know what will happen? A door will open. A door for selfawareness and connection with Krishna. I'm going to share with you some techniques will really really work when you are bored. And I I have tried those techniques and I'm going to share them with you. Once I was traveling in a train uh from from 1 hour train journey and in my section everybody was on the smartphone except one couple one elderly couple maybe they both were 65 years old 70 years old. There were a bori Muslim couple with a colorful burka that lady had worn hijab I think I don't know what it is called colorful Gujarati Muslim and that man had a topi Muslim topi the so this this couple was the only one who didn't have a smartphone everyone else was scrolling on the phone and I was looking at this couple you know how they were sitting the entire journey one hour I saw them sitting like this they were completely comfortable in their own skin they're completely at peace they were not at all agitated and I was constantly looking at them and feeling so peaceful. I realized that they they didn't need anything to agitate themselves. So now my point is when sometimes if you don't chase stimulation you will be able to close the gap. Basically what we need to do is you close a gap between what you want and where you are not by doing something but by learning to accept and enrich the present moment. Then you'll see that the boredom becomes peaceful and also it improves creativity. Okay. So let's see let's let's get into the practical aspects of this. So when we when when when see you have you have something important work to do take the phone definitely. So what I do sometimes is I switch off the phone. I in fact all the time I keep the phone off. So if when I'm writing an article and suddenly want to be distracted like I write sometimes 4 hours, 5 hours non-stop but sometimes when I get distracted I pick up the phone I don't even realize I'm picking up the phone and then I see but nothing comes then I realize oh the phone is off. Now to switch the phone on it takes an endeavor and in that process I realized there is a reason why the phone is off and that awareness again helps me keep the phone back in its place. So I realized that many times we check the phone not because there is a need but because we want to avoid the discomfort of silence. In spiritual practices many devotees experience something similar during japa. The beads feel very dry and uh the mind wants to escape. Maybe we want to do some sava, maybe we want to make a phone call, maybe we want to preach. But you know what the deeper truth is? The silence that you experience in Japa, that vacuum, that boredom that you experience is not empty. It is a still quiet lake. You know the heart, the heart is like a lake. So if what happens in a lake when the lake is peaceful all the dust settles down and then the reflection of the moon can be seen in the lake. So you know if there's a pond with lot of muddy you know it's like lot of mud is there because you're constantly throwing stones a lot of mud is there so it's not able to reflect the moon. Similarly, our heart is like a lake. We are constantly putting distractions from morning to night. Distractions, phone calls, constantly watching something on the TV, YouTube. So, what is happening is it is like the lake. It is the heart is like a lake which is constantly there are many layers which are all jumbled up which is all mud is coming up. But when you settle it down, when you don't agitate yourself, when you don't stimulate yourself, then the lake like heart, the heart which is like a lake becomes still. And then we can see the reflection of Krishna. Krishna appears in the heart when we are not um agitated, when you're not stimulated. So if you keep chanting when you are bored although you don't feel like chanting that means you are settling down the lake. So you're staying with the silence. When you stay with the silence you're allowing the moon which is Krishna in this example. You are allowing Krishna's name or the moon to shine. Therefore boredom is very important. Now today I know some devotees are chanting 192 rounds. I know Brahmachari and a few other boys they're sitting together to chant. So I told them they asked me my suggestions or some words. I said please don't chant in a mode of achievement. Chant you will feel bored. Don't fight that boredom. Don't just just be with that and allow the mind to relax because boredom is the gap between what is and what I wish. See in ordinary life you want something you want excitement and you don't get it. You become restless. In spiritual life when you are unexited but you want excitement and you are bored that is very precious because it is increasing the hunger for absolute. So the reality during japa is the mind is wandering. And what is the wish we have during japa? We want complete absorption in Krishna. Look at the gap. The gap is I want full absorption in Krishna. I want to feel loved by Krishna. But the reality is I don't feel any taste. So this is the birthplace of longing. What the gopies experience virra lumba all that will happen because this is the birthplace. So the gopies felt unseparable unbearable separation from Krishna and that gap between reality that wanting Krishna was the reality. The desire was wanting Krishna but reality was Krishna was not there. So instead of escaping that gap what they did they transformed it into song. So we have gopy g they started crying and they started surrendering. So this longing made their devotion perfect. So next time when you go through boredom you can think that this is the chance for you to be like the gopies of vind because now Krishna is removing that Krishna is removing the stimulation. Krishna has removed you know what you really want you're not getting. So, so what happens when when the boredom comes instead of escaping through phone just pause just notice there is a gap there is a gap this is when the longing for Krishna will be born so gap between what I really want and what is this is the space where that longing for Krishna matures recently during Janmast I had a discussion on longing for Krishna so this so boredom we should start treating boredom as an invit invitation to intimacy. See many of us when we look at bor when we get bored we think it's an obstacle. Boredom is not an obstacle in bi if you see it as an obstacle you'll keep fighting and you'll keep kicking up the phone you'll get frustrated. Boredom is not an obstacle. It is natural and Krishna is giving you that boredom so that he's inviting you to have an intimate relationship with him. Just like hunger is hunger bad? No. Hunger is an invitation for us to nourish ourselves with some good food. It you see hunger makes food delicious. Right? So boredom makes Krishna's presence very precious. Just like hunger makes us value food, boredom makes us value our presence with Krishna. But what we need is patience. So um okay. So we I'm going to share with you a few steps we are going to practice now for a few minutes of japa because I'm assuming that as we start chanting now we may get bored. This is an assume okay even if you don't get bored now later on when you are chanting alone you may feel unexited. So you can try this few steps and see how what a beautiful experience you will have. I'm being very honest. I tried this a few times and it has really really worked. Okay. So first step whenever you get bored or unexcited during chanting pause and name it. I'll repeat the first step is pause and name it. Don't fight it. Don't escape it. Just so you're chanting just silently say Krishna Har Krishna Krishna Krishna Har silently you say I am getting bored. This is boredom. This is a gap between where I want to be and where I am. You know what happens when you name when you name what you're going through. Many of us don't name what we are going through. We allow the mind to drag us. But if you can simply name it, you will see that you are no longer a victim. You become an observer. You don't become a victim anymore. You are you are able to separate yourself from your mind. So pausing and naming our emotion, our mental state is the first step to handle boredom. And then second, this is the this is a game changer what I'm going to share with you now. Whenever you get bored, unexcited, unstimulated in botan class or during japa, just ask gently, what am I longing for right now? I'll repeat. Just ask this question. What am I longing for right now? You know what the answer you'll get? The mind will say food, phone, ice cream, chocolate. You'll get these kind of answers. Just keep asking. No, no, there is something deeper. I'm longing for something. I don't know what it is. What I'm longing for. Just ask this question gently. And you know what the answer you'll get? Eventually you will get an answer that I want Krishna because that's at the core now at the core we all looking for Krishna and we are we don't want to face that question but if you sit with that pain and you ask this question and you ignore the superficial answers you get for stimulation in terms of food or movies just keep asking no there is something I I'm longing for because of which I'm feeling unexited. There is something I really I'm really looking forward for which I'm not getting because of which I'm getting bored. What is it that I'm longing for? Just ask that question and then you will be amazed when you get the answer that I want Krishna. You know that answer will make boredom a very peaceful condition. And this and then immediately we should follow it with the third step. What is the first step? Okay, before we go to the third step, what is the first step? Pause and just just pause and name what you're going through. Just name that emotion. Right? When you name pause and name it, then the boredom is punchured because you're not a victim anymore. You are a observer. Okay? Second step is gently ask what am I longing for? And the second step don't be satisfied by a stim answer that asks for stimulation because you are not when you're chanting and if you're getting bored remember it's not that you're looking for ice cream or chocolate or YouTube or Netflix. If you're bored while chanting that means you are wanting love of Krishna but because you're not getting it you're getting bored. So just ask yourself what am I longing for? Just be with that question and let that answer arise from your heart that I want Krishna. This is not an intellectual exercise. You need to pause and ask this question. And when you get that answer, close your eyes and say the third step. Offer that gap, offer that boredom to Krishna. Krishna, I'm empty. I'm bored. I'm empty in my heart. Krishna, please fill it as you wish. Instead of picking up the phone or grabbing a chocolate just let the gap become an offering. So we have I I don't know if you heard a lot of lectures on surrender to Krishna. The simplest form of surrender is this. Then we can offer the gap when we can offer our boredom to Krishna. So this is the third step. First step is pause and name your state of mind. Second is ask a question very gently what's happening. And third, offer that gap to Krishna. Offer that boredom to Krishna. Offer that emptiness to Krishna. And then the fourth very important step, practice some micro techniques which I do like breathing or relaxing like close your eyes, inhale and exhale. Take few deep breaths, synchronize with the holy name. Just just relax. And uh you know just like I don't know if you've seen I've seen many times small children I see sometime in the temple or mothers with their small babies the mothers you know they're tugging at the cloth of the mother sometimes the parents are talking to me the child is tugging at the cloth and the mother is like yeah holding the child she's talking to us she's talking to me and she's the child is restless so treat your boredom like a child who is just pulling you and you say it's okay it's okay just sit with Krishna. Let us be with Krishna. Now let us be with Krishna. So this is a micro technique. Just breathing, relaxing, just being with that pain. That is the fourth step. And finally the fifth is most important. Offer a prayer of gratitude. Thank you Krishna because this boredom is reminds me that I belong to you. Thank you for this. Boredom is a reminder that we belong to Krishna. So what happens? These are all psychological tricks. Boredom will no longer be a failure. Boredom will be a training for deeper longing for Krishna. So these are the five steps we are going to practice now as you're going to chant. So the first the five things is first is if you get bored, if you get distracted and unstimulated during chanting, we will just pause and name it that I'm right now bored. I'm not excited and we'll name it and then gently we'll ask a question what am I longing for and wait for that answer to come that I want Krishna and that that answer is very satisfying actually that that makes us peaceful even though we are bored and once these two steps are done and then the third step is offer at that time offering to Krishna becomes easy and then you if you if you feel if you want you can just relax be with that pain say that I accept this pain that is the fourth step accepting just breathing is being there and the last is offering a prayer of gratitude. Remember hunger pangs are uncomfortable. Boredom is like hunger. Hunger pangs are uncomfortable. But if you don't stuff yourself with junk food like you know there are some brahmacharis here in our floor when they are hungry. Now there's a certain time you all get hungry because we have prashadam in the morning at 10:00 and the evening prashadam is at 6 5:30 6. So around 4:00 everybody's hungry. Everybody walks to the refrigerator. There is one big refrigerator. Everybody as a default action lazily walks up, opens the refrigerator door, sees what is there to eat. They try to munch something, try to kill time. So this is exactly how boredom is. Boredom is like hunger. It is uncomfortable. But if you don't stuff yourself with junk food, then you're preparing your body for a real nourishing meal. So boredom will prepare the heart for a very nice feast, the taste of Krishna's holy name. Don't stuff your mind with some YouTube reals or Netflix. So next time when you feel restless or bored, just go through these five steps. Pause. Pause and name it. Second, ask gently what you're looking for. Then offer the gap to Krishna. Then use a micro technique to stay present. And then close with gratitude. a gratitude prayer. So there is a personal story I want to share and then maybe we can chant for a few minutes. Now uh this is a little okay I'll just share it nevertheless see I was attending mangladi everyday for many years and chanting with japa with devotees but slowly I realized that at in 2015 2016 that is around after 17 years in a brahmachay asham I realized that I was feeling very restless during my morning program so I could I was hearing a voice you know saying no no I can't I I was feeling choked up. Was my mind cheating me? So I was pushing myself and um but then I would it was not like I was going and watching movies or something. I would come to my room in the morning and start writing journals. And by writing journals I was feeling very natural. But the guilt began to eat me alive because it I started thinking that if I was in another temple they would have thrown me out because there is a rule in the temple that all brahmachari should be in the temple from morning 5 to 9. So then with a heavy heart I went to my spiritual master and I asked him that I'm a writer. I will chant but I want to I want to write first but morning time is everybody's supposed to be in the temple hall. So japa is not possible. Japa can happen whole day but journaling needs a quiet time and morning is a quiet time. So my dear Guru Maharaj what can I do? You know I was just in lot of anxiety. So then his words became a lifeline which just pierced through my despair. He said something very nice. He said I trust you. Whatever you do I trust you. But see anyway you have to chant your 16 rounds. You have taken a bow. So why not chant with other devotees. Now this was a very gentle guidance but still I was finding it overwhelming and I was feeling miserable because I still couldn't chant with devotees in the morning. Now there was a second more consuming more crushing guilt the guilt of disappointing my guru you know failing to obey one person who believed in me. So then but there was a power beyond my own that was calling me to write during those morning hours. So japa japa was not boring. See japa I was thinking am I am I bored with chanting? No I I like to chant but I was not able to chant in the morning. So then what happened? Then slowly I heard a very clear voice that said right right. So then morning time I would write. Now as my pen started moving in the darkness as I was writing my journals I heard a when I I wrote some words which transformed everything. Inability to follow is not insincerity. I was willing to attend the morning program with devotees but I was unable to. So my un I was not unwilling it is just that I was unable to and that became a a birthplace for compassion. My whole preaching changed after that because I was taking strength from my gurumar's words that he trusts me and I was clinging to those words like a drowning man holds on to you know a driftwood but morning time I just couldn't go down and chant with devotees but my writing started getting deeper I started writing 1 hour sometimes 2 hours and then writing turned into stories reflections and then glimpses of my childhood and one day I remember I think while writing I suddenly remembered how in 1979 when I was a young boy um I had cried in the school I was in the first standard and that incident was so powerful and it just came flashing it's not that I was trying to think about it but I remember that incident came flashing that I remember in the first standard I was crying for a pen and my teacher said no children will use only pencils and when you when you are 10 years old we'll give you a pen. But I couldn't wait. I was desperate. I at that time I didn't know but writing was my inner calling. I had this burning desire to express, to create, to write. Now this was what this is what this is what happened in 1979. Now I'm fast forwarding to 2016. That memory was my salvation. That memory reminded me that before I was a devotey, before I knew Krishna, there was already something authentic within me that was stirring within me that was calling me a natural inclination that brought me joy and connection. And for me that connection was through writing. But still I was torn between guilt of not following the asham rules and also the misery in my you know chanting and the inner joy of writing. All of that was happening and then Krishna revealed to me a counterintuitive strategy. I mean a thought came to me. I didn't figure out this thought but it was revealed in my heart. You know what I fixed? I said I'm going to chant every day my 16 rounds from evening 8:00 p.m. to 10 p.m. And when I told this to my friends they were shocked. They said you are supposed to chant in the morning. An Lan Pu was shocked. He's my very close friend. He said, "Brushi, you're going mad." I said, "No, I just told my mind 8:00 p.m. to 10 p.m. I'm going to chant." You know, it is as if Krishna was whispering, "Challenge your mind. Don't give up." It seemed rebellious. My mind protested that you're not following the asham rules. But somehow I persevered because I felt I had to write first. I had to do what I love like singing budons, uh doing my dity worship. I have my duties. So something amazing happened you know by afternoon itself by 2 p.m. I had completed my duty worship. My journaling, my writing, my story journal, all the things that emotionally fulfilled me was done by afternoon 2:00. And then when I sat for japa, I was amazed. I felt peaceful for the first time. I felt sheltered by the holy names instead of being burdened by the holy names. See, previously when I would reach out to devotees for help because of the guilt in my japa, they would give me empty consolations. They would tell me prau japa is a burden. No, it's a happy burden. Continue to chant. Even if you feel it's a burden, just keep chant because it's a burden of love. Like a mother carrying a precious child. I said, but my heart is my heart was rebelling against that simplistic answer because many mothers suffer from postpartum depression. You know, I protested with very lot of frustration that carrying a child is not blissful. It is not easy to chant in the morning when your soul is feeling dead inside. But they said no no no you have to chant in the morning it sir there is no other way. So their answers never satisfied me and that ache was within me. But I continued writing. You know what happened? Their their int their advice was well meaning good intention but I felt inadequate because japa was not my shelter. Japa remained a obligation a duty. So how could I find joy in something that felt like a spiritual imprisonment rather than rather than nourishment? So then I realized my calling is now honored. I was writing every day. First thing I started writing. So because I started writing, my calling was honored. My emotional anchor was there. Then chanting later did not weigh me down. Chanting became my shelter. And then the shelter became stronger. Then slowly I started chanting in the morning with devotees. And today 2025 August I complete my rounds seamlessly in the morning hours. Today also before 8:00 in the morning my japa was done. So now my schedule is I sleep at 7:30 8 in the night get up at 2 complete my journaling by Mangalarati. So it's all happening naturally because I got my shelter. So and you know what is the most amazing thing? One young boy told me recently prauj I'm so inspired to see you chanting in the morning. I feel inspired. Now here is a is a very very dramatic thing that happened. He said uh prau but I I can't get up early in the morning. What should I do? I said no no morning chanting is the most important. You should get up in the morning and chant first thing. And later I realized what did I tell him? I was being a fanatic preacher. I was imposing my solution on his unique situation without understanding his heart. So then I called him again next day to temple. I said what helps you to connect with Krishna? He told I don't know. Then I told him okay then search for it because you didn't come to Krishna consciousness by accident. Once you find out what connects you then your chanting will become your shelter. And that's when I realized that I must preach not with fanaticism but with compassion. See nowadays what I you know when I'm when I'm talking to devotees this is what I tell them. First connect then chant. Okay let's say you don't know what helps you connect with Krishna then fine then of course begin with chanting. But if you have been chanting for years and struggling, if you are drowning rather than being sheltered, I'm repeating, if you don't know what helps you connect, then keep chanting. But after chanting for so many years, you're still not feeling sheltered by the holy name, then courageously search for what ignites that divine spark within you. There has to be something sacred that is calling you. My dear friends, there is something. See you didn't stumble upon Krishna consciousness by accident. It could be bhagatam then get up in the morning and read bhagatam for 5 minutes. See that is you are a genuine spiritual seeker and that seeking what nourishes me is holy. But if you're confused and chanting feels like duty, it is crushing you. Then then sit with that raw discomfort. Continue chanting. Eventually that chanting will become your teacher. That boring chanting will become your teacher. It will reveal exactly what is lacking in your life, what is missing in your emotional spiritual landscape. And then when you discover your calling, I'm I'm assuming I'm I'm I'm uh I'm hoping it is dharmic. See, it has to be it has to be in the lines of dharma. Then your chanting will miraculously shift like what now there were times when chanting was heavy for me. Today I find shelter in chanting and now chanting has become my number one priority. Although I get up in the morning and I write my journals. See it's like I don't know if I met such young unmarried men in Iska I might I find a lot of such men who are irritable, restless, spiritually hungry but because emotionally they are stopped. They're not in a they're not in a stable ash. So I've seen young men young men when they get married and there is a kind of an emotional sanctuary. Then suddenly the grass, the asham life and the bacti they begin to make perfect sense. So the principle remains unchanged even for us. So when we are when we have emotional shelter when we are psychological shelter then spiritual practices transform and they give nourishment. So of course bi is not dependent on anything. It is independent. But uh we have to arrange our lives in such a way that we can be happy. We can chant happily. Now for many of you here who are attending this I see there there are over 100 participants in today's ABC session I want to request you if you don't know if you're not the introspective kind you don't know what helps you connect it's okay then I offer you the strategy first thing as soon as you get up start chanting you won't get ecstasy but you will get bored and maybe irritated but continue chanting. So the scientists call this boredom. You know what happens when we get bored? The neuroscientists say that the default brain network is activated. Now this is a very fancy sounding term. Don't get scared. It's a simple thing. You know there is this uh there is this thing in the brain which starts getting activated when we get bored which starts asking existential question. Existential questions start coming in the mind. Who am I? What am I doing in Har Krishna? Why am I chanting? You know these kind of uncomfortable questions start coming up. Now when this questions come that's when the churning is happening and you will know you as you sit with that pain and as you continue chanting you will know the calling will come. You'll know what your psychophysical nature is. You know, you you know it is authentic because it doesn't break regulative principles and brings you peace. It has to be within the four regulative principles obviously. And then when you follow it, it could be reading batam, it could be dy worship, it it could be doing yoga, whatever the chanting will transform from duty to shelter when you first take care of your basic psychophysical nature. I know when I told this to some of my brother friends today morning that I'm going to share this in the class. They told me you are giving permission to do things other than chanting. This is a big risk you are taking. I said yes uh but I'm not speaking right now in ABC sessions as a preacher. I come here in these sessions as a human being who cares for your emotional and uh mental well-being. So because I know ultimately only Krishna can satisfy us completely. But instead of making Krishna rigid start no making Krishna rigid start middle and end I'm suggesting let us start with Krishna let us start with chanting allow Krishna to guide us through the necessary adjustments in the middle and then return to Krishna with authentic devotion otherwise you may remain an irritable unfulfilled unhappy devotey and who does that serve in the long run so my preaching goal is not to force Krishna into people's schedules artificially but to help you naturally make Krishna your shelter. Chanting is number one. Chanting is supreme but the path to finding chanting as shelter is personal and it is sometimes winding and you have to go through boredom. You have to go through churning you have to go through painful questions that needs to be answered. So my message is very simple today before we sit down for chanting for 10 at least 10 minutes I want to chant with you. See, see if you're already happy in Krishna consciousness, forget whatever I have spoken the last half an hour. Just forget it. Control A, delete. [Music] Don't don't don't listen to whatever I said today because you're already happy. You don't need what I'm saying. But if you're struggling to find authentic shelter in bi and if you're tired of forcing bi, if you are tired of not feeling devotion but only forcing it, then perhaps you may have to approach. You see, you may have to maybe my approach will help you find home. Begin with chanting. Allow Krishna to guide you through your inner journey and then you'll end up with chanting as your shelter. See, I'm not lowering your standards. Please, I'm just raising your consciousness. See, it's about finding our authentic doorway through which Krishna consciousness can naturally flood our heart and it can transform our lives. So I'm convinced holy names are waiting to give you shelter but they're not waiting to burden you. Holy name is supposed to give us shelter. We need to trust the process. You have to trust your heart and most importantly trust that Krishna is seeing your sincerity even when your methods don't match conventional expectations. So this is my request. Yes, sometimes chanting may be boring but just continue chanting. Allow Krishna to reveal to you. So today we are going to chant. Now it is 5:23 in my watch. 5:23 p.m. We'll chant for the next 15 minutes. And um we're going to follow five steps. Remember if you feel bored I hope all of you remember. I think you must have forgotten also. It's okay. First, pause and name it if you feel bored. Second, ask a question. What what is it that you're longing for? Because of which you're feeling bored and wait till you get the answer that you're longing for Krishna. And once you get that answer, offer that gap to Krishna. Then use a micro technique like breathing, relaxing or accepting what is happening. And then finally end with gratitude. Thank Krishna for revealing to you the pain, the inadequacy. And like this we will chant for 15 minutes and then I'll come back and we'll have some more discussions. Thank you very much. Let us start now. Hurry Krishna. Hurry Krishna. H Krishna Krishna. [Music] So I want to just uh conclude today's session with a few thoughts that um we are all busy from morning to night. We are doing a lot of things. I think all devotees are living in a age of endless motion constant movement. We are overflowing with service. Our minds are buzzing with activities and chanting also has become an activity that we have to complete. Unfortunately, this is our situation and we have to do it efficiently. But today I'm proposing that you know the constant busy life that we are leading may be actually preventing us from experiencing that very Krishna consciousness that we are seeking so earnestly. So the sequence is like this. First we chant then purification happens. So purification will lead to clarity of thought and that clarity leads to Krishna consciousness beginning to shine in the heart. So the journey from darkness to light is not in an it's not in an instant. How does the sun come in the morning? The sun doesn't leap from darkness to blazing afternoon. Right? The sun passes through the gentle twilight. We all have seen that. So as we move from spiritual darkness to Krishna's light in our lives, we will see that we have to go through the inevitable twilight. Twilight period means pain, confusion, struggle and even suffering. There is no bypass route. Uh you can't say I will avoid all of this. No, it's a sacred passage. We walk through it and we are there for each other. And the key is this twilight appears in our lives as boredom as ritualistic bacti. You know I read a nice quote some years ago that that the cave that we are fearing to enter is holding the treasure that we are seeking. I'll repeat the cave you fear to enter is what holds the treasure that you seek. So we are scared to be alone with ourselves. But that's the cave. When we enter that, that's when we get Krishna. So let us be willing to face what arises within us. Who am I? That question will arise. What is my relationship with Krishna? What am I doing here? We let us create space for these discomforting questions. See uh mind will scream for stimulation when these questions arise and out of habit we may want to check the phone or we may want to look at the messages but and that's because boredom is uncomfortable but please know boredom is not your enemy it is the gate through which purification enters so it is boredom through which Krishna starts his cleaning work this is the first verse we chant of shik shastakam We all know that verse. What is the first word of the shast to come? Yes. The mirror of the heart. The mirror of the heart is getting cleansed. We see both sides of ourselves. When we cleaning means we are able to see the good side and also the dark side. We see our strengths, we see our weaknesses, we see our hopes, we see our disappointments. But unfortunately we are devotees. We only look at the positive side. We only look at our achievements, our service. No, the hidden pain, our inadequacies, we keep denying, we keep busying ourselves. No, we have to face it. And when we chant, even when we are not excited. See, is provides answers to all the questions. But chanting is different. Chanting is surgery. And uh you know in the surgery happens in the form of questions that arise in the heart. If you're alone with the holy name, you won't get answers. You will get questions. You know if you attend Batam class, you'll get answers to all your questions. You ask questions in the class. We like to ask questions in class because we get immediate answers. But we don't want to face questions when we are chanting. Question chanting is when we start questions start getting revealed to us and the stillness is important. It is important to be with the holy name even though you don't feel excited. See when Krishna is saying no relax be alone it's okay to be bored we think prauj is we may think that oh this is deviation or it doesn't make sense but when the most successful people in the world talk about it then you start waking up like the one of the most successful athletes in the world right now is a person called Novak Jakovic I think many of you may know in tennis history has been as successful as this man he has won 24 grand slam titles He is like the most successful tennis player technically. And this man in an interview to Ganam Priya Prabhujai Shetty podcast he very honestly he says that he gets as much he gets a lot of energy by just sitting and doing nothing just looking at nature relaxing. He says when I'm alone with my thoughts I'm able to connect with myself. So that's very important. Propa said chant Har Krishna and be happy. But the two words Propad also spoke that we have conveniently not added there. Propa said chant Har Krishna get purified and be happy. We don't quote Praad saying that. Propad has said many times chant Har Krishna get purified because that purification means it's uh dust getting see when the dust starts getting cleaned it doesn't feel nice. it's it's uh dust is getting blown or you know when the wound uh is being disinfected it stinks before it starts healing. A caterpillar has to stay long in the dark cocoon before it emerges as a butterfly. Similarly chanting when you're getting bored don't escape into social media. Be in that cocoon. Allow allow allow that allow the holy name to reveal. Don't do extra planning. Don't do meaningless activity. Just stay with the holy name. So what feels like boredom is Krishna cleaning your heart. That's the pain. Just allow that to happen. I think I mentioned it in the ABC class that famous experiment. You will get it on YouTube or internet. I don't know where you'll get it. But long back I had read in Harvard University they made 200 people sit alone in a room. They said you can't do anything. Just there is a button. If you get really if you really want to agitate yourself, you can press that button. But you'll get a shock. 90% of the people in that 20 minutes they just couldn't sit alone with themselves. They prefer to get a mild electric shock by pressing that button. This was a very big shocking experiment that people literally preferred physical pain to mental stillness. Therefore, the one of the greatest mathematicians, Pascal, Bla1 Pascal, he said that all of humanity's problems arise because of human beings inability to sit quietly in a room alone. So, this is this is an epidemic. We are all lonely. We are suffering but we don't want to sit alone. See research has this is an amazing amazing research which has proven that those who are not bored in life there is a higher rate of depression amongst them. Those who get sufficiently bored in life they have very low depression rates because those who get bored they are able to face themselves. But if you don't face yourself, if you keep avoiding that boredom, then you become isolated from your true self and you become isolated from Krishna because the inner unresolved questions remain. They don't disappear. They keep piling up and when you avoid them, they become harrishna. I think you've gone on mute. Can you hear me now? I don't know what the last thing you heard. Yes, we can hear you now. We can hear you. Yes, we can hear you. Yeah. Boredom you are saying like over time. Yeah. I was just saying that the b the unresolved issues don't disappear. They just keep piling up and sooner or later they will come up. So better we consciously start addressing them now by just being with the holy name. And let us let us uh allow the holy name to help us confront ourselves and um you know satur calls this as vast intermediate zone in biatiti when we come to bi it's all easy but that vast period that long period where we have to go through cleansing that's the time when we need each other in ABC sessions we need each other we need to not judge each other we need to help each other we need to hold each other's hands and gently push each other to come to Krishna. So therefore don't rush to your phone when you get bored. Just stay with the discomfort. Allow the frustration to arise and observe yourself with compassion. Just witness your boredom. Allow Krishna to do this gentle surgery. All the layers are being removed of the false ego. So therefore the time is now. Let us embrace this sacred art of boredom. Create space in your spiritual life. So it's not a problem to be solved. It's a gateway that will open up. Krishna will enter. So, so, so just relax, be happy, spend some time with yourself, lead a balanced life and improve your awareness and stay connected to Krishna and yourself. Hooray Krishna. Thank you very much. Shilapad key. Thank you so much prau for being uh authentic with us and honestly now I think the burden of responsibility is on us to make sure that we take this advice responsibly to not lower our standards but to connect with Krishna authentically and to take deeper shelter of the holy names. So thank you so much. Um I think uh can we take question and answers for 10 minutes? Yeah we have 10 minutes of question answers we can have. All right. So we'll start with Mahala Madi Mati G. Okay. I see after attending your class I understand I'm also under the same thing because I like to read bar more and hear lectures more but in the recent days what I feel is I like to read and hear but I don't want to chant so I was like feeling my intention of reading is not but I'm not sincere in reading but uh but taking the beat is like a very it's a It's a very burden for me and I somehow complete my rounds and as you said if I complete in the morning it is good if I don't complete if I don't get time in the morning it is very difficult to complete my 16 round so is it the same which I'm under like what you were telling that thank you for sharing your realizations Ra I think she she wants to ask that is this the same thing that she is going through like through your journey what yeah it's the same thing it's just that as I said in the class don't misunderstand me chanting is the most important I'm just saying that nourish yourself first be emotionally anchored and then chant do chant praad wanted us to chant every day because we have to See, we can't just be doing with Krishna. In a relationship with Krishna, we can't be doing only the things that we like to do. When you love someone, you do things that you like to do and you also do the things that your lover likes you to do. A relationship is two ways. We can't be only offering Krishna what we like. We should also offer Krishna what Krishna likes. So we we get up in the morning and we do things that we love to do like journaling or reading batam. But we also should offer with the sincerity what Krishna wants us to offer. That's where we chant also attentively. [Music] Har Krishna Mahindri M. Yes. Hi Krishna. Prau G. Thank you so much for such an authentic conversation. Uh my uh disc my point is more than a confession more than a question. It's a confession. Uh to go through this journey of silence and boredom. uh but my understanding is we need um silence and we need uh peaceful environment outside also so that we can feel that boredom and we can go through this journey. uh for myself personally once it's if that that outside peaceful environment is uh rare so I feel missing or I feel guilty that I'm not getting that and I'm not even uh getting time to get bored in the chanting because once it's 6:00 a.m. in the morning uh things start and it goes all the way up to 1000 p.m. in the night. So uh I'm right now I'm guilty of not getting up uh at 4:00 or very early in the morning. So uh I I need I I think that that's what I wanted to share. Is it the right understanding pu that the outside environment also affects to go through this journey? Yeah, you need but you need to create that space like we all see I don't know your family maybe what 10 people in your family I don't know. See our ashram is extremely intense place. Sadhus are supposed to lead a satpic life. But we lead a very passionate life. It's crazy. So what I do is I'm in the third floor of this building. On the fourth floor is a terrace. And even in the terrace there is a corner which is like kind of an edge of the terrace and I have found myself a place there. I've kept a chair and my name is also written there. So nobody takes it. So what I do is I run there whenever I get like whenever I'm tired I just lock my room and I run to the terrace go to that corner take my alarm and keep put an alarm for 20 minutes and then I just sit there and relax and breathe and connect with myself and offer prayers. I don't do anything planned consciously and once the alarm goes off I slowly rise and come back to my room. So even if you can do it once a day, I do it sometimes four times a day. I actually I'm I'm able to do see at least once I do it. I mean you have no choice. If you want to remain sane, you have to run. You have to you have to disconnect from everything and connect to yourself. So I found my place. I found a place in the terrace of our ashram. Maybe there is a park near your house. Maybe there is some place somewhere you run and hide. I you need you need some time for yourself. Har Krishna. Thank you Roku. Har Krishna G. So Proji like told to take a pause for example this I I I used to feel a lot uh even still now in my chanting that in the morning I first thing I want to do is some physical activity like 20 30 minutes of yoga and first thing is that second thing which I want to ask that sometime like I work in a in a corporate so sometimes there are some males which are very like all that 2 hours of chanting in the morning I used to think that I have to drop this drop this and I totally my meditation goes on that mails which I have to do so I just want to ask should I finish that work in the ing itself in 10 15 minutes and focus on my chanting or generally what I do I say first part is chanting then I will do any other activity so uh this is my question to you my question to you is what what you should do I'm asking you you can't ask me I don't know what you should be doing you you should know what you should do first thing what helps you connect what helps you find that keys because that emails will never end you know for for 15 minutes you start then you may other important emails then you reply then another email I don't know exactly what kind of job you are doing what kind of emails you have to reply so it's a very tricky question to ask some third person so why don't you do one thing why don't you ask these questions to Krishna during your japa why don't you convert your japa from a monologue to a dialogue we like to ask questions to prau's and majis in classes because we get immediate answers and we also get answers that we like but when you ask questions to Krishna you may not get an immediate answer. You may get silence from Krishna. But in that silence, if you continue to chant, if you continue to be with Krishna, slowly Krishna reveals in a voice that is beyond matter and you'll get your answers eventually. So my request is convert your japa from a monologue to a dialogue. Start asking questions, start praying earnestly and you will understand what you need to do in the morning. Thank you. Thank you. G can we take more questions? It's six. Yeah, we can take one more. Yeah. M G. Har Krishna Puan pranam. Uh I just wanted to share uh my experience because you told me I had the issue of chanting very fast. So I complete my 16 rounds in the morning but then I always feel that I have not done justice. So you told me set a timer for a certain time. So what I do now is I set up a timer for so 20 minutes to 30 minutes depending on the time that I have and although I uh the the goal is to uh to slow down and also to uh you know to chant in a soft way generally I'm loud and fast and that's that you always say is is is the talk of the mind you know when when we connect to Krishna we have to be slow and we have to become more satwic you know so I find myself very passionate but at least now what I do is when I put the timer for 30 minutes. I still chant fast but uh I still I'm a little satisfied now that I'm doing extra rounds for Krishna. So um so is that is that okay bra prau because I still chant very fast because sometimes in half an hour I complete almost four to five rounds you know although my intention is not to complete more rounds uh so uh so I don't know bro am I on the right track should I just continue this practice you are on the right track okay bra thank you so much har krishna bro thank you we can take one more question sur uh there's this question in uh The chat by Karthik prahu he is asking is distraction in chanting also boredom. Bakot takur says it's vshapa which means there are three kinds of um problems that happen. See the mind has different stages. Mind according to patnalis yoga sutras at the lowest stage is called chipta. The mind is restless constantly jumping jumping here and there. So, so I don't know. See what what did I define boredom as? Boredom is an is a state when you are not excited to do the activity. So, you are distracted the and are you see if you're getting me technically on this subject I'm not able to answer right now. But the idea behind boredom is you have the holy name with you but you're not excited to chant. You're not excited to do anything at bi. That is boredom. And generally that boredom is to remove that boredom we get distracted. We start watching phone we start. So if you if you avoid the distractions and if you sit alone then you may get bored. To avoid boredom we get distracted. But if you avoid the distractions and just stay with the boredom that's when all the purification happens. So that's how it works. So I wouldn't want to get into the technical part which comes first the chicken or the egg but yes boredom is something which is when Krishna wants to reveal something to us and we don't feel interested in anything because there's a gap between what we really want and where we are. So that's the time when we need to sit quietly with that boredom. But if you distract yourself that means the distraction is happening because you don't want to sit with your questions. You don't want to answer your questions. So that's how I see it. Thank you so much. Ru Kartiku has raised his hand. Uh yes. Uh by distraction I mean um when I chant I uh I see random things uh sometimes uh my childhood places where I lived uh roads I see roads and those things so I try to come back as uh you have suggested so I yeah that's what you do mind things you can't keep worrying about oh the mind is saying this the mind is doing mind that's the mind's You can't take everything the mind says seriously. That's that's what the mind is, right? Sometimes you'll get thoughts of some uh movies that you have seen, some relationships, some problems. Oh, I got this thought proj. That's the mind. Just continue. Just keep doing what needs to be done. Thank you so much. Okay. Can Yeah. Yes. There is this last question if you want to take I I take this last question. Okay, we'll take this last question. Uh Mati G is saying Har Krishna Prabuji I begin with enthusiasm but slowly start feeling bored and distracted and more often than not I doze off and then of course get back after a jolt but it makes me feel guilty and many time I procrastinate the chanting what can be done please help. Listen to this class again. Release the guilt. We all on the same journey. Actually, we are all on the same journey. Uh we we go through all these things. This is the way we get purified. This is your journey. And some of us doze off. Some of us don't sleep in japa. But we are disconnected from Krishna. So, so you see I think one of the things we need to clarify today is that struggle if you're struggling many devotees think that oh I'm struggling so much so they think they're not advancing and we look at devotees who are not struggling and we think they're advancing please know that struggle is not the criteria of advancement lack of struggle doesn't mean you are advancing and struggling doesn't mean you are going down the criter Criteria for advancement is not lack of struggle. The criteria for advancement is your longing is your aspiration. So if your longing, if your heart is in the right place, if you want to improve, you are making advancement. So celebrate that fact. Be happy. So I have one brahmachar who always sleeps in japa and I hardly sleep in japa in temple. And I'm a big fool if I think I'm more advanced than him. Because even though he sleeps in Japa, he never gives up chanting. He's always chanting in the temple. And when I feel very sleepy, I give up chanting and go and sleep comfortably. So that means he's willing to struggle. That means he's willing to come to Krishna. He's willing to keep chanting. So he is more advanced. So the lack of struggle doesn't mean you are advanced. It just means what is your longing? What is your heart? So it's okay. You are dozing off. You're you know coming back. Instead of feeling guilty, be happy that you're coming back to Krishna. You can't you can't come to Krishna being guilty and being miserable. Imagine imagine you were a billionaire, you know, big big bill and hundreds of servants serving you. Imagine a servant comes to you always with some milk or some tea and then that servant is always crying and miserable. What would you tell that servant? Get lost. Go and become happy first. Serve me later. First be happy. So Krishna is also like that you know Krishna has hundreds millions of servants we are serving Krishna but if we keep going to Krishna always miserable Krishna will say you forget serving me first you become happy first become peaceful then serve me so let us not let us remember our international society for it's not international society for guilt consciousness it's international society for Krishna consciousness if your guilt is helping you come closer to Krishna be guilty if your guilt is making you miserable and taking you far away from Krishna, throw away the guilt. Be happy. Smile. If you are serving a bill billionaire, you will be happy. You'll be pleasing him. Be happy and come to Krishna in a happy state. Let Krishna be excited to see you. When we go for dity worship, when you go to Reundab and when you go to temples, you know the the pandas what they tell us in when you enter the temple hall, what they shout? They tell us laugh, clap your hands. We're supposed to enter the temple by laughing and clapping hands. We're supposed to say we are supposed we're supposed to laugh and be happy when we come in front of Krishna. When we go in the duty room for dressing duties in the morning, we are supposed to smile and raise our hands and whatever has happened in the past has happened. But now we're supposed to be happy, cheerful so that Krishna is happy to see us. So when you're coming to chanting, if you're coming miserable always, that's not the way to serve the most benevolent lord. Krishna knows what struggles we are going through. Let us let us be happy as a service to Krishna. Let us offer the best to Krishna. Let us be cheerful. I don't know if this answers your question but more or less many of the devotees are struggling with this. We have become addicted to being miserable that that has become our default setting. Let us choose to be happy. Har Krishna. Thank you so much prau. Thank you. So I think I'm sure this must have answered the question and uh we can uh end the class. Um I I have few announcements to make prau but if you I want to chant prayers. Thank you very much. I leave now and si you can continue to make your announcements and I hope to see all of you again very soon. Thank you very much. Har Krishna.