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All Glories to Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj World Tour Interviews Soquel, California Interviews and webpage by Vaidehi Devi Dasi |
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This evening, after having another one of the Wednesday
youth classes, the prasadam hall and the temple room held many young
devotees and their guests. Jasmin, 18 years old, is a regular guest
to the Soquel Ashram and has recently been introduced to Krishna consciousness
within this past year. She will tell us how she came across the path
of Bhakti Yoga.
 Jasmin: "I
started working at a movie theater near the area, and Vidura Prabhu
and Vyasa Prabhu were both working there. There was a lot of talk about
religion with my co-workers because amongst us there were atheists,
Christians, and pretty much every faith. As I got to become better friends
with Vidura, I became interested in the place I kept hearing about that
they called the Temple. I never really grew up around religion or anything
like it. It hasn't been part of my life until now, so I was interested
in experiencing something different. Vidura and some of the other devotees
that were outside the Temple were going. Vidura asked me to come one
time, so I did, and have been coming since then."
Vaidehi: "Apart from Vidura talking about
the Temple, what was it that captured you and motivated you to continue
coming?"
Jasmin: "I
haven't really experienced much of any religions, but from what I have
experienced it seems like once you walked in the door you felt on the
spot. But the first day I came here, no one asked me any questions about
whether I was going to become a Hare Krishna, or what my beliefs were.
Everyone was really warm and affectionate, and it didn't matter what
my background was. The devotees just wanted to share Krishna consciousness
with me without forcing it. I have had conversations with people from
other religions, and it feels like they are not so open minded. What
I like about this is that they don't condemn other religions but they
understand that there is the same goal, just different perspectives."
Vaidehi: "Can you tell us a little something
about what you have heard about Srila Govinda Maharaj. Some connection
you might have had?"
Jasmin: "It
was only a few months before he came here that I started coming to the
Temple. I kept hearing that he was coming, and that he was so amazing.
It was hard to imagine that so many people had so much respect for this
one person; I was anxious to see who this person was. I remember the
first time that I actually saw him he had a big smile on his face. I
don't know what it was, but it was his smile. You just see it and you
feel happy inside — I don't know. Ever since he has been going
through health problems, I notice that every time I see him he is still
smiling and you don't see the pain he is going through. It's hard to
explain what it is about him, but there is something special."
Vaidehi :"What do your parents think about
this?"
Jasmin: It's
a really strange coincidence, but my grandfather has always talked about
Siva and about Krishna, and he has been to India a couple of times,
and has experienced a lot of different religions. What I remember the
most is that during Christmas my parents would put presents under the
Christmas tree, and his presents would always say, "To Don from
Krishna." I didn't know too much about Krishna, but I remember
seeing that on there and wondering what it meant. When my father was
younger, my grandfather used to take him to Hare Krishna Temples in
San Francisco and New York. I remember that my grandpa would come back
from India and would bring me saris to dress me up with. I would always
wonder when I was ever going to wear them, and now I am wearing saris
whenever I come here. It's something that I want to wear to the Temple.
I can't get over how strange it is that my grandfather would always
go to Hare Krishna Temples and now I have found one to go to. My parents
have been pretty neutral knowing that I come to the Temple all of the
time. I invited my dad once since I know he's been exposed to it before,
and I thought it would be nice to share this with him. He came and sat
in the class one day. He didn't really know what they were talking about
and couldn't really relate to it since the subject was very specific,
but when the kirttan started, I could tell he really enjoyed it. During
the prasadam he was very happy to be at the Temple. He enjoyed the prasad,
so it was nice for me to see him happy. My parents don't really ask
about it, but I know they are glad that I have found good people to
associate with, and that I have something positive."
Vaidehi: "Do you have any aspirations or hopes
for your spiritual life?"
Jasmin: "I
hope to become more educated about Krishna consciousness because I know
there is a lot more to learn, and as I learn more, I feel that my aspect
of religion and spirituality is becoming more clear."
Vaidehi: "Is there a message you have for
the devotees around the world?"
Jasmin: "On
days I feel exhausted from work or don't feel inspired to go to the
Temple, I have made myself go anyway. In the class, I always end up
hearing something that makes me realize: 'This is what I came for. I
came to hear this.'"
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I first met Ista Devika when I was in seventh grade,
as Emily, and invited her to come to the Temple a few times. I would
call her and tell her, "There is a feast tonight you have to come!"
She would come every once in a while but now that Srila Gurudev is here,
she has taken initiation and does service at the Temple whenever she
has a break from school. Ista Devika is currently studying at Cabrillo
College, the same community college I, as well as several other devotees,
attend. Let us hear the story of her first introduction to Krishna consciousness,
and how her life might have changed now that she has joined that path
of Bhakti Yoga.
Ista Devika: "I
was going to a home-school program called AFE, and some of the young
devotees like Sarvananda, Dhruva, Satyabhama, Anapurna, Vaidehi, Vyasa,
etc. were also going there. I had been going to a Temple in San Diego
with my mom when I was about four years old, but started coming here
in eighth grade. Vaidehi was the first person to invite me to come to
the Temple and when I came, I really enjoyed it. I felt very comfortable
and everybody was welcoming and nice, so I always came back."
Vaidehi: "When you first arrived to the Temple,
what sort of impression did you get?"
Ista Devika: "It
was very different than other religions I had been around. I liked
the community and how close and welcoming everybody was. Nobody judged
me."
Vaidehi: "Did you know anything about the
Deities when you first saw Them?"
Ista Devika: "I
knew that the blue one in the middle was Krishna, but that is all I
knew. I thought They were really beautiful and amazing, but I didn't
know too much about Them."
Vaidehi: "You've been coming to the Temple
more often, and now that Srila Gurudev has arrived, what inspired you
to get initiated?"
Ista Devika: "First
of all just seeing him and being in his presence was really amazing;
I realized how great he is. I had heard about it, but never knew until
I experienced it. I felt nervous and got all teary eyed, but I was happy
to see him at last. One of the older devotees that inspired me to get
initiated was Sarvabhavana Prabhu when he would speak at the Tuesday
class. During the time that I was considering whether I should get initiated
or not, he had a class and said everything I needed to hear to convince
me that I really did want to receive Harinam."
Vaidehi: "Is there something he said that
is still with you to this day?"
Ista Devika: "He
was talking about the seed of Krishna Prema, how it is planted when
you get initiated. He said something about how Krishna will guide you
away from material attachments. He will steer you away and slowly you
will become less and less attached. The way Sarvabhavana Prabhu said
it, it was very clear and direct. Another thing I remember is that for
example a lot of other religions put themselves as the highest and put
down other faiths. Sarvabhavana Prabhu said that if someone is, say,
a Christian, you don't want to take away their faith. They are also
on a spiritual path but it's just different from ours. Krishna is one,
but he is interpreted in many different ways and there are distinct
paths to take, so we shouldn't put anybody down because they have a
different capacity."
Vaidehi: "Do you have any aspirations or is
there another step you wish to take to deepen your path to Krishna consciousness?"
Ista Devika: "At
some point, once I have my life a little more together and I have finished
school, I want to find a service that I can do really well. I want to
find a responsible service because I know that I need to do that. It's
really hard for me to be ready to do that and actually get myself to
do that because right now there is so much going on in the teenage world
of stupid material stuff. But once I really have my life together I
want to find a service that I can do well."
Vaidehi: "Is there a message you have for
the devotees around the world?"
Ista Devika: "When
you are feeling uninspired or not into doing service or coming to the
Temple at the moment, make sure you keep your association with your
devotee friends. If they are all going to the Temple, you are going
to want to go with them and you're going to be more inspired if you
keep your association with the devotees."
Vaidehi: "Thank you very much for sharing
your stories with us. I hope that in some way, these interviews are
helping someone in need!"
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Sri
Chaitanya Saraswat Math, Nabadwip