Question: NimLhamu Sherpa, my English is not very good. Hare Krsna Guru Maharaj. Thank you very much for blessing us with your presence. I can fell energy and feel blessed to be in the presence of your grace. I have been associated with Iskcon Gangtok for a while and from last June 2019, I started chanting 16 rounds a day. Now I have been chanting 16 rounds every day. My question is, many times as we progress, I have been chanting for a while, but I am not able to, when I am chanting I feel great connection with the Supreme Lord but I am from a Buddhist family and have a family deity we pray to. I have a small altar in my room and I try to connect. However, I don’t get the same power. But I feel with the blessings of all the Guru Maharajas I will grow in bhakti. It has been my problem since the beginning. I have not been able to connect with rupa or with the deity. So Guru Maharaj if you can bless me and suggest what I can do, I shall be grateful Guru Maharaj.

Guru maharaj: You chant the Panca Tattva mantra first? Sri Krsna Caitanya Prabhu Nityanada (yes) before every round (only starting of chanting) Try to chant this mantra before every round you do. Actually the Lord’s deity form is not as beautiful as the Lord Himself. The Lord is unlimitedly beautiful. So we have a deity form that we worship but it is something we can see we can worship, but the Lord is much better. But He accepts the worship we do to the deity. The deity is called as arca avatar. But in the temple we have installed deities, and in the house many devotees have uninstalled deities or practice deities. And they practice it. You can pray to the Lord that He reveal Himself to you. And by regular reading of the descriptions in the Srimad Bhagavatam, you will get closer to the Lord. If anyone has any question, you can also write to me. If Madhavakanta cannot answer, then you can write to me also.  Thank you very much!
19-July-2020 SRIDHAM MAYAPUR, INDIA