Question: Can you please tell about your first visit to Assam, like how you constructed the Rukmini Krsna temple and how you made the preaching possible in Assam and your experience?

Jayapataka Swami: Many years ago, about forty years ago, right?! We had some life members who were helping us and they would contact the municipal people and in various ways help us. One of them was, he was believing in the Sankaracarya philosophy, which was that the ultimate Truth was the impersonal Brahmajyoti, but he was helping us in various ways. So according to our philosophy, Krsna is the origin of the Brahmajyoti. Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita, brahmano pratistaham, I am the basis of the Brahmajyoti. So I explained this to the people and showed what Krsna said. Of course, it was difficult and took time for people to digest it, but eventually, they understood it. Anyway, in the Bhagavat purana, there are three forms of the Absolute – sat cit ananda. The impersonal Brahman, the Paramatma and Bhagavan. Narayana or Rama or Krsna – He has unlimited forms. So complete form of Krsna is to worship Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan. So whatever we are doing, building the temples or solving problems, the patrons even though they believed in different philosophies, yet they were assisting us and we know that by serving Krsna we get benefit eternally. So of course building the temple facility was one, but also building the Krsna consciousness in the congregation. So there were many people that we are grateful to for helping us build the temple. The devotees in the temple like Sriji prabhu, Gauradev prabhu, Bhavabhuti prabhu and many others in the congregation. Too many to just say now! So Krsna never forgets! Who won the Olympics twelve years ago, we forget, but we do a service for Krsna, He never forgets! Haribol!
04-JUNE-2019 GUWAHATI, ASSAM, INDIA