SB 04.31.10_Process Of Initiation_2008-12-25

Lecture – Srimad Bhagavatam 4.31.10 Process of Initiation – partial transcription 2008-12-25 Christmas, Los Angeles

So here it says ‘initiation process’, so we should understand [that] initiation, simply sitting at the fire sacrifice and receiving the beads is not the entire initiation process. It is part of the process
of initiation.  But initiation according to Srila Jiva Goswami is the transference of transcendental knowledge.  That is, if someone has transcendental knowledge and if someone wants to receive the transcendental knowledge, there is a process by which the person who wants to give the transcendental knowledge can deliver it to the person who wants to receive it and part of that process is sitting at a fire sacrifice and receiving a name and beads, etc. But it is not
the entire process. If it were so easy we would all be Vaikuntha right now, of course we are in Vaikuntha in one sense, but in another sense we,.. our consciousness may not be fully in Vaikuntha as [of] yet.

Therefore there is process.  Sometimes the devotee say, “At the time of the initiation the Spiritual Master takes all your Karma,”  Has anyone here ever heard that before?  So does anyone here notice that they have a little bit of karma left?  Does that mean that at the time of initiation the spiritual master took all the karma and then gave it back?  No, karma is taken by the Process of Initiation.  And when one fully accepts the process then fully becomes free from his karma.  And as much as we accept the process then to that extent we become free from karma.  That process of the deliverance of transcendental knowledge is the process that frees us from the karma, not the fire sacrifice.  Although the fire sacrifice is supposed to develop the mood of receptivity for the transcendental knowledge, it itself it is not sufficient for liberation.  Or even to receive the transcendental knowledge, it is simply part of the process.