Questions & Answers (with German translation) - December 22nd 2013, Berlin, Germany. Some video is missing from this recording.
In this questions and answers session in Berlin, Śrīla Narasingha Mahārāja answers questions such as why do Gauḍīyas worship Narasimha and how do we know who is our iṣṭa-deva (the specific Deity our heart is attracted to)? He explains that in the beginning stages, our attraction towards a particular form of the Lord may actually be guided by our material tendencies or conditioning.
Mahārāja explains how pure bhakti begins with Prahlāda and Dhruva which is why Mahāprabhu would listen to these pastimes again and again.
He also points out that asking Narasiṁha to protect you means you are asking Him to be your servant!
Narasiṅgha Mahārāja also explains how art influences what we think the Lord looks like, and he discusses the color of Kṛṣṇa and how that colour does not exist in this world. He also explains how we are “not a picture-looking religion” and put our heart and soul into pictures.
Mahārāja goes on to explain how the īṣṭa-deva is given by the guru and not picked by the disciple. He explains the highest theistic conception of Gaura-Rādhā-Mādhava and how this represents what Rāmānanda Rāya saw on the banks of the Godāvarī. He states that we have to pay attention to both the mood of the guru and also observe our tradition.
Narasiṅgha Mahārāja discusses the understanding how everything is in Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books, and explains how these books actually evolved. He also gives the origins of the saying, “Preaching is the essence” and how this motto is a fallacy.
