Spiritual Questions and Answers with Radhanath Swami
Question to Radhanath Swami: I am planning to go on a pilgrimage to Chitrakoot. So, I’d like to know how attending these pilgrimages will enhance our spirituality.
Radhanath Swami: One of the most sacred traditions of all religions is pilgrimage. In our Vedic religion we go to Vrndavana, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Yamunotri, Gangotri, Tirupati, Ramesvaram, Chitrakoot, Ayodhya, Dwarka, Pandharpur, Kolhapur, Udupi, Varanasi, Kashi, Mayapur, Jagannatha Puri, and so many other places.
Question to Radhanath Swami: Sometimes we start chanting God’s names praying for some self interest. And it so happens that it is not fulfilled. Then we either stop chanting or we loose the mood of chanting. How can we cope up with this kind of situation?
Radhanath Swami: We must learn how to pray from the scriptures and from the great personalities. Jesus was happily praying on the cross. Have you ever been through such a situation as he had to go through?
Question to Radhanath Swami: When only in distress one is able to pray from the heart, otherwise those prayers spring from the mind, and are mechanical offered. Why is it so? Why only in distress does the mind shut down and allow us to pray from the heart?
Radhanath Swami: What you are talking about is sometimes human nature. But we should cultivate a higher standard.
Question to Radhanath Swami: It is said that a prayer should be a cry from the heart. But many times it is mechanical. In that case, should we artificially try to cry or should we wait till the cry naturally comes from the heart?
Radhanath Swami: We shouldn’t be artificial, but we should be sincere. If we do not have sincerity, we can honestly pray for that. Our Guru used to say that everything is based on our desire. Our whole life is built up on the foundation of our desires;
