(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 1 August 2020, Radhadesh, Belgium, Initiation Ceremony Lecture)
With the Mangalacarana prayers, we have invoked the blessings of the entire parampara, coming down from Lord Krsna and all the acaryas. That is how an initiation takes place. It is by the grace of all these personalities. We are all here simply as representatives of the mercy flowing from this parampara. Somehow or other, we have received mercy and because of that mercy, we are able to be here in some role. And the roles we play simply depends on whatever the vaisnavas have bestowed upon us. Because, that is the nature of spiritual life. Spiritual life is a gift. It is a gift of the vaisnavas and a gift of the pure devotees of the Lord.
brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona bhāgyavān jīva
guru-kṛṣṇa-prasāde pāya bhakti-latā-bīja
(Caitanya Caritamrta Madhya-Lila 19.151)
So we are receiving the gift of spiritual life, of the bhakti lata bija (the seed of devotional service), by the mercy of guru and Krsna. In his initiations in early days, Srila Prabhupada would always make sure that at the corners of the yajna, there were 4 brahmanas reading from 4 books – the Bhagavad-gita, the Srimad Bhagavatam, the Nectar of Devotion and the Caitanya-Caritamrta. So, I am just invoking, mentally, these 4 reading brahmanas. They are muted, so you do not hear them but they are reading everything! In this way, you need not worry, the completeness is there. The essence is described in the exchange between Vasudeva and Devaki. It is said that from the heart of Vasudeva, the consciousness of pure goodness manifested in him. Then, he transferred that pure goodness to Devaki. Then, the Lord is manifested in her heart and so on.