Dear Srila Prabhupada,

Please accept my prostrated obeisances at Your holy lotus feet on this occasion of Your 2017 anniversary.

“So keep this paramparä system. This Vyäsa-püjä is paramparä system. Vyäsa-püjä means to accept this paramparä system. Vyäsa. Guru is the representative of Vyäsadeva because he does not change anything. What Vyäsa-püjä… What Vyäsadeva said, your guru also will say the same thing. Not that “So many hundreds of thousands of years have passed away; therefore I will give you a new formula.” No. There is no new formula. The same Vyäsa-püjä, the same philosophy. Simply we have to accept it, then our life will be successful.” 761210DB.Hyd

Sri Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and You are the Supreme Personality of Servitor Godhead. This is confirmed in shastra:

“Only out of His immense compassion does the Personality of Godhead reveal Himself as the spiritual master. Therefore in the dealings of an äcärya there are no activities but those of transcendental loving service to the Lord. He is the Supreme Personality of Servitor Godhead. It is worthwhile to take shelter of such a steady devotee, who is called äçraya-vigraha, or the manifestation or form of the Lord of whom one must take shelter.” Caitanya Caritamrita, Adi lila 1.46 P.

Sri Krishna is the “the basis of the impersonal Brahman,” (Bhagavad-Gita As It Is 14.27). Sri Krishna is indeed the basis and origin of everything that is and You are not only the foundation stone of ISKCON but also the very basis of our lives and existences. We are willingly and ecstatically lead by Your Divine Grace, just as bulls are directed by the ropes and rings attached to their noses.

Your version of Sad Goswami astaka, glorifying the six Goswamis of Vrndavan and recorded at The Schloss Rettershof, near Frankfurt, Germany, in June 1974 is so mystically attractive and fascinating (CD01-1)! I did not directly participate in the recordings, but along with other Godbrothers, Schloss Rettershof was my Sankirtan book distribution base at the time. It should be noted that in German language, Rettershof, means the place (literally “the court”) of the savior, in other words Your place, the place of Your Divine Saving Grace. I also remember how Hansadutta Prabhu used those grey cardboard egg holders as sound proofing material, as can be seen on the cover of the album. During your visit in June 1974, You kindly gave me Hari Nam initiation and the magazine Stern, which had sent a reporter to infiltrate and spy on the devotee community, published a full page picture of my dancing at the fire sacrifice. It should be noted that the reporter managed the ISKCON devotee lifestyle for one or two days / nights only. Then Krishna forcibly ejected him. Sinful persons are definitely excluded from Krishna’s and His devotees’ association, just as water and fire cannot mix and are mutually exclusive.

With the repetitive triple ding of the kartals, its rhythmical and sweet presentation eternally resounds in my heart. If my memory serves me well, Cakravarty Prabhu plays the kartals, Hansaduta Prabhu the mrdunga and You play harmonium. You have a very special and characteristic Prabhupada way to play the kartals as well. The sound of your playing kartals alone can attract one to Krishna consciousness. Just as the four Kumaras were attracted by the smell of the flowers and tulasi leaves offered to Lord Krishna’s lotus feet, anything you ever do, even the most insignificant thing, can attract one to Krishna consciousness.

Just as You stated about Your own Guru Maharaja, You are such a great, transcendental Vaikunta person, well beyond our furthest conceptions and imaginations. You are the greatest well-wisher, benefactor and lover of mankind.

How can one fail to be attracted to Krishna consciousness when one studies Your Divine Grace? Srimad Bhagavatam 10.1.4 answers this question emphatically: vina pasu ghnat and SB 1.3.24 Purport: “Mahäräja Parékñit said that only the animal-killer cannot relish the transcendental message of the Supreme Lord.”

When You speak, You are always “fired up”. It is Your doubtlessness, clarity of vision and persuasion that convinces the hearer. On one occasion, at question time, one man openly confirmed just that- your no-nonsense, to the point, strong presentation. You humbly thanked him for his compliment. I failed to find the lecture. I think it was in the UK. Because you are the world teacher many of your classes are in a declamatory tone, thus defying and challenging anyone to put forward a better philosophy. We know this is not possible! Whereas other classes such as 750902SB.Vrn are in a calm and conciliatory mood.

And you do this out of love for mankind. This is your only motivation. There is no other motivation! Therefore you are as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Supreme Father, Who, out of love only, tries to bring to reason the fallen and Maya-witch possessed conditioned souls.

Above all, Your message subscribes to the rigors of scientific analysis. “Religion without philosophy is sentiment, or sometimes fanaticism, while philosophy without religion is mental speculation.” BGAII, 3.3 P.

Your message is intelligent, reasonable, structured, consistent unchanging, strong, stern, sometimes forceful, but always respectful of our freedom to choose, just as Sri Krishna, after speaking the Bhagavad-Gita, gives Arjuna his freedom of choice. Bhagavad-Gita As It Is, 16.63 yatheccasi tatha kuru: “Thus I have explained to you knowledge still more confidential. Deliberate on this fully, and then do what you wish to do.”

Your message is liberal, enjoyable, benevolent, sustained, thoughtful, well thought out and prepared, well observed, humorous, the product of a genial, super top-most and God surrendered brain….

and finally Your message is free of charge as well.

You are both the nicest and wisest, Srila Prabhupada! But we are so fools and rascals that we are not always able to take full advantage of Your message and association, as we would like to do.

Through Your own elaborate plan and actions, the joyful Krishna conscious revolution is already in progress. A perfect example is the yearly Sacred Sound Festival by HH Indradyumna Maharaja and associates both here at ISKCON New Govardhana, New South Wales, Australia and North Carolina, USA.

You are the greatest sankhya-yogi, because if You hadn’t analyzed the phenomenal world so carefully, how could You explain so well the Supreme Brahman along with His diverse energies? “Only the ignorant speak of devotional service [karma-yoga] as being different from the analytical study of the material world [Sankhya]. Those who are actually learned say that he who applies himself well to one of these paths achieves the results of both.” BGAII 5.4

Your expertise and maturity of realization in presenting the Krishna conscious philosophy is astounding! So is your thorough grasp of the philosophy and knowledge of the Sanskrit shlokas. If I could only possess an atom of your spiritual master ship, I would become a useful tool in your hands.

Intensive travelling all over Australia-dvipa for the purpose of book distribution is an undertaking of gigantic proportions. It is a limitless enterprise! New shopping centers are erected continually. I usually see my customers once a year. Physically, mentally and emotionally, it is a little taxing. Chapter five of Bhagavad-Gita As It Is is called “Karma Yoga-Action in Krishna consciousness”. I may say that I see plenty of action in Krishna consciousness, to the point that I periodically collapse and need to remain inactive for some time in order to recuperate. I usually distribute 4000 to 5000 piece of literature per year. Due to age, I might have to adjust my schedule or perhaps even better, change style of distribution and distribute even more books. As you explain in Srimad Bhagavatam, the aging body loses its physical strength. This fact is also common sense knowledge. I do not know how I have managed to survive to this point. It is only due to Your kind and benevolent mercy and the mercy of the Hare Krishna Maha-mantra and my clinging to it under all circumstances. Of course making the planet earth Krishna conscious, as You have personally undertaken, is a much more gigantic enterprise. We also note that some of Your exalted disciples and grand disciples- mostly sannyasis- travel all over the world, steady as clock work: more gigantic enterprises! “

“A living entity who is specifically empowered by the Lord with knowledge or strength is technically called äveça-rüpa.” As stated in the Caitanya-caritämåta (Antya 7.11), kåñëa-çakti vinä nahe tära pravartana: Unless a devotee is specifically empowered by the Lord, he cannot preach the holy name of the Lord all over the world. This is an explanation of the word äveça-rüpa.” CCM 20.165 P.

In the early days, the saying was “Work now, Samadhi later.”

We absolutely love the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead under Your personal direction, still we may at times ask the question: ”Where is Samadhi?”

Dreams of achievement in Krishna consciousness may not be instantly realized. Sometimes we find there is a twenty years gap between the preaching dream and its practical realization. In Your own life, we see that it took several decades to achieve Your ultimate and grand success. The main thing is to keep our hopes always very high, and that should not be very difficult, as our hopes are pinned on Krishna, the highest and most elevated personality. In other words, the greatest and infallible positivity and win-win arrangement is Krishna consciousness.

There are seemingly mundane expressions of beauty that cannot fail to remind us of Krishna as per His words in Bhagavad-Gita As It Is 10.41:

 

yad yad vibhutimat sattvam

srimad ürjitam eva vä

tat tad evävagaccha tvam

mama tejo-‘àsa-sambhavam

“Know that all opulent, beautiful and glorious creations spring from but a spark of My splendor.”

In this respect, my other dream it to see the Canadian singer Celine Dion sing for Krishna, just as George Harrison sang for Krishna. She has a very dynamic personality, is an excellent singer and has sung for Christ in the past. So why not sing for Krishna as well? Because of her wonderful God given talents it will be a great success.

Your message remains as relevant as ever:

In 1975 while travelling by airplane to Chicago You read the Time Magazine article: “Crime why and what to do.”

On Jan 7^th 2017, the BBC reported that more people are crime-killed now in Chicago than in the Afghan and Iraqi conflict combined.

You commented as follows:

“Yes, bring. We shall take this opportunity to preach. “Crime, Why and What to Do?” We shall give all solution. We can arrange big, big meetings on this point, “Crime, Why and What to Do?” A very suitable heading it is. Haräv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guëä [SB 5.18.12]. Unless he’ll take to God consciousness, all this rascaldom, so-called advancement of civilization, all condemned, everything. All rascals. So why we will not…, will there be crime? There must be. This is the result of modern civilization, crime. You cannot check it unless you take to Kåñëa cons… They are all violating the laws of nature. Nature brings you from evolutionary process to the human life, and if we misuse, then we suffer. This life is specially meant for understanding God. Athäto brahma jijïäsä. This is the only business. Jévasya tattva-jijïäsä na yaç ceha karmabhiù. Jévasya tattva-jijïäsä. Find out this verse.”750703Ar.Chi.

I did not receive many personal instructions from You. Nor was I ever part of your direct entourage, as a personal servant, like His Grace Hari Sauri Prabhu, His Grace Sruta Kirti Prabhu and so many others. Nor was I ever a personal assistant manager such as Your GBC deputies.

These days, as a personal service, I often fit Your bead bag into Your hands at the beginning of a Japa session. Thank you very much for this service opportunity as well!

However, the most important and most inspiring instruction, You have ever given to me, came in a letter dated May 2^nd 1977 and addressed to “Sriman Yadavendra Das Brahmacari”. It reads as follows:

“There is no difference between study and management in Krishna consciousness. I am studying books and writing also, and at the same time attending to your letter. And there is so much management to look to. So I am doing both because there is no difference.”

Your secretary of the time, late His Holiness Tamal Krishna Goswami added:” Srila Prabhupada is the Acarya and showing us the example by doing both management and study. You should follow in His footsteps and do the same. There are nine types of devotional service and of the nine “arcanam” includes management. If one takes part in any one of these nine types of devotional service he can make his life perfect. So do not see any duality in any service, which you have to render to Krishna. Besides this, it is advised:

tad viddhi pranipätena

pariprasnena sevayä

upadeksyanti te jnänam

jïäninas tattva-darsinah

Bhagavad-Gita As It Is 4.34

Rendering of service is essential in Krishna consciousness. Therefore you should perform your daily routine activities with as much enthusiasm as you study Srila Prabhupada’s books…”

Srila Prabhupada, if the shakti to carry out the orders of the Spiritual Master comes with the instructions of the Spiritual Master, then I may petition You herewith: ”Please give me Your special blessings NOW!” After some 45 years of trying, I think I might be ready for it NOW. I think I might be able to handle it NOW. I always wished to practice and live by your instructions 24 / 365. It has already transformed my mind. It has set it right. It has already transformed my life.

“Bhakti means “devotional service.” Every service has some attractive feature, which drives the servitor progressively on and on. Every one of us within this world is perpetually engaged in some sort of service, and the impetus for such service is THE PLEASURE WE DERIVE FROM IT.” Nectar of Devotion, Preface.

Srila Prabhupada, I am yours without reservation and for eternity and I enjoy the Prabhupada-sambandha, also called Prabhupada-rasa relationship very much. So be it. Thank you very much!

Always remaining a beggar at your holy lotus feet as well as

A grateful servant,

Acknowledgement: I would like to take this opportunity and thank herewith HH Ramai Swami, the ISKCON Co-GBC for Australia for his green light to feature in Your international Vyasapuja book under the heading “Homages from other sources.“ The first publication was last year 2016. This acknowledgement is therefore overdue. Maharaja, please accept my humble apologies for this tardiness and thank you very much for your broad-mindedness! All glories to You, Srila Prabhupada!