Websites from the ISKCON Universe
Sunday program, Jan 7 - 2018, Krasnodar ISKCON, Russia (Album of photos)
Srila Prabhupada: The Hare Krishna mantra says, “My dear Lord Krishna, my dear Lord Rama, O energy of the Lord, Hare, kindly engage me in your service.”
(Srimad-Bhagavatam, 4.24.69 Purport)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/shNLV7
Kirtan Fest at ISKCON Calgary, Canada (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: One has to continue chanting the Hare Krishna mantr...
By Bhaktin Diksha Vohra World Holy Name Festival team gears up to welcome delegates at their booth in the ISKCON Leadership Sanga to be held between February 4th and 11th 2018 in Sri Mayapur Dhama. Continue reading "World Holy Name Festival team prepares to welcome ISKCON Leadership Sanga delegates
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By Adikarta das This first verse of the siksastakam, particularly resounds for me, when I go on sankirtan. All the wonderful features, and blessings of this verse become manifest. Especially, the ocean of bliss that one can experience when giving out a tiny particle of Krishna consciousness. So, no matter what the material circumstances are, it's just worth it to taste this bliss. In fact, we could surmise that this is what drove Srila Prabhupada on, when he faced the austerities of coming to the West. The reciprocation of mercy from the Lord. After all, at one point in Vrndavana, after being attacked by a cow, he, in his own words, was wondering if he should have taken sannyasa.Later on, surrounded by his loving disciples, appreciating their devotion, and care for him, he said that nobody knows Krishna's plan. Here he was in the US; Krishna had bestowed upon him, followers, recognition, and other opulences; so after all that struggle, he had been very blessed by Krishna. That is the reciprocation that to some degree, anyone who sincerely tries to give Krishna to others, can expect. Continue reading "Why distributing books has saved me for 43 years
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By Guru Carana Padma devi dasi Bhaktivedanta Manor school children participated in an inaugural ceremony to mark a new chapter in their school's history. The primary school has been situated at Bhaktivedanta Manor for the past 35 years. Due to various challenges associated with the building of the new Haveli on the site and the required demolition of 2 of the classrooms, the school has been relocated into a new temporary premises just 5 min from the temple . The renovation of the existing buildings took over 8 months to complete, and involved top architects, structural engineers, 2 major building contractors and a big investment from the temple. The new site gives extra facilities to the children and the teachers. "The most important feature of the new site is the fact that the children are totally safe, protected and have lots of space of their own to let their imaginations bloom!" spoke the Headteacher Guru carana padma dasi. The temporary permission to house a school on the premises is only for 2 years. Let's see how the school develops in this time. There is a possibility it could be extended. Continue reading "New Site for Bhaktivedanta Manor School
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“Krishna Consciousness is so nice that if one takes part in it in either ways, like hearing, chanting, remembering, worshiping, praying, or even simply by eating prasadam, the transcendental effect will be visible…If you continue like this I am sure you will make rapid progress in Krishna Consciousness.” – Letter to: Lynn, Calcutta, 23 November, […]
The post Our Secret Weapon appeared first on Mayapur.com.
ECO-Vrindaban Board Meeting Minutes 12/17/2017
Mission Statement: ECO-Vrindaban promotes simple living, cow protection, engaging oxen, local agriculture, and above all, loving Krishna, as envisioned by Srila Prabhupada, the Founder-Acharya of ISKCON New Vrindaban.
Participating Directors: Chaitanya Mangala (chair), Kripamaya, Ranaka, and Vraja.
Participating Advisors: Jamuna Jivani (secretary), Kalakantha (partial attendance), Makara, and Olivia.
1. Ranaka’s Monthly Report
2. Fall 2017 Joint Board Meetings Recap
Chaitanya Mangala reported on the joint board meetings that were held November 10-12:
3. ECO-V Website Update
Jamuna Jivani resumed work on the website from earlier in the summer, and Makara also volunteered to help with this project. They are gathering some more material and writing the last of the content. They aim to have everything to the web designer within the next week.
4. Online Cow & Cowherd Campaign
ECO-V’s new Facebook campaign consists of two weekly posts; one featuring a cow, and the other a cowherd/gardener/staff. These posts provide information about their personality and history (for the cows) and about their service, history, etc. (for staff). This was the idea of Sukhayanti and Nila Gopal, and they are putting together the content, with the help of the ECO-V team. This has been a very popular campaign, as many Facebook users have been reading and appreciating these posts.
5. Cow Adoption Request
The Lakshmi Cow Sanctuary, located in PA, has requested ECO-V to adopt five of their cows, as the director, Dr. Sankar Sastri, is nearing retirement. In order to understand the situation more fully and to be able to make a clear decision, Ranaka will find out:
6. Gita Nagari Grant Request
Devotees at Gita Nagari are building a new feed area and manure storage facility for their cows. The total cost is $268K. They were successfully awarded a grant of $134K from the USDA. It is a cost share grant so they have to raise the balance. Dhruva Maharaja dasa, the President of Gita Nagari, asked if ECO-V would help them complete the project.
WHEREAS: The ECO-V Board wishes support cow protection throughout ISKCON, especially with our sister organization at Gita Nagari.
RESOLVED: The ECO-V Board authorizes a grant up to $10K to Gita Nagari for help with the completion of their new facility, contingent upon confirmation of their ability to raise the remaining funds.
For regular updates please visit and like the ECO-V Facebook page.
(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 07 October 2017, Canberra, Australia, Srimad Bhagavatam 4.27.25)
The essence of spiritual life is simple – to render some devotional service to Krsna. This does not require very complex philosophical understanding. However, there are some injunctions which require analysis, for example, “One who does not give to charity according to the customs of the scriptures and who does not accept from charity are considered to be in the mode of ignorance.”
So giving to charity is very important. We have to be charitable because if we are not and we just hold onto things, we develop a deep attachment to matter. Therefore we have to give in charity but it must be done according to the scripture, otherwise what benefit is that charity? If we just give charity to the poor what will the poor do with that charity? If they engage in sinful activity then nobody will benefit. They will not benefit and you will not benefit.
I saw a ghastly scene in Calcutta. Near the Howrah Bridge, under the flyover, there are colonies of lepers. They do not look very nice because their fingers and their noses are gone. They look intense and naturally, we feel some compassion but also a little fear of getting too close. As I walked past, I saw how one of them picked up a stone and smashed the head of a sleeping dog. They killed the dog right, there in front of my eyes and later when I had to walk back on the same road, I saw that they were cooking the flesh of the dog on a fire. It is a sinful little world there!
So, it not just poverty but they are deeply rooted in the mode of ignorance and endure the suffering that comes with it. It is not so simple to help, to be charitable. Mother Theresa would just take the beggars off the streets and offer them a bed. That was very good but how are we going to change their heart? How are we going to actually remove those sinful inclinations which brought them down to their ghastly situation?
Those kinds of questions come up in Krsna consciousness. In this way, we can see that to give or to accept charity is a complication. If one accepts charity and uses even one cent of that charity, then one will get some of the karma by which those funds were attained, unless one offers it to Krsna. By offering to Krsna, we can purify. Yes, that is true but still to offer things, which have been obtained from a sinful source to Krsna is not recommended.
Now in this age of Kali, it is very difficult because everything is tinged with sin. If we have to do a security check on whoever gives a donation to find out where the money came from and whether any sin was involved, it will become too complicated. But when the drug dealer starts to regularly give money to the temple then at one point it becomes a problem where you have to say, “Well, this is not ideal,” and it becomes a cut-off point. When a butcher gives a donation, we accept it to purify that butcher, to give him a chance to be saved from hell but at the same time if we just get a direct pipeline of money coming in from the slaughterhouse, then it becomes a bit compromised. So like this, even living according to scriptures is not just cut and dry.
The TOVP management has arranged for a live broadcast of the Grand Installation Ceremony of the Chakras onto Sri Sri Radha Madhava’s and Lord Nrsimhadeva’s domes on February 7th, 2018 through MayapurTV. Now every devotee will have an opportunity to view this occasion live right from the comfort of their own home and with their entire family.
This momentous and pivotal occasion, perhaps the most important in ISKCON’s history to date, represents the completion of a ten year phase of construction and the beginning of the remaining phase of construction of the TOVP as we approach the Grand Opening in 2022. It heralds yet another milestone of achievement in our cooperative effort to fulfill Srila Prabhupada’s strong desire to build this unique temple and establish Sridhama Mayapur as the spiritual capital of the world, nay, the universe, from whence the sankirtan movement of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu began and Krishna prema flows.
The address to access MayapurTV is: www.mayapur.com/media/mayapur-tv/
A link to download the Schedule of Events is below and we request you print it to post at your local temple and share on your Facebook Page and other social media. Become a TOVP Ambassador and spread the word.
Please note that the schedule times are for India and you will have to adjust that for your own time zone.
To sponsor an abhisheka for one or both Chakras go to:
https://tovp.org/donate/once-in-a-lifetime-chakra-abhisheka-seva-opportunity/
Schedule of Events can be downloaded by clicking the button below.
The post Watch the Live Broadcast of the Historic TOVP Chakra Installation Ceremony appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.
(photo by Laura Fasulo) KEEPERS OF THE FLAME: Although this expression is most often used by our Christian brothers and sisters, I totally relate to its exclamation in relationship to what or who I am, or at least, aspire to be: A Keeper of the Flame of Bhakti, or A Keeper of the Flame of Spirituality. Personally, I see this as a responsibility for all followers of Shri Chaitanya and those who represent him. I visualize a flame burning brightly in my heart, or raising a torch in my hand to dispel darkness. To me, this is inspiring! "Lead me from untruth to truth! Lead me from darkness to light! Lead me from death to immortality." [Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad 1.3.28] This is my meditation and affirmation on being a keeper of the flame.
More than ever before in my life, this is what I want to stand for, and share, and be, and promote. Though admittedly this has waned in the last year, I keep being reminded of it, and now this is the direction I want to take. With this new year, I am reaffirming my commitment. Thus, I write and speak with the prayer to do this service of giving light and encouragement to deal with our worldly desires and nature in the context of spiritual growth—transforming our human life into the life of the soul. Easy to say, I am well aware, yet for me, I need to keep high aspirations always in mind and in my prayers for my highest prospect. Otherwise I may just settle to get by as I have for so many years.
Maintenance of ISKCON is in the hands of the next generation by Bhakti Charu Swami. Published on Jan 5, 2018 (video)
Srimad Bhagavatam Class 11.6.34-35 By Radhanath Swami at ISKCON Chowpatty on 6th January 2018 (video)
The Wall Street Journal: Psychologists Shouldn’t Ignore the Soul!
David H. Rosmarin: When I was an intern, patients frequently asked if they could talk to me about God.
In my first six months as a predoctoral psychology intern at McLean Hospital, I was approached by at least 10 patients asking essentially the same question: Can I speak to you about God? They wanted to discuss their problems not in psychological terms but in spiritual ones. I guess the yarmulke on my head suggested I was an appropriate person to offer guidance.
To read the entire article click here: https://goo.gl/kmLzj6
New Varshana’s Ratha Yatra (6 min video)
Prananatha Das: New Varshan devotees held a Ratha Yatra Festival today, pulling the Rath cart around the farm. This was the first time that many of the devotees and guests saw our new, Govardhan Hill. You won’t believe your eyes!! (Thanks to the hard work of Saci Suta and his wife, Ananta Krishna. ).
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/DoV3Lq
Prabhupada had planned the takeover of Russia long before he ever went to Russia.
Govinda dasi: He used to sit and turn the globe, and he would meditate on the different countries.
And he would say, “Brahmananda, you shall go to Russia. Goursundar, you shall go to Japan. Somebody else, you shall go to South America.”
You have to understand, we had no money, we had no manpower, we had nothing.
We were a handful of teenagers, 10 people in their early 20’s who were rather eccentric, all of us, because we had rejected our cultural values and we were following him like a Pied Piper, and he was telling us about these different countries we were going to go to and open temples.
He had his plan. It was not haphazardly done.
I have a beautiful picture of Prabhupada sitting and turning his globe.
He did it a lot. He meditated on the globe.
He looked at the different countries. You would see him doing it a lot, and he was planning.
He had planned the takeover of Russia long before he ever went to Russia.
This is a part of what he knew he had to come to this world and do.
We just didn’t know what all he was doing, although sometimes…in Montreal when we had a lot of time and he would talk, he used to talk to me about his different plans.
We had no money. We lived in a little flat. We had rats too.
There was nothing and yet he was telling me how he was going to have a world sankirtan party, and he also told me how he wanted to have a big auditorium where people could come and watch bhajans and hear bhajans and see plays and Krishna conscious things rather than going to the cinemas.
He felt the cinemas were drawing people into another world.
He had plans of doing this.
And when I go to Bombay and I see that great big auditorium, I say, “He said he was going to do this.”
It’s just like if I’m a pauper and I tell you I’m going to build Disneyland, and that’s what it was like.
But I never disbelieved anything he said, I just listened.
I was just always listening to him, and he liked to talk about what he was going to do.
And he talked about many things.
—Govinda dasi
The appearance of Govardhana hill in New Varshana. (Album with photos)
By the mercy of Srila Prabhupada!!
The residing Deities are Sri Sri Radha-Giridhari installed by Srila Prabhupada 1972.
Work in progress.
One night Sacisuta Prabhu one of the older devotees of New Varshana, Auckland, NewZealand had a dream about Govardhana hill. And when he woke up from his dream he said to his wife Ananta Krsna dd I’m going to build Govardhana hill and as you can see by the photos Sri Giri Govardhan! is fulfilling his desire by manifesting himself by His causeless mercy.
Today we sprinkled dust from Braj over Govardhana.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/CSUpqf
By Adikarta Das The Supreme Personality of Godhead is worshiped with the prayer name brahmanya-devaya go-brahmana-hitaya ca. Thus it is clear that the Supreme Personality of Godhead respects and protects the brahmanas and brahminical culture, as well as the cows; in other words wherever there are brahmanas and brahminical culture, there are cows and cow protection. In a society or civilization which there are no brahmanas or brahminical culture, cows are treated as ordinary animals and slaughtered, at the sacrifice of human civilization.The specific mentions the word gave by Prthu Maharaja is significant because the Lord is always associated with cows and His devotees.In pictures Lord Krishna is always seen with cows and His associates such as the cowherd boys and the gopis. Continue reading "Will Veganism save the cows?
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By Dravida dasa *Absolutely no offerings will be accepted after April 15, 2018.* Offerings must be in English. Please restrict the length to a maximum of 3,000 words. Please omit all diacritics on words that can be found in the VedaBase. It’s easier for us to put them in. If you quote a verse from outside the VedaBase or compose original Sanskrit, please include diacritics. Do not "recycle" an offering — no offerings from previous years will be accepted. The Vyasa-puja book is meant for glorifying Srila Prabhupada, not venting grievances. The BBT reserves the right to reject an offering it deems inappropriate or to ask for a rewrite. When writing an offering on behalf of a temple or other unit, please try to write in such a way that the other devotees in your unit can also identify with the offering. Continue reading "Call for homages for Srila Prabhupada’s 2018 Vyasa Puja Book
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By Abhirama das In the previous months at the old center some neighbors were disturbing the programs in different ways, devotees could not have kirtans, and there were other obstacles that discouraged guests from visiting the old temple. Eventually Temple President Prabhu Das suggested to the community to find another place in which they could properly glorify Sri Krishna loudly, without restrictions. They then began to look for another place. A few short weeks later they found out that a nearby building, in which they had previously done some Food for Life programs, was now empty and that they were looking for somebody to rent it. Continue reading "New Center in Torino
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The post Daily Darshan: January 07,2018 appeared first on Mayapur.com.
Adi Purusa Das, the TP of Canberra temple, invited me to a kirtan program on a Saturday night. Even though on that day it was nearly 40 degrees, quite a few devotees attended the evening of blissful chanting.
Apart from myself there were a few local kirtaniyas who led, such as, Gauravana das, Ananda devi dasi and Ayodhyadeva das. At the end everyone relished a wonderful feast cooked by Krsna Kirta das.
Mission Impossible (The Impossible Quest)
“IMPOSSIBLE is a word in fool’s dictionary.” Hope you have heard this statement oftentimes. Such inspiring statements invigorate one to do things that apparently seem to be beyond one’s capacity. But did you ever try to contemplate in what ‘context’ such statements could be used? And what could be the driving force that enables a person to make impossible things possible?
Scriptures proclaim that not a blade of grass moves without the permission and sanction of the Supreme Lord. Sure enough, this is no exaggeration, because every living entity is utterly dependent on the Lord in every walk of his life. So, without the sanction of the Lord, how does any insignificant mortal possibly achieve anything impossible?
Here is the formula to achieve the impossible. If one has a pure intent to render tangible service to the humanity selflessly, the Lord and His representatives help him in every possible way to make the impossible tasks possible. It’s the blessings and good wishes of great souls and the Lord that make one accomplish impossible missions, and not the individual’s determination inspired by one’s own whimsical desires. If one is obsessed to achieve one’s selfish ambitions that cause no good to others, his taking of so-called inspiration from such statements is merely passionate, if not imprudent. In fact, a selfish person’s desire to achieve impossible goals doesn’t cause any good to his own self. We see several examples in the scriptures like Hiranyakashipu and Ravana who tried to become immortal, which is impossible for any mortal being, causing great disturbance to people in general and ultimately ruining their own lives.
On the other hand we have an example from the Srimad Bhagavatam that describes the glorious sacrifice of a selfless soul who took up an impossible mission and made it possible by the power of his pure intent. Once upon a time there lived the great king Sagara, who was an ancestor of Lord Rama. He decided to perform a horse sacrifice. Indra, the king of heaven, being envious of Sagara had stolen the sacrificial horse and tied it near the hermitage of the great sage Kapiladeva. The 60,000 sons of Sagara went in search of the lost horse and found it near Kapila’s hermitage. They mistook Kapila as a thief and tried to attack him. The angry sage then burnt all of them to ashes. Ansuman, the grandson of Sagara then approached Kapila and begged for the deliverance of his forefathers. Kapila told that they could be delivered only when touched by the holy waters of river Ganges. Dilipa, the son of Ansuman tried to bring the Ganges to this world but died without success.
King Bhagiratha, the son of Dilipa, was determined to bring the Ganges to this world, and underwent severe austerities. Mother Ganges, being fully satisfied by his austerities, appeared before him. Bhagiratha then requested her to deliver his forefathers. But Gangadevi expressed her concern that her waters would be very forceful that the flow would pierce the surface of earth. She therefore asked Bhagiratha to find someone who is capable of checking her force. Bhagiratha then prayed to Lord Siva who agreed for this task, and thus helped the descent of Ganga devi. Simply by the touch of the holy Ganges, Bhagiratha’s forefathers were delivered and allowed to go to the heavenly planets.
Thus Bhagiratha with his determined will accomplished the impossible mission of bringing Mother Ganges to this planet. Thus, he not only delivered his forefathers but also every living entity that would come in contact with holy waters of the Ganges for the rest of eternity.
Similarly in our journey of life, we face many ups and downs and many missions that may seem impossible. But the lesson we learn from the descent of Ganga is to remain fixed in the goal of life, by the strength of higher virtue. Life is not worth living without seemingly impossible challenges. If one takes up challenges with pure motivation and determination, in a spirit of doing good to others, Lord favors him in all his movements and makes every circumstance in life favorable to him.
(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 02 January 2018, Murwillumbah, Australia, House Programme)
It is said that the pastimes of Lord Caitanya are like the sky and different birds are flying on different levels in that sky. But some birds do not fly at all, for example, chickens; they do not fly. But I tell you, by this kirtan, we are becoming flying chickens!
Prabhupada said, “Impossible is a word in a fool’s dictionary.” That is a fact. Nothing is impossible. We think we know our limitations. We think we know how far we can take it but with the mercy of Lord Caitanya, it is no longer like that. We astound ourselves. We can do things that were impossible, that we could have never done.
So in this way, we can have faith that somehow or other we will do it. We will make it. That is empowerment. This whole principle of empowerment is just wonderful. We are not restricted by our limitations because we can be empowered to rise above. That is what this kirtan is actually doing: it is empowering us to go beyond anything we ever thought possible – to experience things that we never thought could be.
Srimad Bhagavatam Class in Mayapur, Jan 4, 2018, Canto 8.6.12 by Atita Guna devi dasi ACBSP.
Unlike Radhanath Swami, Visakha was not on a search to find God, although she had no faith that the materialistic lifestyle of those surrounding her in her youth would satisfy her. 
Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami Appearance day celebrated at ISKCON-Delhi, 06-01-2018(Album with 16 photos)
Srila Prabhupada: All gl...
Recently released a thought provoking song inspired by the Bhagavad Gita with transcendental lyrics set to reggae beats, and through it hopes to awaken the curiosity of many a sleeping soul throughout the world! 
Krishna katha kept everyone captivated for more than two hours (Album with photos)
On 11th Nov 2017, Gaur Gopal Das was invited to speak at Artha Forum on the topic of ‘Living in the VUCA world,’ at RELC International Hotel, Singapore.
Smart and well-informed group of entrepreneurs, corporate leaders, professionals, and students gathered to hear from him, seeking for new perspectives on dealing with the mayhem around us. Filled with deep wisdom and realizations, the talk and follow-up Q&A kept everyone captivated for more than two hours.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/6yy8op
By Visnu Murti das On January 2nd in a conference call, the Global BBT unanimously voted to *continue* the special augmented book points for Arabic and Farsi books! So it did not stop at the end of the year, and is still active right now and for the whole of 2018 (at least)! This is also nicely timed for the long awaited launch of the new Arabic Gita which will be awarding the book distributors with 6 (six) points for each sale instead of the normal 2 points for a Gita. So please feel free to get this good news out to all the sankirtan devotees of your area. Continue reading "Great news for Sankirtan devotees
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By MCO To this day, the ISKCON Mayapur Food for Life strives and, by the mercy of Srila Prabhupada, succeeds in fulfilling this instruction. Over the last eight years, the ISKCON Mayapur Food for Life program, under the Sri Mayapur Food Relief Trust, has distributed over three million, nine hundred and twenty-five thousand, seven hundred plates of prasadam (3,925,700 plates). By the end of this year, the number of plates will have reached four million. Continue reading "Our Secret Weapon
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By Sitalatma das Why is that thousands of these Orthodox monks can chant day and night non-stop but we can't? Now that many of our devotees are retired from active duties and call themselves vanaprasthas perhaps it's time for our society to start talking about increasing the number of our daily rounds. Not compulsory, of course, but for those who can it could be encouraged. Another important aspect is that in Orthodox Christianity following preceptors is the only way of spiritual progress. There's no democracy on Mt. Athos, you can't just show up and claim the right to be taught - one must be selected and accepted by a known teacher. Likewise, one can't practice on his own - guidance must always be there. One can't approach Jesus Christ on his own either - only through what we'd call a parampara. Continue reading "Monks of Mount Athos – is there something we should learn from them?
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The post Daily Darshan: January 06,2018 appeared first on Mayapur.com.
Giriraj Swami: In anticipation of the fortieth anniversary of of the Juhu temple, Rasa-sundari dasi wrote about serving there:
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay from 1990 to 1992 was sometimes a real challenge, because we had hardly any facilities.
In the beginning there were only three of us, not even initiated then: Bhakta Juan, Bhaktin Manju, and myself, Bhaktin Flor.
Cooking was done on the second floor in a small kitchen connected to the Bhaktivedanta Institute. Guru Maharaja always took his prasadam in his office, and as he liked hot chapattis, we were cooking them on the second floor and then running down the hall with them, one by one, to the office.
There were no mobile phones at that time, so lots of time was spent trying to find each other to get the messages through.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant to be able to go with him to visit all those wonderful devotees who were present during Srila Prabhupada’s time—Mrs. Nirmala Singhal, Dr. C. P. Patel, Mr. P. L. Sethi, Srimati Sumati Morariji. They all received Guru Maharaja like a long-lost son who finally had come home.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant witnessing how he gave himself fully to each and every person who wanted to see him, and everyone wanted to see him. He never showed any concern for himself, whether he had eaten, taken rest, or had some time for himself.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant being the lucky first three devotees that received initiation from him under the loving glance of Sri Sri Radha-Rasabihariji, and we became Vrindavan das, Janaki devi dasi, and Rasa-sundari dasi.
After our initiation, Guru Maharaja allowed us to collect guru-daksina in front of the restaurant. At the end of the day, when Vrindavan das told Guru Maharaja that because of his service, he had not been able to collect anything and so he had nothing to give to him, Guru Maharaja looked at him and said, “You need not worry about that—you have already given me your life.”
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant being able to see him many mornings on the altar doing the mangala-arati for Sri Sri Radha-Rasabihariji.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant seeing him so expertly supervise the cleaning and maintenance of Srila Prabhupada’s quarters. He wanted us, the devotees, to do the cleaning and everything else there.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant watching him go almost every morning after mangala-arati to Srila Prabhupada’s quarters and chant his rounds there.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant meeting and serving so many of his wonderful godbrothers and godsisters who had served together with him during Prabhupada’s times, and seeing the love they all had for him.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant realizing that you are not this body, when after ten or twelve hours of intense service you fell on your bed, the body completely exhausted and the soul inside completely blissful, wanting to do more.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay was one of the happiest times in my life!
—Rasa-sundari dasi
In anticipation of the fortieth anniversary of the Juhu temple, Rasa-sundari dasi wrote about serving there:
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay from 1990 to 1992 was sometimes a real challenge, because we had hardly any facilities.
In the beginning there were only three of us, not even initiated then: Bhakta Juan, Bhaktin Manju, and myself, Bhaktin Flor.
Cooking was done on the second floor in a small kitchen connected to the Bhaktivedanta Institute. Guru Maharaja always took his prasadam in his office, and as he liked hot chapattis, we were cooking them on the second floor and then running down the hall with them, one by one, to the office.
There were no mobile phones at that time, so lots of time was spent trying to find each other to get the messages through.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant to be able to go with him to visit all those wonderful devotees who were present during Srila Prabhupada’s time—Mrs. Nirmala Singhal, Dr. C. P. Patel, Mr. P. L. Sethi, Srimati Sumati Morariji. They all received Guru Maharaja like a long-lost son who finally had come home.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant witnessing how he gave himself fully to each and every person who wanted to see him, and everyone wanted to see him. He never showed any concern for himself, whether he had eaten, taken rest, or had some time for himself.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant being the lucky first three devotees that received initiation from him under the loving glance of Sri Sri Radha-Rasabihariji, and we became Vrindavan das, Janaki devi dasi, and Rasa-sundari dasi.
After our initiation, Guru Maharaja allowed us to collect guru-daksina in front of the restaurant. At the end of the day, when Vrindavan das told Guru Maharaja that because of his service, he had not been able to collect anything and so he had nothing to give to him, Guru Maharaja looked at him and said, “You need not worry about that—you have already given me your life.”
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant being able to see him many mornings on the altar doing the mangala-arati for Sri Sri Radha-Rasabihariji.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant seeing him so expertly supervise the cleaning and maintenance of Srila Prabhupada’s quarters. He wanted us, the devotees, to do the cleaning and everything else there.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant watching him go almost every morning after mangala-arati to Srila Prabhupada’s quarters and chant his rounds there.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant meeting and serving so many of his wonderful godbrothers and godsisters who had served together with him during Prabhupada’s times, and seeing the love they all had for him.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay meant realizing that you are not this body, when after ten or twelve hours of intense service you fell on your bed, the body completely exhausted and the soul inside completely blissful, wanting to do more.
Serving Guru Maharaja in Bombay was one of the happiest times in my life!
—Rasa-sundari dasi
