CONTENTS:
- Ocean of Mercy, Chapter 5,
- Srila Prabhupada's Appreciation; and
- Guru Maharaja’s instructions.
1. OCEAN OF MERCY CHAPTER 5 “WITH SRILA PRABHUPADA IN MAYAPUR (FEBRUARY 7 – MARCH 21 1977)”
One beautiful spring morning, when the sun was bathing the earth in golden rays and the air was filled with the fragrance of flowers and the cooing of cuckoo birds, Srila Prabhupada arrived in Mayapur in his maroon Ambassador, its stainless-steel Vaisnava tilaka, an auspicious spiritual marking, emblazoned on the hood. He had been to Bhubaneswar to lay the cornerstone of a new temple that had been developed by Gour Govinda Swami, his sannyasa disciple from Orissa. I could have gone with him but decided to stay behind to complete the printing of Bhagavaner Katha, which I was planning as a surprise offering to His Divine Grace. Devotees stood on either side of the road to greet him, chanting and dancing in jubilant anticipation. When his car appeared in the distance, the kirtana reached a crescendo and the dancing grew wild with ecstasy, and when it stopped in front of the temple and Srila Prabhupada emerged, devotees fell flat on the ground to offer obeisances. Many broke down crying; others stood motionless, transfixed. With Srila Prabhupada in Mayapur (February 7– March 21, 1977) 5 82 Ocean of Mercy With chanting and dancing devotees leading the way, Prabhupada strode gracefully through the crowd into the temple. He had installed the Deities— Sri Sri Radha-Madhava and Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu— several years earlier, in 1972, and when he reached Them he offered his obeisances and then stood in front of the altar gazing at Their transcendental beauty. He circumambulated Them three times and walked to the other end of the temple room, settled down on his vyasasana as the devotees chanted and danced before him, and remained there with his eyes closed, deep in meditation. When the kirtana stopped, Prabhupada recited the prema-dhvani prayers, glorifying and offering respects to the Lord and the previous acaryas. Then he spoke about the goals of the Mayapur project. His spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Ṭhakura, had maintained absolute conviction in Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s prediction that the Krishna consciousness movement would spread throughout the world, to every town and village. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta had showed how one could serve Krishna even while living in big cities and making use of motorcars and other modern amenities. He had given Srila Prabhupada the mission to spread the movement not only in India but also throughout the world, and Prabhupada had carried on the mission with a broad vision, making all kinds of arrangements to attract different kinds of people. Srila Prabhupada quoted a verse from the Bhakti-rasamṛta-sindhu (1.2.187): iha yasya harer dasye karmana manasa gira nikhilasv apy avasthasu jivan-muktah sa ucyate “A person who acts in the service of Krishna with his body, mind, intelligence, and words is a liberated person, even within the material world, although he may be engaged in many apparently material activities.” He pointed out that some people might feel envious upon seeing the devotees living in palatial buildings, but that Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Ṭhakura had said that only the devotees should live in such With Srila Prabhupada in Mayapur. Just as government servants are granted special privileges, those who serve Krishna should be given all kinds of facilities. Also, the Europeans and Americans who were coming to India to preach Krishna consciousness were not accustomed to the hardships of Indian conditions. In Mayapur he was establishing facilities for their stay. Through ISKCON, Srila Prabhupada said, he was combining Western brains and money with Indian spiritual culture. He gave the example of a lame man and a blind man. Alone, each is severely limited. But if the blind man takes the lame man onto his shoulders, then the combination of the blind man’s strong legs and the lame man’s good vision will enable them to achieve so much more. America, he said, was spiritually blind, while India was materially lame. But together they could spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness all over the world.
2. SRILA PRABHUPADA’S APPRECIATION
Through ISKCON, Srila Prabhupada said, he was combining Western brains and money with Indian spiritual culture. He gave the example of a lame man and a blind man. Alone, each is severely limited. But if the blind man takes the lame man onto his shoulders, then the combination of the blind man’s strong legs and the lame man’s good vision will enable them to achieve so much more. America, he said, was spiritually blind, while India was materially lame. But together they could spread Krishna consciousness all over the world.
3. GURU MAHARAJA’S INSTRUCTIONS
Always remember spiritual life is not a sentimental thing. It’s a business vyayavasatmika buddhi, it’s a business. There is a proper way of practicing it. If we practice it properly the result will automatically be there. That is how we have to actually focus on vani, we should never think that he is gone. Rather we should see how he is still guiding me, how he is still inspiring me and how he is still motivating me. And just follow it in that way. The main thing is what you appreciate you broadcast, that is how sravanam, kirtanam. Kirtanam is very very important. Vani has to be sravanam and kirtanam. First you accept and then you broadcast and that is how you show your appreciation to your spiritual master’s vani.
(HH Bhakti Charu Swami Youtube channel entitled “Never think he is gone” posted on 3 July 2022)
(Compiled and Edited by Hemavati Radhika Dasi)
(The content of this E-magazine was based on a book written by HH Bhakti Charu Swami entitled “Ocean of Mercy” first four pages of chapter 5.)