Memories of TKG and the Radha-Damodara TSKP

[Guest guest]

MEMORIES OF TAMAL KRISHNA MAHARAJA

and THE RADHA-DAMODARA TRAVELLING SANKIRTANA PARTY

By Brahma Das

 

I worked extensively under Tamal Krishna Maharaja from 1975 through 1979. We

met when I was in San Francisco working with Swami Tripurari on his BBT book

distribution party. At that time TKG asked me to join his party as leader of

one of the new Radha-Damodara Buses.

 

Upon returning from India TKG had teamed up with his old friend Visnujana

Maharaja and turned his festival bus program into a dynamic preaching party.

Together their preaching was so powerful that they recruited enough devotees

to fill up two new busses. Soon those devotees were selling more BTGs than

any other zone in North American. Therefore BTG featured ads for RDTSKP in

every issue. This ad had a picture of Visnujana Maharaja chanting and

playing harmonium that read: "Travel with advanced devotees of the Hare

Krishna movement" and "Learn to play ancient Indian Instruments."

 

Because of these ads every devotee in the movement knew about RDTSKP and

almost every brahmacari secretly wanted to travel and preach with TKG and

Visnujana Maharaja. New men were also joining as well so TKG commissioned

two more buses and was looking for devotees to put in charge of them. It was

at this time in 1975 that Radha-Damodara visited San Francisco and there is

an amusing and insightful story regarding how I came to be part of the

RDTSKP team.

 

The first day the bus arrived in SF I was in the brahmacari ashram and came

across Visnujana Maharaja singing in the shower. Everyone knew Visnujana

Maharaja and loved him. He had a warm dramatic style that had the power to

transport a person immediately to Vaikuntha.

 

As I stepped into the shower room Maharaja recognized me and said, "Brahma,

why are you here in SF, did you know that TKG and I wanted to put you in

charge of one of the new busses?"

 

I was shocked at this statement as I had only been in the movement three

short years and was barely twenty-two years old. Certainly one had to have

more experience and maturity than I to be in charge of a Radha-Damodara bus.

When my ego and mind recovered from the shock I asked VJ Swami what I would

do if I became a bus leader.

 

There dripping from the shower Visnujana Maharaja dramatically outlined

everything to me in vivid terms.

 

He said," You will be the spider.The spider", I replied with a puzzled

look.

 

"Yes, he said, At the festivals Radha-Damodara weaves a web through the

chanting of their Holy Names and various types of conditioned souls are

caught on that web. You as the spider will have to find out which of the

souls caught on their web of chanting are ready to surrender their lives to

Radha-Damodara. Those souls who are worthy you transport to your lair on the

bus and turn them into shining new bhaktas for Krishna and Prabhupada. Then

he opened his arms leaned into the shower and as the stream of water

cascaded over his head he chanted in a loud voice Radha-Damodara Ki-JAI!"

 

Needles to say I was spellbound by Visnujana's ecstatic presentation and the

picture it painted in my mind. I was now speechless and in a half a minute

VJ Swami had turned my world upside down and I began to believe that

Prabhupada and Radha-Damodara wanted me to be the" spider" on a RDTSKP bus.

 

Such was the power of Visnujana Swami's amazing love for Radha-Damodara.

 

There was however a slight problem. Before I could join RDTSKP and begin

"spider training" I would have to talk to Tripurari Maharaja who had just

recruited me to be in charge of the SF airport book distribution party.

Outside VJ Swami's influence I became confused and depressed at the thought

of letting down Tripurari Maharaja and the BBT party. I was in a dilemma but

little did I know that TKG the great preacher, organizer, and problem solver

was about to work his magic behind the scenes.

 

First he called me in and asked if I wanted to join RDTSKP. At this point

although I really wanted to be "the spider" I was confused and told him I

was undecided. He was not happy about this answer and gave me a strong

lecture about taking on responsibility for Prabhupada. He said I had

leadership potential and on RDTSKP that potential could be developed for

Krishna's service. I objected and said that I was distributing books for the

BBT and knew that service was extremely pleasing to Prabhupada. At this TKG

hesitated and thought for a moment. Something was going on in the back of

his mind. He ended the conversation by saying, yes book distribution is

no-doubt pleasing to Prabhupada and asked me to join him for prasadam after

I came back from the airport tomorrow.

 

The next day at the airport I was too disturbed to distribute many books. To

be the spider or not to be the spider was the question disturbing my mind.

And that was my mental state when I went to the bus for dinner with TKG and

VJ Swami. As I was dined and flattered by two of the most respected devotees

in the movement the bus book distribution team came in to take prasadam.

 

One by one TKG introduced each devotee and asked how many books he had sold

that day. Each devotee replied with a number that ranged from ten to thirty

books. After he was done he said this is Brahma Das, he is a very famous BBT

book distributor. Then he asked how many books I had sold today. Having had

a bad day I was embarrassed to report that I had only sold about fifteen

books that afternoon.

 

At that TKG pointed his finger at me and said very sternly, these men are

all new bhaktas and they have almost to a man each sold more books than you.

With good training these devotees will be able to preach and sell more and

more books but none of them are qualified now or any time in the near future

to be a RDTSKP bus leader. These new men need experienced guidance and that

is why the best service for you is to take command of one of the new busses.

 

Again I was speechless. Both Visnujana Swami and TKG each in their own way

had overwhelmed me in a matter of minutes. I knew at that time that these

two were the most dynamic preaching team in the movement and I wanted to be

part of that team.

 

But there was still the problem with my responsibilities to the BBT party.

TKG quickly took care of this problem to everyone's satisfaction by offering

three of his best book distributors as replacements for me on the BBT party.

But before he did this TKG asked me one important question.

 

Are you considering grhastha life?

 

"Grhastha life is fine for Bhaktivinode Thakura but not for me", I replied.

 

He then smiled and said that was the right answer as he wanted only

dedicated brahmacari or sannyasi leaders on his bus party. And with that I

was welcomed aboard.

 

I served on RDTSKP for the next three years as a bus leader. TKG was a hard

taskmaster but he was able to motivate me like no one had done before and in

turn I was able to motivate others. He saw something of my potential for

service and I had faith and appreciation for him. As bus leader I had to

call him from the field once a week and those calls either left me tearful

because I had let him down or elated because he was pleased. He had a

powerful effect on my life that has been with me ever since.

 

By 1979 the RDTSKP busses were all broken down or dry-docked and I was

serving on the Indian library party out of Bombay. TKG called me in Bombay

and asked me to return to the states to take a bus on the road again. I

loved the bus party and returned to be reunited again with many from my old

party.

 

There was Hasyagrami who had been my driver and festival equipment manager,

Sunanda the cook and kirtana leader, and Drista the sincere and dedicated

leader of the book distribution party. We were all happy to be serving

together again on the bus. Once our bus party alone consisted of

twenty-eight brahmacaris packed together on a bus and accompanying three

vans. Now we were going to Texas to distribute books, preach and put on

festivals with a total of seven devotees. Times had changed and now TKG was

in charge of temples rather than busses and had to put most of his energy

into those responsibilities. We were on the road in Texas for about six

months. Finally we parked the bus in Austin and started a restaurant

preaching center near the University of Texas that TKG named Govinda's

Super-Natural Foods.

 

That was the last ride of RDTSKP. But anyone who took that or any ride on

RDTSKP between 1974 and 1979 will never forget it. And all owe a debt of

gratitude to Tamal Krishna Goswami for making it possible for Radha-Damodara

and their devotees to travel down that historic road into the glorious

history of the Krishna consciousness movement.

 

 

Sincerely, Brahma Das

brahmadasa