Homages to Srila Prabhupada from Vrindavana Dhama

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Below are a few homages from Srila Prabhupada's Disappearance Day festival

held today in Sri Vrindavana Dhama. Eighty-nine disciples of Srila

Prabhupada were present, although not all were able to speak during the

celebration due to time constraints.

 

We will post more homages in the coming days. Unfortunately, many were not

transcribed due to difficulty with the sound system. There may also be

missing passages or paraphrasing in the offerings for the same reason.

Please forgive our mistakes and shortcomings.

 

 

* * * * * * * * * *

 

 

HH Bhakti Caitanya Swami:

 

I first started coming to the disappearance day festival here in Vrindavana

in '91 and it was very nice but there were not so many devotees, maybe half

what we have here. I was thinking this morning in mangala arati, in the main

temple room, it was completely packed, so Srila Prabhupada's movement, by

his mercy, by his potency, is going on developing. I thought that was a

wonderful glorification of Srila Prabhupada itself, so many people coming to

take shelter of Srila Prabhupada and his movement.

 

I just want to mention one experience I had with Srila Prabhupada which was

not recorded, it was in a darsana, but I found it very, very interesting.

This was in Bhaktivedanta Manor near London, 1974, in the afternoon. Srila

Prabhupada gave darshan in his living/sitting room, big room there in

Bhaktivedanta Manor.

 

One devotee asked Srila Prabhupada about the subject of offenses. He read

from the chapter in Nectar of Devotion which is dealing with offenses. There

Prabhupada talks about the seva aparadhas, the offenses to the deities

beginning with coming into the temple with your shoes on. Then Prabhupada

talks about the ten nama aparadhas. When Srila Prabhupada talks about the

seva aparadhas, Srila Prabhupada says that if you commit any of these

offenses, if you go on chanting Hare Krsna and rendering devotional service,

the effects of these offenses will be washed away. Then Srila Prabhupada

says about the ten offenses to the Holy Names that if you commit these

offenses, you cannot be freed from the reactions.

 

That devotee, in the darsana, read these parts of Nectar of Devotion to

Srila Prabhupada. Then he asked, "Isn't there some way we can become free

from the effects of nama aparadha?"

 

Srila Prabhupada looked at him silently for some seconds, one of those

penetrating looks of Srila Prabhupada and Srila Prabhupada responded. He

said, "You are asking this question because you want to offend. You want to

offend and then just do something and become free like that. This is not the

answer. The answer is you stop offending. No more offenses," Prabhupada

said.

 

No more offenses. So if we try our best to serve Srila Prabhupada, follow

his instructions, and avoid offenses in our devotional service, then we will

please him, we will be successful in our Krsna consciousness, Prabhupada

will be glorified as his followers become more advanced in Krsna

consciousness and in this way we can make progress.

 

Srila Prabhupada ki jai!

 

 

HG Kusa devi dasi:

 

When I look out into the audience and I see this huge family of Srila

Prabhupada's, I feel that I belong to Srila Prabhupada, as we all do.

Relationships come and go, but everything in relationship with Srila

Prabhupada is eternal because he has given himself to Krsna. It means that I

am Srila Prabhupada's and I always will be no matter what happens. Life goes

on and Srila Prabhupada leads the way.

 

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

 

 

HG Grahila dasa:

 

Before coming up here, I just began feeling more and more overwhelmed of the

feeling of such insignificance of my own existence, so small and so tiny in

the midst of such wonderful vaisnavas. I wonder how I can even be here, but

Srila Prabhupada was kind to even those who don't even understand how they

can be here. Yet, we find ourselves here in growing numbers in this

wonderful event glorifying Srila Prabhupada in Vrindavana.

 

I became a devotee in a very small town called Gainesville, Florida. You

have probably heard of Gainesville now because it has grown into a larger

community called Alachua. But in 1971 there were just a couple of devotees.

We were all friends together and we became devotees at the same time. The

first person we contacted who came to Gainesville to teach us Krsna

consciousness was Gargamuni. . .

 

At some point, in all of our Krsna conscious lives, we have a point where we

realize Srila Prabhupada was someone very special. Even in those early days

when, we were running hither and thither, there comes a point when the light

come on like ? Prabhu was speaking that when he saw Srila Prabhupada all

doubts were removed.

 

When I was just a new bhakta, Srila Prabhupada was actually coming to

Gainesville. This was a very special event for us. We were hoping we could

actually become devotees by his coming to Gainesville. My first engagement

was, everybody knows Amarindra. He was the temple president then, he gave me

the engagement to build Srila Prabhupada a vyasasana. This vyasasana turned

out to become very stout, very big and very strong. I had no idea what I was

doing so I was just putting together these pieces of lumber and Ananga

Manjari came and covered it with cloth.

 

When Prabhupada arrived, we threw flowers at his feet and he offered

obeisances to Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati in picture form. Then he

proceeded to the vyasasana. He sat on the vyasasana and was looking over the

assembled devotees and looked very happy. Somehow he glanced down upon me.

It was one those glances many devotees have described as Srila Prabhupada

knows you, he knows everything you have done and everything you are going to

do. A major light comes on that you have actually met the person who is

going to guide you. This was a very significant moment and I began to cry at

that moment.

 

Many years have passed since then. We see that many, many lights have come

on. Just by coming Vrindavana, Mayapur, various places that Srila Prabhupada

has touched, we see that everything is moving forward just as he wished.

Being older disciples, sometimes we have a sense of maybe becoming a bit

complacent, but if we have any strength left to give Srila Prabhupada, we

should give it to him very soon because very soon, as we see, many

godbrothers and godsisters are leaving us. So we should do it now and help

others learn what we have learned and glorify Srila Prabhupada to help

lights come on and preach very boldly.

 

Srila Prabhupada gave us a very simple formula that we should preach very

boldly, take sumptuous prasadam. . . this formula works and has always

worked.

 

That is all I have to say.

 

 

HG Prthu dasa:

 

I forgot when it was, maybe '73 or '75, when Prabhupada came to the Eiffel

Tower. And the question was raised, "Srila Prabhupada it says that one who

chants has visited all the holy places."

 

Srila Prabhupada laughed heartily for a while and chuckled, "That may be so

that you have seen all the places in a previous life but don't think that.

Actually, I have created your good fortune."

 

He came out of Vrindavana to create good fortune for thousands of fortunate

souls. If one comes in touch with a pure devotee, he gets the bhaktilata. He

came late as far as age is concerned, and although in old age, he published

100 books, opened over 100 temples, initiated 5000 disciples, gave about

3000 lectures, wrote 15000 letters and he permeated our consciousness with

hundreds of advices and instructions on how to come to Krsna. The world is

complex and he cut through all of this.

 

In Srimad Bhagavatam it says there are many fools and rascals who propose

this and that but real liberation comes only when we concentrate on our next

life. So simple. . . He taught how to do this by giving us so much seva, as

he did himself in an awesome way. Krsna says in Bhagavad-gita when the

parampara is lost then he comes to rebuild. . . As people get deviated,

fortunately, Krsna sends acaryas like Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur

and Srila Prabhupada to put everything into place again, Lord Caitanya, too.

And the practical proof is how much sakti Srila Prabhupada had that in such

a short time he did so much.

 

Most people in their 70s retire, but he started and it won't stop. Srila

Prabhupada is not gone. The last day he was put into samadhi and then there

was salt and earth and a little mound and a bamboo was sticking out to

locate his head for the murti to be placed. There was a little hole when the

bamboo came out. In my dream the hole became a chimney and I could see him

and all he said was "They think I am dead". And many thought that, and did

things otherwise. But, "He reasons ill who tells that Vaisnavas die, when

thou art living still in sound. A Vaisnava dies and living tires to spread

the holy name around."

 

Srila Prabhupada, thank you so much for saving us in the West, in India too,

you are directly Krsna's representative, mahabhagavat, saktyavesa avatara.

 

 

HG Sankarsana dasa:

 

There are no words actually sufficient to reciprocate the love Srila

Prabhupada has given to me and all of us. This love is absolutely

inconceivable, unlimited, fathomless. Fathomless means there is absolutely

no limit to get the mercy, wisdom of His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada. I

simply remembered this morning how much I was suffering. I was crying that

my life is so empty, so meaningless, so horribly nightmarish. But then the

grace of His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada and so many wonderful of his

followers, just like Makhanlal Prabhu is here, he preached to me first in

Berkley. Then His Holiness Visnujana Maharaj came to Austin in 1971. So by

the kindness of Srila Prabhupada and the kindness expanded by Srila

Prabhupada through his followers, I have gotten the opportunity to actually

become happy and get out of my suffering condition. So how much I am

indebted to Srila Prabhupada and to all of you, there is no limit.

 

Everything about Srila Prabhupada is absolutely wonderful. A devotee asked

Srila Prabhupada, "Srila Prabhupada what happens when you give someone a

simply wonderful on the street?"

 

Srila Prabhupada said, "He will take that simply wonderful and he will come

to your temple and he will become simply wonderful. Krsna is simply

wonderful, this process of Krsna consciousness is simply wonderful and you

are all simply wonderful."

 

Then one devotee said, "Prabhupada is simply wonderful!"

 

Prabhupada said, "That's alright, have kirtan."

 

I thank you all for being the simply wonderful followers of Srila

Prabhupada, giving this simply terrible wretch Sankarsana dasa, the

opportunity to become Krsna conscious.