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Dear Prabhus,

 

I received this most profoundly written account of the

recent passing of our wonderful Godsister, Mula

Prakriti Dasi, in the company of her family and dear

friends and devotees in Vrndanvana. I was deeply

grateful to Mother Maha Devi for providing us all sucn

a vivid and stirring account.

 

I will say "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" and pray

that Lord Krsna and Srimati Radharani bless you many

times over simply for taking the time to put your

thoughts and realizations to paper for the purpose of

properly glorifying such a committed devotee, mother,

wife, friend, samkirtan devotee, and loving daughter

of His Divine GRace Srila Prabhupada. Her passing was

glorious! And now we are all just a little more

prepared to face our futures with hopefully some

measure of faith and commttment also to hearing and

chanting always the Holy Name in life and it's finale.

 

 

I thought also to send a copy of this letter which my

dear friend Narrottama actually read aloud with me

last evening while visiting myself and my family

yestyerday. I am certain that all of you will

appreciate it every bit as much as I did. So please

enjoy and extract what you are able and share with

myself or any of us whatever you like also.

 

Your servant always Praghosa Das

 

 

July 13, 2004

 

Ekadasi in Sri Vrndavana Dhama

 

 

 

O he Vaisnava Thakura……doyara sagara, e dase koruna

kori. Doya pada chaya, sadho he amaya , tomara

carana dhori. O venerable Vaisnavas, O ocean of

mercy, be merciful unto your servant. Give me the

shade of your lotus feet and purify me. I hold on to

your lotus feet. ……Krsna is yours, you have the power

to give Him to me. I am simply running behind you

shouting, “KRSNA KRSNA!”

 

 

 

O he Vaisnava Thakuras,

 

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to our

beloved Spiritual Master, His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, for giving us the nine

devotional Processes of Krsna Consciousness. His

unmatched miracle to the world was introducing all of

us to KRSNA, creating dancing white elephants, turning

hippies into happies, and so lovingly giving us the

shade, shelter and solace of His Lotus Feet. All

glories to all the assembled devotees who are living

and sharing what He has given us.

 

 

 

So, we have finally performed the last rites for our

Godsister Mulaprakrti devi dasi Here in Sri Vrndavana

Dhama, where she left her body two days ago, in the

association of chanting devotees and Srila

Prabhupada's Sacred Voice. During the two weeks she

had been here in MVT, there assembled quite a profound

group of devotees from the NM camp and a few of us

ISKCON devis, who used to distribute Books with her

many centuries ago, or were just well wishers. Aindra

and his men doing sometimes 6hr kirtan shifts, Kurma

rupa das and a few others were coming and going.

Everyone was doing different sevas; the main seva of

course was the continuous chanting of Hare Krsna or

bhajans. I was blessed with the seva of changing her

diapers, helping her body relax in various ways,

making prasadam for the family and this and that.

 

 

 

Last year, I had the fortunate opportunity to speak

with Mula in Vrndavana about Srila Prabhupada’s

contributions to the world. We were reminiscing about

the old days when so many of us in our twenties,

filled with the vigor of youth, were absorbed in

Prabhupada’s Book Distribution. There was a blazing

fire in all of us, individually and collectively, to

spread the rays of the benediction moon, the Sacred

Words of Srila Prabhupada and the Pastimes of Krsna.

We ate, slept, walked and talked, drank and got drunk

with the nectar of putting Srila Prabhupada’s

Bhagavatams, Gita, and the famous blue trilogy Krsna

Book in as many hands and with as many hearts as we

could. Mula and I were laughing about some of the

crazy and austere things we did to distribute these

Books. I remember telling her how we all were amazed

at the stories of her enthusiasm, determination and

drive to give one more soul one of these

transcendental Books! The fire of her dauntless

example motivated Book Distributors all over the

world. Mulaprakrti devi certainly has reaped the

eternal benefits of her “vigorous preaching”, which

Prabhupada himself told us was the best way we could

try to repay the debt to the Spiritual Master.

 

 

 

To be a loyal and chaste wife is very difficult in

this Kali Yuga. Her equally loyal and chaste husband,

Gopavrndapal das and her have given a new and

wonderful meaning to the word “marriage”. Very

difficult these days to stay together and the success

rate in this age has not been good for lifetime

marriage. For their 29 years of seva to each other,

and then for their selfless seva to Nama (Nitya),

Sravanam and Kirtanam, they are receiving the

blessings of the Vaisnavas.

 

 

 

Mula and I spoke frankly about the issues of this camp

and that camp. We shared the same views that it was

unfortunate how devotees were behaving with one

another due to their differences. It made me sad to

hear about devotees not allowed in ISKCON temples and

how roughly they were treated because of their choice

to seek guidance from others. If we are allowing souls

who eat meat, have illicit sexual connections, take

intoxication etc take darshan, then what to speak of

"misguided" devotees. But then it is equally a sad

situation that one would think "guidance from others"

is necessary, especialy if one has been initiated by

Srila Prabhupada. I found my mind and heart

experiencing many questions and I just had to put it

all aside for the purpose of seva to Vaisnava. But I

am certain, without a doubt, that distribution of

Prabhupada's Books and the propagation of His Sacred

Mission, His ISKCON, is the lifelong duty of any

Westerner devotee..

 

 

 

On a global level, it made us even more sad to hear

how differences were seemingly the focus, and not

Srila Prabhupada’s Mission of living and spreading

Krsna Consciousness. I resolved during that

conversation with Mula in Vrndavana last year, that I

would continue to try and offer genuine respect and

seva to ALL Vaisnavas, without losing my own sense of

self and my allegiance to ISKCON.

 

 

 

Recently, I was in Jagannatha Puri, shooting the

Rathyatra and working on some other projects. My

Godsister Sitala was staying in my MVT flat and told

me that Mula was leaving her body. I didn't know. In

like 2 hrs, I packed my bags so quickly and went to

the train station, where they told me “no ticket

available.” I proceeded to tell them, “No, you don’t

understand I HAVE to go to Vrndavana. My sister is

leaving her body. I have to go to Vrndavana to do some

seva.” By Krsna and Balarama’s Divine Trickery, They

found me a seat, which I just knew They would. Two

days later, I was in Vrndavana. I threw my bags in

the kitchen and went directly to the flat where Mula

was, praying for the opportunity to do some seva for

her and her family, and the other devotees that I knew

would be there. I thought she might be gone by that

time, but surprisingly, she was still alive. I was

stunned to see her condition.

 

 

 

Her body was almost like a skeleton, but to me, her

aliveness was still vibrant! She was not eating or

drinking, and during the two days I was there, she did

not speak audibly nor did she open her eyes, as her

skeletol body lie in the bed. Well, actually a few

times, I think she was so enlivened from the kirtans,

and when Gopa was taking us all on Govardhana

Parikrama…. her eyes opened briefly and then closed,

but not all the way. I was awed by her transcendental

appearance and the disappearance of what we knew as

normal human behaviour. I was thinking that soon I

would be in this condition too and secretly begged

Krsna and Balarama that I too could be in Vrndavana,

in the association of devotees.

 

 

 

It is almost indescribable to try and share with you

what I was allowed to witness. Mula’s lifelong

practice of Krsna Consciousness and faith in her

Spiritual Master was being put to the test at every

moment, with every inhalation and exhalation. Her

loud groans were somtimes almost unbearable,

especially for her three children and Gopa. It was as

if she was having this transcendental conversation

with Srila Prabhupada and Krsna, praying, begging,

chanting, engaging in an intimate flow of emotions.

To see, hear and participate in Mula’s journey from

her body will remain impressed in my heart forever.

Many times, I felt a dejavu, as just a few years ago,

I had played a part in my mother’s departure from her

body in MVT.

 

 

 

I was not there when NM came to visit her, but it has

become public news what transpired. He was asking her

"Who are you thinking of?" She replied, "My

Prabhupada." And he said she could think of him and

he would help her. She replied, "No, I just want to

think of my Prabhupada." Again, he told her she could

think of him and he would help her. And again she

said and Gopa said, they just wanted to focus on Srila

Prabhupada. At some point, he told her that she would

go to Goloka or that she would take birth in Vrndavana

to help him with his mission! You can just imagine

how all of us devotees from ISKCON felt inside. But I

was impressed how mature we all decided to be for the

purpose of seva to Vaisnavas. I pray Srila Prabhupada

was pleased with the few of us there, who were trying

to represent His Sacred Mission of ISKCON, the BBT

and all the other Sacred Insitituions that Prabhupada

left us to maintain, despite problems.

 

 

 

To carry a Vaisnava’s body through the streets of

Vrndavana to the burning ghat, participate in the

sacred cremation ceremony on the banks of the Yamuna

River, and watch the body burn is truly a rare

spiritual experience.

 

 

 

Sometimes her groaning was almost too much to bear and

my mother’s heart would go out to her children. I

would think if it were my time of death and Caitanya

and Goura were there; will I be so fortunate?, will

they be so fortunate?…. I was so impressed to see and

feel the awesome effects her departure was having on

all souls coming and going to do seva. Her departure

was creating an atmosphere of non stop hearing and

chanting of the Holy Names. But even more significant

to me was the opportunities for devotees from

different camps to do seva together. Unity in seva

seemed to be stronger and more relevant than diversity

in philosophy. The KRSNA Book story of the cowherd

boys asking for Prasad from the wives of the brahmanas

illustrates this to me. I had been begging Krsna on

the train for some seva and so I came with the mood to

spontaneously give what I could to Mula I was

overwhelmed with deep internal feelings of

gratefulness to do anything for my Godsister and

Vaisnavi, who had given her life to Srila Prabhupada,

her family and to the Holy Names. I felt very grateful

to be in the same room with so many great Sankirtana

generals, and humbled by their greatness in so many

areas of devotional service.

 

 

 

As a mother, I was specifically impressed with her

family. Gopa should give VIHE courses on how to serve

the wife with loyalty, love and appreciation, because

that mood will carry the husband (or wife) to do the

necessary seva at the time of death. That is why

Prabhupada told us we had to make this seva attitude a

life of practice, because what we are thinking and

practicing will reflect at the time of death. Gopa’s

genuine devotional qualities during this excruciating

time for him must have pleased Srila Prabhupada very

much. He was so attentive to each devotee coming to

render seva to Mula. Prabhupada told us that how we

treat each other is a direct manifestation of our

service attitude to him.

 

 

 

I also witnessed the Krsna consciousness of Nama,

Sravanam and Kirtanam. All glories to Mula’s family,

who have given the world their example of loving unity

at such a difficult time Each of them was like a

particular variety of flower, serving some individual

purpose at their mata’s lotus feet. I particularly

noticed their seva of not being too physically

personal with their mata, especially during the last

two days, so as not to distract her. It must have

been the utmost challenge for them, but they

preservered with Vaisnava courage and faith. I am

indebted to Mulas’s family for allowing me to do some

seva and for enlivening my faith in the undying

Process of Krsna Consciousness.

 

 

 

My head at the feet of the incredible devotion and

tireless seva of my Godsister Sangita devi, who made

Mula’s departing as comfortable as possible and for

the love she gave to all involved. Her and Giriraj

Swami are establishing an incredible Hospice here in

Vrndavana. They have bought the property beyond the

Krsna Balarama Tree, that beautiful piece of land at

the first turn on the Parikrama Path. The money is

already there and the building plans are so

meticulous. Sangita is going to be training up mnay

positions and everything will be up to Western

standard. Its such a detailed plan, that you may want

to inquire yourselves if you're interested. But now

all devotees can look forward to coming to Vrndavana

at death, I mean before death:)if they so desire and

feel peace of mind with facility. Of course , this

will take some time to build and initiate. I have

already signed up to be involved .

 

 

 

My head at the feet of all my Godsisters/brothers

around the world…my head at the feet of all devotees

who are hearing and chanting the Holy Names and

Pastimes of Krsna. The CC says that such souls are

glorious! One by one, we're all leaving. Dhruva

maharaj das was reading to us from CC where Prabhupada

says if we qualify to go back Home, then first we go

to another universe where we get trained up by nitya

siddhas, before we get to enter Goloka. Anyway, I'm

such a dog, I am simply dependent on Causeless Mercy.

Wherever Prabhupada decides I should go, then so be

it. I just hope I get to leave with my mind and heart

focused on Srila Prabhupada and Krsna amongst Srila

Prabhupada and devorees chanting Hare Krsna.......and

Tulsidevi present. Sangita wants to make a form

whereby devotees can request how they would like their

departure to be...within reason:)

 

 

 

By the way, Mula's Giriraj was at her head when she

left, with Tulsidevi looking on.

 

 

 

The morning of her departure, Sangita, Krsna Kumari

and I were trying to figure out how to get the mucous

out of her throat. So, we decided to sit her up.

Immediately, the gurgling sound went down and within

minutes, she left very peacefully. She looked

beautiful, like a gopi. And she became even more

beautiful, as we bathed and dressed her body in clean

cloth, a saree that looked perfect for Mula.. That

“Mula smile” seemingly got wider and brighter.We had

just sat her up, to give her some relief form all the

gurgling, and within minutes we could see she was

leaving. We quickly called everyone in.....it all

happened in minutes.....it was truly a transcendetnal

expereince to feel the soul leavve thebody, as I had

expereinced with my mother.

 

 

 

I don’t think any of us will forget when Mula was

raising her almost dead hand in her white bead bag,

chanting japa. And then when Sangita took the bead

bag off, her finger and thumb were still moving the

imaginary beads to the ongoing shabda of…Hare Krsna

Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama

Rama Rama Hare Hare…

 

 

 

Tonight, glorifications in Prabhupada's Rooms.

 

 

 

Hoping this finds all of you absorbed in your seva at

Srila Prabhupada's Lotus Feet. Please bless me by

giving me just one drop of faith with which to obtain

the great treasure of the Holy Name of Krsna. All

glories to Sri Goura Bhakta Vrndas!

 

 

 

Gratefully,

 

Mahadevi dasi

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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