FW: The Passing of Bhava Bhuti Das

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Prabhus,

 

This is a copy of what I have written about the passing of Bhava Bhuti Das for

VNN.

 

Please feel free to spread it around.

 

YS,

 

Sravanananda Das

 

 

>PERLMUTTER1 (AT) aol (DOT) com

>news03 (AT) vnn (DOT) org

>CC: dperlmutter (AT) hotmail (DOT) com

>The Passing of Bhava Bhuti Das

>Tue, 21 Sep 2004 10:09:13 EDT

>

>Dear Prabhus,

>

>Bhava Bhuti Das left his body on Friday Sept 17th, 2004 in the evening. He

>joined the movement in 1971. He was a disciple of His Divine Grace Srila

>Prabhupada. He was 52 years old.

>

>He suffered since the 1980's from Lou Gehrig's disease and for over 15 years

>was on a ventilator remaining with his wife and family. His wife Mongala Gopi

>Devi Dasi my wife's (Ananda Gopi Devi Dasi) sister remained with him

>throughout this ordeal taking care of him while maintaining a job and bringing

up her

>two children Rukmini and Gokulesha.

>

>While actively preaching in India in the 1970's and early 80's he helped with

>the early days of Vrindaban's project and raised funds in the Middle East to

>help in various other Indian projects.

>

>We became co-presidents in Madras in 1975 and preached vigoruosly to try and

>construct a temple. Srila Prabhupada came for 10 days and we enthusiatically

>had an ecstatic festival program with many senior devotees attending and 10's

>of thousands of Southern Indians attending.Srila Prabhupada was very pleased.

>

>Later Bhava Bhuti took it upon himself to receive a large plot of land in

>Gauhati, Assam, India on a mountaintop overlooking the Brahmaputra river from

the

>same family that had donated the land in Vrindaban to Srila Prabhupada. He

>enthusiastically began construction of a beautiful temple on this mountaintop

>while constantly struggling to remain in Assam with out the proper required

>permit for a restricted area in India. Eventually he and his wife had to leave

and

>the construction was completed by other devotees.

>

>Shortly thereafter he was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease which normally

>is terminal within a few years. He came back to USA to seek treatment but due

>to rapid deteriation remained bedridden for almost 20 years.

>

>I would like to thank all the devotees who always remained in touch with him

>and his wife

>and who would come and visit him to try and keep his fire of devotion kindled

>while in this condition. Adhridharan Das, Sridhar Swami, Shambu Das, Sunanda

>Das, Drystadumna Das, Ananda Gopi Devi Dasi, and all the other devotees that

>I may have missed.

>

>One day before Sridhara Maharaj left his body in Sri Dham Mayapur I had sent

>him an email to see how he was doing and his only reply was how is Bhava

Bhuti?

>

>I would like to add 2 of my memories that come to mind.

>

>1) While I was with a party of devotees in the Nitai Pada Kamala Boat Program

>in the Ganges near the Bay of Bengal in or around 1976 it was becoming dusk

>and we were preparing for evening Arotik when we all heard a loudspeaker

coming

>across the water yelling Sravanananda,Sravanananda!!! We thought we were

>mistaken and as we all came out on the deck to see what was the ruckus we saw

>Bhava Bhuti on the front deck of a power boat searching for me to give me a

>sweater that he had purchased for me in the Middle East. We were all

hysterical to

>see the Transcendental Mad Man! We all sat together on the deck of the Nitai

>Pada Kamal and had prasadam as the sun set over the Ganges.He then jumped back

 

>on the power boat to go back to somewhere where he had some urgent service to

>do.

>

>2) Srila Prabhupad arrived at the airport in Madras and we were all there to

>greet him along with all the senior disciples. We all had the opportunity to

>place a flower garland around Srila Prabhupada's neck and as we did so we also

 

>had to remove them quickly so that more could be adorned around his neck by

>the throngs of people as they almost covered his face. Srila Prabhupada was so

 

>pleased that his eyes filled with tears and yet were illuminated with the

>intensity of the sun. As he exhibited signs of ecstasy all in the crowd were

>immensely affected and Bhava Bhuti in the midst of the kirtan began to leap in

the

>air which seemd to be at least 3 feet off the ground and tears came from his

>eyes. I looked at him and he looked at me and we both agreed in the intensity

>of the kirtan and leaping in the air that at that moment there was no better

>place in the universe to be than at the feet of the most wonderful pure

devotee

>that the world was to know: His Divine A.C. Bhaktivedanta Srila Prabhpada.

>

>Jai Srila Prabhupada.

>

>I pray that Bhava Bhuti Das will eternally be at the lotus feet of His Divine

>Grace Srila Prabhupada, the most merciful and loving.!

>

>Thanking you for your good wishes and prayers.

>

>Your Servant,

>

>Sravanananda Das

>

>Please send any memories you may have so that I may forward them to his wife

>Mongala Gopi Devi Dasi and his children at:

>

>dperlmutter (AT) hotmail (DOT) com