Srila Prabhupada wants Prasadam distribution in Mayapure

[Guest guest]

How ISKCON’s world wide prasädam distribution began

Excerpt from a lecture by H.H. Jayapatäka Swami (place and date unknown)

”It was the second or third International Mäyäpur Festival. We had just

finished the four story building that is today known as the Lotus Building.

Çréla

Prabhupäda had invited several devotees from all over the world for the

inauguration of this mandir. On this occasion we had a big feast. After the

feast

Prabhupäda took prasädam and then a little rest. But his rest was disturbed by

the howling of dogs, and he got up. Prabhupäda said, ‘Bring all the sannyäsés,

bring the GBC immediately! Bring them!’

”Usually if Prabhupäda wanted to say something he would say, ‘Bring my

secretary.’ But in Mäyäpur he would call everyone. He would want everyone to

hear

what he was saying. At that time the devotees were just ‘recovering’ from a

big feast. When Prabhupäda called, all the devotees came down rushing. ‘What is

 

Prabhupäda calling for? What’s happening?’ They saw Prabhupäda intently

looking out of the windows with tears in his eyes – he was crying! They looked

out

and saw a big pile of leaf plates thrown at the back of the temple after the

feast. There were about fifteen dogs, and about fifteen to twenty boys and

girls, little kids between eight and fourteen years, picking through the leaves

 

and fighting of the dogs. They were eating the leftovers and licking the

leaves.

They were ordinary village children who were basically clean but poor.

”Prabhupäda was trying to communicate. Then Prabhupäda revealed his mind, ‘

How hungry they must be! They are picking the prasädam from the pile – they

must be so hungry! We must arrange for their prasädam! If you want to make this

a

mandir, a house of Kåñëa, then you must see that within a 10 mile radius, no

one goes hungry. That will be your success. Kåñëa is everyone’s father. How

can the son go hungry in the presence of the father? Immediately arrange to

distribute prasädam.’

”When Prabhupäda wanted something done immediately, it meant the next day was

too late. But anyway, we could not get it together until the next day. We

just had a big tent in those days, and since Prabhupäda wanted prasädam

distribution, we cooked some kichari, and in this way we started to distribute

prasädam.

”Prabhupäda said that if we could have a prasädam distribution center at

every 10 square miles throughout India, then we could transform the whole

India.

People will become so grateful to ISKCON that they would all definitely accept

Lord Caitanya’s movement – it will be the most important movement, and they

would follow very strictly. Simply by prasädam distribution, all the effects of

 

Kali-yuga could be stopped.”

In a Bhagavad-gétä lecture on 7 January 1967, you explained to your fledgling

disciples your “easy process” of self-realization: “So what is the

difficulty there? And you come here, chant and dance. We don’t say that you

make such

exercise or press your nose or this or that. We simply say that ‘Come here,

dance with us, chant with us and take prasädam.’ Is it very difficult?

(laughter)

It is not difficult. The easiest process of transcendental realization.”

Praying to assist you in Çrématé Rädhäräëé’s kitchen and push on your Food

for Life mission to deliver all the sinful people of Kali, your prasädam

bhaktas

and potato peelers from all over the world humbly take shelter at your

glowing white kitchen boots.

Båhat pots ké jaya!

Çréla Prabhupäda ké jaya!