HH Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Swami Memorial Part 1

[Guest guest]

>From Sri Mayapur Candrodaya Mandir!

February 17, 2007

 

 

Memorial Program for His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja.

 

 

Hari Sauri Prabhu: So this morning the GBC requested that we have a special

observance for the disappearance of our dear godbrother Bhaktisvarupa

Damodara Maharaja. There are a number of speakers. We will probably go until

about 9:30. I was told there were two senior disciples of Maharaja here but

I haven't been introduced to them. So if they could come forward, we can ask

them to speak at different intervals. Prasada Prabhu and Devarsi Prabhu, if

they can come up and sit at the front there.

 

To begin with, I'll ask His Holiness Jayapataka Maharaja to say a few words.

He had a lot of association with Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja over the

years.

 

 

Jayapataka Swami: Every year, at the New Panihati festival in Atlanta, we

have a Prabhupada lila-smarana festival of his visit there. Svarupa Damodara

Maharaja was there when Prabhupada was there and he would come to this

lila-smarana festival. So we heard from different devotees also how much

Prabhupada showered his mercy up on him. There are pictures of him receiving

Prabhupada at his car.

 

He was a VIP devotee. His special service was cultivating VIP's, especially

the scientists. We showed a number of his disciples in Bali and different

parts of the world some slides we have of him. He also was a wonderful

sadhu. It is rare to find probably scientists who are sadhus, but he was a

super-wonderful sadhu because he was very gentle, very kind.

 

Once we did a Panihati festival in Prabhupada Desh. His Holiness

Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja, I gave him the first pot of the cida-dadhi.

He, normally you get a big pot of this cida-dadhi covered with rasagullas,

sandesa, normally what you would do is eat it. But what did he do? He took

it and offered it in the mouth of all the devotees. There are pictures of

the devotees with their mouths open and he is like birds feeding their

babies. He was putting the prasad in their mouth.

 

He had special tunes, maybe these are Manipuri melodies, he would sing. He

reached a very high note. Sometimes we would raise his hand. He had a

particular, I can't imitate it, only he can do it. He would raise his hand

and then reach this high note. Then he, changed the tune again sang a part

of this particular tune.

 

Prabhupada, I remember that he said that, I heard, I didn't see it in

writing, but I heard that the Manipuris were somehow descended from the

gandharavas. That is why they are such nice singers and dancers, very

cultural. His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja was like that, he was

a great kirtan leader, singer, wonderful Vaisnava.

 

Somehow he was very kind to me always. He invited me to his World Congress

Conference for the Synthesis of Science and Religion, both the one in Bombay

and the one in Calcutta. I was studying science when I was in university,

but I dropped out and joined Prabhupada's university. Prabhupada didn't tell

me to keep studying because I was only in my freshman year. So my sophomore

year I spent in ISKCON, but Prabhupada had him finish his study and get his

PhD and use it.

 

Somehow he brought me and I tried to do what service I could do discussing

with the scientists. One of the Nobel prize scientists in Calcutta, he was

the discoverer of the laser. This is how much influence Maharaja had on him,

he said, "I came to this function where 20 years ago I would never come, I

would never dream, I would say that someone is crazy that I would be sitting

here, a scientist, physicist, with religionists discussing about science."

 

But because the scientists, the physicists, at least, I can't speak for the

chemists, the physicist, he came, "As quantum mechanics, quantum theory, now

we have gone beyond the classical physics. These little particles act like

people. I was hearing from Maharaja how this is, the Vedas have knowledge

about consciousness in a scientific way, so I'm here to hear about it, I'm

here to discuss it."

 

So in this way, Maharaja in his tenacious and humble way, he would go and

discuss with different scientists and he would convince them to some degree,

I don't know how much, but they would definitely come to his conferences

they were influenced. He would influence them to be open to read the Vedas,

to read Prabhupada's books, to come to the conferences. He was having a

great impact.

 

He also was a member of the World Parliament of Religions. He never invited

me for one of those, so I don't know exactly what happened, maybe someone

else could speak later. He was very versatile.

 

I remember one time I was walking with Prabhupada and Svarupa Damodara

Maharaja, maybe it was in Bhubaneshwar somewhere, I can't remember now,

Svarupda Damodara Maharaja was saying, "If we can influence the scientists,

they are the people who are most respected in the world day, everyone

follows science."

 

Prabhupada was saying, "Yes, if you can convince the scientists, we can

change the world."

 

I am a Namahatta preacher, I am trying to get to the masses, so I was

saying, "Well, it is very hard to convince the scientists. If we can

convince all the people, maybe they'll be more selective about what they

accept from the scientists."

 

Prabhupada told me, "Yes, if you can get people to come up to the scientists

and say, 'I don't believe your theory of Darwin,' that will be a big thing."

 

But then he would go and convince Svarupa Damodara. It was like some kind of

a game Prabhupada was playing, but he won. Svarupa Damodara won. Convincing

scientists was considered more. . . but I got some good encouragement also.

 

Svarupda Damodara Maharaja, we were together in many places, but he was able

to do things pretty much on his own. Sometimes he would call for help, but

generally that was just his mercy. He was a very capable person.

 

Prabhupada told him to make Manipur a Vaisnava state. It was already a

Vaisnava state, but to revive it to its full glory. I had the opportunity to

go to Manipur and see. They have what is called Vijaya Govinda deities.

 

Sometimes he would serve the GBC special Manipuri meals. It's been a long

time since that happened. But he would give this special, they have blue

rice in Manipuri. Manipur is like seven mountain ranges. In the middle there

are two big lakes. What are they called, the Duck Lake or something? The

main flower of this lake is lotus, so lotus is one of the main dietary parts

of Manipur. He would feed the GBC's lotus stems and lotus preparations and

this blue rice. Especially when you make the blue rice, it is a sweet rice.

It tastes like blueberries. Like this, he was introducing so much culture.

 

He was so dedicated to Prabhupada. we were discussing that even in the last

moments, he was just thinking, "How can I please Prabhupada?" He was

completely dedicated to being in ISKCON and please Srila Prabhupada.

 

There is some, Prabhupada told him especially do this kind of cultivating of

scientists. Svarupda Damodara told me how he had this program in Rome in

some special hall where once a year all the top scientists get together and

have some program. The mayor of Rome gave it to him to also have a program.

They had a number of scientists and devotees speaking. It was so successful

that the mayor said, "You can have it every year." It is a very prestigious

venue.

 

I think my time is up. I don't know who is trained up to follow in his

footsteps, who can do the wonderful service he was doing. We were all

expecting him to be with us for twenty, thirty years more at least. It is a

big loss for all of us. He was very dear to all the Vaisnavas.

 

His Divine Grace Svarupa Damodara Swami Maharaja ki jai!

 

 

Hari Sauri Prabhu: Thank you very much Jayapataka Maharaja. Now we'd like to

ask one of Sripada Maharaja's senior disciples, Devarsi Prabhu, to say a few

words.

 

 

Devarsi Prabhu: So my name is Devarsi Das. I received initiation from Srila

Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja in 1992 in New Mayapur in France. The day

that he gave me initiation, it was re-initiation for me, I asked him to come

to the Padayatra in south of France. He accepted. Two-three days after, we

were riding to south of France. At that time he had his cane, so it was a

little difficult for him to walk on Padayatra. We had very simple

accommodation. I invited him to stay in the room I was renting in the south

of France. It was about eight meters square room. It was a place for one bed

and one mat and a little kitchen. Actually, from the beginning he showed me

what is simplicity. He accepted to stay in the bed where I was sleeping

before and I was sleeping just on the mat. His simplicity was quite

extraordinary. I have always seen this quality in him.

 

Since Jayapataka Maharaja spoke quite a lot about his different services in

ISKCON and his scientific preaching, I may speak a little about different

qualities that I have seen in him. One quality that impressed me a lot was

his humility. He very often reminded me of this verse:

 

trnad api sunicena taror api sahisnuna

amanina manadena kirtaniyah sada harih.

 

He really exemplified this verse in his life.

 

I remember one time in Manipur, we were visiting one of his former teachers

in a very small school. The teacher was about seventy-five, eighty years

old. Immediately as soon as he saw his teacher, he paid full dandavats to

his former teacher.

 

He was so tolerant about life because many of his disciples, including

myself, we are not so qualified so we are making quite a lot of mistakes.

Like a father, he was always guiding us and always helping us to develop

tolerance. On time I asked him in Calcutta, I was also in the Congress in

1997, I asked what is possible to do for the French devotees. He said, "They

need to be the tolerant, so maybe I can invite them all to come for five

years to Calcutta to learn tolerance!"

 

He was very joyful, very humorous. Actually in my observation, he was really

a perfect gentleman. I have never seen him really angry, even in some

disaster. He showed me and he showed to us real Krsna consciousness. It was

a question of consciousness. He was so busy working, serving his own

spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, and a huge toll to present Krsna

consciousness to the scientific world. He very peacefully, with a lot of

determination and a lot of joy, he was really working a lot, a lot, a lot.

Calcutta was his place of work, really.

 

Prasada Prabhu at the end is going to tell us what was the last days in his

life, how he was experiencing something quite special.

 

One day I was in Calcutta with him. I got the opportunity to get some books

from BI and to go to Calcutta to distribute some books in Ultadanga, BI

books. He was very pleased to see that it was possible, that people door to

door, shop to shop were able to appreciate the books and took some books. He

put a lot of emphasis in these books about Bhaktivedanta Institute, about

this scientific preaching, about God is a person, about all these things.

 

Personally, I am quite inspired all that he has done in his life and also

for me and also for many non-devotees I know. He has been able to touch the

heart of many, many people, actually. Not in a big way like that, but in a

very subtle and very deep and very profound way.

 

Now two days ago I was in Radha Kunda in his samadhi. If you want to know a

little more about him, I can invite you to come to Radha Kunda to his

samadhi in Gopaldeva Mandir because it was the place he really wanted to be.

Although he never stayed there in Radha Kunda, it was the place that was the

object of his meditation. You are most welcome to Gopaldeva Mandir in Radha

Kunda.

 

Hare Krsna.

 

Srila Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja ki jai!

 

 

Hari Sauri Prabhu: Thank you very much Devarsi Prabhu. Now we'd like to ask

His Grace Sesa Prabhu to say a few words.

 

 

Sesa Prabhu: I take it as a very great honor that I can sit before you today

to speak a little bit about His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Swami. As I

do so, I remember my godbrother, His Grace Bhojadeva Prabhu. I want to

mention his name because he was actually our godbrother, Srila Prabhupada's

disciples' godbrother, that was very, very close to His Holiness

Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja. Actually he was sitting on the stage on

Janmastami in Manipur when the terrorist attack happened and the bomb blast

took place. Bhojadeva is a rather big person. He took a lot of the shrapnel

from those bombs shielding His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja and

preventing more serious injury from happening to him. Of course he himself

was very seriously injured. Fortunately now, by the grace of Lord Krsna, he

is recovering. I know he would like to be here today to speak about

Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja, so I hope that I can do some service to him

and Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja by saying a few words here today.

 

I think that all of us should realize the significance of the loss that we

are experiencing by the departure of His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara

Maharaja. He was, and his relationship with His Divine Grace AC

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada was very, very special. It taught us a very,

very special lesson about the relationship between Guru and disciple.

 

Srila Prabhupada was very, very fond of His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara

Maharaja. Of course, the spiritual master is very fond of all his disciples,

that is not to be questioned, but sometimes we see a very, very special

relationship that exists between the spiritual master and one of his

disciples. In ordinary material life, such a special affection is the cause

of envy for others, but in spiritual relationships, the matter is different.

 

Whatever pleases the Lord, whatever pleases the spiritual master is the life

and soul of all the disciples, of all the devotees. So if one can be pushed

forward that offers special pleasure to the spiritual master, that is

everyone's pleasure. In my mind, His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara

Maharaja had this type of a relationship with Srila Prabhupada.

 

Srila Prabhupada would actually call for him, "Where is our scientist?"

Whenever he wanted to have some fun debating about smashing the scientists,

he always wanted His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja to be there.

"What do they say?" he would always ask him, call him very affectionately.

 

Of course we know that Srila Prabhupada, his point in discussing the

scientists and their belief system and how they've gained control in the

world was more than just a mere joking session. It was a very, very key

essential part of his preaching Krsna consciousness all over the world to

destroy the hold, the grip that these materialistic scientists have on the

minds and hearts of modern civilization.

 

Therefore, when he got a disciple like His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara

Maharaja, who was a scientist, who was trained by them, who could understand

their arguments, and who was so surrendered to His Divine Grace Srila

Prabhupada, he was very, very pleased by that.

 

He therefore called him, trained him, grilled him, provided all the

instruction, all the support that he needed to be a key player in Srila

Prabhupada's plan to change this world. They had a very, very special

relationship. And all of us whose life and soul it is to please His Divine

Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada have lost something with the

departure of His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja.

 

So the question now becomes, how do we go forward? This is more and more

becoming the unfortunate task of those of us who remain behind as our

beloved Godbrothers one by one depart to serve Srila Prabhupada in other

places. Our task is to remain faithful to His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, his mission, his vision, and to try to

support that and participate in that mission in whatever way that we can.

 

Clearly, Srila Prabhupada wanted this materialistic science to be defeated.

Clearly and very affectionately, he trained His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa

Damodara Maharaja to do that. Clearly, it is our duty to try to further that

work which was so dear to both of them.

 

I know that during the last year of his presence with us here in this

material world, His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja became more and

more and more determined and fixed on the instructions, the very specific

instructions, that Srila Prabhupada had given him about this type of

scientific preaching. I had the great fortune to be involved in debate with

him about such instructions. Of course, that is very insolent of me to feel

that I can debate with my senior godbrother, sannyasi, but somehow or other,

by Krsna's arrangement, I was put in that situation. The great lesson I

learned from that was that I should be so fixed to instructions given by

Srila Prabhupada as Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja was fixed to the

instruction given to him by Srila Prabhupada.

 

I think that none of us will be prepared at any time for such a wonderful

Vaisnava to depart, but if we can separate ourselves from the feelings of

anguish at his departure and we can look at it objectively--I don't know

that looking at it objectively is what we'd want to do, we'd rather look at

it in a more heartfelt way--but if we did try to look at it objectively, if

we could do that, we would have to say that he, no matter what the

circumstances were, was fixed, irremovably fixed, at the lotus feet of Srila

Prabhupada and that such departure was indeed timely. Timely in the sense

that he was so fixed.

 

We can only pray to Srila Prabhupada, Sri Sri Radha Madhava, that at the

time we leave this world, we can be as fixed in the determination to serve

Srila Prabhupada as His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja was when he

left this mortal world.

 

Hare Krsna.

 

Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja ki jai!

 

 

Hari Sauri Prabhu:Thank you very much Sesa Prabhu. Now we' d like to ask His

Holiness Hrdayananda Goswami to say a few words.

 

 

Hrdayananda Goswami: Hare Krsna.

 

I spent a good deal of time with Bhaktisvarupa Damodara in Los Angeles when

he, I think not too long after, he began visiting the temple and taking

those famous walks with Srila Prabhupada. I was present so I was on many of

those walks.

 

Of course, we became friends. Bhaktisvarupa Damodara was, I was sannyasi

then, he was of course a student at the University of California in Irvine.

It is certainly true that his presence there inspired Prabhupada to speak on

the famous topic of life comes from life.

 

One time, when I was relaxing in Los Angeles, I am from Los Angeles, I was

born there, I was looking at the Vedabase, Prabhupada Vedabase, I looked up

Los Angeles. I was curious what Prabhupada had to say about Los Angeles, the

sacred place where I was born. I found that there were basically two main

things that Prabhupada always said about Los Angeles: One is that he really

liked the weather and two that he had a disciple who was becoming a

scientist.

 

That was Thoudam Singh and he became initiated as Svarupa Damodara.

Basically that is what Prabhupada had to say about Los Angeles, that he like

the weather and there was this disciple there who was a scientist.

 

It was something new in a sense for the Hare Krsna movement. I think

Sadaputa had been a scientist, but he concealed the fact and preferred to

wash pots for a while. Actually, Svarupa Damodara was the first. It was the

fist time a practicing scientist, a young man still getting his PhD, joined

the Hare Krsna movement. He wasn't just someone who had studied science and

then got burnt out and joined the Hare Krsna movement, but he was actually

involved in science, finishing his doctorate.

 

Not only that, but from Prabhupada's point of view, because Svarupa

Damodara, as we called him then, because he was from East India, of course

from Manipur, but he studied in Calcutta University, as I just saw in this

book here, Prabhupada could actually talk to him.

 

There was a sense in which Prabhupada, when he came to the West, his

disciples were very enthusiastic, very devoted, and also we were quite

immature and sort of awestruck by Prabhupada and also coming from often

somewhat fallen backgrounds in the sense that before we met Prabhupada we

had gone through a period of, well, non-Krsna consciousness, extreme non

Krsna consciousness.

 

So all these factors including Prabhupada came externally even from a

different culture. We didn't know all that much about Indian culture, what

to speak of Vedic culture. I personally observed, and Prabhupada said this

himself actually, that when Prabhupada would be in the association of

devotees who just on a regular external level understood the culture that he

was coming from and he understood their culture, in a sense, it was a more

mature, more natural relationship.

 

Spiritually of course, whoever was devoted to Prabhupada got his mercy.

We've seen that many devotees from all parts of the world have received

extraordinary mercy from Prabhupada and extraordinary empowerment. But if we

allow Prabhupada to be a person as well as an icon, for all of us, even for

preaching, even we are acting as guru, as sannyasi, it is nice to relax and

talk to someone who actually understands what you mean.

 

That was the case with Svarupa Damodara. He provided that kind of pleasure

of Srila Prabhupada. Krsna says in Bhagavad-gita, yuktahara viharasya, there

has to be, even in Krsna consciousness a bit of relaxation, there is a need

for a certain minimum amount of comfort in order to be peaceful and do your

service properly. Of course, like Prahlada, we can sometimes serve in

extraordinarily difficult circumstances. It is normal for any soul, for any

person, to enjoy that kind of natural intimacy where people understand each

other.

 

I think it was a combination of these two things, thinking in retrospect as

a historian: the fact that Svarupa Damodara was not a burnt-out Westerner

who had formerly studied science. He was a sober, non-sinful doctoral

student studying science. He was from East India. He lived in Calcutta. He

spoke Bengali. I think Prabhupada felt a natural affinity. Prabhupada was

quite enthusiastic. Prabhupada had the vision to see that a whole new

chapter for Krsna conscious preaching was possible. He definitely focused on

Svarupa Damodara as the sort of pivot for that kind of preaching.

 

When Svarupa Damodara establishd the Bhaktivedanta Institute, so Svarupa

Damodara had the distinction, or Bhaktisvarupa Damodara, had the distinction

of not only dedicating his life to serving Prabhupada to the best of his

ability but also for being Prabhupada's special instrument to inaugurate in

ISKCON an important new chapter of our missionary activities, and a chapter

which we need to continue writing.

 

He was also a personal friend of mine. I'd like to say a few words about

that. We were always friends. Whenever we would meet each other, we would

joke a lot. You may find this hard to believe about me. But we had a very

friendly relationship. He would always say the same thing, whenever he would

see me and I would start joking with him, he would always say to me, "Your

pastimes are inconceivable."

 

Also, I think I should mention that Bhaktisvarupa Damodara was one of the

great ambassadors in the history of ISKCON. Especially, in two ways, I think

of two ways in which he was an extraordinary ambassador of ISKCON to the

world. One way, I'll start with one and go to the other because that's the

most important. he was, of course, born in Manipur and he was quite familiar

with Manipuri culture. He used that ancient Manipuri culture, which in many

ways was Vaisnava culture, to open many doors in the west. He brought the

Manipuri troop, sword fighters, rasa-lila dancers, the martial artists.

 

I remember in Los Angeles, and I'm sure in other place as well, he booked

this show in Los Angeles at hundreds and hundreds of high schools. So he did

a tour of high schools in Los Angeles. He also presented programs at

universities all over the west. So using this facility of his Manipuri

heritage, he was able to open many doors and be an extraordinary ambassador

of Krsna consciousness throughout the world.

 

And of course, an ambassador to the scientific word, he had the ability to

be charming and to win the hearts of all kinds of scientists, Nobel

laureates, people who usually do not come on a regular basis to their local

Hare Krsna temple. He had a humble manner. He was really able to sort of get

in any door. He was able to ingratiate himself and establish a rapport with

all of these different scientists. And by the power of his own personality

in Krsna consciousness, persuade them to, in some ways, interact with Krsna

consciousness, to participate in various ways in Prabhupada's mission, even

if it was just giving advice or writing papers or putting their names on

publications.

 

In this way, I think he is one of the greatest ambassadors that we have seen

in ISKCON. Anyway, I am glad to be able to participate here in this literal

memorial service in sense of memory establishing or engaging our memory a

wonderful Vaisnava. All of us will have to leave this world. I hope no one

is trying to stay here too long. In a sense, his final example of leaving

the world in a very Krsna conscious way is another extraordinary example

from his life.

 

Thank you very much. All glories to Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Maharaja!