Advaita Candra dasa, Krsna Priya devi dasi, and Madanmohan

namah om visnu-padaya krsna presthaya bhutale

srimate romapada svamin iti namine

Our dear and most respected Guru Maharaja,

Please accept our humble obeisances at your divine lotus feet. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

By the mercy of our great acharyas, we have come to understand that the Vedic literatures repeatedly, convincingly, believably, and strongly talk about the importance of a spiritual master in the process of devotional service. In a lecture, Srila Prabhupada reveals the secret for progress in spiritual life:

Unless you satisfy your teacher or guru nicely, you cannot get the right knowledge. That is natural. If you receive your guru properly and give him a very nice place where he can sit comfortably, and if he is pleased with your behavior, then he will speak very frankly and very freely, which will be beneficial for you…Maitreya Rsi was very much pleased with Vidura, and thus Maitreya imparted instructions to him. [Srila Prabhupada lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam
3.25.4]

When we read these statements, we feel deep gratitude for your divine presence in our lives. In spite of our not-so-pleasing behavior toward you and lack of spiritual qualities and qualifications, you have been very kind and patient with us, and also very compassionate upon us. Not only have you always spoken freely and frankly with us, you have also allowed us the space to speak frankly and freely with you. On this auspicious occasion, we want to take this special opportunity to express our heartfelt gratitude to you for being such a kind authority figure, a selfless guide, and a true well-wisher.

This year, we were very fortunate to have you here in Boston for the ISKCON 50th anniversary celebrations commemorating Srila Prabhupada’s incredible journey to the US. It’s always a joy to see you here in Boston, but we also found it very enlivening and invigorating to see you on the boat tour with your wonderful godbrothers and godsisters sharing the glories of Srila Prabhupada. Often times, due to the tendency to fall prey to groupism or sectarianism, we forget to see the big picture of how the spiritual master along with other great sages is actually fulfilling the ONE mission of his predecessors and Lord Krsna. Thus, it was a nice opportunity to appreciate the simultaneous oneness and difference of unity and diversity of the Guru principle in ISKCON.

Guru Maharaja, we also want to take this opportunity to thank you for your love and blessings for our little Madanmohan, who is growing up as a happy boy. It is very satisfying to see him receive your mercy. He is always excited to meet you and is looking forward to be part of your Vyasa-puja celebrations. We also want to thank you for your support and prayers for Krsna Priya’s growth in her new teaching career.

As we explore our individual journeys of self-discovery, we hope and pray that our faith in you and the Lord grows and that we can continue to render some service to Srila Prabhupada’s glorious ISKCON. As His Grace Anuttama Prabhu said during his speech on the boat tour, we have to constantly think “what next can we do for Srila Prabhupada’s movement?” And to derive inspiration, we only have to study and follow your example.

Thank you very much!

Your aspiring servants,
Advaita Candra dasa, Krsna Priya devi dasi and Madanmohan