Rajendra dasa, Ruciranana devi dasi

Hare Krsna dear Guru Maharaja,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. All glories to Your Divine Grace.

Guru Maharaja, a very happy Vyasa-puja to You. We pray to Krsna for Your good health and seek Your special blessings on this auspicious occasion.

Thank You for all Your support and advice this year. This year was the first time in my life when I was without a job for a considerable amount of time. We also lost so many loved ones in India within a month’s time due to Covid. I realized how just a little belief in the Absolute helps one to manage the pain and anxiety that might otherwise have been devastating. On the other side, this year we were fortunate to get so much of Your physical association when you visited Houston for almost a month during April-May. The instructions and words of advice that I received from You at that time worked like a lighthouse in the midst of darkness. I had a sense of different duties, but was probably not prioritizing them well when making tough decisions. Should I move to India to ensure no interruption in my career, or should I take up any job in Houston so I am always there for my son’s support in college? You helped clarify my priorities and by following Your instructions, I was able to make good decisions.

Guru Maharaja, this year’s realizations during the tough times have made my determination firmer to prioritize my sadhana over everything else. It made me realize that time is very short and I should be effectively dealing with all the obstacles in my devotional life by making the necessary lifestyle adjustments. I cannot afford to be in namabhasa stage and will need to take firm steps to develop taste in chanting. As always, Your japa retreat lectures and the different ways You described to connect with Krsna through the Holy Name gave me so much enthusiasm. The key message from this past japa retreat was to reestablish our relationship with the Holy Name by chanting to please Krsna and by chanting with the feeling of crying out for Krsna’s help to engage in His service, not just mechanically. I know when we take Krsna’s name, it is pleasing to Him but to chant with an intense desire to please Krsna is not that easy, though we know that all the work should be done for Krsna’s pleasure. I have made this sankalpa to chant from the heart and to seek Krsna’s mercy to engage me in the service of Nama Prabhu by improving my attention. I will always keep in mind the different steps that you described for realizing that Nama Prabhu is a person and that we need to develop a relationship with Him. I also heard that the ear can conquer the mind and other senses, but I still need to experience that. I seek Your blessings so I can stick to my sankalpa and improve my chanting.

Your servant,

Rajendra dasa

Ruciranana devi dasi’s Offering:

Hare Krsna dear Guru Maharaja,

Dandavat pranama. All glories to Srila Prabhupada and your divine lotus feet. Happy Vyasa-puja!

First, I want to express my gratitude to You and Srila Prabhupada for being a part of my life and guiding me in my spiritual journey. Guru Maharaja, for the last ten months, our material life has been up and down with many obstacles that were impacting my spiritual life. Then, You sent a picture of Krsna to my Prabhu that illustrated – never leave Krsna’s lotus feet. After that, I have been holding that image in my heart all the time, which has helped me a lot to remember Krsna during this time. Now I can understand Kunti Maharani’s prayers. The reason she was looking for more difficulties is because she does not want to forget Krsna. When we are in difficulty, our Supreme father and His devotees can always help. Thank You so much for accepting me. I am begging You to always help me in remembering Krsna and never forgetting Krsna.

Your daughter,

Ruciranana devi dasi