Ananga-mohini devi dasi

Beloved Guru Maharaja,

Please accept my most sincere obeisances to your lotus feet! All glories to you and Srila Prabhupada!

As a spiritual master in the parampara from the Supreme Lord you took the trouble to travel all the way from the United States to Beijing on 11th July to visit mainland China, generously giving your personal association to the devotees of China. You are the first ISKCON sannyasi and spiritual master to visit mainland China after the COVID-19 epidemic! You are like Hanuman who leapt across the ocean to reach the city of Lanka, bringing the message of the Supreme Lord, joy, light and hope to the souls imprisoned in material jails.

I am a sincere soul following You, thanking You from the bottom of my heart for accepting me in Your service. You gave me my first initiation on 16 July in Shunyi, Beijing and bestowed upon me an immensely attractive spiritual name, Ananga-mohini devi dasi. In giving the name, you told me that Ananga-mohini is a name of Radha, which means charming and attractive. I further learnt from my daughter that Ananga means the cupid who enchants all beings, which is Krsna and Ananga-mohini is the one who enchants Ananga, that is, Radha. By giving me this name you have enjoined me that there is no need to become charming like Radha, but become a servant of Radha.

I am thankful to Krsna for giving me a family that supports me in my practice of bhakti-yoga. My husband, although he has been working as an engineer and has no religious background attended the entire ceremony of my initiation, took photos and videos of me, kept the footprints of my spiritual birth and gladly joined me in offering gifts and presents to you. What surprised me even more was that on his way from home to the initiation site early in the morning he spontaneously bought more than 100 catties of watermelons (fresh watermelons grown by farmers near the Fellowship Ground and picked on the same day) and presented them to the devotees who attended the event. In the decades of living with my husband, this was the first time I had ever seen him make such an endeavor. When I saw the farmer driving his car, pulling a trailer load of watermelons and entering the gates of the fellowship ground, I couldn’t help but marvel and give thanks to the Supersoul, power of the spiritual master and the power of the devotees.

As a sannyasi you teach the science of Krsna consciousness without a moment’s pause, preach pure love for Krsna, narrate the pastimes of the Supreme Lord and His great devotees carrying on the will and mission of Srila Prabhupada. You have set an example for us as acarya by living in this material world of strife with great love and gratitude. I remember on the evening of 17 July you insisted on giving an evening lecture to the Chinese devotees on the story of Hanuman in Ramayaṇa, despite the strain of traveling. Later due to fatigue you ended before the scheduled time. Tears filled my eyes thinking of your life as a sannyasi, full of preaching. 9 years ago I remember crying for my 23 year old daughter when she left to the US for study all alone no one to turn to. My daughter is my only child, the emotional bond between mother and daughter is natural and deep. When I shed tears for you I realized having formed an emotional connection with you. The emotional connection between a spiritual master and a disciple can be as natural and deep as the love between a mother and daughter.

Guru Maharaja, I will remember the instructions you have given me, devote myself to the chanting of the holy name, never leave you, and serve you humbly.

Please accept with mercy the sincere and humble obeisances of a fallen soul.

Your eternal servant,
Ananga-mohini devi dasi