Rama-kanta dasa

om ajnana-timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah

nama om visnu-padaya krsna-presthaya bhu-tale
srimate romapada-svamin iti namine

nama om visnu-padaya krsna-presthaya bhu-tale
srimate bhaktivedanta-svamin iti namine

namas te sarasvate deve gaura-vani-pracarine
nirvisesa-sunyavadi-pascatya-desa-tarine

mukam karoti vacalam pangum langhayate girim
yat-krpa tam aham vande sri gurum dina-taranam 

My dear eternal Spiritual Master and Spiritual Father,

The time is moving so swiftly and again the opportunity has arrived to write few words of heart-felt appreciation on the divine occasion of Your divine grace’s seventy seventh Vyasa-puja celebration which is going to happen in the end of this year.

Thank you so much for reading and replying to my letters, in midst of your busy to super busy schedule and travels. The reciprocation of Your divine grace through letter replies is the means of sustenance and nourishment in my spiritual life. At times, I am wondering how Your divine grace would do it? Traveling from one to another, preparing and giving classes, attending festival events, conducting so many retreats throughout the year, corresponding to devotees via email, SMS and/or another media, doing research on questions asked by devotees and also managing personal sadhana practices.

This gives me a realization that, spiritual master is having a spiritual body and He is above the three modes of material nature, and Krsna has given His potency to Your divine grace to carry-out services. The Supreme personality of Godhead has sent His Supreme intimate and personal associate in the form of spiritual master to revive the lost relationship with Him and teach the principles of devotional life.

A week ago, I saw the “Fire van” on the road, while going back from work to home. This reminds of the function of a spiritual master to save the conditioned living entities from the fire and heat of the material existence. Through the descending mercy spiritual master showers the nectar of Krsna-prema to relieve a conditioned soul from the clutches of material nature, which is impossible to over come by one’s own efforts and endeavors.

samsara-davanala-lidha-loka-
tranaya karunya-ghanaghanatvam
praptasya kalyana-gunarnavasya
vande guroh sri-caranaravindam
(Sri Gurv-astaka Text one)

“The spiritual master is receiving benediction from the ocean of mercy. Just as a cloud pours water on a forest fire to extinguish it, so the spiritual master delivers the materially afflicted world by extinguishing the blazing fire of material existence. I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master, who is an ocean of auspicious qualities.”

I am eagerly waiting for that day to come in my life when I can say – my dear Guru Maharaja, please use me the way you like in the service of Sri Krsna and Srila Prabhupada.- with complete faith and surrender. Please shower few drops of mercy upon me, so that it can happen soon.

Thank you so much, Guru Maharaja, for considering me and giving me second initiation. Whenever I am entering altar, I am considering myself as Your divine grace’s instrument who has so kindly and mercifully engaged in some altar services for my purification and upliftment of consciousness. After completing the service, I am offering at Your divine grace’s lotus feet.

Your divine grace, has always been a shining example for me – an acarya. After the second initiation fire sacrifices was over, you had called second initiates in Your divine grace’s room for giving them gayatri mantra. While giving the mantra, you clearly stated that you have never missed a gayatri, after receiving second initiation. I was thinking, that’s more than fifty years.

In recent times, Your visit to India has been limited to yatras. I am contemplating on how to have Your divine grace’s physical association. I have asked the same question couple of times, and you have given a simple profound answer – through sound vibration and that’s how Your divine grace is associating with Srila Prabhupada.

I have been hearing to Ramayana class given by His Grace Nityananda Pran Prabhuji. We are in the Yuddhakanda wherein he mentioned the episode of Akampana’s fight with Hanuman. How Sri Hanumanji, saved the vanara-sena from the onslaught of Akampana by killing him, giving protection to fellow monkeys and removed the fear and doubts from their minds. Similarly, Your divine grace, has entered my life to save me from the cycle of repeated birth and death and remove the fear of bodily conception of life which is ingrained in me from time immemorial.

It is said, that if one practices the vow of celibacy completely for hundred lifetimes, then one can enter into Brahmaloka. On the same note, if one glorifies, spiritual master for hundred lifetimes without even wasting a single second, then also, it is not possible to completely glorify the spiritual master. As a conditioned living entity, I am trying to glorify Your divine grace according to my capacity, please forgive my shortcomings in this service.

I am begging for your forgiveness and pardon for any offenses knowingly or unknowingly at your lotus feet on the most auspicious day of your divine appearance day. Please engage me in some service at the dust of your lotus feet.

Your ever indebted and aspiring servant,
Rama-kanta dasa