Dear Guru Maharaja,
Please accept my humble obeisance in the dust of Your divine lotus feet. All glories to You! All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
On this Vyasa-puja day, we gather to celebrate Your appearance in this world.
Because through Your presence, You have given new life to thousands of hearts…
Hearts that were wandering, lost—
Caught in an endless cycle of birth and sorrow.
But through Your mercy, those wandering souls
Have found a path—
A path lit with meaning, purpose, and eternal hope.
And among them is me—
An insignificant soul, fallen and unworthy.
Yet still… You gave me shelter.
You saw something I couldn’t see in myself,
And gently, without force, You offered me a new beginning.
I am not unique as a recipient of Your causeless mercy.
Your compassion, like Your love for Prabhupada, is limitless.
This journey—it’s not easy.
At times, it’s steep and windy.
We are forced to confront our shadows,
That lurk in the crevices of our hearts.
To face doubts that whisper we won’t make it.
And, yes, there are still moments when giving up feels easier.
But then, there You are.
Steady.
Compassionate.
Always guiding.
An exemplar of guru–nistha.
Your vani becomes the compass—
Connecting us to a luminous chain of acaryas,
Stretching far beyond what our minds can grasp.
You connect us to a community of sincere devotees,
And that… that gives us the strength to go on.
How can one repay a mother who gives life?
It’s impossible.
And yet, even more impossible
Is repaying the debt to a spiritual father, You, Guru Maharaja—
Who gives eternal life.
Who gives the Holy Name…
The joy of sankirtana…
The shelter of Srila Prabhupada’s mission…
The mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu Himself.
Truthfully, I don’t even fully understand
All that You have given me.
But deep down, I know—
This is the treasure I’ve longed for,
Lifetime after lifetime.
So how do I express my gratitude to You?
By striving to do what You’ve asked.
By serving, stumbling, and standing back up—
Again and again.
By offering whatever I am
As a small, imperfect instrument
In Your mission…
In Srila Prabhupada’s mission…
In Lord Caitanya’s mission of love.
Thank You, Gurudeva.
On this sacred day,
I aspire to offer not just my words—
But my heart, my life, my everything…
At Your lotus feet.
My prayer is that You kindly accept them,
That You kindly accept me.
Your aspiring servant,
Pooja