Advaita Candra dasa, Krsna Priya devi dasi, Madanmohan, and Archana

Our dear and respected Guru Maharaja,

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

During the 2023 summer school vacation, we decided to visit Vrndavana dhama, inspired by our son Madanmohan’s strong desire. Initially, I wasn’t sure because my only experience visiting the dhama was with You and the devotees a couple of times before, and I was wondering how my family would be able to carry Krsna consciousness in our hearts while visiting such a special place, the holiest of holy places. When I shared my hesitation with You, You simply wrote back: “Vrndavana dhama! You and your family are all most fortunate.” This helped us feel deeply grateful for the opportunity to visit the dhama and helped orient our consciousness.

As soon as we arrived in the dhama, I missed being there with You and the devotees. At that time, I could clearly understand how during past yatras, You had kindly helped orient, carry, and nurture our consciousness. Nothing can replace the association of guru and Vaisnavas, especially in a sacred place like Vrndavana. Having said that, the training You provided over the years came in very handy and I was determined not to squander it.

There were several experiences and realizations during this visit, but one that stood out for me was the one-pointed orientation of Srila Prabhupada’s consciousness. Like the boat with the blue top on the Yamuna River (shown in the picture) whose orientation is toward the sun, Srila Prabhupada’s orientation was fixed toward his guru, acaryas and Lord Krsna. After observing this boat’s orientation and the realization about Srila Prabhupada, I was fortunate to visit the Radha Damodara mandir and Srila Prabhupada’s quarters. There, one very senior devotee, who maintains the quarters, opened one of the windows and explained that when Srila Prabhupada stayed there, he was constantly looking out the window toward Srila Rupa Gosvami’s samadhi. This further confirmed and strengthened the realization I had earlier about Srila Prabhupada’s one-pointed orientation.

Guru Maharaja, on this auspicious occasion of Your Vyasa-puja, my meditation is on how, since You first met Srila Prabhupada and his followers more than 50 years ago, Your consciousness has been fixed on one thing and one thing only – to serve Srila Prabhupada’s mission without interruption and without any material motivation. I have never met Srila Prabhupada, but I have been fortunate to access Your association over the last 20+ years and it is Your single-pointed orientation, the purity and strength of it that has sustained my Krsna consciousness. How lost I would be without it – I cannot even imagine!

Guru Maharaja, I (Krsna Priya) was fortunate to receive an opportunity to give a class about Your glories to the Doha congregation arranged by my brother-in-law and Your disciple, Sudama dasa. I gave this class from the holy place of Sri Rangam and that made this opportunity even more special. As I prepared for this class, I meditated on the memorable experiences in Your divine association that I was fortunate to have had over the last two decades. Srimad-Bhagavatam (10.33.31) describes accurately Your qualities and instructions:

“The statements of the Lord’s empowered servants are always true, and the acts they perform are exemplary when consistent with those statements. Therefore, one who is intelligent should carry out their instructions.” [Translation Srimad-Bhagavatam 10.33.31]

In the purport, Srila Prabhupada explains: “[A]ny living being exhibiting an extraordinary power, ability or authority must have been empowered by the Lord Himself or by the Lord’s energy.” Therefore, the word, isvaranam is translated as, “Lord’s empowered servants.” Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura has translated the word isvaranam as “those who have become powerful through knowledge and austerity.” In Your recent visit to Connecticut, You kindly gave a home program and all the participants from our neighborhood that attended the Krsna conscious seminar for the first time shared that “they felt like they met a very saintly person with aura” and were simply amazed by Your vast knowledge in scriptures. In the purport, Srila Prabhupada further writes, “Those directly empowered by the Lord are devoted to Him, and thus their power and influence spread goodness throughout the world.” This is absolutely true of You as You travel around the world consistently spreading the teachings of Srila Prabhupada in a very thorough, systematic, and professional manner.

We, Madanmohan and Arcana, love it when You come to our house and give classes. Thank You for teaching us how to be Krsna conscious. I (Madanmohan) especially remember when we went to Vrndavana in the summer how I felt like Krsna and Prabhupada were right there. When we went to Govardhan parikrama on a rickshaw, I couldn’t believe that Krsna’s pastimes, 5,000 years ago were in those exact same locations, like Kusum Sarovar and Manasi-ganga. When we went to Radha-Damodara, it was amazing to see Prabhupada’s kitchen and bedroom where he stayed before coming to the USA.

Guru Maharaja, we are very grateful that You have kept us in Your shelter and loving guidance for over two decades now and we sincerely pray on this auspicious occasion of Your Vyasa-puja that may we continue to serve You and represent the teachings and instructions that You have always given us.

With gratitude and love,
Advaita Candra dasa, Krsna Priya devi dasi, Madanmohan, and Archana