Nityananda Pran dasa and Hemangi devi dasi

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

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

Our dear and respected Guru Maharaja,

Please allow us to offer our humble obeisances at your merciful lotus feet. All glories to Your Divine Grace! All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

“Sundara Setave Namah”

This phrase signifies our profound reverence for Sri Hanumanji, the beautiful bridge and medium between conditioned beings and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Rama. In essence, anyone who assumes the role of Sri guru acts as a sundara setu, serving as our immediate link to Sri Kisora-Kisori, Their associates, Their abode, and most importantly, to Their holy name!

Hanumanji earned Sitadevi’s trust by revealing his realizations about Sri Rama’s name, form, qualities, and pastimes. Over the years, you have generously shared hundreds of enlightening classes on these topics, enriched with your own realizations from countless hours of research. Since the onset of COVID restrictions in early 2020, you have delivered at least two lectures daily, amassing a staggering total of 3,650 classes! The tireless grace you extend through your association is truly remarkable. As Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura eloquently illustrates, we recognize and praise such grace as “ghana-ghanatvam”— like a dense and thundering rain cloud eagerly poised to shower much-needed rain upon the victims of a raging forest fire. This is merely one aspect of Your Divine Grace; what to speak of your in-person interactions, voice notes, texts, emojis, and thoughtfully devised services that engage us. Each of these elements serves to quiet the tumultuous mind, which is perpetually agitated by sorrow and fear.

Sri Hanumanji conveyed to Sri Rama that His words of assurance were auspicious and welcoming to Sitadevi, who had been despairingly hopeless about her fate. His comforting words calmed her mind and instilled hope that Sri Rama would soon reclaim her. Similarly, your soothing voice and reassuring words offer solace to our aching hearts, igniting hope against hope that we are indeed on the right path toward reuniting with that Supreme Person, the Lord of our hearts.

Furthermore, Hanumanji relayed Sitadevi’s urgent appeal for expediency from Sri Rama. He spoke on her behalf, extolling her chastity amidst the relentless harassment of demons. In this same spirit, you serve as our bridge (setu) to convey our appeals. Every act of worship—be it puja, bhoga offering, prayers, japa, or tapa—begins with an appeal to you, asking that you kindly rectify any shortcomings and recommend us to the Lord for the extension of His divine grace.

Therefore, we offer our obeisances to you, the transparent medium between the Lord and us, His jivas. Sundara Setave Namah!

Your servants,
Nityananda Pran dasa and Hemangi devi dasi