srila prabhupada said...!!!

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

In awarding brahmana initiation even to those who were formerly yavanas and mlecchas, Prabhupada was following in the footsteps of his Guru Maharaja, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. In the course of his preaching, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta had met with bitter opposition from the caste brahmanas of India, who resented his awarding Gayatri mantra to those not born in brahmana families. But Srila Bhaktisiddhanta had defeated all of their arguments by supporting his actions with shastric conclusions. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu also did not care for such material designations and accepted Haridasa Thakura, who was born in a Muslim family, as the acarya of the Holy Name of the Lord. Lord Krsna states in the Gita that He created the varnas not according to birth, but according to guna-karma, the qualities and acts of the person. Factually, in the Kali-yuga everyone is born as a sudra, because there are no purificatory ceremonies performed at the time of conceiving a child. Therefore the only hope that one has for elevation to the transcendental platform of life is the association of a pure devotee of the Lord. By his association, the pure devotee, as the bona fide representative of Krsna, can turn anyone into a Vaisnava, which is the highest status of all, in which all brahminical qualities are automatically manifest. Though Prabhupada's disciples may have lacked the polished mannerisms of brahminical life, under his guidance they were serving Krsna, the Supreme Brahman, with all their energy, and thus they became brahminical in quality. Accordingly, there was no wrong in their receiving Gayatri in recognition of the total change in their lives.

Receiving brahminical initiation was not the final goal, however. There were duties to be carried out, rules and regulations to follow, not the least of which was the standing order to preach Krsna consciousness. Prabhupada was sacrificing the last remaining years of his life to offer Krsna to the people of the Western world, and he expected the same dedication from his disciples, especially those who were senior. The tendency to become lazy, to take it easy in spiritual life, was always there. But such an apathetic attitude would not help the conditioned souls suffering in the material world. If the new brahmanas did not take the trouble to offer their association to others, then they were brahmanas in name only. Prabhupada referred to such unqualified brahmanas as "two-paise brahmanas," because in India, for two paise one could purchase the brahminical thread worn as proof of one's twice-initiated status. There were tens of millions of such so-called brahmanas, but very few of them performed the most important brahminical duty: to teach spiritual life to the public at large. In fact, it was not uncommon to see ricksha drivers in India smoking cigarettes while wearing the brahminical thread. Brahminical culture was practically lost; therefore it was one of Prabhupada's avowed aims to re-establish the brahminical culture, despite the disqualifications of Kali-yuga. What made this even more astounding was Prabhupada's determination to do this in the Western countries, which were the most degraded of all. Prabhupada had no intention of creating a self-righteous class of followers, proud of their position. Neither would he tolerate his disciples breaking the principles which they had taken vows to follow at the time of initiation. As their spiritual master, it was his duty to fulfil his obligation to return them back home, back to Godhead. And he was convinced that this could only be possible if they fully engaged in the sankirtana movement by vigorously preaching Krsna consciousness Srila Prabhupada said.

It was with such a conviction that Prabhupada asked Gaurasundara dasa, his servant and the husband of Govinda dasi, to leave his personal association and go to establish a Krsna consciousness center in Hawaii. Gaurasundara and Govinda dasi had been travelling as part of Prabhupada's personal retinue for more than a year, and neither had any desire to ever leave his association. But Prabhupada was not sentimental. He had the mission of his Guru Maharaja to carry out. When he gave someone his personal association, it was always with the idea of making them strong so that they could become fixed in a preaching engagement.

Biographies and Glorifications of Srila Prabhupada-Servant of the Servant-The West Coast Days-Becoming Prabhupada's Man-Tamala Krsna Goswami

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

Prabhupada had been in San Francisco for less than two weeks and was about to travel to Seattle, where a new temple had been opened by Upendra and Gargamuni. But before leaving, he was determined to see Gaurasundara embark for Hawaii. I had just come to visit Prabhupada when I saw an amazing scene taking place in his apartment. Gaurasundara, holding luggage and mrdanga, was being literally forced out of the front door by Srila Prabhupada. At the same time, Prabhupada was reassuring him that Krsna looks after all of His devotees' needs when Srila Prabhupada said they sacrifice their life for preaching. The whole scene reminded me of a mother bird pushing her offspring out of the nest, forcing them to learn to fly, and as I watched I was also aware that this might happen to me one day. Prabhupada was taking so much care, seeing to all of my spiritual needs, allowing me to feel dependent upon his association, secure in his presence. And yet I now sensed that whatever time he invested in training me was in preparation for some greater purpose which lay ahead sometime in the future. Indeed, his association carried with it a heavy obligation. But that was the future. For now Prabhupada was keeping me personally under his wing, like a protected child.

Having ushered Gaurasundara out, Prabhupada returned to his room. I followed closely behind, not allowing any distance to separate us.

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

As Jayananda maneuvered our sankirtana van through the busy noonday traffic along Hollywood Boulevard, I surveyed the passing shops and office buildings, in search of our temple. Dayananda Prabhu had invited Prabhupada to the new temple he had just rented in the heart of Hollywood, but Prabhupada had not been able to come immediately. From Seattle he had gone to Montreal to arrange his permanent residency visa for the U.S., so he had instructed us to meet him in Los Angeles, where he would be coming within a few days’ time. We had driven straight from Seattle, following the Coast Highway through the states of Washington, Oregon, and Northern California. Our plan was to arrive before Srila Prabhupada, so that we could help make any necessary arrangements for his comfortable stay, and because of this Jayananda had driven the entire distance, stopping only when he became too tired to drive. Our van was a commercial vehicle, which I had purchased second-hand, and it had no windows. The devotees were all sleeping, exhausted from the arduous journey and midday heat. After so many continuous hours of travelling it was hard to make out their bodies amid the sleeping bags, rugs, musical instruments, signs, and other paraphernalia of our sankirtana party.

"There's the temple," Jayananda announced, pointing to an office building with a large storefront window. Jayananda quickly parked, and the devotees jumped out of the van, shaking off their slumber. We stood outside the tall office building, impressed by its size and location. Our temple in Seattle was a traditional framed house in a quiet residential neighbourhood: but Dayananda had rented a huge ground-floor showroom right on Hollywood Boulevard. Immediately across the street was Grauman's Chinese Theatre, a popular tourist attraction. When we had visited Los Angeles a few months earlier, we had found Hollywood Boulevard's broad sidewalks and active night life an ideal setting for our kirtanas. Even now, hundreds of people, many of whom were tourists, could be seen shopping in the prestigious Hollywood stores.

As we carried our sleeping bags, dirty clothes, instruments, and other paraphernalia through the building's lobby, our crumpled appearance drew disdainful, amazed looks from the businessmen waiting for the elevator to take them to their offices. Even had we been dressed in fresh cloth and neat tilaka, it was doubtful that they would have been any more appreciative; our saffron dhotis and rubber sandals were a marked contrast to their pin-striped suits and wing-tipped shoes. We laughed at their amazed stares, happy to have arrived at last at the temple.

The showroom was very modern and clean. As it had been rented only recently, little had been done yet to convert it into a temple. Dayananda and his wife, Nandarani, were alone, and they were relieved to have the help of so many brahmacaris. Dayananda explained that Prabhupada would be arriving the next day. He had made arrangements for Prabhupada to stay at the Lucky Seven Hotel, also on Hollywood Boulevard, near to Grauman's Theatre, and the fully-furnished hotel room was complete with an attached kitchen, so Prabhupada's servants would be able to prepare his meals without having to come to the temple. We all congratulated Dayananda for his excellent arrangements, and after bathing and taking prasadam we went straight out for sankirtana. What a wonderful facility! We simply had to go out the door and we were right on Hollywood Boulevard, the most important place in Los Angeles. We walked up and down the Boulevard, performing kirtana, selling magazines. and inviting people to our new centre, although the temple was in such an ideal location that there was hardly need of distributing invitations. At night, with all the offices closed, our brightly lit ground-floor temple room was like a Hollywood stage set. and the constant flow of people strolling down the Boulevard would stop. spellbound, staring at the most unique sight they had ever beheld, many pressing their faces against the large showroom window, trying to get a better view.

Such a temple would have immensely pleased Prabhupada's spiritual master, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati. He had always preferred to preach amid the teeming masses rather than seeking out comfortable seclusion far away from the people. And Prabhupada's mood was identical. When he arrived the next day, he immediately sat down on a large pillow in the centre of the temple room floor and began to hold kirtana. He very much appreciated the prominent location of the building and the easy public access it afforded; in fact, he liked Los Angeles very much. Its warm climate reminded him of India, and Srila Prabhupada said that if he were to establish a headquarters, this was an ideal city. Looking out of the windows, seeing the many interested people crowding around, all curious to find out what this "spiritual life" was all about, Prabhupada became very encouraged. From their appearance, he judged that they were respectable persons from all walks of life. Yes, Dayananda had chosen a good location from which Srila Prabhupada could launch his activities.

Biographies and Glorifications of Srila Prabhupada-Servant of the Servant-The West Coast Days-Intimate Encounters-Tamala Krsna Goswami

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

Unfortunately, the managers of the office building did not share the optimistic views of Srila Prabhupada and his followers. They disapproved of our loud kirtanas and received constant complaints from the building's other occupants, protesting the strong, pungent odors which bellowed out from the rear window into the offices above whenever prasadam was prepared. Suddenly, without prior warning, the management served a twenty-four-hour eviction notice. With nowhere to go, we found ourselves sitting. with all the temple paraphernalia, along the sidewalk of Hollywood Boulevard. What had seemed to be a most promising opportunity had now turned into a terrible predicament. Camped out along the sidewalk, the devotees appeared like a wandering gypsy band. Out of desperation we began to ask the people who passed by, "Can we stay with you? Can we stay with you? Can we stay with you?" After many hours, when we had become nearly hopeless, a lady in her late middle ages walking with a little pet dog came up to us. She could understand our troubles, and without our even asking she invited us to her home. For three days we lived in her country house, along with her three dogs. She seemed to be forever cooking food for her pets, but we had no choice but to tolerate it because we had nowhere else to stay. Although she had hardly any inclination toward spiritual life, she was friendly and kindly disposed to the devotees, and we all appreciated that she alone had come forward to help us in our moment of need. Out of gratitude for her help I brought her to meet Srila Prabhupada, and although she had little understanding of his spiritual position, she nevertheless curtsied before Prabhupada, who thanked her very much for helping us.

Prabhupada was very concerned about the unfortunate turn of events. He instructed me to immediately rent a house for our sankirtana party. Dayananda had found an apartment for Srila Prabhupada, and he and his wife had occupied a separate accommodation some distance away. This meant that Prabhupada, the brahmacaris, and Dayananda were now each living in separate parts of the city. But Prabhupada was not to be easily discouraged. He had undergone far more difficult tests in the past. He described how, when he had lived in India as a sannyasi, he had been without Srila Prabhupada said any fixed residence. There, also, he had been forced to move from one place to another; but he had never allowed his preaching activities to become affected. Although he had worked singlehandedly and often did not have even enough money to purchase his meals, somehow or other he had persevered, and in the midst of such difficulties he had still produced three volumes of the Srimad-Bhagavatam. When he came to America things had not been any easier. His first year was spent in a similar condition, without any certain income or fixed residence. But he had continued to translate the Bhagavatam and hold preaching programs. In retrospect. Prabhupada now considered these difficulties to be spiritual assets. A devotee could find solace knowing that Krsna alone was the only real shelter, not any place in this transitory material world. Material security was an illusion which sooner or later would crumble, and finally, when death came, the soul would have to leave the body no matter how fine or permanent the arrangements may have seemed.

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

Prabhupada's personal experiences and his instructions encouraged the devotees to carry on with their activities. Prabhupada worked with great concentration on his translation of the Bhagavatam, while Dayananda, in his off hours after work, looked for a new temple location, and the sankirtana party went out daily for chanting and Back to Godhead distribution. Prabhupada would still hold evening programs, but now, without a temple, the location had to be constantly changed. One night the meeting was at Dayananda's apartment, another night at our sankirtana house, and on still another occasion in the garage of some sympathetic person met during the day's preaching.

Wherever the program was, Prabhupada would dutifully come from his apartment to wherever we had arranged. He was equally happy sitting in a comfortable lounge chair in Dayananda's living room or on an oriental rug placed over the cement floor in an empty garage. On behalf of Krsna, he was determined to tolerate all inconveniences in order to establish Krsna consciousness. He saw the whole event as a great challenge and explained that because there was so much difficulty, it meant that there would be Srila Prabhupada said a great reward in the end. Prabhupada was determined to establish an important centre in Los Angeles. As soon as he was seated, he would ask for a report of our day's sankirtana activities: How much money had we collected? And how many magazines had we distributed? Our activities encouraged him that even without a temple, preaching was nevertheless going on. And he would give a full lecture, undaunted by the surroundings, absorbed in training his disciples to become determined servants of Krsna.

After many weeks of searching, Dayananda at last found a suitable building for establishing a temple. Located on La Cienega Boulevard, it had formerly been a church. Its main entrance led into the high-ceilinged chapel, which had equally high windows. At the far end, opposite the entrance, was a stage, where formerly the altar had been. A narrow room ran adjacent to the chapel along one of its sides, and another room, equal in size to the chapel, but not nearly so lofty in height, had probably been used as a meeting hall. This also had a stage at one end, and along its sides were three alcoves, almost large enough to be considered separate rooms in themselves. Between the meeting hall and chapel were two other rooms, both large, perhaps half the size of the meeting hall, and two small offices, two bathrooms, and a kitchen completed the building. It was in reasonably good condition and, set back some fifty feet off the Boulevard, had an attractive appearance. From the sidewalk to the entranceway was a lawn, with shrubs and small trees skirting the building.

Prabhupada was satisfied that this was the suitable place to establish a Krsna consciousness centre, and he advised Dayananda to arrange the rent. Although Dayananda's pay checks were the only steady income to be counted on, it was worth taking the risk of paying the monthly rent of four hundred dollars. The new premises afforded Srila Prabhupada a suitable facility from which to conduct his preaching activities. He envisioned the chapel converted into a temple with established Deities, devotional paintings hung along its walls. There was enough space to accommodate hundreds of guests; the narrow room alongside of the temple could be reserved for his personal use; and there were still three other large rooms, one of which had a stage. These could he used for lectures, prasadam distribution, and for residential purposes. With proper arrangements made, it would be by far the best temple that ISKCON had. Though the devotees had been unceremoniously ousted from their previous Hollywood location, Krsna was now offering an even better facility. The building was self-contained, and there would be no complaining tenants to deal with. This had always been a problem at Prabhupada's storefront centres since the very beginning, at 26 Second Avenue. But here the devotees could hold kirtanas as loudly as they liked. The building had been constructed specifically as a place of worship, and those who lived nearby must already he accustomed to hearing prayers and religious songs. The neighbourhood was mostly residential, but there were also shops and offices spread out along both sides of the Boulevard. Judging from the steady flow of cars that passed by, it was a fairly important thoroughfare.

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

Overall, Prabhupada was very pleased with this new facility. He was eager to establish Srila Prabhupada said a regular temple program as quickly as possible. It had not been easy for his disciples. Spread out in different locations, it had been difficult to keep everyone enthused. He had done as best as he could by holding regular evening classes, but without a proper temple, the preaching could not be developed properly. The sankirtana party reported meeting many sincere persons, but without a fixed address it was difficult to invite them.

As soon as the building was rented, Prabhupada directed Dayananda to move to the new location. In addition to his wife and small daughter, Dayananda had allowed a few other women, one of whom also had a small child, to share his apartment. Now they all moved into the large temple facility, pleased with their new accommodations. The women occupied the alcove rooms, and by hanging curtains over the exposed side created small, private apartments for themselves; and there was ample space for the small children to freely run about. Meanwhile, Prabhupada continued to reside at his Hayworth Avenue apartment. But when he came to visit the temple to see what progress had been made, he was not very satisfied. Rather than increasing the preaching, the devotees had simply expanded their household arrangements, and nothing had been done toward preparing the temple room for opening it to the public. Between two rooms. Prabhupada saw a large rubber mould hanging from a doorway. The devotees explained that Nara-Narayana and Govinda dasi were making replicas of the Kartami-sayi Deity. But all Prabhupada could see was plaster of Paris hardened onto the floor and surrounding walls. Everywhere there was a feeling of general disorder and lack of cleanliness, and it was clear that the new property was not being used as Prabhupada had intended.

Dayananda could not be blamed. After all, he had to attend to his job during the day. With only a few women left to manage on their own, they were finding difficulty even to keep such a large place clean. In Prabhupada's other temples, the administration was all done by the brahmacaris. Free from family entanglements, they could give full attention to looking after his preaching mission. But in Los Angeles there was only Dayananda and a few women and children. Prabhupada decided to call for me.

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

Our sankirtana party had been going out daily, pushing Back to Godhead distribution and holding kirtanas throughout the city. The small house which we had rented was easy to maintain, and the low rent allowed us to save a major part of our collections. Prabhupada had discussed with me the possibility of a world tour beginning in Europe, and I had been saving money with this in mind. Our days were free of worry as we concentrated all of our energy on developing the preaching. As for the temple, that was a concern for the local devotees. We were Prabhupada's personal sankirtana party, and we preferred to remain separate. But Prabhupada had a different idea. Sitting in the bare, unfurnished room set aside for his use, Prabhupada explained that the temple was not being properly managed. It was the largest building in ISKCON, and yet it had the fewest devotees. Dayananda was sincerely trying to do his best, but it was not possible for him alone. Prabhupada spoke of the great potential for spreading Krsna consciousness in Los Angeles and revealed how he envisioned having a first-class temple and big festivals to attract the people of the city. "Now is the proper time for you to move in and organize things here with your party. This will be a real challenge," Srila Prabhupada said. Prabhupada knew that I would be hesitant to accept his proposal. When Dayananda had first found the building, Prabhupada had asked how much our sankirtana party could contribute toward the rent. We had only offered to pay one hundred dollars, and Prabhupada had had to personally pay the difference from his book fund.

"But Prabhupada, you told us that you wanted us to go to Europe and all over the world. If we move in here"

Prabhupada interrupted. "No, no. This will just be for a short time." In this way he gradually induced us to take responsibility for organizing the temple.

The brahmacaris took up the task of renovating the temple with the same enthusiastic spirit with which they performed sankirtana. Now, instead of mrdangas and karatalas, we wielded brooms, paint brushes, and hammers. Within days, the building began to take on the atmosphere of a regular ISKCON temple. Every room was given a fresh coat of paint, and in the main chapel an altar was constructed over the stage. Nara-Narayana immediately set to work building Prabhupada a beautiful vyasasana. The alcoves of the meeting hall were converted into an art studio, a puppet-making area, and a sewing room. The women were relocated together in one room, and they helped by sewing curtains for the many windows as well as preparing Prabhupada's personal room. In this way, each part of the building was designated for a specific use. When all the arrangements were complete, I brought Prabhupada to the temple. He walked from one room to the next, inspecting the ceilings, the walls, the floors. Everything was clean and shiny. All of the devotees had been following him around as he made his tour, and now he led them into his room. Sitting on the new cushions that had just been sewn for him, he appreciated the endeavour which we had made-"Now it is a real temple"- and Prabhupada explained how our next engagement should be to arrange for a press conference, so that the public would come to know of our activities. Paid advertisements would be too expensive, and the public would never seriously accept statements we printed about ourselves. It would be better to invite reporters to come and let them write articles describing our movement and its activities. Prabhupada planned out a large feast and asked one of the brahmacaris, Dina-dayalu, to take charge of organizing the whole event.

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

Prabhupada arrived at the temple at six P.M., a half hour before the press conference was scheduled to begin. He personally observed the arrangements to see that everything had been done satisfactorily. In the temple room, before the altar, dozens of rented folding chairs had been arranged for the comfort of the reporters, as Prabhupada had not wanted them to experience the inconvenience of having to sit on the floor. At the rear of the temple room, large banquet tables covered with white tablecloths were set up in a buffet style. Prabhupada also saw that the feast had been properly prepared. The devotees had made many varieties of special dishes and had cooked enough for one hundred people to eat. Prabhupada took his seat on the vyasasana to the right side of the altar and waited for his guests to arrive. From his vantage point on the raised stage he looked down, surveying the devotees. Everyone looked bright-faced, excited at the prospect of seeing their spiritual master meet the leading newsmen of the city. Dina-dayalu had sent invitations to all the major news media, including television and radio stations. Prabhupada chanted on his beads. and the devotees followed his example. It was now nearly six-thirty, but so far no guests had come. Prabhupada chanted japa with his eyes closed, only his fingers and lips moving to the sound of the mantra. He opened his eyes and looked at his watch. It was now six-thirty. Everyone looked in the direction of the temple room doors as the sound of someone entering was heard. But it turned out to be one of the devotees. Prabhupada called Dina-dayalu to his vyasasana and asked why the guests had not yet come. Dina-dayalu explained that they were important men with busy schedules. He had purposefully set the conference for the evening, after their working hours, to make sure they were free to come. Again Prabhupada closed his eyes and chanted on his beads. Now the devotees were becoming a little anxious. Why hadn't the reporters responded to their invitation? Everyone looked in the direction of the entrance, hoping that at least some reporters would come. Six-forty. Six-fifty.

At seven o'clock Prabhupada gave a final glance at his watch. He cleared his throat, and speaking into the microphone he first addressed Dina-dayalu, saying that it was now concluded that none of the reporters would come. The mistake had been in scheduling the conference for the evening. The reporters were only interested in attending functions that coincided with their working hours. They would not receive any salary for working overtime; therefore they would see no benefit in attending a spiritual conference in the evening. They had no idea of the importance of Krsna consciousness Srila Prabhupada said or the value of the ISKCON temple which was newly opened, so why should they sacrifice their free time? They were looking for sensational news, something that would attract their customers to purchase more papers.

Prabhupada was not angry with the innocent mistake of his in-experienced disciples. They had done their best to make all nice arrangements. He encouraged them, telling them that there was no loss. Whatever service had been done was not in vain. Krsna had accepted all these preparations, and that was the real point of the conference-that one should offer everything to the Supreme Lord. Whether it was decorating the temple, holding a press conference, or performing sankirtana, the one aim was to satisfy Krsna. If this could be accomplished, then any effort was a great success, even if the results seemed to indicate the contrary. The devotees had been disappointed, but hearing Prabhupada's explanation they became relieved. They wished that they had been more careful in planning when to held the conference, but they saw that Srila Prabhupada was not upset with them. They listened carefully as Prabhupada continued to elaborate on the principles of devotional service.

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

After Prabhupada had spoken for nearly half an hour, he asked that kirtana begin. The devotees danced and chanted enthusiastically, swaying back and forth, their hands stretched high above their heads, pleased at being with Prabhupada. When the kirtana ended, Prabhupada ordered that the feast be served. He remained sitting on his vyasasana while a huge plate of prasadam was placed before him, and along with all of the devotees he respected the Lord's mercy. Though the evening had threatened to become a complete failure, it had been transformed into a blissful Krsna conscious event due to Prabhupada's pure devotional presence.

Soon after the failed press conference, Srila Prabhupada taught the devotees how to observe some important Vaisnava festivals. On these occasions, Prabhupada would arrive at the temple after his morning walk and stay with the devotees until the afternoon. To celebrate these special festival days, he would personally go into the kitchen and cook the entire feast, with different disciples assisting with the preparations. One time, Prabhupada engaged me in cooking puris. He demonstrated how to roll the puri out until it was perfectly flat. Then he put it into the ghee, and by touching it with his finger it would blow up. I was amazed. It seemed like magic. I thought, "Prabhupada is so potent that just by his touch everything expands and changes!" And after everything was offered to the Deity, he would come into the temple room, sit on his vyasasana, and take prasadam with the devotees. The taste of the preparations he cooked was like pure nectar. Personally, I never tasted prasadam as when Prabhupada cooked it himself. It was completely different, totally on the transcendental platform.

At the feasts, Prabhupada was always careful to see that the children were fed first, and from his vyasasana he would direct the servants, "Give him more of this, him more of that" Srila Prabhupada said.  I would always sit up toward the front, near Prabhupada, anxious to receive some remnants from his plate. Once I was lucky enough to get a sweetball, which I saved on the corner of my plate to relish at the end of my meal. But my Godbrother Jaya Gopala had also been eyeing the sweet ball. Suddenly he reached over and stole it, plopping it into his mouth in one swift action. I became furious, and because he had no remnants for me to steal in return, I began to twist his arm in anger, completely forgetting that Prabhupada was sitting right in front of us. Prabhupada asked, "What is going on?"

"Jaya Gopala just stole my sweetball!"

Prabhupada replied, "Very good, he has just made great advancement." Everyone laughed. Then all the devotees began stealing each other's prasadam.

[chitralekha devi dasi (bcs)]

Prabhupada knew from experience that the easiest way to change the hearts of the American public was through the distribution of krsna-prasadam. He was always eager to know whether the guests had relished prasadam. Seeing Prabhupada in this mood, we were reminded of the prayer of Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura describing the glories of the spiritual master:

catur-vidha-sri-bhagavat-prasada-

svadv-anna-trptan hari-bhakta-sanghan

krtvaia trptim bhajatah sadaiva

vande guroh sri-caranaravindam

"The spiritual master is always engaged in offering Krsna four kinds of delicious foods, analyzed as that which can be licked, chewed, drunk, and sucked. When the spiritual master sees that the devotees are satisfied by eating bhagavat-prasadam, he is satisfied. I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master."

Krsna-prasadam, cooked with love and offered to guru and Krsna with great devotion, is both fully satisfying as well as beneficial for spiritual advancement. The essential idea is that by pleasing the senses of Krsna, our senses come completely under control. The prasadam feasts were not simply festivals meant for our enjoyment; they were the performance of a sacred yajna. prescribed in scriptures and meant especially for the Kali-yuga- chanting of the Lord's Holy Name followed by the distribution of sacred foodstuffs. While Srila Prabhupada was eager to participate m such joyous festivals, his mind was constantly absorbed in pleasing his spiritual master and Krsna. Once, on the disappearance celebration of his Guru Maharaja, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, Prabhupada had come to the temple to celebrate the occasion with all the devotees. As the festival fell on a Friday, I had given instructions that the feast be prepared in the evening, so that we could invite many guests. Out of my foolishness, I had forgotten that the real purpose was to serve Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura and not the palates of our guests. By eleven o'clock in the morning Srila Prabhupada asked me how the feast preparation was coming. When I informed him that we were planning to hold the feast in the evening, to accommodate the guests, he became as angry as Lord Nrsimhadeva. With great contempt for my total ignorance, he immediately got up and walked swiftly into the kitchen, his angry look making all the devotees very fearful. Only one mataji was in the kitchen, cooking the normal midday offering. When Srila Prabhupada asked her why she was not Srila Prabhupada said preparing a huge feast for his spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta, she replied, "Tamal Krishna has told us that we will cook for Bhaktisiddhanta in the evening." This only infuriated Srila Prabhupada more, and without further delay he personally began to cook the entire feast himself. Assisted by only a few devotees, he cooked a ten-course feast for sixty persons within one hour. After the kirtana and lecture, we all sat down in long lines and began to relish the feast, while Srila Prabhupada went to his room to respect the prasadam of his Guru Maharaja. To our great surprise. the servant came out of Srila Prabhupada's room within minutes, carrying Prabhupada's silver plate. The prasadam was untouched. Prabhupada had not eaten anything, being very disturbed by our negligence in not properly serving his Guru Maharaja. Our carefree. festive mood became broken as we realized the sober lesson that without pleasing guru and Krsna, there is no possibility of our own satisfaction.

This mysterious anger of our spiritual master should not be misunderstood as being the influence of the modes of material nature. Ordinary, material anger is a manifestation of the mode of ignorance. When the living entity comes within this material world, his original love for Krsna becomes perverted and turns into lust, in the same way that milk in contact with a sour agent is transformed into yogurt. Out of lust, the living entity tries to en-joy the objects of the senses, but when frustrated in his attempt, he becomes overwhelmed by anger. This is certainly not the case with the spiritual master, whose senses are always controlled by being engaged in the service of Krsna. The spiritual master, the most exalted of souls, is described as atmarama, or one who is self-satisfied. Being self-satisfied, how is it possible for him to have to search for happiness within this world of suffering? Therefore we can understand that Srila Prabhupada's anger was transcendental, a manifestation of love for his spiritual master.