Page 13 - MMOSP (English)
P. 13

Introduction





             I joined ISkcoN in 1975, when Çréla Prabhupäda was already
             established as a great world äcärya and had several thousand
             disciples. By that time, only a few devotees were allowed regular
             personal access to Çréla Prabhupäda; the rest were discouraged
             from disturbing him. Even while traveling and preaching
             extensively, Çréla Prabhupäda set aside as much time as possible
             for his foremost work: translating books. We were told that more
             important than seeing Çréla Prabhupäda in person (vapuù) is
             to follow his instructions (väëé), and that he was especially
             pleased by distribution of his books. (In those days, most of the
             brahmacärés were engaged in that service.) Of course, we got to
             see Çréla Prabhupäda in classes and darçanas, during which he
             freely gave his personal association to everyone.

             Although I saw Çréla Prabhupäda several times before he passed
             away (on 14 November 1977), only once was I ever alone in
             a room with him—when he gave me the Gäyatré mantra. It
             may be questioned why one  with so few memories  of Çréla
             Prabhupäda would bother to publish them. The first reason is
             that many newer devotees ask me about my experiences with
             Çréla Prabhupäda, and I wish to share whatever little I can
             tell with those who are eager to hear. Furthermore, while my
             personal anecdotes regarding Çréla Prabhupäda naturally have
             special meaning for me, they are also significant for the entire
             world, because everything that Çréla Prabhupäda said or did
             is important for everyone and hence should be recorded and
             preserved, as far as possible. So another reason for my publishing
             these few vignettes is to encourage others to write or otherwise
             record theirs. Many disciples had extensive association with
             Çréla Prabhupäda, others had less, and still others (as in my
             case) had very little. But if many of the devotees with only a



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