Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to you.
As the years go by, we can’t help but marvel at your unwavering quality of always taking shelter
at Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet, which makes you absolutely fearless. “Kṛṣṇa never gives up anyone who
takes shelter and serves Him. All others die in vain,” writes Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura.
Taking shelter is based on the firm conviction that only Kṛṣṇa and no one else – not the doc-
tors, not modern inventions in medicine, not wealth, nor connections – only Kṛṣṇa is capable of
offering full protection and maintenance. When, in June 1967, a stroke brought you down, you
gave an endearing example of what it means to take shelter. You requested three things from your
disciples that would help you:
1. Bring me a painting of Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva
2. Chant the Nṛsiṁhadeva prayers and the mahā-mantra for my protection
3. Additionally, you asked your servant to recite the prayers of Queen Kuntī to you, where
Śrīmatī Kuntīdevī urgently and famously requested that all the calamities she had to face
would happen again because Kṛṣṇa would unfailingly come to her side during those severe
tests. And in this sheltering presence, even the greatest obstacles and misfortunes would
miraculously evaporate, like dewdrops on the arrival of the morning sun. These are Queen
Kuntī’s words:
vipadaḥ santu tāḥ śaśvat
tatra tatra jagad-guro
bhavato darśanaṁ yat syād
apunar bhava-darśanam
I wish that all those calamities would happen again and again so that we could see You
again and again, for seeing You means that we will no longer see repeated births and
deaths. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.8.25)
A few years later, after another health crisis, you expressed your gratitude to Brahmānanda for
praying for you, saying, “Whatever the material condition may be, we should just cling to Kṛṣṇa’s
lotus feet.” (Māyāpur, October 7, 1974)
You have consistently exemplified throughout your life the importance of taking shelter at
Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet, which serve as a protective umbrella against the unavoidable showers of dif-
ficulties that come to everyone in this world. Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet are not only protecting but they
simultaneously rain down nectar – healing, nourishing, life-giving nectar.
Throughout your life, your supreme shelter never left you, and thus, you were never alone.
“What is this alone?” you once wrote to a disciple. “A Vaiṣṇava is never alone. When I first came
to the United States, I was seemingly alone for one year. But I never felt alone. I always felt the
presence of my Guru Mahārāja … Actually, you should know this: you are never alone.” (Letter to
Trivikrama, December 1974)
Once, in Vrindavan, I was driven by a friend through a narrow, winding lane. Suddenly, he
slammed on the brakes – three children were playing with marbles in the middle of the road,
fearless. My driver laughed and exclaimed, “Children! They are fearless because they know the
parents are nearby, watching.”
Śrīla Prabhupāda, when I think of you I see a sheltered devotee whose protective guardian is
always close by and keeping an eye on His dependent servant.
On your divine appearance day, I request you for your blessings. I can see that the great wave
of life will bring many unexpected changes into this world. Let me learn from you to be fearless
by always seeking the shelter of your lotus feet. Thus I can be sure that the Lord will watch over
me. And what can go wrong when your eyes and the eyes of the Lord are upon me?
Let me end by saying that I am forever grateful to have been accepted by you and that you
have blessed me with three types of faith that I consider my real shelter: 1. the taste for your ser-
vice; 2. the profound sādhana you introduced; and 3. the hopeful life you have given me, with the
prospect of one day attaining the Divine Couple, pleasing Them, and establishing a loving rela-
tionship with Them.
Thank you a million times and more for being compassionate and patient with your slow
disciple.
Your humble servant,
Śacīnandana Swami