Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept my most humble and respectful obeisances. All glories to Your Divine Grace.
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāminn iti nāmine
I offer my respectful obeisances unto His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, who is very dear to Lord Kṛṣṇa, having taken shelter at His lotus feet.
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
Our respectful obeisances are unto you, O spiritual master, servant of Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī. You are kindly preaching the message of Lord Caitanyadeva and delivering the Western countries, which are filled with impersonalism and voidism.
As time continues to move inexorably forward in this dark and unfortunate Age of Kali, the verse spoken by the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya becomes more and more revealed:
prāyeṇālpāyuṣaḥ sabhya kalāv asmin yuge janāḥ
mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ
O learned one, in this iron Age of Kali men almost always have but short lives. They are quarrelsome, lazy, misguided, unlucky and, above all, always disturbed. (Bhāgavatam 1.1.10)
In the purport to this verse you expand upon some of the complexities and difficulties manifest in this dark Age of Kali. It is apparent that such complexities and difficulties are increasing manyfold in all sorts of ways. However, as you also write in the same purport. “The devotees of the Lord are always anxious for the spiritual improvement of the general public.” You, Śrīla Prabhupāda, are the epitome of this statement and illustrate it wonderfully. Despite the great personal difficulties you had to undergo in order to help in the spiritual improvement of the general public, you remain steadfastly committed and engaged in this compassionate service. In this and in numerous other ways, you are the guiding light, inspiration, and example for everyone.
This year, 2026, is the sixtieth anniversary of the legal incorporation of your ISKCON Society. ISKCON is the practical manifestation of your commitment to continually help “for the spiritual improvement of the general public.” That ISKCON continues to develop, expand, and help in fulfilling this desire of yours is a testament to your continued influence on the ISKCON Society you founded. It is also a testament to the dedication of your followers in wanting to help you in being “anxious for the spiritual improvement of the general public” and to then share your teachings, example and kindness as a means to bring about this spiritual improvement for the general public and for our own selves.
As a result of being situated within this material world – itself a place of inherent difficulty and trouble – ISKCON had and has and will have its own share of difficulties and complexities. Such difficulties and complexities become further accentuated due to the influence of the dark Age of Kali.
By better taking shelter of you, by better following your teachings and example, and by becoming improved mediums for your compassion and wisdom, we can more effectively navigate through these difficulties and complexities, both individually and collectively.
On the occasion of the 130th anniversary of your appearance, may I (and all of us) strive to take better shelter of you, your teachings, and example, and pray to become better mediums for your compassion and wisdom. In this way, may we become more worthy servants of your mission to be “always anxious for the spiritual improvement of the general public” and to then do what needs to be done to see this manifest.
Your humble servant,
Chandraśekhara Ācārya Dāsa