Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāminn iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
Please accept my most respectful obeisances at your lotus feet! All glories to Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Śyāmasundara! All glories unto you!
Please, allow me to express my infinite gratitude to Your Divine Grace. Throughout my life, I increasingly experienced that I did not understand the meaning of human existence nor the goal of human life. Thus, I lived a life that was unhappy, disillusioned, and aimless
The Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya 19.151) states:
brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona bhāgyavān jīva
guru-kṛṣṇa-prasāde pāya bhakti-latā-bīja
Once, the smile of great fortune fell upon me: your book, The Science of Self-Realization, found its way into my hands. This single book answered every one of my questions. I had truly believed that there was no authentic source capable of providing answers to my inquiries. When I read your words, they had a most extraordinary effect upon my consciousness.
Before this, I had read many books by various authors, but none could provide a complete picture of the world or the nature of the soul. Nor of the Absolute Truth.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, when I read your books, I understood immediately in my heart that you are that authentic person whom I had been seeking. At the same time, you teach us in your books how to distinguish the authentic spiritual master from the charlatan.
The perspective you opened for me hit me with great surprise; it struck me as a total revelation. It came as a surprise because I did not even expect such clarity. Beside you, other authors – many of them very famous, such as Sri Aurobindo and others who sought to convey enlightenment through their writings – seemed as if they were looking at reality through a cataract. But that which Your Divine Grace conveyed was like pure vision. Such was the profound impact I felt when I came in contact with your books.
On one hand, it felt as if I had known this truth and the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra from somewhere long, long ago. On the other hand, I had never heard it from anyone else before. For me, this was a true mahotsava occurring in my life.
Now, as I write this offering, I am reliving those wonderful, blissful experiences that arose within me at that time. I remember when I read others’ writings on the nature of the soul – why it exists at all and what it seeks in the material world – the authors gave such a blurred image. It was never clear whether the soul is a person or something else. In contrast, dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, your stunning explanations are so simply understandable, clear, and perfect. In just a few sentences you presented the knowledge of the soul. Everything fell into place.
Since others were incapable of giving a philosophically clear explanation of the nature of the soul and its relationship with the world, what could they possibly say about the nature of God? But you did not stop at sharing knowledge of the soul, for that is only the beginning of knowledge. You shared knowledge of Kṛṣṇa as well. Moreover, you teach that the ultimate goal is prema pum-artho mahān.
You broadcast Kṛṣṇa perfectly, exactly as He is! To me, this is all crystal clear. Before I began reading the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, as I mentioned, I first read The Science of Self-Realization. In that book you frequently quote ślokas from the Bhagavad-gītā.
When I read those verses, wonderful and startling emotions ignited within me. I thought with amazement: “This is impossible; this cannot be.” The sentences in those verses are so perfect that an ordinary human could not compose such statements. It was so obvious that you brought this knowledge directly from Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, exactly as it is. I was utterly enthralled.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, you explained perfectly the soul-tattva, kṛṣṇa-tattva, and the tattva of the relationship between the soul and Kṛṣṇa. And it did not end there. You even gave us the means by which we can build a loving relationship with Rādhā-Śyāma!
For this, I shall never be able to repay you, dear Śrīla Prabhupāda.
I still remember when I bought the first six volumes of the Bhāgavatam and brought them home. I set them down, sat before them, and just stared at the books for hours, blissfully stunned, feeling that I had just received the greatest prize of my life. This experience was exceptionally wonderful.
When special events occur, such as a birthday, it is customary to give blessings. I too wish to take this opportunity and ask for a small blessing from you. So that I may better please you and properly repay my debt, I ask that you empower me to cleanse the anarthas from my heart. I also ask that the fresh, stunning, and wondrous sense of surprise I felt when I first encountered your books remains just as fresh and vivid throughout my entire life. For then I will always be enthusiastic to practice Kṛṣṇa Consciousness! And through that, I will be able to express my gratitude.
Once more, thank you so much for switching on the light in my heart! Now I understand which way to go, what surrounds me, and with whom I should build my relationship. Śrīla Prabhupāda kī jaya!
Your insignificant servant,
Bhaktipāda Goswami