Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our humble obeisances at your lotus feet. All glories to you on this most wonderful day!
2026 is a very special year for all Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas around the globe. This year, we have already celebrated Lord Caitanya’s 540th anniversary. Two other remarkable occasions are coming soon: the sixtieth anniversary of the incorporation of ISKCON and, of course, the 130th anniversary of Your Divine Grace. Devotees all over the world are going to celebrate these most precious events. We at ISKCON Heidelberg are also looking forward to observing them.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, on this wonderful day we are meditating on your childhood pastimes. Being born into a pure Vaiṣṇava family, you were surrounded by devotion to Kṛṣṇa all the time. You were absolutely charmed by the beauty of Their Lordships Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Govinda from a very early age. You soon asked your father to get you your own Deities so you could serve Them with love and devotion.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, your father, Gour Mohan De, wanted three things for you: “He wanted you to become a servant of Rādhārāṇī, to become a preacher of the Bhāgavatam, and to learn the devotional art of playing mṛdaṅga.” (Śrīla Prabhupāda-līlāmṛta, chapter 1). You indeed made his dreams come true.
When you were only about six years old, you organized a Ratha-yātrā festival in your neighborhood. Satsvarūpa dāsa Goswami mentions in the Līlāmṛta that, by engaging your playmates in the Ratha-yātrā preparations, you became their natural leader: “Wearing a dhoti and no shirt in the heat of summer, Abhay led the children in chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and in singing the appropriate Bengali bhajana, Ki kara rāi kamalinī.” (Śrīla Prabhupāda-līlāmṛta, chapter 1).
Even at such a young age, Śrīla Prabhupāda, you were already a person others wanted to follow. It was completely natural for them to follow you. The same happened with the young people of the US when you went there in 1965. Your disciples’ memories of how they first met you and joined the movement are the best evidence of this.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, we are in your eternal debt. We understand that this debt cannot be repaid. Yet, like a child who wants to please his father and buys him a present using his father’s own money, we are trying to please Your Divine Grace by preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness to the people in Heidelberg and the nearby cities. Our regular harināmas attract the attention of passers-by. They eagerly take your books and prasādam. They also like to take pictures, record videos, and share them. Our dear Śrī Śrī Gaura-Nitāi welcome fifteen to twenty new visitors every Sunday, bringing the total attendance to 100–120 devotees and guests at the Sunday feasts. They dance and chant in ecstasy, listen to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and Bhagavad-gītā classes, and honor prasādam.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, we pray to be helpful in Lord Caitanya’s harināma-saṅkīrtana movement. Please bless us to become useful instruments in your mission.
Your servants from ISKCON Heidelberg
(written by Acintya Gaura Dāsa)