Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Your Divine Grace.
To fulfill the order of your spiritual master, sixty years ago you came to America to teach the ancient science of Kṛṣṇa consciousness and to share the message of Lord Caitanya through the harināma-saṅkīrtana movement.
I offer my prostrated obeisances unto you as your servant and disciple.
Upon departing this mortal world, you graciously left us your transcendental presence to carry on your mission – your example of a life of devotion, the ISKCON movement you established, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and all your books, initiation into our Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava lineage, your many instructions, and the association of your dedicated followers.
These gifts flow from your mercy, compassion, wisdom, and sacrifice. You are our only qualification. You are the wealth we have to give.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, we happily and gratefully distribute your gifts.
Touched by your compassion for all conditioned souls, our hearts awaken with the desire to love Kṛṣṇa. In that awakening, our darkness is dispelled, and we naturally want to share this gift with others.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, you have touched so many hearts, and with gratitude we offer this service.
To live in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we cultivate a service attitude for Kṛṣṇa. You have taught us to become strong and empowered through bhakti-yoga – a process by which we develop a loving relationship with God. When love arises from the spiritual platform, it transcends all material considerations. In this way, bhakti connects the heart and soul, unified by the grace of Kṛṣṇa.
You have instructed us to ground our devotional life in sādhana, the daily practices of bhakti-yoga. We seek Kṛṣṇa while trying to please Your Divine Grace – chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and your other books, participating in kirtan, taking darshan of the Deities, preparing and honoring prasādam, and serving with devotees. By maintaining these practices, by your grace, we become strengthened in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, we pray for the focus and association needed to cultivate the desire to please you.
From your example we have learned that Kṛṣṇa always helps the sincere. Whoever we are, wherever we come from, whatever we have done or not done, Kṛṣṇa responds to sincerity. As we approach Him, “He preserves what we have and carries what we lack.” Even when His help comes in unexpected ways, we trust it as an opportunity for purification and growth in bhakti.
We pray to receive Kṛṣṇa’s mercy and to help share the message that He always protects His devotees.
Through your books, we understand that Kṛṣṇa resides within the heart, even if we cannot yet perceive him. By following your instructions – serving the servants of your devotees and chanting Kṛṣṇa’s holy names – His beauty, grace, and mercy awaken within us. He removes our anarthas and grants liberation even in this life.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, you blessed the world by coming to the forests of West Virginia to establish the sacred New Vrindaban pilgrimage project. After naming this place New Vrindaban Dhāma, you returned many times to sanctify it as a community rooted in simple living and high thinking. You instructed us to recite Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam daily, care for the land, protect the cows, and welcome pilgrims who come for association and darshan of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Vṛndāvana Candra. For this, we remain deeply grateful.
With this spirit, we strive to embrace your teachings. Please bless us to reflect even a small measure of the urgency with which you traveled the world, sharing compassion for all conditioned souls and setting the example for us to follow.
Although I am unqualified to be part of your mission, you have accepted me nonetheless. I pray for your mercy to pass the tests required to serve and assist you.
Your servant,
Sudhanu Dāsa
On behalf of the New Vrindaban community