Our dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our most humble obeisances at your lotus feet. All glories to Śrī Guru and
Gaurāṅga! All glories to Your Divine Grace! All glories to your 129th divine appearance day!
This year marks the fiftieth brahmotsava of the Śrī Śrī Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma temple – a milestone in
the history of ISKCON. Vrindavan was always your home, from your humble room at the Śrī Śrī
Rādhā-Dāmodara temple to the magnificent Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma Mandir, which manifested as a result
of your unwavering surrender to the instructions of your spiritual master, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta
Sarasvatī Ṭhākura.
It is said that when you chose the temple site in Vrindavan it was on the outskirts of town – just
as Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Rasabihārī’s temple in Juhu was initially in a remote area. But due to your vision
and determination, these places have become magnets for kṛṣṇa-bhakti, drawing thousands of sin-
cere seekers. Today, because of your surrender, we have such wonderful temples and, more impor-
tantly, spiritual guides – our śikṣa- and dīkṣā-gurus – leading us on the path of bhakti.
The scriptures reveal that pure devotees carry the holy places within their hearts and transform
ordinary locations into places of pilgrimage simply by their presence. Śrīla Prabhupāda, you
not only sanctified lands across the world – from the USA to the UK and beyond – but you also
gifted us your sincere disciples, who now serve as our spiritual mentors. The paramparā continues
as they, in turn, guide their own disciples, keeping your legacy alive.
Today, we reflected on how a skilled surgeon prioritizes saving the patient over the technical
perfection of the operation. Similarly, you adapted your approach – making adjustments without
compromising the essence of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Instead of insisting on strict adherence to
sixty-four rounds, prohibiting Deity worship by women, and enforcing rigid qualifications for
initiation, you chose to cultivate devotees first. Your policy of compassion over rules led to the
expansion of ISKCON as a global family, proving that inclusivity in bhakti bears greater fruit
than mere rigid institutional success. Here at ISKCON Yavatmal, we are witnessing the fruit of
your mercy.
• Over the past few years, many new devotees have joined the congregation.
• Youth participation is growing, with special sessions tailored for them.
• A prominent businessman, though unable to join ISKCON full-time, has committed to sup-
port ISKCON externally.
• A respected veteran, though not officially joining, has pledged to donate an entire floor of a
prime-location building to ISKCON.
• Our Janmāṣṭamī celebrations have grown from fewer than a hundred visitors in 2014 to over
fifteen hundred attendees today.
Inspired by this momentum, we seek to expand our bhakti-vriksha programs and home-based gath-
erings to reach even more souls.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, we humbly pray that as we endeavor to serve you and the paramparā, we
may develop the same unwavering faith you had and always feel the presence of Guru and
Gaurāṅga by strictly following their instructions.
Your servants at ISKCON Yavatmal