nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate jayapatākā-svāmin iti nāmine
namo ācāryapādāya nitāi-kṛpa-pradāyine
gaura-kathā dhāma dāya nagara-grāma tāriṇe
My dear Gurumaharaj, please accept my humble obeisances at your lotus feet.
All glories to Srila Prabhupad.
All glories to your divine grace.
You have appeared in this world to give us Krishna prem. From the young age of 19 you have taken the responsibility of spreading the name of Krishna all over the world. ISKCON was also very young, it was a difficult time, your grandfather was amongst the top 10 richest persons of America but you still left everything for the service of Srila Prabhupad and Krishna, struggled a lot to happily serve Krishna. Srila Prabhupad had given you so many important services which almost seemed like an impossible task but you achieved all of it happily and blissfully and made the instructions as your life and soul. When there were difficult times in ISKCON you were always present as a symbol of hope. Despite suffering from paralysis, kidney and liver failure you stood firmly as the strongest pillar of hope and faith for all of us. Srila Prabhupad used to hammer and speak that we are not this body but a spirit soul and you have literally proved it.
Dear Gurumaharaj, I have no qualification, I am a fallen soul but you are so merciful that you accepted me and gave me your shelter. I was drowning in this material ocean of birth and death with no hope, frustrated but you stood there on your wheelchair showcasing that the only hope in kaliyuga is the lotus feet of lord Gauranga. Thank you very much for giving us this hope. When you chant the name of lord Gauranga it gives me goosebumps and it perfectly resonates with the heart touching prayer of Narottam das thakur "gauranga’ bolite habe pulaka-sarira ‘hari hari’ bolite nayane ba’ be near". Your body is not supporting you, it's giving a lot of pain but you perform so many services even in this condition with enthusiasm and you are very blissful. Whenever I face problems I think of you as a symbol of enthusiasm and bliss.
Dear Gurumaharaj, you have instructed us to cry for Krishna when you chant his names, I am trying my best to follow your instruction and cry for Krishna. You are so compassionate to all the living entities and want all of us to go back to Krishna. I also want to imbibe this quality of yours to be compassionate to all the living entities and preach Krishna consciousness to as many people as possible and bring them to the lotus feet of Krishna. I am inspired by your sincerity for service to Srila Prabhupad with humility, sensitivity, compassion. I also want to serve your instructions sincerely to always be compassionate, humble, never become proud and always be in association with devotees.
On this occasion of your Vyas puja I want to recommit myself to you. To improve my chanting, personal hearing, reading Prabhupada books, attending morning program, and endeavoring to endeavour in planning my day in such a way that even after morning program I won't be wasting my time in maya. Just like the cricketers do net practice to perform well in a match, I will also give my 100% effort to be fully Krishna conscious for the entire day so that I can perform well in the morning program by attentive chanting, reading and hearing. To invest whatever free time I have to plan and prepare on effective preaching and learn Bhajans by our acharyas. Please have mercy on me so that I can serve your instructions to the fullest of my capacity.
Always seeking your blessing.
Your servant,
Akshay Keshwatkar.
ISKCON Youth Forum,
Kolkata.