Hare Krishna Dear Guru Maharaj,
Please accept my humble obeiscences unto your lotus feet,
All Glories to Srila Prabhupad,
All Glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga,
2020- the year that was. Everyone would have something fateful in relation to it. Many would say covid, lockdown, departing of so many devotees in the movement; but for me it was most definitely Zoom darshans and daily Chaitanya Caritamrita classes of Your Holiness. All glories unto You and Your wonderful team for planning the most unique and personalised ways to engage devotees even during a pandemic! House visits, Zoom calls and the Malaysia Record for Damodar Aarti are testimony to this.
Gurudev, this year, for one, has been shocking mainly due to my father's sudden departure on 1st February 2021 (H.G Shyamsundar Jagannath Das). Though we are slowly trying to come to terms with it, we're also trying our best to live by the instructions he left behind for us and draw inspiration from the life he lived.
One distinctive character we noticed while he performed his devotional service was to always carry the mood of Your Holiness in every task he undertook; be it chanting, giving lectures or any other service. He also had a sense of urgency to give Krsna to everyone. He felt so sorry and compassionate for so many non believers who didn't have Krsna in their lives and enthusiastically urged them to participate in Krsna consciousness. He used to tell us he felt so fortunate for being in the movement, that someone had taken mercy and the effort to make us Krsna Conscious, so we too should return the favour and preach to as many as possible.
Though I've lost my father, I always look upto to my spiritual father for guidance. Gurudev, each day that you are present on this planet is our greatest fortune and auspiciousness. Even after going through so many trifles and tribulations and coming out clean is really nothing short of a miracle. I pray to Their Lordships to grant Your Holiness a long and healthy life so that You continue to work Your magic on countless souls swimming in this ocean of birth and death.
Please bless me that I imbibe the mood that my father carried in his heart to perform his sadhana and that I may be able to chant offencelessly so that I understand a drop of what Krsna Consciousness really is.
Your disciple,
Vaishnavi Haripriya Devi Dasi