Dear gurumaharaj, His Holiness Jayapataka Swami,
Please accept my respectful obeisances at your lotus feet on this day of celebrating your Vyasa-puja!
It is incredible how you have always been present guiding my spiritual life through the path of devotional service, showing at every moment your causeless mercy and magnificence towards the lost souls.
At the moments that I had doubts about what would be the best way to render devotional service, you appeared in classes, in dreams, through spiritual siblings and guided me. Your example shows how you are always thinking about Krishna and willing to save people from the suffering of material existence and take them closer to devotional service.
When I met you personally in Nova Gokula Dhama, you instructed me to graduate as a psychologist and to serve devotees and ISKCON through this occupation. When I graduated, you asked me if I could teach at the university and you instructed me to teach there, as I could be an instrument for students to become Krishna conscious. Only by the mercy of your instruction and by your desire to serve Srila Prabhupada's mission, many paths were opened so that I could fulfill my service and many people came to help me.
Nowadays, in addition to being able to serve devotees as a clinical psychologist, by your unconditional mercy, I teach different groups of people about self-knowledge and spirituality according to the Bhagavad-gita. Until last year, face-to-face classes took place at yoga schools and at the Federal University of Paraíba. With my husband we wrote a book on this topic and we also opened an NGO called Instituto Cultive-se (Institute Cultivate Yourself) with the objective of offering classes in the form of online courses and thus reaching more people.
As The Bhagavad-gita says, the spiritual master is a self-realized soul who can impart knowledge unto us because they have seen the truth. As you predicted, many students wished to go deeper into the science of bhakti, so this year we opened a group of studies like nama-hattas in the online format so we can assist their first steps in devotional service.
As His Holiness engaged me in devotional service, so many wonderful things that I could never do alone are coming true. On such an auspicious and sacred day, I am deeply grateful for you always being with me and for never giving up on me. I pray that you will always be by my side protecting me. I offer my respectful obeisances and continually surrender to the service of your lotus feet. I pray that, through your mercy, I can qualify myself to carry out all your instructions and that I can truly help you to fulfill Srila Prabhupada's mission.
Your eternal servant,
Prema Mayi Gaurangi devi dasi,
João Pessoa, Brazil