nama om visnu padaya krsna-presthaya bhu-tale
srimate jayapataka-swamin iti namine
nama acharya padaya nitai-krpa pradayine
gaura-katha dhama daya nagar-grama tarine
All glories to you, my dear Guru Maharaja, on the occasion of your Vyasa-puja! All glories to the Vaisnavas, those surrendered souls who are constantly engaged in the service of Sri Guru-Gauranga. All glories to Srila Prabhupada, our glorious ISKCON Founder-Acarya, under whose shelter you perpetually live and serve.
I’m writing this offering on the occasion of Good Friday. Today marks the so-called disappearance of Lord Jesus Christ. Srila Prabhupada often glorified Lord Jesus Christ, referring to him as a Spiritual Master due to his unshakable devotion to the preaching of God consciousness. Of course, Srila Prabhupada also drew attention to the ghastliness of his crucifixion. It is the nature of those who take up the cross of spreading the Word of God to be the subject of derision and even violence of those opposed to the Lord’s existence and inimical to His mission to reclaim the fallen souls. Yet preachers continue to serve the purpose in which they have come in spite of all personal attack, discomfort and malady. When I think about the enthusiasm in which you and other missionaries of our beloved Lord demonstrate—and the passion in which you embody when it comes to saving the lost sheep—I offer my obeisances again and again at your lotus feet.
Recently you said that you “just cannot stop” talking of Lord Caitanya’s all-auspicious pastimes. It is clear, even to my myopic eyes, that you are seeing the eternal pastimes as they unfold. There is no doubt that you are an intimate servant of Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu’s glorious associates and that your service is to spread His unlimited mercy to every inhabitant of every town and village. A popular Bengali song by an unknown poet comes to mind whenever I hear you speak the nectarian topics of Gaura-lila:
bhaja gauranga kaha gauranga laha gauranga nama (re)
ye jana gauranga bhaje sei haya amara prana (re)
You indeed are the life and soul of all of us who worship Gauranga. In fact, we have no entry or even hope to enter into those pastimes unless you take us by the heart and hand and guide us to His lotus feet. As an aspiring servant of the servant of those who dance and chant the name of Gauranga-Nitai, I beg that you forcibly take this foolish wretch to the lotus feet of those parisads who worship Gauranga, speak of Gauranga, and chant the name of Gauranga. I long to be in the association of devotees who are constantly engaged in the service of Gauranga, and you are my direct link.
Please, Guru Maharaja, look kindly on this servant and engage me in your mission. I pray that you may be pleased with even my small efforts to serve you and the mission of Srila Prabhupada. You are a perfect instrument in the hands of the previous acaryas and my heart’s desire is to experience the unmitigated bliss of pure, unalloyed, uninterrupted service.
Desiring to take the dust of your feet on my head,
Your eternal god-daughter,
Amrta Gopal dasi
Sri Dham Mayapur/East Sussex, United Kingdom