Dear Guru Mahārāja,
All glories to Śrī Guru and Gaurāṅga
All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda
All glories to Śrī Jayapatākā Swami Guru Mahārāja
Please accept my humble obeisances.
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate jayapatāka svāmin iti nāmine
nama ācaryapādāya nitāi-kṛpā-pradāyine
gaura-kathā-dhāma-dāya nagara-grāma-tāriṇe
I am extremely fortunate, to have sheltered under the merciful umbrella of your guidance. You were born into an opulent family, and then renounced everything. But now you are even more opulent holding the most precious treasure of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. You are so knowledgeable that you were offered full scholarships by key Universities throughout America. Now you are using that knowledge to serve Guru and Kṛṣṇa, preaching and distributing love of Godhead. While the Indians were looking up to the west, forgetting their own Indian culture, you were looking for a spiritual path, took up Kṛṣṇa consciousness and you were later even granted Indian citizenship. This clearly shows your commitment towards Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mission. You created the brilliantly curated Bhakti-vṛkṣa system. It’s widely growing branches is attracting many people into the path of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In fact, I came into Kṛṣṇa consciousness through a Bhakti-vṛkṣa in Bahrain. It established a strong foundation for me, starting off with following the four regulative principles and developing the taste for chanting. This led to studying Bhagavad Gītā, hearing lectures from many great devotees, taking part in kīrtanas and increasing my love for Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa more and more.
Currently, I am studying the Bhāgavata Pravaha course put together by His Grace Gaurāṅga darśana Prabhuji, under the guidance of three mātājīs (His Grace Leela Kīrtaneśvari mātājī, His Grace Ujjvala Kālindī mātājī and His Grace Madhusmitā mātājī) here in Qatar. I have completed 3 modules and the fourth is going on. Personally, I feel amazed every week by hearing their lectures and it has boosted me to study Śrīmad-bhāgavatam in more depth.
You are the example of determination. Nothing can stop you from performing the instructions of Guru and Kṛṣṇa. Despite having physical challenges, you do not stop travelling, spreading the message of the Absolute Truth to every nook and corner of the world. Covid had paused the whole world, but even that couldn’t pause you. I have had your darśana 5-6 times in person and even though this pandemic has brought up a lot of difficulties and disadvantages, I think it has done some good things as well. One of them is getting the opportunity to have your live darśana and to hear your nectarian lectures everyday through Zoom.
All these is what makes me understand the True value of the word ‘Fortunate’. I will never abandon the shelter of the merciful umbrella of your guidance. Please bless me to continue performing my sadhana with love and dedication. And also, to inspire others and attract them towards Kṛṣṇa consciousness and experience the bliss of love of Godhead, just like you are inspiring millions.
Your humble servant,
Muthulakshmi Avudaiappan (aspiring disciple)
Kṛṣṇa-kathā deśa
