nāma oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya Kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate jayapatākā-svāmin iti nāmine
namo ācāryapādāya nitāi-kṛpa-pradāyine
gaura-kathā dhāma dāya nagara-grāma tāriṇe
Dear Gurumaharāja,
Please accept my respectful prostrated obeisances at your divine lotus feet. I am an insignificant fallen soul who doesnt have the slightest capability of glorifying your Holiness. Please bestow your mercy on me, so that I may be able to pay homage unto you on your auspicious appearance day.
I listened to your pastimes through the lips of devotees. (As the ever-sweet Bhāgavatam have become even more tasteful when narrated through the lips of Mahābhāgavata Śukadeva Goswāmī, similarly your ever-sweet pastimes become even more relishing when being described by devotees). You are an ocean of mercy, overflowing with compassion for the fallen conditioned souls of Kaliyuga like me. You are an Ācārya, teaching devotional service through personal example. In spite of so much physical turbulence you are going through, you are continuing your service to Śrīla Prabhupāda like a lion, simultaneously showing us that to rise above bodily inconveniences, the only way is getting submerged in bhakti-yoga, a lesson which continues to touch my heart. Your actions inspire and remind me that “durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma tad apy adhruvam arthadam”. Honestly, I am the most fallen soul because very often I forget the goal of human life and get engaged in materialistic activities. Yet I am the most fortunate, because devotees take the pain to remind me time and again. I humbly desire a drop of your mercy which can enable me to remain steady in the path of devotional service, understand the rarity and urgency of human life, and not get distracted from this path. Please give me a chance to serve your lotus feet and provide my insignificant assistance to Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mission, so that I can at least try to make my human life successful.
Your most unworthy aspiring servant,
Nilanjan Das
Śrī Māyāpur