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
My dear spiritual master, His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Guru Mahārāja,
I offer my respectful obeisances at the dust of your purifying lotus feet on the auspicious occasion of your 74th Vyāsa-pūjā celebration. Guru Mahārāja, you are the topmost swan-like devotee and wandering mendicant, the crest jewel of this planet, who is kindly delivering the message of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu to the world. You have saved me from the most wretched states of existence, simply by giving me Kṛṣṇa and it is Kṛṣṇa’s mercy to have granted me, your divine self.
brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona bhāgyavān jīva
guru-kṛṣṇa-prasāde pāya bhakti-latā-bīja
[Cc. Madhya 19.151]
“According to their karma, all living entities are wandering throughout the entire universe. Some of them are being elevated to the upper planetary systems, and some are going down into the lower planetary systems. Out of many millions of wandering living entities, one who is very fortunate gets an opportunity to associate with a bona fide spiritual master by the grace of Kṛṣṇa. By the mercy of both Kṛṣṇa and the spiritual master, such a person receives the seed of the creeper of devotional service.”
My considerate spiritual father,
This year I was fortunate to be blessed by your purifying audience on two occasions once in Bangalore and once in Tirupati. I was incredibly happy to hear from you again on these occasions. These moments of being in your physical presence (vapu) are my cherished memories. I wish to remember them and meditate on them always. However, I meet you more frequently in your vāṇī as you are more accessible in that way. Every time, when I try to hear you with rapt attention, then try to meditate on what I heard and then make insignificant attempts to follow it, I feel so much relief from the clutches of material nature. When will that day come when I will be submerged in this rasa of following you and pleasing you? When will that day come when my materialistic mind will take shelter of innermost aspirations and become a servant of your mood and mission? I hanker for that eternal and most satisfying treasure.
You have revealed in your lecture the importance of this greatest treasure:
“By one particle of dust of the lotus feet of Śrīla Prabhupāda, whole universes are delivered. We are simply implementing. Just we are allowed to feel that we are doing some service, although everything has already been done by him. Simply if we can be instruments, surrender ourselves as his puppets, so that he can dance us as he likes according to his sweet will.”- (17th September 1979, Los Angeles, USA)
My dear Goṣṭhyānandī Guru Mahārāja,
By your unfathomable and causeless mercy, and by the guidance of your ever-encouraging servants, two new Youth Baces have now come up, near Hopefarm, Bangalore. It attempts to offer the youth boys a distraction-free environment where they can feel empowered to take shelter of Śrī Śrī Gaura Nitāi. We offer these Baces and their services for your pleasure and seek your blessings for their further expansion, under your able guidance. Whenever I meet a Śrīla Prabhupāda disciple or any other mahatma who is sincerely following Śrīla Prabhupāda, I tell them that you have desired to make Bangalore the first Kṛṣṇa conscious city and I seek blessings from them to be able to render service unto your saṅkīrtana lotus feet in this way. Guru Mahārāja, please consider my request and kindly accept me in your transcendental army. This will be your favor upon me, and my lowly self will be fully reclaimed in the process of serving you insignificantly in this manner.
My dear savior and role model,
Merely seeing you perform devotional service daily, simply for the satisfaction of Śrīla Prabhupāda is the most important life lesson for me. The Glory, sweetness and simplicity of bhakti-yoga are established by Your Divine saintly conduct.
Your persistent, patient, and uplifting dealings with your disciples and followers
Your adventurous desire to travel and revive the enthusiasm of all your followers
Your prioritized desire to personally connect with all via monthly letters and daily classes and regular correspondence
Your merciful reminders to read Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books and follow them
Your dutiful encouragement to all your disciples to take up the role of spiritual masters
Your unwavering, unconditional, and uninterrupted remembrance of Lord Caitanya despite the new happenings of each moment
Your heart-melting disciple consciousness
Your constant meditation on the teachings and instructions of Śrīla Prabhupāda
Your exclusive dependence on the mercy of Śrīla Prabhupāda
Your most cherished desire of pleasing Śrīla Prabhupāda
Your daily prayers for all your disciples/followers
Your respectful service attitude unto your godbrothers and godsisters
Your instructive desire to daily attend the morning program and take meditative darśana of deities
Your ever-ambitious desire to always distribute Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books
Your responsible endeavors to inspire and contribute to the TOVP Construction
Your sincere attempts to serve the GBC
Your focused approach to manifesting a spiritual city in Śrī Māyāpur dhāma
Your heartfelt desire to develop the Navadvīpa-maṇḍala via parikramās, holy spot acquisitions, and interactive portals to make devotees familiar with the dhama.
Your celebrative mood to participate in festivals and accept prasāda with devotees.
Your collaborative yearning to reunite the Gauḍīya Sārasvata Family
Your empathizing desire to extend care to anyone who needs it, especially the disciples of His Holiness Bhakti Tīrtha Mahārāja and His Holiness Bhakti Cāru Mahārāja
Your reflective urge to always remind and align people with the desires of Śrīla Prabhupāda and the previous ācāryās
Your longing yearning to eternally serve Śrīla Prabhupāda
Your uplifting desire to initiate/shelter and guide the devotees to expand the preaching unlimitedly and spread the glories of Lord Gaurāṅga
Your ever-well-wishing desire to see ISKCON progress and respect Śrīla Prabhupāda’s position as the Founder-Ācārya
My dear eternal spiritual father,
I have not been able to follow your instructions in the letter. Please forgive me for that. Despite how extra-ordinarily fallen I am, my pride and hope are that I am connected to you. I have an ardent desire to take complete shelter of your instructions and follow your devotional illustration. Guru Mahārāja, a spiritual master is known by the virtues exhibited by the disciples. You are my glorious master, but I have chosen to remain your fallen unchaste disciple, for whom spiritual progress and absorption in the process of nava-vidhā-bhakti is a dream. I beg your mercy and blessings, Guru Mahārāja. Please empower me so that your instructions become my only sādhana, my only sādhyā and my only livelihood. I wish to never give up these instructions either in the stage of practice or in the stage of perfection. I beg that your instructions remain my only desire and my only responsibility. By your mercy anything is possible, I hanker to get a drop of it.
My most tolerant Guru Mahārāja,
On this auspicious occasion, I again remind myself of your qualities of selfless service to your spiritual master and unalloyed devotion to Lord Kṛṣṇa. You are kindly allowing me to assist you in your service to Śrīla Prabhupāda, though my services are grossly materially tinged. By your divine touch, my services become pure and acceptable to Kṛṣṇa. There is no possibility of ever repaying you, but you are so humble that when you see your disciples making little advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, you feel indebted to them. This is humility unrivalled. Only those who are truly meek and humble can ever come to the platform of “Nāma-gaṇa sadā ruciḥ”, always chanting and glorifying the name, form, qualities and pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa and His devotees. This wicked soul hopes against hope, to walk in your footsteps and attain this platform only for your satisfaction. By your mercy, anyone can achieve the Lotus-feet of Lord Caitanya and I hanker to get a drop of it.
Your fallen servant,
Acyuta Arjuna Sakhā Dāsa,
ISKCON Whitefield,
Bangalore, India