nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale śrīmate jayapatāka svāmin iti nāmine nama ācaryapādāya nitāi-kṛṣā-pradāyine gaura-kathā-dhāma-dāya nagara-grāma-tāriṇe
Dear spiritual father,
Please accept my most respectful obeisances unto your divine lotus feet.
All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda!
All glories to your divine grace on this most auspicious day of your 76th Vyāsa-pūjā.
Guru Mahārāja,
You are an ocean of divine qualities. I have no qualification at all to even begin to glorify you. But still, I dare to attempt to make this humble offering on this most auspicious occasion for my own purification. You are a perfect living example of the sādhu described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.25.21:
titikṣavaḥ kāruṇikāḥ
suhṛdaḥ sarva-dehinām
ajāta-śatravaḥ śāntāḥ
sādhavaḥ sādhu-bhūṣaṇāḥ
The symptoms of a sādhu are that he is tolerant, merciful, and friendly to all living entities. He has no enemies, he is peaceful, he abides by the scriptures, and all his characteristics are sublime.
Due to your causeless mercy and unfathomable compassion, you traveled non-stop for decades and still travel across the globe bringing millions of fallen conditioned souls towards Kṛṣṇa, awakening the dormant spiritual consciousness within us. Your enthusiasm and eagerness to give Kṛṣṇa is beyond our understanding. I am always amazed by how you come up with different creative ways to make people take the Lord’s names.
Another amazing quality of yours which Your Holiness teaches us by your example is guru-niṣṭā. Your unflinching faith in Śrīla Prabhupāda and your determination to fulfill his instructions is simply inconceivable for fallen beings like me. But I hope that I learn from your example and try to become a worthy disciple.
Recently, in Caitanya-śikṣāmṛta class, you were explaining how the Lord manifests Himself as guru when a soul is sincere. There must have been a tinge of sincere desire by the association of devotees, due to which I was fortunate to come under your loving shelter and eventually receive both first and second initiation from you, Guru Mahārāja. Please bless me with unwavering attachment to your lotus feet, which is my only shelter.
During my initiation in 2016, it was mentioned that I am interested in learning. While giving my name, you mentioned that I’ll be named after one of the nine islands of Navadvīpa—Sīmantadvīpa. Then, you went on to explain that the island of Sīmantadvīpa is associated with hearing. To learn, one must first hear. From then on, by your mercy, I am trying to hear regularly. I am also giving classes regularly in our local temple. There is some interest among the new contacts we made during the book marathon, and we are planning to start an online Gītā class very soon. I would also like to share that a couple we are mentoring got initiated by His Holiness Indradyumna Swami Mahārāja last year.
By your mercy and constant encouragement, I was fortunate to complete Bhakti-vaibhava last year and am now pursuing Bhakti-vedānta—both online. Thank you, Guru Mahārāja, for always going that extra mile to help us and save us. Whenever you say, “I’m praying for every one of you,” that makes me feel very protected. As we sing in Guru-pūjā:
śrī-guru karuṇā-sindhu, adhama janāra bandhu, you are an ocean of mercy and the friend of the fallen. Please bless me that I develop attachment to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and the holy name.
I am immensely blessed to be your disciple. I hope and pray that one day I will become a worthy disciple of yours, Guru Mahārāja. I am very grateful for you accepting me. Please be merciful unto me and protect me from taking your mercy for granted. I beg you to keep me always protected under the shade of your lotus feet so that I do not fall prey to the allurements of Māyā and remain your faithful servant forever. Please help me overcome my anarthas and become steady in my spiritual life. Please forgive me for all the offenses that I have committed at your lotus feet. I sincerely pray to Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Mādhava, Pañca-tattva, and Nṛsiṇhadeva to keep you in good health so that you continue to guide and inspire us in the years to come.
Thanking you from the bottom of my heart for everything that you do for us, dear Guru Mahārāja.
Your insignificant spiritual daughter,
Utkarṣinī Sīmantinī devī dāsī