Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, our most beloved, eternal spiritual master,
On this most sacred day of your Vyāsa-pūjā, we, the humble devotees of ISKCON Srirangam
and Trichy, bow down at your divine lotus feet and offer our heartfelt gratitude, prayers, and
homage. Words are too feeble to express the boundless debt we owe you, for you have rescued us
from the darkness of ignorance and given us the supreme gift of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, as we sit here in the holy land of Srirangam, our hearts are filled with deep
appreciation for your mission. Srirangam is no ordinary place; it is a sacred land where Śrī Cai-
tanya Mahāprabhu, the very embodiment of your teachings, chose to reside for four months.
This was His longest stay anywhere outside Navadvīpa and Jagannātha Purī. It was here that He
showered His mercy upon the great Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī and transformed many hearts with
His divine love. For Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas, Srirangam holds an unparalleled significance, and we feel
blessed to serve here in whatever little way we can.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, though we are not aware whether Your Divine Grace physically visited
Srirangam, we are convinced that your transcendental presence must have graced this land. How
could you not have visited such a spiritually rich and historically significant place, where Śrī
Rāmānujācārya established the worship of Lord Raṅganātha and Mahāprabhu revealed the high-
est truths of devotion? Your divine vision and presence transcend time and space, and we are
certain that your mercy is ever flowing here.
We humbly beg for your blessings, Śrīla Prabhupāda, so that we may establish a wonderful
center in Srirangam – a place where your books, teachings, and mood of pure devotion can be
shared with all. The pilgrims who visit Lord Raṅganātha’s temple are already inclined to devotion,
and with your mercy we aspire to guide them toward the path of pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness as
given by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Kindly empower us to make this vision a reality.
Furthermore, Śrīla Prabhupāda, we pray for your divine grace upon all the devotees here.
Please bless us so that we may follow our sādhana with sincerity, purity, and enthusiasm. Let us
not become complacent or negligent in our spiritual practices. Please give us the strength to rise
early, chant our rounds attentively, study your books deeply, and engage wholeheartedly in devo-
tional service. May we become strong, united, and dedicated preachers, effectively sharing your
message with both the local people and the many pilgrims who pass through Srirangam.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, everything we have, every drop of Kṛṣṇa consciousness in our lives, is solely
due to your mercy. We pray that you continue to guide us, protect us, and inspire us to dedicate
our lives in service to your divine mission. Please accept this humble offering of our hearts at your
lotus feet.
Your servants,
The devotees of ISKCON Srirangam and Trichy
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to your divine lotus feet.
This year marks the most important year for your Vyāsa-pūjā because it is fifty years since you
visited this darkest part of this world, South Africa. Your coming to this wretched corner of the
world was the greatest blessing of all. We are living in tough times, where there is no hope for
peace, love, prosperity, happiness, or tranquility. Everything here is temporary and full of misery,
and there is danger at every step. Śukadeva Gosvāmī, while speaking to Mahārāja Parīkṣit said:
kaler doṣa-nidhe rājann
asti hy eko mahān guṇaḥ
kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya
mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet
So true! This material world is like an ocean of faults, and there is no hope of reversing the situa-
tion, but you, Śrīla Prabhupāda, are so kind and merciful to come to our rescue. Thank you very
much, dearest Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Here in South Africa, we have done much for your pleasure, Śrīla Prabhupāda. But there is still
a lot to be done, and we hope that by your mercy, more can be achieved. There are many stum-
bling blocks hindering the progress of Kṛṣṇa consciousness here, but we are hopeful that we will
come out victorious in the end.
Please guide us all to pursue this process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness with care and attention and
complete determination and detachment.
Thank you very much, Śrīla Prabhupāda, for everything you have done for us. We are forever
grateful to you, Śrīla Prabhupāda. We can’t thank you enough, so we will submit to your lotus
feet eternally.
Begging to remain your eternal servants of your servants,
Mahāprabhu Dāsa and the Soweto team
Our dearest Śrīla Prabhupāda,
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto His Divine Grace Śrīla A. C. Bhaktivedanta
Swami Prabhupāda, who is very dear to Lord Kṛṣṇa, having taken full shelter at His
lotus feet.
Our respectful obeisances are unto you, O spiritual master, servant of Bhaktisiddhānta
Sarasvatī Gosvāmī. You are kindly preaching the message of Lord Caitanyadeva and
delivering the Western countries, which are filled with impersonalism and voidism.
Please accept our most humble obeisances. All glories to Your Divine Grace. On this most auspi-
cious occasion of your divine appearance, we are given yet another opportunity to put into words
our gratitude and to try to glorify you, the most magnanimous person we have ever known.
Lord Caitanya is described as mahā-vadānyāya, the “most munificent,” but we know you are
mahā-mahā-vadānyāya because you brought the process of bhakti out of Bhārata-varṣa all the way
to us, the most fallen, in this Western part of the world. You freely distributed it to everyone with-
out consideration of age, caste, or creed. You made numerous sacrifices at such an advanced age
to do so, and there is no doubt that you were always carefully taken care of personally by Lord
Kṛṣṇa Himself. Who else in this world would even make such an effort as you did? And how can
we ever repay you? You gave hope and a sense of meaning to our hopeless, aimless lives.
You carefully tailored the practice of devotional service, making it easy for us, and you gave
everything to make it practical and feasible. You provided absolutely everything possible and are
training us, even today, like a father securely holding the hands of a young child and guiding that
child with so much love and care to traverse the path out of this horrid material existence. You
have given us real life. You are teaching the real meaning of this rare human birth and how to
navigate the trials and tribulations of material life while simultaneously using this life as an offer-
ing to Kṛṣṇa. Lord Caitanya instructed Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī in the Caitanya-
caritāmṛta, Madhya 1.211: “If a woman is attached to a man other than her husband, she will appear
very busy in carrying out her household affairs, but within her heart she is always relishing feel-
ings of association with her paramour.” You are teaching us to make Kṛṣṇa the center of life, what-
ever our material circumstances and duties. We pray your blessings and eternal guidance make us
develop, progress, and go deeper into our relationship with you, our dear guru, and Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
On this most auspicious day, nay, every day, we express a most heartfelt thank you for every-
thing: your many books, detailed and practical instructions, meticulous temples, most beautiful
Deities, amazing festivals, prasādam, kīrtanas, devotee association, and the dedicated disciples
and granddisciples who continue to guide us. You have given us windows to the spiritual world!
Thank you, our dearest Śrīla Prabhupāda. All glories to Your Divine Grace.
Your insignificant servants at the Śrī Śrī Nitāi-Gauracandra Mandir
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
Please accept my most humble and respectful obeisances in the dust emanating from your lotus
feet. All glories to you! All glories to your beloved guru, the lion among Vaiṣṇava sannyāsīs!
In this year, 2025 of the Christian era, I am trying to write a few words of gratitude for your
incredible time on this planet.
Here, in the southern cone zone of the world, in the countries most distant from Vrindaban,
your glories are sung and will undoubtedly continue to be sung. It is unthinkable that at your
advanced age you could have done what you did. You gave to this sad and desolate world the
most valuable gift that could have been given in its entire seemingly timeless existence: you gave
humanity the maximum benefit, and you gave it for nothing. Our limited efforts to spread your
message clearly show us that your service was not an ordinary preaching activity. No.
You stated in your books that for a preacher to be successful in Lord Caitanya’s mission, he
must be empowered by Him. On the other hand, you also state that a person empowered by
Kṛṣṇa is technically known as a śaktyāveṣa-avatāra.
The years go by and your persona and mission grow. You continue to demonstrate that you are
not just another Vaiṣṇava saint. In the book Kṛṣṇa-bhajanāmṛta, by Narahari Sarkara, the posi-
tion of a Vaiṣṇava with extraordinary qualities like yours is revealed: “It is certainly true that all
Vaiṣṇavas are on the same transcendental platform. However, among Vaiṣṇavas there may be a dif-
ference in the spiritual potency they possess.” The author further states: “Although all the water of
Mother Ganges is sacred, there are waves of different sizes in it.” Furthermore, you yourself state
in your Caitany-caritāmṛta (Madhya 11.103) purport: “Even though one may celebrate himself as a
learned follower of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and even though one may attempt to preach the
holy name of the Lord all over the world, if he is not favored by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu he will
find fault with the pure devotee and will not be able to understand how a preacher is empowered
by Lord Caitanya.” And you’ve taught us that the Vaiṣṇava is devoted to the Supreme Personality
of Godhead, and therefore his words are charged with spiritual potency. Ultimately, the potency
or spiritual strength of a Vaiṣṇava lies in his ability to convert others into Vaiṣṇavas through his
words and example.
You are great, Śrīla Prabhupāda. You converted such degraded people into perfect ladies
and gentlemen, and even today you continue to do so through your books, inconceivably, even
though you are not physically present.
The words that express the science of devotional service in your books and instructions are the
greatest legacy ever given to humanity. The world’s masses are eager to have one true religion,
and you simply expounded what that true religion is: that which teaches one to love God. Incred-
ibly, each of the most secret and confidential aspects of the loving relationship of the self with the
Superself has been presented in your books in such an accessible way that even a small child can
understand it.
You are great, and your sacred person, who gives us association through your books, grows
more and more important to us every day. Your books are no different from Kṛṣṇa, no different
from you. They protect us from obstacles on the path back home. I always remember how in
1998, in Jagannatha Puri, we were visiting the Gambhira, and we heard some Vaiṣṇavas singing a
mantra that we then started to sing alongside them: śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu nityānanda hare kṛṣṇa
hare rāma śrī rādhe-govinda. Upon entering our room, we resumed our reading of the Caitanya-
caritāmṛta. Suddenly and amazingly, you instructed us in one of your purports: “Sometimes they
sing bhaja nitāi gaura rādhe śyāma hare kṛṣṇa hare rāma or śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda hare
kṛṣṇa hare rāma śrī-rādhe govinda. Actually, however, one should chant the names of the full Pañca-
tattva (śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda) and
then the sixteen words Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare / Hare Rāma, Hare
Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. But these unscrupulous, less intelligent men confuse the entire
process. Of course, since they are also devotees they can express their feelings in that way, but the
method prescribed by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s pure devotees is to first chant the full Pañca-tat-
tva mantra and then chant the mahā-mantra – Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare /
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.” (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 7.4, purport)
You are alive in your divine instructions, and we are fortunate because if we follow those
instructions, we will always live with you.
I think the future of ISKCON sometimes looks a bit uncertain. Great changes have occurred
in the way your followers live the Kṛṣṇa conscious life. In some countries, preaching is extremely
successful, while in others, practitioners barely gather to glorify the holy names of the Lord. Some
worldly ideologies have entered our society to a certain extent, and this is because we, your fol-
lowers, sometimes forget to study your most important legacy in depth: your books.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, on this new anniversary, I offer you my intention to continue spreading
the message of Śrī Caitanya and my intention to help Vaiṣṇavas live full and happy lives in Kṛṣṇa
consciousness. I am uncomfortable seeing how devotees sometimes live a life of sadness despite
having this great gift of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, I hope you take this promise to keep trying as a small demonstration of
gratitude. I am convinced that when your message is widely distributed, the world will undergo a
profound shift toward real life. There’s no way it won’t. Your words are more than true, and they will
make a profound difference in the hearts of the world when this message penetrates their hearts.
You are truly great, and your love shines, illuminating, through your instructions, the unfor-
tunate souls who find themselves in this world, where suffering is their natural condition due to
ignorance. Kalau naṣṭa-dṛśām eṣa purāṇārko ’dhunoditaḥ – “Persons who have lost their vision due
to the dense darkness of ignorance in the Age of Kali shall get light from this Purāṇa.” You turn
misfortune into auspiciousness by giving, from your heart, the light of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
You are great because pure love of God is not cheap; in fact, even the great so-called
spiritualists of this world are unaware of this message. Yet you have made it accessible to anyone
for the price of just a drop of faith.
Your write in your introduction to the Caitanya-caritāmṛta: “Strictly speaking, anyone who
accepts the existence of God is situated in devotional service. To acknowledge that God is great is
something, but not much. Lord Caitanya, preaching as an ācārya, a great teacher, taught that we can
enter into a relationship with God and actually become God’s friend, parent or lover.… Through
Lord Caitanya we can become friends with Kṛṣṇa, and there will be no limit to this friendship. We
can become friends of Kṛṣṇa not in awe or adoration but in complete freedom…. Usually God is
seen as the almighty father who supplies the demands of His sons. The great devotees, however,
sometimes treat God as a son in their execution of devotional service. The son demands, and the
father and mother supply, and in supplying Kṛṣṇa the devotee becomes like a father or mother.
Instead of taking from God, we give to God. It was in this relationship that Kṛṣṇa’s mother, Yaśodā,
told the Lord, ‘Here, eat this or You’ll die. Eat nicely.’ In this way Kṛṣṇa, although the proprietor
of everything, depends on the mercy of His devotee. This is a uniquely high level of friendship, in
which the devotee actually believes himself to be the father or mother of Kṛṣṇa.”
All the souls in this world seek solace, and you gave them much more than that – you gave
them a gift beyond compare. You are not just another saint. Sometimes we become used to living
by your instructions and fail to appreciate how great you are. Just as Śrī Kṛṣṇa covers his associ-
ates with his yogamāyā potency so that they may live without the distance that reverential love
entails, we sometimes cover ourselves and forget the majesty of your instructions. We ask your
forgiveness, Śrīla Prabhupāda, but you know of our conditioning, which is the inability to under-
stand that the greatest, incredible, and sublime mercy of Lord Caitanya is manifested through you
and by your desire to the most degraded among humankind in this Kali-yuga.
You are great, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Your determination to serve is inconceivable. Occasionally,
we give up our service due to physical ailments. However, one of your beloved sons revealed to
us that you once had a stroke, which paralyzed your left side. You kept this a secret and escaped
from the hospital to continue your service despite your condition. You are great. You are our
example. Our guide. Our inspiration.
My spiritual master explained to me that at the beginning of his spiritual life, when he first
went to India, he thought he would meet many “Śrīla Prabhupādas.” But he realized that you
were unique, someone great, even there, in that land of saints. Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, you are a
saint among saints.
You are great, Śrīla Prabhupāda, and you are our warmest and most beautiful refuge. Forgive
us if we cannot see or appreciate this properly. This sometimes embarrasses us. Let us enter that
beautiful home that Kṛṣṇa has provided for you in the spiritual world – the house into which all
your children, grandchildren, and other descendants will enter. In the same way that children
acquire their physical characteristics from their parents, and these traits identify them within the
lineage as heirs, we who follow you acquire your transcendental spiritual traits. This qualifies us to
belong to your transcendental spiritual family, in which we are protected and happy.
O Śrī Kṛṣṇa, may we never accept any master other than Śrīla Prabhupāda! There is no one
more merciful than him. He gave us absolutely everything. What more could we ask for?
I know that you, dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, await us with open arms in that beautiful home in the
spiritual world. I know that you anxiously await us, because your love is unconditional. I know
that you joyfully await us, just as a father, even late at night, awaits his son so he can embrace him
upon his return home after a long journey. Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, we prostrate before you thou-
sands and millions of times because you are worthy to receive all these many obeisances.
Your servant grandson,
Baladeva Dāsa
Dear respected Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our humble obeisances at your divine lotus feet. All glories to you.
In a lecture given in Los Angeles by Your Divine Grace on Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 2.3.25, dated
June 23, 1972, you mentioned, “You cannot pay by returning the value which is taught by the
spiritual master. That is not possible. Therefore it is called sevā. Dedicate your life for his service.
You cannot pay. What you have got to pay to a spiritual master?”
In your purport to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.22.47 you write, “Vinoda-pātram, which means ‘joker.’
A joker’s activities simply arouse laughter, and a person who tries to repay the spiritual master or
teacher of the transcendental message of Kṛṣṇa becomes a laughingstock just like a joker because
it is not possible to repay such a debt.”
Hence in no way we can repay you for all the things you gave us. On this very auspicious occa-
sion of your Vyāsa-pūjā, we, the devotees at the ISKCON Cultural Centre in South Bengaluru,
would like to offer the results of our services at your divine lotus feet and seek your blessings so
that we may continue assisting you:
• Book distribution: Between April 2024 and March 2025, devotees from our temple distributed
the following numbers of books for your pleasure: 1,180 full sets of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam;
11,500 Bhagavad-gītās; 50 sets of the Caitanya-caritāmṛta; 760 copies of the Kṛṣṇa book; and
our temple stood first in the Bhadra Pūrṇimā Bhāgavatam set distribution under the small
temple category.
• Formation of the Śrīla Prabhupāda Bhagavata Vidyalaya (SPBV): To systematically study and
teach your books, we formed an institute for śāstric study that will teach Bhakti-śāstrī,
Bhakti-vaibhava, the ISKCON Disciple Course, and other courses. These will help devotees
go deep into their understanding of the scripture. Currently two batches of Bhakti-śāstrī
classes are going on.
• Preaching – Bhakti Sadana: We are focusing on reaching more souls to bring them to the
lotus feet of Their Lordships by inspiring our congregation to start new home programs we
are calling Bhakti Sadana. Around thirty devotees have come forward to offer their houses
or lead these programs, and by next year we will be able to offer you good results. We
seek your blessings for the success of this program. Currently, about 75 families live in the
vicinity of the temple and take part in the temple activities.
• Revival of our devotee care system: Although we started a devotee care system in 2019, we
wanted to restructure it and make it more active. Starting in January 2025, we began work-
ing on it. We currently have around twenty-two caregivers and assistant caregivers, who
serve the devotees and facilitate them in their spiritual lives.
• Construction: We are a cultural center, so we hold cultural programs to attract the public
to come to the temple and get connected. Therefore we are remodeling our previous
temple hall, turning it into a mini auditorium. We have named it the Bhaktivedanta Mini
Auditorium.
• Kitchen development: We are also trying to improve the quality of prasādam we serve the
devotees as well as our cleanliness, so we are remodeling our devotee kitchen with newer
equipment and a better infrastructure.
• Festivals: This year for the first time, we tried to invite more visitors to attend Gaura-Pūrṇimā.
Around 800 devotees and 700 visitors came and got the mercy of Lord Caitanya
Mahāprabhu.
We are grateful for all that you have given us, and we pray at your lotus feet that we may never
deviate from the way you wanted us to live and serve while assisting you in your service to your
spiritual master.
Your servants,
The devotees at the ISKCON Cultural Centre in South Bengaluru
Dearest Śrīla Prabhupāda,
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
Please accept my humble obeisances at your divine lotus feet. All glories to Your Divine Grace!
I consider myself highly unqualified to compose this offering on the auspicious 129th appear-
ance day of Your Divine Grace, yet I am deeply grateful for this opportunity to express my heart-
felt appreciation for the invaluable gift of the society you gave us.
On this most auspicious occasion, I offer my heartfelt gratitude and devotion unto you. You
are the eternal representative of Śrīla Vyāsadeva, who has come to liberate the fallen souls from
the endless cycle of birth and death. By your boundless compassion and unshakable faith in the
instructions of your spiritual master, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, your divine mercy
has illuminated the path of bhakti for countless lost souls, including myself.
As Lord Kṛṣṇa declares in the Bhagavad-gītā (2.41):
vyavasāyātmikā buddhir
ekeha kuru-nandana
bahu-śākhā hy anantāś ca
buddhayo ’vyavasāyinām
Those who are on this path are resolute in purpose, and their aim is one. O beloved
child of the Kurus, the intelligence of those who are irresolute is many-branched.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, your unwavering determination and unshakable faith have become the guiding
light for thousands. You accepted all hardships to fulfill the order of your Guru Mahārāja, bring-
ing the supreme gift of kṛṣṇa-bhakti to the suffering jīvas of this age. By your mercy, we received
the most precious treasure – the opportunity to serve the Supreme Lord, Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
śṛṇvatāṁ sva-kathāḥ kṛṣṇaḥ
puṇya-śravaṇa-kīrtanaḥ
hṛdy antaḥ-stho hy abhadrāṇi
vidhunoti suhṛt satām
Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead, who is the Paramātmā in everyone’s heart and
the benefactor of the truthful devotee, cleanses the desire for material enjoyment from
the heart of the devotee who has developed the urge to hear His messages, which are
in themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.2.17)
Through your transcendental books, temples, and devotees, your presence remains ever vibrant.
You have given us kṛṣṇa-kathā, which purifies our hearts and awakens within us the dormant love
for Kṛṣṇa.
I am eternally indebted to you, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Without your mercy, I would be lost in the
darkness of material existence. You gave me the greatest gift – the opportunity to serve Kṛṣṇa and
be engaged in devotional service.
On this auspicious day, I beg you for one blessing:
janme janme prabhu sei patita pāvana
bhajite bhajite māṅ labo prema-dhana
Lifetime after lifetime, may I always remain your servant, O savior of the fallen! By
serving you and chanting the holy name, may I one day attain the treasure of pure
love for Kṛṣṇa.
Please bless me so that I never deviate from your teachings. Śrīla Prabhupāda, your causeless
mercy is the only hope for fallen souls like me. Your compassion reminds me of the words spoken
in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 19.151: guru-kṛṣṇa-prasāde pāya bhakti-latā-bīja – “By the
mercy of the spiritual master and Kṛṣṇa, one receives the seed of the creeper of devotional service.”
Without your boundless compassion, I would be adrift in the vast ocean of saṁsāra, trapped in
the endless cycle of birth and death. You have bestowed upon me the most precious gift – the
refuge of Kṛṣṇa’s divine lotus feet.
By your mercy, Śrīla Prabhupāda, we have been able to serve in our small capacity.
On the auspicious day of Kṛṣṇa Janmāṣṭamī, we organized a seven-day Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
discourse by His Grace Govinda Bhakta Prabhu. During the Lord’s appearance day, over 150,000
pilgrims took darshan of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Dāmodara, and we distributed more than 15,000 full
plates of prasādam and over 50,000 packets of dry prasādam.
With your blessings, on Utthāna Ekādaśī (November 12, 2024), we celebrated the third brah-
motsava of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Dāmodara over a four-day festival (November 10–13). His Grace Gopati
Prabhu, president of ISKCON Ravet, graced the occasion, and we distributed around 5,000
plates of prasādam to the assembled devotees.
In our endeavor to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness among the youth, we successfully organized
the mega youth festival UTSAV, “A Festival of Joy and Happiness.” With the inspiring presence of
His Grace Devakīnandana Prabhu, we welcomed 3,500 students from fourteen or fifteen colleges,
introducing them to the sublime path of bhakti. On this occasion, we distributed 500 transcen-
dental books.
Furthermore, with your mercy, on Gītā Jayantī, we had the great fortune of distributing 26,543
copies of the Bhagavad-gītā, making Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s divine message accessible to thousands.
Another milestone in our service was the establishment of a BACE (Bhakti Academy for Cul-
tural Education) in Solapur, where six students now reside, strictly following the four regulative
principles, chanting sixteen rounds daily, and attending the full morning program. Our focus for
the upcoming year is to expand youth outreach and congregational preaching, bringing more
souls into the fold of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s divine mission.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, without your guidance and the ISKCON society you established, we would
remain lost in the miseries of material existence. Your divine movement not only imparts knowl-
edge but profoundly transforms lives. Your selfless sacrifice has given us a spiritual family, a pur-
pose, and the strength to transcend the illusory energy, māyā.
Your only desire was to satisfy Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and in reciprocation, He empowered you beyond
imagination to spread His glories across the world. Generations to come will continue to seek
refuge in your books, your teachings, and your example.
When people get to the point of understanding the need to reevaluate and formulate new goals,
and they then become serious about searching for the truth, they will meet you, the founder-
ācārya of ISKCON, and you will show them the way out of the material world by giving them
true knowledge and real guidance.
As stated in the Mukunda-mālā-stotra (5):
nāhaṁ vande tava caraṇayor dvandvam advandva-hetoḥ
kumbhīpākaṁ gurum api hare nārakaṁ nāpanetum
ramyā-rāmā-mṛdu-tanu-latā-nandane nābhirantuṁ
bhāve bhāve hṛdaya-bhavane bhāvayethāṁ bhavantam
O Lord Hari, I do not pray for liberation from the horrible hell known as
Kumbhīpāka, nor do I seek the pleasures of the heavenly planets, nor do I desire to
merge into the spiritual effulgence. My only prayer is that in birth after birth, You may
manifest within my heart.
Your causeless mercy is my only hope. Without it, I have no shelter. With it, I have everything.
Your servant,
Krishnabhakta Dāsa
