An offering to:

Our spiritual master,

Srila Prabhupada,who is an ocean of

love and compassion.

IntroductionHis Divine Grace A.C. BhaktivedantaSwami Prabhupada, who successfullydistributed the message of Lord Krishnathroughout the world, was not anordinary conditioned soul, governed bythe harsh laws of material nature.Although he always felt himself to bemost insignificant, it is evident throughcareful study of his life that SrilaPrabhupada perfectly displayed thetwenty-six qualities of a pure devotee ofKrishna, as given in Sri Caitanya-caritamrita.

The Vedic literature states that only onewho is free from material bondage canpossess these qualities in full. Such agreat soul is rarely found within thismaterial realm, and owing to hisunparalleled purity and exalted status asan intimate associate of the SupremeLord Krishna, he is worshipable by theentire world. Following are the sublimequalities of a pure devotee so eminentlyexemplified by Srila Prabhupada.

Merciful

The ultimate expression of mercy is to freely afford everyone the opportunity to develop pure love of Godhead. This, SrilaPrabhupada did by opening over one hundred temples, printing millions of books and sending his disciples all over the world toteach the science of Krishna consciousness. His distribution of mercy manifested naturally as a result of his heartfeltcompassion for the long-suffering conditioned souls. His mercy fell everywhere, like pleasing rain upon the burning hearts ofthis age. When Srila Prabhupada lectured during the early days of the Krishna consciousness movement in America, he wouldoften tell his listeners, "I have come to your country not to take anything, but simply to give." Those who were honest andsincere were able to sense Srila Prabhupada's unalloyed desire to bestow upon them the highest form of mercy, and directedby Krishna within their hearts, they voluntarily placed themselves under his guidance and protection. Although SrilaPrabhupada is now gone from our material vision, his mercy is still available. A liberated soul is not bound by time and space,and neither is his mercy. One only has to open up one's heart to receive this benediction, which is being distributed freely toeveryone.

TruthfulDuring the 1960’s, a generation of young men andwomen took part in a mass rebellion against theuntruths that had been perpetrated upon them bygovernments, schools, media and big business. Atthat time Srila Prabhupada arrived on the scene,boldly preaching the message of Lord Krishna. Hespoke truthfully, never altering the pure message indeference to the time and circumstance to attractfollowers, fame and money. In an atmosphereseething with the fumes of unrestricted sensegratification, Srila Prabhupada presented a processof spiritual life based on personal sacrifice andpurification of the senses.

In those days, with the peace movement in vogue, itwas extremely unpopular to speak out on behalf ofany form of military activity. But rather than cater topublic opinion, Srila Prabhupada spoke the truthabout the Bhagavad-gita, explaining to his youthfulaudience that Arjuna attained spiritual perfection byfighting a war under the order of Lord Krishna.Because of Srila Prabhupada’s own spiritual qualitiesand his straightforward presentation of LordKrishna’s message, people gradually began tounderstand the message and received it with greatdelight. Such was the powerful effect of SrilaPrabhupada’s truthfulness.

MagnanimousSrila Prabhupada’s gifts to the world werefilled with tremendous spiritual value. He gaveus a wonderful philosophy to live by,knowledge of our true spiritual identities,beautiful Deities of Krishna to worship, the all-auspicious holy name of Krishna and deliciouskrishna-prasadam. Srila Prabhupada also gaveus the spiritually enlivening association ofdevotees and the chance to attain love ofKrishna and return to a life of eternity, blissand knowledge in the spiritual world.

In return for all these blessings, SrilaPrabhupada asked nothing for himself. Hesimply asked that we refrain from sinfulactivities, chant Hare Krishna and give Krishnaconsciousness to others. In this way, selflesslygiving of himself at every step, SrilaPrabhupada perfectly exhibited themagnanimous nature of a pure devotee ofLord Krishna.

DesirelessOne is said to be desireless when his onlyinterest lies in satisfying the transcendentalsenses of Lord Krishna. Desires are eternallyflowing like a river from the heart of theliving entity, and the process of Krishnaconsciousness can change the quality ofthose desires from material to spiritual.

Although Srila Prabhupada began hispreaching work very humbly, his missionbecame enormously successful, and Krishnablessed him with great opulence. When aperson acquires great amounts of wealthand power, he usually becomes thoroughlyattached and polluted due to the strongforce of his material desires. SrilaPrabhupada, however, remained aloof fromthis contamination because of his completeabsorption in the desire to please Krishna.

Indifferent to Material Acquisition

Because a pure devotee of LordKrishna is desireless, he is naturallyindifferent to material acquisition.Material facilities may come and go,but that does not concern him in theleast.

Srila Prabhupada once pointed outthat if he had simply sat beneath a treeand preached, very few people wouldhave come to listen. Therefore, toeffectively deliver the message of LordKrishna, he constructed beautifullyornate temples. At no time, however,was he desirous of settling incomfortably to enjoy these facilities,choosing instead to follow a rigorousschedule of traveling and preachingthat even the youngest and healthiestof his disciples could not keep pacewith.

Without Material Possessions

A pure devotee of Lord Krishna is alwaysdiving and surfacing in the ocean of spiritualhappiness. The Vedas explain that one drop ofthis happiness is millions of times greater thanthe paltry relish afforded by material sensegratification or even the pleasure derivedfrom liberation from material existence. Apure devotee never depends on theaccumulation of material possessions for hishappiness. He accepts only what is necessaryto perform devotional service and maintainsfull awareness that these facilities are actuallythe property of the Lord.

During Srila Prabhupada’s years spent inVrindavana preparing for his eventual journeyto the West, he lived very simply in a tinyroom in the courtyard of the Radha-Damodara temple. After preaching vigorouslyin the West for a number of years, SrilaPrabhupada had access to much opulence,yet he never claimed any of it as his own andused every penny in the service of Krishna.

FixedWhen Srila Prabhupada wasinstructed by his spiritual master topreach Krishna consciousness inEnglish, he took his order as his lifeand soul and fixed his determinationupon carrying it out diligently.Founding the Back to Godheadmagazine in 1944, Srila Prabhupadasingle-handedly attended to itspublication and distribution for manyyears, never once deviating from hissincere effort to please his spiritualmaster. As a result of SrilaPrabhupada’s fixed determination, allof his preaching activities werecrowned with glorious success, andeven now, in his physical absence, hisfollowers carry on his work all overthe world.

Without False Prestige

Srila Prabhupada’s humility wasinconceivably deep and heartfelt, and itinspired a generation of young men andwomen, who had based their lives on therejection of authority, to willingly accepthis authority. Srila Prabhupada never tookcredit for his many successes, alwayspreferring to acknowledge his spiritualmaster, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta SarasvatiThakura, and the assistance given to him byhis disciples.

During one lecture, Srila Prabhupadatouched the hearts of his disciples when hestated that he considered them to berepresentatives of his spiritual master, sentto assist him in his preaching mission. Bythis expression of sincere gratitude, SrilaPrabhupada displayed his mood of devouthumility. Anyone pursuing the spiritualpath should aspire to follow in hisfootsteps in this regard.

GraveSrila Prabhupada once explained to a group ofhis disciples that a devotee of Lord Krishna isalways grave. Upon hearing this, one devotee,a very colorful and effusive person, decided totone down his disposition and becamestraight-faced in an attempt to please hisspiritual master. After a few days of thisbehavior by his disciple, Srila Prabhupadalooked at him quizzically and asked what wasthe matter. The disciple replied that he wastrying to be grave.

At that, Srila Prabhupada laughed andexplained to him that being grave means tobe serious about Krishna consciousness. It hasnothing to do with artificially repressing one’sindividuality. Srila Prabhupada himself was amost vibrant personality. His life aboundedwith laughter and spiritual enjoyment, yet hewas always serious about Krishnaconsciousness. He never forgot Lord Krishna,not even for a moment, and in this waydisplayed perfect gravity.

Not DefiantWhen Srila Prabhupada first met his spiritual master,Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, he was asupporter of Mahatma Gandhi’s effort to free Indiafrom the clutches of British rule. During thatmeeting, the two engaged in a discussion, duringwhich Srila Prabhupada expressed his view that tobe spiritually potent India first needed to bepolitically free. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta responded byusing sound logic and scriptural evidence to provethat Krishna consciousness alone could rid India, aswell as the rest of the world, from all forms ofmaterial suffering.

Because Srila Prabhupada was not defiant, beingendowed with all humility and respect, he graciouslysurrendered to Srila Bhaktisiddhanta’s infallibleconclusion and accepted him as his spiritual guide.From this transcendentally instructive pastime wecan see how a pure devotee of Lord Krishna is neverdefiant, and also how we must conduct ourselves inthe presence of genuinely advanced Vaishnavas, ifwe wish to rise to the platform of spiritualconsciousness. Although Srila Prabhupada was apersonal associate of Lord Krishna, capable of givingspiritual guidance to the entire world, he was alwayssurrendered to the lotus feet of his spiritual masterand never evinced even a hint of defiance in hischaracter.

RespectfulSrila Prabhupada was respectful to all livingbeings because he saw them as parts andparcels of the Supreme Lord Krishna, withwhom he was fully in love. During hisextensive preaching tours, he was usuallygreeted at temples by adoring throngs ofdevotees and guests. On one such visit to theNew York City temple in 1976, as he strodegracefully down the center aisle amid amultitude of beaming devotees assembled inthe front lobby, they all paid obeisances tohim, as is the custom when receiving aworshipable guest. At that time a younggurukula boy, who had innocently boweddown too far into the aisle, was easedbackwards by the devotee next to him, so asnot to obstruct the path. When SrilaPrabhupada reached the boy, he stopped,placed his hand on his head and looked at himwith affection, as if to make sure that hisfeelings had not been hurt. In this instance,and in all of his personal dealings, SrilaPrabhupada treated everyone he met with theutmost respect, thus softening their heartsand rekindling their spiritual sentiments.

Equal to EveryoneA pure devotee of Krishna sees the spiritual nature ofall beings, regardless of their temporary materialforms. He observes that all souls, in their pure state,are qualitatively equal, though their individualspiritual identities are unique. In addition, he is alwaystrying to uplift them and sees and treats everyone inthat spirit. Srila Prabhupada perfectly exhibited thissublime quality and was thus the ideal representativeof Lord Caitanya and Lord Nityananda, who desired toflood the entire world with love of Krishna. He wasconstantly immersed in distributing Their mercy toeveryone, and he humbly requested his disciples toassist him in this effort.

One evening in July 1966, while Srila Prabhupada waslecturing at 26 Second Avenue in New York City, anold derelict staggered into the storefront, put tworolls of toilet tissue in the bathroom, set some papertowels atop the sink, turned and staggered out. Beingequal to everyone, Srila Prabhupada was undisturbedby the man’s odd behavior and appreciated the sparkof devotion shining through. “Just see,” saidPrabhupada, “he is not in order, but he thought that,‘Here is something. Let me give some service.’ Justsee how automatically it comes. This is natural.”

CleanSrila Prabhupada exhibitedsummit cleanliness, bothinternally and externally. Hisheart and mind were constantlysubmerged in the purifyingwaters of love of Godhead, andhis shining body was alwaysengaged in Lord Krishna’s puredevotional service. SrilaPrabhupada’s cleanliness was soprofound and far-reaching thatnot only was he himselfimpeccable, but he also purifiedthe lives of thousands of youngmen and women who hadpreviously possessed no properconcept of spiritual or bodilycleanliness.

PeacefulSrila Prabhupada once described themind of a pure devotee as being verypeaceful, like a country pond filled withcrystal-clear water, beautiful lotusflowers and swans gliding happily acrossit. This much desired state of mind is anatural quality of one who is situated intranscendence, at the lotus feet of LordKrishna, far beyond the turbulentmaterial world and senses. SrilaPrabhupada was very peaceful due to hisown pure Krishna consciousness.Shouldering the immense pressure andresponsibility of a worldwide spiritualfamily, with its concomitant problems,Srila Prabhupada gracefully meted outlove, guidance and practical instructionswith full composure, never once losingtouch with his peaceful Lord Krishna.

MildSrila Prabhupada’s mild demeanorwas another very attractive featureof his divine personality. In thematerial world, when a personattains a position of high authority,he often becomes influenced byfalse pride and loses the quality ofgentleness in his behavior. Thus hebecomes a source of anxiety for hissubordinates. Srila Prabhupada,although the world’s greatestspiritual authority, never displayedeven a drop of false pride andalways maintained a mildnessaround which everyone felt atease.

PoeticSrila Prabhupada was poetic, not onlyin the literary sense, as evidenced byhis beautiful poems glorifying hisspiritual master and Lord Krishna, butin every aspect of his personality aswell. His gesturing, walking, talking,singing, smiling, dancing and worshipwere all done with a natural poeticgrace, as befitting a swanlike puredevotee of the Lord.

For those sensitive souls who hadembarked on a pilgrim’s progress, insearch of ultimate truth and beauty,attaining Srila Prabhupada’s sublimeassociation marked their journey’send, and they happily gave up allmundane pursuits to engage in hisservice. Such was the attractivepower of Srila Prabhupada’s poeticnature, which manifested wonderfullydue to his superexcellent level ofKrishna consciousness.

SaneThe living entity in the material world hasbecome mad due to the influence of maya. Inreality, he is an eternal spiritual spark, partand parcel of Krishna, but in illusion, he seeshimself as a material body, forgets hisintimate relationship with the Lord and fails tosee how everything around him is emanatingfrom the Absolute Truth.

Srila Prabhupada was never under suchmisconceptions, however, as evidenced by hispure devotional service. Out of naturalhumility, he never promoted his own elevatedstatus, but once, when pressed by hisdisciples for information concerning hisposition, he modestly replied, “Never wasthere a moment when I have not thought ofKrishna in this life.” Srila Prabhupada’sunwavering remembrance of Krishnaprovided the perfectly effulgent example ofspiritual sanity, and by faithfully serving hislotus feet we will soon become free from ourmaterial illusion.

FaultlessDue to his being situated in the internal,spiritual energy of Lord Krishna, SrilaPrabhupada was faultless, free from the fourmaterial defects, namely, the tendency tocommit mistakes, to be in illusion, to cheatothers and to possess imperfect senses.Because Srila Prabhupada performed hisdevotional activities in a mood of fullsurrender to Lord Krishna, he was guided bythe personal hand of the Lord and wasconsequently mistake-free. His freedom fromillusion was shown by the fact that, throughhis preaching work, millions of souls wereenlightened with spiritual knowledge. Bysacrificing his own bodily comforts for theservice of mankind, he demonstrated hiscomplete freedom from the tendency tocheat others. And finally, his eyes, beingsmeared with the ointment of love of God,were fully spiritual, as were the rest of hissenses, which were ever engaged in thetranscendental loving service of Sri Krishna.

Surrendered to Krishna

Srila Prabhupada’s complete surrenderto Lord Krishna was shown by hisconstant engagement in devotionalservice with mind, body and words.Another symptom of a soul fullysurrendered to Krishna is absolutedetachment from the bodily concept oflife.

At the advanced age of seventy, despiteseveral heart attacks and many otherordeals, Srila Prabhupada single-handedly penetrated Maya’s formidablestronghold and planted the seed ofdevotional service in the hearts ofthousands of fallen souls. He was able todo this because he was completely freefrom material attachment, owing to hisfull surrender to Krishna.

Eats Only as Much as Required

Although Srila Prabhupada received themost opulent prasadam, presented tohim in grand amounts by lovingdisciples, he never indulged in luxury,taking only modest portions anddistributing the remainder to thedevotees. As a rule, one in therenounced order of life is forbidden toeat delicious food, as this may drag himby the tongue into a whirlpool ofmaterial desires and thus ruin hisspiritual advancement. SrilaPrabhupada, however, was nevervictimized by these culinary delights. Healways maintained full spiritual potencyand complete dedication to satisfyingthe transcendental senses of LordKrishna.

Completely Controls the Six Bad Qualities

An aspiring devotee of Lord Krishna, who isserious about spiritual life, strives to control thesix bad qualities, namely, lust, anger, greed,illusion, madness and envy, which act like deadlypoison upon his consciousness if not subdued.His practical method for accomplishing this is toactively engage his body, mind and words in theLord’s devotional service, which has the potencyto neutralize these vices, as a serpent is robbedof its capacity to inject poison when its fangs areremoved.

Srila Prabhupada did not need to control thesevices, however, as they were completely absentfrom his nature. He was like a vaidurya gem,manifesting many beautiful, transcendentalqualities at every moment, as he moved about inthe brilliant light of pure devotional service. Sincewe are still susceptible to the onslaught of the sixbad qualities, we should place our heads, in allhumility, at the lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada,engage enthusiastically in his glorification and tryto please him by serving his mission to the best ofour abilities. In this way, we are sure to becomecompletely free from material contamination anddevelop pure love of Krishna.

Performs Welfare Work for Everyone

It is stated in the Krishna book story of SudamaBrahmana that when loving service is rendered toLord Krishna, the entire creation benefits. Thus, apure devotee of the Lord, who always engages indevotional service, performs welfare work foreveryone. This welfare work is nothing like mundanephilanthropy, which provides unfortunate personswith material facilities to temporarily offset theirsuffering condition; rather, it is meant to completelyextricate them from material existence and awardthem an eternal blissful life in the spiritual realm.

Srila Prabhupada served Lord Krishnawholeheartedly and without deviation during his lilaamong us. In this way he benefited the entire world,indirectly, by his own pure devotional service, anddirectly, by offering a potent spiritual program,capable of eradicating the material existence ofanyone who takes to it seriously. His welfare workdid not stop with his physical disappearance,however, as the preaching force he set in motion willcontinue to spiritually uplift the inhabitants of thisplanet for the next ten thousand years, farexceeding the meager philanthropy performed bythose absorbed in the bodily concept of life.

ExpertWhen Srila Prabhupada arrived in America in1965, he faced the tremendous challenge ofattracting gross materialists to the sublimespiritual process of Krishna consciousness.Although such a feat seemed impossible, SrilaPrabhupada miraculously ignited a spiritualexplosion, whose vibrations are still resonatingthroughout the world. He demonstratedunprecedented preaching skill by presentingKrishna consciousness perfectly according totime and circumstance, offering such anattractive and palatable spiritual program thatany sincere soul could easily follow.

Today, at Ratha-yatra festivals all over theworld, millions of people chant, dance, waveand cheer in a universal expression ofappreciation, as Lord Jagannatha’s colorfulchariots float through the city streets. Fromthis it is clear that Srila Prabhupada was soexpert that, even in his physical absence,Krishna consciousness is being spread far andwide by the faithful application of hisinstructions.

SilentAccording to Vaishnava philosophy, beingsilent means to engage the tongue inspeaking only about topics related to LordKrishna. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta SarasvatiThakura used to encourage silence in hisdisciples, telling them, “Nonsense talkbreeds nonsense thought, breedsnonsense action, breeds birth, death, oldage and disease.”

Srila Prabhupada, being the foremostdisciple of his spiritual master, was thechief exponent of this adage in themodern age, single-handedly spreadingkrishna-katha all over the world throughhis lectures, discussions and translatingwork. His words are a river of nectarflowing mercifully into the hearts of thedevotees, and in due course of time thismighty river will silence the nonsense of allsouls suffering in this world.

CompassionateA pure devotee of Krishna is alwayscompassionate upon the fallen souls, who aresuffering greatly in the blazing fire of materiallife. He is ever busy making arrangements torelieve their distress and is pleased when he seesthem advancing on the path of spiritualhappiness. Srila Prabhupada, compassionpersonified, dedicated his every breath tospreading Krishna consciousness, resting only afew hours every night to keep body and soultogether.

As his body dwindled during his last days with us,many doctors visited Srila Prabhupada to offertheir advice and treatment, but with little or noresult. Finally one day, a physician suggested thathis condition arose from his grave anxiety overthe tribulations that would beset his disciplesafter his physical disappearance. At that, SrilaPrabhupada looked up and told the man, “Yes,you have diagnosed my condition correctly.”With these words, Srila Prabhupadademonstrated his utter selflessness and hisextraordinarily profound compassionate nature.

A FriendIn the Bhagavad-gita Lord Krishna states that He isthe friend of all living beings. As the Lord’s intimateassociate, Srila Prabhupada also displayed friendshipto all by dint of his constant engagement in spiritualwelfare activities. In the material world friendshipsare formed on the basis of mutual sensegratification, and when sense gratification isdisturbed, the relationship is either damaged ordiscontinued.

Srila Prabhupada was a true friend to all, however,because he formed relationships with othersmotivated by his unalloyed desire to assist everyonein achieving the highest goal of life. He never desiredto exploit anyone, and if there was ever an offensecommitted against him or some difficulty caused byothers, he never took it seriously.

Because Srila Prabhupada accepted the karma offive thousand disciples, he had to undergo whatappeared to be suffering. In spite of this, he neverwithdrew his mercy and friendship. Significantly, healways closed his letters to his disciples with thewords, “Your ever well-wisher.” The spiritualfriendship of a pure devotee like Srila Prabhupada isthe rarest of gems, and intelligent persons willcertainly appreciate, revere and guard it as life’sdearest treasure.

AcknowledgmentsContent:

• Ajitananda dasa

Images:

• Bhaktivedanta Book Trust

Image Selection & Slides Creation:

• Bhakta Avinash

Special Thanks:

• Srivigraha dasa