Radha Damodara Vilasa 2

Table of Contents
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Foreword
Introduction
Preface
Prologue
First Wave,
Broadway Bound
Vrindavan, October 15, 1972
Boston, October 1972
New York, October 1972
Philadelphia, October 27, 1972
Atlanta, November 1972
Govardhana Puja 1972
Vrindavan, November 1972
Dallas, November 1972
New Orleans, November 1972
Bombay, December 1972
Miami, December 1972
Los Angeles, December 1972
Second Wave,
South of the Border
Florida, January 1973
Gainesville, Florida, January 1973
Philadelphia, February 1973
New Orleans, Louisiana, February 1973
Houston, Texas, March 1973
Mexico, March 1973
Austin, Texas, March 1973
Dallas, March 1973
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St Louis, March 27 1973
Third Wave,
The Kidnapping of Ramacharya
Mayapur, March 1973
New York, April 5, 1973
Boston, April 13, 1973
Philadelphia, April 1973
Pittsburgh, April 1973
Detroit, April 1973
Chicago, April 1973
Denver, April 1973
Los Angeles, May 1973
Laguna Beach, May 1973
Fourth Wave,
High School Confidential
San Francisco, May 1973
Portland, Oregon, May 1973
Seattle, May 1973
Vancouver, Canada, May 1973
Denver, May 29, 1973
New Vrindavan, June 1973
Fifth Wave,
Bikers and Brahmanas
New Vrindavan, April 1973
Louisville, Kentucky, May 1973
Philadelphia, June 1973
San Francisco, June 1973
Rathayatra, July 1973
Sixth Wave,
The Mayor’s Race
Summer 1973
Chicago, August 1973
Detroit, August 1973
New York, August 1973
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State Fairs, 1973
New Vrindavan, Janmastami 1973
Atlanta, Georgia, September 1973
Atlanta, October 1973
Nashville, Tennessee, October 1973
Dallas, Texas, October 1973
Seventh Wave,
The Blazing Inferno
Los Angeles, October 1973
Houston, Texas, November 1973
Phoenix, Arizona, November 1973
New Mexico, November 10, 1973
Houston, Texas, November 12, 1973
Dallas, Texas, November 1973
New Vrindavan, November, 1973
New Jersey, December 1973
Eighth Wave,
Big River
Pasadena, California, January 1974
Bombay, India, January 1974
Miami, January 1974
New Delhi, India, January 1974
Jaipur, India, January 1974
Allahabad, India, January 1974
Patna, February 1974
Mayapur, February 1974
Vrindavan, India, March 1974
Bombay, India, March 1974
Ninth Wave,
Back in the USA
New York, March 1974
Miami, Florida, March 1974
Key West, Florida, March 1974
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Atlanta, Georgia, April 1974
Boone, North Carolina, April 1974
New York, April 1974
Bombay, India, April 1974
San Francisco, California, April 1974
Seattle, Washington, May 1974
New York, May 1974
Chicago, May 1974
Dallas, Texas, May 1974
Tenth Wave,
A Garland of Jivas
Los Angeles, June 1974
San Francisco, July 6, 1974
Eleventh Wave,
No Grand Opening
San Francisco, July 1974
Minot, North Dakota, July 1974
ISKCON Chicago, July 1974
Ann Arbor, Michigan, August 1974
Vrindavan, India, August 1974
San Francisco, August 1974
Jagannath Puri, Orissa, August 1974
New Vrindavan, August 1974
Twelfth Wave,
Steps and Missteps
Boston, August 13, 1974
Vrindavan, August 13, 1974
Philadelphia, August 1974
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Philadelphia, September 1974
Washington, DC September 1974
Thirteenth Wave,
On the Wings of a Prayer
Virginia Beach, October 1974
Denver, Colorado, October 1974
Berkeley, California, October 1974
San Diego, November 1974
Los Angeles, November 1974
Govardhana Puja, 1974
Fourteenth Wave,
Escapade on Esplanade
Arizona, November 1974
Texas, November 1974
Bombay, India, December 1974
Gainesville, Florida, December 1974
Miami, Florida, December 1974
Sidney, Australia, February 1973
Melbourne, Australia, December 1974
New York, December 1974
Fifteenth Wave,
Faults and Faultfinders
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, January 1975
Brooklyn, New York, January 1975
Key West, Florida, January 1975
Fort Lauderdale, January 1975
Gainesville, Florida, February 1975
Chicago, February 1975
Sixteenth Wave,
1975 World Tour
Honolulu, Hawaii, February 1975
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Mexico City, Mexico, February 11, 1975
Caracas, Venezuela, February 19, 1975
Atlanta, Georgia, February 1975
Miami, Florida, February 25, 1975
Houston, Texas, February 1975
Atlanta, Georgia, February 27, 1975
Atlanta, Georgia, March 1, 1975
Atlanta, March 2, 1975
Dallas, Texas, February 1975
Seventeeth Wave,
The GBC Meeting
ISKCON Dallas, March 3, 1975
Austin, Texas, March 5, 1975
Phoenix, Arizona, March 1975
Los Angeles, March 1975
Calcutta, India, March 1975
Sridhama Mayapur, March, 1975
Mayapur, March 27, 1975
Mayapur, April, 1975
Eighteenth Wave,
The Ultimate Triumph
San Diego, April 1975
Hyderabad, India, April 11, 1975
Vrindavan, April 15, 1975
Krishna-Balarama Mandir, April 20, 1975
Appendix One,
Elevation to Ecstasy
Age of Fighting
Universal Movement
Dance of Love
Appendix Two,
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Conversations from India
How Krishna consciousness has gone from East to West and back
again
Land of Pious Life
Purity in the Midst of Confusion
A Sensation Within the Heart
An Ecstatic Beginning
The Leaders of India
A Practical Program for Basic Needs
Prosperity Through God Consciousness
Appendix Three,
You Can’t Eat Nuts And Bolts
Conversations From India (Part II)
A Cheating Civilization
Railway Robbery
The Lure of City Life
Natural Divisions
The Brains of Society
Beyond the Barriers of Birth
8
Rādhā-Dāmodara Vilāsa II -
Vaiyāsaki dāsa
The Inner Life of Vishnujana Swami & Jayananda Prabhu
VOLUME TWO
1972 - 1975
Readers interested in the subject matter of this book are invited to

contact the author:
vaiyasaki@kirtan.org
Copyright 2013 Per Sinclair - All Rights Reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or

transmitted in any form, by any means, including mechanical,
electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior
written permission of the publisher.
Sections of this book excerpted from the recorded conversations,
lectures, and letters of Srila Prabhupada, and all photographs are
Copyright Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International.
VaiyasakiDas Adhikari
Sravanam-Kirtanam Press
In association with Transcendental Art Associates
9
Dedication
I humbly offer this book at the lotus feet of my eternal spiritual master
His Divine Grace Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, in
recognition of his disciples who gave the best years of their lives
traveling with the various Radha-Damodara sankirtan parties to fulfill
the prophecy of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu that Krishna kirtan would
spread to very town and village worldwide.
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Acknowledgements
The Radha-Damodara Vilasa trilogy was begun in March 1992. Volume
One was published in 1999, and now Volume Two is in your hands. It
has been a long journey. My original intention was to write a short book
about His Holiness Vishnujana Swami, so that his contribution to the
pioneer preaching of Krishna consciousness would not be forgotten with
the passing of Srila Prabhupada’s direct disciples.
As I began traveling and conducting interviews, I realized that the

project was much larger than I had conceived. With each interview more
interesting details surfaced, and as more questions were answered,
further questions arose.
Consequently, my initial goal developed into a whole new project: a

detailed account of Vishnujana’s life, his relationship with his beloved
Deities, Sri-Sri Radha- Damodara, and the history of the Radha-
Damodara traveling sankirtan party. I have carefully used Vishnujana’s
own words to express his life, his music, and his preaching. I quickly
became intrigued by the mystery of Vishnujana’s disappearance and
wanted to discover what had actually happened, and why.
In 1994, I visited Vrindavan, and it was here that His Grace Jayananda
Prabhu became a major character in the book. My esteemed godbrother
Mahanidhi Swami had gathered many valuable interviews on the life of
Jayananda with a view to publish a book in glorification of this great
Vaishnava. But, as he remarked to me, he had been away from America
for too many years and he could no longer project himself into that
environment to accurately portray the mood of Jayananda and his times.
Therefore, he handed all his research material to me and begged me to

take up the project. I gladly accepted the task, taking it as Krishna’s
mercy. I was already interviewing people about Jayananda because he
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had joined the Radha-Damodara party and was equally legendary in
ISKCON’s pioneering days. So it was natural to expand his impact in
the book.
The cornerstone of the mountain of information at my disposal was the

personal interviews from over 500 eyewitnesses. I spent more than two
years following leads and tracking down prominent people of the era to
get answers to important questions. The result was over four hundred
hours of interviews that I transcribed and catalogued myself for another
two years while traveling and presenting kirtan.
It was surprising to discover how many people figured prominently in

the lives of Vishnujana and Jayananda. Several had already vanished
somewhere in the material world, and others had left their bodies. I only
encountered two outright refusals for an interview. Certain prominent
personalities of the period had a distorted view of themselves and
ISKCON history, and thus they lost their credibility, in my opinion.
In a few instances, I had to resort to secondary sources to give particular

people a voice in the book. I hope I have done them justice. Without the
assistance of all the interviewees, this book would never have seen the
light of day. Thus, I owe each of these people a debt of gratitude. Their
contribution was immeasurable.
In addition to the interviews, the Bhaktivedanta Archives was another

tremendous resource, having letters and conversations involving
Vishnujana and Jayananda. They also provided many photographs. I
gratefully acknowledge the immense research done by the Archives,
which enabled me to accurately document many historical details.
I was fortunate to receive Vishnujana Swami’s original kirtan, bhajan,

and lecture recordings from Mahi Barta Prabhu, and other devotees,
along the way. These greatly enhanced my appreciation for Vishnujana
Swami’s realizations. Now, you the reader, can relish the classes and
philosophical presentations given by Vishnujana Maharaja exactly as he
spoke them decades ago.
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I was also fortunate to have Servant of the Servant by Tamal Krishna
Goswami, and What is the Difficulty by Srutakirti Prabhu, as points of
reference that were invaluable to reconstruct several important moments
in the narrative. I also want to gratefully acknowledge the inspiration I
received from Srila Prabhupada-līlāmṛta by Satsvarupa dasa Goswami,
and Our Merciful Srila Prabhupada by Mula Prakriti Dasi. I owe these
authors a gracious, “Thank you.”
Of course, I am always indebted to my editors, Braja Sevaki Dasi, and

Satyaraja Das, who gave me considerable help in bringing the book to a
readable standard. Bimala Devi also tastefully designed the cover and
did the layout for the book.
I have to honestly admit, however, that I really cannot take any personal
credit for writing this book. I consider myself more of a weaver rather
than a writer, because I only wove together the events described to me
by the devotees whom I interviewed.
At a certain point, it became obvious to me that the direction of the book

was being guided by higher authority. Because the book turned out far
differently than I had originally intended, and went in a completely
different direction than I ever could have imagined, I must express
supreme thanks to Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara, whom I believe guided the
direction of the book for the express purpose of glorifying Their
devotees, Vishnujana Swami and Jayananda Prabhu.
Throughout the book I have adopted certain conventions, like using

devotee names instead of legal names because devotees are considered
eternal servants of the Lord. Since devotees get credit for whatever
service they have done and there is never any loss or diminution, I never
covered anyone’s identity even though some have subsequently fallen
from favor. I also adopted the convention of omitting diacritics for
Sanskrit words and proper nouns that have entered the English
vernacular. This enables an easier read.
Last, but certainly not least, I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to my
13
wife, Kaisori Devi Dasi, who also translated Volume One into Spanish.
Without her love and assistance at all levels of the project, this book
might not be in your hands today.
– Vaiyasaki Das Adhikari –
14
Foreword
A full decade has passed since the release of Radha-Damodara Vilasa,
Volume One, a momentous book that documented the journey of Radha
and Krishna – the Supreme Lord and His eternal consort in Their forms
as Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara – to the Western world. That journey was
facilitated by the loving, herculean endeavor of His Divine Grace A. C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder-Acharya of the
International Society for Krishna Consciousness, and augmented by the
charisma, devotion and talents of two extraordinary individuals,
Vishnujana Swami and Jayananda Prabhu, among others.
The initial stages of this spiritual journey were effectively and

dramatically portrayed by Vaiyasaki Das in the first volume, which
garnered much praise from various quarters, especially from the
community of devotees. That being the case, I now feel justified and
gratified in writing that volume’s glowing introductory notes. The days I
spent on that prefatory essay bore incredible fruit.
Those days blossomed into months and years, as days normally do, and,
today, I find myself being asked to write such notes again – this time for
what will be Volume Two of a trilogy. And because of the considerable
moments that have elapsed between the publication of the first book and
that of the second, I find myself thinking about time and space, and
about how they impact an epic of devotional history like Radha-
Damodara Vilasa.
Time is mysterious: In some cases, it changes things drastically. Milk

sours; flowers wilt. People age and die. From another point of view,
though, it’s as if time simply does not exist at all. St. Augustine,
espousing a subjective view of time, said that it embodies little that has
anything to do with reality. It exists, he said, only in the mind’s
apprehension of reality. In the 11th century, the Persian philosopher
15
Avicenna doubted the existence of physical time altogether, opining that
time only exists because of memory and expectation. Others have
argued convincingly for both physical and psychological time, at least in
the material world. And the scriptures have their own story to tell: In the
spiritual realm, time is conspicuous by its absence.
The subject of Radha-Damodara Vilasa transcends time – in a sense. It

focuses on a spiritual movement that, in its essence, goes beyond the
limitations of all things material. And it is about individuals who,
though their activities and accomplishments are constricted by past,
present, and future, also stand outside the normal boundaries of time.
How is this so?
The answer is disarmingly simple: The work of this movement and of

these particular individuals is spiritual, and so even though the
movement goes through numerous permutations, both good and bad,
and the individuals – especially Vishnujana Maharaja and Jayananda
Prabhu – lived and died, apparently like so many others, they largely
functioned in a transcendent realm, even while in the flesh. They
contributed to a world that is immortal and supreme. Indeed, their
activities were gently molded, as well as orchestrated, by the hand of
God. They functioned within sacred space, revealing glimpses of the
spiritual kingdom in their life and work. They fully embody the mystery
of time, transcending it while, externally, submitting to its fearsome call.
No one in the material world can escape time. Nor should they want to.
Time is, after all, a form of Krishna. And to submit to time properly is to
submit to the Lord and His service. Otherwise, one merely goes sour,
like milk, or wilts, like a flower. Not so for the pure devotee and his
associates. For him (or her) life springs eternal, and while going through
the motions of one subjected to time and space, such personalities live a
life of ever-increasing bliss. Such a life of “timeless time” engulfed both
Vishnujana Maharaja and Jayananda Prabhu.
Here, in Volume Two, Vaiyasaki Das illustrates this quite clearly. The
16
volume picks up where the previous one leaves off. It is fall of 1972 – as
if its subjects are functioning within the precincts of time – and we find
ourselves sharing “time” with Srila Prabhupada in the holy land of
Vrindavan, a land that is clearly beyond the limitations of past, present,
and future. Vaiyasaki brings us there in his own inimitable way,
virtually transporting us to Krishna’s holy abode.
From there, we are brought to North America, where the Divine Couple
– and their superlative devotees, the main protagonists of Vaiyasaki’s
book – extend Their blessings to all who would receive them. We learn
that Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara are the ultimate Sankirtan deities, unable
to sit in one place, as other immobile manifestations of the Divine tend
to. Rather, by the grace of Vishnujana Swami and later, Tamal Krishna
Goswami, They seek to share the divine truth of Their existence with
one and all.
They live on the road with Their devotees, inspiring Their glories to be
sung by experienced practitioners and by newcomers alike. They watch
magazines and books go out, and, as a result, new seekers come in.
Vishnujana Maharaja is at the helm, bestowing Their mercy through his
shining example and mellifluous voice. Tamal Krishna Maharaja –
Vishnujana’s other self – works closely with him, complementing his
soft, endearing qualities with practical know-how, scriptural knowledge,
and a sense of gravitas.
Jayananda, too, inspires this magical experience, but mainly through

building magnificent festivals and helping fledgling devotees. Whereas
Vishnujana Swami took to the streets overtly, with literally buses of
devotees traveling the continent, Jayananda stuck more closely to
ashrams and temples – yet outreach was his forte, too. Ratha-yatra and
other outdoor festivals were his way of bringing God to the masses.
Both he and Vishnujana Swami, then, shared a passion to help Radha-
Krishna in Their mission as Radha-Damodara, that is, to perform
Sankirtan – to reach out to people, both inside and outside of ashrams,
and to give them Krishna consciousness.
17
As such, Vaiyasaki’s book is a literature of exemplars, displaying the
ideals of a community as much as the events of individual lives.
Vishnujana Swami and Jayananda Prabhu are no doubt the main models
for the religious life as portrayed in the book you now hold in your
hands, even if their exemplary behavior is predicated first on
Prabhupada and his superlative example. This should be perfectly clear:
While our two protagonists are center stage in this particular series of
books, it is never far
from the author’s mind that they are flawed, human individuals, and that
their “perfection” is precisely in their ability to take shelter of a pure
devotee of the Lord, in this case, Srila Prabhupada. This truth is implicit
in nearly every page of this book.
As the years have passed, Vaiyasaki has himself developed a reputation

as a kirtan singer of respectable renown, both inside and outside the
community of which he is a part, and since the writing of the first
volume, his realizations and insights have developed considerably.
His own ability to take shelter of his spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada –
the same teacher who so inspired both Vishnujana Swami and
Jayananda Prabhu – has grown with the years. Time can do that. A life
lived properly helps one progress on the spiritual path, no doubt. And a
person who lives many years pursuing the spiritual path in earnest will
generally be closer to the goal than a fledgling devotee. Not necessarily,
but generally.
Although spiritual advancement is not limited by time constraints, a

seasoned devotee, an experienced practitioner, can usually access inner
regions more effectively. More accomplished, more practiced, such a
person brings long-cultivated virtues to the table. Vaiyasaki Das does
this in his own life and in Radha-Damodara Vilasa. Because of this, his
work will stand the test of time. Indeed, Radha-Damodara Vilasa
transcends time, as I stated earlier, for it embodies the best that the
spiritual world has to offer.
18
Steven Rosen (Satyaraja Dasa) is an initiated disciple of His Divine
Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. He is also founding
editor of the Journal of Vaishnava Studies and associate editor for Back
to Godhead. He has published twenty-one books in numerous
languages, including the recent Essential Hinduism (Rowman &
Littlefield, 2008) and the Yoga of Kirtan: Conversations on the Sacred
Art of Chanting (FOLK Books, 2008).
19
Introduction
hṛdi yasya preraṇayā pravartito ‘haṁ varāka-rūpo ‘pi tasya hareḥ pada-
kamalaṁ vande caitanya-devasya
Although I am the lowest of men and have no knowledge, the

inspiration to write transcendental literatures about devotional service
has been mercifully bestowed upon me. Therefore I am offering my
obeisances at the lotus feet of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, who has given me the chance to write these
books. [CC, Madhya 19.134]
śrī-caitanya-prasādena tad-rūpasya vinirṇayam bālo ‘pi kurute śāstra

dṛṣṭvā vraja-vilāsinaḥ
By the mercy of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, even a foolish child can

fully describe the real nature of Lord Krishna, the enjoyer of the
pastimes of Vraja, according to the vision of the revealed scriptures.
[CC, Adi 4.1]
For a long time people have asked, “When is the second volume coming
out?” And now it is in your hands! It was of utmost importance to
research and interview eyewitnesses, because a book about
Prabhupada and his disciples must be accurate and devoid of errors.
Mahamaya Dasi wrote something terribly wrong about Vishnujana

Swami in her book. I was shocked and questioned her about it. She
replied that it was what she remembered. I asked her if she had doubled-
checked with the memories of other devotees or done some research to
determine that what she wrote was actually true. She said no, she relied
on her own memory.
20
To avoid the pitfalls of relying on only one person’s memory, I have
done extensive research for the volume you are now holding. That’s one
reason the book has taken so long to come to print. The second reason is
that I’m always traveling and preaching. Moreover, there is no one to
assist me because I do not accept disciples, so this work is basically one
man’s endeavor.
Both the families of Vishnujana Swami and Jayananda Prabhu received

copies of the first volume of Radha-Damodara Vilasa. Vishnujana
Swami’s sister, Theresa, sent me a wonderful letter of appreciation. One
of her comments was, “You must have researched up to the point of
exhaustion.” And it was true. I was meticulous in presenting all facts as
fully authoritative and accurate. I did not merely rely on the memories
of individuals, but cross-referenced and double checked everything to
the best of my ability. I have continued that practice in the present
volume.
As Sri Krishna states in the opening verses of Bhagavad-gita, Chapter 6,

a sannyāsī is a person who is dedicated to spreading the teachings of
bhakti-yoga. Srila Prabhupada ordered me to share what I knew about
Krishna consciousness wherever I went, therefore sitting in one place to
write was not an option. So in my travels, I promote Prabhupada’s
mission and write, by his mercy. If I had remained in one place I could
have finished much quicker, but I didn’t have that alternative.
In the first volume there wasn’t much of Vishnujana Swami’s actual

lectures, but the readers of Volume One were struck with wonder to see
how Vishnujana Swami presented Krishna consciousness in all kinds of
circumstances. Soon, people began to record his talks because they were
far beyond the realizations of his peers. So in this volume you can
actually hear Vishnujana Maharaja preach Krishna consciousness, and
you will be further impressed. As a devotee for only 5 years, Maharaja
preaches at a level that only a few rare disciples can do today, 35 years
later.
21
At a high school in Portland, Oregon, the reader sits beside Vishnujana
Swami as he presents a slide show describing the qualities of a bona fide
guru. Everyone should know the actual qualities of a spiritual master so
they can choose a guru based on knowledge, not on sentiment. He also
describes the qualities of a bona fide disciple. He goes on to describe all
aspects of life in the practice of bhakti-yoga, including marriage,
renunciation, sādhana, Deity worship, and returning back to the spiritual
realm. Vishnujana calls his bhakti-yoga presentation, Easy Journey to
Other Planets, after the title of Prabhupada’s first book.
At the present, japa retreats have become popular for improving the
chanting on beads. As you read Vishnujana Swami’s realizations on
japa back in 1973, after only five years of chanting, you will be
astonished. His insights will bring you to a higher understanding of the
culture, tradition, and daily practice of mantra meditation.
In the early days of the movement, everything was progressing through

spontaneous inspiration guided by Srila Prabhupada and Sri Krishna.
People became inspired and acted on that inspiration. Prabhupada
fanned those sparks of inspiration and gradually developed the
devotional programs in his ISKCON society.
Srila Prabhupada adopted quite a liberal approach with his young

followers, as did his Guru Maharaja, Srila Bhaktisiddanta Sarsvati
Thakur, before him. This liberal approach is in keeping with the most
magnanimous incarnation ever, Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
All great reformers and visionaries are liberal and thus they upset the
status quo. Therefore, they are criticized by their contemporaries, the
conservative class. The criticism often crosses over to the realm of
vaishnava-aparadha, and this clash between liberal and conservative is
evident even in the ISKCON world.
Srila Prabhupada explained during a class that poet Alan Ginsburg had
commented, “Swamiji, you are very conservative.” But Prabhupada did
not agree. “No, I am the most liberal. You do not know. If I become
22
conservative, then none of you will come to me.”
In San Diego, he elucidated further. “Conservative means unnecessarily

you catch some rules and regulations without any meaning or without
any utility. That is conservative. In Sanskrit it is called niyamāgraha.”
In this volume, the sannyāsī leaders of the Radha-Damodara party,

Vishnujana Swami and Tamal Krishna Goswami, were so liberal that
they could engage people in devotional service who otherwise might
never have survived life in an ISKCON temple. You will read how
some leaders lost their early enthusiasm and innocence. As their mood
began to change, they increasingly strayed from the liberal
transcendental vision given by His Divine Grace.
Towards the end of the book, it becomes clear that Vishnujana Swami is
disturbed by something that makes him sad. Various people begin to
notice this although they don’t know why his mood has changed. The
reader becomes an eye-witness to the development of Vishnujana’s
Krishna consciousness as he experiences different challenges, including
his greatest challenge.
Some readers may be disturbed by the actions of Tamal Krishna

Goswami in this volume. Goswami was an intriguing personality, an
empowered servant of Srila Prabhupada. Yet, he also had to overcome
many challenges to achieve success in preaching as you will discover.
The spiritual master is known to give both the “sweet sauce” and the
“hot sauce.”
Tamal Krishna was frequently the recipient of Prabhupada’s heavy side

as well as his soft side. In his own dealings, Goswami used to dish out
the “hot sauce” unreservedly in the early days. Some persons were the
recipients of the “hot sauce” and their memories are included to present
a balanced portrait of Goswami’s character. Those who utilize the “hot
sauce” shouldn’t be surprised when others also use it.
23
Although Tamal Krishna was a good person at heart, he acted in a heavy
way to get results. And he did achieve results in preaching and
management as you will see. Most people are followers and cannot
accomplish what they need to do, therefore they require a strong leader
to make them act. Some sannyāsīs are too soft and can’t accomplish
much because people take advantage of them.
Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara arranged the perfect balance – Vishnujana

Swami with the sweet sauce and Tamal Krishna with the hot sauce. The
analogy of the lenient mother and the strict father is appropriate in this
regard. Krishna is ultimately in control and both personalities needed to
be involved to achieve what they did together.
I hope nobody feels upset about the incidents in the narrative where
Tamal Krishna Goswami acts in an unconventional way. He was aware
of his own nature and has also recorded these events in his own
writings. All activities performed in devotional service are on the
absolute platform. I’m not writing this book to present material
activities. Still, there may be an occasional reader who will think that his
guru has not been sufficiently glorified. To such people I must
emphasize that Radha-Damodara Vilasa is not written by a disciple
glorifying his spiritual master. Rather, this is one of those rare
manuscripts written specifically to glorify one’s godbrothers and
godsisters.
As Advaita Acharya demonstrated, receiving the mercy doesn’t always

mean receiving praise. In the same vein, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta stated
that people who pointed out his faults were actually his friends, not the
ones who were continually glorifying him.
Sri Vishnu uses the mace as well as the lotus flower. He is not only
sweet. He also has His other side and can hit hard when it is deemed
necessary. In the same way, all human beings have both sides as well.
mahānubhāvera cittera svabhāva ei haya puṣpa-sama komala, kaṭhina

vajra-maya
24
This is the nature of the mind of an uncommon personality. Sometimes
it is soft like a flower, but sometimes it is as hard as a thunderbolt. [CC,
Madhya 7.72]
In the text, Tamal Krishna Goswami’s name is sometimes shortened to

simply Tamal, because Srila Prabhupada affectionately referred to him
this way, as did many of his godbrothers and godsisters. Some readers
who are disciples of Tamal Krishna Goswami, might complain that this
is not proper, that he should be referred to as His Holiness Tamal
Krishna Goswami.
To reassure such people, I point out that the friendly nomenclature

‘Tamal’ was used extensively in Volume One and HH Tamal Krishna
Goswami made no point about it. Why? Because between godbrothers
it’s okay. In an environment where godbrothers and godsisters are
considered very much “equals” – even when some have taken sannyāsa
– such informalities are not uncommon.
For the next generation, however, it would be disrespectful, because it is

incorrect according to śāstra. Since this book is also for future
generations, Vaishnava etiquette prevents later generations from
referring to senior devotees in a casual manner, although in the context
of this book it is acceptable.
Finally, Tamal Krishna read Volume One and personally told me that it
was, “right on the money.” He also told me, “only a kirtaniya could
have written this book.” I can’t say I understand his entire intent, but I
do believe that there is a purpose behind my writing. Moreover, he said
he liked being in the “subordinate position” to Vishnujana and
Jayananda. For whatever reason, Tamal Krishna did see himself as
subordinate to Jayananda, and he has stated that frequently. He also
wrote in his own book that he left Prabhupada’s service in India simply
to be with Vishnujana Swami!
Again, I must emphasize that this is not a book about one’s guru written
by a disciple. Therefore, the mood is not formal with awe and reverence,
25
but informal and affectionate. Tamal Krishna enjoyed the first book so
much that he said he would request every one of his disciples to read it.
Volume One was a huge success and I did not hear one protest about
using the name ‘Tamal.’
The target audience for Radha-Damodara Vilasa is the devotee

community of the 22nd Century. This is long after the present gurus and
their disciples have passed on.
Radha-Damodara Vilasa may be the first book that a devotee a hundred

years from now picks up. Therefore, I have included everything: the
history, the culture, the pastimes, and the philosophy. My goal is to
portray the mood that Srila Prabhupada embodied and taught his direct
disciples, what they understood and what they did, how they accepted
the teachings and the austerities they performed, and how they helped
fulfill Lord Chaitanya’s prophecy by going to every town and village to
spread the mission of kirtan-yoga under Prabhupada’s guidance and
direction.
I also want to reveal that the Supreme Personality of Godhead came to

this earth with His Eternal Consort as Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara, the
Sankirtan Deities, to help Srila Prabhupada spread the culture of bhakti-
yoga. Vishnujana Swami understood this deeper than others. To him
Radha-Damodara weren’t Deities, like for the other devotees. For him
They were directly Srimati Radharani and Sri Damodara from Goloka,
who were assisting their pure devotee, Srila Prabhupada in his service to
Guru-Gauranga!
Prabhupada was very much enlivened by the Radha-Damodara traveling

sankirtan and you will read how he emphasizes this mode of preaching
in the later chapters.
dekhi’ nityānanda prabhu kahe bhakta-gaṇe ei-rūpe nṛtya āge habe

grāme-grāme
Upon seeing the chanting and dancing of Lord Sri Chaitanya
26
Mahaprabhu, Lord Nityananda predicted that later there would be
dancing and chanting in every village. [CC, Madhya 7.82]
Srila Prabhupada’s purport:
“This prediction of Sri Nityananda Prabhu is applicable not only in

India but also all over the world. That is now happening by His grace.
The members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness are
now traveling from one village to another in the Western countries and
are even carrying the Deity with them. These devotees distribute various
literatures all over the world.”
Prabhupada’s comment appears to be a direct reference to the Radha-

Damodara Sankirtan Party that traveled all over North America with
Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. These travels are documented in the pages of
this book. For those readers who are unfamiliar with 20th century
Gaudiya Vaishnava history, the Radha-Damodara party was a book
distribution party with the added twist of a Vedic band and a traveling
temple. They put on festivals every day in every town and village they
entered.
Srila Prabhupada continues:
“We hope that these devotees who are preaching the message of Sri
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu will very seriously follow strictly in His
footsteps. If they follow the rules and regulations and chant sixteen
rounds daily, their endeavor to preach the culture of Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu will certainly be successful.”
Apparently, this comment is a warning for all devotees to dedicate

themselves wholeheartedly (drdha-vrata) to the practice of bhakti-yoga
so that persons all over the world will benefit from the teachings and
mercy of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. This is demonstrated by one’s
behavior rather than by one’s words. Unfortunately, some of
Prabhupada’s leaders did not heed this advice as you shall read in this
volume.
27
Personally, I had two major realizations while undertaking this project.
We learn from scripture that one advances spiritually simply by
glorifying the Vaishnavas. My experience was that simply hearing
others glorify Vishnujana Swami and Jayananda Prabhu, I was totally
enlivened and that carried me in my service of writing this book.
Secondly, just as Princess Rukmini fell in love with Sri Krishna simply
by hearing about His glories, similarly I fell in love with Vishnujana
Swami and Jayananda Prabhu simply by hearing about their glorious
activities. These transcendental pastimes gave me the inspiration to
continue the project through many challenges.
Therefore, I owe the greatest debt of gratitude to these two stalwart

devotees, who inspired me in devotional service long after they had left
the planet.
I pray that my spiritual guide and teacher, His Divine Grace A.C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada, as well as all the readers, will
be pleased that Vishnujana Maharaja, Jayananda Prabhu, Sri-Sri Radha-
Damodara, and the many devotees of the Radha-Damodara party, have
been properly glorified for their pioneering work that made Hare
Krishna a household word and Deity worship acceptable previously
considered idol worship.
28
Preface
EVERY GENUINE MOVEMENT attracts persons who stand out by
their acts of selfless sacrifice. Vishnujana Swami and Jayananda Prabhu
were two such persons in the Hare Krishna movement. Their spirit of
humble service and commitment to spreading the glories of kirtan, the
singing of the Holy Names of the Lord, left an indelible impression on
everyone who met them. Each became a legend in his own time.
Vishnujana Swami was active in devotional service for only eight years
and Jayananda for only ten before they passed from our vision. They left
behind no disciples, no books, no temples.
This book is a humble attempt to properly glorify these outstanding

devotees. The goal is to preserve their place in Vaishnava history so that
succeeding generations may know of the important roles they played in
helping Srila Prabhupada establish Lord Chaitanya’s mission
worldwide.
Although saintliness is rarely achieved, Vishnujana Swami and

Jayananda Prabhu seem to be acknowledged as saintly by the people
who knew them. The personal memoirs in this book give us an insight
into the character and personality of these two saintly personalities.
Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara
Also of primary significance in the book is the introduction of the

Supreme Lord and His eternal consort, who display Their childhood
forms as Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. The following discussion supports
the observation that the advent and traveling sankirtan pastimes of
Radha-Damodara were indirectly, but clearly, predicted in scripture just
as the advent and sankirtan pastimes of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu were
indirectly, but clearly, predicted.
29
The Lord sometimes makes unscheduled visits as part of His sankirtan
līlā. In kali-yuga the Lord again makes His own appearance, but this
time He comes incognito, in the mood of a devotee. This advent of Sri
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is due to both internal and external
considerations. The internal reasons, antaraṅgā vicāra, are for His own
Divine Purpose.
The external reasons, bahiraṅgā vicāra, are for the benefit of the
conditioned souls.
Bringing His associates and the full paraphernalia of His transcendental

abode, He reclaims the fallen souls and gives pleasure to the devotees
by chanting His own Holy Name. He establishes the yuga-dharma, by
personally inaugurating the sankirtan movement, and teaches the
process of bhakti-yoga, or devotional service.
Although this appearance is covert, it is prophesied in Srimad-

Bhagavatam:
kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ
sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam
yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair
yajanti hi sumedhasaḥ
In the age of Kali, intelligent persons perform congregational chanting

to worship the incarnation of Godhead who constantly sings the name of
Krishna. Although His complexion is not blackish, He is Krishna
Himself. He is accompanied by His associates, servants, weapons and
confidential companions. [SB 11.5.32]
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s advent and līlā are also described in the Sri
Visnu-sahasra- nama, which appears in the Mahabharata:
30
suvarṇa-varṇo hemāṅgo
varāṅgaś candanāṅgadī
sannyāsa-kṛc chamaḥ śānto
niṣṭhā-śānti-parāyaṇaḥ
“In His early pastimes He appears as a householder with a golden

complexion. His limbs are beautiful, and His body, smeared with the
pulp of sandalwood, seems like molten gold. In His later pastimes He
accepts the sannyāsa order, and He is equipoised and peaceful. He is the
highest abode of peace and devotion, for He silences the impersonalist
non-devotees.” [quoted in CC, Adi 3.49]
Chanting and dancing blissfully throughout the Indian subcontinent,

Lord Chaitanya freely distributed the Holy Name of Krishna to enable
everyone to taste the ecstatic mood of love for God. He tastes it Himself
first and then distributes to everybody else, even amongst the lowest of
mankind. After inaugurating the sankirtan movement in India, the Lord
left the rest of the service to His surrendered devotees. But He
guaranteed that the whole world would have the opportunity to drown in
the ecstasy of kṛṣṇa-prema by making His own prophecy:
pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi grāma
sarvatra pracāra haibe mora nāma
In every town and village around the world My name will be sung. [CB,
Antya-lila 4.126]
With this prophecy Lord Chaitanya reveals that He will come again,
because there is no difference between Krishna and His Holy Name –
kali-kāle nāma-rūpe kṛṣṇa- avatāra. [CC, Ādi-līlā 17.22]
In kali-yuga especially, Krishna descends as the sound vibration of the
31
mahā- mantra. Both the Holy Name, nāma, and the possessor of the
Name, nāmi, are one. Both are on the platform of eternal existence,
eternal knowledge, and eternal bliss. This is the Absolute nature of
Krishna and His Holy Name.
This is further corroborated in the Chaitanya-bhagavat, Madhya-lila,

Chapter 27, wherein the Lord informs His mother, Saci-mata, at the time
of taking sannyāsa, that He will descend two more times and that she
will also accompany Him. He will appear in the form of the Holy Name,
while she will appear as the tongue that vibrates the pure Name.
Secondly, He will appear in the form of the Deity, and she will become
the substance from which the Deity is formed.
According to Vaishnava acharyas, the following verse from Srimad-

Bhagavatam, wherein the sage Karabhajana discusses the yuga-avatāras,
is understood to predict Lord Chaitanya’s appearance as the kali-yuga
avatar.
tyaktvā su-dustyaja-surepsita-rājya-lakṣmīṁ
dharmiṣṭha ārya-vacasā yad agād araṇyam
māyā-mṛgaṁ dayitayepsitam anvadhāvad
vande mahā-puruṣa te caraṇāravindam
O Mahā-puruṣa, I worship Your lotus feet. You gave up the association

of the goddess of fortune and all her opulence, which is most difficult to
renounce and is hankered after by even the great demigods. Being the
most faithful follower of the path of religion, You thus left for the forest
in obedience to a brāhmaṇa’s curse. Out of sheer mercifulness You
chased after the fallen conditioned souls, who are always in pursuit of
the false enjoyment of illusion, and at the same time engaged in
searching out Your own desired object, Lord Syamasundara. [SB,
32
11.5.34]
Synonyms
tyaktvā—abandoning; su-dustyaja—most difficult to give up; sura-īpsita

—anxiously desired by the demigods; rājya-lakṣmīm—the goddess of
fortune and her opulence; dharmiṣṭhaḥ—most perfectly fixed in
religiousness; ārya-vacasā—according to the words of a brāhmaṇa; yat
—He who; agāt—went; araṇyam—to the forest; māyā- mṛgam—the
conditioned soul, who is always searching out illusory enjoyment;
dayitayā—out of sheer mercy; īpsitam—His desired object; anvadhāvat
—running after; vande—I offer my homage; mahā-puruṣa—O Lord
Mahaprabhu; te—to Your; caraṇa-aravindam—lotus feet.
The explanation is as follows: Lord Chaitanya married the goddess of

fortune herself, Srimati Vishnupriya, who is desired by all the demigods
(surepsita) including Lord Brahma. Yet Lord Chaitanya left her
(tyaktvā) to take sannyāsa, which is the most difficult renunciation (su-
dustyaja). He always behaves as a perfect Vaishnava and is thus most
perfectly fixed on the path of dharma (dharmiṣṭhaḥ). When He was
cursed by the brāhmaṇa who could not enter the kirtan hall, “You will
be bereft of all material happiness,” Lord Chaitanya understood these
words (ārya-vacasā) as a benediction and accepted sannyāsa. He then
traveled through the forests of Jarikhanda, Vrindavan, and South India
(yad agād araṇyam). His mission was to search out and deliver
(anvadhāvat) the conditioned souls pursuing the allurements of illusion
(māyā-mṛgam) and thus, He is the most merciful (dayitayā). He is
constantly searching out His most desired object (īpsitam), Lord
Krishna, and therefore all obeisances are offered to the lotus feet of such
a great soul.
Srila Jiva Goswami has shown that this verse also describes the
appearance of Lord Krishna. The words surepsita-rājya-lakṣmīm
indicate Mathura, which is described as a reservoir of opulence.
Although taking birth in the opulent city of Mathura, Krishna left that
33
city (tyaktvā) and relocated to the village of Vrindavan, by the words
(ārya-vacasā) of His parents, Vasudeva and Devaki. Following their
instruction, He relocated to a forest village (yad agād araṇyam). The
relationship between Sri Krishna and Srimati Radharani (māyā-mṛgam)
indicates yogamāyā in this context since Radharani is Krishna’s hlādinī-
śakti, His original internal pleasure potency. Because Krishna is
Madana-mohana and Radharani is Madana-mohana-mohini, therefore
mṛgam means Krishna is like a deer that is controlled by the beautiful
Radharani. Sri Radha always performs pūjā to bind Krishna because She
cannot live without Him. Due to Radharani’s ārādhana, or worship,
Krishna never leaves Vrindavan. He runs through the forests of
Vrindavan (anvadhāvat), playing with His friends and cows and
engaging in amorous pastimes with His most desired object (īpsitam),
Srimati Radharani.
The ancient sage, Sridhara Swami, has explained how this verse also
describes the incarnation of Lord Ramachandra, who gave up (tyaktvā)
an opulent kingdom, which is very difficult to renounce (su-dustyaja).
Lord Rama left the kingdom that was desired even by the demigods
(surepsita-rājya-lakṣmīm) to honor the words of His father (ārya-vacasā)
whom He accepted as a guru, and entered the forest (yad agād araṇyam),
thus showing His unflinching submission to the path of dharma,
(dharmiṣṭhaḥ). He wandered throughout the forest (anvadhāvat) and
displayed His affection for Sita-devi by chasing the illusory deer (māyā-
mṛgam) created by Maricha. The golden deer was especially desired by
Sita-devi (dayitayepsitam).
Accepting all the explanations of this verse, adherents of the Gaudiya

Vaishnava sampradāya worship Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu in His six-
armed form known as ṣaḍ- bhūja-mūrti. Two arms carry the bow and
arrow of Sri Ramachandra. The next two arms hold the flute of Lord
Krishna, and the final two arms carry the waterpot and danda of the
sannyāsī Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. The ṣaḍ-bhūja form, therefore, is
accepted as the siddhānta of this verse.
34
We may observe that this same verse also applies to Sri Sri Radha-
Damodara and Their pastimes. They gave up living in a temple (tyaktvā)
where Deities normally reside. Many people come to the temple to pay
tribute, and the temple service provided by Their devotees is usually
opulent and affectionate, so that situation is difficult to give up (su-
dustyaja). They left the opulent capital city of Washington, DC, of the
richest country in the world (surepsita-rājya-lakṣmīm) for the holy
purpose (dharmiṣṭhaḥ) of spreading the sankirtan mission.
Thus, They fulfilled the prophesy of Lord Chaitanya (ārya-vacasā) who

accepted the role of a brāhmaṇa sannyāsī. Accordingly, They traveled in
the forest of illusion within the material world (yad agād araṇyam) out
of Their causeless mercy (dayitayā) to deliver the conditioned souls who
are chasing after illusory pleasures (māyā-mṛgam). In this way They
achieved Their desired objective (īpsitam) which was the fulfillment of
scripture. For this very purpose, They traveled here, there, and
everywhere (anvadhāvat) on a bus.
There is no contradiction for the different interpretations of this verse

because the Supreme Personality of Godhead manifests unlimited forms
to perform His pastimes, advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam, as
stated in Brahma-samhita.
Srila Prabhupada himself gave the indication to His Holiness

Vishnujana Swami that Radha-Damodara were in the mood of Lord
Chaitanya, and thus They traveled on a bus throughout the North
American continent sanctioned by the word of Srila Prabhupada (ārya-
vacasā). Ironically, this fulfills yet another prophesy in scripture:
śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya-prabhu deśe deśe yāñā
saba-loke nistārilā jaṅgama-brahma hañā
“Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, however, moves from one country to

another, personally or by HisSri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, however,
moves from one country to another, personally or by His representative.
35
Thus He, as the moving Brahman, delivers all the people of the world.
[CC, Antya-lila 5.153]
From the historical evidence presented in this book it will become clear
that Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara arrived in America and traveled on a bus
to inspire Their devotees to fulfill the prophecy of Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu.
Therefore, we may confidently conclude that these pastimes were

indirectly predicted in śāstra as the above verses affirm.
– Vaiyasaki Das Adhikari –
Madhya-lila
The End of the Innocence
36
Prologue
Mission Impossible
West Begal, circa 1953
One hour south of Mayapur is the town of Shantipur.
West Bengal circa 1953 A small temple complex, known as Advaita

Bhavan, has been established here as a memorial for Srila Advaita
Acharya and his wife, Sita Thakurani. A pūjārī is always on hand to do
the pūjā, welcome visitors, and take care of the temple.
In the early 1950s a gentleman dressed in white khādi comes to visit

Advaita Bhavan. After chanting for many hours he is about to depart.
He approaches the temple pūjārī first and thanks him for allowing him
to chant here.
The pūjārī begins to notice that the gentleman comes regularly, once a
month on a weekend. He always takes a seat on the floor in the back of
the temple hall. Sitting there for hours at a time, he simply chants japa
quietly and deeply.
After several months of this routine the temple pūjārī expectantly waits
for this gentleman and greets him warmly when he arrives. Again, the
man simply smiles and sits quietly to chant japa at the back of the
temple hall. The pūjārī has developed some affection for this Vaishnava
gentleman but never invites conversation which might disturb his
bhajan.
Occasionally, the pūjārī hears the man’s voice choke up as he chants his
japa.
Sometimes, he sees that his eyes are full of tears. His profound presence
37
makes a strong impression on the pūjārī.
Just as suddenly as the gentleman began coming, he suddenly stops

coming. The pūjārī begins to miss the presence of his “friend.”
Time passes. One Thursday afternoon on August 12, 1965, the pūjārī
notices a saffron-clad sannyāsī sitting in the back of the mandir chanting
japa.
Pujari: In a moment I recognized him to be my old friend from before.

Again he sat for a long time chanting Hare Krishna. I could see his
beads moving, his eyes closed in concentrated devotion. He was
weeping unabashedly, even more than he used to, while he took the
Holy Name. Finally, as evening came, he paid his dandavat pranāms for
a long time. When he arose he came up to me and again thanked me for
my seva here at Advaita Bhavan.
The pūjārīs interest is piqued and he asks, “Who are you? I remember
you from so long ago.”
“My name is Abhaya Charanaravinda Bhaktivedanta Swami. I am an

unworthy disciple of His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati
Thakur, Srila Prabhupada, my divine master. I have been coming here
for such a long time because my gurudeva has given me an impossible
mission. His desire was for me to go across the ocean to the Western
countries and spread the sublime teachings of Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu.
There are countless souls there who have never heard of Sri-Sri Radha-
Krishna and so they are suffering greatly.
“I have not known how this mission of his will be successful, so I have
come here to this special house of Advaita Acharya where he,
Nityananda Prabhu, and Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu would gather
together to plan the sankirtan movement. It was here that they launched
the inundation of love of God that swept India and continues to this day.
38
“I have been praying very earnestly here that they will give me their
mercy that somehow they will empower me and guide me. I want to
satisfy my gurudeva’s desire, but I am feeling unqualified to do this.
“Tomorrow I am leaving for Calcutta to go upon a ship across the ocean

to America. I do not know what will befall me there, but I am praying
most earnestly here for help.”
As the Vaishnava sannyāsī reveals his heart to the pūjārī, tears begin to
roll down his cheeks. Then he humbly asks the pūjārī for his blessings,
and leaves. The pūjārī is deeply moved by the Vaishnava’s sincerity and
determination. He watches him as he departs, walking down the road
and finally out of sight. He wonders about the journey that he will take
across the ocean.
Again, time passes. One day, the pūjārī is shocked to see several
western Vaishnavas at Advaita Bhavan. This is the first time he has ever
seen Vaishnavas that are not Indian. They are wearing dhotis and saris
and chanting on tulasi-mālā just like Indian Vaishnavas. He can’t get up
the courage to approach them although he is filled with questions. As
they leave, one of them comes forward and gives him an English
magazine. The title is Back to Godhead.
Pujari: As I was looking at the photographs, suddenly I recognized a

picture of the Founder- Acharya who had brought Krishna
consciousness to the West. It was a picture of my friend, Bhaktivedanta
Swami, who had come and prayed here so many times before. Then I
realized that he had actually accomplished that impossible mission of
his gurudeva. I saw that it was indeed he, starting alone and without
pretense, who had accomplished this glorious miracle against all odds.
Before coming to America, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami felt himself to

be a lone representative of the mission of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta
Sarasvati Thakur. The one Gaudiya Math had splintered into many
separate maths.
39
While in New York, Prabhupada corresponded with several of his
godbrothers to elicit their support and cooperation in his attempt to
fulfill Mahaprabhu’s prophecy that the Holy Names be sung in every
town and village worldwide. Unfortunately, he did not get the support
he was hoping for. No doubt, this pained him because he was a sensitive
man.
One may justifiably inquire why the Gaudiya Math did not support or
assist Prabhupada’s effort to spread Lord Chaitanya’s mission
worldwide. The answer is disarmingly simple. Srila Prabhupada was
never part of the Gaudiya Math inner circle. He was never a temple
leader nor a guru with disciples. He was simply Abhay Babu, the
householder. He was what we call a congregational member, a
businessman with a family who came to the temple regularly and
assisted the temple leaders.
Even when he took sannyāsa at the age of 63, he was a lone preacher,
not connected to the Gaudiya Math management structure. It was no
wonder, that his godbrothers felt he could not possibly accomplish what
had never been done before. Thus, Prabhupada was obliged to take up
the order of his spiritual master single-handedly.
Under the circumstances he had no choice but to shift his affiliation

from serving the body of his guru’s mission in favor of serving the
personal instructions he received directly from Srila Bhaktisiddhanta
Sarasvati Thakur.
Seeing that his Western disciples were willing to render service on

behalf of his guru maharaja, Prabhupada became very appreciative. In
his heart he understood that Srila Bhaktisiddhanta had sent these young
people to assist him. Thus, he accepted his first and foremost duty to
protect them, nurture them, and establish them as the future guardians of
Lord Chaitanya’s mission.
In September 1970, Prabhupada brought forty young western

Vaishnavas to India from Europe and America. Together, they traveled
40
around the country putting on grand programs that lasted up to a week.
These functions were graced by beautiful marble deities presiding center

stage. After the programs, They were sent to various temples in the
West that were ready to begin serious Radha-Krishna worship.
Gradually, Prabhupada unfolded a plan to spread sanātana-dharma,
Krishna consciousness, all over India.
Sri Krishna chooses whomever He desires to accomplish His mission on

planet earth, irrespective of householder or śūdra, and empowers that
person to do the impossible. Srila Prabhupada always quoted this verse
– kṛṣṇa-śakti vinā nahi tāra pravartana – in relation to his success in
preaching Lord Chaitanya’s mission, that without being empowered by
God, no one can spread His mission worldwide. He never took credit for
himself.
Volume One of Radha-Damodara Vilasa ended with the dramatic

performance of the First American Theistic Exposition, known by
devotees as the Transcendental Road Show. Srila Prabhupada sat in the
audience at the large rented hall in Pittsburgh. After that, Prabhupada
returned to India, to his rooms at Radha-Damodara Mandir in Sri
Vrindavan dhāma.
This volume begins where Volume One ends. Now, let us travel to the
holy land of Vrindavan where Srila Prabhupada is about to be honored
by a special function at the Radha-Damodara Mandir.
41
First Wave,
Broadway Bound
We are not interested in attracting millions of men to see some show.
Better we attract one sincere soul to join us in ecstatic chanting and
hearing. That will be of real value. [Letter to Sudama - November 25,
1972]
Vrindavan, October 15, 1972

Today the Radha-Damodara Mandir is alive with activity.
A large crowd has assembled to honor their local son. Srila Prabhupada
will receive a hero’s reception, having returned from a triumphant
global preaching tour. Surrounded by his forty Western disciples, he is
greeted with a magnificent welcoming celebration in the courtyard of
the Radha-Damodara temple.
Only one of his godbrothers is present to honor his achievement. His old
friend, Dr. O.B.L. Kapoor initiated as Adi Keshava Das, opens the
program with a short address. He had also left the mission of Sarasvati
Goswami due to the politics that overtook the Gaudiya Math. Now,
however, Dr Kapoor is Prabhupada’s staunch supporter. In his address,
he begins by describing how Prabhupada left the shelter of Vrindavan
and Radha-Damodara to inaugurate the worldwide sankirtan movement
prophesied by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
“This return back to the homeland of Srila Prabhupada is particularly

significant,” he continues, “because this time he comes back with a host
of his Western disciples. This signifies to me the meeting of the East
42
and the West, or at least the beginning of such a meeting. This signifies
the victory of spiritualism over materialism, of good over evil.
“This is really a rare moment in history because for the first time in the
history of the world, for the first time at least in living memory,
Vaishnavism, the message of Vaishnavism, the message of
Mahaprabhu, the message of pure devotion, has been carried to the
West, and carried so successfully.
“I am sure that historians of the future will have a lot to say about
Prabhupada and his movement. And they will be even envious of us for
living in a time when this movement was begun, and for our
participating in it.”
Many locals continue to crowd into the courtyard, jostling one another
in front of Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara, causing a minor disturbance.
Everyone is anxious to catch a glimpse of the successful hometown
Swami. Many don’t understand English, but they want to be present at a
gathering they are being told is historic.
“I have a secret realization,” Dr. Kapoor concludes, “that at this

moment, while we are welcoming Prabhupada, Sri Rupa Goswami, Sri
Jiva Goswami, and Sri Krishnadas Kaviraja, whose samādhis signify
their eternal presence in the sacred precincts of this temple, are also
joining us in welcoming Prabhupada, and they are showering their
choicest blessings upon him. I can hear them saying, ‘Long live
Prabhupada, long live Prabhupada.’
“I am sure as a result of their presence, Prabhupada will live long, for

many, many more years, to broadcast the message of Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu all the world over and to inspire us with a special zeal in
our hearts.”
Bringing his grand introduction to a close, Dr. Kapoor offers his

praṇāma to Prabhupada and requests him to speak. The audience buzzes
with anticipation as Srila Prabhupada approaches the podium.
43
He begins by thanking Dr. Kapoor and offers his own praise in return.
He informs the audience that they have been godbrothers for forty years.
“So his association is a great blessing for us. But this reception is
actually not my reception. It is the reception of my foreign students. Sri
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu wanted that His message should be broadcast all
over the world, in every village and every town, and my guru maharaja
attempted this.”
Prabhupada explains that Bhaktivinoda Thakur was the first to distribute

Gaudiya Vaishnava literature abroad. In 1896, he had sent his first book,
Sree Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, His Life and Precepts, to McGill
University in Montreal. Almost a century later, one of Prabhupada’s
Canadian disciples found that very volume in the University library.
Next, Prabhupada gives a brief history of his meeting with Srila

Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Maharaja in 1922. He relates how
Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja asked him to preach Lord Chaitanya’s
message to the English speaking world during their very first meeting.
“So I was a little surprised, especially at that time. I was a very young
man and newly married. I had one son also. So it was my mistake that I
did not take up the words of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami
Maharaja immediately. I thought that, I am now married. Let me settle
down. Perhaps if I would have joined from 1922, by the blessings of
Guru Maharaja, I could do more preaching work. Anyway, it is better
late than never.
“After my retirement, I was living in the Kesi-ghat Radha-Krishna

Temple. But Gaurachand Gosaiji asked me, ‘Why don’t you come
here?’ So I left that place and came here. And with some arrangement, I
took this room. But I was always thinking that Guru Maharaja asked me,
and he asked also some of my other godbrothers, but up till now nothing
has been done. So let me try, at least, at the fag end of my life.
“So I left Vrindavan in 1965 and went to New York at the age of 70
44
years. But for one year I had no place to live. I took some of my books,
Srimad Bhagavatam, printed here, up to three parts, First Canto, and I
was personally selling these books. With great difficulty I was pulling
on.
“New York is a very expensive city, a great city, a great forest, and I am
a poor man.”
Prabhupada chuckles to himself as he recalls his early days in the

Bowery. “Then I began chanting in Tompkins Square Park, and I think
in the first day this boy – Acyutananda Maharaja now – he and another
boy, Brahmananda Maharaja – who is also preaching in Africa – these
two boys danced, and a photograph was published in the New York
Times with great detail. That was the first encouragement.
“After chanting in the park, many young men and girls used to come to
my apartment, my meeting place. In this way I started, first in New
York, then in San Francisco, then Montreal, then Boston.”
Prabhupada holds up several books he has published in the West: Nectar

of Devotion, Bhagavad-gītā As It Is, and the KRSNA Book. Out of the
corner of his eye he sees many pots ready for prasādam distribution and
he ends his talk.
“So by the grace of Krishna, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, whichever book

we are publishing, that is being accepted. Thank you very much.”
During this 1972 Kartik celebration, Prabhupada spends the entire

month lecturing on Nectar of Devotion. He stays in his original rooms at
Radha-Damodara Mandir, while his disciples stay at Vasanti
Dharmasala near the sabji market in Loi Bazaar. But his stay is not
without controversy. Soon, the Vrindavan residents begin finding faults
with the Western Vaishnavas.
Gopal Chandra Ghosh: Particular persons criticized him saying that his
Western disciples were CIA. But he did not take offense and behaved
45
with humility. I heard him say to his disciples, “All of you, it seems the
Vrajavasis may dislike you but you should offer them praṇāmas.
Because they are Vaishnava, if you do this you can get their mercy. If
you want to get any of Radharani’s or Lord Krishna’s mercy, then do
seva of the Vaishnavas.
He was always so kind. Small boys could talk with him and old men
could talk with him. English persons and Indian persons; he did not
differentiate between anyone.
When he was at the Radha-Damodara temple a few people knew that he

was great, but not many people knew about him. Nowadays, so many
know of him. Even riksha-wallas and beggars know his glories. All over
Vrindavan the houses and shops have his photo. Even small children
recognize his picture. He was the hero of our Vrindavan and will always
remain so in many of our hearts.
One gentleman, Sri Banwari Lal Pathak, becomes close to Prabhupada

and desires to help him propagate his mission. Prabhupada reveals that
his desire is to build a beautiful temple and guest house especially for
the international Vaishnavas, who, he says, will soon come by the
thousands.
Mr Pathak pledges to do his utmost to assist him in this project. He has a

friendly relationship with a householder couple, Mr and Mrs Saraf, who
own land in the Raman Reti district on the outskirts of Vrindavan town.
He approaches them with a proposal to donate their land so a beautiful
temple can be built by the foreign Vaishnavas. This will spread the
glories of Sri Vrindavan dhāma around the world. And it will not only
be a great service to Vrindavan, it will facilitate the spreading of the
sankirtan movement worldwide as prophesied by Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu.
Mr. Pathak convinces the Sarafs that Bhaktivedanta Swami is the most
worthy and proper person to build this temple and bring the foreign
Vaishnavas to India. Full of enthusiasm, the couple donate their land so
46
that Srila Prabhupada can build this temple. All over Vrindavan, Mr.
Pathak promotes the new temple project and helps collect donations. He
makes loan arrangements for the construction. He assists in the
negotiations and legalities involved in acquiring the land, as well as
making many important arrangements during the building phase of the
temple. Due to his untiring devotion for the project, Srila Prabhupada
will invite him to speak during the temple inauguration in 1975. His
wife remembers those early days.
Srimati Pathak: When Srila Prabhupada was first coming to Vrindavan

with Westerners, many of the Vrajavasis, and others, were worried
about what he was doing. They were thinking that he had brought those
who were not qualified and didn’t have good habits. Maybe they would
spoil our Krishna conscious society. Many people were thinking like
that. But because my husband had such a close relationship with Srila
Prabhupada, he was firmly convinced about what Prabhupada was
doing.
He stood up for Srila Prabhupada in numerous assemblies and private

meetings among many people. He explained that what Srila Prabhupada
was doing was correct and it was glorious that he was trying to initiate
these Westerners, as this would help Vrindavan.
Boston, October 1972

The First American Theistic Exposition, branded by devotees as the
Transcendental Road Show, is busier than ever with performances
around the college towns in New England. Kuladri has had a lot of
success booking the show in the Boston area. By holding a slide show
presentation for the student council that budgets money for
entertainment, he sells the show as “the first transcendental rock opera
in America.”
Boston is unusually cold this year. Fresh winter snow has come early,
speckling the surrounding countryside. The three Road Show buses are
47
parked at the temple compound on North Beacon Street in Allston. The
brahmacārīs sleep in the warm temple, but the brahmacārīnīs are asked
to sleep outside in a bus with no heater. Taking the humble position,
they accept in the mood of surrender.
Despite the cold, Vishnujana Swami continues taking out a sankirtan

party for street kirtan and book distribution. He is the inspiration for all
the devotees who cheerfully follow in his footsteps. Everybody gets up
for the entire morning program and they all go out after breakfast
prasādam. With Vishnujana at the helm there is no indication of
looseness between the men and women. On the contrary, all dealings are
strictly in accord with proper Vaishnava etiquette. Maharaja is very
chaste in all his dealings, and everybody emulates his mood. The
women feel comfortable asking him questions because he is always kind
and loving towards everyone.
After returning from sankirtan, everyone is busy preparing for tonight’s

rock opera performance at Brandeis University. In the audience is a
Broadway producer. He has heard about the Hare Krishna rock opera
and comes out of curiosity. Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell are
popular rock operas on Broadway, and he’s hoping that the Krishna rock
opera can also become a money-making Broadway hit.
At the end of the show, he turns up backstage to introduce himself. He is

quite friendly and makes a few overtures about a possible Broadway
run. Everyone is excited hearing his enthusiastic proposals.
Hasyagrami: When the Road Show was big, we were a force. We felt
like that too. We could roll into a place and take it over. Can you
imagine the logistics of mounting that? We would take over a whole
stage, we had a huge backdrop, we had instruments, a cast of 25-30
people, a chorus with many singing parts, dancers, several parts of
acting. The whole thing took almost three hours. It expanded step by
step. Each person added something. With the band it was like that. We
must have had 30 songs. We only used about half that, but we kept
48
writing them. Mangalananda and I wrote a lot of songs that just flew
out. He was the musical director.
The next day, all the talk around the temple is about performing on
Broadway. With the Boston bookings completed, the plan is to return to
New York and merge the Road Show devotees with the Brooklyn
temple. As the buses are about to depart, Suhotra, the Boston sankirtan
leader, decides that traveling with the rock opera is big-time preaching.
He jumps aboard one of the festival buses as it exits the compound. Trai
Das, the newly-arrived Boston Temple President, is very upset. He’s
losing one of the main temple leaders – but that’s show business!
Driving out of Boston, all the devotees are inspired seeing Vishnujana
Swami so devoted to Sri-Sri Radha Damodara. He is the first to wake
up, then he bathes with cold water, sometimes breaking the ice outside,
and dries himself with the dhoti he puts on! He then cooks a milk sweet
for Radha-Damodara and wakes Them. Then he leads maṅgala-ārati,
after which he bathes and dresses Radha-Damodara and leads the Deity
Greeting. When he speaks it is usually short and sweet, but with such
love for Krishna consciousness that the devotees’ hearts melt. They
never become tired or bored with his talks. His kirtans are remarkable.
He leads kirtans and bhajans eight hours a day, and still finds time to
chant his rounds and perform Deity service.
New York, October 1972

When the Road Show devotees arrive in New York, Vishnujana
Maharaja leads a roaring kirtan at the Henry Street temple for the
pleasure of Sri-Sri Radha-Govinda. He is overcome with ecstasy, and
everybody is inspired into exuberant dancing by his tremendous kirtan.
The New York devotees are impressed to see Maharaja so blissfully
chanting for Radha-Govinda. They have never seen him in such a mood
towards Deities other than Radha-Damodara. Vishnujana’s behavior on
this occasion reminds many devotees of the descriptions of how Lord
49
Chaitanya would enter a temple to see the Deity, have kirtan, and
exhibit ecstatic features.
After the kirtan, Maharaja sits down for class and begins to glorify
Radha-Govinda. He comments that Their faces are very much like
blossoming lotus flowers. He speaks with the same fervor as a mother
praising her children. Vishnujana articulates his points in a loving mood,
evoking poetic expression, although there are also moments when he is
grave. He is certainly inspired.
In his class, Maharaja explains how a devotee should review his attitude
in relationship to the Deities. “I am the servant of Sri-Sri Radha-
Govinda, and I cannot go anywhere or do anything without Their
permission.” This simple idea is enough to further bond the New York
devotees’ relationship with Radha-Govinda. By Maharaja’s insight they
are inspired to cultivate a deeper commitment to devotional service.
After class, Srila Das approaches Vishnujana Maharaja to ask if he can

rejoin the bus program. He believes that he belongs with the traveling
party and is simply on loan to the New York temple. He is attached to
Maharaja and feels ambivalent about his temple service.
Vishnujana questions him. “Well, you’re serving here. How is it

going?” Srila acknowledges his service in the printing department at
ISKCON Press.
“You have some solid service there,” Vishnujana replies. “You’re

working on Prabhupada’s books. You should stay with it.” Seeing that
Maharaja is totally detached, and not trying to expand his party, Srila
surrenders. He agrees to continue his service in New York.
Sravaniya also approaches Maharaja to do pūjārī work for Radha-

Damodara. She has a desire to increase her service as part of the Road
Show. Vishnujana agrees; she can do the last ārati and prepare the
Deities for Their evening rest.
50
Sravaniya dd: They were my heart and soul. Damodara’s hair was really
amazing. The way He had us dress Him was always dramatic. I was one
of those white pūjārīs. We all wore white. All we did was pūjārī work,
sing bhajans, and polish the silver. It got me into a real priestess mode
and I absorbed my mind in just that. It was a dream to travel with
Radha-Damodara and take care of Them in such an informal way.
Actually, what we used to offer Them almost wasn’t good enough, but
everything went fine. No lightning bolts hit us.
I can still see Vishnujana Maharaja walking out into a New York winter
wearing nothing but his sannyāsa cloth. He used to walk down the street
in the bitter cold in just sandals and a kurtā like a real avadhūta. I
remember him as being a performer and an introvert at the same time.
He was enigmatic, but Gemini is like that. He didn’t demand that
anybody be or do anything. He just set his own example knowing that
devotees will naturally follow the truth.
The Road Show devotees live and rehearse in the loft above the
ISKCON Press warehouse at Tiffany Place. Every Sunday, they perform
select portions of the rock opera for the guests at the Love Feast. This is
where Sudama Goswami starts to get involved. Sudama first saw the
show at the Syria Mosque auditorium in Pittsburgh and fell in love with
it.
Sudama approaches Bali Mardan Goswami, the New York temple

president, and begs for a part in the show. Everybody knows Sudama’s
fancy footwork from his dancing in kirtan. Bali Mardan believes the
show needs a professional dancer, and Sudama was part of the original
Broadway production of West Side Story. A decision is quickly made
and Sudama is in.
Toshan Krishna is still the Road Show manager. His office is in the sub-
basement of the temple. The basement is where the prasādam hall is,
and below that is a dungeon- like area dominated by washing machines
and big sinks for cleaning. Also in the sub- basement is Pancharatna’s
51
office. He has a tiny corner for his public relations work – organizing
college preaching and school programs as well as trying to get on radio
and television.
Toshan is now promoting the rock opera through the National

Educational Agency that supplies colleges and universities with their
entertainment. Along with the rock groups, the Road Show is listed in
the directory that promotes the college campus entertainment industry.
He books the show for $2,000.00 a night, a huge sum of money for an
evening of preaching.
The Broadway producer who saw the show in Boston arrives at the
Brooklyn temple one afternoon for a meeting with Toshan Krishna, Bali
Mardan Goswami, and Sudama Goswami. After sampling a little
prasādam, he explains that the show’s success has attracted the attention
of important Broadway people. They believe the Hare Krishna rock
opera might have a successful run like Jesus Christ Superstar, currently
the hottest show on Broadway. Tactfully, he emphasizes the need for a
few “minor” revisions to customize it for a Broadway audience. He
acknowledges that it’s a great rock opera in and of itself, and he knows
that the Hare Krishna mantra is already in another show, Hair, but he is
not convinced that deity worship fits the concept of a Broadway act.
Sudama and Bali are willing to make concessions in order to get the
show on Broadway. They agree that certain revisions are feasible to
make the show more sophisticated, more in accord with what the
producer says will work. They believe that major recognition will please
Prabhupada.
That evening the Road Show managers have a meeting to discuss the
future. The question is whether to develop the entertainment side for a
Broadway run or to retain the original format as a preaching vehicle for
schools and colleges. Hearing about the proposed changes, Vishnujana
Maharaja voices his displeasure. He is an integral part of the project,
and his concept is to preach in all the cities and towns as desired by
52
Lord Chaitanya.
Sudama Maharaja, having previously been a dancer on Broadway,

prefers to make it a professional show suitable for mature audiences. He
has definite ideas how to refine the show’s concept to attract the
Broadway crowds. “This is also preaching,” he asserts, “just to a more
sophisticated audience.”
After the meeting, Sudama convinces Bali Mardan that, with his
previous theatrical experience, he is the only person who can reformat
the Rock Opera to ensure a Broadway success. “Reaching out to the
higher class of people will really please Srila Prabhupada,” he
concludes.
Bali Mardan becomes convinced. Together, Sudama and Bali make the
decision to take over the project and revamp it for theatrical success.
Their idea is that Vishnujana Swami should be replaced with Sudama.
They don’t consider Vishnujana a good manager anyway, and he is
already voicing his displeasure about the new direction that the show
needs to take.
Quickly, rumors begin to surface around the temple about bickering

amongst the Road Show managers regarding the focus of the show. Bali
Mardan and Sudama inform the cast that a fresh concept is crucial. They
need to present the philosophy in a way that will bring people to
Krishna consciousness one step at a time, without laying it on too thick.
As they implement their new ideas, the format begins to change. As the
presentation veers off-center from its original concept, it finally reaches
the point where Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara are taken out of the show. This
eliminates the ārati segment as well. No one in the cast is happy about
this decision. Some see the change as the harbinger of disaster. When
devotees are told that they need to take professional acting lessons,
many can feel the air escaping from the balloon! It’s obvious that the
emphasis is now more on performing and less on preaching.
Sudama Goswami had joined because he wanted to play the role of the
53
Maharaja in the show. In the beginning he was the understudy, trying to
work together with Vishnujana. But Vishnujana Swami carried the part
off with style and grace. Sudama’s version of the Maharaja role is to
become a dancing swami. He makes his stage entrance with a series of
rhythmic movements with his danda, coming across more like a
performer than a real sannyāsī. Nor can he sing as well as Vishnujana.
It’s difficult to replace a unique individual like Vishnujana Swami who

can make something happen out of nothing. Less imaginative
individuals believe they can also get the same results. Although Bali
Mardan is trying to control everything, Sudama also wants control. The
atmosphere becomes more competitive. Gradually, a mood of
unorthodox mixing between the brahmacārīs and brahmacārīnīs enters
the scene. Ironically, fearing the new mood of looseness, some devotees
become even more serious about their devotional life.
Vishnujana sadly recognizes that he can no longer be part of this project

where the leaders are placing Broadway fame above humble service to
Radha-Damodara. Maharaja envisions a totally different concept
dedicated to pure preaching. After due consideration, he decides to leave
the show and carefully chooses the brahmacārīs to help him form a new
party.
After dressing Radha-Damodara early the next morning, Vishnujana

shifts the altar and palanquin from the temple bus to the ashram bus
where all the gear is stored. It’s a practical choice because the temple
bus has no storage facilities. The ashram bus has a raised platform
where books, devotees’ belongings, and other paraphernalia are stored
underneath. Moreover, Dayal Chandra has assured him that this bus is
mechanically superior.
Dayal’s idea is to remodel the ashram bus into a temple room. The
raised platform, however, will prevent anyone from standing, so
devotees will have to sit for darshan. The floor already has marble-look
linoleum tiles, and there are two trap doors that lift up for easy access
54
underneath. Outside, the bus is painted a bright blue color with the
mahā-mantra air-brushed on both sides.
Maharaja gathers his crew, headed by Dayal Chandra as driver and

mechanic. No traveling program can survive without an expert
mechanic on board. The newly acquired Suhotra will be the book
distribution leader, assisted by Sri Vallabha. Hasyagrami, Sankarshan,
and Vishnudatta are musically inclined and will be enthusiastic
kīrtanīyās.
These brahmacārīs happily accept Vishnujana’s decision to leave. Even

as their authority figure he has their love and respect. Sankarshan is a
southern boy and New York is too cold for him. He was always in
anxiety because there wasn’t enough heat in the temple to keep him
warm. He is happy to go south. Vishnujana also wants Chandrasekhar to
join him because they share a special relationship since the early
preaching days in Texas. But the Brooklyn temple is so full of devotees
scattered everywhere that Maharaja can’t find him.
The bus leaves Brooklyn, crossing the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan,
then through the Holland Tunnel and onto the New Jersey Turnpike
heading south. Vishnujana tells his men, “Let Sudama have the theater.
I’ll take the Deities.” That’s his mood. He’s happy to leave the show to
Bali and Sudama. “They can have the money, and I’ll take Krishna.”
Hasyagrami: I recall Vishnujana saying that Radha-Damodara could not

be part of a Broadway program because They wouldn’t be worshipped
properly. The idea of turning devotees into something acceptable to
Broadway and reconfiguring the show not to be the Hare Krishna story
was unacceptable. It just wouldn’t be sankirtan to get involved in a
Broadway production.
With Vishnujana and his brahmacārīs gone, the show quickly changes
into a cabaret. Sudama and Bali accept that Deities can’t be in a
Broadway play, but with Radha- Damodara out of the show, most
devotees feel that the nectar has dried up. It’s no longer a blissful
55
experience. Some feel a foreboding.
Everyone misses Vishnujana Swami. The brahmacārīs are in great

distress due to the change of mood to professionalism. Some are even
praying for the Road Show to end. During this phase of the show the
association between the men and women becomes looser and the new
leaders are not as attentive to the devotees’ spiritual life as before. There
have been no physical fall-downs, but a strict sannyāsī would consider
the intermingling to be illicit.
Having no home, no base, and no office, Vishnujana Maharaja begins

his practice of traveling temple to temple like a true renunciate.
Vishnujana’s exodus with Radha- Damodara signifies the genesis of the
second stage of Radha-Damodara’s traveling sankirtan program.
Philadelphia, October 27, 1972

Mahesvara watches as a bus pulls up in front of the temple. He has been
coming to the Philadelphia temple since a high school student of age
sixteen. A sannyāsī and six brahmacārīs disembark from the bus. At first
glance they appear to be a rag-tag crew, but it’s obvious they are a
happy group. Mahesvara is struck by the sannyāsī, who appears to be a
dynamic personality.
Ravindra Swarupa is the temple president. He greets the party, and after
offering obeisances to Maharaja, brings him to the temple room for
darshan. The news that a sannyāsī has arrived quickly spreads
throughout the temple. The local devotees gather in front of Lord
Jagannath for kirtan. Vishnujana Swami is the kirtan man. His mṛdaṅga
playing has everybody enthralled. They can see he has all the beats and
accents down, as well as all the moves. Of course, Vishnujana Maharaja
isn’t performing, he is chanting from the heart as instructed by Srila
Prabhupada.
Ravindra introduces the devotees to Maharaja and informs them of
56
Vishnujana’s exalted position in ISKCON. “He’s the first devotee in
America to sing Vaishnava bhajans, having learned them personally
from Srila Prabhupada in Los Angeles.”
On a regular basis, Mahesvara enjoys helping Ravindra’s wife,

Saudamani, in her service on the altar. One day she mentions that
Vishnujana Swami needs someone to cover Radha-Damodara’s canopy.
Mahesvara sees an opportunity and approaches him.
“Is there any service I can do for you Maharaja?”
“Well, Radha-Damodara’s palanquin needs a top covering. Can you do

it?” “Yes. I’d be more than happy to do it, Maharaja.”
The top of the palanquin is shaped like an umbrella. Accepting the

service with a glad heart, Mahesvara covers it with a metal-flake vinyl
and adds gold jāri around the border for decoration.
The following day after lunch prasādam, Vishnujana Maharaja is

scrubbing the bus very energetically with his lungi tucked up like a
śūdra. When he’s done, he takes bath, then goes behind the altar to
prepare Radha-Damodara’s afternoon offering.
Mithiladish has been observing Maharaja for the past hour and marvels
at the diversity of Krishna consciousness. A person can be scrubbing
something filthy, and five minutes later, after taking bath, can be serving
the body of the Lord. Maharaja’s party reminds Mithiladish of
transcendental pirates, like a roving band of merry men, yet very
inspirational.
During his stay in Philadelphia, Vishnujana Maharaja is still thinking

about Chandrasekhar. He had looked for him before leaving New York
but couldn’t find him. Now he resolves to contact him to see if he is
properly engaged. Using a phone in Ravindra’s office, he calls the New
York temple.
57
Busily serving at the Henry Street temple, Chandrasekhar receives a
message to report to Bali Mardan’s office. As soon as he enters the
room Bali hands him the phone. He is surprised to hear Vishnujana
Swami’s voice. “Would you like to join me, or are you established
there?”
Chandrasekhar: It breaks my heart to tell this story. I said I was

established. Maharaja was not very assertive. He didn’t make it clear
that he’d like me to come and join him. I know he strongly felt that. My
problem was that I was pressured to stay by the administrators. I was a
brahmacārī doing what I was told – serving in the kitchen with
Mangalananda, Gariyan, and Nanda Kishor. I stayed in New York but I
was always thinking, Vishnujana Maharaja wanted you to go with him.
Maharaja wanted you on his party. It hurt so much to think that I
actually said no.
The Philadelphia devotees are impressed with Vishnujana’s classes on

Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita. Among them is Dhristadyumna, the
temple commander and Ravindra’s right hand man. As an aspiring
harmonium singer, he is also in awe of Vishnujana’s kirtan and bhajan
abilities. No one can sing and play the harmonium like Maharaja, so
Dhristadyumna decides to associate with him as much as he can. He is
eager to help out whenever Maharaja needs anything done.
In Vishnujana’s association, Dhristadyumna begins to feel that temple

life is not as attractive as preaching on the road with a sannyāsī. With
Vishnujana Maharaja, Krishna consciousness becomes more nectarean,
and everybody wants to be where the nectar is. As much as he
appreciates Ravindra Swarupa’s scholastic erudition and knowledge of
history and philosophy, Dhristadyumna prefers to be on the road with
the Swami and his party. All of a sudden, temple life seems dry and he’s
actually pining to be with Maharaja.
One afternoon, as Dhristadyumna drives Maharaja back to the temple

after harināma sankirtan, he indirectly tries to get Vishnujana to say,
58
Come with me. Leave the temple. But Vishnujana is a sensitive person.
He isn’t into acquiring men to have a large party.
“I don’t want to disturb anyone’s ongoing service,” he explains. “Of

course, I would accept a man who is rejected from a temple because
nobody wants to engage him. That would be fine, but there’s no point in
just collecting men. Devotees have to be properly engaged in Krishna’s
service. It’s the most important consideration.”
This is not the answer Dhristadyumna was hoping for. He is not

satisfied and continues pressing his case, ever so subtly, until Maharaja
finally looks him right in the eye and addresses his desire.
“Dhristadyumna Prabhu, what you’re looking for is a best friend. But

what you don’t know is that your best friend is already with you. You’re
looking everywhere for this friend, but He’s already with you. You
don’t have to go somewhere else. I’m always happy because my best
friend is with me. Be happy doing your service because He’s there with
you. Always.”
Dhristadyumna: I felt so embarrassed; because that’s what I wanted. I

wanted Vishnujana Maharaja to be my best friend. But he said wherever
you are, be Krishna conscious. Then you’re already there. You don’t
have to be with this party, or leave that temple. It’s an important
instruction that every devotee should grasp. That Krishna conscious
instruction always stayed with me.
Another leader might have said, “Sure, come with me. Be on my party.
We’re the best.” But Vishnujana Maharaja wasn’t like that. He just gave
pure Krishna conscious instruction. There was nothing I could say. I
swallowed it and knew I wasn’t going to be leaving with him. I was in
such anxiety at that point.
After he left, I started to act like he did. I was enthusiastic about

maṅgala-ārati, enthusiastic to cook for the Deities. Whatever the service,
just do it happily. That instruction changed me. I was inspired by his
59
kirtan and classes. He gave class and kirtan like nobody I ever met. He
was worthy to follow because he enlivened people; he attracted people.
He was always full of energy. Waves of prema were flowing from him.
I couldn’t help but be overpowered by his enthusiasm for everything to
do with Krishna consciousness. Deity worship, prasādam, there was
nothing he wasn’t blissed-out about; except money and politics. That he
didn’t relate to.
Driving south out of Philadelphia, Vishnujana decides not to visit the

Washington, DC, temple. He knows that Damodara Das would again
ask to have Radha-Damodara back. Vishnujana knows he is still
thinking They were originally the Washington temple Deities. Having
no desire to get involved in that issue, Maharaja instead pays a visit to
the small preaching center in Virginia Beach, managed by Dasarath and
his wife, Bhagyavati.
The bus arrives late in the evening, so Maharaja chooses to stay

overnight on the beach. The brahmacārīs are happy traveling with
Maharaja and free from the new Road Show atmosphere of
intermingling. They heard rumors that some temple devotees were
saying the show was māyā. Others even went so far as to say the entire
theatrical production was simply an excuse for illicit mingling. But now
the simple life of living exclusively with a fixed-up sannyāsī is every
brahmacārīs dream come true.
Vishnujana Swami is always the first one up in the morning. Everyone

appreciates the nice way he awakens them, like an angel coming to them
in their sleep. “Good morning, prabhu. It’s time to rise and shine for
Krishna.” It’s like waking up from a dream. There is no feeling of
lethargy commonly experienced upon waking. During maṅgala-ārati, as
Maharaja plays mṛdaṅga and sings the prayers to the spiritual master, he
enchants and enlivens everyone.
After the morning program at the beach, Dayal Chandra drives the bus
over to the preaching center. Dasarath and Bhagyavati are chanting japa
60
when they see the bus pull up. They greet Vishnujana Maharaja with
obeisances and escort him into their temple room. Vishnujana offers
daṇḍavats to the picture of Panca-tattva on the altar, which serves as
their Deity. Then he asks, with a big, warm smile, if they would like to
come onto the bus for Radha-Damodara’s darshan.
“Yes!” they eagerly respond.
Dasarath: He took us out to the bus. As we went in, there was a big step
up to the platform where all their paraphernalia was stored underneath.
We had to almost crawl into the temple room on hands and knees. We
couldn’t stand up, so we sat down. He opened the curtain with one
sweep of his hand and then offered daṇḍavats. He got up to a kneeling
position and, folding his hands, began speaking to the Deities.
“Dear Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara, please don’t kick me away from Your

service.” He was so sincere. Then he turned to us with a big smile and
asked, “How do you like Them?” They were just radiating beauty. He
had incredible potency to invoke Radha-Damodara’s presence.
After a brief stop in Virginia Beach, the bus is back on the road heading
further south towards Atlanta. During the controversy with Sudama and
Bali Mardan, Vishnujana conceived of a new project that he tentatively
named Yoga Village. He much prefers to have a yoga village than a
Broadway play. He wants to continue presenting Krishna consciousness
to the backdrop of music and drama, but the major focus must be
preaching Lord Chaitanya’s mission. Fame or fortune on the Broadway
stage holds no attraction for him. He could have had that as a rock
musician before he joined the temple in San Francisco. But he wasn’t
interested then and he has no interest now. His life is simply dedicated
to self-realization, serving the divine forms of Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara.

Vishnujana’s arrival at the temple causes excitement amongst the
61
devotees because everyone knows there will be great kirtans. Maharaja
wants to stay in Atlanta for a few weeks to begin rehearsals for his new
project. It will be a concept similar to the Road Show but focused
mainly on preaching, prasādam, and book distribution.
Atlanta Underground is still the best sankirtan spot in town. The Atlanta
devotees go there in the evening for kirtan. It’s an area that encompasses
a crazy assortment of people and scenes that the Radha-Damodara
devotees wouldn’t imagine to be together in one place. Vishnujana’s
party is into book distribution so Suhotra thinks this could be an ideal
spot to introduce Prabhupada’s books.
The first night that Suhotra and Vishnudatta have a look at Atlanta
Underground it is in full swing. When they distribute a few books, they
find that it’s a good field. They are the first devotees to distribute books
there, so it’s fresh. After the initial success other devotees become
excited to distribute there.
Vishnujana likes to cook hot sabjis to fire up devotees for going out at
night. He has a special sabji made with lots of red pepper “to get you
thoroughly fired-up.” Suhotra and Vishnudatta introduce their own
adaptation, the honey and cayenne pepper mixture. They eat the sabji
with all the red peppers, and then chant a couple of rounds. Just before
they get in the van to go out, they offer up the honey cayenne pepper
mixture and split it between them. Now they are ready to go down and
hit up the crowds.
To remain fired-up to preach down at Atlanta Underground, Suhotra and

Vishnudatta always pack small jars of their honey and chili powder
mixture in their cloth book bags. As soon as they feel fatigued, they take
a spoonful of the mixture. It keeps them going all night.
On Sunday morning, Suhotra goes out alone with two book bags filled
to the brim with packs of softbound KRSNA Book trilogies. He hangs
one bag on each shoulder, and appears almost like a mule carrying a
heavy burden. The Atlanta devotees are surprised seeing him go out.
62
They think that Sunday is nothing, super slow. But at the end of the day,
just in time for the Sunday feast, Suhotra returns with both bags empty
and pockets bulging. He has sold every one of the KRSNA trilogies.
Govardhana Puja 1972

Vishnujana Swami wants to make sweet rice to offer to Radha-
Damodara. He loves this festival and prepares enough sweet rice in two
large pots. His idea is to satisfy all the Atlanta devotees with Radha-
Damodara’s mahā-prasādam. After a blissful kirtan his pleasure is to
honor each person by personally serving everyone the sweet rice.
Radharani’s lotus feet are visible for this occasion as special nectar for
the devotees.
She is the only Radharani Deity whose lotus feet are revealed. She has
two outfits that are cut so that Her lotus feet can be seen. On the day She
reveals Her lotus feet the devotees go mad in ecstasy. It isn’t a common
thing, just on special occasions. Amoghalila is particularly attracted by
this pastime. Still, he wonders if it is bona fide and approaches
Vishnujana Swami.
Taking him gently by the arm, Maharaja escorts Amoghalila to a quiet

place and explains how Srila Prabhupada had come on the bus for
Radha-Damodara’s darshan in Pittsburgh.
“Damodara’s outfit displayed His lotus feet as He stood on the base that
was locked into the bus altar for stability. Radharani’s long dress,
however, not only covered Her feet but the base as well, making Her
look much taller than She really was. After offering obeisances, Srila
Prabhupada gazed at the two Divine forms and quietly commented,
‘Radharani looks more like Mother Yasoda.’
“I was feeling embarrassed, so I replied, ‘Radharani’s lotus feet are

covered out of respect.’
63
“Prabhupada looked at me, ‘Oh, you don’t like to see Radharani’s lotus
feet?’ I was really surprised. ‘Yes, you can show Radharani’s lotus feet,’
he continued, ‘because She is at the Damodara age.’
“It was a moment of enlightenment. And ever since that day, devotees
can have the darshan of Radharani’s lotus feet.” Amoghalila is satisfied
to hear this nectar story from Maharaja.
Although Vaishnava philosophy declares otherwise, most devotees

actually see Sri- Sri Radha-Damodara as Deities fashioned from metal.
Vishnujana Swami, however, is always in the mood that They are none
other than the original Supreme Personality of Godhead and His eternal
pleasure potency. In his mind, Radha-Damodara have descended
directly from Goloka Vrindavan to help Prabhupada fulfill Lord
Chaitanya’s mission of spreading the Holy Names to every town and
village.
Therefore, Radha-Damodara prefer going to the people instead of

waiting for people to come to Them. Vishnujana believes that this is the
reason They have chosen a bus as Their temple. In this way, They can
bless infinitely more conditioned souls with Their darshan. And these
fortunate souls are stirred with an inner desire to express their natural
inclination to glorify the Supreme, thereby advancing in spiritual life.
Vrindavan, November 1972

From five to six o’clock every evening Srila Prabhupada lectures on
Nectar of Devotion in the courtyard of Radha-Damodara Mandir. His
Western disciples, who are here with him the entire month of Kartik,
find it difficult to pay attention with the chatter of the birds and
monkeys. Before long, a monkey fight temporarily interrupts the talk.
Prabhupada is not bothered by the disturbance, although his disciples
are distracted.
After class, they all gather for a personal darshan in Prabhupada’s sitting
64
room. As he speaks, local residents bring offerings of fruits or flowers to
place at his lotus feet. Suddenly, a monkey darts into the room and
lunges for a bunch of ripe bananas. Vishakha responds quickly by
throwing her chaddar over the monkey and grabbing the bananas as he
runs by. She manages to retrieve most of the bananas, but within
seconds the monkey is gone, clutching one prized banana in his hand.
Srila Prabhupada laughs, “Just see how intelligent this monkey is. This
shows that in their own respect all living entities are intelligent. How
long do you think it would have taken you to do that, run in and out and
get the bananas? This monkey is so intelligent in regards to his eating,
he can do it in a few seconds and practically no one even saw him. He
just took the bananas and ran out. This is what it is like in the material
world. Everyone is expert in his own sphere. So, we have to become
expert devotees, not expert like monkeys.”
Several days later, Srutakirti brings in the mail and drops several letters
onto Prabhupada’s desk. Formerly, he was one of the original Road
Show members but is now Srila Prabhupada’s personal servant. Looking
through the letters, His Divine Grace sees one from Sudama Goswami.
Sudama writes that Vishnujana Maharaja and Radha-Damodara are no

longer involved with the Road Show. He supplies the details of the
necessary revisions that have been made to take advantage of the
opportunity to preach on the Broadway stage. Prabhupada, however, has
already received an update from Toshan Krishna about this change of
direction.
Toshan had written because there was pressure from the cast to inform
Prabhupada about the new Broadway presentation. They wanted
Prabhupada to know that the show is different from the one he saw in
Pittsburgh. That show was powerful in terms of the spiritual message
delivered in the songs and the drama. Prabhupada had given a short
discourse, and then sat down in the audience to watch the performance.
At the end of the concert there was a standing ovation and many in the
65
audience had tears in their eyes. That was the power of the play.
Prabhupada had approved the performance with Vishnujana and Radha-

Damodara, although he had always seen the danger that devotees might
be diverted from the path of pure bhakti. In the original concept the
music and drama were simply a backdrop to present Vaishnava
philosophy. But with the dismissal of Radha-Damodara in favor of
Broadway fame, it is clear to him that the show has taken a wrong turn.
The main focus is now dramatic, and will no longer give a convincing
Krishna conscious message. This new direction relegates preaching to a
secondary capacity.
A Broadway audience might be impressed with the artistic presentation

but not with the fact that these people have dedicated their lives to
Krishna consciousness. The drama will no longer attract the souls of an
audience, nor will they be inspired to become devotees of Krishna,
because it would be a superficial attraction, not a deep one.
A theatrical presentation could be viewed as questionable, yet as long as

Radha-Damodara and preaching were the central focus, it was an
acceptable approach. But with God now out of His own production, His
pure devotee realizes there is no longer any point to the show. The
spiritual focus has been lost in the material excitement and visions of
Broadway fame. Moreover, he’s concerned about the devotees falling
away, because you can’t be Krishna conscious without Krishna.
Immediately, Prabhupada dictates a reply to Sudama stating his

concerns.

A short time after the Govardhana Puja celebration, the temple
president, Balavanta, receives a letter from New York. It’s a Prabhupada
letter from India that has been copied and forwarded to all temples.
After reading it himself, Balavanta at once seeks out Vishnujana who is
66
presently rehearsing his new Yoga Village presentation at the Atlanta
temple.
“You better read this,” he says as he hands the letter to Maharaja, who
reads it aloud with concern.
My dear Sudama,
I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated October 27, 1972, and
I have noted the contents carefully. So far the Road Show and this Yoga
Village are concerned, these things should be stopped. Simply perform
our kirtan. If we divert our attention in this way, the whole thing will
gradually deteriorate. He is going far away. All these things are
nonsense inventions. Such inventing spirit will ruin this movement.
People may come to see, some will become devotees, but such devotees
will not stay because they are attracted by some show and not by the
real thing or spiritual life according to the standard of Lord Chaitanya.
Our standard is to have kirtan and start temples. What is this “Road
Show” and “Yoga Village?” It will be another hippie edition. Gradually
the Krishna consciousness idea will evaporate: another change, another
change, every day another change. Stop all this. Simply have kirtan,
nothing else. Don’t manufacture ideas. [Letter to Sudama - November 5,
1972]
With the preaching dimension of the show drying up, Prabhupada gives
the order to disband. “Stop all this. Simply have kirtan, nothing else.”
The message is clear – these shows will not make devotees according to
Lord Chaitanya’s standard. Upon reading the letter, Vishnujana
immediately surrenders to Prabhupada’s instruction.
“Jaya! Now we’ll just travel and preach and distribute Prabhupada’s
books.”
Gokularanjana: When the letter came it was very helpful for me to see
Vishnujana’s reaction. He just took it as Srila Prabhupada’s mercy.
67
Earlier this year, Prabhupada had written Kirtanananda emphasizing the
same essential point: that kirtan is the most important business for
devotees, especially in regard to performances. “So far your road-show
is concerned, we are not meant for giving performances. We are simple
kirtan men. There must always be kirtan going on wherever we travel,
and nothing else.” [Letter to Kirtanananda - June 25, 1972 ]
Now, in this letter to Sudama, Prabhupada again carefully explains that

by manufacturing ideas, one’s focus for direct service to Krishna
becomes overshadowed by desires to fulfill personal goals. This may
appear benign in the beginning as desires are dovetailed in service to
Krishna. But eventually pure devotion never manifests and thus the
movement becomes ruined over time. Prabhupada only wants to
inculcate the highest standard for his disciples. He wants them to
become fixed in the mood of selfless devotional service, śuddha-bhakti.
Now he sees them diverting from the simple focus of Lord Chaitanya’s
pure mission and developing their own ideas of how to preach.
Previously, under the leadership of Kirtanananda and Vishnujana, the

party was a fairly tight ship, but under Bali Mardan and Sudama it
becomes, as Prabhupada describes it, “another hippie edition.” Even
though there are many signed contracts and money is rolling in, the
show is axed.
Toshan Krishna: The reason that I was ready to can it myself after we
got so many contracts lined up, was because of the only problem the
Road Show ever had: temptation was there. And it wasn’t even
manifest, it was still in its incubation stage. I could tell, as with all
performing arts, theater, and shows, that here was a strong potential for
illicit activity. The Road Show was spectacular, with audiences raving,
and a lot of enthusiasm among the cast members about the fame that
was coming. But backstage there was constant mixing, especially with
changing of costumes and makeup. The mood backstage was Krishna
conscious relative to today, but none of these girls were married and
they were all young. I knew what was going on, and as the promoter of
68
the show I knew it would not remain pure.
Sudama continued the show without Radha-Damodara but it was too

much of a burden for me to watch over everything and take care of the
promotion as well. When Prabhupada wrote the letter I was glad not to
have that responsibility anymore.
In spiritual life a disciple must be careful about interpreting the spiritual

master’s rationale for his decisions. Scripture explains that even the
most learned man cannot understand the activities of a pure devotee.
Introducing interpretations of Prabhupada’s motives is as dangerous a
precedent as presenting rock music as a mainstream Krishna conscious
musical presentation. Thus, by Krishna’s arrangement, Prabhupada puts
the brakes on, and stops the show. “Stop all this. Simply have kirtan,
nothing else.”
Seeing the success in America, devotees in other countries are trying to

emulate the Road Show program. In his reply to Madhudvisa in
Australia, Prabhupada firmly discourages these “shows.”
Regarding your question of dancing-show, whatever it may be, it may

not deviate from the real Krishna consciousness program. We are Hari
Kirtan men, that’s all.
We can attract people by some gorgeous show, but inside there must be
strict purity and seriousness, otherwise, we shall be attracted by the
gorgeous show only. There are two energies always working
simultaneously, and Maya means when we diminish the spiritual
energy, then automatically we become attracted to the external dress of
Maya. So I do not care very much for these plays and dramas unless
they are coming directly from the Vedas.
If we can recite from Bhagavad-gita the first chapter without any need
for elaborate scenery or stage-props and gorgeous dresses, that is best.
Just like your Shakespeare. Macbeth may be recited by two men,
without anything else, and simply by their acting ability and the
69
meaningful words alone, they can very easily capture the entire
audience and give them real substance. We have so many stories, like
Jagai-Madhai, Krishna departing for Mathura, like that. Satire will not
help us. Our message is very grave, and because it is the Absolute Truth,
it will work without any artificial presentation.
Because they heard of our program in Bombay along with the Zavery
Sisters (Manipuri Dancers) here in London they had arranged one
program of lecturing by me along with a recital by one man playing on
the vina just to attract attention to my speaking. I am not in approval of
such arrangements, and it will be a dangerous thing in future if we begin
this type of program just to attract the masses. Already I see this
happening practically all over the Society, so better we stop it now and
get ourselves firmly on the track chalked out for us by Lord Chaitanya.
We are simply sankirtan men, our program is chanting, dancing,
distributing prasadam, and speaking high philosophy, that’s all. [Letter
to Madhudvisa - July 8, 1972]
Devotees are always thinking how to attract more people to Krishna

consciousness, and using rock music seems to work well. But here
Prabhupada speaks to future generations not to make the same mistake,
“it will be a dangerous thing in future if we begin this type of program
just to attract the masses. Already I see this happening practically all
over the Society, so better we stop it now and get ourselves firmly on
the track chalked out for us by Lord Chaitanya.”
Some people are disappointed and feel bad about the demise because it
could have been a great program. Even though totally committed to the
performance, everyone accepts Prabhupada’s decision to stop the rock
music and simply become fixed in Lord Chaitanya’s style of preaching.
Life goes on.
With a sad heart, Sudama Maharaja writes to confirm that the

production has indeed been canceled. Srila Prabhupada’s reply is brief
and to the point.
70
Yes, we shall base our preaching work on Lord Chaitanya’s formula:
sankirtan. After all, He is God, and if He recommends, what is the
question of failure? That is not possible. If we simply stick to this
program as I have done it since the beginning, namely, kirtan,
preaching, kirtan, distribution of prasadam – if you do like this only that
will be sufficient. Of course, you may make the kirtan as nice as
possible, with dancing, many khols, karatals, conches, and if you preach
sincerely, anyone will listen and become convinced. The potency of
Krishna consciousness movement does not come from some outward
showing. No, it is the transcendental sound vibration of Hare Krishna
mantra and the words of Bhagavad-gita, Srimad-Bhagavatam, like that.
So go on and develop the things in this spirit. That will be nice.
We are not interested to attract millions of men to see some show. Better
we attract one sincere soul to join us in ecstatic chanting and hearing.
That will be of real value. And distribute books, as many as possible. If
anyone hears philosophy from us, that will help him. But, if he
purchases one book that may turn his life. So selling books is the best
preaching activity. Sell books, hold the kirtan in public places like
schools and colleges, and preach. If you practice these things, and try to
improve them more and more simply by your practicing sincerely, that
simple program will please Krishna the most and you will see that very
soon. [Letter to Sudama - November 25, 1972]
One by one the Road Show devotees are brought into Bali Mardan’s
office and officially informed that the show has been disbanded. Narada
Muni and Aja are cornered and told that Prabhupada has dissolved the
show and that they should now remain in New York. Without really
saying it, Bali gives the impression that Vishnujana Swami is in illusion
and that Prabhupada wants all the devotees from the show to stay on at
New York temple. But Aja and Narada Muni want to travel with
Vishnujana Maharaja. Secretly, they contact him in Atlanta and beg to
join his party.
Aja: All of us, especially the brahmacārīs, were really suffering. There
71
was a lot of close association with the lady members of the cast. The
atmosphere was becoming loose, and Radha-Damodara were gone. We
were praying for a way out. It was our service, but we were suffering. In
those days you never left your service unless it was authorized. We were
rehearsing the changes in Brooklyn when Prabhupada’s letter was
posted on the notice board, disbanding the show. I remember reading it
and being very happy.
Immediately after Radha-Damodara’s departure, the show’s energy had

begun to dissipate because They were always the main force behind
everything. Unfortunately some diehard devotees, allured by the call of
Broadway tried to carry on the show without God, but now the whole
thing has fizzled like a puri that didn’t puff up.
Over many months, Bali has been receiving complaints from other GBC
men about the Road Show. The major problem was that the show
collected money and the GBC body wanted to know where the funds
were going. The Road Show, as a large, attractive money-making
organization, was not attached to any particular GBC man, and that had
unsettled the higher echelons of management. The show was considered
too much temptation for any one manager.
The disbanding of the Road Show creates a minor uproar within the
movement. Now there is tension and debate among the leaders. Who
will get this devotee, who will get that devotee, who will get this bus,
who will get the Deities? They begin to divide the assets. The Deities
originally came from the closet of the Washington temple so there is a
dispute about where They should end up. Initially, They were meant to
be in Washington and some people feel that Kirtanananda pulled a fast
one in taking Them. A controversy develops. Now Vishnujana has the
Deities and is traveling with a renegade band of devotees; a traveling
party not connected to any temple.
Damodara: When the Road Show folded, we had hopes. Srila

Prabhupada said buses couldn’t carry Radha-Krishna Deities – they had
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to carry Gaura-Nitai Deities. Then Prabhupada said that Radha-
Damodara could be considered as Lord Chaitanya, since He was both
Radha and Krishna. There were tense moments as we prayed that They
would come back to us. But Vishnujana Swami wouldn’t back down.
We were happy to see Them worshipped, but it was a mixed happiness
because we wanted Them too. Whenever Vishnujana came to
Washington he posted extra guards for the Deities because he knew we
wanted to kidnap Them.
Most of the Road Show devotees remain in New York. Gradually all the
electronic gear is sold. Mangalananda becomes the head cook. He was a
baker before becoming a devotee so he likes to make cakes and sweet
rice for the Sunday feast, along with sabjis, rice, and dāhl. He also gets
involved in the plays and sings Road Show songs with his guitar to
entertain the Sunday feast guests.
Mangalananda: I didn’t like what happened, but Prabhupada said it

should stop so no one argued the point. The major part of what we did
was having Radha-Damodara with us and taking Them places. That
seemed to fade away as it became more about doing a show than
preaching. The original program was fairly simple, and I thought it was
pretty direct. I liked it better when it seemed more connected and the
Deities were there. Vishnujana was always friendly and made me feel
good to be part of the show.
Because Radha-Damodara were originally installed in Atlanta,

Balavanta and Ananga Manjari now begin plotting to keep Them as the
Atlanta temple Deities. Vishnujana Maharaja has been thinking of
making Atlanta his base, but he gets wind of their plan and quickly
rounds up his men to leave.
Upset by the unfortunate conclusion of the show, Vishnujana writes to

his cousin, Revatinandana Swami, who has now also accepted sannyāsa
from Srila Prabhupada and is preaching in England. On his way out of
town, Maharaja stops at a post office to post his letter.
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Revatinandana: Vishnujana and I exchanged a couple of letters in ‘72.
He wrote me how he felt about what happened on the Road Show. It
was exactly what he always wanted to do, but when other people got
involved strange things started to happen. Some people were having real
problems with sex in those days and it came out later.
He wrote, “I haven’t told many people about it, but I’m explaining this
to you. I feel bad about what happened with the Road Show because I
feel like I was responsible. Even though I didn’t do anything, I feel bad
about it because I caused other devotees to get into māyā.”
Some things happened the last month of the show in relation with
Sudama and other people. It came to Prabhupada’s attention and he
curtailed the show. He considered that the whole medium had led the
devotees too close to the edge, where māyā could take them over.
That’s why Vishnujana didn’t want to use rock music or guitars

anymore. In his own mind he took personal responsibility for what
happened on the show, even though it was done by other people. The
next application was the bhajan band, using Indian instruments. It was a
much simpler sankirtan format than doing huge theatrical performances.
In spite of Srila Prabhupada stopping the music and drama, there are
still some devotees who want to dovetail their musical aspirations within
the preaching mission. Prabhupada gives his definitive direction on this
point in response to many such requests.
Your question is whether you can utilize your inclination to play the
guitar and write songs about Krishna in devotional manner of activity.
Several times I have replied this question. I do not know why you are
not learning these things. There should be arrangement for distribution
of such information to all the devotees if there is some important
question, not that I shall have to continue answering over and over the
same thing. But as you have requested, I am your spiritual master, I
must reply to your satisfaction.
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So this playing guitar and writing of songs is not very important thing.
You can write and play, but one cannot take it very seriously. If any
Vaishnava is writing songs about Krishna, he should have realized
himself what is Krishna, just like our great saints and acharyas like
Madhvacharya, Ramanujacharya, Rupa Goswami, six Goswamis,
Bilvamangala, Bhaktivinoda Thakur, like that. They are self-realized
souls, therefore if they write some song about Krishna that will be
perfectly from the transcendental platform, without any tinge of
mundane influence or nonsense imagination.
Unless he comes in the category of these big Vaishnava personalities,

his manufacturing some songs will be misleading to himself and to
others. And unless his writing of songs can be accepted as gospel, like
Vedas, then such writing is simply a disturbance and is diverting the
attention from the subject matter only. That song writing we cannot
regard very seriously. That will spoil the whole thing. But you can
utilize your propensity to write poems and articles for BTG, for singing
in the kirtan, like that. That will make you very happy. Now you just
apply yourself for becoming qualified to see Krishna face-to-face, then
you will be able to actually write songs about Krishna. [Letter to
Sankarshan - December 18, 1972]
Dallas, November 1972

Dallas is the home of Prabhupada’s dream for a movement-wide
educational facility to train children in Krishna consciousness from the
earliest age – a gurukula. He wants children protected and cultured in
spiritual principles so they may grow up to be the leaders of their
generation. They will benefit the entire human society by helping to
redirect consciousness back to godliness. This will save humanity from
a terrible fate at the time of death, enabling people to return back home,
back to Godhead.
All the kids are totally excited when the Radha-Damodara bus arrives.
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As Vishnujana enters the temple room for his first darshan of Radha-
Kalachandji, he exclaims with a wave of his hand, “This is God!” He is
obviously impressed. “This is God!” he affirms again, almost like Srila
Prabhupada would do. Thereafter, he will always tell devotees, “When
you’ve seen Radha-Kalachandji, you’ve seen God.”
His preaching is wonderful, his kirtan is wonderful, and even his mere
presence affects everyone in a wonderful way. He is so absorbed in
chanting that he appears blissful and satisfied in his Krishna
consciousness. The ladies are also excited hearing Maharaja lead kirtan
and give class. By his dedication and sincerity he reminds them of Srila
Prabhupada. Thus, he immediately becomes like the guru of Texas. The
kids love him and everyone wants to be around him. When the kids
come onto the bus for Radha-Damodara’s darshan, Maharaja always
gives each of them a gulābjāmun.
Rupa Vilasa: He used to do a lot of the cooking and was famous as a

cook. He had a little kitchen towards the back of the bus; rough
conditions for cooking. Radha Damodara always seemed to be opulently
dressed. Their outfits and Their backdrops, everything was just fantastic.
They always seemed so well cared for and gorgeous.
Sri Galim is also in Dallas. He and Bhaktarupa had been with

Vishnujana Maharaja at the Pittsburgh temple several months back
when Srila Prabhupada was there. They were given a special service –
to drive the new Dallas temple Deities from New York to Dallas. After
seeing the Road Show in Pittsburgh, Prabhupada had come to Dallas to
perform Their installation ceremony.
Reuniting with Vishnujana, Sri Galim tells Maharaja the story of the
Deity installation. “Srila Prabhupada had made the arrangements for the
Deities to come to Dallas. The story goes that Srimati and Kausalya
discovered Krishna in an antique shop in Jaipur, and He was supposedly
fashioned around 400 years ago. Prabhupada wanted them to get this
Krishna, and a Radharani to accompany Him.
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“When the Deities came to Dallas in September, Prabhupada was eager
to install Them although the devotees here were not really ready for
Radha-Krishna worship. At one point he told Satsvarupa Maharaja he
wasn’t going to do it – he was going to leave– because Jahnava had
removed the original paint and repainted the Deities in a different style.
Srila Prabhupada was furious. ‘It should not have been done,’ he said.
“She answered, ‘Well, that’s what I was told to do by my authority.’
Prabhupada replied, ‘I’m your spiritual master, and I’m in the next
room. Why didn’t you ask me?’ “She was crushed. So she had to repaint
the Deities back the way They were, overnight, and hope that the paint
would dry. The entire temple room had to be constructed within a
couple of day’s time. Somehow or other, the devotees stayed up all
night and got everything finished.
“The Deities were installed the next day. When the curtains opened and
everybody bowed down, Prabhupada got up from his vyāsāsana and
went to the altar so he could offer ārati. When he picked up the camphor
lamp, there wasn’t enough camphor to his satisfaction. A devotee added
more, and Prabhupada said, ‘No. MORE!’ The devotee then put a big
chunk of camphor on the lamp.
“When Prabhupada was offering the lamp there was a huge flame
shooting up from that large chunk of camphor. His hand kept inching
down the lamp because it was getting so hot. By the time he put the
lamp down, he was only holding it by its base. A devotee came by and
picked it up to offer to the devotees, and he scorched his hand!
“After the ārati, Prabhupada wrote down; Radha-Kalachandji - the Deity

of Dallas, September 12, 1972 - A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami. He named
Them on the spot and said that Kalachandaji meant ‘black moon’. The
Deity gave us the impression of being very powerful. He had a
tremendous sense of power, like He was protecting the children.”
Sri Galim then reveals that the temple authorities are trying to get him
married, because after six months of teaching at Gurukula he’s still an
77
agitated brahmacārī. He expresses his desire to leave Dallas and join
Radha-Damodara’s traveling party.
When Vishnujana brings up the issue with the temple authorities he

cautions them that it would be a mistake to get Sri Galim married. He is
too young and too unsettled to be married. Besides, agitation is not a
good reason to marry. The result will be disastrous! Better for him to go
on the road with the traveling party, which will be helpful for his
spiritual life. Since Sri Galim has already received second initiation, he
can do deity worship for Radha-Damodara, and also go out on book
distribution.
Vishnujana’s party has been taking to the streets from the very
beginning, distributing BTGs in dhotis. So the temple authorities accept
Maharaja’s proposal and Sri Galim joins the party.

The first stop after Dallas is the New Orleans temple on Esplanade
Avenue. Discovering one eucalyptus tree nearby, Vishnujana Maharaja
breaks off a twig and paces back and forth outside the temple precincts,
using the twig to clean his teeth. Seeing this, Vrikodara is intrigued and
approaches Maharaja for an explanation.
Vishnujana elucidates, “In India Srila Prabhupada always uses a neem

twig for cleaning his teeth. In the States he uses a eucalyptus twig
instead, because neem trees don’t grow here. Prabhupada never uses a
toothbrush. He says it’s unclean to keep a brush around for weeks after
it has been in the mouth. With a twig, after one use it is thrown away.”
Hearing this explanation, a smile appears on Vrikodara’s face. It brings

to mind ancient sages using twigs to clean their teeth. He begins to see
Vishnujana Swami in a new light; really austere, and really advanced.
Later in the day, Vrikodara and Chaturbahu join other devotees on the
bus to associate with Maharaja as he prepares his special afternoon
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offering for Radha-Damodara.
Vishnujana explains many intricate points of Vaishnava culture and

tradition to the brahmacārīs sitting together on the bus floor. They learn
that Maharaja does most of the cooking for the Deities as well as the
offerings. In Vedic culture the brāhmaṇa who cooks generally offers
what he has prepared to the Deities. “It may not be practical, though,”
he adds, “to institute this in all our temples.”
When the mahā-prasāda comes off the altar everyone is eager to get the
nectar. Maharaja distributes the large cauliflower pakorās, followed by
strawberries and cream for dessert. He explains, “When making
cauliflower pakorās don’t cut small florets. No. Cauliflower pakorās for
Radha-Damodara should be big.”
Chaturbahu: Vishnujana Swami was charismatic and transcendentally

boisterous. He was very jolly. He was the first sannyāsī I had seen. I had
been told that when you see a sannyāsī you pay your obeisances. Very
dutifully I thought, here’s my chance, so I said, “Maharaja, please
accept my obeisances.” He smiled at me and paid his obeisances. I
didn’t know that you were supposed to offer them unannounced.
Later, Chaturbahu sees Maharaja blissfully taking prasādam with some

of his men while listening to a Prabhupada tape. He kneels in front of
him with folded palms and asks, “If Jesus Christ was aware of the Vedic
principles, why did he multiply loaves and fishes?”
Hearing the question, Vishnujana turns off the tape recorder and
explains. “Lord Jesus could have multiplied apples if he had wanted to,
but people in that area were used to eating fish because fish was all that
they had.” He adds that the pūjārīs in Jagannath Puri are also known to
eat fish.
The next day Maharaja is introduced to a University Professor who has

brought his fiancee with him. They have been coming to the temple for
almost a year. They meet Vishnujana Swami in front of the Deities of
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Lord Jagannath, Baladeva, and Subhadra. They are in their late thirties
and Vishnujana is only twenty-four, but after hearing him speak about
the beauty of Krishna consciousness they want to join the temple!
The local devotees are astounded by his potency. They consider that
special mercy has taken place in the professor’s heart because he is so
deeply entrenched in society. Subsequently, they both move into the
temple for a while but they can’t maintain the strict regulated lifestyle,
and leave shortly after.
Bombay, December 1972

Srila Prabhupada receives a letter from Ekayani Dasi in New York dated
November 1, 1972. She is troubled about recent developments in the
temple, giving details about a new directive banning women from
certain temple functions. This has been going on now for at least one
month.
The fact that women are only allowed in the temple at certain times
because the brahmacārīs are agitated is not good news. Prabhupada
replies that the brahmacārīs can go to the forest. In his letter to Ekayani
he notes with great concern that he has never implemented such rules in
the temples.
I do not know why these inventions are going on. That is our only
business, to invent some new program? We have already got our
Vaishnava standard. That is sufficient for Madhvacharya, and
Ramanujacharya. It was sufficient for Lord Chaitanya, the six
Goswamis, for Bhaktivinoda Thakur, for my Guru Maharaja
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, for me, for all big saints and acharyas in our
line – why it shall be inadequate for my disciples so they must
manufacture something? That is not possible.
Who has introduced these things, that women cannot have chanting of
japa in the temple, they cannot perform arati, and so many things? If
80
they become agitated, then let the brahmacaris go to the forest. I have
never introduced these things. If the brahmacaris cannot remain in the
presence of women in the temple, then they may go to the forest, not
remaining in New York City, because in New York there are so many
women, so how they can avoid seeing? Best thing is to go to the forest
for not seeing any women if they become so easily agitated. But then no
one will see them either and how our preaching work will go on? [Letter
to Ekayani - December 3, 1972]
Prabhupada is very clear in this letter that he makes no distinctions

based on the body. Moreover, he has personally set that standard. “I
have never introduced these things.” Yet now his ISKCON leaders are
introducing a different standard in his own movement. He is
incredulous, “this is our only business, to invent some new program?”
Prabhupada is presenting the same philosophy that was accepted by all
the acharyas in paramparā, so why should it be inadequate for his
American followers?
Unfortunately, this misconception based on the bodily concept of life

becomes more and more prevalent in ISKCON within a short time,
much to Prabhupada’s chagrin.
Miami, December 1972

The Radha-Damodara TSKP arrives in Miami an hour before maṅgala-
ārati. Vasanta hears them come into the temple compound at 3037
Center Street. The Miami devotees wake up to hear what sounds like a
celestial Gandharva playing music downstairs in the temple room. No
one knows who is playing but they’re certain it’s not one of them. No
one in the temple can sing like that!
As they enter the temple, the Miami devotees receive their first
introduction to Vishnujana Maharaja singing bhajans with his
harmonium. Most of them have never seen a sannyāsī before. When the
conch blows and the curtains open everyone is delighted to see the
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divine forms of Radha-Damodara, who now stand on the altar next to
the painting of Panca-tattva. They appear magnificent, Their forms
golden and effulgent. It’s the first time the resident devotees have seen
Deities. It’s quite an experience to have Radha-Damodara on the altar
while Maharaja is in town.
Every Sunday the Miami temple takes their Love Feast to Peacock Park
in the heart of Coconut Grove. The park is nestled beside a marina right
on the shoreline overlooking the bay. Many groups in town also bring
their scene to the park on Sundays. There are drummers at one end with
their drum circle, the acid water colorists at another end, a hatha-yoga
group has their spot, and the devotees have their place. It’s an
interesting, attractive, and colorful element in the Grove.
Swami Vishnudevananda, a yogi from India, leads a silent yoga

meditation class nearby. His followers, all dressed in white, do āsanas as
well as meditation. Vishnujana eyes them as he cooks the gulābjāmuns
for the feast, “Wait until they’re finished, then we’ll show them our
kirtan yoga!” To have Vishnujana Maharaja and his party join the
Sunday feast in the park is very exciting.
After the meditation is over the yogi leaves and Vishnujana begins his
kirtan. The yoga students come over, join in the kirtan, and begin to
dance happily. It’s quite a change from sitting in silent meditation to
blissful dancing in kirtan. Many young people in the park also come
over and join in the chanting. They hold hands while singing and
dancing in a circle around the kirtan.
Abhirama: When Vishnujana came out to Peacock Park, Radha-

Damodara also came to the park. There was a palanquin to carry Them
and he set Them up so They could attend the whole feast. That was
certainly a new dimension to the Sunday program – Deities and amazing
kirtan. It was quite awesome. I was extremely inspired. The Deities and
his kirtan went together perfectly.
Since winter has taken over the rest of the country, a large contingent of
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young people from all over America hangs around the park. Two
hippies, Amzie and Kenny, frequent the park, bringing their dulcimers
to play for money. It’s a regular gig for them. They earn a living around
the country playing their mountain dulcimers, a four- stringed
instrument that sits on the lap and is strummed. People who appreciate
their music throw spare change onto a colorful blanket.
Amzie: We would play near the Krishnas because the Krishnas had free
food in the park. We ate the Krishna food but we didn’t really think
much about the Krishnas. We thought the Krishnas were kind of weird.
We didn’t know much about them but we got high on the food.
One day this big bus pulled in and all these Krishnas came out and
started playin’. There was this Swami guy who looked real muscular.
He was in the middle of them all and he was like a rock star. I mean he
would get this harmonium thing goin’ and just start rockin’ and totally
gettin’ down.
Generally, we would not respond to the whole Krishna thing, but when
this guy started up, we just said, “Gaad!” and started hoppin’ around and
stuff. Gradually we started playin’ music with him. We played our
dulcimers in the background while they were playin’ drums and
harmonium. It was great. We’d get really high on it. We played really
good together.
Afterwards we were talkin’ to him and he was like, “Get on the bus.
You guys can go with us. Let’s go.” And we were like, “No way, Jose.
We’re not goin’ with the Krishnas.” The interesting thing was my friend
and I never thought about becoming Krishnas, or anything about
Krishna. But we responded to Vishnujana Swami because he was just so
magnetic and incredible.
He spoke to me personally about Krishna consciousness. Then he’d say,

“You ought to join up.” It seemed like he wanted to tell everybody,
“Join up.” He wouldn’t mess around no matter who you were. You
could be a bank president or a cop. He just didn’t care. “Yeah, join up.
83
Shave up. C’mon, let’s go.” You’d meet him for ten minutes and he’d
say, “Yeah, you’re ready to go.”
You couldn’t help but love the guy and you couldn’t help but be
attracted by what he was doin’. He gave off such a straightforward and
pure energy that you would just say, “Whatever it is, it’s right.” Even if
you didn’t know anything about it, you knew it was right and you
wanted to get on board. Yeah, he was the greatest, man. He was really
cool.
All of the devotees are excited, but especially Patatriraj. He first heard
Vishnujana Swami chanting in New Vrindavan at the Bhagavat Dharma
Discourses and felt his chanting to be powerful, blissful, and exciting.
Later, he was at the Atlanta temple when Vishnujana came through with
Radha-Damodara. Again, he was moved by the beauty of his chanting,
by his sincerity, and by his compassion.
Patatriraj has become so enamored by Maharaja that he slips away from

the Atlanta temple at midnight, in the rain, to hitchhike down to Florida.
He’s hoping to join the party in Miami.
Patatriraj: I remember going to Coconut Grove and there were hundreds

of people in Peacock Park. Vishnujana Swami began a blissful kirtan on
a stage with amplifiers where the devotees had their weekly Sunday
Love Feast. His mood was very much like what I had read Lord
Chaitanya was like, just exuberant and full of love. The devotees were
dancing, blissing-out with tears in their eyes.
After kirtan, everyone sits on the grass in rows as an abundant feast is

served by the devotees. Vishnujana Maharaja likes to cook in the Miami
kitchen and make blaster chutneys that devotees still remember to this
day. He also oversees the cooking of a curd sabji, with rice, dahl,
halava, sweet rice, and gulabjamuns. He loves to make these
preparations, offer them to Radha-Damodara, and then distribute
prasādam to as many people as he can. During his stay in Miami,
Maharaja leads the program at the park every Sunday and many
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interested people return to the temple.
People also come by the temple during the week. Narahari works in
Miami playing rock clubs as a drummer with Tiny Tim’s Band. He has
devotee friends, Madan Mohan and Vrindavanesvari, who have sent him
Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. He is familiar with the Gita
because one of his primary interests is yoga. But he has only read
impersonalist commentaries of the Gita. After reading most of
Prabhupada’s translation and purports, he wants to meet the devotees.
He and his girlfriend decide to visit the temple. As they enter, they
encounter their first devotee. They exchange glances like, Wow, these
people certainly look different. Not knowing the proper protocol,
Narahari simply says, “Hi. I’ve been reading one of your books, the
Bhagavad-gita. I had a couple of questions I wanted to ask you.”
“Oh, you’ve been reading the Gita?” the devotee replies. “That makes
my heart as jubilant as a peacock.” They are taken aback by the emotive
reply. “Come with me,” he says with a big smile on his face. He escorts
them down a hallway into a room where he asks them to be seated.
“Aren’t They beautiful?” He directs their attention to the front of the

room.
Narahari: I looked to the front and saw these silver statues with flowers
and jewelry and costumes on. I didn’t know what to think. I didn’t think
they were that beautiful. But he thought they were so beautiful that it
made me think, “Yeah, maybe they are beautiful.”
Then a second devotee came in and started lighting incense. Next, he

began twirling around some gismo with fire on it. It was weird.
Suddenly, the first devotee said, “Here, take these.” He handed me a
pair of finger cymbals and showed me how to hold them. He taught us
how to chant and play kartals – it was just the three of us. Then he
picked up a drum and started chanting. His chanting was beautiful.
85
After about fifteen minutes we finished chanting and I asked him my
questions. He answered them eloquently. I was philosophically inclined
and good at asking questions. He wasn’t bashful, and answered
whatever I asked. What I had read in Prabhupada’s Gita was contrary to
all the conclusions that I thought were there in the yoga system, mainly
the impersonal conclusions. What he responded with was so different,
with his personal conception of God, and the idea of perfection being
activity existing on a higher plane beyond perception. Not just a void of
impersonal brahman. There was a lot to talk about.
I remember asking, “How long have you been a devotee?” He had been
a devotee for five years. We talked for a good hour and a half and it
ended smoothly.
After I left the room another Hare Krishna approached me, “Do you
know who you were just talking to?”
“Gee, I don’t even know if I caught his name,” I said. “Oh, that was
Vishnujana Swami.”
It didn’t mean anything to me then. But what stuck in my mind was,

This guy has been a devotee for five years. He sure is blissed-out. He
was not stuck on the same mundane plane I’d been trying to get off of.
His feet weren’t in the same mundane place as mine. He was clearly on
another level, from another world. And that really impressed me. It
seemed like he was really high on something, and I was convinced he
wasn’t on drugs. He was just high on Krishna. I thought if somebody
can get to that level of bliss in five years I want in on it. I sure want to
know more about it.
Radha-Damodara are the first Deities Narahari has ever seen, the first
time he walks into a temple. He doesn’t know what to think, but
Vishnujana conveys to him the proper mood, and not in a sectarean way.
Vicariously, he experiences what Vishnujana is feeling, because Krishna
is revealed through His devotee in such a way as to evoke one’s eternal
relationship. Vishnujana expresses deep feelings of attachment and love
86
for Radha-Damodara and Narahari can pick up on that.
This is a huge step for an impersonalist to experience because the first

impression is that the Deities are some kind of idols. Krishna
consciousness is too new and strange for him, yet at the same time,
Narahari can understand that something special is going on so he
accepts and appreciates Vishnujana’s mood. Therefore, it doesn’t seem
weird when Vishnujana bows down to Radha-Damodara. It appears
natural because he makes it transcendental.
Later that evening Narahari phones his friend, who later becomes
Raghava Das, to tell him about Vishnujana. “You’ve got to meet this
guy.” They return to visit Maharaja, and Radha-Damodara, Who are
now back on the bus.
Narahari: We’d go on the bus, listen to kirtan, watch the curtains open
and see the Deities appear. We thought it was so bizarre. When the
curtains opened, billowing incense smoke would fill the bus. Then
Vishnujana would start playing harmonium, and it was irresistible. You
weren’t in the material world when you were in his presence. It was just
bliss.
I didn’t know Prabhupada. Prabhupada was just some books at that

point. Vishnujana was the example for a new guy just starting to come.
He was the guru. He knew all the answers and set a perfect example. He
wasn’t interested in anything that wasn’t related to Krishna. Where his
heart was at totally attracted me. To this day, I can’t think of hardly
anyone else I felt that way about. Vishnujana was my inspiration.
Krishna consciousness is so different from the monistic, impersonal

conception that it takes a while to get accustomed to. But it’s certainly
attractive to the soul because one’s eternal loving relationship with
Krishna is awakened. Narahari and Raghava keep returning to associate
with Vishnujana Swami.
Just at this time, one of Miami’s top bands offers Narahari the chance to
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become their drummer. He has been thinking of joining the temple and
now the offer of fame and fortune looms ahead. It is another temptation.
Narahari: A very ambivalent mental process was going on. I was

thinking of moving into the temple but had no plans of staying. I just
wanted to take the opportunity because Vishnujana was there. Abhirama
was the temple president, and I had a great relationship with him, so I
figured I’d just take a little time out and live with these people to learn
more. I had no plans to shave my head. Celibacy was a little too far out.
Still, I wanted to learn more so it seemed like a good opportunity. It was
almost something I was subtly afraid of, because something inside tells
you you’ve got to surrender to it. But your mind and intelligence have
absolutely no thought of surrendering or becoming part of such a thing.
So there was something scary about it. Something was telling you to
dive in, and something else was telling you to get away before it’s too
late.
Having come in contact with the Supreme Lord in the form of Radha-
Damodara, and having experienced the blissful mood of the Lord’s
surrendered devotee, Narahari and Raghava decide to move into the
temple. One of the first people they connect with is Riksaraj. He is also
a musician, now serving as a cook in the temple kitchen. When he first
joined the movement he really wanted to play music. The devotees told
him he could bring his guitar along. But once he shaved up they said,
“Oh, no. You can’t do that now, Prabhu.” When he wanted to join the
Road Show he was told, “Their program is unregulated. You should first
experience regulated devotional life in a temple.”
Riksaraj: I heard that the Road Show broke up, and then Vishnujana
showed up in Miami. He was so incredible. He radiated Krishna
consciousness all the time. He loved Srila Prabhupada. It was just his
whole vibration. To see the way he treated people, and the way he
treated himself; he was so austere. He would sleep on the floor every
night with just a little chaddar, with no pillow and no mat underneath.
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Riksaraj is also instantly attracted to Vishnudatta due to his talented
mṛdaṅga playing in kirtan.
Vishnudatta and Suhotra are the main book distributors on the Radha-
Damodara party. Every day they go out to the large high-rise apartment
complexes in Miami to distribute KRSNA Book trilogies. These are the
days when devotees wear only devotional clothing. It’s unheard of for a
devotee to wear “karmi” clothes. Door-to- door distribution is the
mainstay for the Radha-Damodara men because people generally try to
avoid them when they see a dhoti. Of course, certain places are not so
conservative. The downtown mall in Providence, Rhode Island, is
renowned during the ‘70s as one of the best places to sell books in a
dhoti. But in the cities and towns where street distribution is not so
successful in dhotis, devotees do the apartment complexes instead.
The system is to split up alternate floors so as not to run into each other
and duplicate what the other has already done. Suhotra reaches the top
floor of the high rise and begins going door to door. There is no answer
at the first few apartments he tries. Then he knocks on a door and hears
a woman’s voice asking, “Who is it?”
“I’m from the Hare Krishna movement. We’re coming door to door
selling books.”
These early book distributors are very straightforward.
Suhotra: She asked a couple of questions and I heard a man say, “Watch
out it could be anybody.” Then someone unlatched the door. The door
opened to reveal an old man with a revolver that he pointed right at my
head. He was just as shocked as I was when he saw me standing there in
robes and tilak. He said, “What the hell?” When I saw his gun I also
said, “What, Hare Krishna!”
His wife peered around the side of the door and said, “It’s okay, Harry.
He looks harmless.
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You can put your gun away.”
“All right.” And he put the gun down.
They are an old couple and are curious about what Suhotra is doing and
what he represents. The conversation turns philosophical, and they seem
interested. In the end they buy a book.
During the winter of ‘72, many people come in contact with the Hare
Krishna devotees, who are now quite visible throughout Miami. Many
of these devotees have come down from the northern temples to
distribute books in the warm Florida sunshine.
The Pittsburgh TSKP arrives in Florida after Christmas. They are going
to a rock festival in the resort town of Hollywood, north of Miami,
where many young people will gather. Vishnujana Swami and Radha-
Damodara are also there. At this rock festival, there are three different
traveling parties present. They easily find each other because they’re all
shaved up, wearing dhotis.
At the festival, the Pittsburgh party has posters on both sides of their van
and loudspeakers on the roof with a tape of Srila Prabhupada’s voice
booming out the Hare Krishna mantra.
Brahma Das: We were the Pittsburgh TSKP. We hung out around the
bus because they did great festivals and a lot of book distribution. They
were all good distributors, Aja especially. He was amazing. Everybody
was doing it in a dhoti then. Vishnudatta played amazing mṛdaṅga. I
was mesmerized by these guys.
Rama Das: I liked the devotees when I met them in Fort Lauderdale
doing sankirtan on the beach. One devotee approached me, “Would you
like to help us out?” I had long hair and a beard but I grabbed some
books and a big bundle of incense and started distributing. The day went
by so fast that, all of a sudden, it was evening.
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Someone gave me a book to read. It was Perfection of Yoga. I also got
the current BTG, the one with Vishnujana’s article on varṇāśrama-
dharma. I was captivated by the article, but didn’t meet him at that time.
I gave up my other habits and started chanting Hare Krishna and reading
Perfection of Yoga. On New Year’s Eve I wanted to go to the Miami
temple. I hitchhiked into Miami, chanting all the way, and ended up at
Peacock Park in Coconut Grove. When I got to the park another festival
was going on, which I later found out was the standard Sunday Feast
program. Radha-Damodara were on Their altar, and there was a devotee
leading the chanting. After the kirtan, he sat down and spoke with
different people. I was afraid to ask any questions, but I followed him
from one group to the next thinking, “If this is what a devotee is like, I
want to be one.” That devotee was Vishnujana Swami. He was so
blissful and I was completely impressed. By reading from Prabhupada’s
books, chanting Hare Krishna, and hearing Vishnujana preach, I was
convinced that I wanted to be a devotee.
The San Francisco TSKP has also arrived at Peacock Park for the
Sunday feast program. They are distributing books and collecting lakṣmī
at street fairs and drive-in movies throughout Florida. While distributing
at the University of Miami they hear about a Hare Krishna program in
the College bar, although no alcohol is being served. They are surprised
to find Deities on the stage. Many students are entranced to see devotees
doing their chanting program along with an attractive sannyāsī.
The San Francisco devotees are so impressed with Vishnujana Swami

that they follow him wherever he goes. For at least a month they are
with him every day.
Vijitatma: Vishnujana Maharaja was doing programs at universities and

parks all over Florida. We were in Florida because it was warm during
the winter. At the same time we hung around Vishnujana Swami for his
association. We would always come to hear his kirtan and class. He
always had an air of ecstasy about him. He was happy in Krishna
consciousness. Srila Prabhupada said, “Chant and be happy.” One of
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Srila Prabhupada’s instructions was to be happy! Because Vishnujana
Swami was so happy, it really increased our faith. We would always
hang around wherever he went because he was very inspiring.
Kritakarma is also on the San Francisco party. He joined the San

Francisco temple where Buddhimanta trained him to distribute books.
Buddhimanta was the person to introduce the distribution of big books
on the San Francisco streets. When he began selling as many as five
books a day the devotees in other temples, especially Los Angeles, San
Diego and Denver, wanted to follow his example. Srila Prabhupada sent
Buddhimanta to different temples to show devotees how to distribute
books. And whoever tried and sold a book became caught up in
euphoric excitement.
Buddhimanta had a habit of calling every devotee Maharaja. He is

known as the inventor of book distribution; something he never took
credit for.[Buddhimanta Prabhu left his body in Vrindavan, February 13,
1990] After being trained by Buddhimanta, Kritakarma is put on a
traveling party across the USA for the winter.
Kritakarma: Our party became like a satellite van to the Radha-

Damodara bus. Every morning Vishnujana Maharaja made the same
breakfast, cereal cooked with coconut milk from real coconuts. He
would give class every morning, and he worshipped Radha-Damodara
day and night. His classes were simple but with a lot of conviction.
Every time I heard his class or his kirtan, that thirst, that association I
needed for increasing my faith was definitely available. Devotees like
Vishnujana Maharaja and Jayananda Prabhu were the medium by which
I could understand how great Srila Prabhupada was.
These traveling parties are pioneering the Miami area. They are always
visible in their dhotis preaching at the shopping malls or in the high rise
apartment blocks. There’s no concept of wearing street clothes at this
point in time. The local temple has no regular street sankirtan program
so the visiting traveling parties are very welcome.
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This afternoon the San Francisco TSKP van arrives at the temple and
drops off one of their devotees. He doesn’t have the flair for book
distribution and the other members of the party consider him dead
weight, like ballast. So they finally decide to donate him to the Miami
temple. He is happy to be back to a regulated schedule in a temple and
pleasantly surprised to have the association of the Radha-Damodara
men. He had always admired the party and has a special affection for
Radha-Damodara.
Back in the San Francisco temple he was previously the head pūjārī and
when it came time to repaint the Deities the temple president had given
him that service.
Chiranjiva: I wanted to paint our Deities in a style similar to Radha-

Damodara. I had seen wonderful pictures of how Vishnujana Maharaja
had his Deities with soft eyes and facial features; very soft, very sweet,
and very beautiful. So I painted Radha-Gokulananda in that same kind
of fashion. It was incredible. I was in the Deity room for twelve hours. It
took me from 4:00pm to just before maṅgala-ārati. All night I was
painting Them. I became tired and everything began fading out. I lost
consciousness about everything else but painting the Deities. Things
kept happening that kept me in there longer and longer, but finally the
Deities were ready for maṅgala-ārati.
But then, Bhutatma didn’t like the style. So he had Yogesh Chandra
repaint them in a really hard Indian style. When that happened it broke
my heart. I couldn’t handle it. I just became totally morose. I was a
basket case. So Bhutatma said, “Why don’t you go out on traveling
sankirtan? We’ll send you down to Florida to meet up with our TSKP
van.”
Chiranjiva feels much more at home at the Miami temple than on the
traveling van. He is excited to have the association of Vishnujana
Swami and Radha-Damodara. Before too long, however, the day arrives
when Vishnujana decides that it is time for the party to get back on the
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road. The Miami devotees instantly feel separation hearing of Radha-
Damodara’s pending departure.
Riksaraj is anxious to join the party and lobbies the temple president,
Abhirama, to let him leave. When he finally gets permission, he steps
onto the bus wearing a big smile that lights up his whole face. Patatriraj,
has been following Vishnujana since the Bhagavat Dharma Discourses
in New Vrindavan, and also leaves with the party. Chiranjiva, seeing the
bus ready to leave, realizes that he doesn’t want to lose the association
of Vishnujana Maharaja so he also climbs aboard.
Sankarshan, who became a devotee by Vishnujana’s preaching in

Austin, decides to remain at the Miami temple. It’s a tearful farewell for
him because he loves Vishnujana Swami. Nonetheless, he has been with
him for eighteen months and has had enough of living on the road.
As Dayal Chandra revs the engine, ready for departure, Maharaja is still
leading a big farewell kirtan. Vishnujana brings the kirtan over to the
bus, chanting and playing mṛdaṅga in his usual blissful style. Anxious to
get going, Dayal Chandra is already inching the bus onto the road, ready
to depart. At the last second Vishnujana jumps aboard while still playing
mṛdaṅga, and the party drives off. The Miami devotees continue the
kirtan until the bus turns a corner and disappears from view.

By the end of 1972 the Hare Krishna mission in America is an explosive
dynamic movement that is beginning to inundate the world, as predicted
by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Traveling parties are being dispatched
from practically every temple, inspired by the Radha-Damodara
traveling bus.
Ramesvara is compiling the monthly BBT newsletter in the mood of

transcendental competition. His writing churns up excitement amongst
devotees. “Book distribution continues to soar to all time highs, as more
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than 25 traveling parties roam the countryside, affecting the lives of
hundreds of thousands of conditioned souls! Since mid-September we
have distributed over 15,000 complete KRSNA trilogy sets! And since
mid-August we have distributed over 9000 soft Bhagavad-gitas and over
950 hard Bhagavad-gitas. Macmillan too has completely sold out
(20,000 Gitas sold commercially) and is reprinting large quantities for
the Christmas rush!”
During this period before Christmas, a new program begins. It will soon
become the standard for every temple – the December book distribution
marathon.
Ramesvara: It was on December 22, 1972, that we accidentally

discovered the Christmas marathon in Los Angeles. We noticed a great
increase in the number of people in the stores, which were staying open
sometimes until midnight. We were having an intense competition and
prizes in Los Angeles, and it was building up to a fever pitch.
I was in front of Zody’s in Burbank. So after distributing madly all day

long, it was about ten o’clock at night. I had collected about $350 and
had distributed 650 magazines. I was convinced this was the new world
record in ISKCON and nobody could possibly beat me this day. Even
though the store was open until midnight, it had started slowing off, and
I was thinking, Maybe I should go back. Undoubtedly everyone is back
already. No one has ever stayed out past eight o’clock. They’ll all be
waiting up for me. I shouldn’t keep them waiting up. So in this way my
mind was convincing me to go back.
I finally arrived at the temple at about ten minutes to twelve, and I burst
into the sankirtan room. But the only person there was the secretary,
Madhukanta. I said, “Oh, no, everyone went to bed?”
He said, “No. Nobody is back yet.” I was the first one back! That was
the discovery of the first Christmas marathon. It was completely
unplanned. No one had instructed anyone to stay out that late. We just
did it spontaneously. So in this way we performed the 3-day marathon,
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the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th of December.
During this 3-day period devotees in Los Angeles distribute almost

18,000 pieces of literature. Srila Prabhupada is in Bombay when he
receives the news. He writes Ramesvara, “It is scarcely believable that
more than 17,000 books could have been sold by one temple in three
days! This indicates to me that people are at last becoming a little
serious about this Krishna consciousness movement in your country.”
On the same day, Prabhupada dictates a letter of congratulations to

Karandhar, his GBC man in Los Angeles. “I could never have thought it
was possible to distribute so many of our literatures. Therefore I can
understand it is simply Krishna’s blessing for your sincerely working on
His behalf.”
Similarly, in Boston the book distribution results are astounding since

Trai Das has taken over as temple president. Prabhupada writes him
from Bombay.
I am so much pleased to hear from you that the book distribution has
increased five times than before! Similarly, I have heard from Chicago
and other places also that they are increasing five times than before.
That is very encouraging to me. You are, I can understand, very much
enthusiastic to endeavor big things on Krishna’s behalf, and all of the
new students there at Boston center are also feeling enthusiasm from
your example. That is the business of leader: He must be himself always
enthu iastic and inspire others to be always enthusiastic. Then he is real
leader. And that enthusiastic mood is maintained when everyone is
always without fail chanting 16 rounds daily, rising early for mangala-
arati, reading books, preaching. [Letter to Trai Das - December 27,
1972]
The movement is also having great success in New York since most of
the Road Show devotees have now become part of the temple.
Prabhupada writes Bali Mardan Goswami after receiving his accounting
of the financial position of the temple for the last six months.
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I am most pleased to note from that income statement that since June
your monthly income has doubled and that for six months you have
collected $245,000. That is very much astonishing to me, and I can
understand from seeing these figures just how much suitable you are for
heading up the responsible position of senior man in the New York
temple affairs. [Letter to Bali Mardan - December 31, 1972]
With such outstanding results can anything stop the growth of the Hare
Krishna movement?
97
Second Wave,
South of the Border
Pure devotional service rendered to the Supreme Lord is spiritually so
potent that simply by hearing about such transcendental service, by
meditating on it, by respectfully and faithfully accepting it, by chanting
its glories, or by praising the devotional service of others, all living
beings can be immediately purified. [SB 11.2.12]
Florida, January 1973

The Radha-Damodara TSKP bus is driving slowly up Florida’s east
coast.
They stop at various places to do programs. The approach is mostly

bhajan and kirtan, and dashing into small towns to distribute books.
Every brahmacārī feels blessed traveling with Vishnujana Swami and
Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara.
Dayal Chandra likes to park the bus right on the beach where they camp
overnight.
When the devotees take rest at evening the temple room floor becomes
an ashram. Everyone picks his spot as they lie across the width of the
bus like sardines, with Vishnujana Maharaja closest to the altar. As
night falls, devotees drift off to the sound of the surf gently breaking in
rhythmic peaks.
Taking bath in the morning is easy. Before dawn, they awake to jump in
the ocean for a quick dip and return to the bus for an ecstatic maṅgala-
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ārati. Then they chant japa on the beach. At the sound of the conch they
return to the bus to greet Radha- Damodara and hear Srimad-
Bhagavatam.
Everyone is inspired, especially the young teenager Patatriraj. He loves

living on the bus and he loves joining the other devotees for
Bhagavatam class every morning. Vishnujana’s mood is different from
the other devotees he has met.
Most devotees preach, “This material world is a hellish place,” or,

“you’re not the enjoyer.” But Maharaja personifies the Gita verse,
susukhaṁ kartum avyayam [Bhagavad-gita As It Is (9.2)], serving in
Krishna consciousness brings one to the level of endless spiritual bliss.
“You’re not the sufferer,” Maharaja asserts during class. “It’s a fact.
Only devotees can enjoy because they are connected to the supreme
pleasure potency through Krishna consciousness. Non-devotees are in
the illusion that they are enjoying. But actually they are in constant
anxiety. Deep in their subconscious is the gnawing anxiety that
everything will be taken away by disease, old age, and finally death.”
Vishnujana personifies the philosophy that you’re not the sufferer. He

simply loves devotional service. He’s a child of God, in the sense that
children are totally in the moment. They’re not mental, thinking about
the past, thinking about the future. Thus, he is childlike in that he is
totally in the moment, right here and now. Sometimes he will jump in
the ocean and catch the waves for a half hour. When he swims he is
totally swimming. He isn’t thinking about anything else. When he leads
kirtan, he is completely there. When he’s with Radha-Damodara, he is
completely absorbed in Their service.
He is totally in love with Radha-Damodara. They are his children and he

actually treats Them like his children, in the mood of vātsalya-rasa.
The boys on the bus are convinced they have the greatest service ever.
They feel especially fortunate to go from nothing, to shave up, and then
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a few months later to be on the road with an advanced sannyāsī helping
Srila Prabhupada fulfill Lord Chaitanya’s prophecy. It’s a great way to
begin spiritual life. These are the times they will always remember
fondly, traveling with Radha-Damodara in the association of Vishnujana
Swami.
Maharaja is always personal with the brahmacārīs and always

encourages them to express their individuality in Krishna consciousness.
He constantly emphasizes loving relationships with one another. “You
need to learn to share your feelings with the other brahmacārīs. If you’re
not intimate with the brahmacārīs by sharing your feelings, you’ll have
to get married because we are personal beings. We need personal
interaction, and if you don’t share that with your godbrothers you’ll end
up getting married. There’s no doubt about it.”
Although Prabhupada has not yet translated Rupa Goswami’s

Upadesamrta, Vishnujana understands the importance of sharing and
revealing one’s heart confidentially. There are no politics on the bus
because everyone is blissfully engaged in a mood of friendly
cooperation.
In West Palm Beach the second TSKP out of San Francisco meets the
Radha-Damodara bus on sankirtan. Vishnujana’s inclination is to
always invite devotees onto the bus for Radha-Damodara’s darshan.
This party is Sarvabhauma, Sankarananda, Nimai, and Yudhamanyu.
Their policy is to distribute books and magazines at fairs and rock
concerts, but now they plan their itinerary around Radha-Damodara’s
schedule.
Sarvabhauma: Vishnujana Swami was always my hero. When we first

met him, he invited us in for ārati. After ārati he offered us rasagullās.
In our arrogance we said, “No Maharaja, we don’t eat sugar.”
“I’m very sorry to hear that,” he said, “so here’s a little orange slice.”
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Right after that we had our biggest success in Pompano Beach. We only
had KRSNA books left and we stacked them up like a wall behind us
and passed them all out. Some people gave $20 and some gave only $2,
but it was the most fun we ever had. Whenever we traveled with
Vishnujana Swami, he was always decorating the Deities in different
ways. He would allow us to do ārati while he would chant.
The San Francisco devotees are surprised to see Chiranjiva on the bus
with Vishnujana Swami and Radha-Damodara. They heard that he
jumped ship in Miami but he now appears very happy in the association
of Radha-Damodara and regular Deity worship. “Everything works out
fine in the end,” they tease as they embrace Chiranjiva and wish him
well in his new service.
Chiranjiva: Oh, I loved Radha-Damodara. They are the most beautiful

Deities! They are wonderful. Vishnujana Swami’s pūjā was like a
Vrindavan style, a very rāgānuga type of worship. He seemed to have a
lot of feeling and spontaneous affection for Them. There wasn’t the
aiśvarya awe and reverence feeling so much.
In the beginning he was worried about dealing with Radha and Krishna
on a bus, so Srila Prabhupada told him that these Deities are the same as
Lord Chaitanya; They are for sankirtan! So it was a relaxed standard,
yet you could tell that he appeared to have a very genuine affection for
the Deities. They had been through a lot together.
I remember Vishnujana Maharaja slept with just one blanket. I had an

Army sleeping bag, but Maharaja was very austere with his one blanket.
I’d wake up in the middle of the night and hear “Hare Krishna” or “Jaya
Radhe.” Things like that. He was always chanting, even when I just
woke up. He really seemed transcendental. He wasn’t like the other
devotees.
Every day we did college programs. It was fun making pakorās and
distributing them. We had some of the hottest bhajan people, too. That
was a sweet time.
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In the tiny kitchen at the back of the bus, Vishnujana loves to cook his
favorite dishes – giant cauliflower pakorās and gulābjāmuns. He also
has an eggplant preparation that is real saucy. There is no starvation
program on his bus because he loves to feed devotees. After one bite,
anyone can immediately realize that Radha- Damodara have accepted
all his offerings and imbued each preparation with Their bhakti shakti.
Everyone agrees, “You can taste the bhakti!”
Patatriraj: He used to cook really hot potato sabjis that were full of red
peppers. He fried dried red peppers in ghee until they were black and
then served them out. He called them ‘sharks’. I remember one time we
actually got high sitting in the bus eating his potato sabji. We were all
laughing and Vishnujana Swami was high with all of us, from the
peppers!
Sometimes Maharaja would talk about Srila Prabhupada, or sometimes

about Radharani, and tears would suddenly fill his eyes. He always used
to say ‘jayate’. He was the only devotee I knew who said ‘jayate’. I still
catch myself saying that since those early days with him. My most fun
times with him were on that old bus with Hare Krishna painted all over
it.
In Cocoa Beach, right after breakfast prasādam, Vishnujana Swami

leads the harināma sankirtan party down the beach already filling up
with people. Many hippies live in the area and Maharaja also
encourages his brahmacārīs to simply go door-to- door after lunch and
distribute books. On the first day the party distributes sixty Gitas,
dressed simply in robes. Nobody even owns karmi clothes. Due to the
significant response, they spend a lot of time in the area.
Patatriraj likes to go out near the ocean to distribute the books. When he
meets favorable people he brings them back to the bus. “There’s this
really neat swami, really far-out, and he’s doing this special service on a
school bus. He’s got a temple in this bus.”
Patatriraj: I’d bring people back and listen to him preach with incredible
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compassion. There was a real mood of love and compassion in his
voice. People really liked him. Then I’d go out and sell more books.
By making such a powerful impression on many young people,

Maharaja is invited to do programs in various Colleges. He calls these
college engagements The Bhagavat Dharma Discourses, using the name
Srila Prabhupada coined last year for his Janmastami lectures in New
Vrindavan. Narada Muni and Aja set up the speaking engagements.
They go ahead in a terrible old car that they purchased for practically
nothing. Unfortunately, nothing works; the doors don’t even close
properly, but still it runs. They travel all over Florida without the proper
registration for the vehicle, which they dub the ‘mean machine,’ setting
up college classes for Maharaja.
The plan is to do lectures and present Krishna consciousness using

multi-media, with music, dramatic narration, and visuals. Maharaja puts
together a slide show interspersed with bhajans. He wants to explain
Krishna consciousness and be entertaining at the same time. Vishnujana
calls his slide show “Easy Journey to Other Planets.” He begins by
showing the painting of Goloka Vrndavan surrounded by lotus petals
from the Bhagavatam cover.
“All of us are moving around and changing our position. We’re all
going from one village to another, from one city to another, from one
job to another, from one personal relationship to another, from one
country to another. We are even going from one planet to another trying
to find out more material resources to exploit and enjoy our senses. And
we’re always becoming frustrated.”
The next slide is the yogi with the long matted locks from the cover of
Perfection of Yoga. “A yogi is that person who is finished with this
frustrating material sense gratification, so he’s going beyond this
universe back to the Spiritual Sky. He’s traveling beyond all of these
planets back to the spiritual planet of Krishna.”
Then Maharaja shows different aspects of Krishna consciousness. He
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has slides of devotees preaching, of deity worship, of an initiation
ceremony, and a wedding ceremony. He also describes the esoteric
meaning behind each ceremonial. Deity worship is described in detail
with reference to Radha-Damodara.
“So we’re going on an easy journey to other planets. Since we’re

making a journey, like when you’re traveling on a ship, then you require
a captain. So in the same way, when you want to make this easy journey
as a yogi, then you require a spiritual master. He is the captain of this
ship, which is our body, to take us across this ocean of material
existence. And this is our Spiritual Master.”
A beautiful picture of Prabhupada appears on the screen and he begins

chanting nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale… His kirtan
group provides an excellent accompaniment on vocals and instruments.
Maharaja speaks and sings, back and forth, which makes for an
interesting presentation.
Next he shows a picture of the Madan Mohan temple in Vrindavan.
“This is Vrindavan. In ancient India, in the center of the village there

would be a temple. And all life was centered around that temple. It was
a God centered society.” After speaking about Vedic culture, he shows
slides of devotees chanting worldwide, and involves everyone in singing
the mahā-mantra as he shows more pictures of devotees spreading the
holy names all over the world.
At the end of the presentation there are questions and answers.

Inevitably, someone asks, “What’s that stuff on your forehead?”
Vishnujana sits up straight and explains. “This is a very beautiful

meditation that we do in the morning. We take sacred clay from India
and mark our body as the temple of the Supreme, by chanting different
mantras. So it’s a very beautiful meditation to start the day thinking of
our body as the temple of God.”
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This question is often asked of devotees. For Vishnujana Swami it’s a
beautiful meditation in the morning marking the body as a temple of
God. He is expert at making simple things sound exciting, speaking in a
way that anybody can understand.
Hasyagrami: Vishnujana’s idea was to do the college hopping, so we

became a traveling sankirtan party doing the Bhagavat Dharma
discourses. We had little flyers printed up to paper a college and get
lecture time in some class. He would speak while Dayal Chandra
showed the slides and we’d do a bhajan. He had his lecture skills down
nicely because it was all on his shoulders. We had quite a good slide
show with a lot of slides from India. It turned out to be very good and
carried us for a long time.
People are impressed by Vishnujana’s charisma, by Radha-Damodara’s

alluring beauty, and by the devotees he has attracted to join him. These
are extremely unconventional personalities who would have difficulty
fitting into any structure, let alone the strict structure of temple life.
However, in Vishnujana’s association they become powerful devotees.
There are amazing kirtans with Vishnudatta and Riksaraj jamming on
mṛdaṅgas and Vishnujana on harmonium. The impact of the Radha-
Damodara party on people is truly awesome.
Patatriraj: They were all good musicians, but Vishnujana was an

incredible musician. Whatever he played he was totally there with that
musical instrument. The instrument would come alive with feeling. It
would almost become an animate object. Every instrument he picked up
would become an animate object, whether it was the kartāls or the ektar.
Even the simple ektar would totally come alive when he picked it up.
The harmonium would become this incredible, almost living being. And
the mṛdaṅga – I expected the mṛdaṅga to catch on fire the way he played
it.
Gainesville, Florida, January 1973
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After wonderful engagements in Cocoa Beach the party heads
northwest. Amarendra and his wife, Gayatri Devi, have opened a center
beside the University of Florida in Gainesville. The local devotees go to
the campus daily to distribute prasādam and Back to Godhead
magazines.
This Sunday, a group of students have permission from the church by

the University to close off the street for a block party. Together,
students, hippies, and devotees sponsor a big vegetarian festival right
across from the campus at 13th Street and University Avenue. Each
group works together to cook the preparations for the event.
All of a sudden, Radha-Damodara’s bus pulls up to the celebration.

Everyone turns to see a colorful bus sitting in the middle of the road
waiting to enter. The barricades are removed so they can drive in, then
the street is closed off again. Seeing all the food booths, the brahmacārīs
get right into distributing halava from the back of the bus.
Shyama Kunda: I was a hippie and I was coming back for more and
more halava. Sri Vallabha turned to Vishnujana Maharaja and said, “Oh,
this one is gonna become a devotee. He’s on his fourth cup.”
They were all laughing and Sri Vallabha was saying, “Yeah, eat some
more. Eat more!” I saw Vishnujana preaching to some college kids, and
I remember there wasn’t a negative word that came out of his preaching.
He showed a lot of interest in people. He asked about their interests in
life, and then he would tell them how they could use that in Krishna’s
service. He was all positive energy and I was impressed by him.
At one point Vishnujana got off the bus with his mṛdaṅga, wearing
black gloves on his hands to protect them. He led a rip-roaring kirtan,
jumping high in the air. It was an ecstatic kirtan and the hippies joined
in with their flutes and guitars. Everybody was chanting Hare Krishna.
It soon became night and the kirtan was still going on. The devotees left
early because they needed to get up early the next morning to chant
japa. When they boarded the bus and left, the kirtan continued on! His
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kirtan was so ecstatic that when the devotees left it went on for a whole
hour after they were gone.
Dhanesvara is also at the festival. He has just finished his Masters

degree in Engineering and is working for Sperry Microwave in
Gainesville. He and his wife live in Newberry on a three acre property,
enjoying the mode of goodness of the countryside. They meet devotees
only two weeks after Amarendra and Gayatri open the Gainesville
center and now visit the temple on a regular basis. Amarendra and
Gayatri are so warm and friendly that it’s impossible not to be attracted
to Krishna consciousness; what to speak of the delicious prasādam
Gayatri prepares. It’s something their senses have never previously
experienced.
The small preaching center is upstairs in a house on a narrow

Gainesville street. Knowing that there will be no place to park the
Radha-Damodara bus, Amarendra suggests that they drive out to
Newberry and stay with Dhanesvara. Because his wife is fond of
animals, four cats and three dogs live with them.
Previously, they used to spend nearly seventy dollars a month for meat
to feed the animals, but after accepting a vegetarian lifestyle they
realized, “We can’t do this anymore.” So they begin cooking vegetarian
dog and cat food made with barley meal, other grains, and various
spices. They cook enough to last a week and keep it in a large pot in the
refrigerator to feed the animals.
Dhanesvara: The bus was parked in my yard for about a week.

Vishnujana Swami and the brahmacārīs lived on the bus. Meeting
Vishnujana Maharaja strengthened my impression of devotees. He made
a very strong impact because I was thinking I could become like him if I
associated with devotees.
When we went on the bus it was special because the Gainesville

preaching center had no Deities, just a painting of Panca-tattva. Radha-
Damodara were the first Deities I had ever seen. I thought They were
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very mystical, and of course, very beautiful. In this way Radha-
Damodara personally rescued me from my material situation.
Vishnujana Maharaja was so warm and friendly. Every day he took

Radha-Damodara for preaching on the plaza at the University of
Florida. He would chant there for hours. Crowds of people would come
to hear because it was so melodious. He was such an amazing person
you could not help but like him. He simply wanted to give you Krishna,
either in hearing His name, talking about Him, or giving darshan of
Radha-Damodara. He was always talking about Krishna. You
understood that he had such a personal interest in you that he wanted to
give you the most wonderful thing that he knew - Krishna
consciousness.
One day the brahmacārīs come back to the Newberry house very
hungry. No one is home so they begin looking for something to eat.
They open the refrigerator and discover a mixture in a large pot that
looks something like kichari. It’s not long before they’ve finished the
whole pot. When Dhanesvara returns home, the brahmacārīs are
complaining, “What was that you had in your fridge? It tasted like dog
food.”
Dhanesvara can’t control his laughter at the turn of events but doesn’t
want to hurt anyone’s feelings, so he just apologizes for the fact that he
is not such a good cook. After a successful week preaching and doing
several Bhagavat Dharma classes at the University, the party leaves
Gainesville and drives north up Interstate 75 into Georgia.
Their first port of call is a college in Valdosta. Next, they visit the
University of Georgia in Athens. At both institutions Vishnujana Swami
is able to give his Bhagavat Dharma discourse and slide show. Now that
they are out in the countryside with no temples and no beaches,
Vishnujana Swami teaches the new recruits how to take bath on the
road.
Dayal Chandra usually parks the bus in a secluded spot, or even on the
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shoulder of a country road, for a night’s rest. Before dawn Vishnujana
brings the new members out by the front door of the old bus right next
to the engine. He places his gallon milk jug right on the engine mount
and says, “Now we will take bath with only one gallon of water.” He
splashes half of the gallon jug of water over his body and then
completely soaps up. With the remaining half gallon he rinses off.
Vishnujana Swami has a very large body so the new devotees are
surprised that he can take a full bath with only one gallon of water.
After seeing Maharaja’s example, the new devotees all follow suit. The
experienced Radha-Damodara road warriors are content with only one
gallon of water to take their bath when traveling throughout the towns
and villages of America.
From Georgia, the bus turns west towards Jackson, Mississippi. Every
day the brahmacārīs go out with Radha-Damodara and set up at a
college, in a park, or on the street to do kirtan and serve out prasādam.
Maharaja gets a tremendous response presenting his Bhagavat Dharma
class, and then the distributors go into the college dorms to sell books
door-to-door.
They regularly go to the black neighborhoods and have kirtan in the

streets. Almost immediately hundreds of little black kids begin
following the kirtan party, dancing along and having fun. At the same
time the book distributors go house-to-house and sell BTGs. Everyone
is enthused by the very successful response in this area.
Radha-Damodara’s satellite van party is usually Suhotra, Hasyagrami,

Vishnudatta, and Sri Vallabha. Simply by focusing on colleges they
travel around the southeastern states distributing thousands of books.
They do big on every campus. Narada Muni and Aja book the college
speaking engagements for Vishnujana Swami and also distribute books.
They both distributed BTGs during the Road Show period so it’s natural
for them to be book distributors on the Radha-Damodara party.
Riksaraj, Sri Galim, Patatriraj, Chiranjiva, and Dayal Chandra remain
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on the bus.
Vishnujana Maharaja is a very attractive personality and they are

attached to his association. They have ecstatic times together doing
kirtan and serving Radha- Damodara. With so many books going out,
soon there is enough lakṣmī to purchase another van. Aja becomes the
new van leader with Narada Muni, Riksaraj, and Sri Galim. Radha-
Damodara now has two van parties with the bus as home base.
With the satellite vehicles away from the bus for a week at a time the
men have no facility for hot meals. To keep the devotees ‘fired-up’
Suhotra introduces Eagle Rock – a sankirtan preparation he learned
from Buddhimanta that is meant to inspire the book distributors. The
recipe is simple. A tin of Eagle brand condensed milk is boiled in water
until it becomes caramel. Next, the caramel is mixed into a big plastic
tub of sour cream. The proportions are one to one. Finally, you slice
bananas in and stir it all up. That is the sankirtan meal. Buddhimanta
taught this and he called it Eagle Rock. It is supposed to be a full meal
for devotees when they’re out on sankirtan.
Suhotra: When Buddhimanta really wanted to get the sankirtan devotees

going, he made his Eagle Rock mixture and the brahmacārīs would
come with their bowl to fill up on this stuff. Later, Hasyagrami called it
speedball, because after you take it you are so speedy for hours.
After the Eagle Rock wears off in about three hours, and you start to
slow down, Buddhimanta would recommend that you drink a litre of
buttermilk and eat chickpeas. You pump yourself up again with
buttermilk and chickpeas so you can stay out all day, and all night, too.
He would always have a full bag of chickpeas in his book bag. I would
see him standing on the side of the road, gulping the buttermilk and
tossing chickpeas into his mouth.
Vishnujana Maharaja is such a wonderful soul, humble and giving.

When the engine on one of the vans blows up, the party has to return to
the bus. But Vishnujana isn’t angry due to the lost sankirtan and added
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expense. He simply says, “All right. I’m glad you’re back. I missed your
association.” He never seems to get angry. These devotees are all young,
in their early twenties, and Vishnujana Maharaja is only a year or two
older, yet he seems light years ahead of them. Everyone feels he’s a
unique, extraordinary soul, very renounced, and with all good qualities.
Therefore, they consider him like a guru, even though they are
contemporaries and godbrothers.
Everyone on the party has a unique character that Vishnujana is able to

harness and engage in Lord Chaitanya’s sankirtan mission. Sri Vallabha
is a big jolly fellow with his own way of doing things, like an avadhūta.
He loves going out every day to distribute Prabhupada’s books, though
he invariably gets into trouble with the authorities. Still, he distributes a
lot of books and BTGs. He’s a comic who enjoys joking with
Vishnujana Maharaja. They spend times together simply laughing.
But Sri Vallabha is a person who can’t control his senses. When he gets
hungry he will offer a grocery store to Radha-Damodara by standing in
an aisle, pulling out his brāhmaṇa thread and chanting the gāyatrī
mantra.
“I offered the whole store. Let’s get some prasādam. Anyone who
comes to shop in that store for the rest of the week, at least they’ll be
buying prasādam.” That’s his rationale. When the brahmacārīs get
hungry on the road, they persuade Sri Vallabha to offer the next grocery
store so they can eat prasādam.
Vishnudatta is an expert drummer and the first Western devotee to play

authorized Bengali-style mṛdaṅga. He joined in Vancouver, Canada,
where he had a chance meeting with merchant marines from
Bangladesh. They taught him mṛdaṅga beats and how to use them in
kirtan. He immediately blossoms as a player and plays these rhythmic
beats like a regular Bengali. Anyone who sees him play these awesome
mṛdaṅga beats is instantly impressed with his finesse and style. He’s
young and talented, with lotus-like eyes that give people the impression
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of a Vaikuṇṭha angel dressed in saffron robes.
Dayal Chandra, one of the two Texans that became devotees by

Vishnujana’s preaching in 1971, is tall and thin. He’s always involved
with the mechanics of the bus, constantly fixing and repairing. He is
totally dedicated to Maharaja.
Sri Galim is the other Texan. He does the pūjā and is the head brāhmaṇa
who likes to study śāstra. He is the focus for people who are attracted to
Deity worship. His expertise in the kitchen is his gulābjāmun recipe.
Devotees proclaim that they are just the most incredible sweet you ever
tasted in your life.
Suhotra is the sankirtan leader who was trained by the now legendary
Buddhimanta back in Boston. He is very intelligent and equally
eccentric, with a great sense of humor. He’s always thinking up novel
ways to keep the brahmacārīs inspired. They, in turn, are always keen to
hear Suhotra’s sankirtan stories about his association with Buddhimanta.
Aja and Narada Muni are from the Road Show musical production. Aja
played the lead role, Ringer, whose character became a devotee, while
Narada Muni played a supporting role. On the bus, however, they both
play a major role by setting up college engagements for Vishnujana
Swami and by distributing books for Srila Prabhupada.
Narada Muni: Vishnujana Maharaja used to have two daṇḍas. He

always told me, “This one is yours. I’m saving this one for you.” Once
he told me, “No one can ever be more close to me than you.” I loved
him very dearly; more than I’ve loved anyone except Srila Prabhupada.
Riksaraj is a very short fellow who loves to sing and play mṛdaṅga. He’s
also quite proficient on the sitar. His closest friend on the party is
Vishnudatta from whom he learns many mṛdaṅga beats. Haysagrami is
also an avid musician and a staunch sankirtan devotee. He was the
guitar player in the Road Show band. Being musically inclined he is
always where the kirtan is going on.
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Haysagrami: Vishnujana Swami always impressed us. In those days we
got three classes a day, two in the morning and one in the evening after
sankirtan. They were full classes, not just the verse of the day. We were
all amazed by Vishnujana’s classes. He would read the purport and then
continue speaking and you couldn’t tell where the purport left off and he
began. He sounded so much like Prabhupada that we were all just in
awe. He had a lot of formatted classes in his mind, of which he already
knew the beginning, middle, and the end. He could pull them out on
various subjects. He was very organized.
Patatriraj is a young teenager with glasses. He has a small thin body

with a large head. Hridayananda Goswami always calls him “birdman.”
He has a very mystical side to him and sees everything in terms of
metaphysics. Chiranjiva, the newest member of the party, is a tall well-
built brahmacārī with an attraction for playing mṛdaṅga and for Deity
worship.
All these devotees live, eat, and sleep in the association of the Supreme
Lord and His eternal consort Who have descended to perform Their
sankirtan pastimes as Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara by traveling on a bus to
assist Their pure devotee, Srila Prabhupada, spread the mission of Sri
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. These most fortunate devotees on the Radha-
Damodara TSKP are the instruments by which the Lord accomplishes
the prophecies of śāstra.
Dayal Chandra: Radha-Damodara were always there. We were living on

the bus in close proximity with Them, so we had to be very careful in
everything – our character and our activities – whatever we were doing
or saying. Whenever the Deity curtain was open, They were so
effulgent. I can picture it in my mind. Even if we had just a little candle,
or a dinky little 12-volt light, They were glowing and They were always
smiling.
If I was just spending some quiet time, or meditating on Them, or

looking at Them, that smile would just keep growing, and it would burn
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into my brain, into my meditation. Radha and Krishna were right there,
smiling at me!
The sankirtan boom is overtaking ISKCON America. Although most

temples now have van parties, there are also several bus parties that
have been inspired by the example of Vishnujana Maharaja. Rupanuga
Goswami is now preaching up and down the east coast in his bus doing
college programs. He is invited to do a TV show interview and writes
Srila Prabhupada full of enthusiasm about the event.
Prabhupada saw Rupanuga’s bus when he was in New Vrindavan and

approved his program of setting up teaching engagements at colleges
and universities. Through his letters Prabhupada instructs his disciples
on every aspect of the preaching movement.
All programs must go on but it is a fact that this book distribution

program is very very important. It is real preaching work but I think this
program for TV and radio is not so important. There are so many TV
programs. Someone will see us on TV and then right after they will see
some other nonsense and they will forget. Therefore it is better for them
to read my books, but I think your proposal for seriously organizing the
college programs is first class. If this program is conducted in the proper
fashion it can be our biggest book distribution outlet, I am convinced of
this.
Regarding your question about taking Gaura-Nitai Deities with you on

traveling kirtan, this is not so important. When Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
was touring India He did not bring His Deity with Him. But if you can
make proper arrangement then you may take Them. [Letter to
Rupanuga, February 14, 1973]
Rupanuga Goswami: My idea for getting a bus was strictly to go to the

universities to distribute prasādam, have classes, and distribute books. I
didn’t have a lot of kirtan.
Seeing the success of Vishnujana’s program, Sudama Maharaja decides
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that he should also have a traveling bus party. He writes Prabhupada to
ask permission to do this service as the other sannyāsīs are doing. He is
feeling a little down after the Road Show debacle and is looking for a
service to get him back on track. He asks Prabhupada for advice on how
to stay fixed on the preaching mission. Prabhupada’s reply is direct and
to the point: simply stick to the standards that he has given.
I wanted to make some sannyasis to do what I am doing, and if you keep

the standard, always chanting Hare Krishna, then it will go on
continuously without impediment. That is your duty as sannyasa, to
keep yourself always above suspicion in Krishna consciousness
program, and to teach others to become like you, that’s all.
And if you simply keep to our standard program – don’t try to invent
anything “Road Show” or “Yoga Village”– that means chanting daily 16
rounds, rising early, attending mangala-arati, like that. If this program is
strictly maintained amongst all the devotees, they will remain pure, and
if preaching is pure, automatically leaders, managers, funds, everything
will be given profusely by Krishna, without any doubt. [Letter to
Sudama, December 23, 1972]
Lord Chaitanya, the original propagator of the Sankirtan Movement, is

naturally pleased when devotees dedicate their lives to spread Krishna
consciousness. In this mood, Sudama Maharaja is trying to duplicate the
program of Vishnujana Swami. He wants to take Radha-Krishna Deities
with him on the road. Srila Prabhupada, however, does not think it’s a
good idea.
He wants to encourage his disciples to spread Lord Chaitanya’s mercy,

yet at the same time, he wants to protect them from possible offenses.
Sudama has acquired the old school bus that was the original Radha-
Damodara temple bus after the Road Show broke up. He also has a few
devotees who are excited to travel with him. In addition, he has acquired
two vans donated by Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead. He is ready to
take his bus party on the road.
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Prabhupada writes Sudama Maharaja to not take Radha-Krishna Deities
traveling.
The instructions to Sudama are clear. “You have my sanction to take

with you Gaura- Nitai Deities. Carefully worship Them, attending to
Them with regular āratis and bhoga offerings. Be very careful to
maintain a strict standard of worship, and whenever you arrive at a
temple you can place the Deity on the altar.” [Letter to Sudama, January
26, 1973] Vishnujana has the only traveling program with Radha-
Krishna Deities.
You mentioned about your Temple bus, and that is very nice. When I
saw Rupanuga’s bus in New Vrindavan I wanted that there be a whole
fleet. But you should not take Radha-Krishna traveling, better you take
Gaura-Nitai. For serving Gaura-Nitai there is no offense, but if Radha-
Krishna is there and there is some discrepancy, then there is great
offense and this should be avoided. Therefore, I gave the same advice to
Vishnujana when I was in Pittsburgh.
The idea of the Temple bus is to attract them aboard, back to Krishna…
[Letter to Sudama, March 23, 1973]
It is winter when Sudama’s party finally leaves New York to begin

traveling. In the cold northern states the program is much more austere
than in the warmer southern climes. But these devotees have been
infected with the sankirtan fever and nothing can stop them or slow
them down.
Premarnava: We had a very austere program. We each had a plastic

bucket that we used for bathing. One time we were traveling through
Pennsylvania during the winter. We would get out of the bus early in the
morning and everybody would fill their bucket with snow, and we
would clean our bodies with snow, and then jump back on the bus. We
never purchased bhoga. We would only eat what we would beg from
grocery stores. That was our mood. We wore dhotis everywhere. We
went door to door doing books, and there was no such concept as
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wearing western dress.
As the book distribution fever heats up everyone wants to be part of the

new wave. Danavir Prabhu writes Srila Prabhupada asking if he can
give up married life and go out traveling. Prabhupada replies that it is
not necessary to give up household life to preach. He quotes the verse of
Bhaktivinoda Thakura, gṛhe thāko, vane thāko, sadā ‘hari’ bole’ ḍāko,
that it make no difference if one is a gṛhastha at home or a sannyāsī in
the forest, simply continue chanting the Holy Name, and spread the
sankirtan movement to every town and village.
Philadelphia, February 1973

Many temples are sending out traveling parties who attract people to
become devotees. They also send back their profits. Up north the winter
is too cold to go into the streets for long periods of time so Ravinda
Svarupa decides it’s time to send his traveling party down south. He
gives Dhristadyumna two brahmacārīs, Suddha Jiva and Mahesvara, and
a van full of books with the instruction to return with no books and a lot
of lakṣmī. The devotees are happy to be able to spend the winter in the
Florida sun instead of the Philadelphia snow.
Dhristadyumna: We shot straight south, and when we got to

Tallahassee, Florida, guess who was there with his bus? I didn’t plan it,
and I didn’t know he was there, but here is my prayer to be with
Vishnujana Swami. My temple president said, “Hit the road”, and there
we were.
Vishnujana Maharaja said, “You can tag along with us.” That winter we
traveled with Vishnujana’s party and that was just great. We were the
most fortunate brahmacārīs now. We were with the bliss crew.
Vishnujana was doing kirtan in parks, and festivals in colleges. I learned
from Maharaja how to give love to people, and in that way attract them.
Mahesvara: We would follow Radha-Damodara’s bus so we could have
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the morning program together. Vishnujana Maharaja would cook some
fantastic prasādam for Radha-Damodara, swimming with ghee and sour
cream; very opulent preparations.
I always have a very special place in my heart for Radha-Damodara.

They are so wonderful, so merciful, and such beautiful Deities. Srila
Prabhupada said that They were in the mood of Lord Chaitanya to go
out and travel like that. Vishnujana would tell us stories all the time.
The Radha-Damodara bus continues doing college programs in small

towns like Pensacola, Florida, and Mobile, Alabama. The Philadelphia
party tags along. The Radha-Damodara men experience their best
reception upon returning to Jackson, Mississippi, where they already
had successful programs. They meet an old retired Colonel, a southern-
gentleman who sees them chanting and dancing with genuine religious
fervor. After speaking with Vishnujana Swami, he becomes favorably
disposed and gives recommendations about the best spots where people
congregate. He goes out of his way to introduce Vishnujana Maharaja to
important people in town. The devotees feel welcome here because the
Colonel is so helpful and the townspeople are receptive.
During the day, the Philadelphia devotees generally go off on their own
to distribute the big MacMillan Gitas they have in their van. They go
door-to-door, and dorm-to- dorm, with shaved heads and dhoti, carrying
an album of glossy photos of devotees feeding refugees in Bangladesh;
as well as a letter of appreciation from the Canadian Ambassador. They
are always greeted politely. By speaking purely about Krishna
consciousness they attract people to give a donation.
Whenever they find out about a rock concert they make it a point to go
and preach there. Dhristadyumna likes to follow the big rock concerts
because they can usually distribute a lot of books to the young
concertgoers. Their method is to get in through the back stage entrance.
Suddhajiva: Dhristadyumna would knock loudly at the back entrance.

When a maintenance man opened the door, he’d say, “Set up crew,” and
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we’d just walk in. Sometimes he’d say he was a personal friend of the
band. When a band member came out Dhristadyumna would always
have a plate of prasādam ready. He could always get us in. One band
liked us so much that they made an announcement during the concert,
“Make sure you take care of our friends out there.” We distributed
Perfection of Yoga and Beyond Birth and Death during the concert.
Whenever someone gave a bigger donation we always gave out a
Bhagavad-gita.
Dhristadyumna: We could do the austerity of rock concerts because we

had maṅgala-ārati every morning on the bus with Radha-Damodara.
There was also wonderful prasādam every morning. I admired
Vishnudatta. He had all the beats and tāls on mṛdaṅga, and he knew all
the bhajans. I loved Vishnujana Swami’s sincerity. I detected a bit of
showmanship on the part of other devotees, but I didn’t want to be a
showman. I wanted to be sincere like Vishnujana, so I never tried to be
showy.
Vishnujana Maharaja likes to swap Radha-Damodara men to and from

the satellite van. In this way everyone gets a chance to associate with
Radha-Damodara, and go out distributing Prabhupada’s books in the
smaller towns and villages. When the bus arrives in a town, Radha-
Damodara come out on Their palanquin and devotees have kirtan and
distribute prasādam; sometimes in a park, sometimes at a college, and
other times inside the bus itself. Vishnujana likes to invite people to
come on board for ārati and class. Everyone has to bend over to get in
because of the false floor with all the books underneath. There is no
room to stand so everyone sits down. But it is beautiful inside, just like
any temple in ISKCON.
Even in the south it is unseasonably cold this winter, with frost on the
ground. On cold mornings before dawn, when they pour water on their
bodies they can see steam rising from their skin. In Mobile, Alabama,
the bus parks at a college and the men go to a dormitory in the early
morning to shower. Whenever they can find a college dorm to shower in
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that’s always better than using the gallon jugs to bathe on the side of the
road.
Not all the towns are favorable. In Mobile, other traveling parties have
gone through and caused a disturbance. As soon as the Radha-
Damodara bus is discovered, the police pull them over and politely ask
them to leave; otherwise they will create a lot of trouble for the
devotees.
Mahesvara: The police ran us out of town. We went to a mall for

sankirtan and I distributed a book to the wife of the Chief of Police. So
they came and arrested us and I was thrown in jail.
The Philadelphia TSKP is having such a wonderful time that they are
sorry when they run out of books and the time comes to return back
home, back to the temple. On the trip north, however, they blow out the
engine of the van. After paying for the books, gas, food, and van
maintenance, they had still managed to save $1,000. But when the
engine blows all that money is needed for repairs. So when they return
to the temple there is no money left to give to Ravindra Svarupa.
New Orleans, Louisiana, February 1973

Everyone in the temple is filled with excitement hearing that Radha-
Damodara is coming. The bus party arrives in New Orleans during
Mardi Gras, the annual pre- Lenten carnival. Mardi Gras is French for
“Fat Tuesday” from the custom of using up all the fat in the household
before the beginning of Lent [Lent is a 40 day period of fasting
preceding Easter, beginning on Ash Wednesday] or Shrove Tuesday. A
festival was traditionally held on this day in Paris, and now there are
carnivals in many parts of the world. In New Orleans, founded by the
French in 1718, the Mardi Gras festival is a time of orgiastic release
when people momentarily forget their problems.
New Orleans is a strategic place for traveling parties, situated halfway
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between the Florida and Texas temples. The temple president is
Nityananda Das and his wife is Kanyakumari. Many parties come
through during the winter when it is still warm in New Orleans. The
temple is large, thus making it a nice facility for any party to feel
comfortable in the spacious brahmacārī ashram. The prasādam is also
quite good, so there are always visiting guests.
During Mardi Gras, the brahmacārī ashram is packed with devotees who
arrive to do sankirtan and work the crowds. It seems that every sankirtan
party in North America is here, even a party from Vancouver, Canada.
They are amazed to see so many debauched people all in one place.
The new, unabridged Macmillan Bhagavad-gitas have recently been

published, and the book distributors are fired up to sell these books for
Srila Prabhupada. Janaka Rishi, of the Laguna Beach TSKP, is
especially expert at book distribution doing over forty Gitas every day.
Seeing him in action, every devotee is inspired to distribute more and
more books. Every morning the sankirtan devotees chant special prayers
to Lord Nityananda for the courage to go out and distribute all day in the
face of unrestrained Mardi Gras hedonism.
The four brahmacārīnīs in the ashram can’t imagine how the

brahmacārīs can go out and work that kind of madness, except that they
are devoted to presenting Lord Chaitanya’s teachings. Shanti and
Debraja do the Deity worship together. When they hear that Radha-
Damodara is coming, they get excited to serve Radha and Krishna
because their temple only has Lord Jagannath Deities.
“Okay, let’s get out the fabric and see what we can do for Radha-
Damodara. Let’s make an outfit for Them.” They have all the
dimensions written in their book since the first time Vishnujana Swami
brought Radha-Damodara to New Orleans last November.
Vishnujana’s arrival at the temple gives the local devotees impetus to go

down to the French Quarter for harināma-sankirtan. On Friday and
Saturday nights the crowds gather on Bourbon Street. Whatever else is
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happening on the street, Maharaja dances and chants energetically as
everyone stops to watch.
He appears like a beautiful demigod dancing in the middle of Bourbon

Street. People who would never normally chant Hare Krishna, approach
him to ask about Krishna. He has a beautiful way of presenting Krishna
consciousness that many people are attracted, no matter who they think
they are. He always ends with, “Just chant Hare Krishna.”
Whenever someone is doing direct service for Radha-Damodara,

Vishnujana Maharaja considers they have the right to be on the bus,
even if they are brahmacārīnīs. Women who don’t have direct service
with the Deities have no business being on a bus with brahmacārīs and a
sannyāsī.
Debraja dd: When Maharaja came he would always ask if I could sew
something or mend something, because I did the sewing and pūjārī
service. He was generous about letting me go on the bus to take care of
his Deities. On occasion, he let me put Them to rest for the afternoon.
Not very often did he let women on his bus, but he was quite generous
about that, much more easy-going than some of the later prabhus.
I actually got to make a peacock feather fan for Radha-Damodara

because the one he had was falling apart. Shanti and I got the feathers
and put it together. We sewed the stones and everything into the velvet
and then glued everything together so he’d have a nice sturdy peacock
feather fan for his Deities. They stayed on the bus, not on our altar. He
always had his own ārati on the bus. If it was a special holiday then we
would see Radha-Damodara on the altar with Lord Jagannath, Subhadra
Devi, and Sri Baladeva. At that time we didn’t have Radha-Krishna
Deities.
The New Orleans temple is filled with guests at all times of the day and
night, mostly to take prasādam. In the evenings Maharaja likes to sit
with these people quite casually and speak about the pastimes of Radha
and Krishna as if they were something so common that everyone should
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know about them. His presentation is so attractive that people simply sit
and listen in rapt attention. Devotees also try to get as close as possible
to listen to his talks. He makes the pastimes sound like they have just
happened, that he is simply relating what Krishna did yesterday with
Radharani.
Debraja dd: Late one night I was finishing prasādam by myself when a
man walked in, a long- haired hippie, stinky and nasty. He was in bad
shape but Vishnujana Swami would take anyone in. The way he
presented the Krishna stories was so beautiful and so attractive. They
didn’t sound like far off things or like fairy tales. By the time he
finished talking, the man was in tears and he ended up staying the night
in the temple. He stayed after that for several days and when Maharaja
left, he left with him.
The temple building has been purchased fairly recently so twelve

devotees are busy with a lot of repair and construction work. But the
center is financially stable because of many incense accounts and the
steady management of the temple president, Nityananda Das.
Vishnujana does a lot of fun things around the temple besides the
normal day-to-day pūjā. His presence creates a different mood at the
temple. Devotees love their service, yet day-to-day duties can seem
repetitive for new followers. But Vishnujana makes every service more
exciting and the temple atmosphere changes dramatically, like a breath
of fresh air that blows in the door. Only two men go out for long hours
on sankirtan, so the temple emphasis is more on the Deity worship.
Kanyakumari dd: I was sitting in the hallway all bummed out, in māyā.
Maharaja walked through and I overheard him say to my husband,
“What’s wrong with her?”
“Oh, she’s having trouble chanting her rounds.”
“Then she should go to more kirtan, because she’ll get a taste for
chanting from kirtan.” And it worked.
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When Radha-Damodara came off the bus to our altar, I was dressing
Lord Jagannath and
Vishnujana Swami was dressing Radha-Damodara. One huge

brahmacārī, Chiranjiva, stood at the door watching. The smell of
sandalwood permeated everything from Radha-Damodara. Since I was
supposed to be dressing Lord Jagannath I couldn’t divide my attention
too much, but watching Vishnujana Maharaja dress Radha-Damodara
was really tempting.
Later, he took some of Radha-Damodara’s clothing to get them dry

cleaned. We watched him walk up the street with Their clothes in his
hands. That was unusual, because we didn’t do that normally. The
Deities would wear them and then we’d cover them up and put them
away. But being always on the road, I figured there wasn’t so much
facility for getting new clothes, so things got used more.
My son Bhima was two years old and one time I heard him screaming in
the reception room.
I came upstairs from the kitchen to see what was going on, and
Vishnujana Swami was chasing him around the room, just playing. Then
he gave him prasādam and let him go. Bhima was having a good time
with him.
We had many guests for the Sunday feast. The temple room was packed
and one guest asked him about air pollution, and the damage to our
lungs from breathing all the incense smoke. He answered, “Because the
incense is offered to the Deities, it’s purifying you. It’s not polluting at
all.”
For the Monday morning class, Vishnujana begins speaking on the topic
of the verse, but then segues into talking about Radha and Krishna’s
personal pastimes, and the loving relationship between Them. Maharaja
wants to convey that devotees must have a loving relationship with
Krishna.
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“Not like Radharani, but our relationship with Krishna is personal, and
very loving. It’s our natural position to have that loving relationship
with Krishna.”
Even when the verse makes a philosophical point he always likes to get
it back to developing the relationship with Krishna. “Love Krishna; do
devotional service.” It’s not just do service because this is the process.
“This can be so sweet for you, too. You can be in bliss doing your
devotional service twenty-four hours a day.”
After breakfast, Vishnujana takes Radha-Damodara to City Park and

sets Them in front of the “Pavilion of the Two Sisters.” The setting is
wonderful for chanting japa and visitors are able to get the Lord’s
darshan.
Apparently, the pavilion is named after two sisters who donated money
to build the French-style building. They remain anonymous to this day
as they wished to remain so. It’s located in the Botanical Garden and
modeled after a French orangery. On the east side of the pavilion is a
splendid sculpture by the famous Cuban artist, Enrique Alferez. A
beautiful fountain situated nearby is surrounded by camellias and
azaleas.
Meanwhile, the sankirtan party of Suhotra, Riksaraj, Vishnudatta, and

Hasyagrami, are doing door-to-door sankirtan wearing dhotis and tilak
in Mobile, Alabama. Their plan is to meet the bus in New Orleans and
do the Mardi Gras with the other TSKP’s distributing books at the
carnival. As they return to their van Friday afternoon, they notice a
police car blocking the exit out of the parking lot.
Suddenly, two Alabama state troopers arrest them and place them in a
police car for the drive to the station. At the first stoplight, one of the
troopers turns around to give the devotees a warning. “Any of you boys
thinkin’ ‘bout jumpin’ out at this stoplight? You’re gonna get your
backside full of buckshot.” He lifts up a 12-gauge shotgun to illustrate
his point.
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The devotees are hauled into the Mobile police station where they are
heavily razzed. Because it’s Friday night they won’t get a hearing until
Monday morning and will have to spend the entire weekend in jail. The
charge is soliciting without a permit. They are, however, allowed a
phone call.
Late Friday evening the phone rings at the New Orleans temple. It’s a
call for Vishnujana Swami. Sri Vallabha picks up the phone. Suhotra
quickly blurts out that they are under arrest in Mobile, Alabama, before
the police realize it’s a long distance call. Suhotra explains that they are
in jail before the police push the receiver down. It’s another sankirtan
disaster in Mobile.
Over the weekend, with the party in jail, Sri Vallabha tries to contact
George Wallace, the governor of Alabama, but he is only able to get the
Lieutenant Governor. Sri Vallabha puts on a southern accent. “I’m
callin’ from New Orleans. I thought you Alabama boys was gentlemen.
Well, I sent my preachers out there to Mobile, and they done got thrown
in jail. Now what kind of way is that to treat honest preachin’ boys?”
On Monday morning the four devotees are taken for a hearing. The
courtroom has over-head fans turning slowly. As they enter through a
side door they come face to face with the spectators.
Suhotra: For the two seconds that I could see the people sitting there,
they all looked the same. There were about thirty people who looked
like carbon copies of one another. They all had greasy hair parted down
the middle, wearing thick glasses and brown suits. They looked really
weird looking up at us. I turned to face the judge, and he looked just like
the rest of them with his hair parted down the middle.
He looked at me through his glasses and said, “Bailiff, read the

charges.” Some guy read what we were charged with. The judge turned
to me and said, “How long is it going to take you to get out of town?”
“I really don’t know. I don’t know where our car is. I’ve been in jail. No
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one has told me anything.”
“Boy, let me put it to you this way,” he replied, “You got a half hour to
get across our city limits.” Then we were released. We picked up our
van and drove straight out of town.
On a bright Sunday morning in New Orleans, Vishnujana comes into the

temple kitchen to help prepare the Sunday feast. Usually he likes to
cook everything on his bus and then serve Radha-Damodara’s prasādam
to the devotees. But today he goes right into the temple kitchen to help
with the preparations himself. The kitchen cooks are thrilled because
Maharaja has a reputation as an excellent cook and they want to learn as
much as they can.
Subrata takes advantage of Vishnujana’s presence in the kitchen and

spends as much time as possible with Maharaja, who made him a
devotee in Houston two years back. Years later, Subrata would credit
almost everything he knows to his association with Vishnujana Swami.
Houston, Texas, March 1973

As Mardi Gras ends, all the traveling parties depart in various
directions. The Radha- Damodara TSKP gets onto Interstate 10 and
heads west towards Houston. The temple is now at a different location
than when Maharaja opened that center. Upon arriving they first
encounter the Boston temple TSKP devotees, Adi Keshava,
Ramacharya, and Somadatta. They had first seen Vishnujana Swami and
Radha-Damodara at the Road Show concert in Amherst in 1971. Now
they are in Houston, having just returned from a stint across the border
in Mexico where they had a challenging experience.
Adi Keshava: We had a very difficult exit from Mexico. All our stuff
was stolen. We were supposed to come back and join Pyari Mohan from
Boston. Anyway, we met Vishnujana Swami at the old Houston temple,
and he nursed us back into good spirits. As soon as he got there he fed
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us sweet rice and took us in to see Radha-Damodara. He led us in a big
kirtan and then we felt better. I began to feel that I had a special
relationship with Radha-Damodara since we were “saved” by Them at
that point, because we were new devotees and had experienced a
difficult time. We weren’t expecting that, for the sake of Prabhupada’s
mission, we were going to have to go through some of the things we
went through.
The Radha-Damodara party now has two satellite vehicles, a van and a
beat-up car, that visit towns and colleges for book distribution. Knowing
that his men are suitably engaged, Vishnujana Maharaja arranges to visit
Mexico. He’ll take only two devotees, Dayal Chandra and Sri Galim.
The rest of the bus crew will remain at the Houston temple to
rendezvous with Suhotra’s van party.
For the expedition to Mexico, Dayal Chandra’s presence is essential.

Maharaja would not consider making a long journey in a foreign
country without Dayal’s expertise and experience as a driver and
mechanic. Having a second pūjārī is equally important. Sri-Sri Radha-
Damodara will require an extra pūjārī and cook for this long drive,
therefore Maharaja needs Sri Galim for the journey.
Leaving Houston temple, Dayal Chandra continues driving west on

Interstate 10 towards San Antonio. Unfortunately, the temple that
Vishnujana opened there two years ago is no longer functional. Sri
Galim, who was temple president at the time, was not strong enough to
maintain the center after Maharaja left. Therefore, the bus bypasses San
Antonio and turns south on Interstate 35 towards Laredo and the
Mexican border.
At the international border they cross into Nuevo Laredo on the

Mexican side. The Mexican authorities order Dayal Chandra to park the
bus for customs inspection. A heavy-handed customs inspector, who
takes his job very seriously, comes onto the bus. Sri Galim becomes a
little nervous seeing his attitude although there is nothing on board that
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would be considered dutiable or contraband. The inspector does a
perfunctory search around the bus.
“What’s behind that curtain?” he suddenly asks.
Vishnujana Maharaja answers, “Sri Galim, open the curtains.”
Sri Galim is chanting japa next to the altar. He performs a quick

ācamana, rings the bell, and pulls the curtains open. The customs man is
startled to see Sri-Sri Radha- Damodara. His lower jaw drops open as he
exclaims, “Dios mio!”
Immediately, Vishnujana Maharaja replies with a huge smile, “Yes.

You’re right!
This is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His eternal consort.”
The customs agent is so taken aback at seeing the Deities that he exits
the bus and waives the party on. As Dayal Chandra maneuvers the bus
on to highway 85 for the drive to the Mexico City temple, the devotees
break into a hearty laugh over the look on the inspector’s face when he
saw the Deities.
Mexico, March 1973

The Mexico City temple president is now an Argentine named Haihaya
Prabhu. He had met Vishnujana Maharaja while visiting the Miami
temple in December and was attracted by his devotional mood. Almost
immediately he made up his mind to invite Maharaja to bring his bus to
Mexico. “They will be so enlivened to see Radha- Damodara and hear
you chanting,” he exclaimed. With a big smile, Vishnujana had accepted
the invitation.
Mexican highway 85 is not the super highway the devotees have just left
behind inTexas. It is full of bumps and potholes. To make matters more
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difficult, Dayal Chandra has to slow down frequently to avoid bicycles,
wagons, and children playing on the road. As they pass by the city of
Monterrey towards Ciudad Victoria, night begins to fall. Motoring
through a quiet desert region, Maharaja decides they would be wise to
drive all night to avoid the crowded road during the day. It will be
cooler and they will make much better time, enabling them to get to the
temple much sooner.
After driving past Ciudad Victoria they continue south towards Ciudad
Mante. It is the dark moon night, amāvasyā, and now there is not a soul
to be seen anywhere. As they drive along the deserted road toward
Mexico City in the dead of night, Vishnujana Maharaja keeps the other
devotees alert by telling stories from KRSNA book and answering their
occasional queries. The countryside is so dark and quiet it seems as if
they are the only people alive on the planet.
Driving along a mountain road with surprising headlong speed, Dayal

notices something in the distance that appears to block the road. None of
the devotees can discern what it is. As they continue driving they are
still unable to figure it out. Dayal decides to slow down a little. In this
mountainous region there are sharp bends in the road that appear
without warning. Suddenly, patches of low-lying clouds obscure the
visibility of the road ahead.
All three devotees are now alert peering wide-eyed into the darkness yet
unable to see more than a short distance ahead of them even with the
bright headlights of the bus. The bus is now completely engulfed by the
cloud cover and they can barely see anything more than a few meters in
front of them. Over the roar of the bus engine they hear a strange
rhythmic sound that seems to become louder by the moment.
All of a sudden, Vishnujana Maharaja shouts, “Stop the bus!”
Dayal Chandra slams on the brakes as hard as he can. The bus skids to a
screeching halt. They hear the rumbling clickety-clack of a train passing
across the road directly in front of them. There are no lights, no signs,
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nor any other indication of a railroad crossing. They had almost run
right into the train in the dense darkness of night.
Very early the next morning, the Radha-Damodara bus negotiates its
way through the busy streets of Mexico City after driving more than
twenty hours. Dayal Chandra finally finds the ISKCON center and parks
beside the temple compound filled with devotees chanting japa. The
temple was previously an Embassy building in an important quarter of
the city that devotees have converted into a house of worship.
Seeing this amazing bus parked on the road in front of the temple
garden with the mahā-mantra spray-painted on both sides, the local
devotees quickly gather on the street. A kirtan party rushes out of the
temple and surrounds the bus, chanting enthusiastically as a welcoming
committee.
Radha Krishnadas: Within a week of my joining the Mexico City

temple, we were told that Vishnujana Swami was coming to town. I
didn’t know anything about Vishnujana Maharaja. Haihaya told us that
he was traveling everywhere, preaching and making bhaktas and
presenting a very free way of practicing Krishna consciousness. He
announced that for a couple of days.
The temple was really cooking at the time. It was one of those old
fashioned temples where everyone was very free, and everyone was
very responsible. There was a nice group of devotees. It was very
dynamic and everything was happening. When Vishnujana arrived we
did kirtan in the street to greet the party. Right away we were invited to
go on the bus, in small groups, to see Radha-Damodara. I found it
exciting and amazing, because I had never seen any traveling sannyāsīs,
a la Americana. He was definitely something to witness, something to
see.
Rohini Kumar is now living at the Mexico City temple after leaving the
San Antonio center founded by Vishnujana Swami last year. He is
cooking in the kitchen at the time of Radha-Damodara’s arrival. Hearing
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the commotion and enthusiastic kirtan outside the temple, he runs out to
see the Radha-Damodara bus on the street in front of him. Catching a
glimpse of Vishnujana Swami dancing heartily along with the Mexican
devotees, he offers obeisances and hurries over to join in the
celebration. He is delighted to see Maharaja again after a long time
since the early days of preaching together in Texas. Vishnujana
immediately invites him onboard for darshan.
Rohini Kumar: Haihaya said they were coming but it didn’t really strike
me until, all of a sudden, they were in front of the temple with a bus.
That really surprised me. I didn’t expect Radha-Damodara to be on the
bus either. When I went on the bus and saw the Deities, I was really
excited. Then they were taking the Deities out and bringing Them into
the temple room. It was exciting because they came with a bus, and then
with the Deities on top of it, that really blew everybody away. I was so
happy to see him again.
After picking three tall strong-looking devotees to help Dayal Chandra

carry Radha- Damodara’s palanquin, Vishnujana Swami leads a kirtan
into the temple playing mṛdaṅga. The devotees are totally inspired by
his exuberant chanting and wholeheartedly join in dancing a la
Mexicana, circling round three conga drums in the center of the room
where anyone can take a turn at drumming.
The altar is in an upstairs room accessed via a circular staircase that

sweeps up to a grand balcony. The Mexican devotees follow Dayal
Chandra’s instructions as they maneuver the heavy palanquin up the
staircase. Sri Galim fans Radha-Damodara with a cāmara whisk,
walking backwards up the stairs. The bases are fitted down into the
palanquin to ensure that They won’t tip. Radha-Damodara’s palanquin
is placed beside the small existing altar of petite Jagannath Deities. The
temple does not yet have Radha-Krishna Deities installed.
The kirtan continues unabated, gaining in intensity as the time

approaches to greet the Deities. At the height of the kirtan a pūjārī
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sounds the conch three times in long succession. As the curtains open
everyone bows down to the sound of govindam ādi- puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ
bhajāmi… The local devotees are delighted to see the resplendent forms
of Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara alongside Lord Jagannath, Subhadra
Maharani, and Sri Baladeva.
After greeting the Deities, Haihaya introduces the devotees to

Vishnujana Swami and announces that Maharaja will give the
Bhagavatam class. Haihaya will translate into Spanish. After reading the
verse and purport, Vishnujana begins his talk by explaining how
devotees should always cultivate the mentality of a servant because that
is their constitutional position in the spiritual world.
“Srila Prabhupada said, ‘One has to always be ready to serve, not simply
we are always accepting service.’ We call each other prabhu. Well,
prabhu means master. Does the servant expect the master to serve him?
Therefore, when I say, prabhu, it means I must render service. We
should cultivate this mentality that I am everyone’s servant because I
address others as prabhu.”
He expands on the point, illustrating that the guru is the most humble of
all devotees and thus is the personality of servitor Godhead. He clarifies
the meaning of the sākṣād-dharitvena samasta-śāstraiḥ verse that
devotees sing every morning, emphasizing how we can distinguish the
spiritual master directly as the personal servant of God, and Krishna as
God the master.
Next, he addresses the subject of cooperation amongst devotees.
“Despite our problems we must strive to work cooperatively. Srila

Prabhupada once told the story of two sons who were massaging their
father. They were competing for his attention because he was old and
would soon leave a large inheritance. So, one son would poke his father
in the back where the other son was massaging. Of course, the other son
would then do the same thing on the other side where his brother was
massaging. In this negative way they were trying to influence their
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father. But all they did was hurt their father. Obviously, no one benefits
from this kind of service.
“So in the course of our arguments and disagreements we should always

remember that we are massaging our father, Srila Prabhupada. He has
told us that ISKCON is his body. Prabhupada said that his morning walk
and massage keeps him in good health. If we can focus on that, then we
can provide our father with an excellent massage. Differences may be
there but by respecting one another as loving children of Srila
Prabhupada, we contribute to the health of our beloved Guru Maharaja.
In this way we can learn to honor our godbrothers and godsisters.”
Tarun Krishna: Vishnujana felt very comfortable in devotional service,

and he wanted others to feel comfortable. To save yourself is difficult,
but to get others into the mood of saving themselves is even more
difficult. It takes love actually, which is a rare trait. He had that feeling
of genuine brotherhood and love.
After class and breakfast prasādam, Vishnujana meets the head pūjārīs,
Turiya Das and his wife Shaktimati. They originally joined in Hawaii
but somehow ended up in the Mexico City temple.
Last year, Turiya had written Srila Prabhupada asking whether they
could install lord Jagannath Deities in the temple. Prabhupada replied
giving his consent, “provided you and your wife are going to stick there
in Mexico City and you will not go away.”
Turiya already has a fine reputation as a pūjārī and Prabhupada

acknowledges this in his letter:
I have heard that you are well qualified to worship the Deity at highest
standard and this is very much necessary. One who is worshipping the
Deity must be always attentive and mindful of his occupation at all
times. He must never for one moment forget his duty of serving the
Deity at every moment and strive always to please the Lord. If you are
willing to stick there in Mexico City, along with your good wife, and do
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the needful for worshipping Lord Jagannath and take all responsibility,
then I have no objection if you install. [Letter to Turiya - August 16,
1972] Later, in January 1973, Turiya received another letter from Srila
Prabhupada giving his consent for the Mexico City temple to be ready to
receive Radha-Krishna Deities.
The reports that have come from our Mexico City temple have always
been encouraging and I am glad to learn that now you wish to increase
your service still further. Krishna is unlimited, and His devotees’ service
should also be unlimited. Since you have more than five brahmanas who
can participate in worshipping large Radha- Krishna Deities, and you
have done nicely in worshipping Jagannath, you can order marble
Radha-Krishna Deities. Make the worship of Radha and Krishna most
opulent, profusely decorate with flowers, celebrate all the festivals and
in this way automatically large crowds of people will be attracted to
your temple. [Letter to Turiya - January 27, 1973]
Turiya and Shaktimati have been busy setting up a new temple room in
a larger area downstairs. They have been doing every offering and ārati,
as well as preparing the recently acquired large marble Deities, Sri-Sri
Radha-Madan Gopal for installation even though Shaktimati is in the
advanced stages of pregnancy. They are pleased to see Vishnujana join
them each morning on the altar when he comes to dress Radha-
Damodara.
Shaktimati dd: When Vishnujana Maharaja was dressing Them, he

would just turn the palanquin around so that the back was towards the
room where everyone was chanting japa. He was like a magic
puppeteer, doing the pūjā. You could see this whole thing, that he was
dressing Them in this box. And then when it was time for greeting the
Deities he just turned this box altar around and that was it!
After breakfast prasādam all the devotees get ready to go to the Home
Show. The annual Feria del Hogar is in full swing at the time of Radha-
Damodara’s arrival in Mexico City. This is the important Home Show
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held annually during the month of March at the National Auditorium.
This is the place where Mexican families can find anything and
everything for their home.
The temple has a booth here and at least a dozen devotees sell books and
incense all day long. They have spent a lot of time and money to make
an attractive booth in contrast to the thousands of booths displaying the
latest in home appliances and accessories. During this event there is no
street sankirtan, since most of the devotees are working at the booth.
Even the Sunday feast is scaled down because of the big preaching at
the Home Show.
Thousands of people attend the fair, located not far from the temple.
Vishnujana Swami is invited to join the devotees at the show and to
bring Radha-Damodara. A small place in the booth is set aside for
Radha-Damodara’s traveling altar where They can give Their blessings
to the passersby.
All afternoon, huge crowds inundate the booth to listen to Vishnujana

chanting on harmonium. The Mexican devotees are thrilled to hear the
fantastic bhajans that Maharaja sings. At the end of each bhajan a
devotee translates Vishnujana’s description of the philosophy and
culture of Krishna consciousness. After the talk, Maharaja begins a
rousing kirtan and the crowd expresses their enthusiasm for the chanting
with shouts of “Viva!”
Mexicans love kirtan and they especially like Vishnujana Swami. His
chanting is particularly appreciated because he sings so sweetly.
The Home Fair is such an important event that the President of Mexico
inaugurates it every year on opening day. This Saturday, President
Echeveria attends the Fair with his wife, strolling among the various
booths and viewing all the latest in appliances and home furnishings. All
of a sudden he happens upon the beautiful devotee booth situated in a
strategic location. He stops to survey the scene. It’s a large booth with a
small gallery displaying pictures about the teachings of Bhagavad-gita.
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On the other side, devotees sell Indian paraphernalia and incense.
Vishnujana Maharaja is comfortably ensconced in the center chanting a
beautiful bhajan as Radha-Damodara bestow Their blessings. They are
the main attraction of the booth.
President Echeveria asks a few questions about the Indian presentation

which Haihaya answers to his satisfaction. Before the President is about
to leave, a devotee is quick to snap some photos. A picture of the
President of Mexico speaking with the president of the temple appears
in the newspaper. That photo is enlarged and placed prominently in the
booth for the rest of the Fair.
Rohini Kumar: The President of Mexico came by the booth and saw our
display and Radha- Damodara. Vishnujana was his all-blissful self, and
Sri Galim looked like he was going to go through the roof. It was the
most together thing we ever did in Mexico. The book displays looked
really nice, and when the President came by even he was impressed. We
had a large booth and the Deities looked really fine.
For the Mexican people Vishnujana is a charismatic personality. The

devotees can see it right away by the gathering crowds that linger to
hear Maharaja chant. At one point the crowd becomes so large that
people stop buying. They are crowding the tables to such an extent that
nobody can purchase anything. Great crowds pack the area to see
Radha-Damodara and hear Vishnujana chanting and playing
harmonium. This is a spectacle that none of them have seen before.
Maharaja’s main activity each day is leading bhajans and kirtans at the
fair. Every morning, he gives the Bhagavatam class, with Haihaya as the
translator, and in the evening he teaches devotees how to play
harmonium and mṛdaṅga. More than anything else his association is
unforeseen, yet highly welcome, and very enlivening. Maharaja gives
the Mexican devotees a wonderful opportunity to experience a different
aspect of Krishna consciousness.
Nanda Nandana: It was very ecstatic. At that time Mexico City temple
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was small so it was enthusing to see Vishnujana Maharaja come with his
sankirtan party. We had a booth at the Feria del Hogar selling books and
incense. Maharaja was there with his harmonium, the Deities, and other
devotees chanting. It was very attractive. Many people passing by would
stop and ask questions about the books and the devotees. The Deities
were very attractive with their golden forms and all.
Radha Krishnadas: Vishnujana Swami was a great contribution to the

success of the program. Years later people would say, “Oh, I saw you at
the Fair. The music was great.” Everyone went to that Fair.
On Sundays, devotees always go to Chapultepec Park for kirtan. It’s the

largest park in Latin America having 868 hectares filled with many
varieties of trees and flowering plants right in the middle of the City. In
the center of the park is a large hill. Sitting grandly on top of the hill is
Castillo de Chapultepec, the great palace of Maximilian, the former
Austro-Hungarian ruler of Mexico. In 1820, he was assassinated as the
Mexican people fought and won their Independence. Nowadays, the
palace has become a museum.
Throngs of people crowd the park on Sundays as families buy souvenirs

and food items from the seemingly unlimited stalls located on the main
walkways. Hundreds of casual observers stop to hear the devotees
chanting and dancing as Vishnujana Swami leads the kirtan.
This Sunday, devotees have brought their small Jagannath Deities to the
park on Their palanquin. Maharaja creates a sensation as he sings with a
far-away look in his eyes, and speaks in a foreign language with a
translator. All eyes and ears are on him, as if a demigod had suddenly
descended upon Mexico. Because most Mexicans are short, Maharaja
appears even taller by comparison and some devotees even have the
impression of Lord Chaitanya in Mexico. Every person appreciates his
presence and when the devotees return to the temple, many interested
people come back for the ārati and feast.
Indra Deva: I had just joined, and like most devotees the first month in
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the movement there are questions of staying or leaving. We haven’t
consolidated our faith. Vishnujana Swami was one of the main factors
that helped me consolidate my faith. His attitude, his chanting, and his
sweetness consolidated my faith and made me feel that this was
something real. He had such a heavy sweetness. He was sweetness
personified due to the Holy Name. He was tasting the Holy Name by the
way he was chanting, and by the way he was relating to us. He saw
devotees as his brothers, as his children, and that really impressed me.
After ten days have passed, Vishnujana announces his intention to

return to America. Everyone is sad to hear this news. He has really
inspired the resident devotees with his kirtans and his Vaishnava mood.
Wherever he went he became an inspiration for so many people. The
entire temple gathers outside for a farewell kirtan as the bus departs.
On the journey back to the states, the bus develops mechanical problems
due to being so old. Fortunately, Dayal Chandra manages to overcome
every crisis and gets the bus running again. They barely make it back to
Texas, but they all agree that the Mexico experience was a nectar
excursion.
Austin, Texas, March 1973

After crossing the border back into Texas, Dayal Chandra drives straight
north up to Austin, the state capital. Prahladananda is now the temple
president of the center that Vishnujana Swami opened in 1971. For a
small temple this center is always among the leaders in book
distribution. They do this with only three brahmacārīs! All day they sell
books and don’t return to the temple until 8:30 at night. They are a tight-
knit group always trying to save time in order to go out for sankirtan.
Twice a week they go to the university to distribute flyers and give out
free prasādam to college students. They have a nice location only ten
minutes from the University of Texas, which has 40,000 students.
Suhotra’s van party meets the Radha-Damodara bus at the temple for a
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happy reunion. Also at the Austin center at this time is Satsvarupa
Maharaja’s traveling party with Mahabuddhi, Ghanashyam, and
Ghostabihari. Several devotees from Dallas are also at the temple,
making things quite crowded.
The next morning after prasādam, Vishnujana is eager to take Radha-

Damodara to the University of Texas campus for a festival program.
Maharaja sets up at the same little area in front of the University campus
as he used to in 1971 when he first began preaching in Austin.
Satsvarupa Maharaja, Ghanashyam, and Mahabuddhi sit down to join
the chanting with the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs, Hasyagrami,
Suhotra, Vishnudatta, and Riksaraj.
Vishnujana Maharaja sits on a raised platform with his harmonium and

chants for a long time. It’s a mahā-kirtan and many people come by,
attracted by the eclectic sound. Some devotees distribute BTGs to the
onlookers, but most remain sitting and chanting. From time to time,
Vishnujana gives a short talk inviting people onto his bus to see Radha-
Damodara. Sri Galim is there to greet the adventurous and the curious
who clamber aboard for darshan.
Mahabuddhi: Many people would go in for darshan. That was new for
me too, seeing Radha and Krishna on a bus. Vishnujana Swami on his
own, or with other devotees, was always attractive, always humble, and
always joyful; kevala ānanda-khanda.
He greeted me with, “Haribol.” He remembered me from those early

years in Los Angeles before I joined. I recalled how Vishnujana would
go out chanting as a brahmacārī and I’d remember what I read in Srila
Prabhupada’s books about hearing and chanting loudly; just be there and
don’t worry about anything else. That was what Vishnujana was doing,
so I followed suit. The idea was to do kirtan and attract people. Then
devotees would distribute books.
As soon as I came into his association he would hand me a pair of

kartāls and we’d just chant. Over the years we continued that
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relationship, where I would be his kartāl player. It was always fun being
in kirtan with Vishnujana Swami because he would really get into the
Holy Name, and it would last a long time. It was a safe harbor, a
wonderful experience.
Most of our discussions at the time were on the philosophy. His

resonant voice would bring you into what he was saying. He was always
patient with people, and had time to explain things in simple terms. It
was good to hear the chanting and get the philosophical background.
The stay in Austin is brief. The Dallas devotees inform Maharaja that
they are sponsoring an exceptional festival to honor the appearance of
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. The event will be in a large Dallas park over
the weekend. Maharaja is eager to participate. His old friend,
Mohanananda, is now serving there as the Gurukula headmaster.
Another friend is Dayananda, the Dallas temple president. He was the
temple president when Vishnujana was a brahmacārī in Los Angeles.
Early next morning the Radha-Damodara bus heads northeast towards

Dallas. Both satellite vehicles will also be at the Dallas festival,
reuniting the entire Radha- Damodara party.
Dallas, March 1973

Srila Prabhupada has been asking all mothers with children to go to
Dallas because he wants to establish Gurukula on a national scale. Now
Gurukula is in full swing and the temple has more devotees than most
other centers in America, except Los Angeles and New York. There are
50 adult devotees and 65 children. Spiritual Sky Incense sales brings the
temple a profit of $4,500/month, which covers all the Gurukula
expenses. At the same time two brahmacārī traveling parties send
$2,000 monthly to the BBT.
The curriculum is going on as Prabhupada has instructed, mainly the

study of Sanskrit and English. The teachers use a children’s KRSNA
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book written in simple language with exercises on how to learn
grammar. A staff of writers is also preparing other books in the same
fashion for different age levels. The teachers are gaining the trust and
friendship of the children more and more, so they don’t have to resort to
harsh forms of discipline. But there is a need to improve relations with
the parents.
The temple managers are trying to convince parents to send in the

required $100 per month tuition fee. About 50% of the parents are not
sending the tuition. Although there is talk of establishing gurukulas in
London and Calcutta, the Dallas Gurukula is already a highly
developed, successful educational institution, by anyone’s standard.
As Vishnujana Maharaja arrives with Radha-Damodara all the children

rush out to greet the bus, followed by the brahmacārīs and the gṛhasthas.
Birmala dd: I had a baby. When Vishnujana Swami saw Jamuna he

picked her up, which was unusual because he never had much to do with
the women. He turned to me and said, “You should chant the prayers in
KRSNA Book; the protection mantras that Mother Yasoda chanted to
protect Krishna from Putana.” So for years I chanted those prayers.
People would always ask me how Vishnujana Swami was doing. I think
that’s kind of his trademark, that everyone remembered him.
When Mohanananda and Vishnujana were brahmacārīs in the Los

Angeles temple they shared a lot of experiences together. However, one
got married and the other accepted sannyāsa. Since accepting the service
as headmaster of the Gurukula, Mohanananda has become more
dedicated and feels more assured in his new position. He has begun
publishing children’s books. His first venture, 10,000 copies of the Lord
Krishna Coloring Book, has completely sold out for a profit of $1,900
that went to the Gurukula. Now he is publishing another book about
Prahlada Maharaja.
Srila Prabhupada is pleased with his service and continues to encourage

him to make Gurukula a huge achievement in Vaishnava primary
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education.
Taking the opportunity of their past friendship, Mohanananda

approaches Vishnujana with his plan to make a recording of the
Gurukula kids singing some of the great Vaishnava songs. The idea is to
have Vishnujana Swami lead the singing with the children responding.
Maharaja takes an immediate liking to the proposal because he wants to
help the Gurukula. He knows that Srila Prabhupada considers Gurukula
one of his most important projects; education to benefit the first
generation of Vaishnava children in the West.
When Mohanananda asks him to put up the money for the project,
Vishnujana agrees to finance the recording since he now has a source of
funds from the success of his book distribution team. Mohanananda is
absolutely ecstatic to hear this news and runs to his office to book a
recording date with a professional studio. When they receive the news,
the kids are totally excited that they will be chanting on a record with
Vishnujana Maharaja.
Jagamana: When he cut that record with us, he really showed us that we
were appreciated as people; with voices, with enthusiasm, with love. We
often felt that was missing in the movement. He was the most personal
Chaitanya-like personality. He actually lived it. Instead of just preaching
against māyāvādīs, he was also acting as a non-māyāvādī. As a kid I
picked up on this. I could tell that he really loved people.
Amongst the kids he was the guy to emulate. He was a very desirable
person. We were very surprised that he took the renounced order. I was
always asking him why that was necessary. He didn’t want to talk about
it. He just said, “That’s the progression, and you should also have to
look forward to that.”
The female voice on the Tulasi prayer was Manisha. She succumbed to
cancer in ‘76 and passed away. I was the drummer. There was no
disrespect for females. That came later. I never saw that in Vishnujana
Maharaja.
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Mohanananda: In the recording studio all the kids were singing around
Tulasi Devi. On the label it was Vishnujana Swami and the Children of
Gurukula. I got my name on as Producer. It was all part of our Gurukula
Books and Records division. I was working to have the school
accredited in the state of Texas.
While at the Dallas temple, it becomes apparent to some devotees that

Vishnujana really imbues the avadhūta mood because he is so carefree.
Although the rules and the regulations in devotional life are there, and
they are important, Vishnujana Swami doesn’t structure his life around
the rules and regulations. Rather, his life is lovingly centered on Radha-
Damodara and Srila Prabhupada. That is really his mood and it’s
apparent.
This is what healthy Krishna consciousness is about; it’s not about a

preoccupation with following the rules and regulations just right. Being
inflexible in following the rules is what Rupa Goswami calls
niyamāgraha. Not following the rules and regulations appropriately is
also niyamāgraha. Lord Krishna teaches in Bhagavad-gītā that the path
of moderation, following the spirit of the law, is the path of success in
religious life; not the path of too much, the letter of the law, nor too
little, being lax in following the rules. Vishnujana imbues the mood of
Rupa Goswami’s Upadesamrita even though Srila Prabhupada has not
yet introduced this book in ISKCON.
Patatriraj: When he visited Gurukula, he didn’t mind preaching to the

women and children. He really loved children and he’d put on plays for
them. I remember his mood was very childlike. Another thing about
him was his extreme renunciation. He wasn’t renounced in the mode of
ignorance, the suffering mode. He was just totally attached to Srila
Prabhupada and Radha-Damodara and detached from the material
world. I remember his japa was very sweet. He was really into his japa.
I remember liking to hear him chant japa. I really felt a lot of love for
him. He was like a big brother, and also like a father.
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I got burned out by Vishnudatta. He used to give me a really hard time. I
missed my mom and dad so I went home for a while. I was only
seventeen. I didn’t get initiated until a year later in Puerto Rico.
After a wonderful Gaura-Purnima festival in the park, an increasing

number of people come to the Dallas temple to find out more about
Krishna consciousness. Everyone is moved by the lectures that
Vishnujana Swami gives. Suhotra tapes a few of these lectures because
he is really inspired by them. Sri Galim still isn’t doing well on book
distribution, so Maharaja decides that he should take care of Radha-
Damodara as his main service, and Sri Galim becomes a full-time
pūjārī.
St Louis, March 27 1973

The next stop on the Radha-Damodara festival tour is a drive of 631
miles to St Louis. Suhotra’s sankirtan van goes off in a different
direction after Dallas. The first thing Vishnujana Maharaja does when
he arrives is to bring Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara into the temple on Their
palanquin. He places Them on the altar, moving the painting of Panca-
tattva, which serves as the temple Deity, over to the left. Then he is
offered a seat as devotees assemble in the temple room to hear him
speak.
Vishnujana Swami begins his talk with a mantra that Prabhupada wants
chanted before every class.
“Chant this mantra with me. I say, you say. Oṁ namo bhagavate
vāsudevāya.”
“Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya!”
“This mantra is very important. In this mantra we are offering our

obeisances, namo, and our love to the Absolute Truth. Oṁ vāsudevāya,
is the resting place of all creation and is full of transcendental qualities
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of love, bhagavate. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya; a very important
mantra. This mantra has been recommended for purification, and for
development of love of God. Since the beginning of this universe, such
an ancient, beautiful mantra in its timeless nature, its transcendental
nature, is this sound vibration Oṁ. This is a very important sound.
“Krishna says in Bhagavad-gita, which we’re going to study, that of

syllables He is Oṁ. Sound vibration is ether. This is important. Sound is
traveling without any restrictions. Scientists are throwing the sound
vibration into outer space. In outer space, there is no air; all there is, is
the ether coexistence. So sound is traveling in the ether. It is such an
important vibration; oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. That sound
resounds throughout this universe and is the clue to our lost relationship
with the Supreme Lord.
“So, my name is Vishnujana Swami, and for five years I’ve been a
disciple of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada,
who is the topmost swan-like devotee and wandering mendicant, who
has kindly come to us who are standing in darkness with our eyes closed
shut, and who is forcing our eyes open with the torch light of
knowledge.
“The Deities which we have brought – Their names are Radha and
Damodara. Damodara is a significant name of Krishna. Actually God
has so many names, and His names are chosen according to His
qualities and pastimes. So, Damodara means bound up with ropes.
“This form is especially mentioned by Rupa Goswami. Anyone who is

not very serious about self-realization, who is not very serious about
developing his love for God, if he worships this Damodara form of the
Lord he will become serious and a pure devotee of the Lord. Especially
during the month of Kartik which is October and November.
“This is the time when Damodara displayed His pastimes of allowing

His affectionate devotee mother, Yasoda, to bind Him by ropes, ropes of
love. Because, when she went to tie Him out of maternal anger, she
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found that the rope was short by two inches. When she got an even
longer rope and tried to tie Him, it was still short by two inches. And
when she gathered all the ropes in the whole house together and tried to
bind Him, still it was short by two inches.
“This Damodara name is very important. He cannot be bound up except

by love. That is why He agrees to be bound up by the devotees; because
of the loving affection of the devotees. Krishna’s name is also Ajita.
He’s unconquerable. No one can bind Him, but He becomes conquered
by love.
“Therefore, bhakti is a very important word. Bhakti means love,

devotion – natural, spontaneous love for Krishna. So bhakti-yoga is the
topmost yoga system, because by bhakti-yoga you can find Krishna.
You can have Krishna as your child by bhakti-yoga.
“Other yoga systems will bring you different types of results. That is
also guaranteed in the Bhagavad-gita. But this bhakti-yoga system will
allow you to bind Krishna up as your dear-most child. That is the most
intimate – united with Krishna. Krishna says, ‘Of all yogis, he who is
intimately united with Me in devotion, he is most dear to Me.’ “Radha
and Damodara have been on a transcendental journey. These Deities
were drawn before Their creation by my Spiritual Master, personally.
He has specific intentions for these Deities, and he said to me in
Pittsburgh, not more than eight months ago, that these Deities are acting
as Lord Chaitanya.
“Lord Chaitanya, you know, started this chanting of Hare Krishna in the
streets of the world 500 years ago, and these Deities, Radha and
Damodara are also traveling all over the world and requesting everyone
to please chant Hare Krishna. So, that is Their function. They are asking
everyone to chant Hare Krishna and remember Krishna. Therefore,
They are visiting various temples around the country. They are also
going to places where there are no temples.
“So we bring the temple to the people in the form of that bus you see out
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front. That serves as a kitchen and a temple for Radha and Damodara in
Their travels. The Deities have been visiting all over the South. They’ve
been to Jackson, Mississippi, and have been received by gigantic crowds
of people. Gigantic crowds of people have received them in Florida, in
the Philadelphia temple, and especially the Atlanta temple.
“The various jewels that are decorating Their bodies are all gifts from
the various temples. Also, the traveling sankirtan parties have been
enlivened seeing Radha and Damodara out on the streets with them.
Usually, it’s very difficult to go on a traveling sankirtan party and be
away from the temple and nice prasādam very long. But with Radha and
Damodara and the temple bus out there, it becomes very easy and
sublime. “So the traveling parties coming from the different temples go
to those cities where there are no temples to distribute literature. They
have also been feeling very enlivened by the presence of the Deities and
the programs of Deity worship on the road. Most recently, we were in
Mexico City, where literally hundreds of thousands of people joined in
the chanting and dancing and seeing the Deities. The people there are
very simple and have a tendency towards singing and dancing, and are
naturally curious to anything new. So they were very affectionate
towards Radha and Damodara.
“Also we just got through with a festival in Dallas, Texas. So these have
been some of the activities of Radha and Damodara in traveling around
the country.
“In Florida we were giving Bhagavad Dharma Discourses. Some of the

colleges gave up to $400 for big feasts and festivals with Radha and
Damodara, and the students enjoyed chanting and dancing and feasting
along with beautiful kirtan and nice Deity āratis. The ārati ceremony is
said to be able to attract the minds of the world. So this is our proposal,
that we’ll bring the Deities everywhere to all parts of the world and
perform the ārati ceremony; chanting, dancing, and feasting. We’ll
prove that it will attract the minds of the world.
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“We have to see something beautiful, we have to smell something
beautiful, we have to touch something beautiful, we have to taste
something beautiful. That is the desire of all living beings. So Krishna
consciousness does not mean to restrict these desires. It means to
channel them to Krishna. You taste Krishna prasādam, you see the form
of Krishna – the Divine Couple. You want to see a young boy and girl
together, here is a beautiful boy and girl and They remain eternally
beautiful. They don’t get old, diseased, and die like the relationships in
this world. So you want to see something beautiful, taste something,
smell something? Smell the flowers and incense offered to Them, the
sandalwood oil that’s rubbed on Their bodies, the rose-water that bathes
Them.
“In this way, you can engage all your senses and be fully satisfied in
serving Krishna.
There will be no lack.
“You will see, as days go on, when you engage your senses in the
service of Krishna, you won’t be the loser. You’ll be the gainer a
million-fold. That is Krishna consciousness. Actually the seeing process
is Krishna, the eating process is Krishna, the smelling process is
Krishna, and the hearing process is Krishna. You will find this in
Srimad Bhagavatam, that all these functions of your body are all
representations of Krishna. And you are simply lending your
consciousness to the process of vision, the process of smelling, the
process of hearing. You are lending your consciousness to these
functions. So, actually you are dealing with Krishna.
“The function of seeing is also Krishna. The function of digestion is also

Krishna. All the functions of this body are representations of Krishna’s
energy. So you should understand that you’re dealing with Krishna. No
one can say that he’s not with Krishna. You’re all with Krishna right at
this moment, right? You’re using the process of seeing, you’re using the
process of hearing, so you’re dealing with Krishna this very moment.
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This is the esthetic sense of Krishna consciousness – to be aware that
I’m dealing with Krishna. In all relationships, in all actions – Krishna.
That’s Krishna consciousness.”
Sitting amongst the thirty devotees in class is Chaturatma. He has just

joined the temple one week prior to the Radha-Damodara bus coming to
town. Previously, he was living in a commune where nine of the eleven
members had already moved into the temple. Although he had never
met a devotee he was thinking this must be the next stop for me,
because so many of his friends had already joined.
At the same time a new temple president, Makhanlal, has just taken over
the management. Due to the transition of temple presidents there are
some problems in the temple. Mahamuni is the temple commander and
sankirtan leader. In order to keep the devotees enlivened he is always
preaching, “Just depend upon Krishna, and Krishna will rectify
everything.”
Chaturatma: I didn’t know what Krishna was going to rectify, I just

knew we were praying to Krishna to please help the St Louis temple.
Then, Vishnujana Swami rolled into town with Radha-Damodara and he
and his band of brahmacārīs stayed one week.
Every morning and every evening Maharaja would lead kirtan and give
class. For the Sunday feast he did a wondrous multi-media presentation.
He’d lead these incredible kirtans, and give these wondrous classes, and
the devotees just became solidified. Every little bit of anxiety or despair
in the whole temple just disappeared. He was this incredibly fascinating
personality who was the most Krishna conscious person I had met. Of
course my realm wasn’t so big, but still he had this incredible potency.
I remember saying to myself, If this is what an advanced devotee is like,

this is where I’m going to stay. I remember distinctly that mood. He
mentioned how Srila Prabhupada told him that these Deities are in the
mood of Lord Chaitanya, going anywhere and giving Their mercy.
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After his introduction, Vishnujana Maharaja begins the class by
chanting the Sanskrit from Bhagavad-gita As It Is chapter 4, verse 36.
api ced asi pāpebhyaḥ sarvebhyaḥ pāpa-kṛt-tamaḥ sarvaṁ jñāna-

plavenaiva vṛjinaṁ santariṣyasi
Even if you are considered to be the most sinful of all sinners, when you
are situated in the boat of transcendental knowledge you will be able to
cross over the ocean of miseries.
Maharaja reads the purport and begins his class. Prana is also sitting and
listening to Vishnujana’s discourse. He lives in an apartment a block
away from the temple. When the Radha-Damodara bus arrives he is
visiting the temple. He has just begun chanting japa and when Sri-Sri
Radha-Damodara come out of Their bus, it’s the first time he has ever
seen Deities.
Prana: I had been going to the temple for the morning program and was
participating in the kirtans as an observer, maybe 60% observer and
40% participant. But when Vishnujana Swami came and started leading
kirtans with the mṛdaṅga, and even the way he led bhajans on the
harmonium, it was totally mystical. It was like the Holy Name was
coming from some other dimension. His consciousness seemed to
impart something to the kirtan that I was not experiencing otherwise, up
to that point.
Prana is involved with a circle of friends who meet to have

philosophical discussions about the nature of the absolute truth. They
are all searching for the absolute truth. When they discover Krishna
consciousness, they believe that they have found what they were
seeking, at least philosophically. So Prana spends a lot of time reading
and studying Srila Prabhupada’s books. Before meeting the devotees he
was always distressed seeing how people mistreated each other for so
many crazy reasons. He was troubled by the amount of suffering there
was in the world. He used to pray to God, “Why is it this way? Why is
this going on?”
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Now, he comes regularly to the St Louis temple to ascertain for himself
if Krishna consciousness is the answer to what he has been searching
for.
Prana: I came to Krishna consciousness by reading Srila Prabhupada’s

books. I thought that what’s in these books was either the absolute truth
or the greatest literary hoax ever perpetrated on mankind. So I wanted to
investigate.
When Vishnujana Swami came, the prominent thing in his preaching

was his emphasis that the purpose of the human form of life was to
develop love for God. It was a very universal message. It was not
shaded, or masked, or distorted by the Hindu presentation, or the
Vaishnava presentation, or the ISKCON presentation. In many different
ways one can actually miss the essence of what Krishna consciousness
is. Well, Vishnujana Maharaja never missed. He hit that dead center
with every word that came out of his mouth. Seeing and hearing
Vishnujana Maharaja there was no longer a question of what was the
absolute truth, and what you were supposed to do about it.
Vishnujana’s presentation was like the essence of what I was always

trying to find. It wasn’t the yoga that was the most attractive thing to
me, it wasn’t the mysticism, it wasn’t the Eastern cultural aspect of
Krishna consciousness; it wasn’t anything like that. I was very
westernized, but I accepted the trappings of Krishna consciousness
because they went along as part of the process.
What attracted me was the goal of actually coming face to face with
God, becoming reestablished in my original relationship with God, and
ultimately returning to the kingdom of God. That is why Krishna
consciousness is what it is, and that is the only reason Krishna
consciousness is what it is.
Prana can understand that without developing our love for God, the
ISKCON movement is no more consequential than anything else in the
material world; other than the fact that it’s based on the mode of
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goodness. But if the culture or lifestyle surrounding the movement fails
to link the individual with Krishna, it would not have any more
significance than any other way of life where people live predominantly
in the mode of goodness.
As Prana listens to the class, Vishnujana Maharaja makes a wonderful

point.
“Krishna Consciousness is very easy, but for one who has begun the
path in earnestness, in seriousness, there requires to be some careful
undertaking. That careful undertaking is to take every activity which is
performed either in the temple, or out on the street, or in your mind; take
every activity and ask, ‘Have I been directed to perform this action, or
thought, or word, by my Spiritual Master and Krishna?’ This test you
have to be making. This will protect you from mental concoction and
from the attraction of illusory things.
“If before performing every action – and that includes even putting on
your dhoti or your sari, or even lying down to take rest at night – if you
can question yourself and ask yourself, Have I been given this order by
my Spiritual Master? that will keep you always on the platform of
remembering Krishna.
“You’ll find this mentioned in the 18th chapter of Bhagavad-gita

wherein Krishna says: ‘In all activities and for their results, simply
depend upon Me. Work always under My protection. In such devotional
service be fully conscious of Me.’ Prabhupada states in the purport a
very important quote. He gives us this advice; ‘In all activities we
should ask, have I been given this order by Krishna?’ Then Prabhupada
says, ‘If one does this simple formula, he’ll have to think of Krishna 24
hours a day.’
“Because you’re always doing something, isn’t it? You’re always

thinking something, you’re always speaking something. So if before, or
while doing all these activities, in your intelligence you’re always
questioning, Have I been given this order by Krishna, or is this a mental
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concoction? If you always make that test, you’ll be fully Krishna
conscious twenty-four hours a day. No activity will be mundane because
even while you’re washing your clothes you’ll think, Have I been given
this order by my Spiritual Master or Krishna? You make this test and
see if it doesn’t help you.”
When Maharaja ends the class everyone is delighted. No one has heard
such a perceptive understanding of Krishna consciousness before.
Maharaja’s points make so much sense because they bring the devotee
into a much closer moment-to-moment relationship with guru and
Krishna.
Every afternoon Vishnujana sits in the temple president’s office with the
door open. Anyone who wants to can come in and talk to him or ask him
any questions or discuss problems. This is his policy. He makes no
distinction whether brahmacārī or brahmacārīnī; everybody is welcome
to come in and talk with him. The women in the temple especially
appreciate his mood. Regardless of whether the question is
philosophically brilliant or materially ignorant, it doesn’t make any
difference to Maharaja. He is just happy to try and help in whatever way
he can.
Prana: Vishnujana didn’t treat anybody any differently from anyone

else. That was one of the most prominent things about him. He was
unpretentious. I’ve come to resent the way women have been dealt with
in the movement, but he was a shining example.
When you were around him, you were drawn into what he was doing.
You were drawn into the kirtan, you were drawn into the class, and
drawn in very strongly. There was something coming from his heart
where he wanted everyone to chant Hare Krishna. He wanted everyone
to relish the Holy Name. He wanted everyone to love God with him. He
wanted everyone to worship Radha-Damodara with him. He wanted
everyone to be as attracted to Radha- Damodara as he was, or even
more. If he could find someone who was more attracted, he would
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derive that much more benefit out of their association. And that mood
affected everyone who associated with him, unless they felt challenged
by him. He was one of the best inspirations there was, as far as I’m
concerned.
After spending a week in St Louis, good news arrives. Prabhupada has

just flown into New York from Switzerland. The talk around the temple
is completely focused on his arrival. Everyone is expressing their desire
to see their spiritual master. Vishnujana at once decides that the party
will drive to New York to see His Divine Grace. Back on the road,
Narada Muni has a question. “I’ve been thinking about your Mexican
trip, and the success those devotees had at the Home Show. Why don’t
we do something similar in America? There are state and county fairs all
over the country, especially during the summer months.”
Maharaja concurs with Narada Muni’s point. Since most of the colleges
and schools are closed during the summer it would be wise to take
advantage of the state fairs. He has been thinking about this idea himself
and sees Narada Muni’s suggestion as a confirmation from Krishna. He
would love to travel from one fair to the next, selling books and
paraphernalia prasādam all day long.
Of course, Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara will be on stage as the heart and

program to bestow Their mercy upon thousands of conditioned souls!
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Third Wave,
The Kidnapping of Ramacharya
Books are the basis, preaching is the essence, purity is the force, utility
is the principle. [Srila Prabhupada maxim]
Mayapur, March 1973

One of Prabhupada’s pet projects is reviving the disappearing art of
dioramas.
The main people involved in the Diorama Project are Baradraja, Adi
Deva and Srimati. Last year Srimati and Kausalya had done some
wonderful preaching in Jaipur. They also found the Kalachandji Deity
that is now being worshiped in Dallas. But soon Srila Prabhupada sent
word for her to return.
“Srimati, you come back to Mayapur. You were doing so well here.”
Once back in the holy dhāma, she is awakened one evening. “Srimati,
Prabhupada wants to see you.”
She immediately gets up and walks over to Prabhupada’s room. As she

enters his rooms, His Divine Grace is sitting on the floor wearing a
gamsha as Srutakirti gives him a massage.
Seeing her arrive, Prabhupada immediately says, “Srimati, you go

tomorrow to Gaurni, and find one person there to teach you to do
sculpture to make these dolls. You bring him with you to Mayapur.
Take with you one Bengali girl so she can translate for you.”
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Srimati dd: We went to Gaurni and found a young man. His father and
grandfather had always made the deities in the town out of straw and
mud. It was Durga Puja – a big holiday. There was a big procession
after ārati and they took the deity to the Ganga.
So this man was the right person and he came to Mayapur the next day.
While Prabhupada was talking to him, he sat quietly and did a detailed
small head of Prabhupada out of clay. It was very beautiful. Prabhupada
liked it and hired him. He said, “This is very good. Please come back
here and show Srimati.”
Every day the young man comes to teach doll making and Srimati is his
first student. Gradually Baradraja and Rukmini along with Adi Deva
and Murti Das join the class. Then Bhavananda decides he wants to
learn too, so he joins the little class for a while, just for fun.
They begin by making apples and mangos using Ganga mud.

Prabhupada likes to come by, watch, and instruct, “Make and break.”
The devotees have to go to the Ganga to get their own fine mud. The
rough mud comes from the ISKCON property. They are taught to roll in
the chaff from rice to make the rougher beginnings, and then to lay the
finer detail on top of that.
They construct a large kiln and also learn to make their own paint; even
their own brushes and glue. Everything is natural. They are taught every
detail of the art. There are fields of jute nearby, and some Bengali
devotees sit down and twist the jute to make ropes. Whatever the doll
makers need is supplied. Their life is simple living high thinking, and
they consider it marvelous.
The classes are held on the second floor of the beginnings of the
Mayapur Temple building. When everybody arrives for the festival, the
Bengali workers construct a grass hut on the roof of the building. It’s all
set up for doll making and all the straw and mud they need is brought to
them.
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When the workday begins, they all go up there and start making dolls.
Baradraja makes a really large Lord Nrsimhadeva, whereas Srimati
sticks with the smaller sizes. She makes a small Panca-Tattva set and
gives Them to Prabhupada. They remain on a shelf in his room. On one
occasion Prabhupada remarks to Bhavananda, “These are Srimati’s
Deities.”
Other devotees have come to India on Prabhupada’s request to learn the

ancient art of making mṛdaṅgas. Ishan has answered the call and is
studying along with several other western men.
Ishan: I was in Toronto when Srila Prabhupada sent out a notice to all
temple presidents that mṛdaṅga making was a dying art. There was no
more pride in it. They were embarrassed to take up these trades. I could
see that when I was there. So Prabhupada wanted his men to come and
learn.
Jagadish was our president and I found a notice among papers on his
desk, un-posted, that said, “Srila Prabhupada wants men to go to
Mayapur to learn to make drums.”
I said to Jagadish, “I saw that notice and I want to go to Mayapur and

make drums.” He said, “Fine.” So I collected the money and went to
India.
Among the group of devotees who have come to learn drum making,
most cannot get the hang of this Bengali craft. Some of them don’t even
last two days in Mayapur and are back on a plane to the West.
But Ishan is more a Bengali than an American, and he becomes the

apprentice for the mṛdaṅga mistri. He serves him and brings the man
prasādam. He sweeps the dirt out of the bamboo hut where the drums
are made. In return the mistri takes care of Ishan like a father. He can’t
speak English and Ishan can’t speak Bengali, so he simply draws
pictures on the dirt floor of the hut with a stick.
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One day a man comes who is a translator. The western devotees
frequently ask, “Why does he do it this way?” Ishan glances at them as
he continues cleaning the hut, or scraping the hair off a new hide, or
stretching a new one in the field outside the door. When the translator
questions the mistri, he simply looks up, pauses, and replies in Bengali,
“My father did it that way.”
After a week has passed, the mṛdaṅga mistri draws a picture of a map of
the world on the dirt floor. He points to the various devotees who have
come to learn, sitting in the hut with their notebooks, and he says,
“mṛdaṅga mistri nei,” as he points to each of them one by one. Then he
points to Ishan and says, “Ishan Prabhu, mṛdaṅga mistri.”
Ishan: I loved him and that was the difference, I think, because you only
give your secrets to someone who loves you. And I served him. Not
because I wanted the secrets; it was natural. I really loved this man. He
was barely over five feet and very thin, with jet black hair, and about 65
years of age. He did a few yoga āsanas to stretch before he began his
work. And when he was tired, he would put a cloth on the floor of the
hut and just curl up and go to sleep, saying, “Acha, resting.” Then after
45 minutes he would rise, take some water to wash his face and hands,
and back to work. He taught me a lot about being just natural.
Actually, there were two men. A different man taught me how to make a
clay shell. I would have to clean his clay. We’d dig it out of the ground
and take every piece of grass out of it until it was smooth. That was my
job. Yogin Pal was the clay man and Jotin Da was the mṛdaṅga man. He
would always apologize to the mṛdaṅga for having to put his foot on it
when tightening the straps. He had a very devotional attitude and always
referred to the drum as “Śrī mṛdaṅga.”
New York, April 5, 1973

At JFK International Airport hundreds of devotees crowd the Arrivals
Lounge to greet His Divine Grace. Srila Prabhupada has left holy
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Mayapur to embark on another world preaching tour. Several reporters
are present to cover the Swami’s return to New York. Prabhupada gives
a short address.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I thank you very much for kindly receiving me
in this honorable way. According to our Vaishnava philosophy,
whatever honor is offered to the spiritual master is transferred to the
Supreme Personality of Godhead: yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādo
yasyāprasādān na gatiḥ kuto ‘pi.”
After clarifying that he takes no honor for himself but offers all honor to
Krishna, Prabhupada explains that his ISKCON movement is based on
the authority of scripture.
“Now, so far our movement is concerned, you more or less know about
our movement. But you should know that this is the most scientific,
authorized movement in human society, because the movement is based
on the authority of Bhagavad-gita.
“Bhagavad-gita is spoken by the Supreme Personality of Godhead for

the benefit of the whole human society. Do not take Bhagavad-gita or
Kṛiṣhṇa as something sectarian – Hindu God, Hindu scripture. No. It is
meant for everyone. These names, ‘Hindu,’ ‘Muslim,’ ‘Christian,’ or
‘Buddhist,’ these are the designation of the body.
Actual religion is different. Actual religion means to understand God

and to develop your love for God. That is actual religion. It doesn’t
matter through which religion you develop your love for God, but the
test is, you are first-class religionist if you have developed your dormant
love of God. So this movement is meant for awakening the dormant
love of God. So the subject matter is very serious.”
Prabhupada emphasizes the importance of distributing this important

subject matter through the many books he has written. He explains that
in human society countless people are living like cats and dogs and
therefore his mission is to spiritualize modern civilization back to God
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consciousness.
“So our movement is creating some intelligent class of men. According

to our Vedic knowledge, the first-class intelligent man is he who knows
what is God. He’s first-class intelligent man. Otherwise cats and dogs,
they also eat, sleep, have sexual intercourse, and die.”
“So this life is not very congenial to the human society. The chaotic
situation of the present human society is due to the fact that there is no
intelligent class of men. This is our challenge. The so-called scientists,
so-called philosophers, they have no intelligence. Therefore the whole
society is in the chaotic condition. So these boys and girls, American
boys and girls, they’re being taught, instructed to become first-class,
intelligent man. This is the movement.”
He closes by inviting “those who are interested” to come to the temple

to appreciate the culture and philosophy of Krishna consciousness. “And
if you cooperate, the whole human society will be happy. Thank you
very much. Hare Kṛiṣhṇa.”
When Srila Prabhupada arrives in Brooklyn, the temple room is packed

with devotees. He is escorted through the crowd to the vyāsāsana where
his feet are bathed. Then he gives a short talk. After retiring to his
quarters devotees drink the caraṇāmṛta. A few hours later Vishnujana
Swami arrives with Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara and more or less the same
crew of brahmacārīs that left New York during the Road Show. The
arrival of the Radha-Damodara party creates a minor sensation.
Seeing the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs, Agnideva wants to check out

the bus. He is excited because he remembers Maharaja as the wonderful
devotee he met last year. As several New York devotees scramble
aboard the bus, Vishnujana is very happy to see them come to get the
mercy of Radha-Damodara. Although Vishnujana Swami is a respected
and prominent sannyāsī, he is also very accessible. The bus is decorated
so wonderfully, like a regular temple, that everyone is instantly attracted
and some people manifest a desire to join his party.
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Bali Mardana Goswami is still temple president and GBC. Once again,
he has instituted a policy that is proving to be quite unpopular; that
visitors have to pay for prasādam. Vishnujana Swami’s traveling party
is no exception.
Maharaja is shocked. “It’s Krishna’s prasādam but we have to pay for

it?” It’s uncharacteristic for Vishnujana to be upset or complain, but he
doesn’t agree with the ruling. He states his grievance but then drops it
when he sees that Bali is adamant.
Vishnujana Swami has an early maṅgala-ārati for Radha-Damodara on

the bus and then comes in for the temple program. He leads maṅgala-
ārati and guru-pūjā in the temple room and also gives classes during the
day.
For the Bhagavatam class Srila Prabhupada lectures from the prayers of
Queen Kunti. Sunday is the appearance day of Lord Ramachandra, and
Prabhupada requests Vishnujana Maharaja to give the Sunday feast
lecture. Many guests regularly appear for the Sunday program.
Satyaraja: One of the first times I came to the temple in Brooklyn,

Vishnujana Swami was there and he gave the lecture on Lord
Ramachandra. It was upstairs in the Gallery where they used to have the
plays. It was Lord Rama’s appearance day. When other people would
lecture on some personality like Lord Ramachandra, I would get
immediately bored because I couldn’t relate to a four-armed Vishnu
form of God as He appears on earth. It all seemed very abstract and
distant to me.
But Vishnujana Maharaja spoke about Lord Rama in such a way that I
began to get this feeling, there’s something to this philosophy. He
conveyed to me that it’s actually possible that God could have a human-
like form. That was my first meeting with him and I always hoped I’d
meet him again. To this day it’s the memory of Vishnujana Swami that
keeps me feeling that the process works.
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Every Sunday the New York devotees go to Central Park for harināma
sankirtan after the morning program. When Agnideva moved into the
temple, Mangalananda was singing the Road Show songs at the Sunday
feast. Agnideva used to sing along with him because he’s also a sweet
singer.
This year, he leads kirtan on the streets of Manhattan. On warm sunny

days devotees chant by a fountain where it’s crowded. As they sing and
dance in full swing, all of a sudden another kirtan party comes around
the corner.
It’s Vishnujana Maharaja with his Radha-Damodara party. Agnideva is

happy to see him, and allows Vishnujana to take over the kirtan. All
afternoon they take turns sharing the kirtan and return to the temple just
in time for the feast.
After hearing Maharaja sing and speak, Agnideva is excited. He’s

blissful in the temple but after associating with Vishnujana Swami he
wants to join his party. He has already heard about Maharaja from the
devotees and now it seems like he has the perfect lifestyle. Agnideva
approaches Vishnujana to join his party.
“I have no objection,” Maharaja replies, “but you’ll have to clear it with

your temple president. I can’t interfere.”
Agnideva: He was respectful. No politics. He declared right away that

he wasn’t going to ask for me, but if I got approval then it was all right.
I knew they wouldn’t give it. I had service to do and I sensed they
weren’t going to let me go, so I just dropped it.
Vishnujana Maharaja stayed in the brahmacārī ashram. He was a real

sannyāsī. He had no paraphernalia of his own. He’d sleep on the floor
with a chaddar wrapped around him, with bare feet. He didn’t have
shoes. He was like an avadhūta.
You could count on him to take out the harināma party. Everybody
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looked up to him, and everybody liked him. He was absorbed in Krishna
consciousness and his deity worship was attractive. You knew he was
tasting something. He was the only sannyāsī who had his own deities
and was worshipping Them and taking care of Them so nicely. Back
then no one else had their own deities. You saw how absorbed one could
be in Krishna consciousness.
At the New York temple many sannyāsīs used to come through because
New York was like a hub. A lot of Swamis demanded the mahā plate,
but Vishnujana Maharaja never asked for it. Vishnujana didn’t ask for
anything, but it came automatically because people liked him. He was
definitely more austere than the others. He would never ask for special
quarters. Vishnujana Maharaja stood out in his giving of himself to the
temple, to the devotees, in taking out the harināma party, with his
enthusiasm, and by his austerity too. He didn’t demand respect, but he
commanded it.
Taking the opportunity of Prabhupada’s presence, Vishnujana wants to

arrange a private darshan for his entire party. Dayal Chandra and
Riksaraj are now ready for brāhmaṇa initiation. Maharaja is
transcendentally proud of his men and he wants to surprise them,
“C’mon. I’m going to take you in to see Srila Prabhupada!” The
devotees are astonished.
The sun is shining brightly through the windows as they enter

Prabhupada’s quarters. Basking in the sunlight, Prabhupada sits very
simply on a small mat on the floor. He wears no kurtā, just a dhoti. He
has a huge smile on his face from ear to ear. Everyone immediately
offers obeisances. They remain standing before Prabhupada but he bids
them to sit on the floor with him in a semi-circle.
Vishnujana introduces the brahmacārīs one by one, telling something

about each one’s service. Prabhupada doesn’t say anything. He sits
quietly looking at his disciples and appreciating them as he nods his
head and keeps smiling.
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Vishnujana mentions that this is the sankirtan party that won a category
in Ramesvara’s BBT Newsletter and received special praise for their
distribution of his books. To the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs, that
award never registered as being anything of great significance. They
were just doing their service. However, Srila Prabhupada’s eyes
immediately open wide as he remarks, “Yes, brahmacārīs and sannyāsī.
Go on and increase. Keep on doing what you are doing.” He is pleased.
The mood is intimate and sweet although Prabhupada doesn’t say much.
Suhotra: When Vishnujana introduced me particularly as the sankirtan

leader, Srila Prabhupada beamed his transcendental Vaikuntha smile. It
was personally satisfying for me although no real words were
exchanged. When I took initiation in Boston it was a special pastime in
which Srila Prabhupada acknowledged me as his disciple. It was a very
sweet occasion. Then at this meeting Prabhupada was obviously pleased
with my service.
This was like a confirmation that Prabhupada appreciated my service. I

found that completely satisfying. I was never one to put myself forward
to get Prabhupada’s attention, so I just saw this as Krishna’s
arrangement, confirming that I have a relationship with Prabhupada and
that he is accepting and appreciating my service.
The nature of the Radha-Damodara party then was more like a family.
We weren’t into designations. That’s why when we won a category it
was no big deal for us. I never considered myself the sankirtan leader.
We were just distributing books. The sankirtan party meant, whoever
was there would get into the van. I drove the van because the others
didn’t have a driver’s license. Because I drove the van I planned out
where we’d go. Sri Vallabha was with us and he had a great deal of
experience. He was a veteran book distributor. When he was on the
party I used to think of him as the sankirtan leader, although there was
no official designation.
Most of the Radha-Damodara devotees have second initiation except
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Dayal Chandra and Riksaraj. Vishnujana Swami makes the most of the
occasion by recommending them for brāhmaṇa initiation. As Maharaja
speaks, Srila Prabhupada never takes his eyes off Vishnujana; he is
completely absorbed in everything Maharaja is saying. When
Vishnujana is finished speaking, Srila Prabhupada says, “Yes, whatever
you say is all right.”
Dayal Chandra: When we went in to see Srila Prabhupada, I was

expecting him to be sitting on a vyāsāsana like when he was giving a
lecture. But when we walked in Prabhupada was sitting on the floor.
Vishnujana told him what we were doing and recommended us for
second initiation.
To me that association with Prabhupada was just like sitting there with
Krishna and the cowherd boys. That’s what Prabhupada was like. He
was just like a young boy, sitting there with a big smile on his face with
no pretense about anything. It was like seeing his real self. That was the
kind of relationship he had with Vishnujana Swami.
His relationship was just completely somewhere in the spiritual world.

Srila Prabhupada was just beaming sitting there on the floor. He hardly
said anything; he was just smiling. Everything that Vishnujana said
Prabhupada replied, “Yes. Wonderful. Keep on. Increase.”
Vishnujana asks Prabhupada if devotees can wear western clothing.

During this time, western attire is gradually being adopted in order to
increase book distribution. It began in Los Angeles with Karandhar, the
GBC, and a gṛhastha named Tripurari. Together they are championing
this arrangement. The Los Angeles devotees have had great success
going out in western clothes to distribute books in malls and at the
airport. Prabhupada gives sanction that they can put on proper western
clothing to distribute books but they should not dress as hippies.
Tripurari is training book distributors who fly in to Los Angeles from

temples all over the country to learn the new techniques. Prabhupada
had written Ramesvara in February congratulating the Los Angeles
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devotees for their increased book distribution results, “I must express
my appreciation for Sriman Tripurari Prabhu’s outstanding service, as
well as all the devotees in your party.”
Due to the increased sankirtan results many book distributors are

inspired by Tripurari’s example, and the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs
are no exception.
Although western dress is a minor controversy in ISKCON, Prabhupada

already gave the standard policy dress code years earlier. The following
letter, written in 1968, is indicative of the standard Prabhupada expects
for disciples.
The next point is that you should dress just like perfect American
gentlemen, but the sikha and tilak must be very prominent. Coat, pants,
necktie, and everything, brahmacari and grhasthas, they can put on,
because you are not Sannyasi. In the temple, you can dress as
brahmacari, but in order not to become ridiculous in the eyes of others,
outside you should dress just like a very nice perfect aristocratic
American. So there is no objection. But we must always have our tilak
and sikha and there is no compromise for this purpose. [Letter to
Brahmananda - October 6, 1968]
And now in 1973, he is reaffirming this same policy.
Regarding selling books in Karmic clothes; yes, it may be done, there is

no harm. This book distribution and Ratha Yatra Festivals should go on
all over the world. [Letter to Madhudvisa - August 7, 1973]
On April 13, Srila Prabhupada returns to the airport to catch his flight to
Los Angeles where he plans to stay for more than a month. He is
followed by a convoy of devotee vehicles. Many devotees crowd into
the Departures Lounge to bid their spiritual master farewell. His stay in
New York has rejuvenated everyone’s determination to push on book
distribution.
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During this time in New York, Aja leaves the Radha-Damodara party.
Rupanuga Goswami needs a brahmacārī assistant to work with him, so
he approaches Vishnujana Swami to help him out with a man. Maharaja
is happy to be of assistance and agrees to lend a hand. After careful
consideration he recommends Aja.
The Radha-Damodara party is also leaving New York. They will drive
north to Boston. But before leaving, they pop into the Salvation Army
and St Vincent de Paul’s to get secondhand clothing. They purchase
nice-looking outfits so they can dress smartly for distributing books
without spending a lot of money.
Boston, April 13, 1973

Boston is a little off the beaten path. Nevertheless, the people of this
northern city are also in dire need of the mercy of Sri Sri Radha-
Damodara. The temple is still on North Beacon Street in Allston, which
Vishnujana Swami visited when the Road Show was in full swing.
Previously, it was an old funeral home that the devotees have now
remodeled.
Vishnujana Maharaja orchestrates carrying Radha-Damodara out of the

bus and up the stairs in Their altar palanquin and places Them on the
altar beside Radha- Gopivallabha. As usual, Vishnujana Swami leads
ecstatic kirtans and classes enlivening the local devotees.
Sumati Devi is still doing pūjārī service and has also taken over the
sewing for the Deities. She has only been in the movement for a year
and has never sewn before, but now she is responsible for sewing
clothes for God. Although she is a little doubtful about her ability to
serve the Deities, still she does the best she can. However, after a
remark from a visiting devotee that the Deities’ clothes were the ugliest
he had ever seen, she becomes distraught. She has no idea what to do
because nobody else in the temple knows how to sew either.
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The following morning, as both she and Vishnujana Swami are dressing
the Deities, she reveals her predicament to Maharaja.
Sumati dd: When I spoke to Vishnujana Swami he was so kind. He just

said, “Krishna accepts the devotion, and the care, and the endeavor.
Don’t worry about what somebody else might say about it. I think They
are beautiful.”
After breakfast prasādam, Vishnujana wants to go to the Boston

Commons for chanting and distributing books. Of course, Maharaja
doesn’t like to go anywhere without Radha-Damodara so They are taken
back to the bus accompanied by kirtan as Sri Galim fans them with a
cāmara whisk. Watching the procession, a visiting guest decides he
wants to go with the devotees just to see what the chanting is all about.
Niranjana: I had never seen the devotees chanting before. When I saw
Vishnujana Swami chanting, the very first impression that went through
my mind was, I want to become a devotee. That’s exactly how I was
feeling when I saw him because the air he manifested around him was
so blissful. It wasn’t until I actually saw Vishnujana Swami that I
believed becoming a devotee was the next step that I had to take.
Just by being in his presence I thought, if somebody is relishing Krishna

consciousness as much as he is, then I’m a fool if I don’t become a
devotee. I started coming regularly while he was here just to spend time
on the Commons chanting with him.
On Sunday evening, as Vishnujana Swami is doing the final ārati for

Radha- Damodara, Vivasvan comes onto the bus to watch him perform
the pūjā. Everyone else is still in the temple room striking up friendships
with interested guests so it is just the two of them on the bus.
Vivasvan: Vishnujana Swami inspired me in quite a few ways. In his

lectures he would speak on the Nectar of Devotion so beautifully,
exactly as Prabhupada presented it. He would talk about the different
mellows of devotion and the regulations for deity worship. It was almost
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like he was a walking Nectar of Devotion. He had a very unique deity
schedule. Radha- Damodara had six āratis every day but they were
short. The last one at night was a full ārati. At the end of the ārati
Maharaja took a mechanic’s lamp that was just sitting there, and he
offered that to the Deities!
After the Sunday feast program the Radha-Damodara bus is ready to

leave Boston. The Boston devotees consider it a great loss and they try
to persuade Maharaja to stay another week, but Vishnujana is eager to
get to California. He hasn’t been out west since the 1971 Ratha-yatra
festival when he took the first Austin devotees to receive initiation and
meet Srila Prabhupada.
Suhotra has a secret plan that he hasn’t revealed to Vishnujana Swami.

It was the main reason he pressed Vishnujana to go up north to Boston
rather than head southwest to California. One of Suhotra’s good friends
is Ramacharya. He joined the Boston temple when Suhotra was the
sankirtan leader and they used to go out together. Ramacharya was one
of the big distributors at the time. He was never well known beyond
Boston, so he was an unsung sankirtan dynamo.
When Suhotra joined the Radha-Damodara party he kept in contact with

Ramacharya, exchanging letters once in a while. Ramacharya
remembered how Vishnujana Swami had nursed the Boston TSKP back
to good health in Houston after they returned from a negative
experience in Mexico. At that time he deepened his attraction for
Radha-Damodara.
Reading Suhotra’s letters about the pastimes of the party, Ramacharya’s

attachment intensifies. During one communication he indicates that if
Suhotra would come and pick him up, he’d leave with him and join the
bus party. After receiving this indication, Suhotra hatches a plan to go
up to Boston.
Unfortunately, Ramacharya is not at the temple when the Radha-

Damodara party arrives. At first Suhotra is disappointed. But by
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speaking with another former confidant he learns that Ramacharya is at
the small preaching center in Provincetown, with Adi Keshava and
Somadatta. Provincetown is a tourist resort on the Cape Cod National
Seashore. In the summer it’s a big place for book distribution and
sankirtan.
Although Vishnujana always wants to get an early start on a Monday

morning, it’s not until after Bhagavatam class and honoring prasādam
that he is finally able to get back on the road. Suhotra says that he
prefers to do a little sankirtan in the area before
heading south. He gets permission from Vishnujana Swami and they

agree that his van party will rendezvous with the bus in Philadelphia.
After a successful day of book distribution Suhotra gathers his men, Sri
Vallabha, Vishnudatta, and Riksaraj to explain his plan.
“First we’re gonna drive to Provincetown before meeting Maharaja in

Philadelphia.”
“What for?” Sri Vallabha wants to know. “It’s a long way out of our
way and it’s already late in the day. We’ll be driving all night before we
reach Philly.”
“Yeah, but we’re going to pick up an old friend of mine who wants to
join the party. He’s the big distributor in New England and he’s fried
with the temple. He wants to join up, associate with Maharaja, and serve
Radha-Damodara.”
“Oh yeah?” Riksaraj chimes in. “Is he a hot kirtan man?”
“Actually, he’s more the pūjārī type, but his strong point is book
distribution. He’ll be a great asset to the party.” On the way down to the
cape Suhotra continues telling the others about Ramacharya’s exploits
as a sankirtan devotee. He relates the story of when Ramacharya was on
Pyari Mohan’s party distributing KRSNA books.
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“This is one of the wild and woolly early ISKCON sankirtan stories.
They were driving down this highway and they overtake a car with this
guy driving all alone. Pyari was driving and Ramacharya was sitting in
the shotgun seat. So he rolls down his window and starts talking to this
man and shows him a KRSNA book. He was showing him the pictures
and the man was looking and driving and then Ramacharya starts selling
it to him!
“The man says, ‘How much?’ ‘Just five bucks,’ says Ramacharya. And
then both cars pulled off the road. Ramacharya gives him the book,
accepts the lakṣmī, and then he gets back in the car with Pyari and they
drive off. I’m telling you, he is extremely enthusiastic.” The
brahmacārīs enjoy this story, along with the others that Suhotra tells to
keep them entertained.
By the time they round the cape and begin closing in on Provincetown,
night has already fallen. It’s been a long drive from Boston. “I know
Ramacharya,” Suhotra continues, trying to fire up the others who are
wondering if this might be a wild goose chase. They are getting a little
restless with all this driving in the opposite direction from Philadelphia.
“He’ll still be on the street, because he just loves to distribute,” Suhotra

assures the others. “If we’re lucky everyone else will have gone back to
base, and he’ll be out there alone. You’ll see. It’ll be worth the hassle to
get Ramacharya.”
They finally reach the tip of the cape and head towards the tourist area,
a crowded, narrow avenue, which is the main drag in Provincetown.
Suhotra drives slowly looking left and right.
“That’s him!” Suhotra exclaims excitedly as he spots Ramacharya

distributing books in his saffron dhoti. Suhotra pulls up the van and rolls
down his window.
“Ramacharya, get in!” Seeing the devotees waiting for him,

Ramacharya immediately jumps in and the van speeds off. After
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everyone becomes acquainted with Ramacharya they accept him into
the family. Now, they start thinking about bedding down for the night.
The next day, after the morning program, Sri Vallabha suggests they
distribute books on their way down to Philadelphia, so the party stops
somewhere in New York state for a day of sankirtan.
In the meantime, the Boston temple president gets an early morning call
from Adi Keshava at the Provincetown preaching center. “Prabhu,
Ramacharya seems to have disappeared. He didn’t return to the ashram
last night. And we haven’t seen him back this morning.”
Trai Das is instantly in alarm mode. The last time Vishnujana Swami
came to Boston with the Road Show, Suhotra had left; and now
Ramacharya is missing. Putting two and two together, Trai begins
interviewing the brahmacārīs and learns that Suhotra had been inquiring
about Ramacharya. He realizes that Suhotra has just abducted his star
distributor. His mood is like that of a bull who has just seen red. Trai
Das learns that the Radha-Damodara bus was heading for the
Philadelphia temple. He asks Adi Keshava to join him, and soon they on
their way to Philadelphia.
Trai Das: I was tracking them down. First, Suhotra left and ran off with
the Road Show when I arrived as temple president. I was very angry
because he was our sankirtan leader and main man. Then, Suhotra came
back secretly trying to get Ramacharya. I was agitated because we lost
two of our best sankirtan devotees. I was on the other side in those days.
Later, I went over to them and joined the party!
Philadelphia, April 1973

Ravindra Swarupa informs the devotees that he has just been in contact
with Vishnujana Swami. “He will be coming to visit our temple for a
few days.” Explaining a little about Maharaja’s talents, Ravindra
becomes enthused that the weight will be off his shoulders for a while.
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He closes with a promise, “Maharaja always gives nectar classes and, of
course, incredible kirtans.”
The Philadelphia devotees have increased energy for devotional service

since seeing Srila Prabhupada in New York a few weeks back.
Setubandha: I had all this momentum in devotional service by seeing

Srila Prabhupada soon after joining. A few weeks later I heard that
Vishnujana Swami and the Radha-Damodara party were coming to visit.
I understood that this devotee was highly respected. But the thing that
stood out in my mind was how everyone spoke of him with tremendous
affection.
I thought, This is amazing. This man can’t have been around very long.
Prabhupada hasn’t been in America very long, and yet so much emotion
is being generated, so he must be a very unusual individual. Devotees
had a great desire for his association. It was almost bordering on how
they felt about Prabhupada.
Setubandha is attracted to strong charismatic leaders, because he’s quite

young and is looking for guidance in his life. His service as a
brahmacārī is to clean the entire temple and to serve the guests. He is
expecting the imminent arrival of Vishnujana Swami. By seeing how
other devotees interact, he understands that to get the nectar of quality
association one must physically serve the devotees. He has already met
senior devotees from other temples that come to give class. By offering
to wash their cloth he has received extra association. He utilizes these
special moments to inquire deeper about devotional service and to
resolve doubts in his mind. He has already formulated a plan that when
Vishnujana Swami comes he will get all the nectar. He isn’t going to
ask, he’s just going to take all the service he can get.
The bus is expected sometime in the afternoon. Setubandha is busy

cleaning the prasādam hall after devotees have finished lunch. As he
works he thinks about the morning Bhagavatam class. All of a sudden
he hears footsteps and the door opens. An interesting man walks in and
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sits down with a harmonium. He starts chanting Hare Krishna nicely and
Setubandha offers his respects.
Setubandha: There was no one else in the room. He had not asked for
water or prasādam. He was obviously an older devotee. His eyes were
closed and he was chanting with deep concentration and great devotion.
His voice was phenomenally attractive. I had never heard any chanting
like that. This went on for about fifteen minutes. It was just him and I in
the prasādam room.
Setubandha is busy mopping up and straightening things, when he

notices that the devotee has stopped chanting. He asks if there’s
anything that he needs.
“No, I’m fine. Thank you very much.” “May I ask your name?”
“My name is Vishnujana.”
Setubandha: Not even Vishnujana Swami! He was introducing himself

so humbly. So I offered my respects. I understood how powerful that
moment was. He was so simple and humble and pure, but I knew before
he came that he had a great station in ISKCON. That he was not
expecting any unusual respect or treatment, from the first moment, won
me over to him.
From that moment on Setubandha becomes instantly attached to having

more association. He is always around Vishnujana Swami. Seeing his
instant attachment for Maharaja is a cause of anxiety for Ravindra
Swarupa. The Radha-Damodara party is becoming known for seducing
young, sincere, hardworking brahmacārīs away from the temple and
onto the bus. Setubandha can see immediately why this is the case. But
he has already given his word to Ravindra that, as attractive as the
proposition may sound, he will stay because the temple is in tremendous
need of help.
While Vishnujana Maharaja is happily preaching in Philadelphia, he has
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no idea that a political uproar is brewing. Later that day, Trai Das and
Adi Keshava arrive at the temple. They see Suhotra’s van is not there,
and neither is Ramacharya. They park across the street with Vishnujana
Swami’s bus in view and wait for the sankirtan van to return. Their plan
is to take Ramacharya back, by force, if necessary.
Since Suhotra’s party has decided to do sankirtan on the way back, the
Boston devotees quickly get tired of waiting. Vishnujana Maharaja
becomes aware of their presence and becomes annoyed. “Who are these
devotees waiting for my sankirtan men?” Realizing they have been
discovered, Trai Das and Adi Keshava approach Maharaja on the bus. In
their minds the full blame is on his shoulders.
“Vishnujana Maharaja, why are you stealing our devotees?” Trai says
bluntly in an irritated mood.
Vishnujana has no idea what he means. He simply looks at Trai Das,

wondering why these Boston devotees are so angry. Realizing that
Vishnujana is unaware of the drama behind the scene, they are
convinced that Maharaja doesn’t know anything about the matter. Trai
and Adi Keshava quickly come to a decision to return to Boston.
Adi Keshava: Suhotra came in the middle of the night and picked up
Ramacharya. That was a big political thing. But, basically, Ramacharya
wanted to go with Radha-Damodara, so he went. Trai Das drove down
to Philly to see Vishnujana Swami. I thought Vishnujana was really
cool, so I got to hang out with him and Radha-Damodara. In the
meantime, I was becoming more convinced of Maharaja’s program the
more I knew about it.
Finally, Suhotra shows up in the evening with the sankirtan party.

Vishnujana is happy to see them back. When Ramacharya is introduced,
Maharaja says, “Oh, so this is the cause of all the trouble.”
Vishnujana is inclined to return Ramacharya to Boston because he

doesn’t want to cause friction between devotees. But Suhotra influences
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Maharaja to accept Ramacharya, and he finally agrees. Immediately,
Ramacharya becomes a happy member of the party. He falls in love
with Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara and, with his prior experience as a tailor,
he soon begins making outfits and crowns for Them. It is years before
the Boston temple forgives Suhotra.
Vishnujana Maharaja is very strict with Radha-Damodara’s worship. As

he trains Ramacharya to do the pūjā for Radha-Damodara, Ramacharya
becomes a little fearful of Vishnujana. But he learns how to dress
Radha-Damodara and is always in an awe and reverential mood with
Maharaja, as is everyone. It’s not long before Ramacharya becomes one
of Radha-Damodara’s regular pūjārīs.
Pyari Mohan: Ramacharya was extremely enthusiastic to distribute

books, but when he joined the Radha-Damodara party he wanted to be a
pūjārī. He was completely into being a pūjārī, but because he was such a
big sankirtan man, the “higher-ups” wanted him to go out. So he did
both.
Early next morning after maṅgala-ārati the temple brahmacārīs climb

onto the Radha-Damodara bus, which is packed with devotees chanting
japa. Vishnujana Swami is dressing Radha-Damodara behind the altar
curtains. However, his feet always stick out because the quarters are so
small. The resident brahmacārīs enjoy sitting near his feet to chant japa.
Setubandha is fascinated to think that just behind the curtain Vishnujana

Swami is bathing and dressing the Deities. It’s very intimate because
they can see Maharaja’s hands moving behind the curtain. Setubandha is
trying to imagine what is happening on the altar because paraphernalia
is continually going in and out.
Setubandha: To be near Radha-Krishna Deities being tended to up close

was so fine. The bus was there to get cleaned up and the devotees were
getting a break from being on the road. I remember a tall elegant
brāhmaṇa named Sri Galim. He was a pūjārī and head brāhmaṇa. I was
very drawn to deity worship, so I made it a point to talk with him to get
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a feel for what the standards were.
There was one really wild devotee named Vishnudatta. He was a very
expert mṛdaṅga player and a bit of an eccentric personality, almost like
a Chicago gangster. His face was a little bit tucked to one side. He had a
rough way of speaking, but he was a real character and a lot of fun to
have around. He was very attractive to me because I wanted to learn
how to play mṛdaṅga, and I was very attracted to kirtan.
Every morning and afternoon Maharaja comes over to the brahmacārī

ashram to use the shower and many brahmacārīs gather to witness the
event. Vishnujana doesn’t have a minute to himself if anyone knows
he’s around. Even when he’s putting on his dhoti, the brahmacārīs are
also dressing right next to him and plying him with questions.
Setubandha is naive about ISKCON standards, but he has a powerful

desire to live like a monk. He thinks that he wants to be just like
Maharaja. In front of twenty devotees he suddenly asks “What do I have
to do to become a sannyāsī like you?” Right away everyone begins
laughing. Vishnujana calms them down and makes them understand it’s
a reasonable question for a new bhakta.
“That’s a very nice question, actually,” Maharaja replies. “But your

business now is to not worry about how to become a sannyāsī. Just
practice Krishna consciousness nicely, and then Krishna will reveal to
you details like that later on. So practice your hearing and chanting, and
become absorbed in serving Srila Prabhupada. Then, this will all fall
into place for you.”
Setubandha: I was an innocent brahmacārī at age eighteen. I didn’t

understand to express that desire publicly was considered pretentious. It
really struck me that, even though it was a good occasion for laughter
and there was no harm done, yet he was so sensitive as a preacher. He
could see that I was naive and the laughter might bother me, so he
protected me in front of all the devotees. That really touched me.
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I realized later that I should have been laughed at, and it was acceptable,
but I was so touched by his reaction. I resolved that in the future if I
should have any difficulty, and if I needed association and an answer to
an intimate question in devotional service, that I would seek him out
because his heart was so kind. Not just that he was learned. But I trusted
his devotional sentiment because he showed concern for the feelings of
others. Even from the very beginning, not even understanding
devotional service, that was the most important symptom of a devotee to
me; being considerate of others, first and foremost. Not just being
determined to preach or instruct others.
While in Philadelphia, Vishnujana Swami is continually coming and

going to the temple pūjārī room looking for items to serve Radha-
Damodara. Setubandha is always there running behind him, assisting
him, showing him where this or that is, and just being a little gopher for
him. During the past three days he has made various attempts to serve
Maharaja personally by offering massage.
Vishnujana turns him down, even though Ravindra affirms that he gives
a good massage. Maharaja, however, is reluctant to accept so luxurious
a service.
Setubandha: I got to wash his garments, but he was anxious that I

wanted to iron them. He was very reluctant to receive first class service,
even though I knew that it was helpful to me. He was very careful not to
accept too much. He accepted whatever was reasonable, whatever
he might do for himself, but even then he was accepting in the mood
that he was so busy he didn’t have time to do it himself. My feeling was
that he really honestly only accepted it in the mood that it might be good
for the devotee. He didn’t expect anything for himself and I was very
impressed by that. I understood by the way other devotees were treating
him that actually we should offer him ten times what he was taking. And
his humility was very natural. It was part and parcel of who he was. I
saw so much in just three days, because I was inclined to observe him
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carefully. I gained a tremendous affection for him over a short period of
time.
As soon as he finds an opportune moment alone with Maharaja,

Setubandha approaches him privately with a specific question. He wants
to reveal his most intimate desire to become a brāhmaṇa and a pūjārī. At
the same time he doesn’t mind going out on the street, and he would do
so to serve Srila Prabhupada, but his first desire is to serve the Deities.
“How can I become a pūjārī?” He is expecting an answer that is quite

technical and involved because pūjārī work has many rules and
regulations that one must become absorbed in.
“Well, first and foremost, you should practice becoming clean. Of

course, clean in your bodily habits.” Maharaja gives very precise
instructions for bodily cleanliness, beyond what Setubandha has already
been given as a brahmacārī. “And you become clean in your mentality.
You must also have a very soft heart for the devotees, otherwise the
Deities will not care to be approached by you.”
Setubandha: I was struck by how he grasped the essence of what the

movement was about. Even though these conversations were brief, they
are some of the strongest memories I have outside of relating directly to
Srila Prabhupada, because there was so much potency and so much
sincerity in Vishnujana.
In Philadelphia we had Jagannath Deities. When we went up to New

York and I saw Radha-Govinda for the first time I was completely
blown away, just totally in awe. I thought that I would move to the New
York temple as soon as was appropriate and take up Their worship.
When I saw Radha-Damodara for the first time I was actually a little
anxious that They were being polished, and my mind was reticent
thinking, Maybe They are actually brass. It was hard for me to see Them
because I was so neophyte. So I prayed to Radha-Damodara, I have no
attraction. Please reveal to me why You are so attractive to Vishnujana
Swami. He is serving You so nicely, so I know that You’re really very
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beautiful. Eventually I acquired some taste. They are unique Deities,
very potent, very sweet. Krishna’s arms are so strong.
With the sankirtan van back and Ramacharya accepted as the newest
member of the Radha-Damodara TSKP, Vishnujana Swami is ready to
leave for Pittsburgh. Srila Prabhupada has instructed him to go there and
oversee the initiation of several new devotees on his behalf. The fire
yajña is scheduled for Sunday afternoon, prior to the Love Feast, so that
the guests can experience a Vedic ceremony. After four days of nectar
association the Philadelphia devotees are already feeling pangs of
separation as they watch the bus and the van drive out of the compound
and down the road.
Pittsburgh, April 1973

With so many young people joining the movement in droves worldwide,
it has become impractical for Prabhupada to personally initiate every
individual. He has, therefore, instituted a system whereby his most
senior disciples will conduct the initiation ceremony on his behalf as
officiating priests.
The first step is a letter of recommendation to Prabhupada from a temple

president, confirming that certain devotees are ready for initiation. Then
Srila Prabhupada will chant on the required sets of beads and post them
in time for the yajña. Finally, Prabhupada will designate a particular
sannyāsī, or GBC man, to perform the fire yajña at the initiation
ceremony. In this way, Prabhupada has been able to initiate thousands
of new devotees without actually being present at each and every center.
By the end of 1972, however, so many new people have joined the
movement that there is a need to further modify the system. Prabhupada
writes to Kirtanananda Swami explaining that he is delegating him to
chant on beads for devotees in America and Canada. In many of the
letters that Srila Prabhupada writes during January, he takes the
opportunity to explain the system.
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My Dear Revatinandana,
Please accept my blessings. Just now I have received some more

requests for giving first initiation from Dhananjaya, and now I am
receiving weekly not less than ten to fifteen such requests from new
students. So it is becoming very expensive to send so many sets of beads
such long distance, and it has become little bothersome for me also. So I
think now you may be appointed by me to give first initiations to new
disciples by chanting on their beads on my behalf. In America
Kirtanananda Swami is doing that. So now, if there are two of you, that
will give me great relief. Kirtanananda will chant on the beads for new
devotees in America, Canada, like that, and you can chant on the beads
for the European continent new disciples. They shall, of course, still be
considered as my disciples, not that they shall become your disciples,
but you will be empowered by me to chant on their beads and that is the
same effect of binding master and disciple as if I were personally
chanting. They may continue to send me their letters of request, along
with the President’s recommendation, and I shall give them a name and
it will be entered by my Secretary in our records. Only I will send my
letter of reply to you and you will purchase beads there and chant on
them and send, along with my letter, to the new initiates. Is that all
right?
I shall continue to deal with the matter of second initiations. The sacred
threads do not require so much postage to send airmail. [Letter to
Revatinandana - January 4, 1973]
Revatinandana: Prabhupada empowered me to initiate devotees on his

behalf, but I didn’t feel fit to chant on their beads. So he said, “No, it is
not like that. Because I am telling you to do it, therefore it is pure. Just
chant rounds like you usually do, and do your best to chant purely as
always.”
Prabhupada also begins utilizing modern technology regarding

brāhmaṇa initiation. The following letter illustrates his method of
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utilizing tape recorders to convey the Gayatri mantra.
My dear Bhutatma,
Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter

dated December 18, 1972, forwarded to me here at Bombay. I am very
happy to hear from you that everything is going nicely in the San
Francisco temple. Upon your recommendation I am very glad to accept
the six new students as my duly initiated disciples. Their letter is
enclosed herewith. As for chanting on their beads, I have delegated
Kirtanananda Swami to chant on the new devotees’ beads on my behalf
in your country. In Europe, Revatinandana Swami will chant on the new
devotees’ beads on my behalf. Because it is such long distance,
therefore it is very expensive to send beads airmail from here, and there
are so many instances of the beads being lost in that way. And I am
getting now requests up to 20 or 30 each week, so it is practically
becoming impossible for me to chant the beads when I am so far distant.
Therefore the new devotees may send their beads to Kirtanananda in
New Vrindaban, and he will chant the beads and send back to them. Is
this all right?
Now hold the fire yajna and give also second initiation to Sarvadarsan,
Yajnapati, and Hari Vallabha. Enclosed please find three sacred threads,
duly chanted by me, along with three copies of Gayatri mantra. Hold the
fire yajna for all nine devotees. And for the second initiates teach them
how to chant on the finger divisions and play for them the tape of me
reciting Gayatri mantra into their right ear. [Letter to Bhutatma –
January 5, 1973]
There are some Gaudiya Vaishnavas who preach that pure

transcendental sound vibration, śabda-brahma, cannot be transmitted by
technology. It can only be transmitted in person by a pure devotee, they
say. However, here Srila Prabhupada is giving a higher understanding.
He has recorded a tape of his chanting the Gayatri mantra which is now
being used to initiate his disciples into the brahminical stage of
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devotional service. If, as they say, the transcendental sound vibration of
Gayatri cannot be reproduced electronically, then many of Prabhupada’s
disciples were cheated and did not receive the Gayatri mantra at all.
Regrettably, lesser Vaishnavas with a poorer fund of knowledge come
to a conclusion that leads to Vaishnava aparādha because this false
understanding implies that Srila Prabhupada was unaware of what he
was doing.
Many people have become Krishna devotees simply by listening to the

beautiful songs of George Harrison and chants of Indian devotional
singers. So what to speak of hearing Prabhupada’s recorded classes?
That’s how so many westerners became devotees. If the spiritual sound
vibration was not imparted, then how did so many persons give up
material life for spiritual life?
The argument loses further credibility when applied to books. Srila

Prabhupada herein elucidates:
Why distinguish between chanting and book distribution? These books I

have recorded and chanted, and they are transcribed. It is spoken kirtan.
So book distribution is also chanting. These are not ordinary books. It is
recorded chanting. Anyone who reads, he is hearing. [Letter to
Rupanuga – October 19, 1974]
One may wonder why such disparities among Vaishnavas exist. The
answer is always based on a misunderstanding of śāstra. This is
explained by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
prabhu kahe, śruti, smṛti, yata ṛṣi-gaṇa
sabe ‘eka’-mata nahe, bhinna bhinna dharma
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu replied, “The Vedas, Puranas, and great

learned sages are not always in agreement with one another.
Consequently there are different religious principles.” [CC, Madhya
17.184]
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In his purport to this verse, Srila Prabhupada states, “Unless one comes
to the Absolute Truth, there is no possibility of agreement.” Therefore,
only on the platform of absolute truth can there be agreement.
Regarding this particular issue, the consequence is clearly enunciated by
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and he uses the great saint Madhavendra
Puri as an example.
dharma-sthāpana-hetu sādhura vyavahāra purī-gosāñira ye ācaraṇa, sei

dharma sāra
“A devotee’s behavior establishes the true purpose of religious

principles. The behavior of Madhavendra Puri Goswami is the essence
of such religious principles.”
Lord Chaitanya immediately offers śāstra-pramāṇa to prove this point

by quoting Yuddishtira Maharaja from the Mahabharata, Vana-parva
[313.117].
tarko ‘pratiṣṭhaḥśrutayo vibhinnā nāsāv ṛṣir yasya mataṁ na bhinnam

dharmasya tattvaṁ nihitaṁ guhāyāṁ mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu continued, “Dry arguments are inconclusive.

A great personality whose opinion does not differ from others is not
considered a great sage. Simply by studying the Vedas, which are
variegated, one cannot come to the right path by which religious
principles are understood. The solid truth of religious principles is
hidden in the heart of an unadulterated, self-realized person.
Consequently, as the śāstras confirm, one should accept whatever
progressive path the mahājanas advocate.” [CC, Madhya 17.186]
Therefore, the conclusion of śāstra is that true dharma always resides in

the heart of the mahā-bhagavata Vaishnava. And following such
advanced Vaishnavas is actually the approved path of dharma. As far as
initiated disciples of Srila Prabhupada are concerned, they really have
no option but to accept his version. This is stated by Sarvabhauma
Bhattacharya and accepted by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. “The order of
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the spiritual master is very strong and cannot be disobeyed. That is the
injunction of the śāstras, the revealed scriptures. [CC, Madhya 10.144]
As usual, the truth is simple. But complicated minds make everything

appear complicated.
Since Vishnujana Swami is now in Pittsburgh, Prabhupada requests

Maharaja to perform the fire yajña for the new initiates on his behalf.
The chanting on the beads and the performing of the fire sacrifice are
formal rituals that Prabhupada no longer has time to perform with the
movement growing so fast worldwide. Therefore, he delegates these
formal functions to his leading students under the direct order of the
Supreme Lord, because Srila Prabhupada never does anything that is
whimsical or unauthorized. Real initiation always takes place in the
heart of the initiate with the acceptance of vāṇī, devotional wisdom.
Along with that is a change of consciousness to offer everything as
service to God.
Nari dd: When Vishnujana Swami came with his bus party he
performed my fire sacrifice along with Chandra Bhanu, Brahma Das,
and some others. Srila Prabhupada wrote a letter accepting us as his
disciples and said it would be just as potent if somebody else did the fire
yajña because he was accepting us. Vishnujana Swami was there, so
Srila Prabhupada had him do it. When he was chanting it was just so
pure, so potent, with so much spiritual energy. It’s pure when anyone
chants, practically, but I just felt the potency that much more. There was
so much dancing and jumping when he led the kirtan afterwards.
Also present at the Pittsburgh temple is Rama Das, who met Vishnujana
Swami in Miami’s Peacock Park over the New Year. Later, he had gone
to the Washington, DC, temple and met the same Pittsburgh TSKP
members who had introduced him to Krishna consciousness in Florida.
He has now joined that traveling party with Mahendra, Brahma Das, and
Chandra Bhanu and is back with them in Pittsburgh to see the initiation
ceremony.
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After the initiations, Vishnujana Swami sits with two initiates, Brahma
Das and Chandra Bhanu, to honor prasādam. Rama Das also sits with
them to hear Vishnujana Maharaja tell a story about Radha-Damodara’s
wonderful mercy.
“Radha-Damodara actually saved my spiritual life,” Maharaja says. “I

had a dream one night. I was dreaming of a beautiful woman and I was
going off with her. But at the last moment I looked at my watch and it
was time to do Radha-Damodara’s ārati. So I immediately said to her, ‘I
have to go. I have an ārati to do now.’ So I jumped up and ran off. In
this way, Radha-Damodara saved me.”
Detroit, April 1973

Detroit is the automobile manufacturing center of America. The city
also has a nice Radha-Krishna temple with a full program of opulent
Deity worship. Govardhan and his wife, Sitarani, take wonderful care of
Sri Sri Radha-Kunjabihari, Who are especially beautiful. Govardhan is
very personable and well respected as the temple president. He is like a
father figure and really takes good care of the devotees. He’s a classy
individual with a genuine taste for pūjā. Moreover, Detroit’s Sunday
feast is reputed to have the finest prasādam due to the talented head
cook, Narottamananda.
Every day a sankirtan party goes downtown to Woodward Avenue to

chant and distribute BTGs. They are a motley crew and no one on the
street pays much attention to them.
Udayananda: Our kirtans were pretty sickly, kind of just hanging on for
dear life. All of a sudden, a big white Dodge van pulled up. The door
swung open and this glowing entity came out carrying a huge mṛdaṅga
covered in foam and madras. That was the first time I laid eyes on
Vishnujana Swami. Whenever sannyāsīs came to visit, their reputation
would precede them. Vishnujana’s reputation was that he could enchant
the world by his chanting.
187
He greeted us with, “Haribol,” which was befitting because that was his
real nectar, harināma sankirtan. We offered our obeisances to him right
there on the street.
Vishnujana Swami plays a few licks on the mṛdaṅga, looks at the

sankirtan party and says, “Back to home, back to Godhead!” Then he
begins chanting. The Detroit devotees usually stand in a line and do the
Swami two-step, but Vishnujana starts doing a snake dance, “Let’s get
these people into it.”
Magically, everyone falls in sync, and the kartals play in time as

Maharaja dances down Woodward Avenue with the devotees following
behind him. As he chants he begins spinning around and turning in a
circle with the devotees following along chanting and dancing, having
an ecstatic time.
All of a sudden people start coming out of the woodwork. Previously,

no one has ever paid any heed to the chanting, but now there are about
sixty people standing around watching. Vishnujana continues chanting
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/Hare Rama
Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. The Detroit devotees feel like they
are in Vaikuntha!
At the end of each kirtan the crowd responds with applause and
Vishnujana gives a short talk. “This chanting of Hare Krishna has been
given by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu just to free you from all the anxieties
that you’re feeling in life; to free you from the distresses of the rat race
you’re in.”
Then he begins chanting anew. After a kirtan, he will point to one

brahmacārī to give a talk in front of a hundred people. Most haven’t
been long in the movement and some are not even initiated. They are
uncomfortable with impromptu speaking. Preaching in front of a crowd
on the street is an even more daunting prospect.
Udayananda: I knew he was going to get around to asking me, so I
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prepared a whole speech in my head. I gave sort of a fire and brimstone
speech, and when I finished he turned to me and said, “That was very
nice.” I was on cloud nine just because he recognized me. We didn’t
distribute any books, but we didn’t care – we were just so blissful. He
was playing that mṛdaṅga until his hands were raw. People were
mesmerized. He was like the pied piper.
Vishnujana Swami chants all afternoon non-stop. The Detroit devotees

are exhausted, but Maharaja just doesn’t stop. Udayananda notices a
businessman standing and watching. He approaches him and says,
“You’re actually wasting your life. The goal of human life is for self-
realization and you can’t become happy working hard like an ass from 9
to 5.”
Hearing this, the man opens his wallet and gives Udayananda 50 dollars.
Udayananda realizes that everything Vishnujana Maharaja has been
preaching is really hitting home because the man can understand that
he’s suffering. In return, Udayananda gives the man a Gita.
Subsequently, the man shows up at the Sunday feast program.
At the end of the day, everyone returns to the temple for the full evening
program.
After showering, every devotee is present as Radha-Damodara are

brought in and placed on the altar beside Radha-Kunjabihari.
Vishnujana Swami chants the sandhyā- ārati kirtan accompanied by his
brahmacārīs. Then Maharaja gives the Bhagavad-gita class.
After class, Vishnujana presents his slide show with in-depth

explanations. He has slides of every Deity in the movement and
introduces Them with a concise description. He also relates some nectar
stories about Radha and Krishna from KRSNA Book. From time to time
he sings a bhajan on harmonium accompanied by his men on the other
instruments.
He also has slides of all the holy dhāmas. He gives detailed explanations
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how everything is made of touchstone, how every step is a dance and
every word is a song. Speaking in his unique, articulate way, the words
flow like poetry from his mouth. Everyone agrees it’s been a heavenly
day.
Chicago, April 1973

Chicago is a large metropolis known as the “windy city” due to heavy
gusts coming off its location on Lake Michigan. The 30 devotees in the
temple are dedicated to book distribution. They sell books at the airport,
and the temple is always in the top 10 centers in the monthly BBT
Newsletter. They have plans for the first Chicago Ratha- yatra next year.
The center is financially stable due to the expert management of the
president, Sri Govinda Das, who is very supportive of Vishnujana
Swami.
Another staunch supporter among the Chicago devotees is Parasara Das.

He was formerly “Ron the bead man” when Vishnujana Swami made
him a devotee in Austin. Parasara is always telling stories of Maharaja’s
qualities and exploits and because of this enthusiasm, Vishnujana
Swami has something of a fan club in the Chicago area.
When the Radha-Damodara party arrives in town the whole temple

comes out on the street to greet them. Everybody immediately takes a
liking to Maharaja. He is sweet and kind to the new devotees so they are
happy to discover that everything they’ve heard about him is true. He’s
a legend in his own time and he definitely lives up to his legend status.
The temple has installed large Radha-Krishna Deities in one of the

biggest and best temple rooms in the movement. The devotees worship
Sri-Sri Kishor-Kishori with profuse offerings of flowers and fruits.
When Prabhupada received photos of the Deities and the temple room
from Sri Govinda, he expressed his approval in writing. “I have much
appreciated the pictures of the Deities and Their surroundings. This is
excellent, better than Los Angeles. I have named your Deities Kishor-
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Kishori.” They are the only Deities in ISKCON where Krishna’s name
comes before Radha’s name.
The local devotees follow a daily program of chanting by the lakeshore

in downtown Chicago. A stiff cold wind is blowing in off the lake, so
everyone is dressed warmly as they head out in the sankirtan van.
Vishnujana and his men accompany the sankirtan party to State Street.
Despite the cold, Maharaja continues chanting and playing mṛdaṅga for
hours and hours with enthusiasm.
Urukrama: It was amazing to me because I heard the stories of

Vishnujana Maharaja traveling and doing all these incredible austerities.
Here, he was only wearing a flimsy sweater underneath his kurtā, and
just a dhoti, no hat. And we were all bundled up heavily with clothes
and hats and gloves, long underwear, boots, everything. I was amazed
the way he actually tolerated that cold and kept leading the kirtan. I
observed his daily program and sādhana. The man was really absorbed.
He had an intense morning program, leading maṅgala- ārati, guru-pūjā,
giving the class, and then coming out on the sankirtan party with us.
It was a blissful few days and everyone was very energized by his
presence.
It is not only Maharaja who is making a distinct impression in Chicago.

His men are also outstanding in the minds of the local brahmacārīs.
Vishnudatta, with his expertise on mṛdaṅga, and Sri Vallabha, with his
enthusiasm for book distribution, are very attractive to the resident
devotees.
Some Chicago book distributors like to go out with Sri Vallabha and
Vishnudatta because their style is free and unrestrained. The Radha-
Damodara men are not disciplined like the devotees in Sri Govinda’s
regimented Chicago temple. They are a little independent and do what
they want. Although they’re a free-spirited group of brahmacārīs, they
have a genuine taste for Krishna consciousness along with a knowledge
of śāstra. Thus, they are attractive to the Chicago devotees.
191
Among the guests coming to the center is a university exchange student
from India. Born in a pious Gujarati family, he was raised as a
Vaishnava and knows about Krishna. Seeing Vishnujana Swami’s
devotion, he’s inspired to know more about his own culture and
tradition. He especially likes talking to the Radha-Damodara devotees.
New people prefer easy-going devotees over the heavies.
Yasomatinandana: He only had brahmacārīs on his party and they were

all into kirtan. Everybody was easy-going, laughing and joking. I was a
good friend of Vishnudatta. My distinct impression was that Vishnujana
Swami was charming, affectionate, and humble. He wasn’t on a big
power trip. He was a simple man, so he was very attractive. Whoever
met him became very attracted to Krishna.
One thing about him, even though he was very affectionate, he was also
aloof. He was detached and aloof. When you talked to him he would be
friendly and kind, otherwise he was aloof. He had spiritual power.
As usual, some of the brahmacārīs want to leave the temple and join the
Radha- Damodara party. Most are very young and Vishnujana Maharaja
is senior, so they are awe-struck by his kirtans and classes. They have
not seen or heard anything like Vishnujana Swami in Chicago,
especially his harmonium playing. Maharaja likes to sit in the temple for
hours and sing with harmonium for the Deities. The temple devotees are
always there, chanting along with him.
Vishnujana’s singing, as well as his devotion to Srila Prabhupada,

charms everyone in the temple. He’s always warm and friendly, inviting
the local devotees to come on his bus to experience the lifestyle of a
sannyāsī. Everyone comes because he is famous and Radha-Damodara
are beautiful.
Vasu Ghosh: I remember Vishnujana Swami cooking for Radha-

Damodara on his bus, doing bhajan with him in the temple, and hearing
his classes. I can still to this day remember him chanting the catuḥ-ślokī
Bhagavatam [SB 2.9.33-36, also chatu sloki gita, BG 10.8-11] - aham
192
evāsam evāgre... He gave a lecture on that verse and it was really
impressive. These are the most famous verses in the Bhagavatam. He
was an exceptional lecturer. He could go for an hour and keep
everybody’s attention and make it interesting. He had logic and heart.
He amazed me. All the devotees were awe-struck. Vishnujana was a cult
figure – like a demigod.
Among the bhajans that Vishnujana and his brahmacārīs play for the
Chicago devotees is a song glorifying the guru. This is a new song for
ISKCON but will soon become the standard in every temple. after
ending the bhajan, Maharaja gives the meaning of the song along with
an explanation.
The lotus feet of our Spiritual Master are the only way by which we can
attain pure devotional service. I bow to his lotus feet with great awe and
reverence. By his grace one can cross the ocean of material suffering
and obtain the mercy of Krishna.
My only wish is to have my consciousness purified by the words

emanating from his lotus mouth. Attachment to his lotus feet is the
perfection that fulfills all desires.
He opens my darkened eyes and fills my heart with transcendental

knowledge. He is my Lord birth after birth. From him ecstatic prema
emanates; by him ignorance is destroyed. The Vedic scriptures sing of
his character.
Our Spiritual Master is the ocean of mercy, the friend of the poor, and
the lord and master of the devotees. O master! Be merciful unto me.
Give me the shade of your lotus feet. Your fame is spread all over the
three worlds.
“This is a wonderful description of the guru, that his fame is spread all
over the three worlds. The planetary systems in this universe are divided
into three divisions, according to the struggle for life. In the upper
planetary systems the struggle for life is much less than here. They live
193
for thousands, even millions of years, without the problems that we
encounter, except for birth and death; that problem they also encounter.
There are the middle planetary systems like this one, and the lower
planetary systems where the struggle is even harder, like in the lower
animal kingdom; that hard a struggle.
“So, the benefit derived from traveling all over the three worlds and
gaining knowledge from the greatest demigods all over the universe, is
that gain is there at the lotus feet of a bona fide Spiritual Master. In
other words, if you could develop mystic power after thousands of years
of meditation, and travel at the speed of mind all over the universe, you
can’t get anything more valuable than the lotus feet of a pure devotee of
the Lord. You couldn’t achieve a greater facility even by mystic power.
“You see, love for Krishna is the most valuable power, the most
valuable miracle. And therefore that miracle can be had at the lotus feet
of one who loves Krishna. Otherwise any amount of phenomenon or
mystic power in this material world can never add up to that most
valuable miraculous nature. The Spiritual Master is the sum total of all
the demigods, all great mystics, all great rishis, all great teachers.
“He opens my eyes and fills my heart with transcendental knowledge.

The Spiritual Master is meant to awaken the disciple. We are foolishly
engaged, thinking that we’re enjoying, although we’re stuck in the cycle
of birth and death. He awakens us to this principle that, you’re thinking
yourself very righteous, very good, but actually you’re like a thief
because death comes and steals everything away from you and then
sends you on to your next body.
“That’s the way that a thief is treated, isn’t it? When there’s a thief, a
policeman comes and grabs him, takes away the stolen property and
then puts him in jail. So similarly, we are like that, we’re living like
thieves, saying that this is my car, it’s my body, it’s my wife, it’s my
country, it’s my this, my that – and death comes, ‘All right rascal!’ and
takes it all away and puts you in the jail of your next body.
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“So we’re thinking we’re very nice people, very friendly, a special
community – but actually we’re all rascals; thieves number one.
‘Wanted’ number one, that’s all. Death is coming to take us. Therefore,
the Spiritual Master opens our darkened eyes and fills our hearts with
transcendental knowledge. From him ecstatic prema emanates. Prema
means transcendental love, not the lust of this material world, but the
transcendental love of the spiritual world, which is eternal. That is
prema, and from him prema emanates.”
As Maharaja explains the meaning of the song, the standard guru-puja

ārati and kirtan has not yet been established in ISKCON. The song to
greet the spiritual master every morning is the Govindam prayers sung
by Yamuna Devi. Devotees would imagine that Prabhupada is coming
to greet the Deities, and after the Deity greeting there is class. In the
Boston temple, for example, as the Govindam prayers start, Gaurahari
announces, “Here comes Srila Prabhupada. Here he comes,” as if
Prabhupada was actually coming into the temple.
The same scenario is enacted every day at the Brooklyn temple. “Here
comes Srila Prabhupada walking in,” and everyone pays their
obeisances in the same way as when Prabhupada is present.
It’s the same scene in every temple. In Atlanta, Balavanta goes upstairs
to open and close the door, and when devotees hear his steps they
imagine that Srila Prabhupada is coming down the stairs. As soon as
they see Balavanta enter the temple room it means Prabhupada is right
there behind him. Then the curtains open to the Govindam prayers, and
everyone offers flowers to the Deities and to Prabhupada’s picture on
the vyāsāsana.
In some temples, devotees sit and listen to a tape of Srila Prabhupada for
15 minutes before someone actually gives the Bhagavatam class. The
full ārati and guru-pūjā doesn’t become a standard until 1974. At first
Prabhupada doesn’t agree to have a full pūjā every single day, but
gradually the ceremony becomes formal and builds up to the big ārati
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and kirtan of today.
Denver, April 1973

Denver is a long drive from Chicago across the Great Plains and into the
Rocky Mountains. It is known as “Mile High City.” The Denver temple
has Lord Jagannath Deities, so when Sri Sri Radha-Damodara arrive,
it’s the first time these devotees have seen Radha-Krishna Deities.
One of Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara’s objectives for traveling on a bus –

rather than remain in a fixed temple location like other Radha-Krishna
Deities – is to bless the public with Their darshan. By going to the
people, Radha-Damodara demonstrate Their unfathomable mercy. Since
They are sankirtan Deities, They show the example by living on the
road Themselves. In this way people become inspired by Their mercy
and want to dedicate their own lives for spreading Krishna
consciousness.
The enthusiasm of the Denver devotees is wonderful and they provide

Vishnujana Swami with whatever he requires. The temple president,
Kurusrestha, gives him a $1,500 donation for the party.
Suhotra takes the opportunity to preach extensively to a 16-year-old boy

who has been in contact with the temple for about a year. School life has
left him feeling dissatisfied and he dislikes living apart from devotee
association. He has a plan to join the temple as soon as the school year
ends.
Mahamantra: Suhotra liked me and introduced me to Maharaja.

Vishnujana Maharaja said, “Oh, why don’t you come travel with us?
We’re traveling around America, doing kirtan, distributing prasādam,
and distributing books. You could travel with us.” I thought it was a
very enlivening proposition.
They gave me very nice prasādam in the morning; sweet rice with
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strawberries, and halavā, and many other nice things. At noon they
would cook a very nice cauliflower potato sabji, with a good amount of
ghee in it, and puris. When I ate that Radha-Damodara prasādam spiced
a little hot, Indian style, it was very attractive. Vishnujana Maharaja was
an expert cook. Sometimes Sri Galim Prabhu would also cook. All these
things were reeling me in. I couldn’t escape. Who could not fail to be
attracted, to travel and see America, to preach in different places with
beautiful Radha-Damodara?
When I returned home I told my parents, “I’ve just met a wonderful

individual, a sannyāsī, very robust and amazing, who has invited me to
tour America.”
They said, “Why don’t you go and join him in the summer?” It was their
proposition for me to travel during the summer. This was the chance I
was waiting for. When my friends asked me about it I said, “Well, when
the train is in the station you have to jump on.” The bus party was so
captivating.
Prana Vallabha grew up in the same neighborhood as Mahamantra and

remembered him as a small child. After joining the temple he was
always preaching to Mahamantra who begins coming to the temple as a
student from school. Prana Vallabha has been preaching to him for years
encouraging him to become a devotee. Gradually, his mind becomes
totally fixed on Krishna and Srila Prabhupada’s mission. With the
arrival of the Radha-Damodara party, Prana Vallabha takes the
opportunity to have as much association from Vishnujana Swami as
possible.
Prana Vallabha: I had some intimate association with Vishnujana

Swami. I remember going to him at night after he put Radha-Damodara
to rest, and he would chant his japa in the bus, or right outside the bus.
He would want to hear from each devotee, “How’s it going? What’s
your service like?” We would catch him at a moment when he had some
time and he would hear our problems. “I’m having a problem with this
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devotee, a problem with that devotee. How can I deal with my mind?”
He had personal affiliation with each person, wanting to give them good
advice. I always got direction from him. He was expert in engaging
devotees, expert at seeing what they could do and what they couldn’t do.
I don’t think he expected them to do more than he expected of himself.
He didn’t want them to be super devotees, but to be honest and
straightforward, to do your best. It was fatherly advice.
Badarayana: I came back in April ‘73 and I always had memories of

Vishnujana Swami, When am I going to see Vishnujana Maharaja
again? He came with his men and I have a very strong remembrance of
one of the most ecstatic kirtans we ever had in Denver. Vishnujana was
leading and he was doing this most wonderful dance. He was jumping
up and down while playing the drum and my heart was melting. His
presence touched me in a way that very few devotees did. Many
devotees had a lot of external bravado, but he seemed to have this
internal sense of Krishna consciousness on a deep level. There was this
reservoir of nectar that was very deep, and very emotional.
After a short stay the bus party is ready to move on. Their destination is
Los Angeles temple where Srila Prabhupada is now visiting. The most
fortunate Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs will see and hear their spiritual
master a second time within a month. From Denver the bus continues
west on I-70 through Colorado and Utah until I-15, where they turn
south to Nevada. Finally they enter California connecting with I-10
which takes them directly to New Dwaraka, ISKCON’s western world
headquarters.

The atmosphere in the New Dwaraka community is surcharged with
spiritual potency due to the presence of Srila Prabhupada. As head of
the BBT, Ramesvara’s service gives him an outstanding opportunity to
take extra association by bringing Prabhupada the daily book
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distribution results. Every evening he waits for Srutakirti to finish
giving Prabhupada his massage, and then enters with the day’s report in
hand. Consequently, he is able to get extra Prabhupada nectar to share
with the book distributors.
Encouraged by the dedication of his young sankirtan pioneers,

Prabhupada writes a short note to the devotees one evening and hands it
to Ramesvara.
My dear boys and girls,
You are working so hard for broadcasting the glories of Lord Krishna’s
lotus feet, and thus my Guru Maharaja will be so pleased upon you.
Certainly my Guru Maharaja will bestow his blessings thousands of
times more than me, and that is my satisfaction.
All glories to the assembled devotees,
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
NB Everyone should go with the Sankirtan Party as soon as possible.
With this note in hand, Ramesvara has his nectar to share with the other
devotees. Every morning after maṅgala-ārati there is always a small
group in front of the temple, because no one is supposed to talk in the
temple during japa period. Ramesvara comes to the door and calls
people over until a little cluster of devotees has gathered.
Tripurari: He showed us Prabhupada’s note. Some of the other devotees

got frustrated, seeing that we were talking during the japa period. They
felt we were a distraction, or that we weren’t really absorbed in our japa.
But actually, we were intensely absorbed in thinking of sankirtan. When
we returned to our japa we began chanting with the desire to be able to
go out and please Prabhupada.
Srila Prabhupada’s message spreads rapidly throughout the movement.
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“Everyone should go with the Sankirtan Party as soon as possible”
becomes the rallying cry behind a new wave of book distribution fervor.
Previously, Prabhupada was emphasizing harināma sankirtan and
prasādam distribution. Now, seeing what the devotees are capable of
doing, he places emphasis on the bṛhat mṛdaṅga, the greater mṛdaṅga of
the printing press. His spiritual master had instructed him, “If you ever
get money, print books.” So Prabhupada takes this new zeal for book
distribution as the mercy of his Guru Maharaja who has sent these
American boys and girls to help him do this service.
The Radha-Damodara party arrives at the temple about 3:00 o’clock in

the morning in the midst of this new sankirtan commitment. Dayal
Chandra parks the bus in front of the temple where a few early risers are
chanting japa before maṅgala-ārati. Seeing a light on in one of the
apartments across the street, Vishnujana Swami goes over to get some
bhoga for Radha-Damodara’s morning offering. Tripurari is a gṛhastha
who lives across the street from the temple.
Tripurari: I heard a knock on the door, and when I came to open it,
there was Vishnujana Maharaja, a tall, towering sannyāsī. He was a very
big man with big hands and a big smile. “Have you got any milk to
make some amṛtā for my Deities?” he said in earnest with the kind of
simplicity of a young boy although he was a big man in appearance and
a sannyāsī. I paid my obeisances and went to get some milk. When I
gave him the milk he said, “What is your name?”
“Tripurari Das.”
“Oh, I’ve heard about you.”
That’s how we met. I found out later he took that milk and made amṛtā
for Radha-Damodara with saffron and almonds. It was right out of the
classic description in the Srimad-Bhagavatam where a householder is
approached for a cup of milk by a sannyāsī early in the morning, waking
him up and so forth. He would lead every maṅgala-ārati and go out on
harināma sankirtan. A good part of the day he would be available to
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counsel the householders. They would come on the bus and eat with
him.
In those days you read about it in Srimad Bhagavatam, and that’s how
things were supposed to go on. A sannyāsī would counsel the
householders when he was in town, and advise them and preach to them.
To my mind, sannyāsīs were self realized souls because they had given
up the world entirely.
I went to see him one day. My wife was losing interest in the process.
“I’m having a problem with my wife. She’s not too much interested.” I
guess I wasn’t much of a husband in the sense that I was always out
selling books and I wasn’t around much. I was just going with an excuse
to talk to him.
Every morning there is competition among the devotees, especially the

sankirtan men, to be part of the group that accompanies Prabhupada on
his morning walk. Generally, only the most senior devotees go on the
walk. However, the most ambitious also cajole their way into Srila
Prabhupada’s room hoping they will be among the chosen few.
Everyone present watches as Srutakirti puts saffron socks on his
spiritual master’s beautiful soft lotus feet prior to going out. Then
Prabhupada puts on his saffron sweater and sits down to chant Gayatri.
Almost immediately, everyone else sits down to chant their Gayatri
along with Srila Prabhupada.
Srutakirti: If other devotees were in the room, they would also chant
gāyatri. Usually, this was not a good idea because Prabhupada always
finished before his disciples. Their dilemma then became trying to
decide whether to stay frozen in their brahminical pose and miss their
guru maharaja walking out the door, or to hurriedly get up and try to
keep His Divine Grace in their vision. I loved to watch this humorous
scenario unfold. Even though it seemed to happen in every temple, I
could never bring myself to warn my godbrothers. Being a rascal, I
speculated that Srila Prabhupada enjoyed seeing their desperate looks as
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much as I did.
Sitting in class after the morning walk, the sannyāsīs surround Srila
Prabhupada’s vyāsāsana looking bright and shining, dressed in their best
saffron. Vishnujana Swami, in comparison, looks so innocent with a big
smile like an eternal 11-year-old boy sitting with his dhoti up to his
knees and his curly śikhā all messed up in the back. Suddenly,
Karandhar’s 3-year-old son walks over to Vishnujana. Maharaja pulls
him over and gives him a hug.
Prabhupada looks over disapprovingly and says, “No.” Vishnujana is

naturally loving and affectionate with the children, but Prabhupada
objects to this display during class. Later, no one quite understands why
Prabhupada disapproved, although some speculate that a sannyāsī
should not be concerned with children.
Gopavrindapal: Vishnujana Maharaja was the first one that I ever saw
dancing with the mṛdaṅga. Everyone else might sway, or bounce
around, but he would dance. His knees would go a mile high, while he
was keeping perfect beat on the mṛdaṅga. So he was jumping and
always keeping beat.
The Los Angeles devotees were very attached to him, because he had
been the temple commander here. I would regularly hear stories about
Vishnujana from them. The picture I got from these stories was that he
had a way with people; that he could just sit down in the small parking
lot next to the kitchen, or lean against a car, and people would come to
him for service. And he would blissfully dispense them out to different
responsibilities. I got the impression that people really loved him as the
temple commander and would regularly come back for more service,
just to get a few minutes of his association, and then be dispensed off to
some service for Krishna.
Being in New Dwaraka is always an occasion for Vishnujana to catch

up on old friendships. There are always new devotees coming in, while
older devotees get married and move out of the ashram to the
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apartments across the street.
New Dwaraka has the highest standard of pūjā in the movement, so

Maharaja is motivated to get new garments and accessories for Radha-
Damodara. When some of the married ladies approach him for service,
he organizes them to get everything he needs for Radha-Damodara’s
worship. Sahadevi and Citralekha go shopping together to get fabric for
curtains and other things, and then they sew the curtains and various
decorations for the bus.
Ujjvala dd: He engaged the women that were close to him when he was
our temple commander and we were brahmacārīnīs. We were all very
close, like a family, so we felt comfortable, even though he was a
sannyāsī, to go and ask him to engage us in service. He gave me a large
sum of money and told me to go to the finest stores in Beverly Hills to
buy stones, cloth, and whatever I desired for Radha-Damodara. I bought
Them each an aquamarine stone to wear on Their crowns and some
fancy sari material. He gave me the patterns and measurements and I
made the outfits. I remember enjoying making a parasol with all these
ribbons for Radharani. He was really into serving those Deities.
Vishnujana Swami also gives some fabric and costume jewelry to

Ramacharya, who begs Maharaja to allow him to make an outfit for
Radha-Damodara. He has developed a strong attachment for Them and
wants to get more into deity worship. He is hoping that Vishnujana will
allow him to go on the altar as Sri Galim is doing, although only
Vishnujana Swami dresses Them every day.
Radha-Damodara are a big hit in Los Angeles and many devotees line-
up to get on he bus for darshan. Of course, Vishnujana Maharaja is
always ready with Radha- Damodara’s prasādam to benedict anyone
who comes on the bus. Every afternoon he makes the Radha-Damodara
nectar drink – a blend of orange juice and buttermilk, with strawberries
floating throughout – for the vaikālika bhoga offering. Maharaja
becomes particularly animated as he serves out the nectar.
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“DIIIIVE INTO THE OCEAN OF NECTAR!” he roars in a jubilant
voice as he pours the sweet fruit drink into everyone’s cup. Local
devotees who experience this ritual for the first time are awe-struck
hearing Maharaja’s rousing voice. It increases their desire to honor
prasādam and a smile always comes to their face. Lastly, he honors the
nectar himself in an old silver goblet – previously used by Srila
Prabhupada – which he always drinks out of.
Every so often the Los Angeles pūjārīs auction off older Deity
paraphernalia as they purchase new items for Sri Sri Rukmini-
Dwarakadisa. At the same time they also auction Srila Prabhupada
nectar.
Danavir: I saw him with his ten man Radha-Damodara party. They were
all very happy. Vishnujana Swami was completely satisfied with what
he had. He wasn’t ambitious; totally not ambitious. He gave the
impression of having a treasure house of love of God. He’d say things
like, “Get your love for Krishna,” during a kirtan. Even the expression
was unique. That’s how he felt and that was his mood. He didn’t change
tunes very much, usually one tune for about an hour. He was always
dancing.
One time he told me, “I was sleeping, and I was about to go to sex.”
That’s how he said it. Then he remembered that he had to get up to do
pūjā and cook for the Deities, and that saved him. That stuck in my
mind too, that was interesting.
Another attraction for the Los Angeles devotees is Vishnujana’s exotic

kirtan band singing Vaishnava songs that nobody has heard before. The
songs are coming from India via Acyutananda Swami on a low quality
Indian tape, full of hiss. Acyutananda sings with a simple
accompaniment of mṛdaṅga, kartals, and tamboura, enunciating the
Bengali words with an unusually clear and authentic accent for an
American. He sends the first tape to Vishnujana Maharaja, and he, in
turn, gives it to Riksaraj and Vishnudatta, because he knows how much
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they love the bhajans.
Acyutananda Swami has also compiled the first Vaishnava songbook,

Songs of the Vaishnava Acharyas, which greatly pleases His Divine
Grace. Prabhupada writes in the introduction to the book:
When I became sick in 1967, I left the United States and returned to
India. Sriman Acyutananda could not remain separated from me, and
therefore he joined me in Vṛindavan when I was staying there. Since
then, Acyutananda Swami has worked very hard in India. He has
preached extensively in Calcutta and other parts of Bengal. He has
learned how to sing in Bengali and play mṛdanga like an expert
professional, and now he has compiled this book of Bengali songs with
English explanations.
I am greatly pleased to see this collection of songs composed by Ṭhakur

Bhaktivinoda, Narottama Das, and other great acharyas of the Gauḍiya
Vaishnava community (sampradaya). Songs composed by the acharyas
are not ordinary songs. When chanted by pure Vaishnavas who follow
the rules and regulations of Vaishnava character, they are actually
effective in awakening the Krishna consciousness dormant in every
living entity. I have advised Sriman Acyutananda Swami to sing more
songs of the Vaishnava padavali and record them in books so that my
disciples and others in the Western countries may take advantage of this
chanting and thus advance in Krishna consciousness more and more.
Riksaraj and Vishnudatta immediately buy the songbook and listen to

the tape over and over to learn the beats and the melodies. Maharaja
continues to encourage them wherever they go. “Riksaraj, sing that one.
Vishnudatta play. C’mon.” By continually encouraging them he instills
in them a greater appreciation for the bhajans.
Hasyagrami: We had the “Bengali Brothers” Riksaraj and Vishnudatta.

They were memorizing Bengali verses and trying to pronounce them
correctly in a Bengali twang, trying to ‘zziiing’ through the nose with
the nasal passages somehow blocked. Along with Suhotra, they were all
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memorizing verses like crazy. It was a real nice time.
Vishnujana Swami has his own style and he isn’t about to start sounding
like Acyutananda, though he adopts the traditional melodies. One of his
favorites is Radhe Jaya Jaya Madhava Dayite which he sings a lot, but
in his own style. The songs are so fascinating that the tape quickly
begins to circulate and Acyutananda’s name gradually becomes known
throughout ISKCON. All of a sudden there is a sense of transcendental
competition, with Vishnujana Swami the renowned kīrtanīyā in the US,
and Acyutananda Swami, a newcomer, encroaching from afar.
The Radha-Damodara party has no base, no GBC, and travels wherever

they choose. This is unheard of in ISKCON, even though Srila
Prabhupada has clearly stated that he wants his sannyāsī disciples to
simply travel and preach as he does. Sometimes the Radha-Damodara
men encounter criticism from some quarters over the bhajans, the new
melodies, and the new mṛdaṅga beats. “Oh, what are those bhajans?
Where does this stuff come from?” No one in the West really knows.
Musically, the Radha-Damodara party is far ahead of what is known in

the temples.
But the majority of devotees are in high spirits hearing Maharaja sing
these beautiful, heartfelt bhajans. It is something new in ISKCON that
will soon become a standard feature in most temples before long.
Laguna Beach, May 1973

Situated on a beautiful bay, this coastal town is one-hour’s drive south
of Los Angeles. It’s a place where devotees have to perform extra
tapasya or else they won’t survive. There’s a whole youth culture
interested in Krishna consciousness who are coming to the Sunday Feast
– including bikini-clad teenage girls. So the brahmacārīs have to be
above it all. They have to be experiencing more pleasure spiritually than
most people experience materially, or they’re finished.
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The temple has a special diet facilitating devotees who want to be free
from desire.
Whoever eats rich prasādam in Laguna temple doesn’t have a chance

against māyā. If they can’t taste the nectar of performing austerity
they’re finished, because there is so much material sense pleasure
available.
Rishabhdeva: When Vishnujana Swami came to Laguna in the bus with

Radha-Damodara, it was very humbling. He came in, paid obeisances to
our Deities, and began weeping. Tears were actually streaming down his
cheeks.
“Oh, I love these little temples. There’s so much devotion here.” It

might have appeared sentimental, but it was very real and infused with
his feelings for our little Gaura-Nitai Deities. For prasādam it was just
fruit and milk because that was our standard for many years. He thought
it was wonderful. There was no criticism.
Maharaja invites the whole temple onto the bus for evening ārati and
Gita class so the devotees can have darshan of Radha-Damodara. In the
class he emphasizes how a devotee must remain vigilant in devotional
service.
“At every moment our mind is ready, and Māyā is ready, to distract us.
Actually, in Krishna consciousness you mustn’t think that the distraction
is sex or drugs, because the distraction is criticizing. Then the sex
desire, and everything else, will come. We must always be thinking; ‘I
have to be engaged in service. I want to be engaged in service. Please
Krishna, I want to be engaged in Your service.’ But as soon as we think,
‘Oh, my godbrother is not engaged’, at that very moment, Māyā has got
us. Because as soon as you’re not vigilant with yourself, immediately
you’ll be looking, ‘Oh, what is wrong outside? Let me find something
wrong. Let me criticize.’
“From that moment on, you’ll be thinking, how can I enjoy? You are no
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longer the servant, no longer the devotee. Rather, you have become the
criticizer, and then soon, the enjoyer. But if we’re always thinking that I
have to stay absorbed in Krishna consciousness we won’t have a second
to wonder about the spiritual status of our godbrother or our godsister,
because we’ll have no time for that. So please never criticize. You will
ruin your spiritual life.
“For everything we do, we can remember Srila Prabhupada, and be

grateful to Prabhupada. Not just the big things like going to class, or
going to ārati, or going out on sankirtan. But even when you put on your
dhoti in the morning, or if you put on your sari in the morning, you can
remember Prabhupada. Even when you taste some sweet rice or a
samosā, you can remember Prabhupada.”
Chinmayi dd: I remember Vishnujana having ārati and then he gave a

class. We all sat on the bus and I remember clearly what he said in that
class. I was very young, about 16, and just visiting the temple. Radha-
Damodara were the first Deities I had ever seen. Just to walk into that
bus was absolutely magic. It was so incredible. It was the same feeling
as when Srila Prabhupada would come, something like that. It was very
special. Radha-Damodara always had so much potency. I really had a
strong realization that They were the personification of the Holy Name.
The next morning, Maharaja leads all the kirtans and gives the
Bhagavatam class. He points out how devotees must become cent
percent conscious of Krishna. He reveals a dream that he has had.
“I dreamt about my Damodara. I’m finally coming to the point where

both day and night, it’s Damodara. But don’t think I am Krishna
conscious. I’ll tell you how Damodara comes to me. I’m dreaming about
a beautiful girl and Damodara has to come and save me.”
Rishabhdeva: Vishnujana lectures were always coming from the heart,

and everybody had their eyes and ears wide open. They were lectures
from humility, from realization borne of having experience of the other
side. That lecture was very intense, and very real. This fellow’s
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consciousness was so wonderful. He was completely open. “I am also
fallen, but here is my realization.”
After two days Vishnujana Swami returns to Los Angeles temple to

rendezvous with his brahmacārīs. They have been distributing books
with the New Dwaraka sankirtan men. Maharaja wants to leave for San
Francisco and then head northward to Portland, and Seattle.
Later in the day, Vishnujana observes Srutakirti chanting japa alone and
takes the opportunity to associate with Srila Prabhupada’s servant. They
had seen each other when Prabhupada was in New York but they didn’t
have a chance to speak. Srutakirti had left the Road Show to travel as
Srila Prabhupada’s personal servant and they haven’t seen each other
since then. After offering obeisances to each other, Vishnujana asks how
Srutakirti is doing in his new service. Srutakirti confesses that he
doesn’t feel at all qualified for the position.
“I just wish I had as much love for Prabhupada as all the other devotees.
Actually, that’s what I told Srila Prabhupada this morning.”
“Really?” Vishnujana Swami’s eyes open wide, his mind fixed on every
word.
“Yeah. One of the amazing experiences is walking behind His Divine

Grace as he leaves the airplane and enters the terminal building for his
grand entrance, like when we landed in Los Angeles a few weeks back.
“After the seat belt sign went on instructing the passengers to stay
seated, he got out of his seat, went to the bathroom and put on tilak. An
attendant tried to stop him, but he ignored her request as if he didn’t
hear her. I accompanied him and waited outside the bathroom door. The
walk to and from our seats was exciting as the plane lumbered in for a
landing. He returned to his seat and carefully hung his bead bag around
his neck. When the plane landed, he put a flower garland on.
“As we left the plane and entered the corridor, I could hear the devotees’
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chanting in the background. It grew louder and louder as we entered the
Arrivals Lounge. Srila Prabhupada’s smile grew larger as he approached
his loving disciples. On that day, there were several hundred devotees in
the airport as he walked into the terminal. They were oblivious to
everyone and everything going on around them, except for their glorious
spiritual master.
“I have no qualification to describe the feelings of my godbrothers and

godsisters because I’ve never been fortunate enough to have such strong
loving emotions for Srila Prabhupada. It was obvious to everyone in the
airport that devotees were feeling transcendental bliss. The loving
reciprocation between Prabhupada and his disciples was the easiest to
see in his ‘airport lilas.’ For several minutes it seemed that no one’s feet
touched the ground. Torrents of ecstatic tears flowed freely from
everyone except for one fallen soul – me.”
Vishnujana Swami shakes his head as if to disagree with this last

statement.
“We arrived in New Dwaraka and entered Prabhupada’s quarters at

about noon. I immediately prepared for his massage. During the
massage my mind was very disturbed. I couldn’t free myself from the
pain of thinking that everyone had such love for their guru, except for
me. I was a cheater, an impostor. I finally got the courage to speak while
massaging his back. This way, I didn’t have to speak to him face to face.
‘Srila Prabhupada,’ I said, ‘All of your disciples have so much love for
you. It makes me feel so bad. I lack this intense love. When I’m with
you at the airport, I can see everyone dancing, chanting, and crying. I
have so much association with you, yet I don’t feel this overwhelming
love like they do.’
“I hoped he would say something to relieve my mind. He remained

silent.
Tormented, I finished his massage and went back to my room to finish
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preparing his lunch. After he chanted Gayatri he called me into his
room.
“I entered, offered my obeisances, and looked up with great concern

because he had such a serious look on his face. ‘So, do you like serving
me?’ he asked. ‘Oh, yes, Prabhupada, I like serving you very much.’
‘Then, that is love,’ he explained.
‘Everyone can do so many things: singing, dancing, jumping up and

down. But you are actually doing something. Isn’t this love?’
“I said, ‘I guess so, Srila Prabhupada.’ ‘So, you just do your service.
That is all that is necessary. This is what love means – to do service.’
“Prabhupada is so compassionate. I pray that one day I’ll be qualified to

taste just one drop of Krishna prema so that I can also sing, dance and
chant like the real devotees.”
Vishnujana remains deep in thought after hearing Srutakirti reveal his

heart in confidence. A few moments pass. He mentions that he has just
returned from Laguna Beach. “They have a family atmosphere and
follow a simple diet; no rich foods including no sugar or ghee.”
“Yeah, we had a similar experience the last time Prabhupada took a one-
day trip to Laguna Beach.” Srutakirti automatically launches into
another Prabhupada lila. “That evening he asked for hot milk. I was
unable to find sugar in the temple kitchen, so I sweetened the milk with
honey.
“Sometimes, Prabhupada asks to have his milk sweetened with honey,

but not on this evening. When I brought the milk, he tasted it and
immediately asked, ‘Why it is not sweetened with sugar?’ ‘They don’t
have any sugar in this temple,’ I said. ‘How can that be?’ he asked in an
angry mood.
“I explained, ‘Some devotees think that white sugar is not healthy and
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that it is better to avoid it.’ He said, ‘That’s fine. If they don’t want to
eat sugar, they don’t have to. But, Krishna likes sugar very much. This
is nonsense. They must use sugar when they make preparations for the
Deities.’”
“Exactly,” Vishnujana Swami exclaims, “We’re preparing everything

for Their pleasure. If we’re cooking for our own taste then we’ve lost
that connection with devotional service, and our offering just becomes a
ritual. Gradually, it becomes an empty ritual because we’re simply
cooking for ourselves. So we never develop Krishna consciousness.”
“Right,” Srutakirti concurs. “That reminds me of what happened in New

Zealand.”
He is full of Prabhupada nectar, and that’s why devotees enjoy his

association so much. “Before Srila Prabhupada came to the temple in
Auckland, Siddha Swarupa Maharaja and Tusta Krishna Maharaja
moved the devotees out of the temple.”
“Well, that’s kind of strange.” Vishnujana is surprised to hear this.
“Yeah. Their idea was that Prabhupada’s stay would be more peaceful. I
thought it was unusual, but it did give Srila Prabhupada a chance to have
a relaxing visit.
“Anyway, one evening Prabhupada asked me to prepare puris and sabji.

While I was cooking, I realized I didn’t have any milk sweets to put on
his plate. There was no deity worship at the temple, so I couldn’t get
mahā for him. I had no time to prepare any sandesh since our arrival the
previous day. So I brought the puris, sabji and hot milk into Srila
Prabhupada’s room, placed them on his table and offered obeisances.
Siddha Swarupa and Tusta Krishna were speaking with Srila
Prabhupada and he allowed them to remain while he took prasādam.”
“Wow. That’s not typical,” Vishnujana Swami exclaims.
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“I know. It was a great benediction. Prabhupada usually honors
prasādam in private. So I left the room and went back to the kitchen to
roll and fry a few more puris. I rushed back with two fresh puris, and
Srila Prabhupada looked at me inquisitively, ‘There is no sweet?’ ‘No,
Prabhupada, I don’t have any made yet.’ ‘Oh, all right. Bring me some
sugar,’ he said mercifully, realizing the situation.
“I went back to the kitchen, filled a bowl with white sugar and returned,
placing the bowl on his plate. He took a puri, stuffed it into the bowl of
sugar and took a bite. He did this a few times. You could hear the
crunching sounds as he enthusiastically chewed. He stopped for a
moment and chanted, luci cini sarpurī lāḍḍu rasābalī. [Bhaktivinoda
Thakur’s Bhoga Arati song cites puris and sugar]
Then he said, ‘This is a good combination. It is very tasty.’
“As he ate, the two sannyāsīs watched in amazement. Neither of them

ate anything that contained even a trace of sugar, what to speak of eating
the horrid substance in its ‘impure’ form. This was another of
Prabhupada’s wondrous qualities. He always knew exactly how to
surprise and unsettle his disciples, giving them the opportunity to
understand his most transcendental position.”
Suddenly, a brahmacārī comes to announce that there’s a phone call for

Vishnujana Swami. The call is an invitation for Maharaja to come to
San Diego for the temple’s first Nrsimhadeva festival. They will pay his
ticket and fly him in from Los Angeles.
Early next morning, Vishnujana is picked up at the San Diego airport

and driven to the temple for breakfast prasādam. After breakfast
everyone in the temple goes out to Horton Plaza, a large green square in
the middle of San Diego, where sailors and street people hang out. In
the middle of the green, both kirtan and book distribution go on all day
until the sun goes down.
Suresvara: Vishnujana Swami was sick but he was still determined to
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bless people with the Holy Name. That really impressed me. He was
singing and preaching all day with his velvety voice and dramatic way
of speaking. He had such an engaging manner of communicating and a
sweet style of engaging people. He was very personal. I remember at the
end of the day he collapsed because he was actually very sick.
Nrsimha Chaitanya: He led kirtan for hours and hours and everybody
was dancing in ecstasy. It was a completely divine experience. Back at
the temple, his clothes were completely soaked in perspiration. He
didn’t have a change of cloth because he had just flown in for a day, so I
offered him a simple brahmacārī kurtā. He was so humble and
appreciative of any small service. He made you feel like it was
important to render even the smallest service. He really opened
everybody’s heart. He was always beautiful.
On his return to Los Angeles, Maharaja receives another phone call.

This time it’s from Denver. Mahamantra has become so attached to
traveling with the Radha- Damodara bus that in the past two weeks he
has made all the necessary arrangements to join the party. He confirms
that he has given away all his possessions. He is closing his chapter on
material life and is prepared to go on the road with Radha-Damodara.
Vishnujana explains that it will be several weeks before he backtracks
through Denver again. He gives the advice to chant 16 rounds of japa,
strictly follow the four regulative principles, and associate with the
devotees as much as possible.
Early the next morning the Radha-Damodara bus is ready to leave for
San Francisco. Even though Prabhupada is still in Los Angeles and
giving classes daily, he has requested Vishnujana Swami to continue
traveling to enliven devotees and instruct them to remain vigilant in
their sādhana. Maharaja bids a fond farewell to the Los Angeles Deities,
Sri Sri Rukmini-Dwarakadisa.
Several new bhaktas need a lift to San Francisco so Vishnujana offers

them a ride on the bus. On the trip up highway 101 they ask Maharaja
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for practical advice to improve their kirtan and japa.
“Kirtan is to be executed constantly,” Maharaja explains. “Lord

Chaitanya went through the streets and He invited everyone to join in
the sankirtan movement, constantly chanting the Holy Names of the
Lord. So arrangements should be made for the chanting of the Holy
Names of the Lord to go on in every town and village, constantly. In
every medium – radio, television, etc. – chanting should go on with nice
dancing and feasting. That’s the program.
“Then, as far as japa is concerned, one has to chant personally for his
advancement in Krishna consciousness 16 rounds daily on his beads.
There are guiding principles for chanting attentively. One of these
principles, obviously, is the beads. The beads are given to you by the
Spiritual Master and you chant Hare Krishna paying attention to each
bead. This vow of chanting attentively on each bead impresses the
Supreme Lord. He sees that you are serious, and He gives you
realization. It’s that simple. You chant in regulation and vow, and the
Supreme Lord sees, ‘Oh, he is serious. He’s keeping his vow,’ and then
He gives you realization.
“When you don’t chant attentively, you’re thinking and making the ten
kinds of offenses while chanting. Then the Lord will see that you desire
something else. After all, you can’t fool Him. He’s living right there
within your heart. He knows your desire before you even speak or think.
So, if while you’re chanting you’re committing offenses, thinking of
sense gratification, being attached to material objects, then the Lord will
know what you really want, and therefore you won’t feel the bliss of
chanting offenselessly. The Lord won’t allow you to feel that because
you desire other things.
“So, the main thing is to realize that, I’m dealing with Krishna. That’s
the main thing through this chanting. I’m being with Krishna, therefore,
I have to be very careful. Krishna can’t be fooled like you can fool me.
You can easily fool me that you are chanting attentively, you see. It’s
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easy to fool me because my senses are imperfect. If you see me come in
the room and you’re thinking something nonsense or doing something
nonsense, immediately you feel ashamed. Actually, you should feel that
way twenty-four hours a day because Krishna is always there,
witnessing. You know how it is; you’ll be doing some nonsense and
you’re thinking that no one is watching. No one knows what I am
thinking. But as soon as your godbrother comes and suspects you, then
immediately you feel ashamed, Oh, I’m doing something which is not
good.
“Now, the difficulty here is that you don’t realize that it’s not good for
you. It’s not that you’re offending me; you’re hurting yourself. This is
what they don’t understand, you see. This means that he doesn’t
understand that he’s hurting himself. So herein lies a great difficulty:
there’s a blind spot in our consciousness. We don’t know that our
actions are directly harming our development in Krishna consciousness
if we’re not humble in dealing with Krishna at every moment. We don’t
understand that. We don’t give that value, you see. We think we are
simply socially existing, that if I do some offense then my godbrother
will criticize me and I have to bear his criticism. No.
You’re hurting yourself for not realizing that you’re dealing with
Krishna. That is the worst suffering. That’s the worst illusion.
“Therefore, japa is meant as an individual practice of Krishna

consciousness. So that for at least two hours during the day, you stop
dealing socially. You understand? You stop social dealing and you
realize that, I am dealing with Krishna. If I make offense in thought,
well there’s the Holy Name right on my lips; the Lord is right here, and
He is witnessing.
“If you’re looking lustfully on a girl, or this or that, you can easily fool
me as we’re going through the day’s activities. That’s easy, and if I
catch you, you can feel that, Oh, Vishnujana has caught me. But the
difficulty is that you don’t realize that you’re dealing with Krishna.
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Therefore, one of the beautiful aspects of japa is it forces you to realize
that, When no one else is around, and I’m chanting Hare Krishna, I’m
dealing with Krishna. And unless I do it properly, then I’m being
offensive to the Lord. There’s no one else to hurt, but me. I can’t hurt
Vishnujana, I can’t hurt this one, I can’t hurt that one. I can’t offend
them, all I can do is offend God and myself.
“Therefore, this solitary chanting of japa is recommended. Japa is done

individually. Sometimes I see devotees have a collective japa class. No,
japa means we are chanting individually for two hours. So try to utilize
that time scrutinizingly.”
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Fourth Wave,
High School Confidential
Lord Krishna and His Holy Name are identical. They are one and the
same Absolute Truth, the all-inclusive yet supremely independent form
of dynamic spirituality, full of emotion, without beginning or end. [Srila
Haridas Thakur]

Mark Twain once remarked, “The coldest winter I ever spent was a
summer in San Francisco.”
Due to its location on the Pacific Ocean, thick fog and constant wind
besets the city during the summer months. Conversely, throughout the
winter months the climate is quite pleasing.
San Francisco is where book distribution took off in 1971-72, mainly

due to the inspiration of three devotees. Keshava was the temple
president who emphasized the distribution of Prabhupada’s books as the
prime daily activity. As an organizer and a manager, he knew how to
motivate devotees. Buddhimanta was the stalwart sankirtan hero whose
daring enthusiasm to distribute big books inspired the others. Jayananda
was the senior devotee and respected leader of the temple.
Although Keshava pushed the San Francisco devotees into distributing

books, it was Jayananda who understood the deeper significance of
book distribution. When he first joined the temple, he gave his $5,000
life savings to print the Nectar of Devotion. He knew what it meant to
Srila Prabhupada. Keshava and Buddhimanta were completely attached
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to Jayananda, so he was able to influence them through powerful subtle
ways. Thus, Jayananda was a big part of book distribution taking off,
because all he had to do was say it and everyone did it. Everybody was
affected by his service mood.
Only Jayananda remains in San Francisco now. Bhutatma is the temple

president but Jayananda is the accepted leader. He’s still the inspiration
for everyone because he is transcendentally situated. Jayananda has
been in San Francisco since the temple first opened in 1967. He is so
dedicated to Prabhupada that even though he’s not a book distributor
he’s very concerned about distribution. Without Jayananda’s presence,
it’s conceivable that big book distribution would have never burst out
the way it did. There is hardly a devotee in the entire movement like
him.
Babrubahan: Jayananda was like the daddy in the temple. If there was a
party somewhere with a broken-down vehicle, he would drive out and
fix it because he was a mechanic, too. He had a degree in engineering.
He would fix all the vehicles on traveling sankirtan. He was also selling
incense and he used to get donations at the wholesale fruit market. He
once told me he used to go with Srila Prabhupada and get donations. He
said in the beginning he used to sit in front of Prabhupada’s door and
chant his rounds.
Srikanta: In San Francisco it was a tradition that all devotees would

come together for hot milk at the end of the evening. Jayananda would
cook popcorn and hot milk for everyone. Someone would turn out the
lights in the temple room except for one candle. We all sat together with
our cups of hot milk that Vishal had obtained from a neighborhood
store, and Jayananda would read KRSNA Book stories. We felt like
little children with our grandfather reading stories to us at night. There
was nothing more wonderful. He made sure everyone was satisfied first
and then he would take last.
The San Francisco Sunday Love Feast is very popular and today the
219
temple room is packed as Keshava Bharati gives the talk. All of a
sudden, there’s a commotion outside. The Radha-Damodara bus has
arrived and parks in front of the temple. Soon Vishnujana Swami walks
in dressed in saffron and carrying his danda. Even his face is almost
saffron because he’s always out in the sun.
Vishnujana is a big fellow to begin with and always wears a big smile,
so he makes quite an impression as he enters the temple and offers
obeisances to the Deities. To some, it appears that a demigod has
entered the room. Keshava Bharati immediately turns the lecture over to
Maharaja.
Bana Bhatta: When he came in all the devotees would, in all practical
terms, lose it. Everyone was so in love with Vishnujana Maharaja. I
don’t know what it was about him; there was a certain quality of
unconditional presence. Everyone around him immediately felt the love
that poured out of his heart. He would just have to be in a room and it
was almost like having a celebrity there.
Ratnesvari dd: Whenever Vishnujana Maharaja gave class, whether it

was Nectar of Devotion, Bhagavad-gita, Srimad Bhagavatam, or
Chaitanya-charitamrita, he always left us with something every time.
One of those things was that before we become Krishna conscious, we
should become Prabhupada conscious. Once we become Prabhupada
conscious, then we will get Krishna consciousness. It was his main
theme no matter what class he was giving. He was always emphasizing
that.
The second point that he always left us with was when you take rest at
night you should think, Did I please my spiritual master today? As
we’re taking rest and just drifting off we should be thinking, I have
another day tomorrow to actually please my spiritual master better than
I pleased him today. That was his whole mood, to always be conscious
of trying to please Prabhupada whatever we’re doing.
It was a great gift he was offering, to help us remember that Prabhupada
220
is actually our life and soul. It was something that never left me. I
regularly think and envision him speaking that, and I follow that today.
When I feel there’s something I’ve done that’s not pleasing Prabhupada,
I become upset.
After his talk, while the devotees and guests are honoring the feast,
Vishnujana sings beautiful bhajans to enhance the devotional mood.
When he finishes the song Shuddha Bhakata he gives the translation
along with a further explanation of the song’s deeper meaning.
The dust of the lotus feet of pure devotees, enthusiastic devotional

service, and service to the devotees of the highest order, are the roots of
the creeper of devotion.
The holy days like Ekadasi and Janmastami are the mother of devotion
for those devotees who respect them.
Let the holy places of Krishna’s pastimes be my places of worship, and

bless me.
May I always visit the holy places associated with the lila of Lord
Chaitanya and His devotees.
When I hear the sound of the mrdanga, in my heart I always desire to

join in kirtan; and when I hear the bona fide songs describing Lord
Chaitanya’s pastimes, my heart dances in ecstasy.
Whenever I see the transcendental sri-vigraha of Radha and Krishna I

am in bliss, for by taking Their Lordships’ prasada we can conquer over
the material elements.
One day while performing devotional practices, I saw my house

transformed into Goloka Vrindavan. When I take the caranamrta of the
Deity, I see the holy Ganges water that comes from the feet of Lord
Vishnu, and my bliss knows no bounds.
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By seeing the tulasi tree my heart feels joy and Lord Madhava is also
satisfied. When I eat the prasada favored by Lord Chaitanya it is a new
life’s experience.
“Lord Chaitanya was very fond of a green vegetable preparation called

śāka, and there’s another song in this book that tells of the amazing
effect of this type of prasāda. Bhaktivinoda concludes by saying:
‘Whosoever attains the stage of enthusiasm for these devotional
practices will be supremely blissful wherever he may be.’
“So these are the principles of devotional service. The lotus feet of a
pure devotee, and devotional service to the pure devotees of the Lord,
are the root of the creeper of devotion. In other words, the beginning of
your love of God is to associate with a pure devotee of the Lord, and to
celebrate holy days like Ekadasi and Janmastami. In this way by
remembering Lord Krishna’s pastimes we become advanced in love of
Krishna. By chanting, by remembering, by offering prayers, by serving
the Lord, giving up everything for the Lord, making the Lord your
friend – these processes of devotional service melt our hearts and allow
us to become attracted more and more to Krishna.
“As Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gita, ‘If you do not have

transcendental love for Me, follow the regulative principles of bhakti-
yoga whereby you’ll obtain a desire to achieve Me.’ So everything is
based on desire; whatever you want you can have. You wanted material
life, or life apart from God, so you got the illusion of being apart from
God because you wanted it. You see?
“Now if you want Krishna, you can have Krishna. But since it’s difficult
to want Krishna again, being so conditioned in material life, these
regulative principles of devotional service will help us to want Krishna
more and more. Bona fide songs describing Lord Chaitanya’s pastimes
make our hearts dance in ecstasy.
“This description is there. Bhaktivinoda’s whole house was transformed

into the spiritual world. Just imagine if you open your door and all of a
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sudden it opened into the whole spiritual realm. This was the experience
of Bhaktivinoda Thakur. Because his life was surcharged with devotion,
therefore he could walk into the spiritual realm, without any difficulty of
time/space limitations that keep us from realizing true reality. “So, by
taking the caraṇāmṛta of the Deities – the water that washes the feet of
the Deities – he sees the Ganges water come from the feet of Lord
Vishnu. These things are the value of devotional service. No one can
estimate how valuable it is just to sit in this temple room, just to take the
caraṇāmṛta, just to see the ārati ceremony, just to offer obeisances and
bow down; there is no estimate how valuable it is. At the time of death
when the soul is leaving the body, he has to leave with his subtle mind
and sees his many life’s activities come before him, and whatever is
predominant, whatever he was most attached to, he focuses on for the
development of his next life.
“So, by simply bowing down before the Deity, at the time of death that
will come into your consciousness as the brightest activity. By simply
seeing the devotees chanting Hare Krishna, that will come into your
consciousness as the brightest action. In other words, a little bit of light
can dispel a lot of darkness. Our lives’ activities are like a lot of
darkness, a lot of karma, but a little bit of non-karmic activity, a little bit
of akarma, spiritual activity, can outshine all that darkness.
“So how valuable is just a little bit of devotional service!”
After everyone has taken prasādam to their full satisfaction there are
still four buckets of sweet rice left. Jayananda calls Nalini Kanta over,
“We have to pass this out.” If anything is left over from the feast
Jayananda always goes to the park to feed the hippies, or takes the
prasādam out to the local mission. He is constantly engaged.
Jayananda rarely changes his mood and he never complains about

anything. Sometimes Nalini gets upset having to do extra service at
night, but Jayananda is always happy to be fully engaged.
After distributing the prasādam, Jayananda returns to the temple and
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knocks on the door of the bus, which is parked by the temple on
Valencia Street. Vishnujana welcomes him and brings him in for Radha-
Damodara’s darshan. Maharaja is a sannyāsī and Jayananda Prabhu is a
gṛhastha, yet Vishnujana sees Jayananda as his authority. He was temple
president when Vishnujana became a devotee in 1968. Jayananda had
inspired him when he visited the temple and therefore he had joined the
movement.
Sitting together and sharing their experiences, Maharaja tells Jayananda

about his adventures on the road with Radha-Damodara. He also
mentions seeing Srila Prabhupada in New York and Los Angeles.
Jayananda recalls the last time Prabhupada was in San Francisco.
“When he came through in October of last year, Prabhupada spoke at

the UC Berkeley campus. The San Francisco devotees relished his
lecture to the students. We brought barrels of popcorn in little bags and
were distributing it after the talk.
“Prabhupada asked me, ‘What is that?’ I said, ‘Popcorn, Srila

Prabhupada. Would you like some?’ Prabhupada said, ‘Alright, give me
some.’
“I’ve been cooking and distributing popcorn prasādam in Berkeley for

street sankirtan for a long time now. So I gave him a little popcorn bag
with the mahā- mantra printed all over it. Prabhupada ate some with
great relish and said, ‘Oh, this is nice.’ All the devotees felt so much
pleasure, especially those who distributed the prasādam. They felt like
their offering had been accepted and their lives were successful. As
Prabhupada was eating his popcorn, he kept his hand in the little
popcorn bag. It was sweet. All the devotees hung on Prabhupada’s every
movement. The childlike manners of His Divine Grace enthused the
hearts of everyone.
“After leaving the campus, we did sankirtan down Telegraph Avenue on

the way back to the Berkeley temple. Prabhupada continued to enliven
the devotees by driving slowly past the sankirtan party. Everybody was
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chanting and dancing in ecstasy when Prabhupada drove by.
“The next night Prabhupada had another preaching engagement. Again,

I offered him a bag of popcorn, but he said, ‘No, I am old. I cannot do
things like that very often. It is good, but it is very difficult for me to
digest.’ He refused but he said he liked it.”
It is nectar for Vishnujana and Jayananda to sit and talk about

Prabhupada and sankirtan. Maharaja asks Jayananda Prabhu about the
upcoming Ratha-yatra festival, and Jayananda recalls how Srila
Prabhupada had joked with him before the 1971 festival, just after he
decided to get married.
“Prabhupada was giving darshan in his room and as I entered and

offered obeisances everyone was just sitting there chanting japa. As
soon as he saw me, Prabhupada said, ‘Jayananda, how are you? So you
are married now? So where is your marriage presentation?’
“I was still on the floor offering obeisances, so I barely heard him. All I
could say was, ‘Pardon?’ Prabhupada replied, ‘When you were not
married, you gave me five thousand dollars. Now you are married, so
you must give me ten thousand, double. Come on. Hare Krishna.’
Everybody in the room started laughing. So that was a little
embarrassing.
“Prabhupada began to reminisce about the first Ratha-yatra we did in

1967 with the flat bed truck, then the one cart, and now we have three
carts, so it has been expanding. But he commented that the prasādam
distribution has not improved and asked, ‘Why?’
“No one could say a word, so Srila Prabhupada continued speaking

about how he could hardly find fruit or vegetables when he was in
Moscow, but in America there is so much abundance. Then Prabhupada
told a Bengali story.
“The goddess Durga is asking the devotee, ‘My dear boy, you are
225
happy?’ ‘Yes, mother, I am very happy – simply two things wanting.’
‘What is that?’ ‘I have no food, I have no clothing.’
“His point was that even with no food and no clothing the devotee was
happy. He remarked that someday that might happen in America, no
food and no clothing, like in Russia, because things are always
changing. Therefore, we must spread Krishna consciousness all over the
country before any further changes come. That means utilizing fruits
and flowers for Krishna’s service and being happy. He always said,
chant and be happy. Now it’s up to us to spread the movement all over
the world.”
“Yes, I remember him saying that on numerous occasions,” Vishnujana

Swami lights up. “He also spoke about the meaning of sannyāsa.”
“Right,” Jayananda replies. “Prabhupada said, ‘I did not ask my students

to marry to become a lost child. I wanted to give them some facility, but
now I am seeing that some of them are slipping away.’ I took it that he
was speaking indirectly about me. And then he spoke about sannyāsa
and it reminded me of a letter he wrote me way back in 1967.”
Vishnujana quickly responds, “Yeah, I also remember what Srila

Prabhupada said:
‘Every one of us is as good as a sannyāsī because we are sacrificing

everything for Krishna’s service. Sannyāsa doesn’t just mean simply
having no wife and children. No. It means we possess nothing except
Krishna.’ I always remembered Prabhupada’s exact words, ‘I will have
simply Krishna, nothing more.’ So I’ve been trying to act in that
consciousness.”
Both devotees are feeling blissful but, as it is getting quite late,

Jayananda asks permission to leave because he has to get up early to do
the ‘bhoga run’. The two devotees embrace, and then Jayananda leaves
the bus. He enters the temple and goes up to the second floor brahmacārī
ashram where he sits down to chant his Gayatri. It’s late at night and
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he’s very tired. As he chants Gayatri, his head keeps bobbing up and
down as he tries to stay awake.
Nalini Kanta notices Jayananda trying to chant. “Jayananda, it’s a little

late for Gayatri.”
“Well, I have to do all three of them,” Jayananda replies. He’s been so

busy from the time he got up that he didn’t even stop to chant his
Gayatri.
The next day during Bhagavatam class, Vishnujana challenges everyone

with specific philosophical questions on Lord Chaitanya in Five
Features, a small book recently published.
“The person who answers this next question completely right, gets all
the mahā for the whole day from Radha-Damodara, and also gets to do
Their pūjā in the morning for maṅgala-ārati.”
Bana Bhatta has just finished reading the book and it’s fresh in his mind.
Thus, he is able to answer the question and get it right. That night he
takes rest before everyone else to be prepared to offer ārati on the bus to
Radha-Damodara. This is a special opportunity for him so he is feeling
particularly fortunate. Early the next morning he begins the pūjā as
Vishnujana sings the Guruvastakam prayers.
Bana Bhatta: He was chanting while I was offering. It was like being in
Vaikuntha directly. And I got the mahā-prasāda of Radha-Damodara for
the whole day! It was the most ecstatic experience. I remembered that
for years afterward. Just the feeling of being around Vishnujana Swami
was always very special. He always made me feel very secure and much
loved.
Chiranjiva is now back in San Francisco. He left the Radha-Damodara

party after being on the road for only one month. He approaches
Maharaja at an opportune moment. They have a pleasant reunion and
Vishnujana asks how he is doing at the temple. Taking the opportunity
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to associate with Maharaja, Chiranjiva explains in detail how he
returned to San Francisco to get married.
“When I arrived here there was a lot of disruption in the temple, a lot of
arguing, and a lot of disagreements. Various temple leaders were writing
letters to Prabhupada, complaining about this and that. All the devotees
were so disturbed that no one was enlivened about anything. Finally,
Prabhupada said, ‘Just stop everything and chant Hare Krishna.’ To us
that meant everything; like the incense business, book distribution,
everything. It seemed like a radical instruction but, actually, the temple
management took it to heart and stopped everything except chanting
Hare Krishna.
“Nothing else was going on, so we all just went out on the streets and
chanted Hare Krishna every day because we had stopped everything
else. From the temple we would walk and chant all the way to
downtown San Francisco. Then we walked all over the city, up and
down hills, chanting constantly. We walked almost the entire time we
were out, which was at least 7-8 hours. We were doing that for quite
some time so we were in good physical condition. Actually, after the
first week was over nobody remembered what we were fighting about!
“I was playing mṛdaṅga and some devotees were distributing BTGs. I

couldn’t ask for money because I thought, If I’m an able-bodied man,
how can I ask for money? I always had that aversion. So I developed
incredible stamina for playing the drum, because that’s all I wanted to
do; just chant and play the drum. That was the most blissful time of my
life!”
“Tomorrow,” Vishnujana Swami suggests, “let’s go down to the

Financial District with Radha-Damodara. We could use a good
drummer.” Chiranjiva enthusiastically agrees to this proposal.
Jambavan: Yogesh Chandra took out a chanting party from the temple
every day. Chiranjiva was really dedicated to playing the drum and
leading the chanting. Those who didn’t have any fixed service at the
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temple would hit the streets of San Francisco, chanting all day long for
eight hours. When Vishnujana Swami was there he wanted to chant
across the Golden Gate Bridge. So he joined us all the way across the
bridge into Sausalito, jumping up and down with his tridanda in absolute
bliss. He was so fired-up. Vishnujana thought that was the greatest
thing, a chanting party across the bridge.
Bhutatma: We had a heavy duty kirtan party that went out to the city
regularly. We took the party all the way from the temple in Mission,
through downtown, out by the park, and across Golden Gate Bridge into
Sausalito. The devotees that didn’t come drove out to meet us there for a
mahā-kirtan in Sausalito. I remember crossing the bridge with
Vishnujana Swami leading the whole way. We drove back because it
was quite late by then. Radha-Damodara didn’t go because They were in
the Deity room.
The next day Maharaja is in downtown San Francisco with a chanting

party. Radha- Damodara are also on the street on Their palanquin
surrounded by tall high-rise buildings. Often unnoticed, They bestow
Their blessings upon the people rushing by. Vishnujana is in trance,
chanting in the middle of the business district as businessmen hurry here
and there.
Kaulini dd: My son was born in April. The first time I took him out of
the house we went downtown to the Financial District. The first deities
my son ever saw were Radha-Damodara that day. It was special for me
because my son had his first exposure to Vishnujana Swami chanting
the mahā-mantra. Vishnujana Maharaja and Radha-Damodara seemed
so much above and beyond everything else that was happening.
Sometimes businessmen would stop to look at Vishnujana and Radha-
Damodara. They could tell that he was in a totally different world while
chanting. He was so strikingly different from everybody else and so
absorbed in his chanting. It always made us feel really special towards
him.
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Every day Vishnujana Maharaja does his festival program, whether on a
street, in a park, or at a college. He even takes Radha-Damodara out to
Fisherman’s Wharf for a day of chanting. At Sonoma State College,
north of San Francisco, he sits down with his kirtan band on the lawn in
the center of the campus. Several San Francisco devotees, Jayananda,
Chiranjiva, Vatsala, and Nalini Kanta, take advantage of the presence of
the Radha-Damodara bus to do the festival program. Vishnujana
Maharaja has an attractive personality and people want to travel and
preach with him.
Jayananda especially likes Radha-Damodara’s prasādam of Gauranga

potatoes with poppers, salad, and a nectar drink made of orange juice,
buttermilk, and strawberries served out in Coca Cola cups. This is the
prasādam that Vishnujana distributes at almost every festival program.
Maharaja has a great desire to preach and spread Krishna consciousness,

which includes distributing a lot of prasādam. He always distributes
prasādam at the college programs, although the students are not always
receptive. He notices that people are more ready to accept the nectar
drink than the cooked prasādam, although they are still reluctant to
accept the drink because it’s like nothing they have ever seen before,
due to the addition of the buttermilk.
One time he ran out of cups and had to hurriedly buy cartons of Coca
Cola cups from a local vendor. When the devotees served the nectar in
the Coca Cola cups, they discovered that people would take it more
readily. And once they tasted that nectar they would drink as much as
they could. Since that time Maharaja prefers to use Coca Cola cups for
distributing nectar prasādam.
Whenever Radha-Damodara are in town Vatsala makes it a point to go

to Their programs. He always goes out for harināma sankirtan with
Jayananda and everybody else. Vishnujana has a program every day in
the park or at a college. Vatsala likes to play the drum and Maharaja
likes his lively and enthusiastic playing. He has also learned to play
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harmonium and asks Vishnujana to teach him the morning melody
during a little break at a college program.
Vishnujana replies, “Okay, you sit down here.” They both sit down in
front of the harmonium. Maharaja plays the first part on the lower
octave, saṁsara-dāvānala-līḍha- loka, and then he says, “Okay, now you
play that.” Then Vatsala repeats what Vishnujana has shown, playing
the same thing on the upper scale.
Vatsala: We went through the whole song like that, part by part. I
learned it quite easily that way. He told me that this was the same way
that Srila Prabhupada taught him to play harmonium.
Then he taught me Shuddha Bhakata. I liked that tune, especially the

way he played it. Most of my association with Vishnujana Swami was
in kirtan. If there was a kirtan, I’d get on the bus for the kirtan. They had
maṅgala-ārati on the bus. Whenever they would go out to a preaching
spot, I’d try to get in on that and take a lot of association. I’m kind of a
shy person, and in those days I was intimidated by sannyāsīs.
Vishnujana Swami was always chanting. Then he would give a little

talk, and chant some more, then give a little talk and distribute some
prasādam, and then it was chant some more. That’s real association. The
girls liked him; that was obvious. You could see when he was out
chanting, they would approach him and he was nice to them.
On Sunday mornings Jayananda and Nalini Kanta do a radio show in

nearby San Jose. They have a half hour of airtime and are free to do
whatever they want. They read from śāstra and discuss issues of the day.
They also sing together with Nalini playing guitar. Jayananda also likes
to do dramas and has a number of scripts for the radio show. He enjoys
playing Mrigari, the hunter, while Nalini plays Narada Muni. For the
Sunday feast programs he organizes the temple plays and teaches
everyone their part. He’s very enthusiastic about performing these little
dramas.
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At least once a week Nalini and Jayananda do a high school or college
class and they always encourage the students to chant with them. Often
they do a play in the classroom like “Liquid Beauty” or “Mrigari the
Hunter.” The idea is to get the students to participate and then ask for
questions. Before leaving they distribute prasādam, usually Simply
Wonderfuls.
Jayananda is always visiting people. Because he is so vibrant and

enlivening, everybody likes him. He started the system of taking mahā-
prasādam, usually a sweet, when visiting someone. He always makes
sure that wherever he goes he has a plate of mahā to distribute. He will
not go anywhere without prasādam to offer people.
In the early morning, while most devotees are absorbed in chanting japa,
Jayananda is out doing the ‘bhoga run’ – shopping at the wholesale fruit
and vegetable market. Nalini Kanta frequently goes with him to the
Produce Market. The vendors know him as Johnny Ananda and they
have cartons of fruits and vegetables set aside for him. Everyone gives
him as much as they can.
Nalini Kanta: We’d go to Banana King Louis and he’d give us 12 free
cases of brownish bananas, 15 cases of apricots, and some cauliflowers
with a little brown on the top. Jayananda loved it there. He would bring
prasādam, Simply Wonderfuls or banana bread with sugar icing, to all
the guys. Sometimes he’d give a book and ask them to come to our
Sunday feast. He didn’t talk philosophy too much, but he’d always
invite people to the feast. We had so many bananas so we’d make
banana bread and banana chutney.
San Francisco is similar to London in one respect – there is no space

available for anything. Only one dumpster per house is allowed by law
for the trash. Of course, for a temple there’s a lot more trash than for a
single family home. The garbage collectors come once a week so that’s
the only time to get rid of the trash. To make the best use of the one
dumpster, Jayananda packs everything really solid. He even gets on top
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and jumps on the garbage to pack it down so more can fit. He enjoys
doing this because it’s ‘sacred trash’, the remnants of the Deities and the
Vaishnavas.
Sri Kanta, however, feels bad seeing Jayananda jumping up and down
on the trash.
He decides to go out and collect the money for a trash compacter.
Srikanta: We used to get a lot of letters from Prabhupada and some of

them would end up in the dumpster because nobody understood that
they were really worth saving. I would rescue them because my service
was back there at the trash. It was a nice place to be because that’s
where Jayananda usually was. It’s expensive to dispose of trash in San
Francisco, and Jayananda used to jump on the garbage to tamp the trash
into the dumpster. I hated to see this because Jayananda was the greatest
devotee, so I purchased a trash compacter.
Jayananda gave a sour look, “What’s this?” I explained why I bought

the machine. “Why do you want to take away my service? Why are we
spending Prabhupada’s money on this?” He couldn’t see the logic of
wasting money on a machine when he could do the service. Jayananda
hated that trash compacter, because he loved the service. I realized, I’m
taking away a devotee’s service and giving it to a machine.
Once I had a splinter in my foot and Jayananda insisted that he remove

it. This was the most embarrassing moment for me because Jayananda
was like a mahātmā to us.
Portland, Oregon, May 1973

Dina Bandhu, Vishnujana’s old friend from Texas, is now temple
president in Portland. Maharaja calls him from San Francisco to
announce his intention to visit. Sikhandi Dasi answers the phone.
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“Dina Bandhu prabhu, there’s a call from Vishnujana Swami.”
“Oh, it’s Vishnujana?” On the phone he tells Maharaja about their

Gaura-Nitai installation ceremony and requests him to come
immediately. “Please hurry, Maharaja. Sudama Goswami is also coming
with his party. It’s gonna be huge!”
Dina Bandhu is in total ecstasy for the rest of the day, telling everyone
within earshot about this incredible devotee, Vishnujana Swami. “Never
was there a time when he had not joined ISKCON!”
Pulling up to the temple at 2507 Stanton Street, the Radha-Damodara

bus arrives at the last minute on the day of the installation. Sudama has
already performed the fire yajña.
Dina Bandhu is busy cooking in the kitchen when he sees the old blue
bus. He comes running out wearing an apron completely splattered from
the preparations he’s making and pays his obeisances. Dina Bandhu has
a respectful relationship towards Vishnujana Swami, but with deep
affection and ease because they are old friends.
Vishnujana laughs to see his friend. “As we were driving into Portland I
was thinking, I hope Dina Bandhu is in the kitchen. I’ve been to so
many temples but Keshava told me that your sweet rice is almost as
good as in New Vrindavan.”
“New Vrindavan has so much nice milk,” Dina Bandhu replies, “but we
are also going out to the countryside and getting raw milk.”
Maharaja extends an invitation to come on the bus. “Come take darshan

of Radha- Damodara.” Dina Bandhu is excited. He’s heard so much
about these beautiful Radha- Krishna Deities.
When Vishnujana suggests they bring Radha-Damodara into the temple,

Dina Bandhu agrees. “That will totally amaze the devotees.” As the
Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs carry the palanquin into the temple, the
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local devotees are astonished to see such beautiful Deities entering. It’s
another ecstatic happening on this auspicious day when Gaura-Nitai are
being installed.
As Sri Sri Radha-Damodara enter the Deity Room, Sikhandi and Akuti
are busy dressing Gaura-Nitai for the first time after Their installation.
The ladies are dressing Gaura-Nitai in a separate area, adjacent to where
Vishnujana places Radha-Damodara on the altar.
Sikhandi dd: We knew that Vishnujana Swami had arrived and he was
setting up his Deities. I hadn’t seen him yet because I was absorbed in
dressing Gaura-Nitai. When I came out, there was Radha-Damodara and
Vishnujana Maharaja. It was very sweet, very memorable. The curtains
were open now and everybody was overwhelmed taking darshan. He
decorated Their altar really fine. We had a wonderful kirtan and ārati
after that.
The mood of the temple becomes surcharged with spiritual power as

Vishnujana Swami takes over the kirtan in front of Gaura-Nitai and
Radha-Damodara. Sudama Maharaja does his famous “hot foot”– his
entertaining footwork while dancing. As the kirtan continues on and on
everyone is impressed because no one has ever been in a kirtan like this
before. Even Vishnujana Swami remarks afterwards that it was a
memorable kirtan. “When I go to Vaikuntha and I see Lord Narayana,
Lord Narayana will say to me, ‘Do you remember that kirtan in
Portland?’” Everybody beams in delight hearing this wonderful tribute.
After prasādam is served and everyone is fully satisfied, Vishnujana

Swami gets his kirtan band ready. Before introducing the first song, he
explains how it’s the expression of the pure devotees.
“There’s a nice song about Radha and Krishna by Narottam das

Thakur.” He draws everyone’s attention to Radha-Damodara situated on
the altar.
“These are Deities of Radha and Krishna, the Divine Couple. Just as
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there are couples in this material world – and the material world is
nothing but a shadow or reflection of the spiritual world – so in the
spiritual world there are couples, perfect couples. Radha and Krishna are
the Divine Couple of the spiritual realm.
“There’s a refrain to this song; it’s the first line. The first words Radha
and Krishna are sung three times: Radha-Krishna, Radha-Krishna,
Radha-Krishna prāṇa mor, then again Radha-Krishna, Radha-Krishna,
yugala-kiśor. That will be the refrain. I’ll sing it once more Radha-
Krishna, Radha-Krishna, Radha-Krishna prāṇa mor / Radha-Krishna,
Radha-Krishna, yugala kiśor. Okay?”
He launches into the song with the feeling and expression reminiscent of
the eternal devotees whose only desire is to engage in transcendental
devotional service. Afterward, he reads the translation.
O Radha-Krishna, Radha-Krishna, Radha-Krishna, my living force! O

youthful couple, in life or death I have nothing more than You.
On the banks of the Yamuna in a grove of flowering kadamba trees I’ll

prepare a golden throne and seat You there. I’ll anoint Your dark and
fair forms with sandalwood pulp scented with aguru, and I’ll fan You
with a peacock tail fan and see Your two moonlike faces.
I’ll string garlands of malati flowers and place them around Your
Lordships’ necks, and for Your lotus lips I’ll offer betel leaves scented
with camphor. By the side of Lalita and Vishakha I will stand ready to
fulfill any service at their lotus feet.
Narottam Das, the servant of the servant of the servant of Lord

Chaitanya says, ‘Allow me to engage in these pastimes of devotional
service.’
“So, Radha and Krishna are not an ordinary boy and girl. If they were an
ordinary boy and girl then why would so many renounced monks –
sannyāsīs – why would they be so much absorbed in singing about Their
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beauty; about Their pastimes?
“Naturally, if They were an ordinary boy and girl then we’d all go out
and have our own affairs, you see? But since They’re very special, since
Their bodies are sac-cid- ānanda – eternity, knowledge and bliss –
therefore Their loving affairs are much different than the loving affairs
of this temporary body, which is a combination of chemicals, and which
is not my self, but only a puppet that I’m moving with my self. Actually,
my self is originally eternal, full of bliss and knowledge, just like the
body of Krishna, but because of my forgetfulness of my relationship
with Krishna, therefore I’ve identified myself as matter, as this bunch of
chemicals.
“Radha and Krishna, this Divine Couple, have Their own loving affairs
which are filled with emotional exchanges of love just like a boy and
girl in this material world, but based on eternity, knowledge and bliss. If
you see writing on a rock, just like once I was sitting down chanting on
my beads in a forest and there was a rock where a girl had written ‘Mary
loves John forever.’ Naturally, when you give your love, you give it
forever, isn’t it? You don’t give your love to someone and think, Well,
I’m giving my love to you for a little while, but I want to tell you that in
a little bit I’m gonna leave you and go off somewhere else. No one
begins a loving relationship like that.
“Whenever we begin a loving relationship it’s always with the feeling

that I’m giving my love forever. That is real love. Actually, Mary didn’t
love John forever, because right next to it I saw that now, ‘Mary loves
Mike forever.’ So, Mary is having some difficulty.”
Everyone bursts into laughter at this remark, and then Maharaja

continues.
“She hasn’t found that person to whom she can give her love to forever,
although she wants to love forever. Similarly, all of us want to love
forever but we haven’t found that relationship, that object that can
actually reciprocate love forever, and that we’ll never get tired of loving
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forever. But that is this Divine Couple, Radha and Krishna.”
Early the next morning Vishnujana Swami is on the altar dressing

Radha-Damodara while the Portland pūjārīs are dressing Gaura-Nitai.
When Sikhandi brings Maharaja some flowers for Radha-Damodara’s
vases, he notices an awful sore on her foot that definitely needs
attention. He asks what she’s doing for it. She replies that she hasn’t
really been taking care of it. He comments that it is her responsibility to
take care of the body that belongs to Krishna. It needs to be in good
working order to perform devotional service. He offers a few
suggestions to help the healing.
Later he chastises Dina Bandhu that devotees should be taken care of

nicely. He gives a warning, “If devotees are not treated with love and
dignity they will leave the movement and go elsewhere.”
Sikhandi dd: I had a bad gash on the top of my foot. Vishnujana

Maharaja suggested a few things to take care of it. Then he chastised
Dina Bandhu that he should take better care of the devotees. Dina
Bandhu was really affected by that. I was moved that here was a
sannyāsī that actually cared. He was very personal.
Mahibharta: Vishnujana Maharaja was very concerned for the devotees.

That was one of the wonderful things about him. I remember his mood
was very sweet. He told me that Prabhupada had told him he should go
to all the temples at least once a year and report to him on their
condition.
Srila Prabhupada has often commented on caring for devotees. He has

written that,
“It should be our definite policy that nobody is ill treated that he may go
away. We recruit a person to join us after spending gallons of blood.
Everyone comes for reformation; you cannot expect everyone to be
perfect. Rather it is our duty to make everyone perfect as far as possible.
So we shall be very much cautious and careful in this connection.”
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[Letter to Tamal Krishna - August 23, 1973]
For the morning Bhagavatam class the verse is 1.13.16. Vishnujana

Maharaja begins his talk by first glorifying Srila Prabhupada.
“We’re offering our respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of our
Spiritual Master, His divine Grace Sri Srimad A. C. Bhaktivedanta
Swami Maharaja Prabhupada, who is the topmost swanlike devotee and
wandering mendicant, and who has kindly come to us who are all
standing in the darkness with our eyes closed shut, and he’s forcing our
eyes open with the torch light of knowledge of the Srimad
Bhagavatam.”
After reading the verse and purport he begins speaking about the
material conception of life, how at the time of death there is no
protection. Therefore, everyone should be trained in the principles of
Krishna consciousness and take shelter of the Vaishnavas to give the
greatest benefit to the world.
“So this is the beauty of Krishna consciousness, that it can transform the
morbid face of the present conditioned society into the beautiful smiling
glance of the Lord, by simply introducing this type of spiritual culture.
In spiritual culture everything is done in the most aesthetic way for the
pleasure of the Supreme Lord.
“To get the highest value of some activity, of some object, means to
excavate Krishna from every activity, from every object. That is to find
the essence. Those who are aesthetic personalities, they are interested in
the essence. They don’t want the superficial. They want the essence. So
if you’re actually interested in the essence of all relationships, of all
objects, it is to excavate Krishna by devotional service, in all
relationships and in connection with all objects. Then we can see the
Supreme Personality of Godhead as the central feature of everything.
Krishna is in the center of everything. He is the nucleus of creation. He
is the vortex of all qualities and activities.”
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He begins to develop his theme that all qualities and activities extend
from the spiritual realm, beginning with the Lord’s original pastimes
with his pure, liberated devotees.
“So this is knowledge in Krishna consciousness. We don’t have to

artificially renounce our emotions – anger, greed, lust, envy. These
things are originally pure in the spiritual world in connection with
Krishna. So we don’t have to give them up, we simply have to connect
them with Krishna. That is real renunciation, to connect all emotions, all
objects, and all relationships with Krishna. This is called a purified
reminiscence. Reminiscence is your ability to associate experiences
from the past to the present.”
Maharaja explains that people think in terms of past experiences. On the

basis of past associations they accept and reject situations and make
judgments.
“When people see a young couple together they identify that as

pleasure. Due to identification with the body, that is identified as
pleasure. But that is an impure reminiscence. Krishna consciousness
means to purify our consciousness from the illusory conceptions of
enjoyment.
“To purify the reminiscence, of course, one has to hear about the Lord’s
glories, hear about the Lord’s pastimes, activities, name, entourage,
paraphernalia and servants. By hearing all these topics in relation to the
Lord, you get the purified reminiscence. And the hard knot of material
affection for bodily relationships is severed. When that hard knot
ahaṅkāra – identification with the body – is severed, then you are a
liberated soul. That is the qualification of a liberated soul.”
The next point in his presentation is how the pure soul comes under the
illusion that the body is the self. Maharaja explains how this happens
right at the first moment of birth.
“You are immediately shocked with the phenomena of breathing, and
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you identify life with breathing. The breathing symptom becomes what
you identify life with, from the very beginning of your birth. When you
were living in the womb of your mother, you weren’t breathing. But as
soon as you come out, you identify life with breathing. You see?
“Imagine being a little child with this huge respiration experience going
on, the in- going and out-going breath. The senses are brand new.
Imagine how shocking it is, how absorbing it is for the mind of the little
child, this breathing. You take it for granted now, because of so many
years of conditioning. But imagine the fresh senses of the child. How
much conditioning, how strong is that experience of breathing and
eating from the mother’s breast? He identifies life with eating,
annamoya. His whole conception of existence is based on eating and
breathing. Just see how illusory this material world is. In this way the
knot of affection for this body is created.”
Maharaja explains that due to identifying life with the bodily

mechanisms, eating, breathing, evacuating, etc. one becomes bound up
by the hard knot of material existence. The only way to sever that knot
is to approach a bona fide Spiritual Master.
“Guru is one who is a liberated soul, who has cut off the affection for
bodily activities, and who is engaging all his senses and mind in the
service of the Lord. That’s a guru. He has 26 qualities and is completely
attached to Krishna. He doesn’t go anywhere if the Lord is not involved.
These are the qualities of an actual guru, completely controlling his
senses, his mind, the pushing of his genitals and belly. He has controlled
all these things.”
He clarifies that devotional service means to gratify Krishna’s senses,

not to use Krishna to gratify our own senses. God is the person who is
most worthy of our loving devotional service.
“The actual yogi is thinking how the Supreme Lord will enjoy by this
yoga process. He has transferred the account of sense gratification to the
Lord. And he uses these senses, which are also the property of the Lord,
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in the service of the Lord’s senses.
Therefore, he is actually one with the Lord. Because his senses are
dovetailed in the will and the pleasure of the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, he is one in will with God.”
Vishnujana Maharaja explains a simple point that substantiates the

personal conception.
“It’s bogus that after we get rid of false ego, we lose all individuality,
we merge and become God. That’s not true. That’s a concoction of the
minds of the rascals. The actual fact is, ‘Never was there a time when I
did not exist, nor you, nor all these,’ Krishna says, ‘nor in the future
shall we ever cease to be.’ We were individuals in the past, we’re
individuals at present, and in the future we will continue to be
individuals. But spiritual individuality is different from material
individuality. Material individuality is due to this body, and spiritual
individuality is due to the variety of the pleasure potency of the
Supreme Lord. Variety is part of enjoyment. Therefore, the Lord has a
variety of servitors that serve Him in different moods of affection, and
render Him transcendental pleasure. That is the basis of spiritual
individuality.
“Therefore, our individuality is based on that internal pleasure potency

of the Lord. So, individuality is an eternal fact. It’s not something that
can be given up. It’s something that has to be purified, to the standard of
unalloyed love, for the satisfaction of the Lord.”
Maharaja debunks the pseudo spiritualists and writers. He gives an

example from Siddhartha, [Written by Hermann Hesse] a popular book
among young people.
“The hero is described as falling completely into illusion, living with a

prostitute for the whole of his life, and then at the end of life going to
some river and becoming self- realized hearing the river babbling. So all
the young people in the country are thinking, Oh, let me go and enjoy
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sex all the duration of my life. And at the end of life I will go sit down
by some river, and I will become a self-realized soul. Just see the rascal.
He’s encouraging prostitution in his so-called spiritualism, that you go
on to experience the depths of illusion, and you will be able to
experience the deep spiritual beauty. Just see the rascaldom!”
Vishnujana reiterates that devotees need to give knowledge about the

real qualifications of God, the real qualifications of the spiritual master,
and the real qualifications of a disciple, to protect innocent people from
being cheated.
“Absolute means, there is no need of duality. We don’t have to have

pain to know what pleasure is. We don’t have to have birth in order to
know what death is. We can understand everything perfectly from the
transcendental position. You don’t need to go into the realm of duality
to understand. Go out and help these innocent people that are being
misled by all these rascal ‘spiritual’ teachers. Go out and inform then
that, ‘You’re being cheated. You don’t know.’
“There are so many sentimentalists. ‘Love and peace, everything is all

right.’ That’s not a fact. Everything is not all right. I see all my friends
who were into love and peace, this and that, now so many of them are in
jail, so many of them are having real difficulty in this and that. Where is
the peace? You’re karma is catching up to you at every moment. It’s not
going to give you any peace.
“Peace means to become a liberated soul, factually. Not to make a

mental adjustment that whatever you do is all right. You do your thing,
and I’ll do my thing, and it’s all right. That is not peace. That simply
means ignorance. You’re closing your eyes like the rabbit as the tiger is
about to pounce on him. He protects himself by closing his eyes and
pretending the tiger is not there. But the tiger eats him all the same.
“So these young people that are simply closing their eyes to the facts of
action and reaction, karma, they are closing their eyes to real spiritual
rules and regulations of life. These persons are just like the rabbit,
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closing the eyes to the tiger of birth and death that is pouncing on them.
So you protect these innocent people. Give them this knowledge. Any
question or comment?”
Vishnujana looks around the room but no one is venturing to ask a

question. After a few moments Maharaja asks his own question.
“Do you know the qualifications of a spiritual master? Of a pure

devotee? Suppose someone asks you what are some of the
qualifications? Suppose someone asks, ‘Why do you accept this guru,
Bhaktivedanta Swami, instead of Yogananda or someone?’ Suppose I
ask you that?”
Again, no one puts up a hand to answer. Seeing that not one of the
temple devotees is brave enough to answer, Dina Bandhu at last speaks
up.
“In the Nectar of Devotion it describes that in order to be spiritual

master he takes control of six gratifying agents, the tongue, belly,
genital, the mind, anger, and words. Also Nectar of Devotion describes
that the spiritual master has come to the conclusion of all the scriptures.
And that conclusion is stated by Krishna Himself in Bhagavad- gita,
15th chapter, By all the Vedas I am to be known. And I’m the compiler
of Vedanta, and I know Veda as it is. The real spiritual master has come
to the conclusion that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Krishna also describes what mahātmā is in the 9th chapter, They are
always engaged in chanting my glories, and endeavoring with great
determination they worship me with devotion.”
“This you have to be able to speak,” Vishnujana concurs. “If somebody

asks you, ‘Why do you accept this spiritual master instead of so many
others?’ you have to be able to explain to him why. We’re not
sentimentalists, that we’ve blindly accepted some guru out of many
gurus. We’ve accepted because he’s authorized. He’s an authorized
spiritual master. That means he has potency. Just like you wouldn’t let
any doctor operate on you unless he’s authorized.
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“Suppose I come to you and say I’m a self-acclaimed doctor. You have
a disease, and I’m going to fix it for you. Will you accept me? I’m a
self-acclaimed doctor so no one will accept. Only stupid people will
accept. But one who is in knowledge he’ll think, ‘You are self-
acclaimed? You have no degree? You haven’t studied under any
physician? I can’t even see how your patients are doing? All your
patients are dying, and you want to operate on me. No sir.’ They are
such fools that they accept self- acclaimed doctors. Who else has some
other qualifications?”
“He’s an acharya,” a female voice speaks softly from the rear. “Yes. He
teaches by example.”
“He comes in the line of parampara.” The reply comes from a bold male
voice.
“Yes that’s very important. That means he is in disciplic succession of

many great spiritual masters who are all qualified and authorized.
Disciplic succession begins with Krishna, and is gradually carried down
from master to disciple. That is one of the qualifications of a bona fide
spiritual master. You have to have heard from a bona fide spiritual
master to become a bona fide spiritual master. You can’t be self-
acclaimed. Learn all these things. All glories to Prabhupada.”
“Jaya!” is everyone’s response.
Today the temple has arranged a High School program. After breakfast
prasādam Dina Bandhu, Mahibharta, Akuti and Sikhandi are ready to
depart along with the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs. Everyone in the
temple wants to go to the program but Dina Bandhu explains that they
can’t bring a crowd into the classroom.
At the school Maharaja begins his talk with a general introduction as

Dayal Chandra sets up the projector for the slide show. “We’ve been
visiting a number of colleges and high schools, not only here in
Portland, but all around the US. The purpose is to inform people about
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the Science of Yoga. You’ve heard, most of you, at least by now,
something about yoga. And yoga actually means union with the divine –
linking up our consciousness with the highest happiness, the highest
ecstasy. That’s the literal meaning of yoga – to link.
“How to practice yoga; that’s what this slide show is going to be about.
What a guru is; we’re going to try and explain that and explain what it
means to be a disciple, or an aspirant of yoga. What the lifestyle is like;
how to live the lifestyle of a yogi. In order to understand the science of
yoga one has to be able to give full attention. So to help you and us give
full attention, we’re going to be doing some chanting. They are called
mantras, or mind purification. That’s what mantra means in Sanskrit.
Now the mantras are usually composed of three or four words that are
very simple. Some of them will be written down on the slides and you’ll
be able to chant with us, especially the Hare Krishna mantra.
“These mantras are not against any particular religion. Whatever your
religious background is, the beauty of yoga is that it’s non-sectarian. It
doesn’t offend any religion. Mantras are simply codes for purifying our
consciousness and making us happy. You’ll see as you engage in the
chanting how happy you can become simply by a little meditation.
“So we’ll begin with a mantra. This is the original mantra of the Vedas;
a very old mantra, actually millions of years old. Then we’ll go on with
the slides and explanation. So listen very carefully. If you feel a little
distracted, just close your eyes, and absorb yourself in yoga, in sound.
Unite yourself with this sound.”
Maharaja begins chanting oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. He plays

harmonium and is accompanied by khol and kartāls. The devotees clap
their hands in time, and the two mātājīs from the temple chant along
with the brahmacārīs. After three minutes Maharaja brings the chanting
to a close and Dayal Chandra displays the first slide. [This symbol *
denotes each slide]
* “Easy Journey to Other Planets. That is the mystery of yoga; how to
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travel to the highest happiness. Everyone is moving from one situation
to another, from one relationship to another, even the scientists are
going from one planet to another, looking for higher happiness, more
resources, in order to fulfill our lives. They spend millions of dollars and
millions of man-hours developing space capsules, for going to the
nearest planet, the moon. What is their hope? What is their aspiration?
It’s to find more resources in order to fulfill our desires. That is why
they’re working so hard.
* “So a yogi is also searching. He’s also looking into the realm of more
resources to satisfy our desires. But he’s not looking to any planet in this
dark universe. He’s looking to what is called the brahmajyoti, the clear
light, and the clear sky beyond this black universe, this dark universe.
He’s looking into that realm where everything is, in the Sanskrit
language, sat cit ananda, eternal, full of knowledge and bliss. We have
no experience of such a realm, such a universe, where even the atoms
are eternal, full of knowledge and bliss! Just imagine the ecstasy of
living in that type of environment. That is the environment that a yogi is
looking for.
* “In this realm of existence in the material world, we’re going from one
relationship to another, one friend to another, one stage of our life to
another, one country to another, and in this way we’re going from one
object to another trying to increase our fulfillment, trying to increase our
happiness.
* “But a yogi knows that everything in this world is limited. Every plan
has its limitations. Every stage of our bodily development, and mental
development, has limitations. Therefore the yogi uses the word
‘transcendence’. He’s trying to transcend the limitations of the body, the
limitations of the mind, the limitations of this whole universe. That is
the easy journey to other planets that a yogi is engaged in. Of course,
this human form of life is compared to the perfect ship for traveling on
that easy journey to the higher planets. And every ship requires a good
captain, and that is where the word guru comes in, the spiritual master.
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Guru means the captain of your ship, the one who is guiding the use of
this body and mind in the yoga practice, controlling the senses and the
mind.
* “This is my guru, His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

Prabhupada. He came from India seven years ago, and started the Hare
Krishna movement. And this is a mantra in praise of the guru, a song in
praise of the guru.” Maharaja begins chanting namah om visnu padaya...
with response from the devotees. Then he continues his presentation.
* “This is the place in India, central India, called the Radha-Damodara

temple. In this ancient culture called the Vedic culture, people in
general, when half the duration of their life is over, say when they reach
the age of forty years, they go to what is called the ashram, or the
temple. And it’s here where they develop what’s called self-realization.
They become free from the attachments of this world, nirguna. So my
spiritual master, he actually lived in this Radha-Damodara temple for
many years, translating the ancient Sanskrit books into English. For
hundreds of years, people have been looking to the East for knowledge,
looking to the East for its wealth, looking to the East for the fountain of
youth, and so many other mysteries. Ponce de Leon, Columbus, all these
explorers were going to the East. And actually that wealth was never
discovered by any of them. That fountain of youth was never found by
any of them, because it was hidden in that Sanskrit language, like these
mantras that we’re chanting today. That fountain of youth, that
development of the greatest mystic power, was hidden in that ancient
Sanskrit language.
* “So that is the great service that my spiritual master has done for the
western world. He’s the first guru to actually translate the ancient
Sanskrit Vedas, on a large scale, into English. Those books we’ve
brought here today to show you and after class you’ll be able to look at
some of them.”
* “My Spiritual Master came to this country and he saw that there were
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many other gurus of different types of yoga, hatha yoga, raja yoga, kriya
yoga. Some of you know there are so many systems of yoga. But he
asked all of us, ‘Do you know what is the qualification of an actual
guru, an actual Spiritual Master?’ An exemplary situation was that at
one airport when my Spiritual Master arrived in Los Angeles, one boy
stood up and said, ‘What do you think of the Maharishi Yogi?’ My
Spiritual Master looked at the boy and said, ‘Do you know what is a
Maharishi?’ The boy said, ‘No, I don’t’. My Spiritual Master replied,
‘You don’t know what you’re even asking about, so I could tell you
anything, and you’d believe it.’ And my Spiritual Master went further,
he said, ‘If you come to a drug shop and you ask the drug keeper, ‘will
you sell me some gold?’ the drug keeper will immediately think that
you’re a fool. If you are looking for gold, what are you doing in a drug
shop asking for gold? Therefore I could sell you anything.’
“So my Spiritual Master was giving him a warning, that before you go
looking for a guru, you should study and understand what are the
qualifications of a guru. Otherwise you can be cheated by anyone. Any
person with long hair and a big white beard and beady eyes can call
himself a guru, take your money and give you some cheap process of
yoga. That’s actually going on, on a large scale. Cheaters are coming
from India and for a few hundred dollars, or a thousand dollars, they
teach you how to press your nose, and stand on your head, and go away.
* “So my Spiritual Master has come to this country specifically to give

us knowledge of the qualifications of the real guru. This is what this
slide is about. This is the first qualification of a real guru. He sees within
the body of a cow, or a man, or a dog, or an elephant, or even a dog-
eater, he sees the same Supreme Soul guiding the consciousness of all
these different living beings. This is the universal vision, understanding
that there is a supreme intelligence that arranges for us to be a particular
person, as our wife, another particular soul as our child, to be put into a
particular country and situation. Just like we’re all gathered here
together right now, there are so many other gatherings going on at the
same time. Why you particularly, and you particularly, have been
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gathered here right now? What is that intelligence which has arranged
this?
“We could say that it was the responsibility of one or two girls in the
class, or the responsibility of the teacher who is a liberal person. We
could find so many relative causes. But ultimately we have to see that
there’s the Supreme Intelligence that’s bringing us all together. That is
the vision of a real guru. He sees that Supreme Intelligence working
twenty-four hours a day in everything.
* “A very important qualification of a guru is that he’s not a sectarian

religionist. He’s not the propounder of one particular sect over another,
or one particular yoga process over another. He’s able to see everything
as the teaching necessary for all different types of living beings in
different stages of life. Not everyone can understand Calculus. He has to
start with two plus two equal four. So similarly the guru is able to give
instructions to all classes of living beings, for gradual development to
the highest stage of life. He has come to the conclusion of all scriptures.
Not one scripture, but all scriptures. And that conclusion in Sanskrit is
called sanatana dharma, the eternal religion. A religion can be changed.
A Christian can become a Jew. A Jew can become a Hindu. We’ve seen
it over thousands of years. We’ve been trying to convert each other from
one religion to another. But what is that quality that can never change?
What is the eternal religion? My spiritual master says the eternal
religion is service and devotion. That can never change. Even if I say
I’m an atheist, I’m still serving something. I have to serve my belly, at
least, just to live. So devotion and service between a mother and child,
husband and wife, the soldier and his nation, that is the eternal quality of
an individual.
“Even the animals have this quality. I was watching some birds this
morning.
There’s one class of bird here in Portland that in order to keep the
females happy, I saw, he has to feed them. All the female birds gather
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‘round the male bird and he picks up little things, and they come up to
him and open their mouths. He puts it in their mouth, and that way he
keeps them faithful to him. So he’s rendering service. He’s devoted to
those female birds. In every species of life there is a quality, and that is
giving. Giving to others so that we can all serve each other in love.
Without giving to our child, or husband, there’s no question of enjoying
in this life. Therefore, service is the eternal religion. That is the teaching
of a real guru, a real spiritual master.
* “He’s always in ecstasy. He knows that he’s not this body; that the
body is only a vehicle that he’s traveling in. Just like your vehicle, you
put gas in it and it runs. So this body is a vehicle, you put food in it and
it runs. You don’t know how it runs any more than you know how the
car is running once you put the gas in. But you know if you put gas in, it
will take you where you want to go. Similarly, if you feed this body,
then you can go wherever you want to go. So this body is a vehicle. It’s
not myself. I’m traveling in it. My hand, my leg. Not I hand, I leg or I
body. Have you ever heard anybody say I body? No it’s my body. Just
like it’s my car. It’s my house. It’s my body. But where is that I? Where
is that I that’s in this body we call us? When a person knows that I, then
he becomes joyful, because he’s no longer affected by the pains and
pleasures of the body. That is called self-realization. That is the position
of a yogi.
* “He is free from what are called the modes of material nature. In the
mode of ignorance, people go to the tombs of dead men, like you see at
the bottom. There are two ghost-haunted trees, and they worship them.
In the mode of passion, people worship men, like scientists. There’s a
picture of a man worshipping Hitler in the second world war. Men
worship other men who satisfy their desires, who give them wealth, etc.
And in the mode of goodness at the top, you see them worshipping the
different demigods, the residents of the higher planets. These are the
modes of material nature. Goodness, passion, and ignorance. There are
foods in the mode of ignorance; things that give an obnoxious smell and
make you sick. There are foods in the mode of passion that are just too
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hot, and which cause distress in the body. And there are foods in the
modes of goodness like fruits, and vegetables, and milk. These things
cause a longer duration of life, increased happiness within the body. So
these modes of material nature, goodness, passion and ignorance, are
controlling everything.
“The forest is the place of goodness. The city is the place of passion.
The bar or brothel is the place of ignorance. So these three modes are
just like the three primary colors. The three primary colors can make 81
combinations. Similarly with these three modes of nature, all the
different psychologies of all human beings are created. Every species of
life is conducted by these three modes of nature. The yogi is able to see
that. He’s able to see that nobody is really doing anything freely, but are
forced to act by the modes. Why is it your father decides to go to the bar
instead of the baseball game? Or go to the church instead of the bar? It’s
because of these modes of goodness, passion, and ignorance. One who
can see these things working, can understand the mind of everyone. He
can read everyone’s mind, because he sees the great influences
controlling our walking, our talking, our dressing, everything. This is
the vision of a real guru.
* “He knows that from the highest planet to the lowest planet, they’re all
places of repeated birth and death. The cycle of saṁsāra, repeated birth
and death, is reincarnation. He knows why one appears in the animal
kingdom, why one appears in the human kingdom, or why one goes
beyond into the demigod’s kingdom, the higher planets. These are the
laws of karma. A real guru can explain everything to you about action
and reaction; the laws of karma.
* “A real guru is completely dependent upon the Supreme Lord. And

because he takes a personal interest in the Lord, the Lord takes a
personal interest in him, and protects him from the ocean of ignorance,
this material world.
* “A real guru has completely controlled his senses. He’s controlled his
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working senses, his belly, and his genital. These are some of the
working senses. He’s controlled his knowledge acquiring senses: seeing,
hearing, tasting, smelling, touching. These are our knowledge acquiring
senses. He engages his working senses and knowledge acquiring senses
only in the service of the Supreme Lord. That is actual yoga; mystic
yoga. In this trance of mystic yoga, one can actually meditate within the
four chambers of the heart. And it’s there, within the four chambers of
the heart, that you and I are situated, along with the supreme soul.
“Even a scientist will agree that all energy is seated within the heart.
Even all religions claim God is in your heart. But many scientists have
opened the heart, and they haven’t found Him yet. What do they mean
in all religions, God is within your heart? That a real guru can explain;
how to see the supreme within your own heart. That is the vision of the
mystic yogi.
* “He knows everything about this dark material world, as well as the
light spiritual world, where everything is eternal, full of knowledge and
bliss. And he can explain it all to you and answer all your questions.
* “He’s unaffected by the changes of the body. He can instruct you that
you’re not dying at all. Only this material body is going through the
changes of creation, maintenance, and destruction at last. There’s no
need for lamentation over these changes of the body. Everyone’s
lamenting over his or her body. Oh I’m getting old, I’m getting
diseased, I’m dying. But I’m not getting old. The body is. I’m not
getting diseased, and I’m not dying. It’s only due to my false ego and
my identification with the body as myself that I think I’m suffering. A
real spiritual master can free you from this illusion that I am the body.
That is his gift. And that’s just the beginning.
* “He warns you about the path of attachment to material things, false
pride and prestige, anger, lust, greed, ignorance and envy. These are the
enemies of the path of yoga. These things have to be avoided, by higher
development, accepting a bona fide guru, studying the scriptures,
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controlling the senses and mind, and living a life of austerity. These are
things that help us control the mind and senses on the path of yoga. Now
we’ve described a little bit about the guru. So let’s think a little bit about
what it means to be a disciple, or an aspirant on the path of yoga.
* “These are some of the qualities of becoming an aspirant. First of all

one has to come to hear sufficiently from the bona fide Spiritual Master,
the guru. Just like all of you. You’re hearing from your teacher. You
have respect if he has knowledge, which you also want to achieve, and
therefore you come and you listen. You give attention. Of course, today
there is not very much respect anymore. Half of the students are looking
out the window. I did when I was in high school. I don’t think I can
remember anything I heard in high school. My mind was so agitated by
sex life, agitated by social life, and all that. What do I care about
calculus, and all that? How does that appear in my daily life? So this is
the difficulty. People have not learned how to control their minds,
withdraw their minds from the distractions of the world, and give
attention to the teacher. But if one wants to practice yoga, such an
important subject, we have to develop this control of the mind.
* “Therefore one has to learn how to hear properly. That is a great

science; how to give full attention to hearing. That is the first thing the
spiritual master instructs you; how to hear properly, how to give full
attention in hearing his words. One also has to render service to the
spiritual master because he is not impressed by academic qualification,
or money, or this or that. He’s only impressed by sincere service from
the disciple.
“If one hears sufficiently and gives service to the guru, then he gets his
intelligence satisfied, that all he has instructed me is actually best for
me, is good for me, and will make me happy. It’s only then that one
agrees to act accordingly. For example, if I tell you not to eat meat, why
should you do it unless your intelligence is satisfied that it’s really not
good for you? So the real spiritual master answers all your questions,
satisfies your intelligence, and convinces you of the laws of karma,
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action and reaction, and what is the real path of happiness in life. Then
you’ll agree to act on his instructions. After you act on his instructions,
you become free from all the conditioning, the misconceptions that have
been imposed upon you by the misled society leaders, etc. You become
free of all that conditioning that has been injected into you from your
very childhood, and even before, in your past lives. When you’re free,
when your mind is completely free of all misconceptions of yourself and
others, then you actually develop this universal vision of seeing
everything in relation to the Supreme. At that stage you’re called a
liberated soul. And from there you progress more and more. And that is
a great subject.
* “So if we take a number of bona fide disciples, put them together, with
a wonderful guru, a spiritual master, then it becomes like an army; a
spiritual army of love. And what is the war? The war is against illusion,
against darkness. Here you see some of my godbrothers along with my
spiritual master – even at the airport, always dispelling the darkness of
illusion by dancing and chanting. We’ll do some of the chanting and
show you some of the slides of the different temples around the
country.” At this point Vishnujana Maharaja begins a short kirtan
chanting his favorite melody. After four minutes he brings it to a close
and continues with the next slide.
* “There are over eighty communities around the world. Naturally

people are interested to know how we’re living. This is the beginning of
people entering into the ashram, or into the spiritual community. This is
called the initiation ceremony. This means that after hearing sufficiently
for several months, one may desire to live in the commune or this
temple, along with the other devotees and practice yoga. This fire
ceremony symbolizes the burning away of all the past karma for
millions of lifetimes. That is the meaning of the initiation ceremony.
Forgetting all the ignorance of the past and beginning with fresh
consciousness.
* “We eat in an atmosphere of spiritual love. The food is prepared with
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love and devotion and is offered on the altar to the Supreme Lord, and
then all of us sit down and eat together with love and devotion. Only
vegetarian food is used, milk, fruit, grains, nuts, like this.
* “Naturally every community requires schools for their children, so in

Dallas we have 200 school age children from our society. We teach
them the principles of yoga, along with the knowledge of this material
world. In this way the natural tendency for young people to go within
and meditate is developing. In our present school system, there is hardly
any opportunity to give young children meditation, and an opportunity
to look inside themselves, and find out that deep introspection, which is
their nature. In our schools they actually develop their nature for
chanting, dancing, and meditation, even in pre-school children. This is
natural for them. It makes them joyful.
* “Marriage is also part of any communal living. Therefore marriage in

our conception, in the Vedic spiritual conception, means that a man and
woman join together for doubling their energy for self-realization. That
is the meaning of marriage in our society.
* “There is no discrimination within our society because we know we’re

not this body. Therefore we don’t consider human beings as black or
white, pretty or ugly, or any of these bodily designations. All problems
of the world are due to this bodily false ego; that I’m American or
Russian, Christian or Jew, black or white, and therefore we fight with
one another. But in our consciousness there is no room for such
sectarian beliefs, only the universal love that all human beings are
brothers.
* “The activities of women in Krishna consciousness are also very

beautiful. There is no discrimination because she is a girl she can’t do
the highest priestly activities. Here you see a woman performing the
highest function in the temple: offering the prasādam, spiritual food, on
the altar.
* “Nor do we neglect people in general. Even though we have our own
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communes, we go out to homes and families in the community.
Wherever we are invited we put on programs just like we’re doing here
today. We distribute a feast of beautiful food and give them flower
garlands that are offered with love to God. In this way we try to make
their whole life joyful, and show people how they can transform their
homes into a temple. One doesn’t necessarily have to live in the temple;
he can make his home a transcendental place. By rising early and
meditating, and things like this, it will actually cement families together
in spiritual life.
* “Rising early is a necessary part of yoga. We rise at 3:30am, shower,

then we mark our body with this mark on our forehead as the temple of
God. This is a meditation in which we mark twelve places on our body,
and free all the energy of this body in the service of God. We study the
ancient language, and we read the ancient Sanskrit text describing the
system of yoga. And we practice for six hours in the morning before we
begin our public day and come out and meet with you and other people
on the street.
* “This is called Deity worship. These are forms of Krishna, the

Supreme Lord, that are worshipped in the temple, where food is offered,
etc. This is not idol worship. Just as, for those of you who are Christians
or Jews, you remember Moses took off his shoes and offered his
respects before a burning bush. That doesn’t mean he was worshipping a
bush. But because God had appeared that way, he offered his respects.
Similarly we are not worshipping dolls, we’re worshipping the Supreme
Lord and He agrees to appear.
* “Most important of all is this chanting of Hare Krishna, Hare Rama.

This literally means, ‘please engage me in your service. Oh my Lord,
please engage me in your service.’ That’s the literal meaning of the
mantra. But apart from the meaning, simply by chanting one becomes
joyful. Just like when I first came six years ago, I had no knowledge of
Sanskrit, but I loved the chanting. I was a musician, therefore I was
attracted to these people playing these cymbals and bells, chanting and
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dancing. I thought it was beautiful; such a wonderful atmosphere. So
even without any knowledge or understanding, one can understand the
happiness you experience by chanting Hare Krishna.”
At this point Vishnujana looks over to the teacher. “Is there much time
left?”
“Five minutes, so we’re just about out of time.”
“Well, let me teach you the mantra and we’ll stop here. There’s a lot
more I can show you, but I’d like to leave some time for you to ask
questions. So I’ll teach you the mantra. You can say after me with the
devotees, Hare, Krishna, etc. So we’ll do the chanting and you can
follow along.”
He begins kirtan chanting Prabhupada’s melody for two minutes, and

then asks for questions. However, just at that moment the bell rings,
signaling the end of class.
The teacher speaks up. “Class is over. We’re going to have to get some
of you back to class now. Thank you very much.”
Dina Bandhu: I remember the slide show program he was doing. In fact,
I memorized it and put together my own slide show to emulate
Vishnujana Swami. He had a lot of good ideas. The kids loved it.
I remember his devotion to Radha-Damodara. We all loved Radha-

Damodara. We couldn’t wait to see Them. He had interesting outfits for
Them, and he had a nice altar that could come out. Sometimes he would
take Them on school programs. They were always so sweet and he
would decorate Them so nicely.
One morning he came and told me that when he did the Deity worship,
“Their forms would be burned into my mind.” Because he would be
bathing Them and rubbing Them with oil, he said, “Their forms would
just be burned into my mind.”
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Later that evening, Vishnujana Swami performs the fire yajña for an
initiation ceremony in the temple. He has chosen an appropriate Gita
verse especially suited for the new initiates.
Kalakantha: Vishnujana Swami was senior and I hardly talked to him

before my fire sacrifice when he read the initiation letter and gave a
lecture on Bhagavad-gita. I remember the verse and the discussion at my
initiation, samo ‘haṁ sarva-bhūteṣu.[Bhagavad-gita 9.29] In the purport
Prabhupada writes how the gold in the ring sets off the diamond, and
how the diamond and the gold are complimentary. The devotee is like
the gold and the Lord is like the diamond. The discussion was about the
relationship between the devotee and the Lord.
Vishnujana Maharaja was a very elevated personality. He was traveling

through with his party and he played wonderful bhajans and gave
wonderful lectures. He was so charismatic and charming, always
positive and uplifting about Krishna consciousness, and always ready
with a Krishna conscious remark. I was very impressed with him. He
had a deep impact on my commitment to be a devotee.
When the Deity Installation Festival comes to an end, Vishnujana

Swami is ready to leave for his next destination. As Radha-Damodara’s
palanquin comes down the stairs early the next morning, it suddenly tilts
to one side and a brand new ten ounce bottle of sandalwood oil slides
off and falls. The bottle breaks upon impact, spilling oil all over the
floor. Dina Bandhu is completely devastated. The expression on his face
says everything.
Everyone looks at Maharaja and the broken bottle of oil, waiting for his
reaction.
Vishnujana winces and pulls out another bottle that is almost empty.
“Why couldn’t it have been this other one?” he says in a heartbroken
voice.
Immediately, Maharaja makes a mental adjustment and falls to the floor
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on his knees. He begins rubbing his beads in the fragrant oil. Instantly
everybody else follows suit, taking out their beads to daub them in the
oil. Then Maharaja starts smearing the oil over his body. Again devotees
emulate his behavior. Vishnujana’s reaction and detachment puts
everybody at ease again.
When the Radha-Damodara party leaves Portland, Vishnujana Swami

leaves his mark behind. The spot where the bottle of sandalwood oil
broke becomes like a place of pilgrimage, because the delicate fragrance
of sandalwood remains. The story is often retold to guests and new
bhaktas alike. Devotees like to sit there for japa and remember when
Vishnujana Maharaja was present.
Seattle, May 1973

The Seattle temple president, Sukadeva, is an accomplished kīrtanīyā as
well as an articulate speaker. He loves to give class and lead kirtans, but
when Vishnujana Swami comes to town Sukadeva turns the program
over to him. They have a relationship going back to the early days in
Los Angeles when they were both brahmacārīs.
The Radha-Damodara party arrives in the afternoon and, as usual,

Vishnujana Swami leads the sandhyā-ārati and gives the Bhagavad-gita
class. The Seattle devotees worship Lord Jagannath Deities in the
ground floor temple room. On the second floor is the prasādam room,
covered with blue tile, and off to one side is Sukadeva’s office. After
class everyone goes upstairs to the prasādam hall where Vishnujana
presents his slide show.
Sukadeva: Vishnujana Swami would always talk about Radha-

Damodara. He was very attached to those Deities. I had never seen brass
Deities so beautiful before. Radha-Damodara were unique!
At the conclusion of the slide show, Vishnujana begins the bhajan, Ye

Anilo Prema- Dhana. Meanwhile, in the temple room downstairs, a few
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devotees and guests have arrived late. They are chanting japa when they
hear the sound of music coming from the upstairs prasādam hall.
Bharata: I was down in the temple room chanting japa with another
devotee and I heard this transcendental sound. We both looked at each
other like, Who is that singing? As we were walking up the stairs I felt
like I was floating. I thought, What is this? I walked around the corner,
and here is this guy singing this sad, sad, song. I was having a heck of a
time giving it all up and joining the temple. This guy was a mature,
older devotee and his chanting just ripped my heart out. I collapsed over
in the corner sobbing. I couldn’t control myself. When I looked up he
just had a smile on his face.
When Vishnujana’s singing comes to a close, he translates the song.
That personality who delivered the treasure of prema-bhakti, who was

so intense with compassion, where is such a personality to be found as
Sri Acharya Thakur (Shrinivas Acharya)?
Where are the saviors of the fallen souls, and where is my Swarup
Damodara, and where are Rupa Goswami and Sanatan Goswami?
Where is Raghunath Das to be found, and where are my Raghunath

Bhatta and Gopal Bhatta Goswami? Where am I to find Sri Krishnadas
Kaviraj now?
All at once they have gone to join Lord Gauranga, the great dancer. To
reach such a perfect personality as Lord Chaitanya I can only break my
head against the stone in the anguish of separation.
They have all gone off together in their own pastimes. Narottam Das
Thakur says, ‘Unable to obtain their association, I must simply weep.’
“This feeling of separation has nothing to do with the material world.”

Maharaja has a faraway look in his eyes as he begins to speak about the
deep meaning of this song.
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“In the material world one misses his friend, or his child, or his lover, or
father, because of a bodily affection for one another. But this affection
that’s being sung about here has nothing to do with this material body.
This affection deals with the eternal relationship of the individual soul
and the Supreme Soul. In that relationship there are also emotions. It’s
not emotionless. Whatever exists in the material world exists originally
in the spiritual realm in perfection.
“So, every emotion that we experience, even that emotion of separation

from a loved one, exists in the spiritual world. But it’s not the source of
material anxiety; it is the source of another type of spiritual bliss called
separation. In this feeling a devotee feels tears in his eyes constantly.
“If ever you meet our Spiritual Master, Srila Prabhupada, you always
see there are tears in the sides of His eyes. This is the mark of someone
who’s always in this mood of separation. This feeling is due to one’s
intense love, and that intense love is so powerful that it allows his
consciousness to pierce the material realm and enter into the spiritual
realm. Just like, suppose you’re in the middle of downtown somewhere
and you’re missing someone you love, then are you really in the middle
of downtown? No. Because your mind is totally absorbed in that person
you’re unaware of the things going on around you. Isn’t it? This is the
power of love. So how much more powerful is love of God?
“If love for a material friend can bring you out of the atmosphere of
downtown, imagine how powerful is the feeling of love for God that it
can bring your consciousness out of this entire illusion of material
existence. This is the affection; this is the love that’s indicated in this
song.”
Vishnujana begins singing a second bhajan, which naturally leads to the

chanting of the mahā-mantra and soon develops into a gigantic kirtan.
The Seattle devotees are totally into Maharaja’s kirtan. The ecstasy of
the chanting continues increasing in intensity and the dancing develops
into jumping up and down in unison. Soon the floor is also moving up
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and down. It starts to come away from the wall foundation because the
wall is standing still. Then the plaster begins to crack.
Downstairs in the Deity room, Lord Jagannath’s pūjārī is experiencing

the commotion upstairs. Fearing a disaster, he races upstairs to stop the
kirtan. He can barely make himself heard over the roar of the kirtan.
“There’s plaster falling all over Lord Jagannath’s altar!” he shouts.

Sukadeva comes over to Maharaja, his face full of anxiety, to try and
stop the kirtan. But every devotee stares at him as if to say, “Don’t you
dare.” So he says nothing and the kirtan continues unabated.
Bharata: After the bhajans we had a kirtan that practically broke the
second story floor. I’ve never been in a kirtan that was so emotionally
charged, with everyone pulling out all the stops, jumping up and down.
It was like a hurricane of wonderful ecstatic emotions. Our chanting was
whole-heartedly, We’re going back to Godhead, right now! I’ve never
been in a kirtan that was as blissful.
Kanti Mati dd: That was one of the most ecstatic kirtans I’ve ever been
in. You never forget the feelings you get in a kirtan like that. Those
feelings don’t go away and you go seeking more of that. Vishnujana
Swami instilled and inspired those types of feelings and we just wanted
to seek more.
I’ve always felt he’d much rather sing than talk. If he got a chance to
say a śloka, he always sang them instead. If there was anything he could
sing, he would sing it. Srila Prabhupada said that’s how they
communicate in the spiritual world.
With everything he did we always got the indication that he wasn’t quite
from here. He was a little bit more special; so let me get a little bit
closer to this person. He knows something I don’t. He’s been
somewhere I want to go. I always felt that. And that was really the
attraction because it wasn’t just the ladies who were attracted to him.
The men were just as much in love with Vishnujana Swami, and just as
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attached to him. They cried the same kind of tears. In fact worse,
because he never got close with the women like he did with the men.
Dina Bandhu is a good example of that kind of closeness, that kind of
love. When Vishnujana had to leave, Dina Bandhu felt dejected, like
when Krishna left the gopis and told them they had to stay behind.

A sankirtan van is standing in a line of cars at the Canadian border
crossing. Inside are Vishnujana Swami, Hasyagrami, Ramacharya, and
Vishnudatta waiting to enter Canada. They have borrowed a van from
the Seattle temple because Radha- Damodara’s bus needs to be repaired.
It’s always overloaded and now tilts to one side. Dayal Chandra remains
behind in Seattle to purchase the parts to put the bus back into first class
order.
The party is going to Vancouver in a stripped down fashion and

Vishnujana Swami is unhappy because Radha-Damodara are laying
down in the van without Their altar. He considers this very sub-
standard, but he didn’t want to leave Them in Seattle. He wants the
Vancouver devotees to get Radha-Damodara’s blessings so he prays that
They will not take offense.
It is late at night when they cross the border. Arriving at the Vancouver
temple they find everyone fast asleep. Nevertheless, Vishnujana Swami
is still the first person up for maṅgala-ārati.
Kutichak: The whole temple slept in because we had a very late

preaching engagement. Then someone walked in and yelled,
“Vishnujana Swami is here.” Immediately we all woke up, and we were
all at maṅgala-ārati on time. Sure enough Vishnujana Maharaja led the
kirtan.
The devotees like to go for a japa walk after ārati in a nice neighborhood
near the temple. Vishnujana Maharaja accompanies them on the walk
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along with the temple president, Bahudak. They mostly chant japa but
are happy to associate with a well- known sannyāsī. Vancouver is off
the beaten track so it’s rare for the temple to host such a distinguished
visitor.
During breakfast prasādam, Vishnujana informs everyone that he will be

available for whoever wants to resolve any doubts or problems they are
facing. All the devotees take full advantage of the opportunity to take
advice from Maharaja on various issues. He is very transparent in the
sense that he allows everyone to actually reveal their mind in confidence
about anything that ails them. One after another a line of devotees come
to reveal their grievances in devotional service.
One gṛhastha man complains that, “My wife and I don’t get along.”
Maharaja simply replies, “Don’t worry. Don’t take it seriously. Don’t be
offended by her. Be forgiving...” Another devotee expresses frustration
with the temple authorities, “Bahudak wants to kick me out.” Yet
another complains, “Look, I can’t get my rounds done because I have to
do books, books, books.”
Vishnujana Maharaja begins to see a pattern. A lot of these surrendered

souls are having problems because they are always out distributing lots
of books, yet they are still required to do temple service. This leaves
them with very little time to chant their rounds or read Prabhupada’s
books. Moreover, they are always tired. Some people can handle such a
full day’s service, others simply cannot.
Hearing these objections, Vishnujana Swami approaches Bahudak and

persuades him to allow some of these devotees to join him on sankirtan.
As a result some of the book distributors, temple devotees, and long-
suffering pot washers, go downtown to chant and dance for the day with
Maharaja on Granville Street underneath the overhang by the Hudson
Bay Company. After doing sankirtan for several hours, they all go to
Stanley Park for a picnic.
Kutichak: We ate, and chanted, and then we rested on the grass. That
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was new for us in Vancouver. He could see that we were worked to the
bone. I have a congenital problem with my knee and I also have flatfeet.
Because of my disability, Vishnujana Swami gave me a total foot
massage. I couldn’t believe what had happened. A senior devotee had
taken care of me so nicely; and a sannyāsī, mind you. Then we ran
through the woods. Finally, we returned to the temple for evening
kirtan.
After Bhagavad-gita class, Vishnujana invites everyone to join him for

bhajans. Just for a change of pace, Maharaja sings Gopinath playing the
ektar rather than his usual harmonium. He tunes the ektar down really
low and begins plucking it in a slow hypnotic rhythm. No one knows
what to expect and some devotees are wondering, “What is this tune
going to be?” With the ektar twanging on such a low note it almost
sounds like something from another planet. Then, all of a sudden, after
building up the suspense, Maharaja begins to sing, “gopīnāth, mama
nivedana śuno…”
When the song is over he reads the translation and explains the deep
meaning.
O Gopinatha, Lord of the gopis, please hear my request. I am a wicked

materialist, always addicted to worldly desires, and no good qualities do
I possess.
O Gopinatha, You are my only hope, and therefore I have taken shelter
at Your lotus feet. I am now Your eternal servant.
O Gopinatha, how will You purify me? I do not know what devotion is,
and my materialistic mind is absorbed in fruitive work. I have fallen into
this dark and perilous worldly existence.
O Gopinatha, everything here is Your illusory energy. I have no strength

or transcendental knowledge, and this body of mine is not independent
and free from the control of material nature.
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O Gopinatha, this sinner, who is weeping and weeping, begs for an
eternal place at Your divine feet. Please give him Your mercy.
O Gopinatha, You are able to do anything, and therefore You have the
power to deliver all sinners. Who is there that is more of a sinner than
myself?
O Gopinatha, You are the ocean of mercy. Having come into this
phenomenal world, You expand Your divine pastimes for the sake of the
fallen souls.
O Gopinatha, I am so sinful that although all the demons attained Your

lotus feet, Bhaktivinoda has remained in worldly existence.
“Bhaktivinoda Thakur is not full of lust, but he prays like that for our
benefit so we’ll have a platform on which to be sincere. Even if your
heart is full of lust you can still find a platform of sincerity to pray to
Krishna. This is one of the devotional principles: making Krishna your
friend. You reveal everything to Krishna, even the bad things.
“You don’t keep anything apart from Krishna. Otherwise, how can He
take it away from you? If you want to keep all kinds of secret thoughts
and desires apart from Krishna, then how can He help you? But if you
reveal to Him, if you say, ‘Krishna, even though You are living within
this body, I’m thinking all kinds of nonsense, please help me,’ then He
will help you. So don’t keep anything from Krishna, not even the bad
things. Reveal everything. That’s called making Krishna your friend,
one of the devotional principles.
“There are hundreds of songs. This is the mood of kirtan. We could stay
here all night.”
Every devotee responds enthusiastically, “Jaya!”
Hasyagrami: Vishnujana sang with the ektar and someone made a good
recording with the primitive home studios of the ‘70s, a four-track and a
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mixer with four microphones. It was a lot of fun.
Vishnujana Maharaja is making a wonderful impression on the

Vancouver devotees. He even comes into the kitchen to cook a
preparation. On two separate occasions he comes to the kitchen during
pot washing time to lead a kirtan, and read from Nectar of Devotion.
Thus, pot washing becomes an ecstasy.
Kutichak: He led a little kirtan so we could wash the pots in bliss.

Nobody had ever done that before so it was ecstatic to have him. But
then the temple authorities became a little upset because the more he
stayed the lower the lakṣmī point scores went down.
Then Bahudak and some of the inner group, the treasurer, started to
make a little politics. They started accusing him of being sentimental.
Not the way Srila Prabhupada uses the word. They were using it in a
different way. I don’t think Vishnujana Swami was sentimental. He was
sweet and he pampered devotees, but that didn’t mean that his men were
sleeping in. They worked hard for him. I noticed they were nicely
dressed and taken care of. One of his men had a dental problem, so we
took him to the Dental College and Maharaja stayed a few days extra so
the devotee would have two visits.
He understood that if your body is hurting you can’t really serve that
well. If your teeth are hurting how can you think of Krishna and
surrender fully? So he understood that and pampered devotees. He
understood that joining the movement and spending the first year in the
kitchen washing pots was going to discourage some people.
Bahudak becomes a little apprehensive of Vishnujana Swami’s

intrusion. He has been hearing stories, especially from Boston and the
kidnapping of Ramacharya. In his initial reaction Bahudak feels
threatened that Maharaja will take away his brahmacārīs, and later he
feels marginalized seeing how Maharaja is attracting the hearts and
minds of his devotees.
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Everybody loves when the Radha-Damodara party arrives at a temple,
although temple presidents tend to be less enthusiastic since the party
does have the dubious reputation of being Vishnujana’s Raiders.
Because the party is just passing through, sometimes things leave with
them. Indian kurtās and dhotis are rare at this time so everyone wears
polyester dhotis. If someone has an Indian dhoti, that’s considered
special. So, sometimes the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs take attractive
items with the rationalization that we are not the proprietors and
everything will be used in Krishna’s service, anyway. Sri Vallabha is
the main man behind this.
Nevertheless, the first impression temple leaders have of the bus party is
a band of brahmacārīs who look so blissful and happy that local
devotees want to leave the temple to join them. To resolve the issue,
Bahudak approaches Vishnujana to discuss the situation. Hasyagrami
has seen this scenario before and understanding the circumstances, he
eavesdrops on the conversation.
Hasyagrami: At first there were raised voice discussions. “After you

leave they’re going to follow you back over the border. You’re taking
my best men away. What am I supposed to do now?” They had a long
discussion and finally Vishnujana brought him around. Then Bahudak
went out chanting with us a couple of times to Stanley Park, a big park
where everybody goes, and we did a few sessions down there.
In Stanley Park the local underground community has organized a Be-In

over the weekend. It’s an annual festival where hippies gather. These
are the days when people wear peacock feathers and bells and beads.
The devotees arrive and Vishnujana begins kirtan as the mātājīs serve
prasādam. All the Be-In people join in the chanting and dancing. As
always, Vishnujana gets completely lost in the chanting and the kirtan
goes on for hours with everybody dancing happily.
The Vancouver devotees consider Vishnujana Swami an advanced

Vaishnava with brilliant potency to convey the Holy Name. Maharaja is
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the first devotee they have heard that really sings melodiously on the
harmonium.
Prabhupada Das: Vishnujana gave a talk at a school auditorium.

Afterwards, many students surrounded him. He answered their questions
so nicely that three people joined on the spot, two guys and a girl. They
were taken to the washrooms and returned dressed as devotees wearing
dhotis, and the girl had on a sari.
Seeing the positive effect Vishnujana Swami is having on the devotees,

Bahudak is influenced to focus more on chanting bhajans and kirtans.
Later, he develops his own style that becomes quite popular throughout
ISKCON.
Denver, May 29, 1973

On the way back from Vancouver, the Radha-Damodara bus stops at the
Denver temple. Hearing that Vishnujana Swami has arrived,
Mahamantra comes to the temple for lunch determined to join the
Radha-Damodara party. He’s a fired-up kid of sixteen still going to
school, but the opportunity to travel around America with an advanced
sannyāsī and Radha-Damodara is the chance of a lifetime. Vishnujana
accepts him and he joins the party when they continue their journey
east. After the first day on the road, Dayal Chandra decides it’s time to
shave up the new recruit.
Suhotra: He was going to school and was sort of a devotee already. He

showed up and said, “I’m joining.” I thought, Oh boy, we have this nice
little devotee. He had beautiful long hair and looked like a little angel.
Dayal Chandra shaved him up on the road and then we saw his strange
shaped head. A new bhakta was born – the manifestation of a new entity
on the bus. He was energetic and enthusiastic, but also ungainly and
spaced-out. He had all this youthful energy, but it was coming out in a
wild erratic way. It seemed to start as soon as his head was shaved.
Before that he was just a nice kid. We all thought he was an intelligent
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and beautiful angelic boy.
The shock of shaving his head and the reaction it engenders from the
others, apparently has an unpleasant effect on Mahamantra, causing him
to act in an erratic and insecure manner. Nevertheless, his enthusiasm
for this new chapter of his life solidifies his position on the party.
Sri Galim: I’ve never seen a person get so much sauce in my entire life.
He got it from morning to night, mostly from Dayal Chandra who was
on his case constantly. But he was humble and he took the sauce.
As the bus rolls down I-80 towards Chicago, a lot of the conversation is
about the upcoming Ananta Sesha Festival in New Vrindavan. Srila
Prabhupada himself is planning to come and devotees all over America
are talking about it. A great yajña will be performed for the anticipated
construction of a new temple. The Radha-Damodara men are excited to
attend this festival.

The Ananta Sesha Festival is attracting devotees from all over the
United States and Canada. When Prabhupada originally received
Kirtanananda Swami’s festival plan, he replied with full instructions
how to perform the foundation stone-laying ceremony for the proposed
Radha-Govinda temple. Back in March, Prabhupada acquired a small
golden Ananta Sesha mūrti in Calcutta specifically for this temple
construction. Then he brought that mūrti with him to America.
Prabhupada’s instruction is to place the mūrti in a pit that is fifteen feet

deep.
Moreover, there should be offerings of five types of jewels, five types of

metals, five types of fruit, five types of grains, and five types of amṛtā.
[Auspicious liquids such as ghee, etc] The brāhmaṇas should carry these
items down a ladder into the pit. At the bottom of the pit, each brāhmaṇa
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should offer his item and chant the first verse of Gayatri mantra. Kirtan
should accompany the entire ceremony.
Prabhupada emphasizes that the Deities in the new temple must face
East. He suggests having the yajña with four brāhmaṇas surrounding the
fire, each one reading, respectively, from Bhagavad-gita, Nectar of
Devotion, Srimad Bhagavatam and Teachings of Lord Chaitanya. The
reading is meant to continue for the entire ceremony to purify the
atmosphere.
To conclude the procedure, Prabhupada writes, devotees should place

bricks on top of the offered items and fill the pit with earth. When the
pit is full the foundation stone is placed on top, marking the location of
the exact corner of the Temple. The idea is that the entire building will
rest on the hoods of Ananta Sesha, making it very auspicious. After the
ceremony a festival of kirtan and feasting will commence, lasting
several days.
Srila Prabhupada’s intention is to grace the festival with his presence,

but due to failing health he has to return to India at the last moment to
recuperate in Mayapur. Nevertheless, the festival is going on as planned
with full enthusiasm. Little do the New Vrindavan devotees know,
however, that this festival will be the cause of the most catastrophic
event in the history of ISKCON!
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Fifth Wave,
Bikers and Brahmanas
The exact adjustment in Vaishnava philosophy, which is called yukta
vairagya, means that we should simply accept the bare necessities of our
material part of life, and try to save time for spiritual advancement.
[Letter to Hayagriva – June 14, 1968]
New Vrindavan, April 1973

The Vancouver TSKP is on the road distributing books.
Originally, Bahudak sent the party of Dharmatma, Riddha, Ganapati,

Krishna Katha, and 16-year-old Mahariddhi, across the border to the
United States after Christmas. The warmer climate influences bigger
book distribution during the winter months.
The idea was to be in New Orleans by February for the famous Mardi
Gras Carnival, where book distribution is rated super ecstatic. The
Canadian devotees spent a blissful week in New Orleans distributing
books along with the other sankirtan parties. In the course of their
travels, they always aspired, and prayed, to meet Radha-Damodara.
Wherever they went they made inquiries to ascertain where Vishnujana
Maharaja was preaching so they could meet him.
After Mardi Gras, their next port of call was the Dallas temple. Along
the way they distributed box loads of Bhagavad-gītās, going door-to-
door at University campus dormitories, shopping malls, and any other
place they could find a crowd. In Dallas, they took shelter of Sri Sri
Radha-Kalachandji, praying for Their mercy. Experiencing the kind
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hospitality of Dayananda, they immediately adopted him as their temple
president. In reciprocation, he inspired them with enthusiasm to
continue book distribution.
Riddha: I really looked up to Dayananda as a temple president in Dallas.

On one occasion we returned to the temple at midnight and we had done
125 KRSNA books between us and collected $1,000. We asked him to
lock the money in the safe. He was so amazed he was practically crying.
I’ve never met a temple president like Dayananda that I could look up to
as a father. He was such a nice devotee.
Now, however, the Vancouver party is taking a short break in New

Vrindavan. They are completely inspired by the beauty and opulence of
Sri Sri Radha-Vrindavan Chandra. Although it’s still cold in these West
Virginia hills there is no snow left on the ground. After traveling in the
southern states, it feels quite chilly in New Vrindavan but still balmy
compared to a Canadian winter.
Krishna Katha makes friends with Kasyapa and shares some of their
traveling experiences with him.
“On our way to New Orleans, we visited the temple in San Francisco
where we met Jayananda Prabhu. I went into the garage to get
something and there was this devotee, covered with grease, working on
a car. He crawled out from under the car and gave me a big, blissful,
self-contented smile.
“Someone said, ‘That’s Jayananda,’ and I said, ‘Wow,’ because I had

heard about him.
“Dinanath told me that when he was at his first Sunday feast, Jayananda
was sitting opposite him. Dinanath wasn’t really getting into the feast,
so Jayananda asked, ‘Are you going to eat that?’ Dinanath said, ‘Not
really.’ So Jayananda said, ‘Well, I’ll take it.’ And so he ate his plate
too.
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“Then Dinanath decided to stay over at the temple that night. The next
morning they said to him, ‘We’re going to send you on the garbage
detail.’ So Dinanath was feeling like, Yeah, right. Typical.
“They put him out with Jayananda, and he said that was it. He thought,
If the garbage man in this organization is so blissful, what’s everybody
else like?”
Kasyapa beams brightly, hearing this nectar from Krishna Katha.
“Then we drove down to Los Angeles. That temple really blew us away.
We visited the Art department where the artists do the paintings for
Prabhupada’s books. Then we toured the BBT building where hundreds
of thousands of Prabhupada’s books are transcribed, printed and
warehoused. Finally, we met Krishna Kanti in the Golden Avatar studio
where all of Prabhupada’s classes are recorded and distributed. We were
amazed to see so many wonderful devotees doing so much devotional
service.
“But the highlight of the visit was meeting the book distribution big
guns, Tripurari and Ramesvara. That experience motivated us to
distribute as many of Prabhupada’s books as possible all over the
country.
“Later, we met Vishnujana Swami in New Orleans and had darshan of

Radha- Damodara on his bus. Wow, that was something special. Then
we distributed tons of books at Mardi Gras.”
Everybody loves to hear about the famous individuals in the movement.

Although Kasyapa joined the New Vrindavan community last year, he
has never met these famous devotees.
The next morning after breakfast, Dharmatma takes Krishna Katha out
to a hayfield to show him two old buses lying in disrepair. “These are
the old Road Show buses!” Dharmatma expresses a strong desire to fix
up one of the buses. Specifically, he likes the kitchen bus – an
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International Harvester school bus – which still seems to be in fairly
decent condition.
Krishna Katha doesn’t have the vision to see the old bus as a beautiful
traveling temple. But Dharmatma is strong-willed and continues
preaching about it. Gradually, Krishna Katha is overcome by the feeling
that this could be something big and agrees with the vision.
Dharmatma offers Kirtanananda Swami $500 for the bus and the deal is
done. Then Dharmatma discusses the restoration work with the party
members. They would like to do it up really nice, but they prefer not to
do it in New Vrindavan. They’ll need an income stream to pour into it
so that means basing near a city.
Louisville, Kentucky, May 1973

Out on book distribution the Vancouver devotees meet a couple from
Louisville, Kentucky, who invite them to stay at their home. After fine-
tuning the engine in New Vrindavan, they drive the bus to Louisville to
begin turning it into a proper temple on wheels.
Their daily schedule is to take their van into town to distribute books
and return at evening to “rehab” the bus. The preaching is really sweet
in Louisville. The Canadian devotees meet nice people on the streets
and invite them back to their bus for the Sunday Love Feast. While
Dharmatma does the cooking, they have a big blowout kirtan, class, and
finally a big vegetarian feast.
They all go out during the day in their dhotis to distribute incense and
books. Except for paying the BBT for their books, they spend all the
money they collect on sankirtan to refurbish the bus. Thus, they are not
sending any money back to the Vancouver temple. Dharmatma buys
everything to fix up the bus because he is the handyman.
A few houses down the street lives a motorcycle gang called Sons of
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Silence. They all live in a large house, and are always hanging around
tinkering with their big bikes.
Riddha: We would come back at night and see the bikers with a beer in
their hands. “Hey man, give me some of that incense.” I would give
them a couple of sticks to keep them quiet, because they were half out
of their brains.
Krishna Katha: When we would return at night, the bikers looked at us

like we were really strange because they’d never seen devotees before.
The way we looked back at them, they understood the feeling was
mutual.
Krishna Katha is an artist so his first inspiration is to give the bus a new
coat of paint. It’s an old bus with raised protective barriers, like ribs, all
around it. He decides to paint the bus white and the ribs a lovely yellow
color. On either side he paints the Hare Krishna mantra in red
devanāgarī script surrounded by pink lotus flowers, with the symbols of
Vishnu at either end. On the front of the bus he paints, “Lord
Chaitanya’s Sankirtan of Love.”
A certain day is set aside once a week so everyone can work on the bus.
Dharmatma recreates the floor with a beautiful tile pattern that only he
can do. The others marvel how the bus floor now looks as immaculate
as marble, although it’s only vinyl.
Every evening Krishna Katha loves to bring out his paints. Inside, he
does scenes of kṛṣṇa-līlā on the ceiling. He begins with a large lotus
flower depicting different Krishna pastimes on each petal. On the walls
he paints murals of other Krishna pastimes and right inside the cab,
above where the driver sits, is a picture of Maha Vishnu lying on the
Causal Ocean.
Ganapati is in love with one of the paintings. He feels inspired by the

picture of Lord Chaitanya with tears coming from His eyes above the
door of the bus. He always looks at it when going out the door and he
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likes to say, “We’re going out to do sankirtan because this is Lord
Chaitanya’s mood.”
The altar is Dharmatma’s pet project. He builds an opulent altar of rose-

colored marble fitted with Roman-style curtains. Whenever they drive
out to the surrounding towns for sankirtan, Dharmatma takes every
opportunity to look for altar paraphernalia. One day he meets a woman
on the street and asks if she has a sewing machine.
“Well, yes, I do,” she replies.
“Can you help us out?” Dharmatma inquires. “I’m trying to make a very
large altar curtain with three strings going through it so that it can be
raised up from the bottom in perfect folds.”
He has already designed the curtains and asks her to sew it. She’s happy
to oblige. This is the magic of Krishna consciousness. Everything seems
to come together and each day the devotees are amazed how Krishna is
reciprocating through the people they meet. It’s a nonstop mystical
experience day after day. They never know what will happen next; only
that Krishna is behind it all.
When the altar is finished, they install an exquisite painting of Panca-

tattva. Besides the temple room, the bus also has a well-equipped
kitchen, a large sink, and a shower. Now the Vancouver devotees have a
beautiful sankirtan bus with a black-and-white floor resembling a
marble temple room, and a marble altar with a traditional Vedic- style
archway.
It’s a dream bus for brahmacārīs to live in, complete with all the
necessities required for living on the road, including a shower. It is their
traveling temple. Preaching out on the battlefield year in and year out is
difficult, but Srila Prabhupada has said that whenever he thinks of the
traveling parties he considers them “as Krishna’s soldiers fighting
Maya’s army,” so this gives the sankirtan devotees great strength.
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Ganapati: We were going out in dhotis and selling books. We would go
to the laundry or a grocery store and immediately people would come up
to us with questions, so we were preaching. We would meet people and
have programs in their homes, then they’d get into it, and we’d bring
them to New Vrindavan.
Dharmatma: One young man would come every day to the downtown
mall in Louisville and just sit and watch us distribute books. Ganapati
Prabhu gave him a book and invited him to the Sunday Love Feast that
we put on. He accompanied us to New Vrindavan and later was initiated
as Gopinatha Das.
With the bus parked down the street from the motorcycle gang, the
devotees attract a lot of attention. The leader of the gang, who owns a
bar in Louisville, has a beautiful daughter. She becomes intrigued by the
devotees up the road, because they are different. The devotees believe
that she is interested in Krishna consciousness because she comes over
to visit all the time with her friend, and Mahariddhi befriends them. Her
father, however, begins to suspect that she has a crush on one of the
devotees.
Riddha: We were alternative and we were clean. We were cool guys. So

the girls would come for the evening KRSNA Book reading, and
sometimes for the Bhagavatam class in the morning. Mahariddhi was a
young devotee from Edmonton with a very long śikhā. He befriended
one of the girls who had actually been abused by her father. So she was
taking shelter of devotees.
At the beginning of June, after being in Louisville for over a month, the
bus is now beautiful and road-worthy. The Vancouver devotees are
ready to leave town. As they prepare to depart, the young girl
approaches Dharmatma with bags in hand. She desperately asks
Dharmatma to take her with them.
Understanding that she’s the daughter of one of the bikers and aware of
some inappropriate behavior with Mahariddhi, Dharmatma explains that
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he can’t possibly take her. With tears in her eyes, she begs again and
again, but Dharmatma is firm and the girl leaves crying. Unbeknown to
the devotees, the girl has already run away from home and was
expecting to travel with them.
The bus leaves Louisville and the party drives to Columbus, Ohio,
where they have already met a lot of interested people. Some of them
are inspired to visit New Vrindavan and spend a few days at the Ananta
Sesha Festival to experience the festive mood of Krishna consciousness.

The Radha-Damodara bus winds its way through the hills of West
Virginia towards New Vrindavan with Vishnujana Swami, Ramacharya,
Sri Galim, Narada Muni, Dayal Chandra, Vishnudatta, and the new
recruit, Mahamantra. [Mahamantra later became B.V. Madhava
Maharaja] Suhotra has taken the rest of the party and gone ahead in the
van to distribute books in Philadelphia. They will rendezvous with the
bus after the festival.
Upon entering the New Vrindavan grounds the bus is moving relatively
fast considering the winding and hilly landscape. Recently there was a
lot of rain and the roads are muddy. Without warning, the bus comes
upon a sharp curve in the road and begins tilting to one side. The driver
has taken the curve a little too fast for the vehicle to handle. All of a
sudden, the bus is riding on two wheels at a 45 degree angle.
Centrifugal force carries the bus over the edge of the road and it topples
over a ridge, turning over and over in multiple somersaults as it tumbles
down the grassy hillside, finally landing upright at the bottom of a
narrow valley.
Vishnujana Swami’s immediate concern is for the Deities. Fortunately,

there is not even a scratch on Radha-Damodara. They are securely
bolted into Their altar which is locked onto the chassis of the bus so
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firmly that They are protected. The system, which Vishnujana Maharaja
built himself last year, was properly arranged for traveling so that
nothing could happen to Them in a worst-case scenario. His next
thoughts are for the devotees. They have been protected as well. Except
for minor cuts and scrapes, and bruises here and there, no one is
seriously injured.
The bus, however, is now stuck in the mud and cannot be driven out.
Someone calls for a big tow truck. After a long endeavor the truck pulls
the bus out of the ravine. From this incident devotees understand how
Sri Sri Radha-Damodara undertake great risks in order to dispense the
mercy of Lord Chaitanya’s sankirtan mission to the fallen conditioned
souls. The episode turns into an amazing story that portends some
ominous happening, but no one is exactly sure what it means.
The pastimes of Radha-Damodara are glorious. Although there are

many extraordinary pastimes of Deities in the scriptures, none of the
scriptures that actually tell of these wonderful pastimes have yet been
translated into English. In this sense, devotees are experiencing
astonishing things firsthand from Radha-Damodara and it appears
miraculous. Later, with the translation of Chaitanya-charitamrta and
other scriptures, devotees could understand that Radha-Damodara were
performing miracles in the same way as other Deities had during the
time of Lord Chaitanya and before.
Once the bus is back on the road, the party stops at the New Vrindavan
temple.
Vishnujana Maharaja personally explains the position of Kirtanananda

Swami to Mahamantra. “He’s a senior sannyāsī, so we should offer our
respects to such a senior sannyāsī. I’m ready to set the example of how
one should serve the sannyāsīs and offer respect.” He personally gives a
hundred dollar donation to Kirtanananda out of respect for his senior
sannyāsī godbrother.
About four-hundred devotees have already arrived. This is the biggest
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festival since Srila Prabhupada came last year for the Janmastami and
Vyasa-Puja celebrations. That was when Sri-Sri Radha-Vrindavan
Chandra moved from Their original installation site at the Old
Vrindavan Farm, to the ‘new’ temple on the main road at Bahulavan. At
present, They are housed in a beautiful temple room at Bahulavan farm.
Now, a full nine months later, the proposed Govindaji temple is to be

built so that Sri-Sri Radha-Govinda can make Their appearance at Srila
Prabhupada’s New Vrindavan project. When Hayagriva Prabhu was
with Prabhupada in Vrindavan for Kartik, he acquired Gaura-Nitai
Deities and two sets of Radha-Krishna Deities in anticipation of
building more temples in New Vrindavan.
Kasyapa: [Kasyapa later became H.H. Varsana Swami] It was a time of

mystical achievement. Our highest thoughts and dreams were becoming
physical realities. The spiritual world was unfolding before our eyes.
The brahmacārīnī ashram is located at the Old Vrindavan Farm, where

some of the ladies are busy sewing bead bags and altar handkerchiefs to
sell at the festival, in order to help reimburse Hayagriva. Besides the
usual temple duties and Deity worship, the ladies also saw and split their
own firewood for cooking.
Sudhakari, the original seamstress for Radha-Vrindavan Chandra, and

Ishani, Their Lordships’ jeweler par excellence, hold ‘shop’ on the
second floor of the temple. Most ladies spend any available time
upstairs in Sudakari’s sewing room helping with sewing projects for
Radha-Vrindavan Chandra. They also assist in making outfits for the
arrival and installation of Sri-Sri Radha-Vrindavanath, the new small
Krishna Deities to be installed at the Vrindavan farm.
As they work, the ladies listen to tapes of Srila Prabhupada. Sometimes

they play games like going through the alphabet and remembering as
many names for Krishna as they can for each letter. They also learn
verses and sing the Vaishnava songs while they work, helping one
another to memorize the words and melodies. Mostly, they discuss the
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stories of Krishna’s pastimes from KRSNA Book. They are young and
eager and their days are full for Krishna and for each other.
New Vrindavan has planned a full-out three day festival with Deity
installations, initiations, and a fire yajña wedding. The foremost
attraction will be the Ananta Sesha ceremony for laying the cornerstone
for the new Govindaji temple on a hill behind Bahulavan. A record of
five fire sacrifices will be performed in three days. Fire yajñas are fairly
new to western devotees, and are always an exceptional experience.
The ever-increasing build up of transcendental preparations and sound

vibrations, along with the appearance of Lord Vishnu in the fire, are
considered extremely purifying, and bring unlimited auspiciousness to
the participants.
There’s a transcendental competition between the three farms,

Bahulavan, Madhuvan, and Vrindavan, to see who can lay out the best
feast after the temple ceremonies. At the Vrindavan Farm, the one
rolling pin in the kitchen is insufficient, so the ladies use glass mason
jars to roll out the dough for huge quantities of puris. Actually, the
ladies consider these mason jars one of their indispensable tools. They
also use them to churn cream into butter.
The Vrindavan farm has only one cow, unlike the volumes of cream that
come from the many cows at Bahulavan, so the ladies put a cup of
cream in a mason jar before going to the temple for ārati. As the ladies
are dancing and jumping during kirtan, the mason jars get fully shaken.
The result by the end of the ārati is butter to offer Krishna.
New Vrindavan is usually an austere place with not even rice and dhāl
available.
Devotees typically eat oat gruel or split-pea soup with polk weed, a
local wild green, as opposed to buying spinach or cauliflower.
Kuladri: We were drinking oat water in the morning and eating bean and
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corn mush for lunch. I remember Vishnujana Swami saying one time,
“This prasādam is a joke. Where are the cauliflower pakorās and the
tomato chutney?” He was laughing at the devotee prasādam in a friendly
way. But we always offered nice preparations to Radha-Vrindavan
Chandra.
For the Ananta Sesha Festival, however, the local devotees are sparing
no expense to host the visiting Vaishnavas in a wonderful way. At
Bahulavan, Chinese lanterns are strung up all over the patio area
creating a festive atmosphere. Behind Bahulavan, prasādam is served in
a huge cow barn that is open on four sides, with the hay pushed over to
the sides. The resident devotees have cleaned it spotlessly so everybody
can sit on the floor. There’s no lack of prasādam, with more rotis and
puris than anyone can possibly eat. The sweets include blackberry sweet
rice, blueberry sweet rice, and strawberry sweet rice, all made with fresh
berries. Vishnujana Swami directs the serving of prasādam.
Hasti Gopal: We drove down from Toronto and Vishnujana Maharaja

was the main attraction. He led all the kirtans. On the way to New
Vrindavan all I heard about was Vishnujana Swami. The descriptions
reminded me of a well-known camp counselor that everyone just loved.
I thought he must be like that. He was even better, of course. By
evening we arrived in New Vrindavan and it was like going to a party.
There were groups of devotees everywhere. I wandered from one group
to the next and unlike an ordinary party where there are so many
mundane topics, there was only one topic of discussion: Krishna.
When everyone settled down to honor prasādam, I saw Vishnujana

Swami standing off to the side, leaning on his danda and swaying from
side to side. It seemed to me he was meditating on the glory of honoring
prasādam. He stood there just relishing the devotees taking prasādam. I
was eating, of course. It’s very difficult to put into words, but I watched
him watching us. Prasādam is such an important aspect of becoming
Krishna conscious and cleaning the heart, and I got more of an
appreciation for honoring prasādam by watching him display
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appreciation for prasādam. When you see someone excited about
something, then you become excited. So while I watched him enjoying
devotees take prasādam, I got more of an appreciation for what I was
eating.
Pundarikaksa: I still remember one time when they served out a big
feast. We were all sitting down for prasādam and Vishnujana Maharaja
took a little bit because he immediately got up and started chanting, like
serenading the devotees while they took prasādam. That was always his
mood. Whenever he gave a class it was a nectar class. Someone who
was critical might have called him sahajiyā but you could see by his
dedication and by how hard he worked that he felt Krishna
consciousness from the heart, rather than the intellect.
Sridhara and Nrsimha are friends that previously traveled with the Road
Show. After it ended, they joined the New Vrindavan community and
lived as brahmacārīs at the original ashram where Prabhupada stayed for
a month when he first visited in the late ‘60s. Sridhara has always been
an admirer of Vishnujana Maharaja and likes to reminisce about the
times he spent with him.
Sridhara Das: [This is not the Canadian Sridhara who became Sridhara
Swami] Vishnujana Maharaja sat at the harmonium for the last ārati
while everybody else was still outside eating. There were only a few
devotees present and Vishnujana sang, govinda jaya jaya, gopal jaya
jaya, radha ramana hari, govinda jaya jaya. The melody would always
go up on ‘hari’ and he would pause there briefly. It was beautiful, a real
tear-jerker. I’ll never forget that first night he was there. All the
sannyāsīs, the traveling preachers on the road, were really fired up,
especially Hrdayananda, whose dancing was like he was floating.
Then Vishnujana sang Jaya Radha-Madhava and a beautiful, deep,

emotional Hare Krishna melody. That’s when I decided I wanted to join
his party. I considered myself stuck at New Vrindavan. I liked a lot of
the introspective, meditative aspects about living in a farm community,
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but I felt tied down after being there a year.
On Friday evening, Vishnujana sets up his slide show and presents it

outdoors on the side of a house. The show goes on late into the night.
Devotees are chanting, dancing, and cheering along with Vishnujana’s
commentary during the entire show. As devotees become tired, they lie
down for 15 minute naps, and then get back up again to finish watching
the show.
On Saturday morning Vishnujana Maharaja performs an initiation

ceremony at the Bahulavan temple. Both Kirtanananda Swami and
Hrdayananda Swami sit close to Maharaja as he ladles in the ghee for
the fire yajña.
Several new devotees accept first initiation, including Radhanath Das.

Since returning from India last year, Radhanath has remained in New
Vrindavan. He hasn’t shaved up nor inquired about initiation. This had
made him suspect in the minds of some New Vrindavan residents.
Radhanath: I remained within ISKCON even though I wouldn’t cut my

matted hair or take initiation. I knew Srila Prabhupada was a perfect
guru. But I was afraid if I make vows to him, and break those vows, it’s
worse than death. I had to be convinced I’d never break those vows. So
it took a while. Everyone thought I was a real rascal.
Although sannyāsīs get special treatment, Vishnujana Maharaja doesn’t

want to be special. He just wants to be one of the devotees serving Srila
Prabhupada and spreading Lord Chaitanya’s mission. Whenever he gets
the chance to honor his godbrothers he is so happy that the opportunity
has come his way. He’s always full of praise for the process of Krishna
consciousness.
Radhanath: We used to get gulābjāmuns at night. Vishnujana Maharaja

would just put one into his mouth and say, “Hare Krishna, Hare
Krishna! This gulābjāmun is so sweet. This prasāda is so delicious. Just
by eating this prasāda we will go back to Godhead. Just this prasāda
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alone with nothing else has the power to deliver the whole universe.”
How he would just glorify prasāda! He would get intoxicated eating
prasāda. He loved prasāda and he would eat a lot of prasāda too. But
with every bite, practically, he was savoring it and extolling its virtues.
Sometimes they would just give him the bowl of gulābjāmuns, and he
would distribute them to everybody.
One time he had apple chutney. “Oh, this apple chutney! Jesus Christ
was crucified and died for the sins to purify people’s hearts. Everything
that Jesus did can be attained, just by eating this apple chutney.” He
didn’t say it in a condescending way; he was actually glorifying Lord
Jesus. He was sharing his own feelings about the apple chutney. “The
whole world can be free from all its sins just by tasting, or smelling, or
seeing this apple chutney.”
On Saturday morning the Vancouver bus, Lord Chaitanya’s Sankirtan of

Love, comes rolling into New Vrindavan. Inside is a crew of potential
new bhaktas that want to experience the Krishna festival. It’s a hot day
in June as they walk up the hill towards the old house that serves as the
temple for Lord Jagannath, Sri Baladeva, and Subhadra Maharani.
A huge fire yajña is in full swing at the crest of the hill for the
installation of Ananta Sesha and the cornerstone laying ceremony for
the new Govindaji Temple. This is on the next peak from where Radha
Damodara, Lord Jagannatha and Srila Prabhupada had presided over the
Bhagavat Dharma Discourses the season before. Because the rituals are
being performed outdoors, the local devotees have created a huge
bonfire for a terrific offering. As brāhmaṇas chant ślokas, the pūjārīs
carry sacred items on their heads into the pit as Prabhupada instructed in
preparation for the installation of Ananta Sesha.
Vishnujana Maharaja leads the kirtan during the yajña. Every devotee is
fully engaged in either chanting, dancing, or in offering auspicious
sacraments intended to invite Sri-Sri Radha-Govinda to make Their
auspicious appearance at the proposed new temple to be built on this
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prominent hilltop, according to the instructions and guidance of His
Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada.
Krishna Katha: Vishnujana Swami was dancing and chanting in a way

that reminded me of Lord Chaitanya. There was a big cloud of dust
around him because he was like a whirlwind. He led the chanting for
most of the ceremonies. We loved Radha-Damodara and we loved
Vishnujana Swami. Of all the sannyāsīs, we liked him best.
Among the visitors from around the country are a group of devotees
from Vancouver, led by Bahudak. They have driven down not only for
the festival, but to reclaim their traveling sankirtan party and the bus
that was paid for by their collections. The party has been gone from
Vancouver for over five months but they have neither sent word nor
money, so Bahudak is really concerned.
There are many new devotees who have recently joined ISKCON and
they have also come to New Vrindavan hopeful to meet Srila
Prabhupada and to receive initiation directly from him. They are
unaware that he has returned to India due to ill health.
Kiranasa: I had just joined about five days before the New Vrindavan
festival. I came to New Vrindavan because devotees told me that Srila
Prabhupada was coming. Vishnujana Swami came and stayed a few
days. He told us during a class that if anyone had any doubts they could
come and talk to him, because he said he was firmly convinced about
Krishna consciousness.
As Hrdayananda Goswami is quoting ślokas in the Sunday morning

class, a voice suddenly calls out, “Maharaja, the state troopers have
come.” The class immediately stops. A West Virginia state trooper is at
the door of the temple with the father of the missing girl from
Louisville. He is obviously upset and emotionally disturbed. Yesterday
there had been some problem when some bikers came demanding the
whereabouts of their leader’s daughter. But the devotees had said,
“She’s not here.”
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Now the man demands the return of his daughter, the trooper explains.
“She has supposedly eloped with one of your people, and he thinks you
are hiding her.” No one in the class knows the girl they are talking
about. Nor is she present in the temple room when her father comes
looking for her. But he is convinced that his daughter has run off with
one of these devotees.
Actually, the girl has already left with some other festival attendees. Her
plan is to leave her father and the whole biker scene.
Riddha: The same biker had come the previous night brandishing a
pistol and protesting about his daughter. Devotees quickly dispatched
him. So he came again in the morning with the police, and he was still
disturbed. I even heard that there was a phone call for Mahariddhi from
Moundsville, but it didn’t connect. After we finished doing up the bus
and pulled out of Louisville, the girl must have left also and the father
assumed that we had taken her with us. Mahariddhi liked to sleep
underneath the bus on a mat in his sleeping bag every night, so we
weren’t aware of anything developing. We didn’t know if he was getting
fresh with her or not. He must have given her the address of New
Vrindavan.
Ganapati: One young devotee on our party got involved with the
daughter of the leader of the bikers. They were secretly meeting. When
we went to New Vrindavan, they planned a rendezvous and she split
from her folks.
Krishna Katha: It turned out that Mahariddhi was sneaking out at night
and meeting with the girl. I was so naive I had no idea devotees did that
kind of thing.
The day before, the bikers watched the big fire yajña from the woods on
another hill. Seeing the ceremonies with devotees intoning svāhā in
front of a huge bonfire, they concluded that the devotees were
performing some sacrificial rites and perhaps even planning to use the
girl as a human sacrifice to place in the pit. They were freaking out and
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decided to report the incident to the police.
Later that evening, they confronted Radha Kanta demanding the return
of the girl.
Some New Vrindavan devotees shave only once a week, and they don’t
wear dhotis when they work, so they appear rugged and look like they
can handle themselves. Radha Kanta is chopping wood at the time and
since they don’t appear to be friendly he politely escorts them off the
property with his ax. “Your daughter is not here in New Vrindavan.”
The bikers leave reluctantly because they don’t want to risk a

confrontation with so many devotees present. They decide to wait for
the right opportunity before making their move.
Early Monday morning, the day after the festival, when most of the
visiting devotees have departed, the bikers return at dawn. They want
revenge – to completely wipe out the Hare Krishnas in West Virginia.
They assume that the locals will accept that as a worthy goal and might
even want to assist. After all, when some Mormons had tried to settle
the area several years ago, they were driven out with fire and lynching.
The bikers’ first action is to cut the phone line to the one telephone that
exists in the devotee community. Then they send one of their members
up the high road to the beautiful homestead on the ridge owned by the
Snyder family, whose land straddles between the Bahulavan farm and
the Old Vrindavan farm.
Devotees often walk across Mr. Snyder’s part of the ridge going to and
from Bahulavan on errands, or for the Sunday Feast program. When
doing so, they stop at the house to always get his pleasant and nominal
permission to cross his land. The Snyders have no interest in what the
devotees are doing, as long as they behave as good neighbors with
regard for their property.
On Monday morning, June 5, Mr. Snyder opens his front door to find a
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man brandishing a semi-automatic rifle. “How many Krishna people
live up there behind your place?”
Not liking the attitude of the stranger, Mr. Snyder cautiously answers,
“Oh, about a dozen.”
“Well,” replies the stranger patting his rifle, “that’s twelve dead, right?”
Pulling his own rifle out from behind the door, Mr. Snyder levels it at
the man’s chest and says, “Thirteen. Turn right around and go back
where you came from.” The stranger doesn’t hesitate.
Meanwhile, back at Bahulavan, Kirtanananda Swami is giving the

Bhagavatam class.
The topic is about Dhruva Maharaja. All the devotees are sitting on the
floor inside, unaware that gang members have surrounded the temple.
Everything seems to be progressing unrealistically smooth. And yet,
some devotees are ever mindful that these
West Virginia hills are tenanted with prejudice and bigotry. Like
Dhruva Maharaja’s conquest over the Yakshas at Alakapuri, where he
was ever vigilant for a surprise attack, the more experienced New
Vrindavan devotees are concerned that things might be going too
smoothly.
Kasyapa: I was pondering Dharmatma’s repeated use of a particular

analogy. “Maya’s got a shotgun pointed at your head.” Why was he
using that analogy? It seemed inconsistent with all that was transpiring.
Or was it prophetic of some unforeseen development? Contemplating
these matters, I drifted into a slumber during class. A godbrother woke
me up, so I moved next to an open window hoping the fresh air would
help me remain attentive. The fragrance of spring flowers, mixed with a
chorus of birdsong, seemed celestial.
The windows on the right hand side of the temple are at ground level.
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They are stained glass windows that were purchased from a church. The
lower parts are tilted open, like a separate little window, to allow a
breeze. All of a sudden, rifle barrels poke through the opening in every
window. Seeing the shotguns come through the windows, some
devotees begin to shout. Kiranasa dives through the doorway into the
Deity room with the pūjārīs.
Kuladri comes running in from the prasādam room where devotees are
cutting vegetables at the front of the temple. “The demons are here!”
There are no guards, or anything, to protect the devotees or the temple.
Everyone stands up to bolt but Kirtanananda Swami shouts, “Sit down.”
A double barrel shotgun is aimed right at the head of Kasyapa. Radha

Kanta is leaning against the wall sees the shotgun at the window. He
immediately reaches over, grabs the barrel and tussles with it. Kasyapa
is sitting nearby and he jumps up to help wrestle the weapon away from
the attacker. As Kasyapa grabs the shotgun barrel to take it out of the
gunman’s hands, Krishna Katha grabs a pair of kartāls and begins
smashing the gunman’s hands.
Several men race to the other windows in an attempt to wrench the

weapons out of the hands of the assailants. Kasyapa is mindful that
devotees had better remember Krishna before any gunshots are fired.
Kasyapa: With a shotgun barrel aimed right at my head, the Dhruva

Maharaja allegory became all too real, as did the accompanying theme,
“that we must fight for Krishna.”
Krishna Katha: It got suspenseful immediately. Without even thinking I

picked up a pair of kartāls and started whomping the guy’s hands. I was
waiting to hear the explosion, because all he had to do was squeeze the
trigger.
In the ensuing fight the gun barrel moves erratically from Kasyapa’s
head to Krishna Katha’s chest. Krishna Katha is standing on the other
side of a fully loaded double barrel as he tries to pull the barrel off the
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stock.
Suddenly, a shot rings out. Several ladies start screaming. The explosive
impact of a shotgun blast sends buckshot, stained glass, blood, and
devotees flying through the temple room. Kirtanananda cries out,
“Everybody down!” The idyllic atmosphere has been shattered by
gunshots and screams of terror.
Krishna Katha: I felt an explosion and I was flying through the air. I
didn’t hear the sound; I just felt it. I was thinking, “How did that gun go
off?” I wasn’t thinking of Krishna! We had the barrel cracked open on
the shotgun, and I could see the shell. So I thought, “That’s really weird
that it went off.” I didn’t realize there was more than one gun. Someone
from the other window shot me in the shoulder with a 12-gauge
shotgun. I must have flown four or five feet in the air and lost
consciousness in front of Srila Prabhupada’s vyāsāsana.
From the pūjārī room, Kiranasa hears a shotgun go off. Glancing into
the temple he sees Bidhan Chandra and Krishna Katha lying on the floor
in pools of blood. As bullets whiz by everywhere, there is blood all over
the floor with many devotees wounded to some degree. Blood is
splattered all over the walls.
Suddenly, the father of the missing girl storms inside the temple through
the front door. He is followed by four other bikers with long hair and
beards, and vicious eyes. They are fully armed with shotguns and
handguns. “Everybody down on the floor.” They proceed to terrorize the
devotees by shouting obscenities, pushing people around, and shooting
holes in the ceiling.
Hearing the frightening sounds of shooting and obscenities, the pūjārīs

on the altar immediately start passing the little Deities out the side
window. Because they are behind the curtain, the bikers can’t see them.
As the pūjārīs escape with the Deities, one biker sees the curtain move
and fires his shotgun into it. One of the pūjārīs, while helping to rescue
the Deities, gets his arm shot up really bad.
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Riddha: Immediately I realized what was happening and who they were.
I ran into the Deity room and saw the mātājīs, all petrified, praying to
the Deities. Mahamaya was gathering the small Jagannath Deities from
the altar in her apron. All I saw coming from Bidhan Chandra was a
fountain of blood going to the ceiling. I took my kurtā off and wrapped
it around his arm. I heard the commotion and gathered myself.
From behind the curtain in the pūjārī room, Riddha finds an open
window and drops ten feet to the ground. Moments later, two bikers
come into the Deity room through the kitchen. One of them picks up a
rolling pin and whacks Kiranasa on the head. Then they herd the pūjārīs
into the temple room.
Mahamaya dd: I was on the altar bathing the Deities. Kutila and I
managed to place the small Deities – Jagannath and Radha-Krishna –
out of sight behind the altar before we were ordered into the temple
room. There I saw Bidhan Chandra and Krishna Katha prabhus lying
bleeding on the floor.
Dharmatma: Devotees were running everywhere not knowing what to

do. I ran to the kitchen behind the temple, grabbed a knife and hid
behind a door. One of the bikers pulled back the door and pointed a
shotgun at me. I dropped the knife and was herded along with all the
devotees into the temple room.
Krishna Katha: When I came to, I saw a devotee lying next to me with a
big pool of blood around his head. I thought, “Oh no, they shot him in
the head.” But it was my blood! Kasyapa also got hit in the eyelid with a
pellet from the buckshot. Parambrahma was fearless because they told
everybody to get down but he just sat there and ripped my kurtā off. He
was applying pressure on my wound at the top of the shoulder to stop
the bleeding.
Kirtanananda tells everyone, “Chant the nṛsiṁha prayers!” Everyone

begins singing the prayers to Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva at the top of their
voices. This agitates the bikers and they begin shouting, “Shut up, shut
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up!”
But the devotees don’t stop; they sing even louder. One demon waves
his pistol in the air and fires several shots into the ceiling. “Stop! Stop
that!”
Immediately, everybody stops singing. They start chanting japa really

loud. This further freaks out the bikers who are trying to be heard above
the din.
One of them yells as loud as possible, “Stop it, shut up!” Everybody
begins chanting japa softly, praying fervently to Sri-Sri Radha-
Vrindavan Chandra to protect them. It’s the most sincere japa they have
ever chanted. Kirtanananda instructs, “Don’t do anything rash. Just
remain sitting and do what they say.”
Krishna Katha: We shut up, and I was thinking, that’s really dumb. But I
was only a devotee for six months and I thought they were more
advanced so they must know.
The father of the girl demands, “We want your leader. Who’s in
charge?” Kirtanananda Swami raises his hand, “I’m in charge.” The
man slaps him severely across the face. With vicious eyes, the bikers
take a quick look around the room. One of them recognizes Dharmatma
from Louisville. He puts a pistol to his head and pulls back the trigger.
The leader of the pack roars, “Where’s my daughter?”
“I honestly don’t know,” Dharmatma replies meekly. The biker doesn’t

like this answer and whacks Dharmatma with his gun. Then he violently
rips the tulasi beads from his neck.
Satisfied that they have the people in charge, the bikers force the other
devotees down on the floor while a few of them take Dharmatma and
Kirtanananda out of the temple at gunpoint. “Okay, you’re going up that
hill. We’re going to kill you guys. You’re going to dig your own
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graves.” They order them to grab two shovels standing nearby. They
march them up the hill towards the sacred ground where the fire yajña
had just taken place. The other attackers stay behind and harass the
devotees in the temple, hitting a few over the head and knocking others
around.
All the devotees are cowering in fear as the bikers walk around the
temple room with .45s in their hands, verbally and physically abusing
everyone. Kiranasa is a brand new shaved up bhakta. Seeing him with
his incredibly long śikhā one of them whacks him on the side of the
head with a rifle stock. Everyone can feel how bad that must hurt.
One attacker asks another, “What color are brains?”
“I sure don’t know,” an evil accomplice answers. “Let’s find out.”
Kiranasa is sitting in pain after being whacked in the head when the
demon puts the shotgun to Kiranasa’s forehead. “Boy, do you know
what happens if I pull the trigger on this damn gun?”
“Well, I guess it would destroy the body,” Kiranasa responds

transcendentally. “Destroy the body? That’ll just blow you away.”
Kasyapa: Bidhan Chandra was lying in a pool of blood. Other devotees,

myself included, were still shell-shocked from the gun blasts that had
sent us reeling. The smell of blood was intoxicating to the demons. They
were relishing the illusion that they were in complete control of the
situation. The demons, brazen yet calm, informed us that none of us
were going to survive; that after they buried our leader they would kill
the rest of us. They were terrorizing, humiliating, and exterminating the
Vaishnavas – and this delighted them to no end.
While the bikers turn their full attention to terrorizing the devotees in
the temple, Garga Rishi and Riddha have managed to escape. Going off
in opposite directions without delay, they run for help as fast as they
can.
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Garga Rishi: A couple of us saw the guns come through the window, so
we ran outside. There were some bikers there and one of them shot at
me. The bullet just glanced off my neck so I ran past him and back into
the temple, up the stairs, and jumped out of a second story window to
the ground. I went off to the neighbors to try and get some help. I ran to
the next farm over barbed wire fences; I had ripped my dhoti and was
bleeding. I banged on the door and a lady came to the door.
I said, “Give me a gun because these bikers are down there shooting up
our temple.”
She went to get a gun for me but then her son came down the stairs and
said, “No way. We won’t have nothin’ to do with it. Get outta here.” I
ran over to another farm. The lady there called the police but they didn’t
come for an hour or so.
Riddha: I crossed the road where the horses were kept and I saw
Sridhara crying like a baby. He had obviously seen what had happened.
He was too distraught so I didn’t speak to him. My heart was pounding
and I ran. I was so frightened I kept running and falling. It was just too
much for me. I finally got to the edge of the road and saw a school bus
coming. I tried to flag it down, but it wouldn’t stop. The driver thought I
was crazy, so I ran up to the next farm and got the farmer out of his
house.
“Get a phone! Call the police. Have you got a rifle?” I was desperate. I
knew something bad was going to happen. He wouldn’t give me a gun
but he let me use the phone and I called the state troopers.
As Kirtanananda Swami and Dharmatma, are being marched up the hill

at gunpoint, the other demons continue terrorizing the remaining
devotees in the temple. They rip the paintings off the walls and throw
them on top of Bidhan Chandra and Krishna Katha, still lying on the
floor in pools of their own blood. There is wholesale beating and assault
throughout the temple room, like wolves ravaging among sheep.
Everybody is convinced they will meet the time of death at any moment.
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But the sheer horror and violence keeps everyone silent.
All of a sudden, one gang member turns towards the closed curtains in
front of the altar, as if summoned, and bellows, “What’s behind that
curtain?” Getting no response he orders that the deity curtains be torn
down. Nobody moves.
Getting no response, the demon lunges forward, pulling at the curtains

and ripping them down from the altar. He is stunned to see Sri-Sri
Radha-Vrindavan Chandra standing serenely on Their altar, face to face
with him.
“What the hell is this?” he cries out in alarm.
The other bikers are also struck by this vision. “That must be their god,”
one of them offers.
Enraged and arrogant beyond belief, the biggest and nastiest demon
strides up onto the altar, turns his back on Their Lordships and declares,
like Hiranyakasipu, “Now, I’m your god. Worship me!” Getting no
response, he turns around with the intent to desecrate the Deities.
Devotees are horrified and in complete shock as the envious monster

violently throws Sri Krishna down the altar steps. The Deity hits the
lower shelf of the marble altar, which cracks and breaks beneath Him.
Kasyapa: When Krishna’s Deity shattered so too did our dreams. And as
Sri Radha’s Deity seemed to be following Him, the devotees were
breathless as if all hope was about to be destroyed.
The evil biker orders Kiranasa to go up on the altar and throw down
Srimati Radharani. Although just a new devotee, Kiranasa refuses to
obey. Gang members surround him and begin beating him terribly with
their rifle barrels and their fists. One demon drags Kiranasa by his sikha
jerking his head around and jokingly asks another biker if he would like
to see some brains right now.
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Another gunman laughs, “What brains? They ain’t got no brains.”
Undaunted by the abuse, Kiranasa continues to refuse to harm Srimati

Radharani. Convinced they will witness the murder of their new
godbrother at any second, Kuladri and Vipina Purandara step up on the
altar.
Krishna Katha: When some devotees offered to help push the Deities
down, I was like, This is not right. To this day I think I should have
done more, but I was lying there with a shot-up arm. I wasn’t sure if I’d
ever use my arm again because it was totally numb. I was thinking, Oh
no, I’ll never paint again. My arm felt like it was paralyzed. But I also
thought I should get up and do something.
Gloating, the chief demon watches as the two devotees gently lift
Srimati Radharani, one of them on each side. With shotgun in hand, he
orders them to carry Her out to the center of the temple room and break
Her up.
Kasyapa: Radharani was being carried into the center of an assembly of

devotees who were overpowered by demons holding them at gunpoint.
It was reminiscent of Draupadi being dragged into the scene of her
humiliation.
The bikers are aiming their firearms and threatening to kill the devotees.
It’s a difficult choice. Either throw Radharani down or the devotees get
shot. Of course, no devotee can possibly make such a choice.
Looking at one another sorrowfully, Kuladri and Vipina Purandara let

go of their grip while holding Radharani just a few inches from the
floor. As Her base sets down very hard on the marble floor, She
suddenly falls forward. As Srimati Radharani falls towards the floor,
every devotee comes to know firsthand the meaning of brokenhearted.
In the meantime, Kirtanananda and Dharmatma are now far up the hill
with shovels in hand for digging their own graves. They are praying to
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Krishna to please save them, convinced that without Krishna’s mercy
they will be shot and buried at the same site where the foundation stone
was just laid.
They are almost up to the top of the hill when they hear a gargantuan
sound.
Ganapati: At gunpoint they forced some devotees to go up on the altar

and throw down the Deities. At that time, when Radharani toppled over,
there was an otherworldly sound that freaked the bikers.
Krishna Katha: There was a sound like thunder. The sound made so
much noise; it was totally mystical.
When Radharani’s Deity falls to the temple floor, it doesn’t sound like
marble hitting marble from a short distance. Materially speaking, that
sound should not be very loud. But this sound is inordinate to the actual
crash. It’s like a supernatural sound, that produces a huge, thunderous
noise that can be heard for miles, almost like that of a massive
explosion.
Riddha: As I was waiting for the police I heard a colossal sound, like an
explosion. I couldn’t figure out what it was. Oh, no. What’s going on
over there? Hurry up state troopers! Later, I found out they had marched
Kirtanananda Swami and Dharmatma up to the top of the Govindaji
Temple hill site and were going to shoot them and bury them there.
Although the bikers that have Kirtanananda and Dharmatma are quite a
distance away up the hill, they become alarmed when they hear this
unearthly sound. The sound that Srimati Radharani makes when She hits
the floor is so horrendous, so frightening, and so piercing, that it totally
unhinges the attackers. Hearing this incredible sound coming from the
temple at the bottom of the hill, these bikers become alarmed. “Uh-oh,
somethin’ awful just happened down there. Somethin’s gone wrong.”
Thinking that the other gang members are in some kind of danger, they
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make a quick decision. As they push Kirtanananda and Dharmatma
further up the hill, one demon says, “Don’t turn around or I’ll put a
bullet in your head. Just keep walking.” These are big bikers with guns,
but they suddenly turn around and run back down to the temple full of
anxiety to find out what’s happening.
Kirtanananda and Dharmatma turn gingerly to see the two bikers

running down the hill towards the temple. Immediately, Kirtanananda
tells Dharmatma to race down the opposite side of the hill and get help
from a local farmer.
Running through tall wet grass in a panic, Dharmatma arrives at the

farmhouse totally out of breath. He finds a few devotees there who have
already called the police.
Back inside the temple room, when the attackers see the other bikers
running down the hill their fear becomes contagious. Shouting to their
cohorts, they conclude, “They must have seen the cops, or somethin’.
Let’s get outta here!”
All the bikers are totally shaken by the explosive sound of Radharani
falling. They have become fearful because the recognition has come that
they are going to be in deep trouble over this! Terrorized out of their
own wits, in combined panic they run off at once thinking there is some
danger and they need to get out of there fast. The intoxicating glory of
their bloody conquest has transformed into an ungodly panic which
sends them fleeing for their lives.
But before leaving, they make a final threat. “We’ll be back.”
Riddha: As the bikers were intending to desecrate the Deity, Radharani

sacrificed Herself in that form by making a huge noise to distract the
guys at the top of the hill from putting a bullet in Kirtanananda Swami’s
head. I saw them leave. They got into a little VW Beetle, and very
calmly drove out as if nothing had happened.
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Suddenly, the demons are gone as abruptly as they had come. The
devotees in the temple room are simply thinking, “Hare Krishna!” It is
now obvious that a divine arrangement has been made to save them by
an inordinate sound that spooked the entire gang. Although the sound in
the temple room was not unduly loud, outside it could be heard for
miles!
By Her inconceivable compassion, Srimati Radharani has saved the

New Vrindavan community at the cost of Her own arcā-vigraha. What a
great example of how one’s compassion for others should be willing to
express itself!
Kasyapa: Something quite mystical had transpired when Srimati

Radharani slipped from the devotees grip and fell. The sound the
devotees heard was not like marble deity breaking on marble floor.
Physically speaking, that sound couldn’t have carried to the hearing of
the demons far away on the hilltop. And yet it did reach them, striking
fear in their hearts. The sound was heart-rending, though paradoxically
soft.
In śāstra two incidents evoked a similar level of fear. One was the roar
of Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva coming from the pillar just prior to His
appearance, and the other was the appearance of Mother Kali from her
mūrti form to save Jada Bharat. Did Srimati Radharani reveal Her
horrible and furious Durga feature to the demons who assaulted Her
deity and Her devotees?
Everyone now turns their attention to the wounded. So many devotees

have been shot to one degree or another. In the shock of the conflict all
that remains is the trauma that always comes afterwards.
Ugrasena Dasi, the wife of Bidhan Chandra, quickly arranges a vehicle

to take the bleeding, shot-up devotees to the hospital. On the way she is
constantly preaching to them how they were all saved by the mercy of
Radharani. Several devotees accompany them for emotional support.
Bidhan Chandra’s left arm is so badly wounded he has almost bled to
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death on the temple room floor.
Krishna Katha: As they were taking me out I remember looking over

and seeing a cloud of smoke or dust on the altar. Mother Ugrasena was
preaching to us all the way to the hospital. She was just really fixed.
In an extreme state of shock, the ladies wipe up the blood and glass
fragments in the temple while the men carry the Deities of Radha and
Krishna to Kirtanananda’s cabin. There is no question in anyone’s mind
other than to care for Their Lordships and regain Their darshan: their
life and soul.
Kutila and Mahamaya retrieve the small Radha-Krishna Deities and

hide Them safely. At the same time, the Jagannath Deities are carried
away to Talavan farm, which is a more secluded area of the community.
As the New Vrindavan community waits for the police to arrive,

everyone is feeling that they seem to be taking an excessive amount of
time to come. Finally, after what seems like hours, a few cars from the
county Sheriff’s office make an appearance to interview the devotees
about the altercation.
The Sheriff informs the devotees, “There was a group of 150 bikers
camped outside of Moundsville. The original shoot-up gang had come
in a car. Their plan must have been to first rescue the daughter, then
attack your community.”
Before leaving New Vrindavan, the Sheriff advises them to protect

themselves.
“If these guys ever set foot on your property again, don’t ask, just shoot
them.” The devotees look at each other and agree, “Okay.”
Garga Rishi: An hour later the cops showed up. They didn’t like the
devotees. What did they care? They’d been trying to get us out of there
for years. I remember Kuladri holding up Kirtanananda Swami and he
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was crying like a little baby.
Ganapati: Immediately a lot of devotees drove into town and went to the
gun stores. That night there were many devotees standing guard with
rifles. There were some minor repairs needed on the Deities, too.
Krishna Katha: I remember Kuladri wearing a gun to ārati. The incident

hit the papers. It was a big headline story and the news spread
throughout ISKCON. Bahudak had come to take us back so I decided to
return with him to Vancouver. The others decided not to go back.
New Vrindavan now becomes like an armed camp. Devotees have

bought every gun in Moundsville thinking, They said they’re coming
back and there’s 150 of them, so we’ll need some firepower. All around
the community devotees are walking around with handguns.
When the devotees gather for an iṣṭha-goṣṭhī, Kirtanananda explains that

Krishna has protected the community and that this was a great test from
Maya. He says that now, more than before, everyone has to be strong in
The mood of New Vrindavan has changed to a somber atmosphere

because the presiding Deities, Sri-Sri Radha-Vrindavan Chandra, have
been vandalized and are off the altar being tended to by Bhagavatananda
in Kirtanananda’s cabin.
Various devotees begin taking on austerities to both apologize to Radha-

Vrindavan Chandra, whom they love so dearly, and to thank Them for
their protection. Some devotees vow to give up a favorite or opulent
prasādam, which in those days of near starvation was a great sacrifice.
Others vow to add extra rounds of japa to the basic 16 for many years
thereafter.
Kirtanananda immediately writes Srila Prabhupada relating all the

events and asking what to do about the Deities. Prabhupada is in
Mayapur when he receives the letter and, without delay, dictates his
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reply.
My dear Kirtanananda Maharaja,
I am in due receipt of your letter dated June 6, 1973 and have noted the
contents with great care and concern.
The Deities may be immediately repaired and worshipped. Now we

must take precaution as you have suggested. You may get some guns
and some of the boys may be trained as ksatriyas. Such gunshots could
have taken place long ago since we are challenging everybody. So we
must be prepared to fight. We cannot stop this movement. It is actually a
fight against Maya. So Maya may also sometimes cause casualties in
our camp. So, we must only thank Krishna and seriously dedicate
everything for Him. So, you are Kirtanananda Maharaja, take pleasure
in performing kirtan. That is our real weapon against Maya.
I am very pleased that the cornerstone function was nicely done and
successful.
Continue the work enthusiastically. Thank you very much for the check
for $200.
I am slowly regaining my health. It is now the rainy season here and

accordingly the digestive process is slowed down. Therefore the rainy
season means slow recovery.
I was just thinking of you and wondering why I hadn’t heard from you
in a long time. You’ll be pleased to know that your assistant Srutakirti is
here. He’s feeling all right. This boy appears to be a very sincere
devotee. [Letter to Kirtanananda Swami - June 12, 1973]
Two devotees with extensive military experience are enlisted to teach

the men martial arts and how to shoot. Some of the brahmacārīs have
already sandbagged the top of the pump house, fearing the bikers will
return. The lead biker definitely wanted his daughter back and didn’t
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believe that she was never in New Vrindavan, so devotees are certain
they are coming back. There are sandbags all over the property, both on
the ground and on top of some of the one-story buildings.
Several devotees have M-16s and are practicing on the sandbags. Some
of the kṣatriya men begin sleeping in the temple room vestibule with
sawed-off 12 gauge shotguns. They have orders to shoot first and ask
questions later if anyone tries to force an entry. There is even a serious
suggestion to ring the temple room with weapons in case of another
attack.
Prabhupada has given the instruction that the Deities, “may be

immediately repaired and worshipped,” but some devotees are worried
if it is even possible. Many are devastated to see the curtains open to an
empty altar. Of course, the smaller Deities are still on the altar, but the
vijaya mūrtis alone on the altar, now seem so small that the empty altar
appears like a vast, desolate space.
Sri-Sri Radha Vrindavan Chandra remain in the cabin beyond the vision
of everyone as They are tended to and worshipped. Devotees are so
attached to Radha-Vrindavan Chandra that the whole community has
lapsed into a state of shock. The atmosphere is like a body with its heart
torn out. Anxiety, fear, shock, and guilt are palpable elements in the
ether. No one can tolerate being in the temple room emptied of Radha-
Vrindavan Chandra’s merciful presence.
The daily darshan feels strange without the presiding Deities of the
community standing on Their pedestals. It’s difficult for devotees to
sing with enthusiasm during ārati when they are brokenhearted. Rather,
the kirtans express the mood of separation, vipralambha-bhāva.
Devotees are longing to once again behold the beautiful forms of Radha
and Krishna that have now disappeared from their vision.
Even visiting devotees experience this same feeling.
Suresvara: I was on Mahatma’s sankirtan party out of San Diego. Round
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about Flint, Michigan, I decided to jump ship and go to New Vrindavan.
I arrived at Detroit temple where Govardhan tells me, “You’re going to
New Vrindavan? Did you hear what just happened? A motorcycle gang
came there and shot up the place.”
I was thinking I was going to have peace and quiet in New Vrindavan
because I was tired of the road and all the crazy people in the parking
lots and shopping malls. So Krishna taught me a lesson. I got there on
Tuesday and it was so bizarre seeing this empty altar when the curtains
opened.
The following Friday, an announcement is made that Sri-Sri Radha-

Vrindavan Chandra are ready to return to the temple. They will lead a
procession from the cabin to the Bahulavan temple before sunset. New
traveling cloaks have been made for Them for Their return to the
temple.
The entire community is present to greet Radha-Vrindavan Chandra

with kirtan when the cabin door opens wide. As Sri Vrindavan Chandra
comes down the steps of the cabin first, devotees begin joyously
chanting His Name over and over in a near riot of happiness and relief.
But that appears almost minimal compared to the reception that Srimati
Radharani gets. When She comes down the steps in Her traveling cloak,
Her face is radiant with Her compassionate glance for all the devotees.
As one, the devotees begin chanting, “RADHE! RADHE! RADHE!”
over and over again, unwilling and unable to stop. They are literally
beside themselves with their overriding joy of reunion and thankfulness.
Kasyapa: We read how separation enhances the ecstasy of reunion. How

deeply we experienced that when Their Lordships descended from the
cabin to resume Their place on the altar in the temple and the altar of
our hearts!
On Saturday, the news all over New Vrindavan is that Sri-Sri Radha-
Vrindavan Chandra will make Their re-appearance for sandhyā-ārati.
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Nobody is going to miss this event! Everyone crowds into the temple
room at evening, anxious to greet their beloved Lordships again.
Suresvara: As the curtains opened, we bowed down, and looked at the

Deities. It was obvious that not only were we looking at the Deities, but
the Deities were looking at us. They were inspecting us. Everyone had a
sense that we had let the Deities down, because we had allowed Them to
be vandalized at gunpoint.
So the Deities were inspecting us and nobody said a word. Nobody said
anything. We’re looking at Them, They’re looking at us. They were
really looking at us! It was intense. Kirtanananda Swami had asked me
to lead the kirtan, but I couldn’t say anything. Finally somebody nudged
me, “Start singing.”
I began singing in this strange, disembodied voice that I didn’t

recognize, and still nobody moved. This was the most intense ārati I
have ever experienced in my life. Finally, Kirtanananda started swaying,
and then everybody started swaying. By the end of the ārati, you
couldn’t even keep your feet on the floor and everyone was throwing
flowers at the altar.
Kiranasa: The hair on the back of my neck was standing on end during
that kirtan.
The transformation of the personal sweetness and beauty in the features

and faces of Sri-Sri Radha-Vrindavan Chandra are dated from that day
of Their return. Pictures of Their Lordships from the time of Their
original installation at Vrindavan Farm are vastly different from the
pictures of Them after the biker attack. Even including Their move into
Their present day temple and Deity house. The break on Their wrists is
quite visible and probably always will be. To see it is simultaneously
painful and sweet.
Kasyapa: I was reminded of the scene from a church which had been
damaged in the bombing of World War II. The form of Lord Jesus had
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his blessed, healing, and soothing hands blown off in the violence of the
holocaust. The church elders held council to discuss whether the form
should be repaired or replaced. The conclusion was that he should
remain as he was, but have a plaque placed at his feet declaring his
message with reinforced emphasis, “I have no hands other than your
hands to do my work in this world.”
In a similar spirit, the wounds on Radha-Vrindavan Chandra remain to

remind us of many beautiful truths, more glorious than temples on
hilltops or bustling communities. Topmost amongst those truths is the
extent to which Krishna will go to protect His devotees’ faith. Then the
truth of how Srimati Radharani, though truly the Queen of Vraja, is the
sweet and loving Mother nurturing the devotees’ love and trust for Her
and for one another. Then the words on that plaque, that remind us that
we are meant to be the hands and feet who perform the Lord’s work in
this world, bearing testimony to the infinite love of the Supreme Father
and Mother of all souls.
For some time after the incident, several devotees still take guns to the
temple because they are not sure if the bikers will come back. Whenever
Kirtanananda tells the story he always calls it, “The day Radharani
saved my life,” because of the sound She made.
As the news spreads around the movement, some devotees are shocked
and write Srila Prabhupada asking for an explanation why the Deities
and the devotees were attacked. The faith of some is being challenged.
Why could God not protect Himself?
You have asked what is the mentality of the demons who attacked New
Vrindavan and why did this happen? You should know this already, that
there are two classes of men, devotees and demons. The whole history is
that the peaceful devotees are disturbed by the demons but that the
devotees are always victorious by the grace of Krishna. In the
Bhagavad-gita Krishna ordered Arjuna to declare to the whole world
that His devotees would never be vanquished.
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And in the last verse of the Gita, Sanjaya says wherever there is
Krishna, and Krishna’s pure devotee Arjuna, there will always be
opulence, victory, extraordinary power and morality – tatra srir vijayo
bhutir dhruva nitir matir mama. But because we are engaged in warfare
with the forces of Maya, there will be casualties. Even Arjuna’s son,
Abhimanyu, a 16-year-old boy, was killed at the battle of Kuruksetra.
We should be prepared to protect the Deities and always expect
Krishna’s Mercy, because we are always dependent on Him and we
cannot do anything on our own without Him.
You have asked about whether nuclear devastation on this planet would
affect the Sankirtan Movement. No, there is nothing that can stop the
Sankirtan Movement because it is the will of God Himself, Lord
Chaitanya, that His Holy Name be heard in every town and village.
Neither can the demons devastate this planet independent of the will of
Krishna. Nothing happens without His sanction. If Krishna wants to kill
someone no one can save Him, and if Krishna wants to save someone no
one can kill him.
For our parts we should just be determined to carry out our mission
against all opposition; demons, nuclear war, whatever. The whole
universe is finally subject to certain annihilation by the will of Krishna,
but devotional service is eternal and is the only certain way one can save
himself from devastation. We can preach all over the world that the only
way to be saved from collective and individual devastation is to take to
the chanting of Hare Krishna.
In short, this material world is a very precarious place, therefore we

should always chant Hare Krishna and seek Krishna’s protection. [Letter
to Makhanlal - June 22, 1973]
Prabhupada is very concerned that the New Vrindavan project not be

adversely affected by the negative turn of events. He continues writing
Kirtanananda Swami inquiring about the precautions that have been
taken in the community to prevent further inauspicious incidents. He
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gives details that even in Sri Mayapur there are similar unpleasant
episodes in the surrounding precincts of the Holy Dham. “Here in
Mayapur there are reports of dacoity at least once, twice, in a month
surrounding our place. So we have now taken two guns under regular
license from the government.”
In the letter, he clearly explains the position of the Vaishnavas in terms

of their being attacked. “We are not advocates of non-violence. When
there is aggression we must kill them. I think you shall immediately
arrange for guns and at least 10, 12 men should be trained up so when
there is again attack you can properly reply to the aggressor. I shall be
glad to hear from you what defense measures you have taken to protect
the life and property of New Vrindavan. This is very important and you
must take all steps.” [Letter to Kirtanananda - June 22, 1973]
Eventually the leader of the bikers is captured in Louisville, and brought

back to Moundsville jail to await trial. Many devotees are interviewed
about the incident, but in the end the judge dismisses the case due to a
lack of evidence.
Unfortunately, the wounds of Bidhan Chandra, who received brāhmaṇa

initiation from Srila Prabhupada in November 1971, gradually cause
lead poisoning. He and his wife shift to the Washington, DC, center
where they try to get professional medical care. But no doctor is able to
prevent the poison from spreading throughout his entire body, which
eventually leads to his passing away several years later.
Bidhan Chandra devoted his life to the service of Prabhupada’s mission.

When he leaves his body, devotees are there to chant the Holy Names
and garland him with Radharani’s flower garland. His body is cremated
and the ashes are placed in an urn. His wife flies to India to spread the
ashes in the Yamuna River.
After this terrifying incident the New Vrindavan community decides

that the proposed Govindaji temple should become a temple to glorify
Srila Prabhupada, by whose mercy all the devotees’ lives have been
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changed forever. When Kirtanananda informs His Divine Grace that the
devotees feel that their spiritual master should be worshiped in a palace,
Prabhupada replies enthusiastically.
Yes! Go on acquiring the surrounding lands and in this way we will

establish a local self-governing village and show all the world a
practical example of spiritual life as Krishna Himself exhibited in
Vrindavan. Agriculture and protecting the cow, this is the main business
of the residents of Vrindavan, and above all simply loving Krishna. The
cows, the trees, the cowherd men and gopis, their chief engagement was
loving Krishna, and in New Vrindavan we want to create this
atmosphere and thereby show the whole world how practical and
sublime our movement is.
I shall go to New Vrindavan as soon as your palace is finished. Jaya!
For the small cottages I suggest to construct as the diagram below –

wooden beams and between the beams fill with gravel cement. The roof
may be tile. The size may be 12’ x 15’. This design is especially suitable
for grhasthas, who can feel very comfortable there, and you may house
four brahmacaris in such place. Every day you can build one such
house, ten may be required, and in one month you will have 30 such
nice shelters. [Letter to Kirtanananda Maharaja – July 27, 1973]
It’s not long after the biker incident that the proposed Govindaji temple
project is renamed Prabhupada’s Palace.
Philadelphia, June 1973

News of the biker attack has spread rapidly throughout the ISKCON
world. The Radha-Damodara party hears of the incident at the
Philadelphia temple where they have stopped after leaving the New
Vrindavan festival.
Vishnujana Swami is making arrangements to find an artist to repaint
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Radha- Damodara. Jahnava mātājī had spent time with Vishnujana in
Texas when he opened several temples, so Maharaja knows that she is
expert at painting. He locates her in the New York temple and requests
her to do this service for Radha-Damodara.
Early next morning Vishnujana is at the Henry Street temple in

Brooklyn in a sankirtan van driven by Dayal Chandra. The bus is
waiting at a state park where Jahnava can do her service for Radha-
Damodara without interruption or disturbance. The other brahmacārīs
remain in Philadelphia to distribute books.
Jahnava dd: Right after maṅgala-ārati, Vishnujana Swami comes up to

good old mother Jahnava Dasi, and says, “I’m kidnapping you. Try your
best to get temple permission to come with me. If you can’t get it I’m
taking you regardless.” That’s how I remember it. I couldn’t get
permission so off I went, anyway.
His Radha-Damodara bus was in the middle of a park and he had two
young brahmacārīs with him. And there They are, Sri Sri Radha-
Damodara, and They need to be repainted. All the paint was there. I
started really early in the morning and took all the paint off the Deities.
Then I put on a white undercoating. I painted white on all the areas that
I was going to paint. When that dried then I put on the paint. Then I put
on a second coat of enamel paint, and then I had to varnish the paint.
This was all in the back of the bus behind a little curtain.
The two young brahmacārīs are Chaitanya Das, Badrinarayan’s 15-year-

old nephew, and 16-year-old Mahamantra. They’re like cohorts in crime
on the bus.
Leaving Jahnava alone to complete her service for Radha-Damodara,

Vishnujana Swami takes the boys out in the park to engage them in
various sporting activities. While Mahamantra is searching for his
shoes, Vishnujana quickly runs and hides in the woods with Chaitanya
Das. His idea is to engage them in a game of hide and seek. Not seeing
anyone outside the bus, Mahamantra calls out, “Maharaja, where are
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you?”
“We’re with Krishna,” comes the reply.
Immediately, Mahamantra runs in the direction of the voice trying to

find Maharaja. But Vishnujana has already run to hide in another place.
Finding no one, Mahamantra calls out again, “Where are you?”
“We’re with Krishna,” comes the reply from a different direction.
Mahamantra: He played a cat and mouse game with me. For 20 minutes
I was desperately trying to find Maharaja in the forest, but I was unable
to find him. Then I looked through this tunnel of bushes, and there he
was at the end of the tunnel with Chaitanya Das, looking at me and
laughing loudly. I ran through the tunnel, grabbed Maharaja, and
embraced him happily. Then I put my head at his feet and offered
obeisances. Vishnujana Maharaja was very jovial and loved to play
games to bring out the love and affection of his servitors, just like one
would expect Krishna and Prabhupada to do. He knew how to bring out
your love in a very nice way. He was also skilled with a knife. I was
marveling to see how he could throw a knife and stick it into a tree, very
expertly, from a considerable distance.
As the sun begins to drop low on the horizon, Maharaja brings the boys
back onto the bus. He tells them wonderful stories of the various
pastimes of Srila Prabhupada and the devotees serving intimately with
him. Some had become familiar with Prabhupada and later fell down.
He explains to the boys how important it is to serve the spiritual master
without being familiar. Then he relates the pastimes of Lord
Ramachandra.
Jahnava dd: To keep me going, because I didn’t have time to eat, he told
the story of the Ramayana in extreme detail to these young boys in the
temple room. The curtain was closed but I could hear the whole thing.
He just kept going on and on and on, and I was able to stay awake. The
fumes were extreme. Somehow or other, I did this whole thing in one
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day, and they deposited me back at the temple by 10:30 at night. I was
totally blissed-out because of all that association with Sri Sri Radha-
Damodara. I did it all in one day. It was a miracle actually.
After Jahnava’s service to Radha-Damodara, Vishnujana decides to visit

the Washington, DC, temple. He arrives late Saturday night, knowing
that he will meet many guests at the Sunday Feast. On warm sunny
days, the temple likes to go out to Dunbarton Oaks Park for the Sunday
program. It’s a perfect opportunity for Radha- Damodara to come out of
the bus to give Their darshan.
Palaka: When I was a senior in High School, I brought some friends to

Dunbarton Oaks Park for the Sunday Feast. Radha-Damodara were set
up by the back of a tree and everyone was circumambulating the
Deities. Most people came for the great vegetarian feast, but they all got
sucked into the kirtan led by Vishnujana Swami. They were totally into
chanting and dancing around the tree. He was like the pied piper
because regardless of where you were at, you were sucked in and you
wanted to be part of it.
When I was first coming, I got the pamphlet On Chanting Hare Krishna.
Vishnujana’s photo was on the front and he looked like he was in
ecstasy. You could see in this little pamphlet that he was totally blissed-
out. His fingers were all bandaged up and he was right there, spiritually.
I remember seeing his picture and thinking, “This Hare Krishna guy is
heavy. That’s where it’s at, to be where he is.”
I have made a vow to print a million On Chanting Hare Krishna

pamphlets and just give them out. That’s a real potent piece of literature.
I want to keep the same picture of Vishnujana Swami. ‘The Peace
Formula’ is perfect, ‘On Chanting’ is perfect, and only ‘Who is Srila
Prabhupada’ needs to be updated.
Monday morning, the bus returns to Philadelphia to pick up the book

distributors. The next day, after giving class and honoring breakfast
prasādam, Vishnujana Maharaja is ready to leave for San Francisco
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where the annual Ratha-yatra festival will take place. In 1973 this is the
only city where Ratha-yatra is performed in America. Many devotees
are making plans to attend Ratha-yatra this year, including devotees
from all over the ISKCON world.
Several ladies want to give Radha-Damodara a gift before They leave.

Pancali runs to the fabric shop down the street, and stands out front
begging donations from passersby.
“We’re collecting money to make a handkerchief for the Deities. For

God, you know. Can you please give a donation?” She also pleads for
donations to buy flowers for Their altar.
She collects eight dollars, enough to get the desired fabric. The ladies
are in ecstasy as they rush to the sewing room. They know Vishnujana is
in a hurry to leave and they have less than an hour before the bus
departs. And now a kirtan party is chanting by the bus in front of the
temple as a farewell offering to Vishnujana Swami and Radha-
Damodara.
Pancali dd: We bought cloth to make a little handkerchief for ārati, so

we sat down and quickly sewed the handkerchief and made some
flowers. It was a purple handkerchief with lots of lace and trim. Just as
we finished, the bus started its engines and they were leaving. We were
upset, “Oh no, They’re not going to get Their gift!”
I ran out on the street. Vishnujana was singing and hanging out the
window of the bus. He was always excited and happy. All his devotees
were singing away, hanging out the windows. I waved and flagged the
bus down. Vishnujana said, “What is it, mātājī?” “I have a gift for
Radha-Damodara.”
“Oh, okay. Come on the bus. Go see the Deities first.” I went in, saw the
Deities, and then handed him the handkerchief. He said, “Oh, this is so
beautiful. Thank you very much.” When I got off the bus, I was so
happy to have given Them a gift.
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The arrival of two new sannyāsīs from India has enlivened the San
Francisco temple. These sannyāsīs are about to write a new chapter in
the evolution of ISKCON. They will become famous as the ‘mean
swamis.’
Yasodanandana Swami is a French Canadian who accepted sannyāsa in

India several months before Gurukripa Swami, although Gurukripa,
from California, is definitely in charge. They were both present in
Vrindavan when Srila Prabhupada gave his famous Nectar of Devotion
discourses at the Radha-Damodara Mandir. Then they pleased
Prabhupada by being the first to travel throughout South India preaching
strongly to defeat māyāvādī philosophy.
They see themselves as no-nonsense Vaishnavas who need to set the

example for giving up sense gratification once and for all, and simply
work 24 hours a day for Srila Prabhupada. They follow Prabhupada’s
words according to the letter of the law, rather than the spirit of the law.
By their mood they take everything Prabhupada says to the extreme.
For example, Srila Prabhupada said ‘swami’ means one who cuts, so
they take that to the extreme. Women are māyā for sannyāsīs, so they
take that to the extreme. For them, Krishna consciousness means the
sannyāsīs and the brahmacārīs. They have a strong macho attitude, and
many sannyāsīs in the ‘70s begin to emulate this macho style.
Of course, this is not Prabhupada’s way of dealing with women, because

he sees everyone with an equal eye, just as Krishna does.
By the time the Swamis arrive in San Francisco, they both have
jaundice. They are quarantined in the temple garage on Valencia Street
to recuperate. But soon they are in the temple room leading their own
brand of kirtan in a rough and ready style. They call themselves the
‘mean swamis’ and they like being known by that name.
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Their desire is to form a party to collect money to build a temple in
Vrindavan for Srila Prabhupada, the Krishna-Balarama Mandir.
Kritagama: I was taking care of them, cooking them kicharī. Then

Gurukripa Swami said, “Srila Prabhupada wants temples built in India
but nobody wants to do it. Everybody just wants to take care of their
own little temple. But I volunteered to do it. So we have come to
America.”
I said, “That’s good. Let’s do it.” I went out every day on my own. I
collected $100 a day; that was my quota. Eventually, we had enough to
get a little bus. Then gradually, one by one, devotees joined the party,
which they called the Nama Hatta party.
I was attracted to Gurukripa’s style. I respected him because he had the

guts; he worked hard. Gurukripa organized everything and he pushed to
make it happen because he wanted this for Prabhupada. He loved
Prabhupada. I saw his good side.
They came from India, and they were chanting Sanskrit ślokas. They
were singing bhajans and they had a mean kirtan. It seemed so good
because I was kind of passionate. They started the trend in ISKCON
about being negative and hostile towards women.
On several occasions, Prabhupada stated to his disciples preaching in

India that his guru maharaja ordered him to preach in the English
speaking countries. But, he adds, “It is my desire to preach in India.”
The only problem is the lack of funds to build the temples and guest
facilities needed to make ISKCON a strong spiritual force in the
homeland. When he brings this up to Gurukripa, the young sannyāsī
immediately volunteers to collect the money on behalf of His Divine
Grace. Teaming up with Yasodanandana Swami they are now in
America to fundraise for Prabhupada’s Krishna-Balarama Mandir.
The ‘mean swamis’ are good friends, but they aren’t equals. Gurukripa
takes the role of the big boss. He has the drive and the energy to get
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things done. Yasodanandana is more of a scholarly person, almost like a
bookworm, so he’s not the one who is going to go out and get things
done. However, he’s an enthusiastic kirtan man so they make a good
team. They complement each other very well, but Gurukripa is the
leader.
Vaiseshika: When I first joined the temple I used to sleep in the book
room in the garage. Early in the morning, way before maṅgala-ārati, I
used to see Yasodanandana Swami walking back and forth in the garage
chanting ślokas. When the kirtan really got going, Yasodanandana used
to start jumping really high while he was playing mṛdaṅga. Their kirtans
were really fired-up. I was a new bhakta and when I saw him leaping
straight up in the air I thought, Wow, now he’s seeing Krishna, because
I’d never seen that before. Gurukripa gave good classes with a lot of
ślokas. I thought they were awesome.
During this time, another sannyāsī arrives in San Francisco from

Hawaii. His name is Siddha Svarupananda Goswami and he will also
play a role in the progress of the Hare Krishna movement. He has
formed a rock band playing Krishna conscious songs along with the
mahā-mantra. They perform at a large program sponsored by the San
Francisco temple on a landed houseboat in trendy Sausalito. A lot of
people attend and the program is considered a success.
Jayananda Prabhu, however, does not consider this appropriate, because

Prabhupada has already written that devotees should not get involved in
rock music. Those letters had circulated all over the movement.
Jayananda tries to explain to the others that Prabhupada disbanded the

Road Show for the very reason that the audience would only be
impressed with the artistic abilities of the devotees, but the music would
not attract the souls of the people. Prabhupada was also concerned that
rock music might be a distraction from pure devotional service, leading
to a fall down. Moreover, rock music has nothing to do with Gaudiya
Vaishnava culture. The spiritual message of Bhagavad-gita has little in
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common with sex-oriented rock music.
Jayananda has tears in his eyes as he tries to enlighten the devotees.
“Prabhupada has already spoken about this. We should be concerned

that our spiritual master’s words are followed, not that there may be
many people attracted. Prabhupada didn’t want us to do this rock music
style of preaching.”
Rishabhdeva: Jayananda came up to me and he was actually crying,

because he was so concerned, even though it appeared to be a successful
program. He felt it was a diversion from Prabhupada’s instructions.
Prabhupada has requested all his followers to introduce and demonstrate

various aspects of traditional Vaishnava culture in order to maintain the
sampradāya exactly as Lord Chaitanya had originally presented. It’s
important that future generations of devotees receive Vaishnava culture
and tradition without change, as it has been handed down in paramparā.
Maintaining the purity and integrity of the sampradāya will provide the
best opportunity for devotees to remain fixed in devotional life, for now
and for the future.
The Road Show was extraordinary, yet Prabhupada stopped it because

he didn’t want any more rock music by devotees. Within six months
after the road show’s termination, however, Siddha Svarupananda has
formed a new rock band, supposedly for preaching. When Jayananda
sees a sannyāsī fronting a band and playing rock music, he is shocked.
Due to his innocence and sincerity, Jayananda can’t understand how a
devotee would not follow Prabhupada’s direct instruction.
With tears in his eyes, he asks Siddha, “Don’t you know? Prabhupada
doesn’t want this. Why are you doing it?”
The justification given to Jayananda is yuktā-vairāgya, anything can be

dovetailed in Krishna’s service. “C’mon Jayananda, you know the
philosophy. When actions are performed and the fruits are given to
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Krishna, then that’s called yuktā-vairāgya.”
Jayananda knows Bhagavad-gita well. He quotes what Srila Prabhupada

has written in the purport to Bhagavad-gita 9.28. “One who acts in
Krishna consciousness under superior direction – that is called yuktā-
vairāgya. I don’t want to interfere in anyone’s devotional practice, but
we should act under Prabhupada’s superior direction. He has expressly
prohibited rock music preaching, so we should not use śāstra to reach
another conclusion.”
Prabhupada clarifies the concept of yuktā-vairāgya in terms of

renunciation. In Bhagavad-gita he quotes Rupa Goswami’s Bhakti-
rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.2.255.
anāsaktasya viṣayān yathārham upayuñjataḥ
nirbandhaḥ kṛṣṇa-sambandhe yuktaṁ vairāgyam ucyate
Things should be accepted for the Lord’s service and not for one’s
personal sense gratification. If one accepts something without
attachment and accepts it because it is related to Krishna, one’s
renunciation is called yuktā-vairāgya. [Quoted in CC, Madhya-lila
16.238, purport]
Factually, yuktā-vairāgya is an advanced stage of devotional service.

Rupa Goswami describes this platform as utilizing material opulence to
execute the mission of the Lord. Advanced devotees will never be
seduced by such material trappings because their motivation is solely for
the pleasure of the Lord.
Anything can be used in a wonderful way to spread the glories of

Krishna and to bring about a spiritual transformation in society.
Neophyte devotees, however, are warned to be wary of material energy
because they can easily become ensnared in māyā once again.
By citing Rupa Goswami as the authority on yuktā-vairāgya, it brings to
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mind that every night he slept under a different tree. This was his
practical application of yuktā- vairāgya. It is common practice to engage
non-devotees in dovetailing their material propensities for Krishna’s
service, but having once taken up the process of bhakti-yoga serious
devotees always remains aloof from material energies. Srila Prabhupada
has clarified the meaning of yukta vairāgya right from the start of his
preaching mission.
The exact adjustment in Vaishnava philosophy, which is called yuktā-

vairāgya means that we should simply accept the bare necessities of our
material part of life, and try to save time for spiritual advancement.
[Letter to Hayagriva - June 14, 1968]
In the early days of ISKCON, sannyāsīs are looked up to with great

veneration and respect. They are considered almost pure devotees
because they apparently give up everything to dedicate their lives for
devotional service. Vaishnavas understand this as accepting the order of
the spiritual master as one’s life and soul. To take sannyāsa and then use
rock music for preaching, after Prabhupada has explicitly said no, is
difficult for some devotees to accept. Others can’t even understand it.
“Why is he doing this?” They cite the example of Vishnujana Swami
who immediately gave up rock music upon Prabhupada’s letter and is
now only presenting traditional bhajan and kirtan.
The ‘mean swamis’, having just come from India, also take the position
that rock music is a deviation from the orders of the spiritual master.
They state that any activity not sanctioned by the spiritual master is
considered śrama eva hi kevalam – simply a useless waste of time.
This incident in Sausalito causes confusion among the San Francisco

devotees and creates two camps. One group sides with Siddha Svarupa,
while the other group agrees with Gurukripa and Yasodanandana.
Before long, the dichotomy between liberal and conservative devotees
will spread throughout the Society, causing strain and tension.
Prabhupada is quite clear how he wants devotees to serve in the
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movement of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. He always knows the exact
point he is making, even if others don’t. Sometimes disciples think that
cultural differences prevent Prabhupada from fully understanding their
intentions, so they try to interpret his statements. But His Divine Grace
knows who he is dealing with, what they need, and exactly what he
wants them to understand. It is only due to attachment that devotees
continue trying to get Prabhupada to agree that rock music can be used
to attract people to Krishna consciousness. But Prabhupada has to
constantly reiterate that utilizing rock music to preach is not wanted.
My opinion is that it is not necessary for us to utilize these different

musical talents for spreading Krishna consciousness. I would rather see
people follow strictly the path of Lord Chaitanya and His Sankirtan
devotees. We are using mrdanga, kartals; that is enough. We are not
musicians. We are Krishna bhaktas. Therefore we do not stress so much
importance on these different musical talents. Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu is God Himself. Had He thought it would have been better
to spread Krishna consciousness by another way He would have done
so. But no, simply with mrdanga and kartals, traveling and chanting
Hare Krishna, asking everyone to chant Hare Krishna, preaching simply
Srimad-Bhagavatam philosophy, this is the process. There is no need for
us to try and add anything to this simple method. It will only be a
distraction.
Therefore, I request you to follow the simple path of Lord Chaitanya

Mahaprabhu and help me spread this wonderful mission all over the
world. Keep yourself pure and fixed up in Krishna consciousness by
following the basic principles that I have given; chanting 16 rounds
daily, following the four regulative principles, rising early, attending
mangala-arati and classes etc. This is of the utmost importance. [Letter
to Jagadish Pandit - December 28, 1974]
Seeing that devotees are always trying to add new ideas in an effort to
attract people to Krishna consciousness, Srila Prabhupada instructs his
GBC man, Rupanuga, to be careful to maintain what he has established
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and not to allow changes to be added.
Whatever I have introduced should remain. Nothing new should be

added. New things means their brain is not clear. Carefully manage
things that I have established. [Letter to Rupanuga Das - September 4,
1974]
Rathayatra, July 1973

The San Francisco devotees are fired-up under the leadership of temple
president Bhutatma Prabhu. They are committed to going out all day for
heavy harināma sankirtan. However, two weeks before Ratha-yatra,
Bhutatma pulls some sankirtan men off the streets to do a complete
temple renovation, including painting the entire building and laying
marble. Jambavan and Chiranjiva repaint the outside of the temple on
long ladders that stretch several stories high. Momentum is building up
for Ratha- yatra and Bhutatma wants the temple to sparkle for all the
visiting devotees who will attend this year’s festival.
Essentially, San Francisco is involved in a competition with Los

Angeles temple.
“Whatever New Dwaraka’s got, we’ve got to be better.”
At Ratha-yatra time the busiest person is Jayananda. He organizes every

temple festival and always manages to engage the visiting devotees. To
ensure the success of Ratha-yatra, Jayananda arranges everything from
the building of the carts to the serving of prasādam. He makes all the
legal arrangements, gets thousands of roses donated, and even designs
the posters. He takes care of every detail of the festival. Jayananda
Prabhu practically puts on the whole festival himself. He’s like a one-
man show. He does all the advertising, gets the permits, and recruits the
manpower. He even engages people right off the street to help him build
the carts.
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Everyone does whatever Jayananda requests. Nobody can say no to
Jayananda.
Because he is so enthusiastic and works so hard, it becomes contagious.

Even if people don’t feel like doing so,mething, they will do it if
Jayananda asks them. The most predominant characteristic of his
personality is his enthusiasm. He is expert in engaging people who
everybody else has given up on.
Just as Srila Prabhupada is always friendly to the devotees as well as the

non-devotees, Jayananda is the kind of devotee who is everyone’s
friend. This quality is described in the Bhagavad-gita, that the devotee is
engaged in devotional service with determination and is everyone’s
friend. He is peaceful, equipoised, and has no enemies. This is an
accurate description of Jayananda. [Bg 12.13-14]
Many people approaching Krishna consciousness in San Francisco come

from a culture of Zen, impersonal yoga, or psychedelic drugs.
Jayananda is very merciful in giving his association to these people, and
by his association newcomers become convinced that the process of
bhakti-yoga works. Because he is such an ideal servant of Srila
Prabhupada, Jayananda always instills faith in people. He makes joining
the Hare Krishna movement a lot of fun. Serving side by side with
Jayananda, a newcomer develops a sense of comfort and confidence in
the process of Krishna consciousness.
He is well known in the temple for taking out the daily sankirtan party.
Jayananda loves the Holy Name, loves chanting and feasting, and he
loves Srila Prabhupada. His happiness is almost childlike: “Let’s go and
chant, let’s go out on sankirtan.” He just loves the entire process. He
lives it and loves it. He is always encouraging, “Oh Prabhu, how nice
that you have come out on harināma sankirtan.” He says it so sweetly
that it makes devotees feel like a million dollars for going out. He never
takes any notice that some devotees are hesitant to go out, or that others
are dragging their feet. No one can admit they’re not into it around
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Jayananda. He has the kind of energy that dissipates all the shadows.
Everyone’s dark side becomes purified being around him because he’s
so happy about it. “Sankirtan is so wonderful.”
He always plays the same simple mṛdaṅga rhythm but he hits the drum
so hard that it fires up the kirtan. He is fond of saying, “Sankirtan is for
the masses and Bhagavatam is for the classes.” Unfortunately, an
unavoidable part of the masses is the occasional demon that tries to
disrupt the chanting. Jayananda is tall and strong with huge hands, he is
very handsome and pure looking, and this seems to upset some people.
Yogesh Chandra: When Jayananda was chanting on the party, the

demons would come and try to hassle him, “Hey man. What’s your
trip?” There was a period when some of these negative spirits were
getting violent.
One time a drunkard singled Jayananda out and wanted to attack him.
Getting angry and upset, he finally came running right at Jayananda. He
was an old bum and Jayananda was just playing the drum and chanting.
I was standing next to him and I was thinking, Oh, no. Here comes some
trouble. I thought he was going to push Jayananda or tackle him, but
Jayananda just stuck his chest out and the guy stopped right in front of
him, screaming.
Jayananda yelled right back, “Chant Hare Krishna. Just chant Hare
Krishna.” He continued playing the drum real hard, “Just chant Hare
Krishna,” and blew the guy away. After he left Jayananda said, “Oh
Prabhupada. Oh Prabhupada.” He was really affected and just closed his
eyes, really intense, very strong.
When dealing with material challenges, Jayananda never complains

about anything, a mood similar to Lord Chaitanya. Prabhupada always
has the deepest admiration for Jayananda and even commented one time
that, “Jayananda looks like Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. [Lecture, Los
Angeles - December 1, 1968] When visiting San Francisco, if he doesn’t
see Jayananda Prabhupada immediately asks for him. “Where is
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Jayananda?” He singles him out and asks about him because he is
always engaged in service. This is the ideal relationship between guru
and disciple.
There are big hills south of San Francisco where the main highway leads
into the city. A week before Ratha-yatra, Jayananda drives out with bags
of lime early in the morning when it is still dark. On a very prominent
hillside he writes in huge letters, “Hare Krishna - Golden Gate Park -
July 21 - Festival.” People driving into the city on their way to work
cannot miss seeing this message.
The San Francisco brahmacārī ashram is very austere – one huge room
where 40 devotees sleep facing east. During festival time that number
doubles. Ganga Narayana wakes everybody up for maṅgala-ārati by
banging on a pot. It’s very unpleasant to wake up to that clanging sound
early in the morning, but in spite of the inconvenience Jayananda always
says, “Krishna consciousness means eating and sleeping in the best of
company.”
He projects a sense of comfort that everything is going to be fine. He is

so enthusiastic about prasādam that sometimes he will wake up a
devotee in the middle of the night and put a gulābjāmun in his mouth.
There is never a time when anyone has ever heard Jayananda speak
nonsense, because he is always in awakened consciousness.
When the Radha-Damodara party arrives in San Francisco, Vishnujana

is very relaxed. He loves Ratha-yatra and enjoys taking out the sankirtan
party because there are so many devotees. It’s like bringing out an army
to sing the Holy Names on the streets of the city. Dayal Chandra parks
the bus right in front of the temple where the Radha-Damodara
brahmacārīs prefer to take rest because there are so many bodies in the
ashram. It’s a bit of a risk due to a city ordinance banning people from
sleeping overnight in their vehicles. But Maharaja decides to take that
risk because Radha- Damodara need to be protected at night.
Bhumna: Vishnujana Swami had a way of keeping himself aloof
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without being aloof, if you know what I mean. He always maintained a
Krishna conscious upbeat spirit. He never got into putdown jokes, or
cheap comments. Whenever he showed up at a temple, everybody
would be excited about street kirtan.
His party had a loose camaraderie, very laissez-faire. Everybody was his
own man on the party. He treated everyone as an adult. They didn’t
always act like one, but he treated them as such. They were like nothing
else in ISKCON. They were like buccaneers, not in the sense of
renegades, but more as rebels.
The renegade spirit was more from Gurukripa’s party. “We know
what’s going on; you guys are all out of it. We know your name, we
know your game.” They were rebels without a cause, whereas
Vishnujana Swami was happy-go-lucky. He created a convivial
atmosphere. His brahmacārīs were always chanting, and they’d invite
people on his bus to take opulent prasādam all the time. It was very
relaxed, easygoing.
Paulie: When the Radha-Damodara program came to San Francisco,

they were parked in front of the garage on Valencia. Vishnudatta was a
really creative personality. His reputation was that he was the greatest
mṛdaṅga player in our movement. He could play, but he would take all
the attention away from the Deities. Everyone’s attention would be on
him, and he’d be showing off doing all his Bengali stuff. He had a huge
persona. He was a very exotic character, like exotica personified. But
for me there was not enough of a person to grab onto.
Vishnujana Swami wasn’t like that. He just sat on the floor with his
harmonium, or he played mṛdaṅga, with his big floppy socks, two sizes
too big. Those were the standard wool socks with a stripe that he used to
wear in the heat of the summer. He was genuine.
I worked on the carts with Jayananda for three Ratha-yatras. Jayananda

transcended all temporary designations of śūdra, brahmacārī, sannyāsa,
vānaprastha, because he did whatever was required. There was an urn
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by the temple door and Jayananda had the potency to put tilak on people
as they entered. How many people can do that to guests on a Sunday?
Mother Silavati is now living at the San Francisco temple. Seeing the
bus parked outside the temple, she has a strong desire to go on the bus to
see Radha-Damodara. She was Their first pūjārī, but she hasn’t seen
Them for so long because They are traveling with brahmacārīs. She
approaches Vishnujana Maharaja with a request to do a little pūjā for
Them.
“No, you can’t go on the bus now,” Maharaja explains, “because it’s not
only a temple but a brahmacārī ashram too. So you just can’t go on.”
Silavati is obviously upset hearing this news, but there’s nothing that
Vishnujana can do about it. For days in her room, she is simply pining
to serve Radha-Damodara.
A few days later, Vishnujana Maharaja goes out of town with a

sankirtan van and some brahmacārīs for college preaching programs
north of the city. Radha-Damodara stay back on the bus with the rest of
the brahmacārīs who are now helping Jayananda get everything ready
for the Ratha-yatra festival on Sunday.
Lakshmipati dd: One morning Silavati and I were up in her room

chanting japa, and suddenly there was a knock on the door. It was the
brahmacārī who drove the bus and did the cooking. He had spent the
night in the brahmacārī ashram and when he awoke and went down to
the bus he discovered that all the brahmacārīs who slept on the bus that
night were arrested for vagrancy. He had to have the morning offering
made and the Deities dressed in only 25 minutes and he’s the only one
left. So now he is knocking on the door, “Mother Silavati. Please help
me. Will you please dress Radha-Damodara for me?” Immediately she
jumps up and says, “C’mon Lakshmi, let’s go.”
We ran down the hall, down the stairs, and onto the bus. Silavati got to
see her Radha-Damodara. She dressed Radharani and I dressed
Damodara. It was a really fine way that Krishna arranged for her to
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come on the bus and see Him. She was pulling out all the clothes that
she’d sewn for Them, and some jewelry that she had made. She not only
got to see Them, but she got to dress Them. She was so excited. It was
real nice to see her with Radha- Damodara because she had a close
relationship with Them and They reciprocated. It was obvious.
Then the brahmacārī came with a nice offering and did the pūjā. He was
mild mannered, very pleasant, and thin. I felt honored to be part of that
pastime.
Later the same afternoon, the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs are

released from jail. When Vishnujana Swami returns from his road trip,
he learns of the incident. Seeing Silavati in the temple hallway before
sandhyā-ārati he bursts out laughing, “I guess you got to see Radha-
Damodara after all, didn’t you?” Everyone enjoys this little Radha-
Damodara pastime.
The San Francisco temple has a large prasādam hall, which is divided
equally between the men and women by a thin plastic curtain. Every
morning Bhavatarini cleans the brahmacārīnī side of the prasādam hall.
Her one-year-old daughter, Nipuna, likes to crawl around to where the
men take prasādam. They enjoy putting sweet balls in her pockets, so
she is always eating sweet balls. One day Bhavatarini overhears a
conversation among the men, and she recognizes Jayananda’s voice.
Bhavatarini dd: They were having a discussion about what to do when

you’re sick. One of them said, “I fast completely so the body can heal
itself.” Another one said, “When I’m sick I just drink herbal teas and
take a lot of rest.” A third said, “I just try and drink a lot of juice.” Then
they asked Jayananda, “What do you do when you’re sick, Jayananda?”
He said very clearly, “Well, I eat as much sweet rice, halava, and mahā-
prasādam as I can get my hands on. Then the germs get so purified they
just leave me alone.”
I thought I was the only one who knew Jayananda was very special. He
arranged for me to have a room in the temple, next door to the kitchen,
330
because my husband had left me. Then Jayananda brought him back to
the temple and found an apartment for us. He was very kind.
There are a lot of mothers with children at this year’s festival.

Bhavatarini is happily engaged at the temple now that Jayananda has
made comfortable arrangements for her family. She also has a 4-year-
old daughter, Kunti, who is a little difficult to manage. As they walk
along Valencia Street in front of the temple, she suddenly starts
throwing a tantrum for no apparent reason.
She begins banging the wooden door to the temple garage where they
house the Ratha-yatra carts. Vishnujana Swami is on his bus and hears
the commotion. He opens the door, goes straight towards her, and
simply says, “Come with me.”
Bhavatarini dd: He just picked up this distraught child who no one could
do anything with and everybody thought was hopeless. He took her on
his bus that was painted blue and she stayed with him for hours. Later I
asked, “What did you talk about?”
“Nothing,” she answered back. “The Deities were taking rest. We just
chanted softly. He wants to have breakfast with me tomorrow.” Every
day I made fruit salad with yogurt for breakfast and took it to the bus
with her. Then she would go on the bus and eat breakfast with
Vishnujana Swami and spend the day with him. She thought he was her
best friend. He gave her a prasādam crown from Radha-Damodara. She
just sat for hours at a time in front of Radha-Damodara. Vishnujana was
like a swan. He didn’t look like he was from this planet.
She was seven when he passed away. When she heard that he
disappeared she was very upset with him. She couldn’t understand why
he didn’t tell her, or talk to her first. She thought they were best friends.
She was very broken-hearted when he left the planet. It took her years to
get over it. She never spoke about what they talked about. The whole
relationship they had was very private and very transcendental.
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Kunti: When I was little, Vishnujana was my best friend that I used to
hang out with. I would take prasādam with him. Mostly I would just sit
in front of Radha-Damodara and whisper, because They would be
sleeping. I have one clear memory where he gave me a crown. I was
sitting on the steps of the bus in San Francisco. He had given me some
mahā jewelry from the Deities and I was wearing the crown. He really
loved the Deities. He never talked very much. He wanted me not to talk
so much but just observe and learn. If I talked he would go, “Shhh, the
Deities are sleeping,” very nicely. I didn’t ask many questions. He
didn’t tell me stories. I would just sit in the bus while he would do
things for the Deities. He wasn’t like a father figure, more like a friend,
a companion.
Many devotees who were at Ratha-yatra last year have returned. Some
of them want to make their home in San Francisco. When Hari Vallabha
returns he goes looking for Jayananda. He finds him working in the
garage next door. He’s very happy that Jayananda remembers him. They
sit down and Jayananda asks how everything is going. Hari Vallabha
talks about his recent marriage to Kusha Devi. Jayananda is keen to
listen. He folds his arms and looks intently at Hari Vallabha, who
notices that Jayananda is now also wearing white.
They exchange details how their lives are unfolding in Krishna

consciousness.
“I decided I should be married,” Jayananda sighs. “I didn’t want to be a

sannyāsī. I don’t think I’m capable of that. My wife, she’s a nice
devotee. I like her. She’s real sweet. She’s nice to me, but I don’t really
like being married. Still it’s my duty. It’s my service. This is my
ashram.”
Jayananda quotes Bhagavad-gita 3.35 to validate his claim: “It is far

better to discharge one’s prescribed duties, even though they may be
faulty, than another’s duties. Destruction in the course of performing
one’s own duty is better than engaging in another’s duties, for to follow
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another’s path is dangerous.”
Hari Vallabha: Jayananda remembered me. He wanted to hear what I

had to say. He was so sweet like that. Other devotees were more
concerned about other things, formal considerations, and position.
Jayananda was the oldest devotee and the most advanced, but you’d
never know it by the way he acted. He was just so natural and always
concerned about how you were doing. It seemed that he would never do
anything for himself. He was always doing things for others. A lady
wanted to marry him, so he said, “Okay.” He didn’t resist.
Kusha dd: My husband had been with Jayananda at Ratha-yatra before. I

heard about Jayananda when I was a brahmacārīnī, how he had donated
his life savings to Srila Prabhupada and how he was building the Ratha-
yatra carts. Then I heard that once his father came to build the carts with
him.
I met him when we moved to San Francisco from Hawaii. I also knew
his wife. We were both from Hawaii so she would confide in me.
Basically, he was in the brahmacārī ashram and she was in the
brahmacārīnī ashram and she was not happy about it. She wanted a
relationship that was more earthy. There were certain distresses. She
wanted to have a home and maybe a child. Jayananda treated her as he
treated every devotee and she didn’t know how to deal with it. She was
always on the edge. Sometimes she left to visit her parents in Hawaii
because she was beginning to feel that it was hopeless.
The marriage was simply arranged. It wasn’t a big deal for Jayananda. It
wasn’t going to change him. It didn’t affect him whether he was a
householder or a brahmacārī.
What really impressed me about Jayananda was that he had no false

ego. None. Zero. He was the personification of humility. And he was
SO enthusiastic! The word, ‘enthias,’ means ‘with God’. He was with
God all the time. He would pay obeisances to each and every devotee.
He’d be perched inside the temple room, and as soon as devotees
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walked in the door, he’d create a large pomp and circumstance, “Oh the
Vaishnavas are coming! Please accept my humble obeisances!” It was
dramatic and it was humorous. Sometimes, there would be ‘diving for
feet’ and it was really exciting. This is at 4:00 o’clock in the morning,
every morning. Even throughout the day, if devotees came to the
temple, he was like that.
Rather than pacing back and forth, Jayananda just sits during japa time.
He chants quite fast and loud always rocking up and down. On the floor
beside him is a little notebook with a pencil. Srila Prabhupada said that
in Kali-yuga memory means keeping a notebook. As soon as something
comes to his mind Jayananda jots it down, especially before Ratha-yatra
when he has so much to do. He’s always completely absorbed in his
chanting, but when something comes into his mind that needs to be done
he will jot it down. The whole Ratha-yatra festival unfolds in this way
as he chants his japa.
Jayananda Prabhu loves talking about Prabhupada but never talks about
his relationship with Prabhupada. Nor does he talk about himself, except
to minimize his own service while glorifying the service of others.
Sometimes a devotee may claim, “I’m so fallen,” and it sounds more

like a cliche.
But Jayananda comes off as really sincere. People accept it when he

says, “I just want to do some service. I’m too fallen so I just want to
keep busy, you know? I just want to help out.”
Jayananda doesn’t always wear devotional clothing because he spends

so much time fixing cars and building Ratha-yatra carts. He is
unflappable. He is totally cool and peaceful, so when he becomes
dramatic it’s like a precious moment. He moves very consciously and
knows everything that’s going on around him. He is aware of everything
and everybody in a wonderful way. There might be sheer chaos but he
will always remain completely calm.
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For sankirtan, Sausalito is always a favorite place to take the chanting
party. When Vishnujana Swami is in town he always leads the
sankirtan. The book distributors are dressed in plain clothes just a short
distance away from the sankirtan party. In this way, the sankirtan and
book distribution go on side by side. As they distribute books, these
devotees can hear the chanting up the street. This is exactly how
Prabhupada prefers his disciples to perform sankirtan, with the books
and the mantra being distributed simultaneously.
Ravindra Svarupa had written Prabhupada asking if it’s all right to send
the entire sankirtan party out to distribute books, which meant that no
one would be available for chanting. Srila Prabhupada replied that book
distribution would increase if sankirtan party was nearby the book
distributors.
So if there is any occasion of necessity, if there are not very many men
available, or if there is prohibition by the municipal authorities,
something like that, we may assign everyone for distributing our
literature. There is no loss for that. But it is always better if there are
also some devotees chanting loudly on the street. If there is even one
man to two men or a small party who are chanting Hare Krishna, that
will increase also the book sales. So if there are sufficient men, and if
we have got sanction by the authorities, it is always better to have at
least a small party chanting along with as many distributors of books as
possible.” [Letter to Ravindra Svarupa - January 5, 1973]
As Ratha-yatra day approaches, devotees continue to pour into the city

all day long, arriving from various temples near and far as well as
transatlantic. Part of the success of any festival is always the
cooperation of the constabulary. So Jayananda bakes a cake for the
police with “Hare Krishna” written in icing and personally delivers it to
the police station. He displays so much enthusiasm that others also
experience the same ecstasy. Each morning he has the ladies making
garlands, while the men cut vegetables to feed the hungry hordes.
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Vishnujana takes Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara and his kirtan group to
Golden Gate Park to chant all day and invite everyone in the park to
attend the festival on Sunday. A lot of the visiting devotees immediately
make arrangements to accompany Maharaja.
A group of Vancouver devotees also join Maharaja’s kirtan party to get

into the mood for the big festival.
Pasupati dd: We got out of the van and I could hear sweet sounds
wafting through the air. It was very hypnotically attractive and I just
followed the sound, like with the pied piper. As I got closer a crowd had
gravitated to where the sound was originating.
There were people three or four deep, and when I wriggled up to the
front I saw the beautiful forms of Radha-Damodara. All these ordinary
people, non-devotees, were automatically attracted to the sound of
Vishnujana Swami chanting on the harmonium and attracting everyone
to the lotus feet of Radha-Damodara. The amazing thing was that
although the bhajan was in Bengali, everyone in the crowd was
repeating Gopinath. He was singing, and everyone was responding
Gopinath in unison at the chorus. Vishnujana made it so easy for people
to be Krishna conscious, because he made it so attractive. He was
powerful and charismatic, and I sensed that he had a lot of devotion for
attracting people to Krishna consciousness.
At the end of each bhajan, Vishnujana Maharaja chants the mahā-

mantra. After blissfully chanting Hare Krishna, he addresses the
spectators.
“This Sunday in Golden Gate Park we’re going to have a wonderful

parade. This has been going on for the last seven years here in San
Francisco. It starts at noon on Sunday at the Fell Street entrance to
Golden Gate Park. The theme of the festival is: A Walk With God.
“It’s a beautiful theme, and it’s open to everyone. What we’re going to
do is take beautiful Deities, like the ones you see here from India.” With
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his right hand he directs people’s attention to Radha-Damodara. “We’ve
built these 30-foot, gigantic wooden carts, something like big wagons,
but beautifully decorated. And with thousands of other people we’ll be
pulling the carts through Golden Gate Park to Lindley Meadows.
“Then we’re going to have a wonderful feast, an Indian vegetarian feast,

offered with love to God. There’ll be a lot of singing like you’re hearing
today, and there’ll be a lot of discussion on the philosophy of life. So
please come. Take advantage of this spiritual festival and dance in
ecstasy with us.”
After his gracious invitation, Maharaja begins another kirtan.
Hari Vallabha: I was mesmerized by Vishnujana Maharaja because I

was a musician. He had his devotees who played these exotic
instruments. That’s when I really got inspired. Bhutatma got me started
on the harmonium and I learned to play by listening to Vishnujana’s
tapes and copying him. In those days, Vishnudatta was the mṛdaṅga
player. Nobody could play like him. He was a good cook too.
Dina Bandhu: Those early San Francisco Ratha-yatras were so ecstatic.

We would always stay in some strange place because there was no space
in the temple. Vishnujana Swami would come with his bus and his
devotees to give the most marvelous classes. His classes would always
encourage us to advance in Krishna consciousness. One thing I
remember was the way he used to sing when he chanted, that suddenly I
realized that this is actually a very sacred thing that’s millions of years
old. What we’re doing is a heavy spiritual process and it’s a very
wonderful thing, this chanting. It was always amazing.
On Ratha-yatra day the sun is shining brightly. A slight breeze makes it

comfortable for everyone. The feature of this year’s festival is the
attendance of six sannyāsīs: Vishnujana Swami, Hrdayananda and
Satsvarupa Goswamis, the ‘mean swamis’ Gurukripa and
Yasodanandana, and Sudama Goswami. There are ecstatic kirtans with
Sudama and his crew in front of Lord Jagannath’s chariot, the Los
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Angeles and San Francisco devotees in front of Balarama’s chariot, and
Vishnujana Swami with the ‘mean swamis’ in front of Subhadra Devi’s
chariot.
Yasodanandana Swami: We had gone to India and now we were

collecting for the Vrindavan temple. For Ratha-yatra we were together,
Vishnujana Swami, Gurukripa Swami, and myself, in one solid kirtan
for about six hours straight, and all of us had mṛdaṅgas. In those days
the devotees were very close, so the unity of the movement was
prominent; especially for kirtan. Everybody saw it as a jubilant
celebration. Golden Gate Park was packed with people and Vishnujana
Maharaja had Radha-Damodara and a few brahmacārīs. Basically, when
we met, it was kirtan, Bhagavatam, and prasādam. The competition was
how long would the kirtan go on, and how long will they keep talking
about Krishna?
Bhayahari: Vishnujana Swami walked backwards the whole way

playing mṛdaṅga. He had his shoes scrunched down at the back and
walked backwards facing the Deities.
The St Louis temple president, Makhanlal Prabhu, was previously a San

Francisco devotee so he will never miss a Ratha-yatra. He has driven to
San Francisco with nine new brahmacārīs packed in a van like sardines.
This is their first Ratha-yatra and they are in awe experiencing the
ecstasy of thousands of devotees pulling the Deities on Their chariots
through Golden Gate Park.
Chaturatma: I remember the ‘mean swamis’, Gurukripa and

Yasodanandana, and the kirtans! Oh, the kirtans were incredible. They
were the ‘mean swamis’ doing the Swami step. I remember the first
story I heard Gurukripa tell from Chaitanya līlā, how a devotee stepped
over another devotee, who turned and slapped him. That was his kind of
story. In the Chaitanya-charitamrta that devotee turned around and
slapped him, but the way Gurukripa Swami read it, he turned around
and ‘decked’ him.
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Jayananda is everywhere, ensuring that the festival goes off without a
hitch. During the parade he directs the movements of the carts. At the
end of the parade he organizes the serving of the feast for about 20,000
people. He loves to cook the feast and engage people to help him. It was
Prabhupada’s idea that the free feast should be first class because
“prasādam is our secret weapon.”
Many devotees are made simply by serving first class prasādam at

festivals and at the Sunday feast. In this way, so many people join the
movement and eventually go out on sankirtan to purify the material
world. In the early days the best prospects are people without money,
the hippies and students. Because they receive a terrific free feast many
people became devotees. The same principle should work for all time.
Unfortunately, in later years, the free feast is not the most delicious
prasādam available. In later years, devotees begin selling the best
prasādam to cover the festival expenses. The mahā-prasādam is for the
“special” devotees, the free feast is for everyone else. So the original
mood of inviting people to Lord Chaitanya’s movement with fantastic
prasādam is lost, and fewer devotees are made.
During Ratha-yatra some devotees are so busy that they can’t find the
time to chant their rounds. Jayananda is working day and night and he
also can’t find the time. But he always keeps track of the lost rounds.
When Ratha-yatra is over, he goes into the temple to sit and chant for
hours and hours to make up the missed rounds. When people ask,
“Where’s Jayananda?” the answer is always, “Oh, he’s in the temple
chanting his rounds.”
Vrindavan Vilasini dd: Jayananda was totally absorbed doing service.

At Ratha-yatra, he made sure that everything was ready in time. He was
in the kitchen, in the temple, he was at the site, he was everywhere. He
was humble and totally absorbed trying to engage everybody, and he
was happy. There was no māyā because he was totally absorbed in
ecstatic devotional service. Because he was giving everything to Lord
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Jagannatha and Srila Prabhupada, I was completely happy. When I think
about him, I want to become totally absorbed because that’s how you
become free from suffering.
Bana Bhatta: Both Vishnujana Swami and Jayananda Prabhu had a

certain naturalness of spirit. They didn’t have to know anything special,
or be anyone special, to be an advanced Vaishnava. In terms of the
amount of love they emitted, and how they cared, that came through
very strongly in both of them. Vishnujana Maharaja was the most
amazing person. I always felt that maybe he’s seeing Krishna directly.
He had that kind of a presence. He looked like he was always in love
with Radha-Damodara. Not only that, but when he was away from
Them, he was able to carry Their presence with him, and it felt like he
was in direct contact with Them. He was never so much affected
directly by outside pressures as other people. I loved where he was at.
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Sixth Wave,
The Mayor’s Race
Krishna’s name is the sweetest of sweet things, the most auspicious of
auspicious things, the transcendental fruit of the vine of all Vedic
literature. O best of the Bhrgus, chanted even once, either with faith or
contempt, it delivers the chanter. [Rupa Goswami - Padyavali, text 16]
Summer 1973
All summer long the Radha-Damodara bus treks back and forth across
America.
They have their itinerary planned out, attending state fairs and visiting
ISKCON temples along the way. Since the party’s return from Mexico,
Narada Muni has been booking as many state fairs as possible. At the
fairs, they sell handicrafts from India, Spiritual Sky scented products,
and Srila Prabhupada’s books, from a booth that Suhotra and Dayal
Chandra have built.
Vishnujana Swami likes to sell cauliflower pakorās that he cooks on a

little gas stove.
He serves them with chutney at four for a dollar. At the same time, the
Radha- Damodara book distributors go into the neighboring towns to
distribute KRSNA Book. They do hundreds of these books every day.
During the summer of ‘73, book distributors discover that they can
distribute masses of the KRSNA Book at rock concerts. Now published
as a softbound trilogy, the devotees utilize the foreword by George
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Harrison to attract concertgoers. Tripurari and his men are now
distributing books in Western attire and wigs. They claim that this
makes it easier for people to relate to the devotees. At one concert they
distribute 600 KRSNA books. Ramesvara writes Prabhupada that the
Los Angeles temple is selling 2,000 KRSNA books every week!
Prabhupada replies from London:
There is no doubt about it; to distribute books is our most important

activity. The temple is a place not for eating and sleeping, but as a base
from which we send out our soldiers to fight with maya. Fight with
maya means to drop thousand and millions of books into the lap of the
conditioned souls. Just like during wartime, the bombs are raining from
the sky like anything.
So you are the expert in this field. I like also your program of sending
out your best men to teach the others. That is the actual process of
Krishna consciousness. To train others to continue this program, so that
in the future every devotee in our movement will know the art of
distributing books. This is approved by me. [Letter to Ramesvara -
August 3, 1973]
Tripurari now begins visiting different temples to train others and share
his experience. More devotees start going out in western dress to
increase the potential for selling books. However, not everybody agrees
with this new direction. A minor controversy arises. Various people
present their case to Srila Prabhupada about distributing books “in
disguise.” After hearing all sides of the argument, Prabhupada settles in
favor of Western clothing as long as devotees dress as respectable ladies
and gentlemen wearing tilak and neck beads.
The results speak for themselves. The MacMillan Company reports that
more than 150,000 copies of Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is have
been sold. Sales of the many other English editions of the Gita are
dwindling, the Company writes, as Bhagavad-gita As It Is continues to
grow in popularity. [Back to Godhead magazine, volume 60]
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The Nama Hatta party is also on the road with the mission to help
Prabhupada build the proposed Krishna-Balarama temple in Vrindavan.
But their focus is collecting money rather than distributing books.
Kritagama, Pundarika, Badarayana, and Bir Krishna have joined
Gurukripa and Yasodanandana’s party. Although the ‘mean swamis’ are
dedicated to expanding Prabhupada’s mission in India, their aggressive
tactics are not appreciated in America.
Bhutatma: I got burned out by Gurukripa and Yasodanandana. They

were just creating havoc. They would get the brahmacārīs in a corner
and tell them, “You’re going to go to hell if you stay in the temple.
You’ll get married and go to hell.” They took away all my distributors
and all my collectors. I had already offered to give a few good men, but
they weren’t happy with that. Finally I outlawed them from the San
Francisco temple because the whole thing turned into such a fiasco.
Sura Das: There were so many different traveling parties. We had three
mothers on our party and they would sleep in the van and the men
would sleep outside the van at campgrounds. The six of us traveled for
months in ‘73. It was so innocent. The thing that scared us most of all
was when we met up with the ‘mean swamis’, Gurukripa and
Yasodanandana. They were tough people. The Nama Hatta party was
very powerful. They were doing mall programs and rampaging the
country with heavy devotees.
The Radha-Damodara party, however, doesn’t have to compel people to

join them. They have such an attractive program that many brahmacārīs
long to give up their temple service and join Vishnujana Swami. The
temple presidents are always a little apprehensive that their brahmacārīs
are going to get attracted to Vishnujana Maharaja and leave. When the
party arrives at a temple, the president usually pleads with folded hands,
“Please don’t take our brahmacārīs,” because every brahmacārī is
infatuated with Radha-Damodara’s program, “Wow, we want to do this.
This is dynamic. This is full of life.”
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Vatsala: There was talk that every temple was going to start a program
like Vishnujana’s. I think one of the main reasons was because every
time Vishnujana Swami came to town, everybody wanted to go with
him. The authorities figured that if the temple had that kind of program,
then maybe everybody wouldn’t want to go with him. I was supposed to
start this program in San Francisco.
Chicago, August 1973

Parasara Das has begun a newsletter describing the activities of the
Radha-Damodara party and Vishnujana Swami in particular, whom he
idolizes. Also included are transcriptions of Vishnujana Swami’s
Chicago classes from last April. Prabhupada, however, does not approve
of this endeavor. Upon receiving a copy of the publication, he replies
strongly:
Why should we endeavor separately to produce another magazine?

Whatever articles are written by our students may be published in BTG
by submitting them to the chief editor Satsvarupa Goswami Maharaja.
BTG is especially meant to give some facility to our students, to train
them to write articles on the philosophy of Krishna consciousness. Our
energy should be concentrated on one thing at a time, not that everyone
will start their own magazine wasting time, money, and manpower. Our
BTG is there and it is being distributed without financial risk, so submit
articles and increase the pages of BTG and increase the distribution also.
The temples have now enough literature, and besides that if you simply
ask for a little contribution, no one will send. [Letter to Parasara Das –
July 31, 1973]
As the Radha-Damodara party continues traveling the length and

breadth of America, shuttling back and forth between various state fairs
and whatever temples are in the vicinity, the brahmacārīs eat “road-
mode” sandwiches. One afternoon, Riksaraj and Vishnudatta return to
the bus after distributing books just outside Chicago. They have
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purchased round pita breads, avocado, lettuce, and tomato for the road-
mode sandwiches. Vishnudatta gives them to Narada Muni to offer to
Radha- Damodara. While waiting for prasādam, Riksaraj becomes
impatient and solicits Narada Muni, “Did you throw a thread on it?”
Vishnujana is incredulous. “What’s this? Throw a thread on it?” He

looks right at Riksaraj, “Better to ask, did you offer it!”
Suhotra: I came up with that slogan ‘throw a thread on it’ in response to

Gurukripa’s party. They had their Nama Hatta style, the Gurukripa way
of talking with the different rhymed expressions that they’d use. That
was the Nama Hatta influence. Gurukripa called the Radha- Damodara
bus ‘the showboat.’
His boys were coming to take prasāda with us and that’s when I coined
this phrase. They were sitting down and it wasn’t offered yet, so I told
the pūjārī on the spur of the moment, “Okay. Throw a thread on that.”
They started laughing. They cracked up like anything.
I developed the road-mode sandwiches with Mahamantra. He was a kid

who just wanted to serve the devotees, so he became our gopher. When
you’ve got someone who is such an eager servant, you start thinking of
interesting ways to engage him that might also be entertaining. He
wasn’t good on sankirtan so we had him do the things that had to be
done to support the sankirtan, like preparing prasādam.
We’d pull up in front of a market and I’d say, “Okay, get out and get
some of that whole wheat bread.” The pita bread was a variety that we
picked up on later. “Then get tomatoes, lettuce, avocados, and
Philadelphia cream cheese.”
We learned about Monterey Jack cheese from Gurukripa Swami. He

went to the factory and found out it was made without rennet, so that
became big on our list. We used Monterey Jack cheese and Cottage
cheese in the same sandwich. Sometimes we used three different kinds
of cheeses. We would get different kinds of veggies that could be
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chopped up or sliced.
I had Mahamantra make triple-decker sandwiches, and sometimes

quadruple-deckers, stacked up. Mahamantra did all the preparation. This
kind of bread was very spongy so you could press it down. We would
even tie it down with a little string so it would hold together. Then the
devotees would just kind of eat between the strings.
Road-mode desert was strawberries and aerated whipped cream. We’d

drop a strawberry into our mouth, hold our heads back, fill the rest of
the mouth with whipped cream, and chew the whole thing down. It was
a quick and delicious desert.
The Radha-Damodara mood of eating on the fly evolves because not a

minute should be wasted in the service of Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara.
Suhotra has picked up a kind of half-joking mood from his association
with Buddhimanta, who visited various temples to train the book
distributors.
As they travel, Mahamantra loves to hear stories of Vishnujana’s early

days in Los Angeles, and the personal anecdotes of the devotees on the
bus. Narada Muni tells him how Tamal Krishna used to try to get
Vishnujana to distribute magazines in the early days when they were
brahmacārīs.
“Vishnujana would always be chanting, but when Tamal Krishna asked

him to distribute BTGs he would simply talk to people and give away
the magazines.
“When he returned Tamal Krishna would ask, ‘So, where is your

collection?’ Vishnujana would say, ‘What collection?’ He was simply
passing them out! Tamal Krishna became exasperated and reported to
Srila Prabhupada that Vishnujana just gave BTGs away without asking
for a donation. Prabhupada said, ‘That’s all right, let him chant. He’s
happy to chant, so let him chant.’
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“And chant he did. In those days, devotees went out for street chanting 8
to 10 hours a day.”
Suhotra adds his own experience, “The Boston devotees would go to the
Boston Commons and chant for eight hours every day. It was harsh on
the hands so they wore gloves to play mṛdaṅga.”
Mahamantra turns to Vishnujana Swami, “Maharaja, how did you learn

to play mṛdaṅga?”
“Oh, Mukunda taught me.”
“What else about it Vishnujana Maharaja? How did you start to play?”
Vishnujana simply laughs. “Prabhupada told me that you just beat it

until it sounds good. It’s wonderful that Srila Prabhupada has given us
this kirtan rasa, because without it I would have never been able to stay
in the movement.” This is something Maharaja says quite frequently.
Sri Galim tells stories how Vishnujana Maharaja made him a devotee
and other tales when he was under his tutelage. Sri Galim is a tall lanky
Texan and wears very large sandals, the same shoe size as Vishnujana.
Nobody else can wear their sandals. But Maharaja doesn’t make any
distinctions so he will put on whatever sandals are nearby, to the
occasional annoyance of Sri Galim.
While visiting different temples, Maharaja sometimes puts on

anybody’s sandals that fit. He doesn’t even notice which sandals he puts
on, because he’s so absorbed in chanting, sometimes playing mṛdaṅga,
sometimes playing harmonium, or just getting devotees to “come out for
sankirtan.”
Mahamantra: On the bus, his maṅgala-ārati kirtan with the harmonium

was extremely captivating and nobody could see how he could play so
expertly. Of course that was by American standards. It wasn’t traditional
Indian harmonium playing but it was impressive nonetheless.
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He was very expert at everything; an expert cook, expert in honoring
prasādam, expert at lecturing, and expert at charming the hearts of all.
But kirtan was his forte. He was so enlivening. He was attentive to the
temple programs and lectured nicely. The way he would dance in the
kirtan! He was graceful and had wonderful unique long steps going
forward and back. He had an intense look of compassion and a huge
neck and huge hands. I never met such a wonderful individual. He was
just joy.
On the bus, Mahamantra’s service is cleaning the kitchen behind the

altar. In the morning he heats water on the 4-burner stove for Sri Galim.
There is a small opening in the wall separating the kitchen from the altar
that is just large enough to pass the silver deity bowl through to Sri
Galim for bathing Sri Sri Radha-Damodara. Sri Galim hands Radha-
Damodara’s night clothes back to Mahamantra. He hangs them up in
zipper bags and gives Sri Galim the day outfit. Mahamantra soon
becomes expert at knowing the different day and night outfits that Sri-
Sri Radha-Damodara want to wear. Everyday Mahamantra transfers the
mahā-prasādam and then serves it to the devotees. Sometimes Sri Galim
cooks, sometimes Vishnujana Maharaja, sometimes Riksaraj, and
sometimes Narada Muni. Another service is washing the pots.
Occasionally, Mahamantra is in the booth at the state fairs, but mostly
he simply serves the Vaishnavas. He is completely happy living on the
bus.
Detroit, August 1973

Continuing east after Chicago, the Radha-Damodara bus eventually
arrives at the Detroit temple in the middle of the night. Early in the
morning, the temple president, Govardhan Prabhu, requests Bhakta Pat
to go outside and wake up the devotees on the bus so they can attend
maṅgala-ārati.
Praghosa: I went out and knocked on the door. The door swung open
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and there was this gigantic guy, a big huge man. His śikhā was
everywhere because he had just woken up when I knocked.
I said, “Haribol, Prabhu. The temple president asked me to come and

invite you all for maṅgala-ārati.”
He looked at me and said, “Well thank you, Prabhu. Thank you very
much. That’s very kind of you. What’s your name?”
“My name is Bhakta Pat, what’s yours?”
“My name is Vishnujana Swami.” I didn’t know who he was but he was
real friendly and humble, not distant at all. He was like a brahmacārī in
a sannyāsa role.
Later that morning he gave a slide show. His men were playing exotic
Indian instruments and he played the harmonium while narrating each
slide. I don’t remember what the slide show was about because I wasn’t
looking at the screen. I was looking at him the whole time. He was so
fascinating. The way he talked was very melodic; it was hypnotic. I
can’t describe it except that it was just different.
After prasādam, Maharaja makes sure that all the Detroit devotees go
out for street sankirtan dressed in their best Vaishnava clothing.
Vishnudatta is one of the kings of style, and sets the example.
Vishnujana Swami, in contrast, dresses quite simple. No silk for him.
Everyone squeezes into cars and vans for the drive to Kennedy Square
in downtown Detroit. Before starting the kirtan, Vishnujana Swami does
an inspection checking that the devotees are standing nicely in line and
ready to dance together in time.
Maharaja begins the kirtan by calling out, “Back to home, back to

Godhead.” Then the kartāls begin ‘ching ching ching, ching ching
ching.’ Once the beat is established Maharaja calls out again with his
arms outstretched, “Back to home, back to Godhead.” This is his intro to
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the kirtan.
As a crowd begins to gather, Maharaja starts with the prayers to the

spiritual master, “nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale…”
Next, he sings the Panca-Tattva prayers before launching into the kirtan.
At the end of each kirtan he gives a short talk. After chanting and
speaking several times, he begins pushing different devotees forward to
say something.
All of a sudden, he turns to Bhakta Pat., “C’mon Prabhu, your turn. Say
something.”
“Really? I’ve never done this before. What do I say?”
“Just tell the people what you like about kirtan. Tell them how much
you like to chant.”
Praghosa: After I spoke whatever it was I said, because I was so

bewildered, he commented, “That was very nice, Prabhu. Very nice.”
That inspired me. He was very encouraging. It was so mystical to watch
this guy in the middle of downtown Detroit crying out, “Back to home,
back to Godhead.” He would shout it out 3 or 4 times while he got the
rhythm going; and he’d be tapping on the drum the basic tini tini ta beat
while swaying back and forth.
Ramacharya stayed back and took care of Radha-Damodara. He was

very devotional. He used to go out in the afternoons with incense to sell
in the black areas of Detroit. He’d sell them by the individual stick and
get one dollar for a stick! He could collect about $150 in an afternoon
and was maintaining Radha-Damodara’s jewelry, Their flowers, and
Their bhoga. He was a major monetary source for the party, and would
also make a lot of Their jewelry as well as being the pūjārī! Vishnujana
Maharaja was really attached to him. Everybody could see that they
were a team. I think Ramacharya was as attached to Radha-Damodara as
Vishnujana was. Of all places to join, Detroit was a great place to start
in Krishna consciousness. As temple presidents go, I think Govardhan
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was probably the nicest I ever met in ISKCON. He was just fabulous. It
was a great temple and everybody there was really fired-up. Vishnujana
didn’t stay in Detroit very long, but he went out every day to chant and
we went out with him. He would play the drum all day on the street. He
made us feel like we were part of the whole thing.
New York, August 1973

Driving further east, the Radha-Damodara party arrives at the New York
temple in Brooklyn during the Jhulan-yātrā festival. Sunday is a hot day
and the temple is packed with over two hundred devotees and guests
milling about. Every evening, little Radha-Govinda Deities are placed
on a beautiful swing. After class, Vishnujana stands beside the Deities
to explain what the swing ceremony is all about. After taking a few
questions Maharaja gives the Deities the first swing and invites others to
do the same.
Everyone gets involved in this pastime by swinging Radha-Govinda as

Maharaja begins kirtan. As soon as he hits the first beat on the drum,
everybody in the whole room is up dancing. Several devotees notice
tears in Vishnujana’s eyes as he chants, “rādhe jaya jaya mādhava-
dayite.”
Sunanda: He had an incredibly intense spiritual charisma. He was totally

absorbed in Krishna consciousness and the bliss of kirtan. Even when
speaking one to one. In lectures it was obvious he was on a highly
elevated platform worthy of respect. He had such a tremendous
charisma, this tall, immense man chanting these beautiful melodies with
his own unique tone of voice. The way he expressed the words, and
expressed the feelings in the kirtan, anyone could tell he was someone
special; definitely not an ordinary person. All glories to Vishnujana
Maharaja!
Agnideva: Vishnujana Swami wasn’t into making waves with the

temple. I remember Gurukripa and Yasodanandana coming through
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New York. They were known as the ‘mean swamis’. After maṅgala-
ārati they came up to the ashram to canvass the brahmacārīs. “So, are
you going to come with us, or stay in this place and start wearing
white?” They just began canvassing. They didn’t respect the temple.
While In New York, Vishnujana Swami likes to take Sri-Sri Radha-

Damodara on Their palanquin and walk Them through Central Park. At
other times he will chant in front of Macy’s on 34th Street. Vishnujana
Maharaja always leads the kirtan and he can chant and dance for hours
and hours.
State Fairs, 1973

The Radha-Damodara party has inaugurated kirtan and preaching at
County and State Fairs. Basically they have a sales booth, with the
Deities on a stage, all under an attractive tent with lights. They have
built three sides of a square with sloping counters for displays. This
serves as a boutique to sell a line of Indian clothes, jewelry, and incense,
along with Prabhupada’s books and prasādam. Another part is reserved
as a platform for Radha-Damodara.
They do kirtan inside the booth, because the booth is large enough.
There’s no other boutique like this one on the midway. Sometimes
Maharaja splits the party and does two fairs simultaneously because
they are having so much success with this program.
Even at the fairs, the daily sādhana is maintained. Devotees rise early
for maṅgala- ārati with Sri Sri Radha-Damodara and then chant japa
together. After greeting the Deities, Vishnujana Swami gives the
Bhagavatam class, followed by prasādam. Then they go out to preach.
There are different shifts. Some devotees stay back to cook and serve
Radha-Damodara, others go to the fairgrounds and prepare the booth for
the expected crowds, while some go out to the nearby towns to
distribute books. Vishnujana oversees the entire operation.
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Naturally, the weather plays an important part of the fair experience.
When the skies are not sunny and bright the crowds dwindle. With any
outdoor event there is always the possibility of rain. When an occasional
storm threatens to take over the day, it dampens the spirits of everyone.
When the weather is sunny, Maharaja will bring Radha-Damodara to the

booth and place Them prominently on a decorated platform. Otherwise
he comes out to do kirtan or help sell items at the booth. Then he returns
to the bus to make sure that Radha-Damodara are being worshipped.
Later, he returns to the booth for more kirtan and preaching.
One day a storm overtakes a fair in the Midwest. High winds

accompany a heavy rain and Vishnujana Maharaja becomes concerned
for the safety of Sri-Sri Radha- Damodara. All the men are desperately
trying to keep dry with Radha-Damodara under their tent with the lights.
But rainwater is leaking through the tent and even coming in from
underneath. Hasyagrami shuts down the electricity so there is just one
candle burning in the tent. The rain is sopping down and everyone just
sits there, soaking and miserable.
Then Vishnujana says, “Let’s just chant Hare Krishna.”
Hasyagrami replies, “Yep, we’ve got nothing to do now Maharaja,

right?”
“No, no, no. This is our eternal service,” he explains. “This is decorating
the Holy Name. Someday we’ll be back in Goloka doing this, just like
the gopis, decorating Krishna. This is our business, just decorating the
Holy Name.”
Hasyagrami: Chanting nicely was decorating the Holy Name. We used

the instruments, so that was the idea. It seemed like he came up with a
lot of melodies from thin air. I remember him saying one time, “I think
I’m starting to get the hang of this harmonium.” This was after we were
playing for years and he had already come up with zillions of
arrangements that everyone else laboriously copied.
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He had a keyboard arrangement of the morning melody that was just
brilliant!
Hearing about the success of the Radha-Damodara party, it’s not long
before other traveling parties realize that the state fairs are a good place
for book distribution because of the huge crowds. However, these
parties distribute in disguise, wearing western garb rather than
presenting themselves as devotees of Krishna like the Radha- Damodara
party is doing in their booth.
Janardana: I was a brahmacārī out of New York and we were another

TSKP with Sravanananda, Jagat Guru, Sevananda, and Yogananda. We
were distributing books at the fair and ran into the booth where
Vishnujana and his raiders were selling incense, jewelry, and whatever
they could. He was chanting with the Deities in the traditional sweet
way. Whenever we would run across them, it was always a warm and
friendly exchange. Their program was fun. It was the spirit of the road,
traveling with a sannyāsī and having the Deities personally there. It was
very exciting. But it was also striking – the difference of the standard of
Deity worship on the bus and what we were accustomed to in Brooklyn.
You might say that it wasn’t as strict or as regulated as we were led to
believe that Deity worship should, and must be. It wasn’t anybody’s
fault because so many devotees were living on a school bus and
circumstances were difficult. But no one was suffering devotionally as a
result.
While preaching across America, many traveling parties run across the
Radha- Damodara devotees at various locations. The St Louis traveling
party of Chaturatma, Prana, and Radha Kunda, meet the Radha-
Damodara extravaganza at a county fair in Sedalia, a town about three
hours west of St Louis at the junction of highways 50 and 65 in the state
of Missouri.
Chaturatma: We hadn’t been near a temple for weeks, and when I turned
down one of the rows of booths I heard a kirtan. I thought, “It couldn’t
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be a kirtan; it must be carnival music.” We followed the sound and
when I turned down one of the aisles, in the second booth from the main
cross aisle, there was Vishnujana Swami on the harmonium enticing the
crowd doing kirtan with Vishnudatta, Riksaraj, and Hasyagrami. Radha-
Damodara were up on a stage. We almost fell over.
We hadn’t seen a temple in what seemed like eons, with no association,

and all of a sudden we stumble upon Radha-Damodara at the State Fair.
It was so wonderful. We thought we’d come to heaven. Sri Galim took
us back to the bus outside the fairgrounds and fed us gulābjāmuns. We
were just in ecstasy.
If you’ve never had the experience of the Sri Galim gulābjāmuns

offered to Radha-Damodara, they were the most incredible thing you
ever tasted in your life. What to speak if you’ve been on sankirtan for
weeks and eating whatever little thing you can get together. So we spent
the rest of the day with the Radha-Damodara party. It was so enlivening.
They were going from fair to fair. That was Vishnujana Swami’s mood,
to give Radha-Damodara to everybody.
Whenever any traveling party comes across the Radha-Damodara booth,

they always join together every day for kirtan and prasādam, which then
becomes the real life of the fair for them. The St Louis party takes
advantage of Radha-Damodara’s presence since they are at the fair
mainly to distribute books undercover in western clothes. The Radha-
Damodara devotees are also happy to meet other traveling parties to
catch up on the latest ISKCON news, like where Srila Prabhupada is
preaching at the moment, and generally just to feel part of a worldwide
movement.
The state fairs are a real high point for preaching. The crowds come
mainly in the evening, which is great for the brahmacārīs. During the
day they can go into the towns to distribute books and return about 5:00
o’clock to preach at the booth. Ramacharya always helps with the
Deities when he comes back from book distribution. He is not yet a full
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time pūjārī, but he loves to make garlands for Radha-Damodara and
frequently goes out to get flowers for Them.
The devotee booth is surrounded by other booths selling fast food,

jewelry, stuffed toys, and other carnival attractions. Every evening
Vishnujana Swami is cranking out the kirtan, performing the regular
ārati schedule for Radha-Damodara and serving prasādam. Throngs of
people crowd shoulder to shoulder to get a closer look. It’s great
preaching because many people come to listen.
Hasyagrami: It was really wild in the evenings and we would go until

very late, as long as the crowd was there. It was magical. We sold
everything under the sun. We bought Indian stuff from Gaurahari and
other devotees. We had a dress and kurtā rack, a big display of all the
Spiritual Sky products, and we had Prabhupada’s books for sale. I
remember it being a pretty good source of revenue. Ramacharya was our
big fair distributor. He’d sell to the women and was very good at selling
them everything.
In his correspondence, Srila Prabhupada has been emphasizing that

opening new centers is less important now that so many parties are out
traveling. “Practically, this ISKCON organization is there because I
have been always traveling. I never sat down in my old age. No. So you
follow my example and preach widely all over the world. That is
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s version.” [Letter to Bhagavan - May 12, 1972]
Prabhupada continues stressing this point and compares the training of

devotees to boiling milk.
Now we have got so many students and so many temples but I am

fearful that if we expand too much in this way that we shall become
weakened and gradually the whole thing will become lost. Just like
milk. We may thin it more and more with water for cheating the
customer, but in the end it will cease to be any longer milk. Better to
boil the milk now very vigorously and make it thick and sweet, that is
the best process.
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So let us concentrate on training our devotees very thoroughly in the
knowledge of Krishna consciousness from our books, from tapes, by
discussing always, and in so many ways instruct them in the right
propositions. [Letter to Hamsaduta - June 22, 1972]
Vishnujana Swami’s party is the perfect example of Prabhupada’s desire

because they are constantly traveling with no safe haven other than the
lotus feet of Sri-Sri Radha- Damodara. They usually have 3 or 4 classes
daily including Sri Isopanisad, and Nectar of Devotion. Whenever a
traveling party meets the Radha-Damodara bus, there is always kirtan,
prasādam, nectar classes, and darshan of the Deities.
Practically every temple has a traveling sankirtan party. In Chicago the

devotees have been working the airport right from the start, so they
don’t need a traveling party. Likewise in Los Angeles, Tripurari and his
men are always distributing books at the airports.
In Canada, however, devotees cannot distribute in the airports, so both

the Vancouver and Toronto temples have purchased buses that are fixed
up like a temple and designed for long hauls on the road. They distribute
books and have a full temple program to attract interested people.
Prabhupada writes Bahudak Prabhu, the Vancouver temple president,

extolling the virtues of traveling sankirtan. “I think we are becoming
like a gigantic guerrilla warfare movement fighting with māyā. This
traveling in buses is the best means to drive away māyā and establish
Krishna consciousness all over the world.” [Letter to Bahudak - August
28, 1973] Jagadish writes from Toronto that they have sold 268
Bhagavad-gitas in less than three weeks’ time. As a result, the Toronto
temple is now overcrowded with so many devotees joining that they are
searching vigorously for another building.
In Germany, Hamsaduta is spearheading the sankirtan movement with

eight vans traveling all over Europe preaching and selling books. In
Australia, Madhudvisa is spreading Krishna consciousness through
festivals, and Srila Prabhupada comments, “Your festival appears to be
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just like Jagannath Puri. It is so encouraging to me to see how very
enthusiastic you are working there… I want to introduce this Ratha-
yatra festival program all over the world.” [Letter to Madhudvisa -
August 7, 1973]
After the bikers shot up the New Vrindavan temple, the Vancouver
TSKP of Dharmatma, Ganapati, and Riddha have been preaching in
Texas, Arizona, and California. Now they arrive at the Wisconsin State
Fair with their beautiful bus, “Lord Chaitanya’s Sankirtan of Love.”
The most recent Back to Godhead magazine, with Sudama Brahmana on

the cover, has recently been published. Riddha has a copy and presents
it to Vishnujana Maharaja as a gift.
Riddha: Immediately he went into ecstasy. He ordered that Radha-

Damodara’s mahā-prasāda be delivered to me. I felt that was a great act
of mercy. I remember him as a man who always showed mercy and a
man of compassion. He would always have bhaktas who he was
personally taking care of and he treated them like his own children. I
could see that was a great quality in him. Some of them were
psychologically disturbed and some of them were down in the
boondocks, but he would still treat them like his own children. When I
saw that, I could understand the caliber of man that he was. Not just a
sannyāsī. He was a proper human being. And that’s why I was attracted
to him.
It’s obvious he was a renounced person, but you need to be more than a
renounced man.
You need to be human, and to communicate. And these are the qualities
that I liked in him. I was a bit unhappy to see that he was selling
Spiritual Sky products at the state fairs. I could see that here is a man
with great ability to sing devotional songs and to encourage people. I
would see him managing Vishnudatta and those devotees selling these
products at the state fairs, which would inevitably attract women.
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There were some crack book distributors at the fairs. Lokasaranya had
class. He was soft. He would distribute a book like a waiter. He would
hold the book like he was taking hors d’oeuvres on a tray, and he would
deliver the book to people like that. He would do big. Another was
Sarvabhauma, a little Jewish guy, and bent over. He would always say,
“Excuse me. I beg your pardon. We’re just asking for a courtesy
donation.” He was elegant in the way he delivered the books.
We also met up with the ‘mean swamis.’ All I can say about Gurukripa
is that he tried to influence me to join him. He tried the macho stuff on
me and it didn’t work.
There are so many traveling parties bringing the message of Srimad

Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita to the American public that they always
bump into each other at big events. The Wisconsin State Fair is a huge
event and many TSKPs are active. Reports of Radha-Damodara’s
success at the fairs have spread throughout the American temples.
The Nama Hatta party is very aggressive in the way that they collect
money for building the Vrindavan temple. In contrast to the ‘mean
swamis’ are the two ‘scholarly swamis’, Hrdayananda and Satsvarupa.
They have a bus party named the Bhagavat Dharma Discourses TSKP.
Their main service is booking classes at major universities.
Hrdayananda Maharaja originally approached Satsvarupa, who was
preaching downtown on the streets, and suggested, “Why don’t we
preach to the intelligent class of men, in the universities and colleges?”
Sastvarupa agreed, “It’s a great idea.” So now they book college

programs and give lectures on Bhagavat Dharma in whatever college
class they are able to sign up for. Prabhupada writes to instruct his
disciples how to preach to students.
If at least the seed is planted and they begin chanting rounds and
following the principles while continuing their studies at school, that is
our great victory. And if they like, they may go and live in one of our
centers, wherever they like, and learn further. But we shall not present
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Krishna consciousness as anything dry or like a set of rules and
regulations only. No. Krishna consciousness is the topmost philosophy,
also the highest knowledge of educational experience, so try to impress
this aspect of offering the perfect scientific understanding of everything
as it is, not the temporary and unsatisfactory and incomplete
understanding of things. [Letter to Satsvarupa and Hrdayananda -
January 9, 1973]
At the Wisconsin fair, the ‘mean swamis’ arrive with their men. With so
many parties at the same fair a sense of rivalry develops, which brings a
mood of competition that goes beyond a friendly challenge. With so
many devotees working the crowds at the Wisconsin State Fair, some
kind of altercation is inevitable. Before long, a dispute arises when a
Nama Hatta devotee takes a woman’s purse. That brings the police and
gets the Radha-Damodara party in trouble, too.
It’s an unpleasant scene when a cop comes up to Radha-Damodara’s

booth on a motorcycle. “Okay, where’s this woman’s purse?”
“What purse? Oh, that must be another party.”
Suhotra: The police just lumped us in; it’s the Hare Krishnas. That was a
source of trouble for us, because we were not supposed to work the
crowd like that at the fairs. If the management connects that it’s the
same organization – the guys selling in the crowd with someone in a
booth – then the guys in the booth will be shut down. So that was a
source of friction.
Gurukripa and Yasodanandana were known as the ‘mean swamis’ for a

reason. Vishnujana Maharaja was very cordial with them. I remember
one meeting in particular. He went off to talk with them and I was
manning the booth. A half hour later he came back shaking his head,
“another swami on the way down.” At the time I thought they were
tough guys. Their boys used to say, “They get us all fired-up. They
don’t like women. They really keep us on the straight and narrow.”
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Vishnujana Maharaja, being also in the sannyāsa ashram, had more of
an insight into what was really going on. Vishnudatta got along well
with the ‘mean swamis’ but I shied away from them. I didn’t trust them.
Badarayana: I went traveling with Gurukripa and Yasodanandana,

which was my fall down. I joined them in Denver because their amazing
kirtans attracted me. They were also great preachers, so I thought by
going with them I would learn about preaching.
We met Vishnujana Swami at the state fair in Wisconsin. He was into a

cultural presentation of Krishna consciousness because Prabhupada said
that cultural preaching would conquer America. He had a beautiful
booth with books, incense, posters, and different types of paraphernalia.
And here we were just madly collecting as much money as we could;
the Nama Hatta ‘pick it to the bone’ program. There was no real nectar
in that program.
Vishnujana and his brahmacārīs were dressed as devotees and I was

impressed. Even though I was influenced by Gurukripa Swami, I
remember having the impression of Vishnujana Swami having this inner
composure. I was thinking, why am I not with Vishnujana Maharaja?
I got burned out by the Nama Hatta intense-collection / no-sādhana

program. I left for some time to play music in coffee houses and clubs in
Milwaukee. But Vishnujana made such a deep impression on me that
when I left the movement I would often think about how he affected me.
Even though I didn’t have much personal association with him, his
presence affected me so deeply that I just began to cry.
Traveling out of Los Angeles, Kavi Chandra and Pandu are also
distributing books across the country and they too meet the Radha-
Damodara party at the Wisconsin State Fair. Pandu has seen Vishnujana
Swami before and he uses this get-together as a golden opportunity to
join his party.
Approaching Kavi Chandra, he reveals his mind. “I want to join
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Vishnujana Maharaja.” Kavi immediately understands the situation and
realizes he is about to lose a man. Resigned to the inevitable, he talks it
over with Maharaja, who agrees to accept Pandu. Kavi Chandra returns
with the good news. “All right, you can do that.” So Pandu joins the
party on the spot.
Kavi Chandra: When I joined the movement Vishnujana Swami was

very famous. His chanting was very attractive to anyone who heard it.
There was something about his voice. When he sang or spoke it was
very captivating. There weren’t very many sannyāsīs and his name was
always mentioned with great awe and reverence. My experience with
him was that he could chant and chant and chant.
When I did TSKP I used to meet up with him once in a while. We

would distribute books at a state fair and he would be chanting all day.
We liked to distribute near the chanting party just to get charged up. Just
to see them chanting all day was always enlivening. It was ecstasy. He
dealt with everybody in a super friendly way. He was the friendliest,
nicest person, like a really loving big brother. As far as I could see he
was like that with everybody. He could always pick you up no matter
how you felt.
Just as Srila Prabhupada has written, that book distribution would

increase if a chanting party was nearby, Kavi Chandra experiences how
the kirtans of Vishnujana Swami enlivens his party to distribute more
books.
Also at the Wisconsin Fair is the New Vrindavan TSKP. They have
been trained to collect money for developing the New Vrindavan
project. When word gets back to Kirtanananda Swami that Vishnujana
Maharaja is at the fair, he calls to speak with him. Kirtanananda has
plans to go to India and he needs someone to watch over New
Vrindavan while he’s gone.
He invites Vishnujana to come to New Vrindavan for Janmaṣṭami, only

a few days hence, so they can discuss this proposal. He is confident that
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Vishnujana is the right person to take over the spiritual leadership of
New Vrindavan while he’s away because they traveled together for over
a year with the Road Show.
The Vancouver party also wants to attend the Janmastami festival. They
decide to leave the fair early and offer to drive Vishnujana Swami to
New Vrindavan in their bus. Maharaja takes Mahamantra and
Vishnudatta along with him and requests the rest of the party to continue
preaching at the Wisconsin fair.
On the trip to New Vrindavan the Vancouver devotees are amazed at

Maharaja’s service attitude. Although he’s a famous sannyāsī, he cooks
for them and takes care of whatever they need. They are amazed
because they were expecting to serve Vishnujana Maharaja, the famous
saintly sannyāsī, and instead he is serving them.
During the day they stop at different towns to do harināma sankirtan,

since they have a few days to spare and are not in a rush. The bus only
has the one driver’s seat in the front so at night when Dharmatma is
driving, Vishnujana sits on the wheel well beside the front door chanting
beautiful bhajans with kartāls to keep Dharmatma from falling asleep.
At other times he gives a Gita class on the bus. In this way they arrive at
New Vrindavan for the festival.
New Vrindavan, Janmastami 1973

When the Vancouver TSKP reaches New Vrindavan with Vishnujana
Swami, the festival is already in full swing. It’s a big celebration this
year and a lot of devotees have come. Srila Prabhupada had originally
intimated that he would also attend the celebration but since the London
devotees have acquired Bhaktivedanta Manor, by the kind donation of
George Harrison, he stays in London instead. However, nine sannyāsīs
do show up in New Vrindavan, which is a huge event in itself.
At this stage in the development of ISKCON, New Vrindavan devotees
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are quite insular. When guests come they treat them cordially but at the
same time they check them out first very carefully. They do not readily
accept other devotees, because they are totally sold out to Kirtanananda
Swami.
Of course, when Vishnujana Maharaja comes, everyone loves him

because they know there will be wonderful kirtans. New Vrindavan
doesn’t have any kirtan leaders and the ones that do lead kirtan sound
like frogs, albeit imbued with devotion. Moreover, no one really knows
how to play the instruments so there is not much melody or rhythm.
The fact that New Vrindavan can’t do nice kirtan always disturbed
Kirtanananda.
Now that Vishnujana has arrived, everybody comes out of the hills.
They are excited. “Wow, Vishnujana Maharaja is here. We’re going to
have great kirtans.”
Garga Rishi: When the word got out about Vishnujana Swami,
everybody was in the temple ready for kirtan. Taru used to lead a lot. He
had a real nasal, horrible, voice actually, but a lot of devotion, so he led
a lot of the kirtans. Vishnujana Maharaja was already there and
everybody was ready for the big kirtan when Taru walked in. There was
some kind of rasa between Kirtanananda Swami and Vishnujana Swami
because, in the excitement and build up to the kirtan, Kirtanananda told
Taru, “I want you to lead instead of Vishnujana Maharaja.”
Taru was always known for jumping into the kirtan before anybody else
had a chance to lead and everyone knew that. So everyone was in the
temple room waiting for the curtains to open and looking at Taru like,
Don’t you dare try it.
As soon as the curtains open Taru immediately starts singing, as he had

been instructed, and everybody scorches him with their glances because
now it will be just another New Vrindavan kirtan. But Vishnujana
Swami starts laughing. He thinks this is just the funniest thing. He is
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supposedly the big sannyāsī coming to lead kirtan, and this other guy
jumps in and starts singing. Afterwards he comments, “Krishna is
always making me humble.”
Although Maharaja takes it lightly, the New Vrindavan mood is not

really the Gaudiya Vaishnava mood that Srila Prabhupada wants
inculcated in ISKCON, whereby guests are treated practically like God.
This Vedic etiquette is called athiti- sevā. What to speak of Vaishnava
sevā, because a Vaishnava is afforded extra special consideration above
guests who are not Vaishnavas.
This year the festival is up on a hill, next to the new barn where the blue
Harvesters are parked. Vishnujana Swami gathers whatever musicians
he can find and spends his time on the hill chanting beautiful bhajans
and kirtans during the festival. Bathing is still very rudimentary, but the
visiting devotees are happy to be there because most aspects of the
festival are well organized.
Parambrahma: When Vishnujana Swami came to the New Vrindavan

festival, he would walk around chanting like a minstrel while everybody
else was finishing the feast. That was the most amazing thing. He would
get up every morning and start chanting, then stop take a little prasādam
and chant, stop take a little prasādam and chant, stop take a little
prasādam and chant; all day long.
Vishnujana enjoys visiting his New Vrindavan godbrothers. Hayagriva

informs him that kṣatriya training has now begun in earnest since the
motorcycle gang came and shot up the place. Samvatsara is training
people in martial arts and preparing a kṣatriya force to be ready for the
next time the community is threatened. As he reveals the plan,
Hayagriva is chortling. “Yeah. You see all these New Vrindavan
brahmacārīs working in the woods, and taking care of the cows, and
these mātājīs pushing their perambulators? Watch out. Every one of
them is packing a pistol.”
Radhanath uses the occasion of Vishnujana Swami’s presence for
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regular association.
Radhanath: Vishnujana Swami and Vishnudatta were playing mṛdaṅgas

together and leading kirtans together. He used to love to talk about
Vishnudatta. He used to say, “He’s my little brother.” He told me,
“Vishnudatta is like an innocent child,” because he was quite young
when he joined.
How he use to glorify Vishnudatta! He talked about how they would go

door to door distributing books and collecting donations. At every house
Vishnudatta would give a different story. And if they didn’t give,
Vishnudatta would become sad like a little boy, saying things to gain
their sympathy. And the mother of the house would say, “Alright, I’ll
buy the book.” Vishnujana Maharaja was fascinated by sankirtan and he
loved to tell those stories.
Vishnudatta knew I’d been to India and he used to ask me many

questions about Vrindavan and Ayodhya and everything. He used to
always tell me how much he wanted to go.
Suhotra: Vishnudatta was the wonder boy. He was an excellent cook,

expert mṛdaṅga player, and a good singer. He could give enlivening
classes and he knew ślokas. His classes weren’t so philosophical but
they were inspiring. He was also a good book distributor. That’s how I
remember him. But he seemed to need a continual change, and that’s
where he got into trouble. He couldn’t be steady. He went around
different aspects of Radha-Damodara a few times and then he wanted
something else, so he ended up going to India.
Sridhara is feeling a little apathetic on the farm and wants to do more

preaching. He has developed a strong desire to travel with Vishnujana
Swami. Joining the bus program with Radha-Damodara and Vishnujana
Maharaja is just the tonic he needs to regain the spirit he had when he
was traveling with the Road Show. New Vrindavan is more a place for
doing tapasya – milking cows, serving the Deities, and developing a
place of pilgrimage. Of course, Srila Prabhupada’s vision is that it’s
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meant to become a place for preaching.
At an opportune moment, Sridhara approaches Vishnujana Maharaja to

ask if he can join his party in the future. Vishnujana simply says, “Okay.
I’ll talk to Kirtanananda Swami.” Kirtanananda agrees on the
understanding that it will only be temporary and Sridhara will return to
New Vrindavan as his permanent base. Since the departure of Srutakirti
to become Prabhupada’s servant, Sridhara has taken his place as
Kirtanananda’s servant. Therefore, Kirtanananda Swami has no desire to
lose him.
While Vishnujana is in New Vrindavan inspiring everyone with classes

and kirtan, the rest of his party is meeting with success preaching at the
Wisconsin State Fair. As soon as the Janmaṣṭami festival is over,
Maharaja arranges to return with the Chicago devotees and meet the
Radha-Damodara bus at the Chicago temple. Although he came to the
festival with Mahamantra, his original plan was to donate him to
Kirtanananda and leave him in New Vrindavan.
Mahamantra: He was thinking of leaving me there, because I was very

eccentric, as I still am. I was a little mortified by that. So I went up to
Kirtanananda Swami and said, “Haribol, Maharaja. Vishnujana
Maharaja is saying that he’s thinking of letting me stay here in New
Vrindavan!” And Kirtanananda was taken aback by that and said,
“What? Over my dead body.” Anyway, because of that joking comment,
Vishnujana didn’t push it. So I was fortunate. I got more of his
association.
Thus, Vishnujana Swami returns with the Chicago devotees and

Mahamantra returns with him. Everyone is packed into the van so it’s an
intimate setting. In New Vrindavan, Vasu Ghosh purchased some tapes
of Acyutananda Swami telling different pastimes from the Chaitanya
Bhagavat and Vishnujana Maharaja is in ecstasy hearing these pastimes.
He is full of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ the entire 12 hours ride to Chicago. They
all relish this experience.
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When the van arrives back at the Chicago temple, the Radha-Damodara
bus is already there. The men have come from Madison, Wisconsin, and
are full of anecdotes from the fair.
Now that summer is almost over, the weather will become colder, so
Maharaja decides to drive south towards Atlanta. Sri-Sri Radha-
Damodara will be more comfortable in the warmer climate. There is big
preaching going on in Atlanta and Vishnujana wants to participate and
help as much as he can.
Atlanta, Georgia, September 1973

When Vishnujana Swami arrives with Radha-Damodara and a few
brahmacārīs, they pervade the entire temple. Their atmosphere is so
powerful that they take over every aspect of devotional life. The local
devotees are pleased because Vishnujana Maharaja leads all the kirtans
and each one seems to get more and more ecstatic. Maharaja’s presence
in the temple giving classes, leading kirtans, and lovingly sharing his
enthusiasm for Krishna consciousness, is contagious.
He wants to bring everybody onto the bus – devotees living in the

temple or guests at the Sunday feast – to introduce them to Radha-
Damodara. He has a powerful loving reciprocation with Radha-
Damodara, in terms of kirtan, and in terms of bringing people to have
Their darshan.
Gokularanjana usually leads kirtan in Atlanta, although sometimes

Ananga Manjari leads because there aren’t that many men in the temple
who are musically inclined. Moreover, there is a rule that only initiated
devotees can lead kirtan or play mṛdaṅga and Ananga Manjari takes
advantage of this rule because she enjoys chanting and leading kirtan.
She is developing her skills at playing mṛdaṅga and keeps a steady beat.
She never plays fancy.
There is no installed Deity in Atlanta, so pūjā is offered to a painting of
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Panca-tattva.
Ramanath Sukha: Radha-Damodara were the first Deities I ever saw.

The memories of Vishnujana Maharaja playing harmonium for
maṅgala-ārati, and the exquisite sound vibration that he became
empowered to transmit in such a melodious way, was infused with so
much devotion and bhakti that everyone naturally became ecstatic. That
bhakti was evident in his relationship with Radha-Damodara. He wanted
to bring people in contact with Radha- Damodara. That was his pure
joy.
Vishnujana Maharaja was one of those beautiful, empowered, ecstatic

devotees, who embodied so many wonderful qualities, that he naturally
attracted people to Krishna consciousness, to chanting Hare Krishna,
and entering into bhakti rasa.
I remember the kirtans as being some of the most relishable that I ever
experienced. Those kirtans were sweet, melodious, bhakti-filled kirtans
that really touched my heart. People compared Maharaja to a Gandharva
because his voice was so beautiful. And he was very well built, kind of
like a demigod. But his smile, his enthusiasm, his love for Prabhupada
and Radha-Damodara was the real attractive feature.
I remember the effect it had on me; that Krishna consciousness was real
and you simply had to open your heart to enter into it. I can’t remember
anyone in my contact with empowered devotees within the movement
that had that kind of effect on me as Vishnujana Maharaja.
While Vishnujana Swami is in town there are two maṅgala-āratis every

morning. After the morning program in the temple, the resident
brahmacārīs rush outside to get to the maṅgala-ārati on the bus. They
crowd in to hear Maharaja play harmonium and sing for Radha-
Damodara. They all agree that his maṅgala-ārati is simply amazing.
Then they stay on the bus to chant japa.
The temple’s main preaching focus is the race for Mayor of Atlanta.
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Balavanta, the temple president, is running for public office. He has
already run, unsuccessfully, for the state legislature. Srila Prabhupada
approves of this policy and is encouraging him to be a candidate for the
office of Mayor of Atlanta.
I am very pleased that you are running for Mayor of such an important
city as Atlanta. Now you present to the populace the perfect example of
a Krishna conscious person, and always be very clean and neat. You
may present the simple program to the citizens for becoming purified
and regaining their lost happiness by meeting together frequently to
chant Hare Krishna, that’s all. We have no complicated political
platform. Politicians today are simply pick-pockets, tricking the voters
to pick their pockets. They make promises to gratify the public’s senses,
but then they only gratify their own senses and the public throws them
out, repeatedly. So we can promise perfect peace and happiness, and we
can fulfill our promise very easily. You and the other devotees are the
practical demonstration, and whenever you speak in public they may be
also present and hold kirtan and give speeches also.
Actually, this world is like a hospital. We are all like sons of rich men
running mad in the streets. Our Father, Krishna or God, is the wealthiest
father, and we are all His sons gone mad. Someone is thinking give him
food, that will help, or give him house, or clothes, this or that – but the
madness is still there. So this kind of bodily welfare work will not help.
The world is supposed to be a place for curing men of their varieties of
diseases of madness and sending them back home, like a hospital. But
men have now got the mistaken idea to make a permanent settlement in
this madhouse! Just like the hog is eating stool and he is thinking, “Oh, I
am enjoying like anything, and when I am finished, then sex with any
she-hog – wife, daughter, sister, it doesn’t matter – and for so many
children I shall have to have big house.” And on and on like this, all
because of his madness that he thinks, “I am enjoying.”
So preach like this, and I think many people will appreciate our
philosophy and gain respect for this Krishna Consciousness movement.
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[Letter to Balavanta - February 18, 1972]
Far from being ideal leaders, modern-day politicians are generally of

low character, which Prabhupada likens to pickpockets. His solution is
strong Kṛishṇa conscious leadership. “If we are able to establish Krishna
conscious leaders throughout the country in important posts, we will be
able to save everyone from the present dangerous position of the world.
People in general are being guided into hellish conditions of life by the
rascal leaders, so we must establish qualified brāhmaṇas at the head of
the society, and widely distribute Krishna conscious principles.” [Letter
to Balavanta – June 17, 1972]
As Srila Prabhupada corresponds with Balavanta, he always gives

instructions and inquires how the mayoral campaign is progressing. He
continues giving encouragement and further insights.
According to our Vedic civilization, this Krishna Consciousness

Movement is supported by the state. We are already explaining these
things in the chapters of Srimad-Bhagavatam regarding Prithu
Maharaja. Unfortunately, people have taken religion as a fictitious faith,
therefore the modern states are not interested in fictitious faiths, and as
such, they declare “secularism.” Actually, it is the necessity of the
human society to become Krishna conscious and each state has to take it
seriously to implement the idea among the citizens. So we expect to
push on our movement to that extent. That is our objective. [Letter to
Balavanta – April 25, 1972]
The run for Mayor of Atlanta is a non-partisan race with the only
condition being the payment of a $1,000 fee. The Atlanta temple has
paid the $1,000, which was a lot of money for them, and now Balavanta
is one of many candidates for the post. A side benefit is favorable
publicity – like hundreds of thousands of dollars of free television,
radio, and newspaper advertising.
The local CBS TV channel gives focus to the four front-runners and one
of the other ‘crackpot’ candidates. “One of these groups is using the
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mayoral race as an opportunity to create a philosophical forum.” They
don’t refer to Balavanta as crackpot, but present him in a more favorable
light. The visual shows the devotees’ Mercedes truck with Vote for
William Ogle for Mayor – Hare Krishna painted on both sides. It’s a
large gray vehicle previously used for delivering shipments of bread. On
top there’s a small railing along the perimeter of the roof. Devotees
place a rug on top and sit on the roof doing amplified kirtan with the
temple instruments and a sound system. The truck goes slowly along the
main streets of downtown Atlanta and devotees call it the kali-yuga
elephant.
From the back of the truck devotees hand out flyers promoting
Balavanta’s run for Mayor. They distribute prasādam in the form of
donated fruits, from the back of the truck. Some devotees delight in
throwing apples and oranges to the crowds. They are extra careful with
the tomatoes. People are amused and delighted with the kirtan and fruit
as they compete with one another to catch the thrown prasādam.
Gokularanjana leads the kirtan on top of the truck, and sometimes
Ananga Manjari leads while playing her mṛdaṅga. When Vishnujana
Maharaja arrives he takes over the kirtan. All this is captured on TV.
Sudama Goswami is also here with his party of Premarnava, Visvareta,

Atulananda, Krishna Chaitanya, Mahesh, plus Praghosa from Detroit.
Sudama alternates leading kirtan on top of the truck with his group.
Praghosa: Vishnujana’s kirtans were really from the heart and he sang
like a demigod. Sudama’s kirtan was almost like soul music. The way
he and Premarnava played mṛdaṅga, the way they danced, and the way
they got everyone else to dance, it was spectacular. It was fabulous.
Sudama saw that I was enthusiastic, so he asked Govardhan if I could
travel with him for a couple of weeks. So I went with him and then I
decided not to go back to Detroit.
Rupanuga Goswami is already here to assist Balavanta’s campaign and

organize his strategy. Amarendra has come from the Gainesville temple
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to further help in promoting Balavanta. They are out late into the night
giving speeches, meeting the press, and putting up posters all over town.
Just like Vedic Vaishnavas, they do everything themselves.
While the Mayor’s race is in full swing, two long-haired hippies show
up at the Atlanta temple. After seeing Vishnujana Swami at the
Brooklyn temple in July, the two friends have become a little serious
about Krishna consciousness. The Brooklyn devotees advised them to
visit New Vrindavan for Janmastami, and there they saw Vishnujana
Maharaja once again.
Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva: Radha Raman had returned from Key West

where he had association with devotees there. It was his idea to go to the
Brooklyn temple. The first time we went, Vishnujana Swami was the
guest speaker and he led the kirtan. I was attracted because he was
effulgent. He had a really nice demeanor and a big smile. But the temple
room was so crowded that I was a little disoriented. Radha Raman had
the experience with devotees in Key West, but I hadn’t had contact with
devotees.
They have arrived from Nashville where they went to check out the
music scene. But their stay in Nashville turned out to be a drag. They
decide to visit Key West, where Radha Raman has made some devotee
friends. Fortunately, they have a BTG magazine. Looking at the list of
centers they see that there’s a temple in Atlanta and decide to check it
out on their way to Key West.
Because Balavanta is busily campaigning to become Mayor, they are

both drafted into that service as soon as they arrive. Lakshmi-
Nrsimhadeva is given the service of driving the kali-yuga elephant, and
Radha Raman joins the kirtan party on top of the truck. Again, they
meet Vishnujana Swami and again are very impressed with him. They
are seriously thinking to become devotees.
From time to time, the truck visits minority neighborhoods where kids
quickly surround the vehicle. They are completely excited about the
373
game of catching fruit. Devotees challenge the kids who can chant
louder. “We’ll give you more fruit if you can chant louder than us.” As
the devotees chant, “Haribol, Haribol,” the kids shout back,
“HARIBOL, HARIBOL.” Soon, many parents are also attracted to join
the crowd. Then, as the truck drives slowly forward, everyone follows.
Balavanta schedules a press conference at the Atlanta Medical

Association on Bhaktivinoda Thakur’s appearance day. He’s taking
advantage of every opportunity to preach. The AMA program is at the
beginning of the campaign so devotees are a little nervous how
Vishnujana Swami will react to it. But he sits in the audience and even
writes down a question during the break for Balavanta to raise.
Balavanta: Vishnujana Maharaja happened to be there when I was

running for mayor. He loved it. Our relationship became more solidified
during the mayor’s race. He would come with me and we’d talk about
what I would say in advance of the speeches. In those days sannyāsīs
had a tremendous mystique and charisma about them. Then he would sit
in the audience and applaud. I remember before one engagement he
said, “Why don’t we tell them a great civilization rose and then a great
civilization fell. The Roman civilization rose and then fell, the European
civilizations rose and now they’ve fallen. So the American civilization
has risen and it will also fall unless we take to Krishna consciousness.”
I said, “That’s very good. Let’s do that.” We were in the auditorium of

the Atlanta Medical Association packed with these dried-up old prune
doctors who had no genuine education. These people had gone to school
to get trained in a craft for which they could earn very good money, but
in terms of broad intellectual thought there was almost none in these
folks. There was little response to that discussion.
Because it’s a public campaign, all the candidates speak at every forum.
When they invite one, they have to invite all. Vishnujana Maharaja is so
impressed by Balavanta’s run for mayor that he offers him a $100
donation, which the Atlanta devotees consider a fortune. They are
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amazed, “He’s a sannyāsī and Balavanta is a householder and he’s
giving him a donation!”
Vishnujana Maharaja is so delighted with Balavanta’s service that he

enjoys informing people around the movement how the Atlanta temple
is really doing some dynamic preaching. As a result, more devotees
begin to take an interest and they soon come from everywhere to
experience how Balavanta is presenting Krishna consciousness.
Balavanta: At all the engagements in the campaign I wore a dhoti.

Everyone else was saying isn’t this country great, isn’t this city great,
elect me and we’ll all go forward together. I would stand up and say this
is bad, we’re missing the purpose of life, our civilization is doomed, we
have no God consciousness, we’re simply materialistic, we don’t know
any ultimate values, and when we die we’re all going to suffer because
we have no spiritual life. I would just take the opportunity to put it in
their face. That was our mood in those days. That’s what wearing a
dhoti and having a shaved head was all about. It was a challenge. At
first they would chuckle, but after I spoke they were fearful. It touched
them in the sense that maybe he’s telling the truth. I was the fly in the
ointment. Later, I took to wearing a coat and tie.
On the disappearance day of Haridas Thakur, Vishnujana does a 24-

hour fast. He spends most of the day in front of Radha-Damodara just
chanting and reading from Prabhupada’s books. When he’s not on the
bus he is in the temple kitchen cooking sweet rice for the devotees. He
is constantly stirring the rice and milk and doesn’t leave the stove for
even a second. He just continues stirring and stirring while singing the
mahā-mantra the entire time.
Ananga Manjari dd: I was thinking, “All that devotion is going into the
sweet rice. It’s going to be super nectar.” We talked about it and he said
something about the Holy Name going into the sweet rice. We tasted the
sweet rice later and relished it like anything. He brought the spiritual
world to a reality that you could feel. I could feel the spiritual things
375
taking place. It wasn’t ethereal or imagination. It was real. That’s what I
remembered about his personality.
For the Sunday Feast the Atlanta players always present a drama. This
Sunday the play is called The Ballad of Everyman. It will be performed
after ārati and before the feast. Gokularanjana plays Everyman, the spirit
soul searching for the meaning of life and asking questions about his
existence. Māyā always appears to answer his questions and affirm,
“This is yours. You’re meant to enjoy.”
“Well, how am I to enjoy?”
“Just look, here are your parents.” There is a scene with loving parents
that eventually turns into a frustrating situation.
“Well, here is your wife.” Again the relationship appears to be happy

but quickly turns sour and becomes frustrating. “And here is your bogus
guru,” with Swami Beyondananda trying to get money for a mantra.
Finally, Vishnujana Maharaja enters the scene playing the part of a
devotee.
Gokularanjana: Vishnujana was a very spontaneous person and you

really felt he was actually experiencing a taste of love of God. We were
trying to get him to rehearse because he didn’t know the play, but he
said, “Just tell me what time to be there.” Then he sat in the audience
and watched the play until his part came. Usually his part, the devotee
part, was the weakest part, unfortunately, because we were really good
at the other parts.
When Vishnujana came on stage, I was sitting there as the character

Everyman. His presentation was so blissful I actually forgot I was doing
the play. He was totally impromptu, and whatever he spoke was much
better than the lines we had written. I forgot that I was doing the play,
and I was once again joining Krishna consciousness; once again being
reminded of the reason I became a devotee. When Vishnujana was
speaking about Krishna consciousness, I really felt like I was part of
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something dynamic. He was our most potent preacher at the time.
The play ends with Vishnujana Swami leading a kirtan and then
prasādam is served out. Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva and Radha Raman
always try to sit near Maharaja during prasādam time. Because they are
musicians, the Atlanta temple authorities have been wondering how they
will be engaged. But with the Radha-Damodara party more or less
dominating the temple environment, it soon becomes obvious what they
should do. There is no contention at all. It’s so obvious that they should
join the Radha- Damodara party.
Vishnujana Swami’s party is totally surrendered to the sankirtan

movement. It’s not just kirtan and festivals; they also distribute a lot of
books. Vishnudatta is always energetic and loud. He even chants ślokas
when the temple brahmacārīs are standing in line waiting to take their
shower before maṅgala-ārati. This early in the morning, everyone is still
a little groggy but Vishnudatta gets them into chanting ślokas or singing
a bhajan about whichever incarnation’s appearance day it happens to be.
Sometimes he will start a kirtan and everybody in line for their shower
begins swaying back and forth and finally jumping up and down. The
temple is in an old house and the weak second story floor begins
creaking and bending as the brahmacārīs jump.
Both Vishnudatta and Suhotra are forceful personalities. Riksaraj is a

little mellower. Hasyagrami has his moments of greatness and is also
quite forceful but in a different way. Sri Vallabha is friendly but also
eccentric. The Atlanta devotees can recognize that the Radha-Damodara
party has a really nice program.
New people are always coming to the temple after seeing the kirtan
party out on the streets or after reading one of Prabhupada’s books. Now
in Atlanta, they are able to have the association of Vishnujana Swami
and the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs when they visit the temple. The
meeting always leaves a lasting impression.
Balabhadra Bhattacharya: I was coming to the temple and just checking
377
it out. I came one Wednesday night when Vishnujana Maharaja was
there with the Radha-Damodara party. I walked into the temple and
somebody introduced me, “This is Vishnujana Maharaja.”
I said, “Great,” because I didn’t know what that meant.
He looked at me with a beautiful smile, “Oh, so nice that you’ve come.

We’re going to have some good times.” And just when he said that,
“We’re going to have some good times”, I thought, Wow. Yeah. That
experience with him enticed me to get more involved with the
movement. He was saying we were going to have some good times, it’s
not like a dry religion.
On Saturday afternoon devotees go to Peachtree Street in downtown

Atlanta for harināma sankirtan. They invite guests to join them for a
“transcendental experience.” Today, about 30 devotees go out chanting
with Vishnujana Maharaja. It becomes such a blissful kirtan that
devotees are dancing off the sidewalk and onto the street in their
ecstasy. Seeing the commotion, several shop owners complain that the
chanting is interfering with their sales. They soon become annoyed and
call the police. When the police arrive they give the Vaishnavas a stern
warning in a rude manner. “Stop this party and leave, or face jail time.”
After the police disappear, Vishnujana instructs everyone to just
continue chanting and not be concerned about it.
Thus, the devotees adopt a mood of civil disobedience. Remembering

how Chand Kazi tried to stop the kirtan of Lord Chaitanya, they decide
that, “We are part of Lord Chaitanya’s sankirtan movement so no one
can order us to stop chanting the Holy Names. No. We can’t agree to
that.” They are aware that they might be arrested but are determined to
continue chanting, anyway.
Seeing that their warning has been defied, the police return with a paddy
wagon to take everyone to jail. Seeing that police have come to arrest
everyone, Gokularanjana immediately bolts from the sankirtan party in
the opposite direction and quickly returns to the temple to get Balavanta.
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Vishnujana Swami doesn’t stop the kirtan and continues playing kartāls
when the police take the mṛdaṅga from him. Angrily, the police grab
Maharaja and snatch the kartāls out of his grasp. But Maharaja
continues chanting by clapping his hands. The entire kirtan party is
carted off to the city jail and locked up, as Vishnujana Swami continues
chanting with everybody responding.
Balabhadra Bhattacharya: I was just a visitor, but they grabbed me too

and we were all locked up in jail. From the time they picked us up,
during the whole period where they signed us into the jail, Vishnujana
Maharaja kept on chanting and everybody was responding. He kept the
kirtan going even in the cell when there were no instruments. When he
finally stopped the kirtan he gave a Bhagavatam class. All the devotees
were remarking, “This is amazing.” He didn’t react at all to the police or
to being in jail. He was just completely transcendental.
Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva: I was thinking, Wow, they’ve really committed

a big offense because they arrested a sannyāsī. We were in a big holding
pen overnight and there was a drunk sleeping in one corner. There was
only one window, and a gṛhastha devotee, dressed all in white, was
chanting japa early in the morning when light was coming in through a
window. As he was chanting the drunk began to awaken out of his
drunken stupor. He looked up and saw this devotee beautifully shaved
up and dressed in white, with the light shining on him through the
window and exclaimed, “Oh my God, an angel. I must be dead. Oh my
God, I must be dead.” Everybody started laughing.
While the devotees are in jail, Balavanta and Gokularanjana arrive at the
police station with their attorney to ascertain what the devotees are
charged with, and how much it will cost the temple to bail them out.
This is not the first time the police have hauled the devotees into jail
because of street sankirtan. The city has been involved in an ongoing
dispute with the devotees to prevent them from chanting in the streets
and the devotees are continually protesting that decision.
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On one occasion, when Balavanta was running for State Congress prior
to the Mayor’s race, the entire male population of the Atlanta temple,
including Balavanta, was in jail over the weekend. When the police
came to arrest them, the devotees had quickly entered the Chrysler
Center – a place where hippies gathered – to distribute prasādam
according to plan. Determined to rid the streets of the nuisance
devotees, the police adopted a ruse. In a friendly manner they said,
“Actually we made a mistake. You’re free to sing on the street as long
as you don’t block the flow of pedestrian traffic.”
Thinking they had won the battle, the kirtan party resumed chanting at
their favorite corner. Instantaneously, riot troops appeared from all
directions and everyone was arrested and put in jail.
Balavanta wrote Prabhupada about the incident seeking advice how to

handle these situations. Prabhupada gave this advice:
You may get some relief in this connection if you can approach very
carefully some leading members of the city government, or big, big men
of the town, and convince them by your words and behavior that our
devotees are not in any way unworthy persons, that in fact they have left
their lives of criminals to try to turn others away from being criminals,
and that if simply we get a little facility we can render immense service
to the cause of law and order. Like that. If you are sincere and cool-
headed, they will appreciate after some time. And if only one of such
big, big leaders understands the real fact, that is sufficient to stop all
further cases of police attacks.” [Letter to Balavanta - December 13,
1972]
Following that advice, Balavanta approached a prominent Atlanta

attorney to explain the religious significance of the sankirtan movement
and ask for legal assistance. The man appreciated Balavanta’s
presentation and spoke to the mayor and the police chief on the
devotees’ behalf. From that point on, devotees had less of a problem
with the police and they could see that Prabhupada’s instruction was
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perfect.
While the mayor’s race is going on in Atlanta, Srila Prabhupada arrives

in New York. His servant, Srutakirti, calls Atlanta to say that
Prabhupada wants Balavanta to come and see him. “Srila Prabhupada
says you should come directly to the Brooklyn temple.” Prabhupada
wants to talk to Balavanta about the mayor’s race. He has been getting
good reports and is pleased with the program.
At the meeting, Prabhupada asks Balavanta, “So, do you like our

philosophy?”
“Yes, Srila Prabhupada.”
“You like to preach this philosophy?” “Yes, Prabhupada.”
“Then you must learn this philosophy.”
When Prabhupada flies to Los Angeles the next day, Balavanta

accompanies him. On the plane they formulate an idea for the “In God
we Trust Party” to run for political posts. Srila Prabhupada sees
Balavanta’s endeavor as a good opportunity for preaching. ISKCON
could get a lot of exposure and be taken seriously. This preaching
program can reach a different class of people than students and hippies.
As a result, a lot of devotees now want to get involved. Prabhupada
continues instructing how to do this kind of preaching.
As for political speaking, first of all, don’t go so much into the details of
the affairs. Our message is that people should elect pure God conscious
leaders, that is our main statement. We cannot go into details. As a side
touch you can speak on inflation. Yes, inflation is due to paper currency.
As for land ownership, in the Vedic civilization the land was given to
the people for cultivation not for ownership, and a tax was collected
which was 25% of the person’s income. The land belonged to the state
and the man would cultivate it and pay 25% to the state. If he has no
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income then he doesn’t have to pay. If he doesn’t pay tax he may be
disowned of the land. One cannot get land from the government unless
he agrees to produce something and if everyone produces food then
there is no scarcity. At least he has his own food produced by himself.
Now people are educated as sudras. They are going to work to produce
what is not urgently needed by society.
The actual social structure should be that the first intelligent class, the
brahmanas should be for studying and educating people for God
Consciousness. They are the gurus of all other classes. They second
class, the ksatriyas give protection from dangers and they can distribute
the land. The third class vaisyas are for producing. So after the first,
second and third class, the remaining should help the upper three
classes, then everyone will be employed.
As for speaking this knowledge effectively, that requires a little

experience. The more you are experienced then you will be able to give
examples.
Your work in America with the In God We Trust Party is very inspiring
to me. If anywhere they will take seriously the principles of Bhagavad-
gita As It Is, that will be America. We are getting good response and
being taken seriously as I have seen in the reports from Amarendra there
is even prospect that we may capture some post. I have written a letter
to Rupanuga Maharaja and you may get information from him on the
importance of our men themselves following the brahminical regulative
principles, lest in the midst of political work you forget the aim of life
which is to remember Krishna. So go on as you are doing
enthusiastically and give me information.
With Prabhupada giving his approval for this manner of preaching,

Amarendra decides to run for Congress in Gainesville, Florida.
Rupanuga, Ravindra Swarupa, Bala Krishna, and other temple leaders
come to Gainesville to help Amarendra with his run for office, and to
help develop a process and a platform. Running for office can develop
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into a dynamic preaching vehicle and things appear to be going well.
Soon this political preaching mood catches on in other centers.
Sesha: I was a brahmacārī for the In God we Trust party. Rupanuga was
a sannyāsī at that time heading up the party in Washington, DC. All the
political programs were under the In God
We Trust banner. A lot of devotees were coming to get a look at the

IGWT party and how it worked. Bala Krishna came from Canada and
devotees were coming from all over because this was becoming a big
thing.
I also worked on Amarendra’s campaign for office in Gainesville. I

worked on the campaign with Balabhadra, from Atlanta, going door to
door in all the black neighborhoods dressed as karmis. Amarendra did
well in the black neighborhoods, and then we headed back up to
Washington. When we regrouped in DC, we were printing and
distributing a newspaper called The New World Harmonist.
Atlanta, October 1973

While trying to be a little more sophisticated in order to garner more
votes, the devotees running for political posts give up their dhotis and
take to wearing a suit and tie. When Hrdayananda Goswami comes to
Atlanta, he makes a memorable comment. “When we started out we
wore t-shirts and two different colored socks – a very unsophisticated
movement. We shouldn’t become sophisticated. Rather, we should still
remain ‘two different colored socks and a t-shirt’ in our hearts.” He sees
that devotees are becoming overly sophisticated.
Besides assisting Balavanta with his campaign, Vishnujana Swami

continues doing many college programs in Atlanta. He finds a receptive
audience at West Georgia College and begins going there on a regular
basis. Playing on campus all day with amplifiers, his kirtan band attracts
a lot of favorable attention. The Radha-Damodara experience is very
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powerful and attractive, with students spending time listening to the
kirtans and asking intelligent questions.
The real impact of Vishnujana Maharaja’s association comes during the

morning and evening temple programs. The Atlanta devotees generally
dance the Swami step, swaying from side to side, but Vishnujana
Maharaja introduces a variation. Dancing back and forth, devotees step
forward towards each other, and then step backwards. Then they dance
forward towards the Deities and back again to the rear of the temple
room, going back and forth. The Atlanta devotees are amazed and
entertained by Maharaja’s kirtan and his dancing.
Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva: At the time, Ananga Manjari wouldn’t let

uninitiated devotees play mṛdaṅga. She played because the women were
doing kirtan, but they never let me play although I was interested.
Vishnujana Swami invited me for lunch one day because he heard I was
a percussionist.
“Why don’t you come up and take prasāda with me?” So I did. He said,
“Can you play this mṛdaṅga?”
“Well, I’m trying to.” Maharaja knew that I had that inclination, so he
invited me up and showed me how to play a little and then we took
prasādam together. He preached to me, “Why don’t you stay in
devotional service? Perhaps you can travel with my party.”
I figured there’s nothing holding me back, and I might as well just travel
with the Swami. I thought it was the right time, the right place, and the
right circumstance, so I said, “I’d love to travel with you.”
He said, “Okay. You just come, no obligation.”
During that time in Atlanta, neither Sudama Goswami nor Rupanuga

Maharaja preached to Radha Raman or me. Here we are, two long-
haired guys obviously interested in Krishna consciousness because we
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were doing service and chanting and getting up for the program, and
neither of them spent the time to preach to us to shave up and join the
temple.
Radha Raman is outside doing some repair work on a sankirtan van

when Lakshmi walks by after lunch.
“Hey, guess what? I’m gonna go travel with the Swami.”
“I’m going too,” replies Radha Raman as he throws down the drill in his
hand. He feels angry because he wasn’t part of the get-together.
“You can go if you want to. Just ask the Swami.” So Radha Raman goes
upstairs to speak to Vishnujana Swami, who says, “Okay.”
When the Radha-Damodara bus leaves Atlanta, the new recruits are on
board. To make room for them, Vishnujana leaves Mahamantra behind,
asking him to remain at the Atlanta temple where he will get a solid
foundation in Krishna consciousness.
Mahamantra: Vishnujana Maharaja wanted to get rid of me. I was a

nuisance. “You have to stay here in Atlanta,” he said. I was a
blabbermouth, as I am, and a crazy, eccentric wild man. I made friends
with Ramnath Sukha and Balabhadra but I was lamenting. “Vishnujana
Maharaja and Radha-Damodara are so wonderful. Oh, what a wonderful
party and I’ve been kicked off.” I was so disturbed, I was crying for
days.
So I did a vrata. I started to chant my 16 rounds in front of Tulasi Devi

in the tulasi house.
What a vow! I was praying, Oh Tulasi Devi, You are so beautiful. You
fulfill all the wishes of your devotees. If you’re pleased by anything I
do, please let me get back with that party. I just thought somehow or
other, I don’t know when, I’ll get another chance to go with the party.
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Nashville, Tennessee, October 1973
From Atlanta, the Radha-Damodara party heads westward towards
Tennessee where they are booked at the State Fair in Nashville. They
leave Atlanta with one precious possession: an esraj recently brought
from India by Radha Mohan. When Vishnujana Swami first saw that
esraj, he intimated that he would like to have it. Balavanta, in the mood
of giving charity to the sannyāsīs, wants to reciprocate with Maharaja
for his inspiration and assistance during the Mayor’s race. Approaching
Radha Mohan, he persuades him to donate the esraj to Maharaja since
he has never used it. Thus, the esraj is offered to Vishnujana, who gives
it to Hasyagrami with the instruction, “Now you have to learn to play
this because we’re going to have a Vedic band.”
Vishnujana Maharaja is obviously a forerunner in progressive Hare

Krishna music. His singing and harmonium style captivates and attracts
new devotees. He is the first to tour the colleges using multi-media
presentations and putting on festival programs with chanting,
philosophy, a book table, and prasādam distribution. He is the first to
incorporate classical instruments from India like the esraj, sitar, and
ektar. Riksaraj plays sitar and sings. Hasyagrami plays esraj, and
Vishnudatta is the expert mṛdaṅga player.
At the Nashville State Fair the devotees are in their Hare Krishna booth
selling incense, oils, books, and Indian clothing. Ramacharya sits
quietly making his unconventional outfits for Radha-Damodara with
various baubles and beads. When people approach the booth, he is also
expert at selling items.
Two long-haired hippies work as parking lot attendants at the fair. They
meet Riksaraj and he invites them onto the bus when everyone is taking
morning prasādam. Vishnujana Swami offers them a bowl of sweet rice
with strawberries.
“Oh no,” they say, “We don’t take any milk products. Steve Gaskin says
386
that milk is not good. We’re vegans and we only drink soymilk.” They
explain that they live on a communal farm and grow soybeans. They
make tofu and soy products, but never eat any dairy. Vishnujana starts
to laugh while he is eating. He begins glorifying prasādam, how
delicious it is, how Krishna has tasted it, and how Krishna is the most
expert mystic Who can change matter into spirit, and spirit into matter,
at will.
Eventually the longhairs acquiesce, “Okay. We can try some.” They are
intrigued to taste this “prasādam” that has been changed into spirit by
Krishna’s mystic potency. Seeing that they are enjoying the prasādam,
Vishnujana says, “Milk isn’t so bad, is it?” All the brahmacārīs start
laughing.
The two were so adamantly against milk, but due to the influence of
Vishnujana, the way he was honoring prasādam and the way he was
glorifying prasādam, they just had to have some.
As musicians, the new recruits, Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva and Radha

Raman, join the kirtan party every evening at the Hare Krishna booth.
By this time they definitely look up to Vishnujana Swami as their śikṣā
guru. Of course, they don’t know what śikṣā is at this point, but
certainly Maharaja is the one giving the classes and giving them
guidance about bhakti and chanting.
Vishnujana Maharaja always prepares wonderful preparations for

Radha-Damodara and then feeds the devotees sumptuously. He honors
prasādam with such enthusiasm and love that very quickly he and the
two new recruits develop a good relationship.
Lakshmi feels he is now ready to shave up but Maharaja refuses. “No,

no. You’re not ready.” When the party is in Memphis for another state
fair a few weeks later, Lakshmi is now begging Maharaja to shave up.
Seeing his sincerity, Vishnujana finally relents. “Okay, if you want to,
you can shave up.” Radha Raman immediately decides he wants to
shave up as well. Riksaraj takes them into a public bathroom at the fair,
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and two new Vaishnavas are born.
Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva: We knew that Vishnujana had so much

association with Prabhupada, so we would always try to get nectar
stories from him. He told me that one time he went to Prabhupada’s
room and it was quiet, so rather than knocking at his door he peeked
through the keyhole to see if Prabhupada was there. He saw Srila
Prabhupada all by himself chanting and dancing in ecstasy with arms
raised. Vishnujana was peeking in and realized that he was seeing pure
devotion emanating from a pure devotee. Then he just quietly left. That
was one thing he told me.
Another thing he told me was the “no-gap philosophy.” Prabhupada was

very animated and enthused one day saying, “When one arises, one
bathes, and chants his gāyatrī, then he chants Hare Krishna.”
Prabhupada began chanting on his beads, “And then he goes into the
kitchen to cook for Krishna.” In a very animated fashion Srila
Prabhupada moved around his quarters, demonstrating to Vishnujana
the various items of devotional service and saying, “In this way, ours is
the no-gap philosophy.”
Vishnujana Maharaja applies the no-gap philosophy in his service –

chanting Hare Krishna and preaching. His entire program is based on
reaching out to the public, contacting people, and introducing them to
Krishna consciousness. He is always chanting Hare Krishna inside the
booth, or beside the booth, depending on the set-up. His men rise early,
have maṅgala-ārati for Radha-Damodara, chant japa, greet the Deities,
hear Bhagavatam class, honor prasādam, and then get ready to go out.
Before dressing Radha-Damodara, Maharaja always chants the
Gurvaṣṭakam prayers with harmonium. While he dresses the Deities the
men chant japa.
Devotees are always ready to man the booth at State Fairgrounds for 12-
14 hours and stick there. They have the evening program and evening
prasādam together. Vishnujana is always preaching and his men are
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always preaching. When he goes back to the bus to take care of Radha-
Damodara, the men just sell the books and Spiritual Sky products. In
this way from morning until night, Maharaja is always engaged in
devotional service – the no-gap philosophy. His men also have that
consciousness.
The state fairs are a real challenge for the devotees. The other booths are
loud and go on late into the night. It’s the big māyā and the Vaishnavas
are out there doing a lot of tapasya. Most of the preaching is done at the
so-called ‘freak shows’ where people with unusual bodies earn their
living. After a while the devotees get to know everybody and almost
everybody likes them. From one state fair to the next, they see the same
carnival people on the midway. Some of the favorites are the 700-pound
man, who likes to listen to the devotees. One of the dwarfs also really
gets into the philosophy. There is a hypnotist who is exactly the
opposite. He doesn’t like the devotees and seems afraid of them. Radha
Raman thinks he is really weird.
All the vendors follow the fairs around the country and they book their
spots well in advance. Everything is pre-arranged and organized. Narada
Muni has become expert in doing the bookings. No one on the party
sees him much because he’s always ahead booking future dates in his
car.
Vishnujana Swami feels so happy and satisfied in his service of

chanting Hare Krishna and bringing Radha-Damodara to the public.
When Vaishnavas are in this mood – doing their service nicely and very
happy in that service – then they’re actually pleasing guru. The
happiness they experience is reflected from the pleasure of the guru.
Vishnujana will never structure his program around where Prabhupada
is at any moment, but when he has the opportunity he will visit Srila
Prabhupada. Sometimes, Prabhupada will call for him.
After the Memphis fair the party drives towards the Dallas temple on
their way west.
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Dallas, Texas, October 1973
When the Radha-Damodara bus arrives in Dallas, a brahmacārī is
waiting to join the party. Back in New Vrindavan, Sridhara was feeling
separation from Vishnujana Maharaja. When Narada Muni showed up
for a break from non-stop traveling, he encouraged Sridhara, “Yeah, you
should join the party. Maharaja is waiting for you. Now is your chance
since Kirtanananda Swami has gone to New York for a few days. I’ll
cover for you.”
Narada Muni is thinking that if he and Sridhara trade places for a short
time it will be accepted by the two sannyāsīs.
Before leaving New Vrindavan, Sridhara visits Radhanath. “I’m leaving

to join Vishnujana Maharaja tomorrow and I wanted to talk with you
tonight.”
Radhanath is encouraging. “That’s wonderful. Vishnujana Maharaja has

a wonderful service, but I’m not even allowed to leave this building so
you know where I’m going to be. Srila Prabhupada has given me my
order never to leave the Deities.”
Sridhara’s sister and her husband are in New Vrindavan for a visit, so
they drive Sridhara back to Atlanta. From there he catches a bus to
Dallas to meet Vishnujana’s party.
While in Dallas, Vishnujana Swami makes arrangements to do a

College program. It’s an opportunity to do some straight preaching after
the carnival atmosphere of the state fairs. And perhaps an opportunity to
attract a few interested souls to Krishna’s lotus feet.
Pandu: We walked into the classroom filled with students and everyone
had this blank face like, Here come the Hare Krishnas, we have to sit
through this. But Vishnujana Maharaja had a courageous personality. As
soon as he started talking, they began to tune in and he just captured
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everyone’s heart. He had the whole audience in his hand. He spoke on
and on about Krishna consciousness. After the talk everybody was
asking questions. People who you’d never expect would be interested. It
was just his personality that did it all. We were just sitting there and
watching.
Back on the road again, one of the favorite pastimes for new recruits as
the hours and miles pass by the windows is to hear Vishnujana Maharaja
tell stories of the early days in ISKCON, how he joined the movement,
and his interactions with Srila Prabhupada.
Sridhara Das: When I got back on the party it was like going back to
Godhead. I remember Sri Galim cooking a preparation that he learned
from Vishnudatta, who was an early Vishnujana fan. Vishnudatta got
the recipe from an Indian lady. It was a brilliant cauliflower, curd,
tomato, and pea sabji with sour cream. It also had sweet spices, nutmeg
and cinnamon, in just the right quantity. We had huge cauliflower
pakorās, a delicious nectar drink, and triangular parathas. This was the
daily offering to Radha-Damodara! I was coming out of New Vrindavan
where we ate gruel – oats cooked in water with huge quantities of sugar
that became a thick mucousy substance. I came out of that to the most
incredibly opulent, delicious prasāda.
I remember Vishnujana saying that when he first came to the temple

Gargamuni did not like him. He thought he was a troublemaker. But
Prabhupada said, “No, no. He will become a very good devotee.” He
told us stories before he joined. He would come to the temple in the
early days dressed, he would say, in a white gown. He lived at Morning
Star, one of the groovy communes in those days.
He once asked Prabhupada, “How can I become really fixed up in

Krishna’s service?”
Prabhupada told him, “You go out on sankirtan eight hours a day, every
day, and you will be very fixed up in Krishna’s service.” In those days
sankirtan meant chanting in the streets in dhotis. One time in Los
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Angeles he had a fever, and passed out – fainted on the sidewalk – but
he would go out every day.
Epilogue Hearing how Prabhupada’s American disciples entered the

political arena to preach in Atlanta, two devotees in Australia, Sabhapati
and Charu, were impressed.
Krishna consciousness began in Australia when Prabhupada sent Bali

Mardan there in 1970. Shortly after, Upendra and his wife came. The
first devotees to join in Australia were also Americans, Upananda and
Charu. Subsequently Madhudvisa Swami arrived from San Francisco to
be the GBC representative.
Charu writes Prabhupada with a proposed plan to preach in the political

arena in Australia. Srila Prabhupada writes an encouraging reply.
Your entering politics is good. You should make political propagation

on the basis of reforming the whole human society. The leaders must be
an ideal class of men, with ideal character, free from the four sinful
activities: no meat-eating, no gambling, no illicit sex and no
intoxications, as well as chanting. They should chant the names of God.
This is essential for leaders. Leaders must be ideal men so others will
follow them. So make propaganda on this basis. We are Krishna
conscious candidates, so our political propaganda must be one hundred
per cent Krishna conscious. [Letter to Charu - May 9, 1974]
Understanding the shameful state of affairs in modern society,

Prabhupada constantly explains in his books, classes, and letters that the
present materialistic civilization is misdirected. The leaders are simply
misleading the citizens, and most people are blindly following.
Prabhupada calls it “the blind leading the blind and both of them fall
into the ditch.” Desire for personal sense gratification permeates every
political decision and is the root cause of people’s endless suffering.
In his letters, Prabhupada clarifies that the duty of the leaders of society
is to guide the citizens toward Krishna consciousness.
392
The Australian devotees waste no time igniting the transcendental
political engine with the announcement of the candidacy of Sabhapati
through a newspaper article.
The Hare Krishna movement will contest the May 18th Federal
Election.
On Friday in Melbourne, it will launch its campaign with chanting,

dancing, free food distribution and lecturing. The candidate for the
International Society for Krishna Consciousness is Mr. Phillip Scott, 25,
an Economics Graduate. He will contest the blue ribbon seat of
Melbourne held by Mr. Innis (Labor).
The Hare Krishna policy speech will be given at the office of the
Spiritual Sky Incense Company. The official opening of the campaign
will be followed by a public rally on Parliament House steps.
According to Hare Krishna campaign organizers, Mr. Scott offers a

proven, practical and positive alternative political platform.
It is based on a 3-point program for a progressive society – honest

leadership; education and spiritual culture; and progressive
environmental development.
Currently Mr. Scott is a student of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta

Swami Prabhupada. [The Melbourne Sun - April 23, 1974]
Sabhapati officially launches his campaign with a speech on the steps of

Parliament House. Reporters cover Sabhapati’s press conference held at
his campaign headquarters at the Spiritual Krishna goes to the Polls.”
Sky offices. An article is published entitled “A Hare Krishna goes to the

polls.”
The incense with the policy speech was perhaps a little different, but the
shaven head on top of the business suit was disconcerting, to say the
393
least. But disconcerting or not, the ‘In God We Trust’ Party today
launched a campaign for the House of Representatives, maintaining it
has the answer to every problem in our society – from inflation to
venereal disease.
The party’s candidate, an Economics Graduate, Mr. Phillip Scott, 25,

will contest the blue ribbon Labor seat of Melbourne. The party is an
attempt by the Hare Krishna movement to spread its way of life and
bliss through politics.
The “In God We Trust” political platform is short lived. Karandhar

raises concerns that ISKCON may lose its tax-exempt status because a
religious movement can’t be directly involved in financing political
parties.
By June, 1974, Prabhupada has stopped the political preaching because

the political atmosphere is too contaminating for his novice disciples.
When the political preaching campaigns are abandoned, devotees return
to sankirtan and book distribution as their main preaching focus.
Prabhupada writes Balavanta, “Better concentrate on developing the
brahminical qualities in the devotees there; that is more important than
running for political office.” [Letter to Balavanta - June 10, 1974]
Although Balavanta did not become the Mayor of Atlanta nor was
Sabhapati successful in the Melbourne race, nevertheless, Prabhupada
was pleased with their attempt, stating that every vote they received was
a vote for Krishna.
394
Seventh Wave,
The Blazing Inferno
O Nama! The Vedas loudly declare that even without a devotee
undergoing any suffering, his prarabdha-karma which cannot be
eliminated even by resolute meditation on impersonal brahman, is at
once mitigated by Your appearance on the tongue. [Sri Krishna-
Namastakam verse 4, by Rupa Goswami]

Everyone is totally excited. “Radha-Damodara are coming to Los
Angeles!”
It’s like unbelievable nectar coming to New Dwaraka and everybody is

talking about it. Sahadevi is busy organizing the ladies who will be
serving Sri Sri Radha-Damodara while They are in town. They are
thrilled at the opportunity to sew new outfits, make new curtains, and
decorate Their altar.
Sri Sri Radha-Damodara arrive very late in the evening when everyone
in LA is taking rest. Most of the brahmacārīs on the bus are fast asleep
as Dayal Chandra parks in front of the temple. Absent from the party are
Sri Vallabha and Vishnudatta, who are with Suhotra’s van party,
Mahamantra, who was left behind in Atlanta, and Riksaraj, who is
recuperating at his mother’s home in Florida after a relapse of hepatitis
incurred before becoming a devotee. Pandu, Sridhara, Radha Raman and
Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva have replaced them.
Mula Prakriti is a brand new devotee. Along with everybody else, she’s
395
excited hearing about Vishnujana Swami and Radha-Damodara
although she doesn’t know what to expect. She is so eager to get
involved and not miss anything that she can hardly sleep. Consequently,
she gets up early, before 3:00 o’clock in the morning, and sits in the
walkway outside the temple quietly chanting japa.
All of a sudden she sees a figure in the darkness. She is looking down at
her feet when an orange-clad figure comes quickly through the
walkway, opens the door, and enters the main part of the temple next to
the kitchen.
She decides to get up, thinking that this person is opening up the temple,
and follows through the unlocked door into the temple room. It is
completely dark inside except for a crack of light coming from beneath
the entrance of the Deity room. The light is just enough to allow a faint
glimpse of her surroundings. She goes to the area where she knows the
ladies gather and sits down to continue her japa. On the far side of the
Deity room there is a door that pūjārīs use, and she notices that this
individual is waiting there.
Mula Prakriti dd: I was watching this person who I kind of recognized
as someone important. I realized later he was waiting for the pūjārī to
come in because he was going to bring Radha-Damodara onto the altar
through the side door. He didn’t notice that I was in the room. Thinking
he was alone, he prostrated himself in full dandavats in front of the
Deity doors. He just lay there for a really long time. I was being very
quiet. I actually stopped chanting and was just watching. Then I heard
prayers and sobs coming from the floor. I was amazed. It seemed like he
was talking and crying to Krishna for an awfully long time. I was
actually in shock, but tremendously attached and inspired. After a while
he got up and he was still not even noticing me. Then he happened to
look over and notice there was a body over there, a person. He was very
humble and just went out of the temple room.
Later that morning when the curtains opened, I saw Radha-Damodara
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on the same altar as Rukmini and Dwarakadisa, but in front. They were
really beautiful. Gaura-Nitai and Jagannath had separate altars.
After the morning program, Maharaja takes a crew of eight new bhaktas
and bhaktins who don’t have any particular service, and tries to give
them a taste for Krishna consciousness by engaging them in cleaning the
Deity kitchen. Even though he is just visiting the temple, he sets a
perfect example of understanding for these new devotees – that
everything belongs to Krishna and one can serve Him in any capacity,
anywhere. They just whiz through the entire kitchen and return to
inform him that the kitchen is clean.
Maharaja looks it over and says, “Oh, very nice. Let’s do it again! If you
want to do something for Krishna,” he explains, “then you have to put
all your energy and all your love into doing that. Just like if you’re
going to sweep the floor, you can sweep it so-so, but if you keep
sweeping, and every time you focus your consciousness on getting
every little grain of dirt, and noticing all the small details, and relishing
the details and the purification, then you’ll be happy with whatever you
do, because you’ll be concentrating so much like that to please Krishna.
So look for those details. As you clean the temple you are cleaning your
heart.”
Everyone returns to clean the kitchen again and Vishnujana continues to

encourage them. In this way he engages them in the guṇḍicā mārjana
pastime of Lord Chaitanya.
Mula Prakriti: I never enjoyed cleaning a kitchen more. I remember he

was saying that Krishna consciousness was the science of noticing the
details of one’s motive, in wanting to purify your motive and noticing
the details.
Sacidevi and Sahadevi invited me for dinner and they had also invited
Vishnujana Maharaja. Because I was a new person he really got
inspired. He was excited to distribute Krishna consciousness, especially
to a new person, so he was preaching in such a wonderful way. It wasn’t
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that I even heard the words so much, but his presentation was so
attractive. He was full of enthusiasm and joy. It was attraction rather
than promotion. He just beamed.
Urjasvat is the Los Angeles temple commander. When he preaches to

the new bhaktas, he likes to use Vishnujana Swami as an example. “If
you associate with Vishnujana Swami he can really empower you. And
if you really want to know how to do kirtan you should learn from him.
That’s the thing I like about him, he’s always available to inspire others
in Krishna consciousness.”
When Vishnujana takes a kirtan party out, Urjasvat always plays the
drum. Maharaja has been teaching him different ways to play mṛdaṅga
for kirtan.
By observing how Maharaja plays mṛdaṅga, the different tunes that he

sings, and the way he changes from tune to tune, Urjasvat has also
become proficient in leading kirtan. He’s in charge of keeping a drum
completely fine-tuned to make sure that Maharaja has a mṛdaṅga of high
quality whenever he comes to Los Angeles. When the Radha-Damodara
party comes to New Dwaraka, Maharaja always asks, “Where is
Urjasvat? Tell him I’m here and ready to do kirtan. Where’s the drum?”
Urjasvat: Vishnujana Maharaja used to tell wonderful stories. He could

sit for hours and tell stories that made you feel like you really wanted to
be a devotee. He was such a devotee through and through. He
demonstrated how wonderful it is to be a devotee of Krishna. When you
associated with him the only thing on your mind was how you enjoyed
being a Vaishnava. My relationship with him was more in awe and
reverence. He was a sannyāsī and I was respectful of his position.
He had faith in me because he liked the way I kept my mṛdaṅga. He

thought I had great potential as a kirtan leader, so he would always work
with me. The main thing was his empowerment by Srila Prabhupada to
be a kirtan man. He was empowered to distribute the Holy Name to the
movement, and the world. He had his duty, to get the Holy Name
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distributed and to teach others. He was the main general and his duty
was to produce men who would also distribute the Holy Name. This was
his service, his life’s work, his mission. He took that mission very
seriously.
As much as I could, I would sit down with him and he’d talk about
Krishna consciousness and show me different things on mṛdaṅga.
“Okay, Urjasvat. Your service is to make sure that when I come here,
the drum is tuned and we’re ready to do kirtan.” I could tell that he
really loved Krishna, and the movement. He conveyed a lot of
confidence and total surrender to Krishna. He was a great soul and I
really learned a lot from him.
Before the Sunday Feast, devotees are so busy getting ready for the
guests that the kids are running around unsupervised. Seeing that no one
is taking care of the kids, Vishnujana sits down on the grass in front of
the temple with his harmonium and calls the kids together. He begins to
tell stories utilizing the harmonium as background music for the stories’
All the kids gather like bees to hear him. Soon, the adults are attracted to
come and watch the performance.
As he tells the Ramayana story, he stops at dramatic points to make

faces and play music, absorbing everyone in Krishna consciousness.
“The golden deer is coming,” as he plays on the high notes. “And here
comes Ravana,” playing the low bass notes. At the part where Rama
cuts off the nose of Sarpanaka, he speaks and plays the harmonium in
such a heavy way that all the children just jump back
Satarupa dd: While telling the story of the Ramayana or the Aghasura
demon, he did special effects on the harmonium and he would also sing.
As a sannyāsī, it wasn’t necessary for him to do that service, but he saw
that it was something that needed to be done so he sat down and
enchanted the kids. He would always do spontaneous things like that. It
was so wonderful and enlivening for everybody.
Mithiladhish: I remember him sitting on the front lawn of the temple
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with so many children around him, just like the photo in the old Hare
Krishna handbook. They were experiencing it while he was performing.
As the time for the Sunday program nears, Vishnujana leaves the kids
and gets his kirtan group together. They will perform the songs of
Bhaktivinoda Thakur and Narottam das Thakur on the stage in the
sanctuary using their exotic Indian instruments. Hundreds of devotees
and guests crowd into the sanctuary to hear Maharaja sing these
incredible bhajans. It turns out to be a big event and a joyous occasion.
After the bhajans, Vishnujana wants to do a special program that he has

promised the kids – putting on a puppet show. Most of the puppets that
he and Srimati utilized for presenting Krishna consciousness years
earlier are still lying in storage at the temple. While the Sunday feast
class is going on, Maharaja leaves to present the puppet show for the
kids. Gradually, people begin leaving the class to go see the puppet
show.
Among the guests present today is Sandamini. She was living and
working in Cincinnati when she met the traveling party of Dharmatma,
Riddha, and Ganapati. She has just finished high school and this is her
first job, but she is attracted to their mood. They have their bus nicely
painted up with Lord Chaitanya dancing on it. Seeing that she is
genuinely interested in spiritual life, Dharmatma suggests she go to New
Vrindavan.
Ganapati has a different idea. “If you really want to become a devotee,
Prabhupada always goes to Los Angeles, so if you want to get the nectar
you should go to LA.”
Sandamini dd: When I arrived in Los Angeles I went to the temple for
the Sunday feast. The Sunday class was going on, but one by one,
people would be leaving the temple room and going somewhere. I was
wondering what was going on, if they were serving the feast? So I asked
someone, “Where is everybody going?”
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“Oh, Vishnujana Swami is giving a puppet show upstairs for the
children.”
“For the children? All the adults are taking off. There’s hardly anyone
left in the temple. This must be some special guy?”
“Oh, yes he is. And he’s just wonderful with the children. It’s such a
performance to see him doing the puppet show for all the kids.”
I didn’t want to miss out so I also went upstairs. There was a little stage
set up – very simple – and all the kids were sitting in the first immediate
circle, with the adults sitting behind them. He was playing with the kids
using hand puppets on this little stage, but not behind a stage like you’d
expect. I thought he was a really special person to be entertaining the
children and getting all the respect, at the same time, from the adult
community who were looking on and enjoying. I could tell they had a
lot of respect for this person. I was both intrigued and impressed. Who
is this person who can command so much respect from everyone and at
the same time be so simple that he can relate so well with the children?
Although he’s a sannyāsī, Vishnujana Swami doesn’t seem to make any

distinction when he’s preaching whether one is a man, a woman, or a
child. He sees everybody with an equal eye, just like Srila Prabhupada
who is also a sannyāsī. In Bhagavad-gita Krishna explicitly states,
paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ, that the humble sages, by virtue of true
knowledge, see with equal vision. Moreover, such sages are samaḥ
sarveṣu bhūteṣu, equally disposed toward every living entity and thus
they attain pure devotional service unto Krishna.
Prabhupada has advised every person to preach and give class

irrespective of their material situation. Whenever a so-called authority
tries to prevent the ladies from expressing their realizations by giving
classes, Srila Prabhupada always steps in to correct the mistaken
judgment.
So you please continue your devotional service, cooking, etc, and you
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can also keep giving Bhagavatam class if you like. Women in our
movement can also preach very nicely. Actually male and female
bodies, these are just outward designations. Lord Chaitanya said that
whether one is brahmana or whatever he may be, if he knows the
science of Krishna then he is to be accepted as guru. So one who gives
class, he must read and study regularly and study the purport and realize
it. Don’t add anything or concoct anything, then he can preach very
nicely. The qualification for leading class is how much one understands
about Krishna and surrendering to the process. Not whether one is male
or female. [Letter to Malati – December 25, 1974]
On Monday morning, Vishnujana wants to take Radha-Damodara to the

UCLA campus [University of California at Los Angeles] and chant for
the students. Several temple devotees are also eager to present Krishna
consciousness at the university. As Maharaja is waiting for the
brahmacārīs to get ready, a devotee from Argentina comes onto the bus.
He’s very curious to see the Deities and eager to experience the
traveling temple that he’s hearing so much about.
Vishnujana Swami is doing service alone inside the bus. Still, he makes
time to speak to this guest from Argentina and invites him to come
along to his program at the University.
Nrihari: His presence was very powerful. He said they were doing a
program that day at UCLA and that I should come. So I went out with
him. We set up on the lawn at the campus. As soon as he sat down and
started chanting, people would flock around. There was something
about him that people would stop what they were doing. You could see
people walk by and do a double take and then come back and listen to
him. No one could walk by and not be attracted to what he was saying,
or the way he presented it. The students just loved him.
While Maharaja and the brahmacārīs are chanting with their exotic
Indian instruments, the temple devotees distribute books and magazines
and serve out prasādam. As the kirtan takes off, Vishnujana exclaims,
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“Come ride with us on the magic carpet of sound,” and many feel
themselves transported to another dimension. He also asks the students
to chant and dance. Almost as if he was a professor in class, the students
get up to chant and dance because he has asked them. At the end of the
day every devotee agrees it was special mercy to present Krishna
consciousness with Vishnujana Swami.
One morning, Krishna Kanti comes onto the bus to present an idea to
Vishnujana. He has a little four-track studio at the back of the temple
where he duplicates and distributes Srila Prabhupada’s classes and
kirtans under the name of Golden Avatar Productions. His idea is to
schedule a recording session so that the songs that Maharaja sings can
be heard and appreciated by devotees all over the movement.
Vishnujana Maharaja agrees to the proposal. Krishna Kanti suggests
doing the recording tomorrow evening after sandhyā-ārati. Vishnujana
agrees to record tomorrow. The brahmacārīs become excited hearing
this news. They are enthusiastic to participate in the recording.
The next day, as the brahmacārīs get ready to go out to UCLA for
another day of chanting and preaching, Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva
approaches Vishnujana Swami. “Maharaja, we’re recording this
evening. Don’t you want to give your voice a break? Shouldn’t we take
today off and prepare for the session?”
“No,” Maharaja replies. “We’re going out to preach.” Although he’s

feeling ill today due to a slight fever, he is adamant. “The only way to
cure the fever is to go out and chant Hare Krishna.” Vishnujana
Maharaja is in the same mood as Srila Prabhupada and Radha-
Damodara – always go out to present Krishna consciousness.
The party returns to the UCLA campus to do their entire program again.
Maharaja chants all day, explains the philosophy, distributes books and
prasādam, and then returns to the ashram for a quick shower. Then he
runs to the temple to lead the sandhyā-ārati kirtan. After kirtan, he is
ready to record.
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Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva: We went out for six hours, and it was hot at the
UCLA campus. We were chanting the whole time and Vishnujana
became hoarse. When we came back at 6:00pm, we were all exhausted
because we were dancing and chanting all afternoon and it had been so
hot. But Vishnujana Swami said, “Okay, we now have an opportunity to
record, so let’s go do it.” I kept thinking to myself, How can you do it?
Your voice is hoarse. Why don’t we all take rest and do it the next
morning when we’re all fresh. I was very tired, but he was fired-up to do
it.
So we went into the recording studio and spent hours recording. It was
great, ecstatic. I played the ektar. We used to call it the ‘twanger’.
Radha Raman: Hasyagrami was on the esraj and I was on the drum. I’d
only been playing the drum a few months on that. Lakshmi was the
twanger man. We had problems getting the kartāls recorded right, so
Krishna Kanti had someone playing them outside the room and recorded
that.
Hasyagrami: When we made the Radha-Damodara TSKP tape, that was

when our bhajan band was really cooking. Lakshmi played the ektar –
boing, boinng, boinnngg – and Radha Raman played mṛdaṅga. We got
better later on, but it was really a lot of fun at that time, and we could
draw crowds. We had a certain sound that reminded me of a carousel. It
was a circular, attractive sound that seemed like something you heard
when you were an infant – pre-verbal – when things would influence
you different, rather than a logistical linear way. It really took me way
back to somewhere.
There were a couple of mantras we would do and we’d get into this
thing where you just started floating away. Gaura Nityananda Bol was
one of them. It was really powerful. We would really get a crowd and
they felt it too. There were a few bhajans like that, too. We had a
descending sort of thing of Hare Krishna and Sri Krishna Chaitanya, and
we sang that to everything. Om Namo Bhagavate was kind of in-
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between, a little sonic relief.
Dulal Chandra: I came to Los Angeles when the Radha-Damodara party

was there. Since I had a previous relationship with Vishnujana
Maharaja, I played the kartāls when he recorded in Krishna Kanti’s
studio. It was a very nice experience. At that time there was a change in
what I noticed to be Vishnujana’s temperament, but his kirtan was still
very enlivening. He was still the same as far as the relationship that we
had, but I noted a definite change in his demeanor.
Sri Galim: I was playing tamboura. I wasn’t good at music, so

Vishnujana stuck me with an instrument that couldn’t be heard. Radha
Raman and Lakshmi were both good at music, so they were playing.
It’s ironic that the recording is made mainly with the new bhaktas. The
other experienced devotees like Vishnudatta, the famous mṛdaṅga
player, and Riksaraj, the expert on sitar, are not with the party in Los
Angeles at the time. They are out distributing books with Suhotra’s van
party. The bus crew is mostly the new bhaktas who are being trained by
Vishnujana Swami.
When the recording is released, it’s an instant hit – the number one
listened to tape in ISKCON. Maharaja sounds a little hoarse on the
recording, because he was out chanting at the University campus all
day. Vishnujana never takes a break from his routine. He embodies the
no-gap philosophy. He goes out every day for kirtan, explaining Krishna
consciousness, distributing books and prasādam, even with a fever. He
has the festival mood – Krishna consciousness is blissful. Wherever he
goes, that place is transformed into a festival. By his association his men
become blissful, too. They all give good classes, and are good kirtan
men. Vishnujana Maharaja sings many bhajans that nobody else in the
movement has heard. His sincerity and expertise as a Vaishnava really
appeals to everyone. He has a profound effect on people.
The next weekend, a three day festival is being advertised up north in

Marin County. It’s like a rainbow gathering, with lots of young people,
405
and takes place on a large open field. A group of mātājī sankirtan
devotees, Vrindavan Vilasini, Labanglatika and Mula Prakriti, will be
going. Vishnujana Swami is enthusiastic that Radha-Damodara should
also attend. On the drive north, the ladies will follow the Radha-
Damodara bus in their own van.
The festival is an overnighter. Gopavrindapal is now the sankirtan

leader, so he approaches Vishnujana Swami. “Maharaja, could you keep
an eye on the ladies, at a distance, just for safekeeping? They will be out
there all alone.”
Gopavrindapal: I asked meekly because I was asking a sannyāsī to keep

his eye on ladies, and I didn’t know how appropriate that was. I didn’t
exactly ask him to take the responsibility, it was more like, Could your
party be close to the women just so they’re protected? Can the two
vehicles be somewhat close together, so that the women aren’t
completely alone? He noted that I was hesitant to ask.
Vishnujana Maharaja replies, “Don’t be afraid to ask this kind of

question. This is devotional service. Besides, they are not women, these
are goddesses of fortune.” That’s his attitude. Gopavrindapal is
impressed by this understanding of the position of the mātājīs. He had
thought he shouldn’t even bring up the topic of women with a sannyāsī,
but Vishnujana Swami reassures him me that he shouldn’t hesitate to
ask because they are goddesses of fortune and not women in the least.
In the early days of ISKCON, Prabhupada trained the men not to see the
mātājīs as ordinary mundane women. Rather, they should be recognized
as a Vaishnavi and respected like a goddess of fortune. Vishnujana
Swami embodies this teaching of Srila Prabhupada in his execution of
devotional service.
Although he recognizes that any woman can also be māyā, especially

for sannyāsīs, he strictly follows Vaishnava etiquette without being
fanatical. By firmly following the teachings of Lord Chaitanya one
automatically advances and sees the spirit soul within the body. This is
406
the vision of Srila Prabhupada.
Actually, woman is considered as goddess of fortune, representative of

the goddess of fortune. We are misusing for sense gratification. No.
They should be respected as goddess of fortune. If one man has got nice
wife, actually he has got goddess of fortune. That is astrological
calculation. A man is considered to be fortunate in three ways. If he has
got good wife then he is fortunate. If he has got good son then he is
fortunate. And if he has got plenty money he is fortunate. So these are
three standards of fortune; out of which one who has got good wife, he
is the most fortunate. So our society will try to make good wives so that
the boys, all boys, should, think himself always fortunate. [Lecture -
August 15, 1968]
At the festival, Vishnujana Swami opens the doors to his traveling

temple and begins churning out an ocean of nectar by his singing and
harmonium playing. The bus soon becomes packed to overflowing and
visitors receive the benediction of Sri-Sri Radha- Damodara’s darshan.
The brahmacārīs preach day and night, and the ladies distribute books
intensely.
Mula Prakriti dd: In the evening one of the brahmacārīs complained to

Vishnujana Maharaja that our van was too close to the bus. We were
standing there and he said, “What do you mean? They are goddesses of
fortune. They are not women.” He took really good care of us and
encouraged us.
Sometimes he would tell people, “Go talk to one of those girls there,
and they’ll give you one of these books.” So people were clamoring for
books. They were standing in line to get a book. I remember he was in
total ecstasy. Nobody wanted to take rest because people were coming
all night and asking questions and Vishnujana Swami was in his bus
preaching and chanting.
Just to look around that bus to see the beaming faces entranced by his
kirtan and by the nectar of Krishna kathā was an example of joy. He was
407
encouraging questions, “You can find the answer to that in these books
the girls are giving out.”
When the ladies return to Los Angeles after the festival, they are simply
raving about the association of Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara and Vishnujana
Swami.
Houston, Texas, November 1973

Another guru from India is coming to America, a young teenage boy
named Guru Maharaj Ji. His followers claim he is an incarnation of
God, an avatar. His organization has booked the Houston Astrodome
stadium for a huge convention, and they have spent large sums of
money promoting the occasion. The Vaishnavas see it as a great
preaching opportunity and many traveling parties converge on Houston
for the event.
A festive atmosphere is prevalent at the Houston temple on 707

Hawthorne Street where many devotees are now camped. Besides
Suhotra’s van party, Abhirama arrives from Miami with his men,
Riddha and Ganapati are still traveling from Vancouver, and Kavi
Chandra’s Los Angeles party is also present.
In 1973 there are many spiritual seekers in America, and devotees are in
the mood that this young guru is cheating these innocent seekers with
his promises of enlightenment by simply pressing his thumb between
their eyebrows. The traveling sankirtan vans have come to town with an
aggressive preaching mood. They are convinced this is an excellent
situation for book distribution.
The young Guru Maharaj Ji has become an overnight sensation and is

gaining quite a following in the West. Originally, his group was
advertising 80 jumbo jets of ‘premies’, as they call themselves, coming
from around the world to Houston. The Astrodome holds about 80,000
people, but less than 10,000 have come, making it a dismal turnout.
408
Still, thousands of long-haired hippies with a glassy look in their eyes,
descend upon the motels around the Astrodome area.
The leaders of the Guru Maharaj Ji organization call themselves

‘mahatmas’ and dress like māyāvādī sannyāsīs, with saffron garments
and shaved heads. Taking advantage of this similar look, devotees from
the different book distribution parties start going to these motels with a
greeting sign, “Welcome to the Astrodome Convention.”
They knock on doors with shaven head and dhoti introducing

themselves as ‘mahatmas’. The premies are excited, “Wow!” Then the
devotees open with an explanation, “We’re here to initiate you into the
knowledge.” That’s one of their terms. “But first you should read this
book.” So they are selling Prabhupada’s books like anything from
morning to evening.
The mood of the organizers is open arms – love and peace – because
they think the Hare Krishna devotees are coming to surrender. “Have
you come to surrender to Guru Maharaj Ji?” But they soon become
nervous seeing that the sankirtan devotees are starting to dominate the
event. Devotees are all over the place, inside and outside the Astrodome,
working the crowds and doing very well distributing Prabhupada’s
books.
After a day and a half, the organizers gradually start to catch on what is
actually happening. They begin making announcements, “Don’t buy
these books.” They forbid the devotees from entering the grounds. “You
can’t come in here.” They also inform the Houston Police, “We have
rented this place, and we don’t want these Hare Krishnas coming
inside.”
The Houston police, however, are reluctant to get involved.
Suhotra: For the first day it was, “Love and peace, brother.” Then half
way through the second day, the sides were really drawn. We had
already been informed that we couldn’t go inside anymore so we
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gathered outside the entrance. I thought, “All right. Let’s start a kirtan.”
Then Brisakapi climbed up onto the overhang above the entrance and
began chanting and dancing, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna
Krishna Hare Hare/Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare.”
It’s not long before the police arrive to pull down this crazy Hare
Krishna who is leaping and dancing and singing on top of the overhang
that juts out at the entrance of the stadium.
This kirtan is the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Now the organizers
become totally resentful and begin insisting that the police remove the
devotees.
“We don’t want these Hare Krishnas here, not by the entrance way nor
even in the parking lots.”
At the beginning of the third day, however, devotees are still

distributing books and prasādam when the police arrive to inform them,
“If you continue coming here, we’re going to have to arrest you.”
Now the book distribution is being compromised by the confrontation.

Everyone is aware of the conflict and the atmosphere become tense.
Suhotra: We were distributing prasādam and books as best we could but

the police were watching everything we were doing. The organizers
were upset with us, and even threatening us. They had some karate
experts who were the bodyguards of their guru, and they were coming
and threatening us. One came up to me and said, “You know, as far as
I’m concerned, you’re like Ravana. And I feel myself to be Hanuman.”
Abhirama and Suhotra cook up a plan. They get in their vans as if they
are agreeing to leave. They drive in opposite directions towards the exit
gates leading outside the Astrodome complex. But suddenly, they turn
around and drive back in the innermost lane that leads right up to the
front gate. Their vans are filled with devotees chanting a powerful kirtan
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with kartāls and mṛdaṅgas.
Seeing this, the police call for reinforcements. They arrive in full force
with lights flashing. They quickly arrest the devotee men and drag them
off to jail. This scene is documented by newspaper reporters, who take a
lot of photos.
The reporters then approach the event organizers with questions, “What
is this? Why are you having the Hare Krishnas arrested?”
The organizers immediately backpedal because the event is billed as a

festival of love and peace. “Oh, it has nothing to do with us. It’s the
Houston police.”
The devotee’s move was planned, but the reaction of the public was
unplanned. When the story is published in the newspapers and on
television, public sympathy sways in favor of the devotees. While the
devotees are in jail, the festival representatives are interviewed on the
evening news, dressed in white suits and ties, with the women wearing
white dresses.
“Oh, this has nothing to do with our people. We would never put the
Hare Krishnas under arrest. This was just the Houston police force
acting on their own.” They present the episode as an innocent and
unfortunate incident.
When the Houston police see that they are being vilified on the evening
news they just hit the roof. The police chief is angry because they were
told to arrest the Hare Krishnas, but when the media pressured the
premies on TV, “Why did you do this?” the blame was placed on the
Houston police force.
Immediately, an officer comes in with the keys, “Okay, boys we’re

letting you out.”
The devotees are released and they don’t have to go to court.
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Siddhavidya: In the first two days we distributed tons of books. The
third day we had an incredible kirtan at the entrance of the Astrodome
with Suhotra leading. There were about 50 men, women and children,
and we wouldn’t stop chanting. Only the men were arrested and put in
one big holding cell. We continued chanting the whole time and the
police were watching and laughing.
Suhotra: After we got out of jail, reporters were coming over to the
Houston temple to interview the devotees. They were sympathetic,
“Who do these guys think they are? They come to our city, rent the
Astrodome, and only 10,000 people show up. And they have the
audacity to arrest our own local Hare Krishnas!” That was a real
adventure. I was on the front page of a newspaper with a policeman’s
arm around me.
Phoenix, Arizona, November 1973

Mahamantra still remains in Atlanta. He chants daily in front of Tulasi
Devi, praying to be allowed back on Radha-Damodara’s party. One
afternoon, Balavanta calls him into his office.
“They want you back,” he says. “I just received a call. They said that
they can’t keep the kitchen clean on the bus. ‘Can you give us back our
bhakta?’
“Here’s $50 for a bus ticket. They’ll meet you in Beaumont, Texas.”
After the Astrodome incident, one of the Radha-Damodara satellite vans

is orbiting the Texas area. The order is to pick up Mahamantra and
rendezvous with the bus party at the Arizona State Fair in Phoenix.
Mahamantra: So I took a bus out to Beaumont. I remember the reunion

in Phoenix. “Come back in. Welcome home. Here’s some halava and
some sweet rice.” It was strawberry sweet rice. Aaaahh, I was so happy
to be back.
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Vishnujana dressed Radha-Damodara in the morning and listened to a
tape. He heard Prabhupada say that everybody wants to see Krishna in
the rāsa dance. “This is possible only for Him, because He is the
supreme controller. People in general should follow the instructions of
Lord Kṛiṣhṇa as given in the Bhagavad-gita and should not even
imagine imitating Lord Krishna in the rāsa dance.” [KRSNA Book,
Chapter 32]
Prabhupada said it twice so that impressed Vishnujana. We had so many

posters of rāsa-līlā that we were selling at the state fairs, but Vishnujana
Maharaja didn’t buy that poster anymore. He ordered Universal Form
posters. He was impressed by what Prabhupada said.
The state fairs are not the most conducive environment to present
Krishna consciousness, nevertheless Pandu, the eccentric artist, meets a
young woman who becomes interested in bhakti-yoga. Vishnujana
sends her to Los Angeles temple for training. Maharaja inspires many
people to take up Krishna consciousness, but he simply sends them to
the nearest temple. He prefers to keep his party small. As far as guiding
the men already on his party, he doesn’t say much in terms of
instructions. He just sets the example.
Pandu: I remember everywhere we went, every state fair, Vishnujana

made devotees wherever he went, and he would just send them to the
nearest ISKCON temple and they would become devotees there. He just
kept the bus light with his particular crew.
At the Arizona State fair the brahmacārīs consider it a magical time.

They bring Radha-Damodara out and chant for hours and hours. The
Deities stand in a beautiful white mother-of-pearl lotus throne with little
curtains. The altar has been done up beautifully by the Los Angeles
mātājīs. Every morning, Vishnujana dresses Sri Sri Radha-Damodara
and the brahmacārīs greet the Deities with kirtan during ārati.
Sridhara Das: He would chant Govinda Jaya Jaya, Jaya Radha-

Madhava, Om Namo Bhagavate, and Hare Krishna mantra with
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beautiful, plaintive melodies filled with feeling. Every morning tears
would come to my eyes because it was so beautiful. I thought I had been
blessed to be with Vishnujana Swami. I felt I was on the best party in
the whole movement, even though I wasn’t totally satisfied with the
state fairs.
Radha Raman: These were the real heavy times with Vishnujana. We
were really out there in the big māyā and I was with him 24 hours a day
on that bus. There was no time you got away on his shift. He would
always take me out to the booth and make sure that I was on his shift.
He knew it was harder for me to surrender so he always kept me with
him.
At the end of the State Fair, the Radha-Damodara bus leaves Phoenix
right after maṅgala-ārati. Their destination is Houston, Texas, where
they will rendezvous with the men who were distributing books at the
Astrodome. Then the party will go to Florida for the winter. Narada
Muni has recently returned from New Vrindavan.
“Maharaja,” he says anxiously, “today is ekādaśī. Should we be leaving

on ekādaśī?”
“Oh, yes. I think we can leave.”
It’s early November and the cool mornings of autumn are replacing the
heat of summer. The bus leaves Phoenix in the distance, heading south
towards Tucson. At the back of the bus a donated white car, a Saab, is
being towed. It will become another satellite vehicle. They have finished
the last state fair of the season and they did well over the summer. At
the Arizona Fair in particular, they have done huge.
The bus is loaded down with $5000 worth of hardback KRSNA Book
trilogies that
Vishnujana purchased while in Los Angeles. They are stored beneath

the raised platform floor along with posters, incense, paper cups, plates,
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and other paraphernalia used for the daily festival program. Because of
the platform, only Sri-Sri Radha- Damodara can stand up in the bus.
Everybody else has to sit down for ārati, kirtan, and prasādam, because
there’s no room to stand.
Maharaja is very tall, and he’s been living on a bus where it’s
impossible to stand up for a whole year. That’s an austerity.
New Mexico, November 10, 1973

As the bus reaches the outskirts of Tucson, Vishnujana Maharaja has
finished dressing Radha-Damodara behind the altar curtains. At the
sound of the conch, it is time for ārati, kirtan, Bhagavatam class, and
then breakfast. By the time devotees have finished prasādam, the bus
has already passed the mountainous eastern region of the state of
Arizona on Interstate 10, and now enters the state of New Mexico.
As they roll along the Interstate, Vishnujana Maharaja sits in front of

Radha- Damodara chanting a beautiful kirtan with his harmonium and
the brahmacārīs complement him with kartāls and mṛdaṅga.
Sridhara: I felt so fortunate to be on this party. We would be traveling

down the road like free agents and Vishnujana would be doing his
kirtan. I remember the magic carpet of sound and how Vishnujana’s
chanting would take you traveling through space. When he said, “Come
ride with us on the magic carpet of sound,” you could just feel yourself
floating through space. It was so beautiful and so free. And we had
incredible prasādam. I remember going to sleep and asking myself,
“How could there be a better day than today? There couldn’t be a better
day than today. This was the best day. I don’t know how it can get any
better than this.”
As they pass the town of Deming, Radha Raman takes over driving the
bus from Dayal Chandra. Since the rule on the party is not a moment
should be wasted in the service of Radha-Damodara, they change
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drivers on the fly without stopping. Vishnujana Maharaja started this
system. Right behind the driver’s seat is a platform that is almost flush
with the driver’s shoulders. The alternate driver simply maneuvers
himself behind the driver’s seat. Then the driver gets out of the seat still
holding the steering wheel, while the new driver slides down onto the
seat behind him, and takes the wheel from his hand. Radha Raman and
Dayal Chandra always switch in this way.
This stretch of Interstate 10 is a long, lonely, four-lane highway with

cactus on both sides of the road. The scenery is high desert, at least 1500
meters above sea level. The mornings are cold but during the day it gets
hot and then again cool at night. There are few vehicles on the road,
only an occasional truck passing in the opposite direction. The land is
mostly flat, dry, and sparse with Yucca plants and low sagebrush dotted
here and there as far as the eye can see. The terrain slopes down gently
towards the horizon where jagged mountaintops silhouette against the
blue sky.
As Radha Raman drives towards the town of Las Cruces, the sun shines
brightly with only a few wisps of cumulus clouds on the northern
horizon.
They have been driving since early morning. At noon it’s time for
Radha-Damodara’s rāja-bhoga offering. Sri Galim blows the conch for
ārati, and Maharaja sits in front of Radha-Damodara with the
harmonium. He begins singing, bhaja bhakata-vatsala śrī- gaurahari…
The brahmacārīs join in on mṛdaṅga and kartāls.
Sri Galim begins the ārati ceremony by offering the incense.

Unexpectedly, the curtain from the window side of the altar flies over
the voted candle. It begins to smoke as if to catch fire, so Sri Galim
quickly pushes the curtain back and continues the ārati.
During the ārati, Sri Galim glances out the window and sees smoke
coming from the side of the bus.
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Sri Galim: I was thinking, I just put this out. I couldn’t figure out where
the smoke was coming from. Vishnujana Maharaja was in ecstasy
chanting in the middle of the bus while I did the ārati. I kept looking out
the window and the smoke kept increasing.
Radha Raman is driving the bus. “I smell something burning,” he says

to Dayal Chandra who is resting on the floor beside him. “Just keep
driving,” is the response.
“Hey, there’s smoke. What’s going on?”
“Better slow down and find out what it is.” Dayal considers that a
significant reason to stop.
Radha Raman steps on the brake. “There’s no brake!” “Well, you better
downshift and pull over.”
Radha Raman slows the bus by downshifting. Mahamantra is cleaning

the kitchen in the back and hears some scraping sound coming from the
wheels.
Sri Galim smells smoke as he’s doing ārati. “Vishnujana Maharaja,

there’s smoke coming out the side of the bus.” Maharaja looks out the
window.
He stops the kirtan and shouts, “Stop the bus!”
Radha Raman brings the bus to a stop on the shoulder of the highway
about ten miles west of the town of Las Cruces. Suddenly there is a loud
bang. “I think the tire just blew up,” Dayal Chandra shouts. The vehicle
leans over to the passenger side and sinks down.
Dayal thinks it’s the second rear tire, because one had already blown on
the passenger side and now the other tire is carrying the full weight of
the bus.
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Sri Galim stops the ārati. The smell of burning rubber is pronounced.
Black smoke is emanating from the rear of the vehicle.
Dayal Chandra and Radha Raman immediately run outside to ascertain

the situation. The smoke is coming from underneath the bus. Vishnujana
also gets out to determine the state of affairs. A few devotees follow
Maharaja, curious to see what’s happening. The rest restart the kirtan for
Radha-Damodara.
Dayal Chandra gets down on his hands and knees to inspect the
undercarriage. He can hear the sizzling sound of fluid touching hot
metal. Because the tired old bus was so overloaded with books, the
weight has pushed the frame down on the back axle which has been
rubbing against the tires.
He can see that the brake line has been ruptured and hydraulic brake
fluid is spraying over the hot axle and the brake shoe. Due to friction,
metal against metal, the entire rear axle and the bearings have heated up
considerably and now the leaking fluid is burning as it hits the hot
metal.
Immediately Dayal shouts, “This is serious.” The fuel tank and all the
propane tanks for the kitchen are sitting just above the burning smoke.
“We’ve got to fix this immediately,” he yells. As the brake fluid
continues leaking out more and more, the smoke is getting thicker.
All of a sudden, the fluid bursts into flame. There is no fire extinguisher
on the bus so several devotees try swatting at the fire with their dhotis
and chaddars to smother the flame. Others throw dirt on it hoping to
extinguish the fire. But it’s a greasy oil fire so their attempts go in vain.
Radha Raman rushes back inside the bus to return with a bucket of
water that he throws on the fire. But he can’t put it out, even with water,
because the oil fire simply hisses and crackles and continues burning.
Sridhara shouts, “Hey, I think it’s really getting out of control.”
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The devotees look at one another somewhat bewildered. They realize
this is extremely hazardous because their efforts to extinguish the fire
have been to no avail. Vishnujana Swami’s first thought is to get the
Deities out.
“Let’s get Radha-Damodara out, right now! This bus is a real fire trap.”
The brahmacārīs on the bus doing kirtan are unaware of the dangerous
situation.
Radha Raman screams, “Everybody get out immediately. Right now!

We can’t put out this fire.”
Radha Raman: We were outside screaming for everyone to get out, and
the guys inside were chanting and had no idea what was going on. We
were fighting the fire as hard as we could and they were in a good
kirtan, but the flames were getting closer to the fuel tank and the
propane cylinders. It was a raging fire and they wouldn’t stop the kirtan.
They just thought we would put the fire out.
There is a door at the rear end of the bus. Dayal Chandra quickly
unhitches the Saab from the back of the bus and reverses it down the
highway a considerable distance to allow Maharaja easy access to the
Deities. Vishnujana quickly opens the back door to rescue Radha-
Damodara. Narada Muni rushes over to help him carry out Their
portable altar and palanquin. Sri Galim, who is still inside the bus,
quickly pulls out all Radha-Damodara’s outfits and jewelry that hang on
a rail in the back. He takes them out safely in the Deity box.
There is barely enough time to take the Deities out of the bus before the
conflagration starts to take over the vehicle. Radha-Damodara are
placed unharmed on the ground a safe distance away.
The propane gas cylinders have to be removed from the kitchen because
they can explode and cause tremendous damage. In a panic,
Mahamantra is hurling everything out of the kitchen window. While
lowering a propane tank from the kitchen, in the heat of the moment the
419
cylinder falls on Dayal Chandra’s foot. Dayal has a thing with
Mahamantra and now he’s ready to kill him.
Mahamantra: The fire started at the rear wheel and the flames were
building up. I accidentally dropped a gas cylinder on Dayal Chandra’s
toe. “OOOOWWWW! MY TOE!!” I can still remember it.
The remaining devotees now realize the seriousness of the situation and
start piling out of the bus. Some want to rescue their personal
belongings, but it’s an impossible task. Smoke begins billowing out the
doors and they come out coughing and gagging. As a last resort,
Vishnujana asks Radha Raman if he can rescue the lakṣmī.
Radha Raman: They sent me back into the bus to get the money. We
had buckets full of coins. I ran inside the bus like a charge, but it was so
thick with smoke that I hit the floor immediately. I couldn’t do anything.
I couldn’t even move. It’s not risking your life when you’re trying to get
the lakṣmī. You have to do that. I felt around for the money but it was
just so hot, I couldn’t take it. Then I got back out, real fast.
Radha Raman runs out on the highway trying to flag down truck drivers
to get a fire extinguisher. All he has on is a lungi; no shoes, and no shirt.
He gets one truck driver to stop and begs him for his fire extinguisher.
The man says, “Well, okay.” Radha Raman rushes back to the bus, but
he’s hit by a blast of heat. He drops the fire extinguisher and runs. The
truck driver is furious.
Sridhara: There we were on Interstate 10 with the Deities on Their

palanquin, and Their clothing box full of Their outfits. And that was it!
Black smoke was going way up into the sky. The four lanes had cars
backed up as people stopped to see what’s going on here; and it’s a Hare
Krishna bus with Hare Krishna written all over the side with conchs,
maces, and lotus flowers, in white and pink and blue and yellow. It was
a great loss. My original japa beads were lost in that fire.
420
The fire began blazing so fast that they just barely got the Deities out the
back door of the bus on Their palanquin. Nobody could envision that the
entire bus was going to burst into flames so suddenly.
Now the flames begin expanding from the back of the vehicle towards
the front.
Within minutes, one side of the bus is completely on fire. Soon, black
smoke pervades the entire bus. Everyone realizes it’s just a matter of a
few minutes more before the whole bus will be engulfed in flames.
Suddenly, the sound of gunfire punctuates the atmosphere. Devotees are

stunned to hear the sound of exploding bullets.
A few months earlier, Vishnujana Swami had purchased some guns and
stocked up on three hundred rounds of ammunition to protect the party
after the New Vrindavan biker incident. Now, as that ammunition starts
going off in the blazing fire, it reminds the devotees of firecrackers on
Independence Day.
Sri Galim: After New Vrindavan was attacked by those demons, we

decided to get guns to protect ourselves. So in Dallas, Vishnujana
Maharaja told me to go to a gun shop and buy two handguns. So I
bought a .38 and a .22 pistol. Together we went out to the firing range to
practice. It was a funny scene; two shaven headed devotees in dhotis
with śikhā and tilak, and neither one of us could hit the target. We were
practicing on the blanks.
After we fired we’d look, and he’d say, “Did you hit it?”
“I don’t know if I hit it or not.” At the end I don’t think we ever hit the
target at barely 25 paces away. So we had these guns and ammunition
and while the bus was burning the ammunition was exploding.
As the devotees stand there mesmerized by the fire and the exploding
bullets, Dayal Chandra is thinking of all the things that are burning up in
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the bus, and what might be left; their beads, their clothing, Vishnujana
Swami’s danda, so many tapes, and all the laksmi. Then he remembers
the fuel remaining in the tank. The devotees are standing a distance
from the raging fire but in a direct line opposite the gas cap, so he
immediately warns everybody to quickly move down the road.
“The fire is right next to the fuel tank. We better get out of here, fast.”
Quickly they move further down the highway carrying Radha-
Damodara on Their palanquin.
The devotees stand down the road on the shoulder watching the fire eat
up everything within its reach, as the bullets continue exploding. The
fire has heated the tank to such an extent that the gas cap abruptly blows
off with an explosion, KABOOM. Then the flames hit the fuel tank.
There’s a tremendous blast and a flame
10 meters long shoots straight out from the cap and scorches the ground
where the devotees had previously been standing. A huge conflagration
engulfs the bus and black smoke permeates the vehicle.
Pandu: We ran down the road and all of a sudden, ‘poof’, the bus just
went up in flame. It just went ‘poof’. It was just one stroke. It ignited
and that was it. We took the Deities and Their clothes off the bus, but
everything else, all the books, all the money, all our clothes were still on
the bus. Vishnujana Swami was weeping, I remember.
Everyone is so sad to see their bus, where they live with Sri Sri Radha-
Damodara, going up in smoke and flame. They are barefoot in their
dhotis, some of them without kurtās, as their home and Radha-
Damodara’s temple, becomes a blazing inferno. They have escaped with
Radha-Damodara, but everything else, all the instruments, the books,
the money, their clothing, is now burning up with the bus. Vishnujana
Maharaja stands in front of Sri Sri Radha-Damodara on the side of the
road, fanning his beloved Deities with a peacock fan as the bus burns
down to a charred cinder.
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Dayal Chandra: Within 15 minutes it was a huge fire. We had loaded
tons of KRSNA Book Trilogies onto the bus, which was too heavy for
the bearings. That’s what started the thing, and that’s what fueled the
fire also. When the fire got to those books, the whole thing just started
burning and wouldn’t go out.
In what seems like a horrible nightmare, the bus burns right down to its
frame. Someone must have reported the event because a fire engine
unexpectedly arrives, pulls around and stops behind the burning bus.
Quickly the firemen hose the bus down, completely putting out the fire.
Within a half hour from the moment they pulled over to the side of the
road, they are left standing on the highway with nothing. The bus is a
charred, twisted, cinder on the New Mexico desert floor. Everything is
gone, including the roof. All that’s left is a smoking hulk with just the
metal ribs protruding.
But Radha-Damodara are safe and all the devotees are out of harm’s
way.
The brahmacārīs are completely distraught standing in the sand by the

roadside along with Radha-Damodara on Their palanquin. A passing
newspaper reporter from El Paso stops his car to get photos. He takes a
black and white Polaroid photo of Vishnujana Maharaja with his arms
upraised holding his danda in front of the black, still smoking shell of
their former bus, as if to say, what can be done?
Pandu: Out of some stroke of luck, a newspaper reporter happened to be

driving by. He stopped to take a few shots. Vishnujana Swami stood
right in front of the bus for one picture.
It was really a dramatic picture. I wish I had a copy of it. That picture is
still in my mind. It was a Polaroid so we got a copy of it.
The reporter drives off with a promise to send help. So now they stand
on Interstate 10 holding out their thumbs to hitchhike into Las Cruces,
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the nearest town. Sri Sri Radha-Damodara are hitchhiking in the middle
of the desert with Their surrendered devotees. Everyone is totally
depressed, yet thankful that Radha-Damodara have been saved and no
one is injured.
Unfortunately, they are not having much luck hitchhiking. Everyone

passes them by, peering back at them with strange looks. Vishnujana
Swami continues fanning Radha-Damodara to keep Them cool from the
heat of the midday sun. They try flagging down vehicles until finally a
friendly man in a pickup truck stops and offers the devotees a ride into
town.
Dayal Chandra: No one would help us. All those people were rednecks
in New Mexico, except one real nice guy who worked for the gas
company. He came in his truck and we loaded the Deities into the truck.
We also had a little car that we were towing on the back of the bus. We
saved that and drove the car into Las Cruces.
Sitting in the back of the pickup truck with Radha-Damodara, devotees

see their bus fade into a small dot on the horizon. Soon they cross over
the Rio Grande. It’s a smaller type of river, not nearly as big as they
would have expected. Las Cruces is in a valley and soon they see green
farmland on the right side of the road and the town coming up on the
left side.
As the truck descends a long hill approaching the outskirts of Las

Cruces, they pass a big Truck Stop and Rail Yards with many industrial
buildings to support the transportation industry. Obviously, there’s
civilization here compared to the sagebrush and tumbleweed terrain
where the charred bus still remains.
Soon the landscape completely changes and different varieties of trees

come into view. At the bottom of the hill they leave the highway at Exit
142, slowing down on the wide circular ramp, going back under the
highway, an eight meter high dual road bridge for each direction on the
Interstate. As the truck makes the turn onto Main Street, devotees see
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many billboards advertising Motels and a sign that reads:
Visitor’s Information,
Las Cruces Visitor’s Center
They pass all kinds of filling stations, Texaco, Chevron, Beacon, and
come upon an old brown brick church that’s very quaint and quite
attractive. Someone remarks that it looks out of place in the industrial
surroundings. The man drives them to the Salvation Army store where
they can find clothes and food stamps. He tells them it gets cold after
dark so they will need warm clothing and a place to stay the night.
In the Salvation Army store there are four check-out counters. Radha-
Damodara are placed upon one of the counters and devotees begin
looking at the racks of clothing for sale. People are inside buying things
and some come by just to look at the Deities.
Vishnujana Maharaja is fanning Radha-Damodara as people pass by to

pay for their merchandise, looking completely bewildered. What’s going
on here? Maharaja continues fanning the Deities the whole time the
devotees are in the store.
He doesn’t quite know what to do; it has been such a shocking

experience.
After hearing the whole story from Radha Raman, the store manager
tells them to pick out whatever clothing they need because they are
barefoot with only their dhotis on. He suggests they get a voucher for a
free motel room at the Visitor’s Center, which is administered by a local
government agency.
Following the directions given by the lady at the Visitor’s Center, the
devotees get a room at the Motel 6 on La Plasado Lane, a beige-color 2-
story hotel structure with four large wings. Each wing has a green
balcony surrounding the second floor. It’s called Motel 6 because a
425
room is only $6 per night.
Mahamantra: Vishnujana Maharaja and Sri Galim put Radha-Damodara

in the motel room, and awwww, just to remember it almost makes me
cry. They were so beautiful. Their effulgence was casting around the
whole room. We were thinking, what are we going to do? Vishnujana
Swami was trying to see it as Krishna’s mercy.
He was saying, “Oh Radha-Damodara. Somehow this has happened by

Your order, and we are here in this room. We are simply trying to offer
You whatever we can. Please forgive us.” Vishnujana Maharaja was in
tears. He was so emotional and so moved by Radha-Damodara, basking
in Their effulgence in that motel room.
Narada Muni: We lost everything, even our clothing. Vishnujana Swami

wasn’t in anxiety or anything. He always displayed detachment and
dependence on Krishna.
Sridhara helps Maharaja hang a sheet across one corner of the room to
make a place for Sri Sri Radha-Damodara to allow Them some privacy.
Nobody really says much because they are all so heartbroken. It has
been a weird day, ekādaśī. Some people are thinking, we shouldn’t even
have been driving.
To break the silence, Mahamantra asks, “Maharaja, what does it mean?”
“It means that Radha-Damodara want a new bus. That bus was not good
enough for the Supreme Lord. We should have gotten a new bus long
ago. Radha-Damodara are so wonderful and Their pastimes are so
glorious.
“These are the most unique pastimes. No other Deities perform such
pastimes in any śāstra that we have read. Radha-Damodara are so
special. They are directly the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His
eternal Pleasure Potency, Srimati Radharani, the hladini shakti love
energy of the Supreme. They have descended to this planet to perform
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Their pastimes of spreading the sankirtan movement. They are not just
arcā- vigraha, but directly Radha and Krishna from Goloka Vrindavan!
“So we are very fortunate to be able to serve Them. But if we don’t

realize our good fortune, if we don’t take advantage of our good
fortune,” Maharaja explains, “then we become the most unfortunate and
we at once become vanquished in our devotional life. But if we realize
who Radha-Damodara are, that They have come for our benefit, that
They want to establish a loving relationship with each and every one of
us, then we become the most fortunate.
“Then we become eligible to return back to home, back to Godhead in

this very life. So we must take the necessary steps to reestablish our
loving relationship with Them.”
The next day, several devotees drive out to where the burned out hulk of
the bus is still lying by the side of the highway. They go through the
ruins and try to salvage what they can. All the lakṣmī that was
supposedly protected in the make-shift safe is completely burnt and all
the paper money has been cindered.
Mahamantra: I remember sifting through the coins and washing the

coins later on. That was one of my services. The mṛdaṅga was burnt, the
harmonium was burnt, and all the books that were underneath the bay
were burnt. All the instruments and all the devotees’ personal garments
were burnt.
Vishnujana Swami decides to make some phone calls to seek help. He

calls the Houston temple first where the traveling party of Suhotra,
Riksaraj, Hasyagrami, and Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva, are supposed to
rendezvous with the bus. Fortunately, Suhotra is at the temple when
Maharaja calls to tell him the unhappy story. After understanding the
miserable situation they are in, Suhotra assures Maharaja that he will
wire all of his money immediately.
Suhotra: We were going to Austin, where Prahladananda was running
427
the center, when I got the news that the bus had burned up. The fire
didn’t seem serious at first, but the conflagration spread quickly and
they just had time to get the Deities out. All the lakṣmī burned up and
only the coins were left. There was one black and white photo of
Vishnujana Maharaja standing in front of the burned out shell with a
melancholy smile. In the background you could see the smoking ruins of
the bus.
Next, Vishnujana calls Karandhar in Los Angeles to explain what

happened and to ask for help. “The books we just got from you burned
up completely, along with our bus and everything else,” he explains.
“Can the BBT loan us back our $5000 for a new bus until we get back
on our feet?”
Later in the day Vishnujana Swami is at the local Western Union office
in Las Cruces where he picks up money wired by Suhotra. Dayal
Chandra rents a U-Haul truck and they place Radha-Damodara in the
wooden box that They have for traveling. They put the box in the back
of the truck and get out of town. A few devotees follow behind in the
Saab. Their destination: Houston temple.
Houston, Texas, November 12, 1973

A cry goes out to the movement. Vishnujana Swami is calling different
temples all over America telling them what happened. “Please, whatever
you can do to help our party get back together again, will be greatly
appreciated.” By calling around, devotees immediately start donating
things. New Vrindavan affirms that they will gladly accept Sri-Sri
Radha-Damodara.
Mahamantra: When Vishnujana Maharaja sent an appeal to the temples

news went out even to Srila Prabhupada. Maharaja lost his beads and
Srila Prabhupada was so moved that he immediately chanted on another
set of good-sized tulasi beads, out of affection for him.
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Suhotra: I remember that Prabhupada was very pleased when
Vishnujana got another bus and continued on after the first one burned
down. He said, “Nothing stops this man. He received a setback but he
keeps going.” That’s what I admired about Vishnujana Maharaja.
The Radha-Damodara party regroups trying to figure out what to do

next. They remain at the Houston temple for several days going out for
sankirtan and book distribution to lift their spirits and collect funds.
Very quickly, Maharaja gets his $5000 loan from Karandhar for the new
bus. He had just paid $5000 for the books that burned up in the bus, so
now the party owes the BBT $5000, with no books to distribute.
Vishnujana sees the incident as Krishna’s mercy, somehow, because

Radha- Damodara were not harmed in any way. He explains to the
others, “I think Krishna wants us to get a new bus.” That’s his
conclusion. He has an idea to get a first class Greyhound bus to replace
the clunky old school bus.
Radha Raman has a suggestion. “I know where to get a Greyhound bus.

There’s this place up in north Jersey, where I grew up, that sells second
hand buses.” It sounds like a plan and, since there are no alternative
proposals, that becomes their next objective.
Vishnujana comes to a decision. “It is better to base ourselves in New

Vrindavan for a little while, until we get a new home for Radha-
Damodara.” He sends different devotees to different places for the
interim period. Some will go to New Vrindavan, and some will go to the
Gainesville temple. Pandu chooses to return to Los Angeles. The
Polaroid picture is used to help collect money.
Following lunch prasādam, Dayal Chandra and Radha Raman place

Radha-Damodara back in Their wooden traveling box, put the box in the
trunk of the Saab, and along with Sri Galim and Maharaja, leave
Houston driving north towards New Vrindavan.
Hasyagrami: I think Krishna’s plan was very much in force then. We
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saw it as Radha- Damodara wanting a new bus. We had a picture of
Vishnujana Maharaja in front of the burned out bus shell and that was
our begging picture. We went to the temple presidents and asked them
to help us out. Vishnujana’s party was received much better than the
Road Show. Everyone figured he was a poor business manager, and he
seemed to be a kind of devil-may- care personality, but he was such a
good preacher and such a charismatic conductor of inspirational Krishna
consciousness, that he was received very well for a long, long time.
Mahamantra: They sent me out to Gainesville, Florida, with Suhotra’s

party. We had an old, beat-up green van with wooden platforms, and the
roof leaked. Since I didn’t like it in Florida, they sent me up Interstate
75 to Atlanta where I spent a month distributing packs of incense.
In Gainesville, Suresvara greets Suhotra’s party on arrival. He has

hitchhiked to Gainesville from New Vrindavan intent on joining
Vishnujana Swami’s party in Florida. Now, Suresvara is dismayed
hearing how Radha-Damodara’s temple has burned to a cinder in New
Mexico. He informs Suhotra that he left Mahatma’s party to join the
New Vrindavan community that had just been shot-up by the bikers.
Now he has come to join Radha-Damodara and the bus has just been
destroyed. What is the deep meaning?
Suresvara: As soon as I arrived in Gainesville, word came that the bus

had burned and they had all just gotten out. There was a picture of
Vishnujana Swami standing in front of the empty shell shrugging his
shoulders. Radha-Damodara were standing outside the bus.
The fire incident illustrates how Sri Sri Radha-Damodara are willing to
take great risk in order to give Their mercy to the fallen conditioned
souls. Vishnujana Maharaja went out with Them every day, every week,
every month, 365 days a year for a full program of chanting, dancing,
and feasting. By distributing books, prasādam, and the Holy Name,
Vishnujana Swami’s party was a major participant in the fulfillment of
Lord Chaitanya’s prophecy: “In every town and village throughout the
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world, My name will be sung.”
Riksaraj: We did the whole USA a few times in that first year. We were
one of the first major sankirtan parties out there. We were doing the
KRSNA Book trilogies, hundreds of them a day. Maharaja hardly ever
slept. He was known for nodding out during japa because everybody
knew he loved to eat and he hated to sleep.
We had a nice morning program. He treated everybody fair and never

talked bad about anybody. He wasn’t fake, and he wasn’t into politics.
Dallas, Texas, November 1973

Four Radha-Damodara devotees arrive at the Dallas temple after dark.
They are greeted by Mandalesvara, who welcomes them with hot milk
and Radharani’s garland for Vishnujana Swami. Receiving the mahā
milk from Sri Sri Radha-Kalachandji, Vishnujana holds up the cup and
says, “Back to home, back to Godhead,” before taking a drink.
Mandalesvara: Vishnujana Swami arrived at the temple at night in a

Saab. He sat down in the auditorium that had church pews and stained
glass windows. He spoke in a personal way, “Radha-Damodara are in
the car.” I was surprised that he had so few words. He just offered this
explanation, “Radha-Damodara must want a new bus.” The bus was old
and junky, not good enough for God, and They wanted something
better. Vishnujana Swami saw everything as directly under the control
of Radha-Damodara. His plan was to go to New Vrindavan.
He whispered, “Srila Prabhupada said that purity is the force, and New
Vrindavan is just like a magnet.”
I noticed that Maharaja had pieces of Radha-Damodara’s clothes sewn

into his chaddar. It’s no more strange than wearing the Deity garland in
the temple because it’s prasādam.”
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In Srimad Bhagavatam we find this verse spoken by Uddhava to Lord
Krishna.
tvayopabhukta-srag-gandha-
vāso-’laṅkāra-carcitāḥ
ucchiṣṭa-bhojino dāsās
tava māyāṁ jayema hi
My dear Lord, the garlands, scented substances, garments, ornaments

and other such things that have been offered to You may later be used
by Your servants. By partaking of these things and eating the remnants
of food You have left, we will be able to conquer the illusory energy.
[SB 11.6.46, quoted in CC, Madhya 15.237]
In the purport, Srila Prabhupada elucidates. “In the Hare Krishna

movement, the chanting of the Hare Krishna mahā-mantra, the dancing
in ecstasy, and the eating of the remnants of food offered to the Lord are
very, very important. One may be illiterate or incapable of
understanding the philosophy, but if he partakes of these three items, he
will certainly be liberated without delay.”
The next morning, Vishnujana Swami leads maṅgala-ārati, gives the

class, and honors prasādam with the local devotees. Radha-Damodara
prefer to remain private and don’t give Their darshan on this brief visit
to Dallas. After breakfast, only three devotees get back into the Saab
and head northeast on Interstate 30 towards New Vrindavan. Sri Galim
will stay in Dallas because Radha-Damodara’s program is almost
completely finished. Vishnujana will drive to New Vrindavan with
Radha Raman and Dayal Chandra because there isn’t enough room for
Sri Galim in the car.
Sri Galim: I really didn’t feel the state fairs were the proper engagement
for Vishnujana Maharaja. He was leading kirtans and we would bring
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the Deities out, but still it just didn’t feel like the right atmosphere.
New Vrindavan, November, 1973

Everybody in New Vrindavan eagerly awaits the arrival of Vishnujana
Swami. It’s late November and very cold in these West Virginia hills. In
summer many sannyāsīs visit New Vrindavan and devotees are always
anxious for their arrival, but the coming of winter means few visitors
until the spring thaw. Since the first snow began to fall, Kirtanananda
Swami has been making plans to visit Srila Prabhupada in India.
Vishnujana’s pending arrival in New Vrindavan is fortuitous. Everyone

has heard the sad story how Radha-Damodara’s bus was destroyed; how
Maharaja lost everything in the fire but saved the Deities. There is a
broad feeling of support in New Vrindavan that he wants to take refuge
here. Kirtanananda can now go to India because Vishnujana Swami will
keep everyone enlivened in Krishna consciousness.
Shankar Pandit: I was a bhakta newly arrived in New Vrindavan when

devotees started saying, “Vishnujana Swami is coming.” I had already
heard a lot about him and the Road Show before he came. So I thought
he was a celebrity and I was looking forward to meeting him.
I remember asking Radha Kanta Prabhu, “What is Vishnujana Swami

like?”
“Oh, he’s a very talented preacher, a very good kirtan man. Everyone
likes him.” He showed me a harmonium in a corner, “See that
harmonium? That’s Vishnujana’s.” It was an old broken harmonium that
was no longer used. I thought, great, that’s Maharaja’s harmonium!
Late one afternoon, a white Saab drives into the Bahulavan compound.
Two brahmacārīs and a sannyāsī alight. The local devotees scramble to
form a kirtan party to celebrate their arrival. A pūjārī hurriedly grabs
one of last night’s flower garlands and gracefully slips it around
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Maharaja’s neck.
Vishnujana announces that Sri Sri Radha-Damodara have also come. As

the kirtan shifts into a higher gear, Radha-Damodara are taken in Their
wooden box from the car to the pūjārī room. Several pūjārīs move the
Jagannath Deities over and place Radha- Damodara where Lord
Jagannath had previously been, next to Radha-Vrindavan Chandra on
the right hand side of the altar, with Gaura-Nitai on the far left.
Now that Vishnujana Swami and Radha-Damodara are safely deposited

in New Vrindavan, Dayal Chandra and Radha Raman offer their
obeisances, get back into the Saab, and head out to search for a new bus.
They plan to stay at Radha Raman’s family home in New Jersey, from
where they will begin their quest. On the drive north, Dayal confides
that he was always upset having to constantly fix the old school bus.
“I think the fire was a blessing, because Maharaja wouldn’t get rid of
that old clunky bus. So the whole thing went up in a big fire sacrifice.
I’m glad to see the last of it.”
A few days later, Kirtanananda Swami is ready to leave for India. With
a wave of his hand he gives Vishnujana full charge of the temple, “Here,
it’s yours.” This arrangement satisfies everyone. Kuladri has the car
warmed up as Kirtanananda bids farewell to the devotees. He has long
anticipated his visit with Prabhupada, who is currently situated at the
New Delhi temple in the city’s Anand Niketan district.
The New Vrindavan community is made up mostly of men. The mātājīs

live at the Vrindavan farm up on a hill. The brahmacārī ashram is at the
Bahulavan farm and in the Bahulavan temple, where Sri Sri Radha-
Vrindavan Chandra reside, there is an upstairs room where electrical
gear and other supplies are kept. Gadadhar lives in that room but he
moves out to accommodate Vishnujana Swami who accepts the small
room for his New Vrindavan sojourn.
As soon as he is settled, Vishnujana Swami introduces a personal
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darshan. Anyone can come up and sit in his room and talk to him about
whatever is on their mind. He posts his schedule on the wall right
outside his door so that anyone who wants to can join him, any time of
day.
Chandramauli: For us it was kind of overwhelming, with this wonderful

devotee giving us a chance to sit there and speak our mind, and to just
be our friend. It was something new for New Vrindavan.
Garga Rishi and a few other brahmacārīs want to test Vishnujana Swami
to see how austere he is. The local fare is a representation of dhāl, which
is a soup with hardly any beans in it at all. Sometimes there are comfrey
leaves in this soup. Every day, they bring Maharaja this simple
prasādam that devotees eat, but not the mahā-prasādam from Radha-
Vrindavan Chandra.
“That’s all there is?” Maharaja asks, incredulous. He accepts it because

he’s a humble devotee but there are no chapatis, nor sabji preparations.
Sometimes they bring him dry baked bread. Instead of rice, there is
barley, but only occasionally. The kitchen is full of bags of corn,
normally used for horse feed, which devotees grind for making upma, to
which they add boiled pumpkin.
Garga Rishi: We just kept bringing him the simple prasādam, sort of the
Brijbasis’s test. He ate that every day. But after a while he said, “I gotta
have some better prasādam. I can’t exist on this New Vrindavan fare.”
But actually he did for a long time, so it wasn’t that he was really
complaining. The other sannyāsīs that came through wouldn’t have
stood for it. Everybody else on the first day would say, “Where’s the
prasādam?” But Vishnujana Swami loved the devotees so he tolerated,
and we were actually impressed. Everyone loved him.
Vishnujana prefers to honor prasādam with the brahmacārīs rather than

take alone in his room upstairs. He is unaware that the Deities are
getting extremely opulent prasādam. Driven by hunger, the New
Vrindavan devotees have become expert mahā-prasādam thieves. They
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are wild about the Deities’ incredible mahā-prasādam. After Maharaja
has passed Garga Rishi’s test, he is brought a mahā plate regularly. Now
he enjoys distributing the sweets to the devotees because he understands
how austerely they eat.
On one occasion he asks Shankar Pandit to sit beside him and Shankar
feels very honored to sit next to Maharaja. As Vishnujana preaches to
the brahmacārīs, he takes a sweet off his plate and puts it on Shankar’s
plate. “This is mahā-prasādam,” he says with a smile.
Shankar Pandit: I immediately gobbled it down impressed that he was

so warm and friendly with everyone. His overall disposition was of an
equal, a friend, though it was easy to understand that he was a very
advanced devotee. He would always distribute the mahā- prasādam, so I
made it a habit to sit near him. I appreciated that he was very personal
with everyone. It didn’t matter if you were a big devotee, small devotee,
young devotee, or old devotee, he didn’t make any discrimination. I was
immediately attracted to him because his persona was so mystical. The
way he would talk, or gesture with his hands in a majestic way, I
thought he was extraordinary. So I thought I would introduce myself at
an opportune time.
The next day, Shankar Pandit sees Vishnujana Swami sitting by himself
reading one of Prabhupada’s books. He takes the opportunity to
introduce himself. He offers obeisances and due to excitement he blurts
out, “I’ve heard so much about you that I’ve always wanted to meet
you. Is it true you used to be the backup guitarist for Jefferson
Airplane?”
Shankar is trying to satisfy his own curiosity as well as reveal that he

likes that band.
Maharaja is reluctant to discuss his past but he does acknowledge that

he was associated with different groups in the Bay area. “But now, the
main thing is I’m part of Krishna’s band.” Shankar appreciates his reply.
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“Where did you join the movement?” Maharaja asks.
“I originally joined the Washington, DC, temple but I just wanted to get
away from my hometown so I came here.” Vishnujana Swami is pleased
to hear that.
“Yes, the New Vrindavan community is a very nice place to begin your
devotional life. Now you should take up some type of regulated service
and become Krishna conscious. I’m going to be giving harmonium and
mṛdaṅga lessons. Would you be interested?”
“Yes, very much so.”
“Well, what would you like to learn?”
Shankar is attracted to both instruments but decides to choose one. “I’d

like to play the drum.”
The next day Maharaja gives Shankar his first mṛdaṅga lesson.
Shankar Pandit: He had me sit directly opposite him on the floor in a

very comfortable fashion. He put a drum on his lap and arranged for me
to have a drum also. Then he started playing. He showed me some
standard beats that he was using in kirtan. He was a very good teacher.
He was watching my progress, sometimes taking my hand to show me
how to hit the drum, and where to hit it. He had many students learning
harmonium and drum. That was my most intimate contact with him.
Although New Vrindavan is considered very austere by most devotees,

there is one individual who considers it to be sense gratification. Before
he became a devotee, he was a yogi and used to do all kinds of tapasya.
In India he was living in caves and jungles because he had made a vow
that he wouldn’t sleep indoors. When he visited Vrindavan he slept on
the bank of the Jamuna, and that’s where he heard about Srila
Prabhupada.
437
Radhanath: I was living in Vrindavan for a year as a bābājī. I didn’t
know of ISKCON but when Prabhupada came I met him. He had little
Deities with him and he revealed more beauty in those little Deities than
all the big wonderful Deities I was seeing every day. They were little
Radha-Krishna Deities. Even though I was following everything as well
as I possibly could, I still wouldn’t cut my matted hair or take initiation.
Even with Srila Prabhupada in Vrindavan, Radhanath continues

sleeping by the Jamuna. Every morning he comes for darshan and to
hear Prabhupada speak. Eventually he has to leave Vrindavan because
the Indian government refuses to renew his visa. When he learns there is
a New Vrindavan in America he decides to take shelter there.
Radhanath: When I came to New Vrindavan, I resolved that I would

only bathe outside and never take bath inside. When Vishnujana
Maharaja came it was freezing. There was a little pond where the cows
would drink water and it was covered with ice. It was about a ten minute
walk and I had to go through knee-deep mud to get to it. That’s where I
would take my morning bath every day using a gallon milk container to
pour the water over my head. Sometimes I had to break the ice with a
rock and it was icy, muddy water.
It was the only place I would take a bath, but I didn’t tell anybody that I
was doing this tapasya. I’d wake up early before everyone else, and
when I came back they thought I had bathed in the bathhouse. I
wouldn’t use a flashlight so when there was a moon I could see. When
there was no moon I would fall down here and there, but I got to that
pond. So I was doing this every morning and evening just wearing a
gamsha. I didn’t take a towel. They gave me an old army blanket
because they had no coats or anything.
Every morning when Vishnujana Swami takes bath in the bathhouse he

tells wonderful stories to the brahmacārīs, talking about Srila
Prabhupada, about preaching, and about Radha-Damodara’s mercy. It’s
not long before he discovers that Radhanath is never in the bathhouse.
438
One day he confronts him.
“Why are you never in the bathhouse when we’re telling stories?”
“Actually, Maharaja, I don’t usually bathe there.”
“Well, where are you bathing?” After Radhanath explains about the
pond and his determination for austerity, Vishnujana chastises him.
“This is all nonsense. It’s artificial austerity. Krishna consciousness is

not like that.
This will make you hard hearted. You should bathe with the other
devotees, and do like they are doing. You shouldn’t think that you’re
better than them. You should stop this austerity.”
A few days later, Vishnujana asks Radhanath, “Are you still bathing
outside?” “Yes, Maharaja.”
“Why are you doing this?”
“I have vowed that I will do this. I cannot break my vow.”
“This is a nonsense vow.” Maharaja is not pleased with Radhanath’s

response.
Radhanath: He chastised me, but he said it with so much love. It was not
like it created any difficulty in our relationship. He cared about me so
much that he didn’t want me get sick. He was like a mother. He was
very motherly. He treated devotees like his best friend, as if he loved
them. And he did love them – otherwise he would not have done that. It
was a spontaneous outpouring of his Krishna conscious nature.
I used to miss a lot of nectar because I wouldn’t go to the bathhouse. So

I would bathe outside and then go to the bathhouse to listen to his
stories. How he would speak and personally relate to devotees was so
wonderful and impressive! I spent lots of time with him and never heard
439
him find fault with anyone. It wasn’t in him. He would glorify anyone
he knew as a devotee. He would glorify Krishna consciousness, glorify
Srila Prabhupada, and ultimately everything went to the lotus feet of
Radha-Damodara.
One day Sri Galim arrives at New Vrindavan. He was unable to remain
in Dallas without the association of Vishnujana Maharaja. He sees that
Sri Sri Radha-Damodara are on the altar and he hears Maharaja leading
rousing kirtans and giving dynamic classes. He can see how Vishnujana
is inspiring the New Vrindavan brahmacārīs, who are really fired up by
his association. It’s almost like being back on the bus.
Vishnujana invites Sri Galim to share the little room with him next to
the brahmacārī ashram. Some New Vrindavan devotees are thinking,
what kind of a soul is this that he lives in the same room as Vishnujana
Maharaja and travels with him everywhere?
Sri Galim: He was chanting bhajans with the brahmacārīs, and they
were going to his room to get his association. I remember we went from
Bahulavan up to the mātājīs farm, the Vrindavan farm, and he led kirtan
there. Basically, he enlivened the devotees with his kirtan, his lectures,
and his association. They were hungry for his association.
Mahamaya dd: He started a bhajan every night before the evening ārati.
We began learning prayers we never knew before. He would hand out
copies of Ohe Vaishnava Thakur and songs like that. We didn’t know
these songs so he would teach them to us. It was an open thing for
whoever wanted to go. Then he would lead the evening ārati and give
Bhagavad-gita class. It was ecstatic.
Maharaja is also trying to train Sri Galim to play mṛdaṅga and

harmonium, so that he can have somebody to accompany him wherever
he goes. He spends hours trying to teach him, but Sri Galim is a slow
learner because he is not musically inclined.
Every morning after maṅgala-ārati, Vishnujana Maharaja chants his
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sixteen rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra in the temple room, and then
he chants eight rounds of the Panca-Tattva mantra. A few devotees also
start following that, like Sri Galim and Radhanath.
Radhanath: I would sit and chant the Panca-Tattva mantra with him for
an hour sometimes. Later on, Prabhupada told him there was no need to
do that. But for the whole six weeks he was there he would chant that
mantra. There was no privacy in his life, you could just come and join
him. You could sit and chant japa with him, you could chant Panca-
Tattva japa with him, he would teach harmonium lessons a certain time
of the day, he would teach mṛdaṅga lessons a certain time of the day,
and he would teach kartāl lessons to all the devotees. He loved to teach.
He was completely the property of the Vaishnavas. Throughout the
whole day he was talking and preaching, and just giving himself.
The New Vrindavan devotees are so enlivened by Vishnujana Swami

that they ask him to lead all the kirtans and give all the Bhagavatam
classes. Every evening he leads sandhyā-ārati kirtan and gives the
Bhagavad-gita class. His kirtans and classes are beautiful. He is able to
inspire the devotees to dance and sing in a way that reminds them of
Prabhupada. This is what is so charming about him. It’s a wonderful
time for the New Vrindavan devotees because no one else knows how to
lead a good kirtan.
During this time Srila Prabhupada writes a letter to Vishnujana asking

him to visit all the temples and teach devotees the proper way to present
kirtan.
Radhanath: We received a copy of that letter so it was an additional

feature to our hearts because Prabhupada was actually telling us to learn
kirtan from Vishnujana Maharaja. Every day he would lead beautiful
kirtans and he would dance back and forth from the altar to
Prabhupada’s vyāsāsana. We’d all dance back and forth like that with
him. He used to love to dance that step and the devotees also loved it.
The evening kirtans were especially wonderful. He would always sing
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the Gaura ārati song the way Prabhupada originally taught. It was not at
all the traditional Bengali melody that we usually hear. It was the
melody Srila Prabhupada sang on his tapes. Everyone would come to his
kirtans. Everyone!
After the last ārati, while the Deities are dressed in Their night outfits,
Maharaja sits in the temple playing harmonium and singing to Them.
Only a few people stay because some have other services and most
people take rest early because everybody rises early in New Vrindavan.
Every night Maharaja stays in the temple to sing bhajans and Radhanath
also stays up with him. Sometimes Taru and Parambrahma also stay up
with them to sing the bhajans. Radhanath plays mṛdaṅga while
Maharaja plays harmonium and leads the singing. Radhanath only
knows one beat on the drum, but it’s the right beat and Vishnujana likes
the way he keeps a steady rhythm. When the curtains open for the final
darshan Maharaja sings to the Deities.
Radhanath: In those days we did an ārati for the last darshan, and
mother Kutila used to offer that ārati. Vishnujana Maharaja would
alternate between two songs nightly, either Gopinath or Hari Haraye
Namah. He would sing with so much enthusiasm and so much feeling! I
remember his head would be up and he’d be looking at the Deities and
singing. Radha- Damodara were on the altar with Radha-Vrindavan
Chandra.
After that wonderful, wonderful kirtan, we would go into the little

prasādam room, which was outside the temple room, and we’d sit on the
floor. Sometimes just the two of us, and sometimes Taru or
Parambrahma would come. The pūjārī would bring him a plate of mahā-
prasādam. He would take a little paper plate and distribute the prasāda
to whoever was there and keep an equal amount for himself.
As Maharaja distributes the mahā-prasādam, he simultaneously glorifies

the qualities of prasādam.
“This is Krishna. Every taste is Krishna. Every mouthful is Krishna.
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Everything is as sweet as Krishna. This prasādam is all the mercy of
Krishna.”
Each evening when the mahā comes at 9:00pm, Maharaja speaks in the
same mood of glorifying prasādam to the few devotees sitting on the
floor to honor the holy remnants. Then Vishnujana tells beautiful stories
from śāstra, about sankirtan, and about Srila Prabhupada. Every night
they sit together on the floor until midnight, hearing these beautiful
stories.
Radhanath: He glorified prasāda like I wish I could glorify Krishna,

because he saw prasāda was Krishna. It was the most wonderful thing.
He would never get tired of glorifying prasāda and as he ate it, he would
savor it.
First we spent ten minutes glorifying prasāda with him, and then he
would talk for three hours. It was nothing formal; he would just share
his heart with us. He loved talking about Prabhupada. He would tell us
so many stories like how he met Prabhupada, and different relationships
he had with Prabhupada, and different instructions Prabhupada gave
him.
He was so dedicated to Prabhupada, so dedicated to his movement, and

he so much appreciated anyone who would help Prabhupada. In those
six weeks, three hours every night, I never heard him criticize or say
anything bad about any devotee. Practically every devotee that he would
talk about, he would simply extol whatever good qualities they had. He
really loved devotees. He really cared about them. His whole life was
simply to enthuse devotees and inspire them to do more service to Srila
Prabhupada and Krishna.
He told me he wanted his ex-wife to join with him, but she just wasn’t
interested. So he left her for Krishna consciousness. He renounced
everything. I remember that he was relating a story of his ex writing him
and sending pictures. He was relating it to Srila Prabhupada, how when
Prabhupada told him, “I had a small family that was not interested, but
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now Krishna has given me such a big family. That is much better.”
So Vishnujana Swami said the same thing. He told us the story of his
wife and child, and then he told us how he dealt with it, by remembering
what Prabhupada did, and what Prabhupada told him about his family.
“Just like Prabhupada I gave up one or two people but now, by
Prabhupada’s mercy, he’s given me a family of so many hundreds and
hundreds of wonderful devotees.” He never showed the slightest bit of
regret to me. He was ecstatic about what was happening in his life.
He explained in a blissful, positive way how he became involved with

that “Prabhupada is God” thing. He took it like a spiritual evolution, that
Prabhupada had saved him, and that Krishna was revealing the greatness
of Prabhupada and the greatness of Lord Chaitanya’s mission. The way
he explained it to us, it was just part of the evolution of the movement,
to purge the impersonalism out of it. And if these types of incidents
didn’t happen it really wouldn’t be so clear to us as it is now. He saw
everything as Radha-Damodara’s mercy, even the bus burning down.
He saw everything positively; there was no negativity in him.
Vishnujana Maharaja loves telling KRSNA Book stories, but more than
that he loves to talk about his preaching experiences and about Radha-
Damodara. He explains that for a long time he was longing to come to
New Vrindavan and spend time with the resident devotees. Prabhupada
told him that Radha-Damodara were in the mood of Gaura-Nitai and so
They could travel, but he always feels in his heart that one day his desire
is to build a temple for Them.
“It’s not proper for us to be traveling with Radha-Krishna Deities, but

Srila Prabhupada has given us the sanction. Ultimately, I want to build a
beautiful temple for Them.
“I always wanted to be here with the New Vrindavan devotees, with the
cows, and with Radha-Vrindavan Chandra. But because I had my
service I could only stop in for festivals. So now Radha-Damodara has
fulfilled my desire by burning that bus.”
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Maharaja has hundreds of stories about different devotees, different
places he visits, the different ways people respond to kirtan, and the
different ways people dance. He describes how the brahmacārīs
distribute books door-to-door. It’s not what he says, but how he tells it
that makes him so interesting. What he says is what all devotees say, but
he speaks with feeling and bhakti.
At midnight the other devotees have to pull themselves away from

Maharaja. They only get a few hours rest these nights, and they are
always tired, but they are attached to his association. These talks are so
interesting that the brahmacārīs tell everyone else, “Why don’t you
come and join us?”
“Oh, it’s too late.”
By spending nights in intimate talks, Radhanath develops a close feeling

for Vishnujana Swami and begins to reveal his mind to Maharaja. He
relates that when he was a wandering sadhu in India, his only possession
was a harmonica that he used to play as a way to pour out his heart’s
feelings.
“At Rishikesh I used to sit on a rock in the middle of the Ganga and
meditate from dawn to dusk, hearing only the river. As night fell, I
would retire to a cave after begging something to eat. One day I
understood that until I gave up this harmonica I could not make further
progress. I was thinking, I’m living in a cave, wearing only a lungi and
top cloth, and the only possession I have is this harmonica.
“I realized that I had to give up this attachment. One morning, as I sat

on the rock holding the harmonica, I finally offered it to Mother Ganga.
I threw it up in the air and watched as it left my hand, gracefully arching
forward and down as if in slow motion, and then entering the water to
disappear forever from my sight. I had renounced my final possession. I
had nothing else.”
“The harmonica is a perverted reflection of the harmonium,” Maharaja
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says. “You should play harmonium.”
“That same expression was coming through the harmonica.”
“In Krishna consciousness we can experience that rasa on harmonium,

but for Krishna, which is pure. So now you should learn to play
harmonium.” Unfortunately, there is no harmonium in the New
Vrindavan community.
Vishnujana always likes to go into the kitchen to cook, but in New

Vrindavan so few ingredients are available. He makes the endeavor, but
he’s not enthusiastic about cooking in New Vrindavan. Whatever the
resident devotees grow is what they eat. Whatever they don’t grow they
don’t eat. He likes to come into the kitchen with big plans of opulent
preparations for Radha-Damodara. He has a list for a Sunday feast that
he wants to prepare, but all that’s in the pantry is some hard squash and
pumpkin that will keep throughout the winter.
There is nothing available that is even close to being opulent. He can’t

even find any flour for rotis. Because it’s winter, there’s not much
bhoga in the kitchen.
Radhanath: He loved to make wonderful things for Radha-Damodara.

Anything he did he loved to do. When he was cooking he loved to cook.
When he was singing kirtan he loved to sing kirtan. When he was
preaching he loved to preach. When he was eating prasāda he loved to
eat prasāda. When he was talking to devotees he loved to talk to
devotees. Whatever he did he would savor it. You could see him
savoring his life moment after moment. Every aspect of Krishna
consciousness enthused and excited him and brought so many emotions
out of his heart. Every particle of what Krishna consciousness was
about, he would worship and glorify. It was wonderful and it was
contagious.
After a month in India, Kirtanananda Swami eventually returns to New

Vrindavan. He’s fond of the New Vrindavan burfi. Hladini mātājī
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always makes burfi for Radha- Vrindavan Chandra with silver leaf on it,
and Kirtanananda asks for it immediately upon his return.
Every morning, he and Vishnujana Swami sit together and honor

prasādam with all the brahmacārīs. Kirtanananda constantly glorifies
Hladini’s burfi.
“Have you ever tasted burfi like this? So creamy and so flavorful?”
“Yes, they are wonderful,” Vishnujana Maharaja replies, “but you

should try these rasagullās of Sri Galim. They are like out of Goloka
Vrindavan. You see they squeak. Your burfi does not squeak.”
Vishnujana Maharaja is very proud of Sri Galim’s rasagullās. He

continues glorifying Sri Galim’s rasagullās, “When you eat them they
squeak, they talk, they sing, they chant. We will conquer the world with
Sri Galim’s rasagullās.”
Then a big smile lights up his face. He especially loves Sri Galim’s
rasagullās made with New Vrindavan milk. Every day the sannyāsīs
challenge each other in a joking mood whether the burfi or the
rasagullās are better.
Radhanath: Kirtanananda Swami and Vishnujana Maharaja would sit

next to each other with nice big plates of mahā-prasāda. We’d all be
around with little bowls of unsweetened oatmeal, and a little trace of
mahā-prasāda. We’d be watching them and enjoying. We were happy to
see them having nice prasādam. They used to get into little
transcendental arguments over whether mother Hladini’s burfi was
better than Sri Galim’s rasagullās.
Sri Galim never thought they were that good at all. He was very humble
so he thought it was just Vishnujana Swami’s mercy to encourage him.
But actually they were wonderful. In those days we never had such an
exotic thing as a rasagullā in New Vrindavan.
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Chandramauli: Once there was a debate in the prasādam hall right after
lunch. Kirtanananda Swami took the side of the impersonalist and
Vishnujana Swami took the side of the devotee. It went back and forth
until it seemed that Kirtanananda Swami defeated him with the
impersonalist point of view. Kirtanananda was a scholarly impersonalist
before he became a devotee, so he knew the impersonalist philosophy
very well. The ability of impersonalists to defeat devotees is due to their
skill in word jugglery. Kirtanananda was expert in using word jugglery
and somehow he caught Vishnujana Maharaja in something. Then
Kirtanananda turned it around and acknowledged Krishna
consciousness. I remember that incident and it was a fun thing and very
sweet.
New Jersey, December 1973

Dayal Chandra and Radha Raman are hunting around for a Greyhound
bus with the $5000 loan from the BBT. There are many bus companies
on the eastern-most section of New Jersey bordering the Hudson River,
which separates New York from New Jersey. They search all over and
finally find just the right bus, a GMC 4104, sitting in a second-hand bus
dealership. Ironically, this bus has also been involved with fire, but only
the seats are destroyed.
During negotiations with the dealership, the salesman tells the true story
behind the burned out seats.
“The owner had run up some fuel bills on his charter service, so he
decided to set one bus on fire to collect the insurance money to pay his
bills and get out of that business. On Halloween he paid somebody to
shoot off a military rocket, an anti-tank weapon, through a bus window
to set the vehicle ablaze.
“But the fire department came too quick, so the only damage was the
burning of the seats and some charring of the interior walls. So, he
didn’t get the full insurance pay- off for the bus. Now, he’s hanging in
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limbo, still stuck with bills because he couldn’t collect the full amount
from the insurance company.”
The dealer allows the devotees to fire up the engine and take the bus for
a little drive around the area. Dayal Chandra confirms that it runs well
and is in great condition structurally and mechanically. The damage to
the interior is inconsequential, since the interior will have to be rebuilt
anyway to turn it into Radha-Damodara’s temple. All in all it’s an
excellent bus with low mileage on it.
Radha Raman tells the salesman, “We’re prepared to take this bus, even
with the defects, but we only have $5000. There’s no way we can come
up with more than that.” He hands the man the $5000. The dealer is not
satisfied with that amount of money. But the devotees maintain their
position and negotiate a good deal with the owner because he knows the
bus is no longer usable as a coach due to the burned-out interior.
Dayal Chandra: It was another great deal from Krishna, because it was
worth three times that much. But the guy who owned it was desperate
for cash. Later on, we found the head of a rocket inside.
Not long after the bus is purchased, Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva flies into

New Jersey from Florida. He is picked up at the airport by his mother.
He contacts Radha Raman and learns that they have already purchased a
bus and are staying at Radha Raman’s family home. Dayal Chandra
feels uncomfortable because there are six dogs in the house and Dayal
doesn’t like dogs. Lakshmi suggests that they move to his family’s
home, because their house has a big basement fixed up with living
accommodations.
Once settled away from the dogs, the three devotees get busy taking out
the burned seats and clearing the junk that is still on the bus. After
cleaning the interior and exterior, the naked gutted bus is now ready to
drive to New Vrindavan to pick up Vishnujana Swami and Radha-
Damodara.
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It’s snowing when the bus pulls up in front of the Bahulavan temple.
Dayal Chandra honks the horn. Seeing the huge bus through the temple
windows everyone understands, this is it, Maharaja is leaving. They all
run outside. Vishnujana is so happy to see the bus and his brahmacārīs
that he’s ready to leave in a moment. He just has to get Radha-
Damodara ready for departure. Everything is frozen over in New
Vrindavan so he’s anxious to get on the road.
Sri Galim helps Maharaja put Radha-Damodara in Their traveling box

because the bus is not furnished with an altar. “We can rebuild the bus
in Miami and turn it into a wonderful temple for Radha-Damodara,”
Vishnujana explains as he takes the wheel desiring to drive the new
vehicle.
Seeing that the bus has also been in contact with fire, Maharaja is quick
to notice the irony. Waving goodbye to the New Vrindavan devotees,
Maharaja and the bus disappears down the road.
Night falls as Vishnujana drives through thick snowfall in the West

Virginia hills.
It’s a twisting road with a slippery surface. Coming over the crest of a
steep hill the bus gathers momentum. All of a sudden, the bus is going
downhill at a fast clip, picking up speed due to the sharp slope.
Maharaja tries to apply the brakes but there is nothing behind the pedal.
It is snowing hard and the bus begins slipping and sliding down the
highway, still picking up speed.
Sri Galim is thinking that they are going to crash for sure, when
Vishnujana Maharaja turns to him and says, “Get Radha-Damodara out
of the box. They don’t like being packed up in a box.” Sri Galim quickly
takes the lid off the box where Radha- Damodara are lying down. He
stands Them up in the box, so They can see the road.
Vishnujana starts chanting, “Radha-Krishna, Radha-Krishna, Radha-

Krishna prāṇa mor!” pumping the brakes, and downshifting. The brakes
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are not responding so Maharaja pulls the emergency brake. Nothing.
Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva: I looked at the speedometer and we were up to

70 mph. I thought we were going to die because we had started at the
top of a mountain and were going downhill in the snow. I thought for
sure we would hit 100 mph, smash into something, and totally be
obliterated. Vishnujana Swami was driving but it wasn’t his fault
because it was a mechanical failure.
At the last moment the emergency brake catches and the bus begins to
slow down. Finally, they come to a stop at the side of the road. Dayal
Chandra does a quick inspection of the brakes. It appears that they are
still serviceable.
“We should just carry on,” Vishnujana says. They get back on the road
and continue driving until they arrive at the warm, sunny, Miami
temple.

Srila Prabhupada now spends most of his time in India overseeing his
major projects there. On November 23, he leaves India for a week of
scheduled programs in Nairobi, but is refused entry by the Kenya
immigration officers.
Taking it in stride, he flies to London instead. He spends a week at the

new temple complex recently donated by George Harrison,
Bhaktivedanta Manor.
Next, Prabhupada stops overnight in New York, gives a Bhagavatam

class, and then continues on to California. He arrives in Los Angeles on
November 30. Srutakirti, his servant, and Pradyumna, his secretary,
accompany him.
Srutakirti is happy to be back in the states. He never felt comfortable in
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India, and Los Angeles is the perfect place for him with pleasant
weather and lots of devotee association. The New Dwaraka pūjārī is
now Silavati mātājī, Radha-Damodara’s pūjārī from the Road Show.
Srutakirti considers her to be the ultimate pūjārī because of her
dedication and creativity in serving the Deities.
One day Silavati questions Srutakirti how he serves lunch for

Prabhupada. She enjoys hearing about Srutakirti’s experiences with
Prabhupada. He explains how he runs hot puffed-up chapātīs, with the
steam still coming out, back and forth for Prabhupada’s pleasure.
Charmed by this procedure, Silavati wants to do the same for her Deity
offerings.
The next day, when she brings Sri Sri Rukmini-Dwarakadisa Their
lunch, she runs back and forth with hot chapātīs. Seeing her endeavor,
Srutakirti decides to check with Prabhupada about this practice.
Srutakirti: When I mentioned this to Srila Prabhupada, he said, “No, no,

no. This is not acceptable.” She typified what Prabhupada called ‘the
American style’ – changing things to make improvements on the Vedic
system.
Now that he is comfortably ensconced in New Dwaraka, Prabhupada

catches up with his correspondence through which he manages the
entire International Society. There are many problems to untangle, the
most serious being the present situation in Hawaii. Some of his senior
disciples have sold the temple and abandoned the Tulasi plants. Srila
Prabhupada is incredulous.
That Gaurasundar and Siddha Svarupa have sold the Temple in Hawaii
and abandoned the beautiful Tulasi plants there is a great fall down on
their parts. They did not ask my permission. If they wanted to go away
they could have, but they had no right to sell the Temple. It is actually a
criminal act on their part. Anyone who follows them will also fall down
without a doubt.
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Now, we have by Krishna’s Grace built up something significant in the
shape of this ISKCON and we are all one family. Sometimes there may
be disagreement and quarrel but we should not go away. These
inebrieties can be adjusted by cooperative spirit, tolerance and maturity.
So I request you to kindly remain in the association of our devotees and
work together. The test of our actual dedication and sincerity to serve
the Spiritual Master will be this mutual cooperative spirit to push on this
Movement and not make factions and deviate. Try to convince
Gaurasundar and Siddha Svarupa to return to ISKCON and let us forget
whatever has happened in the past. [Letter to Babhru - December 9,
1973]
This is the same Siddha Svarupa who came to San Francisco fronting a
rock band after Prabhupada instructed devotees to give up rock music.
As Jayananda Prabhu had foreseen, by disobeying Prabhupada’s
instruction Siddha Svarupa has had a serious fall-down. Of course, most
of the mail is from faithful disciples, which gives Prabhupada much
solace. A letter from Jayananda recounts how he goes out daily for
street chanting. Prabhupada replies warmly.
I was very happy to hear from you. I am always thinking of you and
praying to Krishna for your advancement in Krishna Consciousness.
That you are engaged in street sankirtan in San Francisco is fully
approved by me.
That you are feeling more and more enthusiasm by doing this is quite
natural as sankirtan is our life and soul. My Guru Maharaja used to say,
“One who has got life, he can preach.”
Yes, I remember the old days in San Francisco. Krishna has been so
kind upon me to have sent so many sincere disciples to help me push on
this Movement on behalf of my Guru Maharaja. You continue with your
program there in San Francisco, always strictly keeping our principles
and Krishna will bless you with greater and greater realization of the
importance of this Movement. I am dependent upon you, my older
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disciples, to carry it on.
Please offer my blessings to your good wife, Trayi devi dasi, and thank
her on my behalf for the three nice drawings of Krishna lila. Also,
please thank Bhavatarini devi dasi for her drawing of Gopal Krishna. So
far how she can serve me, the best service is to chant Hare Krishna
always and spread it to every town and village. [Letter to Jayananda -
December 1, 1973]
Understanding that he needs more time to write his books, Prabhupada

decides to send a worldwide memo to all the devotees. He dictates the
letter to Karandhar and asks him to ensure that every center receives it.
On December 16, Karandhar sends out the memo to every ISKCON
temple worldwide.
A Memo to All Centers
Repeatedly Srila Prabhupada says, “I only want my disciples to take this

Movement seriously.” So, the punch line is that Prabhupada wants to
initiate the following schedule:
1. Reside four months in India, four months in Europe, and four months
in the USA out of each year.
2. See or speak to no one except very important visitors wherever his is

staying.
3. Be completely relieved of managerial affairs and have full time for

translating. What this means to us is the following:
1. Don’t ask Prabhupada to come to our Temple.
2. Solve all problems amongst ourselves and don’t burden Prabhupada

with them.
3. Continue to advance dynamically in Krishna consciousness by
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keeping all our principles very strictly, and vigorously preach and
propagate the movement around the world.
Now we have the GBC, the sannyasis, the presidents, and so many
qualified devotees. We have to give up the habit of placing everything
on Prabhupada’s shoulders. We must be responsible, mature, steadfast,
and convinced.
Wherever Prabhupada is staying he will deliver morning lectures.

Presidents, etc., may visit there and go on the walks with Prabhupada.
Other than that we must take care of all affairs. Enough said. The rest is
up to us. Haribol.
Your servant,
Karandhar das Adhikari
APPROVED: A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
So many devotees have come to Los Angeles now that Prabhupada is

here. One day, Vishnujana Swami arrives at the temple. He has left the
brahmacārīs in Miami to renovate the new bus. As soon as he arrives,
Maharaja manifests his former position as the inspirational leader of
New Dwaraka.
On morning walks a lot of ‘sticks’ accompany Prabhupada, like a forest

of dandas. Vishnujana Swami is also on the walks. As Prabhupada
returns from his morning walk, Vishnujana grabs a mṛdaṅga and leads
kirtan when Prabhupada enters the temple for darshan. Then Maharaja
leads the guru pūjā kirtan.
Pandu is back in New Dwaraka. His service is taking out the daily
sankirtan party to downtown Los Angeles. The party comprises 10-15
new devotees who go out with Pandu to chant the Holy Names and
distribute prasādam sweets. But with Vishnujana Swami back in town,
the sankirtan party now swells to over 200 devotees because everyone
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wants to go out chanting with Maharaja.
On Friday nights the party goes to Hollywood where the tourists gather.
As the kirtan party chants down the sidewalk, passersby are pushed back
against the shop windows. Restaurant diners stop eating to look up and
stare in wonderment. Vishnujana is so immersed leading kirtan that he
attracts everybody’s attention.
On Saturday nights, sankirtan is in Westwood. There’s a large open area

in front of the Bank of America that can accommodate hundreds of
devotees. With Maharaja leading kirtan, every devotee takes advantage
of his association to chant and dance with abandon as crowds stop to
watch.
At the temple, Vishnujana stays in one of the small rooms that

Karandhar has fixed up underneath Prabhupada’s quarters. Srutakirti is
up the stairs in the servant’s quarters at the end of the hallway next to
Prabhupada’s rooms.
Srutakirti: Vishnujana Swami had an incredible voice, and I heard him

preaching to a college girl in one room below Prabhupada’s quarters. I
thought this was unusual for a sannyāsī. It caused conversation!
Sannyāsīs didn’t associate with women in private areas, that’s why it
was like a shock. Even Prabhupada would call me in and make me sit
down if there was a woman in the room.
Vishnujana is not conscientious about how others view his position. He

is more like an avadhūta and his concern is spreading the Holy Name as
prophesied by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. He openly preaches to
whoever is interested in Krishna consciousness. He seems to lack the
social awareness that a sannyāsī can’t preach to women the same way as
to men. This mentality is disturbing to some devotees, and especially to
Karandhar.
Another thing that disturbs some devotees is that Vishnujana Swami

dozes during japa. Never mind that he is awake doing full-out service
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without any rest. But this further agitates Karandhar.
Although fully dedicated to his spiritual master’s mission, Karandhar is

struggling with his senses. This leads to a fault-finding mentality.
Eventually, such a state of mind results in a fall-down. Prabhupada has a
deep love for Karandhar and appreciates Karandhar’s integrity and
honesty about his situation. Although they say sex is for procreation
only once a month, many devotees are beginning to take license with
that. But in these early days nobody talks about such things, and nobody
reveals their mind in confidence.
Some devotees notice Karandhar’s attitude towards Vishnujana

Maharaja, but few take it seriously. Karandhar’s wife, Sacidevi,
however, can’t help but notice the change in her husband and the change
in Vishnujana Swami who, years earlier, had inspired her to become a
devotee.
Sachidevi: There was something personal going on between the GBC,

Karandhar, and Vishnujana Swami, who felt oppressed. That was the
feeling I got. I sensed that there was a lot of envy. No one ever validated
that; it was just my personal view. Karandhar was down on him, and
me. It’s painful to remember it, but I think things were going on –
politics. It was discouraging to him and it kind of diffused his bhakti.
There was a 3-way thing there. Prabhupada made a lot of comments that
Karandhar was too heavy on him.
Ragavindu: I was Hrdayananda’s secretary in Los Angeles so I saw

Vishnujana Swami with the GBC men and other sannyāsīs. Everyone
was different in private than they were in public. I could tell Vishnujana
was having a hard time. We would all chant japa in the sannyāsī
quarters, and he was falling asleep practically every bead. He was
expressing that he was having a hard time. He wasn’t trying to be
humble. But he didn’t explain what it meant to have a hard time.
Karandhar was the GBC, and he was anti-sannyāsī. He wanted to kick
all the sannyāsīs out of where they normally stayed when they came to
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the LA temple. Everyone thought Karandhar was nuts or something. No
one took it seriously, but Hrdayananda Maharaja was especially angry.
Although Karandhar continues his inimical mood, Vishnujana Maharaja

tries to remain neutral. Sadly, only a month later Karandhar resigns his
GBC post due to having an affair with another woman.
A few days before Christmas eight devotees arrive from Venezuela to

take initiation. On the morning of December 25, initiations are held and
Srila Prabhupada motions to the new devotees from his vyāsāsana.
“So come on. Chant the mantra, then I will give the names. I am not
asking individually about the four principles. I suppose you know this.
But I was just explaining, sat and asat. These two things are side by
side. Just like there is darkness and there is light. You’ll see, one side is
light, and one side is dark. Similarly, sat and asat, they are existing side
by side. If you don’t remain this side, then you come to this other side.
So it is my choice.
“So this Hare Krishna is the bright side, and the other things, material
activities, and sinful activities, meat-eating, intoxication, gambling,
illicit sex, is the dark side. So it is your choice. If you remain on the
bright side, then your progress is certain, and if you fall down again on
the dark side, that is your misfortune. So you should always remember
that. Come on.”
One by one the six men and two ladies from Venezuela, along with two
ladies from Los Angeles temple, come up to accept their beads and their
new names from Srila Prabhupada.
Later that afternoon, one of the Venezuelan initiates, Virabahu, is eager

to attend the sandhyā-ārati kirtan. The temple room has very thick doors
and the kirtan can’t be heard through the closed doors, so as not to
disturb the neighbors. As he opens the doors there is a blast of sound so
powerful that it just sweeps him away, pulling him into the kirtan. He
barely has time to offer his obeisances to the Deities, as he is just swept
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up in the kirtan.
Virabahu: Vishnujana Swami was leading the kirtan. Everybody was

dancing ecstatically and I was jumping and dancing in ecstasy all
through the kirtan, right to the end of the prema dhvani prayers. I didn’t
stop dancing the whole time. I was dancing like a madman jumping up
and down.
The other Venezuelan devotees are surprised to see their rather grave
and sedate godbrother dancing like a madman. Another thing that
surprises the Venezuelan devotees is that the Los Angeles devotees are
taking around a petition on a big piece of cardboard, which states that
the LA community of New Dwaraka wants Vishnujana Maharaja to stay
in Los Angeles. They want everyone to sign the petition. Nobody wants
Maharaja to leave because they love him so much.
The Venezuelan devotees are impressed by this mood of affection.

Never have they seen such a thing, that the devotees love Maharaja so
much that they circulate a petition to persuade him not to leave.
Tripurari: We sent a petition around, and every devotee signed it, to

have him stay in Los Angeles as the resident sannyāsī. But he wanted to
travel and not be tied down to any particular place. He was a very
popular person. I heard the story how his bus blew up and he saved the
Deities himself, carried Them off the bus, and hitchhiked with Radha-
Damodara and some brahmacārīs. He was, in a word, blissful.
A similar situation had occurred in 1970, when Tamal Krishna wanted

Vishnujana to come to London. He had several devotees petition
Prabhupada to send Vishnujana to London because they felt that he
would ignite a Krishna conscious explosion in Europe. But Prabhupada
was adamant that Vishnujana couldn’t leave Los Angeles. He wanted
the devotees in London to become enthusiastic on their own by
following the process of bhakti-yoga that he had taught, because they
were all senior men.
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Karta dd: I went back to Caracas and somebody sent the Radha-
Damodara TSKP tape. I was on the altar and I hear this song śrī-rūpa-
mañjarī-pada... This was the first time I was struck deeply by a
particular bhajan. I thought, this is Vishnujana Swami again. He was so
far into the vanguard. We didn’t know what he was singing about but
the way he was singing it! At that time nobody could figure out top from
bottom, side to side. Nobody knew anything. But he was already who
knows where? It was extraordinary, like a mystic power. You see so
many people now and they’re good kīrtanīyās but this man had a special
shakti. It was his internal thing; something from inside.
On the last day of 1973, there’s a lively discussion on the morning walk.
“Now, if you analyze the present human society,” Prabhupada explains,

“you will find there is not a single human being. All animals. Not a
single human being. People do not know what is the aim of life. That is
the difficulty.”
“Yes. From childhood they are taught sense gratification,” Vishnujana

adds.
“They do not know that for sense gratification enough facility is there in
the animal kingdom. So if you want to give facility for sense
gratification, does it mean that you want to become more than or less
than animal?”
“They want dog’s life,” Vishnujana says. “They think a dog’s life is
good life. They have to work hard and the dog stays at home all day and
enjoys their nice big house. So they think I would be better to be the
dog.”
“And so they have become,” Prabhupada agrees. “But when he becomes

street dog?
That means he has to depend on good master. Big apartment for dog
means he belongs to the master. So he has to find out a good master. But
460
if he fails to find out a good master, then he’s a street dog. Dog’s life is
good, provided he gets a good master. So therefore we have decided to
become the dog of Krishna, the best master.”
Everyone laughs at this remark. “And the master says, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-
pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi māśucaḥ, [Bhagavad-gita, 18.66] ‘I will give
you protection.’ So why not become the dog of Krishna?”
461
Eighth Wave,
Big River
Devotional service, beginning with the chanting of the Holy Name of
the Lord, is the ultimate religious principle for the living entity in
human society. [Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.3.22]
Pasadena, California, January 1974

Since 1899, the Parade of the Roses is always held on the first day of
January.
And every year since 1968 a kirtan party from the Los Angeles temple
arrives in Pasadena to provide an auspicious atmosphere. The grand
parade, with floats plying along the city streets prior to the Rose Bowl
football game, is telecast coast to coast on the first day of each New
Year.
Today, a devotee from France is one of many devotees in the kirtan

party.
Locanananda: I went with Vishnujana Swami to the Rose Bowl parade.

He chanted non-stop and played beautiful mṛdaṅga. As soon as he
started singing everybody felt surcharged with bliss, with ecstasy. I had
the impression that his feet never touched the ground during that kirtan.
That’s the way it looked to me. I was an initiated brāhmaṇa, so it wasn’t
just sentiment.
Devadahiti dd: The Parade of the Roses was incredible. We kept going
the whole time and didn’t stop for a minute. Vishnujana Swami did
462
sankirtan through the streets early in the morning. He’d go on for hours
and hours and we followed him. We were better than the Rose Bowl
parade. He had so much love for Prabhupada and everybody picked up
on it.
After the Rose Bowl parade most devotees return to their home temples.
Prabhupada will remain in Los Angeles for a few more weeks before
moving on to Hawaii. Vishnujana Swami is able to have a private
darshan with his spiritual master where he reveals his mind. He has been
thinking of going to India for the first time.
His idea is to do the same Radha-Damodara program of visiting every

town and village, but on a boat sailing down the Ganga to Mayapur. His
plan is to preach in a different village every night. The only problem is
he won’t know the language.
Prabhupada is pleased to hear this proposal and encourages Maharaja to

do it.
“Even if I don’t speak the language, Srila Prabhupada?” “That is all

right. They just want to see how you behave.”
Later that morning, Maharaja catches a ride north with the San
Francisco devotees. He needs to go to San Francisco to get his visa for
India. The San Francisco traveling party of Jambavan, Yogesh Chandra,
Nimai Das, and Sarva Darshan are happy to give Vishnujana a lift.
Jambavan: He was going to India and he simply had a small book bag
with a Bhagavad-gita, his beads, and a chaddar with a couple of things
wrapped up in there. He was traveling across the world like that!
An hour before San Francisco, Maharaja asks, “Yogesh Chandra

Prabhu, ārati is at 7:00 o’clock?” “Yeah.”
“Can we make it?”
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“Well, yeah. We might be able to make it.” “Let’s see if we can make it.
Let’s go for it.”
Yogesh Chandra pushes the pedal to the metal, like a racecar driver,
trying to make the ārati on time. As the van turns on to Mission Street,
Yogesh says, “I’ll pull up in front of the temple, Maharaja. You just get
out, and I’ll park the van.”
When Yogesh Chandra comes to a stop, Vishnujana leaps out of the

vehicle ahead of the others. He runs up to the brahmacārī ashram and
jumps into the shower with his sannyāsa dhoti on. He is done in a
minute, no soap, just a quick rinse. Coming out, he wrings out his dhoti,
shakes it a couple of times, and rewraps it around him. Running
downstairs, he grabs a mṛdaṅga sitting inside the temple room door just
in time to lead the kirtan. Right out of the shower!
From the time he has arrived at the temple, showered, put on the clean
dhoti, and tilak, it’s just a matter of a few minutes. He is completely
fired-up.
After kirtan, Maharaja gives the Gita class. “It doesn’t matter what
one’s situation is. But, ideally, one should always be in brahmacārī life.
One should be dhīra, not contemplating should I get married or should I
not get married. If you’re thinking, should I get married or not, or if
you’re thinking, I should not get married, then in either case you must
get married. But if you’re not even thinking about marriage, then you
might want to become a sannyāsī.”
Sura Das: I was thinking of being a householder although everybody

was pushing brahmacārī life. At that time Vishnujana Swami looked me
right in the eye. I thought, Oh my God, he knows. This guy is
clairvoyant. He’s as powerful as Sri Yukteswar, Paramahamsa
Yogananda, Vivekananda. I had been reading Autobiography of a Yogi,
and Be Here Now. I was convinced Vishnujana Swami was special.
I was in San Francisco with the Seattle TSKP on our way to Los
464
Angeles to see Prabhupada.
Vishnujana was giving the lecture and I was amazingly impressed

because I was into psychic power. Of course his chanting was mystical,
and mystified the devotees. We had such reverence for the sannyāsīs
back then.
One person asks, “How do you know what’s pleasing to the spiritual
master?”
“Before you do anything,” Maharaja replies, “ask yourself if Srila

Prabhupada would be pleased if I did this. It’s very simple. Everything
that you do just think, will Prabhupada be pleased with this activity?”
Every devotee can understand that Vishnujana Swami is living this
ideal.
While in San Francisco, Maharaja visits an old friend, who is a

naturopath, to get fixed up for living in India. He gives Maharaja
vitamin B1 to keep the mosquitoes away, along with other naturalistic
approaches to maintain health. The consensus in ISKCON at the time is
that you just depend on Krishna, but Vishnujana is practical. Before
catching his plane to India, Maharaja notices the BBT Newsletter in the
President’s office. It’s a recent issue with the book distribution results
for the months of October/November. On October 27, the New York
devotees set a world record by distributing 13,486 books in one day.
The next weekend they distribute 13,127 books and 10,000 portions of
prasādam on November 3.
Ramesvara, the editor of the Newsletter, attributes these tremendous

results to the fact that Srila Prabhupada decided in favor of ‘disguise,’ or
conventional dress, for devotees going out to distribute books. However,
devotees must look like respectable ladies and gentlemen. “Seeing the
results of increased book distribution,” he writes, “influenced
Prabhupada’s decision.”
After six weeks in Los Angeles Prabhupada is leaving for Hawaii to
465
deal with some ongoing problems there. But before departing, he has to
resolve a problem at Bhaktivedanta Manor in London. He writes the
temple president, Mukunda, and explains the absolute necessity of
maintaining the standard program of ārati, kirtan, and classes. “Here in
LA they have elaborate Sunday festivals and erect a tent on the front
lawn. There are hours of kirtan, a philosophical lecture, and lots of
sumptuous prasādam distribution.” He explains that the LA temple has a
24 hour security guard to protect the Deities and devotees. “So you
should set the example and also see that the others are following.”
[Letter to Mukunda - January 12, 1974]
Bombay, India, January 1974

Prabhupada has acquired a spacious temple property in the Juhu area
that he calls Hare Krishna Land. Among the resident devotees is
Dhristadyumna, the former Philadelphia sankirtan leader and admirer of
Vishnujana Swami. Dhristadyumna began thinking about Srila
Prabhupada after spending time with Maharaja in Florida and seeing the
impact that Prabhupada had on Vishnujana.
Dhristadyumna: In September I left for India to be with Prabhupada. I

thought, if Jesus Christ were on the planet today, would I get married
and sell incense, or would I go be with him? By being with Vishnujana,
I could no longer think about married life, business, or even temple life.
I was spoiled.
Srila Prabhupada is in Bombay when Dhristadyumna arrives in Delhi.

Desiring to be with his spiritual master, he takes a train down to
Bombay. But he promptly becomes ill. As his health slowly returns he
stays in Bombay and goes out preaching with Tamal Krishna, the GBC
man for India.
Tamal Krishna – now a Goswami after taking sannyāsa in Jaipur in

1972 – catches up on Vishnujana’s activities in America through
Dhristadyumna. He hears the shocking news that the Radha-Damodara
466
bus has burned to a cinder.
Subsequently, Tamal Krishna receives a letter from Vishnujana that he

is coming to India to hire a boat and sail down the Ganga.
TK Goswami: I was living at the time in Bombay in a little flat owned

by the BBT. I wanted to go on that boat because I wanted to be with
Vishnujana Maharaja. I was supposed to help him get the boat together.
I wanted to be on the party.
Dhristadyumna: Tamal Krishna immediately said, “This is it. I’m going

with my buddy.” He was excited because he really wanted to do this
with Vishnujana. He loved Vishnujana Swami.
Tamal Krishna is eagerly anticipating the association of his dear friend

who originally convinced him to drop everything in San Francisco and
join Prabhupada’s movement. The Bombay devotees are also excited to
hear that Vishnujana Swami will soon be coming.
When Vishnujana Maharaja arrives in Bombay, Tamal Krishna and

Dhristadyumna pick him up at the airport. As the taxi pulls up in front
of the temple property a kirtan party is in full swing. The pūjārī greets
the sannyāsīs with flower garlands. Immediately, Vishnujana Maharaja
is taken for darshan of the beautiful Bombay Deities, Sri-Sri Radha-
Rasabihari. They are being worshipped in a small tin-roof hut that
serves as a temporary temple.
Vishnujana Swami is impressed to see the terrific plot of land that

Prabhupada has recently acquired, but is dismayed to see the tiny tin-
roofed temple. Tamal Krishna assures him that Prabhupada’s plan is to
build an elegant temple and worship the Deities gorgeously to attract the
wealthy people of Bombay.
“Prabhupada told the Deities, ‘Sit down here. I’m going to install You
before the temple is built, so You can protect the land. My dear Lord, if
You sit down here then I promise to build You a temple. Please, just
467
don’t move.’ Because in India, when a Deity is installed, that’s it – you
can’t get the Deity off that land.
“Prabhupada carries the photograph of Radha-Rasabihari with him

wherever he goes all over the world. When one of the pūjārīs in Bombay
countenanced that, ‘Radha- Rasabihari are very beautiful,’ the pūjārī
wanted Prabhupada to agree that this is the most beautiful Deity.”
“Everybody feels their Deity is the most beautiful,” Vishnujana

acknowledges. “I think Radha-Damodara are the most beautiful.”
“Yeah, but Prabhupada turned to him and said, ‘Radha-Londonisvara

are also very beautiful.’ That Krishna Deity is just something special –
you look at the face of that Deity! The Deity is just in ecstasy, isn’t it?”
“I was never at the London temple, but the photos are enchanting.”
Among the devotees greeting Maharaja is Sravaniya, who traveled with

the Road Show and did some pūjārī service for Radha-Damodara. She
explains that part of her service now is cleaning Prabhupada’s quarters
with Palika, Srila Prabhupada’s cook.
“We clean it every morning when he’s here, and then I do life
membership in the afternoon with Lokanath, who is a brahmacārī.
“One day Palika said to me, ‘Sravaniya, come out here on the balcony. I
made some gulabjamuns for Prabhupada, but I don’t think they’re good
enough.’ We went out on the balcony and she put one in her mouth and
gave one to me.
“I said, ‘These are kind of tough; probably not good enough for
Prabhupada.’
“She said, ‘Yeah, that’s what I thought. Here, have another one.’ They
weren’t really nice enough for him, so we ate them all.”
468
Vishnujana bursts out laughing upon hearing the gulab story.
“I sewed curtains for Prabhupada’s room,” Sravaniya continues. “He

has a book, Chanakya Pandit Sayings, on his desk.”
“Yes, Srila Prabhupada likes to quote Chanakya Pandit,” Vishnujana

comments. “He was a simple brāhmaṇa who became an important
minister to Emperor Chandragupta at the time that Alexander the Great
tried to conquer India. His real name was Kautilya, but he received the
name Chanakya because he only ate chickpeas. He prepared them in
over a hundred different ways! He said it was the perfect food.”
“Right,” Tamal Krishna chimes in. “He lived in a small cottage as a

simple brāhmaṇa but he was the Prime Minister of India. Eeveryone
followed whatever advice he gave. Austerity is the wealth of the
brāhmaṇas!” Everyone enjoys these nectar exchanges.
Vishnujana’s old friend from Los Angeles and Dallas, Mohanananda, is

now the acting president of Bombay since Giriraja has had to relinquish
the post and return to America due to failing health. Mohanananda
greets Vishnujana warmly and suggests that they all honor prasādam
together.
After taking his meal, Vishnujana reveals that the first thing he wants to
do is visit Vrindavan, take darshan of the Radha-Damodara temple, and
soak up the atmosphere of the holy dhāma.
“Hold your horses,” Tamal Krishna chuckles. “I’ll have to arrange train
tickets to Mathura, first. From there we take a horse-drawn tonga for a
beautiful 40 minute ride into Vrindavan. Better that you rest for a few
days in Bombay. Right now you should get acclimatized to India, and
we can catch up. It won’t be easy living here, I can assure you.”
Now that Prabhupada is in America, Tamal Krishna is free to do

whatever he wants, because whenever Prabhupada is in India Goswami
has to be available. So his immediate desire is to spend as much time
469
with Vishnujana as possible.
Vishnujana appreciates Tamal’s sound advice. Over the next few days
he has reunions with several old friends and acquaintances now serving
on the Hare Krishna Land property. But India is a culture shock for most
westerners and Vishnujana Swami is no exception. After only a few
days he becomes a little discouraged. Sometimes the way Indians do
things, or their lack of urgency for doing things, becomes irksome for
Americans. He is also experiencing how austere life can be in India, and
how almost everyone gets sick.
Bhumna: You know how fried people can sometimes get when they first
come to India? Well, I was beyond fried! I had jaundice, dysentery, and
everything. But I was feeling a little better now and making plans to
escape the clutches of Tamal Krishna Goswami. I had $20 in my pocket
and felt like a rich man. In those days the brahmacārīs lived in a shack
in the rear of the property.
Vishnujana Swami arrived and I was with him one day when he said
something to one of the Indian devotees. He was chastising him, but
made a racist reference that he was Indian. I had a strong feeling about it
so I said, “These guys will take any kind of abuse you want, but if you
tell them they’re no good because their Indians, they won’t respect
you.”
Immediately he said, “Yes, you’re right. It was a mistake what I said.”

No standing on ceremony whatsoever. I was struck by it; that some
spaced-out brahmacārī could talk to a Swami like that. In those days,
they’d likely slap your nose. But it was nothing like that. He
immediately buckled under and accepted that he had made a mistake
and thanked me for pointing it out. I thought that was amazing.
Tamal Krishna is constantly by the side of Vishnujana Swami. He is

excited about the pending boat trip And always talking about it. He
purchases four tickets to Delhi suggesting that Dhristadyumna and
Haridas should join the party. Dhristadyumna is a capable devotee who
470
speaks well and performs kirtan properly. Haridas is essential, too,
Tamal explains. He is a young Bengali who speaks Hindi, Bengali, and
English so he can translate and be the go-between whenever needed.
Moreover, he has traveled widely in India and knows a lot of people.
Vishnujana is in full agreement.
Haridas: At my first meeting with Vishnujana Swami he didn’t like me

because he saw me eating prasādam with the left hand. So he didn’t like
that. He was trying to tell me, “Don’t eat with the left hand.” He even
got angry. Finally, when he saw that my right hand did not function
properly and I had to use the left hand he really felt bad. Then he
hugged me and was real friendly. So he began taking special care of me,
personally. From that day on he showed me more love and affection.
Miami, January 1974

The new Miami temple compound on 4001 Kumquat Avenue is a
fabulous property situated on two acres. The grounds include many
mango and avocado trees. The main building is a nice 2-story house
adjacent to a banyan tree that covers a wide expanse of the property.
When the Radha-Damodara party arrived back in December, the

property was in a mess so Narada Muni made a short-term commitment
to help the temple. He engaged the people hanging around to convert the
main house into a temple. Thus he became the de facto bhakta-leader
and temple-commander. After cleaning and repainting the living room,
they built a black marble altar and installed a painting of Panca-tattva as
the temple Deity. Finally, the little screen porch beside the temple room
was just perfect to be Tulasi Devi´s house.
The main house now contains the temple room, brahmacārī ashram, and
the treasury office. There are three smaller buildings on the property;
one is the kitchen, another is the brahmacārīnī ashram and the gṛhastha
quarters. The third is the residence of the temple president, Abhirama,
and his wife.
471
As the Radha-Damodara men are refurbishing the bus, Abhirama
requests them to place Radha-Damodara on the new marble altar until
Vishnujana returns from India. “They should be worshipped in a
temple.” Radha-Damodara are the first Deities that many Miami
devotees, and guests, have seen.
Titiksa dd: I had only been a devotee for a few months when I was told
that devotees worship Deities. I didn’t know what that meant, because in
Miami there was only a painting of Panca- tattva on the altar. When they
put Radha-Damodara on the altar, the thing that scared me the most was
being able to accept the Deity form of the Lord. I was raised Christian,
Presbyterian, so I was apprehensive. I thought, when this curtain opens,
if I don’t flip, then I can be a devotee.
When the curtain opened and I saw Their faces, I began to cry because it
was so overwhelming. Their faces were so sweet. They were so much
like real people to me that I just started crying. Then I thought,
everybody will think I’m nuts so I shouldn’t let them see me crying. But
I fell so in love with those Deities. They completely melted my heart.
Then I knew that this process was the absolute truth.
Meanwhile, the Miami sankirtan devotees report that the Nama Hatta
party is in town. Gurukripa and Yasodanandana are collecting money
for Prabhupada’s Krishna- Balarama Mandir. The ‘mean swamis’
haven’t officially informed the temple they are in the area, but Riksaraj
is able to find out where they are staying. He goes to their motel room
and offers them an invitation.
“Please come and give a lecture at the temple and stay overnight,” he
humbly requests. “We want to extend our hospitality to you.”
Gurukripa Swami turns to Yasodanandana Swami, “What do you think

Maharaja? Shall we go?”
“Yeah, I think we can go.”
472
“Okay, we’re going to the temple. Let’s change into our dhotis.”
When their van pulls up in front of the temple a kirtan party greets them.
Gurukripa gives the order, “Okay, give me my show stick.” Kritagama
puts the danda in his hand as he jumps out of the van. Together, the
Swamis give their typically heavy, but significant class, quoting a lot of
ślokas. It’s a machine gun, mow ‘em all down class, aimed at the
brahmacārīs.
After class, they do their typical wild kirtan, leaping high into the air.
Yasodanandana Swami always jumps high while playing mṛdaṅga, and
that creates excitement. After prasādam, they invite the brahmacārīs for
a darshan.
While the ‘mean swamis’ are in Miami, Vishnudatta develops a friendly

relationship with them. By their association, Vishnudatta and Riksaraj
are inspired to go to India. The ‘mean swamis’ have a lot of experience
there and Yasodanandana Swami is always talking about South India.
“Yeah, we work out in North India and Bengal,” he explains. “But when
it’s time for a little relaxation we always take a clean slide down south.”
He tells compelling stories about the temples in South India, like Sri
Rangam, and the relationships they have there with the priests. This
fires Vishnudatta’s imagination, and Riksaraj is right behind him.
Dayal Chandra and Radha Raman have already begun working on the
bus. After building a temporary shop next to the bus, they begin work
on the interior of the bus. Now they’re building a kitchen in the back of
the bus and putting in a nice floor for the temple room. Sridhar is fixing
the altar with beautiful decorations, and the next project is to put in a
shower at the rear of the bus.
At the same time, Suhotra takes out a party every day. They have to pay
back the $5,000 debt to the BBT and also collect for refurbishing the
bus. They have a nice program doing kirtan all day and preaching.
Kritagama likes to associate with the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs.
473
When the ‘mean swamis’ rerturn back to India, they leave their men
behind to winter in Miami.
Kritagama: It was the most wonderful time I had as a devotee, because I

was able to cook for Radha-Damodara and preach the philosophy
straightforward. We would go to different places, set up a book table,
and distribute prasādam. Vishnudatta used to play the harmonium and
Suhotra was preaching. Every day they cooked the same thing for lunch,
cauliflower, potatoes, and peas sabji with parathas. Vishnudatta taught
me how to cook and how to make parathas for Radha-Damodara. They
made a big barrel of nectar drink with buttermilk, orange juice and
strawberries, which was out of this world.
There was no karmi clothes, no lines in the airport, no quick pick in the
mall with incense.
It was just preaching and I was completely in ecstasy to give somebody

a book after speaking for a while. It was a festival atmosphere and I
could understand that this is the way Prabhupada wanted us to preach,
because we become stronger, and then everything expands from that.
When it’s just for money we get dried-up and fried-out, and eventually
blown away.

At the New Delhi station, two sannyāsīs and two brahmacārīs alight
from their 24- hour train journey. Vishnujana had a lot of time to reflect
on the train. He sees that India is a huge country with vast tracts of
mostly empty farmland between the few crowded cities. He is
appreciating the agrarian India from which the roots of Krishna
consciousness have sprung.
After negotiating for a taxi they squeeze in for the drive to the temple,
located in the Ananda Niketan area. When the local devotees see two
sannyāsīs alight from the taxi, they quickly get a kirtan going to greet
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the Swamis.
Vishnujana’s old friend Ishan is the pūjārī. He gives Maharaja a warm

embrace after offering dandavat pranam. The kirtan continues into the
temple room as Vishnujana is ushered before the Deities, Sri-Sri Radha-
Parthasarathi.
A brahmacārī brings out a new harmonium and beckons Vishnujana

Swami to sing.
Ishan: When he did kirtan the man was in ecstasy. It wasn’t ostentatious,
but it couldn’t be hidden – his eyes and his happiness. He was
celebrating Krishna and it was so beautiful to be around him. It seemed
to flow out of his harmonium. His harmonium was not like a piece of
wood and keys, it seemed to exude, it seemed to flow out in waves – his
singing and his playing – so that people around would be swept up in
celebrating Krishna, and Krishna consciousness through it. So he was a
real kind of generator, a real expansive being. It was wonderful. That’s
how it was when he first passed through Delhi. As I’m thinking back, I
feel that I didn’t appreciate him enough.
After kirtan, Ishan and Vishnujana have a reunion. Ishan explains how
he was trained to make mṛdaṅgas in Mayapur. After a lot of blunders, he
has now become relatively proficient.
“So one day Prabhupada called me into his room. Jayatirtha was also
there at the time. Srila Prabhupada told Jayatirtha, ‘Ishan is making
these drums.’ He pointed to a mṛdaṅga I had made.
“Then he asked me, ‘Where would you like to make the drums?’ “I said,
‘I hear LA is the best place for plastics and synthetics.’ “Then
Prabhupada said, ‘Jayatirtha, you will give him all support?’
“Jayatirtha was not happy. ‘Well, maybe he should go to London.’

Jayatirtha and I never hit it off.
475
“So Srila Prabhupada asked me, ‘London, Ishan?’
“I said, ‘No, I think LA is the best place.’ So finally Jayatirtha

reluctantly agreed. But outside he said, ‘Okay Ishan. How much space
do you need and how much is this going to cost me?’ He sent me to
Delhi and said, ‘I’ll send you a ticket.’ So I waited here in Delhi and
became the pūjārī. But I got malaria. I almost died and I’m still waiting
for that ticket.”
Vishnujana is sympathetic. “I’ll have a talk with Jayatirtha when I get

back to the states. I think what you’re doing is great.”
At that moment Yamuna Devi comes over to greet Maharaja. She used
to go out chanting with Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna at Fisherman’s
Wharf when they were new bhaktas in San Francisco. She’s like an old
friend, not just a voice singing the Govindam prayers every morning, so
Vishnujana is pleased to see her again. But there is something in her
demeanor that Vishnujana picks up on. She is not the same blissful
personality that he knew when they were new devotees in San
Francisco.
Seeing that Yamuna is a little uneasy, he makes a mental note that he

needs to talk with her to find out what’s troubling her.
Yamuna dd: We had a reunion in India. It was six years since I’d seen
him. He finally showed up with Tamal Krishna. They were holding on
to each other, arm in arm. We all kept track of each other vicariously,
but we lived in a different world. We in India from 1970-74 had our
own world of ISKCON. We knew what was going on in the rest of the
world but it really was very different. In other parts of the world,
Prabhupada would leave his men to take care of what he had
established, but India was his baby. It was a different world because we
were always under his thumb and felt the pressure of intensity directly
under Srila Prabhupada. He was in charge of everything and everyone,
all the time.
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Later that day, after lunch prasādam, when most devotees in India take a
nap, Vishnujana and Yamuna are able to speak heart to heart. In answer
to his query about how the devotees were advancing in Krishna
consciousness, she reveals the hardships she has been facing. As the
GBC secretary for India, Tamal Krishna has a strong desire that
sannyāsīs should be in charge of the temples rather than gṛhasthas. This
is his understanding of varṇāśrama dharma. Prabhupada, however, has
great faith in Gurudas and Yamuna and wants to keep them in charge of
his Vrindavan project.
Vishnujana Swami hears a completely different interpretation of life in

devotional service in India than what he has heard from Tamal Krishna.
In reciprocation, Maharaja also reveals his mind in confidence about
something that has been disturbing to him.
Yamuna dd: When I saw him we all paid dandavats, but at that time
Tamal Krishna and I weren’t on the best of terms. It had evolved from a
close, appreciative, serving relationship to a difficult one. Tamal and I
did a lot of service together, as we all did. Tamal and I installed the
Deities in Hamburg Temple together. I was in charge of the arcanā and
he was in charge of the temple management. We did programs together.
His letters to Prabhupada about me in ‘70 and ‘71 were just glowing. By
‘73, we started our fallout. Tamal Krishna was on the
attachment/aversion thing. I became a symbol of everything that he
didn’t want to see. So it became very difficult for me. Many devotees in
Prabhupada’s service at that time certainly were not communicating
well. It was a very difficult time for everyone. There were a lot of
nervous breakdowns.
Vishnujana Swami, by the arrangement of Providence, didn’t come to

India. But when he did show up, I recall that there was some...I
remember that he had admitted, on a certain level, that...he had
somehow had problems.
He told me personally, “I cannot take being on sankirtan anymore
477
around all these women. Women that don’t wear any clothes; that come
and just shove themselves in your face all the time. I can’t take it
anymore. I’m ready for a breakdown.”
Whether he had already done something or whether it was just, this is a

weakness of mine and I don’t want to be near that, at all costs to avoid
it, no matter what level it was, he admitted that this was really bothering
him. He was honest enough to say that.
So much had happened in ISKCON that we weren’t revealing our minds

by those days. Therefore I always took he and Karandhar as men that
Prabhupada really loved, and took responsibility that they had a very
strong sense of self by being honest with their shortcomings. Whereas
many people in those days avoided them and just concentrated on the
service. We didn’t confront our problems when we had them. We just
didn’t. Finally it got worse, and worse, and worse.
By early morning, Tamal has hired an old Ambassador with a driver.

Right after maṅgala-ārati, two sannyāsīs are on their way to Vrindavan.
The green fields of the Indian countryside soon replace the dilapidated
concrete structures of civilization fading behind them in the distance.
Cows, buffalos, goats, and a myriad of rickshaws and bicycles,
dominate the horizon. Vishnujana becomes excited as they draw closer
to the sacred land where Radha and Krishna had sported thousands of
years ago.
On the way Tamal Krishna becomes the expert tour guide informing
Vishnujana about intimate details of Krishna’s pastimes in Vraja-
maṇḍala bhumi and Srila Prabhupada’s pastimes with the devotees in
India.
“When we first had Radha-Madhava, after Kumbha Mela, we went to

Allahabad. We arrived in the late afternoon and Prabhupada said, ‘Make
a siṁhāsana for the Deities.’ Prabhupada stayed up the whole night and
all the devotees worked that whole night. By maṅgala-ārati the
siṁhāsana was made and the Deities were there. He wouldn’t let us rest
478
until the Deities were properly situated.”
“Yes, that is our first duty as servants of the Lord – to make sure Radha-
Damodara are comfortably situated. That’s why I got Them a new bus.”
“Yeah? Tell me how that happened? Tell me everything.”
Vishnujana relates the entire incident, how the fire was caused by
overloading the bus with books. Then it swept throughout the old school
bus, leaving him only enough time to save Radha-Damodara, Their
clothing and other paraphernalia. He relates how Radha-Damodara had
to hitchhike with the devotees into town, how They spent the night in a
motel room, and the entire saga how the new bus was purchased.
“The men are in Miami now refurbishing that bus into a fantastic new
temple, a traveling temple that will go to every town and village. Just
like what I want to do with this boat on the Ganga.”
“I can help you with that,” Tamal adds. “I also want to go with you on
that boat trip. You’re a sannyāsī so you would be better off staying in
India.”
TKG: [A popular acronym for Tamal Krishna Goswami] I started off

with, “Well, you’ve come to do a boat program, so let’s get that going.”
I also was serving an idealized type of dream of mine that I could get a
break from all my responsibilities and go with him on the boat. So I
said, “Vishnujana, you’ve got to stay in India.”
When I told him this he just looked at me and laughed. “You don’t
understand. There’s Radha-Damodara.” And I didn’t understand
because I hadn’t met Radha-Damodara. But when he said it, he wasn’t
talking about Deities. He didn’t refer to Them as if They were Deities. It
was like They were the love of his life. It was almost like: I don’t even
know how I’m away from Them even for this amount of time. I could
never leave Them.
So it wasn’t like it was Vishnujana and me anymore, but there was
479
someone else there who was going to be the main part of the formula, if
there was going to be a formula at all. And because of Them it wasn’t
going to be in India. So I couldn’t quite figure out how to deal with that.
“They are my only possession,” Vishnujana concluded in a choked

voice. I appreciated now why he had laughed in disbelief when I tried to
convince him that, as a sannyāsī without attachments, he would be
better remaining with me in India. Until Vishnujana came, I wasn’t
thinking much about what was happening in America.
Goswami decides to change the subject. “I miss those preaching

adventures we had together. That was so much nectar. We’ve been away
from each other so long.” He’s eager to tell Vishnujana about his own
adventures on traveling sankirtan.
“We had a traveling party to end all traveling parties. We had formed a
TSKP of three jeeps, which was quite an amazing party. Our party
consisted of Acyutananda Swami, Gargamuni Swami, Harikesa das
Brahmacari, Sridhar das Brahmacari, Dinanath Prabhu, and Haridas and
Parmesvari. We all went together in three jeeps with two trailers on two
of the jeeps. We went to Indore and Bhopal, in Madhya Pradesh. Then,
unfortunately the temple in Bombay was broken, devastated, so I had to
rush back there. That sort of put the kinks in the works for me.”
Vishnujana Swami takes this opportunity to inquire about how the

devotees, and Tamal Krishna Goswami in particular, are making
advancement in Krishna consciousness while serving in India.
TKG: When we met I longed again to be with him, because it was very
very difficult for me in India. Prabhupada pushed so hard and I was the
only GBC in all of India. On the one hand, I was being constantly
pushed by Prabhupada, and on the other hand I had to deal with the
senior people in our movement, who don’t like to be pushed, and yet
Prabhupada would push them through me. So it was a very pressured
type of position to be in – to be the GBC and actually not be the GBC –
because Prabhupada was the GBC, whereas I was his assistant. So it was
480
very difficult.
As the car makes a left turn off the main highway, Tamal Krishna says
that they are now only a short drive to the ISKCON temple in Raman
Reti. Tears begin to well up in Vishnujana’s eyes. He can barely hold
back the upsurge of emotional feelings now that he’s in the heart of Sri
Vrindavan dhāma.
The car suddenly comes to a stop. The proposed ISKCON temple is still
a construction site with piles of bricks and bags of cement surrounding a
finished foundation. Nonetheless, Vishnujana is overjoyed to see it. He
gets out of the car and immediately offers dandavats to the sacred
ground of Krishna’s pastimes. He takes a handful of Vrindavan dust and
spreads it all over his body, placing the last few remnants on his head.
Tamal’s eyes open wide as he remembers his own first experience in the
dhāma.
Vishnujana is in bliss, as are the few devotees who greet him. They are
Prabhupada’s representatives trying to build a grand temple for Sri-Sri
Krishna-Balarama. Prabhupada has also empowered them to build an
International Guest House.
The only real building on the property is the first story of Prabhupada’s
proposed brick residence. His room isn’t quite ready. The floor is
simply bricks and dirt. Devotees and hired workers are urgently trying
to finish because His Divine Grace is expected to arrive within weeks. A
small mud-baked hut with a straw roof is located on the edge of the
property. “That’s where I stay when I’m in Vrindavan,” Tamal Krishna
states casually.
Vishnujana is anxious to have darshan of Radha-Damodara Mandir and

Srila Prabhupada’s rooms where he translated Srimad Bhagavatam and
wrote his Bhaktivedanta purports before coming to America. As they
climb into a rickshaw, Tamal tells the history how the present Deities
are prati-bhū mūrtis, and the original Radha-Damodara of Jiva Goswami
481
are now in Jaipur.
After a whole day’s tour of Vrindavan, Vishnujana is overcome by

emotion time and again as he experiences the sacred tīrthas that he has
talked about and dreamed about for years. At evening, the sannyāsīs
take rest with the other ISKCON devotees at Fogal Ashram. The next
morning, Vishnujana Swami is up bright and early. He has a great idea
that he shares with Tamal Krishna.
“Let’s go to Jaipur. I really want the darshan of ādi Radha-Damodara.

We have a car and driver, so let’s leave now.” Tamal is glad to take a
few days off from his hectic schedule for a little tīrtha parikramā. He is
so happy to be back with his dearest friend.
TKG: When I saw him I was certainly caught up with all the
responsibilities I had, with all the pressures I had. And at the same time
I recalled those days, the most wonderful times I had had with him. I
wanted to have a friend like him again. When a person is under great
strain and pressure, then a loving relationship makes it bearable,
tolerable. You feel more the need for it. You may ask didn’t you have
that with Prabhupada? Didn’t you have that with Krishna? Yes for both.
But still a friend is a friend. So I really wanted to be with him again.
Jaipur, India, January 1974

The Radha-Damodara temple in Jaipur is reminiscent of the Radha-
Damodara Mandir in Vrindavan with cows in the outer courtyard, tulasi
plants in the inner courtyard, and a darshan area up a few stairs. On the
altar are two sets of Radha-Krishna
Deities. The smaller ones are the original worshipful Deities of Srila
Jiva Goswami that were moved from Vrindavan around 260 years ago
to protect Them from a demoniac Moghul ruler.
To the left of the Deities, wearing a long white flower garland, is a
482
govardhana-śilā that was worshiped by Sanatana Goswami in
Vrindavan. Also in the temple is another altar, to the left of the main
altar, with Deities of Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva and Prahlada Maharaja.
Looking closely, Vishnujana Swami can see Lakshmi seated on her
Lord’s left side and Sri Prahlada standing just by the Lord’s right knee.
Prahlada’s crown appears like a small silver triangle.
On the return trip to Delhi, Tamal is in the mood to reminisce about the
early days in California.
“Remember how Prabhupada used to travel with Radha-Krishna

Deities? He ordered some small brass Radha-Krishna Deities for Los
Angeles. My mother was a jeweler. I remember she came when the
Deities came, and she made the earrings for the Deities. She met
Prabhupada twice. One time Prabhupada gave her a garland.
“Prabhupada personally installed these Deities and he told us exactly

how to build Their throne. Everything he did, it was like he knew
Krishna. I mentioned yesterday how he drew a picture of how Krishna’s
flute looked, how Krishna’s staff was to be, the menu for what Krishna
wanted to eat – so many things.”
“Yes,” Vishnujana responds. “Actually, that was the same drawing that
Damodara Das sent to the mūrti-wālā in Varanasi who fashioned my
Radha-Damodara!” “Really?”
“Yeah. Damodara Prabhu told me the whole story. He tried to get

Radha-Damodara back so many times, but I told him it was impossible.
I said, ‘Over my dead body!’ Finally, Prabhupada settled the whole
dispute, and gave a beautiful Deity to Damodara for him to worship.”
“Wow!” Tamal Krishna exclaims. “Remember, one time we came into

Prabhupada’s room when he had his little Radha-Krishna Deities and
the room was dark except for the little light next to the Deities. And
Prabhupada said, ‘Look: Radha and Krishna are dancing!’ I didn’t see it
that way, but Prabhupada saw Radha and Krishna dancing.”
483
“Yeah, I remember that well. Those were heady days. And then you left
for London.”
“There are very nice pastimes about the installation of Radha-

Londonishvara. You know that pastime of Radha-Parisishvara?” Tamal
Krishna laughs as he remembers. “Prabhupada said Krishna went to
Paris to get some Parisian gopis! Prabhupada loved to take part in
festivals. I remember we had the festival for Rama Naumi and he
introduced the song, Raghupati rāghava rāja rāma, patita-pāvana sītā-
rāma…and now Prabhupada has installed Deities of Radha and Krishna
all over the world.
“Everything was so personal with Srila Prabhupada – to give the Deities

the names: each temple felt their Deity was special and personal.”
“And that’s our philosophy, isn’t it?” Vishnujana adds. “It’s all about
loving relationships. That’s how we are meant to be moment-to-
moment, seeing every person as special. If we develop our loving
relationships in this life we can certainly be transferred to Krishna’s
nitya līlā in the next life.”
“Right, that’s exactly how I feel, too.”
TKG: It was so different seeing Vishnujana in the setting of India. I had

been in India four years and I was very much Indianized. Vishnujana
was still the same old self. So there was a cultural difference, just in
little things he did; the way he sat, the way he would do things. You
learn many things of Vedic culture in India, and he really didn’t know
those things.
Even though I found that there were differences in culture, I longed to

be with him again. I like to have very intimate and close relationships
with devotees. I had a tremendous love and relationship with
Vishnujana Swami. And it was such a compatible relationship. My
nature is I’m a very meticulous person, and very organized. I try to use
my intelligence a lot. On the other hand Vishnujana did everything a lot
484
from the heart, which appeals to me because I also try to do that as far
as I can. I try to do the two. I can’t be attracted by anyone if they’re not
like that. But he was so much more from the emotive side and that’s
what appealed to me. Just like it appealed to everyone, it completely
won my heart.

Back at the Delhi temple, plans are being made for Vishnujana Swami’s
boat trip down the Ganges to arrive in Mayapur for ISKCON’s first
International Gaura-Purnima Festival.
Vishnujana’s original idea is to start from Haridwar or Rishikesh, but

he’s told that he can’t do that because there are too many rapids. After
analyzing the situation carefully a decision is made that the best place to
start the journey is Allahabad, because it’s easy to hire a boat there.
Haridas explains that he knows a Dr. Ghosh, who is a personal friend of
Srila Prabhupada, so they would have a place to stay in Allahabad while
they looked for a boat.
Maharaja’s plan is to travel from village to village and do programs, so

they will need a group of devotees who are into kirtan. He also wants to
get japa beads and books so that after they leave each village, people
can continue to chant the mahā-mantra. Tamal Krishna suggests they
take a projector along to show the new Hare Krishna People film that
Yadubara and Vishakha have recently completed. “That will be big in
those villages,” he assures Vishnujana.
A crew is quickly chosen. Sri Vallabha is in Delhi and he rejoins

Vishnujana Maharaja for this new adventure. Also included are
Dhristadyumna and Bhava Bhuti who are both good kirtan men and can
play mṛdaṅga. A new bhakta, Madhusevita, is enthusiastic to go and
Tamal Krishna knows it will be good for his Krishna consciousness to
travel with Vishnujana Maharaja. Two Indian devotees, Haridas and
Krishna Kishor, will round out the crew.
485
Madhusevita: I met Devananda in Nepal and became a devotee there.
But since it was not a functioning ISKCON temple, he suggested that I
go down to Vrindavan. Gurudas and Saurabha were affectionate, but
there was nothing to do because the construction of the temple was
going on. So they sent me to Delhi where I met Dhristadyumna, Bhava
Bhuti, Sri Vallabha and Tamal Krishna Goswami. Vishnujana Maharaja
wanted to establish a boat program. Somehow, I was chosen as a
member of that expedition. Bhava Bhuti was a nice mṛdaṅga player. We
were going out for harināma sankirtan every day and distributing
magazines together. Dhristadyumna was taking care of me like an elder
brother.
As soon as the party is selected, Vishnujana and Haridas leave for

Allahabad to find out about hiring a boat. Meanwhile, the other devotees
make arrangements to get books and everything else that will be needed,
including japa mālās, which they will purchase in Vrindavan.
Allahabad, India, January 1974

Vishnujana Swami and Haridas are staying at the home of Dr. Ghosh.
Haridas is essential because he speaks the language, making it easy to
search for a boat. Within a few days they find a large wooden boat with
a big sail and hire three boatmen (mājīs) who know the river well. The
boat has no engine, which is not a problem because they will sail
downstream, so the current will carry them if there is no wind. By
having Haridas on board, Maharaja will be able to communicate with
the mājīs.
Vishnujana is excited. He calls the Delhi temple to inform Tamal

Krishna that they are ready to go. They are doing some programs in
Allahabad while they wait for the others to come. He tells Tamal to get
on a train with the other devotees and meet him in Allahabad. “We are
now living on the boat near a village where the boat is being equipped,”
he explains. “People quickly got to know us, so every night we do kirtan
486
and get a crowd. We do our morning program on the boat.”
Tamal Krishna says he will send Dhristadyumna, Sri Vallabha, and

Bhava Bhuti for now. “I’ll join the party with a few more devotees once
the boat is seaworthy and ready to sail. Prabhupada is arriving in Delhi
on February 1, and I have to be here. Arrange a program for Prabhupada
in Allahabad. I’ve already told him you’re there and he has agreed to
speak. Try to get the high-class gentlemen to come. After the program
we can start the boat trip.”
Dhristadyumna: Tamal told me, “Go with Vishnujana Maharaja and I’ll
see you later.” So I’m very happy. Now I’m able to go with Vishnujana
Swami and sail down the Ganges preaching in every village. Then we’ll
arrive in Mayapur in time for the festival, and we’ll be able to tell
Prabhupada all about our trip. I couldn’t believe it. Krishna was
answering my prayers. I got to do everything I ever wanted to do.
Several days later, Vishnujana Swami and Haridas meet the Delhi
devotees at the train station. They have brought many trunks of Hindi
Bhagavat Darshan magazines and hundreds of japa mālās for the
planned village programs. Maharaja takes them to see the boat and the
newcomers become excited. Already they are relishing the anticipated
river excursion and the adventures that lie ahead.
After loading the trunks and the devotee’s belongings into the hold
below, Vishnujana reveals his next plan. He has commissioned an artist
to paint the sail with HARE KRISHNA in three different colors with
huge letters in three languages, Hindi, English, and Bengali.
“As soon as he’s finished, we’re ready to go,” Maharaja says with a
twinkle in his eye.
Then he goes into town with Haridas to purchase big sacks of rice, dhāl,
gur, [Sugar-cane juice is cooked down until the water evaporates. What
remains is the sticky, brownish gur (pronounced goor)] and murī (puffed
rice), so they have full provisions for the trip.
487
Before sailing, Vishnujana and Dhristadyumna decide to visit the police
station to get information about what to do if there is a problem on the
river. The police station is typical, a decrepit office with a creaking fan,
like out of a movie. A big overweight, bureaucratic Superintendent of
Police, with a stubbly beard, sits behind an old wooden desk. To the
devotees, he looks like he gets his palms greased every day. To the
police chief, these devotees look like really naive Westerners. He would
rather not have them on the river in case they cause a disturbance.
“We want to travel down the Ganga to Maypur. So we’d like to know
about the law of the river,” Vishnujana Swami inquires.
“On the river?” he replies. “On the river there is no law. You know
pirates? Pirates there are. If you arrive alive, that will be your very good
fortune.”
All of a sudden, Vishnujana realizes that the boat trip could be

dangerous, especially for the Western devotees who don’t speak the
language and don’t know the local customs. What to speak of having no
experience living on a boat or what to do if confronted with hostile
pirates. He is reluctant to put these devotees at risk.
After discussing the problem with Haridas, Maharaja calls the Delhi
temple to discuss the situation with Tamal Krishna. He learns that
Prabhupada has left Delhi for Vrindavan because his main concern is
finishing the Vrindavan temple, which requires Tamal’s immediate
attention. Prabhupada’s appearance in Allahabad is now cancelled and
Tamal Krishna’s dream of doing the boat program with Vishnujana is
dashed. He’s unhappy that he can’t sail down the Ganga with his friend.
He suggests that Vishnujana try it with the people he has, to get an idea
of the experience.
“We don’t want to put devotees at risk,” he cautions. “If all bodes well,
maybe I can join you later and bring a few more devotees with me.
Right now Prabhupada wants me here. Call me when you reach Patna. If
Prabhupada won’t let me go, I’ll send Trivikrama Swami to take my
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place.”
Vishnujana agrees this is the best solution. “Okay. I’ll call you from
Patna.”
Trivikrama Swami: I was serving in Japan and I came to India a little

early for the Mayapur festival. Tamal Krishna was in Delhi and he was
going to go with Vishnujana Swami on the boat, but then he got an
order from Prabhupada to do something else. He was the GBC for India,
so he wasn’t available. Then my name was suggested to accompany
Vishnujana Swami as a second sannyāsī.
Now that the boat is provisioned and the sail is complete, Vishnujana is
ready to depart with his crew. As the boat sets sail, Maharaja informs
them that the next 40 days and 40 nights will be spent on the Ganga.
The devotees think this is incredible. There is a bamboo cabin on the
deck, with a flat top and rounded sides, with small windows on either
side. It must have been designed for sitting because it’s not tall enough
for anybody to stand up inside.
The three mājīs live there, and all the devotees’ belongings are piled up
in there as well. They have a projector on board to show the Hare
Krishna movie, although they don’t know how many villages will even
have electricity.
Dhristadyumna has brought along a camera. The scenery is

exceptionally beautiful with picturesque villages on the banks of this
divine river. It is winter, so the temperature is not hot, just pleasantly
warm. By late afternoon, after enjoying the initial euphoria of sailing
down the Ganga on the adventure of a lifetime, many devotees have
already dozed off. Vishnujana is happy to just be alone with his
thoughts. His thoughts go to Radha-Damodara, wondering if They are
being worshipped properly by the brahmacārīs back in Miami. He
wonders how the construction of Their new temple bus is progressing.
He has been away from Them for six weeks and is feeling pangs of
separation.
489
Every day Vishnujana reads Nectar of Devotion. He keeps a journal and
writes his realizations and feelings about Radha-Damodara and how he
can improve his service to Them. It is only by Their mercy, he writes,
that I am living on the sacred Ganga.
As the sun begins to set, Maharaja decides to anchor the first night by a
small village. He chants his gāyatrī enjoying the peaceful mood created
by singing birds. Not wanting the mood to be disturbed, Maharaja
doesn’t wake the sleeping devotees knowing they will rise early for
maṅgala-ārati.
Everybody wakes up in the early hours for the first morning program on
the boat. Indian villagers also get up early, and some of them have come
to check out the boat. They have heard Maharaja leading kirtan on
harmonium before sunrise. A large painting of Panca-tattva hangs over
the cabin as a backdrop.
After finishing the kirtan, and seeing the villagers still attentive,
Vishnujana decides to have a japa class. He asks Dhristadyumna to get
some japa beads and hand them to the villagers. Once they have their
beads he teaches them how to chant and then everyone chants a round
together. After returning the beads the villagers depart. The devotees get
down to seriously chanting their rounds.
Dhristadyumna: It was wonderful doing the morning program. We

would stand in the Ganges doing our gāyatrī facing east as the sun came
up over the river. I thought, This is the life. It was cold too, but we
survived. It was austere but we loved it. Vishnujana Swami was very
austere. He was always first up, last to take rest. He was writing a diary
journal at night. I didn’t know he was doing that until later. He did this
night after night. He was a very private person in some ways. That’s
why it was hard to get close to him, because he had his own mystical
interior side.
On the Ganges, there were times when it could have been 500 years ago.
The villages were the same as they were for centuries with ancient
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temples, no electricity, no wires, no planes, and no cars. I had a kind of
time-warp experience, like being a brahmacārī 500 years ago. It was a
wonderful experience.
The Ganga passes the ancient city of Varanasi. On the fourth day of
sailing, everyone gathers on deck to watch as they approach the city at
early morning. Vishnujana Swami remembers Lord Chaitanya’s
pastimes in Varanasi and narrates them to the brahmacārīs as they sail
by the city. Bhava Bhuti remarks that it doesn’t look as spiritual or as
ancient as he would have expected.
Sailing past the city, a strange thing happens. Gradually the river begins
turning eastward and continues turning until the boat is actually sailing
north! Vishnujana can ascertain this because the morning sun is always
on the eastern horizon. Nobody can understand what is happening.
Haridas inquires from the mājīs and relates their explanation to

Maharaja.
“Varanasi is the ancient city of Lord Shiva and its ancient name is
Kashi. It was Lord Shiva who caught Mother Ganga to break her fall as
she fell to earth, so Lord Shiva and Mother Ganga are intimately related.
There is a famous temple of Lord Shiva at the beginning of the city and
after touching near that temple, Mother Ganga flows south along one
side of the city. At the end of the city she turns north and returns back
along the other side of the city to the same Shiva temple. From there she
again turns south and continues flowing south until she reaches the Bay
of Bengal. This is the only place along her thousand mile route where
she flows north.”
The devotees are amazed to hear this pastime of Mother Ganga. All of a
sudden, they are sailing past the ancient temples and ghāts so famous in
photos of Varanasi. They can see many boats filled with pilgrims and
thousands of people taking bath at the many ghāts along the river bank.
Varanasi appears crowded and vibrant compared to the idyllic peaceful
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countryside. Maharaja prefers to continue sailing and dock in the
evening at a more remote village.
Haridas: We sailed all day and whatever village came into sight in the
evening that’s where we stopped. There was no discrimination if it was
qualified or unqualified. We anchored the boat somewhere and we had
to jump out of the boat and wade through the mud to get on land.
The morning program on the boat includes a short ārati, guru-pūjā, and
class. Breakfast prasāda and lunch prasāda is always the same, gur and
murī. If they get some milk or bananas from a village then they mix it
in. Only if some person invites them into their home then they can have
a decent meal. Otherwise, they return to the boat and eat the same thing,
gur and murī, and sometimes chīra (flat rice). That’s their main meal
every day. At night the boatmen cook their own food on land. They are
also vegetarian.
Sri Vallabha and Bhave Bhuti like to sit on deck after breakfast and
practice mṛdaṅga together as the boat sails down the river. They sit in
front of each other, with their mṛdaṅgas practically touching. For hours
at a time they practice their beats, going like machine guns, as if in a
competition.
Sri Vallabha is not a very open personality. He had problems in Delhi,

so his mind was troubled. The river excursion is supposed to be his
opportunity to get back in the fire of devotional service. On the boat he
does become more relaxed and the other devotees notice the change in
his demeanor. Although he’s a kind devotee he is not carefree like the
others. With Bhava Bhuti, he has a friendly, but confrontational,
relationship.
Every afternoon, when the weather is warm, devotees enjoy diving into
the Ganga for a swim. The top of the cabin is a fair height from the
water level. As the boat is plying on the river, they dive from the cabin.
A rope is attached to the stern and trails in the water, so they can swim
over, grab hold of the rope, and pull themselves back to the boat.
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Vishnujana loves to hold that rope and let the boat pull him through the
Ganga. He says it’s like being pulled through caraṇāmṛta. As he’s pulled
through the sacred water, he enjoys singing the mantras from Brahma-
samhita.
Once, Haridas is almost lost at sea. After diving from the top of the
cabin, the current catches him and he can’t swim over to catch the rope.
All of a sudden he is being left behind in the river.
Haridas: The current was going so fast that I drifted way out and missed
the rope. Vishnujana Maharaja had to dive in and rescue me. He was
brave and adventurous, and swam out to bring me back to the boat.
Vishnujana relished and enjoyed the boat, the Ganga, and the scenery,
more than anyone. He would sit on top of the cabin and sing all day with
the harmonium. He was always in trance. His favorite song was Radhe
Jaya Jaya, Madhava Dayite. I don’t know what made him so high, but
he was on the roof alone, all day, singing so beautifully while we sailed.
His bhajans and classes occupied most of our time. Bhava Bhuti was
lying around and taking it easy, a very free kind of man.
Depending on the weather, the entire day is spent either on the deck or
below. The mājīs harness the wind to control the direction of the boat.
It’s cold at night and windy during the day. At times there is thunder
and occasionally a storm threatens. When high winds and waves hit the
boat, Vishnujana Swami joins in to help the mājīs control the sail. One
time the wind becomes so heavy that the mājīs cannot lower the sail fast
enough. The boat is going so fast that it crashes right into the bank. The
boat suffers no harm, however, because the banks are only mud and
grass.
Vishnujana has great faith in Krishna so for him the problems of the
boat are minor.
But the others worry about what might happen. They’ve barely been on
the river a week when they sail past the town of Saidpur, and one man
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has had enough. He wants to leave the boat and get a train to Mayapur.
But Maharaja convinces him to stay.
The mājīs keep the party well informed about conditions on the river,
and about different villages along the way. They really know the river
well and keep Vishnujana Swami apprised of various situations that may
present a problem.
Devotees chant on deck all day as they sail because there is nothing else
to do. One day they come across pirates, swarthy mean-looking men
with dark ships and dark sails. But the Vaishnavas simply sail past them
with their beautiful sail painted Hare Krishna in three languages. The
pirates smile seeing these white people doing kirtan. The boatmen warn
Vishnujana Swami that these men are bad, but Maharaja can tell that the
pirates will leave them be.
One evening the boat stops at a pirate village, but the devotees do their
regular program of kirtan and prasādam distribution. Vishnujana doesn’t
discriminate whether dhīra or adhīra, if it’s a nice village or not a nice
village, whether poor people or not. He’s always imparting Krishna
consciousness.
When the boat enters the state of Bihar, the river becomes very shallow
at Durjanpur. It seems to flatten out and becomes incredibly wide, but
very shallow. The mājīs have long bamboo poles that they use to gauge
the depth of the river by sitting on the bow of the boat and lowering a
pole into the water. Notwithstanding the efficacy of this technique, the
boat does get stuck on a sandbar one time. Both devotees and mājīs have
to disembark and pull the boat off the sandbar with ropes.
After that incident, they continue sailing and anchor beside a village at
evening. With his harmonium strapped over his shoulder, Vishnujana
Swami leads the kirtan party through the village to announce their
presence. Several devotees distribute the Hindi magazine, Bhagavat
Darshan. They immediately attract a crowd and Haridas makes
arrangements with the village leaders for an evening program.
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The program always begins with kirtan and then Vishnujana explains
the mission of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Haridas translates his talk. Since
this village has electricity they show the Hare Krishna People film.
After the film they have another kirtan and then a japa class, which has
become a regular feature.
All the while, donated rice and dhal cooks in a huge karāi (wok) over a
fire. They finish with an offering, ārati, and then everyone honors
prasādam.
Dhristadyumna: The scenery was gradually changing. As we

approached the arid lands of Bihar, we saw many poor, bedraggled
people. Obviously, there was drought and no food. We’d pull the boat
over and kirtan into town, start a fire going and set up the woks, then
throw in the rice and dhāl, and feed them. I got some incredible shots of
this wild, bleak landscape, the desert, and the Ganges, very shallow and
wide, with people dressed in black clothing like refugees from some
alien planet. It was surrealistic.
For three weeks the boat sails down the Ganga doing the same program
every evening. For Vishnujana Swami, the boat party is similar to his
Radha-Damodara party, but now he’s on water. Even though he doesn’t
speak Hindi, his speech and behavior are genuine and his body language
is convincing. Educated villagers are impressed with Maharaja’s depth
of knowledge. When a person can convey deep philosophical truths and
make it easily understood, he knows his subject matter well.
Every morning, devotees do their own program, and every evening they
do the village program. One day they see the town of Patna in the
distance.
Patna, February 1974

Overlooking the Ganga, Patna is the capital city of the state of Bihar.
The boat docks at a quiet ghāt, far from the hustle and bustle of the
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town. Having sailed from Allahabad to Patna without incident,
Vishnujana and Haridas agree that they can now proceed towards
Mayapur without any reservation. But Maharaja wants more devotees in
order to increase the potential of the program.
Vishnujana calls Delhi for Tamal Krishna, only to discover that he’s
with Prabhupada in Vrindavan. He leaves a message with Tejiyas, the
Delhi temple president. “The boat has arrived in Patna, and Goswami
should send the rest of the crew.” He asks Tejiyas to have Tamal call the
home of a favorable gentleman they have met in Patna who will relay
the message to the boat.
While waiting in Patna for more devotees to arrive, the Western

Vaishnavas attract a lot of attention. Soon they are invited to the homes
of several important people to do programs.
Dhristadyumna: We were treated like kings and feted by the top people
in the city. So it wasn’t only that we did programs in the villages. We
were like the first padayātrā, in a sense. Some people had heard about
Prabhupada and his movement, but ISKCON was still very small in ‘74.
Vishnujana Swami, if he was preaching to the rich men of Patna, or to a
bunch of pirates, he was the same.
Soon, Vishnujana receives a message that more devotees are on their

way by train. They will arrive Wednesday morning. Before sunrise,
Maharaja and Haridas wait for their new crew members at the Patna
railway station. Haridas quickly spots Trivikrama Swami, Madhusevita,
and Krishna Kishor, gathered together on the platform. They have
brought more japa mālās, Hindi Bhagavat Darshan magazines, and Gitar
Gan, Prabhupada’s rendering of Bhagavad-gita into Bengali poetry. It’s
a small book for the Bengali speaking villages.
After a warm reception, Vishnujana assures them the trip will be blissful
and there will be no challenges they can’t overcome. He informs them
that he has a nice seaworthy boat with experienced boatmen who know
everything there is to know on the river.
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“We have a little outdoor pandal,” he explains. “Everyone is impressed
to see our group of white sādhus. Haridas made friends with an old
gentleman who was well informed about this Bihar segment of the
Ganga. He gave us valuable guidelines how to live on the sacred river.
So everything is going great.” The new members are happy to be part of
this novel adventure.
Madhusevita: When I arrived in Patna, Vishnujana Swami received us

very warmly. He told me, “I’m also from an Italian family,” so I felt
relieved, that if I had a problem I could tell him and he would
understand. He was a wonderful Vaishnava.
After loading their bags and baggage into two taxis, they drive to the
ghāt to see the boat. The light of day is breaking when they arrive at the
Ganga. Seeing the boat, the newcomers are thrilled. After meeting the
other devotees and loading their gear into the hold, Vishnujana takes
everybody to his favorite place under the shade of palm trees where he
likes to do the morning program.
They sit among the trees on the banks of the Ganga for Bhagavatam
class. As the sun begins to rise over the river, Vishnujana Swami starts
singing jaya radha madhava, kunjabihari…
There is a small village nearby. One villager comes by with a clay pot of
date rasa as an offering to the sādhus. The villagers tap the date trees in
the evening and hang clay pots. By morning the pots are full. The
western devotees have never had this before so they put it aside and will
take it for breakfast.
Dhristadyumna: We had an especially long kirtan and class that

morning. The sun was up, and it was getting hot by 9:00 o’clock. Then
we had breakfast of puffed rice and chickpeas, and date rasa. We were
drinking the date rasa and it was kind of fizzy. It was the first time we
ever had it and it was delicious.
Madhusevita: We had fresh green chickpeas, delicious chickpeas, and a
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beverage. We drank it and were very happy after drinking that beverage.
It was some kind of rasa from the trees.
When taken at early morning, date rasa is very good. But every villager
knows that after sunrise it starts to ferment and turns alcoholic. The
devotees are drinking the date rasa with the intention that it is good.
Only Trivikrama Swami refrains from drinking the rasa because he
doesn’t like the taste. Some villagers are hanging around watching and
they start laughing when the devotees become a little tipsy as they drink
more of the rasa.
“Gee, this is good stuff, you know?” says Sri Vallabha with a big smile.
“Is this okay?” Maharaja asks Haridas. “Is it okay to drink this?”
“Are you sure this is just date juice?” Dhristadyumna inquires.
“This is a little bit like wine,” Madhusevita says. “It’s just from the date
tree, right?” Haridas can only laugh because now he understands what is
happening. But he doesn’t have the heart to tell the others.
Madhusevita: We all liked it, but unfortunately it was fermented, so we

got a little drunk. Because I was a new devotee, I thought maybe this is
a kind of beverage that is allowed in the movement.
Dhristadyumna: We couldn’t understand why the villagers were

laughing, but they knew what happens if you drink it after sunrise. They
were laughing to see a sannyāsī and brahmacārīs getting lightly looped.
Then we realized it was fermenting and was mildly intoxicating. Of
course, we felt kind of guilty but what could we do?
Vishnujana informs everyone that they had better get back on the boat
and push off. Maharaja has already sent the mājīs into town to purchase
huge sacks of puffed rice and gur.
“For the sake of practicality,” he informs the newcomers, “we will have
a simple diet on the boat – puffed rice and gur.” Hearing this, Sri
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Vallabha and Bhava Bhuti look at each other and laugh, knowing that
the new recruits have no idea what they are getting themselves into.
“This will not only comprise our diet,” Maharaja continues, “but will
also be distributed in the villages along the way. We won’t cook on the
boat, because there is no real facility for that, and we previously had
problems cooking with the kerosene stove on a moving vessel. We’ll all
do our own laundry, and we’ll each have a little space on the boat for
our belongings.”
Maharaja says he expects the expedition to last for at least a month. He

wants the boat to arrive in Mayapur to join the devotees from around the
world who will be there for the Gaura Purnima Festival. Hearing
Maharaja’s exciting description, the new members of the party become
even more fired-up.
When the mājīs return from town, the devotees help them load all the
provisions onto the boat. Everything is stored in the hold along with the
books, magazines and japa mālās. They are now ready to raise anchor
and begin the journey of a lifetime.
Everyone shouts, “Haribol,” as the mājīs use their long bamboo poles to
push the boat away from the ghāt. As the boat catches the current of the
river, they hoist the sail. The new devotees are delighted to see the
brightly colored sail with HARE KRISHNA displayed prominently.
Within minutes they are sailing down the Ganga on a bright, sunny day.
For the new members, the excitement of joining the expedition soon
turns into dealing with the practical side of daily life.
Trivikrama Swami: On the boat it was cramped quarters. You could

stand on the deck, but underneath you couldn’t stand up so you had to
bend over. It was wintertime, so it was quite cold. We had to take our
bath in the river every morning, and that was an austerity. There were
also mosquitoes; that was another austerity. But the biggest austerity
was the food.
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For breakfast, Vishnujana Swami would sit down with a big smile on
his face, and eat a plate full of puffed rice and some gur. He would sit
there and eat and eat and be happy and smiling. I also did that a few
days, but I got so sick of puffed rice and gur, especially the gur. Even
today I don’t like gur, because we had to eat so much. Finally, I only
had one meal, rice, dhal, and sabji, cooked in one pot, once a day at
evening. It would come out like a stew. The only other thing we ate was
puffed rice and gur.
Vishnujana Maharaja was quite austere about sleeping. He didn’t like it

if you slept more. I was tired one evening during the program and he
was speaking, so I left early and went back to the boat. When he came
back and saw that I was resting he was upset. He didn’t chastise me, but
he made it clear that he didn’t like it that we were sleeping extra. Both
sleeping and eating were pretty austere. I remember talking to him about
it and he said, “When I travel in America we always have opulent
prasādam, so now I’m coming to India to perform austerity.”
That was his mood. On that boat he was quite austere.
Madhusevita: I remember in the morning a big pile of puffed rice and a

big chunk of gur. That was breakfast. Then at noon there was a big pile
of puffed rice and a chunk of gur; and in the evening, a pile of puffed
rice and a chunk of gur. It went on like this and some people got
constipation, and others got the opposite. Everyone would complain, but
we were taking it. I had variations on the diet. Today I’ll eat more
puffed rice and less gur, just for a change. Or, I’ll break the gur in small
pieces and mix it in the puffed rice. Or, instead of mixing it I’ll just bite
off a big piece of gur and then take some puffed rice.
The gur was the thickest type, like the kind they also give to horses,
with pieces of sugar cane still in it. These are the remembrances of a
bhakta. As a young brahmacārī I was in ecstasy thinking, what is this
very austere life! Of course I really liked sweets so I felt that this is
really the program for me. I remember waking up in the morning and
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jumping in the Ganga for our morning bath.
Then maṅgala-ārati on the deck with Vishnujana playing harmonium

and singing the Gurvastakam prayers sweetly with the devotees as the
sun was coming up on the Ganga. It melts my heart just to remember.
He was a wonderful person and we had sweet association. He had me in

sympathy immediately. He said he liked my singing very much, but that
was probably just to encourage me. I was a young bhakta so it did give
me great encouragement. The kirtans were wonderful. He sang with so
much enthusiasm. It was just ecstasy chanting Hare Krishna. Vishnujana
and Trivikrama gave class. It was idyllic. I think Prabhupada and
Krishna blessed me by having this beginning in spiritual life. I’ll never
forget it.
Soon, they cross from Bihar into Bengal. The scenery and the mood
changes completely. Gone are the arid plains of Bihar replaced by the
sub-tropical villages of Bengal. At almost every village they are offered
date rasa. In Bengal it’s a bigger thing than in Bihar. If a village has date
trees, the mājīs go and get the rasa for themselves, and always offer
some to the devotees. Vishnujana makes sure they take it early, before
sunrise. Trivikrama Swami still doesn’t like it, and a few devotees
prefer not to drink it, so Haridas and Vishnujana usually take it by
themselves.
Every devotee notices a different mood in Bengal. They are welcomed

in every village with more enthusiasm than they experienced previously.
This is the first time that many of these villagers have seen white
devotees chanting Krishna kirtan. Some villages give them a
tremendous reception as people come out of their homes to honor the
sādhus. Some ladies even come forward to wash the devotees’ feet with
Ganga water and others bring ārati lamps to offer them pūjā.
The book distribution led by Bhava Bhuti, goes much better and they
distribute hundreds of copies of Gitar Gan. It’s hot in the villages during
the day, but Bhava Bhuti is encouraging and enthusiastic as he reveals
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the bliss of book distribution.
“This is our life. What more do we want than this? People are so nice
here.”
Every evening the boat stops and they do kirtan through a village to
announce their presence. When Vishnujana ends the kirtan, Haridas
explains that they will do a program that evening and everyone is
invited. Haridas is invaluable as a translator. He speaks both Hindi and
Bengali, and he’s a very clever organizer. He has gained a lot of
experience on the trip and knows how to deal with the local people.
Dhristadyumna: For a guy from the West, a brahmacārī in the

movement for two years, doing kirtan in these villages was incredible.
They made us stop and they performed ārati to us. They put water on
our feet and took the dust. Haridas would translate. “This lady would
like you to take her son to join your party.” Women said things like that.
It was one wonderful reception after another in every village.
Madhusevita: I don’t know what the villagers thought. They would see
these white men led by a giant-like Vishnujana Swami singing with the
harmonium strapped over his shoulder, accompanied by Trivikrama
Swami holding his danda, and the other devotees playing mṛdaṅga and
kartāls. They were not expecting people like us coming out of a
fisherman’s boat. We could have been from some different planet. For
them, it was like a miraculous appearance - like Columbus coming to
America.
While a village is being enlivened by kirtan, Haridas organizes

volunteers to return to the boat to bring everything needed for the
evening program. The boat is filled with big sacks of provisions because
Vishnujana never expects the villagers to provide. The village men carry
back the sacks along with two huge karāis. By inserting a bamboo pole
through the handles on either side, two men carry each karāi back to the
village. Then Haridas engages local men to dig a pit and start a fire.
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When the fire starts blazing at a good clip, devotees put a karāi on the
fire to begin cooking down the gur. Soon it starts melting into a
bubbling liquid, like molasses. Then they take the karāi off the fire and
allow the mixture to cool. Next they throw in the puffed rice and stir it
around. At last the mixture is rolled it into large sticky balls called moa.
The brahmacārīs always eat the gur/puffed rice mixture raw, but for the
villagers they cook it down and roll it into balls.
As soon as the first karāi comes off the fire, the second one is put on to
make kicharī. As the kicharī is being prepared, the village kids are
eyeing the moa. Seeing the sweet sticky balls, the kids cannot control
their senses and swarm around the karāi trying to snatch a sweet ball.
Madhusevita becomes concerned that the kids might burn themselves
because the gur is still hot.
The kids are so enthusiastic for the moa that devotees have to have a
guard system to prevent them from taking the prasāda before it’s
offered. Despite these efforts, three kids dive into the wok. Some
devotees pick up sticks to try and stop them, but the kids are so eager for
the sweet balls they are practically unstoppable, like monkeys. They
swiftly load up their pockets and run off coated with the sticky mixture.
As they run they resemble monsters from a Spielberg movie with puffed
rice and gur stuck to their bodies.
Dhristadyumna: We couldn’t keep the kids away from the prasāda. It

was wild. We’d have kicharī and the sweet balls. We’d have two woks
going and do one of each. One of us would cook, and the villagers
would all pitch in. By 7:00 o’clock the whole village would gather
around the fire. It was like something out of ancient times, like the
Ramayana Tour coming into town. We had banners and a whole festival
atmosphere. If a village had electricity we’d bring out the projector for
the Hare Krishna film. The village people would see devotees in
London, New York, and Los Angeles. They didn’t know that Hare
Krishna was all over the world. We were the Hindu evangelicals who
were sweeping the world.
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When they set up a screen and bring out the suitcase projector to show
the Hare Krishna People movie, the villagers get excited. This is the part
of the program they like the most. Everyone laughs in ecstasy to see
white sādhus, dancing white elephants as Prabhupada would say, chant
and dance in the major cities of the world.
After the film Vishnujana Swami gives a short talk with Haridas
translating expertly.
It’s a simple talk, but very informative – about Prabhupada, Hare

Krishna worldwide, and the fulfillment of Lord Chaitanya’s prophesy.
After the talk Vishnujana leads an ecstatic kirtan.
The evening ends with Vishnujana giving a japa class, which is a

popular feature of the program. Devotees have brought hundreds of japa
mālās and are eager to hand them out to interested people. Sometimes,
individuals want to keep the beads and Vishnujana obliges them.
There are always big crowds. Vishnujana’s kirtans are well received and
everyone joins in the chanting. They are attracted by the western
Vaishnavas and the movie. They don’t know anything about Prabhupada
or his movement but there is always a good response. Vishnujana
Swami is charismatic and people love him. Women, especially, come up
to offer things at his feet or offer an ārati to him. The devotees are
surprised to see this because they have always been taught how chaste
and shy the women are in India, but now they are experiencing their
high-spirited side.
Trivikrama Swami: I remember we stopped in one village and the leader

of the village wouldn’t let us go. “No, you have to stay one more day.”
He had us show the movie in his house. One thing that struck me was
the curtain in the middle of the room with women on one side, and the
men on the other side. They didn’t mix. Both sides could see the speaker
and the movie, but they couldn’t see each other.
After a few weeks on this tour, I got so skinny. But it didn’t faze
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Vishnujana Maharaja at all. He would eat so much puffed rice that
somehow he survived. He was always in good spirits.
When the program is over, the villagers help the devotees pack
everything and return to the boat to load all the paraphernalia back into
the hold underneath. Then the devotees take a well-deserved rest.
The boat lifts anchor at sunrise after maṅgala-ārati. During the day
everyone chants japa or reads until prasādam time, which is always
puffed rice and gur. There are the occasional complaints because some
are suffering the pangs of hunger, others the lack of medicine. With no
proper medication or food on the boat, some men start getting sick.
Others try to sleep a lot because the boat is sailing all day long.
Haridas: One day I got an infection in my leg, so I couldn’t jump in the

water and cross to the land. Vishnujana Maharaja was such a big man;
he could easily carry me on his shoulders to the land. Sometimes he
would carry me back to the boat after the program. He took care of all
my personal and medical needs. Many places I couldn’t go to the
program, but he’d say, “No you have to come, there’s nobody else to
translate.” I became important because I organized everything and
translated his lectures to the audience.
Overall, everyone agrees it’s a nectar trip. They have Ganga water to
drink and Ganga water for bathing. They even sleep in the lap of mother
Ganga. Every evening they perform the same program, and each village
is receptive beyond belief. They distribute hundreds of Bhagavat
Darshan magazines and Gitar Gan books in every village.
Now and then, Vishnujana is asked, “Have you attained peace of

mind?” At other times people inquire if he has mystic powers. “Can you
tell the future?”
Maharaja replies, “Yes, I can tell the future.” People’s eyes open wide.
“You are all going to die, and therefore you must take shelter of
Krishna’s Holy Name.” From that point on he begins preaching.
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Basically, he wants to convey the necessity of kirtan, chanting the
mahā-mantra.
One evening during the kirtan, Vishnujana is so engrossed in chanting

the Holy Name that he is overcome by emotion. His eyes become wet as
he sings, so at a certain point in the program he says to Dhristadyumna,
“You take over the kirtan,” and he returns to the boat alone.
Dhristadyumna’s kirtan is also quite good. He wears saffron canvas
shoes and he likes to jump up and down a lot.
One morning after maṅgala-ārati, Vishnujana Swami announces,

“Today is Lord Nityananda’s appearance day. So we’ll just have our
own program, meditate on the mercy of Nityananda, and cook a feast.
Yesterday I arranged for the mājīs to get as many vegetables as possible
so we can make some opulent preparations for Nityananda Prabhu.”
Madhusevita: On Nityananda’s appearance day we had a real feast – not

puffed rice and gur. Vishnujana Maharaja cooked wonderful
preparations. Many of us chanted 64 rounds and helped Maharaja cook.
That was the meal of the trip. We talked about Lord Nityananda. We
were on the Ganga and I was in the air, there was neither earth nor
water. I thought, Krishna consciousness is just sublime; it’s the most
beautiful adventure in life. Oh, it was nectar! That was one of the best
periods of my spiritual life, although the puffed rice and gur were
playing their part! I remember Vishnujana Maharaja with great
affection, and he showed me great affection.
On another evening, after leading kirtan in the village, Vishnujana

Maharaja wants to return to the boat to continue writing his diary.
Dhristadyumna asks if he can also return because he has been going at it
pretty hard. Trivikrama Swami says he will be happy to remain with the
other devotees and do the program. So Vishnujana Maharaja and
Dhristadyumna return to the boat.
There is no moon tonight because it’s amāvasyā. [The dark moon night]
The boat is rocking gently on the ripples of mother Ganga. Vishnujana
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sits on the deck by the bow writing his journal; a solitary sannyāsī in the
darkness. He has a little clay cup, filled with ghee and a wick, which
serves as a lamp. He is writing by the dim light of this small clay cup
lamp.
Dhristadyumna sits on the far side of the boat, by the stern, softly
chanting japa because Maharaja is not in a mood to converse.
Dhristadyumna doesn’t want to disturb him because Vishnujana is
deeply meditating on his writing.
Suddenly, Dhristadyumna hears a noise, ‘pft’. Then he hears it again,

‘pft, pft’. He looks around trying to determine where the sound is
coming from. It begins increasing, ‘pft, pft, pft’, out of the black night
on the Ganga with no electricity, no light. Dhristadyumna gets up to find
out what that sound is and where it’s coming from. He walks over to
where Vishnujana Swami is sitting, and looks over at the makeshift ghee
lamp. He notices that the ghee wick is flickering. Vishnujana is looking
at it too. They are both looking at the lamp and the light is growing
more and more dim.
In the faint light, the two devotees can see many tiny gnats approaching
the light of the lamp. They can see the gnats as their trail approaches the
lamp because they start to light up as they enter the flame, pft. The
flame is flickering and becomes dimmer as their dead bodies continue to
pile up. Ultimately, their bodies will extinguish the flame. It’s like a
mystical phenomenon. They are dying one-by-one as they’re attracted to
this solitary light in the dark night.
Dhristadyumna is transfixed seeing this manifest. He ponders its deep

meaning. Suddenly, Maharaja turns around, looks up at him, and quotes
Krishna in a deep voice, “Time I am, destroyer of the worlds.”
[Bhagavad-gita, 11.32]
Dhristadyumna: It’s hard to convey the realization I had at that time

about the material world; how we’re all like moths being drawn into the
flame and dying. Thousands of gnats were piling up. It was a dark night,
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that’s why it was so mystical. Just a little flame in the whole expanse of
the black night. It was quiet and Vishnujana was writing. Then we heard
this noise and saw the light growing dim. And we see the trails of the
gnats as they fly into the light and die, just like the living entities drawn
by their sense gratification to death. It was a supernatural scene
illuminated by the flickering lamp. That was profound!
The next evening the boat stops at a village that turns out to be
completely Muslim. As the party kirtans into the village, everybody
turns to look at them with suspicion. “What is this? White people
coming into our village and singing Hindu chants?”
Within minutes the kirtan party is surrounded by a crowd of villagers

carrying sticks, machetes for cutting coconuts, and other kinds of
weapons. They appear ready to harm or kill the devotees. At first the
devotees thought they were following the kirtan, but soon they discover
that these people would just as soon kill them.
One Hindu gentleman, the teacher in the village school, gives them a
warning, “You better leave now, otherwise they might cause you bodily
harm.”
Vishnujana refuses, “No, we don’t want to leave. We want to chant.”

He’s determined to set up the program as usual and distribute prasādam.
Devotees carry on the kirtan and prepare the gur and murī.
Madhusevita: It was like being back in the 10th Century. It was a dark
night and I was scared because they were all Muslims. But Vishnujana
was courageous. He said, “Let’s have a program anyway.”
The devotees do their kirtan in the middle of the village, surrounded by

500 people who simply stand silently. These people do not chant. In all
the other villages, people would chant ‘Hare Krishna’ and ‘Haribol’
with their arms raised, but these people just stand there listening. They
seem attentive, but not one of them utters a sound.
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After kirtan, Vishnujana Swami tries to give a talk. It’s a poetic situation
in the moonlight with people who are attentive but don’t respond. They
don’t talk nor ask questions. When devotees offer them prasāda they
refuse to accept it.
Vishnujana Swami simply says, “Then we will eat,” and the devotees
begin eating.
Gradually the village ladies come forward, one by one, and in the end
many people take prasādam. The devotees stay up very late in that
village to establish a rapport.
The next morning, at daybreak, scores of men come to the boat. A wave
of apprehension sweeps over the brahmacārīs assuming this might lead
to some trouble.
Haridas: They were standing there with fruit and vegetables to give to
us. They brought whatever they had. They all appreciated us! They
remained on the shore waving us off for a long time. That was the only
village where there was an incident, but Vishnujana Swami reciprocated
well with those people. We went to big towns and small villages, but
these people really cared for us when we were leaving.
One fine day, as the boat sails past the village of Rajmahal, the mājīs
casually tell Haridas that they will reach the dam within a few hours. It’s
as if they think that everyone knows about it. Haridas immediately
informs Vishnujana Swami. Maharaja is shocked, “What does that
mean?”
“It might be the end of the trip,” is all that Haridas can reply in a sad
voice.
Soon the boat arrives at Farakka Barrage, a massive dam near the border
with Bangladesh. It appears as if a gigantic steel claw has been
constructed across the Ganges. It’s there for flood control, but during
the monsoon season the reverse happens when the overload of water is
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released.
Seeing the dam appear out of nowhere to block their passage is like a
great shock. Vishnujana gathers the men together. “We have a huge
problem. The mājīs did not inform us from the beginning that the
journey to Mayapur would be blocked.” Everyone is upset hearing that
they may not be able to sail into Mayapur for the conclusion of a
fantastic adventure.
Maharaja has the mājīs anchor the boat by a grassy bank and the
devotees disembark. They walk over to the dam for a closer inspection.
There are a number of chutes, long cement ‘slides,’ that allow water to
cross over the dam. They look down one huge chute, thinking maybe
it’s possible to slide the boat down the chute to the next level of the
river down below.
Dhristadyumna examines the angle of the slide, wondering if they could

take the boat and slide it down this gigantic dam. Maybe they could
actually get to the other side, to the river below, otherwise they have no
idea how to continue. Nobody wants to stop the journey. They want to
sail into Mayapur.
When speaking to the people who work there, they are advised not to
sail further.
“If you go you may not reach Mayapur, ever. It is too risky.”
Dhristadyumna: We didn’t know there was a dam there. Vishnujana

hadn’t done the research.
Maharaja leads everyone back to the boat to discuss the situation. They
realize that the boat could splinter into a million pieces if they try to
cross the dam. They are undecided whether to take that risk. Finally,
everybody agrees it’s not worth the risk to try and sail over the dam, nor
do they have the money to haul the boat past the dam by truck to get it
back into the river on the other side. Besides, the boat is too big to haul
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by truck. So they agree to abandon the boat and leave it with the mājīs.
They can sail it back to Allahabad.
The great adventure, 40 days and 40 nights on the Ganga, ends here. By
the mercy of Haridas, they try hitchhiking and get a lift with a truck.
They salvage as much as they can from the boat and leave.
Madhusevita: We were sitting in the back of this open truck all the way
to Mayapur. Everything was a challenge, but at the time I really loved
austerities.
Dhristadyumna: There was so much variety on the trip. First, Allahabad,

the Bihar deserts, then Bengal, lush and opulent with cows everywhere.
Haridas: Those six weeks were really transcendental. Vishnujana

Maharaja took the most advantage of it because he was relishing
everything. He was enjoying our association, the bhajans, and the
kirtans. Vishnujana never chastised anybody even though we were
making a mess because most of the devotees were new. He was
enjoying every village program and he spoke to the people very nicely.
Mayapur, February 1974

From the banks of mother Ganga, from the emerald green rice paddies,
from the golden mustard fields, from the thatched homes in remote
villages comes the cry, “Hare Krishna! Hare Rama!” Small children
dance on the roofs of buses and clamber over trucks to greet the
devotees as Vishnujana Swami leads a kirtan party on the main road
from Hular Ghat to the ISKCON temple property. “Hare Krishna Hare
Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama
Rama Hare Hare.”
In Mayapur, word spreads quickly. “Vishnujana Maharaja is here.”

Many people come out to the road to greet the boat party. When the
party enters the temple room, they discover that Dinanath has been
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doing a 24-hour kirtan without any rest. Dinanath looks up at Maharaja
and says, “Haribol!” He is completely exhausted and moves over so
Vishnujana can take over the kirtan.
Maharaja tells everyone he meets about the trip down the Ganga. “One
can live here in India and they’ll just take care of you,” he says. Later in
the day, he arranges medication to take care of a leg infection that
Haridas can’t get rid of.
Hearing that Prabhupada will soon be coming to Calcutta, Maharaja

leaves at first light the next morning with Dhristadyumna. They want to
develop their film to show all the photos to Srila Prabhupada.
Unfortunately, the entire roll comes out looking like ghosts. The camera
was defective. They are so disappointed that there are no good pictures
of the boat tour and they will have nothing exciting to show
Prabhupada.
Nevertheless, when Prabhupada arrives with Tamal Krishna, Vishnujana

and Dhristadyumna go to his room to inform him about the trip. When
Vishnujana explains how they gave out hundreds of japa beads,
Prabhupada says, “No, you cannot do this. When you give people beads
like that, they think now you are their guru.”
TKG: He went on the boat and Prabhupada was very pleased with that.
When he was giving japa mālās away, Prabhupada didn’t want him to
do that. Prabhupada said that you have to sell the mālā, or they’ve got to
become qualified. I don’t recall a great deal about it.
Dhristadyumna: We didn’t know the etiquette, the nuances of Indian

culture and society. So Prabhupada made a point about the japa mālās,
that it was the wrong thing to do, and then he moved on. I remember he
was serious about it. I felt bad, too. I thought Vishnujana Maharaja
knew everything; obviously he didn’t.
Several Australian devotees are in Calcutta. Seeing the small lake across
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the street from the temple, they decide to go for a little swim. When they
return from bathing it’s time for the evening ārati. There are only 15 or
20 devotees in the temple. As the conch blows for the ārati, two
sannyāsīs enter the temple room. One of them has a clay mṛdaṅga. The
other one begins to lead kirtan.
Ganesh: It wasn’t a wild, romping, ecstatic kirtan, but was rather

subdued. He sang Gaura- arati, dancing very nicely. I didn’t know who
he was but he was tall and handsome. He was tanned so he’d obviously
spent time in India. Moving up slowly towards the Deities, he would lift
up and stretch out his arms when he reached the altar. Then he’d dance
back from the Deities, by lowering his arms. Then he’d come forward
again. His dancing reminded me of Lord Chaitanya from the little I
knew about Krishna consciousness. Later, I found out it was Vishnujana
Maharaja.
Sabhapati: Vishnujana Swami came in with just his top piece on, no
kurtā, and led the ārati. He was singing, and Acyutananda Swami was
playing mṛdaṅga. Being in India the first time, with the Indian
atmosphere, I thought he was like a demigod. He had his arms in the air
dancing to and fro the whole ārati. He was very tall and really stood out.
I’ll never forget him because he was effulgent. We’d been listening to
his tapes, but to hear him sing in person was something else.
After the ārati, Acyutananda sang bhajans with a tamboura. It was really
special – like magic. I was just a raw brahmacārī from Australia, and
coming to India and hearing Vishnujana lead kirtan and Acyutananda
singing bhajans, it was such a transcendental experience. It was
mystical.
After a few bhajans, everyone is invited into Prabhupada’s room for

darshan. Ramesvara is carrying the first volume of the Chaitanya-
charitamrta. It’s a big book and Prabhupada is delighted to see it. He
opens it up and looks through it. He is in ecstasy seeing that the book
has finally been published.
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Then Madhudvisa Swami speaks up, “I’ll order one thousand for
Australia.”
Prabhupada turns to look at him, obviously very pleased. The Australian

devotees, however, are taken aback by the proposal. Seeing the size of
the book they are thinking, That’s all right for you, Madhudvisa, but
we’ve got to sell these books. How can we distribute such a big book?
Yasodanandana Swami: I was in Calcutta when Vishnujana came to

India and met Acyutananda. You could describe it as a transcendental
get-together, like two rivers meeting. Vishnujana Maharaja had been
very potent and very sweet with his style of kirtan. Acyutananda Swami
was in India a long time, where he developed a unique style of Bengali
kirtan that was different from what devotees were accustomed to in the
West. When they met there was an uncontrollable surge of devotional
kirtan energy that was amazing. It was very blissful the first year they
met, because when they did kirtan together it was super ecstatic.
Suhotra: Vishnujana and Acyutananda finally met in India. They got

together in Calcutta and Garga Muni recorded them singing Gopinath
and trading off verses. That was considered very monumental.
A few days later Srila Prabhupada leaves Calcutta. When his car arrives
in Mayapur, news spreads around the festival site, “Prabhupada is
coming. Prabhupada is coming.” There’s a huge commotion as every
able-bodied devotee rushes to the road to greet Prabhupada’s car.
Everyone is excited to see their spiritual master, who is accompanied by
Tamal Krishna Goswami and Vishnujana Swami.
The devotees’ excitement is almost like that of the gopis when they hear
Krishna’s flute. They drop everything and run to Him, even if some of
their clothing is not properly in place.
Madhusevita: I was in anxiety because I had never seen Prabhupada. I

put on my dhoti and ran to the road. There was no front gate at the time.
Everybody was running to meet Prabhupada’s car. A furious kirtan had
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started and everyone was jumping. I remember Bhavananda dancing
like mad and spinning around. While I was dancing and jumping, my
dhoti started falling down. I just grabbed it and held it up while I
continued dancing. Then Prabhupada looked at me and smiled. I was
stunned.
The 1974 Gaura-Purnima festival is a mixture of difficulties and

achievements. Bhavananda Maharaja and Jayapataka Swami are the co-
managers of Mayapur. Together they rule. This is the first year that
devotees worldwide have come to Mayapur and the local devotees are
completely unprepared for the large turnout. The first building is still
under construction and unable to adequately house hundreds of devotees
from around the world.
Many devotees sleep out on the veranda at night where they also keep
their belongings. Prasādam is served on the same veranda, which adds
to the discomfort and confusion. In short, there is no privacy or security.
Having meager facilities, the festival frequently becomes a mob scene.

Most devotees are in India for the first time and fall victim to dysentery
and other illnesses, but the medical facilities are sadly lacking. Still,
everyone is happy to be in the holy dhāma. The only remedy is to accept
the austerities philosophically. Next year things will improve.
On the positive side, the 1974 gathering of devotees is making spiritual

history. It’s the first manifestation of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur’s
prophecy that devotees from all over the world will come to Lord
Chaitanya’s holy birth place and chant Jaya Sacinandana, Jaya
Sacinandana. A blissful pastime is meeting the devotees who had left
the western temples to serve Prabhupada in India. Vishnujana Maharaja
meets many old friends in the holy dhāma.
Adi Deva: When Maharaja returned from the boat trip he had dysentery
and was feeling real sick. He had a little book bag around his neck
where he kept Nectar of Devotion. Every two minutes he would pull it
out and read something. He was obsessed by that book, reading it over
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and over, and over again. Anytime someone sat down he would give an
impromptu class. He told me they tied a rope to the back of the boat,
and he loved when the boat pulled him through the Ganga. They would
have kirtan in villages where people had never seen white men before
and the villagers would go crazy.
This is also the first year that Prabhupada requests the GBC men to meet
and plan for the coming year’s preaching. Those devotees who are not
hampered by illness, are thrilled to go out on parikramā to visit the holy
sites associated with Lord Chaitanya’s pastimes. Bathing in the holy
Ganga is the most favored activity, besides shopping in Navadvipa. Best
of all, however, is to be with Prabhupada in the temple room every
morning.
Another exciting thing for first time devotees in India is to see so many
ISKCON sannyāsīs. The sannyāsīs seem to be everywhere, hanging
around in pairs. They associate Vishnujana Swami and Tamal Krishna
Maharaja. There are the ‘mean swamis’, Gurukripa and Yasodanandana.
Paramahamsa Swami is always with Parivrajakacarya Swami.
Bhavananda Goswami and Jayapataka Swami are together, and there is
Garga Muni Swami with Acyutananda Swami.
On a morning walk in Mayapur, with the sun just rising over the paddy
fields, Vishnujana Swami tells Prabhupada about the boat trip and his
experience in the Muslim village.
“There were only two Hindu gentlemen in the village and still, the
Mohammedans received us and arranged for our kirtan and prasādam
distribution.
“Very nice.” Prabhupada is pleased to hear this. “We felt it was

Nityananda’s grace.”
“Hare Krishna. Yes.”
“First we were afraid. Haridas Brahmacari told me: ‘Oh, these are
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Mohammedans. They’ll not help us in any way, nor will they accept
prasādam.’ But then I said let’s go.” “No, no. Everyone will help us,”
Prabhupada interjects. “It may be in that way, sometimes, Hindus are
also against. It is not the Mohammedans. In Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s
time, even the Hindus were against His movement – the brāhmaṇas.
They complained to the Kazi, ‘This is not a Hindu movement.’ You see?
The sankirtan movement! Therefore, the Kazi had to take steps to stop
the sankirtan movement. So the Kazi took steps on the grounds of
complaint by the Hindus.”
It is an enlightening moment, that one cannot assume any person, or any

group of persons, will be for or against the sankirtan movement.
Among the visitors to Mayapur are Kim Waters and Chris Murray, a
couple who run an art gallery in Washington, DC. They became
attracted to Krishna consciousness and were persuaded by devotees to
take the trip to Mayapur to celebrate Lord Chaitanya’s auspicious
appearance day. Now at the festival, they are inspired about everything
in the holy dhāma. Even more, they are enjoying the wonderful kirtan
and devotee association that is prevalent in Mayapur.
Chris Murray: That first festival in India was so ecstatic. There was
unlimited kirtan with large parties chanting blissfully on the roads of
Mayapur and Navadvipa. I have this vision of Vishnujana Swami
walking down the road followed by great Bengali drummers, and big
crowds of devotees and people. He seemed to have unlimited energy.
He would chant for hours. He could go, and go, and go, and go. Not just
a 20-minute kirtan. He sang in a way that brought your devotional spirit
alive. The way he pronounced the words śuci, and ruci; he seemed to
wrap himself around those words.
Yesterday, Prabhupada had invited his godbrothers to come for a visit

and today they arrive for the noon ārati. The American devotees are
leading kirtan but it’s a bit too jivey, so Prabhupada requests the kirtan
to be sung in a more traditional way. Acyutananda Maharaja takes over
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the kirtan with the Bengali devotees accompanying him on mṛdaṅgas.
To return the favor the next day, Achyutananda organizes an outing to

visit the math of His Holiness B. R. Sridhara Maharaja, a prominent
godbrother of Srila Prabhupada. A huge crowd of devotees kirtan down
Bhaktisiddhanta Marg to Hular Ghat at the confluence of the Ganga and
the Jalangi rivers. The ghāt is crammed with many small Bengali boats
for the trip across the river.
Uttamasloka: All the devotees were going to Sridhar Maharaja’s ashram

to meet the Gaudiya Math sannyāsīs. We went to the ghāt by the Jalangi
and got about 15 gondolas [Naukās - Bengali boats] of various sizes and
we all packed on to them. The boats were floating down the Ganga with
devotees having kirtan on every boat. It was a glorious sight.
Chris Murray: We took one of those boats from Mayapur and they were
always so packed out. I was on one with Vishnujana Swami, and I
remember him telling me about his boat trip. It was the coolest thing I
had ever heard. He told me they would dock, and they would kirtan
right from the shore and walk down the trail to the center of town and
then do kirtan in the town. People would come from everywhere and
they would go crazy. He told me they loved the American devotees.
He really had the spirit of Lord Chaitanya, every town and village with
the boat. He did things that I thought were so cool, like his bus with
Radha-Damodara, his music with the bhajan band, and then the boat
trip. I just thought, God, isn’t that great? I’d like to do that. I just wanted
to give up everything and join because it sounded like the ultimate
transcendental adventure.
I asked if he was coming again next year and I remember his comment.
He said he would return only if he had some service in India. It was in
the context of the boat trip. He was talking about organizing another
boat trip and if that happened he wanted to return. It was an amazing
attitude. I was going on pilgrimage to see India, and he only wanted to
go if he had some service to engage him.
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The boats are carried down river by the current, past the confluence of
the Ganga and Jalangi, and past Navadvipa town. They stop downriver
at a sandy beach-like area. From here devotees have to walk up the
grassy banks a few hundred yards inland where Sridhara Maharaja’s
ashram is located. As they come up from the river they can hear a kirtan
in the distance. As they enter the temple compound, the rāja-bhoga ārati
kirtan is in full swing with several Bengali men playing mṛdaṅgas. The
western devotees become overwhelmed by the ecstatic kirtan and begin
to join in and participate.
Uttamasloka: There was a tall guy and a little short guy playing
mṛdaṅgas. Their beats fascinated and captivated me. Something about
the rhythm just drew me to it. When the kirtan ended, everybody sat
down. The dais was filled with various Gaudiya Math sannyāsīs and
Sridhar Maharaja was sitting in the middle. I saw the little old man who
had played mṛdaṅga sitting on a chair with his drum.
All of a sudden he starts warming up, ‘de bap de boom, de bap de boom,
de de bap boo boooom’ and starts singing, sujanar putra pada padaṁ...
while playing a simple beat on the drum that was just beautiful. I had
my tape recorder on and was taping it. This bhajan was building up, and
all of a sudden, it took off. He started chanting, “Jaya Prabhupada, Jaya
Prabhupada,” using a take-off beat, where he just takes off and goes
sailing. Then, he did a change-up, where he stops and starts over again.
Later I learned that Sridhar Maharaja wrote the song in praise of

Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur. The singer was Krishnadas Babaji.
This was the first time I had been exposed to this type of kirtan, because
at the festival it was all western devotees doing a sort of frenzied rock ‘n
roll Indianized style. So when I heard the mṛdaṅga playing in this style,
“Jaya Prabhupada, Jaya Prabhupada,” I picked it up and started doing it
that way, too. I had this tape and I thought, This is it! From that moment
on I was into that style of kirtan.
Vishnujana Maharaja is also attracted to this style of kirtan and begins
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associating with the Bengali mṛdaṅga players to pick up their beats.
Back in Mayapur, he asks Nitai Chand, “Why does Prabhupada like
your playing more than others? Acyutananda Maharaja and other
devotees also play well.”
“Actually, I don’t play very good,” Nitai Chand replies, “but it is

Prabhupada’s causeless mercy that he is giving me a chance to serve
him.”
Vishnujana Swami likes his response. “You are fortunate that

Prabhupada calls you to play in front of everyone. For anyone in
America, they would take great pride in that service.”
Nitai Chand: Prabhupada used to ask me to play mṛdaṅga for Jaya

Radha Madhava before beginning his class. Vishnujana Maharaja
noticed that, and he came and talked with me later on. He was interested
to discuss the bhajans of Bhaktivinoda Thakur and Narottama das
Thakur. He would ask me about the meaning of different Bengali words,
about the mṛdaṅga beats, and how to play them.
I was attracted to Vishnujana Maharaja because in those days there were

few devotees who were expert in singing. I heard his kirtan tape from
America with the Radha-Damodara party when I joined. His personal
behavior was very attractive and he was very humble in his dealings
with me.
Soon the Mayapur festival comes to an end. Devotees are ready to

proceed to Vrindavan for the second part of the pilgrimage. Before
leaving, Vishnujana goes shopping in Calcutta for various Indian
musical instruments, esraj, ektar, and santoor, to augment the bus
program in America.
Narayani is a pūjārī at the Calcutta temple. Her husband, Purnaprajna,

informs Maharaja that she can teach him how to play the esraj because
she was a cellist before becoming a devotee. Maharaja brings the
instrument to her and asks if she knows how to play it. She takes a few
520
minutes to show him the basic technique of bowing, how to brush the
bow across the strings and finger the neck with the left hand. He is very
appreciative of her instruction.
Vrindavan, India, March 1974

The Krishna-Balarama temple is still a construction site so devotees are
staying at Fogal Ashram. The compound is enclosed by white walls with
an outdoor pandal set up in the center of the courtyard. There are many
rooms available for everybody and Prabhupada also has his room in the
back. Every evening the devotees have a program with kirtan and
bhajans, after which Prabhupada speaks to appreciative crowds that
increase day by day.
One afternoon, a reporter from BTG magazine, Jayadvaita Das, comes

to interview Tamal Krishna Goswami about Prabhupada’s plans for
preaching in India. Vishnujana decides to visit Chir Ghat, where
Krishna stole the clothes of the gopis. He brings his harmonium along to
sing bhajans with Gurudas and Revatinandana Swami. His favorite
songs are Gopinath and Vrindavan Ramya Sthana. Some of the
Australian devotees also tag along for more association. [See Appendix
Three & Four for TKG interviews]
Sabhapati: I was in complete ecstasy listening to him sing. It was like

we were in the spiritual world. For three afternoons we went there and
his singing was similar to the tapes we had heard. The song Gopinath
stuck in my mind so much that I named one of my children Gopinath.
Revatinandana Swami: We went on parikramā together. We sang

Gopinath at Chir Ghat under the tree where Krishna had stolen the
gopi’s clothes, on the bank of the Jamuna down the hill from Madan
Mohan Temple. Another time we went to Seva Kunj and had kirtan
together. That was a nice time with him. We were both preaching
sannyāsīs and we were both happy.
521
What happened in India was profound. He was like a saint going
around. He was a Chaitanya-like entity, a fantastically inspired kirtan
leader and preacher, who always took care of devotees. He had an
impact wherever he went.
Gurudas: He told me he had seen the confluence of the Ganges, Jamuna,

and the Saraswati, and that there was a great whirlpool there. We had all
changed a lot, and I was more withdrawn in India.
Towards the end of the festival, there’s an announcement that

Prabhupada wants all the devotees to stay in India an extra month. He
wants one group to return to Mayapur, and another group to go to
Bombay, where there is a disturbance. The police have proclaimed street
kirtan to be a nuisance. Devotees are prohibited from chanting Hare
Krishna in the streets of Juhu where the new temple project is located.
Before leaving Vrindavan, Vishnujana goes shopping in Loi Bazaar for

Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. Without notice, Prabhupada sends Tamal
Krishna to Delhi to take care of some business there.
Bombay, India, March 1974

The local politicians have been trying to drive out the foreign devotees
for months and now they have passed a law declaring sankirtan to be a
disturbance to the peace. Prabhupada calls Balavanta to his office and
requests him to handle the situation in Juhu. He wants to warn the
western devotees to be very careful in their dealings with the local
people. He suggests that Balavanta put together a group of people to
work on a resolution to the impasse. Prabhupada’s idea is to go chanting
on the street in the mood of civil disobedience.
“This is similar to Lord Chaitanya’s pastime with the Kazi,” Balavanta

comments. “Yes.” Prabhupada agrees. “Therefore I have selected you.
Go do this.”
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Balavanta asks Vishnujana if he wants to participate. Maharaja says,
“Of course.”
Vishnujana forms a party with Acyutananda Swami, Dinanath, and Jaya

Sachinandana to do nāgara-sankirtan around Juhu – civil disobedience.
What a kirtan team! Also joining are six Australian brahmacārīs. The
ten devotees go out every morning and chant all day. Each kirtan leader
takes his turn to lead the chanting.
The Aussie devotees are amazed to hear how these American devotees
do kirtan. To go out with all of them together is an awesome experience.
Jaya Sachinandana has a fabulous voice, Acyutananda sings and plays
the mṛdaṅga passionately, Dinanath is a powerful kirtan man, and, of
course, Vishnujana Swami. These are the best kirtan leaders in
ISKCON.
After a day’s chanting the sankirtan party goes to Juhu Beach for a
swim in the ocean because Prabhupada has said it will be good for their
health. Vishnujana is wary of sharks. He laughs as he says, “Now
Krishna will come to me in His form as a shark and say, Here I am.”
Balavanta visits several political leaders and gradually the opposition

backs off. Within a week the civil disobedience movement comes to an
end. The problem with the police and the politicians is amicably
resolved and the issue is finished. The impact is not as profound as
devotees had expected because the opposition receded and didn’t
respond. They were intelligent and didn’t challenge the kirtan party, so
Srila Prabhupada did get the result he wanted.
After the devotees stop going out to chant, the brahmacārīs are just
sitting around the Bombay temple. Vishnujana comes to tell them,
“Prabhupada is not pleased that we are all so lazy. We should be doing
something. He says that if you just sit around, you’ll get sick.”
The next day Prabhupada asks, “What are they doing?”
523
“They’ve gone to distribute books, Prabhupada,” Maharaja replies. “No.
Tell them to stop. They are not allowed to sell books.”
After just gaining a concession from the politicians to do street

sankirtan, he doesn’t want to create another furor and aggravate the
police once again.
Sabhapati: Gopikanta and I decided to go out and distribute books. We

found half a box of BTGs so we went out the front gate to sell them.
Prabhupada knew that we were heavy book distributors from the West
and he knew our techniques. He didn’t want us to hit up the Indians the
way we hit up people in the West.
Prabhupada has his rooms in one of the buildings at the rear of the
property, and the devotees stay in makeshift huts with half the roof
missing. The present temple is the same simple structure with the tin
roof. The kitchen is set up right behind it. Every evening, Prabhupada
does a pandal program, speaking on the fourth chapter of Bhagavad-
gita. After the final ārati, the brahmacārīs take rest on the temple room
floor to protect the Deities.
Vishnujana stays with the brahmacārīs all day like he does on his bus
party. He prefers a simple lifestyle, and eschews opulence. That endears
him to the brahmacārīs who have seen some sannyāsīs enjoy their
privileged status.
Sabhapati: The thing that impressed me was he was very simple, very
humble, and very austere. He slept on a mat and used his top cloth as a
blanket. We didn’t have all the books then because they hadn’t been
translated, but he was very Krishna conscious. In the evenings, he would
talk about his Radha-Damodara Deities and his bus program in
America. They would go to Colleges to chant and distribute prasādam.
They’d travel down the highway at high speed while offering ārati to the
Deities. He was very inspirational. I’ll never forget it. All I wanted to do
was get a bus program going in Australia like he was doing.
524
Meanwhile, back in Miami the new bus has been completely
refurbished, and the brahmacārīs are waiting expectantly for Maharaja’s
return. Suhotra has already written a couple of letters to Vishnujana
begging him to come back quickly. “We have a new bus, and the
brahmacārīs are fired-up to get back on the road.” But when most
devotees return from India, Suhotra becomes concerned. Where is
Vishnujana Swami? He finally tracks him down at the Juhu temple and
sends off a telegram:
Bus is ready. Deities are here. We’re ready to go. Just waiting for you.
Reading this message, Vishnujana feels intense separation from Radha-

Damodara and his bus program. He knows that it’s time to leave India.
So without waiting to say goodbye to Tamal Krishna, who is still in
Delhi, he takes his flight back to America.
525
Ninth Wave,
Back in the USA
O Lord, as soon as Your Holy Names manifest on the tongue (even in
the form of nāmābhāsa) all seeds of sinful activities are totally uprooted.
This is elaborately glorified in the Vedas. [Sri Namastaka (4) by Srila
Rupa Goswami]
New York, March 1974

A Radha-Damodara van party is distributing books around New Jersey.
Every evening, Hasyagrami calls Suhotra in Miami to report the daily

results. Tonight, Suhotra has good news.
“Vishnujana Maharaja is back! He called from the New York temple. I

told him that you’ll pick him up. Then drive back to Miami as fast as
you can.”
Fortunately, the van is not far from the Hudson River. After a short
drive through the Lincoln Tunnel, the men meet Maharaja at the large
brownstone temple on Henry Street, Brooklyn, for a joyful reunion.
Vishnujana tells how he would jump off the boat every morning to chant
gāyatrī in the Ganga. He recounts various incidents with porpoises and
fresh water dolphins in the river. As he describes it to the brahmacārīs,
he becomes very inspired. For him, the boat program was Radha-
Damodara TSKP on water.
Mahamantra: We met Maharaja at the temple and he described his
526
wonderful experiences preaching in India. His kirtan was so sweet that
some people would cry. Some Bengali men would go blow the dust off
their khols, and come back to rejoin the kirtan. They had to stop the kids
from jumping into the pots while they were preparing prasādam. People
thought he was like a demigod.
Hasyagrami: The Ganga tour was a fabled trip. When Vishnujana

returned with all the Indian instruments, he was very enlivened. “I’ve
been talking with my old friend Tamal Krishna Goswami from San
Francisco days and he’ll be joining us. He wants to do some preaching
again. He’s got some plans.”
While he was doing the boat trip, we were building the bus. That was a
yajña, but kind of fun. We would collect a little, buy some parts, work
on it, collect a little, buy more parts and work on it, in that cycle until
we finished.
The next morning at the temple, Vishnujana gives the Bhagavatam

class. He speaks about the value of ruci and vairāgya, describing them
as “the taste for spiritual life, and the energy to be protected from the
pull of māyā.”
He explains, “One can achieve a spiritual taste and spiritual strength by

the mercy of Krishna, and to understand how this works is a great
science.” He also cautions everybody about making offenses to
devotees. “If you find yourself arguing or fighting with a devotee, then
serve him. Do some service for him.”
Dravida: My great misfortune was that I didn’t have much association

with His Holiness Vishnujana Swami. But I remember distinctly how he
gave a beautiful class about knowledge and ruci, and how we have to
attain these things. I was experiencing a bit of that because I was going
out every day on harināma sankirtan. I regarded him as a highly
advanced soul who was coming to enliven the whole temple. He was a
transcendental figure speaking about ruci, getting a taste for the Holy
Name, and he was glowing with bliss and what I saw as realization. It
527
just entered my heart and I felt very moved by that.
We used to have a dhoop ārati after class. He was leading the kirtan
with only a few of us in front of beautiful Radha-Govinda. Most
devotees would leave for prasādam, but I thought I would stay for his
kirtan. He was playing mṛdaṅga and dancing, and we danced with him. I
felt very uplifted by that, and I just revered him.
During Maharaja’s visit, the talk around the temple is about a newsletter
that has been started by a gṛhastha named Srutadeva from the
Washington, DC, temple. This Sankirtan Newsletter will soon
revolutionize the Hare Krishna movement. Only one newsletter has been
published at this time and very few temples are aware of its existence.
Prabhupada has been calling for increased book distribution, so the main
function of the newsletter is to inspire devotees to distribute more books
for Srila Prabhupada’s pleasure.
Every book and magazine is given a point score. The total points
determines a temple’s position in the scoring system. In effect, it’s an
arrangement to ignite a transcendental competition for distributing
Prabhupada’s books.
Srutadeva joined the movement in November of 1970. In the summer of

1971 he was in Baltimore when serious book distribution began. The
Baltimore devotees, under the leadership of Abhirama, were applying
their intelligence and developing techniques to increase book
distribution. Prabhupada was receiving letters about book distribution
that were very enlivening.
Then Karandhar began to send out a BBT newsletter with books scores
and inspirational stories about book distribution. After Karandhar left,
Ramesvara headed up the BBT and began doing the BBT newsletter on
a monthly basis.
Srutadeva: Karandhar’s newsletter was the seed, and Prabhupada was

sending letters back. I remember crying, because it was so emotional, to
528
see how dear and how important book distribution was to Prabhupada. I
was thinking it would be wonderful if we could do this weekly, since
devotees are going out 8-9 hours daily, and to do that you really need
inspiration every day. It’s a great sacrifice and not something that comes
easily. So I felt that it would be great to have that kind of inspiration
every week, not just every month.
I called up Ramesvara. “Prabhu, your newsletter is so wonderful, could

you do it weekly?”
But he was so overworked that he suggested that I do it weekly. I didn’t

think that was feasible, but when I realized he really didn’t have time to
do it, I spoke to Rupanuga to get some ideas and inspiration. Ramesvara
was doing it with lakṣmī totals, so I wanted a different focus, how many
books distributed. His newsletter was coming from the BBT down, so I
thought to do it grass roots, from the devotees up.
Miami, Florida, March 1974

Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara have been residing on the black marble altar in
the Miami temple anticipating the return of Vishnujana Swami. Next to
Them is a beautiful painting of the Panca-tattva.
The Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs have transformed the new bus into a

gorgeous traveling temple on wheels. It sits under a large tree waiting
for Vishnujana’s arrival. One day, there’s a lot of excitement at the
Miami temple.
“Haribol! Vishnujana Maharaja is here!”
Maharaja is happy to be reunited with his party and is overjoyed seeing

the new bus. Dayal Chandra takes him on a tour, pointing out the
features and explaining the improvements over the old bus.
But Maharaja is hankering for Radha-Damodara’s darshan. Seeing his
529
beloved Deities on the Miami temple altar, he is stirred and begins an
ecstatic kirtan. When asked to speak, he relates details about his boat
trip.
Suhotra: He said the boat trip was very austere. He was eating only once
a day but his joy was to take bath in the Ganga. His greatest bliss was to
hold onto a rope behind the boat and be pulled along the waves of the
Ganga.
Sridhara: He said he kept a low profile in India because Acyutananda

Swami was Mr. Showtime and did everything so fancy. When I was in
New Vrindavan in ‘72, we received a reel-to-reel tape from India of
Acyutananda singing bhajans, and I was totally blown away. I picked up
that Vishnujana Maharaja felt somewhat eclipsed by Acyutananda.
Unlike Kirtanananda, who said India put him in māyā, Vishnujana liked
India. But I think he had moved a bit out of his element, although he
was very much in his element when he was chanting in the West.
There’s a picture of him in a BTG playing a gong, because I think the
Bengali players and Acyutananda’s mṛdaṅga playing was so fancy that
he felt he should cut a low profile.
I chanted with Vishnujana for countless hours and I loved his

harmonium playing. It was his own style and he was good. Maharaja felt
his purpose was to enthuse devotees by chanting, and to teach them how
to chant and play the musical instruments. He felt a fulfillment of his
purpose under Prabhupada to do this.
A new devotee has joined the Miami temple. Although just turned 18,
Sruti Rupa is a high-class woman from a millionaire family who is now
involved with the Hare Krishnas. When she first became a devotee, she
emptied out her bank account and gave it to Vishnujana Swami before
he went to India. He got the boat and paid for everything with her
donation. She is a bhaktin now, and lives in the same house with
Abhirama and his wife. They have their own rooms and the Miami
devotees don’t consider anything untoward is going on.
530
Sruti Rupa dd: When Vishnujana Swami came he was describing his
boat trip. As he was talking I could feel that I was there. Oh, it was
captivating. He explained how he was dragged behind the boat in the
Ganges, and he was thinking, At any moment, just take me now, just
take me now. I entered right into that and it just took me away. He was
so endearing. The Deities were there and that created a whole other
feeling in the community, very alive, and ecstatic.
In his classes, Maharaja gives the Miami devotees the proper training in
the etiquette of Deity worship. “Always be aware that the Deity is
watching you when you’re in the temple room.” It is obvious to
everyone that Vishnujana Swami is fully aware that Sri- Sri Radha-
Damodara are actually the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is
always thinking how to serve Radha-Damodara either by singing or
making nice arrangements for Them. In this way he is acharya, teaching
by his own example.
Vrindavanesvari dd: When Vishnujana Maharaja arrived, I remember a

wave of unusually blissful energy coming through. He stood out
because he had a different vibration. I’d been in the movement for two
years and I had never met anybody like him. You could see he was
enjoying Krishna consciousness. It was very strict then and male/female
association was limited, especially with a sannyāsī. We wouldn’t even
look at them or talk to them, and they wouldn’t talk to us. But he was
friendly and polite. I felt very comfortable around him, and he didn’t put
out any agitated vibes.
He wasn’t attracted to women and he wasn’t repulsed. We sat in a circle

in the temple room, men and women, and he would tell stories. His
mood was simply Krishna conscious. He was devoted to his Deities,
Radha-Damodara, who were so beautiful and very well taken care of.
Challenges always surface in devotee relationships, and when someone

is advanced enough to offer the solution, everyone benefits. Ramadas
has a problem with his temper and this behavior leads to offenses.
531
Overwhelmed by the mode of passion one day, he punches a devotee.
Then he hides up in the brahmacārī ashram, afraid he will have to leave
the temple. When Maharaja comes up to talk, Ramadas is in tears.
“You have no need to cry,” Vishnujana explains. “Everybody makes

mistakes. The important thing is that you stay in the association of
devotees and chant Hare Krishna. You’ll see over time that things get
better. Maybe you’ll react in the same way, but by chanting Hare
Krishna, associating with devotees, and taking prasādam with them,
you’ll actually gain more and more control of yourself. You might be
ready to hit someone and then you’ll realize, I shouldn’t be doing this.
Whereas, previously, you would have hit him and not realized it until
later. So it’s a gradual process.”
Ramadas: I came to understand that I have to realize before the event

what’s going to happen next. He was so convinced that just by chanting,
taking prasādam, and associating with devotees that this was the
panacea for surmounting all my problems.
There is no organized bhakta program in Miami, so for the next few

days Vishnujana assumes the service of training the 10 new men and
women. After the morning program he takes them out to either
downtown Miami or to Key Biscayne for nāgara- sankirtan. Whoever
walks by is attracted to the kirtan because Maharaja is so blissful. After
lunch back at the temple, he takes them to Peacock Park to chant and
meander through the park, running around trees and making an
impression with people in the park. Everybody feels comfortable around
him because he’s jolly and very lit-up.
When the devotees are tired, he sits them down for a class on Nectar of
Devotion. He knows they are green so he simply gives them the ABCs.
Maharaja is always ready to start up a kirtan spontaneously with the
harmonium. There’s so much kirtan all day that the new devotees get
many realizations. They all agree it’s a great way to begin
Krishna consciousness, and they try to convince Maharaja to base
532
himself in Miami. Everybody laughs when a new recruit says that he
thought devotees sometimes kept their regular name and just added a
Krishna name like Vishnu John or Nrsimha Dave.
The Sunday feast is always at Peacock Park. That’s the tradition in

Miami – take the Sunday program to the people. The park is usually
filled with hippies playing guitars and flutes, and the same yoga group is
still doing āsanas. Vishnujana starts up the kirtan after they finish their
yoga practice and they come over to join in chanting Hare Krishna, and
experience bhakti-yoga.
The relationship with them is friendly and they become a regular feature
of the Sunday program. Maharaja always attracts new people to get
involved.
When prasādam is served, practically everybody in the park comes over

to sample the ‘Krishna food’. There are long lines of people as devotees
serve out the feast. Maharaja sings his transcendental bhajans to
serenade them as they eat. The atmosphere is always mellow as he
enthralls the crowd. There are never any hassles when he’s around.
When devotees clean up the area after prasādam, kirtan goes on late into
the night. Many people become attracted to Krishna consciousness due
to the Sunday program in the park.
Abhirama: After the boat trip, I got to know him a little bit. He was
always my superior and I was never his peer. I was happy he was there
and content to serve him. He was busy with preaching and serving the
Deities, reading and chanting. He didn’t gravitate to intense friendships,
but he was like a friend to everyone and he cared about you. So
automatically you felt friendly. He was kind of a loner in his own world,
very eccentric in the sense that he was out of the center. Vishnujana
Swami was pretty much absorbed in the mood of the gopis.
On Monday morning the postman arrives with a stack of letters.

Included in the mail is the second Sankirtan Newsletter with book
distribution scores for the weekend of April 5-6. Abhirama receives the
533
mail and requests Vishnujana Swami to come into his office to see the
Newsletter. Only five temples have sent in their scores, but Chicago is
number 1 with 2,424 points. Sri Kari Dasi is Chicago’s top distributor
with 594 points having distributed 125 big books, 3 medium books, and
45 small books.
In second place is the BBT Party headed up by Tripurari Das, with

1,814 points. Tripurari has shifted to Chicago from Los Angeles to
distribute books at the busy O’Hare International Airport. He is now
wearing brahmacārī cloth. His total of 749 points comprise 153 big
books and 60 medium books. Toronto and Washington temples are third
and fourth on the list, with Stockholm temple last, reporting a score of
254 points. Smita Krishna Das is their top distributor with 81 points.
Tripurari is pioneering new techniques to distribute big books at US

airports. He has recently formed the BBT Party with some leading book
distributors in America. The idea for the party was conceived during the
Mayapur Festival back in February. Tripurari lives with his men in an
exclusive room in the brahmacārī quarters. Their day is a regimented
program devised to keep them focused on distributing big books. They
have a special diet to enable them to distribute for up to eight hours
while carrying heavy book bags.
It’s not easy distributing books the entire day to all varieties of people in
a congested airport. This sankirtan yoga tests one’s desire to serve Srila
Prabhupada and these devotees proudly identify themselves as members
of an elite group of book distributors.
The Sankirtan Newsletter is also a vehicle to inspire other temples with

tips and advice. Toronto temple reports how they distribute books at
concerts.
“We attach a tag to our jackets saying ISKCON SOUND. We simply

make like we are part of the band or stage managers who set up all the
equipment. We’ve been able to enter concerts without purchasing a
ticket, carrying boxes of books which are supposedly our props and
534
sound equipment.”
Vishnujana Swami and Abhirama are in ecstasy reading the newsletter

and seeing the number of books distributed by these five temples.
On Monday afternoon the Radha-Damodara party is ready to leave

Miami, but Narada Muni will stay behind. While Maharaja was in India,
Narada married a new bhaktin. Maharaja is disappointed that Narada
Muni will no longer be a member of the party. He had hoped that
Narada would always be traveling with him and eventually take
sannyāsa.
From this experience, Vishnujana begins to think that for every female
devotee made, inevitably there will be one less brahmacārī.
Invariably, someone wants to leave the temple and join the bus program.
Last year it was Riksaraj who left Miami with the bus, and this year
Sadananda, the temple cook, leaves with the party. He will be the head
cook and purchase the bhoga. He will also go out to chant and work the
booth at festivals.
Sadananda: I was cooking and I wanted to get out of the Miami ashram.
Radha Raman and Dayal Chandra were the main builders working on
the bus. When Maharaja got back, the bus was finished and they were
ready to roll. I had to ask his permission to join the party although I had
already been invited by Suhotra and Sri Galim.
When the Radha-Damodara bus leaves Miami the party comprises

Hasyagrami, Suhotra, Dayal Chandra, Sri Galim, Mahamantra,
Ramacharya, Radha-Raman, Sridhara, Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva, and
Sadananda. Gone are Vishnudatta, Riksaraj, and Sri Vallabha, who all
went to India, and Narada Muni who got married.
As the party leaves Miami, Sruti Rupa remarks to Abhirama, “Isn’t it

wonderful? It’s devotees like Vishnujana Maharaja that really make me
want to be a devotee. Is he like that for you?”
535
Abhirama agrees, “Yeah, he is.”
“I don’t know what it is about him,” she muses.
Sruti Rupa dd: He gave me a taste of something real; something feeling.

He interacted in a very soft and gentle way. The feelings I had with him
weren’t artificial or uptight. I loved him in many ways.
Narahari soon becomes the Miami kirtan man because he’s so

enthusiastic. Vishnujana Swami is able to impress the ecstasy of his
kirtan into the hearts of others so the kirtan goes on when he leaves.
This is the way Prabhupada always introduced the process of Krishna
consciousness – the paramparā system.
Key West, Florida, March 1974

Key West is Mile Zero, the island at the southernmost tip of Florida
where the azure waters of the Atlantic Ocean meet the turquoise waters
of the Gulf of Mexico. Every evening, hundreds of people gather at
Mallory Square to watch the sun go down in paradise. The tourists come
to drink slushy rum drinks and watch the jugglers, the troubadours, and
the magicians perform on the streets.
As each day comes to an end, people loosen up as they wait for Krishna
to paint His nightly extravaganza across the sky. “Look daddy,
dolphins,” a little girl squeals, as the sun splashes more colors on the
horizon than the little girl has in her Crayola box. Hippies watching
under the influence of hallucinogens, say they can see native American
spirits worshipping the gigantic saffron orb.
All of a sudden, a US Navy submarine surfaces on the horizon in front

of Mallory Square. Suhotra sees it first and points out the gunning tower
to the others. As the hatch opens they can see some sailors come out and
look around with binoculars.
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As the sun sinks into the sea in all its resplendent grandeur, the crowd at
Mallory Square erupts in applause. Welcome to Key West, where the
sunset gets louder cheers than the high school football team.
Key West is a small town and traffic is restricted, making it difficult to

find a place for the bus. Dayal Chandra decides to park in a shopping
center parking lot. There’s not much to do here besides kirtan. The town
is too small to be a great place for distributing books. There’s only a
single shopping center, which is barely busy enough for two devotees.
So Vishnujana Swami prefers to simply distribute the Holy Name and
prasādam.
Sridhar has built a beautiful new palanquin, which also fastens onto the
altar. It’s perfect to take Radha-Damodara out for festival programs.
Sridhara, slender and brahminical, always helps with the cooking and
the pūjā, but he can also do physical labor. When Maharaja went to
India, he returned to New Vrindavan. But when he received a phone call
that Maharaja was back he booked a flight to rejoin the party.
Vishnujana Swami sets up Radha-Damodara at Mallory Square before

evening. There’s always a beautiful sunset, and as crowds of people
begin to gather the devotees are already absorbed in ecstatic kirtan.
Many musicians come to Key West because there are so many tourists.
All kinds of freaky people come, too, but it’s a beautiful scene
nonetheless.
Mahadevi: There was an evening program at the pier every night where
people get an incredible view of the sun setting in the ocean. The
hippies with their far-out clothes, the magicians doing magic tricks, the
incense sellers, and people selling food: everybody had their scene set
up on the pier every night for sunset. One day Vishnujana Maharaja
came with his bus. Sri Galim and Ramacharya would bring Radha-
Damodara out on the pier.
Vishnujana Maharaja sat right next to Them singing, and he looked so

pure and effulgent with shaven head. He never stopped smiling and his
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voice was so sweet. The music definitely finished me off. He was so
bright and effulgent it seemed like he was incredibly blissed-out. The
more people looked at him, the more they became attracted. He always
had the biggest crowds. The jugglers and other acts were going on, but
he was definitely center stage. He looked so spiritual; he could have
easily played the part of Lord Chaitanya in a play.
As the sun sinks into the horizon, the onlookers break into applause. The
clapping increases in loudness until the sun finally disappears. Maharaja
always positions Radha-Damodara so that the sun shines on Them as it
sets. Radharani’s bluish eyes are so luminous while Damodara’s
beautiful lotus eyes are sparkling. All kinds of people are allowed to
come forward to see Them. Even dogs that walk by get Their darshan,
so They are extra merciful being so accessible for everyone. Of course,
They sit high up on Their palanquin altar, so They are protected.
Vishnujana’s kirtan is already in full swing as the sun sets. He has many
different Indian instruments and he knows how to attract and capture the
mood of the people. A festival atmosphere sweeps over Mallory Square.
Vishnujana Maharaja takes advantage of this in a transcendental way.
He starts his kirtan quite slow, and gradually increases the intensity.
The next afternoon, Maharaja sets up a pandal in a parking lot near the
Marina. He has a book display on one side with posters and pictures of
Krishna’s pastimes, and a booth to sell Spiritual Sky products – incense,
oils, and soaps. Radha-Damodara remain on the bus and interested
people come in for darshan and philosophy. When not performing
kirtan, Maharaja sits beside the booth, bright-faced and cheerful,
chatting with people who come to see the boats but are attracted by his
setup.
Mahadevi happens by and enters the bus to admire Radha-Damodara.
“What are you looking for in life?” Maharaja asks her out of the blue.
He has seen her come by several times and wants to attract her to
Krishna consciousness. She replies that she wants to embrace a natural
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way of living. Maharaja pulls out a recent BTG about New Vrindavan
and shows her photos of the beautiful green rolling hills, with all the
devotees smiling and happy.
“Well, I think you would really like to go to this place,” he says.
“Why would I want to go to a farm in the middle of nowhere?”
“You might just want to think about it,” he answers very low key. He
continues preaching to her because she is interested and not intimidated.
Because he’s an expert preacher whatever he says makes a lot of sense
to her. He knows Prabhupada’s books and how to quote from the books
without sounding like a scholar. Philosophy just naturally rolls into his
conversation in a personal way.
Mahadevi: He would smile so often while speaking that you couldn’t

help be attracted. He was very pure and when you were around him you
just felt religious, spiritual. I liked that because I was trying to get away
from the heavy street life. He was always friendly and didn’t emit any
sexual energy, so I felt drawn to him. A lot of women were around him,
because it was a beach town, but he wasn’t disturbed in the least.
Mahadevi is accompanied by Joline, an 8-year-old girl who sneaks off

to Sunset each evening. The girl always tags along with Mahadevi. They
first met at the kirtan in Mallory Square and took prasādam together.
Now they have developed a friendship.
“I just don’t see you really being happy doing what you’re doing,”
Maharaja continues. He again suggests New Vrindavan as a place to
visit, and Joline quickly says, “I’m coming with you.”
“Well, I don’t know about that,” is Mahadevi’s first impulse.
“No, no,” she says, quite determined to remain with Mahadevi. She does
not want to go back to her hippie parents who apparently mistreat her.
She has been staying at Mahadevi’s apartment the last few nights.
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“Better go to her parents and ask if you can take her to New Vrindavan
for two weeks,” Vishnujana suggests. “Give them the address and in
two weeks they can send some money and she can take a bus back
home. Let her go to the temple for a little while, then she can come back
home.”
His proposal sounds reasonable and Mahadevi finally agrees to give it a

try.
“Just to experience devotional service,” Maharaja hints, “why don’t you

make a garland for Radha-Damodara before you go?” He gives her a
basket and asks her to bring it back full of white star-shaped flowers that
flourish in Key West.
When she returns, he shows her how to string the flowers into a garland.
After finishing the garland, she hands it to Ramacharya, the pūjārī, and
starts to leave.
Maharaja calls her back. “No, I want you to stay, because I want you to
see it on Krishna.” He doesn’t want her to leave until she can see the
fruit of her service because she had remarked that the Deities always
had fresh garlands on. She doesn’t understand the significance of it but
is delighted to see the garland on Krishna. “This is really special,” she
remarks.
Mahadevi: Years later I realized the significance. You ask people to do

a little service, and then you show them how Krishna accepts the
service. Vishnujana brought so many devotees to the movement because
he was expert in making people feel wanted by Krishna. He showed
them how Krishna appreciated their service.
He always asked me how I was, and Srila Prabhupada did that so often,
“How are you?” The devotees who are developing Vaishnava qualities
ask you how you are. He knew how to behave like a Vaishnava and he
knew how to make you feel like one even though you weren’t. When I
went to see Joline’s parents I was shocked that people could live like
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that. The mother was kind of a bum and the father was too. They said,
“Sure take her.” They didn’t hardly care! So I gave them the address and
told them I’d sent her back on a bus in two weeks. When Maharaja left
Key West, I felt anxiety that here was someone who was reviving my
faith in God, and now he was gone. So the three of us – my dog, 8-year-
old Joline, and I hitchhiked to New Vrindavan. She went back to Florida
two weeks later but I stayed.
Atlanta, Georgia, April 1974

Late one afternoon, the Radha-Damodara bus parks in front of the book
warehouse across the street from the Atlanta temple. The drive up from
Key West was time consuming and Vishnujana doesn’t plan to stay very
long. He does want to show off the new bus, however, and give
everyone Radha-Damodara’s merciful darshan. The Atlanta devotees
are excited because they have received advanced word that Radha-
Damodara are coming. The newer devotees have never seen Radha-
Krishna Deities.
A few people at a time are allowed on the bus: first the ladies, then the
men. After darshan, Maharaja sits down with his harmonium to sing a
bhajan in glorification of Srimati Radharani. The ladies rush back to the
bus, which is overcrowded, and everyone packs in to hear Maharaja
sing. It’s evening and the bus lighting is subdued as Vishnujana
Maharaja sings radhe jaya jaya, madhava dayite… over and over.
Naradi dd: It was crowded on the bus and people were jammed up the
steps. He seemed to be singing just to Radharani and Damodara. It was
the first time I had seen Radharani, and I can still remember how She
looked. Tears immediately came to my eyes. It was amazing. They were
so beautiful and so transcendental. It was a beautiful, intimate situation.
I was captivated by his style. Everyone else was doing block chords on
the harmonium but he really had style.
I had heard that he was a talented speaker and really interesting, but he
541
was so incredibly good it was more than I expected. He was talking
about bathing in the rivers of India, and just floating along. He said that
swimming in the Ganges was like swimming in caraṇāmṛta! It was very
intimate and I was glad to be there. He definitely carried our minds
away to India. Not many people had been to India, what to speak of
having the fabulous pastimes he had. We were amazed. If I were a man I
would have taken up and followed him.
Kardama Muni: He narrated the entirety of his trip down the Ganga. He
lectured extemporaneously, like he was reading from a diary. The sound
representation of the pastimes of the Lord’s devotees was directly
issuing forth from his mouth. He said they were making prasādam with
puffed rice and gur, and some people were so anxious for it they were
diving into the woks. They were giving japa beads to the village people
and they told Prabhupada about it. He said, “Prabhupada checked us,
because if you give japa beads without getting anything in return, it’s
the same thing as initiation. So he stopped us from doing that.”
Gokularanjana: When he came back from India, he was telling us that

the highest offering is to make a garland of jīvās for guru and Gauranga.
In other words, go out and preach Lord Chaitanya’s sankirtan movement
and attract other jīvātmās to surrender, and offer that garland at the lotus
feet of Lord Chaitanya. It was such an incredibly poetic and beautiful
transcendental image. That really inspired me, the offering of a garland
of jīvās. It’s just one of the most beautiful transcendental expressions.
To me it typifies Vishnujana’s personality, his mood of, Let’s make a
garland of jīvās for God! I remember how much it affected me.
Prabhupada used to say that Krishna consciousness is a positive

renunciation, that we should be engaged in such a way that our senses
are not attracted to anything material. And Vishnujana Swami was
always engaged in blissful sankirtan. Wherever he was, a spontaneous
festival sprung up. He was a walking festival.
Vishnujana Maharaja has captured an equivalent mood of Srila
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Prabhupada, who offered all his disciples unto Srila Bhaktisiddanta
Sarasvati Thakur. All the devotees appreciate Vishnujana’s realizations.
After the program, Balavanta calls Maharaja into his office to ask if he
has seen the latest Sankirtan Newsletter. It’s the third Issue, April 12-13.
Again, only five temples have sent in their results. The scores are down
from last week, and Washington, DC, is the only temple to repeat. The
new temples are San Diego, Pittsburgh, Vancouver, and Cape Town,
South Africa. Jagatguru Das reports how he is distributing KRSNA
Books on the University campus in Cape Town. “The only thing is –
there aren’t any devotees here. I am praying to Lord Chaitanya that
some devotees come here soon.”
The Vancouver temple reports how they distribute BTGs at the movie
lines. “We purchased a megaphone for the line, and one person just has
to stand a few feet away and make an announcement about how urgent
it is that everyone give a dollar to help those who are starving. Before
you finish the announcement they have their money out! It’s really a
tremendous method. In a short period of three minutes, four devotees
collected 70 dollars and gave out as many BTGs.”
In another report, the Washington devotees went out on Easter weekend

wearing bunny ears to distribute books and collect money.
Balavanta and Vishnujana Swami raise their eyes at this tactic.

Maharaja quotes Lord Chaitanya, harer nama harer nama harer nama
eva kevalam… Balavanta smiles and nods in agreement.
The next day Maharaja is invited to the home of Gadi Das, who traveled
with the Road Show in 1972. He has recently married Titiksa Dasi and
moved to Atlanta where they have a room in the gṛhastha ashram. When
Maharaja leaves after kirtan, Krishna kathā, and prasādam, Titiksa has a
talk with her husband.
“Look, Prabhu. I’ve got a real problem. I want to shave my head, bind
my body to look like a man, put on a dhoti, and I want to leave with this
543
person, because I am so in love with him.”
“I can’t even feel one bit of jealousy,” Gadi replies, “because I feel the
same way about him. Everyone that meets him feels the same way.”
Titiksa dd: I was so captivated by this person. He just emanated so much

charisma and so much love for Prabhupada that I wanted to be around
him all the time and just soar to the transcendental platform. I wanted to
leave with him. So, that’s what we did! We asked if we could follow
him in our car to the next festival.
He said, “Yes. You can be gṛhastha brahmacārīs, and you can travel
with us.”
The Fiddler’s Convention, which takes place every April in the hills of
North Carolina is a gathering for acoustic music only, no electric bands
are allowed. Several devotee friends inspire Maharaja to take his kirtan
band to the festival since they play acoustic music. The festival
comprises ethnic mountain music, with banjos, mandolins, guitars, and
fiddles. It’s a funky get-together that takes place on open farmland
without electricity with most people intoxicated on moonshine. A large
cotillion of Hells Angels and other bikers show up because they like
country music. People come from all over the US, including wild crazy
hippie types.
The Radha-Damodara TSKP is about to enter into a primitive

environment to continue spreading Krishna kirtan to every town and
village. Gadi and Titiksa follow the bus in their VW van through the
mountain roads to the festival site. They have picked up a friend and
convinced him to come to the program. They know that if he meets
Vishnujana he will become a devotee; and later, he does become
Rakshavan.
Sadananda: I remember driving down winding mountain roads and

cooking puris to save time. Cooking on the bus was difficult. I had to
cook in a very tall stock pot with about an inch of ghee in the pot
544
because we’d be going all over the place. I remember emergency stops,
and the stainless steel 10 gallon milk container would go flying. But in
all my years of cooking I never got seriously burned.
Radha-Damodara was fun because it was nice to be around Vishnujana

Swami. He was wonderful. Vishnujana would throw us the Radha-
Damodara flower prasāda and tell the devotees to pass them out. We’d
throw them out and people would start throwing them back. It would
slowly degenerate into an all out flower fight, kind of like in Chaitanya-
charitamrita, in ecstatic love and devotion.
Boone, North Carolina, April 1974

Arriving at the festival site, Vishnujana’s idea is to sneak the devotees
into the Fiddler’s Convention. They don’t want to give away Krishna’s
money and they are certainly not bluegrass fiddlers. After hiding the
brahmacārīs in the back of the bus, only Dayal Chandra and Maharaja
drive through the entrance gate. The organizers charge them for only
two people and give them a spot to set up.
Dayal Chandra finds their place and parks the bus. The first task is to
assemble the booth and the stage, while Sadananda prepares a feast.
Maharaja has decided that the daily prasādam will be kicharī, halava,
and puris, accompanied by their famous Radha- Damodara nectar drink
of orange juice, buttermilk, and strawberries. Maharaja is very particular
about the way Radha-Damodara’s halava is made. He trains Sadananda
to make it properly and if it isn’t done right he lets him know about it!
After surveying the scene, Vishnujana suggests, “We should probably

just have kirtan from dawn to dusk. That’s what’s going to work with
these people. They are not in the mood to hear philosophy.”
The brahmacārīs unload everything from the bus bays. After the front
part of the fair booth is set up, Ramacharya begins selling books,
incense, and Spiritual Sky toiletries, but not the jewelry and clothing.
545
The Indian pandal looks attractive with the elephants, the mirrored
cloth, and concentric circles hanging down with little fringes.
Soon Titiksa, Gadi, and Rakshavan arrive at the devotee site. They park
their car beside the bus and take a moment to watch a brahmacārī
distributing prasādam to whoever happens by. Vishnujana comes over to
invite them for Radha-Damodara’s darshan. Inside the bus, the rest of
the brahmacārīs are honoring kichari. Titiksa feels quite awkward
because she is the only woman among all these men. A brahmacārī
hands Maharaja the mahā-prasādam and he comes over to offer Titiksa
some mahā from the plate. She understands that Maharaja can sense her
nervous feeling, and for that she is appreciative.
Titiksa dd: The next morning Vishnujana Maharaja came to our car
window and woke us up. He looked at me and asked if I would like to
do ārati for Radha-Damodara. I thought I was going to die! I had this
opportunity but I had to refuse because I didn’t have brāhmaṇa
initiation. I was honored that he would even ask. It was so kind of him. I
remember him always making me feel comfortable and being nice to
me. It was such a loving feeling, and he was setting such a nice example
of being equipoised around a woman. After a while, the brahmacārīs
started picking up on his mood and they were more hospitable.
Before breakfast, Suhotra’s van party drives up and parks beside the
bus. As he and his crew board the bus everyone is chanting japa.
Immediately there is, “Jaya! Haribol!” as Vishnujana Maharaja invites
them to have some mahā-prasāda. “What took you so long? You missed
prasādam last night.”
“Well, Maharaja,” Suhotra, begins, “we were driving through the

mountains with all these winding roads and there were cops staked out
everywhere. So many people were coming from all over the place and
the police were just looking for any slight infraction to stop people and
fine them. They were cleaning up. So they stopped us, too. They were
amazed to see us, ‘cause we’re dressed as Hare Krishnas. They were
546
staring at us, ‘Who are you, boys?’ We started preaching to them and
they let us go. “When we got to the fair grounds it was dark and we
couldn’t find anything because it’s such a huge area. Rather than try to
scout the place out, with no lights, we just parked in a field and took
rest. So when the sun came up, we started driving around the site trying
to find the bus.
“As we were going around a corner, there was a big area that was roped
off, and we saw a couple of weird characters in black leather jackets
with real oily stringy hair, with some logo on the back of their jackets.
They were standing with ax handles in their hands protecting this roped
off area. The thought crossed my mind, Who are these weird guys?
Then we just drove by and at last we found the bus.”
After breakfast prasādam, Suhotra takes some brahmacārīs and goes

around the festival site to distribute books. The Radha-Damodara men
are basically a book distribution party with an added twist of a Vedic
band and a traveling temple. Vishnujana sits on a madras beside the bus
with his band and chants all day. Several people have seen devotees
before and are familiar with kirtan. They become regulars. Between
each kirtan Maharaja speaks to the crowd.
“Please join us. We have wonderful prasādam. We have a beautiful

nectar drink, made with orange juice and strawberries.” He describes
everything as beautiful. Word spreads and the devotee site becomes
popular as many people come to watch them do kirtan. Then they sit
down to accept free prasādam. The devotee booth is always crowded
and Ramacharya sells Spiritual Sky soap products at a fast clip, along
with books and incense.
Everyone is impressed with Vishnujana’s singing. He stands out from

the other musicians, who are mostly drunk, some in cowboy hats and
boots, and some half- naked. Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara are always
present on Their palanquin to bestow Their mercy. Vishnujana expands
the kirtan performances, sometimes playing five hours at a time. It’s an
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intense program – chant all day, take prasādam, and zone out for a while
before getting ready to play all evening.
Hasyagrami: We now had a first-class bus and a real Vedic band. I

remember my fingers being raw from just sawing away on the esraj for
hours and hours. It was austere because we didn’t have water or electric
hook-ups, but it was really ecstatic. We got big crowds because we were
the most unusual group there. Everyone had their banjos, guitars, and
fiddles because it was country and folk music. And here we were with
this Indian stuff; harmonium, tamboura, esraj, ektar, mṛdaṅga and
kartāls.
Rakshavan: They asked me to join in the kirtan which I had never done
before. The chanting was a religious experience for me. I remember
Vishnujana Swami talking a lot about dovetailing. Actually, I didn’t
know who he was or what he was, but he definitely won me over. In
1969, when I passed through San Francisco on my way to Vietnam, I
was taking photos of devotees. I didn’t know what to make of it then,
but they seemed to be sincere and were obviously very happy people.
When I saw Vishnujana Swami, I remembered him as one of those
devotees from San Francisco.
I was so impressed with Maharaja that I gave away the marijuana I had
brought with me to a left-wing radical friend I met there. I didn’t need it
anymore. I told him about the chanting: “This is how you really get
high. It’s a natural high.” I felt the cleansing effect and the purifying
effect of kirtan. I had a lot of prasādam and enjoyed all of it. Without
understanding it, I was appreciating what he was doing. Right after
being with Vishnujana Swami, I joined the temple in Atlanta. It was
enough to convince me.
Later that day, Suhotra is distributing books and has completely

forgotten about the roped-off area with the weird guys. Suddenly he
hears a thunderous roar, an unbelievably loud sound. “What is that?” he
says to Ramacharya.
548
They are near the front entrance and can see that a huge gaggle of
motorcyclists have just pulled up to the gate. A big guy at the front is
counting dollars into the hands of the man taking tickets. After
finishing, he turns and motions to everybody behind him. “Let’s go,”
and they all come roaring into the festival site at full speed.
Suhotra: It was the Hells Angels themselves. They were driving so fast
through the fair grounds, vroom, vrooom, vroooom, that it was scary.
They all ended up at the roped-off area and parked their bikes.
The Fiddler’s Convention was one of the wildest things I’ve ever seen.
Maharaja had brought an ektar so that made a real Indian-cum-bluegrass
sounding boing-a-boing-a-boing, and Hasyagrami had his esraj. There
was a big tent with 80-year-old guys singing John Henry on their banjos
and stomping around on the stage.
Soon the Hells Angels are getting stoned and drunk and begin lurching
all over the place and getting into fights. Some people become
frightened, because they are big, big characters and they are walking
around with ax handles over their shoulders. A few of them start coming
to the devotee camp. They just plunk themselves down in front of the
kirtan band.
Some devotees become apprehensive wondering, what are they going to

do? The devotees continue kirtaning but they don’t know how the bikers
will respond. The bikers simply sit there listening to the kirtan. Then
Sadananda brings out the prasādam. The bikers come over to get their
paper plates full of kicharī. They wolf it down and come back for more.
Sadananda gladly gives them as much as they can eat.
One biker by the name of ‘Animal’ approaches Sadananda with his

empty plate. “Hey, ya got any more of them long black things?”
“You mean the sharks?”
“Yeah. Just gimme as many of those as you can gimme, you know?
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They’re great. I really like ‘em.” Sadananda picks out about 20
blackened chilies deep-fried in ghee and plops them on Animal’s plate.
He begins eating them like popcorn. “Yeah, man. They’re great.”
Animal is a little open and friendly. He likes the sharks, and is always
coming back for more. So Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva starts talking with
him. Lakshmi has heard that Keshava and Karandhar had ridden with
the Hells Angels before becoming devotees. They weren’t actually full
members, but because he’s talking with Animal and a few of his friends,
and because there’s friendly banter going on, to make the conversation
more interesting, with an offhand remark he says, “Yeah, a couple of
our devotees in the movement, they used to be Hells Angels before they
were Hare Krishnas.”
Suddenly the mood changes and gets really heavy. Animal bellows,
“Look, we run down rumors like that. We run ‘em down hard.” He
muscles Lakshmi into a pack of Hells Angels and says, “I’m going to
check this out, right now.” Lakshmi is a short little guy and suddenly
he’s surrounded by angry Hells Angels.
Animal confronts him, “Where’d those guys ride with us?”
“It was (gulp) in California.”
“Hey Geezer, yer from Oakland,” Animal hollers to an old gray-haired

Angel lying on his back and staring up into the sky. “D’ ya’ ever hear
‘bout two of our boys joinin’ the Hare Krishnas?” Geezer doesn’t seem
to acknowledge. He doesn’t turn his head. He just stares at the sky.
After a few minutes he ventures, “Naaaah.”
A few bikers start closing in on Lakshmi like a pack of wolves.
All of a sudden, Geezer goes, “Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Yeah.

Yeah. I think I heard somethin’ ‘bout that. Yeah.”
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Animal changes his mood, “Oh, all right.” He begins slapping Lakshmi
on the back and shaking his hand.
Some of the bikers have become regulars at the devotee kitchen. They
come by in the morning to get a huge plate of halava. They have typical
biker names like ‘Bear’ and ‘Mad Dog’ but are friendly with the
devotees. The regulars come by several times a day, nod to the
Maharaja, and get their plate of halava.
Vishnujana gets the idea to do sankirtan throughout the grounds. Since

there is no amplification, simply by walking a few minutes in any
direction the devotees are in a completely different atmosphere. The
idea is to walk a short distance, put down a blanket, lay a few books on
it, and just chant until a crowd gathers. Then Maharaja explains the
meaning of the chanting and tries to sell a few books. After a while, he
packs up and looks for another spot to set up again.
There are people who are wandering around all over the festival.
Musicians are jamming all over the place with their stringed
instruments, with very little drumming. The devotees are the only group
with a drum.
Before long, Vishnujana wants to go over to the roped-off biker camp.

This idea becomes a matter for some serious discussion. Maharaja
points out, “Well, they come over and see us every day. What are they
going to do? They’re not going to stomp on us. They already know
we’re here.” So finally everyone agrees to go chant for the bikers. They
are not greeted enthusiastically, but the devotees are just another part of
the phantasmagoria of the festival.
As the kirtan starts, a few of the prasādam regulars come over, and one
of them pokes Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva in the ribs, and winks. But the
mood is friendly. Music has power to soothe the savage beast, what to
speak of devotional music like kirtan.
It’s not long before the organizers come around to the devotee camp and
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invite them to play on the main stage. Because they have stringed
instruments, ektar, tamboura, esraj, the devotees qualify to play on the
main stage in front of the multitude. They will perform tonight after the
Kloggers, an Americana folk-dancing fad that likely originated in
Holland. The Kloggers do circle dancing and square dancing wearing
wooden shoes that make a huge noise by stomping in time to minimal
musical accompaniment.
At the appointed time, the devotees arrive at the main stage. The
Kloggers are in the middle of their act. They’re a large group and the
attraction is mainly the big rhythmic waves of stomping with the
wooden shoes. When they clomp off the stage, the devotees are ready.
They are strictly shaven heads and dhotis. When Vishnujana signals that
they are ready, the MC bungles the introduction.
“Well, let’s put our hands together as we meet and greet the Hair
Christians with Janis Swami.” The devotees smile but it’s bizarre, to say
the least. The usual wave of stupefaction comes across the audience,
seeing the devotees all dressed in orange. “Huh?? Who?? What??”
Undeterred, the devotees begin chanting. They do an extended kirtan

and when they finally stop there’s a long delay before the audience
finally responds with applause and cheers. Then Maharaja speaks a few
words. They do another kirtan before they are told to wind it up. The
devotees are satisfied. Their time wasn’t long but they have given the
Holy Name.
Hans: He captured everybody’s heart and won the night. What amazed
me was that he could engage anybody; the drunks, the kids, the old
people. He would get everybody up to dance and nobody was self
conscious. He had the overpowering ability to get everybody up to
dance. It was infectious. It was never forceful but always in such a
sweet way. He had an incredible talent. He was great with kids, and they
loved him back. Radha-Damodara were beautiful, and very well-kept.
They looked very happy.
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Atari Das: I heard Vishnujana Swami chant on tape, and heard stories
about him leading kirtans in San Francisco and Los Angeles. He was
like a legend, so I was always looking forward to meet him. The
Bluegrass festival was the most blissful time I ever had chanting. It was
the first time I got his association. That sold me about Krishna
consciousness. I was thinking about becoming a devotee so that made
things concrete for me.
Gadi: The Fiddler’s convention was a gigantic event – about 100,000

people – and just one big party. We would move around on a blanket
and go from area to area. It was so huge you could just pick up and go to
another area and start a whole new presentation. So we moved around
from place to place with all these Indian instruments. The Radha-
Damodara party was not officially part of the festival, but the response
was wonderful.
One lady comes to the devotee camp dressed in a sari. Vishnujana

Maharaja engages her to sell items in the booth along with the
brahmacārīs. She is one of many people who phone a temple whenever
they hear Vishnujana Swami is in town. “Where is he doing his next
program?” These people want to be involved in the inspiration that
occurs when someone inspired is chanting, preaching, or conducting
some kind of Krishna bhakti. But they never join a temple.
When the Bluegrass festival is over the Radha-Damodara bus travels to

the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Some friends of the
devotees have followed the bus after the Fiddler’s Convention to ask
more questions. They get a lot of association chanting with Vishnujana
Maharaja and his party for three hours on campus. Then they help serve
out prasādam. Vishnujana receives wonderful appreciations from many
students who are completely enraptured by the kirtan. The devotees’
friends are impressed.
The fairs and colleges are always a high point. With the new bus they
can do many more festivals because the large bays underneath provide
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ample facility for storing equipment. The school bus had no bays so
devotees had to go into the bus and pull everything out through the trap
doors. It was cumbersome and inefficient. Now, they can carry a lot
more and it’s much easier to load and unload the gear for the programs.
New York, April 1974

Vishnujana is in town to pick up a shipment of items he purchased in
India that has just arrived by ship from Bombay. Included are more
exotic Indian instruments, including clay mṛdaṅgas, colorful pandals,
and many items for Radha-Damodara’s worship. Maharaja stops at the
Henry Street temple for a few days. Dayal Chandra parks the bus on
Cane Street, facing down towards the East River at the intersection of
Henry Street.
The new Radha-Damodara bus causes a sensation. Vishnujana Maharaja

gives the Sunday feast lecture and leads the kirtan. The temple is always
packed with guests on Sundays, leaving no room for theatrics. After
kirtan the guests go upstairs to the gallery for prasādam. Maharaja goes
downstairs to the devotee prasādam room in the basement to answer
questions.
After the Sunday feast there is usually a tulasi pūjā kirtan in every
ISKCON temple. This tulasi pūjā kirtan is particularly sweet with many
guests present. It’s so hot in the temple room that Vishnujana Swami
just wears his top cloth without no kurtā. Maharaja is beating on the
mṛdaṅga as he starts jumping up and down. By jumping so
enthusiastically, however, his sannyāsa dhoti starts to loosen and comes
undone, but he continues playing mṛdaṅga with one hand and holds up
his dhoti and tucks it in with his other hand.
Hamsarupa: Vishnujana Swami gave the most nectar classes of all the
devotees. He had his own way of instilling a certain level of
consciousness in a neophyte. He put the philosophy in such a way that it
allowed new devotees to focus on their service and their duties. He had
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even compiled a book specifically on Nectar of Devotion. It had an
embossed gold foil cover and was the forerunner to a Bhakta Program.
He said his day would begin by meditating on, Why am I getting up in

the morning? On whose order? And for what purpose? He said this type
of focus would help devotees not be so susceptible to māyā; akin to
Bhaktisiddhanta’s beating the mind with shoes.
Maharaja’s classes are not vague or abstruse, but directly to the point.
“Every devotee knows you’re not the body; you should do this, and not
do that. But performing a practical check on māyā requires having a
little forethought. Is what I’m about to do going to please Srila
Prabhupada? Is it going to have a positive effect on my Krishna
consciousness?”
Vishnujana Maharaja has a practical handle on the philosophy and

knows how to present it so that devotees can utilize it to make
advancement. He gives concrete concepts that any person can
implement. “Why am I getting up in the morning? To please my
Spiritual Master. You should think in all of your activities throughout
the day, why am I doing this? Will this please my Spiritual Master?”
Maharaja also refers to his recent adventure in India. He would like to

see many brahmacārīs come back with him next year. He tells them how
they will hire a boat in Mayapur and then sail down the Ganga to the
Bay of Bengal doing kirtan from village to village. All the brahmacārīs
are excited and enthusiastic. He is able to enchant devotees and many
want to leave with him, but can’t.
Bombay, India, April 1974

When Tamal Krishna arrives back in Bombay he finds that Vishnujana
and all of the Western devotees have already gone. He was counting on
finalizing things with Vishnujana before he left for the US, and is upset
by the delays that kept him in Delhi and Vrindavan. But his first job is
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to report to Prabhupada. After giving a full report, he reveals his mind
about experiencing constant pain.
“When I was in Delhi I realized I had a hernia.”
“Oh? Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur had a hernia.” “So what

should I do?”
“The only way you can deal with hernia is to have an operation,”
Prabhupada replies. A decision is made that an operation is necessary.
Indian medical technology is lacking the modern machines of America,
but Tamal Krishna prefers to stay in Bombay. He feels more
comfortable with Indian doctors than American doctors.
Tamal Krishna is admitted into Bombay’s best hospital after choosing a

doctor who is a life member. He gets a private room and a devotee from
France, Daksha Das, stays in the room with Tamal to lend assistance
and provide association.
TKG: When I went into the operating theater, I tried to envision Radha-
Rasabihari during ārati with Prabhupada present. Before the operation,
they gave me an anesthetic and said, “Count from 10 down.” So I
envisioned that when they put me under the sedative. I got to 7 and that
was it.
During the operation Goswami has an amazing dream. When he’s

wheeled back to his assigned room after the operation, Prabhupada is
sitting there with some devotees. He had come in an open Jeep in the
heat of the afternoon to stop the operation.
“I tried to come here as fast as I could because I was thinking you

should have this operation in America,” Prabhupada says. “I was
worried that something might not be good enough. But anyway it is
done now.”
“Srila Prabhupada, I just had a dream.” “What is that dream?”
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“I dreamt that the previous acharyas had called you to give them a
report on your preaching work, and how it was going on this planet.
They were all there and asked you, ‘What is your report?’ You reported
to them that you had studied the people of this planet very carefully, but
you found that they had no capacity for any type of austerity and no
ability to tolerate physical inconveniences. Neither were they qualified
to study deeply, nor were they very pious. In fact they were addicted to
many sinful activities.
“So the acharyas said, ‘Then how will you be able to deliver them?’
“Then you answered their question, ‘The only thing that I can report is,
somehow or other, they are taking shelter at my feet.’ That’s the dream I
had.”
Prabhupada sits next to the hospital bed, listening intently. After hearing
the dream, he gives a wonderfully big smile and comments, “Actually,
this is a fact.”
Three days after the operation, the hospital decides that Goswami can be
discharged. But he is adamant that having worked as hard as he has been
working that he needs extra rest. “No, I’m not leaving. I want to stay
here for a week, at least.”
So he stays a few extra days before returning to the temple in Juhu. Now
he lives in a chātāi hut at Hare Krishna Land that was formerly an old
godown where books were kept. Devotees bring in a hospital bed and he
gets all facility, proper prasādam, and personal care while he remains
there to convalesce.
Prabhupada comes to visit every morning after his walk. Sitting on a

little rickety folding chair, the kind that people use at pandals, he gives
his association while Tamal Krishna, still his GBC man, lies in bed
recuperating. Prabhupada usually stays for 5-10 minutes and then
returns to his own quarters.
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TKG: I had enjoyed good health in India and to be suddenly bedridden
allowed me a lot of time to think. Vishnujana had come and gone before
the operation and the effect of his association in India was really on my
mind.
When Goswami is able to move about, Satsvarupa Maharaja, who is

currently Prabhupada’s secretary, comes during the day to spend time
with him. Prabhupada can see his sannyāsī students from his balcony as
they sit and talk in the garden below.
One day Prabhupada inquires from Satsvarupa, “What is Tamal talking

about?”
Satsvarupa has no choice now but to answer the question of his spiritual
master. “What he is talking about is… that he wants to return to
America to regain his health, just as Giriraja did.”
Srila Prabhupada considers this a serious thing because Tamal Krishna

is his GBC representative. In the past four years great progress has been
made in India, but he is fully aware how austere it is for his western
students. Without them it might not be possible to develop Lord
Chaitanya’s mission on the subcontinent. He had tried before without
success. Now that he has positive results, Prabhupada is reluctant to
change course. That’s why he has kept a tight rein on everyone
continuously since returning to India in 1970 with 40 American and
European disciples. As an authority figure, anything Tamal Krishna
does sets a precedent. And if he leaves India, others might start leaving.
Dhristadyumna: After the festival I was back in Bombay with Tamal

Krishna. By that time he had decided he was leaving India. He was
scheming how he was going to join Vishnujana Swami. “I’m out of
here, but Prabhupada will never let me go.” He tried so many ways to
have Prabhupada let him go and Prabhupada kept saying, “No. No. No.”
TKG: Finally one day I got enough strength to crawl onto someone’s
back, and was carried up to Prabhupada’s room. When I was let down I
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just flopped over. I offered obeisances still in quite a bit of pain.
“Why did you come up?” Prabhupada is concerned. “You didn’t have
to.”
“I didn’t want you to keep coming to me.” They exchange a few

pleasantries and Goswami remains silent as he tries to summon his
strength. Prabhupada gets right to the point. “Anything to discuss?”
Taken aback, Tamal Krishna blurts out, “Srila Prabhupada, I was

thinking that maybe I should go back to America for some time.”
Prabhupada is thoughtful. “Why?”
“Well, I can probably quote half of the Bombay municipal codes, but I
can’t quote nearly so many verses of Bhagavad-gita.”
“Oh? That is not very good. What will you do?”
“Well, I can preach there. I’m a sannyāsī. I’ve been managing too much.
This Bombay case has taken so much effort. We’ve been in lawyer’s
offices and I’ve spent hundreds and hundreds of hours like that. I think I
need a change.”
Prabhupada makes no immediate decision. He seems reluctant in the

beginning, but after a few days he concludes that a brief change might
be beneficial. “Yes, we can always pay a manager, but preaching is a
matter of realization.” Agreeing with Tamal Krishna’s proposal to go to
America, Prabhupada gives an instruction, “Get a van with some
brahmacārīs and distribute books.”
Tamal Krishna gladly begins planning his return to the States. Seeing
that he has received Prabhupada’s permission to go out and preach,
Satsvarupa’s own thinking is impelled in the same direction, even
though he is Prabhupada’s servant and secretary.
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Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: All these talks about preaching were very
enlivening, but they made me also want to preach. I went and spoke
with Tamal Krishna in his hut.
“I think I would also like to go and preach in America,” Satsvarupa

reveals. “I could start up my own traveling party again and go town to
town. What do you think? Sometimes I feel someone else could do the
simple things I do here.”
“But I don’t know what Prabhupada would say,” Goswami replies.

“Anyway, the main thing is attachment to the spiritual master. And that
can also be gained as servant or secretary. I think if you ever feel that
it’s not good for you, you can ask Prabhupada to release you for
preaching. But as long as you feel strong by attending him, writing his
letters, writing for Back to Godhead, then it is best to do what
Prabhupada has asked you to do. Even if it’s not preaching, it’s an
important service.”
For the time being, these words dissuade Satsvarupa from even bringing
up the subject to Srila Prabhupada. But in his correspondence,
Prabhupada continues to address preaching. On April 11, he writes to
Dayananda, “Without preaching, ISKCON will become rubbish.”
In his correspondence, he also refers to Tamal Krishna’s condition.

“Very suddenly Tamal Krishna Goswami underwent treatment for a
surgical operation for a hernia. Now he is completely invalid and cannot
move. It will take about two weeks more to recover, and then he desires
to go to the USA for preaching work, and retire from the GBC.” [Letter
to Atreya Rishi - April 4, 1974]
Once he is well enough, Tamal goes shopping for gifts to give to the
Deities at the American temples he plans to visit. He decides on four
small silver swings, with two tiny silver cups on either side of each
swing. He journeys to several sacred tīrthas to fill the tiny cups. He seals
Yamuna and Ganga water in one cup of each swing. In the other cup he
seals four different sacred ingredients; Vrindavan dust from Ramana-
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reti, the Samadhis of Sri Rupa, Sri Sanatana, and Sri Jiva Goswami,
neem leaves from the tree where Lord Chaitanya appeared in Mayapur,
dust from the Samadhis of Bhaktivinoda Thakur and Bhaktisiddhanta
Sarasvati Thakur, and, finally, dust from Srila Prabhupada’s lotus shoes.
Tamal Krishna feels a special relationship with the Bombay Deities, and
he prays to Them to empower him to exemplify the activities of an ideal
sannyāsī as he goes forth to America to preach. His excitement increases
as the day of his flight draws near.
San Francisco, California, April 1974

The temple at 455 Valencia Street in the Mission District is an old
building that was formerly a mortuary. There’s no heating system to
speak of, so hot water is limited. The women have their ashram in the
basement which is haunted by ghosts. Next door is a garage with a loft
where Jayananda occasionally stays with some new devotees.
Bhakta Das has just arrived to be the new temple president. Previously,
he turned San Diego into a major preaching center. Upon his arrival,
Jayananda greets him with much warmth and love to make him feel
welcome. He pledges his support and cooperation to let Bhakta Das
know that he’s needed and appreciated. Bhakta Das has plans to develop
the San Francisco yatra, but the temple is in financial distress. The first
priority is to discharge all the debts.
Bhakta Das: Jayananda recommended me to be president in San

Francisco. I was enthusiastic, and he liked people with enthusiasm.
There was a GBC meeting and afterwards Jayatirtha called me in and
said, “The GBC wants you to go to San Francisco and be the president
there.” San Diego temple was very together then. We had worked hard.
Frankly, I was quite frightened to go from a relatively small temple to

San Francisco, which had six times as many devotees and financial
problems. There was no book inventory, no incense inventory, no
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magazine inventory, and no money. There were two traveling sankirtan
parties but nobody knew where they were. Temple devotees were forced
to get their own money to buy sandwiches in health food stores. That
was April and we were supposed to put on a Ratha-yatra festival in July.
Madhudvisa Swami has recently returned from Australia to get a new

visa. Prabhupada has instructed him to help Bhakta Das in his new
service as temple president. Madhudvisa is very encouraging and gives
valuable suggestions to improve Ratha-yatra. He becomes a major force
to help organize the festival.
Jayananda, Madhudvisa, and Bhakta Das have a meeting and decide to

really improve the festival this year. Bhakta Das asks Jayananda to tell
him everything about previous Ratha-yatras.
“Well, the first year, 1967, we just rented a flatbed truck and decorated
the truck with flowers,” Jayananda recounts. “We put the Deities on the
back, and the girls passed out fruit. A good crowd walked along with us
at the beginning, and when we turned off Haight Street a smaller group
of maybe 50 people came with us and we went all the way to the beach.
“The second year we made our own cart, with saffron silk canopies,
small ones. And we had the parade through Golden Gate Park to the
beach. By that time San Francisco temple had grown a little. We had
maybe 30 devotees and about 100 people came with us through the
park. The chanting was very nice that year. Then in 1969 we built a
much bigger cart, with a tall silk canopy, like the ones they build in
Jagannatha Puri.
“But in 1970 we worked for two months straight and built the three big
carts, basically the same ones we use now. Also we had all kinds of
publicity – TV, billboards, posters. And Srila Prabhupada came to that
Ratha-yatra. So a lot of people came, maybe twelve thousand people. It
was big – a tremendous success. We had a few mishaps, though. One
cart broke down in the middle of the parade. And it was a bitter cold
day. But even though it was so cold at the beach, thousands of people
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stayed there with us and ate a lot of Krishna prasāda. We brought twenty
50-gallon barrels of prasāda, and they ate it all.
“Later that year the auditorium we used at the beach was torn down. So
in ‘71 we decided to end the parade in the park, at Lindley Meadow.
That year, and in ’72 and ‘73, the parade was a little smaller than in
1970.”
“Why don’t we expand it this year?” Bhakta Das exclaims. “Let’s make
it bigger and better than ever. I’m prepared to spend more money than
before and we’ll invite Prabhupada, to make it a huge success.”
Jayananda loves the Ratha-yatra festival. He feels it gives the best

impression of Krishna consciousness to the public. Previously, San
Francisco Ratha-yatra was just a parade with prasādam distribution at
the end. There were no exhibits, no booths, no pandals, nor a stage for
Vaishnava entertainment. So they formulate a plan to make exhibits
depicting various aspects of Krishna consciousness, plus a stage for
kirtan and drama. They will also have booths to sell gifts and prasādam
snacks to recoup some of the funds spent for the festival.
Bhakta Das: Jayananda and I liked festivals. We felt they were a

wonderful way to preach and attract people to Krishna consciousness.
We wanted to have festivals in the surrounding cities, too. Jayananda
gave 100% support so I appreciated that very much. His mood was
different from a few devotees who resented that someone from outside
became president. They tried to undermine me behind my back. So it
was difficult.
With the support of Jayananda, Bhakta Das rallies the troops together.
He encourages the cooking of opulent prasādam to stop the practice of
eating outside. Devotees begin to work as a family again. To raise
funds, Bhakta Das sends Bahulasva out with a few devotees to sell
paraphernalia and prasādam. He also asks Jayananda and Nalini Kanta
to go on the road selling Spiritual Sky incense and soap products.
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Jayananda is frequently gone from the temple traveling all over
California selling Spiritual Sky incense. He’s enthusiastic to do
whatever he can to pay down the temple debt. On the road he usually
eats dates with sour cream, or figs with cream cheese. Most weekends
he returns to the temple for the Sunday Feast.
Nalini Kanta: Bhakta Das inherited a temple with a debt of $50,000 so

he was doing everything he could to raise money. Sometimes,
Jayananda would go out alone in his red truck all over California. He
would be gone for six days at a time, and bring money back to help
maintain the temple. He was completely fixed in Krishna consciousness,
sleeping in the truck, bathing in rivers, and cooking for himself. I
thought Jayananda was not well placed in that service. He was such a
good PR man and so good for the devotees, but he was always willing to
do the needful.
Devotees feel sad that Jayananda is away so much because they’re

always inspired by his association. Within a month the temple has raised
enough funds to settle its debts with the BBT and Spiritual Sky. Now
they purchase books and are determined to get book distribution going
again, as it was during the days of Keshava and Buddhimanta.
Jayananda continues the incense sales while Yudhamanyu and Keshava
Bharati go out locally to distribute books.
As he pays off the debts, Bhakta Das arranges financing for the festivals
that are planned. Jayananda is Mister Ratha-yatra, and he declares that
festivals and parades are the ultimate preaching tool to create the most
good will for the Krishna consciousness movement.
Every year the San Francisco devotees put on a large festival in

Berkeley to celebrate Lord Chaitanya’s advent. With the success of that
festival behind them, Jayananda wants to do another festival in the
beach town of Santa Cruz. He works tirelessly organizing this festival,
as well as the upcoming Ratha-yatra.
One day, Vishnujana Swami arrives at the Valencia Street temple after
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driving cross- country from New York. The new Radha-Damodara bus
is like a miracle. Immediately, Maharaja is invited to the Santa Cruz
festival. Devotees from all over California will converge here for the
festival on the beach.
In the temple office, Maharaja sees the Sankirtan Newsletter, with

results from April 19-20. Glancing over the report, he sees that the BBT
Party is on top with 2,000 points, followed by Chicago temple with
1,539 points. The BBT Party is headquartered in Chicago, so it’s
obvious that book distribution is the major focus there. San Francisco is
third, followed by Pittsburgh, San Diego, and Washington. Nine temples
have reported their results, with Edinburgh, Scotland, in last place with
159 points.
That evening, as Vishnujana Maharaja enters the temple room before

sandhyāārati, he notices a young man sitting alone in the corner playing
tablās. Jnapaka is a young, musically-inclined high school student who
has been studying tablās at the Ali Akbhar Khan School of classical
Indian music. He likes to play his tablās during kirtan at the temple. His
parents are professional classical violinists for the Oakland Symphony,
and his father occasionally plays with the San Francisco Symphony.
With a big smile on his face, Vishnujana invites Jnapaka to play with his
kirtan band. He offers him a ride to the Santa Cruz festival on Radha-
Damodara’s bus. “Sure I would like to go,” Jnapaka replies, “but I’m
still living with my parents. I’m due to graduate from high school in
June.”
Jnapaka: I had previously seen Vishnujana Swami in kirtan at the

temple, and I was very impressed because he had such a strong
personality and such a beautiful voice. He looked radiant and powerful,
and exuded a lot of warmth and friendliness. When he approached me I
was kind of spellbound at first. I felt spontaneously inspired to say yes,
but I was a little apprehensive because I had mixed feelings.
On festival day, devotees kirtan down the main street of Santa Cruz
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behind two gigantic mūrtis of Lord Chaitanya and Lord Nityananda
each on a round platform with rotating wheels. The platforms are
designed with gears underneath that connect to the wheels, so as the
wheels turn forward, the gears underneath also turn, and the beautiful
mūrtis dance!
The procession of dancing mūrtis and devotees crosses a bridge over a

narrow river to the festival site on a grassy area by the beach. It’s a big
setup with colorful pandals, almost like a Ratha-yatra festival. Several
tables display Prabhupada’s books, while others offer vegetarian snacks.
Many beach people are attracted by the music and dramas. They watch
the play on Lord Chaitanya’s pastime with Chand Kazi, and enjoy
Satarupa’s Los Angeles dance troupe.
Satarupa dd: With Vishnujana and Madhudvisa, you had the two kings
of kirtan. We chanted forever and the crowds were going wild. It was a
magical weekend.
Puru: This was the first time I saw Vishnujana Swami with the exotic
instruments he brought from India. The ektar had one string that was
plucked and the bottom was made from a gourd. He also had another
amazing instrument, a santoor, which looked like a xylophone, but with
strings, and was played with little hammers. Madhudvisa Swami
arranged the prasādam distribution, but Vishnujana Swami didn’t eat
anything. He was just chanting for hours with that ektar. He kept going
around and around on the grass, dancing and chanting. Everybody was
amazed because he just didn’t stop.
Madhudvisa Swami is in bliss sharing kirtan with Vishnujana and

Jayananda. He also shows devotees how to efficiently distribute
prasādam in a service mood. He has learned in Mayapur how to
organize prasādam distribution. Until now, it was always buffet style in
America. Nobody knew how to sit people down in rows and serve out
by going down each row.
After everyone has taken prasādam to their full satisfaction, Madhudvisa
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leads the grand finale kirtan on stage. Vishnujana Maharaja sits behind
the mixing board wearing headphones to do the sound mix. Jayananda
encourages everyone to hold hands and dance in a large circle around
the dancing mūrtis of Lord Chaitanya and Lord Nityananda.
Keli Lalita dd: Vishnujana Swami was extra special. It wasn’t just
charisma. There was obvious shakti there because everyone was in
ecstasy when he led the chanting. In retrospect, after reading
Prabhupada’s letters to Vishnujana Maharaja, and how Prabhupada
loved to hear him sing, there is no question that he was representing
Prabhupada’s ecstasy in chanting Hare Krishna, and getting others to
join in the kirtan to experience the bliss.
Jayananda represents complete humility and faithfulness to the spiritual

master. He was a dedicated servant to the max. I would say he was the
epitome of what a devotee should be like in serving the spiritual master.
In his devotion, his preaching, and especially his compassion, patience,
and willingness to serve the spiritual master’s mission, Jayananda was
the standard. I always think of Jayananda and Vishnujana as the gauge
of devotional service. At the time we never really knew who these
wonderful devotees were.
After Santa Cruz, the Radha-Damodara party heads north, stopping only
in Davis to attend a new age festival. The kirtan band sets up next to the
Spiritual Sky booth and chants all day. The devotees notice there is a lot
of māyā going on at this festival in the name of spiritual life. It’s a free-
for-all type of scene with people stoned-out and in their own world.
At one point a Bengali gentleman comes up to the devotee booth, smiles

at Suhotra and says, “There are many groups here proclaiming a
spiritual path. But from all of these, there is only one that is real. And
that is the group that represents Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.”
Suhotra: That was like a bolt from the blue, like when the clouds open
and a stream of light comes down. He just said that and walked on.
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Leaving Davis, the Radha-Damodara bus heads north on Interstate 5,
out of California and into Oregon. The bus stops at the Portland temple
for a few hours. Hearing that Maharaja is on his way to Seattle, many
local devotees crowd into a van to go up with him. Last year, they heard
about his incredible kirtans at the Seattle temple and want to be present
this time. The Seattle temple president, Sukadeva, is a great kirtan man
in his own right, and the Seattle kirtans are always powerful.
Seattle, Washington, May 1974

The Sunday feast is packed with devotees. The news has spread that
Vishnujana Swami is in town and has just returned from India.
Sukadeva is doing a wonderful job as president, presenting Krishna
consciousness and cultivating guests in a way that makes them feel
welcome and at home in his temple.
Gauridas Pandit is one of the guests at the program this Sunday. He has
only been to the temple a few times and comes early, before the
program actually begins. As he stands gazing out of an upstairs window,
Vishnujana Swami suddenly comes up behind him. Hearing a deep
resonant voice behind him, Gauridas turns to find an effulgent devotee
he hasn’t seen before. He has a deep tan and looks a little thin, although
quite bright-faced.
“Haribol! My name is Vishnujana Swami. I’m on my way to a festival

in Vancouver after the Sunday feast. Please accept my humble
obeisances.”
Gauridasa Pandit: I had never seen such a bright person. Acting like I
knew the prayers, I bowed down although I had never offered
obeisances before. I noticed that he was effulgent, like an aura. I had
never seen a sannyāsī before but I was impressed by how humble he
was.
For kirtan, Maharaja wears only a thin chaddar lightly wrapped around
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him even though it’s still quite chilly in Seattle. As the intensity of the
kirtan builds more and more, the chaddar begins to slide off his
shoulders and eventually glides down to the floor. He lets it lie there
without giving it a second thought.
Everyone else in the room is wearing a kurtā, or a wool chaddar, or even

hooded sweatshirts, because of the cold. But Maharaja continues
chanting with no top garment. He is totally absorbed in the kirtan,
singing in such a powerful voice and straining his neck. All of a sudden,
his kaṇṭhī mālā breaks and the beads fly all over the floor. Again, he is
so absorbed in kirtan that he doesn’t even flinch. He simply continues
singing.
Kanti Mati dd: The way we saw him he was beautifully absorbed in
Krishna prema. And that’s all there was to it. The way he would say
“Krishna” would just inspire me to feel that same prema for his devotion
to Krishna. He could inspire you, and that’s why he was so dear, and
why devotees lamented so terribly when they thought they weren’t
going to have his association.
Jagadisvari dd: He was one of the few men that I felt saw me as a spirit
soul. I didn’t feel uncomfortable at all in his presence. I always tried to
be respectful with sannyāsīs, but I felt that he treated me like a spirit
soul. He wanted to distribute Radha-Damodara nectar to everyone. He
would take my son Balarama on the bus and give him prasādam. He was
good with the children and I don’t think he distinguished between child
and adult. He was like the pied piper with Radha-Damodara. He’d play
and sing his beautiful music, attracting everyone, and everyone would
follow.
Sukadeva has brought back a lot of slides from India that he has not
shown yet. Upstairs in the prasādam room, Vishnujana hears there will
be a slide show that no one has seen. During the feast, he decides that he
has to present it and arrangements are quickly made. Although he has
never seen these slides before, he makes a perfect presentation singing
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between each slide and speaking about the pastimes as if he was there.
He seems to know every holy place, every detail of the pastimes of each
place. There is no question in his voice: he speaks with the utmost
authority on every slide. Devotees are amazed.
After the slide show, he gathers his brahmacārīs and begins singing
bhajans. Nobody leaves to go home. There are more people than ever at
the temple this Sunday, and the bhajans go on and on. Every time
Maharaja wants to bring it to a close, the Seattle devotees beg him to
continue singing. “One more please. Please.” So he continues with
kirtan as many people get up to dance.
The temple is a 2-story building and there are so many devotees dancing
that Sukadeva starts to worry that the floor might cave in. He requests
everyone to just sit and listen, but nobody stops. Finally around
midnight, Maharaja brings the evening to an end saying, “See you all at
maṅgala-ārati.”
Pandava Vijaya: When I first saw Vishnujana Swami he approached me,

a new guest, and offered his obeisances to me! He led the kirtan and
chanted bhajans after the feast. Every time he stopped, the devotees,
lapping up the nectar, begged him to sing more. This went on until
midnight. There were so many devotees packed into that room that
Sukadeva thought the floor was going to give in. What a way to go!
Sukadeva: Every time Vishnujana Swami came to Seattle people would

stop what they were doing and kirtan would go on late into the night.
Devotees were so into him, like a rock hero.
Just as people go to rock concerts and are mesmerized by the rock

artists, people would come to see Vishnujana Swami and be mesmerized
by him. Anyone who heard him lead kirtan wanted to become a devotee.
This is not hearsay, it’s an actual fact. There were people who wanted to
move into the temple after hearing him chant. He had such power in his
kirtan, that they wanted to become devotees.
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When he came to Seattle after that boat trip in India, he brought back
exotic Indian instruments. Instead of listening to Ravi Shankar or Indian
classical music, it was great to have a devotee with the musical talent to
put together that type of group. The sound he was getting with those
instruments was a total transcendental experience.
Vishnujana Maharaja is way ahead of his time. He has his bhajan band
with Indian instruments to appeal to both devotees and non-devotees.
He is the forerunner of the later rock ‘n roll bhajan bands that devotees
will gravitate towards after Prabhupada’s departure from the planet. He
is also ahead of his time in terms of his rasika understanding of the
bhakti mood.
Most of the guests are now ready to go home. Gauridas Pandit lives a
great distance away and it’s very late, so he accepts the invitation to stay
overnight at the temple. He puts down a sleeping bag outside the door of
the room that Vishnujana Maharaja has been given. But he’s too excited
from the evening’s experience, and he can’t fall asleep. So he simply
lies there deep in thought.
Gauridasa Pandit: I couldn’t sleep because I was so fired-up thinking

about the kirtan. At 2:30am a light went on inside the room and the door
opened. Vishnujana came out to take bath. He noticed me lying there in
the semi-darkness. His eyes met mine and he said, “Haribol,” in his
esoteric voice. I replied, “Haribol,” and was blissed-out again.
The next morning, right after maṅgala-ārati, the Radha-Damodara bus

leaves with its 12-man crew, heading north towards the Canadian
border.
New York, May 1974

An Air India 747 jumbo jet taxis onto the runaway at JFK airport.
Peering out the plane’s window, Tamal Krishna Goswami reflects on
Srila Prabhupada’s 1965 New York arrival. He recalls the setbacks that
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Prabhupada faced when he first came to America onboard the cargo ship
Jaladuta, and the austerities he endured trying to establish Krishna
consciousness nine years earlier.
In comparison, Tamal Krishna’s present journey looks easy. His flight

aboard a modern jet was paid for by the Bombay temple and he’s
accompanied by a brahmacārī assistant, Dhristadyumna. ISKCON now
has many temples, many devotees, and Deities. There’s the Dallas
Gurukula, the New Vrindavan farm community, and even Spiritual Sky
Products, the successful business enterprise in Los Angeles. All these
exist as a result of the preaching effort of the American Vaishnavas. It’s
a much different world than Prabhupada had encountered.
Tamal Krishna’s arrival in New York coincides with Lord

Nṛsimhadeva’s appearance day. He considers this an auspicious
beginning for his new preaching duties. Devotees greet him warmly on
his arrival at the Brooklyn temple. With great care, Goswami offers one
of the small silver swings at the lotus feet of Sri-Sri Radha-Govinda.
These Deities presided over his 1972 sannyāsa initiation in Jaipur.
Subsequently, They journeyed to America and were installed at the
Brooklyn temple.
Goswami spends his first days back in the States adjusting to the culture
shock of returning from India. He tours ISKCON Press, lectures at the
temple, and organizes some kirtan parties around Brooklyn. But he
quickly becomes restless. He wants a definite preaching assignment.
When the Los Angeles temple leader offers him an airline ticket on the
condition that he will stay and preach, Tamal is interested because he
helped establish the LA community before leaving for India. He
requests that the ticket allows him to stop in Chicago and Dallas along
the way.
Satyaraja: I was at the Henry Street temple when Tamal Krishna

Maharaja came from India to join the Radha-Damodara party. He said
he was going to the West Coast to meet with Vishnujana Swami and
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that my friends and I should get out to the West Coast any way we could
and join the party. We packed into a van and drove cross-country,
chanting every day. We were really fired-up young kids.

Even before Vishnujana Swami arrives, Bahudak is worried that
Maharaja will attract the brahmacārīs away from his temple. When
Maharaja came last year, Bahudak saw his effect on the brahmacārīs,
many of whom wanted to join the Radha-Damodara TSKP. Although he
didn’t lose any devotees last year, this year he won’t leave things to
chance. Vancouver Temple is fired-up about book distribution and
Bahudak often says that nobody is to get close to Maharaja.
“Don’t anybody get too into him. You’re all staying right here in
Vancouver. When that bus leaves, it’s going without any of you.
Nobody is leaving the temple. Do you understand?”
The devotees are having breakfast when the bus pulls up and parks on
the street in front of the temple. Vishnujana Swami comes inside with
his men for a roaring kirtan in the prasādam hall. He has his harmonium
strapped over his shoulder as he sings and dances. There are 50 devotees
in the building and the kirtan is so intense that the Panca-tattva painting
suddenly falls from the wall.
At once the kirtan stops. Everyone’s attention turns to the floor.

Vishnujana runs over to the painting and picks it up. “It’s a good sign,”
Maharaja says. “They wanted to dance.” He feels it was significant; that
it wasn’t accidental.
Pasupati dd: He chanted on the harmonium and we had a wonderful

kirtan. It was like the roof was raised. It was a transformation from the
prasādam hall to a cathedral.
Padyavali dd: It was like a great effulgence came into the room, and that
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light spread and everybody got lifted up. He was in such an ecstatic
mood of sankirtan.
After the kirtan Maharaja meets various devotees. Everyone gathers

around him because he’s such an attractive personality. To the
Vancouver devotees Vishnujana
Swami is Mister Kirtan. That’s his reputation. They want to record

Maharaja so they schedule a time right after the evening Gita class.
Then he invites everyone to come onto the bus for darshan of Sri-Sri
Radha-Damodara.
To the gṛhasthas he says, “All of you men who have wives, Krishna will
steal them. Krishna will steal the hearts of your wives.”
That evening, Vishnujana Swami begins his program singing Radhe

Jaya Jaya Madhava Dayite by Srila Rupa Goswami. Then Maharaja
reads the English translation and gives a further explanation.
Glories, glories to Sri Radharani, the beloved of Madhava and most

worshipable of the cowherd girls of Gokula Mandala!
Decorated by the dress of Lord Damodara’s increasing ecstasy, You are

the lady of the house of Lord Hari and the groves of Vrindavan.
From the ocean of Vrishabhanu has arisen a new moon, which is

overwhelming the qualities of Lalita and Vishakha.
O Goddess, Your qualities are described by Sanaka and Sanatana Rishis

and by Sanatana Goswami. Please bestow Your mercy upon me!
“We are given a hint here into the nature of spiritual love,” he explains,
“that even the dress of the spiritual body is of the nature of ever-
increasing ecstasy for the Supreme Lord.” Maharaja holds up a picture
of Radha-Krishna on a swing.
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“Radharani is seated in the swing there with Krishna, and it’s described
that Her dress is not made of cotton, it’s not made of silk, it’s not made
of oil, like the modern day. Today all these fabrics are made from oil,
isn’t it? They take oil and they turn it into Dacron, nylon, this ron and
that ron, you see?
“So it’s not oil, it’s not cotton, it’s not this, it’s not that, what is it? Her
dress in made of ever-increasing love for Krishna. Now just imagine
what the spiritual world is. You see that we cannot imagine. We’re
always used to making things out of dull matter, but in the spiritual
world things are made out of ever-increasing ecstasy. So we’re given a
little hint.
“In another poem, in Srimad-Bhagavatam, it’s described that

Radharani’s hair, the knot of her hair, is not ordinary. It’s compared to
Her confidential deep anguish for Krishna. Just like in this material
world you feel deep anguish over something you love, you see? So in
the knot of Her hair is an exhibition of anguish for Krishna. In this way
all the different aspects of Radharani, Her crown, Her earrings,
everything about Her body is transcendentally absorbed in love of
Krishna. So this gives us a hint into the nature of spiritual life.
“Then, there’s a song about Krishna. First we’ll sing about His
childhood pastimes on page 79.” Everyone turns to that page in the
Vaishnava Song Book. He chants Damodarastakam with the devotees.
This is his favorite song because it gives entry into the mystical
pastimes of his beloved Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara.
Several devotees request him to sing Sri Rupa Manjari Pada from his
popular Radha- Damodara TSKP album. After singing the song and
reading the translation he adds, “Acyutananda Swami wrote me that
these Bengali melodies are the source of all emotional expression. They
are the source – this is where our emotion comes from, these melodious
ecstasies...
“There’s another very nice song about this chanting process. You turn to
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page 41. This song has a refrain; it’s the first line of the first verse. It
goes, kabe ha'be bolo se- dina āmār. It means, ‘When, oh when will that
day be mine?’ So you can all sing that refrain at the end of each verse,
and also I’ll stop after singing one line and then you’ll sing it after me,
two lines again, just as before. I’ll sing two lines and you’ll repeat,
except for the refrain.”
The song Kabe Habe Bolo is by Bhaktivinoda Thakur. He begins with a

little harmonium riff, which becomes a theme for the song. Everybody
joins in singing with Maharaja and the bhajan creates a special mood.
Upon finishing he reads the translation and then reveals his own
realization.
When, oh when will that day be mine? When my offenses ceasing, taste
for the name increasing, when in my heart will Your mercy shine?
When, oh when will that day be mine?
Lower than a blade of grass, more tolerant than a tree, when will my
mind attain this quality? Respectful to all, not expecting their honor,
then shall I taste the name’s nectar sublime. When, oh when will that
day be mine?
Great wealth or followers, feminine beauty, I won’t care for them or the
comforts of my body. Birth after birth give me, O Lord Chaitanya,
causeless devotion to Your feet divine. When, oh when will that day be
mine?
When will I utter Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, with words choked up and
shivering body? When will I be trembling all over, lose bodily color,
tears pouring from my eyes? When, oh when will that day be mine?
When in Navadvipa along the Ganges bank, shouting “Gaura-

Nityananda!” as a surrendered soul, dancing, chanting, running
everywhere, when will I become half mad of mind? When, oh when will
that day be mine?
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When will Lord Nityananda show mercy upon me, and when will I
reject the world of maya? Bestow unto me the shade of Your lotus feet,
and let the right to preach the name be mine. When, oh when will that
day be mine?
I will beg, borrow, or steal the nectar of the name. By the name’s effect
I will feel paralyzed. O enjoyer of the nectar of the name, when will I
touch Your lotus feet till the end of time? When, oh when will that day
be mine?
When kindness to all beings will be appearing, with free heart forgetting
my self- comforting, Bhaktivinoda in all humility prays, “Now I’ll set
out to preach Your order sublime.” When, oh when will that day be
mine?
“Krishna consciousness develops to the point of ecstasy. This is what’s

being expected in this prayer: ‘When, oh when will that day be mine?’
Krishna consciousness begins with what we’re doing right now – we’re
hearing. And that hearing develops a taste for this way of life, these
devotional feelings, these devotional emotions. And as one desires it
more and more, naturally he becomes satisfied in his intelligence that I
should take to this science; I should take to the process of executing
devotional life. As soon as his intelligence is satisfied by hearing
sufficiently, that means he has agreed to act on what he’s heard. He
hears about the laws of karma, he hears about the desires of Krishna,
how to please Krishna, and he acts in that way. As soon as one acts in
that way, he breaks his chain of karma, which has caused him to take
birth after birth after birth. He’s not creating any more karma, good or
bad.
“This is the next stage, which is called steadiness, or freedom from all
distractions of the mind, all distractions of one’s previous karmic
activities. After the stage of steadiness comes the stage which is
mentioned in this song – the stage of ecstasy, when simply by chanting
the Holy Name of Krishna, tears fill the eyes, there’s shivering in the
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body, hairs standing on end, there’s separation from the body. This is
the experience of one who’s reached this higher stage of Krishna
consciousness. And right after this stage, the stage of perfection comes,
which is the stage of perfect love when one realizes his original spiritual
form in the spiritual realm. That’s the final perfectional stage.
“So, whether one is a Christian, Hindu or Jew, it really doesn’t matter

because, after all, we have to go through these different stages of
realization. Isn’t it? Whether you’re Christian, Hindu or Jew, you have
to hear from Jesus, or this one or that one, you see. You have to get your
intelligence satisfied that what’s being said is actually good for you, is
actually what you desire to be.
“Then you have to act on the instructions and become free from your
karma. Then you have to reach the stage of ecstasy, and then you have
to realize your original spiritual form in the spiritual realm. This is the
real religion – not Christian, Hindu, Jew. This is the step-by-step
process of realization that is the eternal religion. This is being cried for
here; this is being desired with great intensity by Bhaktivinoda Thakur.
“Bhaktivinoda is our great-grandfather Spiritual Master, and he’s the
first one to write on this Vaishnava conception, this eternal religion
conception, in the English language. He translated books from Sanskrit
into English and sent them to various libraries around the English-
speaking world. Therefore, he’s the pioneer of Krishna consciousness,
and he predicted that very soon on the banks of the Ganges in
Navadvipa, the birthplace of Lord Chaitanya, Westerners, Europeans,
would gather by hundreds and thousands and chant the Holy Names of
the Lord. And actually for the last two years this has been going on –
our godbrothers and godsisters from all over the world have assembled
in the birth spot, Navadvipa, of Lord Chaitanya, and in the Ganges
water and along the banks, chanting and dancing.
“So, Bhaktivinoda Thakur’s prediction is coming true. And his desire

that everyone should dive into this ocean of nectar, dive into this ocean
of ecstasy of the Holy Name of the Lord, is actually being fulfilled by
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Srila Prabhupada, his representative.”
The next morning, after maṅgala-ārati, there’s a minor altercation.

Before the japa period there are announcements and the reading of the
book distribution scores. Vishnujana innocently asks if he can take the
devotees out on a chanting party to downtown Vancouver. Everybody is
energized hearing this, but Bahudak immediately says, “No, because
there is an important fair going on, so we have to do books.”
Maharaja replies, “Listen. I’m offering myself and my men. Take an

afternoon off. There’s always a fair. There’s always people downtown.
But please, harināma-sankirtan is important, and I understand you
haven’t done it for a few weeks.” Devotees have been revealing their
minds to Maharaja.
Kutichak: Because of money problems, harināma-sankirtan had been

curtailed. But there were other things leading to it from the first visit to
the second visit, because Vishnujana Swami had introduced
personalism. On the second visit, they were a musical group. They were
chanting in the temple and at different places. It was more substantial.
Bahudak was a family man and he was doing fantastic, but he had the
pressure of maintaining the temple and the finances, and book
distribution brought in money. Of course, you have to have a balance.
But Bahudak felt that Maharaja had tilted the balance too much the
other way.
Now everyone wanted to chant more. Everyone was pushing for

harināma sankirtan; everyone wanted to go chant in Stanley Park. They
wanted to do wonderful things like that. There was a standard initiation
letter that Prabhupada sent out, and I got one, in which he said to chant
16 rounds and go chant in the streets every day.
Vishnujana Maharaja glorifies the chanting, and the importance of

sankirtan in the streets. So he points out that same wording in
Prabhupada’s initiation letter, “You go in the streets...”
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Bahudak responds with a quote on the bṛhat mṛdaṅga, and the press.
“Yes. The street. Distribute books – the bṛhat mṛdaṅga – because the
clay mṛdaṅga is only heard a few blocks away.”
“You should do both simultaneously,” Maharaja answers. “Lord

Chaitanya inaugurated the sankirtan movement and He was distributing
the mahā-mantra with the clay mṛdaṅga. It’s not that you forget one and
just have the other.”
“No, no, no. It’s not that we’re forgetting one. We do have street
chanting.” Then a devotee exclaims, “But we haven’t had one in two
weeks!”
Kutichak: There was a period when we would go out chanting at 9:00am

and come back at 5:00pm, Monday through Friday. That was our week.
We were living in the streets and the temple brought lunch to us. But it
stopped because of book distribution. That whole way of life, which we
loved dearly, had been curtailed. And Vishnujana Swami was like the
emblem. There was the temple president with the financial pressure, and
there was the traveling sannyāsī who loved to preach and chant. Each
one of them had valid points. During that conversation, with two big
personalities talking back and forth, the temple devotees were raising
their hands and siding with Vishnujana Maharaja, and that irritated
Bahudak.
Kalki Das: I had just joined the day before and shaved up. The next
morning Bahudak asked me if I wanted to go on sankirtan. I was
thinking, Great, I’m going on a chanting party. He said, “Just go
downstairs and the devotees there will take care of you today.”
I got down there and they gave me a scratchy old wig and karmi clothes
to go out on book distribution. And I had just shaved up!
Not wanting to create a commotion, and sensing that the devotees are
siding against him, Bahudak suggests that everyone begin their japa
meditation. The discussion can continue later. He invites Maharaja to
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join him in his office where he shows Maharaja a copy of the new
Sankirtan Newsletter. It is Issue 5 with results from April 26-27. Eight
temples have sent in a report. He proudly points out that Vancouver
temple is fourth in the ratings with 769 points.
“This is the way the movement is going,” he affirms. “We do the movie
lines with a megaphone, and in only 25 minutes our team distributes 200
BTGs and collects as many dollar bills. Our collection for two days was
$1,500. That’s how we support the temple, pay for the prasādam, and
fund the Sunday festivals.”
“That’s all right,” Maharaja replies. “No one can argue against that.
Still, we must be mindful that the process of bhakti-yoga is not about
collecting men and money. That should not be our motivation because
śāstra tells us our motivation should be simply to please guru and
Krishna.”
“Well, this is what pleases Prabhupada the most. It’s clear that book
distribution is the best service of all.”
“Lord Chaitanya teaches that devotional service is on the absolute

platform,” Maharaja explains. “Every service is the best service. To
think that one service is better than another is a material conception.
“In spiritual life every service is sat cit ānanda – eternal, full of
knowledge, and bliss. Book distribution and street chanting should go
on side by side. Not that we replace one with the other. Srila
Prabhupada wants both to continue like the two tracks that the sankirtan
train must travel on.”
“Well, I have a temple to maintain, and I’m doing the best that I can,” is
Bahudaka’s final say. They agree to leave it at that.
Glancing over the Newsletter, Vishnujana sees that Los Angeles is in

the top position with 1,927 points. San Francisco is second, followed by
Pittsburgh, Vancouver and Washington. The Pittsburgh temple has
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practically doubled their score in three weeks and Brahma Das is the
week’s top distributor with 61 big books, 105 medium, and 70 small
books. There is a challenge: “Brahma Das, after returning from two
weeks with the BBT TSKP, is churning up a storm! Watch out San
Francisco!!” The book distribution competition is heating up.
After breakfast, Bahudak offers Maharaja a few devotees for harināma

sankirtan and the rest go out on book distribution. Before they go out,
the book distributors approach Maharaja.
“Where are you going to chant?”
“Georgia and Granville. Then we’re going to walk down to Burrard.”

The book distributors have made a private arrangement so that they
know where to go. It’s not that Vishnujana Swami tells them what to do,
but he doesn’t discourage them.
The wearing of western clothes has now spread around the movement,
and later that day the book distributors join the kirtan party taking off
their wigs and chanting in street clothes. When Bahudak hears about it,
he becomes furious. He considers it really bad that the book distributors
joined the sankirtan party in their karmi clothes.
That evening, a meeting is held in an incense filled room between

Bahudak and his treasurer, and Vishnujana Maharaja and his right hand
man, Suhotra. It’s an intense meeting. Several devotees listen outside
the door and they can hear raised voices.
Kutichak: When Maharaja came out he said to us, “I can’t circumvent

the temple authorities. Just don’t forget harināma sankirtan.” Basically,
we were happier with harināma. But the temple did less and less
harināma, and then got involved in more and more politics.
On Sundays all the devotees go out to Stanley Park. This Sunday the
temple has arranged to perform a Vedic wedding in the park. The
devotee couple feels that it’s much nicer to get married at a festival in
582
the park than indoors. Also a wedding provides a wonderful opportunity
for a grand preaching program.
Lord Jagannath also comes to the park on a palanquin for a Ratha-yatra

parade before the wedding ceremony. Vishnujana Swami leads kirtan
with his men and everyone present becomes entranced.
As Maharaja sings, devotees are dancing around in circles in complete

ecstasy.
Pasupati dd: He was so charismatic it was incredible. Anyone who saw

him couldn’t help but be attracted because he had such spiritual potency.
The whole time he was there, he was doing kirtan. He gave classes and
everyone was enlivened.
After the wedding ceremony, as everyone returns to the temple for the
Sunday Feast, Vishnujana comments to a brahmacārī. “Marriage is the
best use of a bad bargain. It’s like having a big mahā plate. The
difference is you can’t eat it.” He explains that in spiritual life husband
and wife don’t have sex except for procreation, like having a mahā plate
that you can’t eat. “Why settle for that when you can have Krishna!”
Back at the temple, Maharaja decides to lead out a kirtan party through
the streets of the neighborhood. Everybody wants to go with him. When
he sings, he always gets lost in śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ. He is dancing and
dancing until he practically drops.
As a result of the all-day harināma sankirtan, many guests come to the

temple for the Love Feast. Some have previously received a book or a
BTG from one of the distributors in downtown Vancouver. The guests
are impressed because they have never seen such an exuberant Sunday
program. Vishnujana Swami is leading the kirtan yet again, and
everybody is so enthused that they are dancing with their arms high in
the air. Next, Maharaja gives an inspired class.
Some guests are simply checking out what Hare Krishna is all about, but
583
are being influenced to seriously consider the process of bhakti-yoga.
Prachetana dd: He was a dynamic, magnetic, powerful speaker who

presented Krishna consciousness in an endearing mood. That attracted
me. After the lecture, he spoke about when he was in India. He had a
party going to different villages and people would light incense to greet
them. They cooked prasādam in big woks and after kirtan some kids
would get so ecstatic that they would jump in the woks. That was funny.
After the feast, he was singing the different bhajans you can hear on his
tape, like Sri Rupa Manjari Pada. I felt very emotionally drawn to
Krishna consciousness. At one point I had to leave the room and go
wipe the tears from my eyes. It was so moving!
He was such a magnetic personality. They say that when the door opens
and you enter, a gust of wind pushes you in. He opened the door in my
heart and all this Krishna consciousness entered in. It was that kind of a
feeling.
From his own example, I felt he was a happy, satisfied individual, and I
thought, If he can be like that, that’s what I want in my life. I want to
feel like that too. After seeing Vishnujana Swami, I made up my mind
that I wanted to join the temple.
On Monday morning, Maharaja is ready to leave. It has been a

memorable occasion. Vancouver is so out of the way that not many
sannyāsīs come to visit. His next stop will be Victoria temple, on
Vancouver Island. He has received an invitation from the devotees there
to visit for a few days. An ESP festival in Victoria will give Maharaja
another opportunity to present his Krishna conscious festival.
Padyavali dd: He stayed in Vancouver about a week giving classes, and

taking out harināma parties. He remarked that Krishna sends what the
devotees need, when they need it. Of course, all the brahmacārīs wanted
to go with him. He had a Pied Piper effect on everybody.
584
Chicago, May 1974
Tamal Krishna and Dhristadyumna are met at the Chicago airport and
driven to the temple for darshan of beautiful Kishor-Kishori, the only
Deities where Krishna’s name comes before Radha’s name. Tamal
offers Them one of his silver swing sets and marvels at the size of the
temple facility. Chicago has become the home of big-book distribution,
due to the influence of Tripurari’s BBT Party.
Goswami meets Tripurari and is enlivened by his service mood. He

spends time getting to know this enterprising devotee. In their talks, he
emphasizes his GBC experience working directly with Srila Prabhupada
in India, and reveals his idea to engage householders. Tamal Krishna
keeps referring to varṇāśrama-dharma. Srila Prabhupada had given a
series of talks on the subject in Vrindavan, and now this has become a
buzzword among the ISKCON leadership. Tamal Krishna has had much
association with wealthy Indian businessmen, and he envisions a great
sales force of many householder couples. As they speak, Tripurari
becomes enthused by the idea.
TKG: We envisioned householder couples going out together in vans all

across the country. Becoming caught up in my conviction, Tripurari
bubbled with enthusiasm. After all, I had been Srila Prabhupada’s GBC
man in India for four years, and yet Prabhupada allowed me to be
relieved of such an important position with the instruction to get a van
with some brahmacārīs and distribute books.
In Chicago, Tamal Krishna and Tripurari peruse the new Sankirtan

Newsletter with results from the weekend of May 3-4. Six temples
report, with Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, noticeably
absent. Pittsburgh is now in the top spot with Brahma Das the top
distributor for the week. Tripurari comments that he trained Brahma in
Chicago and that he has great potential. Tamal Krishna is not impressed
with these results compared to what he has been doing in India.
585
The Radha-Damodara bus arrives back in San Francisco with the idea to
use the temple as a temporary base until Ratha-yatra in July. Maharaja
has a plan to do his festival program at the University campus in
Berkeley. However, it becomes difficult to park Radha-Damodara’s bus,
which is simply too large for the narrow streets of the Mission district.
The temple has grown to overflowing as well, making it too crowded to
house all of Vishnujana Swami’s men.
Jayananda suggests that the party relocate to Oakland. He has been

going over to the Oakland house on Mondays with 15 devotees from the
San Francisco temple. He always brings bread to make peanut butter
and jam sandwiches for lunch and then takes everyone for harināma
sankirtan in Berkeley.
“I know a nice Vaishnava couple who rent a 2-story house on 60th

Street in North
Oakland,” he advises. “From there it’s a short drive to the UC campus in

Berkeley where you can do your festival program. It’s one of the best
places to make devotees.”
Jagannath Swami Das and his wife, Maha Laksmi Dasi, live in a
predominantly black neighborhood where nobody has seen devotees
before. He’s a professional drummer so the house also serves as a
practice facility for his rock band. He has a soundproofed room where
they can rehearse.
The Canadian devotee, Paulie, rents a room in the house. He’s been
associating with devotees for more than a year but isn’t ready to take on
the rigorous lifestyle of a brahmacārī. Therefore, Jayananda suggested
he try living at the Oakland house.
Paulie now works for the band as a roadie. To help pay the rent, he also
586
does odd jobs around the neighborhood. When returning home one
afternoon, he sees a large bus parked in front of the house. Vishnujana
Swami has come over to check on the situation to see if it’s a suitable
place for his party.
Jagannath Swami Das: Vishnujana Swami knocked on my door one day,

introduced himself and said Jayananda sent him over. They were doing
a program at UC Berkeley and needed a place to park their bus. I said,
“Fine. You can park your bus here.”
Paulie: I was painting a house down the block so I was covered in paint.
Vishnujana Swami had that sense of personality to come and pay
obeisances. When I got up he already had his arms around my dirty,
sweaty body. He was the kind of person that could integrate himself,
and he wanted to see the facility first to check it out.
I think he was the first impactful devotee that I met. There was
something about him, something that resonates within people who knew
him over the years. There was a certain aspect that just stayed with
people. I think it was the flavor, the type of personality and character
that Vishnujana Swami had.
Vishnujana likes what he sees. The house will be a fine base for Radha-
Damodara’s bus party. From here he can dart in and out of the Bay area,
do programs in Berkeley, and storm into the San Francisco temple for a
big kirtan at the Sunday Love Feast.
When Maharaja casually mentions that he used to be a musician, they

ask him how to maintain their faith while playing in clubs. He advises,
“Just take your mind off it. Simply take your mind off of any kind of
māyā that will attack you. When you do your concerts on stage, depict
pictures about Krishna, and say something about Krishna. You’ll
become famous.” That’s all he says, but it makes an impression.
They want a new name for the band and Maharaja suggests the name,
“Samsara.”
587
The Oakland house is now a preaching center with a regular morning
program. The bus is parked in front of the house with two wheels on the
street and two wheels on the grass so it will be level for Radha-
Damodara. The temple is right there on the curb! They all rise early for
maṅgala-ārati, they chant their japa, and Maharaja gives Bhagavatam
class. Then they finish their japa and have a Chaitanya-charitamrta
reading from the first volume of Adi-lila that has just been published.
After breakfast they go to Berkeley for harināma-sankirtan all day.
Jagannath Swami Das: Radha-Damodara were very captivating Deities.

Every day They went out to UC Berkeley and I’d go too. We spread out
a Persian rug and just sit and chant for eight hours, no exaggeration..
Vishnujana Swami led the kirtan, and people were attracted. They loved
it. I’d play kartāls and sing. Sometimes it was so hot we had to wear
turbans. At noon we would distribute a first class lunch with salad and a
nectar drink. I was preaching too, because I had such good association. I
felt really good because Radha-Damodara were my house guests. God
came to my house!
Jnapaka: Vishnujana Maharaja invited me to visit him at UC campus.

Radha-Damodara were set up at Sproul Plaza, where many people
passed through and congregated. As soon as I started going in the
afternoons, I was hooked. Then I was going almost every afternoon after
school. I tried to attend as much as possible, because it was a priority for
me.
At Sproul Plaza many vendors earn a living selling food to students. But
devotees are now competing for the same customers. There’s an
unwritten law that the best spots go to whoever gets there first. The
vendors are irritated because the devotees are always there first. As far
as Vishnujana is concerned the vendors can be at any location and it
would make no difference because whoever wants a hot dog won’t
come to them. But the vendors start coming earlier and earlier to beat
the devotees to the prime spot. In response, Maharaja has to send an
advance crew to claim the best spot.
588
On Monday, Jayananda joins Vishnujana’s party in Berkeley with a
crew of brahmacārīs from the Valencia Street temple. He brings the
monthly BBT Newsletter with the astounding report that in 1973, the
temples bought 4,169,004 total books from the BBT. He also has the
latest Sankirtan Newsletter with results from May 10-11 to show
Maharaja. The transcendental competition is picking up.
San Francisco is in second place right behind Los Angeles. Toronto, San
Diego, and Detroit round out the Top Five. Brahma Das is again the top
distributor with 41 big books, 65 medium, and 41 small. Close behind in
second place is Sura Das of Seattle. Neither the BBT party nor Chicago
temple are among the 12 temples reporting.
“Listen to this,” Jayananda says eagerly. He reads a report the San

Francisco temple has sent in. “We are finding that Krishna conscious
festivals are the most potent method of spreading Krishna
consciousness, and we are determined to make the West Coast the
capital of Krishna consciousness in the world. Ratha-yatra this year is
going to be mahā mahā!! We are preparing to serve opulent prasāda to
25,000 jivas!”
Jayananda is ebullient reading the nectar. Vishnujana smiles in

reciprocation.
Dallas, Texas, May 1974

The next stop for Tamal Krishna is the home for ISKCON’s Gurukula
school. Dayananda and his wife, Nandarani, served with Tamal Krishna
in the early days of the Los Angeles preaching mission, and they now
oversee the Dallas temple and school. They bring Goswami for darshan
of Sri-Sri Radha-Kalachandji, and he offers Them the small silver swing
that bears Their name.
Tripurari has also come to Dallas to help Goswami present his plan of a
householder sankirtan army. He still has a strong influence in Los
589
Angeles even though he has shifted to Chicago. Tamal is excited and
confident that he will have a strong impact in LA. After two days in
Dallas, he calls San Francisco looking for Vishnujana Swami.
Jayananda gives him the Oakland house phone number.
590
Tenth Wave,
A Garland of Jivas
The Krishna consciousness movement will inundate the entire world
and drown everyone, whether one be a gentleman, a rogue, or even
lame, invalid or blind. [CC, Adi-lila 7.26] The word around the
community is that a sannyāsī from India is coming.
Los Angeles, June 1974

The news is that Prabhupada has sent Tamal Krishna Goswami to take
charge of the Los Angeles center. The temple leader, Jayatirtha Das, has
paid his ticket to fly from New York. A wonderful reception is planned
to welcome him.
Vishnujana Swami flies into Los Angeles two days before Tamal
Krishna’s impending arrival. He has been invited by Sahadevi to do a
kirtan in Griffith Park over the weekend to help raise funds for the
children. He has many friends in Los Angeles. Only six months back
everyone signed a petition that he remain as the resident sannyāsī in Los
Angeles. But he went to India instead.
Seeing the preparations for Goswami’s reception, Vishnujana is pleased

by their Vaishnava mood. On the other hand, however, his
understanding is that Goswami’s intention is to join the Radha-
Damodara party. That had been the plan when they were together in
India, and that was confirmed just a few days back on the telephone call
from Dallas. Vishnujana is concerned that differing expectations will
cause friction.
591
After lunch, Vishnujana takes a chanting party to the UCLA campus. He
organizes everybody so it won’t be a haphazard space-out. “We should
form two lines like a ‘V’ – for Vaishnava.” He lines them up in two
rows fanning out from one point that forms the ‘V.’ He’s in the center
and, because it’s a ‘V,’ all the devotees can see one another and they can
see him. Agnideva, who is now the temple cook, usually plays mṛdaṅga
and sings but not with Maharaja in town.
Agnideva: Everybody in New Dwaraka loved him. He did a puppet

show for the kids and then he sat on the lawn and preached to the
gṛhasthas. He gave a brahmacārī iṣṭagoṣṭhī and preached to them. He
was preaching to everybody. The kids loved him, the gṛhasthas loved
him, and the brahmacārīs loved him.
Back at the temple after sandhyā-ārati and Bhagavad-gita class,

Vishnujana has a reunion with Murti Das. They sit together on the steps
outside the Sanctuary and talk about life in Krishna consciousness.
Murti became a devotee in 1971 when Maharaja opened a center in
Austin, Texas. Now he has given up his post teaching architecture at the
University of Texas and is preparing to leave for India. Prabhupada has
written him to come to Vrindavan and help with the construction of the
new Krishna- Balarama temple.
Murti Das: I asked what he was doing. He said he and Tamal Krishna
Goswami had plans for the Radha-Damodara party. He was excited
about that. Vishnujana Swami was so nice, outstanding. I joined because
of him. He was very sweet, following the etiquette, being polite and
considerate of everyone’s feelings. I felt that I could reveal my heart to
him at any time, that he was just the right person to talk to. He was a
gentleman in every regard. He did not directly reveal if he was having a
problem, but he had a definite moodiness about him that was different
than the way he was earlier. He was more solitary, more to himself.
There was a feeling of depression.
The next day, Vishnujana is at the airport to meet Tamal Krishna’s
592
flight. He waits in the Continental Airlines arrivals lounge, an expansive
room with wide picture windows facing the incoming planes taxiing
down the runway. He has come early and watches several New Dwaraka
book distributors do their service in the terminal. Their strategy is to
approach passengers embarking on a flight so they have a book to pass
the time.
Whenever the airport is slow, devotees approach people who are seated
quietly in the lounges and waiting areas, so they can give them a book.
Mula Prakriti dd: I saw Vishnujana Maharaja facing the windows

looking out at the planes coming in, with his back to everybody. It was
the day that Tamal Krishna was flying in because the temple had
announced he was coming. But that flight wasn’t arriving for hours. I
saw him sitting there with his arm over his head. He looked like he was
in distress. I’d never seen him like that. I kept coming back every half
hour and he was still like that. He was chanting, but he looked
despondent. It was a heavy thing to watch, but I had no idea what was
on his mind. If he had known that someone was watching, he probably
wouldn’t have stayed there.
Later, Tamal Krishna’s plane lands. A large kirtan group greets

Goswami’s party when they disembark from the flight. With a blissful
smile, Vishnujana Swami joins the kirtan with his arms held high. A
devotee garlands Goswami and the kirtan party escorts him to a waiting
car for the drive back to the temple. Vishnujana Swami appears visibly
upset as he gets into the car, so Tripurari and Dhristadyumna catch a
ride back to the temple with some book distributors. In the car the two
sannyāsīs have a talk.
Dhristadyumna: I was now Tamal Krishna’s secretary/servant when

Vishnujana met us at Los Angeles airport. He was very upset. Tamal
Krishna and Vishnujana had a talk, but I wasn’t privy to it.
As the car pulls up in front of 3764 Watseka Avenue, the temple

devotees greet Goswami with another enthusiastic kirtan. They offer
593
him a seat on the lawn in front of the temple and bathe his feet with
rose-petal water. After the foot bathing ceremony, Jayatirtha escorts the
sannyāsīs to their room. A householder couple invites the sannyāsīs for
evening prasādam and kirtan at their home. When the sound of a conch
announces that rāja-bhoga ārati is about to begin, the sannyāsīs rush to
the temple for darshan of Sri-Sri Rukmini-Dwarakadisa.
After ārati, Tamal Krishna suggests they have a meeting with the temple
leaders. Vishnujana Swami declines, explaining that he has committed
to go to Griffith Park for harināma sankirtan.
Sahadevi dd: I was in charge of raising money to get a playground for

the children. It was important because there was no place for them and
they were getting into trouble. I got some women together and we
organized bake sales to raise the funds. I set up the kirtan at Griffith
Park. Vishnujana agreed to come and lead the kirtan and the women
were going to collect. It became a big deal because Maharaja was
coming and we could collect a lot more. He had an incredible kirtan
party there and we were cleaning up.
Meanwhile, Goswami arranges a meeting with Jayatirtha. He is

enthusiastic to unveil the plans that he has hatched with Tripurari.
Jayatirtha is also excited that a sannyāsī has come to take charge of the
temple. And not just any sannyāsī, but the person who was instrumental
in establishing Los Angeles temple as ISKCON’s western world
headquarters. After initial polite conversation, Tamal Krishna presents
his vision of organizing the householders in a sankirtan army. Tripurari
and Dhristadyumna sit quietly, observing and listening. The discussion
goes on for quite some time. Goswami emphasizes the importance of his
proposal due to recent falldowns on the West coast.
TKG: I put forward my suggestion that the remedy was to engage

everyone in preaching. When devotees fully absorbed themselves in
sankirtan, there would be no time for nonsense, and the effect of
sankirtan would automatically elevate them to the transcendental
594
platform.
Jayatirtha is impressed with the vision. However, he informs Goswami

that Srila Prabhupada has recently established him as the GBC for the
entire Western region with instructions to oversee the spiritual well-
being of all the devotees, so now is not the time to make a drastic
change or start something new. It’s better to go slowly, step by step.
Prabhupada is pleased with his service and he produces a letter for
verification.
From my careful observation of your activities especially in Los

Angeles and the other temples, I can understand that you are doing very
well as GBC representative for the West Coast. Therefore I am
appointing you as the regular GBC representative with full standing, for
heading affairs in the western region of the USA. I have already
instructed the president of the Seattle temple in a recent letter, to send
new initiates beads to you for chanting. I know you will discharge the
duties of GBC with full responsibility, especially seeing that the
spiritual life in the temples is not neglected. [Letter to Jayatirtha - June
2, 1974]
In response, Tamal Krishna also produces a letter supporting his claim

that Prabhupada wants him to help reform the situation where gṛhasthas
are not following the regulative principles. His vision of a sankirtan
army of gṛhasthas who give up their easy lifestyle to go out and preach
is the solution to the problem. He relates how disturbed Prabhupada was
when he received news that some gṛhasthas were found taking drugs.
Tamal Krishna Goswami is going to Los Angeles and I shall give him
instruction to join Madhudvisa Swami, Bali Mardan and Jayatirtha and
reform the deficiencies. As soon as there is a little deficiency we must
repair it or it will create a big hole and the ship will drown. So I have
said keep fit.
As for drugs, not just one party, but everyone was involved. Our process
is to reform. Everyone is under the clutches of maya. If we follow the
595
regulative principles we can get out and come to spontaneous love. A
diseased man is always under the clutches of disease. [Letter to
Rupanuga Maharaja - April 28, 1974]
Jayatirtha counters that he knows the people involved. He knows who is

doing their best and who must come to a higher standard. He’s dealing
with them discreetly, one on one. Not everyone is capable to travel and
be part of a sankirtan army. There are gṛhasthas in the Art Department,
in the FATE Project, and at the BBT. Moreover, the householders run
Spiritual Sky Products, a huge concern that brings in the money to
support all of New Dwaraka’s activities.
“We can’t jeopardize existing projects and send everybody out

traveling. Any changes will have to be introduced slowly, with regard
for an individual’s propensity. We’re already the world’s top book
distributing temple.”
Tamal Krishna is not pleased to hear this. He feels that Jayatirtha

doesn’t appreciate his plan to bring the devotees to a higher level of
service. He’s also upset that his plan is not particularly welcome, and
will not be implemented as he had hoped.
TKG: To my great surprise, he demanded proof that Prabhupada was in

any way displeased. Unless there was a letter from Srila Prabhupada
telling him what to do, he said, there was no use in our making any
plans; nothing was going to change. I was shocked and disappointed. I
had expected that he would wholeheartedly support our proposal.
When Vishnujana returns from sankirtan, Goswami shares the details of

the meeting. He expresses his disappointment with the outcome.
Vishnujana is not surprised by the turn of events.
“After all,” he explains, “how can you expect householders to give up

their apartments to travel and preach in a van? And where’s the money
for all those vans? And what will happen to all the kids and all the other
programs? It’s not a practical proposal.”
596
“I see nothing impractical about the proposal. What facilities did
Prabhupada make for me when I was a householder in India? He
expected me to put aside all comforts for preaching. Our movement is
meant for sankirtan, not for a life of ease.”
Vishnujana simply laughs. “Listen,” he says, “householders are engaged

in supporting their families, or doing temple services. They like
sannyāsīs to visit their homes to do kirtan and speak about Krishna
consciousness. That’s reality.”
“Will they give a donation? Prabhupada told me to never visit a

householder’s home unless they offer to become a member or make a
contribution. I am not going to go to any gṛhastha’s apartment, accept
food from them and take their karma, if they are not prepared to make
an offering of lakṣmī.”
“But these householders are initiated disciples! They’re not Indian

business people,” says Vishnujana with a tone of finality. “I’m going to
the temple for sandhyā-ārati and Bhagavad-gita class. C’mon, let’s go.”
Goswami, Tripurari, and Dhristadyumna accompany Vishnujana

Maharaja to the temple. After class, Tamal Krishna decides not to
accept the householder’s invitation for a home program.
TKG: Perhaps the ways in which devotees dealt with each other had
changed since I was last in America, but I had my training in India from
Prabhupada personally, and I was not going to budge an inch from it.
While Vishnujana spent the evening chanting bhajans at a gṛhastha’s
home, Tripurari, Dhristdayumna, and I remained behind and read from
The next morning at maṅgala-ārati, Tamal Krishna sees that the New
Dwaraka community has swelled to several hundred devotees. Everyone
appears happy as they dance before the Deities. The men are on the right
side and the women on the left. A narrow aisle that runs from
Prabhupada’s vyāsāsana to the altar separates them. Although Los
597
Angeles is the largest and most developed temple in the ISKCON world,
Goswami is not impressed and feels uncomfortable.
TKG: Indian culture, recognizing the strong attraction between the

sexes, tried as far as possible to relieve the agitation by training the
women in a mood of chastity and reserve, while the men were trained to
be protective towards them. I personally had experience of lecturing in
large assemblies where, out of respect for a sannyāsī, the women
completely covered their heads, including their faces, with their sārīs.
One might argue that such behavior was suppressive or unnatural, but
the Vedic culture was not meant for “natural” material existence. It was
meant for taking one back to Godhead, and for no other purpose.
Therefore I was unaccustomed to seeing so many devotee women, many
with their heads uncovered, dancing in such close proximity with men.
It made me feel uncomfortable and distracted my attention from the
maṅgala-ārati performance.
Even during japa period, Tamal Krishna Goswami is concerned about

the way New Dwaraka devotees relate to one another. Compared to his
experience in India, these devotees are not strict in their behavior. He
concludes that any problems are due simply to looseness and not enough
preaching. He has been asked to give the Bhagavatam class but now he
has second thoughts.
TKG: I seriously doubted that I could positively influence the present

situation. The authorities were not favorable to my recommendations.
What was the use of my lecturing on the Bhagavatam if I could not
effect any practical change? I had not come here as a paid sannyāsī to
speak pleasing words. I wanted to preach, and preaching meant
changing people’s lives. Unless we were prepared to change, to give up
all sense gratification, then how could we possibly hope to make others
better?
All of a sudden, Goswami turns to Vishnujana Maharaja and affirms his

intention. “Take me out of here. What is the use of our being here?’
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Tripurari is taken aback by this statement. “What are you going to do?”
“I’m a sannyāsī. It doesn’t matter where I go. Krishna will give me

service. I’m going to preach!”
Within a few minutes, Goswami is out the door. He wants to go to the

airport immediately and catch a flight to San Francisco. He requests
Tripurari to remain at the temple to explain everything. Vishnujana
Swami and Dhristadyumna grab their things in a hurry and follow
Goswami to Venice Boulevard.
Dhristadyumna flags down a cab. “Airport,” he says to the driver as the

devotees get in. Tripurari looks on as the cab quickly disappears down
the busy street. He is left alone to face Jayatirtha, who will be angry at
Goswami’s unwillingness to deliver a single lecture, after having paid
his travel expenses.
Tripurari: The next thing I knew they were taking off on a plane to San
Francisco without telling anybody in the temple. Jayatirtha was on the
altar doing pūjā and I was stuck holding the hat. Jayatirtha said,
“Where’s Tamal Krishna Maharaja to give class?” I didn’t know what to
say to him. So I had to give the Bhagavatam class.
I remember I was thinking, what are they going to do? They came here
with a plan in mind for New Dwaraka and they involved me in this
whole plan, and now this plan is finished and here I am in New
Dwaraka.
The flight to San Francisco takes only one hour. On the plane the
sannyāsīs discuss the events that just took place. Vishnujana is upset at
Goswami’s behavior in Los Angeles. “People want to feel valued,” he
explains. “Nothing is achieved by force. That’s why Prabhupada is
always encouraging everybody.”
“I wanted to distribute Prabhupada’s mercy to the devotees in New

Dwaraka, but their leader had not trusted my intention,” Goswami
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explains. “Staying there would not have been very fruitful.”
“He’s just one man. Everyone else needed to hear you speak. You left
without giving them any of Prabhupada’s mercy.”
“I wasn’t thinking in terms of preaching to the devotees or preaching in

the temples, as much as going out and trying to make new devotees.
Recruitment, in other words. As far as preaching to householder people,
I just finished four years of preaching to life members in India. The
people I was preaching to were the top people in the whole country.
They were the most cultured, polished, wonderful people; incredibly
gifted people. To me it was a very uninspired idea to go to some people
caught up in household life in LA and ask them for small donations,
when I was going to people and asking for lakhs of rupees. The whole
idea of it didn’t appeal to me. I received a lot of my training in India,
and I was very familiar with varṇāśrama. When I saw a householder as
temple president I felt it should be a little different.”
“But advancement is considered according to qualification, not dress!”
“I just felt that the householders should be supporting themselves and

they should be supporting the temple. I was very distressed to see that
householders were being supported by brahmacārīs. That’s what
disturbed me. Besides that, many of these temple presidents are very
weak and uninspired.”
“Look, I also had a difference of opinion up in Vancouver. But I see that

the presidents are maintaining the temples in the same way that an
architect builds a building. He doesn’t lay a single brick but he makes
sure every brick is laid correctly. Similarly, the householder presidents
ensure that the temples keep going and expand. They’re not supported
by the brahmacārīs, rather they maintain the entire temple community
due to their expertise in managing and greater experience in Krishna
consciousness. They engage the brahmacārīs in devotional service,
according to Prabhupada’s system.”
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“I think Prabhupada did the right thing,” Goswami agrees, “because he
has to support his system that he worked so hard to create. He doesn’t
want to have anarchy on his hands.”
“Right. So if it’s Prabhupada’s system, then how can it be faulty?”
“I totally sympathize with everything he did. I agree with him and I

appreciate. At the same time, to support my points, the reality is that
many of these people fall down because they are practically fallen
already. The temple presidents should be the strongest people.”
“But there are brahmacārīs and sannyāsīs that are fallen too. It was a
great shock when Bali Mardan fell down from sannyāsa and got
married.”
“I was more impressed with the Indian system that householders support
the brahmacārīs and sannyāsīs.” “Varṇāśrama dharma.”
“Yes. I didn’t find that in our temples.”
TKG: I felt more inclined to invest my time, and Prabhupada’s time, in

such a manner that the spiritual assets which I had brought from India
would be increased rather than depleted. Perhaps my departure was
premature, but I strongly sensed that the mood of satisfaction which
came from comfortable living arrangements would have made it
difficult for the devotees to properly reciprocate. No doubt they would
have gladly heard about Prabhupada’s wonderful preaching in India, but
I doubted their willingness to embrace a similar mood themselves.
As they speak, little do they know that another GBC sannyāsī has just
returned to his former wife, leaving his GBC duties and the sannyāsa
ashram behind. Srila Prabhupada writes to console the troubled devotee,
confiding that he already saw that his mind was unsettled due to
negligence in his sannyāsa.
Yes, I could observe that your mind was disturbed on account of
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meeting your wife privately. There is no need of hide and seek. Better
live as husband and wife as householders and in great enthusiasm
execute the Krishna Consciousness Movement. There are many GBC
who are grhastha. You can remain for management of the temples and
also work in the schools and colleges for introducing our books in the
libraries. The recent reports of this work have been very favorable. Take
up this line more seriously, helped by your good wife, and that will be
nice.
I have stopped the political movement because it will not help us. It is a
very filthy atmosphere. Better you do not indulge in those things with
expenditure of money and spiritual energy.
So you should not consider taking sannyasa again, but in your country it
is not a great thing. Although officially it is a falldown from sannyasa,
in your country no one understands sannyasa. The more important
principle is that we should purify our thoughts and engage them in
Krishna’s service…
So I request you to go back preaching vigorously along with your wife

who is also a good preacher. [Letter to Rupanuga, June 8, 1974]

Jayananda Prabhu is at the airport when Vishnujana Swami, Tamal
Krishna Goswami, and Dhristadyumna deplane. After offering
obeisances, he leads them to his van. On the way to the temple,
Jayananda hands Goswami the latest Sankirtan Newsletter. “Have you
seen this?”
“Yeah, this is the new craze here in America,” Tamal Krishna jokes. He
peruses the Newsletter with results from May 17-18. Eleven temples
have reported, with Toronto now in second place behind Los Angeles
who has been on top for two consecutive weeks. San Francisco has
dropped down to third place followed by San Diego and Seattle in the
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Top Five. Sura Das is the big distributor for the week, after being beaten
last week by Brahma Das.
There is a report from Australia, where Buddhimanta Prabhu and

Gopinatha Acharya distributed 135 and 85 hardcover Bhagavatams
respectively, in just one day! “This is an indication of the wave of
Sankirtan we are going to pour over the earth. They are just out for a test
run,” the report concludes.
At the temple, Hasyagrami is waiting in the sankirtan van to take

Vishnujana and his guests to the Oakland house. “That’s where we
stay,” Maharaja informs Goswami. “It’s closer to UC Berkeley where
we do sankirtan every day.” After first taking darshan of the San
Francisco Deities, they depart for Oakland.
When the van pulls up in front of the Oakland house, Tamal Krishna’s
eyes open wide upon seeing the impressive 35-foot GMC Greyhound
bus. It has aluminum panel siding, tinted windows, and deep storage
bays underneath.
The first thing Vishnujana wants to do is take Goswami for darshan of

Sri-Sri Radha- Damodara. He is obviously proud of his new bus as he
opens the door to usher in Tamal Krishna and Dhristadyumna. Leaving
their sandals in a concealed shoe rack by the door, they pass the driver’s
area and enter into a large temple room through an arched doorway. The
floor is covered with simulated white marble tiles. The tinted glass
windows, bordered by colorful curtains, provide privacy. The altar is at
the far end and they all offer obeisances even though the curtains are
closed.
“I’ll show you the bus first, and then we can have darshan,” Vishnujana
Maharaja says. He points to a panel. “This controls both the
amplification and lighting systems which work on outside power
sources and the bus batteries.”
Proceeding to the right of the altar, Vishnujana leads them through a
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small doorway down a short hall into the kitchen area. “Wait until you
taste Radha-Damodara’s prasādam!” Maharaja beams as he shows off
the four-burner stove, refrigerator, sinks, and storage cabinets.
Beyond the kitchen and further down the hallway there are 12 small
lockers for devotees’ personal effects. At the end of the bus is a shower
facility just large enough for one person to stand in. “If you drop your
soap you’re out of luck, because there’s no room to bend down,”
Maharaja chuckles.
Deep in thought, Tamal Krishna recalls hearing how Vishnujana Swami

first traveled on foot after accepting sannyāsa, hitching rides and
preaching wherever he got an opportunity. He opened three centers in
Texas before organizing a group of devotees, men and women, into a
traveling musical theater incorporating rock music, strobe lights, and
tie-dye costumes. It was a spiritual rock opera presenting Krishna
conscious philosophy to appeal to America’s youth. But the
awkwardness of young men and women doing quick costume changes
backstage, led to some inappropriate behavior. After Vishnujana left the
show, Prabhupada advised that rock music presentations be disbanded.
But Maharaja was not one to be easily discouraged. By eliminating the
undesirable elements and keeping only a few brahmacārīs, he continued
the multi-media approach by performing traditional bhajans with a slide
show.
Although the bus is undoubtedly superb, Vishnujana’s real pride is his

beloved Deities. He brings Tamal Krishna back to the temple room for
darshan. After purifying his hands and mouth with ācamana, Maharaja
opens the altar’s gold velvet curtains to reveal the beautiful forms of Sri-
Sri Radha-Damodara.
TKG: It was surprising to see such attractive Radha-Krishna Deities in

such an unlikely place. Vishnujana explained that the silver-blue body
of Damodara was made of German silver, while Radharani’s golden-
hued form was fashioned from a combination of eight metals.
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Damodara’s red-soled lotus feet rested upon a high silver base, on which
His name was carved. The redness was visible on His palms, lips, ears,
and eyes as well. He had an especially bewitching smile, and His eyes
were wide and lotus-like, reaching almost to His ears. He was dressed in
rich gold and green colored silk brocade. From head to toe He was
covered with flowers and jewels, some of which resembled elephants,
calves, and peacocks. He was playing on a short flute, His right arm
resting upon a staff, with a buffalo horn hanging from His waist. I had
never before seen such a wonderfully attractive form of Krishna.
While Damodara was 30 inches in height, Srimati Radharani was

slightly smaller. Her color was as effulgent as bright molten gold. She
had eyes like lotuses, similar to Damodara’s. Her cheeks were very high
and Her smile slightly hidden. Her regal appearance in every way
substantiated that She was the queen of Vrindavan, the greatest of all the
gopis. Nevertheless, in Her right hand She held a bouquet of fresh
flowers to be offered to Damodara, indicating Her constant meditation
as His eternal servant.
“Prabhupada has seen these Deities on a number of occasions,”

Vishnujana continues, breaking Goswami’s reverie. “They presided at
his New Vrindaban vyasa- pūjā celebration in ‘72. In Pittsburgh, he
asked me why Radharani’s dress was so long that it made Her look like
mother Yasoda with her small boy, Damodara. I explained that we
thought Radharani’s lotus feet should be covered out of respect.
“Prabhupada chided me. ‘You do not like to see Radharani’s lotus feet?’
So from that day on, Her lotus feet will be slightly showing on festive
occasions.”
Goswami can immediately appreciate that the worship of Sri-Sri Radha-

Damodara is special in many ways. Like Sriman Mahaprabhu and
Sripad Nityananda Prabhu, They also go out to public places to bestow
Their mercy on the fallen citizens.
“Ramacharya devotes all of his spare time to making Radha-
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Damodara’s specially designed jewelry,” Vishnujana adds. “He’s also
our biggest collector whenever he goes out.” Maharaja explains that
they will stay in the Bay area until Ratha-yatra when Prabhupada is
scheduled to arrive. “It’s a perfect location for us to base in California.”
TKG: I was searching for an audience which would be anxious to

receive the knowledge I had gained through the renunciation and
sacrifice Srila Prabhupada had demanded of me in India. In Berkeley I
found that circumstance – a sannyāsī with only a handful of brahmacārī
assistants and a remodeled 1960 Greyhound bus to call his home. While
the bus was being remodeled as a traveling temple, he went to India to
do a village-to-village boat program. It was during this time that he had
invited me to join him in America.
Prabhupada always praised the sannyāsīs position as most conducive for

spiritual advancement. Therefore he had sent me to my godbrother,
Vishnujana Swami. The more a sannyāsī traveled and preached, the
more he increased his prestige.
The next day in Berkeley, Tamal Krishna sees that Vishnujana Swami
has arranged a major exposition that nobody can miss. Radha-Damodara
stand center stage on Their canopied palanquin, which is constructed to
bolt in and out of the bus altar. The kirtan band sits in front of Them on
a large Persian carpet. Vishnujana Swami leads kirtans and bhajans
playing harmonium. Beside him, Hasyagrami plays esraj and Radha
Raman plays mṛdaṅga. Several devotees play kartāls and sing. Between
songs Maharaja gives a little philosophy.
Goswami marvels at the “festival of sound” that Vishnujana Swami has

created as strains of his kirtan waft around Sproul Plaza in front of the
UC campus. Sometimes the melodies are heavenly and majestic, at other
times cheerful and lighthearted. Crescendos of colorful sound pour from
Vishnujana’s harmonium like an bubbling fountain. His fingers dance
over the keys and his large hands stretch to cover almost half the
keyboard. The kirtan attracts the attention of a generally distracted
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public: students and professors, tourists and hippies.
The devotees’ ecstatic expressions reveal their inner joy to perform for
the pleasure of Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. As if part of the kirtan band,
Sri Damodara plays on His flute while Srimati Radharani beckons
everyone to take darshan of Her beloved Lord. They are both very
effulgent.
“There’s a feast being served over here,” Vishnujana Swami informs the
gathering crowd. “A beautiful vegetarian feast that you’re welcome to
take with us.” Daily at noon, delicious preparations of potato and
cauliflower sabji, puris, halavā, and a strawberry nectar drink are
distributed. Whatever donations people offer is happily accepted. It’s a
transcendental celebration with free passes for the soul to the spiritual
world.
“We have a book table set up over there like a library; you can read the
books. They’re translated from Sanskrit into English for the first time,
and it’s a great revelation into the Absolute Truth. If you just look at a
few of these books you’ll see that. And then, if you’d like to sit and
chant with us, you can take up one of these little instruments and get
into the chanting as much as you like. Hare Krishna!” He pauses for a
moment as the sound equipment is adjusted.
“About these instruments also, what I’m playing is called a harmonium.

This is the most modern of these instruments. I brought these back from
a recent trip to Vrindavan in India, central India. This instrument was
developed around the thirteenth century and has been used by devotees
in India since that time. It reminds us, actually, of the spiritual harmony
that we’re meant to live in.
“This instrument here is called a tamboura, and it’s the drone instrument
that creates an atmosphere behind the chanting. That constant flow is
like a waterfall behind the chanting.
“This instrument over here is called an esraj, and this is actually the
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most beautiful instrument. It has 23 strings called sympathetic strings.
These strings vibrate without even playing them, simply by the note of
the one string that he is playing. It’s a very beautiful, very difficult
instrument to play.
“That instrument over there is called a shenai, it’s like a horn that’s used
in the chanting.” With a nod of his head, Vishnujana begins another
kirtan. “sri krishna chaitanya, prabhu nityananda, sri advaita, gadadhara,
srivasadi gaura bhakta vrinda…”
Back in Oakland, the amber rays of the setting sun filter through the bus
windows as devotees sip cups of lemonade. Their blissful faces reveal
the deep satisfaction of having spent the entire day presenting Lord
Chaitanya’s sankirtan mission. Sri Galim serves out juicy rasagullās
from the afternoon offering. One rasagullā squeaks in Goswami’s mouth
– confirming for him its perfection.
Vishnujana acknowledges Goswami’s grin, praising Sri Galim’s sweets

as the best in America. The tall Texan smiles shyly, hearing the praise
of his service. The large, rotund Sadananda, now the head cook, nods in
affirmation as he swallows his fourth rasagullā. Vishnujana leans out of
an open window.
“Haribol, Dayal Chandra Prabhu. The rasagullās are going fast.”

Emerging from the rear of the bus covered in engine grease, the lanky
driver/mechanic, one of Vishnujana’s original Texas crew, gladly
accepts the juicy sweet. To avoid confusion, Tamal Krishna suggests
that from now on he will be known as Goswami and Vishnujana will be
known as Maharaja.
To supply electricity and light to the bus, a long yellow extension cord
snakes from the vehicle into the house – a brown 2-story older home
with not much furniture. There’s a small back yard and a larger front
yard. According to Goswami’s standard, the house is not clean. A
mildew smell emanates from the peeling wallpaper and old carpet, so he
holds his breath when he enters the house to use the bathroom. The bus
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has been purposely built without a commode, to preserve an
uncontaminated temple atmosphere. But that’s no problem because the
highways are dotted with rest stops and camping grounds with all
necessary facilities.
After taking bath in the early morning, everyone gathers for maṅgala-
ārati. Maharaja plays harmonium, Hasyagrami the esraj, Dhrstadyumna
the tamboura, Goswami the mṛdaṅga, and the rest play kartāls. With the
temple lights off, all attention is focused on the resplendent forms of
Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. The shimmering flames of the ghee lamp
reflect thousands of times in Their sparkling jewels, increasing Their
beauty unlimitedly.
Every evening after returning from sankirtan at UC Berkeley and

honoring prasādam, devotees attend the evening ārati and then sit before
Radha-Damodara to chant devotional songs. It’s an unforgettable hour
which is repeated every evening before taking rest for the night.
TKG: Vishnujana sang with a devotional ecstasy that enriched our

hearts with love for Radha- Damodara. We were all deeply absorbed in
the mellows of Radha-Damodara’s eternal pastimes. I could not
remember who I was, in relation to the body, nor where I was situated. I
was simply praying within my mind, O Damodara, please accept me as
Your servant. Please make me Your servant eternally. How fortunate I
was to be here!
After four years of intense endeavor and preaching struggle, I had very
much needed this. Knowing my feelings, Srila Prabhupada had
unwillingly consented. He had always urged us on, saying, “Work now,
samādhi later.” But I had needed some relief, a taste to remain inspired.
This evening I had felt a great spiritual satisfaction. But it had not been
easily achieved. The transcendental experience was a direct
reciprocation for the service I had rendered in India and before. Srila
Prabhupada had pushed me to completely engage in Krishna’s service,
and as a result my heart was cleansed enough so I could now begin to
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relish genuine spiritual sentiments.
As Goswami relishes the association of Vishnujana Maharaja, he has a

realization that his godbrother is exceptionally advanced. Living on the
road with no base, worshiping Radha-Damodara by pūjā and sankirtan,
distributing books and prasādam around the country, he is presenting the
mission of Lord Chaitanya in its entirety every single day. Goswami is
impressed.
Many people begin to visit the Oakland house, not only for Radha-
Damodara’s darshan, but to associate with Their sannyāsī servitors.
When Tripurari arrives from Los Angeles he brings Kavi Chandra with
him, a top book distributor and a gṛhastha like Jayananda. They are
invited to stay for as long as they want. They are happy in the
association of their sannyāsī godbrothers.
Tripurari takes the opportunity to cook for Radha-Damodara. His

specialty is plum chutney, also known as “Radha Red.” Vishnujana is so
pleased with the chutney that he exclaims, “Not only can he sell books,
but he can cook!”
Another unique character, long-initiated and 40-something Vipra Das,

also decides to throw his lot in with the Radha-Damodara party. Being
mechanically inclined, he can help Dayal Chandra maintain the bus in
perfect running order and be an alternate driver. Every Vaishnava is a
unique individual, and the Radha-Damodara devotees appreciate Vipra’s
unique personality traits.
Vipra Das: The Radha-Damodara party happened to cruise by the

temple at the right time. I was on the fringe because I’ve always tended
to be a loner rather than a joiner. But, it became apparent they were a
bunch of fanatics and that appealed to me. Tamal Krishna had just
joined, and I joined about the same time. I had been associating with
Jayananda and I was profoundly impressed by him, and by his
renunciation. That was a complex situation, but on the other hand his
sincerity and fanaticism made a profound impression. I could see
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renunciation as an ideal, but I liked to have a toy or two. When I was
hanging around the temple I donated my favorite toy, an old Ferrari race
car. It was, in a sense, the ultimate sense gratification machine.
News has spread through the ISKCON grapevine that Rupanuga has
renounced sannyāsa and returned to his wife. Vishnujana Maharaja
begins thinking about Aja. He had given Aja to help Rupanuga’s
fledgling party 18 months back. Under the present circumstances, Aja
might not feel comfortable now. He brings the subject up with
Goswami. Tamal Krishna immediately encourages him to call Aja and
invite him back. Vishnujana is happy and upbeat as he speaks to Aja.
“My good friend Tamal Krishna Goswami has decided to leave India to
work with me on my bus program. What is your situation now?” Aja is
happy to hear the voice of Vishnujana Swami and is glad that he has
called.
Aja: Then he turned the phone over to Tamal Krishna Goswami. He

convinced me that, given the change in Rupanuga’s life, it was no
longer in my benefit to stay connected with that program. We did
everything properly. I spoke to Rupanuga about it, and he understood.
The next thing I knew I was on a plane to Berkeley, California.
Goswami persuades Maharaja to contact any men who were formerly on

his party and invite them to return. As the party is augmented with
additional recruits, Goswami suggests they all move into the house.
“There’s a perfectly good house available with lots of room. Why
should we be packed into this bus like sardines? We just give the wife a
ticket to the nearest temple so she can get trained in Krishna
consciousness, and we’ll use the house for the sankirtan devotees who
are dedicating their lives to spreading Lord Chaitanya’s mission.”
Vishnujana Maharaja accepts the proposal. He approaches Jagannath

Swami Das and Maha Laksmi to explain the situation. They have not
yet accepted initiation, but they have accepted Prabhupada into their
hearts as their spiritual master. They understand that serving Prabhupada
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means serving the devotees.
Jagannath Swami Das: At first it was just to park the bus. It got to be
where they wanted to stay in the house. Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna
supplied a bus ticket and my wife went to Laguna Beach temple for two
months while the Radha-Damodara party took over the house. For a
while they did the cooking on the bus, but then they turned my kitchen
into their kitchen. We only had one shower and we all slept on the floor.
Vishnujana Maharaja treated me very respectfully. He would sleep right
next to me. When we were standing on line for the shower he would
always ask me to go to the front of the line.
Paulie: I was young then and Tamal Krishna had a similar persona and
character as my father. I didn’t find that he showed a lot of sensitivity
on many occasions. He’s very efficient and very organized, that’s fine,
but he was an exact opposite to Vishnujana. I found Vishnujana Swami
very easy to be around, and he smoothed the power motif with actual
love. There was a lot of Eros, a lot of relationship, with Vishnujana.
That’s why I think devotees were so attracted to him. He was really a
genuine individual.
Jayananda Prabhu and Bhakta Das come over to Oakland on a regular

basis. Jayananda is so enlivened by the Sankirtan Newsletter that he
always brings a copy to read to the devotees as soon as a new issue
arrives in the mail. His enthusiasm increases whenever San Francisco is
the top book distribution temple. For Issue 9, with results from the
weekend of May 24-25, the Valencia Street temple is back on top, just
barely sneaking past Los Angeles. Two Australian temples, Brisbane
and Adelaide, are in third and fourth place respectively, with Toronto
rounding out the first five temples.
Jayananda’s old friend, Buddhimanta Prabhu, is the top distributor for

the week with 675 points for Brisbane. Buddhimanta ignited the initial
spark that led San Francisco into big book distribution. Now he is doing
the same thing in Australia, plus training and enthusing the local
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devotees.
Yasomatinandana, from the Adelaide temple, gives Buddhimanta a little

competition with a score of 560 points. Truly the Australian devotees
have lived up to their boast of last week. This week they offer another
challenge to the ISKCON world: “Australian devotees distribute more
Srimad-Bhagavatams than any other sankirtan parties in the world.”
There is a report from San Francisco temple that Kirtanananda Swami,

Vishnujana Swami, Tamal Krishna Goswami, Madhudvisa Maharaja
and Srila Prabhupada have all promised to attend this year’s Ratha-yatra
festival. “We are planning to make enough prasāda for 25,000 people,
and we have rented a large hall with showers, kitchen, and lots of room
so that there will be facility for at least 1,000 devotees.” Everyone at the
Oakland house is enlivened hearing this report from Jayananda.
Many devotees continue to visit the house. Driving cross-country from

New York, five teenagers arrive at the San Francisco temple. From there
they are given directions to the Oakland house and show up one
morning ready to join the party. They agree to be shaven-headed and
Dhristadyumna shaves them up.
Satyaraja: Just as Dhristadyumna Prabhu finished shaving my head,

Vishnujana Maharaja walked in and said that I looked like Narada
Muni. It was one of the most encouraging, enlivening things anyone had
ever said to me! I loved everybody right away. Then we went to the
University in Berkeley where Vishnujana was doing his bhajan. I was so
moved seeing him sing. I thought, Yeah, this is the same personality that
moved me a year ago when he spoke on Lord Ramachandra. So we
joined the kirtan and we did that every day.
Every day after maṅgala-ārati, while the morning program continues on

the bus, Dayal Chandra and Radha Raman drive the bus to Berkeley.
After finding parking close to the junction of Telegraph and Bancroft,
they pull all the equipment out of the storage bays. Methodically, they
set everything up on the sidewalk in the prime location by the
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University entrance in front of the flagpoles. Simultaneously, Sadananda
cooks the breakfast offering. After the preparations are offered to
Radha-Damodara a van full of devotees arrives from the house to enjoy
a hearty breakfast on the bus.
The brahmacārīs always bring Radha-Damodara out on Their palanquin

with a joyful kirtan and place Them in a prominent position. They are
always beautifully dressed. As soon as Radha-Damodara are
comfortably situated, Vishnujana Maharaja sits down with his crew on
the Persian rug and begins the first kirtan. Goswami happily takes over
playing mṛdaṅga.
Hearing the melodious kirtan, a crowd gathers almost immediately.

Tamal Krishna surveys the scene. He recognizes that Vishnujana is one
of the originators of traveling sankirtan: just living on the road.
Goswami appreciates that Vishnujana has also developed an attractive
kirtan presentation. Maharaja knows the entire songbook and sings each
song by himself before leading into the mahā-mantra for others to join
in. His favorite song is Gopinatha by Bhaktivinoda Thakur. He sings it
often and his voice is strong and sweet.
At noon, Radha-Damodara’s raja-bhoga ārati is performed in front of

the crowd.
Then Sadananda sets up the lunch prasādam for distribution.

Immediately people line up because this lunch is free. Naturally, the
devotees attract many people by giving out free prasādam. Later in the
afternoon, like clockwork, young Jnapaka arrives from school to join the
kirtan party.
Jnapaka: Vishnujana Maharaja played like a virtuoso on the harmonium.

He had his own style and his own melodies too. He yearned for Krishna.
I could see him hold back his tears many times while chanting.
Sometimes during the chanting he would just be silent all of a sudden,
and close his eyes. It was just for a few seconds but you could feel he
was very sincere. He really loved Radha-Damodara. I could feel his love
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pouring out of his soul through his eyes, which were always on Radha-
Damodara. It was such a nice experience to hear him chant and see him
gaze upon Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. They are very special Deities. They
have beautiful prominent lotus eyes. Krishna is presented as a very
young boy, which is unique. Radha- Damodara are especially merciful
because They come out to the people to help save Them. They are
totally in the mood of Lord Chaitanya.
After playing mṛdaṅga for a few days, Tamal Krishna becomes

concerned about recruitment. While Vishnujana sings, Goswami is
looking for people who might be a candidate for becoming a devotee.
He wants to prove to Srila Prabhupada that his leaving India was not a
mistake. After each kirtan, Vishnujana speaks to the crowd and explains
Krishna consciousness by giving a general description of bhakti-yoga.
He doesn’t get into deep philosophical talks, but prefers to keep it
simple and to the point.
“This Hare Krishna mantra contains the names of God. It’s of the
absolute nature, so it’s non-different from God. The mantra is a non-
sectarian chant that any person can chant, whatever your religious
beliefs. The kirtan dispels the darkness of negativity like the rising sun
at dawn, and it allows the light of divine love to manifest within our
heart. Kirtan increases the ocean of transcendental bliss allowing anyone
to experience the taste of spiritual ecstasy that everyone is looking for.
Kirtan can render all blessings to the sincere seeker because the
transcendental sound vibration is empowered with inspirational energy
directly from the spiritual realm.”
“Kirtan speaks of an ancient culture, an eternal civilization, which is

present even today. I brought these instruments from India, where I
sailed a boat down the sacred river Ganges. In the villages where I
rested I was able to witness an entire society based on God
consciousness. The people live a simple life. They raise their families
and work the fields with their animals. They don’t require artificial
entertainment for their happiness, like us. Instead, when they finish their
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work they gather together and play instruments like the ones you see
here today, and glorify Krishna in a natural, spontaneous way, just like
we are doing.
“So this is not a mere musical diversion because we have nothing better
to do. It’s a lifestyle called bhakti-yoga, to revive our lost love for God.
Yoga means ‘to link,’ and bhakti means ‘by devotion.’ So the process of
bhakti-yoga is how we link ourselves to Krishna through devotion. This
kirtan has inexhaustible spiritual energy so it’s joyfully performed. It’s
recognized as the sublime method of mantra meditation. The ancient
sages of India recommend chanting with humility, tolerance, and a
mood of respect for all living beings. We are meant to be happy, and
this is a wonderful way to stay happy and return back home, back to
Godhead.
“Krishna is a name for God in His all-attractive feature.” Maharaja

brings the crowd’s attention to Damodara’s blissful dancing form. “And
Hare is the energy of the Lord who helps us to serve Krishna.” Maharaja
directs everyone’s focus to Srimati Radharani. “Rama signifies that
reservoir of pleasure that we experience when we connect to Krishna
through the devotional energy of Hare.”
As Vishnujana Maharaja embarks on his next transcendental voyage on

the magic carpet of Krishna kirtan, Goswami surveys the crowd looking
for potential recruits. He focuses on those who are relishing the free
prasādam. Before long, regulars in the crowd begin to gather towards
the front with questions. Vishnujana brings the kirtan to a close and
allows Tamal Krishna to address their inquiries.
A circle of interested people shout their questions and Goswami answers

them authoritatively with reference to his four years in India. Usually he
is able to convince them by going into depth about the subject matter.
For the more intelligent people, he will initiate a conversation and
immediately suck them in to a discussion. He will sit them down with a
plate of prasādam and have a long talk. He always speaks on a subject
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that someone in the crowd has raised and then relates it to Krishna
consciousness.
With so many people gathering daily to hear the kirtans, Tamal Krishna
gives up playing the mṛdaṅga. Instead, he begins walking around the
Plaza looking for people with the potential to surrender. He begins
inviting favorable individuals to spend a night at the Oakland house to
experience a full day of spiritual life in bhakti-yoga. For the next month
the Oakland house becomes a high-powered preaching center.
Sometimes, San Francisco devotees come and spend the night to attend
Radha- Damodara’s maṅgala-ārati and hear Vishnujana lead kirtan.
Tamal Krishna Goswami also gives classes. In his talks he relates many
anecdotes with Srila Prabhupada. He also recalls Bengali proverbs that
he has learned.
“There is a Bengali verse, ‘What is there that a goat will not eat and a
madman will not say?’ Prabhupada then told a story to show how mad
the modern civilization had become. The Indian government once
wanted a painting of a war scene depicting a child being killed in front
of its mother. Government workers asked many artists to paint pictures
showing how the mother’s face would look upon seeing her child killed.
The winning painting showed the mother covering her eyes with her
arm. Prabhupada explained that anyone who can bear to see a child
being killed is an uncivilized, merciless demon. He said that the
scientists are all madmen who will kill their own children in the womb.
In this way he spoke of how demoniac the materialistic culture has
become.”
In the association of Vishnujana, Tamal Krishna is happy and excited.

At the same time, he’s fully aware that Prabhupada is having difficulty
finding a capable person to take over his responsibilities as GBC in
India. Therefore, he’s eager to get results in America. He’s a bit more
stoic and serious, but being around Vishnujana he can’t help but laugh
and loosen up.
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Tamal Krishna becomes so enlivened that he reveals his mind to
Vishnujana Maharaja and exclaims, “Now, we will never leave each
other again.” Vishnujana looks Goswami in the eye and says, “No, you
can’t say that.” “Well, I’ll never leave Radha-Damodara.”
“You can’t say that, either.” “Why do you say that?”
“I can say that you can’t, because you’re Prabhupada’s man. If

Prabhupada tells you to go to China, you’d go immediately. You’d have
to go.”
“But so would you.”
“No. Prabhupada knows how conditioned I am, that I’m too much
attached to these Deities and he would never tell me to leave Them.”
Radha-Damodara’s program attracts people by kirtan and prasādam.

Vishnujana attracts people by his sweet melodious voice, and Tamal
Krishna preaches and philosophizes with the students. Together they
make a good team and convince a lot of people about the power of
bhakti-yoga. The idea is to keep chanting, give a brief talk, and let
Goswami circle around to gather anybody that appears even slightly
interested. There is a table full of Srila Prabhupada’s books for
interested people to have a look.
The two sannyāsīs quickly become known as the brains and the bliss.
When people hear Vishnujana chanting they are immediately charmed,
then Tamal Krishna preaches to them and blasts their false conceptions
of life.
Some devotees use another analogy to describe the pair, the spider and
the web. As Vishnujana weaves a musical web that attracts people to the
kirtan, Tamal Krishna captures them with his brilliant way of defeating
any bogus philosophies. These people can no longer rationalize their
existing lifestyles when they are inundated by nectar from Vishnujana
Maharaja, and their philosophy is crushed by Goswami. With their
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misconceptions smashed they are willing to give Krishna consciousness
a try.
TKG: Vishnujana’s association was special and acted like a touchstone.

It was not just my experience. Even Srila Prabhupada appreciated his
gandharva-like nature. In Calcutta, Prabhupada had once related how he
had become absorbed in hearing the celestial voice of Vishnujana
coming from the temple room in Los Angeles. The next morning, upon
returning from his walk, he had heard another kirtan led by Vishnujana.
Prabhupada said he thought, “I am walking in Vaikuntha, I am walking
in Vaikuntha, I am walking in Vaikuntha.”
Although things are going well for Goswami in America, the devotees
in India are feeling the loss of his ability to take care of management
problems that always crop up. Gargamuni writes regularly requesting
Prabhupada to convince Tamal Krishna to return to India to oversee the
various developing projects. Building temples and guest houses to
facilitate devotees coming to India is one of the most important
considerations for Prabhupada, so finding a competent GBC man
weighs heavily on his mind.
I find in both these letters you have especially desired to call Tamal
Krishna Goswami to act as GBC. But he left India particularly thinking
himself not very fit for management. He has now gone for preaching
work with Vishnujana Maharaja and recently Karandhar met him, and
Tamal Krishna Maharaja is now unwilling to come to India for GBC
management work. Therefore I have called Karandhar Prabhu to act as
GBC in India. He has practical experience in various lines of
management work. I hope he will replace Tamal Krishna Maharaja
better than anyone else. [Letter to Gargamuni Maharaja - June 13, 1974]
Tamal Krishna can understand that the Radha-Damodara program is a

tremendous vehicle for making devotees. As a result, he begins to
develop his own vision to expand the party into something really big.
His goal is to make 20 new devotees before Ratha-yatra when
619
Prabhupada arrives.
Undoubtedly Prabhupada will want to see the results of his preaching

and Tamal Krishna will be prepared. Planning for the future growth of
the party, Goswami envisions two-man teams duplicating the program.
It’s a concept for making devotees that is already working really well.
Gradually more men agree to join the Radha-Damodara party. After

giving Krishna consciousness an initial tryout, the new recruits are
expected to surrender everything to Krishna. That means turning over
all their possessions and money to the bus program of Sri-Sri Radha-
Damodara.
Uddhava: Vishnujana’s kirtans were so attractive. He was so

enthusiastic and that really attracted me. Tamal Krishna Goswami was
so expert in his arguments, he could defeat anyone. I thought he could
read my mind. He seemed so potent, so advanced. I flew back to Los
Angeles to empty out my bank account.
Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva: I was the one to go with the new recruits to

clean out their place, because I had a way of being gentle yet getting
everything of value. That was my service, see what he’s got and bring it
back alive, bank accounts, everything. I was the clean-up man.
Satyaraja is feeling that if there is an emergency he will need some

money. So he keeps five dollars hidden in his sock in case something
happens to him and he needs to contact his mother in New York. Every
morning, like a ritual, he sticks the five dollars in one sock so he’ll
always have money in case of an emergency.
One evening as he takes off his socks in front of Vishnujana Swami, the
five dollars falls out. Seeing the look on Maharaja’s face, he realizes he
has to explain himself. Before he can utter a word, Maharaja says, “You
don’t have to explain anything. But I want you to know that I’m hurt.”
“Why? It’s not a personal affront, or anything against you.”
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“It’s because you don’t feel that I would take care of you, if something
happened. That’s all. Anyway, I don’t mind. Keep your five dollars.”
Satyaraja: I picked up the five dollars and gave it to him. To me that was
a big surrender. What’s five dollars? But to me it symbolized being able
to protect myself.
During this time, Suhotra is out in the sankirtan van distributing books
with a few brahmacārīs. One day the motor in the van suddenly blows
up. The party separates and everyone returns to San Francisco
independently. When Suhotra finally straggles into the Oakland house,
he is introduced to Tamal Krishna Goswami and Dhristadyumna. Then
he quickly finds a suitable place for himself in an upstairs room.
He notices a Sankirtan Newsletter sitting on top of a stack of BTGs on

one corner of a small desk. It is Volume 10 with 17 temples reporting.
San Francisco is number one with 3,118 points, and Los Angeles is in
second place. Both California temples have crashed through the 3,000
point barrier for the first time. Chicago temple is in third place, followed
by Toronto and San Diego. The top distributor is Bhakta Dennis from
Chicago, and right behind him is Gopavrindapal from Los Angeles.
Tamal Krishna Goswami is settling in more and more as co-leader of the

Radha-Damodara party, but he doesn’t have much influence with
Vishnujana’s original crew. They remain loyal to Vishnujana Maharaja
and go to him first to seek engagement or to verify new instructions
given by Goswami. It’s a normal occurrence to remain loyal to one’s
accepted authority just as the mañjarīs always remain loyal to either
Lalita or Vishakha although everyone serves Radharani. Similarly, the
brahmacārīs all serve Srila Prabhupada, but some repose their loyalty
with one or the other of the two sannyāsīs.
Suhotra: I had a special relationship with Tamal Krishna. I couldn’t take

him seriously. Otherwise we had a warm relationship and it never came
to hard feelings. He tried to bring me into the fold but he couldn’t
because I didn’t take him seriously. There was one memorable morning
621
on a Monday after the feast. There was a big container of gulābjāmuns
in sugar juice. I asked Sadananda to count out 16 and put them into a
bowl with a lot of juice. “After I chant each round I’ll take one.”
Soon, word of Suhotra’s japa gets around to Tamal Krishna Goswami.

He comes upstairs and sees Suhotra sitting with his bowl of gulābs.
“How many rounds have you done?”
“Eight.” Goswami looks in the bowl and sees eight gulābs remaining.
“You’re going to eat a sweet ball after each one of the rest of your
rounds?”
“Not only that. After the last sweet ball is done, I’m going to drink all
the sugar juice.”
Goswami’s eyes widen and he looks around the room. He just says,
“Hmm,” and returns to the bus.
After Suhotra has chanted his rounds, eaten the 16 gulābjāmuns, and has
drunk the sugar syrup, the time comes to greet the Deities. He goes
down to the bus and greets Radha-Damodara with everyone else. Of
course, he is completely in another world.
Suhotra: After the Deity greeting and guru-pūjā, Tamal Krishna

Maharaja turned and said, “Suhotra Prabhu, you’re going to give the
class this morning.” I knew what he was doing. He wanted to embarrass
me. So I sat down and gave this really fired-up class, quoting ślokas,
and I blew his mind. He was flabbergasted.
For days after that he was telling people, “I just couldn’t believe it. He
had eaten 16 gulābjāmuns and drank all that juice and when I asked him
to give the class, he gave a first class lecture. I can’t believe it.”
One day Tamal Krishna decides that all the new devotees who have
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been chanting and associating for more than a month should set a good
example by shaving up before Prabhupada arrives. And the sooner the
better. Some men agree readily, others are definitely not ready. Among
them is a black musician with hand drums who has been captivated by
the chanting.
He was on campus when he spotted the devotees playing exotic

instruments along with Radha-Krishna Deities. Tamal Krishna Goswami
saw him standing there watching and introduced himself. Goswami
asked him if he wanted to play along with the kirtan band, because he
was holding a set of nice Moroccan hand drums. The young man
enthusiastically replied, “Sure.”
Lokanath: I started coming every day. Then I was going to the morning
program. I was trying to become a Muslim so I went to the Mosque on
Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. I’d go to maṅgala-ārati in the morning
where the bus was parked in Oakland.
When Tamal Krishna asks Jnapaka to shave up, he says that he still has
a week of school left. He explains that Jayananda had personally told
him, “Don’t shave your head. Just get a haircut, keep yourself clean and
neat, and come to the programs regularly.” Jnapaka doesn’t consider
shaving up such a hard thing to do, but he is concerned about being
intimidated at school. He’s already being laughed at just for being
different.
To avoid a possible conflict, Vishnujana gently puts his arm around his
shoulder and says, “My dear son, everybody has to surrender sometime.
Arjuna had to do it. So be strong.”
Unable to defend his position further, Jnapaka agrees to shave up one

week before his graduation. Dhristadyumna is assigned the task but isn’t
doing it to Goswami’s satisfaction. “No, you don’t have it right. Don’t
you know how to do it?” Taking over from Dhristadyumna, he finishes
the job by buzzing a nice circular śikhā on the young man’s head.
623
Jnapaka: When I shaved my head a lot of people thought I was crazy.
Even my mother and father got upset because I hadn’t consulted them
about it. They felt that with something like that, they should have been
consulted. My mother was so angry that she wanted to have a personal
talk about it with Tamal Krishna.
I was chanting japa outside the bus the day my parents arrived. When
my mother went onto the bus, she was furious and very tense. All the
devotees left because it was supposed to be a private meeting with my
parents, the Swamis, and Radha-Damodara. My father was serious. He
didn’t know what to think.
They were in there for some time while I continued my japa outside the
bus. After about 10 minutes I heard a few giggles. I was thinking, What?
Who’s laughing? Are they laughing at my parents? Then I heard more
laughing. All four of them were just cracking up! A half hour passed
and they finally came out. My mother had the biggest smile you ever did
see. I was wondering, What went on?
Vishnujana Swami just winked at me. He was glowing radiantly. My

parents never discussed it but in that time, Tamal Krishna had convinced
them this was going to be a wonderful educational experience for me.
He would take wonderful care of me, and I would write regularly, and
call regularly. I would only be gone for two months, and it would be
such a good experience that if they could help out with a little
contribution of $100/month, which they agreed to easily, then
everything was fine. They were actually impressed by Vishnujana and
Tamal Krishna. They saw that I was quite happy, that I was changing
for the better, and the devotees actually had a genuine care for my
welfare. They had some reservations, but on the whole they felt pretty
good.
Dhristadyumna: The highlight of that time was how Tamal Krishna was
able to convince cultured mature people, that it was a good idea for their
son to join the party, that it was actually educational, and that it was the
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best education. He was really brilliant at doing that.
On the day of Jnapaka’s graduation, he accepts his degree in complete

devotee dress and tilak. He gives a long speech about the purpose of
human life explaining that he is taking up the path of devotional service
to God. He will be committed to helping people for the welfare of
himself and others. Everyone applauds when he is done. Most people
are amazed. It’s a bit embarrassing for his parents, but they are strong-
minded. That same day he joins the bus party at the Oakland house.
Jnapaka: There was nothing sweeter than going out with Vishnujana
Swami’s sankirtan party. It was very musical and that attracted me.
Originally I got the impression that I would be using my tablā talents,
but I was a beginner so I really wouldn’t have been able to feel the
potency of chanting the mahā-mantra. My first service was to get trained
up as a brahmacārī, help in the kitchen by washing pots, and participate
in sankirtan. I wasn’t quite as attracted to Tamal Krishna Goswami as I
was to Vishnujana Swami, but I liked him. He seemed like a very strong
devotee and he was intelligent. He had a lot of radiance too, a lot of
spiritual potency. But I also felt just a little fearful of him.
Vishnujana is a great cook and he loves to teach any new bhakta who
wants to learn how to cook for Radha-Damodara. Several new men
express their interest and Vishnujana Maharaja shows them how to
prepare potato sabji four different ways. Basically, Maharaja wants to
teach the new recruits how to cook a feast. Besides various sabjis, he
also shows them how to make puris, samosās, and halavā. He also
makes excellent gulābjāmuns and they watch as he demonstrates the
technique.
Every day at Sproul Plaza the Radha-Damodara extravaganza competes

with student speakers and the mobile food vendors. This is the era when
Berkeley is very tolerant and a lot of different people mingle. Many
appreciate the prasādam distribution, which becomes wide-scale with
several hundred plates given away daily. But the prasādam is free, and
625
this causes a disturbance with the food vendors. Previously, they were
making a good profit selling their different wares but now the free
prasādam takes some of their customers away, cutting into their profit
margins. It gets to the point where some vendors conspire how to
prohibit devotees from doing their program.
One afternoon as the sound of kirtan engulfs Sproul Plaza, a vendor who
sells smoothies and fruit drinks, Fruity Rudy, becomes agitated. When
the kirtan party takes a short break, he comes forward with several
cohorts carrying 2x4s.6
He has been losing customers steadily since the devotees started passing
out free prasādam. He screams in a rage of fury without communicating
in an open way. He threatens to attack the devotees if they don’t move
somewhere else.
Vishnujana’s eyes light up. He immediately leaps up, grabs some poles
that are used to set up the pandal, and throws them to several devotees.
“C’mon. We don’t mind barking dogs, as long as they don’t bite.”
The devotees get in a line holding their poles up menacingly. They

begin marching toward the angry attackers in the mood of defending
Radha-Damodara. It’s an exciting moment and the number of onlookers
almost doubles in anticipation of a fight. The vendors are taken aback
by the devotees’ aggressive stance.
“You guys are crazy coming out like that,” Rudy shouts. He had not
expected a response.
“We’re not like the Christians,” Vishnujana replies, “we don’t offer our
other cheek.” The vendor’s bluff has failed. He backs down and leaves.
The devotees’ superior force has prevented a negative incident from
spoiling the transcendental mood. A Christian zealot, always present to
harass the devotees, takes advantage of the episode to continue his
harangue. “These are idols. Jesus is the only way.”
626
Soon a group of Christians gather in front of the stage and begin
harassing the devotees, using horrendous language and blaspheming
Radha-Damodara. Vishnujana Maharaja stops the kirtan and gets up. It
looks like another altercation is going to ruin a beautiful day. One
Christian man immediately challenges.
“That’s right. If I criticize you, you’re going to harm me, isn’t it? So
now we see that you don’t have real love, that you’ll actually harm other
people. This proves you’re not of God.”
“You can say what you like to me, or criticize me in any way, and I will
not resist,” Maharaja replies. “But if you so much as look the wrong
way at Radha-Damodara, I’ll break every bone in your body.”
These Christian zealots have been harassing the devotees practically

every day until Maharaja confronts them like that. The brahmacārīs are
impressed by his boldness.
Later that same day, a tall muscular man holding a long stemmed rose
approaches Radha-Damodara during kirtan. The Deities are very
approachable and the brahmacārīs are pleased that the man wants to
offer the flower. Suddenly he turns the rose around and makes a move to
poke Radharani with the long stem. Vishnujana springs up instantly and
grabs the man. Pulling him away from the altar he smashes him to the
ground. Several brahmacārīs finish the job beating him up on the
sidewalk in front of everybody. Vishnujana explains to the crowd that
the man was unbelievably offensive.
Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva: This was the first time I saw Vishnujana Swami

get physical. The guy was pretending to be reverent towards the Deities.
Then a big Christian guy came up and went face to face with
Vishnujana. Radha Raman jumped him from behind, grabbing him
around the neck, and I grabbed him around the waist, right in front of
everybody. We dragged him away because he was starting to get
violent. It was good in the sense that the word was out, that you can’t
mess with the Hare Krishnas because they’re not going to stand for it. It
627
deterred a lot of people from doing crazy things. The area had tons of
crazy people.
For the six weeks before Ratha-yatra, Jayananda takes direct

responsibility for the building of the carts, the arranging of the permits,
and for purchasing most of the bhoga. He is expert in convincing the
fruit and veggie vendors at the produce market to give large donations.
He always stays out at Stanyon and Baker Streets, right off the
panhandle of Golden Gate Park, where he and his crew are building the
carts. It’s an austerity because the area is cold, foggy, and windy during
the summer, but Jayananda lives and sleeps here.
He sets up a 24 hour guard duty because of the number of criminals and

drunks in the area. He personally takes the most difficult shift, usually
between 1:00-3:00am, and uses that time to chant his japa.
Jayananda is always willing to do the needful to get things done. This

theme is prominent in his association with the local people. The
devotees are an anomaly in San Francisco and sometimes get laughed
off the street, but Jayananda can go into the most unsavory places and
recruit the most unlikely people to assist him. Because there are few
skilled workers among the devotees, Jayananda recruits people right off
the street to help him prepare for Ratha-yatra. He can gather men from
the most unlikely places. He frequently goes to a local bar and makes an
announcement requesting assistance. Invariably, many patrons feel
affection for him even with his shaven head and tilak.
Jayananda always cooks on a little stove he keeps at the construction

site. After making an offering to Lord Jagannath, he feeds these people
with his own hand. He takes care of their needs and even beds them
down at night. He creates a spiritual atmosphere for these people with
kirtan, ārati, and preaching all day long. He’s an ocean of service. At
4:30am he comes to the temple for maṅgala-ārati and then returns to the
site to start work.
The temple gives whatever men they are able to, but almost everyone is
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needed for other services. The entire construction is always in
Jayananda’s hands, so Bhakta Das has no anxiety about that.
Nalini Kanta: Jayananda chastised me once. We were talking about

advertising Ratha-yatra and I said we should call it “the ultimate trip.”
Jayananda said, “That’s nonsense. Srila Prabhupada never wanted us to
be associated with the hippies.” It was a quick retort. He wasn’t angry
but I’d never heard him talk like that.
I always remember one thing that Vishnujana Swami told me, “Before
you do anything, you should think, is this going to be pleasing to
Prabhupada?”
Bhakta Das is determined to make this the largest and most beautiful
festival in ISKCON’s brief history. To facilitate the large number of
devotees coming to celebrate Ratha-yatra, he has rented the Armenian
Hall. It’s a large, dark building near the Haight-Ashbury district on the
way to Golden Gate Park where the parade will start. Preparing for the
festival is a monumental task because so many things are going on. To
promote Ratha-yatra and attract people to the festival, Bhakta Das has
an idea to hire a public relations company. He finds an enthusiastic
young man named Reed Trencher * who charges the temple $2,000 to
do the entire PR. The man knows newspaper and media people, and how
to get public interest stories placed in the media and on TV. It’s his idea
to call it the “Festival of the Chariots.” He gets 200 billboards donated
so that “Festival of the Chariots” is splashed all over San Francisco,
Berkeley, and the entire Bay Area. Moreover, there are ads on all the
trains and buses in the area.
An article on the “Festival of the Chariots” appears in the magazine of

Pacific Southwest Airlines, the main airline shuttle service going up and
down the coast, so people on the West Coast become aware of the event.
For the two weeks before Ratha- yatra, devotees are regularly invited to
give TV and newspaper interviews about the upcoming festival and its
significance. Because of the publicity, a lot of interest is generated and
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the public seems to accept the event more seriously.
Capitalizing on the idea of “Festival of the Chariots,” Bhakta Das

encourages each temple to present an exhibit at the festival explaining
the process of Krishna consciousness. The temple presidents come a
week early and bring a small crew with them, so there is a large team
working together on the festival. Everyone agrees that it’s a wonderful
thing to see the devotees’ energy pooled together for a common
purpose.
This is the only Ratha-yatra on the West Coast, so devotees from Los
Angeles, Laguna Beach, San Diego, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver,
Denver, Salt Lake City, and from other parts of the ISKCON world,
converge upon San Francisco.
Kantimati dd: My husband and I arrived early for Ratha-yatra. We asked

about Vishnujana Swami, and they said he was staying in a house over
in Oakland. They gave us vague directions how to get there. We just
drove around the neighborhood until we found his bus. We saw
devotees coming and going from the bus to the house.
* By 1980, the June issue of San Francisco Magazine had dubbed him
“publicist extraordinaire.” Often hailed as one of the brightest, most
original thinkers in business today, Trencher is widely-known
throughout the media and communications industry for having instituted
“Pay-for-Performance” in his own field.
A brahmacārī sees the couple, who are dressed in overalls, and says,
“Mother, you’re not allowed here. It’s an all-brahmacārī ashram. There
are no women allowed here.” Kantimati is heartbroken, because she has
looked so hard and was excited to hear Vishnujana Swami speak.
Although the couple is dressed in farmer’s clothes, they are initiated
devotees. Vishnujana overhears the conversation through a bus window
and comes out to see investigate.
“Oh, look who’s here. Haribol! Please come in and see Radha-
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Damodara.” Kantimati looks over at the brahmacārī as she enters the
bus.
Maharaja introduces the guests. “This is my dear godbrother and

godsister from Washington State, Vishnu Yasa and Kantimati devi dasi.
They’ve come to grace our kirtan tonight and take feast with us.” Some
brahmacārīs look at each other like, What’s this woman doing here?
Then the kirtan starts and soon the bus is rocking. The kirtan goes on for
an hour and a half.
Kantimati dd: He said, “We want to love Krishna, and dance for
Krishna. And we’ll be running and shouting, Krishna, Krishna, please
take me with you.” It was so beautiful – like hairs on end the whole
time. The way he looked at the Deities, and the way he said the word
“Krishna” he was there. When he looked at Radha-Damodara, that was
his love. Just as you would look at the person of your dreams, and
beyond, because you couldn’t possibly look at the person of your
dreams like that!
You can tell when someone’s being sahajiyā. Vishnujana was never like
that. He had that genuine love for Radha-Damodara, and all Deities. It
exuded from all of his pores and there wasn’t a single person who
couldn’t get caught up in it when you were around him.
After kirtan, Maharaja gives Bhagavad-gita class. Then a feast is served.

For desert there are huge juicy gulābjāmuns. Maharaja makes the
brahmacārīs eat each one whole. He says they aren’t real brahmacārīs if
they can’t swallow a gulābjāmun whole. As he persuades them to eat
more, some boys are gagging, and everybody is laughing. A discussion
ensues about Radha-Damodara’s pūjā.
Kantimati asks, “Who makes all these decorations and jewelry?” To her
eye they are strange and unusual.
“Well, Ramacharya makes those.” Ramacharya, as pūjārī, spends many

hours preparing flower garlands, flower halos, beaded necklaces, and
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sequined and rhinestone crowns. He sews for Radha-Damodara as well.
Most of the outfits They wear he has made himself, although outfits are
always being donated by well-wishing devotees.
Kantimati informs Maharaja that she has lots of pearls and ornaments
that she can give to Ramacharya to make crowns for the Deities. Before
they leave Vishnujana thanks them for coming and says, “You’re
welcome to come back anytime to have kirtan with Radha-Damodara.”
Kantimati dd: Vishnujana Swami had none of that woman/man thing

that we ran into in those days. When it came to serving Krishna there
was none of that. You didn’t feel intimidated because it didn’t exist. He
never made you feel like you were your body in any way, shape, or
form. I wasn’t treated as a woman, like with other sannyāsī devotees.
Yet he inspired you to be very respectful, because he was giving you
that freedom to act properly, but still be very communicative on the
spiritual level. When I think of everything about him, that’s the most
admirable quality I saw – his unconditional enthusiasm for everyone no
matter who they were.
I always brought people to meet him when I knew he was at the temple
because what better thing could you do than to bring them in front of
someone like that? And they would go away completely enamored and
mesmerized.
The Cleveland traveling party arrives in San Francisco and are sent to
the Armenian Hall where everybody is staying during the festival.
Wherever they travel, they go to the nearest temple because they want to
be near Deities. They always cooperate with temple leaders and give a
donation.
The next morning Jayananda announces that Vishnujana Maharaja and

the Radha- Damodara party will be at the Berkeley campus. After
breakfast, the Cleveland devotees go to Berkeley to distribute books on
campus. They’ve heard of Vishnujana Swami because everybody has
his tape. He’s a famous sannyāsī and a great kirtan leader, so they’re
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excited to have his association.
Mrigendra: We would distribute for hours in the morning, and then

jump in our van around lunch, put on our dhotis, and go chant with
Vishnujana Swami and the Radha-Damodara party at the main entrance
to the campus in front of the Student Union Building. The kirtan was
something to look forward to. That was the first time I saw Radha-
Damodara. I thought They were really merciful Deities. Being able to
see Radha-Damodara made the chanting much better because I was
always looking here and there. After chanting for an hour we took
prasādam then went back to the van to change into pants, shirt, and a hat
to go out and distribute books again.
Divyanga: We pulled up in our van after sankirtan, took off our karmi
clothes, put on dhotis, and joined the festival that Vishnujana Swami
and Tamal Krishna Goswami were doing on the street in front of the
campus with Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. It was incredible. We sat there
chanting for an hour and then we had a big feast. We’d pass out the
plates and serve the halavā, sabji, puris, and the nectar drink. There were
lots of hippies and students that came up to take books and prasādam.
People would sit down right in front of Radha-Damodara and eat.
Devotees are always talking about Vishnujana Maharaja and his Radha-
Damodara party. Just as Srila Prabhupada is the originator of Krishna
consciousness in the West and no one will be able to enjoy the position
that he has, similarly Vishnujana Maharaja is a sankirtan originator, so
in the same way nobody else can be Vishnujana Swami. There can be
lots of people going out, doing kirtan, and carrying Deities, but they will
never be Vishnujana Maharaja, because that post of being the first is
reserved for him.
Jayananda also has his role with Prabhupada and Ratha-yatra that
nobody else will ever duplicate. That doesn’t mean that he was more or
less favored by Prabhupada; he just got the mercy to be in that spot
which he fully reciprocated. It’s actually part of Srila Prabhupada’s līlā
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that these two persons got to play a role with Prabhupada that no one
else can do again.
Seeing so many potential bhaktas attracted to Vishnujana Maharaja,

Goswami takes advantage of the situation to invite several men for
Radha-Damodara prasādam. He hopes to entice them to give up
whatever they‘re involved in and join the party. He promises every new
man that he’ll personally take them to meet Prabhupada. He’s confident
his men will not be denied a personal darshan, even though Prabhupada
no longer meets new disciples like he did when the movement began.
But, they need to be clean-shaven and wearing a fresh dhoti.
“That’s the standard that pleases Prabhupada,” he informs them.

“Shaving one’s head is an act of surrender, so the spiritual master can
see you’re a bona fide candidate for initiation.”
Not everyone associating with the sannyāsīs are able to stay fixed.
Ashram life isn’t suitable for everybody and invariably the time comes
when some are ready to call it a day. Several potential devotees have
already left the bus and are now ensconced in the Armenian Hall with
the rest of the visiting devotees.
Satyaraja: I was having a lot of spiritual difficulty. I was young, I was

sexually agitated, and I wanted to go back to New York. I was in the
Post Office to mail off a letter to my mother two weeks before Ratha-
yatra. As I walked out Vishnujana Swami came in. He raised his arms
up to embrace me and gave me a big hug. The hug practically melted
me alone. He didn’t object to my blooping, which was before
Prabhupada was to come.
“If you feel you need to go back home, that’s okay. All I ask is that you
stay and meet Srila Prabhupada. That’s all. And then go back to New
York. You can work with Jayananda on the carts while waiting for
Prabhupada to arrive.”
Satyaraja is anxious to get back home, but he can’t say no to Maharaja.
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He asks, “Why is it such a battle?”
“Without a battle, how can there be a victory?”
Satyaraja: That was Vishnujana Maharaja’s forte. With just a couple of

words he could say what would take many devotees hours to say. It put
me in bliss because I thought there’s a purpose to this battle. It’s not just
some meaningless existentialist battle. It’s a battle that will end in
victory. The fact that we’re willing to battle is what Krishna wants to
see, that we’re willing to put up a struggle for Him, to develop love for
Him.
Right after meeting Vishnujana in the Post Office, Satyaraja leaves the
Radha- Damodara party and goes to help Jayananda. Vishnujana’s
asking him to stay with Jayananda is important, and a manifestation of
Maharaja’s mercy. Jayananda takes Satyaraja under his wing like an
elder brother and watches out for him as elder brothers do. Every day
Satyaraja does some service on the carts, and drives with Jayananda
around town buying groceries, parts, and paint.
At night, the brahmacārīs take turns guarding the carts, because the site
is in a lower income part of town with a lot of thievery. Every other
night Satyaraja does guard duty and sleeps out at the site. When their
shift is over, Jayananda comes in the middle of the night and takes
devotees to his apartment. His wife leaves brownies and other goodies
for the fortunate few to munch on. They grab the bag from the kitchen
table and go sit somewhere eating goodies and talking about Krishna in
the middle of the night.
Satyaraja: I tried to take full advantage of Jayananda’s association,

asking questions and getting close to him. Prior to my time with
Jayananda, Tamal Krishna gave a class at the temple and said with tears
in his eyes, “Jayananda is living on devotional service. That’s what his
body is made of.” I took those words to heart, so when I got to spend
time with him, I was stoked. He gave very simple classes in the
morning, but his purity and sincerity, and especially his love for
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Prabhupada, always came through.
He led simple kirtans since he didn’t have much of a voice, but again,
his brimming sincerity was always inescapable. We took prasādam
together every day and talked about life, reality, Krishna consciousness.
That time was pivotal in my spiritual life.
Bhakta Das has arranged that Prabhupada will stay at the gṛhastha
house, a large white apartment building full of devotees where
Jayananda also lives with his wife, Trayi Devi. She is from Hawaii and
has the Hawaiian devotee mood; chant on the beach, and be free.
Jayananda, on the other hand, follows a rigid schedule from 4:00
o’clock in the morning until 10:00 o’clock at night. They don’t have
much in common. She is not particularly submissive, nor even
cooperative, but that hardly affects Jayananda. Although he cares for her
and really tries to please her, he never gets emotional.
She is no longer active in doing service or coming to the temple. If

someone points out her relaxed attitude, Jayananda simply says, “Okay,
my wife is not into it.” She is, however, a talented artist. When she sent
Prabhupada some of her drawings of Krishna lila he praised her. When
asked how she could best serve, he replied, “The best service is to chant
Hare Krishna always and spread it to every town and village.”
During Ratha-yatra, Jayananda sleeps in the loft above the big rental
garage, next door to the temple building, with the vehicles and the
sacred trash. He doesn’t sleep in the brahmacārī ashram because he
prefers sleeping in this loft where the books are stored. That’s his place.
Just prior to Prabhupada’s arrival, Jayananda gathers volunteers to clean

his quarters. He also arranges which ladies will clean the apartment
when Prabhupada goes for his morning walk. Everyone approaches him
for service and when they finish they ask for more. “Tell me what to do
now, Jayananda.”
He puts everyone into the mood of serving Lord Jagannath and Srila
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Prabhupada.
They understand that although he allows them to do the service, he

could do it a million times better with a million times more enthusiasm.
Hari Vallabha: Jayananda and I were cleaning the bathroom. It was

really dirty and took us hours because it was a mess. Jayananda would
always take the nastiest job. We were cleaning and cleaning and
cleaning. It came out pretty good because Srila Prabhupada was going to
use that bathroom.
After a thorough cleansing of the entire building, Jayananda places

beautiful Krishna līlā paintings on every wall to make the
accommodations a fit place for the Lord’s pure devotee. By his humble
and selfless service attitude he’s the example how devotees can fully
dedicate their life and energy for the movement. He is always
affectionate and regularly encourages visiting devotees to give the
evening Gita class in the temple.
If someone suggests, “Well, why don’t you give class?” Jayananda

always responds, “Oh, no, you should give class. You know more than I
do.”
Bhakta Das: Jayananda never liked anyone to glorify him. He’d cover
his ears and walk away so he couldn’t hear it. He had no trace of false
ego. I’d feel humiliated around him because he was so pure. I’d see my
own false ego sticking out like a sore thumb. Yet he was always giving
me the credit. He was totally unique and so thrifty with Krishna’s
money. If I gave him 100 dollars to buy bhoga, he’d spend 12 and come
back with a full truck. He was a master at that. He was proud that he
only spent $12 and got all the flowers and all the bhoga for three days!
Bhayahari: One evening, Jayananda heard me criticize another devotee.

Immediately he got up, gave me a sour look, and stormed out of the
room. I realized I had offended him by my fault-finding attitude.
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When the Seattle devotees arrive they settle into the Armenian Hall
along with hundreds of other visiting devotees from all over the West
Coast. With them is a young man who is attending college and has a
part-time job at Boeing Aircraft. A few months earlier he met
Vishnujana Swami at the Seattle Sunday Feast and was extremely
impressed. Although he has no plans to join the movement, the Seattle
devotees have convinced him to attend Ratha-yatra because Prabhupada
will be there. “It will be a mystical happening.” So he agrees to take a
week off and drives to San Francisco in his little green Toyota pick-up
truck.
Gauridasa Pandit: I met Jayananda during prasādam. He asked if I could

help with the carts, and I agreed. He drove us to the site and he was
singing all the way. Jayananda was always working, giving prasādam to
people, and treating everyone with great respect. This charmed
everybody and made them want to offer some service back. I was
impressed by his Krishna consciousness. It was inspiring for all of us
who came in contact with him.
The Armenian Hall has quickly filled to capacity. The walls are a light
green color, and paintings of various Armenian Presidents in formal
dress with medals are hung everywhere – a striking contrast to the
dhotis and kurtās of the Vaishnavas. There are 300 brahmacārīs laying
head to toe, side to side. Each person has their sleeping bag, and that’s
it. There’s a small room where the sannyāsīs stay. The bathing facilities
are sparse, only three taps of water, so everybody has to line up for one
minute showers.
For breakfast, Kritakarma brings kicharī from the temple. The ladies and
the local devotees remain at the temple. During the day some mātājīs
come over to the Hall to cook lunch prasādam for the hungry hordes.
A large group of children are here from the Dallas Gurukula. This is the
first time that many devotees have seen gurukula kids. To the
brahmacārīs, they all look like the four Kumaras. There’s an open
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invitation for any fearless brahmacārī to sleep in the temple garage with
Gurukripa and Yasodanandana, the ‘mean swamis’, and take those
amazingly cold showers they are known for.
The Radha-Damodara bus arrives in San Francisco, and parks behind

the Armenian Hall. With a grand kirtan procession, Sri-Sri Radha-
Damodara are brought out of the bus and placed on the stage in the large
auditorium, packed to capacity with sleeping bags. Radha-Damodara’s
presence spiritualizes the entire atmosphere. With Deities presiding on
stage, and with regular morning and evening programs, the Armenian
Hall becomes more like a temple and less like a place to crash. All the
excitement of Ratha-yatra is at a peak!
Every morning, Vishnujana leads the maṅgala-ārati prayers on

harmonium that quickly morphs into a blazing kirtan. As more devotees
arrive every day, they find both morning and evening programs already
in full swing with fantastic kirtans led by Vishnujana Maharaja and
Madhudvisa Swami. Every day after guru-pūjā, the kirtans continue on,
as the two sannyāsīs play longer and faster, each trying to outplay the
other. Everyone is keen to see who will get tired first and give up. The
brahmacārīs call these kirtans – “the mṛdaṅga wars.” When Madhudvisa
finally wins, Gauridasa Pandit tells him, “You broke my heart when you
outlasted Vishnujana Swami.”
Vishnujana Swami, Tamal Krishna Goswami, and Subala Swami give

joint lectures at the Hall, each speaking on the same Bhagavatam verse.
It’s an awesome experience to hear three of Prabhupada’s sannyāsī
disciples speak their realizations. Behind them, Radha-Damodara stand
prominently on the stage.
Gauridasa Pandit: As Vishnujana was talking I was staring at Radha-

Damodara. There was a blue light on Damodara and a gold light on
Radharani and I was seeing how beautiful They were. I used to meditate
on candle light so I was staring at Damodara when Vishnujana said,
“Don’t think that this Deity is an idol. This is directly Sri Krishna from
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Goloka Vrindavan.” When he said that, a rose fell from Damodara’s
cheek, over His arm and dropped down. When that happened I felt
Krishna was communicating to me that He was there. It convinced me.
The first volume of Chaitanya-charitamrita, Adi-lila, has now been

published and a copy is brought to the Hall one morning. Whenever a
new book is published everyone is excited. It is agreed by all that the
sannyāsīs will take turns reading from the book and give their
comments. Tamal Krishna appears very striking in the classes. He has
voice, he has presence, and he is really in charge – very commanding.
Every evening they continue the readings as Dhristadyumna performs
ārati for Radha-Damodara.
Everyone is so into hearing Adi-lila and the commentaries given by the

sannyāsīs that they skip the evening kirtan.
Ranjit: I had only been in the movement six weeks but Vishnujana
Swami already loomed large. In the Vancouver temple they played his
kirtan tapes, and a tape of a boat trip he took along the Ganges. He was
speaking about the places he had gone to, the reactions of the villagers,
and the programs they were holding. I was very inspired by these tapes.
Another person that struck me was Dhristadyumna. On this occasion he
was the pūjārī up front and center on stage with the Deities. He was a
brahmacārī, young and handsome, and to me he seemed to glow.
Finally Vishnujana begins to sing. For new devotees this is the first time
they have seen Vishnujana Maharaja. The Radha-Damodara TSKP
album is the most listened to tape on the ISKCON hit parade. In every
temple devotees listen to it continuously.
Padmagarbha: It was incredible to see Vishnujana sing the various songs

from the Radha- Damodara TSKP tape. The way he was moving on the
harmonium, his whole body was swaying back and forth. It wasn’t just
me, but everybody was looking at Maharaja with astonishment, like
teenagers seeing the Beatles for the first time. There was that much
admiration and happiness that they could see Vishnujana Swami.
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The song Gopinatha is now the most popular song in ISKCON.
Vishnujana sings most of the songs he has recorded and then, suddenly,
the program is over. It’s quite late but there are hundreds of devotees
sitting in the Hall in rapt attention. Out of the blue someone says, “He
hasn’t sung Gopinatha yet.” Then another person says, “Yeah,
Gopinatha.” One by one, people call out, “Gopinatha,” until the whole
crowd is chanting “Gopinatha, Gopinatha.”
Vishnujana smiles and agrees, “All right, Gopinatha.” As he begins

singing, the lights are turned down low, with a small spotlight on
Radha-Damodara. Their golden forms glow radiantly as They attract the
hearts and minds of everyone.
Siddhavidya: When Vishnujana sang Gopinatha everybody was

swooning. Radha-Damodara was there, the lights were turned down, and
Gopinatha was being sung. Beautiful!
Padmagarbha: To me it looked like the devotees were beings that had

just descended into the Hall from outer space. That’s how it appeared
with all the shaved heads and orange robes. There were hundreds and
hundreds of these beings, and with Vishnujana Swami singing
Gopinatha, it was like an experience from another world.

Today is an exciting day for everyone because Prabhupada will be
arriving later in the afternoon. The Radha-Damodara men are especially
excited since the whole party will be going to the airport. They are all
eager to see Prabhupada and nobody will miss this opportunity.
More devotees continue to arrive for Ratha-yatra. A group of

brahmacārīs from Denver are sent to the Armenian Hall. After lunch a
sankirtan party leaves the Hall and heads down towards Fisherman’s
Wharf. Premarnava, a black devotee from Sudama Maharaja’s party,
leads the chanting. He’s an enthusiastic singer and plays rhythmic
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mṛdaṅga. The kirtan increases in ecstasy as 60 devotees sing and dance
to the wonderment of an unsuspecting public. Unexpectedly, they
encounter a large crowd in an area where the San Francisco cable cars
travel.
Dugdhapan: All of a sudden our kirtan dispersed, and I didn’t know

what was going on. I came through the crowd and saw Radha-Krishna
Deities for the first time. They were standing in a well-designed portable
siṁhāsana. Vishnujana Swami was sitting on a carpet with other
devotees playing exotic instruments I had never seen before. He was
facing the Deities, chanting bhajans and kirtans. I couldn’t make out
what he was chanting because I hadn’t heard anything like it in my life.
He had a black guy playing incredible bongos and the kirtan was
ecstatic. It was all so exotic with those instruments. Some people were
coming up to see the Deities and some were straining to see everything.
It was really interesting to see people peering at Radha and Krishna.
Bharata: Vishnujana was chanting and hundreds of people were

watching. Everyone was mesmerized. It was a beautiful sunny day, and
Ratha-yatra was going to be tomorrow, and Prabhupada was going to be
there, so the mood was just total magic.
After participating in the Chicago Ratha-yatra earlier in the day,

Prabhupada is looking forward to another grand festival for Lord
Jagannatha during his flight to San Francisco. Hundreds of devotees are
waiting at the airport to greet him. Everyone is excited about
tomorrow’s festival because Prabhupada’s presence will make the
festival even more auspicious!
United Airlines flight 216 from Chicago touches down in Los Angeles
at 6:30pm. A swarm of devotees moves quickly to the gate where
Prabhupada will deplane. The Los Angeles temple president, Tulsi Das,
makes a vain effort to stop the stampeding devotees. “Slow down! Who
do you think you’re running after – some movie star or something?” No
one pays him any attention. They just run like madmen to meet
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Prabhupada. As they wait eagerly at the gate, people at the airport are
amazed to see so many shaven heads and saffron robes.
Hundreds of devotees press together in the arrivals lounge, jostling one

another to get a better view. For the newer devotees, this first glimpse of
their spiritual master is a moment they will never forget. Vishnujana
Swami, Tamal Krishna Goswami, and the entire Radha-Damodara party
are squeezed in the crowd, excitedly awaiting the appearance of His
Divine Grace.
TKG: To be an instrument of the spiritual master’s will at every moment

is the goal of all sincere disciples. Yet in leaving India I had expressed
my own desire, perhaps even contrary to Srila Prabhupada’s. I had tried
to push this disturbing thought out of my conscience, but now, upon his
imminent arrival, this was no longer possible.
When Prabhupada steps from the gate with other arriving passengers,
the devotee throng surges forward with great exultation as kartāls,
drums, and conch shells resound simultaneously, heralding the pure
devotee’s entrance.
The other passengers are shocked to see devotees going wild at the sight
of their spiritual master.
Jayananda Prabhu is the first to greet His Divine Grace with a beautiful
garland of white gardenias and red roses. Then he opens an ornate
umbrella with dangling white tassels and holds it over Prabhupada as he
strides with great dignity through the airport.
Nalini Kanta walks slightly ahead of His Divine Grace wearing a big
smile with Jagannath Swami Das following right behind Prabhupada
with a harināma chaddar around his neck.
Bhakta Das leads Prabhupada’s party through the airport concourse

towards a limousine waiting outside. Everyone follows, chanting Hare
Krishna and playing instruments at full volume. Airline personnel and
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passengers stare in disbelief. Outside the terminal, an ocean of
brahmacārīs and sannyāsīs surround the pure devotee and offer him
additional garlands. The expected limousine, however, is not at
curbside. Bhakta Das dashes away to ascertain the problem. Prabhupada
stands calmly waiting for the car, weighed down by the many garlands.
Somehow or other, in that sea of devotees jostling and shoving one

another, Sridhar and Mahamantra are pushed up beside Prabhupada.
They can’t believe their good fortune. “Wow, how did we get this
mercy?” Mahamantra has a thought to touch Srila Prabhupada’s lotus
feet. Should I do it or not? He’s scared but finally reaches forward and
touches the back heel of Prabhupada’s foot. Then he quickly pulls back,
as if getting an electric shock. Now he’s in anxiety whether his action
was offensive or not.
At last, the limousine pulls up in front of the devotees. When

Prabhupada and his secretary are comfortably seated in the back seat of
the car, Tamal Krishna takes advantage of his sannyāsī status to jump in
the front beside Bhakta Das, who is now driving.
As the vehicle accelerates onto the highway towards the city,

Prabhupada brings up the topic of developments in Bombay. The brief
report on the progress of the Bombay temple is especially meant for
Tamal Krishna’s ears. Prabhupada goes on describing the unfolding
drama taking place in more detail. By bringing him up to date on the
situation, Tamal Krishna realizes that Prabhupada is reminding him of
the deep concern he has for this special project.
TKG: Within Prabhupada’s narration I detected a suggestion, though

unspoken, that I should resume my old duties. But this soldier had
retired and gone home. Now, like one who receives a notice to return to
active service, I felt caught in a dilemma… It meant giving up my
newfound freedom of preaching with Vishnujana in America.
Jayananda Prabhu has driven a temple car and now wants to return to
San Francisco quickly to meet and greet Prabhupada a second time. He
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offers Svarupa Damodara, a disciple from Manipur, a ride back to the
city. Jayananda is driving excessively fast because he wants to overtake
Prabhupada’s car. His plan is to reach the gṛhastha apartment before His
Divine Grace to provide a second welcome.
Svarupa Damodara: Srila Prabhupada took one car and I rode in a

smaller car with Jayananda. He was driving very fast, and telling me he
was a taxi driver before joining the movement. He said once he had to
drive to someone’s birthday on the East coast, almost 1,000 miles in one
day at high speed, so he was reassuring me.
We arrived before Srila Prabhupada. Jayananda always served the

devotees and Srila Prabhupada so nicely. I remember him working so
hard on the Ratha-yatra cars. He pleased Prabhupada so much through
his devotion to the other devotees.
With great pomp, Prabhupada is escorted up the steps of the gṛhastha

house and taken to his quarters for a special greeting. Bhakta Das has
organized the temple presidents to give a fixed donation to take part in
the ceremony. The services are charged as follows: $500 to bathe
Prabhupada’s feet, $400 to dry them with a towel, and $350 to fan him
with a peacock fan.
Prahladananda from Austin and Rishabhdeva from Laguna Beach have

both made generous donations. With so many men eager to participate,
Bhakta Das collects almost $5000 and offers Prabhupada the entire
amount.
After the ceremony, Prabhupada considers various management issues

with the leaders when Jayananda walks in the room. Prabhupada looks
at him and remarks, “So Jayananda, Rishabhdeva has recommended you
for sannyāsa.”
Rishabhdeva, the Laguna Beach temple president, is a great admirer of

Jayananda. “Oh, no, Srila Prabhupada,” Jayananda replies quickly, “I’m
just a sudra. I can’t take sannyāsa. I’m happy and I want to stay like
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that.” Prabhupada simply smiles. “All right.”
Prahladananda: Jayananda sat down in the back and quickly fell asleep.
Someone tried to wake him up but Prabhupada said, “No. Don’t wake
him up. Let him sleep. He’s working harder than all of you together.”

Today is Sunday, Ratha-yatra day in San Francisco. Right after
maṅgala-ārati, Jayananda goes to his friend Banana King Louie in the
produce market and returns with a truck load of bananas, pineapples,
and vegetables. Meanwhile, the Radha- Damodara brahmacārīs put on
western clothes and raid the neighborhood gardens. They take all the
flowers, all the roses, everything, in the mood of Robin Hood to be used
for Radha-Damodara and Srila Prabhupada.
At 6:00am, several sannyāsīs and temple presidents arrive at the

apartment around the corner from the temple, to accompany Srila
Prabhupada on his morning walk. The Vancouver devotees are already
there, standing across the road to get a glimpse of their spiritual master
as he comes down the steps and gets into a waiting car to be driven to
where he will take his walk.
Prabhupada arrives at the Valencia Street temple to greet the Deities

after his walk.
He particularly likes this temple room because it’s bright and clean,
painted white with yellow trim. There’s a large skylight in the center of
the ceiling and the temple room is bathed with light as the morning sun
shines sweetly through the skylight. Many mātājīs are on the roof where
Tulasi Devi is kept. From the open skylight they shower rose petals and
carnation petals on the pure devotee as he enters, exactly like the
demigods do. Prabhupada smiles brightly, showing that he likes the
reception.
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During class, devotees volunteers help cut the fruits and serve the
breakfast.
Consequently, prasādam this morning is a fruit salad of bananas and

pineapples, but a sumptuous feast is promised for the Ratha-yatra
festival. After prasādam, Vishnujana gets Mahamantra to string a huge
garland for Srila Prabhupada.
Mahamantra is in constant fear stringing Prabhupada’s garland, because

Vishnujana is repeatedly checking his progress and the garland’s length.
“You need more roses.” When the garland is finally finished Maharaja
picks it up and is visibly irritated. “You only made it two threads thick.
If this breaks, I’ll kill you. Anyway, it’s done. We don’t have any more
time, we’re going.”
Mahamantra: I was scared. It was a thick cotton thread, but the point
was the huge weight of those roses on it. He was concerned that it might
break on Prabhupada’s shoulders. He was grave.
Several devotees have been chosen for guard duty to protect Srila
Prabhupada during Ratha-yatra. Samvatsar and Urdhvareta, are trained
kṣatriyas from New Vrindavan. Others, like Vrikasanga and Jiva Das,
are San Francisco devotees. They will sit on the stage and will always
accompany Prabhupada wherever he goes. Just as the President of a
country has his secret service for protection, these devotees will do this
service for Srila Prabhupada.
Prior to the festival, some book distributors go to the site where the
parade will start and begin distributing books. They will continue
distributing all day alongside the procession as it wends its way through
Golden Gate Park.
Before the parade begins, the sky is overcast and it appears that it will
rain. Many devotees are apprehensive about the weather. Gauridas
Pandit is assisting Jayananda with Subhadra’s cart when conch shells
sound to herald the approach of Prabhupada’s car. After bowing down,
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everyone runs to greet him.
Prabhupada alights from his car to the sound of a roaring kirtan. He

offers obeisances to Lord Jagannath and boards Subhadra’s cart. At that
moment the sky opens up and a ray of sunshine spotlights the self-
effulgent acharya. Even the onlookers present, who know nothing about
the festival, understand that this is something special.
All of a sudden, Gauridas remembers that he left his jacket on the cart.
He approaches Vishnujana Swami with his predicament. “What should I
do? The parade’s going to start and I left my jacket up there.”
“Climb up real quick and get it now,” Maharaja replies. Gauridas

quickly scrambles up on the cart, but he is a little inattentive and one of
the pipes from the canopy hits him right in the eye. He retrieves his
jacket and climbs back down, with a black eye. Vishnujana affirms,
“You got Subhadra’s mercy today!”
With Prabhupada comfortably situated, the parade begins moving

forward and passes through the entrance of the Park. Out of nowhere,
Maha Laksmi, the wife of Jagannath Swami Das, approaches Subhadra
Devi’s cart to offer Prabhupada a beautiful white and gold shawl that
she has been working on for weeks. But before she can hand it to him,
one of the sannyāsī leaders tries to shoo her away.
Seeing her attempt to approach him, Prabhupada speaks out. “Yes.

Please give it to me.” Prabhupada accepts the gift gracefully and with a
broad smile wears the shawl for the entire procession.
For every Ratha-yatra parade, Prabhupada always chooses to sit on

Subhadra’s cart. It’s the cart where Sudarshan Chakra also sits to protect
the sister of Krishna and Balarama. It’s also the smallest cart: Srila
Prabhupada is so humble! When he’s offered to sit on Lord Jagannath’s
cart, Prabhupada politely refuses. Prabhupada doesn’t feel comfortable
riding on the same chariot as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
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These raths have no brakes, so there are people pulling ropes from the
front and from the back. Because San Francisco has more hills than
most cities, devotees need brake with ropes from the back.
Vishnujana Maharaja wanders from cart to cart to lead kirtan with his
Radha- Damodara men. The kirtans are already enthusiastic and then
Vishnujana suddenly appears, jumping in the middle of an intense
kirtan. For some devotees it seems that Vishnujana Swami is practically
leading all the kirtans in front of every chariot at once! Wandering from
one to the next, he fires up the kirtan before moving on. Vatsala is
steering Balarama’s chariot, and he appreciates how Vishnujana Swami
electrifies the kirtan and then disappears.
Vatsala: All of a sudden he would jump into the kirtan with his big
bright face, playing his drum wildly, and then, he was gone. He was off
to the other carts, doing the same thing. Whatever he did, he did with
total enthusiasm.
Suddenly, Maharaja appears in front of Subhadra’s chariot. More

devotees choose to walk alongside Subhadra Maharani because
wherever Prabhupada is that’s where they want to be. Everyone waves
to Maharaja and cheers him on as he takes over the kirtan.
Kantimati dd: I stayed on the right hand side of Subhadra’s cart so I

could keep my eye on Srila Prabhupada the entire walk of the parade.
Vishnujana Swami came to chant and Prabhupada hushed everybody.
He sat up straight and leaned over, as if straining to hear Maharaja
chant. I watched him watch Vishnujana Swami. Prabhupada was
smiling and tipping his head like he was so pleased. That little rasa,
watching Prabhupada watch Vishnujana Swami, was unbelievable.
Vishnujana was whirling and dancing and playing the drum like he did
that lifetime after lifetime. The way he got everyone to dance and chant
in his own ecstasy, Srila Prabhupada very much enjoyed. He was
relishing watching this man lead kirtan.
Patatriraja: Vishnujana Swami led an unbelievable kirtan while he was
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dancing in front of Subhadra’s cart, just like Lord Chaitanya dancing in
front of Lord Jagannath. Prabhupada was smiling his really big smile.
It’s not long before another kirtan party moves in and takes over the
kirtan in front of Subhadra Maharani and Srila Prabhupada. It’s the
Nama Hatta group with the ‘mean swamis’, Gurukripa and
Yasodanandana. So Vishnujana humbly takes his party and moves over
to chant before Lord Jagannath.
There are six different kirtan parties on the procession. Besides the
kirtan groups of Radha-Damodara and Nama Hatta, there are
tremendous kirtans led by Sudama Goswami and Premarnava from
Hawaii, the Los Angeles kirtan group led by Agnideva, the Seattle
group led by Sukadeva, and the Vancouver group led by Bahudak. The
kirtan parties chant at different places in front and behind each of the
three chariots.
When Vishnujana Swami appears in the kirtan led by Bahudak, all the
Vancouver devotees smile and acknowledge him.
Kutichak: One of our Vancouver devotees had a problem with his foot,
and Vishnujana got him onto the cart. He was fantastic at little things
like taking care of devotee’s suffering. In those days it was a hard core
brahmacārī movement, and there was little compassion if you were sick.
That’s the brahmacārī mood; the movement has to be pushed on at all
costs. But Vishnujana Maharaja made Krishna consciousness fun.
Washing the pots and standing on street corners distributing books eight
hours a day, I found that Krishna consciousness became less fun. But
Vishnujana Swami made us happy again. He brought an element of
wonder, of ecstasy, of love, and of kindness.
In Chaitanya-charitamrita Prabhupada writes that Krishna consciousness

means devotees chant, dance and preach, and when they get tired they
take prasādam. In Adi- lila 9.50, it is described like this:
“When Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the great gardener, sees that people
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are chanting, dancing and laughing and that some of them are rolling on
the floor and some are making loud humming sounds, He smiles with
great pleasure.”
In the purport Prabhupada states:
“This attitude of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is very important for

persons engaged in the Hare Krishna movement of Krishna
consciousness. In every center of our institution, ISKCON, we have
arranged for a love feast every Sunday, and when we actually see people
come to our center, chant, dance, take prasādam, become jubilant and
purchase books, we know that certainly Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is
always present in such transcendental activities, and He is very pleased
and satisfied.”
When the parade arrives at the festival site, an ocean of people crowds
in front of the stage where Prabhupada will give an address. It’s an
impressive site with brightly colored pandals from India and booths
where devotees sell books, tasty snacks, sweets, drinks, and devotional
paraphernalia. The main attraction is a huge 3-tiered stage! As the
procession arrives, Vishnujana Swami is already chanting with his
kirtan group on the lower tier. His group is augmented by Tripurari,
Dina Bandhu, and Riddha, who play kartāls and sing.
Soon Bahudak and Sukadeva arrive to add more mṛdaṅga power to

boost Radha Raman’s energetic playing. On the middle tier, Prabhupada
takes his seat on his vyāsāsana playing kartāls and singing along to
Vishnujana’s kirtan. On the top level Lord Jagannath, Sri Baladeva and
Subhadra Maharani are seated one by one on opulent thrones and
Kirtanananda Swami offers Them ārati.
When the kirtan ends Prabhupada gives a wonderful lecture, short but
sweet.
“This is a very old festival, and it enables one to realize the Lord of the
universe.” He points out that other countries follow and imitate
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America. “So if you kindly become Krishna conscious, and chant and
dance in ecstasy, devotional love of God, the whole world will follow
you and it will be Vaikuntha. There will be no more trouble. Thank you
very much.” The crowd roars in appreciation. [See Appendix One for
Prabhupada’s speech]
While Prabhupada is speaking, an offering is being made to the Deities

When Prabhupada finishes his talk, the pūjārī takes the plates off the
altar, and Gurukripa immediately goes for the plates. He begins
throwing the mahā-prasādam fruit to the crowd. People scramble to get
the prasādam, even picking the fruit off the ground and eating it with
great happiness. At the same time, a sumptuous six-course feast is
served out, including the most incredible gulābjāmuns for desert.
Dozens of devotees have been cooking for three days around the clock,
feeling themselves empowered by Krishna.
When Prabhupada gets up from the vyāsāsana at the end of his talk, he
motions for more chanting. Sudama Maharaja leads a tremendous kirtan
with Bahudak jumping in the air playing mṛdaṅga. Prabhupada raises
his arms and starts to dance wearing the rose garland made by
Mahamantra. Suddenly, the multitude of people also begin dancing
along, their arms upraised.
Praghosa: We were going up and down the rows serving prasādam to

ten thousand people. Suddenly everybody who was sitting down eating
stood up. We were bewildered. What are they doing? We turned around
to look and Prabhupada was bouncing up and down on the stage in the
midst of a kirtan led by Sudama and Gurukripa. He had his arms up in
the air, as if to say, Dance. Come and dance. He got everybody in the
audience into it.
When Prabhupada is given a bouquet of pink roses he begins throwing

roses into the crowd, one by one. Srila Prabhupada slowly turns to look
up at the Deities and dances before Them with upraised arms. Then he
turns back to the crowd and starts clapping his hands enthusiastically.
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Padyavali dd: The place was jammed and the whole crowd was dancing.
Prabhupada started throwing roses off the stage and I got one. You can’t
imagine that incredible moment – the kirtan was roaring and
Prabhupada was standing with his hands outstretched in the air. The
whole place was going wild dancing and dancing.
After Prabhupada leaves the stage, Vishnujana and his Radha-Damodara

men continue the kirtan for hours. Hasyagrami is on the esraj, the
freshly shaven Lokanath plays bongos, Premarnava plays mṛdaṅga, and
a recent recruit from Berkeley plays santoor. Maharaja also has a
plethora of simple instruments to be plucked, shaken, or banged, and
welcomes anybody to join in. This is his mood.
Although most people sit on the grass to hear his kirtan, some devotees
stand next to the stage, including members of Vishnujana’s biological
family.
Padyavali dd: Vishnujana Swami was on stage at one corner at the very
front. His mother and sister were standing by the front of the stage. His
mother said to me, “That’s my son.”
“You’re Vishnujana’s mother?” “Yes. And this is his sister.”
I said, “I’m very pleased to meet both of you. He’s a great musician.”
“Yes. He’s always been interested in music. But I’ve never heard him
play like this.” She was proud of her son. His sister was so proud of him
also. I had the rose Prabhupada had thrown and I gave it to Vishnujana’s
mother.
Satyaraja: Vishnujana Maharaja was so personal and warm. That’s the

thing that impressed everyone about him. I remember being deeply
touched, that of all the devotees at the Ratha- yatra festival, I happened
to be standing near him, because I always cherished his association.
Because I happened to be there and his parents were there, he
introduced me to them. I met his mother and father, a sister, and an aunt
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and uncle. There were five people, and he introduced me to them. They
were proud of him, and it was a very warm exchange.
I saw Prabhupada at Ratha-yatra as a result of Vishnujana Maharaja’s

kindness. Seeing Prabhupada was probably the most important spiritual
activity of my life at that point. I was right there at the foot of the stage,
right in front of Srila Prabhupada, that famous picture with his arms
raised. That experience of being with Prabhupada, I owe to Vishnujana
Swami. That was very important because at the time I was doubting
everything.
Vishnujana Maharaja sat on a nice carpet with his set-up. He was

leading bhajans the whole day, like six hours. He didn’t stop. Different
people would come up to play kartāls, mṛdaṅga, or sing, but he just kept
going. I was standing with Harikesh, who had just returned from India.
He said, “That’s the spiritual platform.”
I said, “What do you mean?”
He said, “That. The non-stopping. He has a taste for nothing other than
the Holy Name. That’s the spiritual platform.” He was totally
impressed, and it wasn’t easy to impress Harikesh.
A group of gurukula children dressed in beautiful costumes perform the

play of Prahlada and Lord Nrsimhadeva. Next, the Los Angeles Bhakti
Rasa Dance Ensemble performs a Krishna Lila dance with Satarupa as
Krishna and Rasajna as Arjuna.
After the festival Vishnujana Maharaja walks back to the Armenian Hall
with a crowd of brahmacārīs, chanting japa and talking about Krishna.
It’s exciting for the younger devotees to be with the famous Swami, and
they crowd around to be with him. Suddenly, he turns to Divyanga and
says, “Prabhu, go get me some sticks from that eucalyptus tree. I use
them to brush my teeth.” He holds up the baby finger of his right hand
and says, “This size.”
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Divyanga runs quickly to do some service for the Swami. It’s a big tree
and he breaks off six little sticks the size of his baby finger. But his hand
is small. He comes running back, all excited, and gives them to
Maharaja. Vishnujana holds up his baby finger, “I said as big as my
finger. These are too small.”
“Oh. I’ll go back and get some more.” But Maharaja grabs his arm, “No,
no. This will be fine.”
The 1974 Ratha-yatra proves to be the most successful in ISKCON

history. The result of all the publicity generated is that upwards of thirty
thousand people attended the festival, plus one thousand devotees.
The next morning in the Armenian Hall, most devotees are ready to
return to their home temples. Tamal Krishna realizes that this is his last
chance to get more recruits. Jagannath Swami Das is a likely candidate
to shave up. But he plays in a band and is married so he refuses although
he knows that others shaved up to get Prabhupada’s personal darshan.
Paulie also balks at shaving up.
Paulie: The deal was that Tamal Krishna was taking so-called new
devotees, shaving their head, and taking them to Prabhupada. But I was
attached to my hair and I wasn’t willing to give it up. I want to bring up
that issue that he didn’t allow me to go in and see Prabhupada because
of some hair. That wasn’t Prabhupada’s mood. I was supposed to be on
the bus party but I exercised my choice. I could have gone, but...
Gauridas Pandit is packing up his belongings when Tamal Krishna and

Aja approach him. They know he has become attached to Vishnujana
Swami.
“Where are you going?” Goswami asks. “I’m going back to Seattle. I
work there.”
“Would you like to see Prabhupada before you go?”
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“Yeah. Sure.”
“All you have to do is shave up and join our party. Then you can go see
Prabhupada.”
“Well I’m not ready to do that. I’ve got a job and I’m going to college.”
Tamal Krishna makes another proposal. “I’ll tell you what. Aja, here, is
an expert hair stylist. He can trim a little around your ears so you can be
presentable, and you can go see Prabhupada.”
“Okay. I agree.”
Gauridas Pandit: They took me into the bathroom. As he “trimmed”, I

felt Aja clipping a few snips on top of my head. I said, “Wait a minute.
I’ve got to look at this.”
I demanded to look in the mirror. There were chunks of hair cut out here
and there. I said, “I can’t go out in public looking like this! God, just
shave it all off.” How could I go in public like that? I told him to just
shave if off because anything would look better than that. I was very
upset and was determined to tell Prabhupada about it.
TKG: Aja had cleverly tricked him, “accidentally” gouging out large
patches of hair while supposedly giving him a trim. Horrified at his now
ridiculous appearance, he ordered Aja to shave it all off.
Mahamantra: Srila Prabhupada was not at all pleased that Tamal

Krishna Goswami had left India. I definitely remember him discussing it
with Vishnujana Swami, how Prabhupada was going to make some
demands on him because Prabhupada’s intention was that he didn’t
resign from his GBC duties. Prabhupada tried Karandhar and it didn’t
work out, he tried others and it didn’t work out. So this problem was on
Prabhupada’s mind, who is going to oversee the work in India?
Dhristadyumna: As Tamal Krishna tells the story, Prabhupada’s mood
656
was, go to America for a little bit, but you have to come back to India
because it’s so important. That’s why it was essential for Tamal Krishna
to show Prabhupada results in San Francisco. Prabhupada was going to
say, You’ve had your fun, now come back to India. He was having a
terrible time finding someone to head up things in India. Tamal Krishna
was good, and Prabhupada knew that; therefore, Aja and I teamed
together and shaved up those boys.
None of these “new bhaktas” have been involved with the movement
very long, so they are naturally shy about shaving up. But some agree
because Tamal Krishna assures them, “We’re going to take you to see
Srila Prabhupada and give you his darshan so you can’t have long hair.”
Goswami gathers his new recruits onto the bus and they drive over to
Prabhupada’s apartment. The ten men are freshly shaved and eager to
see His Divine Grace. Each one is given a long-stemmed rose to offer to
Prabhupada.
Mahamantra: They were taught a strict regimen by Tamal Krishna

Goswami. “Don’t open your mouth. I’ll talk about you. You just smile.
And if Prabhupada asks you a question, then you can open your mouth,
otherwise don’t. When you go in offer this flower at Prabhupada’s lotus
feet. Then offer him dandavats and sit down. I’ll do the talking.” They
were all young men in awe and reverence of the Swamis, like demigods.
Tamal Krishna has the men wait downstairs in the hall until he calls for
them. He’s keeping them as a surprise because Prabhupada is still not
happy that he left India.
Upon Tamal Krishna’s arrival, Prabhupada is pleased to see him and

eager to have a discussion about his service. He begins, however, by
expressing his appreciation for the sincerity of his American students.
“It was only due to their cooperation,” he says, “that this movement had
spread so quickly. When I originally came from India, I was regularly
visiting the Scindia Steamship Company, to inquire when the boat
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would return to India. But, somehow or other, I remained, and soon
Krishna blessed me by sending so many devoted young men.”
He pauses to reflect, then changes the subject. “So, are you ready to
return and once again take up the management?”
This is what Goswami has feared the most since joining Radha-
Damodara. He wants to be submissive and truthful so he humbly
suggests, “I would rather remain in America. I think that I should preach
here now.”
“That is all right for you to say. Do you think that I can give up
management so easily?”
“No,” is Tamal Krishna’s meek response.
“No, I cannot. But you will!” Prabhupada becomes visibly displeased

seeing Tamal Krishna’s reluctance to accept his proposal. “You came all
the way here just to be with your Vishnujana Swami in America, but
you have so many pressing duties.” His mood sounds like, it would have
been better if you had stayed in India.
“But the preaching is very good here.” Tamal Krishna can clearly see
Prabhupada’s desire. He wants to explain himself without posing any
arguments, but Prabhupada cuts him short with an abrupt reply.
“Preaching means results.” He’s reluctant to entertain further

explanations.
TKG: His mood was decisively firm. I felt in a quandary whether or not
to say anything more. Remaining silent meant returning to India. But
there was no question of disagreeing with my spiritual master. I thought
to make one final attempt.
“There are results already.”
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“Show me those results,” Prabhupada challenges.
Tamal Krishna asks to be excused for a moment to bring the results. He

runs down the stairs to the new men waiting in the entrance hall.
“Prabhupada is eager to see you.” He tells them to follow quickly, and

dashes back up the stairs to hold the door open and usher them in. One
by one the men enter the room, hand Srila Prabhupada a long-stemmed
red rose, offer full dandavats in front of his desk, and sit down.
Prabhupada beams, his pleasure increasing as each new man enters
before him.
Lokanath: We were at the bottom of the stairs so we heard Srila

Prabhupada talking to Tamal Krishna Maharaja upstairs. He was like
chastising his son. Then we came up, all shaved up in nice new dhotis,
and paid our obeisances to Prabhupada. He was sitting against a bolster
pillow with a big broad smile. He looked very pleased.
Gauridas Pandit: I put a dhoti on, but I wasn’t going to join. I was just
going to see Prabhupada. We were told to give a rose and offer our
obeisances. I said, “I don’t know the obeisances yet.” So Tamal Krishna
said, “Just say in English what you know about Prabhupada coming to
the western world.” I was nervous as my turn came.
I was the last to go in and give Prabhupada a rose. My anger was

subsiding as I entered the room. Prabhupada was sitting gracefully
behind a low table. My hand shook as I reached over to hand him the
rose. When I stepped back and offered my full dandavats I shook
uncontrollably. I was now too overwhelmed to be mad.
Seeing ten new men sitting before him, tears begin to roll down
Prabhupada’s cheek. Turning to Tamal Krishna with a look of
satisfaction he acknowledges, “Yes. This is real preaching! Thank you
very much. This is the right field for you. Keep at this and make
hundreds and hundreds of such devotees.”
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With the new men comfortably sitting in front of their spiritual master,
Prabhupada begins to speak.
“So you are all very bright-faced and very fortunate to come to Lord
Chaitanya’s movement. Now that you are fortunate to have taken up
Krishna consciousness, you should make others fortunate. Preach this
message of Lord Chaitanya all over the world.”
He continues speaking for almost fifteen minutes and closes with this
advice. “Please serve Vishnujana Maharaja and Tamal Krishna
Maharaja nicely and I will be pleased. Tamal Krishna Maharaja is my
senior disciple. I have trained him in all respects, so learn everything
from him.”
The new recruits are blissful. Prabhupada is blissful. Tamal Krishna is

ecstatic because Prabhupada has now agreed to his request to stay in
America by accepting the new devotees.
“Prabhupada,” Goswami asks, “will you come downstairs and see

Radha-Damodara?
They are waiting to be greeted by you in Their bus.” Prabhupada smiles

in affirmation. Parked in front of the building, Vishnujana Swami has
been waiting in the bus with Ramacharya. They have taken the two
sannyāsī cushions, tied them together, and wrapped them in saffron
cloth to serve as a vyāsāsana for Prabhupada. They have also taken two
clean brahmacārī dhotis and used them like a “red carpet” from the door
of the bus, up the stairs, and through the temple room to the front of the
altar.
As Prabhupada accepts a helping hand from Tamal Krishna, he climbs

the steps onto the bus. After removing his slippers, he walks on the
“saffron carpet” and enters the temple room. Goswami grabs a garland
and gives it to Dayal Chandra to place on Prabhupada, “Here Dayal, you
need this mercy the most.”
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After accepting the garland, Prabhupada immediately approaches the
altar. Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara are splendidly decorated with various
ornaments and delicate flowers. Prabhupada offers full dandavats before
Them. After taking caraṇāmṛta he stands with folded palms, admiring
Their transcendental appearance. With a wide smile, he stands looking
at Them for a long time before speaking.
“They are very, very beautiful. Who has dressed Them?” Vishnujana
Maharaja explains that he and Ramacharya take care of Their personal
worship.
“Thank you very much,” Prabhupada quietly tells Vishnujana, who

lights up with a big smile. Turning towards the men, Prabhupada raises
his arms. “All glories to Radha-Damodara and Their traveling party!”
“All glories to Srila Prabhupada!” everyone responds enthusiastically.
“Radha-Damodara are bolted into the altar,” Tamal Krishna explains.

He directs Prabhupada’s attention to the altar. “See there? Below the
Deities’ base is cement with two holes in that cement. There are bolts
that go through the bases of the Deities, through the cement, and they
fasten on the other side. So even if the bus is moving down the highway,
there’s no fear that the Deities can fall.”
Prabhupada replies, “You tell the driver that we do not need to go so

fast.”
Vishnujana begins singing the guru-praṇāma mantras as Prabhupada

takes his seat on the makeshift vyāsāsana. The Radha-Damodara men
have a short kirtan with their spiritual master. Prabhupada smiles
broadly, obviously quite pleased.
Meanwhile, Sadananda is in the kitchen behind the altar preparing an

offering. After kirtan he brings out a colorful platter of cut fruit:
mangos, papayas, kiwi, watermelon, apples, and pears. Prabhupada just
picks up one green grape, drops it in his mouth, and quotes Bhagavad-
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gita 6:16:
nāty-aśnatas ‘tu yogo ‘sti na caikāntam anaśnataḥ na cāti-svapna-śīlasya

jāgrato naiva cārjuna
“There is no possibility of one’s becoming a yogi, O Arjuna, if one eats

too much or eats too little, sleeps too much or does not sleep enough.”
Then he waves his hand, “All right, you may distribute.”
Gauridas Pandit: Srila Prabhupada melted my heart. I decided it was

Krishna’s arrangement. I joined the party even though I didn’t plan on
it.
Jnapaka: Prabhupada was happy about the program and thoroughly

endorsed it. “Let’s have buses like this all over, and reach the hearts of
young people everywhere.”
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Eleventh Wave,
No Grand Opening
The chanting of the holy name of the Lord is able to uproot even the
reactions of the greatest sins. Therefore the chanting of the sankirtan
movement is the most auspicious activity in the entire universe. [Srimad
Bhagavatam 6.3.31]
San Francisco, July 1974

The day after Ratha-yatra, Jayananda and Bhakta Das are totally
exhausted.
Now that their service is complete, their bodies feel drained. Bhakta Das
is feeling ill but he has to deal with the normal day-after-Ratha-yatra
lunch with the GBCs and sannyāsīs. This year it’s at the home of a
Berkeley magistrate, Mr. Joshi, who is excited that Prabhupada will be
his special guest.
As Bhakta Das drives Prabhupada across the Bay Bridge, he finds it

difficult to stay awake. He keeps nodding out and Jayatirtha has to keep
elbowing him in the back. “Don’t go to sleep!”
“I’m trying not to go to sleep!” Prabhupada doesn’t say a word. Finally

the car pulls up in front of Mr. Joshi’s house. He welcomes them in and
announces that prasādam is ready. Everybody quickly takes a seat for
lunch. Prabhupada looks at Bhakta Das. “You are not well. You have
worked hard. Go take rest.”
Bhakta Das is in complete agreement. Mr. Joshi shows him to a
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bedroom with twin beds. He lies down on one and immediately falls
asleep. He hasn’t slept on a bed in five years.
An hour later everyone has finished taking prasādam and Prabhupada

walks into the bedroom with Mr. Joshi. Bhakta Das awakens and
quickly offers obeisances. Prabhupada just says, “You’ve worked hard,
simply take rest!”
Bhakta Das gets back into bed and watches as Mr. Joshi pulls back the
covers of the other bed. Srila Prabhupada crawls in under the covers and
Mr. Joshi tucks him in. The twin beds are right next to each other, about
a foot apart. Prabhupada’s head is on the pillow looking in the direction
of Bhakta Das who looks back at his spiritual master. They are lying
head to head taking rest about two feet apart.
Bhakta Das: I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t go to sleep after that. I just
went into a Vaikuṇṭha dream. There was no need for words. It was like
when Jayananda was in a room with Prabhupada.
Back at the temple that evening, Bhakta Das gathers the devotees who
have worked so hard for Ratha-yatra. He wants to bring them over to
meet Srila Prabhupada for a private darshan, especially the new
disciples who have never personally met their spiritual master.
Jayananda is working at the cart site where Bhakta Das finds him.
“Jayananda, come and see Srila Prabhupada.”
“I can’t right now. I have too much work to do. It’s not necessary.
Prabhupada doesn’t want to see me. I’m not important; just let me finish
this service.”
“No, you’ve got to come.” Bhakta Das grabs his arm and pulls him into
the waiting car. “Please sit down. You’re coming to see your spiritual
master.”
They drive back to the temple where the other devotees are waiting to
meet Prabhupada. They all walk around the corner to Prabhupada’s
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quarters and Bhakta Das ushers them in. “Srila Prabhupada, these are
the devotees who have been working so hard for you. Please give them
your blessings.”
Everybody pays obeisances and sits down. Jayananda sits at the back of
the room and leans against the wall. Within minutes his head drops and
he is sound asleep. The devotees have a one hour darshan with
Prabhupada, after which they pay their obeisances before leaving.
Someone wakes Jayananda, who also pays obeisances and leaves the
room.
There is not a word said between Prabhupada and Jayananda.
Bhakta Das: I realized that Jayananda didn’t have to say anything. He

had full faith and full surrender to Srila Prabhupada and Prabhupada had
full faith in Jayananda. He knew Jayananda was giving his all.
The Radha-Damodara bus is now on Interstate 80 heading east. The

party put down deposits at several state fairs months ago and the first
engagement after Ratha-yatra is in Minot, North Dakota. They are
booked as an Indian gift emporium with authority to distribute snacks
and perform traditional Indian music. There are 17 men on board to
augment the regular crew, including two initiated disciples, Damodara
Pandit, and Vipra Das, plus 6 of the 10 men that comprised the garland
of jīvās: Jnapaka, Gauridas Pandit, Uddhava, Lokanath, and two others
who will bloop within weeks.
Following behind the bus, Radha Raman drives Gauridas Pandit’s little
green Toyota truck. Suhotra’s van party left San Francisco before
Ratha-yatra, with a plan to meet the bus at the Minot Fairgrounds.
Cruising through the Sierra mountains of eastern California, the new
Radha-Damodara men are excited, including Tamal Krishna Goswami.
It’s his first trip since joining the party in June at the Oakland house.
Sitting up front in the driver’s compartment, Tamal Krishna studies the

road map as Dayal Chandra shifts into eighth gear. From the temple
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room comes the sound of mṛdaṅgas, kartāls, harmonium, and the voices
of 13 brahmacārīs responding to Vishnujana’s kirtan. Tamal Krishna
turns to peer into the temple through the arched doorway, focusing on
Sri Sri Radha-Damodara. Their earrings swing to and fro from the
motion of the bus as Ramacharya offers ārati.
Goswami is realizing more and more how Vishnujana Maharaja has

created a tremendous preaching program. There could hardly be a better
arrangement for becoming Krishna conscious. There’s no place to hide
and think about māyā. Even while traveling all day long on the road,
everyone sits in the presence of Radha- Damodara, singing for Them,
honoring Their prasādam, and reading Prabhupada’s books. It’s so
natural to be engaged in Krishna’s service when living in such close
proximity to the most beautiful and merciful Deities.
TKG: They seemed to especially take pleasure in this traveling worship.

The entire atmosphere was alive and spiritually vibrant. Our bus was
like a transcendental spacecraft from another world. Actually, it was.
Cruising at 75 miles an hour, the bus easily overtakes the slower traffic.
Passengers in the other vehicles stare in total disbelief seeing shaven-
headed devotees bouncing up and down during kirtan. Sometimes the
brahmacārīs wave at them with a huge smile. Sometimes people return
the waves, unaware of how fortunate they are to see Radha-Damodara’s
devotees on the move.
Damodara Pandit has brought Volume 12 of the Sankirtan Newsletter.

Vishnujana Swami glances down the list noting that 11 temples have
reported.
San Francisco is first with 3529 points, next is Los Angeles with 2772
points. Chicago, San Diego, and the BBT party round out the Top Five.
Keshava Bharati of San Francisco is the top distributor with 553 points.
The San Diego temple reports that since Tripurari has arrived, “now we
are seeing that big books can be distributed. It’s a whole new
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consciousness in book distribution. Big books can be distributed like
small books. You simply have to take the initiative and completely
depend on Krishna.”
Tripurari Das has sent in his own report: “Madhudvisa Maharaja has
agreed to release Buddhimanta Prabhu to the BBT and the US temples
for one month! His association enlivened me two years ago to distribute
big books. Now, His Grace Buddhimanta will return to give us all some
insight as to how we can inject others with the desire to enjoy Krishna
conscious life.”
After driving 700 miles and crossing the states of California and
Nevada, Dayal Chandra is exhausted. It’s already past 11:00pm as he
carefully guides the bus down a narrow trail to a campsite that Goswami
selected earlier. All the devotees are fast asleep. Vishnujana lies in front
of the altar, Tamal Krishna lies next to him, and the brahmacārīs lie
beside Goswami all packed tightly together like sardines. Dayal gets out
and connects the bus to the campsite’s water and electric lines. With the
bus filled to capacity, he just places his sleeping bag on a picnic table,
stretches out, and immediately falls asleep.
At 3:30am, the sannyāsīs rise to take their shower on the bus. While
Vishnujana prepares Radha-Damodara’s morning offering in the
kitchen, Tamal Krishna rouses the brahmacārīs to take bath in the
nearby stream. Nobody disturbs Dayal Chandra still lying on the picnic
table. By 4:30 all are back to greet Sri Sri Radha-Damodara.
Ramacharya offers maṅgala-ārati as Vishnujana leads the chanting.
During japa period, Tamal Krishna sits beside Vishnujana behind closed
curtains to see how he does the pūjā for Radha-Damodara. He wanted to
assist in the Deity worship and today his training begins.
TKG: Vishnujana kneeled on the first step of the altar while I sat to the
side, watching silently as my godbrother performed confidential service
for the Deities. First he removed Damodara’s flute and crown and then
proceeded to take off Their night clothes. As beautiful as Radha-
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Damodara were when fully dressed and jeweled, this was surpassed by
Their natural beauty. Damodara’s bluish-silver body had a carved dhoti
with a chaddar that flared on both sides. He also had natural bracelets,
as well as a beautiful crown. Radharani wore a finely decorated natural
sāri. These were all unusual features, for normally Deities made of
metal lacked such detailed ornamentation. How special Radha-
Damodara were in every way!
Vishnujana carefully removed the tilak and dots of sandalwood pulp

from Damodara’s face and the tulasi leaves mixed with sandalwood
from His lotus feet. Then he began to massage Damodara’s body with
scented aguru oil. Next he took a soft paper towel and rubbed a slightly
abrasive mixture of powder and lemon juice along Damodara’s silver
body, beginning at His lotus feet, on to His legs and thighs, His waist,
broad chest, bending arms, and finally His lotus face with finely
chiseled nose, circling around His lotus eyes. Damodara stood smiling,
His large lotus eyes looking out from the beige polish now covering His
body. From the kitchen came silver bowls with warm scented water to
bathe Him. As Vishnujana carefully removed all traces of the polish
paste, Damodara’s glistening and effulgent form again became visible.
With a soft towel, Vishnujana carefully dried His body.
The entire procedure was repeated for Srimati Radharani. She had been
waiting patiently beside Damodara, Her body casually wrapped in cloth.
Srimati Radharani emerged from Her morning ablution with the
complexion of the radiant golden sun. Again Vishnujana turned to
Damodara. He took fresh tulasi leaves and, smearing them with
sandalwood pulp, applied them to Damodara’s lotus feet. Very expertly
he decorated Damodara’s lotus face with dots of sandalwood pulp,
which made His smile even more pleasing to behold. Finally, with great
surrender, Vishnujana pressed the lotus feet of Srimati Radharani and
Lord Damodara to his forehead, praying that They please bestow Their
mercy upon him.
The entire time I had been sitting, transfixed, watching everything with
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undeviating attention.
Goswami fully understands that it’s only by Srila Prabhupada’s mercy

that he has been introduced to Sri Sri Radha-Damodara and offered the
chance to assist Vishnujana Swami in Their intimate worship. He
remembers the verse describing Sri Krishna’s body as eternal, full of
knowledge, and bliss.
īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ
anādir ādir govindaḥ sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam
[Brahma-Samhita 5.1]
“Krishna who is known as Govinda is the Supreme Godhead. He has an

eternal blissful spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other
origin and He is the prime cause of all causes.”
Vaishnavas never think of the Deity in a mundane way, that the form of
Krishna is made of marble, brass, or wood. By proper training from
Srila Prabhupada, Tamal Krishna is able to see Radha-Damodara with
devotional eyes. This transcendental vision is possible only by the
mercy of guru and Krishna. It cannot be understood by anyone in
material consciousness, because one cannot comprehend Krishna with
blunt material senses. This is described in Brahma-Samhita 5.38.
premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena
santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu viokayanti
yaṁśyāmasundaram acintya-guṇa-svarūpaṁ
govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi
“I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who is Syamasundara, Krishna

Himself, with inconceivable innumerable attributes, whom the pure
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devotees see in their heart of hearts with the eye of devotion tinged with
the salve of love.”
TKG: Krishna had kindly assumed this Deity form of earthly substance
to allow a conditioned soul like myself to approach Him even with
material senses, which would thus become purified by contact with His
transcendental body. Although the Deity might be made of material
elements, these become transformed into spiritual energy, having been
accepted by the Lord as His transcendental body through the prayers of
His pure devotee. Though the materialist might have difficulty in
understanding this transformation, I found nothing confusing.
Prabhupada had explained that the Lord has multifarious energies which
He employs at different times.
It is no more difficult for Him to convert material energy to its original

spiritual nature than for an expert electrician to manipulate the same
electricity for refrigeration or, conversely, for heating.
Attentive hearing of Krishna’s name, form, qualities, and pastimes, is a

necessary prerequisite before one’s mind and intelligence are
sufficiently purified to understand spiritual nature. Without undergoing
the sādhana of bhakti-yoga, one’s limited comprehension cannot make
accurate judgments regarding transcendental science. The transcendent
reality of the Deity is a fact known only to those willing to undergo the
disciplined process described in Vedic literature. It’s not a question of
blind faith.
When Vishnujana Maharaja signals that he is ready to begin dressing

Radha-Damodara, Goswami carefully moves the Deity curtain aside and
re-enters the temple room. The steady drone of the brahmacārīs chanting
japa sounds like hundreds of teeming bumblebees.
As dawn breaks, Dayal Chandra awakens and takes his bath. Then he
unhooks the electric and water hose connections. The bus is ready for
departure. Dayal revs the engine to let everyone know it’s time to get
back on the road. The morning program continues as the bus wends its
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way eastward. By nightfall, they have driven across Utah, Wyoming,
Nebraska, and into Iowa.
The bus stops for the night at a large Maharishi Ashram in Fairfield,
Iowa. The followers of Mahesh Yogi are friendly and allow the devotees
to park the bus in front of their main building. Early the next morning
there is maṅgala-ārati on the bus as usual. Attracted by the sound, the
leader of the ashram comes out and asks Gauridas Pandit, “Who is that
person chanting?”
“That’s Vishnujana Maharaja.”
“He’s special. He’s probably very pure.” Gauridas considers it

wonderful that someone from another group can recognize Maharaja’s
purity. Although they do not allow the devotees to preach in their
ashram, 12 of them come to listen to Vishnujana’s lecture on the bus.
Simultaneously, they get darshan of Radha- Damodara. Overall, they are
impressed by the Vaishnavas.
Minot, North Dakota, July 1974

The North Dakota State Fair is held annually in Minot, a city near the
US-Canada border. It’s an important event for the state’s residents. The
fair features the latest developments in agriculture. It’s an occasion for
the public to find out about new ideas and techniques. Not only do the
residents of Minot attend the event, but people come from South
Dakota, Minnesota, Manitoba, and even as far away as Montana.
The Radha-Damodara bus arrives in Minot near midnight. Dayal

Chandra finds a parking space for the night behind a closed filling
station. At the brahma muhūrta hour the brahmacārīs exit the bus to take
bath with a hose. They usually bathe in streams or behind filling stations
where they can find a spigot. While they are out in their kaupīnas hosing
down, a truck suddenly pulls into the station. Its headlights shine
directly on the devotees. The brahmacārīs freeze for a moment, like deer
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staring into the headlights of a car. Then the truck backs up and quickly
leaves. The brahmacārīs continue their bathing. Within minutes they can
hear sirens blaring in the distance.
Suddenly three police cars pull up and surround the bus. State troopers
jump out with their shotguns aimed at the devotees. The three patrol
cars have sped to the scene after receiving a report of a UFO landing
behind the station – “Aliens have landed.” When Vishnujana Maharaja
explains the situation, the police simply scratch their heads, wondering
if the devotees are for real.
After breakfast prasādam, Dayal navigates the bus to the Minot

Fairgrounds. The devotees are shown their assigned space and get busy
assembling the booth and stage. All the equipment is neatly stored in the
bus bays. First they set up the book table and fill it with Prabhupada’s
books. Then the booth is erected to sell Spiritual Sky products, incense,
shampoos, posters, Indian clothing, and jewelry. Ramacharya, who is in
charge of the booth, adds the finishing touch – a sign that says
Matchless Gifts.
At last they bring out the portable stage for the kirtan band. They hope
to attract people to Sri Chaitanya’s sankirtan movement. Several
carnival people are also setting up, but they hope to earn big money at
the fair. Radha-Damodara will stay on the bus and not make Their
appearance until evening when the fair is packed with people. While
everyone is busy setting up, Sadananda is in the bus kitchen preparing
prasādam. Later this will be distributed to anyone who accepts
Vishnujana’s invitation to “try this pure vegetarian feast offered to the
Supreme with love and devotion.”
The state fair has something to offer everyone – farmers, businessmen,

housewives, young and old. Housewives cluster around demonstrations
of various household appliances that guarantee to cut their work in half.
Farmers survey sophisticated John Deere tractors, also guaranteed to
reduce their workload. There are competitions for hog calling, log
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splitting, and watermelon eating. Blue ribbons are awarded for the
biggest squash and the best milking cows. For the kids, there is the
carnival with all the latest rides, including an old-fashioned merry-go-
round for romantic couples.
By late afternoon, the fair is crowded. On the main esplanade between a

haberdashery and a toy shop, fairgoers come across a booth with the
tempting sign Matchless Gifts. Without a doubt, the Vaishnavas are the
fair’s most unusual entry. The new recruits play the simple instruments
– tamboura, ektar, kartāls – to enhance the kirtan. Lokanath plays all
kinds of percussion, but prefers his expensive bongos.
Vishnujana’s kirtans always attract large crowds, although the sight is

shocking to a public that has never seen devotees. Farmers and older
couples are astounded by the shaven heads and long śikhās. Some
people are so stunned that the beer bottles drop from their hands as they
stand transfixed. Conversely, young people are interested in the incense,
the jewelry, and the casual Indian clothing for sale. The main purpose is
preaching, but the booth does well taking in $500-$800 a day.
Uddhava: Ramacharya was expert at selling the Spiritual Sky items and
books. He was sweet and friendly with a bubbly personality, but also
very determined to serve the Deities. He was very firm in getting
everyone to serve Radha-Damodara. Both he and Vishnujana were very
devoted to Radha-Damodara.
For the book distributors, there is non-stop engagement answering

questions about the philosophy and devotional lifestyle. When the
crowds swell at evening, Vishnujana Maharaja brings Radha-Damodara
onstage, where They are fully illuminated with colored lights. The
amplification system transmits the kirtan out to the crowds. On into the
night devotees perform the timeless sankirtan service for the pleasure of
Sri Sri Radha-Damodara and the spiritual upliftment of the North
Dakotans. They sing without stopping until midnight when the carnival
closes down.
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After six hours rest, everyone rises for maṅgala-ārati at 7:00am. The
brahmacārīs fill up the public bathroom wearing gamchas and washing
their feet in the sinks. Several brahmacārīs are shaving their heads when
some carnival people enter. It’s a culture shock for whoever comes in to
use the facilities. Some turn right around and walk out the door, freaked
out by the sight.
Before noon, when there are hardly any people at the fair, Tamal
Krishna and Vishnujana spend time together wandering around the
fairgrounds. Vishnujana introduces Tamal to people he knows from
other fairs, like the huge fat lady and her midget husband. They
accepted a book from him last year, and have no difficulty
understanding that they are not the body!
While the brahmacārīs take care of the booth, the sannyāsīs find a place
by a freshwater brook that flows through the fairgrounds. It’s an idyllic,
uninhabited spot, shaded and peaceful. Here they can absorb themselves
in reading, japa, and discussing future plans. Tamal Krishna notes the
major difference between the fair program and the University program
in Berkeley.
“These people who come to the fair are not the type who will likely join
us as full-time devotees.”
“Perhaps. I like the fair programs,” Vishnujana counters, “because we

go where no one has ever gone before, where no one has ever heard of
Hare Krishna. Just look at the benefit they receive from hearing the
Holy Name, taking prasādam, and buying Prabhupada’s books. The
people from way out in the sticks come to these fairs. These are the kind
of people that you never meet in an airport or a mall. These people you
won’t meet anywhere else. It’s the heartland of America. It’s every town
and village.”
“But we want to make devotees,” Tamal Krishna responds. “This

pleased Prabhupada in San Francisco and convinced him to allow me to
stay with the party. I don’t think we’ll make any devotees during our
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week at the fair. I really think we need to expand the party.”
“Well, we meet a lot of nice people, and at every fair there are a few
individuals who are searching for real meaning in life. The program is
pure and sincere people are attracted. We just direct them to the nearest
temple. So we are making devotees. We usually don’t bring them along
because it’s hard for new devotees to follow our program, living on a
bus, and keeping weird hours. We can’t have a program for new recruits
because our business is to serve Radha-Damodara and fulfill Lord
Chaitanya’s mission.”
“I don’t doubt that you have attracted people,” Tamal Krishna agrees,
“but they are mostly persons with a curious interest. They are not
intelligent young men searching for the truth like we met in Berkeley. If
we want to make devotees, it would be better to concentrate our energy
on preaching at college campuses and in the larger cities.”
“Well, Krishna has a plan for everyone. My vision is to have a Festival

of Vedic India. Look at the amusement rides we saw earlier. They are
intricate, but can be disassembled within minutes and stored
conveniently for travel. We can do a similar thing and have a total
mobile festival with a stage, exhibits presenting important points of our
philosophy, and prasāda distribution. We can have many booths; a
question and answer booth, an exhibit about Prabhupada’s life, a library
booth where people can sit and read his books instead of wandering
around aimlessly. We can expand beyond our simple booth and stage,
and provide a total spiritual environment to take people out of the hectic
carnival atmosphere.”
“Your idea is very grand, but is it practical? The set-up expenses would
be enormous. We would have to maintain a separate facility for all the
devotees to travel and live in. I’m still convinced that to continue the
fair circuit is not the best use of our time.”
“Our program is presenting Krishna consciousness in its entirety, in

every town and village.”
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“We should focus on making a lot of devotees and that should be our
main program, not doing the state and county fairs,” Tamal Krishna
concludes.
“We already booked some fairs and sent deposits to reserve our space,
then…?”
Being ever practical, Goswami doesn’t want to lose Krishna’s money.

His solution is to split the party.
TKG: We now had two vans, so Aja could take two of the men and
handle the fair programs. The main party could search out more ideal
places where new devotees could be made. I further proposed to
Vishnujana that we seriously consider purchasing more buses. It was
becoming unfeasible for so many men to travel in one vehicle. Besides,
there was insufficient engagement for everyone. Why not duplicate the
program two or even three times? We had good leaders in
Dhristadyumna and Aja, who could certainly head up their own buses.
The next morning before Bhagavatam class, Ramacharya takes Uddhava

to a nearby residential area to gather fresh flowers for Radha-Damodara.
Because the bus is constantly traveling, getting flowers for Radha-
Damodara’s worship is always a challenge. They can’t order flowers
from a florist when they’re on the road, so they have to liberate them.
The system is that two brahmacārīs will go out in the immediate area
and gather whatever flowers they can find.
Ritadvaja: I lived close to the fairgrounds. One of Vishnujana Swami’s

men came by my house at 8:30am. He knocked on my door while I was
still asleep. I was a musician so I had been out playing a gig and came
back really late. I woke up and went to the door to see this guy wearing
a wool hat, a sweatshirt with a hood, yogi pants, and shoes, all in one
color – pink.
He says to me, “Excuse me sir, can we have some flowers for our
altar?”
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“Yeah, why not?” I closed the door and went back to bed. I didn’t care;
I had thousands of flowers growing in my yard. Then I heard another
knock on the door. This time he says, “Can I have a knife?”
I was thinking, what’s going on? I looked the guy over. I had a guard
dog, a great Dane, so I went to the kitchen and brought out a big knife.
Then I went back to bed and didn’t wake up until noon. When I looked
out the front window there wasn’t a flower left in my yard – hundreds
and hundreds of flowers that were in my yard were gone. I saw the knife
stuck in the window.
That night I went to the fair with my friends. We were walking down
the midway, and all of a sudden, the guy who took all my flowers came
up to me and tried to sell me some incense. He asked, “What do you
think of the altar?” I didn’t know anything about Krishna at the time. I
looked up and saw Vishnujana Swami with his harmonium, with the
esraj playing, and all these other wild instruments.
Vishnujana’s kirtan is in full swing. High up on the stage behind the

kirtan band, Radha-Damodara sit in Their palanquin/altar completely
surrounded by flowers. Beside the stage, prasādam is available with a
small donation box so that people can contribute according to their own
heart. The fair does not attract the same crowd as the University campus
in Berkeley, but people are interested and like the chanting. Due to
Vishnujana Swami’s purity, the sound vibration penetrates the hearts of
a few sincere souls.
Ritadvaja: Since we were musicians we were attracted. We just heard

the last few minutes while the guy was trying to sell me some incense.
He was thanking me for the flowers, and I was thanking him for taking
them all! In those days it was ‘go with the flow.’ Then Vishnujana
Maharaja started talking about the song and he looked at me. He had a
big wide tilak going up his forehead and coming down practically to the
end of his nose. He wasn’t wearing a shirt and was completely tanned. I
remember big tilak markings going up his arms. We were karmi
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musicians and music was just a job for us, but the way he was talking
about the song I started thinking, how in the world is this guy so much
into this song? What are these guys into? He was going on and on about
the song, and about Radha and Krishna.
Maharaja is giving the translation of the song, Radha Krishna Prana

Mor, followed by a short commentary.
O Radha-Krishna, Radha-Krishna, Radha-Krishna, my living force! O

youthful couple, in life or death I have nothing more than You.
On the banks of the Yamuna in a grove of flowering kadamba trees I’ll

prepare a golden throne and seat You there.
I’ll anoint Your dark and fair forms with sandalwood pulp scented with
aguru, and I’ll fan You with a peacock tail fan and see Your two
moonlike faces.
I’ll string garlands of malati flowers and place them around Your
Lordships’ necks, and for Your lotus lips I’ll offer betel leaves scented
with camphor.
By the side of Lalita and Vishakha I will stand ready to fulfill any
service at their lotus feet.
Narottama Das, the servant of the servant of the servant of Lord

Chaitanya says, “Allow me to engage in these pastimes of devotional
service.”
“Radha and Krishna are not an ordinary boy and girl. If they were, why
would so many renounced monks be absorbed in singing about Their
beauty, and about Their pastimes? Actually, They are special because
Their bodies are full of eternity, knowledge and bliss. That’s why Their
loving affairs are so much different than the loving affairs of this
temporary body, which is just a combination of chemicals, and which is
not really who I am. The body is merely a puppet that I, the soul, can
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move here and there just like a driver driving a car.
“My true self is originally eternal, full of bliss and knowledge, just like
the body of Krishna. But, due to forgetfulness of my relationship with
Krishna, we identify ourselves as matter, as a mass of chemicals. But
Radha and Krishna, this Divine Couple, They have Their own loving
affairs that are filled with emotional exchanges of love, based on
eternity, knowledge and bliss.
“It’s natural to give your love forever, isn’t it? Nobody gives their love
to someone with the idea that in a little while I’ll leave and find
somebody else. No one begins a loving relationship like that. We always
begin a loving relationship with the feeling that I’m giving my love
forever. That is real love, actually.
“The difficulty is that we haven’t found that relationship, that person

who can reciprocate love forever, who we will never get tired of loving
forever. But here is this Divine Couple, Radha and Krishna...”
Ritadvaja: One of my friends said, “Look at this. These guys are totally
into that stuff. What is this?” Another friend said, “Hey we’ve got to go,
we’re going on stage.” So we left. I never saw a devotee again for four
years.
Every morning Vishnujana likes to give his men an extra class, Nectar
of Devotion. “Bhakti-yoga is a very natural, happy process,” he
explains. “We don’t have to force it upon ourselves because it’s just so
natural. Krishna consciousness is wonderful. It’s glorious. It’s not that
we have to do all kinds of austerities to reach Krishna. It’s a way that we
can all live together peacefully and be happy.”
During breakfast, he enjoys asking each devotee a question from

KRSNA Book, or from the Bhagavatam class. If they answer right they
get a sweet ball. He will either throw the sweet to the individual, or
come up and say, “Open wide,” and slam dunk a gulābjāmun into the
devotee’s mouth. Sometimes he will just arbitrarily look at someone
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who hasn’t gotten anything for a while, and throw him a sweet. Besides
his love for kirtan and devotional service, he’s very playful.
Jnapaka: Vishnujana Swami was a warmhearted person. He would

actually embrace us sometimes to show his warmth and caring. He
would give me a lot of hugs and I would look forward to his gentle care
and love. Each new recruit always vied for his attention. Being an ‘old’
recruit, sometimes I felt left out because the newer devotees were
getting all the attention.
They would get Radha-Damodara’s mahā-prasāda with a tulasi leaf

handed to them by Vishnujana Maharaja. They would also get favorable
glances from him and I wanted to be in on it. So I would take the
opportunity to do service for Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna, whatever I
could do to try and get some mercy, a favorable glance from
Vishnujana.
I remember the way Vishnujana Maharaja gave class. He talked a lot

about the sādhu’s influence on people’s lives, and how glorious and
joyful it was to be a Vaishnava. He used to preach with that kind of a
mood. Tamal Krishna Maharaja was like, you’re not this body, don’t do
this, don’t do that, do this, do that. He was very scientific. So it was a
different mood.
I loved Vishnujana’s kirtans. His chanting was so intense for me that it

would make me cry.
Looking at Radha-Damodara and hearing his voice, I’d have to control

tears coming from my eyes. I experienced him choking on his words,
having tears in his eyes, even a little bit of bodily shivering and silence.
I understood it as the potency of the mahā-mantra. He was the living
evidence of the power of the mahā-mantra.
People can be impressed by the deep philosophical teachings in

Prabhupada’s books and convinced to try Krishna consciousness. But if
they don’t see the results of bhakti- yoga in the senior devotees – like
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humility, tolerance, and detachment – they might conclude that the
process doesn’t work. Prabhupada explains in his books that
advancement is demonstrated by how one loves to hear and chant the
Holy Names. There has to be a living example – the person bhāgavata –
and Vishnujana Swami is one from their own generation, one of their
peers.
The state fair ends without a single new devotee joining the bus as
Tamal Krishna had predicted. He is convinced that the college campuses
are the best field for preaching. But during the summer months, most
students are on summer recess. His idea is to take the festival program
to the large East Coast cities where there are temples. They can do street
festivals until the colleges are active again in September.
ISKCON Chicago, July 1974

The arrival of the Radha-Damodara bus packed with new devotees
creates a lot of excitement. When Vishnujana Swami last visited
Chicago he only had a few brahmacārīs in the old school bus. Now he
has a grand Greyhound bus and another sannyāsī with him. The Chicago
devotees have already met Tamal Krishna Goswami when he visited
upon his return from India.
The sannyāsīs make a big impression on the temple devotees. When

they take Radha-Damodara to a park on Lake Michigan for chanting and
distributing prasādam, everyone wants to go along and participate in the
festival program.
Tranakarta: Vishnujana Swami came when I was a brahmacārī. What I

remember most is how he would chant, and the potency. The bus
swayed and rocked, sitting in front of the Chicago temple. The kirtans
we had were powerful, and completely mystical. Not only were they
melodious and musical, but the Holy Name was so powerful when he
sang, that it just penetrated your whole body and soul and made you
really aware of spiritual life. It didn’t matter who you were. If you never
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even heard of Krishna you were totally affected.
Chicago is now a big hub for book distribution. Apart from the temple
devotees going out to meet the public, Tripurari is based in Chicago and
is training devotees to distribute big books at the airport where the
affluent public travels. Moreover, the temple managers are developing
systems to raise money through various businesses. Their goal is to
purchase a prestigious temple.
Tamal Krishna tries to encourage the leaders to put aside their business
ideas and depend upon pleasing Lord Chaitanya by performing the
sankirtan yajña. He points out that the devotees going to the airport to
distribute books are fully enlivened. Staying back at the temple to
manage, however, is a dry activity. Tamal Krishna has his own
experience of this. He is much more enlivened now, he explains,
because he has left managing the yatras in India and is traveling and
preaching with Vishnujana Swami.
TKG: I observed that a preoccupation with managing the complex

affairs of a temple somewhat obstructed one’s natural enthusiasm for
preaching. And there were so many added problems caused by dealing
with the many temple women. Living only with brahmacārīs on a
traveling bus was comparatively simple. The lack of space forced us to
keep our maintenance needs to a bare minimum, and with so little to
maintain, our only real worry was how to increase the preaching.
The temple president, Sri Govinda, appreciates Tamal Krishna’s advice

and values the simple life of the renunciate. Still, someone has to
manage. How can a temple survive without management? On behalf of
Srila Prabhupada he has accepted this service. After acquiring the
necessary funds to purchase a larger temple it will mean that more
people can be attracted to visit and take darshan of Sri-Sri Kishor-
Kishori.
While Goswami is busy discussing with Sri Govinda, Vishnujana picks

up an old Sankirtan Newsletter that’s lying on a side table. It’s Volume
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13 with 12 temples reporting. He quickly glances down the list.
San Francisco is first again with 2792 points. This is their fifth
consecutive week at number one. Next is Los Angeles with 2401 points.
San Diego, Chicago, and Pittsburgh round out the Top Five.
Yudamanyu Prabhu of San Francisco is the top distributor with 413
points.
The San Diego temple reports that book distributors had some difficulty
with the police at a county fair because they didn’t have a permit to
distribute books. “To avoid a similar occurrence we are starting a file to
keep all permits up to date and to acquire as many permits as possible.”
The report also details a problem the book distributors encountered at

the San Diego Zoo. “The zoo security guards stole three cases of
Prabhupada’s books right out from under our noses. By Krishna’s
arrangement, we have an eyewitness who will testify for us. The case is
now under investigation as over 100 dollars in books was stolen.”
Philadelphia Temple has sent in their own report about their upcoming
Ratha-yatra festival. “Srila Prabhupada has written us a kind letter
expressing great appreciation with our deity worship (Lord Jagannath,
Lord Balarama, and Srimati Subhadra). Srila Prabhupada has given his
personal blessings and guaranteed that our Rathayatra would be a
success.”
In Philadelphia, a devotee afflicted with muscular dystrophy has been

going out regularly to distribute books. In one month he has increased
his daily sales from 30 BTGs to over a hundred plus 30-50 Perfection of
Yoga books. “The report on Bhakta Joe, our electric wheelchair
distributor is astounding. Last week Joe Prabhu had ten people waiting
in line in front of him for incense and a Perfection of Yoga!!”
Later in the afternoon, three musicians come to visit the temple. Sri
Govinda says he’s too busy to chat so he sends them over to the bus to
meet the Swamis. Vishnujana welcomes them aboard warmly.
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Srikhar: The first person I met was Vishnujana Swami. He was
introduced to me as a Swami who had played for the Jefferson Airplane.
I had a Guild 12-string and a Gibson Dreadnought that I brought with
me. Vishnujana was playing the 12-string and he was good. Then Tamal
Krishna came in and busted up the jam.
Goswami begins preaching to the musicians. He senses an opportunity

to make new devotees. He regards this as a sign that Lord Chaitanya is
reciprocating with their efforts and is sending these souls. For several
days they have been doing their festival in a nearby park with little
result.
When Srikhar mentions he has an interest in astrology, Tamal Krishna

points out that astrology is just one of many topics detailed in the Vedas.
He explains the cosmology as presented in Srimad-Bhagavatam and
states that in his experience occult interests are difficult to translate into
practical action.
When the young man reveals that he has had “out-of-body” experiences,
Goswami points out that these are at best temporary. By the process of
bhakti-yoga one can he elevated to the transcendental platform and
never have to come back to mundane consciousness.
“Spiritual life is a tangible reality, as opposed to the subtle mental

existence of the astral plane onto which you have been projecting
yourself. Genuine spiritual realization harmonizes all of our daily
activities such as eating, working, friendship, and so on.
“To actually experience what we are describing would require some

time. If you traveled with us for a month you would be able to draw
your own conclusions as to the effectiveness of the bhakti-yoga
process.” Goswami challenges the young man to a debate.
“If you defeat me then I’ll admit your philosophy is superior. But if I
defeat you, then you have to join our party and travel with us on this
bus. If my philosophy is superior to yours, then you should become my
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student, according to Vedic culture.”
“Oh yeah, I’ve read about that system.”
“So you sincerely want to learn something better?”
“Sure. If I think what you’re presenting to me is better, then I’ll give up

everything.” Srikhar admits that he has some material attachments, but
he’s ready to renounce everything if he can experience a spiritual
awakening. Discovering the absolute truth is his most important
consideration.
News of the impending debate spreads throughout the temple. As much

as possible, the Chicago devotees pack into the bus to witness the
debate. Everybody else stands on upturned milk crates around the bus to
hear everything through the open windows.
Gauridas Pandit: Srikhar used to argue his māyāvādī philosophy with

the temple president and the devotees. He was so good at it they
couldn’t defeat him, so Tamal Krishna challenged him to a debate. They
went on for some time, and finally Tamal Krishna got him. Vishnujana
didn’t get involved in the debate.
After a long discussion, Srikhar admits defeat. As a sign of his sincerity,

he pulls out all the money in his pocket and offers it to Vishnujana
Maharaja to give to Radha- Damodara. His musician friends are
impressed by this, and they also express their willingness to travel with
the sannyāsīs.
Srikhar: I put $2000 on Radha-Damodara’s altar that night and said,

“I’ll be back tomorrow.” Tamal Krishna and I made a deal that he would
instruct me personally for a year if I joined. I thought it was a good
opportunity.
Suddenly, the mood is disturbed by a loud knocking on the door of the

bus. Goswami looks out the window to see an angry woman. “Who is
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that?” he asks.
“It’s my girl friend,” Srikhar says, without having to look. Goswami

suggests he have a talk with her.
Outside the bus Srikhar explains the situation to her. “I was just visiting
these Swamis and they invited me to travel with them.” “What about
me?” she asks, quite annoyed.
“Well, these are celibate monks. It’s really only for men. They have a
lot of spiritual knowledge so I don’t want to miss this opportunity.”
“You’re just going to leave without me?” She is overcome by anger.

“Who’s going to pay the bills? Where’s the money going to come from?
You can’t leave!”
“Well, I’m thinking to give up everything and travel with the Swamis
for a while, that’s all.”
“Leave me some money! You’re not gonna leave me like this!” She
begins shouting.
“I gave all the money to the Swamis.”
“What?” Beside herself with rage, she catches Goswami’s eye peering
through the bus window. She demands that he return her boyfriend’s
money immediately. Tamal Krishna can see how upset she is and
realizes there’s no point in talking to her. He asks Srikhar to drive her
home and calm her down.
Taking her by the arm, Srikhar says to Goswami that he’ll return.
“Don’t leave without me.”
The temple devotees who have witnessed the entire event quickly spread
the word of Srikhar’s defeat and his surrender of $2000. Sri Govinda is
pleased to hear this news. It was he who had directed the musicians to
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speak with the sannyāsīs and now that same person who was always
coming to the temple has finally surrendered. When Vishnujana and
Tamal Krishna come to the office to share the news of the victory, Sri
Govinda gives Goswami a shock.
“In all fairness,” he declares, “the temple should receive 50 percent of

whatever money was donated.” Tamal Krishna is astonished.
TKG: What did the temple have to do with it? The president himself
could have preached to the boys but he was too busy. The money had
already been offered to Sri Sri Radha-Damodara, so how could I ask
Them to return it? But he insisted that the temple had its rightful claim
to half of the share. Since the temple president had already offered
everything to Srila Prabhupada, at least proper etiquette dictated he offer
us a hospitable reception free of financial considerations. His present
demand made me feel as if I were being presented with a hotel bill.
“Vedic custom dictates that visiting sannyāsīs should be hospitably

received,” Goswami says. “Their presence is auspicious because they
speak the Absolute Truth for the enlightenment of all present.”
“True, and we have welcomed you with all hospitality and kindness.
And please don’t consider that the gṛhasthas in the temple are ordinary
householders. We also speak the Absolute Truth for the enlightenment
of others. We are also surrendered to Srila Prabhupada and live a simple
lifestyle, depending on Krishna for all our necessities.”
“I do agree,” Goswami responds, “but because of his renunciation, the

sannyāsī is naturally seen as the spiritual master by the members of the
other three ashrams.”
“Well, as far as I’ve read in Prabhupada’s books,” Sri Govinda counters,

“we’re all Vaishnavas. ISKCON is meant to prepare people to go back
home, back to Godhead, not to establish varṇāśrama dharma. Since I’ve
already accepted initiation by Srila Prabhupada, I can hardly accept you
in the role of my spiritual master.”
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Seeing the two leaders quarrel over money, Vishnujana Maharaja
becomes visibly upset and quotes a verse by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
kibā vipra, kibā nyāsī, śūdra kene naya yei kṛṣṇa-tattva-vettā, sei 'guru'
haya
It does not matter whether one is a brāhmaṇa, śūdra, gṛhastha or

sannyāsī. These are all material designations. A spiritually advanced
person has nothing to do with such designations. Therefore, if one is
advanced in the science of Krishna consciousness, regardless of his
position in human society, he may become a spiritual master. [Quoted in
SB 6.7.34]
When the sannyāsīs leave the office and return to the bus, Vishnujana
expresses his displeasure at the turn of events. But Goswami is adamant.
He wants to establish what he believes is proper etiquette. Moreover,
he’s upset that Vishnujana isn’t supporting his position. Taking no
notice of Maharaja’s disapproval, Goswami decides to counter Sri
Govinda’s claim with a claim of his own. He immediately sits down and
draws up an invoice, charging the temple for every lecture that he and
Vishnujana gave.
TKG: Though transcendental knowledge is actually priceless, I fixed the

value of each lecture at 50 dollars. When I returned and presented the
account to the president, his wry smile indicated that he had been
outdone at his own game. Unwillingly he had to agree to withdraw his
claim, and I then dropped ours. But I was sorry that our visit had to end
on such a sour note. This unpleasant transaction had reduced the
sublimity of devotional association to a business transaction.
This incident illustrates the misleading conception that bhāgavata

dharma is about right and wrong. Since both parties felt they were right,
an argument ensued that ended on a sour note. Although the Vedas do
teach what is right and what is wrong, bhāgavata dharma teaches about
developing spiritual relationships. All disagreements in spiritual life
should be adjusted according to loving relationships, not according to, “I
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am right and you are wrong.” Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu always
presented his philosophy in terms of sambandha, abhideya, and
prayojana – relationships, the process of developing spiritual
relationships, and attaining the ultimate goal of relationship, krishna
prema.
Based on “I am right and you are wrong,” the Gaudiya Math was
embroiled in litigation for decades with no resolution. Srila Prabhupada
didn’t want to make the same mistake in ISKCON so he cautioned his
disciples to settle all differences amicably as Vaishnavas, and never go
to the courts for a settlement.
Because every living entity is eternally an individual, there are always

many perspectives and angles of vision according to one’s advancement.
Yet, all of these various points of view are harmonized by loving service
with Krishna always in the center. Prabhupada called this process of
harmonizing varieties of differing viewpoints, “unity in diversity.”
The materialist without being able to adjust the varieties and the
disagreements makes everything zero. They cannot come into
agreement with varieties, but if we keep Krishna in the center, then there
will be agreement in varieties. This is called unity in diversity. I am
therefore suggesting that all our men meet in Mayapur every year during
the birth anniversary of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. With all GBC and
senior men present we should discuss how to make unity in diversity.
But, if we fight on account of diversity, then it is simply the material
platform. [Letter to Kirtanananda - October 18, 1973]
Even though the issue has been settled, Goswami remains disturbed by
the exchange with Sri Govinda. He decides to write Prabhupada about
his experiences while visiting the Chicago and Los Angeles temples.
His purpose is not to complain about particular individuals, but to reveal
a tendency which he believes is caused by economic considerations.
In his letter, Goswami also makes a formal request for a BBT loan. If
Prabhupada agrees, then his plan is to purchase two more buses. With
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Srikhar and his friends joining in Chicago, Tamal Krishna feels that the
crowded situation on the bus will continue to increase and become
critical. Lastly, he asks Prabhupada if he can give advice on preaching
and management when he visits the various temples in America.
Suddenly, Dayal Chandra approaches Tamal Krishna. Dayal is disturbed

after hearing about the argument between Goswami and Sri Govinda.
He confronts Tamal about “blowing people out.” This results in a feud
over the issue. Consequently, Vipra Das finds himself in the driver’s
seat when the bus leaves Chicago the next morning. Vipra is quite an
interesting character. Being in his forties and a man of the world, so to
speak, he frequently acts as a troubleshooter for the party.
Early in the morning, Srikhar returns to the temple with his friends. He
relates how he stayed up all night trying to convince his girl friend to let
him go. “When she finally fell asleep,” he explains to Goswami, “I took
advantage of the opportunity to leave unnoticed.”
Although there are three new recruits, two of the six men who were part
of the garland of jivas depart. The net gain is one devotee. With the new
recruits on board, the bus drives out of Chicago heading east to its next
destination – the college town of Ann Arbor.
Hasyagrami: Tamal Krishna was very good with the guests that came
with the heavy questions. He was great at blasting that stuff out. I
remember several sessions where he would get guys to come for a week
because after half an hour they didn’t have anything more to say. That
was impressive. So I was impressed by him, but he still had this
irritating thing about turning the party around. I probably insulted him in
a subtle way, because in my mind Vishnujana Swami was in charge of
the party.
Ann Arbor, Michigan, August 1974

Like any college town anywhere in the world, Ann Arbor’s urban
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development is based on the growing needs of a university populace.
The population of the campus numbers over 40,000, with students and
professors renting every available place in town. During the summer
recess, however, the town is empty with For Rent signs everywhere to
attract the students that will soon arrive by summer’s end.
The Ann Arbor temple is located conveniently near the campus in a

hilly residential area. It’s a typical small two bedroom house at 718
West Madison. The Detroit temple president, Govardhan, decided it was
more convenient and effective to establish a permanent preaching center
here than to regularly make the one hour journey from Detroit. He
chooses a young enthusiastic couple, Badrinarayan and his wife, to run
the center with two new bhaktas. They are struggling for money to keep
the temple going because of a particularly difficult summer, with
unseasonable squalls and constant rain.
As Vipra Das negotiates the large Greyhound bus along narrow West
Madison Street he comes upon 718. After a three point maneuver, he
carefully backs the bus into the driveway to enable a much easier exit.
Sitting on the front porch of an apartment house across the street from
the temple, two long-haired hippie-types watch the huge bus come down
a street that normally doesn’t see any busses, and enter the driveway
across the road. They watch in amazement as the door of the bus pops
open and strange people in orange clothing, carrying various exotic
instruments, start to get out and pile into the house.
“See you later, Rick,” one says to the other, “I’ve got to check this out.”
Sri Rama: I went over and asked Vishnujana Swami who he was and
what was going on. He said something about Hare Krishna. A few years
earlier, I had the Radha Krishna Temple album and I played those songs
continuously until my friends went crazy and forced me to stop. When I
realized there was a connection between these people and that music, I
asked Vishnujana, “Can you play Govinda Jaya Jaya for me?” He
actually sat down on the porch of the temple, took a harmonium, and
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played it.
Vishnujana Maharaja senses that Sri Rama is not entirely sober and
suggests that he come back in better condition at 7:00pm for the evening
program.
Meanwhile, it’s been a most difficult day for young Badrinarayan. First,
his car broke down, a beat-up old red and black Ford, a virtual
environmental dump on wheels. Then, no one bought the flowers that he
was selling on the street. He drives home with a heavy heart, utterly
exhausted. All he can think about is taking a little prasādam, then lying
down and going to sleep. He hopes that when he awakens, the whole
day will prove to be just a bad dream. The car struggles up the hill,
blowing black smoke all over West Madison. When he arrives in front
of the temple, Badrinarayan is stunned.
Badrinarayan: There was a big Greyhound bus parked in the driveway.

There were dhotis, and boxes of this and that, all over the front lawn. It
was like the old lady in the shoe with all the kids coming out.
Badri is so astonished that he doesn’t stop but continues driving. He’s

thinking, what happened? After circling around the block he’s sure that
when he returns the huge bus will no longer be there. But there it is.
While parking the car he keeps thinking, what’s going on? Vishnujana
Swami and Tamal Krishna Goswami come over to introduce
themselves. They explain that they are doing some work on the bus.
The bus is backed up as close as it can get to the big hedge at the rear of
the property. An old lady and her dog live in the house behind the
temple. Her back yard begins at the hedge and on the other side of that
hedge is a doghouse. And now, the tailpipe of the bus is situated right at
the door of the doghouse. Dayal Chandra is working on the engine
revving it up again and again, vroooom, vrroooom, vrrroooom. Seeing
that Badrinarayan has arrived, the old lady comes over carrying the dog
in her arms. She’s a retiree living behind the Hare Krishna temple who
hates devotees.
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She often calls the police to complain.
“My dog is asphyxiated!” She shouts, obviously upset. “You killed my

dog!” Apparently, the carbon monoxide fumes from the bus have gassed
her dog.
Badrinarayan: Vishnujana Swami was completely transcendental. We

were selling flowers in those days, so I had a bucket of carnations. He
looked at the dog, then he took a little water from the flowers and
sprinkled it on the dog. And the dog kind of perked up and came back to
life. He always had a kind of a limp after that so he never quite made it
all the way back.
Unfortunately, the lady is not pacified by her dog’s quick return from
the dead. “You should move somewhere else. You should have a farm,”
she shouts at the devotees.
Vishnujana tries to calm her down. “Look, you know what it costs to fly
to India? It costs $1000 to fly to India. You’re getting India for free, like
the incense, the music, the prasādam!” Every time she raises some
complaint, Maharaja turns around the point she’s complaining about.
“You’re getting India for free. You should pay us,” he jokes. The lady
becomes charmed by Maharaja’s smile and his sweet way of
responding. Her anger is checked, at least until the next encounter with
devotees.
When she returns to her home, Badrinarayan shakes his head and
extends a warm welcome to the Radha-Damodara party.
At evening, the conch blows for Radha-Damodara’s sandhyā-ārati. The

kirtan starts and soon the bus is rocking. The temple bhaktas run into the
house to inform Badrinarayan, “Come out and look at the dancing bus.”
The bus is actually rocking back and forth as the Radha-Damodara men
dance from side to side, forwards and back, to the ever-increasing tempo
of the kirtan. The Ann Arbor devotees are in bliss simply watching the
bus that appears to be dancing.
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The young men from across the road also come over to further check
out the dancing bus. Although they live across from the temple they had
no prior interest. But now with the arrival of the Radha-Damodara party,
their interest is piqued. In an era where being unique is paramount, the
Hare Krishnas stand out as something worth exploring.
Sri Rama: I was working a night shift in a Michigan state hospital for
the criminally insane starting at 11:30pm until 6:30 in the morning. The
job was a cross between being a social worker and a prison guard. But I
was totally at the end of my material life. Krishna had closed it up in so
many ways. So for a few days I would go to the temple for the morning
program when I got off work.
The next day, Vishnujana Swami brings Radha-Damodara into the

house with a big kirtan and places them prominently in the temple room.
This will give everybody more room for the programs.
After the morning program, Badrinarayan brings the latest Sankirtan

Newsletter to the sannyāsīs.
During their stay in Ann Arbor, the sannyāsīs give class in tandem.
Together to the sannyāsīs. they do several verses for Bhagavatam class,
alternating verses. When Tamal Krishna speaks, Vishnujana dozes off.
Badrinarayan: I remember Tamal Krishna chastising Vishnujana that

you must set an example for the brahmacārīs. He had just come from
India and he was on this thing that everything in America was a
concoction. We didn’t know how to cook, and we were speculating
about everything. One time we cooked the Sunday feast and, by
Krishna’s grace, it was nice prasādam. But Tamal Krishna had
something to say about every preparation; this is too wet, this is too dry,
this is too... then he kind of smiled and said, “Actually, I don’t know
how to cook. But I’m an expert critic.”
Another aspect that Tamal Krishna is critical of is how Radha-

Damodara are dressed. Ramacharya makes the outfits by sewing diverse
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fabrics together. He also does the backdrops and the mukuts. He’s very
sincere but his style is unique and different. All the same, Tamal
Krishna does not appreciate Ramacharya’s style. For him it looks too
gaudy. Nor does he like that Ramacharya is even doing this service. His
opinion is that it’s not bona fide. “We should get all the mukuts from
Vrindavan. This is bogus.” Goswami wants Radha-Damodara to look
more traditional, more like what he’s used to seeing in India.
Vishnujana points out that, “Anybody can go to a shop and buy mukuts.
Buying mukuts is not as devotional as taking the time and effort to make
them yourself with love and devotion. That’s bhakti!”
Ramacharya is hurt by this criticism and doesn’t appreciate the heavy

side of Tamal Krishna Goswami. The other brahmacārīs consider
Goswami’s attitude over the top.
Sri Galim: Vishnujana was feeling depressed. Sometimes he wouldn’t

come for certain portions of the morning program. Something was
definitely wrong and Tamal Krishna was really on his case.
Next door to the temple is a house with a large front lawn. Over the
weekend, the neighbor and his wife have worked very hard planting
marigolds for the coming spring. They have completed all their
walkways and borders. On Sunday night they are so happy to see their
beautiful garden after spending the entire weekend planting.
Before maṅgala-ārati on Monday morning, Ramacharya takes Srikhar

out to get flowers for the daily pūjā. The first ones they spy are the
marigolds. Ramacharya considers them perfect for Radha-Damodara.
Being in a hurry, he doesn’t just break off the flower head, but pulls out
the entire plant, whish, whish, whish, and throws them all in a bag.
Srikhar follows suit. In a few minutes they have stripped the entire
garden.
Badrinarayan is out chanting japa after sunrise when he notices the

neighbor standing in his yard holding a cup of coffee. Scratching his
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head, he’s trying to figure out what happened to all his flowers. He is
questioning out loud. “Moles? Giant snails? Aliens from Mars?” He’s
trying to figure out, who would completely take every plant? He looks
around and sees Badrinarayan. “They’re all gone!”
Badrinarayan: If you were a karmi, you would think that there was no
answer. Because who would do that? I knew, but I sure wasn’t going to
tell him. What are you going to explain to the guy? And it wasn’t so
much the loss of money, but the man and his wife had worked so hard.
Ramacharya was a fantastic guy. He had a mixed nature, but he used to

work really hard for those Deities.
Badrinarayan is very happy in the association of the sannyāsīs. From

Tamal Krishna Goswami he gets nectar from India; how the mission is
progressing there, and some blissful pastimes concerning Srila
Prabhupada. From Vishnujana Swami he gets sage advice. Maharaja
explains how precarious life can be. He could never imagine what his
life would have been like had he not taken sannyāsa.
Vishnujana always goes out with Radha-Damodara every day to preach,

whatever the situation. The temple devotees follow the bus in their car.
Sri Rama also comes in his car to help set up the equipment. He’s
visiting the temple daily and wants to go out to chant on campus. When
the bus parks beside a sprawling lawn that separates the university from
the town’s commercial area, Badrinarayan suggests they set up the
festival program in another area called the Diag.
“A friendly law student gave us a tip,” he explains. “He told us that

there’s a certain portion of this property, the Diag, which both the city
and the state claim. To determine who owns that property involves
many ramifications having to do with all sorts of tax laws. So this has
never been decided. We used to chant at this particular area and the city
would come to harass us. So we’d say, ‘Oh, no, it’s state property.’
When the state would come, then we’d say, ‘Oh, no, it’s city property.’
So for two years no one harassed us as long as we stayed in that little
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area, because it was like a no man’s land.”
The sannyāsīs accept his suggestion and shift to the Diag. The temple
devotees watch in admiration as the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs open
up the bays of the bus and unload all their festival equipment including
the Matchless Gifts booth. When a few students stop by out of curiosity,
they are quickly engaged to help set up the festival site.
Most of the student body is gone for the summer. Only a few curious
townspeople and some fascinated summer students come to hear the
devotees chant. Though the attendance is small, nonetheless devotees
absorb themselves in the ecstasy of sankirtan, thankful to serve Radha-
Damodara. They accept whatever comes as simply Their mercy.
Naturally, they would prefer as large an audience as they had at the state
fair, but that is not within their control.
The test of their sincerity is that they remain steady in their service,
certain that Radha-Damodara will reciprocate.
Later in the day a student who knows Sri Rama comes up to talk to him
since he is apparently associating with the Hare Krishnas. Before she
leaves, she gives him a goodbye kiss. Tamal Krishna Goswami notices
the kiss. It doesn’t sit well with him. Vishnujana says, “This is
America.”
The next morning Sri Rama is at the temple again for the Bhagavatam
class.
Vishnujana is always trying to encourage him, “Why don’t you join us

for awhile? Why don’t you come along?” But in spite of the fact that he
has no real reason to resist, something is holding Sri Rama back. He
can’t opt out instantly because he still has many attachments.
Breakfast prasādam is all-you-can-eat halavā and sweet rice. As they

eat, Tamal Krishna suddenly turns to Vishnujana and remarks quite
loudly, “You know, Maharaja, I think we better get out of town.”
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“Oh, really? Why do you think so?”
“Because everybody in this town is attached to women.” Then Goswami

does a strange thing. He looks right into the eyes of Sri Rama and says,
“And I can’t stand people who are attached to women.” He quickly
looks away and continues eating. Sri Rama is astonished.
A few minutes later, Tamal Krishna looks at him again and says, “And
you, just get out of the temple. Get out of here and don’t ever come
back.” Sri Rama is in a state of shock. He can’t comprehend Tamal
Krishna’s motivation.
Sri Rama: How could I understand such a statement? I hadn’t done

anything grossly offensive, or anything that I could think of to deserve
such a reaction. Even though I made some unintentional breaches of
etiquette, I was always respectful. It was outrageous, yet it had a strange
psychological effect on me.
All the devotees honoring prasādam are intrigued by this sudden

suspense in the morning program. What will happen next? Badrinarayan
is particularly interested in this unexpected turn of events. As temple
president he has never spoken harshly to potential bhaktas. He’s aware
that Goswami has a certain shakti and his whole mood is simply to
make devotees. So this startling encounter is particularly captivating.
Sri Rama is ready for a spiritual awakening because he’s at the bottom
of his material life. Perhaps Tamal Krishna can understand his mentality
by reading his face, because he quickly adds, “If I can convince you that
the philosophy of Bhagavad-gita is right, will you come and join us for a
few weeks?”
TKG: I put my foot down and handed him an ultimatum. “Stay in Ann
Arbor and waste your life or take to Krishna consciousness and return
back to Godhead.” Vishnujana’s soft, charismatic approach had
attracted his heart, but my strong, uncompromising words were
necessary to push him to the final point of surrender.
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The young man finds it difficult to make a firm decision to join the
party. He has good intelligence and fine sentiments, but the after-effects
of intoxication have left him in an emotional state. At the moment,
however, he is curious to see the outcome of this confrontation. “Well,
if you can do that, I’ll come with you for a couple of months. Because,
either way I’ll have to quit my job. So, why not for a few months?”
Sri Rama: I couldn’t figure out what was going on because I didn’t
understand any philosophy. But it flashed through my mind that soon
these people are leaving and maybe I’ll never see them again. Maybe
I’m missing an opportunity that I shouldn’t be missing. I liked them as
people because they practiced what they preached.
After a short discussion, Goswami prevails. Sri Rama decides to give it

a try and join the bus party. He’s given 24 hours to straighten up his
material affairs. He has an apartment that he shares with a friend, and a
car that he owes money on. He has various possessions and there are
people who owe him money. Now he has to wind everything up and
leave town. Tamal Krishna tells Gauridas Pandit to accompany Sri
Rama and help him unload all his stuff. Vishnujana suggests something
about devotional clothing, a dhoti and a kurtā. Tamal Krishna adds, “But
first he has to cut his hair, otherwise he can’t wear a dhoti.”
Sri Rama: I figured that they wanted me to cut my hair like your average
1974 person – who we were all rebelling against – and that was a
repulsive thought. So instead, it seemed easier to just shave up
completely. If you’re not going to take the radical position one way,
take it another way. Gauridas Pandit shaved me up and showed me how
to put on a dhoti.
Badrinarayan: One time Tamal Krishna said to me, “Vishnujana weaves

the web, and I’m the spider that captures them.” And he could pick
them. I remember he would just watch people sit down, and he’d say,
“This guy’s into this...” He would look at their faces and he had a whole
idea about their history. It was mystical. He’d say, “That man’s like
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this...” then later on we would sit down and preach, and it would come
out, that he had pegged his attachment. I was impressed. He was an
amazing personality.
While Sri Rama is getting shaved, Tamal Krishna has doubts about him.
He privately asks Vishnujana about his joining. “This boy can never
become a devotee. Why don’t we just leave him here?”
“No, give him a chance,” Vishnujana replies. “Maybe, somehow or

other, he’ll make it.” But Tamal Krishna has his doubts. When Sri Rama
finally presents himself in front of the sannyāsīs, they identify one
remaining problem – the gold earring in his left ear. Tamal Krishna,
especially, is not pleased.
“You’ve got to get rid of it.”
“Well, come on!” Sri Rama stands his ground. “Look at that poster of
Krishna and Arjuna. They both have earrings, so what’s the problem?”
Tamal Krishna points out, rather bluntly, “You’re not Krishna and
you’re not Arjuna.” So that’s the end of the earring. Although he was
living just across the street, Sri Rama never had any prior interest to join
the temple devotees. Now he has become a Hare Krishna virtually
overnight. He’s a cool, cerebral personality, with an impersonalist
brahman type of mentality that Badrinarayan could never penetrate.
Badrinarayan: I remember that we couldn’t crack him. He would come

over sometimes and play the tamboura we had. He looked like some
kind of yogi. But Tamal Krishna challenged him: “If you can defeat me,
fine, then I’ll accept what you’re saying, and if I defeat you, and if
you’re honest, you should join us.” Ultimately, Tamal Krishna won out,
and he joined. I was impressed.
Sri Rama: It wasn’t a deep philosophical conversion. I was just going

along with the devotees. I had seen the Deities at the Festival and they
had set Radha-Damodara in the largest room of the house where they
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did the temple programs, but I had no idea what was going on. They
said, “This is Krishna,” and it was a genuinely long time before I
realized that Krishna was the same person I used to pray to when I was a
child. It was even longer before I asked who the girl was standing next
to Krishna on the altar. It was more the overall spiritual quality of the
experience that attracted me. Vishnujana Swami was certainly
charismatic, and a lot of people became fascinated by him, but it was his
kindness and compassion that had an effect on me.
Another Ann Arbor resident has also been associating with the devotees.
Richard, a good-natured follower of Jesus, was initially attracted by the
outdoor festival. Gradually he begins to realize that the Hare Krishna
devotional lifestyle parallels the life of Jesus Christ. But in his own
experience he has never seen this put into practice like the devotees. He
can understand that accepting the devotee’s renounced lifestyle is a test
of his conviction to the spiritual path that the Bible portrays of Lord
Jesus.
To join the Hare Krishnas, Richard has to abandon his present lifestyle
and possessions. Relinquishing his many attachments is not an easy
task. He finally settles on a few sets of clothing and a glass-encased
collection of Brazilian butterflies – a family heirloom for generations.
Goswami looks critically at the butterfly collection.
“If you want me to come, I have to take the butterflies,” the young man
asserts.
“They have sentimental value so I just can’t junk them.”
“Never mind,” Tamal Krishna responds, “Radha-Damodara accepts

everyone. I’ll put your South American insects deep into the bus bay so
they’ll be protected.” With two new souls onboard, the Radha-
Damodara bus is ready to leave town.
It’s difficult for new bhaktas to follow sādhana without a regulated

schedule. The association of opulent prasādam and advanced sannyāsīs
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reduces the inconvenience. Still, living on a crowded bus trying to
surrender to Radha-Damodara is not the life for everyone. Therefore,
three men bail out in Ann Arbor – the two Chicago musician friends of
Srikhar, and the percussionist Lokanath. The net result is extra space on
the bus. Of course, devotees understand that all results are arranged by
Radha-Damodara.
Lokanath: Tamal Krishna Maharaja would say, “How can you guys just
sit and play music all day long?” He was a preacher, whereas we would
do kirtan all day. Wherever we went I just played. When we came to
Ann Arbor, I jumped ship and stayed at the temple with Badrinarayan.
Badrinarayan: Tamal Krishna once said, “I’m going nuts, living with
these guys.” It was a definite austerity with them all packed on that bus.
When they left I figured if he could shake them off the tree and reel
them in, that was just desserts. In those days we were making a lot of
devotees, so there was plenty to go around.
After one week in the temple, Sri Sri Radha-Damodara are back on
Their bus. At 10:00am, Vipra Das tries to fire up the engine. Nothing
happens. He has already discovered that driving Radha-Damodara’s bus
is unlike driving any other vehicle on planet earth. Now he gets another
lesson on this subject.
Vipra Das: All of a sudden, nothing would work right. I couldn’t shift
gears. The clutch wouldn’t disengage, the gears wouldn’t engage, and
the thing was just at a standstill. I couldn’t get in gear so I couldn’t get it
to move. I was practically going insane because I understood machines
and this didn’t make any sense. So I got out of the driver’s seat and
Vishnujana Swami got in. He fired the thing up and took off. He was
flying like the wind, never missing a shift. Everything worked to
perfection. I sat there feeling totally mind-blown. I was the big Ferrari
driver and I couldn’t make a Greyhound bus move. Yet a devotee just
jumped in the seat and took off.
Lord Damodara was a prankster. There was always weird stuff going
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on.
Once the bus is out on the highway, Vipra switches places with
Vishnujana Swami on the fly. The bus is heading East, and slightly
South, towards Pittsburgh. Their destination is New Vrindavan to attend
the Janmastami celebration.
On the road to New Vrindavan the new recruits spend most of their time
looking out the windows and trying to listen to a tape of Srila
Prabhupada, but not being able to understand a word. For them the most
prominent feature of the trip is prasādam time. By evening Sri Rama is
dying of starvation. Sadananda has made some cauliflower sabji which
is first offered to Radha-Damodara, then there is kirtan during the ārati.
The wait is taxing Sri Rama. Finally the curtains close.
As the junior-most member of the party, Sri Rama is asked to serve

prasādam. He has never had properly prepared cauliflower in his life, so
he’s not interested in the sabji even though he is famished. He serves
everyone out of the pot, and Vishnujana keeps asking him, “Are you
saving enough for yourself? Do you have enough?”
Because he has no interest in cauliflower, Sri Rama falsely says, “Yeah,

no problem.”
He serves out everything but a tiny portion. When he is all done, he is

ready to eat. Suddenly he has the deepest regrets over his generosity in
serving.
Sri Rama: I never realized what vegetarian food would taste like after it
was cooked and offered to Krishna. Of course, I never made that
mistake again. Prasādam became a very important part of my life. I was
underweight when I joined the Movement, and actually malnourished
due to not eating enough for a long time. I remember one morning
asking Tamal Krishna if I could eat everyone’s watermelon rinds, and I
proceeded to demolish a whole bucket of them. For months, I was
always hungry. Even if I ate three or four plates of prasādam I was
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always unfathomably hungry.
Philosophically, I didn’t understand who Radha-Damodara were, and

for some reason, it didn’t matter to me. I could understand that it wasn’t
possible to zero everything out under normal circumstances, and that
Krishna, whoever He was, had arranged this balancing act in 24 hours.
So that was the way of my appreciation – feeling how the Deity was
taking charge of my life. I just followed the program and worshipped
Them, and I figured everything would come in the course of time. Of
course, the Deities quickly became a major element in one’s life because
of the way the festivals were organized.

Living in India in the ‘70s is very difficult because there are no modern
facilities for western devotees. They all struggle to survive, and they all
get sick. The illnesses are usually jaundice, malaria, dysentery, and
rashes over the body. On top of the physical discomfort of building
temples for Srila Prabhupada and having to sleep in very austere
conditions, devotees are too focused on their own survival to be
gracious and understanding in their interpersonal relationships. They are
under tremendous strain and hardly anyone reveals their minds in
confidence. They never tell each other, “I’ve got a problem.”
Yamuna is dealing with the oppressive Vrindavan summer heat while

trying to meet a deadline to open the Krishna-Balarama temple. She's
feeling overwhelming pressure. She used to think that there’s no reason
to live if I can’t serve Krishna, but now she thinking there’s no reason to
live even if I can serve Krishna! She tries to confide in her husband,
Gurudas, about her crisis and he is able to enliven her and save her from
complete depression. But then he goes to Prabhupada to disclose the
situation.
Srila Prabhupada immediately says, “I want to see her.”
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Yamuna dd: I remember walking from our place in Raman Reti to the
temple and chanting one round of Hare Krishna. When I walked in the
door Prabhupada said, “You look so beautiful chanting Hare Krishna.”
That just stunned me. Immediately he said, “Do you think it is not
difficult for me?” I didn’t say anything.
“Do you hear that noise on the roof?” Of course I did. I was involved in
Vrindavan’s construction from the beginning. There were 25 brick
masons carving stone – chink chink chink, chink chink chink – 24 hours
a day. There were 25 of them on his roof.
“The offenses of my disciples are as loud as this pounding on the roof.

All day long it is pounding on my head.” Those were his words.
“All day long it is pounding on my head, but I must tolerate.”
After a moment’s pause, Prabhupada says, “Suicide is not an option.”

Yamuna is shocked to hear Prabhupada address this subject. “No one
has the right to take their life. Do you know why?”
“No,” she responds meekly.
“Because there are so many living entities inside of us who are

dependent on us, and for our Krishna consciousness. We would be
killing them as well.” This statement completely blows Yamuna’s mind.
She takes it that many micro-organisms, little cells, and all kinds of
things, are dependent on the heart’s functioning. The words sink deep
into her consciousness.
The whole perspective of Prabhupada’s talk is really profound for

Yamuna. He explains that when we surrender to the Lord, it means
surrendering our body, mind, and words for His service. Some people
may think of suicide as an option to relieve undue stress, but
Prabhupada wants to prevent this kind of thinking. He knows how
traumatic it is for his young disciples to cope with the hardships of rural
India in the early ‘70s. His compassion for his disciples and for other
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living entities is paramount.
Yamuna dd: It was a difficult time in India. Prabhupada said to

Saurabha and Gurudas, “Don’t you know your fighting is killing me?”
We were doing Prabhupada’s work, but the fighting between us was so
severe and that’s why the temple didn’t open. We were stopping
Prabhupada’s service by this insanity that was covering us at the time.
That was the mood and that’s why I couldn’t take it anymore. I wasn’t a
man and I was supposed to take it. At a certain point I snapped. I saw
the futility of it in its entirety, and I thought, Maybe it’s better to die.
There’s nothing else but the service, and if you can’t do the service, why
live?
Gurudas: It’s very important for devotees to find someone to reveal their
mind to if they have something to talk about. There’s usually only one
or two special devotees that you feel comfortable with that you’re able
to do that with. But it got less and less as we got people more and more
into judging behavior.
In the lives of the acharyas, even pure devotees sometimes feel that life
is no longer worth living.
“After the passing away of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Svarupa

Damodara, Raghunatha Das, unable to bear the pain of separation from
these objects of his complete devotion, traveled to Vrindavan intending
to commit suicide by jumping from Govardhana Hill. In Vrindavan,
however, he encountered Srila Rupa Goswami and Srila Sanatana
Goswami, two of the most confidential disciples of Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu. They convinced him to give up his planned suicide and

impelled him to reveal to them the spiritually inspiring events of Sri
Chaitanya’s later life.” [CC, Madhya-lila 6.169, purport]
In this example, Ragunatha Das is given a reason for living. Moreover,

Krishnadas Kaviraja Goswami was also living in Vrindavan at the time
and Raghunatha Das spent a lot of time providing him with a complete
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conception of the transcendental life of Sriman Mahaprabhu. By
rendering further service to his beloved Lord, all of Raghunatha’s
reasons for giving up his life vanished.
In another incident, Srila Sanatana Goswami developed a disease due to

bathing in bad water and getting insufficient food while traveling in the
Jharikhanda Forest. His body began to itch and he was suffering from
itching sores. So he resolved to throw himself under the wheels of Lord
Jagannath’s chariot in the presence of Lord Chaitanya, and in this way
commit suicide. But one day out of the blue, Sri Chaitanya challenged
Sanatana Goswami.
“Your decision to commit suicide is the result of the mode of ignorance.

One cannot get love of God simply by committing suicide. You have
already dedicated your life and body to My service; therefore your body
does not belong to you, nor do you have any right to commit suicide. I
have to execute many devotional services through your body. I want you
to preach the culture of devotional service and go to Vrindavan to
excavate the lost holy places.” [CC, Antya-lila, Chapter 4, Introduction]
From this example we can understand that when we surrender our lives
to the Supreme Lord, then the body can no longer be used erratically. It
belongs to the Lord and the Lord has every intention to use our body for
spreading His mission on earth.
San Francisco, August 1974

The temple is now back to normal after Ratha-yatra. Although
Jayananda is “Mister Jagannath Festival” he has never been to India.
One day he walks into the temple president’s office with a twinkle in his
eye.
“Bhakta Das, I have a present for you.” “What is it Jayananda Prabhu?”
Jayananda hands him an envelope. Tearing it open, Bhakta Das pulls out
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a substantial check, in the neighborhood of $35,000, payable to James
Kohr. The money has been sent by an aunt.
“What do you want?” Bhakta Das can see that it’s a substantial amount
of money. “Nothing. It’s for the temple.”
“Jayananda,” Bhakta Das sighs, “I think you should go to India. You’ve

never been to India.”
“I have lots of service here in San Francisco.” Jayananda doesn’t really

want to go. He is not at all excited about the prospect. But Bhakta Das
insists.
Within a week, they are both on a plane to India. They plan to visit
Jagannath Puri because Jayananda wants to study the construction of the
Ratha-yatra chariots and to become more familiar with the atmosphere
of Puri. Keshava Bharati takes over as interim president until their
return.
The plane lands at Calcutta International Airport and the American

Vaishnavas spend a night at the Calcutta temple. Next evening they take
the train directly to Puri.
Jagannath Puri, Orissa, August 1974

The Jagannath Express arrives in Puri at sunrise. Jayananda and Bhakta
Das catch a rickshaw into town. The chariots are still sitting in front of
the Temple, although the Ratha-yatra festival has already past. They are
overwhelmed with the feeling that they have come home. Both are in
tears. They take a room 200 meters from the Temple, because
Jayananda wants to look out the window and see the chariots.
Jayananda is so happy to simply spend time around the chariots. He is

constantly taking notes on their construction and meditating on them.
They stay for five days and visit the holy places of Mahaprabhu’s
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pastimes like Tota Gopinath, Gundica, Siddha Bakul, and Haridas
Thakur’s Samadhi. At Siddha Bakul, Jayananda pulls out his kartāls and
starts a kirtan. Several onlookers stop to watch the Americans do kirtan
around Tulasi Devi in front of the siddha bakula tree.
Bhakta Das: We must have circumambulated the tulasi plant for two
hours just dancing and singing Hare Krishna. We felt like little boys in a
toy store. On the plane to Calcutta and on the train to Puri, Jayananda
didn’t sleep much. He was always absorbed in KRSNA Book. He had
such a taste for KRSNA Book. He was always grabbing me and saying,
“Oh, Bhakta. It’s so wonderful. Listen to this.” He was so enthusiastic
about KRSNA Book. I was tired-out after the plane ride and tried to get
some sleep, but he was so enlivened by Krishna’s pastimes. I hadn’t met
anyone who demonstrated such a taste for that as Jayananda.
Jagannath Puri is an ancient tīrtha mentioned in the Vedas. Chapter 42

of Skanda Purana 2.2 describes a festival called Sri Krishna Pusya
Abhiseka.
There’s an elaborate description of the rituals for observing this festival

for Lord Jagannath. Moreover, in Chapter 27 of Skanda Purana 2.2, the
puṣyā-nakṣatra is mentioned specifically. Text 99 states that Lord
Jagannath was originally installed in the Puri temple on a Thursday,
aṣṭamī tithi, during śukla-pakṣa of the month of Vaishakha in
conjunction with the constellation puṣyā-nakṣatra. It’s written in Hari
Bhakti Vilasa that on this day of aṣṭamī tithi one should rub ghee on the
Deity of Krishna. Puṣyā means nourishing and ghee is also nourishing.
The month pauṣa, which is December/January, comes from the word

puṣyā which is the constellation after which the month is named. In
Srimad-Bhagavatam, 2.10.4, we find poṣaṇaṁ tad-anugrahaḥ, which
Prabhupada translates as “maintenance by His causeless mercy.” In Puri
every pilgrim feels blessed by the causeless mercy of Lord Jagannath,
and the two American Vaishnavas are no exception.
After an ecstatic time visiting the holy places of Mahaprabhu’s pastimes
709
in Puri, the pair decide to journey to Mayapur. There are very few
devotees residing at Mayapur when Jayananda and Bhakta Das arrive by
taxi one morning. Jayapataka Swami and Bhavananda Goswami, the
two leaders of the Mayapur Project, give them a warm welcome and
provide a large room. Then they bring them down to the temple room
for darshan of Radha-Madhava and Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, The
temple Deities.
After darshan the sannyāsīs invite the visiting Vaishnavas for lunch “to
taste the best prasādam in the movement cooked by Bengali mātājīs who
learned the art of cooking for the Deities from their grandmothers!” But
first the newcomers want to do tīrtha parikramā to the yoga-pīṭha – Lord
Chaitanya’s holy birth site. Again, they are filled with wonder at this
most sacred spot as they offer obeisances to the blessed Neem tree under
which Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared. He was named
Visvambhara, but Sita Thakurani, the wife of Advaita Acharya,
suggested the name Nimai, which stuck.
When Jayananda and Bhakta Das return to the Mayapur Chandrodaya

Mandir, they are escorted to the first floor balcony behind the kitchen of
the Lotus building, the only building on the property. Already seated
and ready to take prasāda are Jayapataka Swami and Bhavananda
Goswami, along with Jananivasa, Satadhanya, and Puskara. Jayananda
and Bhakta Das are the guests of honor but when the Bengali
brahmacārīs bring the pots to begin serving, Jayananda gets up to serve,
as is his habit.
Jayapataka requests him to remain seated and be served. The system in

Mayapur, he explains, is that the senior devotees are served by the
junior devotees. This is the culture of Bengal, that guests are treated
with the utmost respect; atithi sevā.
Jayananda is taken aback by this explanation. For a moment he’s not

sure what to do. Back in San Francisco he always served the devotees.
He is not accustomed to accepting service from Vaishnavas. Finally he
710
says, “You want me to just sit and be served?”
“Yes, you’re our guest.”
“Uhh...I can’t do that.” Although embarrassed, he proceeds to help the

brahmacārīs serve prasādam. At last he sits down to take prasāda after
everyone else is satisfied. As he honors the holy remnants he says,
“Truly this is the best prasādam I have ever tasted,” to the delight of all
present.
Following a short afternoon nap, several godbrothers escort Jayananda

and Bhakta Das to the Ganga. After a refreshing swim in the sacred
river, everybody walks slowly back to the ISKCON compound. As they
pass the different places of Lord Chaitanya’s pastimes, Jayapataka
explains the līlās in great detail.
Jayapataka Maharaja initially joined the San Francisco temple after

Jayananda engaged him to help build the Ratha-yatra carts. He asks
Jayananda about this year’s Ratha-yatra. Jayananda becomes animated
and excited to tell the story.
“Well, when Bhakta Das came to San Francisco to be temple president,

he decided to expand Ratha-yatra. He spent more money on it than
before, and maybe twenty thousand people attended. The police
remarked that we were the only group that could get such a large
gathering together without creating a problem for them. Srila
Prabhupada came and gave a speech at the Meadow. He was sitting
beneath the Jagannath Deities on Their opulent 3-tiered stage. Even
without much understanding everyone could appreciate that here was a
majestic, awe-inspiring celebration.
“Another wonderful thing we started this year was the fairground-type

booths at the Meadow. You could see the unlimited scope of the Vedic
culture. We had a Deity workshop booth, a transcendental art booth, a
literature booth, and of course many booths selling prasāda.” [Since
1974, these elements are now regular features of Ratha-yatra
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worldwide]
The next day after the morning program, Jayananda and Bhakta Das are
ready to return to Calcutta. Puskara sees them leaving with suitcases in
hand. He asks Jayananda why he’s not staying longer.
“I have no service here. My service is back in San Francisco.”
From Calcutta, Jayananda and Bhakta Das fly to Bombay. Arriving at

Hare Krishna Land in Juhu, they find that the project is entirely under
construction. ISKCON India is not yet developed for guests, and the
living conditions are super austere. The brahmacārī facility is crowded,
so they prefer to sleep outside. However, it’s just after monsoon season
and there are millions of bugs everywhere. They are eaten alive by
mosquitoes. Since there is no service for them to do, they are ready to
leave as soon as possible. Both of them are used to working and they
don’t like hanging out.
Bhakta Das is told there will be a Grand Opening for the new Krishna-
Balarama temple on Janmastami day. Excited by this news, he buys
tickets for the overnight train to Mathura to be in Vrindavan for this
special event. When they finally reach Vrindavan it’s already evening.
They try to get a rickshaw to Raman Reti but no one will take them
there because it’s too far. Finally, by overpaying, they hire a rickshaw.
They are amazed how desolate it is on the way to the temple, and so far
from Vrindavan town. They wonder if people will come all this way to
visit Prabhupada’s new temple.
When they finally arrive, all they see is a construction site with piles of
bricks and bags of cement everywhere. The temple is far from ready.
There’s not a soul around and they have no idea where to sleep. They
can’t find anybody to tell them where to spend the night, so they just lay
out their sleeping bags and take rest in a storage shed used for storing
cement, tools, and other things.
The next day they meet the devotees who are dedicated to the project.
712
Gurudas and Yamuna are warm and helpful. They joined ISKCON in
1967, the same time as Jayananda. As Yamuna arranges prasādam,
Gurudas sits down to relate the story of the temple project.
“I first learned of Prabhupada’s plan for a “heaven on earth” in

Vrindavan in May 1970. I was in Delhi when he wrote me to explain his
plan. He asked me to investigate a report that the king of Bharatpur
wanted to give us one of his Vrindavan palaces.
“At our first meeting and later on, the king made various offers, but it
became clear to us that he was more interested in getting money than in
giving charity. When Prabhupada realized that no palace was available,
he turned his attention to construction. The first step was to acquire
good land. A resident couple, Mr. and Mrs. Saraf, were associating with
our devotees and liked them very much. So they offered us an acre they
had here in Raman Reti. Prabhupada liked the land and accepted the
donation even though it was about five kilometers from the center of
town.
“In June of ‘72, Prabhupada wrote that we must have our own well. The
Vrindavan municipal pipeline didn’t reach the Raman Reti area, so a
well was necessary for construction. I brought in a water expert to
ascertain how to get sweet water because in this area there was only
salty water.”
“How’s that?” asks Jayananda.
“Because the ground was full of minerals. We wanted sweet water

because we couldn’t drink or cook with that salty water. By Krishna’s
grace, they dug a well that yielded pure, sweet water. Everyone in
Vrindavan was amazed. That’s when public opinion became very
positive because everybody believed that Krishna was really blessing
the project.
“In July ‘72, Prabhupada wrote me and said that finding sweet water
was very good news. He said that in Vrindavan, sweet water is good for
713
digestion. So by drinking that water we could stay healthy. Then he
said, ‘As far as the name of the temple is concerned, you can call our
place the Krishna-Balarama Temple.’
“That was the first mention of a Krishna-Balarama temple. Raman Reti

was the area where Krishna and Balarama played as cowherd boys with
Their friends, so everyone was ecstatic. Ours would be the only such
temple in all of Vrindavan.”
“Cool,” says Bhakta Das. Jayananda agrees with a smile.
“So now we had a well, but no design for a temple. Let me introduce
you to Saurabha Prabhu.”
Gurudas calls Saurabha over and introduces him to Jayananda and

Bhakta Das as a devotee architect from Holland. Saurabha sits down as
Gurudas continues his tale.
“We had a couple of Indian architects submit plans, but Srila

Prabhupada and all the devotees much preferred Saurabha’s design. He
included four Deity workrooms beneath the altar, one each for sewing,
for storing decorations, storing large items such as swings, thrones, and
hanging backdrops, and one room for the Deities’ jewelry to be kept in a
safe. He knew how to arrange things for the service of the Deities which
no ordinary architect could ever have understood.
“Unfortunately,” Gurudas continues, “several factors delayed our

progress. First, was a lack of money. The project funds came from life
membership collections in other ISKCON centers. Devotees would visit
businessmen daily to ask them to become ISKCON life members, but
progress came slowly.
“Then, Prabhupada asked Gurukripa and Yasodanandana Swamis to

take charge of the collections. Second, building materials were hard to
acquire. Rather than give preference to religious groups, government
policy favored the army and movie theaters.
714
“I used to go to Delhi regularly to talk with officials who controlled
allotments of cement. I’d go to their homes early in the morning –
sometimes while they were still in their pajamas so they couldn’t escape
– and impress upon them the need for a center of Krishna consciousness
in Vrindavan. This approach finally struck a sympathetic note, and they
began to sanction the amounts of cement and steel we needed. But still
we experienced shortages. We could only get little bits and pieces here
and there, because we didn’t have much money and the government
only gave us small amounts at a time.
“But Krishna arranged for miraculous things to happen, and we always

got supplies of steel and cement even when there were extreme
shortages. In this way, devotees here learned to recognize Krishna’s
control over the project. Srila Prabhupada kept writing to tell us to
develop the Vrindavan temple with full enthusiasm and not to be
discouraged by the temporary setbacks. We should always work in the
spirit of being completely dependent on Krishna.
“Since we were building His temple in His holy dhāma, we understood

every setback was a test of our love to make the temple as beautiful as
possible.”
“This is the understanding we should all have,” Jayananda interjects and

the others nod in approval.
“Over the next two years, the structure went up gradually because the
entire temple was built by hand. The only machine we had was a small
cement mixer. All the ornamental work – the peacocks, the elephants,
the scrolls – was done by skilled masons who cut marble and sandstone
by hand. Nothing prefabricated was used. For scaffolding we tied
bamboo together with twine.”
“What about the Deities?” is Jayananda’s next question. Everyone leans

forward to hear an update.
“Well, after the plans for the triple altars were finalized, Baradraja went
715
to Jaipur to arrange for the carving of the Deities. He stayed there a long
time to oversee the work. He was especially concerned that the mūrti of
Srila Prabhupada be an exact likeness.
“Other devotees traveled all over India to buy Deity paraphernalia like
marble plates, silver staffs, 6-foot brass lamps, silk clothing, special
types of jewelry, etc. Finally, Srila Prabhupada wanted a gorgeous
festival for the grand opening, but that’s been postponed now until after
Gaura Purnima ‘75.”
Gurudas suggests that Jayananda and Bhakta Das do a tour of Radha-

Damodara Mandir and then return to the Institute of Oriental Philosophy
where everyone takes shelter for the time being.
After a glorious day in Vrindavan, Jayananda and Bhakta Das spend an

uncomfortable night due to the heat and the bugs. Now that the grand
opening has been cancelled what should they do?
Other devotees have come for the “grand opening.” Gargamuni is here
from Calcutta and Dhananjaya is also here along with Manibandha,
Dinanath, and Govardhan. Someone suggests they go up north to
Rishikesh where it won’t be so hot and the air will be cooler. “It will be
a lot more comfortable up there.” Jayananda and Bhakta Das at once
agree.
They are able to book an overnight sleeper in New Delhi and squeeze
onto a crowded train to Haridwar. From there they take a taxi up to
Rishikesh. They find a warm welcome and are given wonderful rooms
overlooking the Ganga at the Shivananda Ashram. The first thing on
their minds is to take bath.
Diving off the rocks into the holy Ganga, the devotees float downstream
with the current. Then they return and do it over and over again. After
diving in twice, Jayananda prefers to sit in the shade for the rest of the
day reading KRSNA Book while the others frolic in the sun. Jayananda
is the senior man and already 35 years of age. He is more mature. The
716
others are much younger and still rather rambunctious.
Seeing Jayananda sitting alone, many beggars approach him for money.
He has such a soft heart that he can’t refuse the beggars. It’s very
difficult for him not to give something. He gives a rupee to every person
who comes up to beg, so within a short time he has given away all his
money.
The group stays in Rishikesh for three days eating prasādam at the
Shivananda Ashram. At last, they decide to return to Vrindavan as
Janmastami is approaching. Srila Prabhupada is scheduled to arrive, and
they all hope to get the mercy of washing Prabhupada’s feet on his
Vyasa-pūjā day.
They return to Delhi via Haridwar where they catch the first available
bus. Bhakta Das is sitting right over the rear back wheels. Every time
the bus hits a bump, his head hits the roof. Moreover, he has sunstroke
from all the water sports at the Ganga in the hot sun. He develops a
burning headache.
Jayananda feels great because he didn’t try to enjoy in the Ganga like
the others. He makes an effort to get everyone on the bus into a kirtan.
He begins moving up and down the bus chanting and playing kartāls to
involve everybody in the kirtan. Gradually all the passengers get into the
swing of it and Jayananda leads the kirtan practically non-stop from
Haridwar to Delhi.
Everybody loves it, even Bhakta Das who just sits in the back of the bus
trying to get rid of his headache. Every time he sees lights on the
horizon, he thinks, now we can get off. But it’s not Delhi. To Bhakta
Das it seems like forever before they reach Delhi. He is still feeling
miserable when they finally arrive.
717
Just as practically every devotee on the West Coast goes to San
Francisco for Ratha- yatra, similarly almost every devotee on the East
Coast goes to New Vrindavan for Janmastami. This year it will be
celebrated on Sunday, August 11. The Radha- Damodara party will
arrive early, one day before the official beginning of the festival on
Friday. When the bus arrives Thursday afternoon it’s raining and quite
muddy. It has rained a lot during the week, and muddy in New
Vrindavan is like muddy nowhere else.
Arrangements for the expected guests is Spartan – accommodation,

bathing arrangements, everything. Situated up a winding road on the top
of a hill is a large pandal that the local devotees call ‘The Pavilion.’ A
rented circus tent is at the bottom of the hill. Both are intended to
provide shelter from the rain.
Hearing that the Radha-Damodara bus has arrived, Kuladri and

Kirtanananda Swami come to greet the sannyāsīs and bring them for
darshan. Tamal Krishna has the last remaining silver swing from India
and he offers it to the New Vrindavan presiding Deities, Sri Sri Radha-
Vrindavan Chandra.
Kirtanananda Maharaja explains that the temple is simply a temporary

residence for Their Lordships. Very soon, he promises, They will have
the most beautiful temple in the world. Prabhupada wants him to build 7
temples on 7 hills, and he suggests that one of the temples be for Sri Sri
Radha-Damodara. He traveled with Radha-Damodara in 1971, and
Radha-Damodara has visited New Vrindavan many times. They were
the presiding Deities for Srila Prabhupada’s Vyāsa-pūjā celebration in
1972. Kirtanananda is convinced that Radha-Damodara will be very
happy to live in New Vrindavan.
Vishnujana quickly changes the subject. His first thought is to determine

where he can prominently place Radha-Damodara so They can be
properly honored on Their appearance day. Kuladri takes him to a large
cow barn close to the temple in Bahulavan where many festival
718
activities will take place. Although the barn is unfinished, the upstairs
floor has been cleared to accommodate many visitors. It’s a huge, open
loft space that’s still under construction. There are some rooms along
the sides that have 2x4’s and a little plaster, but it’s mostly an open area.
This is one of the community’s first major buildings and will provide
shelter for the cows and the brahmacārīs. New Vrindavan is still very
basic and austere.
Seeing the large open space, Vishnujana Maharaja is inspired to hold the
festival in the upstairs floor of the barn. He wants to bring Radha-
Damodara in Their palanquin/altar to be the presiding Deities for the
event. “Because the temple room will be too small to accommodate all
the visiting devotees, the Janmastami festivities should take place here,”
he insists.
Kirtanananda Swami prefers to have Radha-Damodara on the altar in

Bahulavan with Radha-Vrindavan Chandra. But Vishnujana Maharaja
has such a strong desire to place Radha-Damodara in the barn that
Kirtanananda acquiesces to his proposal. He can see the benefit of
having a backup facility in case the main temple becomes overcrowded.
Radhanath is now initiated and the pūjārī at the older Vrindavan farm
where Prabhupada once stayed. He has brought Sri-Sri Radha-
Vrindavan Nath and the other Deities down to Bahulavan for the
festival. They are now on the altar with Radha-Vrindavan Chandra so it
makes sense to have Radha-Damodara in an alternate location.
The resident devotees are excited seeing that the Radha-Damodara bus
has arrived.
There are two things that really carry the New Vrindavan Vaishnavas.
The first is that Srila Prabhupada is coming. The excitement begins
months before Prabhupada’s arrival and everybody’s conversation is
about him. As the time of his arrival comes ever-closer the devotees’
excitement builds to a near frenzy.
719
The Janmastami celebration is the second event that carries the
community. Vishnujana’s name is synonymous with the festivals so
with just the mention of Janmastami is the hope that Maharaja will be
coming. Everybody gears up for this festival practically the entire year.
It’s a struggle simply to survive in New Vrindavan, so Kirtanananda
uses the various Vaishnava festivals to keep the devotees fired-up. In
one sense, Vishnujana Maharaja is almost like the light of New
Vrindavan, because the local devotees go for months without ever
seeing a visitor. This is especially true when the weather turns cold.
There are 40 devotees living a simple life in the middle of the woods,
but Vishnujana has been to New Vrindavan several times so he is like a
beacon. Devotees actually wait for his coming. Even to this day, one of
the favorite recordings in New Vrindavan is Vishnujana Swami’s
kirtans.
Advaita Acharya: Vishnujana Swami had a friendship with

Kirtanananda Swami so there was a bond there. The story in New
Vrindavan when I got here was that they were on a walk with
Vishnujana Maharaja around the grounds. Someone asked him what he
would do if Prabhupada were to leave the planet. He said, “I would
come to New Vrindavan and throw myself at Kirtanananda Swami’s
feet.” That, of course endeared him to all the devotees and they loved
him very much.
Later that day a car arrives from Toronto with two householder couples.
Seeing the huge bus, they become excited. They have heard about
Vishnujana Swami and his Radha-Damodara party, so they are thrilled
that he’s here. It’s early evening as they pitch their tent on a hilltop to
establish their place. Then Sashvata ventures back down to the bus. As
he passes the barn he notices some activity. He goes in to check it out
and finds several devotees setting up a stage for Radha-Damodara’s
arrival.
Hearing that Radha-Damodara will soon come to the barn, Sashvata
720
walks over to the bus. He sees a devotee coming out the door and
catches a glimpse of Vishnujana Swami inside. “Maharaja,” he says,
“do you need any help? Can I be of any service?” “Yes, stay right
there,” Maharaja replies as the bus door closes. Sashvata remains
standing by the bus for a long time. He wonders if he should continue
waiting or head over to the barn. He’s lost in thought, he told me to
stand here because there’d be some service. Finally the door swings
open again.
“Prabhu, come here,” Vishnujana says. Sashvata quickly enters the bus.
“All right,” Maharaja exclaims, “you’re taking the other end of this.” He
points to Radha- Damodara’s palanquin that has now been detached
from the altar. Sashvata looks at Radha-Damodara and is mesmerized.
Sashvata: They were so beautiful. Maharaja looked at me and said,

“Don’t slip.” I was paralyzed. We stepped down from the bus and
slowly walked towards the barn. I was so nervous because it was muddy
outside. I was at the front end of the palanquin carrying Radha-
Damodara up into the barn with Vishnujana Swami.
It was just the two of us and the palanquin was heavy, but mostly
awkward, because They were standing. By Krishna’s grace, I didn’t slip
and we got the Deities all the way up and set Them on the stage.
He was very kind to me, and serene. His movements were slow, his chin
was always held high, and he was very graceful. His movements, I
found anyway, were almost hypnotizing, because he was very swan-
like.
After offering obeisances upon Their Lordships arrival up in the barn,

Vishnujana’s men begin setting up their instruments. In the meantime
Sashvata’s friends, Trilokanath, Ratri, and Ksira-chor have now come
down from their hilltop setting. They are wandering around the grounds
looking for some service to render when one lady suggests, “Well, you
can probably decorate the barn.” They immediately head over to the
barn and ask the first brahmacārī they see, “Is there anything we can
721
do?”
The man replies, “Ask Vishnujana Swami, he’s in charge of

decorating.”
Khira-chor dd: We were new devotees so we were excited because he

was a legend already. We were enthusiastic to ask him because we had
heard that he had played with the Jefferson Airplane. We went running
up to him with teenage enthusiasm, “What can we do? How can we
help?” He was decorating the barn by himself. “Oh, wonderful!” he
said. “It’s Krishna’s mercy that He has sent devotees to help.”
We were hanging streamers, flags, and festoons, all that kind of

wonderful stuff. He was working like a brother with us – Vishnujana
Swami and two teenage bhaktins that had just joined – and we had so
much respect and love for him for doing that service together, although
we hardly knew him. He was so approachable and relatable.
Meanwhile, devotees are still arriving. For three years in a row the St.
Louis devotees have packed up their entire temple in two vans – Deities
and devotees – and driven to New Vrindavan. When they arrive in front
of the big barn at Bahulavan, it’s dark and raining. They park near the
Radha-Damodara bus and notice Vishnujana Swami. He’s trying to get
as many devotees as possible to start a kirtan since nothing else is going
on. He knows that new arrivals will come to the barn when they hear the
Holy Name.
Chaturatma: When we pulled up it was rainy and muddy, as it always

was for the New Vrindavan festivals. Right across from us we saw
Vishnujana Swami in a devotee’s van. It was wonderful to see him right
off. He told us that Radha-Damodara were already up in the barn on
Their altar, so we took our Deities, Nitai-Gaura Nataraja, to the top level
of the barn and placed Them beside Radha-Damodara on a makeshift
altar. The barn was unfinished with just basic interior walls dividing off
some rooms. The floor was totally unfinished.
722
The Cleveland devotees soon pull into the parking lot and jump out.
Only a pūjārī and a few mātājīs have been left back at their temple.
Soon the Montreal devotees arrive. Then a contingent of devotees from
Boston pull in and park. As more and more devotees turn up, they first
notice the Radha-Damodara bus and then hear the kirtan coming from
the barn. Vishnujana’s kirtan is in full swing at the top of the barn with
the St Louis devotees, the Toronto devotees, and the New Vrindavan
devotees joining his Vedic band at the South end of the hay loft, where
Radha-Damodara and Nitai- Gaura Nataraja are presiding.
Sashvata: I remember Vishnujana Maharaja starting kirtan and we were

really taken aback by his chanting. We had always been enthusiastic
about any kind of music, but he had a voice like an angel. We must have
sat for three or four hours and he chanted straight, non-stop. It was
really relishable. Finally we had to take rest because we were exhausted.
As we walked back up the hill, way up behind the temple and the barn,
we could hear the chanting. In our tent at the top of the hill, we could
still hear the chanting rolling over the hills.
The next morning, devotees have to come down the hill in the dark to
bathe in a cold stream. Walking down the hill devotees see tents
everywhere. There are people sleeping in the pavilion, on bales of hay,
on tabletops, or wherever they can find a spot. At the Bahulavan temple,
Radha-Vrindavan Chandra’s maṅgala-ārati is at 4:15. When that ārati is
over, many devotees hurry over to the barn for a second maṅgala- ārati
up in the loft with Radha-Damodara. It will be a double maṅgala-ārati
festival this year.
On Janmastami day, many guests volunteer to help with the cooking.

Some are asked to go into the forest to collect firewood, while others cut
the wood to keep the fires stoked. All the cooking is done on open fires
and the huge pots are all turning black. The mood is upbeat and blissful.
After the morning program at the temple, Vishnujana Maharaja walks

around the grounds meeting devotees from various temples and
723
encourages them in their service.
Tapa Punja: I was living in the brahmacārī ashram at the old Vrindavan
farm. My daily routine after the morning program was to come down to
Bahulavan, which was the beehive of activity.
The brahmacārīs were milking cows or cutting wood. I was doing the
gardens near the old barn when somebody said, “Haribol.”
I turned around to see Vishnujana Swami. I heard the lore about him,
and I heard his tapes. I was a new bhakta and very attracted to his
chanting, so I was sort of mesmerized. He said, “What are you doing?”
I told him, “I’m fixing this garden cart.” “How long have you been
here?”
“Just a couple of months. I’m doing my service in the gardens.” I felt

comfortable around him even with those simple questions. I didn’t feel
that he was pressuring me.
He was really radiant, such a wonderful person. I felt very attracted, like
I could follow him anywhere. Later I told some of the bhaktas about the
experience and they were also describing his glories. I remember his
constant chanting. He was constantly absorbed in kirtan-rasa.
Ghanashyam: [He later became Bhakti Tirtha Swami] I was a city boy
and the farm was a new experience. I had some sweet times with
Vishnujana Maharaja. I was wandering around kind of out of it,
wondering what was going on, when I saw him. It looked like he knew
that I needed a little support, a little encouragement. We talked a while
and I was so fascinated. He was very kind to me, very friendly. He saw I
was curious and interested. He was so loving and so fatherly. You can
describe Vishnujana Maharaja as simply an angelic personality. He had
an interesting mood toward the person in distress, the underdog.
I went on the bus for darshan of Radha-Damodara. Tamal Krishna
724
Goswami wanted Satsvarupa Maharaja to see the bus, so he took us for
a tour. Prabhupada asked Tamal Krishna to work with Satsvarupa
Maharaja and set up college engagements for the Library party. They
were trying to arrange working together.
On Janmastami day Vishnujana Swami is doing kirtan in the barn with

his band as a hired work crew does spot-welding on the new Harvester
silos. An uproarious kirtan is going on inside the barn, and all over the
area outside sparks are flying. A maintenance crew is still working by
the silos as dusk approaches and the sparks are like a light show
accompanying the kirtan.
The upstairs hay loft is packed with devotees chanting for hours and
hours. Some go to the kirtan to get fired up, and then come back out to
cut firewood or cut vegetables. There is such an overflow of guests that
people have to cue up to get in for Vishnujana’s kirtans. Devotees
consider them incredible.
Ghanashyam: Vishnujana was chanting all night long for Janmastami. I

was just mesmerized by his chanting – how intense he was.
Prana: Vishnujana Swami led kirtans that were from another dimension.
I had never merged into the Holy Name like I did in his kirtans. I danced
and played kartāls until my hands blistered. The blisters popped and
bled and I didn’t even know what happened until the kirtan finally
stopped.
Divyanga: Vishnujana Swami never stopped chanting. That was ecstatic

because we got a taste for the Holy Name. In our temple, devotees
would start kirtan and quickly stop because they had other things to do;
so it was great to chant and actually get into it. Some devotees were
falling asleep but we really got into chanting.
Vishnujana Maharaja never has other things to do to make him stop a

kirtan. His whole life is kirtan, along with personal service to Radha-
Damodara. While the kirtan is in full swing up in the barn, the festival is
725
also going on at the Bahulavan temple with Radha-Vrindavan Chandra.
The celebration is happening in both places, the barn and the temple, so
people go back and forth all the time because it’s only a five minute
walk. When it begins raining again, the temple provides plastic sheets
for people to stay dry.
Garga Rishi: Radha-Vrindavan Chandra had their regular āratis, but it

was Radha-Damodara’s day. I remember devotees swarming up to the
barn for Vishnujana’s kirtan. At the far end upstairs the altar was set up
for the midnight abhiṣeka. The decorations were wild. Everything was
home made at New Vrindavan.
Vishnujana Maharaja is excited to have an elaborate abhiṣeka for

Radha-Damodara at midnight. All day long he is publicly announcing
the different ingredients he will bathe Radha-Damodara with. For him
every ingredient is the most magnificent offering to Their lotus feet.
“We will bathe Radha-Damodara in ghee – pure, fresh, New Vrindavan

cow’s ghee.
Then we will bathe Them with yogurt coming from the cows of New
Vrindavan, and with milk coming from Krishna’s cows. Then we will
bathe them with orange juice, and with water soaked in jewels...”
Everyone responds with, “Jaya,” after each ingredient. For Maharaja,
this abhiṣeka will be the most wonderful ceremony.
Radhanath: Vishnujana Swami made announcements of the abhiṣeka

several times because he wanted everyone to come. I was sitting there
and Tamal Krishna Maharaja asked him, “Where did you get the
information for this abhiṣeka?” Vishnujana Maharaja didn’t say where it
came from. So Tamal Krishna said, “On what authority is this abhiṣeka
that you’re having? Again, it is coming from the Vishnujana Purana.”
Although Tamal Krishna seems to view everything done in America as

bogus, still, at the midnight hour he has a strong desire to assist
Vishnujana Swami with the abhiṣeka. Pleased to see the shift in his
726
godbrother’s mood, Vishnujana suggests that they do the abhiṣeka
together. So Tamal Krishna Goswami bathes Sri Damodara and
Vishnujana Maharaja bathes Srimati Radharani.
The devotees are excited seeing the sannyāsīs perform the Janmastami
abhiṣeka ceremony at midnight. As they bathe the Deities with various
substances, the Radha- Damodara band is in full swing with
Dhristadyumna leading the kirtan. He has spent a lot of time with
Vishnujana Maharaja so his style is a bit similar. He’s a sweet devotee
as well, although he can also be strict like Tamal Krishna.
As soon as the bathing ceremony is finished Vishnujana Maharaja takes

over the kirtan, transporting the mood higher and higher. Everyone feels
increasing ecstasy. Vishnujana and his troupe play Indian instruments
that are hooked up electronically to give a mix of the Indian and the
psychedelic. Everyone sings with total heartfelt enthusiasm and energy,
feeling empowered by the mantra and the moment.
Khira-chor dd: The abhiṣeka was really wonderful. They had the kirtan
that night with tamboura, shenai, and harmonium. It was totally ethereal.
Totally ethereal. I hadn’t experienced kirtan like that. It was the best and
we stayed up all night chanting.
Sashvata: He chanted right through the night, at least 12, maybe 14

hours. We could hear it in our tent across the whole farm all night long.
It was amazing. It was a very mystical evening.
Gauranga: Vishnujana’s kirtans and lectures were so sweet and

nectarean that my soul was swept away.
Naikatma: We fasted all day and Vishnujana Swami led kirtans that
were so ecstatic. I couldn’t believe how much energy he had because I
was completely wiped-out due to fasting all day. He got Sudama
Maharaja and Subal Swami so excited that they were running, jumping,
and spinning around in the kirtan. It was so amazing. Afterwards, they
served out a huge feast but that midnight kirtan stands out in my mind.
727
Ramakeli: At the top of the barn it seemed like the kirtan never ended,
that it went all night. We were dancing and chanting and enjoying the
kirtan led by Vishnujana Swami. When Maharaja led kirtan everyone
was in an ecstatic mood and they just kept going on and on and on. It
was a very happy time for me and it seemed like we never stopped
chanting. He had that kind of effect on devotees.
I did get on the bus and Tamal Krishna was trying to get me to join the
bus party.
During the kirtans, Sri Rama wanders around the grounds taking it all in
with other new Radha-Damodara recruits. He still doesn’t have any idea
of what’s going on. He finds the whole day’s festivities somewhat
difficult to relate to. Because it’s a fast day, he is practically dying of
starvation. He knows there will be a feast after midnight, but he
becomes so tired that he nods out around 11:00pm and sleeps through
the abhiṣeka and the midnight ārati going on around him. He also misses
the feast.
After the midnight ārati there are so many people anxious to honor
prasādam that pandemonium begins to break out. Kirtanananda Swami
sends Advaita Acharya over to the barn to help calm things down.
Devotees are pouring into the barn and putting their shoes everywhere
because no one has thought to put up shoe racks. Hundreds of pairs of
shoes are scattered all over the floor getting kicked around, while
prasādam is being distributed in the same area.
Advaita Acharya: Rain started to pour down. We had a big circus tent
that we erected for people to sleep in at the bottom of the hill. It poured
torrential rain, and as the rain came down the hill it swept under the tent
and all the sleeping bags, bedding, everything, was soaked.
The next day is the Vyāsa-pūjā celebration at the Bahulavan temple.

Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna give their commentary on the deep
meaning of Vyāsa-pūjā. They chant the Sri-Gurvastakam prayers one
verse at a time, then translate the verse and give an explanation of its
728
inner meaning.
Next, the other sannyāsīs and senior-most devotees read their Vyāsa-
pūjā offerings to Prabhupada. Afterwards, everyone moves back to the
barn. Soon there is a huge kirtan going on in front of Radha-Damodara
around noontime.
Sri Rama, who missed the Janmastami feast, and is dying of starvation,
just stands off to the side watching everybody dancing and chanting.
Sri Rama: I kept thinking, why are they doing this? What is it? It kind of
looks stupid, so why participate? But after watching for 10 or 15
minutes, I started dancing along with the devotees. Immediately I began
to experience what apparently everybody else was experiencing– the
ecstasy of surrendering to the kirtan. I began to understand a little of
what was going on around me.
While the kirtans are raging on, Tamal Krishna and Dhristadyumna
approach people they think will be prospects to join the ever-expanding
bus party. Many people decline, others are defeated and give in, while
some ask if they can join the party. Patatriraja remembers the blissful
times he had traveling on the school bus with Vishnujana Maharaja, so
he decides to rejoin the party and is gladly accepted back.
When Gadadhar is approached, he takes it as a great opportunity to

travel with Vishnujana Swami and Tamal Krishna Maharaja, whom he
respects very much.
Karnapur: The Boston devotees told me that the best place to spend
Janmastami was in New Vrindavan. I already had the Bhagavad-gita
and had given up my job. Dhristadyumna was canvassing up in the barn.
He approached me and asked if I would like to meet a Swami. It
sounded like a good idea so I went to meet Tamal Krishna Maharaja. Of
course he defeated me and said, “Give it a try for a week. You’ll never
get another opportunity like this.” These people were definitely
enthusiastic and fired up, so I left with the bus
729
Gauranga: I remember seeing Vishnujana Swami leaning up against a
fence talking with some devotees and to me he seemed to glow like a
divine being. The only person I had met before with such a heavy
presence was Srila Prabhupada. I saw Prabhupada at the Chicago Ratha-
yatra, then I went to New Vrindavan with the Montreal devotees.
Vishnujana Maharaja had a certain glow about him and his whole being
radiated warmth. I was immediately attracted. I asked devotees, “Who is
this person and what does he do?” They told me he traveled on his bus
putting on festivals. I decided right then that I wanted to travel with him.
I went on the bus and spoke to Dhristadyumna and asked him where
they were going next and how I could join the party.
After kirtan, Prabhupada’s Vyāsa-pūjā prasādam is served and everyone

takes to their full satisfaction. Later on, Sri Rama returns to the bus to
find everyone watching a video of Vishnujana chanting the noon kirtan
in front of Radha-Damodara. Video has just been invented and
Pancharatna is the first devotee to utilize it. Vishnujana sits in front of a
black and white monitor, rocking his head back and forth, his eyes
sometimes open, sometimes closed, listening to the kirtan and watching
the footage.
Sri Rama: I said, “Why are so-called spiritual people so interested in

watching themselves?” Tamal Krishna just went nuts on me. The
purport of it was, “Why don’t you hitchhike back to Ann Arbor?” But
Vishnujana Swami, as his nature is, was soft about it. He didn’t
personally take any offense, so it blew over. When I realized I’d done
something wrong, I asked Vishnujana to forgive me and that was the
end of it.
There is a constant stream of brahmacārīs coming on the bus to have

darshan of Radha-Damodara and associate with the sannyāsīs. Some are
potential recruits; others are fully engaged and happy in their service.
Goswami is in his heavy-duty mood that everybody has to go out to
preach, and joining the bus party is the best preaching.
730
Mangalananda expresses his view that he isn’t going for it. “You just
don’t understand the philosophy,” he exclaims. “Hearing and chanting
about Krishna is the process of purification. It doesn’t matter where you
are, who you’re with, or what service you do.”
Goswami abruptly cuts him off to the dismay of some, especially Sri
Galim, who considers this “too much.” He has been having some
difficulty sustaining brahmacārya and has no patience for the new mood
on the bus. He feels he needs a break and asks Vishnujana Maharaja if
he can stay with the New Vrindavan brahmacārīs for some time. Before
leaving he reveals the secrets for his famous sweets.
Vrikasanga: Tamal Krishna Maharaja recruited me. He was heavy. My

first service was cooking. I learned to cook from Sadananda and Sri
Galim. Sri Galim taught me how to make gulābjāmuns and sandesh.
Suhotra: I remember Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna giving

simultaneous classes. It was a double whammy. They were making a lot
of devotees and that was part of the technique. They had a special setup
between themselves that was almost like good cop/bad cop. Vishnujana
Maharaja was very sweet. Tamal Krishna Maharaja also started off
sweet but gradually he became more and more heavy. They were the
two Swamis giving simultaneous classes, putting the double whammy
on people. When it was time to pull out there would be two or three ripe
candidates. They were brought onto the bus seemingly to say good-bye,
but then Tamal Krishna would speak to them alone. The bus door would
be closed for an hour sometimes. Very often after that you’d have two
or three more bhaktas on the program. It was amazing.

Many devotees have come to Vrindavan for Janmastami and the
proposed opening of the Krishna-Balarama Mandir. For most, it’s their
first time in India and no one knows anything about the country. They
don’t know how to eat or where to eat, so Gurudas and Yamuna have to
731
take people around Vrindavan. “You can buy lassi here, but don’t buy
anything there.” They train the newcomers how to survive in the dhāma.
Prabhupada is also celebrating Janmastami in Vrindavan. On Vyasa-

pūjā day, Jayananda and Bhakta Das get the mercy to wash his lotus
feet. Unfortunately, many people have some sort of illness. That’s the
hardest thing to tolerate in India. Bhakta Das is still not feeling 100%
but he needs to go to Loi Bazaar for shopping. He buys dhotis and sārīs,
tulasi beads and kanthi-mālās, things for the temple and things for the
temple store. He takes Jayananda along because he knows that
Jayananda deserves new clothing.
Bhakta Das: I wanted to get Jayananda a nice silk dhoti and kurtā that he
could at least wear to the Sunday feast. He usually wore grease-infested
dhotis and kurtās. He didn’t stop me and I bought him the best dhoti.
Then I bought the best cloth and had a kurtā made. I also bought him a
“Lal Imli” chaddar.
Jayananda didn’t speak much about his impressions of India. He was

just absorbed in devotional service. I felt that he was missing his service
back in San Francisco. He was the type of guy that had to be physically
active all the time, not mentally active. He was a Taurus and his features
were like a bull; he was so strong and powerful. The things he liked to
do were always very practical.
Once the Vyasa-pūjā celebration is over, there is no reason to stay

longer in Vrindavan unless you are part of the construction team. Bhakta
Das packs up all his purchases and hires a taxi to New Delhi Airport. On
the plane to the states, Bhakta Das tries to get as much rest as possible to
regain his strength. Jayananda passes the entire trip reading KRSNA
Book.
At the San Francisco airport, the resident devotees greet the returning
pilgrims. Jayananda returns from his only pilgrimage to India with his
new “Lal Imli” chaddar and the beautiful silk dhoti and kurtā. Rather
than use them for himself, however, he gives them away to some new
732
bhaktas, preferring to wear his old tattered dhotis. He has no interest in
fine dressing. Moreover, he gave away all his money to the needy in
Rishikesh.
The temple devotees notice that Jayananda is completely absorbed in the

Holy Name since his return from India. Even more than before. He met
different people in Vrindavan and they took to him, and he took to them.
Several senior Vaishnavas gave him a lot of inspiration for the Holy
Name. He always tells everyone, “It’s all in the name. All you have to
do is just chant Hare Krishna.”
Bhakta Das: The path to Goloka does not depend on book learning, but
only on the service attitude and surrender of the sincere disciple.
Jayananda was the perfect disciple because of his full surrender and
service mood. He didn’t know many ślokas and he hated to give a
lecture. But he loved to empty Krishna’s garbage and clean Krishna’s
garage. Most of all, he loved to serve Krishna’s devotees under all
circumstances. He had a real taste for the Holy Name. How else could
he sit down at the end of the Ratha-yatra festival and make up perhaps
100 rounds in one sitting?
He had such a taste for Krishna’s pastimes. How else could he sit on the
plane coming back from India and for 24 hours read KRSNA Book and
chant without taking any rest? Jayananda loved Krishna līlā, and when
he read KRSNA Book he would feel incredible happiness and would
giggle like a young child. I felt sad that I did not have such a sweet taste.

Tuesday morning, August 13, the Radha-Damodara bus is ready to leave
for Boston. Tamal Krishna wants to duplicate the Berkeley experience
and recruit devotees from the college students in the Boston area. But he
has too many people already and the bus is packed to overflowing.
Vishnujana objects, “Where will they stay? The bus is already full.” But
Goswami convinces him that the best service is making devotees.
733
“We don’t all need to travel with the bus. We have so many devotees
that we can split the program up.” He introduces a policy that only the
newest devotees need to stay on the bus. They require sannyāsī
association and a lot of kirtan with Vishnujana Swami. The more
experienced men should leave the nest.
Dhristadyumna and Aja have been promised the next bus, but for now
Goswami sends them out in an old green Dodge van. Mahamantra,
Jnapaka, Laksmi- Nrsimhadeva, Dayal Chandra, Uddhava, and
Hasyagrami will go on the new van party. Seeing Hasyagrami’s dismay,
Tamal says, “You’re on rotation so you can come back from time to
time.” As far as Goswami is concerned all you need for a good kirtan is
Vishnujana Swami.
Hasyagrami: I always thought Vishnujana wanted me on the esraj. I

knew all his moves and I had worked on harmony. I had a heartfelt
attachment to Vishnujana Maharaja. It wasn’t the same with Tamal
Krishna Goswami. I felt kind of threatened by him. I have nothing but
the highest regard for him, because he’s sold out to Prabhupada’s
orders, but he was certainly different from Vishnujana Swami. With
Tamal Krishna it was not so much a heartfelt attraction; it was more of a
head thing. He was an intellect guy, a logical guy, an ideas guy. You did
it because he said to do it, not because you loved him.
Dhristadyumna’s party is smaller so devotees will have more time to

read Prabhupada’s books. He also has a good singing voice and plays
harmonium following Vishnujana’s style. They leave at 6:30am and are
on their own. They start off rough because Goswami gives them no
money. But they have all the paraphernalia they need to duplicate the
festival program and do College programs. Goswami is now making
many management decisions.
Suhotra and Ramacharya prefer not to return to Boston. They are eager
to distribute books in the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and
Nova Scotia and will rendezvous with the bus later.
734
When all the visiting devotees have gone, New Vrindavan returns to its
normal quiet self. But the community views the 1974 Janmastami
celebration as particularly exciting. They were overwhelmed with
devotees and Indian guests, and that surprised them. This was pre-
Prabhupada’s Palace, and the first festival that the core of devotees who
were to build the palace came to New Vrindavan. In that regard it
marked the crossover from the old era to a new era.
For many it was the most ecstatic festival of their young Krishna
conscious lives.
They recall seeing Vishnujana Maharaja – the kirtan man with his
bhajan band. He chanted for hours on end and the New Vrindavan
devotees remember that his kirtans were the highlight of the festival.
735
Twelfth Wave,
Steps and Missteps
The chanting of the holy name of the Lord is able to uproot even the
reactions of the greatest sins. Therefore the chanting of the sankirtan
movement is the most auspicious activity in the entire universe. Please
try to understand this so that others will take it seriously. [Sukadeva
Goswami to Maharaja Parikshit [SB 6.3.31]]

On Tuesday afternoon the Radha-Damodara bus drives into Boston.
This is the city that Prabhupada first saw on his arrival to America in
September 1965. Worn out from internal politics, Trai Das has left for
the Puerto Rico temple leaving Adi Keshava in charge. The GBC has
accepted him as the new president although he looks far too young to
hold that position.
Having received advance warning, the Beacon Street temple has

prepared a complete Vaishnava greeting, including washing the
sannyāsīs feet. It’s a big deal to have sannyāsīs at the temple. A big
kirtan is in full swing as the Radha-Damodara bus pulls in and parks.
The Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs jump out of the bus to join the
exciting kirtan. They are filled to the brim with enthusiasm.
Hearing the kirtan party herald the arrival of the bus, Sumati comes out
carrying a beautiful garland. Vishnujana Maharaja is already out of the
bus and sees her coming. “Is that the garland for Radharani?”
736
“Yes.” She is pleased that Maharaja remembers. “Well, just go in the
bus and give it to Her.”
Sumati dd: I knew that they were coming so I had the garland for
Radharani already made. Every year Vishnujana Swami came with
Radha-Damodara. The day he arrived, I would always have a tulasi
garland made, and he’d tell me to put it in Radharani’s hand to offer to
Damodara. I did that for a few years. I went on the bus which was
empty except for one sannyāsī sitting beside the altar. I offered my
obeisances and explained myself to him.
He looked at me like, What are you doing here? The altar was closed so
I rang the bell and went behind the curtain, put the garland in Srimati
Radharani’s hand, and left.
When Tamal Krishna exits the bus, Adi Keshava comes forward with
paraphernalia to wash the sannyāsīs’ feet. Vishnujana Swami, however,
refuses to let them wash his feet, so they only wash Goswami’s feet.
Then the sannyāsīs are shown to a room that will serve as their quarters
during their stay. This leaves more space on the bus for the others to
take rest. Immediately a pūjārī brings the Swamis a huge plate of
prasādam.
Vivasvan: I had already left the room when Tamal Krishna Maharaja
called me back and began to chastise me heavily about a popper that
was not done properly. Vishnujana Swami didn’t say a thing. He was
just sitting in the corner taking prasādam. Vishnujana always seemed
like he was in a trance state, but Tamal Krishna was very heavy.
“Would you eat this? Here, eat some of this. Would you offer this to the
Deities?” I said, “Yeah, it looks bad. I’ll tell the cook about it.”
When Goswami learns that Adi Keshava is the temple president he

remarks to Vishnujana, “This guy is just a kid. We can do anything we
want here.” Wherever they go, the Radha-Damodara party has now
become so forceful that most devotees simply stay out of their way
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when they arrive. At the very least the temple leaders clear the mātājīs
out of the building.
Sumati dd: A few hours later the temple president made an

announcement that women are no longer allowed on the bus. Women
weren’t even allowed to see Radha-Damodara anymore, because we
weren’t even allowed to go to the engagements, or out on street
sankirtan. The Deities didn’t even come into the temple that year. In
previous years the Deities had always come in and been on Lord
Jagannath’s altar. We had small Jagannath Deities, so there was plenty
of room for Radha-Damodara.
Ananga Manjari dd: I remember Tamal Krishna Maharaja coming with

the party and giving heavy lectures. It was real heavy and all the women
had to be out of the way.
After sandhyā-ārati, led by Vishnujana Maharaja, the sannyāsīs give a

dual Bhagavad- gita class that both guests and devotees find particularly
interesting. Sitting beside each other, Tamal Krishna lectures first for 10
minutes. Then Vishnujana takes over for 10 minutes. After an hour, they
ask for questions.
Bhudara is the temple commander and he wants to know, “How do you

make people enthusiastic?”
“It’s easy,” Vishnujana replies, “just be yourself and be enthusiastic.

They will pick up on it. There’s nothing else you can do.” The Swamis
give all the classes while they are in Boston. Vishnujana’s charismatic
personality captures the brahmacārīs imagination. Whenever he comes
into the temple they follow him around. He’s always moving about
doing something, always active, always busy.
Vrindavan, August 13, 1974

The day after his Vyāsa-pūjā celebration Srila Prabhupada feels so weak
738
he can neither walk nor stand. A local doctor arrives to examine him. He
has an extremely high fever. The doctor’s diagnosis is malaria and he
prescribes some medication. Devotees call a second doctor who
prescribes a different medicine. Lying in his bed, Prabhupada is
adamant, “Stop bringing these doctors. No doctor can cure me.”
In his condition critical Prabhupada explains to an Indian disciple,

Mahamsa Swami, “This is not a normal illness.” His speech is slow as
he reveals that the most senior disciples have been lax in following the
devotional principles – 90% of the leaders, he says, are not fixed on
their sādhana.
Days pass and Prabhupada refuses to take medicine insisting that

sankirtan is the only cure. Devotees take turns chanting in his room to
provide non-stop kirtan. Prabhupada likes it. “This kirtan,” he says, “is
what actually gives us life.” His advice is that continuous 24-hour kirtan
in every center worldwide will purify the devotees. He is completely
bed-ridden and has no appetite. Except for orange slices and a few
grapes, he takes no nourishment. When he needs to go from one room to
another, several disciples have to assist him.
“This is how my father passed on,” he confides one morning, one word
at a time in a soft whisper, “by not eating.” His remark frightens the
devotees at his bedside. The implications of this remark and his critical
condition are so shocking that there is fear he might actually leave his
body. The entire Society is notified to begin 24-hour non- stop kirtan
with appeals to Lord Nrsimhadeva for Prabhupada’s recovery.
From his bed, Prabhupada continues to guide his disciples. He

emphasizes that everyone must personally monitor their devotional life
to remain spiritually strong and healthy. They must be vigilant to not
allow impurities like fruitive desires, speculation, and neglecting
regulative principles, to spoil their devotional service.
Devotees worldwide become enlivened by the 24-hour kirtan. As they

sing blissfully through the night in shifts, every day begins to feel like
739
Janmastami. They begin to realize that the sankirtan-yajña initiated by
Lord Chaitanya is indeed the prime benediction for humanity. By
week’s end, Prabhupada is taking a little prasādam again. Still, the fever
rages and he looks very white. For the first time, he looks old.
For many years, His Divine Grace has stated that what the world needs
now is not leaders, but acharyas – people who educate by their own
example. In his Sad-goswami- aṣṭakam, Srinivas Acharya writes that the
Six Goswamis didn’t need to tell people to chant; people would chant
simply by seeing them. When people see a Vaishnava they are reminded
of Krishna simply by his personal behavior and realizations. This is the
acharya standard of purity.
During Prabhupada’s illness the Vrindavan summer is excessively hot.

Every evening Prabhupada’s bed is set up on the back porch and he
spends the entire night outside in the cooler environment. His living
quarters are in the final stages of construction so there’s barely enough
room for the bed because work is also being done on the porch and
garden area. The temple and international guest house projects are
barely half done. So much activity is going on at the Vrindavan temple
that loud sounds of construction pervade the atmosphere outside his
room.
Every evening, Srutakirti helps Prabhupada get into his bed under a
mosquito net, and then he also comes under the net to massage his
spiritual master’s legs. After the massage, Srutakirti places a straw mat
under the bed where he will sleep. The mosquito netting is attached to
the bedposts and hangs down to the floor, so Srutakirti is also protected
from the mosquitoes.
Srutakirti: I spent each night sleeping directly under His Divine Grace’s
bed, so if he needed anything, I was immediately available. This was the
first time I slept next to Srila Prabhupada. He wanted me close by, so if
he had to get up, I could help him walk. It was a very grave situation. I
thought of myself as my master’s dog, lying on the ground by his
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bedside waiting for an opportunity to serve him. I considered this to be
my actual position.
One night at about 1:00am I awoke to the sound of a stick falling by my

head onto the brick floor. When I opened my eyes, I saw my beloved
spiritual master lying on the ground beside me. Horrified, I immediately
clasped my Gurudeva under his arms and lifted him back onto the bed.
The sound I had heard was Srila Prabhupada’s cane falling to the ground
as he fell over attempting to walk.
I instantly became wide awake and filled with fear. “Srila Prabhupada,
what are you doing?”
I asked. “Why didn’t you call me?”
“Oh, I needed to go to the bathroom,” he replied softly and

apologetically. “I thought I could make it on my own. I didn’t want to
disturb you because you were resting.”
I knew Srila Prabhupada was humble, but this shocked me. I was angry
that he didn’t wake me up and I began to respectfully chastise him. “No,
Srila Prabhupada,” I said. “There is no disturbance! That’s why I am
here. You are very weak. You should have called me.”
“I thought I had the strength,” he said. “But, I can see I have no strength
at all.”
Standing behind him, I placed my hands under his arms and walked him
to his bathroom. I waited outside the door. When he finished, I helped
him walk back to his bed on the porch.
The next day, Prabhupada doesn’t bring up the incident nor does he
complain about any injury that may have occurred due to the fall. His
only concern is that the temple construction carries on without
interruption. He is unaffected by conditions relating to his body. It’s
another day in the life of the pure devotee. Finally, after two full weeks,
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Prabhupada’s fever breaks.

On August 16, a telephone call abruptly alters the temple mood. News
arrives from India that Prabhupada is extremely ill. Devotees worldwide
are told to perform 24- hour kirtan and to offer this prayer to Lord
Nrsimhadeva, “If you so desire, please allow our Spiritual Master to
finish his work.”
A week later, a letter from Srila Prabhupada arrives for Tamal Krishna
Goswami. It has been forwarded from the Ann Arbor temple. When
Goswami receives the letter, Boston temple is in the midst of 24-hour
kirtan. Every ISKCON temple is performing non-stop kirtan day and
night, praying to Lord Nrsimhadeva for Prabhupada’s protection.
Temple devotees and Radha-Damodara men take turns chanting in
groups. Vishnujana Swami still goes out daily with Radha-Damodara
for a kirtan festival because he knows that Prabhupada would want him
to continue presenting the Holy Name and distributing prasādam to the
public.
Prabhupada’s letter answers Tamal Krishna’s questions about preaching

and management. He also sanctions a $10,000 loan to purchase a second
bus. There is a hint about his failing health. The letter is dated August
13, a day after Vyāsa-pūjā.
I am in receipt of your letter dated July 27th along with BBT loan
proposal. Yes, regarding the buses, Bali Mardan must give you the loan.
Regarding the society’s leaders emphasizing business, you should

understand what is the meaning of business. Business means to help the
preaching. Preaching needs financial help, otherwise, we have no need
for business. So far as I understand, our book business is sufficient to
support our movement. I do not want the preaching to be at the expense
of managing. Manager must also be a preacher otherwise who will want
742
to follow him?
Regarding your visiting centers and giving advice on management and

preaching in many zones, yes, do it cooperatively.
N.B. We have to plan our activities in such a way that we become

stronger, not weaker. Physically I am becoming weak, so you boys
become stronger. Also, at Mayapur they are wanting money and grains,
so what are you doing about this?
Prabhupada’s instructions are clear: Business is only meant to support

the preaching projects that require financial assistance. Otherwise, “we
have no need for business.” Prabhupada’s perception is that “our book
business is sufficient to support our movement.” It’s obvious from the
Sankirtan Newsletter that both Los Angeles and San Francisco temples
are distributing tremendous numbers of books, and this is sufficient to
support those temples.
Prabhupada also reveals, “Physically I am becoming weak,” thus he

requires his disciples to become stronger in Krishna consciousness by
following the principles and cooperating together. In this way they can
relieve their spiritual master from the burden of managing every dispute.
He cautions Goswami that when giving advice on management and
preaching, it should be done in a cooperative mood.
Finally, he reminds Tamal about his former obligation to help support

ISKCON Food Relief, Mayapur Temple’s prasādam distribution
program that feeds hungry persons wherever there is need.
Every day, Vishnujana Swami brings his kirtan festival to Harvard

Square, near Harvard University. It’s an interesting place to do the
program. A junction of several roads forms a triangle and in the middle
of the triangle is a traffic island. The intersection is small with one lane
of traffic on either side of the island, and people stand on every corner
to watch the kirtan.
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A modern street lamp is situated on the traffic island that lights up at
night, so Vipra Das concludes there must be a source of electricity
nearby. Hidden in some bushes he discovers an electrical outlet that the
city uses to put up a Christmas tree every year. He mounts an outlet box
and jumps wires into the electric power so devotees can plug in a sound
system. To ensure no one else can use the outlet, Vipra uses an odd
connector rather than a standard one.
The Persian rug is set down in the middle of the traffic island and Vipra
plugs in the sound system. The AC power enables Vishnujana to get a
much better sound for a much longer time than the 12-volt batteries.
Radha-Damodara stand on Their palanquin facing the Zoom Zoom
Donut Shop.
Sri Rama has become a regular musician with the festival party and he
appreciates that. He was playing tamboura before they put him on the
esraj.
Prior to joining in Ann Arbor, he had asked Hasyagrami one afternoon

to show how he played the esraj. Vishnujana remembered that and soon
the sannyāsīs approach him to announce, “Starting today you’re the
esraj player.”
“But I don’t know anything about esraj,” he explains.
“It doesn’t matter,” Vishnujana responds. “You’re going to be playing

six hours a day, so you’ll learn. We’ll keep the volume down and as you
catch on we’ll turn it up.”
This is Vishnujana’s practical way of dealing with the situation.
Sri Rama: I didn’t know at the time the esraj was a fretted instrument.
Curiously, it only had two frets on it. I was a little bewildered what to
do with the frets, so I learned to play it without any of the frets. A few
years later in India, I came across a real esraj with frets, and realized
what a different instrument it was.
744
Vishnujana was a really good showman and he knew how to make
people taste the nectar of Krishna consciousness. I saw how other
people reacted to his charisma as a performer. His presentation was very
much on an emotional level, and I felt like a participant in that. They
always used to chastise me for not being able to chant and play at the
same time, but playing an unfretted esraj took every bit of my
concentration.
The kirtan begins with Vishnujana on harmonium and Tamal Krishna

playing mṛdaṅga. People line the sidewalks listening intently. Some are
mesmerized by the unique sound. Vishnujana sits in the middle of the
traffic island singing for hours and hours, attracting students and
passersby. There’s a microphone on the harmonium, and mikes on the
voices, the tamboura, and the ektar. The esraj has a Barcus Berry
contact mike and the kartāls don’t need amplification. There’s no
mixing board so there’s no question of a mix. The microphones are
plugged into simple amplifiers and each level is adjusted individually.
The program is generally the same. Vishnujana starts with, “Gaura

Nityananda bol, haribol, haribol...” This is his show opener. He follows
with, “Hari haraye namaḥ,” and then into the “Mahamantra”. The big
esraj song is “Gopinath”. Sometimes there’s a solo, but there is always
the refrain where Vishnujana sings “Gopinath” and then the esraj does a
little reply a half bar behind him, sliding up the notes.
After chanting for a while, Maharaja gives a little talk and Goswami
goes into the audience scouting for prospects. Vishnujana is always
preaching between the songs. There are two themes that are prominent
and repeated often.
“For some of you who have just come, this is called mantra meditation.
Man means ‘mind’ and tra means ‘to free’ in the ancient Sanskrit
language of India. So the songs we’re singing are actually very powerful
formulas of sound vibration and are meant to stop the wandering of the
mind. Usually the mind is wandering from one object to another, one
745
atmosphere to another, one place to another, because the mind is
actually always looking for happiness. But because the objects that we
usually absorb our mind in are always limited to some degree, therefore
our mind must reject them after a short or long time. For example,
suppose you had to be in your home all day, day after day after day,
again the mind reaches a saturation point and you must reject it.
“So in yoga, or meditation, the whole idea is to fix the mind in that
relationship which is always expanding, which is not limited, so that the
mind, instead of having to wander, instead of being agitated from one
thing to another, can actually find unlimited satisfaction in an unlimited
relationship, an unlimited object. And this is what this formula is all
about. You hear us singing these words Hare, Rama, and Krishna. Hare
means the reservoir of pleasure, Krishna means all-attractive and Rama
means the enjoyer. So these three words are put into a formula: Hare
Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare / Hare Rama Hare
Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare.
“This formula actually locks the mind in an atmosphere, a relationship

which is ever- expanding. Just like this song has been sung in India for
over five thousand years, and it’s still being sung for hours every day,
sometimes 24 hours a day in the villages of India. And similarly, those
of us that are practicing this yoga, we’re actually experiencing a type of
joy, a type of inner happiness that goes on day after day, day after day
after day, with this same simple song.
“If you have any questions in your mind, or you’re actually curious
about Who am I? and identifying with your self, instead of all these
external designations – black, white, young, old, American, Indian,
Christian, Jew – if you’d actually like to find out what you are beyond
these limitations, our simple invitation is that you chant these vibrations
with us, allow your consciousness to travel on this wave of sound within
yourself to feel some real, beautiful, happiness that will never end.
Thank you.”
746
The second theme, which he elaborates on later, is introducing each
instrument and having the devotee play a little riff on his instrument to
illustrate the sound.
“These instruments are so simple that any of you, if you like, can sit
down with us today and learn to play them. This drum is called a
mṛdaṅga and is made of clay from the banks of the sacred River Ganges.
The heads and straps are skin from cows that have died naturally of old
age, because our tradition is vegetarian – free from cruelty to all living
beings.
“Those finger cymbals are called kartāls, and they jolt our sleeping
consciousness, awakening us to spiritual life. That drone instrument is a
tamboura. It’s a gigantic gourd with four strings on it that are played
like a waterfall of sound. It creates a beautiful curtain of sound that
imitates the om vibration of the universe. The esraj over here is the most
ancient of the instruments and probably the most beautiful. It’s a very
difficult instrument to play and its sound is like the soul crying out for
Krishna.
“The instrument I’m playing is a harmonium which harmonizes all our

desires at Krishna’s lotus feet. It reminds us of the harmony that we’re
meant to live in. Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara ki jaya!”
By this simple music class Maharaja has now captivated the audience.
“This chanting is so powerful that it attracts us to concentrate our mind
on the Absolute. The sound of Krishna is non-different than the
unlimited personality of the Absolute, and therefore when we’re
meditating on that sound we can actually experience the unlimited
qualities of the Absolute.
“So it’s a wonderful reservoir of pleasure, this chanting of Hare

Krishna. And it’s called a mantra. It’s meant to fix the mind, to stop the
wandering of the mind and fix it on the real nature of the self and the
Supreme Self. The sound vibration fixes the mind on the Absolute and
thus gives us a great deal of joy, and that joy increases the more we
747
engage in the chanting. This sound vibration is so wonderful that if you
allow your mind to absorb it then automatically you reach a reservoir of
pleasure. Hare Krishna!”
Sri Rama: Vishnujana’s charisma in dealing with crowds leaves an

impression. Sometimes Tamal Krishna would talk, too, but it was the
speeches of Vishnujana Swami that I heard so often that sticks in the
mind. Everybody remembers his talks because they were so full of soul.
He would talk often, with his eyes closed, and then open, and expressive
with his arms, with a loud, powerful, drawing-in voice that just
mesmerized people.
One sensed that he really tasted something of the kirtan. No one could
say what he experienced internally. Vishnujana once told me that in the
early days in San Francisco, Prabhupada told him he was a demon in his
last life. It was like, “Don’t be so proud. You barely made it in. You
were a demon in your last life, but somehow or other, Krishna had
mercy on you and now you’re a devotee.”
It was a personal anecdote. Tamal Krishna was there at the time and
didn’t contradict him, as I remember. It was something that was hard for
me to relate to, because I didn’t understand any philosophy at the time,
so I wouldn’t have been in a position to catch what was truth or
exaggeration. So Vishnujana was a little humble in that way. He knew
he was charismatic, but he wasn’t a puffed-up sort of a person. He was
extremely spontaneous, but he wasn’t proud in the way we ordinarily
think of persons as being proud.
Karnapur: When we did Harvard Square my service was playing kartāls

and just sitting and chanting with everybody else. Vishnujana Swami
was quite angelic. He definitely seemed to be transcendental. Tamal
Krishna was like a thunderbolt. He was heavy. Together they were
strong as a thunderbolt, soft as a rose.
Vrikasanga: When we traveled with Radha-Damodara it was the same

as traveling with Gaura-Nitai. They didn’t accept offense. We were out
748
on the street in Boston and some demon came through causing all sorts
of offense, but They would not accept offense. That was the special
mercy of Radha-Damodara, the most beautiful Deities. That’s why we
took Them off the bus.
During the kirtans, Vipra Das is usually on the bus. His musical talent
and sense of rhythm is at absolute zero. Whenever he picks up a pair of
kartāls Vishnujana cringes a little, so Vipra prefers to stay back and
protect the bus.
He is sitting in the driver’s seat a block away from the kirtan when an
old woman walks by. She suddenly stops and says to herself, “That
sounds like it’s never going to stop.” Vipra can’t help but smile,
knowing that the kirtan is indeed eternal.
The free prasādam today consists of a cauliflower/potato/peas sabji with

puris, a lettuce, tomato, and celery salad with sour cream dressing,
Goswami’s favorite orange peel halavā for desert, and the standard
nectar drink: diced strawberries floating in orange juice and buttermilk.
The Radha-Damodara men eat this every day and never tire of it
because everything is so nicely prepared.
Just like in Berkeley, the prasādam is so delicious that many Boston

students no longer patronize the food vendors and restaurants. The
vendors complain to the police because they’re losing customers. But
the police can’t do anything since the prasādam is free and not being
sold. The vendors have to suffer until the Radha-Damodara party leaves
town. Harvard Square is one of the choicest locations for the festival
program and a favorite of Vishnujana Maharaja.
During the prasādam distribution, Tamal Krishna Goswami sits with

people who are eating in an effort to convince them to join the party.
Vishnujana softens them with his kirtan and Goswami tries to finish
them off as they enjoy prasādam. He will invite anyone to come and
travel, but when they join he is extremely strict. They have to do
everything he says. There is no question of doing anything else.
749
Today Tamal Krishna spies another person who looks interested. “What
do you think of this type of music?”
The young man immediately replies, “I was part of the Boston temple a
few years ago when Gaurahari was the president. He kicked me out and
for the last couple of years I’ve been in māyā.”
Goswami reassures the young man that it wasn’t his fault he had to
leave the temple. Some of the administrative people had been in māyā
back then. Goswami suggests that he rejoin the movement via the bus
party. He will be able to travel the country, have strong sannyāsī
association, and get to chant every day with Vishnujana Swami.
Sarvopama: Immediately I got on the bus and joined. I met the party on
August 19. I had been a bhakta with Ramacharya when Suhotra was the
sankirtan leader. When Ramacharya joined the temple he wore an
elephant earring that he said an old lady had given him.
Boston is good for attracting devotees. Day after day Vishnujana leads
kirtan on the traffic island. The party arrives around 10:00am and plays
for several hours, before taking a break to distribute prasādam. The
kirtans are excellent and the prasādam is equally excellent. After lunch,
they resume kirtan until 4:00pm, when they pack up to be back at the
temple by 5:00pm.
This is a general schedule that’s common. On rainy days they can’t go

out so Vishnujana brings people onto the bus, and does kirtan for hours.
During these kirtans, it gets so hot in the bus that drops of water drip
down the walls.
Vivasvan’s father has recently returned from New York where he

purchased a harmonium for his son. Excitedly bringing the harmonium
to the sannyāsī quarters for Vishnujana to play, Vivasvan becomes
pleased when Maharaja remarks that he likes it very much. He asks if he
can take it to the bus and play it for Radha-Damodara. Vivasvan agrees
and accompanies him to the bus where Vishnujana sits down with the
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harmonium and sings for hours.
Vivasvan: He used to sit there and play and play. He would also sing
while he was doing pūjā. The bhaktas that traveled with the bus became
advanced very quickly with that kind of association. They asked me to
join many times and Vishnujana Swami wanted me to bring my
harmonium. It was difficult for me to ask for it back, but I did, right
before he left. I had just come back to Boston after traveling and serving
Hrdayananda Goswami for three months. I could see that their program
was extremely heavy. Hrdayananda had been very strict also, so I
needed a break from intense sannyāsī association.
Most of the day, Sadananda is cooking in the bus kitchen. Whenever the
Boston devotees walk past the bus they can smell the intense flavor of
gulābjāmuns coming from a window. The aroma is so thick that the
Boston devotees can almost bite the air. One afternoon Sadananda
comes into the temple with a big pot and places it in on a table in the
back of the prasādam room. The brahmacārīs look up and Sadananda
comments, “These gulābjāmuns are defective, so Vishnujana Maharaja
won’t offer them to Radha-Damodara.”
After Sadananda leaves, the Boston devotees rush to the table to find
gulābjāmuns that have a slight dent on one side. They quickly begin to
devour the sweets. A few moments later Adi Keshava comes in and sees
the devotees gorging themselves.
“What’s going on here?” he inquires.
“Oh, these are some defective gulābs they can’t offer to Radha-
Damodara.”
“Really?” He tastes one of the gulābjāmuns and is shocked because they

are so fine. The defective sweets are quickly demolished.
The temple room is crowded for the Sunday feast, with guests from
Harvard Square that have been invited by Vishnujana and Tamal
751
Krishna. The regular Sunday program attendees feel especially blissful
because Vishnujana’s mood is contagious. After the feast there is
always a swing ceremony for the small Radha-Krishna Deities and a
Tulasi pūjā kirtan before the final ārati. So the guests get a complete
Krishna conscious experience and go home completely satisfied.
Several good prospects are invited to an upstairs office to meet an
advanced Swami to answer their questions.
Also present this Sunday is a New York devotee, Pancharatna. He has

been sent by the GBC man, Bali Mardan, to check out what the Radha-
Damodara party is doing because they are making devotees. He has
heard that the Radha-Damodara party is expanding and that’s exciting
news. But along with the news there are complaints as well.
Pancharatna’s mission is to study and report back.
Pancharatna: I observed a heavy mental-pressure technique, very

psychological. The technique was to use basic philosophy, you’re not
this body, very logically and convincingly, and get people to really
accept it. At each step they say, “Do you agree with this? Do you have
any problem with that?” Tamal Krishna Goswami was the one who
developed this and I observed him doing it. He was putting people on
the spot.
Then at the end he’d say, “Now if you’re a truthful, honest person, you
have to change. You can’t go on the way you are. You have to change
now. You’ve already agreed, you’ve already accepted, you’ve
understood something that you didn’t understand before, and now you
have to change if you’re honest. Otherwise you’re untruthful to yourself.
You’re at a crossroads now. You really have to make a decision, right
now. Are you going to just go on from this point, or are you going to
change? If you want to change then come with us, and we’ll help you
change.”
I witnessed this both in the Boston temple and at a preaching

engagement they set up in Harvard Square. Adi Keshava was really into
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it so they were using the temple to bring people back and grill them. He
seemed to be already into the Radha-Damodara mood and Tamal
Krishna’s man. I didn’t feel that this technique was right on. It was such
a heavy sort of psychological trip. That was my impression. Vishnujana
Swami was more the one who attracted people in and made them feel
comfortable and nice.
Adi Keshava: Tamal Krishna liked me and wanted to mold me into

another one of his lieutenants. I thought, Okay, I can learn from him. I
liked him, too, but he reminded me of Bali Mardan so I didn’t trust him
as soon as I found out that he and Bali Mardan were buddies. We had
been ripped off by Bali Mardan endlessly. That was the story of the
Boston temple.
On Monday morning there’s a phone call for Goswami from Montreal.

“I want to come and join your party, but on one condition. I want to
distribute books. I don’t know if your party is doing that.”
Tamal Krishna immediately replies, “Oh, that’s not a problem.”

Subsequently, the Canadian devotees drive Gauranga across the US
border to Plattsburg, from where he takes a bus to Boston.
Gauranga: In Montreal I was living outside the temple and distributing

books around my neighborhood. Lord Chaitanya was reciprocating
because I felt so ecstatic distributing the books. In Boston we went to
Harvard Square everyday and Vishnujana Swami would lead wonderful
kirtans and bhajans. He was amazing because he had so many
instruments and was training devotees to play the instruments. People
were magnetically attracted to his personality and to his singing. Huge
crowds would gather and he would speak from his heart with such love
and conviction that any soul who had any drop of sincerity would start
to melt.
The new recruits on the party quickly make friends with each other. Sri
Rama becomes close with Gauridas Pandit and also has things in
common with Srikhar. Every morning during the japa period Gauridas
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Pandit takes Sri Rama out for a “japa walk”. They walk to an all night
Supermarket and buy something to eat, usually donuts. There isn’t much
of a concept of reading labels at the time. Sri Rama is always hungry,
but Gauridas has some money so that solves the problem for him. With
donuts in hand they cross the street and sit on the steps of an apartment
building dressed, of course, in devotee garb.
While eating his donut, Sri Rama sees a fresh cigarette on the ground,
just fallen out of a pack. He stoops to pick it up with the intention to
smoke it, but seeing the expression on the face of Gauridas Pandit he
becomes philosophical.
“Well, let’s say if I smoked this cigarette and then I leave, it might be
that I leave because I didn’t follow the principles. So better I don’t
smoke the cigarette. That way, I’ll find out whether Krishna
consciousness is genuine or not.” He tosses it aside in amazement that
he was capable of making such a decision.
Sri Rama: When I joined the Radha-Damodara party, I was a 2-pack-a-

day cigarette smoker. At the point where I understood smoking was
against the regulative principles, I never smoked another cigarette. I was
amazed at that in Ann Arbor. I tried to give up a lot of bad habits for six
years, but before I became a devotee I couldn’t live clean for one day.
That affected me very much, that in the association of devotees, I gave
up my cigarette smoking, my meat-eating, my drug-taking, my illicit
sex, my gambling – all instantaneously.
It’s not long before they notice Srikhar walk into the same supermarket.
A few minutes later he comes out drinking a bottle of Chocolate Milk
because that’s his big attachment. They wave him across the street.
“Obviously, we’re all up to the same thing so let’s eat together.”
Moments later, they observe Vipra walking into the store. Now it’s
really starting to get funny.
They cross the street and enter the store to confront Vipra buying his
junk food.
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They all have a good laugh and leave the store. They walk back across
the street and sit down to eat. Vipra makes an attempt to do an offering
since he’s the initiated man.
While walking back to the temple, an older woman comes out of her
house and demands, “Are you the ones that are dumping your garbage
in my trash cans every morning?” They look at one another. Nobody
can relate to what she’s talking about.
They are completely straightforward by this time, because they have all
caught each other, so no one is trying to hide anything.
Seeing their blank stares she offers an explanation. “Every morning, one
of you goes to that store, and comes back here and dumps an empty
gallon container of milk, and an empty box of a dozen donuts. And I’m
tired of it.” The devotees look at each other for a few seconds. Then
they all realize what was happening.
Sri Rama: Sadananda was the cook, and he was somewhat overweight.
Tamal Krishna was heavy on his case and put him on a strict diet. At
every meal, he would go in front of Goswami and show his plate, “Just
see how little I’m eating.” So when we heard about the gallon of milk
and a dozen donuts at 6:00 in the morning, I said, “What does he look
like?”
“Bald head, tall, he’s a little fat.” So it just clicked, instantly, and we put
the whole story together. We just literally fell on the ground laughing in
front of this poor old lady. I don’t know what she thought of four Hare
Krishnas on the ground in front of her house in unrestrained laughter.
One day bad news arrives from New York. Another senior GBC man
has fallen from his vows. This time it’s Bali Mardan, a valuable devotee
who did a tremendous amount of wonderful service which Srila
Prabhupada greatly appreciated. Bali has already given up his sannyāsa
vows but now he’s not even remaining vegetarian. Tamal Krishna
shakes his head in dismay.
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Of four senior men that accepted sannyāsa at Los Angeles in May 1972,
only two remain fixed in their vows. Goswami feels he better go to New
York to collect the $10,000 loan for a second bus that Bali Mardan is
supposed to give.
At the same time, Sri Rama develops a case of poison ivy. In spite of the
Hare Krishna Movement’s reputation for never allowing anybody to do
anything reasonable to take care of their bodily needs, when he insists
that he needs to do something about it, the sannyāsīs agree. “Fine, you
can go to the local hospital. Just don’t generate a bill we have to pay.”
Sri Rama: As far as the management goes, Tamal Krishna Maharaja

could be overbearing and pretty much of a micro-manager. But I
remember distinctly that they dealt with me generously, in the sense that
I made a lot of mistakes and did a lot of stupid things, but they wouldn’t
bear down on me and rub it in. As soon as they saw that I understood
that I did something wrong, they would just drop it, and allow me to
correct myself, which I very much appreciated. They didn’t always do
that with some of the others. Tamal Krishna was inclined to yell a lot at
the devotees, and even Vishnujana Swami could get pretty heavy with
somebody for doing something stupid.
Gauridas Pandit: One time I made a great mistake. Vishnujana was

giving class and describing that Radharani was made out of eight metals
including gold and silver. Being a foolish new devotee, I made a stupid
comment during the time for questions.
“Even materially speaking if you melted the Deities down They would
be worth a lot of money.” That was it! I never saw Maharaja get angry
like that. Vishnujana, who rarely got angry, became very upset.
“DON’T YOU EVER SAY ANYTHING LIKE THAT AGAIN.” I felt
miserable. I realized I had made a huge blunder.
This incident showed me again how Maharaja felt about Their

Lordships Sri-Sri Radha- Damodara. He knew They were Persons, not
just statues!
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The Radha-Damodara party stays in Boston for an extended period and
it’s a wonderful time for the brahmacārīs. Among the leaders, there’s an
underlying current of concern about Prabhupada’s condition but they
put on a brave face in the temples. Upon his return from New York with
the $10,000 loan, Tamal Krishna reveals to Vishnujana what he has
learned on his trip.
Several senior New York godbrothers confided that they didn’t believe
Bali Mardan and his wife were following any principles. Moreover, they
are presenting themselves as Prabhupada’s direct representatives and
devotees can only have access to His Divine Grace through them. In
light of these revelations both sannyāsīs agree that they should bypass
New York temple and visit the Philadelphia temple instead.
Now that Sarvopama has rejoined the Hare Krishna movement, he is

experiencing strange mental anguish about whether he’s really qualified
to join Radha-Damodara or even to live with devotees. Seeing his
unsteadiness, Goswami comes to the conclusion that he’s too eccentric
and could be a problem child. He reveals his mind to Vishnujana
Maharaja and Adi Keshava in their temple quarters.
“This guy is crazy. We really can’t have him leave with us.”
“Well, he’s not going to make it anywhere else,” Adi Keshava remarks.
“He can’t stay at the temple, so you’re going to have to take him with
you on the bus.” Vishnujana Swami also speaks on Sarvopama’s behalf.
“We should at least give him a chance.”
Sarvopama: Everyone was on the bus and I was halfway up the steps
and ready to go, but then I thought, Oh, I can’t do this. It can’t work. It
won’t be right. I turned around to get off the bus when I saw Vasu
Gopal standing there. He had thick glasses, ice cube lenses, and looked
kind of noble with a slightly pock-marked face from acne when he was
a teenager. He looked at me with an expressionless face and started
quoting from KRSNA Book about the cowherd boys playing with
Krishna and having their lunch prasādam. He had memorized a beautiful
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part of KRSNA Book. It completely washed away my anxiety, fear, and
misgivings. For the next three months I was on the Radha-Damodara
bus. I was a problem case so I got special attention.
Philadelphia, August 1974

The temple has moved from Chelten Avenue to a larger house on
Woodlawn Street although the neighborhood is a little rough. Ravindra
Svarupa is still temple president. When the bus parks in front of the
temple, Ravindra is excited that two sannyāsīs will be giving their
association to the local devotees. Especially since Radhastami is coming
in a few days.
Suhotra’s van party is already here and they enthusiastically greet the
Radha-Damodara bus. They have returned from eastern Canada with
good news – large quantities of books have been distributed. Suhotra
turns the money over to Tamal Krishna Goswami for safekeeping.
Vishnujana Swami leaves the bus and goes into the Philadelphia temple
room.
Srikhar decides to go out for a japa walk but is attracted by the sound of
an exciting kirtan coming from inside the temple room. He goes over to
check it out. Peeking in through the door, he sees Vishnujana Maharaja
beating the mṛdaṅga, swirling around, and running back and forth like
devotees do in a wild kirtan with a hundred people. But he’s chanting
like this all alone! Surprised to see it’s a one-man kirtan, Srikhar picks
up a pair of kartāls and joins in the kirtan rasa. Now two devotees are
chanting and dancing in ecstasy.
Srikhar: Vishnujana Swami was the heart of Radha-Damodara and

Tamal Krishna Maharaja was the head. Vishnujana was like the mother,
Tamal Krishna was like the father. I’ve always respected Tamal
Krishna, but Vishnujana was in another world. He had such an intimate
relationship with Damodara and Radharani on that bus.
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He always sent a couple of devotees out to liberate flowers during the
night. The next morning the Deities would be decorated with fresh
flowers. He was always in ecstasy with Radha-Damodara and took a lot
of personal care in dressing Them. That’s why Ramacharya became
such a good pūjāri because Vishnujana took such excellent care of
Radha-Damodara.
Later that afternoon, Ravindra Svarupa’s little blond-haired son,

Yudhisthira, comes over to the bus. He’s barely a year and a half old
and has to crawl up the bus steps one by one. Vishnujana sees him come
up and greets him.
“Yudhisthira, you and I are going to have a play, okay?” Yudhisthira

nods his little head in agreement. “You’ll be Prahlada Maharaja.
Someone will have to be Hiranyakasipu, and I’ll be Lord Nrsimhadeva.”
Little Yudhisthira is smiling, happy to play Prahlada.
Assuming the pose of Nrsimhadeva, Vishnujana addresses Yudhisthira

in a great guttural roar, “WHERE is your atheistic father, Prahlada?”
Yudhisthira’s face goes white. All the color drains from his face as he
starts screaming. He wheels around and tumbles down the stairs. As he
streaks across the lawn back to his home, he calls for his mother at the
top of his lungs. Everybody on the bus is roaring with laughter seeing
little Yudhisthira run away in fright.
Hearing that Vishnujana Swami has arrived, the three brahmacārīnis in

the ashram become really excited. They are looking forward to having
someone so famous at their temple. They have heard his music and have
heard so much about him that they’re all on their toes when he comes.
The arrival of the Swamis solves a dilemma for Ravindra Svarupa.

There are no Radha-Krishna Deities at his temple. So what to do for
Radhastami with only Jagannath Deities? Since Radha-Damodara have
arrived he can now put together a good Radhastami celebration. But
privately, the sannyāsīs prefer to be at a temple that has a grand
Radhastami festival. They are only a few hours from New York, where
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Radha-Govinda always get the best festivals.
On the third day, the bus is ready to leave Philadelphia much to the
dismay of the resident devotees. As the bus comes upon a hill near the
temple, suddenly the clutch goes out. The transmission can no longer
engage and the bus can’t move. All the brahmacārīs get out and try to
push it back to the temple, but to no avail. The bus is much too large.
They will need a tow truck to bring the bus back to the temple. They call
a few companies and finally a tow truck arrives to pull the bus back to
the temple.
Vipra performs a thorough mechanical inspection and informs the

sannyāsīs that the clutch has burned out. It will take several days to fix.
Understanding that the bus is definitely not going anywhere soon, the
sannyāsīs accept the present situation as Krishna’s mercy, because the
clutch could have blown in the middle of nowhere.
Radha Raman takes advantage of the disabled bus to have a talk with
Goswami. He explains that he knows where to get buses in New Jersey.
It was he and Dayal Chandra that had purchased the present Radha-
Damodara bus and now might be the time to purchase another one.
Tamal Krishna nods his head in agreement as he listens. Prabhupada has

already given sanction to purchase two more buses and he has the
$10,000 loan from Bali Mardan along with money from the book
distribution parties. Without saying a word, he goes to the bus safe,
pulls out $20,000 in cash, and gives it to Radha Raman. “Get two buses,
and bring them back here to the temple.”
Radha Raman: I put the cash in a money belt. Sridhara and I took
Gauridas Pandit’s pickup truck and we headed up north to buy two more
buses. At night it was cold. We couldn’t use any of the money to stay in
hotels or anything like that; we were limited to what we were allowed to
do. We were actually losing it because it was so cold sleeping with our
sleeping bags on the metal floor in the back of the truck, so we’d get up
and start the engine and sit next to the heater to survive.
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With Radhastami coming in two days, the head pūjāri, Pancali Dasi,
thinks that Radha-Damodara want to stay in Philadelphia for the
celebration. Since the bus can’t go anywhere, maybe Radha-Damodara
don’t want to go anywhere. She consults Vipra who informs her that the
bus isn’t going anywhere for a while.
With a little prodding from Pancali, Vishnujana Maharaja begins to

consider, Maybe Radharani wants to stay for Radhastami. That’s how he
accounts for the trouble with the bus. Excited by this change of plan,
Pancali engages several women to make complete Radhastami outfits
for Radha-Damodara.
Pancali dd: I sewed the skirt for Radharani and made sure that She
would have everything really nice for the offerings, and flowers, etc. We
had a beautiful purple marble altar that we had just installed. It was
gorgeous. We put our Lord Jagannath Deities on it. Radha-Damodara
were in Their bus, not on the altar with Lord Jagannath, but I think
Radharani definitely wanted to come on that altar.
Vishnujana Maharaja really wanted to go because he had the traveling

itch. But it seemed that Radharani definitely wanted to come on the
altar. So he surrendered and said, “I think Radharani wants to come on
the altar.” All of us were so excited.
The night before Radhastami, Vishnujana Maharaja stays up past

midnight cooking 25 preparations – one for each of Radharani’s
qualities. Tamal Krishna stays up to assists him in cooking. On
Radhastami Day everyone gathers for a huge kirtan to bring Radha-
Damodara out of the bus and into the temple room where They are
established on the new altar. A lovely celebration ensues to glorify
Srimati Radharani.
Pancali dd: Vishnujana Swami gave class that day and he was excited,
explaining how the whole scenario was being controlled by Radha-
Damodara. He said that Radharani liked the altar, the color of the new
marble, and She wanted to be there for Her day!
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The temple has also prepared a superb feast for Radharani. The Radha-
Damodara brahmacārīs gather in the back garden to honor the feast with
the resident devotees. At one point, Tamal Krishna comes over to ask
his men, “Why are you sitting here when the bus is full of prasādam?”
Realizing it’s the mahā-prasādam that the Swamis are enjoying, the men
get up and charge to the bus like a swarm of bees. Inside, the floor of the
bus is covered with pots of prasādam. It’s a first-come/first-take system
and everyone goes mad after the prasādam. “If you snooze, you lose,
Prabhu.”
Sri Rama: On Radhastami we feasted. First there was the regular temple
feast. Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna were on the bus eating all the
mahā-prasādam. When they couldn’t eat anymore, one of them came out
and said that the mahā is in the bus. So we had another feast, and I ate
myself into sickness.
Gauridas Pandit: One of my favorite Vishnujana preparations was

strawberry malpura. When Maharaja cooked, the offerings were
saturated with love and devotion. Everything he touched turned to gold.
It seemed like Vishnujana had the ‘midas touch’. His chanting, his
speaking, his cooking, and his Deity worship were so full of devotion,
he inspired all who were fortunate enough to come into contact with
him.
He would usually rise up first every morning and take bath. He would
dry himself with the sannyāsa lungi that he put on. He was so austere it
was unbelievable. Then he’d go into the kitchen and cook the maṅgala-
ārati sweet; usually cooked-down milk with coconut. You knew you
were getting ‘prasādam’ when you got Sri Sri Radha-Damodara’s
remnants.
I traveled with Vishnujana Swami for the first year and I thought he was
a pure devotee. When I made this statement in the Philadelphia
brahmacārī ashram I was blasted. They said nobody’s a pure devotee but
Prabhupada. After Prabhupada left the planet I raised doubts that the
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new gurus were pure devotees and was blasted again for doubting them.
I couldn’t win either way.
The Radhastami celebration has temporarily diverted everyone’s mind

from the critical situation the Vrindavan devotees are facing daily. The
sporadic reports coming from India are unclear and even contradictory.
But the entire society is praying to Lord Nrsimhadeva to relieve
Prabhupada’s serious condition. The new Radha- Damodara men have
never even seen Prabhupada, but they also chant through the night to
help their spiritual master, hoping that one day he’ll personally initiate
them into the Gaudiya Vaishnava Sampradaya.
Apparently Prabhupada’s condition is not improving, and Tamal

Krishna recalls how Prabhupada wanted him to return to India. Now
he’s having second thoughts about his decision to leave the personal
service of his spiritual master.
TKG: Though I continued to perform my various duties, my mind was

always weighted with concern, wishing that I could have been in India
to attend to Srila Prabhupada more personally... Seeing the apprehension
of so many devotees only increased my fear.
Ravindra Svarupa: Tamal Krishna Maharaja had been a GBC in India

and wanted to come to America and preach with Vishnujana Swami,
obviously inspired by his association. Prabhupada very reluctantly let
him do that, although Prabhupada wanted him to go back to India
because he needed him there.
Nonetheless, the preaching must go on. Vishnujana takes his festival

program to the city center on Saturday. He remembers a particular
corner from a previous trip and Radha-Damodara come along in
Suhotra’s van. After setting up the Deities, Maharaja begins chanting
with his men and the local devotees. The day is overcast and it looks
like rain. Seeing dark clouds gathering overhead, Maharaja decides that
it’s not appropriate for Radha-Damodara to remain outside.
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The men pack everything up and take Radha-Damodara down into the
Metro station. They place Radha-Damodara on a platform halfway
down the stairs, not on the train platform, and Maharaja continues
chanting while it rains outside.
On Sunday, interested people come to the temple for the Love Feast and
are at once confronted by the huge bus on the property. Seeing the
sannyāsīs and hearing them speak the philosophy, is an impetus to take
a greater interest in Krishna consciousness. Vishnujana and Tamal
Krishna give a Nectar of Devotion class together, alternating back and
forth, reading and giving a purport.
Then a wild kirtan erupts like no one in Philadelphia has experienced

before. At the end of the evening, Vishnujana Swami invites everybody
to come with him to Temple University tomorrow for a festival
program. Ravindra Svarupa has been advising him to take his festival to
the university.
Because of the incapacitated bus, Maharaja will not be able to take

Radha-Damodara and his stage set-up to the university. As an
alternative he takes the devotees to a grassy park on campus and spreads
out a colorful blanket. “This is how we used to do it in the old days,” he
says.
Since Radha-Damodara are not at today’s program, Vishnujana has

brought Their garlands and flower petal offerings to remind the devotees
of Their presence. It’s not long before many students and devotees are
dancing to the kirtan. In a blissful mood one devotee takes a handful of
flower petals and throws them at another. The other devotee takes some
petals and returns the favor. Almost immediately a flower fight erupts
with roses and flower petals flying everywhere. Several students also
get into the fun and flowers are flying as devotees and students continue
throwing flowers at each other until the kirtan ends. Everyone feels
completely blessed.
Bhubrit has been coming to the temple regularly and is present with
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Maharaja at this University program.
Bhubrit: He had the program outside on the green with chanting,

prasādam distribution, and lectures in between songs. That was very
instrumental in me becoming a devotee. After the college program
Maharaja would have an evening ārati for Radha-Damodara on the bus.
Then Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna would go to the temple and give
Nectar of Devotion class. Afterwards we’d have hot milk and KRSNA
Book reading.
Gadadhar: Vishnujana was the web and Tamal Krishna was the spider.
This was not a negative connotation. It was really wonderful and
everybody accepted it. Vishnujana Swami would bring the students into
the web of the beautiful kirtan. Then Tamal Krishna would inject the so-
called ‘poison’ of Krishna consciousness.
Ravindra Svarupa: At Temple University, Tamal Krishna showed me

how they made devotees in Berkeley. The band would sit down and
play. The kids would come to get prasādam and then sit down to eat.
Tamal Krishna would go up to the more interested ones and ask, “How
do you like the music? How do you like the food?” If they thought it
was great then he would stay and preach to them. If they weren’t excited
he would just leave. He said, “You just ask them this. Don’t waste your
time. Look for the people who are favorable.”
There are several pots of prasādam to offer a free lunch to students who
have come. Goswami says they need a prasādam cart to make it more
attractive. When Suddha Jiva says he’s a trained carpenter, Goswami
asks him to build a portable prasādam table immediately.
Meanwhile back at the temple, Vipra has begun work on the clutch with
Vrikasanga assisting him. They quickly discover that the bus has a
complicated transmission, a kind of semi-automatic, with a weird clutch
that has long since gone out of production. They can’t find anyone who
has a complete clutch assembly. In despair Vipra locates a directory of
GMC parts warehouses in the state. After calling around he can only get
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pieces here and there. Between six warehouses he finally locates
individual parts for a complete set of this clutch.
That evening, Vipra approaches Tamal Krishna to explain the situation.

There is no other choice to fix the clutch but to purchase the parts
individually. It means increased cost. After hearing the details,
Goswami gives Vipra the money he needs.
The next morning after breakfast, Vipra showers and changes into clean
clothes before going out to get the bus parts. There are a number of
showers and a big room for changing in the brahmacārī ashram. This is
where the Radha-Damodara men take bath, and some prefer to sleep in
the temple ashram.
Halfway to the first warehouse Vipra realizes he left the wallet with the
money back in the shower room. Returning back to the temple he goes
straight to the shower room but can’t find the wallet anywhere. After
looking every place he can think of, he comes to the conclusion that the
wallet was taken. He asks everybody but no one has any knowledge of
the wallet. He’s very disturbed because now he has to break the news of
the lost money to Goswami.
After hearing his story, Tamal Krishna gets really heavy. “You better go
back and find that money. Or, you’ll be out on the streets for weeks to
collect it.” Vipra leaves like a dog with his tail between his legs. He
looks everywhere, but by the end of the day he still hasn’t found the
wallet. No one has seen it. He slowly walks to the bus to confess that the
money is gone due to his carelessness.
Tamal Krishna allows a full minute to pass without saying a word, and
then he pulls out the missing wallet from a desk. “Don’t ever leave
money lying around. Prabhupada did the same thing to me, and so I’m
passing it on to you.
“Prabhupada always kept a key under his wrist watch to the safe where
all his valuables were kept. He never parted with that key. I always
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desired that Prabhupada would take me into his confidence. So one day
he gave me the ultimate confidence by letting me hold that key. So I
kept that key.
“One day, Prabhupada wanted something out of the almira and he asked
for the key. I came before Prabhupada but I didn’t have the key with me.
I went everywhere looking for that key but I couldn’t find it. I had
people looking for that key all over the temple. So, finally, I went to
Prabhupada. ‘Srila Prabhupada, I have to tell you something.’
Prabhupada was lying down because he was ill, and he said, ‘Yes?’
“I said, ‘Prabhupada, I lost the key.’ Prabhupada said, ‘Call the GBC.’
“I said, ‘Which one, Srila Prabhupada?’ He said, ‘Call the whole GBC
here to decide what should be done.’
“I thought, Oh my God, he said call the whole GBC. There was nothing
else I could do. So I walked out and I was thinking, I have to call the
whole GBC body to Bombay to decide what’s going to be done with
me!
“Suddenly, I had an idea to try another key. It was an Indian lock, so I

just got another key and somehow or other I opened it. I ran back to
Prabhupada and said, ‘Prabhupada, I opened it!’
“He said, ‘How did you open it?’ I said, ‘I found another key.’
“He thought for a moment and said, ‘That means the lock was not very
good. Then it doesn’t matter if you lost that key, because it was not a
good lock.’ Then Prabhupada said, ‘Now put the key on your brahmin
thread. Put the thread through the key and don’t ever lose it.’ So I kept
the key on my brahmin thread.
“This key was a key that opened up a safe, and the safe had a key that
opened up the almira, and in the almira under a special place was a key
that opened up the safe in the almira. Four keys! He had a whole key
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system. One key led to another key, to another key, and finally to the
key that opened up the safe.
“Prabhupada had a lot of systems. Another thing he had me do was to

label every key. There had to be a log of all the keys. Not only was there
an index of every key, there was an index of every item in every almira.
This was the Indian system. When you go to India every seat and every
desk is numbered. This is the Indian government. “Prabhupada told me,
‘you have to keep all documents for seven years.’ He learned so many
things from the Indian government. He used a quote from the Indian
railways – ‘keep the wheels moving’. He said it was a good motto for
ISKCON – keep the wheels moving.”
Tamal Krishna returns the wallet to Vipra and tells him to get the parts
first thing in the morning.
Another interesting person arrives at the temple. Dravanaksha is an

initiated devotee from Detroit who saw the Radha-Damodara party at
the Janmastami festival in New Vrindavan. He was hanging around the
bus while Sri Galim was cooking and mentioned that he’d like to join
the party.
Sri Galim suggested, “You should tell the Swamis that the temple is
trying to get you married. Then they’ll definitely take you.” At the first
opportunity Dravanaksha spoke to Tamal Krishna, following Sri
Galim’s advice. “Yeah, I’d like to come along because they’re trying to
get me married in the temple.”
“Maybe you need it. But then on the other hand maybe not. Who’s your
temple president?”
“Govardhan Prabhu.”
After the New Vrindavan festival, Dravanaksha had asked Govardhan if

he could join Radha-Damodara. He had seen them do a program at the
Ann Arbor college campus when the Detroit temple came up for that
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festival. Govardhan gave his permission and Dravanaksha called Tamal
Krishna in Philadelphia.
Over the phone, Dravanaksha said he got Govardhan’s permission to

come. Goswami replied, “You should come right away.”
“But I don’t have any money.”
“Well, we’re always on the road. We’ve got to keep moving.”
So at the Detroit Sunday feast Dravanaksha preached to an Indian guest

who became inspired to pay his airfare.
Of course, now that he has arrived in Philadelphia the party is not

moving because the transmission is out on the bus.
Philadelphia, September 1974

Vishnujana begins taking his festival program to different campuses
with Radha- Damodara in the van because the bus is still incapacitated.
Bhubrit and Dravanaksha are regular attendees. At Villanova College in
Valley Forge, Suddha Jiva brings his newly constructed prasādam cart.
It looks professional, made entirely of wood with ribbed stainless steel
for strength. It can also be disassembled for storage in the bus bays.
Goswami is so impressed that he says every bus they purchase “must
have a prasādam cart that folds away in a bay.”
Suddha Jiva: He wanted it designed in a certain way, so everyday he’d

come to see how it was going and give advice. “No, make it like this.
Make that change. How about this? That’s okay, but I want this over
here and that over there.” The cart had wheels and a handle, so it was
kind of a moving steam table on wheels. The top had round cut-out
circles where pots of prasādam fit in perfectly, so nothing would spill
over when the cart was moving. Underneath were cabinet doors with
shelving inside.
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I went to the college festivals and one time Vishnujana Swami said in a
lecture, “If God could appear to Moses in a burning bush, then why
can’t He appear in the form of the Deity?” That really struck me. In the
temple room he was always the first in for maṅgala-ārati. We had big
wooden altar doors and he liked to sing before the doors opened to
create an ecstatic feeling of anticipation before the conch blew.
Ravindra Svarupa likes having the sannyāsīs at his temple. One day he
brings the latest Sankirtan Newsletter to show them. It is issue number
23, with 14 temples reporting their scores for the weekend of August 30
- September 1.
San Francisco is again at the top of the list with 5193 points. Los
Angeles is a very close second with 5017 points. Vishnujana comments
that these two west coast temples are definitely fired up to distribute
The BBT TSKP is a distant third with 2605 points, followed by Detroit
and Pittsburgh. Sarvabhauma Das is the top distributor with 960 points
for the BBT TSKP!
He was formerly with the San Francisco traveling party but has since
joined Tripurari’s team. The result is an increase in the number of books
he is distributing every week. The Sankirtan Newsletter is beginning to
dominate the conversation among many devotees nowadays.
Temple visitors are not the only people who notice the bus parked on
the property with ‘Hare Krishna’ prominent in the destination slot.
Parked for a long time in a neglected neighborhood, the bus becomes a
target for hoodlums.
One night some teenagers drive by in a car and start hooting and
hollering. They throw eggs at the bus and one of them hurls a rock
through a bus window. These are really expensive windows and hard to
come by.
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Although the devotees are taking rest, Vishnujana Swami jumps up to
defend Radha-Damodara. He grabs a shotgun he keeps as an emergency
measure since the biker shoot-up in New Vrindavan. Leaping out of the
bus, he runs into the street as the car speeds away. He takes careful aim
and is about to shoot when his lungi begins to slip down. Immediately,
he is forced to grab his cloth to prevent an embarrassing situation. The
vandals escape without injury.
Vrikasanga: One night these guys came by in a car harassing the

devotees and the Deities. Vishnujana Maharaja had such complete faith
in Krishna, he wasn’t going to tolerate it. He was like Lord Chaitanya
going after Jagai and Madhai. He had a shotgun in his hands and went
running down the street. It was a 20-gauge shotgun, a regular rifle. He
was trying to shoot, but he couldn’t get the safety off. He didn’t know
anything about guns. As he was aiming, his dhoti started falling off right
in the middle of the street. There wasn’t anyone around, but it was
hilarious.
Ravindra Svarupa: I saw this happen from a distance. Hooligans pulled

up to the bus and one of them flipped a lit cigarette into the bus through
an open window. Vishnujana Maharaja jumped up and he had a
shotgun, which I didn’t know about. He took this shotgun and ran out
into the street as these guys were speeding away. He was about to fire,
when his dhoti fell down. By that merciful act, we were spared shooting
somebody.
I flipped out and went to Tamal Krishna. “You have to understand

something. If he shoots these people and hurts somebody, it will be a
murder charge, and it will not look good for the Hare Krishna
Movement, even though they were hooligans. Shooting somebody is not
the right response.” I thought Tamal Krishna would then get on
Vishnujana’s case. But he said, “You explain it to him.”
So I went to Vishnujana and explained the law, because he justified his

reaction. I realized that in his own mind he didn’t really see any problem
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with it. I explained to him very clearly what the law was, and that if he
did shoot them and killed somebody or even wounded somebody, he
would go to jail. He didn’t think that was right but he accepted my
verdict that it was the law.
The second thing I told him was that it would look bad for the Hare
Krishna Movement. As a law and order man at that time, I was a little
put-off by the Wild West element that was there. I was in the framework
of temple president and what ISKCON is like, following laws and rules
of an orderly society. He wasn’t operating on that framework
whatsoever. So on the one side was the temple president side, which
was law, order, regularity, reliability, ‘punching a time clock’. Then
there was this sort of wild side. He did have this innocent quality
because I could see that it was a kind of simplicity. But it was amazing
to me that he didn’t think that responding with firearms was at all a
disproportionate act.
To a marked degree Vishnujana Maharaja is innocent, childlike. This

childlike mentality is also mentioned in the teachings of Lord Jesus,
“Unless ye become like little children ye cannot enter the Kingdom of
Heaven.” A devotee regains that childlike innocence in devotional
service - that’s what spiritual life is all about. It may raise hell with
some people when devotees are up-front, but that’s their problem.
Vaishnavas are not meant to assume other people’s problems but to help
solve the problem of repeated birth and death. Vishnujana Swami
doesn’t let other people’s problems become his problems. Rather he
gives them what’s in his heart. That’s where his strength is. He gives
people that love and openness. But when Radha-Damodara are
threatened he becomes like a lion.
Sri Rama: Most of us were sleeping in the temple so I didn’t see it

personally. Some hoodlums came around stoning the bus. I was told that
Vishnujana ran into the street with his loaded shotgun and was going to
fire into the back of their car when his dhoti fell down. He was very
772
particular about protecting the Deities.
There is much discussion about the incident the next day. Some
Philadelphia devotees consider that carrying weapons means no faith in
Krishna. Vrikasanga immediately takes offense at this mentality.
“Oh, really? Arjuna had no faith in Krishna? As devotees we don’t have

to be passive. If someone is going to attack the Deities, or somebody is
going to hurt devotees, which can happen, then I’m going to protect
those devotees. That’s my duty, and I’m going to do that.
“I did guard duty and protection for Prabhupada at the San Francisco
Ratha-yatra.
Samvatsar was there with Urdhvareta and Jiva. They were trained as
kṣatriyas in New Vrindavan after the biker attack, and Prabhupada
authorized that. We were Prabhupada’s designated guards and were
always around him as protection. The President has his Secret Service
for protection, and also Prabhupada has his.”
Vrikasanga: I was the kṣatriya on the bus. I was the only one that had a
pistol and no one else touched a gun. It never came down to anything
final like that, but we were ready. I was always protecting Radha-
Damodara because there were some heavy demons out there. That was
my service.
The way things transpire on the Radha-Damodara party there is always

an undercurrent of piracy, a slight renegade spirit that colors things. At
the same time, there is a really deep devotion. During the stay in
Philadelphia, the sannyāsīs keep their men a little separate from the
temple. Ravindra Svarupa gives the Bhagavatam class and his lectures
are very good. Occasionally, Vishnujana Swami gives the Bhagavatam
class in the temple and everyone appreciates his sweet way of
presenting the philosophy. But Goswami prefers to remain on the bus
and give class to the Radha-Damodara men.
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Ravindra Svarupa takes full advantage of the sannyāsīs presence for
advanced association. He gets to know them both fairly well and
observes that they have an interesting relationship. Overall he interacts
more with Tamal Krishna Goswami than with Vishnujana Maharaja.
Slowly he is developing a friendship with Goswami.
Ravindra Svarupa: Tamal Krishna was always on his case. Vishnujana

Maharaja was somewhat of a lawless person and Tamal Krishna was
always trying to keep him in line. So they had this interesting dynamic
going on all the time. Vishnujana would spend money on things and
Tamal Krishna would get mad that he spent money.
Once he went up to New York and came back with a large Rajasthani-
style Krishna-līlā painting that cost a lot of money. He had the notion of
splitting it in half and making a Deity curtain for the altar. Tamal
Krishna was furious that he had spent the money on that. I remember
Vishnujana crouched in the corner studying his finger nails while Tamal
Krishna ranted and raved about spending this money, that it was a stupid
idea, and that it wouldn’t work. The next thing on Tamal Krishna’s
mind was to get the money back.
He tried to sell me that painting so I said, “Vishnujana Maharaja owes

me $250 in gasoline bills from Suhotra and Vishnudatta last year!”
That’s how I got the painting.
Sri Rama: Tamal Krishna usually acted as the hard guy and Vishnujana
acted as the soft guy. It was like a good cop/bad cop routine. I once saw
them reverse roles, which was interesting.
Ravindra appreciates Vishnujana Maharaja as an inspired kirtan leader,

and recognizes that he gives really nice classes. But he can understand
that Maharaja functions with a totally different perspective. Still he
wants to take advantage of his association before the party leaves so he
approaches Maharaja with a question. “Can you give me a brief
harmonium lesson? With an improved musical presentation I can make
Krishna consciousness more attractive to students and guests.”
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Vishnujana is happy to oblige and brings Ravindra onto the bus for a
quick lesson on playing harmonium the way Prabhupada had originally
taught him.
Ravindra Svarupa: He gave me a lesson that was five minutes long. I

thought that was the most incredible five minute music lesson. I played
violin when young, I even played sousaphone, so I knew something
about music. He gave me a condensed version that if I followed up on it,
I’d become proficient. He showed me what he called the spiritual scale.
It’s mentioned in Srimad-Bhagavatam that it’s the scale that Narada
Muni sings in. He said, “Play in that scale when you play harmonium
and play mostly on the black keys.” Then he showed me how he played
Gopinath, and that was it. He was a very good teacher.
I know what good teaching is, and it was very good teaching, very
authoritative. I realized that a lot of what he did was inspired.
I was amazed at the size of his hands. He was all over the keyboard. I
have a large hand, but he had a huge reach, an incredible reach. He was
a great musician.
Bhubrit: I was attracted to Vishnujana Maharaja because I had studied

piano for 13 years before I was a devotee. I really liked his style of
playing and I was always asking if he could show me some things on the
harmonium. On a couple of occasions he actually gave me a couple of
lessons that lasted about 10 minutes. I was asking him to show me how
to play different tunes and he played some bhajans. He would go back
and forth over the tune so I could see how his hands were moving over
the keyboard. It was incredible to watch him play. Someone told me that
his fingers were being directed by the demigods.
While the party waits for the bus to be fixed, an aerogram from India
alights in Ravindra’s office. It’s for Tamal Krishna, a response to a letter
he had recently sent inquiring about Prabhupada’s health. As soon as
Ravindra hands it to him, Goswami tears it open.
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My dear Tamal Krishna Goswami,
Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter

dated September 4, 1974. Regarding my health, I was lying almost
unconscious. Now by the grace of Krishna, I am walking in the morning
but I am still very weak. Neither do I feel any proper appetite. So the
weakness is there, but I feel that I am progressing a little each day. So
your preaching work is very encouraging to me. You have got the
proper field now. So continue with the cooperation of Vishnujana
Maharaja, so that your example can be followed by others.
Your program for distributing books and having the street festivals and
then preaching and making devotees is very good. Also by teaching by
your personal example and attending to the Deity worship is the most
convincing. Example is better than precept. I am glad to note that the 24
hour kirtan was going on. It is by your chanting that I am now saved
from the dangerous condition. It was very serious. Anyway regarding
the constant 24 hour kirtan, you should not do anything impractical.
I thank you for sending the thousand dollars to the ISKCON food relief.
We are using the moneys that have already been sent from USA in
Mayapur for purchasing grains. In Bombay they also have a very nice
prasada distribution program.
I have been receiving letters from Satsvarupa das Goswami about his
successful library program so I think you also can take up this program
in conjunction with your sankirtan festivals. Get standing orders for
Srimad-Bhagavatam and Chaitanya Charitamrta as many as possible.
This is very good preaching work. So you may consult with Satsvarupa
das Goswami and he can guide you in this program.
Allaying any doubts in Goswami’s mind, Prabhupada assures him that

“You have got the proper field now.” He also requests Tamal to
continue co-operating with Vishnujana Swami. The Radha-Damodara
party has been preaching successfully for several years and now
Goswami’s cooperation will be a good example for others to follow –
776
yad yad ācārati śreṣṭhas tat tad evetaro janaḥ. [Whatever action a great
man performs, common men follow. [Bg 3.21]]
In India, Jayapataka Swami and Bhavananda Goswami are working

together to expand the Mayapur project and Prabhupada appreciates
their cooperation. Prabhupada is aware of the fractious bickering going
on around the movement so he brings up the point of cooperation. It’s
his “unity in diversity” theme.
Prabhupada also draws attention to the BBT Library Party that is

distributing full sets of Srimad-Bhagavatam and Chaitanya-charitamrita
to the university libraries. Selling one set of books equals the daily total
of one major book distributor. Plus, these books will be in the hands of
professors and college students, the more intelligent class. The Radha-
Damodara programs focus on college students, so Prabhupada directs
Goswami to get guidance from Satsvarupa to incorporate the library
program alongside the festivals.
He repeats this directive in a letter to Satsvarupa Maharaja on

September 8th – “I have instructed Tamal Krishna Goswami that he can
also do this library program.” When Vishnujana Swami reads the letter
he’s pleased that Srila Prabhupada approves of the festival program in
conjunction with book distribution. He’s been doing this all along.
Moreover, Prabhupada’s statement that “teaching by your personal
example and attending to the Deity worship is the most convincing” is
exactly what Vishnujana is doing, so he’s satisfied that he’s pleasing His
Divine Grace.
Although Prabhupada mentions that the 24-hour kirtans saved his life,
Tamal Krishna feels listless reading about his continuing frail condition.
These feelings evoke memories of previous encounters Prabhupada
experienced with his health, both in America and India.
TKG: I remembered in India seeing him in a similar condition due to

over exhaustion, but Prabhupada had passed through that trial quickly,
recovering in one night. And I recalled how in Los Angeles he had
777
suffered from heart palpitations and severe coughing which plagued him
for nearly a month. Srila Prabhupada had said that his sufferings had
been caused by a disturbance created by some of his most senior
disciples. It was my conclusion that the problem was once again due to
Srila Prabhupada’s disciples. Just as Jesus Christ had sacrificed his life
for the redemption of the fallen, similarly Srila Prabhupada was
suffering on our behalf, absorbing our karma to raise us to
transcendental life.
According to śāstra, at the time of initiation the spiritual master accepts

the karma of the new initiate based on the vow that the disciple will “sin
no more.” Lord Jesus gave the same teaching, and he also accepted the
karma of his followers. Tamal Krishna believes that Srila Prabhupada is
suffering due to a similar situation.
While Goswami meditates on this situation, Radha Raman and Sridhar

arrive back at the temple in the Toyota pickup truck. They have
purchased two buses and now they need some devotees to return with
them to drive the vehicles back. Simultaneously, Vipra comes to
announce that he has the transmission under control. He has fixed the
clutch but admits it was quite an education for him. “The show will be
back on the road within a couple of days,” he promises.
Again, both leaders welcome the turn of events as Krishna’s mercy.

They are anxious to get back on the road. Goswami calls Dhristadyumna
to arrange a rendezvous in Virginia Beach, where the weather is still
warm. The plan is that the party will head south while Radha Raman
and Sridhar organize getting the buses to the Philadelphia temple, where
they will be fully tested to ensure they will be roadworthy.
There are some people on the party, however, who are ready for a
change in service. Many devotees are now going to India and returning
with wonderful tales of close association with Prabhupada. Others return
with tales of illness and austerity. But the Radha-Damodara men thrive
on austerity. Living on the road and sleeping on the floor of a bus, they
778
feel they are ready for anything, and mystic India beckons.
Sadananda: There was an ISKCON policy that anybody who wanted to

go to India should be encouraged. So I asked Tamal Krishna if I can go
to India. But he said, “You can’t go. You’re too valuable so you can’t
go.”
Tamal Krishna was out to gain personnel. He was very good at making
devotees by pushing people over the line and shaving them up quick. He
was very good at going after their objections and eliminating them, or
making them feel foolish for having them. When Tamal Krishna joined,
the mood changed. It went from laid-back and not a very pushy
program, to an extremely pushy program.
Before leaving Philadelphia, Goswami makes a final attempt at

recruiting more men now that he will have two more buses to fill. There
are several men who have become regulars at the festival programs.
Dravanaksha has already committed to join the party, but no one else
comes forward.
Bhubrit: They tried to get me to join. I was really attracted but I felt
obliged to join the temple because I had already been visiting there for
awhile. Vishnujana’s program was one of the things that kept me going.
He had a lot to do with me coming to Krishna consciousness.
Ravindra Svarupa: The notion was you find the interested kids, you pull
them loose from the college, send a van out to empty their dorm room,
and put them on the bus. It was manipulative behavior and the kind of
thing that leads you to being called a cult. Ultimately, it didn’t work.
Because by the time Tamal Krishna got to Philadelphia he told me that
it wasn’t making devotees like he wanted to. He didn’t know quite what
they were going to do. He was at loose ends. It was a nice program,
people were chanting, but they weren’t joining.
The Radha-Damodara extravaganza is growing and attracting attention

from ISKCON leaders. Before long more buses will be acquired and the
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program duplicated with devotees distributed according to their talents.
Each bus will be fully equipped and have a full esraj/harmonium
ensemble.
After the bus leaves, Ravindra Svarupa starts his own little kirtan band
and goes to the local colleges and universities inspired by the festive
program of Vishnujana Maharaja. Ravindra lectures and Bhubrit plays
the harmonium. They also have mṛdaṅga and kartāls, and they distribute
a little prasādam.
Ravindra Svarupa: Tamal Krishna and Vishnujana were buddies from

the old days and had a solid relationship in pre-ISKCON days. He told
me that Vishnujana had taken the strings out of a piano and mounted
them on a wall, which he used to play, strumming it like a harp. Tamal
Krishna was really inspired by that. There was something he had that
Tamal Krishna admired so much. He was very creative, really artistic,
and of course, his kirtans were so wonderful. He was a dazzling
charismatic musician and he put so much into what he was doing.
There’s been no one quite like him since then.
Washington, DC September 1974

As the Radha-Damodara bus speeds towards the nation’s capitol towing
the Toyota truck, Vipra encounters heavy traffic. Suddenly everyone on
the bus feels a tremendous jolt from behind.
Gauridas Pandit has an intuition that something has happened to his

pickup truck. He looks out a window and sees his little green truck by
the side of the road. “Hey, stop the bus,” he yells out. “The truck came
off.”
Vipra pulls over to the side of the road and backs up. The Swamis get
out to survey the damage. The pickup is demolished. A telephone
company truck behind the bus has rammed into the back of the pickup.
The bus has some cosmetic damage at the rear end, but no one is hurt.
780
Within an hour a claims specialist from the telephone company’s
insurance agency has assessed the damage and handed Tamal Krishna a
check to cover the loss of the pickup.
Gauridas Pandit: I was still thinking it was my truck. Radha Raman used
to drive it, and grind the gears, and go fast over bumps. It was too much
for me. I was thinking of blooping at our next stop. Then all of a sudden
it was about a third the size of a sardine can. We got a $5000 settlement,
and it was only worth about $2000. The insurance company gave us a
quick payment. But I didn’t get a penny.
The back of the bus will need some minor repair work, so the sannyāsīs
agree they would be better off trying to fix it in Washington, DC, than in
the tourist town of Virginia Beach. It’s already dark when they’re ready
to get back on the road. Vishnujana comes over to speak with Gauridas
Pandit.
“Were you thinking about leaving or something?”
“Well, yeah.”
“Just see. Radha-Damodara wouldn’t let you go.”
Tamal Krishna gives Sri Rama a street map and tells him to navigate for
Vipra and get the bus to the temple. Simply from the address in the BTG
and a map of the city Sri Rama finds the temple in the middle of the
night.
Vipra parks in front of the temple at 2015 “Q” Street NW, situated in
the high- rolling area of Dupont Circle. When devotees acquired that
building, they had to build a temple room. As they were knocking out a
wall, they found an old newspaper with an article about Ratha-yatra in
India, in which the term Juggernaut was used. That was a sign from
Krishna if ever there was one.
The next morning the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs wake up and knock
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on the temple door so they can take their bath. Word quickly spreads,
“Radha-Damodara are here!” The temple devotees consider it Krishna’s
great divine arrangement that, lo and behold, Tamal Krishna Goswami
and Vishnujana Maharaja have appeared. Seeing the bus parked in front
of the temple, Tamal Krishna is so pleased he gives Sri Rama another
service – navigating.
While the temple is having maṅgala-ārati for Sri Sri Radha-Madan

Mohan, Vishnujana is preparing Radha-Damodara for Their own
maṅgala-ārati. He has already sent Ramacharya and Sarvopama to
liberate flowers for the morning offering. The temple is near Embassy
Road, where most International missions have their embassies.
Whenever Ramacharya sees a rose garden he nearly strips that garden of
flowers. He trains Sarvopama that roses are more desirable for Radha-
Damodara’s pūjā. When Goswami finds out where the roses came from,
he confronts Vishnujana Swami.
Maharaja politely mentions, “All flowers belong to Krishna so the

brahmacārīs are doing nothing wrong. Besides, whenever we come to
DC that’s where we liberate flowers.”
“I have no idea how you’ve avoided an international incident,” is

Goswami’s reply.
“You are so lucky.”
Although the temple is on Q Street, the brahmacārī ashram is around the

corner a few blocks up the road on 22nd Street. Vishnujana and Tamal
Krishna are standing outside the bus prior to Radha-Damodara’s
maṅgala-ārati when a temple brahmacārī comes by chanting his rounds.
Tamal Krishna stops him to ask his name.
“Sesha Das.”
“What’s your service?”
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“I go out for sankirtan every day.” “Who’s your authority?”
“I’m with Rupanuga Maharaja.”
“Don’t call him Maharaja,” Tamal Krishna gently rebukes him.
Sesha Das: The Radha-Damodara party came to Washington shortly

after Rupanuga left sannyāsa. That was the first time I saw Vishnujana
Swami and Tamal Krishna Goswami. Radha-Damodara had already
picked up the reputation of taking devotees from the temples. They
asked a few more questions and I thought, They’re trying to hit me up to
join the Radha- Damodara party. But I went on and they didn’t try to get
me.
After maṅgala-ārati in the Q Street temple, some local devotees come

down to the street to take darshan of Radha-Damodara on the bus and to
hear Vishnujana lead the Gurvastakam prayers for Radha-Damodara.
Several men remain on the bus to chant their japa. Srutadeva introduces
himself to the sannyāsīs as the person who is doing the weekly
Sankirtan Newsletter. He hands them Issue 25, hot off the press, for
their perusal. Ten temples have reported results. Los Angeles temple is
the top distributor with 3,314 points. Next is the BBT party with 2,330
points, followed by St Louis, Chicago, and Detroit temples.
Tripurari Prabhu from the BBT TSKP is the top distributor with 550
points. Both sannyāsīs praise Srutadeva for his service that is igniting a
revolution in book distribution. They make him feel welcome and invite
him to stay for class and breakfast prasādam on the bus, although he is a
gṛhastha.
Srutadeva: I had always heard of Vishnujana Swami; how he used to

lead kirtan for 12 hours a day, how he always used to tell the Krishna
stories, and how he was such a wonderful devotee. I heard about the
Road Show, and had a tape of the Road Show songs. Then he did the
Radha-Damodara TSKP studio recording, too.
783
Srutadeva is filled is thrilled to take prasādam with the sannyāsīs. He
pulls out a letter he has received from Prabhupada and shows it to them.
You can continue sending me these newsletters as you publish them

weekly. It is this sankirtan which is the life and soul of our movement.
Sankirtan and book distribution should go on together side by side. I am
always glad when these activities are increasing and my pleasure is
always increasing. [Letter to Srutadeva - September 8, 1974]
Vishnujana Swami notices that Prabhupada has written, “sankirtan and

book distribution should go on together side by side.” He points this out
to Tamal Krishna and explains that this was exactly the point he had
made to Bahudak Prabhu when he was in Vancouver.
Srila Prabhupada is now encouraging devotees to add book distribution

to their daily sankirtan. Since the beginning of the movement, devotees
have been going out for 6-8 hours a day to chant the holy names of the
Lord – golokera prema-dhana, harināma-saṅkīrtana. [Song by
Narottama Das Thakur] But now that devotees have discovered how to
distribute his books, Prabhupada is encouraging everyone, through his
letters, to go out and spread the teachings to every town and village.
I am glad to learn that in Philadelphia they are increasing sankirtan. It is

our life and soul. Sankirtan should be increased as much as possible.
Side by side is book selling. Then our mission will be successful. [Letter
to Rupanuga - September 4, 1974]
It’s important to note that Prabhupada is pointing out that kirtan is what
actually gives us life – eternal life. At the time of grave illness or
leaving the body, the mind must be full with Krishna’s Name, otherwise
we may have to take birth again! No other service is as effective to help
us remember Sri Krishna as chanting the mahā- mantra. Here he says,
“It is our life and soul.”
Side by side with sankirtan, however, Prabhupada is now emphasizing

that book distribution should also be implemented.
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The temple presidents are beginning to push book distribution as the
major daily activity, but are neglecting to send out a daily chanting
party. The same reason given by Bahudak, that book distribution brings
in the money to support the temple, is the justification for this practice.
As the trend becomes more widespread, harināma- saṅkīrtana is reduced
to a few hours on Friday or Saturday night at best. Sadly, another
program that’s slowly being neglected is the evening Bhagavad-gita
class.
Damodara Das is still the Washington temple president although he and

his wife, Mriganetri, feel that it’s time to give up managing. Their desire
is to move to the New Dwaraka community in Los Angeles to do
straight preaching. Of course, every time Vishnujana Swami comes with
Radha-Damodara, they feel a little trepidation. They originally arranged
for the Deities to come to America. Then Kirtananada Swami tricked
Damodara into loaning him the Deities. Later, They became the
worshipful Deities of Vishnujana Maharaja, but it was sanctioned by
Srila Prabhupada.
Nonetheless, whenever the Radha-Damodara bus arrives at his temple

Damodara Prabhu always feels a little tinge of nostalgia.
Damodara: I remember very vividly the bus being parked in front of the
temple with Radha- Damodara inside. I do remember going onto the bus
and bowing down, and maybe having some mixed feelings. Perhaps,
there was a little bit of awkwardness. But They certainly were being
taken care of nicely so I was not distressed.
During breakfast on the street in trendy Dupont Circle, there is a sudden

loud knocking on the bus door. It’s Chris Murray. He spent time with
Vishnujana Swami in India at the Gaura-Purnima festival and has heard
that Maharaja is in town. Vishnujana remembers him from Mayapur and
they have a happy reunion. Chris says that he has a boutique and art
gallery in nearby Georgetown with his girl friend, Kim Waters, a
talented and sensitive artist. They now come regularly to the Sunday
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feast.
Chris invites Vishnujana to perform kirtan in the back garden of his

boutique. He explains that they have a weekly gathering and tonight
would be exceptional if Maharaja could be the special guest. Chris
guarantees there will be a nice crowd because the news of Radha-
Damodara’s presence is already spreading throughout the devotee
community.
After Chris leaves, Tamal Krishna sends Gauranga, Karnapur, and

Patatriraj ahead to Virginia Beach to augment Dhristadyumna’s party.
Dhristadyumna: We were on the road living in a van and selling incense

and BTGs. We didn’t worry about money. We were out there on the
leading edge of preaching and just depending on Krishna from day to
day.
Up in the temple’s prasādam room, Shankar Pandit is just about ready to

go out for book distribution when a devotee approaches him. “Tonight
Vishnujana Swami and his kirtan band are going to play at Chris
Murray’s. So why don’t you come back from sankirtan a bit early?”
Shankar thinks that’s a great idea. He remembers Vishnujana Swami
from New Vrindavan last year just after he joined the movement.
Several book distributors agree to go directly to the boutique from their
sankirtan spot.
Later in the day, Srutadeva returns to the bus to ask Vishnujana for a
harmonium lesson. Although he is already familiar with the harmonium
and keyboards in general, and can pick up some melodies easily by ear,
he still wants to learn from Maharaja. Vishnujana, however, has many
things to take care of so he politely puts him off, “When I get some
time.”
That evening, Maharaja and his men set up their portable stage in the
back garden of Chris Murray’s place with all their instruments plugged
into amplifiers. Although it’s autumn there is only a slight breeze. The
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flowers and lighting arrangements make the atmosphere quite pleasing
and enchanting. When Vishnujana begins the kirtan, there are over 30
guests and as many devotees sitting in chairs.
Shankar Pandit: By the time I got there the program had already started
and Vishnujana was already chanting. He was singing Sri Rupa Manjari
and the corresponding Hare Krishna in a sweet melodic way and all the
instruments were blending in. I had never heard anything like it before.
It was very moving and I thought, This is like the spiritual world! I
didn’t have any conception of what music in the spiritual world sounded
like, but I thought it must be something like this.
I was watching Vishnujana’s face and he was intensely absorbed in

singing. I also watched his fingers on the harmonium. Everything about
him seemed very graceful, devotional. Even though I was still somewhat
of a new devotee, I felt tears welling up in my eyes out of appreciation.
The mood of devotion was so thick and the whole atmosphere of singing
and playing was so trance-like that I was very moved.
I had to wipe away the tears because I was afraid someone would look
at me and think I was a sahajiyā. I looked out at everyone else to see
how they were appreciating the chanting and there were several people
who were crying. That was the most amazing thing, because I could
understand that it was moving for devotees, but these were the guests.
They were actually shedding tears! I thought, This is amazing. It wasn’t
your daily kirtan, it was something very unique and special, that even
non-devotees were moved to tears and exhibited spiritual appreciation.
The pace picked up faster and faster, and more intense, and then all of a
sudden, with a stroke of his hand, Vishnujana brought it to a close and
chanted om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. It was like driving down the
highway in top gear and all of a sudden coming to a complete stop. So
he did that, and when he chanted om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya, with
his hand gesturing in the air, it was very mystical. We were on a kirtan
ride and on that journey sometimes we went fast, sometimes slow,
787
sometimes winding.
When he wound up the kirtan he spoke for a few minutes about the
meaning of the chanting. “This is mantra-yoga.” Everyone listened
attentively and then it ended and we went back to the temple. Everyone
was marveling afterwards about the kirtan. That was my first taste of his
kirtan band – completely satisfying.
The program is so successful, and the audience so appreciative, that

Chris and Kim receive kudos from all the invited guests. They are so
moved themselves that they ask Maharaja if they can come for maṅgala-
ārati on the bus. Vishnujana is delighted and gives them a warm,
encouraging, “Of course.”
The Washington devotees have heard Prabhupada say that the BBT
paintings are windows into the spiritual world. Similarly, they say that
Vishnujana Swami’s kirtans are doors into the spiritual world.
Chris Murray: I’m a musician and his ability with the mṛdaṅga and the
harmonium, when he would sing Gopinath and chant Hare Krishna, put
goose bumps on me. He had that slightly raspy voice from preaching so
much and singing so much. After singing the songs, he relished reading
the verses in English. And when he would translate he was celestial, so
warm and so rich. He was so attached to the Bhaktivinoda Songbook!
He was extraordinary, like a demigod. Vishnujana Swami made me fall
in love with Radha and Krishna. He also made me fall in love with him,
which was so nice because it’s wonderful to have that kind of
relationship with a devotee. He was like a bee to honey. He would
always bring out the best in people and he never judged you. He
reminded me of Prabhupada in that way. I felt blessed and fortunate.
The next morning Chris and Kim actually get up and come for maṅgala-
ārati on the bus parked on the street in front of the temple. They find the
experience so enlivening that they want to continue coming every
morning because the mood is so amazing. They are doing a project
called Illuminations from the Bhagavad-gita, which is a series of
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paintings by Kim illustrating Krishna līlā along with the teachings.
Although the project is in a very early stage, they bring some of the
paintings to show the sannyāsīs, who are encouraging. They appreciate
this mood of presenting Krishna’s teachings in an artistic way.
“Why don’t you take your festival program to Montrose Park,” Kim
suggests, “because a lot of people congregate there when the weather is
nice.”
Immediately, Vishnujana says, “Let’s go.” When Tamal Krishna

reminds him that the bus can’t move because of the repair work on the
back, Chris says he will come back tomorrow with his VW van that has
a platform in the back. “It’ll be perfect for Radha-Damodara.”
When Chris and Kim arrive the following morning they bring some
gorgeous miniature roses that Kim has purchased for Radha-Damodara.
When the curtain opens for greeting the Deities, Radharani’s dress and
hair are beautifully decorated with the baby roses. Vishnujana is expert
in arranging the offerings and gifts that people give to Radha-Damodara
so that they can see the results of their service.
Chris Murray: I’ll never forget when he opened that curtain and the
roses were expertly arranged in Radharani’s hair and on Her dress. You
really felt that they got to Krishna when you gave them to Vishnujana
Swami. You really believed that the Supreme Personality of Godhead
was there when he was serving the Deities, because he was engaged in
such a personal relationship with Them cent per cent.
The Washington devotees have been suggesting that the Radha-

Damodara kirtan band go to the University of Maryland. Temple
devotees frequent the campus to distribute books, BTGs, and prasādam.
It would be a great location to present the festival program. After class
and breakfast on the bus, everyone is ready to go.
Chris decides to join them but Kim will stay back to open the art
gallery. The men carefully bring Radha-Damodara out of the bus and
789
into Chris’s little VW van. He considers it a great honor to chauffeur the
Supreme Lord and His Eternal Consort.
Chris Murray: They didn’t take the bus and that was mercy for me.
Vishnujana Swami sat in the back of the van singing to Radha-
Damodara and talking to Them as we drove. I distinctly remember that
he talked to Them like he was carrying on a conversation. He was
constantly talking to the Deities like They were his best friends. He
really had a relationship with those Deities and he made you realize that
They were alive. Kim and I spent a lot of time at the “Q” Street temple
when they were there because the sweetness and intensity of his Deity
worship stood out. It inspired us to get up and come to maṅgala-ārati.
When he sang, his kirtan would literally make us weep. He was so
devoted, so filled with bliss.
The University program is so successful that going there becomes a

daily happening. Vishnujana sets up Radha-Damodara in the middle of
the campus green and performs marvelous kirtans. He also preaches
marvelous sermons. Many students gather, attracted by Maharaja’s
singing. Tamal Krishna goes into the crowd looking for prospects to join
the bus party. Vishnujana is so expert, along with Tamal Krishna, in
creating a program that attracts so many people in such a natural
spontaneous way.
It’s very effective preaching, demonstrating spiritual life by personal

example.
Effective preaching means being the example or being the acharya as

Prabhupada wanted. When devotees simply speak the philosophy
without living it, without being the example, or as Prabhupada would
say, without being the person bhāgavata, then the entire premise of
Krishna consciousness collapses. The basic principle – by chanting Hare
Krishna you become purified and divine love manifests in your heart –
is thus defeated.
The local devotees are so encouraged and inspired by these festival
790
programs that they invite anyone who they think might have an interest
in spiritual life.
Lokaguru: One of my friends told me that I had to go see Vishnujana

Swami singing on the University of Maryland Mall. I was working at
the psychiatric wing of a hospital, and before I’d go to the hospital I’d
come down for the day to the Mall. Vishnujana Maharaja called me over
and asked who I was.
“Have you ever chanted?”
“Well, I used to do Transcendental Meditation, but I switched from the

TM mantra and now I’m just meditating on Rama.”
Hearing this, Vishnujana begins to narrate the story of Valmiki. “At one
point he was a criminal but when Narada Muni met him in a jungle, he
convinced him to become a devotee. Narada Muni wanted him to
meditate on the name Rama. But Valmiki said, ‘No, I am too sinful.’
“So Narada Muni said, ‘Then, you can meditate on the personality of
death, Mara.’ “Then Valmiki started chanting Mara. The next time
Narada Muni appeared, Valmiki said, ‘Every time I chant Mara it
changes to Rama.’
”Narada Muni replied, ‘Yes, because you are no longer sinful. Now you
can go on to write about Rama.’”
Lokaguru: I already had japa beads and I was chanting the name Rama,
so I thought I might as well add Hare and Krishna also. He was the one
who actually convinced me. He also told me how he met Prabhupada.
“I was living in San Francisco and coming everyday for prasādam, but
not for the class. I was into music and lived upstairs in a Frederick
Street house near the temple. I got this cool drum from India but didn’t
know the right way to play it. So I went to the temple to ask about the
drum and Prabhupada happened to be there. Then Prabhupada taught me
791
how to play it.”
Lokaguru relates to this story thinking that it’s similar to what he’s
doing – just coming for prasādam.
Lokaguru: He was extremely personal and that made me feel

comfortable about Krishna consciousness. When he spoke about the
form of Radha-Damodara he gave this example, “If God could appear to
Moses in the form of a burning bush, than why can’t He appear as these
beautiful personalities?” I began to think, Yeah, I could do this. I like
the chanting. He was a magnanimous person who really cared about
people. When Prabhupada instructed the artists how to paint, he said,
“The paintings should be windows into the spiritual world.” When
Vishnujana Swami sang you were transported to the kirtans of the
spiritual world.
Chris Murray also comes everyday to the University programs, and

whenever Kim can get away from the art gallery she also accompanies
him. This is special mercy for Chris and Kim who are seeing the results
of dedicated chanting and preaching in the persons of Vishnujana
Swami and Tamal Krishna Goswami. They are developing an
attachment for Krishna’s devotees, which Krishna explains is better than
developing an attachment to Himself.
In the Adi Purana Lord Krishna addresses Arjuna with the following
statement: “My dear Partha, one who claims to be My devotee is not so.
Only a person who claims to be the devotee of My devotee is actually
My devotee.” [Quoted in Nectar of Devotion]
Radha-Damodara and the sannyāsīs continue going to the campus in

Chris’s VW van while the bus is under repair. It’s almost as if Radha-
Damodara are orchestrating these mishaps so They can stay longer and
give Their mercy to more people.
Every day, whenever he gets the chance, Srutadeva approaches

Vishnujana to ask for a harmonium lesson. Seeing his determination,
792
Maharaja finally agrees, “All right, let’s do it.” Sitting in front of
Radha-Damodara on the bus, Maharaja begins by telling his own story
with Srila Prabhupada.
“When I started playing harmonium I was playing chords. Prabhupada

came over, took my fingers, and pulled them off the harmonium. He
said, ‘No, not like that. Play melodiously.’ Prabhupada didn’t want me
to play chords. So for many years I just played the notes.”
Srutadeva: Later he developed a bouncy technique where he would play

on the tonic, like kartāls, and then play the melody simultaneously. It
was an embellishment for preaching. He played that way for
Prabhupada and Prabhupada didn’t mind.
Then he showed me how Prabhupada had personally taught him to play

the morning melody, starting with F#. He played it very nicely and I
recorded it. He had me sit next to him so I could watch what he was
doing. It was fun because he played the lower octave and I played the
higher octave. I could watch what he was doing and while he played low
I played high. Then we chanted together. But just like with Prabhupada
– you can follow but you can’t imitate – it was the same with
Vishnujana Swami. He would do things I couldn’t imitate.
The musical and spiritual tapestry that he put down was amazing. You
hear it but you can’t do it. Even simple things like the morning melody
were amazing.
One day Srutadeva brings his recording equipment to the campus to do a

live recording of the college kirtan. The recording turns out great and
he’s eager to play the tape for Vishnujana. While listening to the
playback, they both hear something at the same time and look at each
other and exclaim, “Wow”. Both have heard the same musical
embellishment simultaneously. Because it’s something ecstatic that they
both hear, Vishnujana leans over to give Srutadeva a big hug and
remarks, “We both really get off on this, don’t we?”
793
On Saturday night, temple devotees like to go into Georgetown where
many people congregate for their weekend entertainment. Chris Murray
tells the sannyāsīs about a small park with a nice grassy area. He
recommends that they go early and set up before the crowds come. He
assures them it will be big. But when they arrive the park is empty.
There are hardly any people even on the surrounding streets. Tamal
Krishna is disappointed to see such a deserted place. “How will we
make devotees here?”
Chris Murray: Tamal Krishna complained that there weren’t enough

people. “Are we chanting to the trees?” He thought maybe this wasn’t
effective but Vishnujana didn’t mind at all. He got the program going
and people came. There was always that contrast between them. Tamal
Krishna was analytical, and critical, in the positive sense of the word.
Vishnujana was forgiving and loving. So they played off each other.
As night falls in Georgetown the crowds throng to the restaurants and

nightclubs like camels to a desert water hole. The Radha-Damodara
amplified kirtan attracts people to wander over and “check it out.” A
small crowd attracts a larger crowd, and soon the place is so crowded
that people no longer fit in the area. The crowd is practically backing
into the street, thereby blocking traffic.
Srutadeva: One night in Georgetown was really special. There’s a public

park with a small historic house from the 19th Century on a little grassy
area. It was packed with people, Washingtonians walking by, some in
black tie even, and they were wondering, What’s going on? When
Vishnujana Maharaja started tuning up the instruments, it was like the
sound of a symphony tuning up, with that electricity in the air that
they’re about to start. Vishnujana was doing the tuning because most of
his men were bhaktas. He could take bhaktas and have them play, and
the kirtan would be magical! No one else could do that – just take a
bunch of bhaktas and the kirtan would be magic. It was unbelievable.
Tamal Krishna was going to play mṛdaṅga, and Sri Rama was on the
794
esraj. All of a sudden the tuning stopped. Just like a conductor taps the
baton, tap, tap, tap, so just as if the conductor had waved the baton,
Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna looked at each other and started, Gaura
Nityananda bol, haribol, haribol... It was like a rocket taking off to the
moon. I’ll never forget that moment. It was so exciting. There were all
these people, there was electricity in the air, and it was night. Oh, it was
just great.
Whenever devotional service begins to attract throngs of people, Māyā

always intervenes to present a challenge. All of a sudden the police
arrive. They approach the devotees and announce, “You’ll have to
leave. You can’t do this without a permit.” The crowd presses in closer,
to see how the devotees will respond. The confrontation between the
Vaishnavas and the police creates a dramatic moment. This attracts
more people to the scene. “What’s going on?”
Vishnujana Swami gets up and approaches the large black police officer
who is the spokesperson. In a humble tone of voice Maharaja appeals to
the man’s finer sentiments. “Please let us chant. Just let us chant a little
longer.” His voice is full of pleading and emotion. The cop is taken
aback and doesn’t know how to respond. Vishnujana Swami is a big guy
himself, with broad shoulders and muscles, although slim. When he
speaks to the cop soul to soul, “we’re just glorifying God!” with a
loving, imploring look in his eyes, the man’s heart melts. “Okay. All
right, all right. But keep it short.”
Devotees are amazed as Vishnujana sits down again in front of the

harmonium to begin another kirtan. Having persuaded the police to
allow them to continue chanting gives everyone renewed energy and the
kirtan kicks into high gear immediately. The crowd responds favorably
in the typical American fashion of supporting the underdog. Unaware of
the unfolding drama, the temple book distributors are busy approaching
people on the streets in western clothing.
Dandi Das: We heard the chanting a few blocks away and the
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harmonium sounded distinctly Vishnujana Swami. Some of us headed
towards the kirtan. When we got there the crowd was blocking off the
street. As we came through the crowd and got closer, it was one of those
other-worldly sights that you can’t describe – Vishnujana Swami and his
kirtan band chanting with amplified instruments. There was a huge
crowd all over the place in an open grassy area. It was amazing how
spontaneous the whole thing was. Everybody was absolutely
magnetized to the kirtan. It reminded me of a college program that was
also extraordinary.
Historically, the DC temple takes the Sunday feast out to the public
during the summer. They go to either Montrose Park or Dunbarton Oaks
Park. The Radha- Damodara party is asked to lead the “love feast” this
Sunday. Now that the bus is roadworthy again, they bring the stage and
pandal and set everything up in Dunbarton Oaks, a beautiful, lush, 9-
acres designed garden outside of Georgetown. There are flags, festoons,
and banners everywhere, so it’s very much a festive atmosphere. Radha-
Damodara are placed underneath a beautiful Oak tree in a grove of 400-
year- old Oak trees. The Indian instruments are amplified by the 12-volt
batteries.
People in the park for a quiet Sunday afternoon are drawn in by the
kirtan. They come over to watch and gradually some people begin to
dance with the devotees around Radha-Damodara under the big Oak
tree. In this way everyone is circumambulating the Deities! The temple
has brought enough prasādam to serve even the onlookers. As the sun
slowly sinks into the horizon, people take pleasure in the musical
performance and enjoy a delicious vegetarian buffet.
Palaka: Vishnujana Swami was leading the most attractive kirtans – the
best ever. As people were taking prasādam he chanted until the sun set.
He had a way about him that was like a magnet. He drew people in by
his melodious voice and hundreds and hundreds of people gathered
round to hear him sing. It wasn’t that he was the good-looking guy, or
had a sweet voice, or knew how to speak in public. There was a certain
796
quality that Maharaja had. It was like an aspect that Prabhupada had – a
quality of all-attractiveness.
People were immediately attracted to him, and it had to be some form of

purity. There’s no other explanation why he could attract so many
people. Prabhupada gave the example of the Beatles – they were so
attractive because they were demigods who had come to this earth. They
were great personalities so automatically they were attractive. You can
also say that about Vishnujana Swami. Maybe he was a great demigod
who joined our movement. Who knows? But he possessed some pure
quality that everyone felt on many different levels.
Whether Prabhupada stated that the Beatles were previously demigods

is not really relevant. But Prabhupada did acknowledge that demigods
would be queuing up to take birth in the movement. Look at this
exchange on June 9/76.
Ramesvara: Devotees once told me you said that the demigods like this
movement very much so that they’re standing in line to take their birth
in the Krishna consciousness movement.
Prabhupada: Yes. They like to come here on this planet.
Of course, one can never be sure who a devotee really is, therefore the
injunction of śāstra is to always glorify the Vaishnavas.
Palaka: When I heard Vishnujana Maharaja talk about Krishna

consciousness he was thoroughly convinced and so sincere that I
believed it. As someone who was very interested in Krishna
consciousness, even though I was still in high school, I was a little
turned off how heavy and pushy one sannyāsī was to get me to move
into the bus and give up my life and just go travel. I was turned off by
that aspect of Radha-Damodara. It was much too pushy. I wasn’t of
legal age to leave home and I had a nice family. I didn’t want to burn
them out by just giving up everything and leaving.
797
Once the feast is over, everyone departs like light after the sun sets.
Almost immediately only Vishnujana Maharaja, Vrikasanga, and
Lokaguru remain standing by the Oak tree with Radha-Damodara.
Maharaja looks around and says, “Nobody else is here. Both of you are
going to have to help me carry Radha-Damodara back to the bus.”
Lokaguru: I was thinking, Oh my God! I wasn’t even a devotee, just

somebody coming to the feast. He took both corners of one side of Their
palanquin by himself and the brahmacārī and myself took one corner
each of the other side, and we carried Them to the bus. I knew it was
special mercy but I was really afraid that I was going to drop Them. I
just prayed that I wouldn’t because They were so heavy.
Word has gotten out that maṅgala-ārati on the bus is super ecstatic.
Temple kirtans have to be very subdued because of the neighbors, so the
resident devotees come down to the street for a second maṅgala-ārati on
the bus. Seeing the bus, and having heard the ecstatic kirtan at the park,
many Sunday Feast guests also come early Monday morning to attend
maṅgala-ārati for Radha-Damodara. The bus is so crammed with people
that Tamal Krishna asks his men to leave to make room for the guests.
Sri Rama: The temple had problems with the neighbors, but that was a
breakthrough for me because one night I led kirtan on harmonium.
Vishnujana had been showing me how to play. I was well received and
quite astonished, but I had to stop because the neighbors were pounding
on the walls. That’s when Tamal Krishna came to me and admitted that
he had told Vishnujana to leave me behind in Ann Arbor. He never
actually apologized; he just implied that there may have been some
incorrect judgment. He’s a hard guy but that’s not to say that he wasn’t
kind in his own way.
Srila Prabhupada’s health has now turned the corner towards vast
improvement. The dire situation that had put the society in great anxiety
has been alleviated. In letters to various disciples, he expresses his
gratitude for their loving care, and gives instruction to keep them
798
spiritually strong.
Regarding my health, I am improving by the grace of Krishna. Thank

you very much for taking so much care of my health for praying to
Nrsimhadeva. He is very kind. By all your prayers He will surely take
care of me. Kindly follow all rules and regulations. That will give you
spiritual strength. We should always be in touch with Krishna the
Supreme Personality of Godhead directly. That is by chanting Hare
Krishna. [Letter to Ramesvara - September 3, 1974]
The important point for all to understand from this letter is that every
person has a direct connection to the Supreme Personality of Godhead
by chanting the Hare Krishna mantra.
In reciprocation for receiving so many letters of condolences from each

center, Prabhupada also sends out a letter to every temple.
My Dear Devotees:
Please accept my blessings. I thank you very much for your letters
received at Vrindavan and your prayers for my health. By your prayers
and by your chanting Hare Krishna, and by the grace of Lord
Nrsimhadeva I am recovered from the serious illness.
So let us go on with the spreading of this sublime culture of Sri

Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu all over the world. My only request is that you all remain
enthusiastic and pure by strictly following all the rules and regulations
and the devotional practices of chanting 16 rounds. [Letter to Devotees
– September 24, 1974]
With the minor damage on the bus now repaired, Radha-Damodara are
ready to continue onward. No one has joined the bus party so Tamal
Krishna is keen to meet up with Dhristadyumna’s van party in Virginia
Beach as previously arranged.
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Dhristadyumna and Aja have had great success in St Louis. They have
convinced two new men, Ratnabahu and Govinda Datta, to join the
party. They enticed them with promises of preaching on the beaches in
Florida, enjoying the beautiful evening breezes in the association of
advanced devotees, with nothing to do except take prasādam and chant!
“Best of all,” Aja concludes, “you’ll get to travel all over the country
and tell people about Krishna with His Holiness Vishnujana Swami and
Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara.”
Govinda Dutta: I had been coming around the temple and was already
vegetarian and doing some service. Dhristadyumna preached to me for a
few hours at a Sunday Feast. No one else had ever asked me to join full
time. I was getting ready to start my second year in college, but he said,
“Well, you have a week before school starts. Just come travel with us
for that week.”
I hadn’t done much traveling so I said, “I’ll come tomorrow for

maṅgala-ārati.” And I came.
From the temple I called into my job and told them, “I won’t be coming
in today.” They said “Okay. I guess we’ll see you tomorrow.” I said,
“No, you won’t be seeing me then, either. I’m going to take a little
vacation. Just put me down right now that I quit.”
Although Tamal Krishna feels he has not made any devotees in

Washington, actually many people do join a temple whenever and
wherever Radha-Damodara extend Their mercy. Leaving town is part of
Radha-Damodara’s normal routine, but for the devotees they leave
behind it’s always a melancholy moment. Yet the experience of the
Radha- Damodara party enlivens them to become more serious about
Sugata: We used to crowd onto the bus for maṅgala-ārati because it was
so ecstatic. Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna had a relationship and they
would switch off saying the prayers. They also had incredible programs
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at the University of Maryland and 500-1000 people would be crowded
around them. Vishnujana Swami had a great influence on us. My girl
friend and I joined first, and the rest of my friends joined later.
Chris Murray: The main thing that Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna
inspired me for was the idea of serving a guru – to teach one how to be
fired-up to serve a spiritual master – because they were so magnificent
in the way they were serving Prabhupada’s mission. It seemed to me
they were doing it just right, in the spirit of Lord Chaitanya.
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Thirteenth Wave,
On the Wings of a Prayer
One who constantly hears and chants the holy name of the Lord and
hears and chants about His activities can easily attain the platform of
pure devotional service, which can cleanse the dirt from one’s heart.
One cannot achieve such purification by observing vows and
performing Vedic ritualistic ceremonies. [Sukadeva Goswami to
Maharaja Parikshit [SB 6.3.32]]
Virginia Beach, October 1974

Virginia Beach is a popular tourist spot on the Atlantic Ocean. During
the winter, however, it’s very quiet. Devotees have been trying for years
to bring Krishna’s mercy to the local inhabitants. Dhristadyumna and
Aja have already arrived with their sankirtan crew. They do programs
out of the van, distributing BTGs and chanting on the beach. In the
evening they distribute books at the parking lots.
The bus arrives quite late at night so the first place they stay is at a
campground. For many new recruits it’s the first time they stay in a
place that isn’t a temple. Before maṅgala-ārati, Ramacharya and Sri
Rama go out to liberate flowers. While clipping white roses in
someone’s garden, Sri Rama looks up at the window above and notices
a woman watching him clip her flowers. He immediately apologizes.
“Excuse me, I’m just cutting your roses for Radha-Damodara. I hope
it’s all right.”
“Oh. Okay.” She allows him to continue without saying another word.
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The party spends several nights at the campground and then shifts to the
home of a young couple. That strikes Sri Rama as unusual, because he
didn’t know that devotees could live outside a temple.
In Virginia Beach the breakfast diet changes from halavā and sweet rice
to upmā. Sri Rama protests vehemently against the change, being
attached to his sweets. But after tasting the upmā he has a change of
heart and agrees that it’s really good too. Reacting to things before
giving them a try is a typical neophyte behavior. Sri Rama realizes that
the new diet is healthier because with all-you-can-eat halavā and sweet
rice one gets too jacked-up on sugar every morning.
With the bus and the van party together again, a huge festival program is
planned.
They set up the pandals on the beach along a lengthy boardwalk with
Radha- Damodara seated quite prominently in Their own separate
pandal. The wonderfully energized kirtans and delicious prasādam
benefit anyone who participates. But soon several Christians zealots
come up to argue, focusing on religious differences.
“Jesus is Lord. You are worshipping false idols. You’ll burn in hell.”
“Oh, you are followers of Lord Jesus?” Tamal Krishna asks. “So you
follow his teachings, right?”
“We do the best we can. It’s not by works that you’re saved. You have
to accept Jesus as Lord.”
“Well, Jesus taught his followers how to worship. Do you know the
Lord’s Prayer?” “Of course.”
“In his own words, this is what Jesus taught his followers: ‘Our father
who art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy
will be done… You know this?”
803
“Sure.”
“He never said My name is hallowed, or My will be done. No. So we

worship the father exactly like Jesus taught in this prayer. Why aren’t
you following his exact teaching? It’s so clear?”
These so-called Christians have no response to this line of reasoning.

They are clearly defeated and in frustration their reaction goes beyond
philosophy. Seeing the situation, Vishnujana Swami says, “Kirtan time.
The solution is…Gaura Nityananda bol, haribol, haribol!” A kirtan
rockets into full swing within seconds and drowns out those who are
shouting. The Christians soon tire and leave.
Whenever there’s a problem and someone wants to argue rather than

discuss peacefully and philosophically, Vishnujana will say, “Kirtan
time,” and take the mood to a transcendental level.
Srila Prabhupada has given instructions in regard to preaching to

Christians in his letters, classes, and conversations. His basic instruction
is not to try and convert others but to encourage them to be better
followers of their own religion, and learn to love God.
Regarding your questions on Christianity, we are not very much keen to

engage them in argument because for the most part they are
sentimentalists and have no philosophy, therefore they become fanatics
or dogmatists, and this type of person we cannot change. But if you find
some Christian person who is intelligent to understand philosophy then
you may argue that if God is unlimited, how He can be confined to
having only one son? The son is the representative of the father, and in
that sense he is the same as the father, but also he is different than the
father. So Christ is speaking in this sense, that only through the
representative of God can one come to God. Just like Krishna says in
Bhagavad-gita that one should surrender to a bona fide spiritual master,
and then He also says that one should “Surrender unto Me.”
So there is no difference between surrendering to God or surrendering to
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God’s representative. Therefore Christ is also saying just surrender to
me, the son or representative or spiritual master, and that is the same as
surrendering to my father. Accepting the Lord or His representative as
one’s savior means to render loving devotional service to Him, and in
return he will give you all protection. But the foolish Christians they
think God is their order-supplier so that simply by performing some
religious ceremonies they are entitled to receive all benedictions for
enhancing their material life.
First of all, to be saved by God means that one must obey what God
orders or His laws of commandments. But in the Bible God says “Thou
shall not kill,” but where is the Christian who does not kill animals and
eat? They have changed the meaning of kill to mean “murder,” and for
them, murder means only other humans. So unless you find out some
Christian who is actually intelligent, it is useless to try for convincing
them of these points. Simply show them by example that we are finding
great spiritual joy in serving Krishna, sell them some literature, give
them prasadam, and invite to the temple. And if they cannot understand
from the point of view of philosophy, at least they will be able to
appreciate our wonderful and enlivening activities and that we have
proved ourselves the most upright, moral persons and the best examples
of enlightened souls for the general improvement of all the citizens.
[Letter to Dasarha - March 4, 1972]
After several days of preaching Tamal Krishna realizes that Virginia

Beach is not a good place to make devotees. He hankers to return to
Berkeley where he had his initial success. It’s October and Berkeley will
be packed with students, along with hippies escaping from the wintry
north. Before heading west, he decides to lighten the load on the bus. He
sends Uddhava to Suhotra’s party. They do book distribution and preach
in College dormitories.
Since Sadananda has been requesting to go to India almost daily,

Goswami shifts him over to the party of Dhristadyumna and. They will
return to Washington, DC, rather than go to California with the Radha-
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Damodara bus. Vrikasanga takes over the cooking on the bus.
Tamal Krishna gives Aja 20 dollars to fill the tank in Virginia Beach
and the party drives off in a beat-up old van that Hasygrami keeps
running. He’s a wizard at putting things together. By keeping one hand
on the engine and the other on the steering wheel, he somehow keeps it
working. He’s very handy with all mechanical things.
Sadananda: We had way too many people to be on one bus, so Tamal

Krishna sent me out to do sankirtan with Dhristadyumna. I was
supposed to be one of the shining examples for six new bhaktas. I was
the cook in Miami when they installed Jagannath Deities. If you’re the
cook you’ve got to be a brāhmaṇa, whether you’re qualified or not, so I
got second initiation.
I thought, if he won’t let me go to India, I’ll sleep ‘til 9:00 o’clock in the
morning and convince him I’m in total māyā. Dhristadyumna called
Tamal Krishna from DC and said, “Sadananda is in complete māyā and
he’s about to bloop.” Tamal Krishna got me on the phone and said,
“You want to go to India? You have my permission to go to India.” So I
went back to Miami and stayed a couple of months. In 10 days during
the Christmas marathon I collected $1100 to go to India.
The mood in the ‘70s is that you never disobey your authority. It’s
considered an offense to disobey your temple leader. Prabhupada has
taught this because devotees are supposed to be in the mood of dāser-
anudās, servant of the servant. But if someone does act independently,
generally the authority will give his permission so that the devotee
won’t carry the offense with him. It’s considered to be the mercy of the
temple president.
When Sadananda leaves Dhristadyumna’s party, Hasyagrami becomes

the brāhmaṇa to do the cooking, make the offerings, and preach to the
new men.
Gauranga: Dhristadyumna was doing a satellite festival program at
806
colleges, along with book distribution. I preferred to be with Vishnujana
Maharaja, to chant and distribute books, because I was so attracted to
him. I became a little bewildered. We were living an austere life and he
was the inspiration to go out and preach. In a Washington parking lot I
was in anxiety about my situation. As we collected more we bought a
stove so we could cook. Aja trained me up and within two months I was
organizing the sankirtan and training the new devotees. As soon as the
opportunity came to rejoin the Radha-Damodara bus, it was like coming
home.
Privately, Vishnujana Swami brings up the point with Goswami that

they distributed more prasādam and books at the state fairs than in the
cities.
“Yeah, but we made more devotees. At the fairs nobody becomes a

devotee.”
“Well, you never know who will become a devotee as a result of hearing
the Holy Name and tasting Radha-Damodara’s mahā prasāda.”
As the bus prepares to leave Virginia Beach, there’s some difficulty

getting the paraphernalia back into the bays. Somehow the equipment
doesn’t fit, though previously it did. Seeing the devotees’ frustration, Sri
Rama approaches Tamal Krishna and says, “I’ll do it for you.”
The prasādam cart has created the crisis. It takes up a lot of space and
space is always a problem. Sri Rama considers that fitting everything
back into the bays is like solving a jigsaw puzzle – how to put each
thing in so it all fits. All the instruments also have to get in plus
everybody’s sleeping bag goes in the bays. After this, it becomes his
regular service to pack the bays of the bus.
Although every man has a locker on the bus, each locker is only one
cubic foot.
Whatever you can fit in that cubic foot is yours.
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When the Radha-Damodara bus drives out of Virginia Beach no
devotees have been made, but the Holy Name has spread to another
town and village. After five days in Virginia Beach the party is on the
road again, heading back to Berkeley, California. The bus speeds
westward across the Appalachian Mountain range on Interstate 64,
fleeing the cold weather. They soon connect to Interstate 70. Since Sri
Rama also has the service of navigating, he stays up all night with Vipra
in the driver’s compartment to help keep him awake. The bus is
overcrowded so there’s no place to take rest anyway.
Sri Rama: Vipra would drive at night and he was never actually known
to have slept, other than a little catnap now and then. He would drive for
four or five seconds with his eyes open, then for four or five seconds he
would fall asleep, then regularly as four or five seconds would expire,
he would awaken just before the bus ran off the road. It was kind of
nerve-wracking, initially, to get used to sitting next to him at night as he
drove like this. But finally I realized he was perfectly competent!
Gadadhar is the bhakta leader and bus commander. He’s a tall slender
person whose approach is always gentle and kind. Although he’s in
charge of the new men, he is not a stern ‘do as I say’ type. His motive
for being on the bus with the sannyāsīs is to receive further training in
Krishna consciousness. Whatever he knows about taking care of new
devotees he has learned from them.
As the Radha-Damodara bus cruises cross-country, the electricity

suddenly goes out on the bus. Vishnujana immediately says, “This is
because we are not worshipping Radha-Damodara properly.” For him,
everything is Deity centered. He loves to prepare amṛta-keli, as he calls
it, to offer to Radha-Damodara every morning. He has a chart on the
wall of the bus with everybody’s duties, so from the point of view of
organization the bus is really together. Everyone knows exactly what
they have to do.
Gadadhar: If a new man joined the bus and had trouble, he’d have a
808
private meeting with Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna and they’d help
him feel better. I got invaluable instruction because they had learned
from Prabhupada how to take care of new bhaktas. Tamal Krishna
would say that quite often. They emphasized training a devotee until he
was able to stand on his own two feet.
Denver, Colorado, October 1974

The Denver temple, situated on a corner at 1400 Cherry Street, has
experienced a rapid growth period. There are over 60 devotees living
here due to Kurusrestha’s influence as temple president. Seeing the bus
parked in front of the temple a few minutes before maṅgala-ārati,
Kurusrestha comes by to welcome the Swamis and invite them to stay
over the weekend. They decline his invitation saying they are headed for
Berkeley, but they will stay for one day. They want to visit the
university in nearby Boulder.
When the sannyāsīs enter the temple at the sound of the conch, every
devotee becomes enlivened.
Mamata dd: When they walked in the temple room that morning the
feeling that came over us was like Gaura-Nitai entering the room. They
were so golden and effulgent walking in, paying their obeisances, and
leading kirtan for maṅgala-ārati. It was so wonderful.
The party spends the day preaching in the college town of Boulder. The
festival is in full swing with Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara as the main focal
point. One college student comes upon the festival and is astonished.
She bows down to Radha-Damodara and approaches Dravanaksha who
is standing nearby. She explains that she had first seen Radha-Damodara
in New York in 1972 and now she runs into Them every year
somewhere in America! She is very happy as she relates this pleasant
occurrence.
When the bus returns to Denver, Sarvopama starts acting bizarre. Sitting
809
in front of the temple in a full lotus āsana, he begins bouncing around on
the lawn, rolling from one knee to the other. Sri Rama is thinking that
he’s creating a spectacle and looking foolish. “You can’t do that.” But
his words go unheeded.
News of the incident reaches the sannyāsīs. Tamal Krishna can no

longer deal with his eccentricity. He calls Sarvopama onto the bus and
says, “I’m sorry, we can’t have you with us anymore.”
Realizing his folly, Sarvopama falls at Goswami’s feet and begs

forgiveness. “The devotees are my only real friends in the world. Please
just give me one more chance.”
Vishnujana Swami comes to his rescue. He puts a garland around

Sarvopama’s neck and says, “Okay. All right.” Then Tamal Krishna
also relents.
Sarvopama: I was thinking I was a yogi because I had some knowledge

about āsanas. I didn’t see anyone else doing a full lotus so I thought I
was better than everyone else.
Although Denver temple has not reported any book distribution scores
to the Sankirtan Newsletter, nonetheless Kurusrestha Prabhu is
following the results with great interest. Tamal Krishna finds a copy of
issue number 27 in the temple office and notices that only 9 temples
have reported.
For the past month Los Angeles has recorded the highest book scores.
This issue covers the weekend of September 27 – 29. Los Angeles at the
top again with 3,757 points. Chicago is second with a mere 1,530 points,
although Gopal Bhatta Das is this week’s leading book distributor with
696 points himself. Rounding out the top five are the BBT TSKP,
Detroit, and Atlanta.
Los Angeles temple reports that they have too many book distributors
now to go out to the airport, because only eight devotees are qualified to
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distribute there on a daily basis. “After Los Angeles donated Tripurari
and Kavichandra Prabhus to the BBT TSKP,” they write, “the LA
sankirtan party began to train new talent and make new devotees into
book distributors. Now, after 6 months the sankirtan party is roaring
with new devotees going out daily distributing 20-30 hardbound books
and 100 Sri Isopanisads in one day!” They also report that Mulaprakriti
Dasi sold 120 KRSNA Book trilogies in 2.5 hours at a concert.
The Denver devotees are enlivened by Radha-Damodara’s presence at

their temple.
At evening they are invited to attend sandhyā-ārati kirtan in the bus

that’s parked on the street. When the kirtan is finished, however,
Vishnujana Swami makes a dramatic statement. “Goswami Maharaja
will now give class. Brahmacārīs, get out your Bhagavad-gitas. Ladies,
please leave.”
Mamata dd: We were all in the bus for the kirtan, and it was blissful, so
we thought we’ll all sit down for class. “Now it’s Bhagavad-gita class.
Brahmacārīs please sit down. Ladies please leave.” It was Vishnujana
Swami. I thought, we don’t get to stay for class?
Although it’s dark after class, Vipra has the bus back on the road
heading north towards Cheyenne, Wyoming. The plan is to connect to
Interstate 80 so they can go directly to San Francisco and Berkeley. At
3:30 in the morning the bus pulls into a Truck Stop for devotees to bathe
before maṅgala-ārati. Sri Rama sees an opportunity to get some rest.
Grabbing his sleeping bag, he ducks into one of the bays, unrolls it, gets
in and keeps really quiet. As everyone piles out for their morning bath,
they throw their sleeping bags into the open bay on top of Sri Rama.
Someone closes the bay door and before long the bus drives off.
From his place in the bay underneath the temple room of the bus, Sri
Rama can hear the devotees singing the Gurvaṣṭakam prayers before he
falls asleep. By 7:00am, however, the sannyāsīs realize they are missing
one person.
811
Sri Rama: When the bus pulled in to stop, I knocked to let them know I
was there. That happened only once, but I used to sleep in the bay other
times when we were stopped. I just wanted privacy. It was my gṛhastha
tendency – wanting my own space.
Berkeley, California, October 1974

When the party arrives back in the Bay area they again make their
headquarters at the home of Jagannath Swami Das in Oakland. The
weather is warm and sunny, unlike the cold they have just escaped from
back East. A lot of hippies have come to the West coast for the winter
and Radha-Damodara is there to captivate them. Upon returning to
Sproul Plaza on their first day at the University campus, they notice
changes from the summer.
The fall semester is in full swing and far more food vendors cater to the
influx of hippies and students. The city has allotted a designated area for
food sales by the curbside on a first-come basis. The vendors come early
in the morning to compete with each other for the best spots closest to
the campus entrance.
Picking the first available spot, the Radha-Damodara men set up their
festival site eager to start a kirtan. As soon as they begin chanting a
friendly crowd gathers.
Hungry students swarm to the many food vendors lining University

Avenue and bring their snacks over to the kirtan, drawn in by
Vishnujana Swami’s enchanting voice. The students seem relaxed and
ready to hear the chanting and the philosophy. Goswami considers this
the best street festival arrangement in America. Tomorrow they will do
their full program and distribute prasādam along with the chanting.
Early the next morning they arrive in Berkeley to get a good spot.
However, their presence yesterday was detected by some zealous
Christians who now stand nearby with their placards reading: ‘Jesus
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Saves!’ and ‘Pagans Burn!’ The liberal Berkeley student population
feels no sympathy for this narrow-minded approach. Ignoring their
shouts, the students gather to hear the devotees.
In the end, these Christians prove to be the worst advertisement for their
own cause.
Their menacing appearance and vulgar behavior bears no likeness to the

teachings of Lord Jesus to “love thy neighbor as thyself.” And their lack
of love and compassion, makes the devotees appear even more spiritual.
Tamal Krishna remarks to Vishnujana, “They look more like devils than
saintly people.”
Since the devotees are not doing business they are actually free to
choose a location on the campus side of the street, which is off-limits to
the vendors. Therefore, the y cross the street and relocate against the
campus perimeter wall adjacent to the University entrance. Since their
purpose is strictly spiritual they are protected by the freedom of speech
amendment of the US Constitution.
When the vendors see that the devotees now have an even more-prized
location, of which they are denied, they become extremely envious. The
Christians also shift to the campus side of the street to continue
harassing the devotees. They are also protected by the freedom of
speech provision.
TKG: Jesus would surely have been sorry to see them as they blindly
chanted their placard slogans, doing their best to disrupt our lectures and
kirtans. Unfortunately, the obstinate persistence of the pair was
encouraged by some of the food vendors, who had become envious of
our free prasādam distribution.
Gauridas Pandit: A Christian man was preaching fire and brimstone

every day. His voice was as loud as our amplified kirtan. He was big
and had the loudest voice I ever heard. “You are worshipping idols.” We
had tough devotees like Vrikasanga, who wanted to beat the guy up and
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take him away, but Vishnujana Swami kept saying, “No. No. Leave him
alone.” He tolerated this man until he went a little too far.
As the devotees begin attracting more students every day, the Christian
man finally loses his temper. He approaches Radha-Damodara with a
cane shouting that the devotees are promoting idol worship. “I will
break those idols into a thousand pieces.” Vishnujana is doing kirtan
blissfully when he hears the threats from this demon. Instantly he jumps
up from behind the harmonium like Lord Nrsimhadeva from out of the
pillar. He charges towards the blasphemer. The man is a giant, the size
of a professional wrestler, but Maharaja is in the mood of protecting his
beloved Deities.
Seeing this shaven-headed devotee charging fearlessly towards him, the

shocked Christian backs away as if death personified was approaching
him. From the side of Radha-Damodara’s palanquin, Maharaja grabs his
danda and chases the man who flees the scene to the delight of hundreds
of students.
The next day no Christians are present, but yesterday’s incident further
provokes the food vendors against the devotees. Their reaction is to
present a unified front to the University Administration stating that the
devotee prasādam is actually being sold, and not distributed free of
charge.
When confronted with this situation, Tamal Krishna counters with a

membership roll. He asks each student who receives prasādam to sign
that they are members of the International Society for Krishna
Consciousness. This appeases the University management because they
don’t want to discriminate based on religious grounds. The food vendors
are furious that their attempt has been frustrated, and they begin a
barrage of verbal and physical abuse.
TKG: The owner of the Orange Julius stand would regularly hurl orange
rinds at us, and Hector, the nasty proprietor of the popular falafel cart,
teamed up with his passionate wife to throw rotten tomatoes and
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discarded garbage. When we complained to the police, they merely
laughed it off as a humorous instance.
During this political wrangling with the vendors, Lord Chaitanya’s

sankirtan mission continues with Vishnujana Swami leading kirtan and
Radha-Damodara giving Their benediction to passersby. Vishnujana’s
idea has always been to allow people to hear the kirtan and taste the
prasādam so they will become purified and eventually they’ll become
devotees. This is his faith in the process.
Tamal Krishna also sees the festival program as a perfect vehicle to

make devotees. But he wants to make devotees immediately so he can
increase his service to his spiritual master. Prabhupada had been pleased
seeing the new men at Ratha-yatra, and this encouragement keeps
Tamal fixed on his purpose.
Failing to deter the devotees’ determination, the vendors try a different

approach. Several of them approach the university administration with
accusations that the devotee set-up actually disturbs the peace, and
blocks ingress and egress at the campus entrance. The vendors present
themselves as providing an essential service to the student body, and
depict the devotees as parasites who are simply interested in begging
money from students.
Under pressure, the university administrators resolve the problem by

taking the easy way out. They prohibit the devotees to chant on the
campus side of the street, forcing them to return to the city side.
That evening Maharaja and Goswami discuss their alternatives. The can
leave Berkeley and move south, to Los Angeles, but neither of them like
this idea. Vishnujana’s opinion is that Radha-Damodara’s reputation is
at stake. Goswami is dissatisfied that no devotees have been made.
The next morning, the Radha-Damodara bus arrives at Sproul Plaza

before dawn. By 6:00am the festival site is already set up with Radha-
Damodara prominent on Their palanquin. Then the men complete their
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morning program in front of the Deities right on the city sidewalk.
When the vendors begin arriving they are shocked to see devotees set up
in the choicest location. Instead of getting rid of the devotees, the
vendors have lost their best spot. The next morning, the situation is
reversed.
TKG: There was Hector, smiling sinisterly, back in the spot which we
had claimed the previous day. Actually one had to appreciate his
competitive mood and the extra austerities he had undergone in getting
up so early in the morning to compete with Krishna. As a reward for his
efforts we set up our rug just beside him and under great duress forced
him to be an unwilling participant in Radha-Damodara’s full morning
program.
Not to be outdone, the devotees arrive early the next morning before the
brahma muhūrta and set up at the prime location. They have their
maṅgala-ārati on the street and then begin chanting japa. When Hector
arrives to see that he has lost his spot, he can no longer control his rage.
His negative association with Krishna consciousness has not purified
him, exactly like King Kamsa.
He grabs an iron pole and charges towards the devotees while spewing
out abusive profanities. Responding in self-defense, several devotees
quickly disarm and dispatch the demon. He quickly retreats like a
frightened jackal and resorts to verbal attacks. There is no further
incident that day. The vendors realize that they cannot push the devotees
around. They simply have to tolerate the Vaishnava presence knowing
that they will soon leave for their next destination.
After two weeks at the Berkeley campus not one person has joined.
Tamal Krishna becomes a little anxious. He had hoped for a similar
response as during the summer. They have already purchased additional
buses that need to be filled with people. Vishnujana suggests that if he
wants to increase the number of people then recruiting initiated devotees
would serve their purpose better. Raw untrained recruits may never
816
actually become full-time devotees. Tamal agrees with this proposal and
Sri Galim is summoned from New Vrindavan.
Sri Galim: I got a call from Vishnujana Maharaja to rejoin them. I

accepted him as a śikṣā- guru because he had made me a devotee and he
was always trying to help me. When I left I was an agitated brahmacārī.
I didn’t really want to get married, I was just trying to find some service
to sink my teeth into. I was helping Hiranyagarbha with the Gurukula
because he had moved to New Vrindavan from Dallas with the same
kids I’d started with in Dallas. When Vishnujana called, I hitchhiked out
to San Francisco from New Vrindavan.
Among the many hippies hitchhiking around America this year, most
head for the San Francisco Bay area. Many end up in Berkeley, and
some of these hang out at the campus dormitories spending the night
sleeping in the hallways. It’s convenient because in the morning they
can use the bathroom facilities. There isn’t much of a distinction
between hippies and students on campus. The Radha-Damodara
brahmacārīs also take advantage of the dormitories for distributing
BTGs, preaching to interested students, and using the rest rooms.
Dhruva Maharaja Das: One morning I went into the Student Union
bathroom to wash my face. Next to me someone was putting clay on his
forehead. I said, “What is that?”
The devotee explains, “There are yoga centers in the body, called
chakras. This is sacred clay that we use to meditate on these chakras.
We’re traveling musicians. We tour around to different college
campuses. Why don’t you come out to our bus? You can play some
music with us and have some free vegetarian food.” It’s an invitation
right out of the bathroom.
Dhruva Maharaja Das: I was a hippie hitching around, but when I

walked out to the bus I couldn’t believe it when the door opened. There
were huge plastic vats of food and two lines of bald-headed orange
monks on both sides. I took prasādam, then they invited me to chant.
817
They sang songs led by Vishnujana Swami. At the end of the song, he
would explain the meaning to the crowd of people who had gathered.
His explanations were so simple, and so beautiful – it was like nothing I

ever heard in the religion I was brought up in. I stayed from the first
day. My first six months of Krishna consciousness was in Vishnujana
Swami’s association. In large part, I joined because of him. It was a
wonderful foundation for me. Tamal Krishna or Vishnujana would give
morning class and the other one would give class at night. It was back-
to-back sannyāsī association.
The day after Dhruva Maharaja joins, the bus leaves Berkeley for San
Francisco and beyond. Goswami is satisfied that at least they have made
one devotee before leaving. Dhruva is a bearded hippie who is almost as
eccentric as Sarvopama, so they take to each other quite well. Making
friends is essential in order to remain a fixed brahmacārī on the bus. As
Vishnujana Swami explains to the new men, “If you don’t make friends
with your godbrothers, you’ll have to get married because everybody
needs to have a loving relationship.”
At the San Francisco temple Vipra parks the bus in the huge garage. A
local devotee offers Tamal Krishna the latest Back to Godhead
magazine which has an article about the Radha-Damodara party. While
they were in New Vrindavan for Janmāṣṭamī, the sannyāsīs were
interviewed and photos were taken. Goswami peruses the article and
then shows the magazine to Vishnujana Maharaja.
Traveling and Preaching with Radha-Damodara
by His Holiness Vishnujana Swami and
His Holiness Tamal Krishna Goswami
LET US OFFER OUR PROSTRATED OBEISANCES unto the lotus

feet of our spiritual master, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta
Swami Prabhupada, whose words and loving merciful actions have
818
inspired us, and thousands like us, to spread this divine movement,
Krishna consciousness, throughout the world, in every town and village.
There are unlimited ways to serve Krishna, but all of them contribute to
the chanting of His glories. From the very beginning, after we joined the
Krishna consciousness movement in 1968, we were attracted to
traveling and preaching, and by Srila Prabhupada’s grace we were
allowed to assist in opening temples in cities all along the West Coast of
the United States. We have both taken the vow of the renounced order
of life, called sannyāsa, firmly committing ourselves to live as traveling
celibate preachers. We have both traveled extensively, preaching,
chanting and distributing prasāda (delicious spiritual food), and have
opened Krishna conscious centers in the United States, Europe and
India.
Since June of 1973, [This was a BTG typo. TKG left India to join
Radha-Damodara in June 1974] we have taken the Supreme Lord
Himself (in His Deity form called Radha-Damodara) all over the United
States. Along with 10 other devotees, we bring the Lord to colleges,
fairs and any large festive gathering. There we set up tents and spread
Krishna consciousness by chanting Hare Krishna, accompanied by
ancient instruments, distributing prasāda, preaching individually to
interested people, and distributing books by our spiritual master. Lord
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who is Krishna Himself in the role of a devotee,
first expounded this glorious program for self-realization: dancing and
chanting Hare Krishna to the accompaniment of mṛdaṅgas (drums) and
kartāls (cymbals), feasting on delicious food first offered to the Lord,
and hearing the philosophy of God realization.
Formerly, in the ancient Vedic culture, a sannyāsī was required to go

alone into the forest and perform severe austerities. In this age, however,
Lord Chaitanya has directed that a sannyāsī simply stop mundane social
intercourse and devote his life exclusively to the service of the Lord.
Lord Chaitanya Himself traveled widely throughout India, enlightening
even tigers and bears. We cannot inspire animals to chant, but we can
819
give human beings the chance to perfect their lives through this simple
yet deep and sublime process of chanting: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna,
Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare
Hare.
For 10 monks, serving the Supreme Lord as He tours the continent is

full of unlimited bliss. We perform ceremonies of worship six times a
day, even while moving 60 miles an hour over the continental divide. In
a compact kitchen that turns out prasāda for hundreds, we cook all
varieties of delicious vegetarian food for the Lord. We study daily the
sacred teachings of bhakti-yoga given to us by Srila Prabhupada, and we
are always prepared for the order of our spiritual master, who can send
us anywhere to glorify the Supreme Lord and defeat atheistic
propaganda.
Everywhere we hold our sacred Krishna conscious festivals, people

become convinced of the Krishna conscious way of life. They become
inspired to join us in this divine mission of traveling and preaching, and
so in only a few months we have started the same program with a
second bus. And soon, by Krishna’s desire, we hope to see hundreds of
buses bringing these blissful festivals to every town and village. [Back
to Godhead Magazine #67, 1974]
His Holiness Vishnujana Swami joined the Krishna consciousness

movement in San Francisco in 1968. He accepted the renounced order in
1970, and since then he has been traveling, holding festivals and
opening Krishna conscious centers throughout the United States.
– His Holiness Tamal Krishna Goswami, one of ISKCON’s Governing

Body Commissioners, also joined Krishna consciousness in 1968. He
accepted sannyāsa in 1972 in Jaipur, India. He served as President of
ISKCON’s Los Angeles center and was then sent overseas to help
initiate ISKCON’s preaching programs in Europe. For the last five years
he has been Srila Prabhupada’s secretary for India. He has recently
returned to the United States for increased preaching. [Correction:
820
Dayananda was president of Los Angeles temple. Tamal Krishna was
West Coast Manager. For the last four years, TKG was Prabhupada’s
secretary in India.]
Vishnujana Maharaja likes the article. He produces a letter from Sweden

that was given to him a few days back in Berkeley. It’s a request to
travel with Radha-Damodara and the sannyāsīs. Maharaja explains that
he has already answered the letter with an invitation to come and join
the party. “This has happened before,” he explains. “People write saying
how they want to surrender to Radha-Damodara but most never even
show up.”
Within the past year, several major disruptions have assaulted

Prabhupada’s mission. First was the fall-down of two prominent GBC
sannyāsīs. Second was Prabhupada’s severe illness caused by the failure
of many leaders in the movement to follow the spiritual principles.
Third was unbridled ambition by some leaders to position themselves as
Prabhupada’s exclusive representative.
In Europe, the GBC for Germany is trying to increase his influence

throughout the continent. He sends his German followers to other
countries to establish his authority. In Sweden they take over the temple
and remove the Swedish temple president. Several senior Swedish
devotees can’t tolerate this onslaught and leave their country for other
temples.
One day, a Swedish devotee arrives at the San Francisco temple looking
for Vishnujana Swami.
Prapujaka: In a Back to Godhead magazine I read of the preaching of

Vishnujana Swami, Tamal Krishna Goswami and their Radha-
Damodara party. I became very attracted, so I wrote a letter to
Vishnujana Swami. He replied that I was welcome to join their party. I
collected the money and arrived in San Francisco and spent some time
in Vishnujana Maharaja’s company. We had kirtans outside Berkeley
University and festivals at Fisherman’s Wharf. It was very blissful. He
821
was such a nice kirtan singer. Everybody loved him!
The Radha-Damodara party spends time traveling in the Bay area,

sometimes at the temple, at times on a farm of a favorable couple, and
also at the homes of friends in Silicon Valley. One day while driving
back from a program in a rustic area north of the Bay, Vishnujana
reminisces about the “old days.” He has a lot of nectar stories about
devotional service that he shares in an intimate way.
“One time Prabhupada sent us to do kirtan up a mountain where there

were no people. When we got back he asked, ‘So, how was the kirtan?’
We answered, ‘Where you sent us there was nobody there.’ Prabhupada
said, ‘What about the trees and the animals and birds, and the flowers
and the insects. Don’t you realize that they also benefit by the chanting
of Hare Krishna?’”
Kritakarma is now the temple commander in San Francisco. He likes to

help Vishnujana make samosās and a nectar beverage that is offered to
Radha-Damodara.
He also likes to wait for Tamal Krishna and Vishnujana to return to the
temple every evening so he can give them mahā-prasāda. Tonight, he
brings the Sankirtan Newsletter, issue number 28 with scores from
October 4-6.
This issue is being promoted as World Record Weekend, and several

world records in book distribution are set. Los Angeles is again number
one with 4,289 points after distributing a world record 2,414 medium
books over the three day weekend.
The BBT TSKP is second with 3,327 points helped by a world record of
564 big books distributed on the weekend. Tripurari Prabhu is the top
distributor with a world record of 1,110 points and a world record of
189 big books sold to help the BBT TSKP clinch second place. Detroit,
Chicago, and Philadelphia round out the top five. Mulaprakriti Dasi of
Los Angeles is the second biggest distributor with 615 points including
822
a word record of 478 medium books sold by one person in three days.
Kritakarma: When Tamal Krishna came the strength of the Radha-

Damodara party was so powerful. They would give Srimad Bhagavatam
class together. It was a combination of the nectar and the philosophy. In
those days anybody who walked into a temple was in danger of
becoming a devotee. Everybody’s faith became so strong because their
lectures were so potent. I remember Vishnujana was in bhāva during his
kirtans.
Although the Radha-Damodara party is strictly for sannyāsīs and

brahmacārīs, most ladies appreciate the Krishna conscious mood and are
always excited when the party comes to a temple. Many take the
opportunity to render personal service to Sri Sri Radha-Damodara.
Mirabai dd: I made a little silk handkerchief for Radha-Damodara with

an ‘R’ and a ‘D’ embroidered on it. Vishnujana Maharaja sent me a
letter of thanks. I still have it on my altar.
Birmala dd: When Tamal Krishna joined up with Vishnujana Swami he

just became ecstatic. It was the most ecstatic I’ve ever seen him. I’ve
known Tamal Krishna since the beginning of the movement, and I
noticed that. He was extremely attached to Vishnujana. They were a
wonderful team.
In San Francisco, the Swamis get close with Yogesh Chandra and his
brother, Jambavan. Although both are initiated brahmacārīs, they now
live in an apartment separate from the devotees. Inspired by Jayananda’s
way of attracting people, they have set up a halfway house to bring
Berkeley’s misguided youth to accept Krishna consciousness in a
gradual way. According to Tamal Krishna their experiment is not
proving successful. He points out to Yogesh Chandra that the Radha-
Damodara party is already rescuing misguided youth without
compromising regulative principles or concocting new programs.
Yogesh Chandra is a jazz drummer and after one afternoon of kirtan
823
with the Radha-Damodara band he is won over. “Better to go all the
way than halfway,” he grins. He’s ready to join the party but he has one
condition. He wants his brother, Jambavan, to also come along.
Jambavan: Vishnujana Swami was coming through on the bus and I was
attracted to the party. Tamal Krishna heard that Yogesh Chandra had
organized sankirtan and pulled the New York temple out of debt, so he
wanted to have him on the party. Yogesh was reluctant at first, but
finally agreed on the stipulation that I also join the party. I wanted to,
and Vishnujana wanted me to, so we both joined. Those were great
days. What can I say about chanting with Vishnujana? How do you
explain that unless you experience it?
With Jambavan and Yogesh Chandra joining the party, Tamal Krishna
feels that he has accomplished his goal by increasing the number of men
on the party. When he discovers that Jambavan has no musical
inclination he suggests that he help with cooking, setting up the
programs, and doing whatever other service is needed.
Together with Vrikasanga, Jambavan makes the daily Radha-Damodara

feast. He also goes out a few hours a day for sankirtan with Yogesh
Chandra.
Vijitatma: Yogesh Chandra told me how he had a difficult period in

Krishna consciousness. Then he went to Vishnujana Swami’s kirtan
program and it completely revived him. Vishnujana was preaching how
important it was to be very careful in our chanting because so many
devotees had left and become mlecchas again. I was always enchanted
by his kirtan. It was so sublime. I don’t feel there was anyone who
chanted like him. His own inspiration gave me a tremendous amount of
inspiration. It was almost like when Prabhupada would come, my
enthusiasm and faith in Krishna consciousness would increase many
times.
Even though Vishnujana is a highly respected sannyāsī, he always looks

up to Jayananda and refers to him as his superior. Once a week
824
Jayananda Prabhu comes to the Deity room and cleans it from top to
bottom – the walls, ceiling, floor, and śṛṅgāsana. This service he does
alone. Afterwards, he buys flowers to decorate the altar and the Deities.
He tries to make anyone who walks in the door for the Sunday Feast a
Vaishnava. At the very least he keeps everyone in good spirits. No one
can remain in a bad mood around Jayananda because he’s always an
ocean of enthusiasm.
When the Sunday program is over, he takes whatever prasādam has not
been eaten and distributes that to homeless people on the street. He fills
buckets with prasādam and loads then into his van. By his own
enthusiasm, he enlivens other devotees to go with him to the Mission
district or Telegraph Avenue, wherever he can find people who are
hungry. So every morsel of prasādam is distributed.
Sri Rama: The first time I saw Jayananda I was doing something in the
garage and he came in carrying some trash barrels. He had some
position in the temple, and I remember how surprised I was to see him
taking out the garbage. We had a very short conversation. He was
getting up earlier than the other devotees and cleaning the bathrooms
before everybody would wake up. We were told Jayananda was a very
senior devotee, but he proceeded to serve everybody prasādam. That
was his way of doing things. He was everybody’s servant.
It took some time getting adjusted to Jayananda. He was the most

amazing personality in all respects. The things people say about him are
true. I feel that after Srila Prabhupada he was the greatest devotee I ever
met.
Jayananda is always chanting the mahā-mantra even while driving.

Sometimes he falls behind in his rounds but he always catches up.
During the ‘74 Ratha-yatra he confessed to Bhakta Das that he had to
make up 128 rounds. But when the festival was over he went into the
temple room and made them all up. When other devotees fall behind
they can’t always make them up.
825
Even though Jayananda is the hardest worker, he’s usually the last one
to take rest at night and the first one to get up in the morning.
Jayananda likes the old vehicles. He teaches Bhakta Das to buy older
vehicles and maintain them well. Devotees can be careless with the
temple vehicles. They will call up from somewhere in the middle of
Texas, “Oh, we can’t put water in. We can’t put oil in. The engines
cracked and it’s going to cost four thousand dollars to put in a new
engine and we are out of commission for a week.” This happens
constantly. Then Jayananda has an idea for Bhakta Das.
“Why don’t you hire a mechanic to maintain the vehicles and make sure
they’re maintained right?”
Bhakta Das puts an ad in the paper and hires a mechanic who is gay. He
pays him $400 a month and every morning he arrives at 5:00 o’clock
and spends several hours checking all the vehicles. When he leaves, all
the vehicles are fine tuned. He does regular engine tune-ups and
maintains log books on every vehicle. Every three thousand miles, he
changes the oil and puts in new filters for each vehicle.
Implementing Jayananda’s idea, the temple’s automobile maintenance

expenses drop by almost 100%.
Bhakta Das: Jayananda loved kirtan and he could chant and dance for
hours very happily. He could also sit down and chant 50 rounds without
getting up. I always remember the Sad- Goswami-astakam: dhīrādhīra-
jana-priyau priya-karau, “they are loved by both the gentle and the
ruffians because they’re not envious of anyone.” Jayananda was never
envious of anyone, he always offered sincere respect to all living beings.
So when I think of Jayananda I remember that śloka, because whoever
met him from the grossest alcoholic or drug addict, sex monger or
criminal, he had a way of dealing with them that they loved. He was
truly equal to all. Whatever level someone was at, he could reach them
on that level. He engaged them in devotional service by giving them
prasādam, getting them to say Hare Krishna, or getting them to do
826
something for Krishna.
Jayananda is generally in a jolly mood and this puts new people at ease.
He will tell them, “Don’t follow my example. I’m the oldest devotee
here, but I eat too much. You can eat as much as you want because
you’re new.” From that moment on he seems like a second father to the
young novices. Although Jayananda doesn’t know as much scripture as
some devotees, he exemplifies the conclusion of scripture. He
frequently quotes only one verse, “But those who worship Me with
exclusive devotion, meditating on My transcendental form, to them I
carry what they lack and I preserve what they have.” [Bhagavad-gita
9.22] He adds the comment that Krishna won’t have to preserve much
for him, but He will have to carry a lot.
Vijitatma: Out of his great love for Prabhupada, Jayananda worked so

hard that he seemed to fall asleep during Bhagavatam class. But later
during the day, he would often discuss with perfect recall what was
talked about in class. He charmed people with his homespun preaching.
He once told me, “Viji, if you get into fault-finding,” he opened his
hands, “then all you’ll have is a handful of faults.” Another time he said,
“When I was a karmi, women were not attracted to me and I felt bad
about that. After I met Prabhupada I realized it was Krishna’s mercy.”
Jayananda was extremely fond of cooking, distributing, and honoring

prasādam. He would come to me late at night, “Viji, I’ve got some real
nice prasāda.” One time I asked, “What’s the best thing for a cold?” He
said, “When I get sick I eat lots of halavā and sweet rice to pacify the
germs.”
He told me how to make date milk the way he made it for Srila
Prabhupada. He boiled the milk and whipped mashed dates into it.
Almost every morning he cooked his famous 7-grain cereal. On
Sundays he made pancakes. One time many devotees went on a health
binge, renouncing sugar, white flour, and rich sabjis. Jayananda thought
this was wonderful. “This means I can honor almost all the Mahā by
827
myself.”

In the ‘70s, the Los Angeles temple is Prabhupada’s world headquarters.
Week after week, and month after month, this temple is among the
world leaders in book distribution. With a large gṛhastha community
they benefit the entire movement through flourishing projects like the
Spiritual Sky line of products and the BBT headquarters. Their gorgeous
Deity worship also sets the standard for ISKCON.
The Radha-Damodara party, on the other hand, is the leader in

presenting festivals and spreading the Holy Names to every town and
village. And now they have accepted the responsibility of funding
ISKCON Food Relief, the prasādam distribution program in Mayapur.
The leaders in Los Angeles appreciate the success Radha-Damodara has
had in making new devotees.
The new president, Tulsi Das, welcomes the party proudly holding the
latest Sankirtan Newsletter issue number 29. For the weekend of
October 11- 13 only 8 temples have reported results. Los Angeles again
reigns supreme at number one with 4,254 points followed by the BBT
TSKP with 2,792 points. A surprise at number three is the South Africa
yatra. San Diego and Philadelphia round out the top five.
South Africa reports that they are on the move in distributing

Prabhupada’s books. Their tactic is to arrange large programs with the
Indian community. Sri-Sri Gaura Nitai bless each event, always center
stage on their traveling altar.
The program begins with the showing of The Hare Krishna People film
followed by an ecstatic kirtan. Meanwhile, several devotees arrange a
set of Prabhupada’s books on a grand table.
After the kirtan, Pusta Krishna Swami asks the audience for a display of
828
hands for whoever wants a set of books. Then the fun begins. Devotees
run to the people who raise their hand, give them the books, collect the
lakṣmī, and get their names. Then Pusta Krishna announces each name
over the PA system,
“Let’s give a big hand to Mr. Vishnudas and the Supreme Lord.”
Everyone claps in response. Several more hands go up as other people
want their names announced to the crowd. In this way many books are
distributed at each event.
Tripurari is now writing a report in every issue of the newsletter. In his

latest report he writes, “book distribution is ever increasing as our desire
increases to distribute. This is still the best way to distribute Krishna
consciousness, and spreading Krishna consciousness is our only
business. So everything should be scheduled around book distribution.”
He concludes by stating, “we are getting great strength from this

preaching work.
We simply want to encourage all of the devotees to take up this book

distribution once and for all, making it their life and soul.”
When Tamal Krishna first arrived in Los Angeles from India six months
ago, his head was filled with ideas how to change things in America. He
had convinced Tripurari of his ideas and their plan was to implement
these new ideas in the New Dwaraka temple. At his first meeting with
the West Coast GBC man, Jayatirtha, Tamal saw that there was no
interest in any of his proposed changes. At that moment he decided to
leave for San Francisco and thus missed out on associating with the Los
Angeles devotees.
On this second visit he is now a co-leader of the Radha-Damodara party

with Vishnujana Swami. He is more relaxed and respectful of the
service the Los Angles book distributors are doing. This time he has a
valuable realization that the Los Angeles temple is the foremost
contributor to Prabhupada’s book fund.
829
TKG: I felt inspired by the competitive mood of Ramesvara, Tulsi, and
all of the sankirtan devotees. Although our party was first in donating to
the ISKCON Food Relief Fund, and although we had just had our best
month for book distribution, we had placed only ninth in the temple
competition. To be the leading contributor for food relief was certainly
an important service, one for which I had received a direct instruction
from Srila Prabhupada. But in associating with the Los Angeles book
distributors I got my first realization of the nectar they were
experiencing.
The new Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs are amazed by the opulence and

the organization of the temple. As travelers this is totally foreign to
them. Yogesh Chandra sees an opportunity to approach Tamal Krishna.
He can see that Tamal has received some inspiration in New Dwaraka.
His suggestion is that book distribution should be the main activity on
the bus.
“This is what Prabhupada wants,” he concludes after making his case.

Tamal listens politely before replying.
“I’m protecting my men. We go to the colleges, do our festival program,

and make devotees. I’m giving them nice prasādam, nice classes, and
nice kirtans. They’re in the association of two fixed-up sannyāsīs. I
don’t want them out on the street all day distributing books. It’s a
dangerous situation where they can fall victim to the influence of
Mayadevi.”
Yogesh Chandra counters quite strongly. “You’ve got it all wrong,

Maharaja. Book distribution is a transcendental activity. You not only
please Prabhupada more than anything by distributing his books, but the
devotees become more enlivened, and more blissful. They become more
happy by distributing the books. Then you get money for your party. So
altogether, it’s the best program all the way around. Book distribution –
this is it.”
It’s no easy task to convince Tamal Krishna Goswami. “What can be
830
more important and more pleasing to Srila Prabhupada than making
devotees?”
Yogesh Chandra is adamant and full of confidence. “We’ll make more

devotees. Give me a few boys and let me take them out in a van. I’ll
show you that it works. You’ll see.”
Yogesh Chandra has spent years training men and organizing them for
sankirtan in San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles. Thus he’s in a
unique position to instruct Goswami Maharaja.
TKG: Because I had been in India I had not known his past record, but
as he told me of his service over the past few years, I began to
appreciate the wisdom of his vision. His conclusion was that what our
men needed was to be engaged in distributing Prabhupada’s books. His
words rang with the call of destiny.
As individuals advance in Krishna consciousness by chanting the mahā-

mantra and honoring prasādam, they progressively mature in devotional
service. Thus they become prepared to accept more responsibility in
establishing Lord Chaitanya’s mission. After listening to Yogesh
Chandra, Goswami becomes convinced that his men are ready to
increase their service.
TKG: I could see that many were no longer satisfied in washing the
pots, tuning the instruments, and then chanting in the festival for two or
three hours. At first, when they had joined, these simple services had
been enough of a challenge. But now, with so many new men to take up
these services, they were looking for more, something which would test
their spiritual growth.
Vishnujana takes his kirtan party to UCLA for a few festival programs
but one day he stays back to teach Dravanaksha how to drive the bus.
It’s a hair-raising experience because this is the first time Dravanaksha
has ever driven a bus.
831
Dravanaksha: He taught me in rush hour traffic while Vrikasanga was
cooking in the kitchen. That bus had an overdrive unit that got stuck in
second gear, and I couldn’t get it out. I was on Venice Boulevard and it
was my first time at the wheel. Vishnujana Swami said, “Get out of the
seat. I’ll drive.” So I hopped out and he got it out of gear and began
zooming as fast as it would go. He was a very fast driver. He was
zooming down Venice, and the light turned yellow. Vishnujana
accelerated and the guy in front of us braked!
The bus has an emergency switch that locks all four brakes, so Maharaja
instantly hits that switch. The bus stops instantly. Vrikasanga, who is
making an offering to Radha-Damodara, flies all the way from the altar
to the driver’s compartment and hits the dashboard. The offering plates
follow him. But the bus does not hit the car in front. Radha-Damodara
are bolted in the altar so They aren’t harmed.
At a large temple like Los Angeles, where there are many gṛhasthas,
sometimes the mātājīs are allowed to attend Radha-Damodara’s noon
ārati. Vishnujana knows most of them because he was temple
commander here, therefore he allows them to attend the ārati. Sri Galim
or Ramacharya does the pūjā while Vishnujana chants. When the ladies
come for the noon ārati to see Radha-Damodara, Tamal Krishna doesn’t
come. After the curtains close, Vishnujana asks, “Who would like to
make garlands for Radha-Damodara? Anybody want to do some
sewing? Can someone make jewelry?”
During japa period the next morning there are knocks on the window.
Garlands come through, a Deity outfit comes through, and some jewelry
comes through. A lot of paraphernalia for Radha-Damodara is obtained
in Los Angeles, although the bus program is supported mainly by the
collections of the book distribution parties led by Suhotra and
Dhristadyumna.
On Saturday, Vishnujana takes Radha-Damodara out to Westwood for

harināma-sankirtan. A horde of devotees accompany him in their cars
832
and vans.
Danavir: He set up the Deities right on the steps of the Bank of America
building and he had lights shining on Them. All the devotees were
chanting and we had a huge crowd. It was so packed that people
couldn’t even walk. So many people were attracted to that kirtan. The
police were going mad because we stopped up everything. Normally,
maybe 50 or 60 would go out, but he got 120 devotees. The king of
kirtan.
For the Sunday Feast, Tulsi Das arranges a program in the sanctuary for
Vishnujana Swami and his kirtan band. There is construction going on
to turn the sanctuary into the new temple room, so there are pandals set
up around the room to cover up the work that’s being done. Vishnujana
Maharaja gives the Sunday feast address.
Karta dd: He was giving the lecture and speaking very nicely when, all
of a sudden, an Indian man stands up. He was obviously a māyāvādī and
an intelligent man, but very aggressive. Maharaja responded to this man
and dealt with the philosophy in such a sweet way that he completely
charmed that man who was being so aggressive. In a few minutes he
totally defeated him, but very nicely. He not only shut him up
completely, but the man was happy about it. Later, he went up to
Vishnujana Swami and was very respectful.
Then he started kirtan. The typical Sunday Feast in those days was huge.
When the kirtan started I lost track. I didn’t know where I was for I
don’t know how long. I remember only that we were sitting and we
immediately stood up, the whole room full of devotees and guests, and
then we just embarked into this kirtan. And it was like out of this world.
The only thing I remember is that I opened my eyes all of a sudden and I
saw him. He was totally in trance, and he was beaming. The kirtan was
extraordinary. He had his eyes closed and he was playing mṛdaṅga very
nicely. We were there at least an hour and a half. The time just flew. He
was just the most outstanding kīrtanīyā that there was, so everybody
833
wanted to hear him. He was a very good preacher too. Not only singing
and leading kirtan, but also philosophically, he would be outstanding.
TKG: With devotees and guests sitting in the auditorium seats,

Vishnujana got everyone clapping, then dancing, and eventually
jumping to his amplified kirtans. This time we had not come to make
any changes.
After a brief stay in Los Angeles, the party leaves Monday morning for
San Diego on the invitation of Gunagrahi. With Deities of Radha-
Giridhari, San Diego Temple is known as New Govardhana, and since
govardhana pūjā is approaching this is the right time to visit.
As Vipra races down the highway, Vishnujana Swami is in the kitchen

at the back of the bus preparing the noon offering for Radha-Damodara.
All of a sudden a loud siren catches everyone’s attention. Tamal Krishna
looks out the window and sees a police car with lights flashing.
“You’d better pull over to the side,” he calls out to Vipra, who brings
the bus to a halt on the shoulder of the Interstate near Camp Pendleton
Army base. When the policeman comes to the bus, Vipra opens the
door. Tamal Krishna comes forward to deal with the situation. “We
weren’t speeding,” he says.
“That’s not why I’m pulling you over. I’ve been following your greasy
dishwater trail for nearly half a mile before pulling you over.” After
citing the driver for a violation, the cop says, “Keep California clean.”
He gets back into his car leaving Tamal speechless.
San Diego, November 1974

The port city of San Diego is situated at the southern-most part of
California near the border with Mexico. After a three-hour drive south
on Interstate 5 the Radha- Damodara bus finally stops in front of the
temple at 3300 3rd Avenue. With govardhana pūjā approaching, Sri Sri
834
Radha-Damodara want to be in New Govardhana. For most of the
month of Kartik the bus will remain parked in front of the temple.
Gunagrahi has become the temple president since Bhakta Das left to
rejuvenate the San Francisco yatra only eight months ago. Kusakrata is
the pot washer always chanting Sanskrit ślokas.
Gunagrahi: I remember them coming to the temple which Bhakta Das

had done up nicely. Vishnujana Swami looked around at all the flowers
and said, “Just see Krishna’s intelligence everywhere.”
Vishnujana is marveling at Krishna’s opulence of beauty and

intelligence in the flowers. Then he says, “Let’s take darshan of the
Deities.”
Accompanied by an enthusiastic kirtan party the sannyāsīs are escorted

into the temple. They offer dandavats and stand before the presiding
Deities, Sri-Sri Radha- Giridhari. They admire Their beauty for a long
time as a brahmacārī offers flower garlands and sandalwood paste to the
Swamis. Radha-Giridhari are almost equal in size to Radha-Damodara,
but present Themselves in pure white marble. Vishnujana remarks that
Radha-Giridhari are very special.
“This Radharani is the most beautiful except for our own Radha-
Damodara.” Tamal Krishna agrees and feels happy to be in Their
presence. He can recognize that his worship of Radha-Damodara has
prepared him for a natural kinship of attraction to Radha-Giridhari.
When Bhakta Das was temple president here, he had installed these
Deities. After sending photos of the newly installed Deities to Srila
Prabhupada, he received a wonderful letter from His Divine Grace.
I thank you very much for installing Radha-Giridhari. From my

childhood I was very much fond of Radha-Krishna, and now my good
disciples are helping me to open so many Radha-Krishna temples all
over the world. It gives me so much pleasure. Now introduce Ratha-
835
yatra. That was my childhood activity. I want to see my disciples all
over the world introduce two items, opening Radha-Krishna temples and
Ratha-yatra festivals. Do this under the protection of Guru-Gauranga.
[Letter to Bhakta Das – October, 1973]
Every morning after maṅgala-ārati in the temple, several resident

brahmacārīs come to the bus for Radha-Damodara’s maṅgala-ārati with
Vishnujana Maharaja leading kirtan. After japa period, Tamal Krishna
and Vishnujana give class together on the bus, alternating verses with
explanation, and taking questions. This makes for a really fast moving
class that is enlivening, and also very sweet. It’s part of the sannyāsīs’
transcendental strategy to attract more men.
Everyone in the temple becomes ecstatic by the visiting sannyāsīs and

the Radha-Damodara bus. It’s a special attraction for the brahmacārīs.
All the talk is about the charismatic personality of Vishnujana Swami.
To leave a temple to travel with a sannyāsī is considered very
auspicious. A competition develops: whether the temple program or the
bus program is sweeter.
Sachi Dulal: The thing I liked about Radha-Damodara was that the bus
was nicely painted and kept really clean. The brahmacārīs were clean
and nicely dressed. Radha-Damodara were so sweet and so beautiful.
They were nicely taken care of. They were the only Deities in the
movement where Radharani’s lotus feet were shown. I always relished
that.
When people come on the bus for darshan, Vishnujana Maharaja

explains how Silavati began showing Radharani’s lotus feet many years
ago when Radha-Damodara first came to America. Prabhupada had
given his sanction because Radha and Damodara are at the kumāra age
of young children so it’s all right. Silavati was the foremost pūjārī at the
time having been trained personally by Srila Prabhupada.
This year, 1974, is the start of observing Kartik month in America.

ISKCON is now being influenced by devotees returning from India with
836
new mṛdaṅga beats, new bhajans, new kirtan melodies, and new ways of
observing festivals that are not generally known beyond a simple
ceremony. Baradraja is a renowned kīrtanīyā, especially good at bhajans
with the harmonium, who has recently released a recording of
Damodarastakam.
Vishnujana introduces the San Diego devotees to singing the Damodara

prayers every morning along with the offering of lamps. By singing the
Damodarastakam prayers, devotees become conscious of observing the
month of Kartik. In his classes, Maharaja relates pastimes of Lord
Damodara with His devotees. He explains how Kartik is the spiritual
month of Damodara. “If you perform devotional service during this
month of Damodara, you will attain pure devotional service to Lord
Krishna life after life.”
Hearing this nectar, the ladies in the pūjārī department become excited
because they have never heard about the month of Kartik.
Kriya Shakti dd: There’s a special benediction if you serve Radha-

Damodara directly during Kartik so I thought, I’ll give something to the
Deities every day. I was in charge of the flowers so I could make
garlands, or a head dress, or a bouquet for Radharani to hold in Her
hand. I knocked on the bus door every morning to give something to
Radha-Damodara. One morning, when a brahmacārī opened the door, I
heard Vishnujana Maharaja say, “Is it that brahmacārīni again?”
The brahmacārī said, “Yes Maharaja.” I thought, Oh, oh.
Then he said, “Tell her to wait.” I stood outside the bus and waited.
When the brahmacārī signaled for me to come on the bus Vishnujana
Swami came from the back and bent down on one knee holding
Radharani’s hair in his hands. He said, “Every day, could you please
decorate Radharani’s hair?” He touched my heart so much. So that was
my service the rest of the month.
Chinmayi dd: We sang the Damodara prayers and I was excited. It was
837
the first time I heard it, and the first time I learned that serving Radha-
Damodara in this month is very special. You get all sorts of benefits so
that in your next life you’ll be able to serve Krishna personally. I really
wanted to do some service for Radha-Damodara but I didn’t know what
to do until my parents came to the temple on my 18thh birthday and
gave me a gold ring. After they left, I went out, pawned the ring, and
bought a pair of earrings for Damodara. I gave them to Vishnujana
Swami and he said, “Ahh, devotional service in the month of
Damodara.”
I was really pleased. “Yes, that’s what I mean. That’s why I’m giving
it.” He was really merciful to me. Every time he saw me he gave me
service to Radha-Damodara.
Gunagrahi is a wonderful host and is impressed seeing how Vishnujana

Swami is always eager to take care of the devotees. It seems like
Maharaja is much older than everybody else. Vishnujana is genuinely
concerned about the spiritual welfare of people under his protection. He
teaches them the philosophy and practice of Krishna consciousness, he
gives them music lessons to improve their kirtan skills, and he provides
first class prasādam to keep them happy.
Gunagrahi: I was inspired by the relationship that Vishnujana and Tamal

Krishna had. It was loving and friendly. One time they were playfully
wrestling each other on the bus. It was good for the young devotees to
see the leaders getting along. I was also impressed the way Vishnujana
was relating to the devotees.
Gunagrahi arranges a festival program at a small park in downtown San

Diego called Horton Plaza. Although it’s quite a degraded area,
Vishnujana still drives the bus to this place for a festival program. He
brings Radha-Damodara out and does his kirtan, the rāja-bhoga offering,
and the ārati, so that people who see these intimate services to the Lord
will receive special mercy. He also goes out regularly to present his
festival program at the University of California, San Diego State
838
University, and other colleges in the area.
Sachi Dulal: I saw them unload the bus and set up at UCSD. They laid
down Indian rugs on the lawn and played the traditional Indian
instruments. Whenever they loaded and unloaded, Tamal Krishna
Maharaja was instructing and chastising. I saw that Tamal Krishna was
the organizer, and Vishnujana Swami the kirtan leader and care-taker of
the Deities. I understood They were his personal Deities. Vishnujana
had really nice prasāda that he cooked in the back of the bus. You
couldn’t get enough of the nectar! The students would come and sit
down, and he would just chant. It was a mellow kirtan from the moment
he started that was steadily ecstatic. The students loved the kirtan and
many became interested in Krishna consciousness.
Mahatma: He was an enthusiastic, inspired devotee, and a sensitive

preacher, who could present Krishna consciousness in extremely
attractive ways.
Sarvopama: I remember a big college campus with large expanses of

lawn and nice grassy fields. We always brought Radha-Damodara out of
the bus and Vishnujana would chant beautifully. He had memorized all
the translations and would always recite the English after singing a
bhajan. He was chanting with his eyes closed for about half an hour.
When he opened his eyes, the lawn was packed with students who had
poured out of the buildings. That was magical. It was really an
experience to see how he could completely attract people’s minds.
Prabhupada said, “He’s got a voice that will attract the whole world.”
There was a magnetism about him that was beyond belief. He was
poetry in motion. Every movement he made was mesmerizing. In
retrospect, maybe we lionize him but it’s not a bad idea in his case
because he was a remarkable person.
This is another situation where students on a college campus become so

fascinated by Radha-Damodara and the kirtan that they come into the
bus and completely forget about their classes. After a memorable day
839
doing the college program, the brahmacārīs are enthusiastic to return to
the temple for the evening Damodarastakam prayers and the offering of
lamps.
As Vipra pulls the bus out of the college parking lot, he has to navigate
down a steep hill that is full of twists and turns. He’s driving quite fast
when he catches sight of a stop light at the bottom of the hill.
Vipra: We approached a crowded intersection and I hit the brakes, but

they weren’t there. No brakes on this big heavy bus, tearing down a
steep hill. I was already in second gear and the engine was way over-
revved. There was no way to slow down the bus with absolutely no
breaks whatsoever. I went through the red light at a crowded
intersection at 40mph, and needless to say I didn’t hit anyone or
anything. When we finally got back on the highway, suddenly the
brakes were working again as if nothing had ever gone wrong. I guessed
that Lord Damodara figured red lights were for other people. Stuff like
that happened quite frequently.
Keshava Bharati arrives at the temple from San Francisco in order to

distribute books at the San Diego airport. He brings Sankirtan
Newsletter Issue #31 with results from Oct 25-27 to show the sannyāsīs.
Eleven temples have reported scores and Los Angeles is again at the top
with 4,695 points. The BBT TSKP is a distant second with 2,945 points.
Toronto is a close third with 2,579. Detroit and Philadelphia round out
the top five temples.
The Los Angeles temple reports that they now have 7 devotees who
only distribute big books at the airport. Similarly, there are 6 devotees
who only do medium books at concerts, fairs, and large stores, while 7
more devotees concentrate on small books on the streets and at sporting
events.
Philadelphia reports that they have finally “cracked the thousand point
mark this weekend and set ten temple records in doing so.”
840
Toronto inaugurated a Sri Isopanisad and KRSNA book weekend. “Our
program has been to involve everyone in the temple in book
distribution, and the results are that on the weekend 40% of the books
were distributed by devotees who do not regularly go on sankirtan.”
“Listen to this,” Keshava Bharati says excitedly as he reads the report

from Washington DC: “In National Airport this weekend, secret
servicemen looked on as Srimati Mulaprakriti distributed 2 Srimad-
Bhagavatams and collected $30 from the son and daughter of the
President of the United States!!!”
Keshava Bharati wants to develop a friendly relationship with

Vishnujana Swami and Tamal Krishna Goswami. He is gearing up for a
big day on book distribution when the sailors get shore leave and fly
home to visit their families.
While Goswami is thinking about distributing small books, Keshava

Bharati is already distributing many big books. Confident that he can do
more than the entire Radha-Damodara party combined, he issues a
challenge to the sannyāsīs. He claims that he can distribute more books
single-handedly the next day than their entire party. Hearing this
challenge, Vishnujana Swami decides that Keshava Bharati needs a
lesson in humility.
Keshava Bharati: Vishnujana Maharaja invited me for prasādam that

evening and fed me up to the nose. I got ill from overeating so the next
day I couldn’t go out. So they declared themselves the winner by
default.
TKG: Vishnujana Maharaja, eager to defend Radha-Damodara’s

reputation and considering all’s fair in love and war, took advantage of
Keshava Bharati’s passion for prasādam by inducing him to take a big
feast on the night before the contest. As a result, Keshava Bharati lay
awake all night with stomach cramps and lost the competition by
default.
841
By association with Yogesh Chandra and Keshava Bharati, Tamal
Krishna can see the enthusiasm these devotees have for serving their
spiritual master. Although he feels his service is to make new bhaktas,
he can understand that this innovative phenomenon is pioneering a
revolution in consciousness by firing-up devotees and pleasing His
Divine Grace simultaneously. If every household gets a book, surely
America can become Krishna conscious.
TKG: It was impossible to miss the emphasis that Srila Prabhupada was
placing on book distribution. Although it was a new phenomenon to me,
by visiting the various temples I had come to understand its central
importance as the main program for preaching. Vishnujana was trying to
do his best in that direction, but his heart and soul were absorbed in
kirtans and festivals. And certainly there was no wrong in this, because
who among Srila Prabhupada’s disciples was able to attract so many
people to Krishna simply by chanting Hare Krishna?
But was this sufficient for the growing number of men on our party, and
for myself?
According to Lord Chaitanya and the Brihan-naradiya Puraṇa the only

compulsory service is the chanting of Hare Krishna. Prabhupada has
given all the other services because westerners are restless and have
difficulty maintaining one particular service. Vishnujana Swami and
Jayananda Prabhu are among the exceptions. As most devotees move
forward in their lives, whether due to restlessness or maturation, they
need engagement in services that satisfy their psycho-physical make-up.
To fulfill Lord Chaitanya’s mission, Prabhupada needs all kinds of
people to do all kinds of service.
Vishnujana Maharaja is the first devotee to travel full-time living on a

bus without a base. He puts on a festival practically every day, and
sends out several vans, headed by Suhotra, to distribute books. Like
Jayananda, he believes that festivals give the public the best
presentation of Krishna consciousness.
842
Vishnujana Maharaja is the nectar kirtan leader, but few devotees have
the taste for chanting that he does. At this juncture in ISKCON’s history
there are several mandates current at the same time. Prabhupada wants
Krishna conscious knowledge distributed as much as possible; the
movement requires funding to support his many projects; and new
people need to be engaged according to their propensities. Thus,
Prabhupada is emphasizing book distribution which fulfills all three
requirements.
After receiving Sankirtan Newsletters 23 & 24 from Srutadeva,

Prabhupada writes to express his delight.
I like very much to receive the report of my book sales. I think it also
gives encouragement to the devotees who distribute the books. Here at
Mayapur my guru maharaja was printing one paper. It was selling for
only a few paise. Sometimes, whenever one brahmacari would go to
Navadvipa and sell even a few copies, I would see my guru maharaja
become very much pleased. Even if the brahmacari was not a very
important member, my guru maharaja would become very, very pleased
with him. He personally instructed me that books are more important
than big temples.
At Radha Kunda he told me that, “Since constructing the big marble

temple at Bhag Bazar, there have been so many difficulties. Our men
our envious over who will live in which room. I think it would be better
to take off all the marbles and sell them and print books.” He told me
this personally. So I am always emphasizing book distribution. It is the
better kirtan. It is better than chanting. Of course chanting should not
stop, but book distribution is the best kirtan. [Letter to Srutadeva -
October 4, 1974]
It’s important to clearly understand Srila Prabhupada’s frame of mind in

this regard. With so many young western devotees accepting kirtan as
the yuga-dharma, Prabhupada wants to instill his guru maharaja’s plan
for book distribution deep into their psyche. He knows that, come what
843
may, his books will always be there to continue his mission long after he
is gone. However, he has already established that devotional service is
on the absolute platform. So the comparative states of better and best
exist only in terms of each individual’s propensities. Nevertheless,
Prabhupada uses these relative terms to spur on a transcendental
competition to fulfill his purpose of establishing Krishna consciousness
worldwide.
Prabhupada’s rationale is determined by specific events. In Portugal, an

11 year old boy became a devotee after purchasing several books at a
Lisbon bookstore. He began chanting the mahā-mantra and asked his
father to purchase all available Srimad- Bhagavatams from the USA.
Subsequently, he started offering his food to Krishna and began
translating Bhagavad-gita As It Is into Portuguese. Prabhupada
commented that, “Our books went there to Portugal but we did not, but
still he has become a devotee.”
Another factor influencing Prabhupada’s decision is that sometimes the

street chanting is regarded as a farce in the West. This also proved true
in India where street chanting was met with mostly derogatory results.
Therefore, Prabhupada established the Life Membership program in
India, which is a method to distribute his books in bulk, attract people to
ISKCON, and receive a large donation all at the same time.
One day Tamal Krishna receives a letter from Srila Prabhupada, and
suddenly everything becomes clear. The letter motivates Tamal’s
thoughts into action. After breakfast the next morning, the Swamis call
the brahmacārīs out of the bus to sit with them on the front lawn of the
temple. Vishnujana explains that they have received a letter from
Prabhupada that everyone needs to hear. Tamal Krishna reads the letter.
Regarding Sankirtan and book distribution, both should go on, but book
distribution is more important. It is brihat kirtan. In Tokyo airport one
boy had come up to me asking if he could speak with me. I said yes, and
then he asked me “Swamiji, where do you get all that knowledge in your
844
books?” Of course it is Krishna’s knowledge, not mine. But the effect is
there. So for wider kirtan, book distribution is better. Book distribution
is also kirtan.
Regarding making hundreds of traveling parties, yes do that please as

far as possible. [Letter to Tamal Krishna Goswami - October 23, 1974]
Yogesh Chandra is ecstatic about the letter. He feels vindicated that his
vision was on target. That very morning he takes out a party for BTG
distribution and begins training the men how to sell BTG’s and incense.
They had already been doing this on a smaller scale but Yogesh is
instrumental in fine-tuning the process. Tamal Krishna begins preaching
that this will be the new direction of the party.
From this day on, things will change on the Radha-Damodara bus.
Yogesh Chandra: I definitely pushed and started the book distribution

on Radha-Damodara. I was standing right next to Tamal Krishna when
he got the letter from Prabhupada. I was saying “Now you understand?”
and “The sankirtan leader is the most important position in the
movement.” Tamal Krishna was jumping up and down and going crazy,
he was really happy. He said, “Now I’m convinced. I’m committed.” He
was really nervous because he wasn’t convinced before that.
Vishnujana Swami was very important but Tamal Krishna was the big
guy. He had the shakti, and he made those devotees. Sometimes he
agitated me so much that I didn’t want to be around him, but he had
Vaishnava power from Prabhupada. Politically, he’s just not together
because he blows it with a lot of people. But one on one, he can make
devotees. He picked up these raggedy-ann guys that I would have left
behind. He’s a heavy guy, and I didn’t want to work under him, but he
was great.
Many devotees would not have joined that party without Tamal Krishna.
I’ll always give him the credit. He made those people surrender to
Krishna because he demanded that they surrender to Krishna. He was
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the heavy guy, getting them on the bus.
Without Vishnujana Swami I don’t think he could have done it, but
Vishnujana never would have got those men without Tamal Krishna.
They were a team. Tamal Krishna always wants to be first, but he is
coming from a special place. So as far as the bhakti points go, Radha-
Damodara had a big impact. The biggest impact was that there are a lot
of devotees in the movement today.
Tamal Krishna is now anxious to get back on the road, except that
govardhana pūjā is coming, which is not to be missed. Vishnujana has
been telling Tamal about the nice preaching in Florida. He is still new
on the party so he has to rely on Vishnujana to tell him where the good
preaching places are. Vishnujana says he always bases in Florida during
the winter. He knows people there and it will be the best place to work
on the buses because of the sunny weather.
Unfortunately, there’s no way the bus can drive off with the number of
people now on the party. The bus now feels like a sardine can. No
matter how tightly they pack together, five devotees have to stand
outside the door for maṅgala-ārati. That’s not including seven in the
driver’s section that can’t see anything past the horde that are packed
body to body right up to the Deities.
Tamal calls the Philadelphia temple and orders Radha Raman to get the
new buses to San Diego immediately. “Get over here with the buses, we
need them.” Radha Raman says only one bus is road-worthy. The other
one still needs work, then he will drive it to Florida and rendezvous with
the party.
Seeing an opportunity, Yogesh Candra begins pushing Tamal Krishna to

get another van especially for the book distributors. A local dealership is
having a sale on Dodge vans with almost no qualification needed to
purchase. Yogesh insists this has to be Tamal Krishna’s next move. He
has already been to the dealership and picked out a 12-seater orange and
white Dodge maxi-van.
846
Yogesh Chandra: When we finally went to sign for the van, Tamal
threw the pen down, and said, “I can’t go through with this. I just can’t.”
And I said, “Sign the paper and get the van.” He said, “If anything
happens to this it’s all on you, man.” I said, “All right, it’s all on me.”
He sent Prabhupada a letter saying now we’re distributing books, then
Prabhupada sent a series of letters that locked in Tamal. That was the
mood.
Jambavan: When the devotees came back at the end of the day they
were so happy and blissful that Tamal went for it. He was convinced
immediately because everybody became enlivened. We distributed lots
of books and collected lots of lakṣmī. It was a good program all around.
Los Angeles, November 1974

A letter arrives at the Los Angeles BBT for Ramesvara. It’s from
Prabhupada’s secretary, Brahmananda Swami, initialed and approved by
Srila Prabhupada. The letter is a response to inquiries that Prabhupada
has received from several GBC men regarding street chanting and book
distribution. Apparently a controversy has developed over the two
services.
Ramesvara reads the letter with great interest. “Srila Prabhupada has
said that book distribution is more important than street chanting. Book
distribution is bṛhat kirtan. It is literally kirtan in the sense that the
books are spoken and therefore anyone who reads a book is hearing.
Because his books are recorded and transcribed Srila Prabhupada calls
his books spoken kirtans, or recorded chanting. So book distribution is
also kirtan and should not be considered less than kirtan.”
Brahmananda goes on presenting the case for book distribution saying

that, “book distribution is greater than chanting because the effect is
wider. A purchased book goes into a person’s home and will be read by
others, whereas street kirtan only benefits those in the vicinity who
hear.”
847
To ensure that no erroneous conclusions are introduced into ISKCON,
he emphasizes that street chanting should not be stopped for any reason.
“Prabhupada has never said that street chanting should be stopped. The
chanting can go on for a little while and when a crowd is drawn books
can be distributed. When I mentioned to Srila Prabhupada that when in
LA last, there was the system of book distribution all week long and on
weekend nights full street kirtans, he said that was a good system.”
Many senior devotees who grew up with street chanting, view book
distribution as an innovative enhancement to preaching. However, they
claim that not all devotees can go out and distribute books to people
who are not interested. Moreover, they add, pushing devotees to go out
against their own gut feeling could be detrimental to their Krishna
consciousness.
In dealing with this argument, the letter presents Prabhupada’s own

conclusion on the subject. “Regarding the claim that devotees have
difficulties maintaining Krishna consciousness by only doing book
selling with not enough street chanting, Prabhupada remarked that if
things deteriorate that is another thing, but it is not the fault of book
distribution. Book distribution must not be neglected.”
The letter continues to deal with other important topics in ISKCON, but
the effect of the letter is that Ramesvara begins emphasizing the
importance of book distribution over and above every other service.
This is natural for him since his service is with the BBT, Srila
Prabhupada’s book trust.
The result is that through his BBT Newsletters and his own personal
preaching, the meaning of the word sankirtan is re-defined. Because
Prabhupada states that both book distribution and street chanting are
sankirtan, therefore Ramesvara interprets this statement to yield two
discrete concepts. He emphasizes that the word sankirtan refers to book
distribution and defines the word harināma to mean street chanting only.
Thus the Sanskirt term harināma sankirtan is separated into two separate
848
and distinct western connotations, redefined by Ramsesvara, without
authority from Srila Prabhupada.
Since sankirtan is mentioned throughout Prabhupada’s books as the

yuga-dharma, assigning the meaning ‘book distribution’ implies that
everyone should be engaged in this activity because book distribution is
the yuga-dharma to save the conditioned souls. It’s a brilliant tactic to
encourage everyone to distribute Prabhupada’s books. That’s the upside.
But what is Srila Prabhupada’s definition for sankirtan? That’s the

overriding consideration. He has always adhered to the original meaning
of sankirtan as nagar- kirtan, or street chanting.
I am glad to learn that in Philadelphia they are increasing Sankirtan. It is

our life and soul. Sankirtan should be increased as much as possible.
Side by side is book selling. [Letter to Rupanuga Das - September 4,
1974]
Regarding Gurukula, they are in financial difficulty, so introduce book

distribution. Sankirtan and Book Distribution should be pushed side by
side, and there will be no difficulties. [Letter to Jagadisa Das -
November 12, 1974]
It is this sankirtan which is the life and soul of our movement. Sankirtan
and book distribution should go on together side by side. [Letter to
Srutadeva – September 8, 1974]
There is very good scope in Europe for this Sankirtan movement. If you
just spread this chanting in Europe, then it becomes Vaikuntha. Side by
side push on the literature distribution as far as possible. [Letter to
Haihaya Das - November 21, 1974]
Sankirtan is imported from Goloka Vrindaban it is not material musical

rock and roll. It is actually imported from Goloka. [Letter to Bhagavan -
February 1, 1974]
849
Even in Prabhupada’s letter to Tamal Krishna the clear distinction of
two types of service – sankirtan and book distribution – is clearly stated.
“Regarding Sankirtan and book distribution, both should go on, but
book distribution is more important.” [Letter to Tamal Krishna
Goswami - October 23, 1974]
The downside of Ramesvara’s re-interpretation of the Sanskrit term

‘harināma sankirtan’ is that street chanting is given a back seat. Very
quickly, street chanting becomes a once a week affair for a few hours.
After Prabhupada leaves the planet, it is reduced even more in
importance, as lakṣmī collecting becomes the prime benediction for
ISKCON in the ‘80s. This is in direct opposition to the conclusions of
śāstra.
Fortunately, as devotees advance in Krishna consciousness, they

gradually come to realize that the word sankirtan in Prabhupada’s books
does refer to street chanting. Moreover, the expression ‘going out for
harināma’ is not grammatically correct because harināma is a noun. It
means ‘the name Hari.’ The term harināma sankirtan – going out for
street chanting of the name Hari – makes perfect sense.
Lord Chaitanya Himself propagated His movement through street

chanting. He never wrote or distributed books although he arranged for
books to be compiled and disseminated in the future to substantiate that
the yuga-dharma is congregational chanting. This is what produces the
fruit of divine love of God – Krishna prema. However, since the
common man in Kali-yuga can hardly understand philosophy, these
books are meant mostly for the educated class of people situated in the
mode of goodness.
Somehow or other everyone can manage to perform such a yajña

[sankirtan] and distribute prasādam to the people in general. That is
quite sufficient for this age of Kali. The Hare Krishna Movement is
based on this principle: chant the Hare Krishna mantra at every moment,
both inside and outside of the temples, and, as far as possible, distribute
850
prasādam. This process can be accelerated with the help of the state
administrators and those who are producing the country’s wealth.
Simply by liberal distribution of prasādam and sankirtan, the whole
world can become peaceful and prosperous. [SB 4.12.10, purport]
The splitting of the term harināma-sankirtan into two separate terms –

street chanting and book distribution – is accepted as the new paradigm
for preaching in ISKCON and continues to this day.
All problems in Krishna consciousness arise because of not following

Prabhupada’s teachings; in other words, introducing mental speculation.
“Whatever I have introduced should remain. Nothing new should be
added. New things means, their brain is not clear.” [Letter to Rupanuga
Das - September 4, 1974]
Next, Ramesvara begins preaching that distributing books pleases

Prabhupada the most. This fires up the book distributors even more.
However, when a disciple writes Prabhupada asking what he can do to
please him the most, Prabhupada replies, “You may please me the most
by reading my books and following the instructions therein and by
becoming fully Krishna conscious in this lifetime.” [Letter to Bahurupa
Das - November 22, 1974]
It’s not long before book distributors begin to look down at temple
devotees who do other services. Street chanting is thought of as just for
the neophytes. Advanced devotees go out and distribute books. It causes
a conflagration in ISKCON which eventually brings both sides into
conflict. Prabhupada will label it a fratricidal war.
Srila Prabhupada specifically writes that, “One who distinguishes a

particular type of service as inferior or superior, he does not know the
value of devotional service. It is all transcendental. [Letter to Satsvarupa
Maharaja - January 19, 1975]
Genuine Vaishnavas honor everyone’s unique service whether book

distribution, nāma-kirtan, or washing the pots. This insight is called
851
equal vision, paṇḍitāḥ sama- darśinaḥ, because Vaishnavas can see the
Lord in everyone’s heart. Devotional services are simultaneously one
and different, absolute and pleasing, because all living entities are equal
in the eyes of the Lord, samah sarvesu bhutesu.
Govardhana Puja, 1974

San Diego is known as New Govardhana so devotees on the West Coast
like to come here to celebrate govardhana pūjā. The temple always has a
grand celebration and this year the city has issued a permit to perform
the entire ceremony as a public festival in prestigious Balboa Park.
Five thousand years ago Krishna pleaded with his father, Nanda
Maharaja, to forego the annual indra pūjā, and instead perform
govardhana pūjā. Finally capitulating to young Krishna’s insistence, the
vraja-vāsīs followed His instructions by circumambulating Govardhana
Hill and preparing many varieties of foodstuffs. To accept their
offerings, Krishna manifested a wonderful form known as Giridhari and
the vraja-vāsīs offered everything to the Lord for His satisfaction.
The temple advertises this govardhana pūjā festival throughout

California and many devotees drive to San Diego to celebrate the event.
Jayananda and Bhakta Das arrive from San Francisco to help Gunagrahi
organize an impressive govardhana pūjā celebration. This is the first
time that Gunagrahi meets Jayananda although he has heard a lot of
praise about his devotional qualities.
The next morning Gunagrahi is excited to ask Jayananda to give

Bhagavatam class.
Jayananda replies that he can’t give class, and Gunagrahi is a little

disturbed by his response. He requests Bhakta Das to give class instead.
The next day Gunagrahi again asks Jayananda to give class, and again
Jayananda declines, with an explanation. “Actually I have no time to
study. I really can’t give a good class unless I study. If I had time to
852
study I’d be glad to give class.”
Gunagrahi: Then I understood his mentality. I was impressed when he

came because it was an intense situation putting on a big festival, and I
observed that he was a most cool-headed person. The various
arrangements were very intense, especially when things weren’t so well
organized. He helped out tremendously in terms of creating a wonderful
atmosphere amongst the devotees putting on the festival. He figured out
many wonderful things to do for the festival that put the extra touch on
the program.
The magnetic attractiveness of Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara has a strong

pull, even from San Diego. Devotees come from all parts of California
hearing that the Radha- Damodara party will be there for the
Govardhana festival. Nalini Kanta also drives down from San Francisco
with a new bhakta, Visoka, who has only joined the movement one
week ago. A group of devotees also drive down from Santa Cruz, near
San Francisco.
Rajavidya: I went to San Diego with the Santa Cruz devotees. The first
time I saw Vishnujana Swami, he led kirtan in the temple and had us
running back and forth. The whole temple was aglow with his dynamic
energy and charisma; his power to get people feeling ecstasy. His kirtan
was astounding. Then he sat down, just a pile of sweat, to give the
Sunday lecture. He gave the most powerful, wonderful, beautiful class.
When he spoke it was melodic. That was Vishnujana at his essence, at
his best. He was the absolute king of it all. I saw him do that many
times, and that’s where his power was. That’s what he loved and always
wanted to do.
Gokula is a US Marine who is stationed in San Diego. He has had prior

association with the devotees and has been coming to the San Diego
Sunday feast whenever he can get shore leave. He is friends with
Rajavidya and is excited to see him in San Diego for govardhana pūjā.
Gokula’s tour of duty is almost up and he has plans to join the San
853
Diego temple when he’s discharged from the Marines.
Among other visitors are Praghosa and Keshava Bharati who are
dedicated to book distribution. They are attracted by the BBT party
headed by Tripurari who is having tremendous success distributing big
books at the Chicago airport. The focus of the BBT party is to distribute
big books at major airports around the country and train other devotees
how to do it. Praghosh has recently joined Tripurari’s airport party in
Chicago and is in San Diego to work the airport here. Keshava Bharati
has yet to join the party but is working the airports on the West Coast
and will receive further training from Praghosh.
Under the guidance of Jayananda and Bhakta Das, the San Diego
devotees make a replica of Govardhana Hill by forming massive
quantities of rice into a ‘hill’ in the middle of Balboa Park. They
decorate the ‘hill’ with an assortment of ‘vegetation’ using broccoli as
trees, liquid chutney rivers with grassy banks of lettuce and spinach
leaves. The large boulders on the ‘hill’ are kacaurīs and samosās. When
the ‘hill’ is finished everyone gathers to observe the festival as
Vishnujana Swami starts the kirtan.
Hearing Vishnujana lead kirtan, hundreds of people gather at the festival

site. Soon Maharaja starts dancing around the hill playing mṛdaṅga and
chanting Giri Govardhana Hari Haribol, Giri Govardhana Hari Haribol.
Devotees have never heard this before, but just the way Maharaja is
singing it seems perfect for the occasion and everybody happily
responds. Devotees and guests hold hands and dance around
‘Govardhana Hill’ in observance of this ancient ceremony. When

Maharaja begins chanting the mahā-mantra, the nectar of the kirtan
increases.
After leading the chanting and dancing around the ‘hill’ for about 30
minutes, Vishnujana Swami stops the kirtan and sings the rāja-bhoga
offering song by himself very slowly, “bhaja bhakata-vatsala śrī-
gaurahari...” He waits for a response, but apparently not many people
854
know the words. He sings several verses but no one else is able to
follow so he just sings it himself.
At a certain point, he stops playing the drum and after a moment’s

silence he sings, “Krishna won’t you please come and take your
prasādam” continuing the same rāja- bhoga melody. Then he looks
around at all the people, all the devotees and guests, and again he sings,
“Krishna won’t you please come and take your prasādam.” This second
time everyone responds.
Seeing the response, Maharaja begins dancing around the hill singing at
the top of his voice, “Krishna won’t you please come and take your
prasādam.” He continues singing in English, “Krishna won’t you please
come and take your prasādam” while dancing around the ‘hill’ and now
everyone else is singing and dancing with him.
Vrikodhara: I remember Vishnujana Swami singing the bhoga-ārati

refrain in English, “Krishna won’t you please come and take Your
prasādam.” It was the only time I heard the English translation. It was so
sweet.
Praghosa: It was the wildest mantra you ever heard in your life,
“Krishna won’t you please come home and take your prasādam.” When
he did it everyone went crazy, all the devotees, all the guests. From that
he went into Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare
Hare/Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare, continuing the
melody and leading that kirtan around the hill for an hour.
Vishnujana Swami really looked like some kind of demigod. He was

very large and had an imposing figure. He loved prasādam and he loved
serving prasādam to the devotees in quantities. His mood was “Eat, and
eat a lot. Chant, and chant a lot.” He used to wear big oversized socks
that were always old and didn’t have any elastic left to them, so they
would bunch up down at his ankles. He never appeared to be concerned
with his appearance in terms of having pressed cloth. He would just
throw his sannyāsa cloth around him, tie it up, ‘boom’, and throw his
855
sash on. He was always clean but that’s the way he appeared.
He was never into cutting a profile. His tilak always looked unusual. It
looked like he just swished it on, ‘sloop, sloop’, and there would be a
big smear on his forehead. It never looked really perfect and he was
unconcerned with that. He had a big śikhā which he always tied up
nicely, but it sometimes came loose.
Sri Rama: There was an absolutely different mood with Radha-

Damodara than anywhere else. By constant proximity to the Deity, there
was a mood of intimacy. We lived with the Deity in the same room just
separated by a thin piece of cloth. We ate there, we cooked there, we
showered there, we slept there, and we took Them out every day to see
everyone else. So it was definitely a unique mood. It was almost
difficult to understand the mood of the Deities in the temples we visited
because it was so strikingly different from our own experience.
Added to that was Vishnujana Swami’s mood of worshipping Them. It

was very, very intimate. On a number of occasions Maharaja used to
describe Them like, “an American boy and girl.” That struck me
because I noticed how the Deity photos in each BTG always looked like
the people from the country They were residing in. It was very
prominent and a lot of people noticed that. I remember that Radha-
Damodara looked like an American boy and girl.
When Vishnujana brings the kirtan to a close, he begins distributing

parts of the ‘hill’ to everybody present. It’s a huge hill with all sorts of
foodstuffs on it. He happily passes out prasādam to whomever comes up
to him, and he throws fruit like bananas, oranges, grapefruits, papayas,
mangoes, and avocados to people in the back.
Sanjaya: I was on a spiritual quest, leaving my home to go to California

in search of the Holy Grail, and I found the devotees. I first came into
contact with Vishnujana Swami and the devotees down by Ocean
Beach. I didn’t know the philosophy, didn’t know who Krishna was,
didn’t know who Prabhupada was, but I liked the chanting. I thought
856
they looked a bit funny and was worried about the Hells Angels or
others beating them up, so I was nice to them, and they were nice to me.
A friend gave me a Gita, but I never read it although I thought the
pictures were far out.
On govardhana pūjā day, Sanjaya is in Balboa Park and sees the big
festival with the devotees dancing around Govardhan hill. He is sitting
on a park bench in an introspective mood, so he’s not much attracted to
the festivities. But Rajavidya approaches and offers him an incense
stick. He asks a few questions and discovers that Sanjaya has an interest
in spiritual life. He decides to hand him up to a higher personality and
suggests, “We’ve got a bus. Do you want to see the bus?”
“Okay. I’ll see your bus.” On the bus, Sanjaya is introduced to

Vishnujana who welcomes him.
“What’s your name?” “Chris.”
Maharaja looks right into Sanjaya’s eyes and remarks, “Chris? Bliss! Do
you want one of these?” He offers a gulābjāmun and Sanjaya accepts the
sweet. “I’ll show you something,” Maharaja says as he rings the bell and
opens the curtains of the altar.
Sanjaya: When I saw Radha-Damodara, my hair just stood on end. I still

didn’t know who Krishna was, but I was transfixed. Without a doubt it
was like being transported straight out. Vishnujana was definitely not of
this world. He was so happy, and funny.
After the festival, Jayananda gets a crew together and stays back to
clean up the park. His mood is that a brāhmaṇa always leaves a place
cleaner than when he first arrived. As devotees return to the temple
blissed-out by the day’s wonderful festivities, Sanjaya is invited to
return with them. After taking prasādam to his complete satisfaction, he
is asked if he wants to spend the night at the ashram. Feeling that the
devotees have been so kind to him, he agrees.
857
Sanjaya: I couldn’t sleep that night. Everything was so foreign and the
idea of sleeping on the floor with a bunch of devotees was so different
from anything I had experienced. The next morning I had to get up early
for maṅgala-ārati. Gadadhar was the bus commander and he gave me
my first japa beads. He taught me how to chant japa, and I chanted my
first rounds.
After breakfast prasādam, Gadadhar brings Sanjaya to a room in the

temple that Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna use for an office. They are
sitting together, side-by- side, against the wall on their little āsanas.
Gadadhar introduces Sanjaya and they sit down. The whole purpose of
the bus is to make new devotees.
Sanjaya: Tamal Krishna put me through the ‘cutting of all attachments,

come join with us’ routine. I offered as much resistance as I could in
terms of attachments and arguments. One by one they were snipped. He
was the hard man. Vishnujana was the blissful man. He looked at me
and said, “If you come with us, life will be very blissful.” It got to a
stage where Tamal Krishna had me on the ropes. He was getting me to
agree to quit my job, which wasn’t much of anything anyway, and he
found out I had money in the bank.
Gadadhar: The way Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna had it set up, people
were attracted to come. They immediately saw the respect of the
younger devotees for the sannyāsīs, who always sat on cushions. That
bona fide hierarchical structure attracted new people. Vishnujana and
Tamal Krishna would accept first prasādam, and almost immediately the
second prasādam was offered to the new bhaktas. They were expert in
helping the new men learn and appreciate Lord Chaitanya’s teachings
about humility – to actually see that the reason the sannyāsīs and the
spiritual master were offered such respect was warranted. They heard
and felt the potency of their words, so they saw that they deserved it.
As Krishna says in Bhagavad-gita, the difficulties of spiritual life in the

beginning are like poison but in the end like nectar. So the new bhaktas
858
always needed to be encouraged and I was blessed with the tolerance to
take care of the new people, keeping these things in mind.
Now that govardhana pūjā is over, Tamal Krishna decides to request

Gunagrahi to give him a few of the new men. One of the two new buses
has arrived so he has the extra room for additional devotees. He explains
that the temple will not lose a man because they have not spent any
energy in training them. Plus, the new men will get the best training by
traveling with two sannyāsīs, serving Radha-Damodara, and chanting
Hare Krishna with Vishnujana Swami at festivals every day. What to
speak of Yogesh Chandra training up new book distributors? Certainly,
this is the best arrangement for a new recruit.
Gunagrahi agrees that Tamal Krishna can have any of the new men who
want to travel with Radha-Damodara. But the more experienced
brahmacārīs that have already received training can’t join the bus party.
They have to remain at the temple. Tamal Krishna agrees to this
proposal. At the moment he’s in the middle of getting Sanjaya on board
and already has Rajavidya and Gokula committed to join.
Gunagrahi: When Tamal Krishna came into my office I asked, “By the
way you’re preaching do you think the brahmacārīs should actually
leave the temples and travel with Radha- Damodara? Is that the best
thing?”
He said, “Yes.” Some really wanted to go, and I knew it would be good
for them, so I gave a couple of men. There was no monetary pressure at
our temple so everything was okay.
Rajavidya: I was fired-up to go with them. Vishnujana was so

charismatic that he looked kind of like a demigod with his long arms
and golden complexion. I remembered that first day we were cutting up
bananas for govardhana pūjā, and he was singing while we were cutting.
His trip was nectar. I figured if I was lucky they’d let me join so I went
for an interview. But actually they were just trying to get anybody they
could.
859
Gokula: When I got out of the Marines I wanted to join the temple but
Vishnujana Swami and Tamal Krishna talked me into joining the bus.
Kaviraj: I thought they were wonderful, especially Vishnujana Swami.

He presented himself straight up-front. “Wouldn’t you like to travel
with us?”
I said, “It would be a nice thing to do.”
He said, “You have to talk to your temple president and get his
permission.”
I was totally mesmerized and felt that I had to leave with these devotees.
He left that impression on me. My intention was to leave with them, but
when I took this proposal to Gunagrahi Das Adhikari, he opposed it.
Sanjaya: Lakshmi-Nrsimha had the job of taking me back to my house

where I proceeded to give away everything I owned: my surf boards, my
Hawaiian shirts, my cat, my half interest in the house, everything. The
word quickly spread to my friends and ultimately to my girlfriend.
When she came to the temple to talk me out of it, she was invited inside
to take prasādam.
The bus engine started up and the question was put, “Will you get on the
bus? Will you come with us?” It was a dramatic moment. The door was
open and I wasn’t sure I was getting on. Then, out of the blue, a friend
that I knew who had become a devotee saw me.
He said, “Chris. You get on that bus. You’ll become a brāhmaṇa. Get on
that bus and do it.”
That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. There was somebody I
knew.
So I got onto the bus. I joined the party in one amazing 24 hours. That
first night we drove across the California desert to Arizona.
860
Fourteenth Wave,
Escapade on Esplanade
My general request is that you all distribute as many books as possible
and at the same time be very careful in dealings with others so that they
may not become irritated with us. [Letter to Tripurari Das - January 16,
1975]
Arizona, November 1974

The Radha-Damodara convoy is heading east out of San Diego towards
Arizona.
The Dodge maxi-van accompanies the original bus as one unit. The
newly- purchased bus and Suhotra’s sankirtan van travel together as a
second unit. They leave first because the new bus is untested. In case of
mechanical problems the later group can stop to help out. Dravanaksha
drives the new bus with a group of devotees that includes Jambavan,
Gadadhar, Vrikasanga, Dayal Chandra, and Lakshmi- Nrsimhadeva.
This bus has no altar, and no work done on it. The entire party will
rendezvous at a Truck Stop in Yuma, Arizona.
Crossing the high mountain range between California and Arizona is a

lengthy climb. It takes a long time because Dravanaksha has to drive his
bus in second gear. Once they reach the summit, then it’s mostly
downhill with areas that are quite steep. As the bus heads downhill in
fourth gear the devotees are soon flying down the mountain grade. The
engine is worn out so it can’t slow the speed of the bus and the brakes
can’t slow it down either.
861
Dravanaksha: We were going faster and faster and I couldn’t slow it
down. The air system was old, and the air pressure was zero as I was
pumping the brakes. I was really sweating and chanting, trying to get
into a lower gear. I couldn’t downshift because we were going too fast.
At a certain point you can’t rev it up enough to put it in a lower gear. I
was chanting in a sweat because we were flying down that mountain.
All of a sudden, Dravanaksha hears a long BEEEEP. He looks over to

see Vishnujana Swami driving the Radha-Damodara bus as it overtakes
them at 90 mph. Maharaja waves as he passes. The devotees in the new
bus watch in amazement as Maharaja races down the mountain.
Dravanaksha knows that Vishnujana is a fast driver, so after this
incident he simply transcends his problems. The entire party reunites at
the truck stop in Yuma, as planned.
Sanjaya: The first morning being a devotee was in the desert. I was
introduced to an austerity system I didn’t know existed. We showered in
the bathroom of a rest area. Truckers came in when devotees were
drying their brahmin underwear with the hand dryers. That first morning
I chanted Hare Krishna with a bit of sincerity. I climbed a tree and was
chanting japa up in the tree. That’s when Tamal Krishna started taking
an interest in me. He came over, looked up, and offered this gem, “You
were a monkey in your last life. Get down.”
Arriving at an Arizona State campground on the outskirts Yuma, Tamal

Krishna discovers there’s no available camping site without a booking.
The manager tells him to try a newly opened senior citizens’ mobile
park where there will be ample space.
On the way to the senior park, Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna are in
Radha- Damodara’s kitchen. While singing Hare Krishna, Vishnujana
dices a colossal eggplant into bite-sized morsels to prepare the rāja-
bhoga offering. Then he melts a stick of butter in the wok over a high
flame with one hand, while releasing the dirty sink water that washed
the vegetables with his other hand.
862
“Why do you insist on waiting until we come to a city before letting out
the sink?”
Tamal Krishna complains. The bus was built without holding tanks to
leave more room in the bays for storing the festival equipment. So the
dirty water empties down the drain and onto the street. Tamal reminds
Vishnujana of the incident when they were cited for a violation just
outside San Diego.
Vishnujana smiles, “Krishna and Balarama never cared for the law and
order of Kamsa.” He tips his head and continues to sing.
“But They didn’t get caught,” Tamal Krishna retorts. “They moved
through Mathura doing as They pleased, with no risk of reprimand from
Kamsa.”
At dusk, Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna stroll along the clean driving
lanes of the senior park. A stable, pleasant winter makes Arizona a
popular state for retirees. As a result, numerous mobile home parks offer
lifetime leases for elderly couples to spend the winter. In summer, most
seniors return north to spend time with their grandchildren. The locals
call them “snowbirds.”
Elderly couples bicycle past the sannyāsīs, smiling or waving. The

atmosphere is peaceful, but Tamal notes that it’s an artificial tranquility.
Old age is a warning that death is quickly drawing near. It signals the
time to get ready for the moment when the soul exits the body. It’s not
meant for being lulled into a false sense of security. The sannyāsīs feel
compassion for these old people who are frivolously wasting their
precious last years on bicycles without any preparation for going back to
Godhead.
Vishnujana Swami changes the subject. From his shoulder bag he pulls
out the latest Sankirtan Newsletter that he picked up before leaving San
Diego. He shows issue #32 to Goswami. Twelve temples have reported
their scores and new records have been set. Los Angeles remains the top
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book distribution temple with a world’s record of 5,231 points. New
York is second with 4,470 points, and they have set a world’s record for
small books with 8,380 distributed from November 1-3.
Chicago is in third place with a new high score of 4,405 points. San
Francisco and the BBT TSKP follow in fourth and fifth place. Toronto
at sixth and New Vrindavan at ninth have both set new high scores.
Vaishnavas always take rest early. But at 3:00am an alarm rings.

Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna rise quickly and shower. Soon all the
brahmacārīs are up. While the mobile village rests in deep slumber, the
Radha-Damodara bus is a beehive of activity.
Rushing back and forth between the public bath house and the bus,
everyone gets ready for maṅgala-ārati by candle light.
With so many energetic devotees jumping and dancing, Radha-

Damodara’s bus also begins to dance for the pleasure of Their
Lordship’s ārati ceremony, performed by Ramacharya. Vishnujana leads
the kirtan, accompanied by mṛdaṅgas and kartāls, as the melodious
chanting wafts through the closed glass windows to purify the
atmosphere of the grounds.
Suddenly the window beside the altar is forcibly opened. A double

barrel shotgun is thrust through the opening. The menacing weapon
freezes the devotees. An angry voice barks, “Alright, you crackpots!
This is the manager speaking. I’m giving you five minutes to pack up
and get out of here before I blow your whole bus out of the city!”
Without waiting to hear anything more, Tamal Krishna pushes through

the devotees and jumps out of the bus to deal directly with the manager.
“What’s the meaning of this?” Tamal Krishna demands.
“I’ll tell you what the meaning is,” the man roars as he points the loaded
shotgun directly at Goswami. “How many people are in there? I rented
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this space for one bus and three men, but there’s at least 25 of you,” he
shouts furiously. “I’ve got decent, respectable people living here. What
do you think you’re doing carrying on like this in the middle of the
night? You’ve got one couple practically scared out of their minds.
When the old lady looked out her window and saw a bunch of bald-
headed Martians running around with orange sheets, she was hysterical
and called the police. Now I’m giving you five minutes to clear out of
here before I let my anger get the best of me.”
Without any further discussion, Tamal orders everyone to pack up and

get ready to leave. Vishnujana jumps into the driver’s seat and fires up
the engine. Fuming because Radha-Damodara’s ārati was stopped at
gunpoint, he floors the gas pedal sending a blast of black exhaust that
leaves the irate manager gasping for breath. The other vehicles follow
the bus out of the mobile home park.
Back on the road, Vishnujana suddenly breaks out laughing. “The

materialists are insane.” He relates a humorous story to Tamal Krishna.
“A similar thing happened two years ago in Florida. One day my old
school bus was surrounded by police cars. They received a complaint
that I was keeping two small children captive and torturing them with
fire. It turned out that an old lady had seen us offering the ārati lamp to
Radha-Damodara through a window and misunderstood everything. I
had to let the police on the bus and physically show them that Radha-
Damodara were not flesh-and-blood children before they were
convinced.
“Damodara is a very naughty boy and enjoys giving trouble to His

devotees. But that trouble is in the form of His special mercy to make us
fully dependent. I am always praying to Damodara, ‘Please give me
more troubles, so that I may never forget You,’ just like Queen Kunti
prayed.”
Meanwhile back in San Diego, a young man named Ryan Butler knocks
on the temple door. He’s looking for the Radha-Damodara bus party.
865
Ryan had met devotees in Boston and wanted to join the temple. Adi
Keshava suggested he join the Radha- Damodara party instead.
Accepting this advice, Ryan drives cross country to San Diego to meet
the bus. But Gunagrahi informs him that the party left for Arizona two
days ago. He suggests they might be staying at the ISKCON preaching
center in Phoenix. The young man immediately jumps back into his van
and starts driving.
Several San Francisco devotees have opened a center in Phoenix. When

Nalini Kanta arrived with his wife, they rented a ranch-style house and
began giving Gita classes. Soon Srikanta, Vatsala, and Darpada show up
with their wives. The four couples are trying to establish a permanent
preaching hub.
When Ryan drives up to the address given by Gunagrahi he sees the bus
parked in front of the house. When he enters the bus the first words out
of his mouth are, “Hey, I’d like to join you guys.” Vishnujana Swami
smiles and welcomes him aboard. But after having a shotgun pointed at
him, Tamal Krishna is suspicious. “Why do you want to come?” After a
few minutes, however, Ryan is accepted on the party.
That evening, Yogesh Chandra and Suhotra take out some of the new
men for book distribution at a nearby mall to teach them how to
distribute books. Each man is given a shopping bag with an assortment
of books, BTGs, and incense.
Then Yogesh says, “There’s your books. Go and distribute them.”
Sanjaya: That very first day they put me out on book distribution.
Yogesh Chandra was the sankirtan leader and he had just bought the
first sankirtan maxi-van. For him and Tamal Krishna it was like a new
toy. I gave out a Bhagavatam that first day but I hadn’t read any of these
books.
Rajavidya: I went with Ryan to do books. That was the first time I ever
866
did it. I sold incense and collected $50. It was a phenomenal amount and
Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna remarked, “Lord Chaitanya is really
pleased with you,” laying it on real thick.
Dhruva Maharaja Das: Tamal Krishna wanted to introduce book

distribution so I went out, but up until that time it was constant chanting.
I was really attracted to Vishnujana Swami so I helped him in the
kitchen. I liked to get up early when he always cooked a special sweet
for Radha-Damodara. He would put milk and saffron in a shallow pan
and cook it with sugar and diced almonds into a thick pudding kheer. It
was only enough for a small offering and he liked to offer that to Radha-
Damodara.
Jambavan likes to reminisce about the early days and tell stories to the
new recruits. Tonight he talks about the Radha-Damodara party before
Tamal Krishna joined. “It was a real nice brahmacārī/sannyāsī mood.
Vishnujana Maharaja and Vishnudatta did a lot of cooking on that old
school bus. They were both excellent cooks, so prasādam was really
nice. You heard what happened to that bus, right?”
“No, we haven’t heard much about anything.”
“Well, it burned to a cinder. Maharaja was lucky to get Radha-

Damodara out. Everything was lost, the books, the lakṣmī, everything.
Maharaja said that Radha- Damodara wanted a new bus so that’s when
he got the first Greyhound.
“Vishnujana visited the old St Louis temple in that school bus when
Mahamuni was temple commander. Mahamuni was a great temple
commander. He was great with the bhaktas because he was such a nice
devotee.
“Vishnujana was so impressed with Mahamuni that he wrote an article

about his visit there and said, ‘I love that Mahamuni.’ Vishnudatta was
really fired up. He was a Canadian and an excellent cook, kirtan leader,
and mṛdaṅga player. He was the best drummer in the whole movement.”
867
Texas, November 1974
After passing through Arizona, the convoy of buses and vans drives
through New Mexico. As they approach the town of Los Cruces,
Vishnujana Maharaja again recounts the story of how the original bus
went up in flames. Suddenly they pass a blackened spot of the side of
the road. “That’s it,” Maharaja shouts as he points to the spot. “That’s
where the old bus blew up.”
The convoy stops in El Paso, Texas, to refill the tanks. If the

brahmacārīs don’t relieve themselves while the tank is being filled, the
bus won’t stop just because someone has to answer the call of nature.
It’s considered māyā to waste a moment in the service of Radha-
Damodara. The sannyāsīs decide that half the party will go via I- 20 to
Dallas, while the other half will stay on I-10 to Austin and Houston. The
entire party will rendezvous at the New Orleans temple.
The Texas highway is mostly dry desert with not too many rest areas.
On the bus, the driver’s compartment is completely separate with a door
that closes. That’s how the Swamis can get away from 30 brahmacārīs
to be alone with the driver. The rear side door of the bus opens towards
the front on the driver’s side, so when it is pried open oncoming traffic
can’t see what is being done. By opening this door as the bus moves
along at 70 mph, a brahmacārī can relieve himself in an urgent situation.
Today is a bright sunny day as that door is now pried open for such an
emergency. The other devotees run to the windows to watch the car
behind. They burst out in laughter when they see the windshield wipers
suddenly start for no apparent reason.
Sri Rama: We had free access to the highway and God help whoever
was behind us. It was so funny because the people in the car behind us
had to turn on their windshield wipers without knowing why.
Vipra has been driving non-stop since the party left Phoenix, and he’s
868
feeling extremely tired. He has to keep shaking his head to keep from
falling asleep at the wheel. Soon it’s the middle of the night and
everyone on the bus is fast asleep. Even Sri Rama, who normally stays
up as Vipra’s association to ensure he stays awake, has long since fallen
asleep.
Vipra: Driving for Radha-Damodara was very memorable. Those days

reminded me of my World War II childhood on the Russian front, as far
as austerity, hardship, and adventure. The hardship part was driving for
48 hours straight, constantly pushing myself to the limit of physical
endurance. I started hallucinating while floating across Texas at 2:00am
after being at the wheel for 24 hours. I remember looking through the
windshield and I could see a black velvet curtain stretched across the
highway from one horizon to the other. Right in the middle of the
highway there was a crack in the curtain where the two halves came
together. I could see that just beyond the curtain was the edge of the
earth. I immediately hit the brakes, but just as my foot hit the brake
pedal the curtain dissolved and the earth was spliced together again. I
also remember seeing Spanish galleons on the highway.
I was totally exhausted and couldn’t keep awake. More than anything
else in the world I wanted to sleep. So I pulled off the highway and
stopped. But there was no place to lie down. Every square inch of the
bus was covered with sleeping devotees, even down in the stairwell on
the steps. I couldn’t even get out of the driver’s seat because I’d have to
walk on devotees. I was trapped behind the driver’s seat and I had to
sleep hunched over the wheel because I couldn’t even get up. So that
was very much like being a refugee.
A thousand miles from San Diego the next morning, Sanjaya realizes
there is no turning back. With Vipra getting a well-deserved rest, the bus
is back on the road with Vishnujana in the driver’s seat. He is listening
to a Prabhupada tape on headphones, completely oblivious to his speed.
The bus rolls along the lonely Texas highway at 75 mph after all the
speed limits have been changed to 55 mph due to the oil embargo. All of
869
a sudden the sound of a siren disturbs the mood on the bus. Sanjaya
looks out the window to see the Texas Rangers flagging down the bus
with lights flashing.
Maharaja pulls over to the side of the road and stops. Two large Texas
Rangers get out of their car and walk to the front of the bus. Vishnujana
can be fast when he has to be and, because he doesn’t have a driver’s
license, he volunteers Sri Rama to be the driver. “Get in the driver’s seat
real quick.”
As soon as Sri Rama jumps in the driver’s seat, the troopers knock at the
door. As the cops look up at him, Sri Rama pops the door open. A big
fat Ranger comes in and says a few words to Sri Rama. He wants to
have a look in the back. Sri Rama releases the latch on the door that
opens into the temple room.
“What the Sam Hill...” the cop exclaims, confronted with the throng of
shaven-headed devotees sitting on the bus floor chanting japa. He is
completely taken aback and can hardly believe his eyes. He quickly
returns to the driver’s compartment and nods to Sri Rama, “Okay son,
you better come with us.”
Sri Rama gets out of the bus with shaven head and saffron robes. He
follows the Rangers along a path in the desert with nothing but sage and
sand. After walking almost 100 meters, they arrive at a small cinder
block structure.
One trooper opens the door, “C’mon in, son. Have a seat.” Inside there’s
enough room for a table, a chair on one side of the table, a chair on the
other side of the table, an air conditioner, a refrigerator, and a toilet. Sri
Rama is looking around at this when a trooper says, “Sit down, son.”
Another trooper comes out of nowhere and sits in the chair opposite. He
picks up a gavel, bangs it on the table and says, “This court of the state
of Texas is now in session. How do you plead?”
870
“What are my alternatives?” Sri Rama asks. “Son, you’re guilty.”
“How much is it going to cost?”
“It’s gonna cost you 40 dollars. How do you plead?”
“I’m guilty.” The gavel bangs down on the table. The troopers frog-
march Sri Rama back to the bus, where he collects 40 dollars. Then they
walk back, and he pays up.
“Goodbye son. Don’t speed in Texas.”
Sri Rama: It was like straight out of a movie. Nothing ever showed up
on my record. No repercussions. It was so surrealistic that it sounds like
exaggeration, but that’s what happened.
Sanjaya: In true Vishnujana form Vishnujana had no driver’s license, no

ID, or anything. He probably thought it was māyā to have it. These were
the days when people had never seen devotees, so Sri Rama was real
nervous. He had to go to kangaroo court and pay the fine. Vishnujana
got bawled out by Tamal Krishna, who was like a wife henpecking him,
always on his case for something. But Vishnujana was like water on a
duck’s back.
By evening the bus arrives at the small Austin temple that Vishnujana
opened in 1970. Prahladananda is the Temple President and has been
since 1971. The temple hasn’t expanded much because the local GBC
man keeps taking devotees for the other centers in Texas. Most of the
new men shave up, including Sanjaya and Ryan. But after one day in
Austin, the party departs for Houston, another temple opened by
Vishnujana Maharaja.
Prahladananda: Tamal Krishna and Vishnujana came by the Austin

temple and we did a program at the university. We were well liked at
that university because we also did prasādam distribution, so we had a
successful Sunday feast program. Satsvarupa Maharaja asked me to give
871
some good devotees to help them out in Houston, so I gave my two best
men. I also sent some devotees to Dallas.
On the road to Houston, the bus stops in a small town to refuel.

Vishnujana needs flowers for Radha-Damodara’s worship, so he sends
Ryan out with Ramacharya. “Go to that cemetery we passed and get
some fresh flowers.”
Tamal Krishna sees them returning with new flowers and pulls Ryan
aside. “Where did you get the flowers?”
Ryan is unaware that he’s not supposed to say anything. “Oh, we just
went to a graveyard and got them.”
Goswami becomes furious. “You can’t do that?” “Well, Vishnujana

Maharaja sent us to get them.”
Tamal goes to Vishnujana to prevent the flowers being used for pūjā.
“Vishnujana Maharaja, you can’t offer these flowers to Radha-

Damodara. They’re not offerable. They’ve already been offered to the
ghosts, dead people.”
Vishnujana Swami simply laughs. “If they haven’t been offered to

Krishna, they haven’t been offered.”
Goswami can only shrug his shoulders, realizing the avadhūta nature of
his friend. “All right. Okay.” Tamal Krishna is always the person who
goes by the book, and Vishnujana is the person who is always
spontaneous. It’s the time-honored conundrum: the letter of the law
versus the spirit of the law.
Vishnujana explains that he is doing the spirit souls of the flowers a

great service by offering them to the Supreme Personality of Godhead,
Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara, thus perfecting the lives of those flowers.
However, it should be noted here that no one can imitate Vishnujana
872
Swami’s understanding.
In Houston, Siddhavidya is still living at the small temple. When

Vishnujana sees him he pays his flat out obeisances first before
Siddhavidya has a chance to offer obeisances to Maharaja. Then
Vishnujana embraces him and says, “Ahh, my friend,” with a big smile
that melts Siddhavidya’s heart. He was among the first devotees
Vishnujana had made in Texas in 1971.
The next day, Vishnujana sets up his festival program on a University

campus lawn. It’s a place that Siddhavidya never thought would be good
for sankirtan.
Siddhavidya: We went to a park and he chanted with mṛdaṅga. I

remember closing my eyes and really becoming transfixed on the Holy
Name. His kirtan made you feel like you were in another world. When I
opened my eyes there was a huge crowd of people around.
Whenever he chanted he created a mesmerizing type of mood. He was

the most charismatic, dynamic, personality. It was real mystical to enter
that bus; it was like entering into the spiritual world. He served me his
nectar drink on that trip. He would ring a bell and come running in,
“Nectar, nectar.” I drank a lot of it. I always had a desire to go with him,
but Providence didn’t arrange it.

It’s unusually cold when the Radha-Damodara bus arrives at the New
Orleans temple on Esplanade Avenue. The temple president,
Nityananda, warns Vishnujana Maharaja not to park the bus in front of
the building because some local pranksters have been driving by and
harassing the devotees with obscenities. But Maharaja parks in front to
unload the festival gear from the bus bays. He sets up the instruments on
a beautiful rug in the temple room for the Sunday program. The other
bus and the sankirtan vans park around the corner.
873
Many people are regulars at the Sunday Love Feast but most never
participate in the kirtan. Basically, they are there for the free prasādam.
But hearing Vishnujana’s kirtan this Sunday, they suddenly begin
participating as though it was their second nature. Maharaja has them
playing tambourines and kartāls, and singing like they were regular
chanters.
The New Orleans devotees are completely taken aback. “Wait a minute,
these people never chant. They never play instruments.”
Chaturbahu: After singing Kabe Habe Bolo by Bhaktivinoda Thakur,

Vishnujana Swami recited the translation to the song simultaneously
with Tamal Krishna Maharaja. At the exact same point they both
stopped and their voices choked up. For a few seconds they couldn’t
read. I don’t know if one spurred the other on, but the emotion
overcame both of them simultaneously. Then they regained their
composure and completed the translation. Everyone was remarking that
it was extraordinary.
After class, while everyone remains in the temple enjoying the feast and
preaching to the guests, Vishnujana Swami, Ramacharya Prabhu, and
Gauridas Pandit return to the bus to perform the sayana-ārati for Radha-
Damodara, suddenly Vishnujana comes running back to the temple
raising a stir that some guys have attacked the bus. He wants his men to
come and protect Radha-Damodara.
The call to arms is enthusiastically taken up by the brahmacārīs. Several

men jump up right away, others follow like sheep. Seeing that Maharaja
has the people he needs, the rest continue honoring prasādam.
Basically a group of rowdy drunken high school kids are out for a laugh.
They have been driving around the block and when they come up to the
bus they either shout obscenities and honk their horn, or throw things.
The last time they came around they threw eggs at the bus. That’s what
prompted Vishnujana to call for reinforcements.
874
Gauridas Pandit: During the evening ārati I heard a thud on the side of
the bus. Sticking my head out the window to take a look, I saw the car
driving away. They had plastered the side of the bus with eggs. Yuk!
As the devotees gather on the front lawn of the temple, Maharaja is

talking about organizing some defense. Anything thrown at Radha-
Damodara’s bus is an aparādha in Vishnujana’s mind and he will
retaliate. It doesn’t matter the level of the offense. While the devotees
are discussing what to do, the car comes around again and pelts the bus
with more eggs – SPLAAAT. This time someone also throws a stone
and cracks a window of the bus.
Yogesh Chandra runs out into the street roaring like a lion and sees the
car go around the corner. Yogesh returns out of breath and says,
“They’re going to be back, Maharaja. I know it. They’ll be back, so let’s
set them up.”
Everyone agrees that they need to take care of the attackers. Maharaja
leads the devotees down the street to set up an ambush. Esplanade is a
broad avenue with double lanes of traffic on either side of a spacious
grassy island in the middle, like a divided highway. Vishnujana lines up
behind some bushes 10 meters from the back of the bus which is parked
in front of the temple.
Maharaja tells everyone to get the biggest rocks, or anything else they
can find, and take their positions along the street. Some 15 meters down
the road Vrikasanga is behind a tree on the grassy island. Several other
devotees are crouching and waiting behind some parked cars. Yogesh
Chandra stands 10 meters further down on the same side as the bus.
Goswami is a bit uptight about the mood. He doesn’t really like what he
sees, but he can’t stop Vishnujana and Yogesh Chandra who are men
obsessed with protecting Radha-Damodara. There are devotees hiding
behind trees, and parked cars before and after the bus, all lying in wait.
Several brahmacārīs watch from various positions of the temple, curious
to see what will happen.
875
It’s night, so Vishnujana tells Gauridas Pandit to go up the block and
yell if he sees the same car come back. Sure enough, a few minutes
later, the car comes by yet again with five persons in it. The pranksters
are back, hollering through an open window. They are unaware that
devotees are hiding at different choice locations on the street.
As the car passes him, Gauridas shouts back to Maharaja, “That’s it.”
When the car approaches the bus, the driver slows almost to a crawl.
Suddenly, Vishnujana comes running out as if he was leading a Cavalry
charge. He has a big wooden rod with metal on the end, that he calls his
tire poker. Truckers use this to check the pressure on their tires.
Before the villains can do any mischief, Maharaja swings the tire poker
and throws it as the car passes him. It hits the rear window, which
smashes into a jigsaw puzzle and bounces back onto the street. The
effect this has on the other devotees is that the ambush is authorized.
This is for real.
The driver veers the car to the far left, but Vrikasanga is waiting on the
island 15 meters down the road. He now has a good advance warning.
He’s brandishing a tire iron that the brahmacārīs refer to as the
‘breaking bar’. It is tubular steel about a meter in length with a right
angle bend in it at the mid-point. It’s used for removing the lug nuts
from the wheels of the bus. As the vehicle goes by Vrikasanga, he whips
the thing at the car and it smashes right through the left rear passenger
window – SMAAASH!
Instantly, the other devotees leap out from their hiding places and pound
the car with rocks. Chaos ensues inside the car. Devotees converge on
the vehicle as the shocked vandals roll up the windows for protection.
The car starts swerving erratically as the driver tries to intimidate the
oncoming devotees and avoid the flying rocks at the same time. But 50
meters down the street is Sanjaya.
Sanjaya: I remember feeling all the good spots were taken, so I went
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further down the road. As it worked out I was the very last one. I saw
the headlights of a car driving down the road erratically. I could see by
the actions of Vishnujana and the devotees that this was the car.
Sanjaya grabs the nearest thing he can find, a huge rock about the size
of a football. He heaves it up to his shoulders, and it’s very heavy. The
car is out of control, swerving from side to side. The driver and
passengers are in a state of shock as to what has hit them. They’re not
sure what to do, except to get away from there as quickly as possible.
The vehicle has slowed down just enough, to allow Sanjaya to jump out
on the road and stand in the path of the car.
Sanjaya: I lifted this huge rock over my head. The car kept coming
towards me and I could see these guys, who were only about two meters
away. There was a brief moment, and it will be with me forever, when
my eyes caught the eyes of the driver. He saw the size of the rock and
he went into shock. His mouth dropped wide open.
Sri Rama: I could see Sanjaya’s face as the car wheeled into his path.
There was no more than two meters between him and the driver. He was
standing there with the rock as the car came at him. “Do I, don’t I. Do I,
don’t I...”
The driver slams on the brakes seeing a devotee on the road in front of
him ready to throw a huge rock. The car screeches to a complete stop.
The driver doesn’t want any more damage to his vehicle, nor does he
want to kill someone. He’s bewildered about what to do next because
Sanjaya has blocked his path.
So as not to hurt anyone, Sanjaya aims the rock right in the middle of
the glass between the driver and the front passenger and lets it go. The
windshield absolutely explodes into tiny little pieces with an earsplitting
noise – KABOOOOM! The air is filled with shards of glass everywhere.
All the devotees can see what has just happened and it sounds like a
bomb going off. Mahamantra hears a loud scream as the rock smashes
the windshield.
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It takes a couple of seconds for the driver to recover from the shock.
Then he floors the accelerator and almost runs over Sanjaya who jumps
back to the side. The car drives up on the grassy island and back on to
the road, zig-zagging right and left, right and left, down Esplanade for
quite a distance until the driver finally attains stability and gains control.
The devotees watch as the vehicle disappears into the night.
Sanjaya: I was very shaken because it was a violent act and I was upset
because I was new. I walked back to the bus. Devotees were jumping up
and down like it was a great event. “Haribol! Jaya!” The first thing I
said was, “I’m very sorry.” I was literally shaking.
Vishnujana gives Sanjaya a big hug and reassures him, “There is no

greater service in the world than to protect the honor of Sri-Sri Radha-
Damodara.” Essentially he relieves Sanjaya by saying he has done well.
Tamal Krishna adds, “Just see. The newest devotee does the most
damage.” Vishnujana gives the final word. “You have all protected the
chariot of Radha-Damodara. You are all wonderful. Radha-Damodara
will really bless you.”
Some devotees begin to wonder if they are going to see the police now.
Who knows what those kids will tell their parents happened to daddy’s
car? That car will arrive home with no windshield, a shattered rear
window, a smashed passenger window, and numerous dents on both
sides.
Everyone agrees that the temple has to be protected all night with a
shotgun, out of concern that the hooligans will come back. Vrikasanga
volunteers to stand guard duty so the others can take rest. But that’s the
last they hear of these people.
Sanjaya: The kids weren’t really that horrible. That’s why they got their
comeuppance the way they did, because they could have been seriously
hurt.
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Gauridas Pandit: The pranksters were given some of their own
medicine. Having a bit of the kṣatriya spirit we enjoyed confronting
māyā once in awhile, but most days were spent blissfully chanting the
Holy Names.
Hasyagrami: It was a glorious victory that was oft repeated in the annals
of Radha-Damodara.
The next morning, the bus is ticketed for a parking violation in an

unauthorized spot. Vishnujana comes out to talk to the policeman who
tells him he has to move the bus, right now. By the way he looks at
Maharaja, he must be thinking that he’s dealing with some weirdo
wearing orange bed sheets.
Rajavidya: It was amazing to see this demigod-looking man talking to

the cop. That was an incredible display of different egos. Maharaja was
on such a spiritual platform. All his talks were just into the spiritual
world. Vishnujana Swami handled it real well but in the end we had to
move the bus. I was 21, and I was impressed, thinking, My gosh this
cop doesn’t know he’s talking to a pure devotee.
After the morning program, Tamal Krishna gathers the men and gives a
long speech essentially informing everyone, “Okay, we’re kicking you
out of the nest now. You have to earn your keep.” Tamal feels they need
to distribute a lot of books to counteract the violence of the night before.
He assigns a group of men to a traveling van party with Yogesh
Chandra. They will drive to nearby Baton Rouge for book distribution at
the University there.
In the ten days since the Radha-Damodara party left San Diego, Yogesh
Chandra has conceived a plan to sell books without going into debt with
the BBT. It’s his brainchild to sell a pack of incense for $1.00 and then
give away a BTG magazine as a gesture of good will. The magazine and
the incense pack cost .25 cents each, leaving a profit of .50 cents to send
to the Mayapur Food Relief program.
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Yogesh Chandra and Tamal Krishna are convinced that this method will
produce more results than selling a book directly.
The men all wear standard clothing; clean shirt and pants, and a golf hat.
They carry BTGs and incense in a shopping bag so they look like a
shopper. The hat also covers the shaven head and śikhā. As they become
more confident, they are able to sell more incense packs and give away
a book. When a person buys three packs of incense, the devotees can
give him a Bhagavatam.
Yogesh Chandra continues training the men to sell the BTGs and
incense. Although the Radha-Damodara party has distributed books
from the beginning, with Suhotra and Aja leading the charge, Yogesh is
instrumental in fine-tuning the process for the new recruits. Before long,
the party will get into heavy-duty BTG distribution.
Tamal Krishna and Yogesh Chandra decide to have a devotional

uniform to make the Radha-Damodara men stand out as unique and
different from other devotees. Instead of wearing a kurtā, the men will
simply wear a vest with their dhoti, like Vishnujana does. This will
show off the tilak markings on their arms and make them appear more
Vaishnava-like.
Some of the men take to book distribution sankirtan like ducks take to
water. Others have no affinity for it and sales are slow. This is
especially true for Sri Rama. He longs to return to harināma sankirtan
with Vishnujana Swami. He has difficulty approaching people on the
street, and he has problems with his feet.
“Prabhupada told me,” Vishnujana explains to Sri Rama, “that when

people have pain in their feet it’s due to a reaction from illicit sex in
their previous life.”
The point comes up after Maharaja borrows Sri Rama’s sandals.

“Prabhupada said when you use someone else’s shoes you take their
karma. So it’s not a good idea for me to use your sandals because you
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have so much trouble walking.”
That evening Tamal Krishna summons Sri Rama to his quarters in the
temple to inform him that since he’s doing poorly with BTGs, he will
have other duties.
The next day Sri Rama takes up his new duties, which includes washing
the pots, cleaning the interior of the bus, doing the shopping, and
repairing one side of the bus. Basically these are troublesome duties, but
Sri Rama experiences a lot of transcendental bliss doing this work. After
two days, however, Tamal Krishna approaches him to say he’s doing so
nicely in his new service that he will be rewarded by going back out on
BTG distribution again. Sri Rama’s heart sinks.
Srikhar has been avoiding book distribution because he doesn’t want to

leave the kirtan festival program with Vishnujana Swami. That’s the
reason he joined the party.
Tamal Krishna is aware of his attachment to kirtan so he approaches

him gingerly. “We’re going to start distributing books. What do you
think?”
As Goswami expected, Srikhar says, “No.” “Why?”
“Because I know you. If I do it one day, you’ll have me doing it from

now on.”
“Well, if you don’t want to, we’re not going to do more than two hours
a day. You can quote me on that.”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t worry. We’re still going to keep the kirtan program.” “All right.”
Bombay, India, December 1974
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While the Radha-Damodara party is stationed at the Esplanade temple,
Prabhupada is supervising his Hare Krishna Land project in Bombay.
From India he oversees his vast Krishna conscious empire. In response
to Tamal Krishna’s last report, Prabhupada sends a reply to the
Brooklyn temple. Tamal is in constant contact with Rupanuga regarding
the situation there, and the letter is forwarded to him in New Orleans.
Regarding the book distribution, apart from our books, the Communist
Party has become popular simply by distributing their literatures. I know
in Calcutta the Communist agents were inviting friends and reading
their literature. The Russians never came to India, but by distributing
literature in every language they get a pretty good number of followers.
So if it is possible for ordinary third class mundane literature, why
should our transcendental literature not create devotees all over the
world? I see practically how our books and magazines are becoming
popular in your country. So there is good potency for pushing on these
literatures very vigorously.
So organize this propaganda work very carefully and our movement will
be very much successful by introducing literature from village to
village. Lord Chaitanya wants this, so carry out His order.
Everyone says the Investigation Committee report is dispatched, but it is

not in my hand. [The report is received in hand today]
It is very good that you have purchased a third bus and also that you are
rotating the men. This is a good idea. Yes, train up the brahmanas very
carefully. Many Indians and foreigners criticize us how we can create
brahmanas. They are under the impression that brahmanas are born like
horses and asses are born. According to Bhagavad-gita, brahmanas are
according to guna and karma. So the training of brahmanas should be so
nice that people will be forced to accept them as brahmanas by guna,
quality, and karma, action.
So go on with your preaching solidly. Krishna will be pleased and

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu will be kind. He is already kind. You simply
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have to go village to village, and your life will be perfect. I hope this
meets you in good health.
In this letter Prabhupada gives the example how communism spread

through the distribution of books that were mainly “third class mundane
literature.” The Russians have expertly distributed their literature and
their propaganda. In India they have books in 9 different languages
which has proved to be effective in converting people to their way of
thinking. Similarly, Lord Chaitanya’s teachings can be spread to create
devotees worldwide due to the superlative transcendental nature of this
literature.
ISKCON must have a grand program to spread Krishna consciousness

all over the world through book distribution. Therefore, hundreds of
thousands of books should be printed and distributed. This will have a
great effect on the populations of Europe and America. Prabhupada
wants his books distributed vigorously because “Lord Chaitanya wants
this, so carry out His order.”
The mention of the Investigation Committee report refers to a problem

with the New York leadership. Goswami is part of the committee with
Kirtanananda Swami and Rupanuga that is investigating various
allegations. Prabhupada has been waiting for results of the due process
before taking action on the matter.
TKG: I had received two letters from Prabhupada containing the same
instruction. If we distributed books village to village, our movement
would be very successful. And by that success our individual success in
spiritual life would be automatically guaranteed. The order was clear;
now I had to carry it out.
Of course, expanding book distribution does not mean to neglect the

other services Prabhupada has given. The festival programs that
Vishnujana Swami and Jayananda Prabhu have dedicated their lives to
promoting gives the public the best impression of the Hare Krishna
movement. At these festivals, people come in contact with the totality of
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Krishna consciousness – kirtan, prasādam, Deity worship, and the books
– all at one venue, all at one time.
When Vishnujana Maharaja has a look at the letter he is particularly

pleased with Prabhupada’s comment “You simply have to go village to
village, and your life will be perfect.” He has been doing this for years
now and he feels that Prabhupada is indirectly offering praise and
blessing his service.
While Yogesh Chandra trains the men to distribute transcendental

literature, Vishnujana Swami and Tamal Krishna Goswami continue
Radha-Damodara’s festivals in full swing, according to Their desire.
The weather remains unusually cold for New Orleans so Vishnujana

suggests they continue on to Florida, the party’s ultimate destination.
Many young people congregate in Miami over the winter, and it has
always been a productive place to present Krishna consciousness. He
enlightens Tamal Krishna about the best prasādam distribution program
in America at the Gainesville temple, on the way to Miami.
Gainesville, Florida, December 1974

The temple is an excellent dwelling on Depot Avenue. In earlier times it
served as a sorority house. It comprises two buildings; one for the
temple, prasādam hall, and reception area, and the other for the
brahmacārī and brahmacārīni ashrams. A circular driveway on the
property includes a large oak tree.
Amarendra is the temple president, and along with his wife, Gayatri,
they distribute prasādam daily on the Plaza of the Americas at the
University of Florida. This program continues to the present day!
Amarendra was involved with the In God we Trust political party and
had run for office in Gainesville, but his reputation as a prasādam
connoisseur is more widely established.
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Amarendra has skillfully cultivated a reputation for having the best
prasādam. It is unchallenged in the whole country. The temple is famous
for their feasts and for stuffing everybody up to the neck. The
Gainesville prasādam is so richly laden with butter, cream, and
vegetables deep fried in ghee, that devotees refer to the place as
Gheesville. Gayatri mātājī is an incredible cook. Her specialties are
fantastic Gauranga Potatoes, and cauliflower pakorās.
Every traveling sankirtan party makes sure to spend at least a few days
here to sample the renowned prasāda before continuing to their next
destination.
The Radha-Damodara convoy of buses and vans take an exit off the
Florida Turnpike to refill the tanks. At the same time Goswami calls
Amarendra to introduce himself. He warns him that the Radha-
Damodara party is about to descend on his temple. “We’re on the way.
There’s going to be two buses and two vans. Dhristadyumna and Aja are
going to meet us there, so that will be another two vans. You can expect
almost 50 men.”
Hearing this news, Amarendra is a bit reticent to have to start cooking in

the kitchen to satisfy so many brahmacārīs. But a sannyāsī has asked
that he do it and so he agrees. When the convoy arrives in Gainesville
there’s a welcoming kirtan. Dhristadyumna and Aja have already
arrived with their party and they join in the kirtan. Every Radha-
Damodara man lives off the fame of Vishnujana Swami and Tamal
Krishna Goswami.
By being connected with them, even the newest recruits are treated like
celebrities. Among the Gainesville devotees are Sankarshan, who
traveled with Vishnujana Swami for over a year, and Dhanesvara, who
hosted the Radha-Damodara men at his farm last year. Both are now
living in the temple.
Titiksa dd: Everybody was getting dressed for ārati when all the mothers
ran to the windows to see Vishnujana Swami arrive. In the kirtan, he
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and Tamal Krishna Goswami were running from one end of the temple
room to the other with the mṛdaṅgas swinging from side to side, and
their dhotis flying. We just couldn’t believe the kirtan that was going on.
It was a small temple room so it was very intimate.
Gauranga: I remember running up and down the temple room floor with
Vishnujana just chanting Hare Krishna. He would mesmerize us by his
chanting. Life couldn’t be better; it was eternal and would never end.
We were living happily ever after with the most blissful personality, just
like the mundane concept of a man and woman falling in love and living
happily ever after. It was like that with Vishnujana Maharaja.
After ārati and kirtan, the sannyāsīs are brought to a guest room where
Amarendra has arranged wonderful plates of mahā-prasādam. As Tamal
Krishna and Vishnujana sample the preparations, Amarendra comes for
a visit. His eyes twinkle as he takes the sannyāsīs to task.
“I’m surprised to see your brahmacārīs are such puny eaters. Many
traveling parties come here with really good appetites. Or perhaps your
men are fasting?”
Tamal Krishna doesn’t let on that they have already honored Radha-
Damodara’s rāja bhoga offering on the bus. Instead, he takes up the
challenge.
“Actually, our brahmacārīs have been complaining of hunger pangs ever

since arriving here. If the prasādam shortage is due to lack of funds, I’d
be glad to help you out. After all, Prabhupada has advised that a guest
not ask for seconds if the host is poor. Actually, we’re just trying to be
as considerate as possible, not wishing to embarrass anyone.”
Amarendra picks up the gauntlet. “No one has ever disputed our
cooking abilities.” “Well, your women may be able to satisfy their
children’s small bellies, but when it comes to cooking for men, we may
have to go hungry,” Tamal concludes humorously. “Although tomorrow
is not a special holiday, I’ll have our cooks prepare a small feast,”
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Amarendra counters. “It won’t be a special endeavor for them, because
they practically do it every day anyway. I’ll tell them how your men say
they’re starving. But I say it’s all talk. Let’s see if they can really respect
māhā-prasādam as you say. When they’re lying on their backs begging
us to stop serving the prasāda, then you’ll have to admit that they’re not
men at all but simply a bunch of puny boys.”
“Okay, Amarendra. We expect a big, super-duper feast for all these

Vaishnavas.”
In this way, Tamal Krishna and Amarendra engage in humorous banter

similar to the joking of Advaita Acharya and Nityananda Prabhu five
hundred years ago. Vishnujana laughs at the humorous exchange and at
Amarendra’s bold challenge.
Sankarshan: Amarendra gave them a room and I remember Tamal

Krishna saying, “Vishnujana Maharaja can eat me under the table. I’m
just a small fry.” That was my first meeting with Tamal Krishna
Maharaja, with him glorifying Vishnujana Swami. Vishnujana made me
a devotee so he was my hero. I was attracted to Tamal Krishna because I
could see he had a nice relationship with Vishnujana.
Tamal Krishna’s plate of mahā is too much for him and he can’t finish
it. He decides to give bhakta Ryan some special mercy. Ryan is a big
fellow with a large appetite, but he’s a new devotee and doesn’t
recognize many dishes, especially the sweets. Innocently, he asks
Amarendra, “What are these?”
“For you, it’s māyā,” Amarendra concludes. Turning to Tamal Krishna

he says, “This is your man? This puny guy?” Ryan is big but so is
Amarendra.
Vishnujana orders Goswami, “Tell the men to fast until noon and be
prepared to defend Radha-Damodara’s reputation. No breakfast prasāda
tomorrow.”
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Although Amarendra is focused on prasādam distribution, he is still
enlivened by the Sankirtan Newsletter. He shows the sannyāsīs issue
#33. Los Angeles is still at the top with 4,983 points, but New York is
closing the gap with 4,663 points. They have set a new record for small
books with 10,370 distributed over the weekend. San Francisco,
Toronto, and Detroit round out the top five. New Vrindavan moves up
to sixth place with a new high score of 1253 points.
San Francisco reports that Keshava Bharati distributed 225 KRSNA

book trilogies on Friday night at the George Harrison concert, while
Bhakta Lou passed out 191 trilogies. “At the Sunday feast we had many
guests who came because of the concert, and six of these guests are now
at the temple becoming full-fledged devotees.”
When Tamal Krishna returns to the bus, he reports that Amarendra has
issued a standing challenge, “You bring your Radha-Damodara men and
we’ll cook more prasādam than you can eat.” This is just the kind of
challenge that the brahmacārīs really warm up to. Everyone is looking
forward to tomorrow.
Suresvara: Gainesville was famous for its prasādam. Of course many

temples claim that, but this temple was founded on prasādam
distribution that is still going on to this day. The temple grew on
Gauranga Potatoes and Carrot Cake. To this day mother Gayatri still
makes them the best. Amarendra challenged all those macho
brahmacārīs. Their program was to come to the temples and say you had
to be a real man and go out and distribute books.
Suresvara has recently arrived from New Vrindavan hoping to meet the
Radha- Damodara party and perhaps join. Besides doing pūjārī sevā,
Suresvara likes to write articles for BTG. As he gets ready to take rest
for the evening, Ramacharya comes to the brahmacārī ashram looking
for him. Ramacharya makes the gaudy backdrops for Radha-Damodara
and is very devoted to Them.
“Suresvara Prabhu, I’m supposed to offer ārati to Radha-Damodara but I
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can’t because I have another service I have to do for Them. Can you
offer the ārati?” Suresvara follows Ramacharya to the bus parked on the
lawn in front of the temple.
The bus is completely dark when they enter, except for the candles on
the altar where Radha-Damodara reign. Ramacharya shows him the
ācaman cup and the tray for him to offer the ārati.
Suresvara: I had never been able to appreciate Krishna in his brass Deity
form though I could accept His presence in marble. That experience of
offering ārati to Radha-Damodara cured me of that misconception. So
I’ve always thanked Ramacharya in my mind for letting me offer that
ārati.
Ramacharya was great. He would do all the sewing for Radha-

Damodara. He was really personal and he loved Vishnujana Swami and
the whole idea of the party. This was the second time I saw Radha-
Damodara, but I didn’t join. I liked Amarendra and the Gainesville
temple.
The following afternoon the Radha-Damodara men gather for lunch in

the prasādam hall located on the second floor above the temple. It’s an
expansive hall with a vinyl floor that is spotless. The men sit in two
parallel lines. Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna head a line on one side,
while the big eaters like Jambavan, Sri Rama, Gauranga, and Ryan head
the line on the other side. In front of each person are three paper plates
and six Styrofoam cups.
The men are in a cheerful mood, enjoying the day off to savor a
tremendous feast after fasting all morning. As they joke with each other
in friendly camaraderie, Tamal Krishna is reminded of Robin Hood and
his Merry Men enjoying a repast. After what seems to be a long period
of time, the brahmacārīs begin to thump the wooden floor: “Prasādam!
Prasādam! We want prasādam!
Turning to Vishnujana, Tamal Krishna jokes, “Amarendra has met his
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match. He probably left town, knowing that he would be defeated.”
“Don’t underestimate Amarendra,” Vishnujana warns. “He won’t be

easily beaten.”
At that moment, Amarendra enters the room holding a huge platter of

prasādam, followed by ten more devotees each carrying enormous trays.
As the Radha-Damodara men utter cheers of appreciation, the
Gainesville servers walk between the lines, displaying the various
preparations.
Several large trays are stacked with puris and chapātīs resembling many
Leaning Towers of Pisa. Another two trays are overflowing with saffron
rice and pulao rice. Other trays are crammed with various vegetable
dishes like Eggplant Balarama, Gauranga Potatoes, Cauliflower
Stroganoff with peas and curd, Asparagus a la mode in a cream sauce,
and kofta balls floating in tomato sauce.
The Radha-Damodara men roar in appreciation seeing all the

preparations. Tamal Krishna tries to shout above the uproar, “Wait a
minute! Wait a minute! Where’s Yogesh Chandra?”
“He’s already started downstairs,” Amarendra laughs.
Tamal runs over to the stairway and looks down. Yogesh is leaning
against the banister with a gallon bucket of sweet rice tipped to his
mouth. He looks up and quips, “Don’t worry about me, Maharaja, I’m
just getting warmed up.”
Amarendra and his men are already serving as Tamal Krishna returns
and sits down. The men eat heartily and empty the trays of prasādam.
They have no trouble finishing round one as Yogesh Chandra returns to
join them. But fresh trays quickly take their place crowded with samosās
and kachaurīs, accompanied by a plastic bucket of tomato chutney. New
trays are filled with different varieties of pakorās: cauliflower, broccoli,
potato, and green pepper, complemented by various fruit chutneys:
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plum, pineapple, strawberry, raisin, banana, and apple.
As the Radha-Damodara men begin to slow down, the servers keep

coming with more preparations. There are trays filled with papaḍams
and baked potatoes. Up the stairs come two men holding a massive
stainless steel pot, filled with dhāl. More men follow carrying plastic
barrels of sweet rice and lemonade.
To encourage the men, Vishnujana Swami chants, “Hari, Hari,” and

everyone replies “Haribol,” or “Prasādam ki jaya!” The devotees are in
ecstasy. They have never seen such a fantastic feast.
Then, Amarendra personally ushers in the next entree – pizza. His

assistants follow with more pizzas as the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs
roar their appreciation. They have no sooner started in on the pizzas
when the servers come in with veggie burgers in buns with lettuce and
tomato.
Everyone agrees that the cooks have prepared these wonderful offerings
to Krishna with great care and devotion. The warm and friendly
atmosphere that Amarendra and his devotees have created in their
temple reminds Vishnujana of Krishna taking His lunch with His
cowherd friends. The Gainesville devotees are also taking the feast and
they honor prasādam to their full satisfaction. They know how to eat
Gayatri’s cooking, and in what sequence. The servers are also in bliss
serving prasādam to the Vaishnavas. It’s a transcendental exchange
where both the server and the served are similarly satisfied.
Amarendra stands with his hands on his hips, monitoring the entire
scene. He has served out a huge spread with practically unlimited
preparations. Some Radha- Damodara brahmacārīs have keeled over
and are lying on their backs. Others are resting on their side with bent
arms supporting their head. Seeing this, Amarendra decides to poke
more fun at Tamal Krishna.
“Your men look like they’re getting tired. They’re just a bunch of puny
891
boys, as I said to you yesterday. And we haven’t even begun to bring in
the dessert.”
“All right! Everybody sit up!” Tamal shouts trying to rouse up his men
to accept the challenge. “What’s wrong with you? Amarendra won’t
start bringing in the desserts until everybody is ready to eat more.”
Hearing the reference to sweets, the men acquire renewed fervor and
roar with delight to reveal their readiness. In response, Amarendra calls
for the sweets: gulābjāmuns, rasagullās, kṣīra, sandeśa, burfi, laddus,
Simply Wonderfuls, malpuras, blueberry halavā, orange peel halavā,
and strawberry halavā. Seeing the servers bring in these delights, the
brahmacārīs stare in amazement. Following these delicacies are the
cakes, banana cream pies, carob cream pies, plus fruit-filled pies like
apple, blueberry, and other seasonal fruit.
The entire Radha-Damodara party is astonished to see the expertise of

the Gainesville cooks. Similarly, the Gainesville devotees are pleased to
see the transcendental appetites of the Radha-Damodara men.
Sri Rama: Amarendra and his wife Gayatri were famous for cooking
and arranging prasādam. Every afternoon they served chocolate eclairs
to the Deities. At that time there was a raging debate about chocolate.
But they served chocolate eclairs anyway, it didn’t matter.
Jnapaka: Gainesville had the biggest feast I’ve ever been to in my life.
There were so many cakes and floating cream pies. We also had very
long kirtans, hours and hours and hours. In those days we did a lot of
chanting.
TKG: Amarendra was particularly proud of the 4:00 o’clock afternoon

offering, which he referred to as the “sannyāsī-killer” on account of the
large variety of especially sweet pastries. Sannyāsīs are advised to
refrain from over-indulgence in sweets to avoid sexual agitation.
Of the six items by which devotees exchange their loving feelings, two
892
are distributing and receiving prasādam. The others are offering gifts in
charity, accepting charitable gifts, revealing one’s mind in confidence,
and inquiring confidentially. These exchanges of spiritual love are
described in Srila Rupa Goswami’s Upadesamrita. Amarendra and his
assistants relish the opportunity to serve Vaishnavas by offering them
Kṛishna in His transcendental manifestation of prasādam. They assist
devotees to advance in spiritual life by directly experiencing the taste of
Krishna consciousness. The loving dealings of the servers inspire the
receivers to respect prasādam more enthusiastically. The cooks have
prepared unlimited prasādam and the Radha- Damodara men have done
their best to receive it.
Just when Tamal Krishna believes that his men have won the challenge,
Amarendra calls for the coup de grace: two hundred cream-filled, carob-
glazed eclairs still warm from the oven. It’s more than some men can
take. Already many lie on the floor holding their bellies, and stuffed to
their necks. Goswami spurs his men on to continue, ordering them to
finish every single eclair.
Amarendra is definitely impressed. Rarely has he seen such a spectacle

of transcendental feasting. The servers are exhausted and the cooks, who
have come up from the kitchen, are astonished. Vishnujana and Tamal
Krishna are no longer able to even stand up, as they lean against the
wall totally exhausted.
TKG: Vishnujana and I sat back, filled with prasādam and amazed at the
one-hour prasādam marathon. All of the men were completely
intoxicated by taking so much prasādam. “You’re the winner,”
Amarendra admitted in happy defeat. “No, you’re the winner,” I said
with similar appreciation.
“We’re all the winners!” said Vishnujana judiciously and triumphantly,

holding up both of our hands in victory while everyone cheered in full
approval.
Jambavan: The transcendental prasādam eating contest was a fabulous
893
feast. I was one of the big eaters and considered myself one of the best.
Vishnujana Swami was a big eater too. He ate a lot of prasādam.
But Amarendra is only feigning defeat to magnify his advantage and lull
Tamal Krishna into a false sense of victory. He is totally into promoting
the contest and gets great pleasure out of it. “You have eaten all of the
regular prasādam. That’s impressive. So now I have something to show
you.”
He leads the few brahmacārīs, who can still stand up and walk, to a
closed door. He opens the door and turns on the light to reveal a room
filled with prasādam. “This is the Māhā from the Deities. You have to
eat this next.”
The brahmacārīs are aghast. By now Tamal Krishna and Vishnujana

have already returned to the bus thinking that the Radha-Damodara
eaters have won the challenge.
Gauranga: After we ate to our full satisfaction and could barely walk,
Amarendra brought us to another room! There was all the mahā-prasāda
completely covering the floor. I remember different devotees up against
the wall as mahā-prasāda was being pushed into their mouths.
Mahamantra had tears in his eyes as somebody was working his jaws
trying to get the prasādam down his throat.
Radha-Damodara devotees were trying to run away from the servers and
hide in closets. I ran into a closet, too, because I just couldn’t eat any
more prasādam. But they just kept bringing more and more. It was the
most incredible feast. I’ve never experienced anything like it. That was
a challenge and we lost, but we lost to our full satisfaction.
Sanjaya: Somebody locked Mahamantra in a closet and made him eat a

whole cake. He actually broke down in tears because they were making
him eat so much.
Dhanesvara: We heard pastimes of how Lord Chaitanya and His
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devotees would eat so much that they couldn’t stand. They’d fill up to
the neck. So Amarendra challenged Radha- Damodara that we can make
more wonderful prasādam than you can eat. It was an incredible feast,
and Amarendra and Gayatri won.
Sri Rama: It’s a matter of dispute as to who won. Both sides to this day
claim victory. The utter gluttony sticks out in my mind. It was a contest
with no bitter feelings. Everything was in the challenge. Everyone did
their best.
Suresvara: In his book, Tamal Krishna Maharaja gives a different

account of the prasādam eating contest than we do. According to him,
Radha-Damodara won. But we won, and I remember the exact moment
we won. Dhristadyumna and Aja were holding their bellies saying,
“This is too much. We can’t take any more.” Finally the coup de grace
when Amarendra had Mahamantra cornered in his office.
“Mahamantra, you see this gulābjāmun. If you can’t eat this, you guys
are through.”
Mahamantra just looked at Amarendra and collapsed.
At that moment a cheer went up, “Haribol, Gainesville wins.”

The Miami temple is now ensconced on Kumquat Avenue in Coconut
Grove and the presiding Deities are magnificently well-built Nitai-
Gauranga. The atmosphere is ideal with a large banyan tree towards the
back of the property. The surrounding neighborhood isn’t all that great,
but everything else is good.
As Abhirama gazes out his office window one afternoon, he sees the
Radha-Damodara bus on the street. Behind it is another bus and several
sankirtan vans.
895
The Radha-Damodara party has returned to Miami for the winter under
the leadership of two sannyāsīs. Abhirama is pleased to meet Tamal
Krishna Goswami as he takes both the swamis on a tour of the spacious
grounds. The property is full of fruit trees like loquat, mango, and
tamarind, along with bamboo and banyan trees. The location is
excellent, a country setting within Coconut Grove but still within the
hub of metropolitan Miami.
As in previous years, Abhirama invites the party to stay as long as they

like. Radha Raman and Dayal Chandra are already here having driven
the third bus directly from Philadelphia after getting it roadworthy.
The other two buses are driven inside the property and parked in the rear
by the banyan tree. Dayal Chandra and Radha Raman confirm that
Abhirama hosted them nicely last year when they renovated the original
Greyhound bus. Now they have two more to remodel.
The construction crew of Dayal Chandra, Radha Raman, Vipra, and

Dravanaksha, soon get busy refurbishing the new buses. After removing
all the seats they begin work on the kitchen and shower areas. Radha
Raman has a new design for the kitchen and with pride he shows the
sannyāsīs the improved layout that will offer more room using the same
space.
Due to the construction, most brahmacārīs sleep in the temple because

the Radha-Damodara bus is too crowded with bodies. Vishnujana,
however, prefers to sleep on the roof of the bus. Bhakta Ryan is not
comfortable in the bus, so Vishnujana offers an alternative.
“Why don’t you sleep up on the roof with me?” Maharaja opens the bus
door, and climbs up the open door to get on top of the bus. He is very
nimble and scrambles up and down as if he was Hanuman. Before dawn,
he awakens real early and scrambles down to take bath for doing the
pūjā. Ryan is not as agile as Maharaja, and in the morning he’s unable to
get down from the roof of the bus. He has to call for Maharaja to come
out from doing the pūjā to help him down.
896
As the sankirtan leader, Yogesh Chandra continues training the newer
men to distribute BTG magazines and he takes them out every morning.
Uddhava, Gauranga, Sarvopama, Dhruva Maharaja, Rajavidya, Sanjaya,
Ryan, Ratnabahu, and Govinda Datta are the first to go out on a regular
basis. Dhristadyumna and Aja go out with the experienced distributors
like Ramacharya, Hasyagrami, and Mahamantra.
While these devotees are out doing book distribution sankirtan,

Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna continue Radha-Damodara’s harināma
sankirtan program with festivals at different venues throughout the
Miami area. They are accompanied by Gauridas Pandit, Sridhar, and Sri
Galim, who are attached to Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara’s pūjāri service,
along with Srikhar and Sri Rama.
The warm weather provides abundant opportunities for kirtan festivals

at the colleges, various parks, and the occasional beach. Having no
competition from vendors, they can turn up the amplifiers for the
pleasure of hundreds of young people who come over to listen or dance
to the kirtan. It’s very effective preaching. By late afternoon, the festival
ends so the kirtan men can also go out and distribute BTGs for a few
hours.
When everyone returns to the bus for the evening program it’s
especially nice to join Vishnujana’s bhajans and honor light prasādam;
at times halavā, but always hot milk. They have become totally addicted
to Maharaja’s masalā milk.
Sanjaya: Vishnujana Swami’s service was to enchant people. Before the

hot milk he would lead a bhajan in front of Radha-Damodara on the
altar. Those bhajans were so nice and the best one was Hari Haraye
Namah – his tune. To this day when I hear the tape, that song just puts
me right back. I became a devotee forever because of those few first
days. It was just so intense. There was no question in my mind of going
back to the karmi world. All of a sudden I had a new identity – I was a
devotee.
897
Out in the middle of the temple grounds is a huge walk-in cooler. The
Miami devotees have an arrangement with the Dannon yogurt company
whereby the company donates their outdated yogurt for the temple’s
prasādam distribution program. Sri Rama sees some devotees loading
flats of yogurt into the cooler and notices that the cooler is filled to the
brim with yogurt. He speaks confidentially to Vipra about the unlimited
Dannon yogurt, although the cooler is locked. Vipra sees no problem
with that.
Late that night, Vipra shows Sri Rama how to pry off the hinges to
remove the door from the cooler. Confronted with their prize, they each
eat a flat of yogurt which means 12 little cups of yogurt. But this does
not satisfy their hunger, so they go for another flat of yogurt each, this
time a different flavor. After eating 24 cups of yogurt, they position the
door back on the cooler, replace the hinges, and go take rest. They
continue to raid the cooler at night and never get caught. It’s the
secretiveness of stealing prasādam that is their rasa.
Sri Rama: Tamal Krishna liked to teach people lessons or give them life
experience. One Sunday I was having my head shaved when he came
out of the bus and said, “I want you to go and find Vipra.” I had to run
around the temple completely shaved on one side, and half hair on the
other side. This was the kind of thing Tamal Krishna did that was
supposed to build character or develop humility. Actually it didn’t
bother me. All the things that Tamal Krishna did, actually worked on me
in the sense of advancing my Krishna consciousness.
As is the custom in Miami, the Sunday feast is at Peacock Park. Balmy

breezes from the Caribbean Seas blow across the tranquil bay and rustle
through broad spreading banyan trees and large shady Oaks that sprawl
across green sloping meadows. Peacock Park is an attractive and
colorful element in the Grove that bears no resemblance to the sandy
beaches flourishing up and down the coast.
The festival begins with devotees unloading vans filled with boxes of
898
books, white plastic buckets of prasādam, assorted musical instruments,
and sound equipment. This Sunday, the Supreme Personality of
Godhead and His eternal consort, namely Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara, are
the headliners.
The Shivananda Yoga people are also part of the program at the park.
When the devotees start to do kirtan led by Vishnujana Swami, all kinds
of people are attracted to come over and join in.
Devadahiti dd: Vishnujana Swami was singing to his Deities, and

people were flocking. Before long hundreds of people were at the kirtan
in Peacock Park attracted like bumblebees to a flower. He had so much
ecstatic potency. Oh my God - unbelievable. He was very relaxed and
loving. It was a different mood than the other sannyāsīs, except for
Prabhupada. He seemed to be madly in love with Prabhupada and it was
such a great example to see that. He had so much love for the Deities
that I could hear it pouring out of him when he sang.
Gokula: Vishnujana Swami was able to charm anyone into a favorable

attitude, but in Peacock Park someone went nuts and finally took a
charge at the Deities. Maharaja was bent over serving Lord Damodara’s
lotus feet and he just stood up, moved the back of his hand around and
nailed the guy right in the face, stopping him in mid-charge, all in one
smooth motion. Then he went right back to his service.
Sri Rama: I had one extremely mystical experience at Peacock Park,

which was consistent with my relationship with Radha-Damodara. I
always had a strong feeling that They were taking care of me and
directing things. Krishna let me know that He wasn’t just a brass statue,
that He was somebody who was really interested in my life and was
willing to take some trouble to prove it.
Abhirama: We were always joyful when Radha-Damodara pulled in.

We were happy they were there, and sad when they left. That’s
including during Tamal Krishna Goswami’s time.
899
He brought in a radically new element of intense organization and
discipline. He brought the German element into the Radha-Damodara
party.
However, all is not rosy in America. Two issues come to light that
further frustrate Prabhupada’s mission to his Guru Maharaja. Both
affairs begin the same way: by not remaining true to one of the
regulative principles, namely ‘no illicit sex’. These issues illustrate
Prabhupada’s method of resolving problems caused by fall-downs. Both
individuals involved did wonderful service, and to chronicle their
history is not to berate them. Rather, their stories emphasize how
dangerous it is to allow sense gratification to enter the heart, and how
merciful Prabhupada is in dealing with the fall-downs of his young
followers.
Ironically, Tamal Krishna becomes embroiled with both issues that

threaten ISKCON’s reputation in America. Upon Radha-Damodara’s
arrival in Miami, a controversy comes to light regarding Abhirama’s
presidency. The issue involves commitment to a Krishna conscious
marriage.
Last year, while Abhirama was experiencing difficulties in his marriage,

a young lady became attracted to Krishna consciousness. She was the
daughter of a former U.S. senator from Florida. Although she had grown
up in a wealthy family, she was attracted to spiritual life and was
determined to be a devotee. Moreover, she was quite beautiful and thus
attracted a lot of attention.
Abhirama: My first wife had problems remaining loyal to our marriage

on more than one occasion. That was quite a dramatic experience and I
made a decision in my heart that I no longer felt she was my wife and I
told her so. “You can live under my protection, but I just don’t feel that
you’re my wife. I can’t feel that way anymore.” It created a great deal of
tension and stress in my life. No doubt her problems stemmed from me
being a poor husband, but I was feeling unable to continue in that
900
relationship.
When Sruti Rupa joined the temple, I saw in her a person of high
character. She came from a wealthy family and the opulence of that
attracted me. She regularly chanted 32 rounds when she joined. She was
extremely austere, and enthusiastic, just head and shoulders above
everybody else I was accustomed to. She was full of energy and life,
enthusiasm and intelligence. I was happy that she joined, and I took care
to preach to her and make sure she was happy. My first wife suggested I
marry her and I agreed to that, thinking it was a good idea. But it
certainly looked bad because my first wife was there, and now this rich
girl has come and I’ve married her. It stunk from a public relations point
of view, although I was at peace with it in my heart.
Due to this unpleasant situation, many people believe that Abhirama

should be removed as president. This is especially true of the GBC man
Rupanuga – even though he had renounced sannyāsa only a few months
earlier. Rupanuga and his wife are quite agitated about the situation and
write Srila Prabhupada with their objections. Prabhupada’s reply is very
instructive.
We do not allow divorce, but in your country it is a common thing.

Although we do not like it, according to the country, what can be done?
There is a Sanskrit saying, Do according to the country’s laws. If both
the present husband and wife agree to divorce, then they can do it and
re-marry, what can be done? [Letter to Rupanuga Das - October 1,
1974]
Prabhupada says nothing about removing Abhirama from his position of

temple president. Rupanuga and his wife are not satisfied with
Prabhupada’s response. They voice their disapproval of Abhirama
through further letters with other objections. They write that Miami is an
important center in an ideal setting with 65 devotees, and is attracting
more people on a regular basis. Therefore, they feel that a capable
person should be in charge who can set a standard for the others to
901
follow.
In Prabhupada’s answer back, he conveys that he has already given

Abhirama permission to divorce, and he is clear about it. At the same
time he expresses disappointment that some of his senior men are
weakening, even as the movement is expanding. He refers Rupanuga to
follow the Direction of Management, [See Appendix Two for Direction
of Management] a document Prabhupada has written with necessary
guidelines for managing his ISKCON society.
Regarding Miami that you want to replace Abhirama, yes a capable man
must be there, what can be done. But I have already written that he can
marry that girl and divorce his wife. Regarding Washington, DC, that
Damodara is also resigning, we are increasing in so many ways, but our
men are deteriorating.
N.B. Regarding replacing Abhirama and Damodara I refer to the

“Direction of Management’’ as follows: “Removal of a Temple
President by GBC requires support by the local Temple members.’’
Therefore you should take a vote of the Temple members and do the
needful. [Letter to Rupanuga - November 7, 1974]
The next day, however, Prabhupada writes again to Rupanuga about the
Miami situation. The matter has been on his mind and he wants to
clarify the situation for Rupanuga. On many occasions Prabhupada has
quoted the Vedic maxim, phalena paricīyate, that one must judge a
situation by the results, in other words by the big picture, not by a single
event. Prabhupada wants his youthful followers to manage according to
this principle.
Regarding Abhirama, in your letter you mention that in Miami it is so

important center, 65 devotees, growing each day, ideal location. So
Abhirama has done this. He has done much service. He cannot be
removed whimsically. Sex disturbance is the permanent disease of the
Western people. Anyway I have already written you that the local
members must agree for him to be removed by you, according to the
902
“Direction of Management.’’ [Letter to Rupanuga Das - November 8,
1974]
Due to Prabhupada’s acceptance of Abhirama’s situation, the outcome is

that he remains as president in Miami. But Rupanuga is still not satisfied
with Srila Prabhupada’s decision! At the Mayapur festival in 1975, he
brings the issue to the GBC meeting and makes his case. The GBC votes
unanimously that Abhirama should be removed from his post in Miami,
although none of them interview him. In other words, Abhirama is not
given due process.
When the GBC submit their resolutions for Prabhupada’s approval, he

defends Abhirama and dismisses that particular resolution. “No. Leave
him be. He has done everything there. Let him go on.” It’s an indication
that Prabhupada wants to give devotees the feeling that when they do
some service on behalf of Krishna, it will be appreciated and there will
be on-going results.
In the other major issue at the time, Bali Mardan becomes ensnared in a
bizarre situation by a similar mind-set that attracted Abhirama. Valuable
lessons can be learned from these unpleasant incidents that should be
shared to clarify misconceptions.
As a sannyāsī and a GBC administrator in New York, Bali Mardan was

associating with a Japanese woman who claimed to be the heiress to the
Toyota Automobile fortune. When she inherited the company she would
use her money to spread Krishna consciousness in Japan, and especially
New York. Her plan was to purchase a magnificent property in
Manhattan to be named Gauranga Hall and introduce Bali Mardan to the
Emperor of Japan. Taken in by her story, Bali Mardan considered this a
great opportunity that should not be missed.
When a sannyāsī associates closely in his dealings with women, often

terrible things happen, and this is the textbook example. In 1973, Bali
Mardan renounces sannyāsa to marry this woman a mere one year after
accepting the renounced order. In spite of this, Prabhupada allows Bali
903
Mardan to remain a GBC representative. Unfortunately, Bali Mardan
does not hang his head in shame, but requests Prabhupada to initiate his
new wife.
By 1974, they are exerting a strong influence in the New York temple.
They are understood to be the devotees’ transcendental link to
Prabhupada and Krishna. It’s considered appropriate to behave as their
menial servants, and devotees wait on them hand and foot. It is also
regarded as highly offensive to question their actions, even in the mind.
During this period, the mood of the New York devotees is that these
individuals are intimate associates of His Divine Grace. As advanced
souls, they are regarded as being almost on the same platform as Srila
Prabhupada and honored in nearly the same way. Taittiriya is addressed
by the honorific “Maharani” and Bali’s name is listed on the class
schedule as Bali Mardan Goswami as if he was still a sannyāsī!
Whenvariousdiscrepanciesarise,devoteesnaivelyrationalizetheseas
transcendental, beyond their ability to comprehend. Gradually, these
discrepancies are reported to Srila Prabhupada. He is soon inundated
with letters from temple leaders, GBCs, and other devotees, questioning
what is going on in New York yātrā. The details of this story will be told
mainly by using Prabhupada’s letters.
At the height of his illness, on September 5, 1974, Prabhupada had

written to Bali Mardan Das explaining that sometimes Krishna will give
the spiritual master an illness. Krishna does this to examine how the
disciples might continue following the principles of Krishna
consciousness in the guru’s absence. “Krishna sometimes makes me
sick just to examine how much you have learned to conduct the business
under my guidance, with a little independence.” But inevitably, the
spiritual master has to leave the planet and his disciples must carry on
alone, taking complete shelter of the guru’s teachings, vāni sevā. “You
should never act independently, because my guidance in my words is
always there.”
904
Prabhupada emphasizes that the most important instruction is that
Krishna and His Name are non-different. Therefore, one must chant the
Holy Names of the Lord with full faith, care, and attention, to avoid
sinful behavior. “The main guidance is all of us should remain
spiritually strong by chanting the minimum number of rounds and
following the rules and regulations.”
Prabhupada wants that the leaders of the Society must set the standard
by their own personal example. “The GBC should personally observe
strictly all the rules and regulations and they should become the
practical example to others. Then everything will be all right. Then there
will be no fear of being victimized by māyā.”
Unfortunately, Bali Mardan is not able to heed Prabhupada’s advice to

become the practical example for others. Falling victim to his mind and
senses, he becomes entangled in a web of duplicity from which he
cannot extricate himself. The crux of the problem is his wife’s claim
that she is the heiress to the Toyota fortune. Influenced by money
matters, many temple devotees also come under her sway. But those
who do not knuckle under are marginalized.
Janardan: I was in that temple and ran afoul of the wrath of Taittiriya.
They were going to kick me right out of the temple for being envious, or
something. But Bali liked me, so he called me up to his office.
“We want to start a program, kind of like Radha-Damodara, with

traveling buses like that. We thought that this would be a good
engagement for you. But in the meantime, we need you to go out on,
more or less, permanent traveling sankirtan, to train up and practice.” So
I went out on permanent traveling sankirtan with Tirthapada and
Rasaraja. That was in the fall of ‘74. And while we were gone Bali had
his own fall of ‘74.
Mangalananda: I was disillusioned because Bali was no longer sannyāsa

and he married the Japanese girl. It all seemed a little goofy to me. I
wanted to go back to New Vrindavan because that seemed solid in my
905
mind. Finally, Bali threw me out of the temple.
By the end of September, Prabhupada receives a letter from Hamsaduta,

his GBC man in Germany, with questions about the situation in New
York. Rumors have already circulated beyond America. Prabhupada
responds from Mayapur with additional guidance. He wants the entire
GBC body to deliberate and resolve the situation by themselves. He
needs to train his leaders to take on more responsibility in preparation
for when he will no longer be available to counsel them. He writes:
Regarding Bali Mardan we have decided to review the complaints and

do the needful at the next GBC meeting. Bali Mardan came to me when
I was in Vrindavan and he showed a tendency for retirement, because he
knows there are so many complaints against him. Three or four times he
said he would like to live in Vrindavan.
So anyway he has given service to the Society, but when there are all
GBC present they may consider the complaints and do the needful. But,
so far I have studied, if all the GBC so desire, he can retire. Personally I
wish all the existing GBC may be trained up so perfectly that in the
future, in my absence, they can manage the whole Society very nicely
and strongly. That is my desire. At least in this stage of my life it is not
at all desirable that there be any factions amongst yourselves. Try to
settle up amicably and correct yourself. One man is trained up with
great difficulty, especially in spiritual life.
Everyone has got some weakness and deficiency. It is better to correct

or mend it than to break it. It will be best to discuss this in an open
meeting of the GBC and then do the needful. [Letter to Hamsaduta Das -
September 29, 1974]
As more news about the state of affairs in New York temple comes to
Prabhupada’s notice, he writes to dispel the ignorance. “I understand
that one devotee is engaged as Taittiriya’s personal servant. No devotee
can be engaged as personal servant in this way. Otherwise everyone will
do this.” [Letter to Hamsaduta Das - October 1, 1974]
906
One evening the bell rings at the temple. Bhakta Marino is near the door
and opens it. A uniform-clad man says, “Delivery for Maharani.”
Taittiriya comes running down the stairs dressed in a kimono and

quickly says, “That’s all right, it’s for me.” But Marino has already seen
that the delivery is from Chicken Delite.
When additional deviations come to Prabhupada’s attention, he writes

Kirtanananda Swami to initiate an investigation into the allegations
against Bali Mardan and Taittiriya. He suggests Tamal Krishna
Goswami and Rupanuga Prabhu work jointly with Kirtanananda Swami
to ascertain the veracity of the charges. Prabhupada mentions a list of 12
devotees from whom he has received complaints and requests the GBC
men to interview these devotees and establish what is factual.
Recently there has been some provocation in our Society regarding Bali
Mardan and his wife. Jayatirtha has received a bunch of complaints.
Similarly Brahmaṇanda Maharaja has also received, so far so, that his
wife is eating chicken in the temple. This has hampered me very much,
so I wish to form an investigation committee of three members, namely
Tamal Krishna Goswami, Rupanuga Prabhu, and yourself. I am
informing them also in this connection with a copy of this letter. So you
combine together and investigate about the charges against Bali Mardan
and his wife. [Letter to Kirtanananda Maharaja - October 5, 1974]
Prabhupada is anxious to receive the report about New York temple

from the investigation committee. He is especially concerned whether
there is an actual plan to purchase the proposed Gauranga Hall.
Receiving no report about the alleged improprieties, he pursues the
matter with Rupanuga:
I have not yet received the report from the Enquiry Commission, but
there are four points to be enquired. The first is the meat eating and
chicken eating in the temple and even in the Deity kitchen where the
prasadam for the Deities is prepared. This is the most serious complaint.
And, in spite of the meat eating Taittiriya was allowed to worship the
907
Deity.
The second is the complaint of abusing the devotees and exploiting their
service for accumulating money and for aggrandizing himself and
herself both. The third is her real identity, and the fourth is whether
actually the building negotiation is going on. [Letter to Rupanuga Das -
November 8, 1974]
Suddenly, Prabhupada hears that the temple has hired a Hindu cook
from India who is not an initiated Vaishnava. He voices his displeasure
in a letter to Kirtanananda Swami. “Of course he is Hindu, but he went
there to start his business. But, he is not initiated to cook in the temple.
Any paid cook is not desirable.”
Taraka: To my knowledge there was no cooking of meat in the temple.

But there was purchasing of Chinese food, including non-vegetarian
items. I don’t know whether any of this was offered to the Deities. It is a
fact, however, that the remnants of this stuff was regularly distributed to
the devotees and accepted as “mahā-prasāda”. Of this I have much
direct experience. Once while honoring “mahā-prasāda” I commented to
the devotees, “It’s amazing how they got this to taste exactly like a
shrimp roll!” At the time, I never guessed that it was in fact a shrimp
roll and those little chewy bits were not craftily disguised curd. I was
immediately blasted severely for my extremely offensive words. Lots of
other nonsense was also going on, but the two were considered above
criticism.
Soon Prabhupada begins receiving letters requesting that swift action be

taken to save New York temple. At the same time, further deviations
now come to his attention from India. Prabhupada is upset by these
negative reports and reveals his disappointment in a letter to Karandhar.
He doesn’t want his ISKCON society to be spoiled, and makes a
reference to the Gaudiya Math in this connection. Despite all the letters
of complaint, however, Prabhupada is not a man to judge anyone
without first determining the factors involved. Only after due process
908
with a fair and impartial inquiry will he take a decision on a matter.
As alleged by you I have received complaints against Bali Mardan and

his wife so seriously, so much so that the girl has declared that Bali
Mardan is an incarnation of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur on my
name. In India some of the important members have collected huge
amounts in the name of the Society and spent it luxuriously. I wanted
you, all my experienced disciples, should manage the whole institution
very cleverly without any personal ambition like ordinary materialistic
men. The Gaudiya Math institution has become smashed, at least
stopped its program of preaching work, on account of personal
ambitions.
So complaints against Bali Mardan are very serious, and I have

appointed an enquiry committee consisting of three men. Let us know
the report. [Letter to Karandhara Das - October 8, 1974]
Even with so many complaints, Prabhupada will not judge anyone

without a full investigation. In reply to a letter full of questions from
Ramesvara, Prabhupada asks everyone to be patient and not take a final
decision until all the facts are known. “Regarding Bali Mardan, there are
so many charges and counter charges. We have appointed an enquiry
committee, so let it be finished and we shall do the needful.” [Letter to
Ramesvara Das - October 9, 1974]
The three GBC men involved with the inquiry interview as many
devotees as possible. Meanwhile, the controversy increases and there is
much gossip about it. Increasingly, the philosophy espoused by Bali
Mardan and Taittiriya to justify their behavior veers further away from
Lord Chaitanya’s teachings. Only devotees who are reading
Prabhupada’s books are able to detect the discrepancies and expose the
deviations for what they are, māyā. Prabhupada acknowledges these
observations in letters to his discerning disciples.
You have marked that she bought a Toyota car with temple funds, so
how could she be a Toyota. You have used your common sense. She
909
wanted to hide herself in so many ways, just like this picture, but she
could not.
Bali Mardan says that taking milk is also the same as eating meat,
therefore you can eat meat. Therefore does it mean that because what I
eat all turns to stool, then I should eat stool? If everything I eat turns to
stool, does it mean I should eat stool? Is this sound logic? He was a
sincere boy, but he has fallen down by bad association. Still I can rectify
both of them, provided they agree. [Letter to Gopala Krishna Das -
November 28, 1974]
Next, Prabhupada writes Satsvarupa Maharaja to express appreciation

for the temple devotees that challenged the deviations. “What is very
pleasing to me is that they have confronted the nonsense. They are
sound devotees; otherwise they would have been carried away by this
wrong propaganda.”
In spite of the crisis in New York, book distribution continues unabated

and the Sankirtan Newsletter #34 is a surprise. In the midst of all the
intrigue, New York temple becomes the leader in book distribution with
5,235 points. This is the first time in nine weeks that Los Angeles is
beaten. With 4,581 points they end up in third place, but still set a
world’s record for big books with 628 distributed. The BBT TSKP rise
to second with 4,754 points. San Francisco drops down to fourth and
Toronto drops down to fifth.
Los Angeles reports that the temple took a day off and attended
Govardhana puja in San Diego, where they met up with the Radha-
Damodara party. They write that Los Angeles is making more devotees
than Radha-Damodara.
“Usually our book distributors meet at least 1 or 2 very sincere people

each day and every book distributor brings their name and phone
number back to the temple with an index card describing the person.
Then our super-enlivened gṛhastha preachers arrange to call them in the
most friendly way, inviting them to visit the temple on Sunday.”
910
The gṛhasthas even drive to people’s homes during the week with
prasādam.
Sometimes they pick up these people and bring them to the Sunday
festival.
“When the person arrives he is greeted with a nice plate of maha-

prasādam and a Deity flower garland, and the gṛhastha stays with him
the entire day preaching… In this way 13 devotees have been made in
less than three weeks!”
In New York, Bali Mardan and his wife are gradually exposed as a
fraud. Despite the deviations, Prabhupada’s mood is to always save the
wrongdoer.
In December, he writes Hamsaduta that, “Bali Mardan is on the

marginal stage. Things will be decided when I go to Hawaii. It is my
opinion that he has fallen victim to the woman. Māyā is very strong, but
we should try to save him by our combined efforts, because he is a good
asset.”
Finally, there is a meeting of the New York temple managers and they
ask Bali Mardan and Taittiriya to leave. Prabhupada writes to condone
this decision. The result is that Gopijanavallabha becomes the new
Temple President. The local devotees request him to perform an
abhiṣeka ceremony to sanctify the temple to restore the original purity
that was destroyed. Writing Prabhupada for guidance, Gopijanavallabha
is encouraged to perform the purification ceremony.
Regarding the abhiseka ceremony, actually it is to be done. There were

mleccha activities. But it is not required to be done because harinama is
going on, but if it is done for the general satisfaction, it will be better. It
is Krishna’s mercy how easily they were purged out, otherwise it was
reported that they were creating a very dangerous situation. [Letter to
Gopijanavallabha Das - December 8, 1974]
911
At last, everything returns to normal in New York temple under the new
leadership of Gopijanavallabha Prabhu. He is very good in the sense that
he gives shelter to the devotees. He’s not well-organized but he’s so
personal that devotees take refuge in his guidance. As a result, New
York continues to distribute more books than ever before.
Prabhupada writes his final comments on the New York episode

instructing devotees to try and save Bali Mardan rather than reject him.
I do not know how he could be victimized by such a woman who is of

mother’s age. Somehow or another we must save Bali Mardan as he is
very much attached to this woman. [Letter to Rupanuga - December 18,
1974]
In the aftermath, devotees are counseled by Tamal Krishna Goswami,

Rupanuga Prabhu, Hamsaduta Prabhu, and Kirtanananda Swami, to help
resolve the situation. They convey Prabhupada’s concern about the
unpleasant episode. Senior devotees are quite distressed to learn that so
much labor and austerity in the service of those “great souls” was śrama
eva hi kevalam, simply a useless waste of time and energy with no value
as devotional service.
The senior devotees in New York come to understand that His Divine
Grace is particularly disappointed that they could not perceive the
problems and take immediate action. Prabhupada is very unhappy with
the fact that experienced devotees were so foolish and so easily misled.
He expects every devotee to be extremely vigilant to spot māyā and take
action. It is the duty of every disciple to know right from wrong in terms
of the teachings of guru and śāstra, and that understanding comes from
studying Prabhupada’s books.
At the same time, however, the junior devotees are consoled with the
explanation that Prabhupada is pleased and appreciative of their efforts
in Krishna consciousness, particularly their submissive cooperation to
follow the regulative principles throughout the difficulty.
912
Vaishnavas should be submissive and cooperative, but not foolish. They
must recognize Māyā when they see her and then act responsibly. To
illustrate the point, one sannyāsī gives a short Bhagavatam class and
asks for questions or comments. There are none. He then reveals that his
talk consisted of bogus philosophy. No one had detected it because they
are not hearing sufficiently from Prabhupada by reading his books.
Furthermore, it is explained that each devotee’s relationship with his

spiritual master is direct. There is no middleman between guru and
disciple. Likewise, each and every devotee has a responsibility to help a
godbrother who is in māyā and to protect other devotees from the effects
of such māyā. This means that every devotee is responsible for the
protection of the Deities and the mission of the spiritual master.
Ultimately, Srila Prabhupada forgives the mistakes. He reinstates Bali

Mardan by making him GBC for Australia, because he had opened the
first center in that country. After considering all the facts, Prabhupada’s
solution is always to acknowledge the service accomplished rather than
focus on the mistakes.
Prabhupada counsels Jayadvaita Das, “When one associates with one

who is in illusion or misled naturally he will also become influenced by
that illusion. So you must pray to Krishna to protect you from such bad
association.” [Letter to Jayadvaita Das, December 20, 1974]
In Sankirtan Newsletter #35, 19 temples report their scores with New

York as the top temple again with 5,503 points, a new world record. Los
Angeles is second with 4,483 points followed by BBT TSKP, Toronto,
and Chicago. The BBT party distributes 831 big books and Toronto
distributes 3,400 medium books, both world records. Gopal Bhatta Das
sets a world record for big books selling 149 Srimad-Bhagavatams in a
day!
913
Back in Miami, Tamal Krishna Goswami is among several devotees
who do not approve of Abhirama’s marital situation. He agrees with
Rupanuga that Abhirama should be removed as temple leader even
though Prabhupada has allowed it! In subtle ways, Tamal Krishna wants
to make the point that household life is simply a concession for illicit
sexual connection. He begins to expound on this policy during his
classes with references from śāstra about the superiority of the
brahmacārī and sannyāsī lifestyles. As a result, The Radha-Damodara
party becomes somewhat of a disturbance in the Miami temple.
Sri Rama: Things started to get frictionalized between the householders

and our party when Tamal Krishna started giving evening classes
smashing household life. There became an edge to Tamal Krishna’s
preaching, like a missionary edge that didn’t exist before. And after that
it was always ever-increasing. Abhirama was the temple president and
he was in the midst of a divorce and a second marriage, so he had little
patience for this ‘message’.
By speaking out strongly, Tamal Krishna realizes that his days in Miami
are numbered. He is already considering where to relocate.
Meanwhile, book distribution is exploding! In Sankirtan Newsletter #36,

new world records are set as 21 temples report from Canada and the US.
Where are the temples from the rest of the world? New York remains on
top with 6,484 points, as Chicago takes over second place with 5,417
points. Los Angeles is third with 5,107 points followed by the BBT
TSKP. Atlanta cracks the top five for the first time.
Chicago reports that they distributed a ton of books at the George

Harrison concert.
“Lord Chaitanya displayed his mystic powers by taking charge of the

whole show. The police were eating gulābjāmuns and dancing in the
kirtan.”
Vishnujana Swami continues doing a festival every day in the Miami
914
area. During the Sunday feast in Peacock Park, Vishnujana’s kirtan band
is in the midst of a stirring kirtan, when Maharaja sees the Canadian
devotee, Paulie. He had spent a couple of months with the Radha-
Damodara party in Berkeley.
Vishnujana points him out to Goswami. Tamal Krishna approaches him

in a friendly mood, thinking he might be ready to surrender. “Paulie,
haribol! How’s it going?
“Jaya. Things are great, Maharaja.” “What’s happening in your life?”

“I’m in Florida for the winter.” “Really? Whereabouts?”
“In Fort Lauderdale, with a friend of mine, Michael Antonelli.”
“What’s the possibility of Radha-Damodara spending some time there?

“Pretty good. Mike really likes devotees.”
“We’ll need to hook up to the electric power like we did in Oakland.”
“No problem,” says Paulie. “I’ll arrange it and get back to you with an
update.”
Tamal Krishna can’t believe how Sri Krishna coordinates everything.

He excitedly tells Vishnujana the news. “It looks like we’ll be shifting
to Fort Lauderdale. Paulie is on his way there right now to make all the
arrangements.”
Paulie: At the time, Michael was addicted to drugs. I brought him to

Peacock Park and introduced him to Tamal Krishna Maharaja and
Vishnujana Swami. He offered them all the money he had on him,
around $200. Then he sent his wife and a couple of kids back to Ohio,
where they were from, and I cleared all the furniture out of the house.
The book distribution competition continues heating up. Issue 37 of the

Sankirtan Newsletter sees New York still on top with 6,689 points, with
Los Angeles refusing to give up as they regain second place with a score
915
of 6,169 points. The BBT TSKP are third with a world record 936 big
books distributed during December 6-8. Chicago and San Francisco
round out the top five.
Montreal temple has moved into sixth place and they report their
success. “Sunday was the George Harrison concert. Twenty cases of
KRSNA trilogies were delivered back stage by ISKCON sound men!
With the manager’s permission over 2,000 trilogies were distributed, so
about 1 out of 5 of the audience received some literature. Urvasi Dasi
distributed 245 during the two concerts plus 500 books the day before.”
Although the Radha-Damodara party is distributing lots of BTGs, they

are not reporting any scores to the Sankirtan Newsletter.
The BBT Library Party arrives in Miami before Christmas. They

distribute full sets of Srila Prabhupada’s books to the libraries in the
New York/ Boston area. They are now in town to do the libraries and
colleges in Miami. The party has three vans at this time with two people
per van. Satsvarupa Maharaja formed the party several months ago with
Mahabuddhi, Ghanashyam, Kalakantha, Mahadyuti, Sesha, and
Subhananda.
The Library party men are thrilled to have darshan of Sri-Sri Radha-
Damodara and excited to have kirtan with Vishnujana Swami. This is
the first time Kalakantha has seen Vishnujana since his initiation 18
months ago in Portland. A lot of exciting things have happened to him
in the interim period. He now feels more advanced and mature in
Krishna consciousness. As he steps onto the bus to offer dandavats to
Radha-Damodara, he notices Vishnujana looking at him and overhears
him ask someone, “And what’s his name?”
A brahmacārī answers, “Kalakantha Das.”
Maharaja asks him directly, “Where are you from?”
“Portland.” Kalakantha realizes that Maharaja doesn’t remember
916
performing his initiation ceremony, but he doesn’t feel belittled by that.
He still considers Vishnujana to be an important and advanced devotee
with a wide range of experiences that he cannot as yet comprehend.
Kalakantha: Tamal Krishna Maharaja gave a sign that I felt was like ‘a
prospect.’ I felt flattered that they would pay attention to someone like
me, but I also felt that I like what I’m doing and I’m not going to leave
the Library Party. Clearly, if I had said, “I’m really not doing much,” I
would have been on their party in a moment.
I had the impression that Tamal Krishna was fairly new to the program.
I remember a distinct feeling that he seemed to have a powerful but
subtle influence on Vishnujana Swami, at least on the character of the
program. When Vishnujana Maharaja had traveled through Portland, the
party seemed like something that appealed to my hippie instincts; a
carefree, place to place, traveling mendicant type of party. Just
traveling, touring, and chanting.
Some people have noticed that Vishnujana is accepting Tamal’s

perspective on things, because the command is coming from
Prabhupada’s letters. Tamal Krishna has convinced Vishnujana that he
has Prabhupada’s ear, and through that connection they can please
Prabhupada the most and get the most mercy. Tamal Krishna has had
closer association with Srila Prabhupada than anybody else, and often
asserts that he is the link to Prabhupada. All dealings with Prabhupada
should go through him in order to get the best results because he knows
how to speak to Prabhupada.
Suhotra also arrives in Miami at this time. He has had a brief stint with
the Library Party in New York and Washington, DC. Tamal Krishna
and Vishnujana are happy to see him again.
“Wow, you look real effulgent,” says Vishnujana.
“You’re fired-up and happy to have been with the library party,” Tamal
Krishna adds. “How’s everything?”
917
“Everything’s okay, except I got a little kink in my back.”
“Well I know how to do Japanese massage,” Tamal Krishna says in a

joking mood as he glances at Vishnujana. “Just lie down on the floor on
your stomach. It’s a quick type of massage, and the culmination is when
I walk on your back.” Suhotra catches some exchange at his expense,
though he goes along with it.
Suhotra: Tamal Krishna Maharaja started walking on my spine and

laughing. Vishnujana Maharaja was laughing too. I was just lying there
getting squashed.
After the “massage” Tamal has a serious talk with Suhotra. “Since
you’re doing so well distributing Prabhupada’s books, I’m going to send
you to Satsvarupa Maharaja’s Library Party. I think Sri Galim can
accompany you. It’ll be better for him to be distributing books than
sitting on the bus doing pūjārī service.”
Sri Galim: Tamal Krishna wanted to do Radha-Damodara in a different

way. We had 3 buses, everything was getting organized, and he started
scooping up brahmacārīs. From a small intimate bus, it turned into a big
organization. I just got lost. Most of us were not high- powered book
distributors. Vishnujana Maharaja was becoming insignificant because
Tamal Krishna was such a good manager. He started getting heavy on
the men and I couldn’t get into that mood. Suhotra and I stopped co-
operating with him so he sent us to the Library party.
Suhotra: On Vishnujana Swami’s Radha-Damodara party we were

distributing books, but we were not yet into big books. Tamal Krishna
started with BTGs as the first phase of intense literature distribution.
Tripurari’s BBT party began during the latter part of 1974. Radha-
Damodara had its reputation as being ragamuffins, or whatever, but that
didn’t faze us. Whatever Tripurari and his boys wanted to think didn’t
bother us, but it bothered Tamal Krishna. At that time the rivalry was
apparent.
918
Every morning, the Bhagavatam class is outdoors because the weather is
warm and there are many devotees. Tamal Krishna and Vishunjana sit
on chairs while everyone sits around their feet. They take turns giving
commentaries on the Bhagavatam verse.
Kalakantha: The mood seemed to be different than before. It was more

contrived, although it was nice. But those classes in Miami seemed odd
and different. Why were they both speaking? I’d never heard of that
before. It seemed to be a Tamal Krishna thing. Before, Vishnujana had
no interest in recruiting me for his party, no interest in initiating a
relationship or following up after the initiation. He didn’t even say
‘congratulations’ or anything like that. It was just a preaching function
which he attended in the midst of going from one place to another.
When we met in Portland I wasn’t a prospect for joining his party

because his party was more like an elite band of musicians. It seemed to
me he was more interested in having skilled musicians. Obviously, I
was attracted to his party and I was thinking what would it take to be on
a party like that. But he wasn’t in a mood of soliciting.
When I met him in Miami, though, it was very different.
The Library Party is considered an elite crew. They are just starting to
get rolling at this time, and the party is still small, perhaps ten devotees
at best. They have a collecting party headed up by Amogha Lila, who
originally did the libraries, but switched to leading the collection party,
which for a sophisticated, intellectual gentleman like him, was quite an
inspiration for the others.
Kalakantha: Sri Galim and Suhotra were donated to the Library party. I
had a sense that they had outgrown the Radha-Damodara party. In
retrospect, they didn’t fit in with the new mood. Sri Galim had an
ecstatic mood those days. He told me he was distributing books in ‘74,
and had met a man at the airport who gave him a $100 donation. He was
so excited about getting this donation that he phoned Vishnujana
Maharaja to tell him the news. When he came back to the bus, Maharaja
919
had cooked him a wonderful feast as an expression of his appreciation.
Sesha: I can still see Sri Galim sitting by the altar they used to carry out
in their vests. We called them the “vest club.” Sridhar joined the library
party later and he was also into that. I had no experience with
Vishnujana Swami, but Sridhar spent hours talking about him when we
traveled together.
Sidney, Australia, February 1973

Before Buddhimanta arrived in Australia in February 1973, devotees
used to go out on the streets in a very humble manner to distribute
BTGs.
They are not ambitious and simply stand on the street holding the
magazines in their arms. If somebody asks about a book they are told to
go to the temple and get one. Life is austere in the temples and devotees
eat simple prasādam.
Buddhimanta’s arrival corresponds with Prabhupada’s third visit to

Australia. At the initiation ceremony in the Sydney temple, he sets up a
book table. The Australian devotees consider this unusual. They used to
wonder what to do with all those books in the book shed. Ganesh used
to look at the books in the Melbourne book shed, and wonder why there
were so many boxes of books.
Now Buddhimanta makes a vow that the Sidney book shed will be
emptied in a short time. But no one takes him seriously. Buddhimanta
insists they will sell the books and he will demonstrate how to do it.
Devotees watch in amazement as he approaches people on the street
with confidence and a warm greeting. “How are you, mate? We’re
having a marathon today and we’re just asking everybody to take one of
these books.”
He hands the person a book and asks, “Where are you from?”
920
“Sydney.”
“You’re from Sydney? Great! I’m from San Francisco. Take one of
these home.” He hands a person a book as he asks for a donation.
Buddhimanta’s dynamic tactics and bold approach, changes book

distribution in Australia forever. He cooks incredible sankirtan
breakfasts for the sankirtan men, and books start going out. In
reciprocation, money starts coming in. The pūjārīs can now maker nicer
offerings to the Deities and devotees become more enlivened.
Everything becomes more opulent and more auspicious.
Sabhapati: Buddhimanta was very up-front and asked for a donation

straight away. Madhudvisa had ordered 600 cases of KRSNA Books,
and we thought it would take us three or four years to sell them. When I
went out the first day I did $16 and thought, Wow, that’s great. But
when Buddhimanta came and trained us up, within a week we were all
doing $100 a day. And within a month we were doing $200 a day. I was
selling a case of BTGs a day - 180 BTGs. We were doing a box of
paper-back KRSNA Books in a day - 60 in a box. When we got the
hardbound books, we were doing 40-50 hardbound books a day. Buddhi
was like the camp commandant. He was pretty passionate but he taught
us how to sell all those books.
Kurma: It was like Buddhimanta set fire to the whole of Australia. From
that very day, book distribution started happening and everything
became auspicious. We had a special BBT book distribution party, and
devotees who joined that party had vans driving around Australia. That
book distribution fever was brought by Buddhimanta, and it continued
from there. I joined the party the end of ‘73.
As the GBC man, Madhudvisa is a charismatic leader. His kirtans are

fired-up. He creates a spirit of co-operation in Australia which lasts for
years. Everyone works together in a cooperative effort, not that a
devotee belongs to one temple or another. If one temple can’t pay the
bills another temple sends the money to pay the bills. Prabhupada is
921
pleased with Madhudvisa’s efforts in Melbourne and states, “If you
follow Madhudvisa’s instructions everything will be successful.”
Melbourne, Australia, December 1974

The Radha-Damodara TSKP tape is still the most popular kirtan
recording in ISKCON, even down under. Everyone has heard about the
Radha-Damodara traveling party, and Vishnujana Swami’s name is
mentioned in glorious terms.
After meeting Vishnujana Swamia at the Mayapur festival, Sabhapati

returned to Australia fully inspired to form a bus party similar to Radha-
Damodara. Gathering several brahmacārīs he begins collecting funds
and purchases an old Bedford 169 school bus. That becomes a traveling
temple with an altar for Gaura-Nitai Deities and a kitchen in the back.
The original party is Sabhapati, Gaura Mandal Bhumi, Gaura Keshava,
Narayana, Krodesvara and Tribuvanapati.
The Deities are cast in Australia by Bhaskara Prabhu. To ensure that all
the 8 proper metals are used, asta dhātu, Narayana’s wife donates her
gold and silver wedding rings. Thus, the Deities are cast according to
sāstric guidelines. With the Deities installed on the bus, the party travels
around Australia, singing, dancing, and distributing books.
Gaura Mandal Bhumi: I was the cook, pūjārī, and musician. The method
of preaching that they were doing in America certainly inspired us on
our bus party. I felt that those were the happiest days in my Krishna
conscious career, traveling on the bus and having no worries; just
chanting and learning ślokas. We played that Radha-Damodara tape
over and over again, and we tried to imitate Vishnujana Swami’s style
of kirtan.
When the Sankirtan Newsletter issue #38 reaches Australia, the local
devotees are amazed to see the scores for the week of December 13-15.
There are 27 temples reporting scores and all of them are from the US
922
and Canada.
New York is on fire as they set a world record of 11,054 points. Los
Angeles is second with 7,858 points, followed closely by the BBT
TSKP with 7,321 points, including a world record of 1,329 big books
distributed. San Francisco and Chicago round out the top five.
Twelve temples report a new high score, including the Gurukula TSKP.
They write, “This weekend in freezing cold Hamilton, Ontario, the six
children (ages 9-12) and two teachers distributed over 700 books!
Sriman Dwarakadish Das Brahmacari (only 11 years old) distributed 13
medium books and 125 BTGs.”
Los Angeles temple is determined to beat New York. They write, “As
we move into the final days of the Christmas rush, all activities in LA
temple will completely stop as at least 90 devotees hit the streets to join
Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s transcendental pastimes of saving the
innocent lost souls of Kali Yuga. With a spirit to maintain this
enthusiasm all year round, our forces should be able to topple New York
temple right off the charts.”
They end the report with a vow to triple their monthly book distribution.
“LA temple has now promised to continue sending out morning and
evening shifts of book distributors!!! LA temple has promised to
transform itself into a real transcendental base for preaching and book
distribution!!! LA temple has promised to make Sankirtan it’s life and
soul!!!”
Sabhapati’s bus party begins traveling around Australia and a lot of

devotees are made. Moreover, many BTGs are sold. With the money
they purchase an additional van and a trailer. While visiting hippie and
alternative communities, devotees are frequently told that if they get
their own land many interested young people would come to help
develop a devotee farm community. Subsequently, a large tract of land
near Murwillambah is purchased with the money collected from the bus
program.
923
Thus, the brahmacārīs from the bus program become the founders of
New Govardhana, a community of over 300 devotees that soon develops
into one of the most successful rural projects in ISKCON.
Sabhapati is New Govardhana’s first temple president. He continues the

bus program from the farm by going out during the week to the many
hippie communities nearby. On weekends, they visit the beaches on the
Gold Coast, the big tourist center in Australia. They put on a program
and fill the bus with people to bring back to the farm for the Sunday
Feast. Then they drive them home in the evening after the feast.
Sabhapati: In Australia everyone goes to the beach. We’re a beach

nation. Everyone lives on the coast. So we’d go to the beaches and take
the Deities out on Their palanquin and just start having a program. Five
hundred people would come around straight away. We put on a play,
cook up a feast, and serve out five hundred plates of prasādam. We had
a complete program: kirtan, a play, a lecture, and prasādam. We did
three or four programs a week and it was all supported by selling BTGs.
New York, December 1974

During 1974, ISKCON has gone through many changes, some positive,
some not. Several major difficulties have threatened the Society’s
fragile structure. Prabhupada revealed that his illness in Vrindavan was
due to the leaders not following the principles. By disregarding
Prabhupada’s teachings things always get worse. Such behavior by
disciples is considered a breach of trust.
When everything finally settles down, another crisis suddenly arises

mid-December.
Two trusted sannyāsī leaders break away from ISKCON with six of
their followers and take over Govinda’s Restaurant in Hawaii. It’s soon
discovered that the Honolulu temple property is now in the name of one
of these people and not in the name of ISKCON. After much time and
924
negotiation Prabhupada finally resolves that problem. Premarnava:
Sudama and I began traveling and doing book distribution but the whole
thing was weak. At a certain point we were called to Hawaii because
Gaurasundar had closed the Honolulu temple and the Deities were put in
a closet in a house somewhere. Karandhar made the arrangement and we
flew to Hawaii. We stayed at a house on the North Shore and recovered
the Deities. Then we rented a house in Ala Aloha Loop and established
a temple while we made arrangements with Ambarish to purchase the
existing temple on Coelha Way.
During this period, another major disaster occurs in Germany. On

December 16, sixty armed policemen raid the Frankfurt temple. All the
devotees are taken to police headquarters. They are photographed,
fingerprinted, and interrogated. The temple leaders are jailed and the
vehicles are impounded. Newspapers splash headlines of the raid around
the country. Heavy accusations increase as the German public
complains that donations to feed the hungry in India are being used for
other purposes.
The complaints reflect a growing resentment towards ISKCON’s fund-

raising methods. After obtaining a judgment from the court, the
prosecutor freezes all ISKCON bank accounts in Germany.
Vedavyasa: The media had a feast reporting on monks accused of fraud,

kidnapping, and illegal possession of weapons. For weeks and months
after the raid, major newspapers and magazines and the national
television stations featured stories on the Hare Krishna devotees. They
were generally depicted as criminals cheating housewives and sending
immense sums of cash to their guru in America.
Three years would pass until the trial, in which all criminal charges
would be dropped and the devotees only fined for violating the
collection laws. But the propaganda, fueled by disgruntled parents and
church leaders, aimed only at stripping the Krishna monks of their
apparently harmless and peaceful veneer and painting a dark picture of
925
destructive morons.
In a letter, Prabhupada reveals that “Hamsaduta was giving stress to

selling records using all tricks, by any means. The incident in Germany
has caused havoc all over the world. It is hampering our reputation
everywhere. I do not want this record distribution to continue. So, stop
this record distribution immediately everywhere. And stress book
distribution more and more.” []Letter to Brahmananda Swami - January
7, 1975
To the Swedish devotees, Prabhupada writes, “Regarding dishonest

means being used, I have never advised or taught anyone like that. That
is not my idea. This record distribution has caused havoc. It should be
stopped immediately.”
The situation in Germany continues to deteriorate.
Regarding the German situation, it is an attempt to suppress our

movement there. We have become very popular and important in a very
short time and now the Christian churches, as well as the police, are
feeling much pressure that “now this movement is increasing.” The son
of one big police officer has joined us and therefore his father has a
grudge and also one newspaper reporter came to our temple incognito
and has some grudge. In this way they and others are trying to spread
some counter- propaganda to destroy our reputation. [Letter to
Pancadravida Swami - January 6, 1975]
Hamsaduta hatches a plan to turn public opinion around. He wants

devotees to perform harināma-sankirtan in front of the German Embassy
in major cities worldwide, while distributing leaflets to the public
pleading our case. This culminates in a letter by His Divine Grace to
implement the new strategy.
Recently in Germany the government, police, and church have started

heavy persecution against our movement by arrests, investigation, and
blocking our monies in the bank. By unfair and slanderous newspaper
926
and television propaganda they have ruined our reputation and turned
the general public against our movement. We cannot sit down and be
idle. Even killing of our devotees has been attempted in Berlin by
shooting. Hamsaduta Prabhu has formulated a plan for protesting at all
German Embassies all over the world. This plan has my sanction. He
will be contacting you in this connection. Please co-operate with him
fully. [Letter to all Temple Presidents - February 6, 1975]
Not all the news is negative, however. In 1974 the US airports are
opened for book distribution and devotees distribute in ever greater
quantities. Tripurari’s BBT party focuses on distributing books in
airports. When Ramesvara writes in his BBT Newsletter that one penny
collected in America buys one brick for Prabhupada’s projects in India,
book distribution increases to greater heights.
Prabhupada has already written Ramesvara that Tripurari was “doing

more than any sannyāsī by his personally distributing hundreds of books
day after day and inspiring others to follow.” Now Prabhupada writes
Tripurari declaring him the incarnation of book distribution and giving
full support for his program.
This book selling is the real preaching of our culture, especially when
you sell Chaitanya-Charitamrta and Srimad-Bhagavatam. They will
understand what we mean by reading these books. So you organize
freely. You are the incarnation of book distribution. So take the
leadership and do the needful. [Letter to Tripurari Das - November 12,
1974]
The year ends with a furious Christmas marathon. Record numbers of

books are distributed. Out of 28 temples reporting, Los Angeles tops
New York with 12,694 points to 12,035. LA sets world records for
points and for distributing 22,450 small books. Tripurari’s BBT party
distributes 1,662 big books, another record, to finish third. San
Francisco and Chicago complete the top five.
For the five days, December 20-24, LA temple distributes 47,601 books.
927
New York 38,289 books, Toronto 23,205 books, and Chicago 18,310
books. Five Dallas Gurukula girls (aged 10-13) plus two teachers do 277
books in 2.5 hours.
Gajahanta Das is the top distributor with 1,197 points including 227 big
books distributed in Atlanta. Among the GBC men, His Holiness
Hridayananda Goswami did 80 points to lead in that category. In all,
133,586 pieces of transcendental literature were distributed before
Christmas.
Not to be outdone by his disciples, Prabhupada finishes his commentary

and translation of Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita in 1974, even while
traveling around the world, managing the Society, troubleshooting
various crises, and suffering a near-fatal illness in Vrindavan. The BBT
report is published in Back to Godhead.
Literature Distribution More Than Doubles In One Year.
The members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness

made 1974 an outstanding year for the distribution of transcendental
literature. Following the request of their spiritual master, His Divine
Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, to “distribute my books
profusely,” in 1974 the devotees distributed more than 6-1/2 million
pieces of literature – from small pamphlets to 1,000-page Bhagavad-
gitas.
More people than ever before – some 400,000 of them – took large,
400-page Krishna conscious books. In only one year’s time the annual
distribution of Back to Godhead magazine (described by Srila
Prabhupada as “the backbone of the Krishna consciousness movement”)
almost doubled to four million copies.
Has the distribution of Krishna conscious books reached its peak?
“This is only the beginning,” said Ramesvara Das, the devotee in charge
of the Society’s central book warehouse in Los Angeles. “Krishna is
928
unlimited. There’s no end in sight.”
929
Fifteenth Wave,
Faults and Faultfinders
Always situated in pure goodness, the Holy Name in the shape of letters
descends to this world as the complete incarnation and embodiment of
the highest sweetness – rasa.
[Haridas Thakur]

At the start of the year, Radha-Damodara are relocated in Fort
Lauderdale.
The bus is parked in the driveway of a small cottage in Florida’s most

popular beach resort. A long orange extension cord furnishes electric
power from the house owned by Michael Antonelli. He’s one of a group
of people who are friends of ISKCON because they identify with the
mood of Radha-Damodara.
The mood of the party is to accept service from people who aren’t
following the rules and regulations. The bus always has to find a place
to stay so there is more of a willingness to bend and accept the
hospitality of God knows who, wherever they happen to be. In this way,
Radha-Damodara extend Their mercy to a lot of people who assist Their
devotees in serving Prabhupada. And since the service of these people is
accepted, they naturally feel a bond and want to offer service again and
again.
The scene at the Fort Lauderdale house bears a lot of resemblance to the
930
scene at the Oakland house where the party stayed during the Berkeley
preaching days. In Florida, however, there will be no vendors or school
officials threatening to curtail their preaching activities. Their purpose
here is to purify the tens of thousands of winter vacationers in Florida.
After settling in, Yogesh Chandra drives the sannyāsīs to the beach area
to look for the right spot to set up the festival program. But upon seeing
so many young women in skimpy bikinis, Tamal Krishna balks. He
becomes totally averse to doing the festival program on the beach.
When Vishnujana explains that this has always been Radha-Damodara’s

program in Florida, Tamal Krishna exclaims, “What? I’m making these
boys into devotees, and they’re going to watch naked women on the
beach? And be captured by māyā again?”
Vishnujana Swami has an independent nature, but at the same time he is

able to subordinate himself, to a certain extent, to Tamal Krishna’s
opinion. Rather than argue the point, he suggests that they simply look
for an acceptable place because his whole purpose in life is to present
Radha-Damodara in public and chant Their Holy Names.
He remembers seeing a nice area that is not at the heart of the enjoying
scene. It’s designed for mothers and children and has a playground with
many swings and other diversions for the kids to enjoy. The location is
right on the water but is more like a park and not all swim suits. Plus,
they can distribute prasādam to the kids and mothers! When Vishnujana
shows Tamal Krishna this location, Tamal relents.
The next day, Radha-Damodara are situated under several coconut

palms doing Their program at this particular beach setting. Paulie and
Michael join the program playing kartāls and singing Hare Krishna. The
kirtan band comprises the devotees who stay back to serve the
transcendental bodies of Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. Everyone else goes
out for book distribution. Tamal Krishna again becomes happy playing
mṛdaṅga. Vishnujana leads the chanting on harmonium.
931
TKG: The festivals we held were the best public relations and were
laying the ground for making so many devotees in the future.
After dropping the book distributors at their sankirtan spots, Yogesh

Chandra returns to the beach to taste the nectar of the kirtan. The
festival starts around 11:00am and goes to 3:00pm when they stop and
repack the bays of the bus. The daily program is to spend half the day
doing harināma sankirtan and then go into Miami to distribute incense
and Back to Godhead magazines.
While Vishnujana returns to the house to prepare Radha-Damodara’s

afternoon and evening offerings on the bus, Tamal Krishna accompanies
the men for the drive into Miami to benedict the conditioned souls with
the teachings of Lord Chaitanya.
“To understand sankirtan you have to travel with the men on the road,”
Yogesh Chandra preaches to Tamal as he drives the van to the city.
“Being on sankirtan is like being in the army. You have to be prepared
to rest anywhere, eat when you can, and distribute books constantly, all
at the same time.”
The men love Yogesh Chandra’s rough-and-ready disposition. His

happy-go-lucky approach encourages everyone to relax. Tamal Krishna
particularly enjoys his company because of his no-nonsense mood when
it comes to the sankirtan mission.
With the colleges re-opening after the Christmas and New Year’s break,
Vishnujana begins alternating between the beach festivals and going to
every college in the south Florida area. With warm weather and idyllic
surroundings, Florida provides unlimited opportunities for these
festivals. To the pleasure of hundreds of young men and women at the
colleges, Maharaja turns up the amplifiers full blast to attract everyone
to dance and chant to the kirtan.
Vishnujana has a binder where he keeps templates for different college

classes. They are categorized as a sociology lecture, a history lecture, a
932
science lecture, a liberal arts lecture, and a philosophy/religious lecture.
The history lecture is about varṇāśrama which he compares to the
decline of Western civilization, using the Roman Empire as an example.
He’s really casual doing these college classes wearing his sannyāsī garb,
a peach-colored corduroy ‘Prabhupada’ hat, and his green rubber
wading boots.
The new recruits are amazed seeing Maharaja walk into a classroom
dressed like that to give a lecture. He simply asks, “What kind of class
have they booked for me?” If it’s sociology, he gives his sociology talk.
He always gets a good response. While Maharaja lectures, the senior
men continue the festival program by serving out prasādam.
At every location, Radha-Damodara work Their customary magic and

new devotees are made. Soon three new people, Glenn, Mark, and Ray,
are caught up in Radha- Damodara’s web, expertly spun by Vishnujana
Swami, and they join the party.
On Sundays, everybody stays back for bus maintenance, reading

Prabhupada’s books, or doing extra japa. Tamal Krishna sends a weekly
report detailing how Radha- Damodara’s program is expanding.
Prabhupada replies with encouragement and instructions to increase the
preaching. Tamal Krishna is understanding that the Radha-Damodara
program has to be accelerated to a greater extent.
I was extremely pleased to hear your report from your traveling buses. It
sounds as if your program is very wonderful and I am very encouraged
to hear that such a program is coming along so nicely. I am glad that
you have understood the importance of my books, therefore I am
stressing it so much. Let everyone take these books. If he simply reads
one page then he is getting something substantial, a real eternal benefit.
Or if he hands it over to his friend and he reads one page the same result
is there.
So continue these festivals constantly and make them all Krishna

conscious.
933
Overflood the whole country by this preaching work. Let the whole
United States become Vaishnavas, then everyone else in the whole
world will follow. That is my real ambition. Therefore your program is
very glorious. This is really preaching. Your intelligence is being
properly utilized. In the beginning you took up the distribution of BTG’s
and you sold the most. Now you have taken up this van program and
you will also be successful in the same way. This preaching spirit will
make you recognized by Krishna. There is so much wonderful potential
in USA for this type of program. So organize hundreds of such parties.
This is fulfilling the mission of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
I am very glad to hear that not only you are maintaining such program
but that you want to expand it. Yes, this is our philosophy;
anandambuddhi vardhanam. It means to expand or to increase.
Therefore I strongly encourage you to double your program by getting
three more buses if you can do it. There is no difficulty. BBT will help. I
have written Hamsaduta one letter to give you the loan of $30,000. BBT
means fifty percent is for printing books and fifty percent for
construction of temples. So your buses are all moving temples. Don’t
worry. There will be no scarcity of money. Go on with your program
and increase and increase more and more.
In the end of your letter you mention that people are not very much
eager to go to temples but with your program you are bringing the
temples to the people. Yes, this is a very important point. You have
picked up this idea very nicely, of bringing the temples to the people. In
this way you will give everyone the opportunity to step in the direction
of back to Godhead, back to home. So you and Vishnujana Maharaja
and all of your nice brahmacaris continue strongly with great
enthusiasm and determination to spread this Krishna consciousness
movement all over your country and Lord Chaitanya will certainly be
pleased with you. [Letter to Tamal Krishna Goswami - December 28,
1974]
Tamal Krishna has picked up Vishnujana’s mood of bringing the temple
934
to the people, and Prabhupada approves it. He encourages Goswami to
continue the bus program and expand it unlimitedly. “So organize
hundreds of such parties.” Prabhupada wants the Radha-Damodara party
to increase the number of buses and festivals. “I strongly encourage you
to double your program by getting three more buses.” But book
distribution should not be increased by neglecting the festival program.
“So continue these festivals constantly and make them all Krishna
conscious. Overflood the whole country by this preaching work.”
Just as a train moves forward on two tracks, Prabhupada emphasizes the

importance of his books and the festivals. In this way many more books
can be distributed. If anyone simply reads one page, they are immensely
benefited. “Go on with your program and increase and increase more
and more.”
Vishnujana Maharaja is happy to see this letter because Prabhupada is

encouraging the festival program, which Tamal Krishna Goswami and
Yogesh Chandra are trying to curtail in order to distribute more BTGs.
Vishnujana is particularly pleased to read that “This preaching spirit will
make you recognized by Krishna,” because he has dedicated his life to
this preaching spirit for Radha-Damodara since 1971.
In his last letter, Tamal Krishna had requested a BBT loan of $30,000 to
get three more buses and now Srila Prabhupada immediately authorizes
this plan. Obviously, Tamal Krishna’s idea to expand the Radha-
Damodara party is getting Prabhupada’s full support and thus
Vishnujana agrees to the new direction of duplicating the original
program again and again.
Motivated by Prabhupada’s letter, Viṣhṇujana increases the festival

programs while Goswami and Yogesh Chandra intensify the distribution
of BTGs. Only one month after getting into serious book distribution
sankirtan, the new recruits have become infected by the book
distribution fever. But now a new challenge arises, the shortage of
vehicles. Luckily a General Motors credit scheme solves that problem as
935
Yogesh Chandra encourages Tamal Krishna to purchase three more
vans. The next problem is to find qualified leaders to direct the growing
number of aspiring preachers.
Again, Yogesh Chandra has a valuable suggestion. He recommends that

Tamal Krishna call Rupanuga in New York and ask him for a few
experienced men. Although he had recently given up sannyāsa,
Rupanuga is still Prabhupada’s senior GBC man in charge of the entire
East Coast of America. Yogesh also has someone in mind, Janardan, a
young energetic brahmacārī who worked under him in New York.
Over the phone, Tamal Krishna explains the situation to his GBC
godbrother. “We are making so many new devotees, but who will lead
them? Prabhupada wants me to organize hundreds of these buses. Can
you spare a man or two? Someone, who with proper training can
gradually accept more responsibility, like Janardan, for example?”
Rupanuga is well aware that Janardan was sent out on permanent

traveling sankirtan by Bali Mardan, so he has no qualms to sanction his
joining the Radha-Damodara party. Goswami expresses his gratitude,
adding that the cause of book distribution is an all-ISKCON concern.
In a truly broadminded gesture, Rupanuga invites Tamal Krishna to visit

New York to convince other young men to join his party. “New York
temple is filled to capacity with an overabundance of devotees so there
will be no loss for us.”
One day the Boston temple president phones Miami to inquire about the
Radha- Damodara party. Abhirama gives him the phone number of the
Fort Lauderdale house. Goswami receives the call after prasādam. Adi
Keshava says he misses the association of the sannyāsīs and Radha-
Damodara. He wonders how things are going.
Tamal brings him up to date saying how they have expanded with two
additional buses. They will soon be on the road duplicating the original
Radha-Damodara festival program. “In addition to that, Prabhupada has
936
just agreed to a BBT loan of $30,000 so I can get three more buses!”
“Wow!” Adi Keshava is very interested in this news. “Is there a chance
to get together again?”
“We are comfortably situated here in Florida,” Tamal Krishna says,

“and have no plans to go up north now that it’s winter. But I do have an
invitation to come to New York to make devotees for my program.”
“Well, if you’re agreeable, I can arrange to come at the same time and
help you make those devotees,” Adi Keshava offers. “There are a lot of
interested people that come regularly to the New York Sunday feast that
might be ready to join with a little inducement. Traveling across the
states in a bus might be just the ticket for someone to make the break.”
After experiencing the nectar of the Radha-Damodara party when they

visited Boston, Adi Keshava wants to get out of managing the temple.
Now he sees the prospect of traveling on a bus himself, as a bus leader.
Tamal Krishna is keen to make new devotees, so both men see this as
Lord Krishna’s arrangement to help them further their devotional
service. Krishna works both ways.
The following Saturday, Tamal Krishna is on a flight to New York. He

has the money to purchase four more tickets if he can encourage some
devotees to join the Radha-Damodara team.
Brooklyn, New York, January 1975

As usual, the temple room is crowded with guests for the Sunday
program. As he gives the lecture, Tamal Krishna carefully studies the
faces of the men who appear to be the most attentive. He speaks about
the suffering in material life. How can there be real happiness when
death and disease are always lurking in the shadows? They will soon
afflict our friends, relatives, and loved ones, and eventually ourselves.
937
TKG: I attacked every conceivable variety of sense gratification I could
think of, demonstrating the bitter reactions to follow. With whatever
intuitive power Kṛishna could give me, I tried to anticipate their false
dreams of happiness and tried my best to smash them with the club of
knowledge and detachment. The guests were disturbed and uneasy, but
nobody was leaving. To hear the truth spoken authoritatively shatters
one’s illusions. They had come to be enlightened even at the cost of
discomfort. With the tension at its extreme, I slowly released the
pressure by unfolding the positive alternative of surrender to Krishna.
“But there is hope in this world of darkness, if you take shelter of

Krishna’s lotus feet. Devotees don’t live in the darkness of ignorance
but bask continuously in the light of spiritual life. Krishna
consciousness places people on the transcendental platform of eternity,
knowledge, and bliss, even in this very body.”
Tamal Krishna then explains the positive alternative of the Radha-

Damodara party.
Looking directly at the most interested men, he asks, “Why suffer

through a winter of hell in New York? I have five airline tickets ready to
go tomorrow morning to Fort
Lauderdale, Florida. It’s 85 degrees [28 degrees Celcius] there, with

guaranteed blue skies every day. You can travel with two sannyāsīs
aboard a Greyhound bus, and see America while learning to play exotic
instruments, studying the ancient philosophy of Bhagavad-gita, and
having the best companionship you have ever experienced.”
After fielding some questions, Goswami retires to the temple president’s

office. Jayadvaita, Pancharatna, and Gopijanavallabha invite any
interested men to meet the Swami one-on-one. With Adi Keshava sitting
beside him, Tamal Krishna interviews the men, one at a time, to
ascertain who has the fewest attachments plus be willing to leave for
Florida the next morning.
938
Pancharatna: I don’t remember any difficulties with the Radha-
Damodara party. We were making devotees and we were overcrowded,
so if some devotees wanted to join Radha- Damodara, we weren’t upset
about it.
The questioning, preaching, and convincing, continues on past midnight.

But most of the men say they need time to think it over. Two friends
agree almost immediately.
Since returning home after the San Francisco Rathayatra, Satyaraja feels
he would like to accept initiation from Srila Prabhupada, so he wants to
rejoin the party. He convinces his friend, Marino, who also has a keen
interest in Krishna consciousness, to join with him. They cannot refuse
the enticement of a free flight to Florida.
Marino: Everybody had heard about Vishnujana Swami and Radha-

Damodara. Tamal Krishna hijacked us in New York and that was one of
his selling points. “C’mon, you’ll join Radha- Damodara and you’ll see
Vishnujana Swami. You’ll get to be with him every day. What more do
you want?” He gave us plane tickets and told us the plane leaves in the
morning. “You be there.” So we said, “Okay, Maharaja.”
Satyaraja: I had left for some time. I went back to my mother’s place
and attended regularly on Henry Street. Then Tamal Krishna passed
through and said, “You know Vishnujana Maharaja is down in Florida.
I’m going down to meet him.” So I went to Florida with Marino. It was
the first time I traveled on a plane.

One day in January when Dwarakadish is a young lad of twelve, the
Gurukula headmaster, Dayananda, informs him, “You're going to go
traveling with Vishnujana Maharaja, Tamal Krishna Maharaja, and
Radha-Damodara for several months.” He is so delighted because he
really wants to be like Vishnujana Swami.
939
An American Airlines jet from New York taxis into Miami International
airport.
Tamal Krishna and his two recruits are greeted by Yogesh Chandra at
the baggage claim. They also meet Dwarakadish’s flight from Dallas.
Soon they are all on the road to Fort Lauderdale, a 40 minute drive up
Interstate 95.
The van pulls up at the beach where Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara are

ensconced under some palm trees. The kirtan is in full swing surrounded
by a small crowd. The new devotees approach and pay their obeisances.
Marino: Vishnujana Maharaja was a legend before I ever met him. He

was playing harmonium and singing, “Hari Haraye Namah.” I was just
floored. There was a crowd of people watching and they were all
enthralled. Then he spoke. Later, he saw Tamal Krishna and they
offered obeisances to each other.
As the kirtan comes to a close for a short break, Vishnujana Maharaja

and Sri Rama walk over to greet the new men. They offer obeisances to
Maharaja and he offers obeisances back.
“Aahh, new bhaktas,” he exclaims.
Satyaraja asks, “Maharaja, do you remember me?”
“Of course I remember you. How could I forget? When you shaved up
you looked just like Narada Muni.” Satyaraja is very pleased that
Vishnujana remembers him.
Then, turning to Marino, Maharaja asks, “So where are you from?”
“We’re from New York.”
“Well, how do you like it so far?”
“I just got here five minutes ago,” Marino replies. “I don’t know.”
940
“Well, stick around,” Maharaja answers, “You’ll be here for a long
time. You’ll love it. This is going to be the best thing that ever happened
to you.” And it’s true, without a doubt. Devotional service to Radha-
Damodara is the best thing that can happen to anyone! For the next few
hours, Satyaraja, Marino, and Dwarkadish join the other devotees in the
kirtan while Tamal Krishna takes over playing mṛdaṅga.
Dwarkadish: When Vishnujana Swami was leading kirtan I just felt,

Boy, there’s no one like him. Who can lead kirtan like this? And he was
so humble. That’s what I always remembered about him. Even though
he was a Swami he was so humble and ecstatic.
At one point in the kirtan an Indian man approaches and stands listening
with rapt attention. Satyaraja is playing kartāls and notices the man with
his wife and daughter staring at Vishnujana Swami as he sings. When
it’s time to serve out prasādam, it’s the usual Radha-Damodara fare:
cauliflower and potato sabji with peas and sour cream, halavā, and
Radha-Damodara nectar – the buttermilk and orange juice mixture with
small pieces of sliced strawberries floating in it.
Holding a plate of prasādam in his hand, the Indian man approaches

Maharaja who is taking a short break. “You sing just like an angel!”
Vishnujana Maharaja puts his palms together, looking just like an

innocent child, and replies, “This is all I want to do with my life.”
Later in the afternoon, when the festival program ends, Vishnujana

wants to engage the newcomers to help him carry Radha-Damodara
back to the bus on Their palanquin. They are both tall and look strong.
Maharaja sits down with Marino and explains the service he is about to
undertake. “Marino, do you understand what I’m asking you to do? Do
you know Who you’re carrying? It’s very important. This is God. You
have to understand this. You’re not initiated but I’m going to accept the
offense, because I want to make sure that Sri Sri Radha-Damodara have
a comfortable ride when we’re taking Them in and out of the bus.
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They’re very heavy, and I want you to pay close attention. Do you
understand what you’re doing now?”
Marino nods his assent and Vishnujana turns his attention to Satyaraja,
who is equally as tall as Marino, and explains the seriousness of
carrying Radha-Damodara in and out of the bus.
Marino: I wasn’t initiated but because I was near the same bodily stature
as Vishnujana, he told me that I was going to help carry the Deities.
Everybody else was shorter than him so he said, “I’m tired of the Deities
getting a bumpy ride.” He was very concerned about that. He allowed
me to carry the Deities on many occasions. We were the same height so
this would guarantee that the Deities were carried smoothly.
Satyaraja: Vishnujana had me and Marino carry Radha-Damodara on

Their palanquin out to the beach or to a college campus. We had to
struggle to get the palanquin off the bus, and we had to walk a few
blocks to the site. I was sweating and complaining, and thinking like I
can’t shake an inch because this is the Supreme Lord, but I’m just not
cut out for this. I remember praying to Krishna, Please accept this as a
sacrifice, because I don’t know if I’ll ever make one even remotely
resembling this again. Carrying Radha-Damodara was the most physical
labor I had ever done in my life.
Every morning, Vishnujana Swami wakes everybody on the bus. At the

back of the bus is a small shower room. The sannyāsīs have to snake
themselves around the altar and kitchen, to the back, where they shower
with cold water. Vishnujana Maharaja is up and dressed before Tamal
Krishna Goswami, and while Goswami is bathing, Vishnujana wakes
the other devotees for maṅgala-ārati. He has a unique way of waking the
new devotees.
Satyaraja: Maṅgala-ārati was no disturbance because Vishnujana

Maharaja used to get us up by tickling our ears with his toes. So we
always got up, enthusiastically, and laughing. He made it fun for us to
get up.
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Marino: Vishnujana Maharaja would come by, chanting and holding his
danda, and he’d tickle your ear with his big right toe. I would wake up
and automatically see a sannyāsī chanting with a danda. And he’d say,
“C’mon, Radha-Damodara are waiting. Don’t keep Them waiting.” So
I’d offer obeisances to Prabhupada and Maharaja. He’d encourage you
to get up right away, and you were in a good frame of mind immediately
when you woke up.
Every morning after greeting Radha-Damodara and performing

Prabhupada’s guru pūjā, Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna give class in
tandem. Since the Adi Lila has now been published, the Swamis elect to
give class on Chaitanya-charitamrita instead of Srimad Bhagavatam.
And instead of just lecturing on a verse, they try to cover a whole
chapter to give a broader perspective of the teachings. They trade off
verses until they have completed the chapter.
By playing off each other and giving varied viewpoints, the devotees
really get a good overview of what the chapter is about by the time the
chapter is completed. Everyone agrees that the classes are great because
they really get to learn the śāstra.
After class, Vishnujana Maharaja is in the mood to help serve breakfast

to everyone. Satyaraja has a habit of lumping all his prasādam together.
While Maharaja is serving Satyaraja, he sees him mixing his sabji,
halavā, and chick peas, all together.
“What are you doing?”
Satyaraja is dumfounded, “What do you mean??” “Look at what you’ve

done to your prasādam.”
“Well, it all ends up in the same place, Maharaja. I like it when it’s all
merged together like that.” Vishnujana just breaks out in laughter as he
continues serving.
Dwarkadish: I remember Vishnujana did all the cooking. I couldn’t
943
believe the raisin halava and the opulent fruit salad he made every
morning. For lunch he made fabulous Gauranga potatoes. Pretty much
that was our diet. The prasādam was always opulent and rich, and
always excellent. We could do so much sankirtan all day, because the
prasādam was so good.
After breakfast prasādam, Yogesh Chandra rounds up the BTG

distributors and Vishnujana gets the festival people ready to go out.
Since coming to Fort Lauderdale, however, Sri Rama has grown a little
weak in devotional service. His mind is dragging him away from
Krishna consciousness and he begins to wonder, Why am I here? What
am I doing?
As the bus is ready to depart for harināma-sankirtan on the beach, Sri

Rama asks Tamal Krishna Goswami if he can stay back at the house. He
explains that he’s feeling a little burned-out and asks if they can just go
out and do the festival without him and leave him alone. It’s almost
heretical to spend the day alone, but he is so insistent that Tamal
Krishna allows him the day off.
Sri Rama: I felt like I was really on the edge and a little lost. I had a
badge of Sri Rukmini Devi from the Los Angeles temple, so I prayed to
Her. “I’m praying to You to please give me the desire to be a devotee.”
Then I stayed back at the house all day. I was uninitiated and Radha-
Damodara were out preaching, but there were some Deity pictures. I
took all the ārati paraphernalia and I did some āratis to the pictures. That
completely revived my devotional service. So actually it was a good
experience for me.
Vishnujana Swami always ensures that Radha-Damodara go out to

bestow Their mercy. Either They are on the beach in the sand, or at a
college or a park on the grass, or on the pavement at a street corner.
Since there is always the question of the weather, Vishnujana Swami
has a simple and practical rule. If it looks like rain, Radha-Damodara
return to the bus. Of course, many times the rain doesn’t come, but on a
944
few occasions devotees have to scramble to get Radha-Damodara back
on the bus. Sri Sri Radha-Damodara have voluntarily renounced the
luxury of relaxing in an opulent temple and waiting for people to come
for darshan. Their mission is to help Prabhupada fulfill the prophecy of
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu by utilizing his western disciples. Lord
Ramachandra recruited an army of vāṇaras to deliver Sita, similarly
Srila Prabhupada is recruiting a sankirtan army of the sons and
daughters of the mlecchas to deliver Krishna consciousness. Thus, Sri-
Sri Radha-Damodara are always eager to extend Their divine mercy to
the conditioned souls of America.
Right from the start, Satyaraja notices a shift in this latest version of the
Radha- Damodara party. There are many changes in place on the party
since Berkeley, and Tamal Krishna has taken a major role in shaping
these changes.
Satyaraja: There seemed to be a shift toward getting books out and

bringing in money. We also emphasized agar-kirtan throughout. When I
was there both were equally important.
One morning Tamal Krishna receives a phone call from Janardan in

New York. Rupanuga has informed him that he’s been donated to the
Radha-Damodara party. Janardan updates Tamal Krishna that he’ll be
coming to join the party and has some dakshina given by
Gopijanavallabha, as a donation for Radha-Damodara. He has heard that
the party is expanding from a simple traveling sankirtan party to a large
festival party with different Indian instruments, doing colleges and big
preaching.
Tamal Krishna is happy to receive this call. He confirms that they are
doing daily festival programs and book distribution with plans for large
expansion. “This will become the largest sankirtan party the world has
ever seen. And you can play a major role. When are you coming down
to Florida?”
“I’d like to come down as soon as possible. At the moment I have a
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party in the Dallas area. I just have to return there and get them settled.
Then I can come down and get involved. Can you give me a week or
so?”
“Sure. Just let me know when you’re flying in and I’ll pick you up at
Miami International.”
Janardan: Over the early years I developed a real affection for

Vishnujana Swami. I kind of knew him and I really liked him. We were
around the Brooklyn temple one day and a tape came in – the famous
Radha-Damodara TSKP tape – with kirtans of what they were doing on
the road. It sounded really exciting, really energetic. That was even
more ghee on the fire.
By that time everybody wanted to join his party. I sure did. Now they
were doing BTGs under Yogesh Chandra’s guidance, and they wanted
to learn how to do big books. They were attempting to get into more
serious book distribution. In New York, our program was traveling
around in vans doing straight books in colleges, universities, and malls.
One day at a college campus, a hippie comes forward with a hammered

dulcimer. This is an instrument with almost a hundred strings that is
similar to the Indian santoor. Vishnujana Maharaja is always looking for
new instrumentation and likes to invite various people to join the kirtan.
He even has Yogesh Chandra playing a snare drum and high hat on
occasion to keep a steady beat. Maharaja beckons the man to bring his
dulcimer on stage.
As he sits down a microphone is set up for the dulcimer. When

Maharaja begins kirtan, the man is able to follow perfectly. Although it
appears to be a home-made dulcimer, the guy is able to get fantastic
sounds out of it.
After the festival, Maharaja invites the hippie onto the bus for bhajans.
Vishnujana does all his favorite songs like, Gopinath, Kabe Hobe Bolo,
and all of the songs he loves to sing, accompanied by the dulcimer, the
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ektar, and the esraj. The sound is absolutely soul-stirring, and Maharaja
is in top form. Satyaraja has a walkman recorder and secretly tapes the
bhajans. It turns out to be an incredible recording and is the only
existing tape of that session.
Marino: We picked up a guy that played hammered dulcimer and he was

amazing. Vishnujana started jamming with the dulcimer player, just like
Bhaktivinoda Thakur said that when you’re in a particular village you
can chant in their particular style. Vishnujana was interacting with the
dulcimer player and Satyaraja recorded this incredible kirtan. We
thought nobody knew about the tape but Maharaja found out about it.
Dwarakadish: The devotees used to play western and eastern

instruments. So many people were coming around and Maharaja really
encouraged the creativity in people. Everything he did was first class. I
remember going out with him to college campuses. We’d pull up in the
Greyhound bus, and everything was state of the art. We had a stage set-
up with an ecstatic kirtan and really wonderful prasādam.
Unexpectedly, Vishnujana Maharaja comes to Satyaraja a few days later

and says, “I’m doing ārati to Radha-Damodara and I want to listen to
something to put me in the right mood, a meditative mood. I know you
have the tape from that day with the dulcimer player. Can I listen to it
while I’m doing the ārati?”
Under ordinary circumstances, Satyaraja would not have given that

recording to anyone, but he humbly acquiesces, “Yes Maharaja, sure
you can have it.” Vishnujana gives Satyaraja a recording of him and
Acyutananda singing Gopinath that was recorded in Vrindavan earlier in
the year. It’s a long 25 minute version of the song with Vishnujana and
Acyutananda trading off verses.
The next day, Satyaraja asks for his tape back, and Vishnujana replies,
“I’m going to do ārati again. Let me listen to it.” Once again, Satyaraja
surrenders.
947
Satyaraja: Over the course of time he kept stalling me. Then I was
transferred to another bus and I never did get that tape back. I think he
stalled me because he really liked that tape and he just wanted to listen
to it over and over again. He had no idea I was going to leave. It all
happened within a few weeks. I cherished that tape more than life itself
for several months.
Soon, another gurukula boy joins the party and Sri Rama is given the
responsibility of taking care of him and Dwarakadish. Ekendra is the
son of Rupanuga, the GBC for the entire East Coast, so he’s a little
proud. Daily Sri Rama drives the boys out to a mall and together they
try to distribute BTGs with incense in the parking lots in front of the
family stores.
Sri Rama: It was quite a shock being connected with young children
when I still wasn’t initiated. I was trying to make sense of how all these
different people fit in the Krishna consciousness movement. Later on I
took care of Kapila in Dallas. This might have been a foreshadowing of
my involvement with Gurukula.
Dwarakadish: All the kids were welcome to come on board the

‘traveling temple’. Actually, we liked to get away from the teachers,
who tried to stop us from going out, because they knew that Vishnujana
Maharaja would spoil us. He loved to give out gulābjāmuns after
maṅgala- ārati. He had no qualms about taking prasādam at any time.
He actually taught me a little harmonium. He showed me how to play a
tune of Hare Krishna, and the Nrsimha prayers. That whole time I was
pretty ecstatic.
Everyone is in full agreement when Vishnujana Swami suggests that the

party visit Miami one weekend for the Peacock Park Sunday program.
After the feast, Abhirama’s wife, Sruti Rupa, informs the sannyāsīs that
her father has a large empty hotel overlooking the ocean in Key West.
She invites Radha-Damodara to use it as a base for preaching there.
Having never been to Key West, Tamal Krishna is eager to accept her
948
invitation. Traveling on Sri Sri Radha-Damodara’s bus is always an
adventure.
Tamal instructs the book distributors to remain in Fort Lauderdale and

continue going out to distribute BTGs under the direction of Yogesh
Chandra. Only the small festival crew, and the gurukula boy Ekendra,
will accompany Radha-Damodara for the harināma sankirtan outing to
Key West, at the southernmost tip of the United States.
Key West, Florida, January 1975

Vipra Das parks the bus in front of the Casa Marina, a big empty hotel
that is now boarded up. It looks like the building has been abandoned
for quite a few years. The Swamis like the situation with beautiful
grounds overlooking the sea. Sruti Rupa unlocks the large front door to
the old turn-of-the-century hotel and hands the keys to Tamal Krishna.
“You now have the run of the entire place,” she says with a smile. Her
parents visit Key West on weekends and don’t complain about her sari
and tilak.
Vishnujana decides that Radha-Damodara will remain on the bus where

Their daily pūjās will be held. Sruti Rupa is always up for maṅgala-ārati
but she is not allowed to come onto the bus out of respect for the
brahmacārīs. She simply stands beside the bus and looks through a
window to see the ārati. As the kirtan gets rolling, the bus begins to rock
from the dancing and jumping inside.
During the day, Sruti Rupa goes to City Hall to get permits for book
distribution.
When two brahmacārīs are arrested, Sruti Rupa visits the Sherriff’s
Office wearing an elegant dress and talks to the Officer-in-charge.
Because her father is a well-known Florida politician, she is able to
maneuver things favorably based on his name.
949
Whenever the sannyāsīs send her out on a mission she always returns
successful and Vishnujana Swami beams from ear to ear. When she
comes onto the bus to report her success, Vishnujana congratulates her
in his deep baritone voice, “Jaya mātājī.”
Sruti Rupa dd: I adored the Deities. At that time they didn’t let any
women do service, but Vishnujana Maharaja would always allow me to
brush and comb Their hair and braid Radharani’s hair. It was very
special. He would talk to me about the hair as he’d come in and out
from dressing the Deities. My impression was that he was a deeply
feeling person.
I really wanted to join Radha-Damodara because it was so enlivening. I

got a rare opportunity to taste it by being with them throughout the day
and seeing the ecstasy, the simplicity, and the preaching. The mood of
the sannyāsīs was wonderful – Vishnujana’s softness and Tamal
Krishna’s attack.
On the opposite side of the island, many hippies gather at a place called
Sunrise to do their yoga on the beach. This is where they watch Surya
rise in his glorious splendor every morning. Today, the Swamis arrive
there for the morning class. Many hippies come over and sit quietly as
Vishnujana speaks from the ancient Bhagavatam as the sun rises.
After breakfast, Sruti Rupa goes out to buy the bhoga for prasādam
distribution. She also buys all the paper plates and cups. Vishnujana
begins Radha-Damodara’s lunch offering on the bus and the
brahmacārīs go out to distribute BTGs. After offering the preparations
to Sri Sri Radha-Damodara, the rest of the day is spent in kirtan and
distributing prasādam to the beach crowd.
By late afternoon, the festival scene shifts to Sunset Pier in Mallory

Square, the westernmost point of the southern tip of the US. It’s a
wooden dock at the end of Duvall Street where everybody – all the
crafts people, the hippies, and the tourists – congregate for the evening
ritual, to watch the sun dip into the ocean. When there are no clouds on
950
the horizon, it’s always a glorious sunset because everyone can see the
sun slowly sink into the sea. If the sky is cloudy, then the colors
displayed on the clouds are extraordinary.
Vipra parks the bus near the pier about two hours before sunset. The
place is already crowded with people drinking beer. Some of them
notice the bus with ‘Hare Krishna’ written in the destination slot. They
begin to jeer, “Oh no, the Hare Krishnas. We don’t want you here.”
Some of these people can get a little rowdy. They don’t want anyone
interfering with their sense gratification.
Tamal Krishna expresses his reservations about setting up in such a

situation.
“Vishnujana Maharaja, I don’t think we should chant here, because they

look pretty demoniac.” Ryan is a big man, so he’s ready for anything
because he also thinks that it could get heavy.
Vishnujana, however, can never be dissuaded from spreading the glories

of the Holy Names. He assures everyone on the bus that it will be okay.
“I’ve done this many times before because this is where everybody
hangs out. We didn’t come this far for nothing. Krishna will protect us.”
It’s his mood of bringing the temple to the people.
Several friends of the devotees happen to be on the pier. Chris Murray

from Washington, DC, comes up to say, “Haribol.” He is visiting a
friend who lives in Key West. Sri Rama also meets several friends from
Ann Arbor who are staying here over the winter. With Satyaraja and
Marino assisting him, Vishnujana brings Radha- Damodara out of the
bus. Maharaja is always specific how he wants Them set up. “Radha-
Damodara must see the sunset. They will also enjoy that very much.”
Chris Murray: Vishnujana Swami had the Deities taken out on a

palanquin to set Them up. A lot of people were so shocked to see this.
I’ll never forget him wanting Radha-Damodara to enjoy the sunset, like
everyone else. It seemed that he had a living relationship with Radha-
951
Damodara. It was so inspiring. They were present to him because he
served Them in such a real way. It was another example of his
realization.
When Vishnujana starts the kirtan, Sruti Rupa sits at the book table.
Tamal Krishna Goswami preaches to anybody who has a question. A
few people continue to mock the devotees, and some come over to
dance sarcastically with a beer in their hand. Seeing these guys drinking
beer and being obnoxious, Vishnujana Swami stops the kirtan. In his
amiable, esoteric voice he explains the Radha-Damodara policy.
“We want everyone to chant and dance with us, but you can’t drink your
beer here. Please sit down by the bar to finish your beer and then come
back here.”
The obnoxious people leave laughing, and the devotees don’t expect
them back. Within half an hour, however, more and more people have
turned away from the upcoming sunset to join the kirtan. Vishnujana’s
singing has completely won them over. It’s not simply because he’s a
great musician, but there’s so much spiritual potency in his chanting.
The new recruits sit with him playing kartāls for hours. It’s the most
chanting they have ever done in their life.
At one point, it seems that practically everyone on the pier is dancing

and chanting.
Hundreds of people dance in a huge circle and the devotees are amazed
to see this. Even the beer drinkers have returned, probably because so
many girls are dancing to the kirtan. Vishnujana’s chanting is pure and
heartfelt so a positive influence descends on everyone who is fortunate
enough to come in contact with the kirtan. A potentially dangerous
situation has turned into a spiritual festival of love of God.
As the sun sets beautifully on the horizon, few people notice it this
evening because they are absorbed in the rising moon of Sri Chaitanya’s
harināma sankirtan movement. Although the sun is setting, and this is
952
what everyone has come for, hardly anyone is even looking because the
kirtan is so ecstatic. Vishnujana Swami has turned them into dancing
peacocks!
When the festival closes down after dark, the brahmacārīs pack the bus
bays while Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna go for a stroll along the pier,
pacing back and forth, and having intimate talks.
Back at the hotel, the sannyāsīs prepare to take rest for the night. But
Vipra is up to something. He asks some of the brahmacārīs if they want
to check out the ghosts in the hotel. “You guys want to hear some
ghosts? There’s a whole bunch of ghosts in the ballroom of this hotel.”
Gauridas Pandit is immediately up for it. “Yeah, let’s go check it out.”

New devotees are always looking for far-out experiences. They follow
Vipra to the hotel’s former ballroom. Entering the room, they can hear
voices coming out of nowhere. It sounds like a party of 50 people all
talking at once, yakety yak yak yak. Giggling sounds can also be heard
with the talking. The brahmacārīs are totally taken aback.
Vipra pulls out a cassette player with a tape of Prabhupada’s kirtan.

When he starts the tape, the room falls silent as soon as Prabhupada’s
chanting begins. When he turns off the tape, the voices start up again.
That’s enough for Gauridas and he leaves the room really fast.
The party remains in Key West for several days and try to make
devotees. By the way Vishnujana speaks about spiritual life and
traveling on the bus, several young men become attracted to join.
The US Navy has bases in the Key West area, and one day a Navy test
pilot comes by to challenge the devotees. When he challenges their
education, Vishnujana immediately brings out the gurukula boy,
Ekendra, who begins quoting Sanskrit ślokas and translating them. The
fellow is very impressed.
Chris Murray: I remember Tamal Krishna preaching to this Navy pilot
953
on the bus in front of me. He was so skeptical but he left with a
Bhagavad-gita. Tamal Krishna was preaching up a storm. He was such
an effective preacher, such a potent preacher. Then Vishnujana was such
an effective singer and pūjāri. They were an extraordinary team. My
friend was so inspired by Vishnujana Swami that he joined and became
Marutpati Das.
Sri Rama: Tamal Krishna and Vishnujana used to play good cop/bad
cop. Tamal would heavy people out, and tell them about their eternal
damnation. He was the bad cop. When they were just about to walk out
the door of the bus, Vishnujana would start extolling the glories of pure
devotional service, and they would go back and forth. I must have
watched it a hundred times. It made devotees. It wasn’t mundane good
cop/bad cop, it was transcendental. In Key West I watched them reverse
one night. I saw Vishnujana play the heavy and Tamal Krishna play the
nice guy. And they did it equally well.
Once the bus is on the road back to Miami, Goswami begins to dish out
the hot sauce to the new recruits. He informs them about practical
spiritual life explaining about all the don’ts: don’t do this, and don’t do
that, give up this, and give up that. By the time they reach Miami, the
weaker men are ready to leave.
Because several devotees are made in Key West, Tamal Krishna

comments to Sruti Rupa that the three of them are a perfect team. She’s
inspired to hear this.
Sruti Rupa dd: When I got back to Miami, I was so enthused after being
with them. I loved Tamal Krishna Maharaja and Vishnujana Maharaja
very much. I wanted to join the Radha- Damodara Party so I told
Abhirama that I would even undergo a sex alteration operation to
become a brahmacārī. It was a joke but Abhirama said, “You can do all
the changes you want and we’ll still know you’re a woman, by your
mind.” I felt so defeated.
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Fort Lauderdale, January 1975
Although the Radha-Damodara party is increasing in numbers, there is
also an increase in austerity. Taking shelter of Radha-Damodara and
Vishnujana Swami protects the new recruits and nourishes their faith.
But those men that Goswami sends out for book distribution have no
other shelter than their own faith.
They have to remain fixed in Krishna consciousness under strained

conditions during the day without any devotee association. They have to
deal with challenges, with ignorance, with atheists, and with so-called
“true believers” who denounce them for worshiping the devil.
The morning and evening classes are platforms where these issues can
be dealt with in a practical way. The sannyāsīs quote from Prabhupada’s
books and speak from their own realization. They explain that all saintly
people meet the same opposing elements, just as Prabhupada did, as
Lord Chaitanya did, as Lord Jesus did. Therefore, those who represent
such great teachers must expect to meet similar challenges. By
following strictly the devotional principles, Krishna empowers His
devotees with knowledge and detachment to overcome obstacles.
One of these principles is to avoid faithless, confrontational, and

envious people. Better to spend one’s time with inquisitive and
interested people.
Some devotees prefer to go out dressed as Vaishnavas with shaven head

and dhoti. At least this way people will know who they are speaking to,
and the discussion can go right to the point of Krishna consciousness.
Goswami explains that devotees can adopt whatever principle is
beneficial to expand the preaching work.
TKG: If the conditions were suitable, certainly we preferred the natural

devotional attire, but under the present circumstances it was unlikely
that dressing visibly as a Vaishnava would facilitate sankirtan. Srila
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Prabhupada has clarified this issue in discussing how Maharaja
Prataparudra approached Lord Chaitanya. [See CC, Madhya 14.5
purport]
Several devotees complain about the modes. Others disclose how

difficult it is to remain fixed in pure consciousness with so many
temptations out there, especially in the form of pretty, young women.
They are concerned about a fall-down because the mind is attracted to
enjoy the objects of the senses.
Satyaraja: Vishnujana Maharaja always taught, “You’re young

devotees, so if you have a fall- down just pick yourself up and keep on
going. Because we’re following the mission of Srila Prabhupada it
supersedes any negative thing in our lives.” As an example he always
used to quote from Nectar of Devotion. “Prabhupada says a baby will
fall down while trying to walk because he has weak legs. But he gets up
and continues to walk and that way he becomes strong and learns to
walk. If he doesn’t get up he’ll be crippled for life.”
Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna were very close, really tight friends.
Even when they would argue, you could feel it was an argument
amongst friends. There was never any vehemence or anger. That was an
inspiration for me. I thought, Oh it’s possible to be friends and to be
advanced in Krishna consciousness.
Nonetheless, some people’s faith is not strong enough and a few people
decide to leave. Among them is Richard, the Christian adherent from
Ann Arbor, whose doubts on Vedic authority has peaked. He
approaches Tamal Krishna with his doubts. “What’s the proof that the
Vedas are the word of God?”
He feels that practicing Krishna consciousness is betraying his trust in

Jesus. This had not been a problem until he started going out to sell
incense and BTGs. When he came across argumentative Christians, they
tried to convince him that he was being lured by the devil. Before long
Richard’s doubts became a chasm.
956
Goswami explains, “The Vedas are the oldest written record known to
man, and their language, Sanskrit, is the mother of all tongues. They are
the final word in theistic science, the postgraduate course in religious
study. The Vedas deal extensively with every aspect about God: His
form, His kingdom, His activities, the creation, and the method by
which to approach Him. The Vedas are like an encyclopedia of spiritual
wisdom compared to the brief, dictionary-like summaries and parables
of the Bible.
“Jesus himself said, ‘I have so much more to tell, but ye cannot bear to
hear it.’ He wanted to explain so much more,” Tamal Krishna
concludes, “but the people he was instructing were not yet ready to
hear.”
“Then why do we take the Lord’s name in vain by always repeating it?”
“Every scripture of the world accepts the Lord’s name as holy,” Tamal
responds. “All the religions of the world recommend that His name be
glorified. There are numerous passages in the Bible to this effect. And
we can see how our own lives have become uplifted simply through the
chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra.”
“The Bible says that Jesus is the only way!”
“Jesus’s purpose was to focus attention on himself as the representative

of God. This agrees with the Vedic version that one can’t approach God
directly but must approach Him through His pure devotee spiritual
master, the authorized representative.
“The Bible has been edited so many times, and the earliest changes were
partly due to political reasons. Originally it contained information about
reincarnation and other Vedic concepts, but these have gradually been
omitted. The Vedic scholars were highly respected throughout the
world, and there is evidence of their presence in the Greek and Roman
empires. There is no doubt that Jesus was familiar with brahminical
culture and appreciated it greatly.”
957
Tamal concludes that if there are any limitations on the knowledge
presented in the Bible, it’s simply due to the time and circumstances
under which Jesus had to preach. Richard is not satisfied, and Tamal
Krishna is not a Biblical scholar. Prabhupada has never advised
devotees to convince people of other faiths to convert. Rather his point
was always that “any religion which teaches how to love God – that is
perfect. It doesn’t matter whether you are Christian or Muslim or
Hindu.”
Goswami is trying to save Richard’s spiritual life but philosophy is not

getting a result. Richard’s lack of understanding comes from not reading
Prabhupada’s books, so Tamal Krishna tries a new tactic.
“I think your dissatisfaction comes from your own frustration of having

to follow our principles. You’ve been abstaining from illicit sex,
gambling, meat-eating, and intoxication. This is your real
dissatisfaction. We don’t engage in these sinful activities, so in the name
of Jesus you are looking for an excuse to leave and return to your old
lifestyle.”
Richard hangs his head down and admits he has already broken some
principles while out distributing BTGs. Not all of the new recruits are
able to follow the process and sooner or later they ‘bloop’.
After getting his belongings together Richard asks Tamal Krishna to

allow him to return to Ann Arbor. Without hesitation, Tamal Krishna
gives him the bus fare and his Brazilian butterfly collection.
The Swamis are pained when potential devotees leave devotional

service and return to the dead end of human suffering. They have
exerted time and energy trying to disentangle Richard from māyās web.
However, they know that he has benefited by the devotional service he
has given. He will return eventually, in this life or the next.
Maya is a formidable enemy, but “wherever there is Krishna, the master

of all mystics, and wherever there is Arjuna, the supreme archer, there
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will also certainly be opulence, victory, extraordinary power, and
morality.” [Bhagavad-gita 18.78]
During breakfast the next morning, Tamal Krishna receives another

phone call from Janardan. He’ll be flying into Miami from Dallas
tomorrow. Tamal Krishna promises that they will meet him at the
airport. He explains that they will only be in South Florida a few more
days before shifting to Gainesville.
“Amarendra has invited us for Nityananda’s Appearance Day festival

and at the same time we’ll have a big meeting to chalk out the future of
the Radha-Damodara party.”
The next day, Tamal Krishna and Yogesh Chandra pick up Janardan at
Miami International. In the van on the road back to Fort Lauderdale,
Tamal Krishna hastily brings up the subject of book distribution.
“How many big books do you guys do every day?”
“Well we’re not exactly doing an airport with a captive audience,”

Janardan says carefully. “We’re traveling around finding spots in malls
and wherever we can. We get kicked out often, but we still do about
fifteen books a day, at regular prices.”
Janardan explains that his party is not blowing out the books at the same
rate as Tripurari’s BBT airport party. Tamal Krishna is disappointed at
these figures and becomes a little dismissive. Janardan’s candor that
he’s only doing fifteen books a day and maybe a little more on the
weekends, and sometimes a little less, doesn’t seem big enough. Tamal
Krishna has seen what the airport distributors are doing in the Sankirtan
Newsletter.
He is hoping the same thing can be done on the buses and that Janardan
can institute a distribution program for big books. The conversation
lapses into japa for the rest of the journey. Janardan is excited on the
drive up, thinking about being a bus leader on the Radha-Damodara
959
party.
When the van pulls up at the beach where Radha-Damodara are set up,
Janardan is not favorably impressed. These devotees appear dressed in
rags and don’t seem to have much of a conception of cleanliness. His
first thought is, Oh my God, what is this?
But then there is Vishnujana Swami and Radha-Damodara. So even

though on one level he finds the situation kind of weird, on another level
there is a high energy of enthusiasm and ecstasy. Janardan realizes that
he has to look aside a little bit.
Janardan: My first impression of the party was, My God, what a bunch

of rag-a-muffins. In Brooklyn we had most of the older devotees who
had been in New York from the very beginning. They had a lot of close
association with Srila Prabhupada; senior devotees like Jayadvaita,
Jadurani, Madhusudana, Murlidhara. So the standard of cleanliness and
the conception of Deity worship was pretty high. We had old-time
pūjāris like Rukmini; she was a big-time pūjāri. There was a great deal
of introduction of art and culture from Baradraja, which made it a lot
different than the other smaller temples that were existing at the time.
New York temple has always been a kind of focal point. There are lots
of people coming through the temple from one direction or another.
There are many senior devotees, including the editors at ISKCON Press.
So the temple has fairly high standards for sādhana, cleanliness, Deity
worship, and for regulation in terms of eating, sleeping, and study of
scripture. The siddhānta is understood a little bit more, and stressed a
little more, in terms of the rules and regulations.
In contrast, the Radha-Damodara party is mostly new men whose main

interest is kirtan and going out to distribute Back to Godhead
magazines.
Within days, the party will shift northward to Gainesville. Tamal

Krishna has been waiting for a shipment of 200 cases of BTGs and
960
today they arrive. He watches as the cases are loaded into the bays of
the bus. Prabhupada has ordered book distribution and Tamal’s mind is
fixed on this instruction. He is prepared to go ahead at all costs.
Amarendra is offering his temple as a base. The sannyāsīs accept the

invitation. They prefer to spend time in a more spiritual environment.
This is the best situation they have been offered. Amarendra has ample
room to house the entire party, including the new buses still being
refurbished in Miami. The new buses are almost complete and the
construction crew retooling them can finish their work at Gainesville.
Dayal Chandra: Unfortunately the new buses were pretty junky. Of

course, I got to do a lot of service in that connection rebuilding one of
those. The first one we bought was ready to go; we just had to do the
inside. But on the other buses I had to redo everything. We had a
different crew to build the inside. I could never get along with Tamal
Krishna, so the perfect way to get rid of me was to give me the service
of doing all the mechanic work.
Tamal Krishna likes the idea of shifting to Gainesville. Although several

men have blooped from the program, more young men have taken their
place. Tamal has kept in touch with Adi Keshava in Boston and
encourages him to join the party. Adi Keshava pledges to come and
bring several of his own men.
One day after maṅgala-ārati, he leaves Boston in a van taking Vivasvan,

Bhudara, and Subuddhi with him.
Adi Keshava: I had some interaction with Tamal Krishna and then I
decided that I wanted to go with the buses. Trai Das was coming back
so he could become the temple president again. I called Rupanuga and
he was happy to get Trai Das back. I left to travel with Vishnujana
Maharaja and Tamal Krishna Maharaja. I was okay with Rupanuga, plus
I would be doing Radha-Damodara with Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna,
so I was really happy.
961
Vivasvan: I joined with Adi Keshava and we got first and second
initiation together. When Tamal Krishna convinced Adi Keshava to join
the party, he wrote Prabhupada to ask permission to leave the Boston
presidency. When the letter came, he said, “Well, he didn’t say yes, and
he didn’t say no, so I’m going to go ahead with it.”
Subuddhi: I joined in Boston when Adi Kesava was in charge. He had

already decided to join
Radha-Damodara, so when he left he took me.
On the way to Florida, Adi Keshava and his men stop at the Atlanta
temple for evening prasādam. Coincidentally, they meet a 16 year-old
devotee who has just flown in from the Portland temple.
Misra Bhagavan: I was 16 when I started going to the Sunday Feast. I

had no idea I would take a big interest in Hare Krishna. The Radha-
Damodara party was a frequent visitor to Portland. They were the talk of
the temple. Mahi Barta was a Vishnujana Swami groupie. He tried to
play harmonium like Vishnujana Maharaja and he’d go on and on about
him. Dina Bandhu had a stack of photos of the big flower festival they
used to do in Laurel Hurst Park where devotees would have kirtan and a
big feast.
Devotees in the temple were listening to Vishnujana Swami’s tapes and

looking at the pictures. They were telling me, “This is Radha-
Damodara, and this is Vishnujana Maharaja. And here’s the kirtan.”
Everybody was really pumped up and happy about that festival.
Immediately I had an impression of some elite group of devotees,
something special. After I shaved up, I continued going to high school
as a devotee.
Back then, Krishna consciousness was so powerful with Srila

Prabhupada’s presence. We thought we could chuck the whole material
life and take the one way street Back to Godhead. With that in mind I
wanted to quit high school, but my parents refused. Dina Bandhu
962
encouraged me to keep peace with my parents and carry on going to
high school and distribute books on the weekends. I wanted to distribute
the books full time, it was so ecstatic. Jayatirtha was the GBC
representative so I brought the question of high school to him.
He said, “No, you shouldn’t have to do that. You should go and join
Radha-Damodara. Then your parents will never know where you are
because you’ll always be moving all over the country.” It sounded great
because I was already becoming one of the Radha-Damodara
worshippers through Mahi Barta’s association. So I sold all my things,
including my bass guitar and record collection, and took a plane to
Atlanta.
Adi Keshava preaches to the young man that he can join the Radha-
Damodara party. “You can be on my bus. I’m going to have a bus too.”
He takes him under his wing and the next morning they leave Atlanta
and drive to Gainesville.
Gainesville, Florida, February 1975

The Gainesville temple is attracting more and more attention from
people connected to the University. This is mainly due to the success of
the prasādam distribution program. Among these people is a young man
who majored in poetry while studying the beatnik movement. He even
spent an afternoon with Allen Ginsburg, who suggested he read
Dostoyevsky and Bhagavad-gita. So he begins the practice of chanting
OM with his friends, along with different mantras that Ginsberg taught
him.
During the summer he spends time in Nantucket where he finds a

Bhagavad-gita in a second-hand bookstore. It’s printed in India by Gita
Press so he buys it because it’s the book Ginsburg said to read. He
always keeps it in the pocket of his denim jacket and pulls it out to read
to his friends. His friends think that’s cool. Before he leaves Nantucket
to return to Florida he asks a close friend, who is also into chanting,
963
about a certain mantra.
“What’s that mantra, Hare Lama? Is it the Dalai Lama mantra?”
“Do you mean the Hare Rama mantra?”
“I don’t know. It’s the one that’s on that George Harrison song.”
Gopal Acharya: I had listened to My Sweet Lord all through boarding

school. But I thought they were singing Hare Lama. That was my first
exposure. My friend taught me the Hare Krishna mantra and we chanted
that all the way to Florida in the back seat of a car.
Back in Florida he finds a place in the countryside outside of

Gainesville with a couple who have a small piece of land. The husband
has a degree in horticulture and is trying to start a little homestead. In
the woods, Gopal builds a thatched hut out of palm trees and moves in
with his girl friend. They have no running water and no electricity. They
never go to parties and don’t have a stereo or radio, because they don’t
like electricity. They don’t like to go to movies, or even going into
town. They are into meditation and enjoy chanting Hare Krishna even
before they meet devotees.
They discover the Krishna devotees by chance because the temple is just
a few blocks from the Gainesville campus. Gopal has friends who are
studying at the University so it’s convenient for him to come to the
temple because it’s the only place in town to get a cheap vegetarian
meal. His friends usually go to a really good vegetarian restaurant but
the prices are astronomical. One of his friends mentions the Sunday
Feast where anyone can eat as much as they want for free! Gopal’s first
reaction is to decline the offer because he doesn’t want to be preached
to.
“Well, look at it this way,” his friend says. “You’ve got your own
spiritual path, but it’s purifying for them to talk about it, so you should
go for their sake.” That makes sense so he becomes a regular on
964
Sundays.
After the feast, devotees have a big kirtan and dance in a huge circle
around the temple’s circular driveway. It’s a lot of fun for the guests.
The neighbor next door, however, can’t tolerate the devotees and he
regularly calls the police on Sundays. Most of the visiting guests are
kind of rebellious anyway, so they identify even more with the devotees
when the cops come.
Gopal Acharya: We weren’t into much city stimulus. I had finger

cymbals that I bought at a store and we’d chant and play these finger
cymbals around the streets of Gainesville. We were a public spectacle.
After we met the devotees we thought this is an anti-establishment,
primal life style. We were into primitive entertainment, and the chanting
seemed primitive. So we really loved it. When I first went to the temple
they were chanting Hare Krishna, and I thought, Oh that’s neat, they’re
chanting Hare Krishna too. Then it dawned on me, after talking to a few
of them, that this was where the mantra came from. I thought, This is
really amazing; this is the source of the mantra.
The Sunday feast becomes the only organized entertainment that Gopal
and his girlfriend relish. They live out on the little homestead all week,
and fast on Sunday before coming to the temple. He always wears clean
overalls and puts a handkerchief in his vest pocket thinking he looks
kind of spiffy. He and his girlfriend dance it up at the temple and then
eat until they drop. They totally get into it because it’s their only
entertainment.
Now that Gopal is a regular at the Sunday feast he becomes quite close
with the devotee who takes care of the greenhouse and Tulasi Devi. But
one Sunday Gopal gets chastised for not appreciating people enough.
“You like coming here and eating, but people grew this, and people
harvested it, and people had to cook it and serve it out. We don’t mind,
but you should understand there are people behind all this. You see that
picture on the wall?”
965
“Yeah, I really like it.”
“Well, a person put that picture on the wall, another person had to paint
it, and you’re enjoying it. But just understand there’s a person behind
everything.” Gopal begins to think he must be an impersonalist.
In the evening, the temple makes a big deal of advertising a festival that
is coming. It is Lord Nityananda’s appearance day and they bill it as a
huge feast with lots to eat.
Gopal Acharya: I was so fond of prasādam that my girl friend and I

would always stay behind when everybody else had cleared out after the
feast. We’d eat everything on all the guest’s plates, because people
would leave their plates unfinished. Then we’d go into the room where
they kept the big containers and take as much of that as we wanted.
Then we’d make up big plates and take them home to our friends.
Inevitably, we would eat it all before we got home. They’d say, “What
did you bring us?” “Oh, we just have some rice left.”
When Gopal comes for the big festival, the entire Radha-Damodara
party has already arrived with three buses, five vans, and over 50 men.
There’s a lot of activity going on with brahmacārīs everywhere. It’s an
exciting time and everybody at the temple is fired-up by Vishnujana
Swami and Tamal Krishna Goswami. Radha-Damodara’s bus is like a
Vaikuntha flower starship that swoops down and charges everybody up.
Hearing about the vast organization that Tamal Krishna is coordinating,

Abhirama has come up from Miami to see what is happening. He is
hoping for some sādhu sanga. On the temple’s front lawn Ramacharya is
fanning Their Lordships Sri-Sri Radha- Damodara. Vishnujana Swami
is speaking and telling the story of Sakshi Gopal, which is a real treat
for everyone. It’s an hour-long story and everyone is mesmerized. Then
the prasādam arrives. Amarendra sends his servers out with three large
tables. One table has sabjis, one table has sweets, and one table has
savories. Many 40 gallon plastic barrels are filled with sweet rice, and
many others are filled with nectar.
966
All the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs have plastic milk containers.
They have clipped off the tops with scissors so that they can each dip a
gallon of sweet rice and a gallon of nectar drink. These they empty
without much difficulty. They then proceed to move down the tables.
It’s another eating contest and Tamal Krishna is the MC. He encourages
the competition but doesn’t eat much himself. The next stage is
individual competitions where devotees pile plates full of samosās and
try to eat them all. By this time, Tamal has already left the scene to
conduct a meeting that he has arranged with his top lieutenants.
Abhirama: Amarendra and his wife were famous for cooking big feasts.
I remember the outrageous amount of eating that went on. There were
the sweet ball tosses, the gulābjāmun tosses, and all the crazy stuff. I
didn’t get involved. It was way over my head. Radha-Damodara was
definitely expanding, but so was the whole movement.
It was a dramatically different organization with Tamal Krishna

involved. Instead of a group of devotional hippies that was wonderful to
be with, suddenly it was an army that had a mission. They were
organized. The entire movement was moving in that direction at the
time. I felt that Radha-Damodara was a very important part of the whole
movement, a really significant factor. They were enlivening us all.
Dwarakadish: I remember that Tamal Krishna was getting everything

more structured. That kind of broke things up and spread things out. It
was more a business type of management – make sure how much lakṣmī
is coming in – things that Vishnujana Swami didn’t really care for. It
seemed like Vishnujana Maharaja had this really spontaneous way of
doing everything. He just wanted to chant and have kirtan and
prasādam.
In a room on the ashram side of the temple, a meeting with all the
proposed leaders of Radha-Damodara is in session. One senior man,
Aja, is absent from the meeting. Tamal Krishna outlines his vision and
the plans he has to attain his goals. “We now have two more buses just
967
about ready to go out, and Prabhupada has approved the purchase of
three more buses. He has authorized the BBT to give us a loan of
$30,000 to get these new buses. So Adi Keshava has come from Boston
with his own men, and he will be the leader of one bus, and
Dhristadyumna will take leadership of the second new bus with his men.
“We have to acknowledge and give all credit to Yogesh Chandra who
had the inspiration and determination to stress book distribution. But he
will stay with our Radha-Damodara bus with his own van party of crack
sankirtan men.”
Suddenly there is a buzzing of voices in the hallway outside the room.

Some new recruits have returned to the ashram after finishing prasādam.
With all the traveling parties congregating in Gainesville, the new men
are meeting each other for the first time. They have joined from
different parts of the country, with different kinds of backgrounds, and
they are relating how they met Radha-Damodara and the Swamis.
Tamal Krishna stops his discussion for a moment. Taking it as a cue,

Janardan gets up, opens the door, and blasts somebody out in the
hallway for talking nonsense. Tamal calls Janardan back to advise him.
“It’s not nonsense. They’re trying to get to know each other. They don’t
know Krishna yet. They need to develop relationships with each other.
Later that Krishna conscious talk will come when they know
something.”
As a new bus leader, Dhristadyumna notes that this is a very important

point. Tamal Krishna has already outlined his plans for where each bus
will go after Gainesville, and which sankirtan vans will be satellites of
each bus, and Dhristadyumna is ready to take on his new
responsibilities.
“After we purchase and outfit the three new buses that Prabhupada has
sanctioned,” Tamal Krishna continues, “then I think that Janardan, Aja,
and Yogesh Chandra can take charge of those buses. Every bus will be a
968
traveling temple with Gaura-Nitai Deities, and every bus will distribute
books and put on a festival every day like we do on Radha-Damodara’s
bus. We will continue to duplicate the program, by training up new
leaders and purchasing more buses. Prabhupada wrote me that he wants
hundreds of these traveling temples crisscrossing America. This is the
beginning of a new era of preaching and we are in the vanguard.”
Janardan: At the big meeting I got to know a lot of the people that were
going to play principal roles on the party. I knew Dhristadyumna from
Philadelphia temple. I met Adi Keshava, and Gauranga, who was Tamal
Krishna’s bright light and big star because he was doing so well on the
lots. They were stressing how much people were collecting. These were
$100 a day men. They had a real determination to do some serious
service. I thought I was going to be in charge of a bus right away but he
didn’t really take to me, old Tamal.
As the meeting is going on, everyone else is taking the Sunday feast.
Srikhara approaches Gopal and sits down to talk a little philosophy.
Srikhara’s style of delivery is attractive so Gopal can relate to him more
than the other devotees who have approached him. Seeing his sincerity
for spiritual life, Srikhara tells Gopal that he wants to introduce him to
the Maharaja.
“Well, I don’t...” Gopal checks himself because he remembers he

shouldn’t be impersonal with people. Instead he says, “Yeah, okay.
What have I got to lose? I probably have something to gain. I don’t
mind meeting someone.”
When they finish their prasādam, Srikhara brings Gopal up to the room
where the meeting is going on. When they enter, Gopal sees all the
heavyweights are there. Vishnujana Swami sits on the floor with his
back against the wall wearing a big grin on his face. Tamal Krishna
Goswami is at center stage, leaning over the back of a straight-back
black chair. He wears black horned-rim glasses and is freshly shaven.
Gopal sits down quietly, realizing he is the only outsider in the room.
969
He’s not accustomed to seeing shaved-up devotees with horned-rim
glasses so he fixes his attention on Tamal Krishna. Several people say,
“Haribol,” but everybody else simply continues listening as Tamal talks
about book distribution. Because of the warm way devotees usually treat
guests, Gopal expects that they will soon acknowledge his presence and
start paying attention to him. He sits quietly for about 15 or 20 minutes
while Tamal Krishna speaks about distribution networks and profit
margins.
Gopal Acharya: I thought, This is amazing, because I had never seen

devotees dealing in a businesslike way, where a guest comes in and they
don’t even pay attention. They were totally into their thing.
When they finish their sankirtan business discussion, Tamal Krishna

turns to Gopal. “You should accept a spiritual master.” He is blunt and
to the point.
“Yeah, I agree. If Krishna wants me to, then He’ll probably send

Prabhupada here and I’ll accept him.”
“That’s not the way it works. You go with us, and you learn with us
until you get a chance to meet him.”
Gopal sees his way out. “Well if Krishna wants it to happen with
Prabhupada, then I’ll bump into him sometime, somewhere.”
“You don’t understand. Srila Prabhupada hardly ever comes to this

country. He might come once a year. It might be a year or two before
you see him.”
Tamal Krishna is trying to convince Gopal to join, and Gopal is trying

to convince him he can’t join. His argument is that he has friends in
Gainesville, and they need him. The conversation arrives at an impasse.
No devotee can get him past this point. They are at a logjam. Suddenly,
Vishnujana Swami speaks up and says, “Go get Dwarakadish. Let him
answer this question.”
970
Gopal Acharya: I thought, God, who’s this Dwarakadish guy! I expected
someone twice as big as Amarendra the way they were talking. “Bring
in Dwarakadish!”
After a few minutes the door opens and in comes a shy little gurukula
boy. Gopal can see that he’s just the most bashful kid he’s ever
encountered. Vishnujana Swami explains the situation to Dwarakadish.
“We have a problem here. We want this bhakta to come with us, but he
says he can’t because of his friends. What should we do?”
Everyone waits breathlessly for his reply. Every person including Gopal
looks at Dwarakadish expecting an answer. There is a silent tension in
the room.
After a moment’s pause, Dwarakadish shrugs his shoulders and says,

“Well, his friends can come too.”
Immediately everyone says, “Jaya,” and laughs. The tension is released

and everybody relaxes again.
Gopal Acharya: He gave the answer that I couldn’t defeat. I had

managed to hold my own with the others, but I couldn’t do it with him.
He was so disarming. I had run out of arguments so I had to go with
them in order to be polite. The plan was, “We’re going to Atlanta and
we’re coming right back and we’ll bring you back when we return.” I
agreed to join them for three days so I got some of my belongings and
told my friends goodbye. I thought it would be fun. We went to Atlanta
but the plan changed and we never came back.
The day after the meeting, Dhristadyumna and Adi Keshava are fired-
up. Each is now in charge of his own bus with a full complement of
men. Tamal Krishna has given the direction that, “Somehow we have to
keep track of all this, so figure it out.” The party needs to send money to
the BBT, to send to Mayapur, and for vehicle maintenance. They need a
system that they can easily keep track of everything. The brahmacārīs
971
aren’t very sophisticated, so they can’t be allowed to just give away all
the incense and books. Dhristadyumna accepts the responsibility to
work it all out.
He stays up most of the night and comes up with something called the
Profit Box.
It’s a little box with a formula to fill in: Number of Books x Cost = Send
this Amount. Every devotee has a box that he fills out and gives to his
van leader every day. Then the van leader amalgamates these into one
report for his van. Then the three or four vans attached to each bus, give
their scores to the bus leader, who amalgamates the three or four reports
into one of these boxes. It’s quite simple because it’s the same form all
the way. Each leader just has to keep adding the numbers.
At the end of each day the bus leaders call in their reports to Tamal
Krishna. Then he can take all the bus scores and add them together to
get the total picture for the day. In this way, Goswami will know every
night how much the party has made that day, and what the profit is for
the day. Then he knows how much to send to the book fund, and to
Mayapur, etc.
Dhristadyumna: Tamal Krishna really liked the idea so we printed them

up and everybody got these. That’s how we kept track of things. It was
very simple. We would put away 5% in a pilgrimage fund, and that way
the whole party was able to go to Mayapur, and still have enough money
when we come back without being in debt. It was very well planned like
that. The men could see this was a program with a vision.
The next morning Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna wonder what to do

with young Bhakta Michael, the 16 year old minor from Portland who
has run away from home. Adi Keshava lobbies that Michael should be
on his bus. “I brought him, so he should be my man.” Tamal Krishna
sees no problem with that. Adi Keshava is 21 but he looks so young that
Tamal starts calling him ‘Adi the kid’. But Adi Keshava will soon do
better than any other bus leader and Goswami will start calling him ‘the
972
boy wonder.’
Misra Bhagavan: In Gainesville I got to see the Radha-Damodara

Deities for the first time. There was something so special about Them.
What struck me was that They had been authorized to come off the altar
and go to all of these places – like a Lord Jagannath Ratha- yatra type of
līlā– which was really quite unusual. I saw Vishnujana Maharaja singing
with his harmonium and everybody was chanting and dancing.
Late one afternoon, Aja arrives dressed in white! He has just flown in
after getting married and wants to discuss his situation with Tamal
Krishna. Goswami is horrified when he hears that Aja has gotten
married and is now wearing white. He has spent time training Aja and
had plans for him to be a future bus leader. Although visibly upset,
Tamal agrees to talk about the situation with Aja. They have a
discussion for several hours, but in the end Aja’s departure from the
party is acrimonious.
Aja: Vishnujana defended Tamal Krishna, who didn’t like that I got
married. That was my most traumatic experience with him. He fought it
and made my departure quite bitter. But I never faulted him in my heart
and I always appreciated him. I never felt I was treated unfairly, or he
didn’t appreciate me. I didn’t have that mentality. When I got married I
became vice- president at Atlanta. I think my decision was correct.
Traveling on Radha-Damodara was one of the most blissful periods in
my Krishna consciousness. Dhristadyumna and I became close. We did
a lot of preaching, made a lot of men, distributed a lot of prasādam, and
a lot of books.
Although Vishnujana Swami prefers the simple life of brahmacārya, this

new mood of judging Vaishnavas based on external considerations, like
wearing white, is causing him some consternation. In his dealings with
devotees, Maharaja always offers respect regardless of bodily
circumstance. Nonetheless, he is going along with Tamal Krishna’s
version because it seems that Prabhupada is supporting it.
973
Tamal Krishna just wants to serve Prabhupada and expand the Radha-
Damodara program. When he discovers that book distribution is the way
to go, then for him it becomes the best service. In order to be the best at
distributing Srila Prabhupada’s books, one must be free of
encumbrances. Therefore, Tamal Krishna is convinced that the
brahmacārī and sannyāsa lifestyle is the best ashram for this service.
Gauranga: Tamal Krishna was seeing that our sankirtan was going well
and we were collecting efficiently. So he started to organize from the
book distribution side. He was a very strong personality so there was no
saying no. “This is it, and this is what you have to do.” I felt awe,
reverence, and fear, because he was very strict.
Dhruva Maharaja Das: By this time Tamal Krishna’s management had

more or less changed the whole program. Rather than going with
Vishnujana Swami to the college campuses, most devotees were going
out on book distribution. The Radha-Damodara program started to
expand and Vishnujana’s program became a second fiddle to book
distribution and incense.
For the next few days, as the construction crew readies the new buses
for final departure, Vishnujana takes his kirtan festival to the University
to complement Amarendra’s daily prasādam distribution program. On
the Plaza, Vishnujana and his harmonium weave beautiful tapestries of
melody together with the kirtan band. Satyaraja is playing the esraj
because Vishnujana needs an esraj player now that Sri Rama has been
shifted to Adi Keshava’s bus and Hasyagrami is on Dhristadyumna’s
bus. Vishnujana chooses to train Satyaraja to play the esraj after he
learns that Satyaraja can play guitar.
Satyaraja: Vishnujana Maharaja needed someone to play the esraj so I

tried because he wanted me to. It was a really crash course – we stayed
up all night and he showed me the basic procedure for playing the
instrument. The next day I had to perform on campus in front of all the
students. But I could never really play it. Before starting bhajans at a
974
university, Maharaja would introduce the instruments and each musician
would play a few riffs to highlight the sound of his instrument. It
sounded really nice. But when he introduced the esraj it sounded like a
total mess when I played it. So he made a really beautiful apology to the
audience. “Steve is a new devotee and he’s just learning how to play.
Please forgive him.”
Suresvara always accompanies Vishnujana to the University programs.

The kirtans are so celestial that Suresvara just gets lost in the chanting
for hours at a time. By that close association, he is always available to
assist Maharaja whenever needed, and always present to hear Maharaja
share many nectar stories. Vishnujana’s favorite topic is his boat trip
down the Ganges that Prabhupada encouraged him to do. He also tells
how he inspired Tamal Krishna to join the party by firing up his
romance for the road, traveling and preaching.
At night in the temple, Suresvara shares the day’s experience with

Sankarshan who reveres Vishnujana Swami. All the brahmacārīs gather
to hear the nectar.
“On the Plaza, Vishnujana’s kirtan was just so celestial that I was just
getting lost in it for hours and hours. I knew Maharaja could speak very
sweetly, but I never knew how scholarly he could speak. He gave a
lecture at a science class, and he explained everything in such scientific
terms. The bottom line was we’re not these bodies. He also talked a
little bit about his background. He was friends with a far-out scientist in
California before he became a devotee and it came out in that lecture.
“Coming back from the Plaza he came to the temple and was playing
mṛdaṅga by himself. But the way he was playing, it was emanating
sounds like a kaleidoscope of sounds from the drum. He just walked
into the temple like that playing at full tilt. The curtains were open and
Gaura-Nitai were there. He came right in front of the Deities making
what sounded like supernatural sounds with his drum. I was just
chanting japa in front of the Deities, and he was playing the drum. Then
975
he started a kirtan. But I’ll never forget the sound he made on that
mṛdaṅga. It wasn’t human, or physically possible. You couldn’t even
see his hands going.
“Was anybody on the bus this morning? He gave Bhagavatam class and
was telling how important humility is. The example he gave was when
he was in San Antonio.
Nanda Kishor’s wife, Jahnava, was in anxiety. So all day long she was
going around the temple cleaning, and she was just calling out for
Krishna. He said it really grounded him, because he was thinking he was
a big this and that Swami and here is this woman calling out for
Krishna. He said she was actually more fortunate than him. I really
appreciated his appreciation, because it was heartfelt. There was no
hesitation to appreciate this woman’s mood.”
Prior to Srila Prabhupada introducing the sannyāsa ashram in 1970,

devotees were very much like a family. They treated each other more as
spirit souls and less as male or female bodies. Prabhupada was marrying
everybody and sending out couples to start centers all over the world.
Three gṛhastha couples started the London yatra where the Gaudiya
Math sannyāsīs had failed.
With the advent of sannyāsa in ISKCON, devotees gradually begin to

look down on marriage as a failure on the spiritual path. Brahmacārīs
are encouraged to regard sannyāsa as the way to go, the ideal to strive
for. Marriage is seen as a fall-down.
By 1975, many brahmacārīs in America have picked up the tendency to

speak ill of women. Situated on the platform of attraction and aversion.
They no longer see them as mother. They don’t even see them as
godsisters! Rather, women are viewed as a threat to one’s continued
attempts at celibacy, in other words māyā.
This mood is fanned by the sannyāsīs. The ‘mean swamis,’ Gurukripa

and Yasodanandana, propagate this mentality vigorously. And this
976
mood has also been adopted by Tamal Krishna Goswami. Whether it’s
to keep the new men fixed in the mood of brahmacārya or whether there
is an actual dislike for the opposite sex, is not yet fully apparent.
However, the misidentification of self as sannyāsī or gṛhastha is clearly
based on the bodily concept of life, sometimes known as varṇāśrama
dharma.
The varnasrama system is for convenience sake in the material world. It

has nothing to do with spiritual life. Acceptance of varnasrama means a
little easy progress to spiritual life, otherwise it has no importance to us.
For example, all my European and American disciples have no
varnasrama position, but spiritually because they have followed the
rules and regulations and also my instructions, their advancement
spiritually is being appreciated by everyone. Always remember that
varnasrama life is a good program for material life… [Letter to
Hamsaduta Das – October 19, 1974]
Srila Prabhupada and Lord Chaitanya don’t recommend varṇāśrama-

dharma because it is not properly executed in Kali-yuga. Moreover, it
becomes tainted by a “holier than thou” attitude based on the
circumstance of a person’s material body, like sannyāsī or brāhmana. It
has nothing to do with one’s inner realizations. Thus, varṇāśrama-
dharma can become a hindrance to pure devotional service.
That was the case in India where it morphed into the caste system, and
now it is surfacing in ISKCON as well. Any point of view that gets in
the way of a person’s spiritual development must be rejected.
Therefore, Sri Krishna’s final and ultimate instruction to Arjuna is

sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja: [Bg. 18.66] “Give
up all other dharmas and simply surrender unto Me.” This verse Srila
Prabhupada has quoted thousands of times and has stated that it’s the
essence of the Gita – Bhagavat dharma.
In this final instruction, which supersedes all of His earlier instructions,

Krishna places emphasis on two principles:
977
1. fully surrender to Him alone – mām ekaṁśaraṇaṁ– and 2. give up all
dharma which includes varṇāśrama dharma – sarva-dharmān parityajya.
Of course for gṛhasthas this means gradually reducing, not suddenly

abandoning, one’s duties to family and children.
In Srimad-Bhagavatam [4.29.46] Narada Muni speaks to the same

approach:
yadā yasyānugṛhṇāti bhagavān ātma-bhāvitaḥ sa jahāti matiṁ loke vede

ca pariniṣṭhitām
When one actually takes to the loving service of the Supreme

Personality of Godhead, he gives up all duties in the material world, as
well as all duties prescribed by the Vedic literatures. In this way one is
fixed in the service of the Lord.
Although the new buses are not entirely finished, Tamal Krishna
decides that the men should go out and try the program of distributing
incense and BTGs. He instructs them to distribute as many Back to
Godheads as they can because “Srila Prabhupada will be in Atlanta in
two weeks and we want to please him with our service.”
Before they all leave, there is a photo shoot with the three buses and all
the men for a BTG article.
What Can Turn a Greyhound Bus Into a Temple? [Back to Godhead

Magazine, #10-04]
Chanting Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/Hare

Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare
The chanting of Hare Krishna, known in India for thousands of years, is

the great prayer for peace – for individual peace of mind and worldwide
tranquility. By repeating these nonsectarian names of God the sincere
chanter is gradually released from material illusions and elevated to the
978
platform of pure spiritual consciousness, Krishna consciousness. This
prayer has been given to the other countries of the world by the spiritual
master of the Hare Krishna movement, His Divine Grace A.C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. He has endowed his disciples with
his spirit of traveling and enlightening the world in Krishna
consciousness, and they in turn are using their Western technology to
spread the chanting of Hare Krishna.
Pictured above are some of the traveling students of the Hare Krishna
movement. They have converted three Greyhound buses into mobile
temples to bring the message of Krishna consciousness to every town
and village in the United States and Canada. Their program consists of
week-long festivals, featuring chanting (accompanied by Eastern
instruments), delicious vegetarian feasts, and lectures from the books of
their spiritual master. They have just completed a tour of colleges in
Florida, Georgia, Texas, Arizona and California and are now preparing
for a tour of Canada and the northern United States.
The Hare Krishna movement proposes to change the modern

misconception that God should be kept locked in a church all week and
then uncovered for an hour on Sunday. The truth is that serving the
Supreme Lord is a 24-hour-a-day engagement, leading to eternal bliss.
As you read through the pages of Back to Godhead, you'll find out how
the members of the Hare Krishna movement live this truth and how they
teach it all over the world.
Radha Raman: When we were taking that picture, there was a constant
row between me and Tamal Krishna. Everything is silent, ready to take
the shot and then in front of everybody, he walks over to me and says,
“Radha Raman, try to look religious.” I had mirror sunglasses on and he
wanted me to take them off. There were multi pictures taken. I was
sitting in the driver’s seat in one of the buses.
Initially, Janardan thought he was joining as a bus leader, but he is

assigned as the leader of a van party instead. After the initial
979
disappointment, he accepts the decision. But some of the men are
lamenting because they won’t be on Radha-Damodara’s bus with
Vishnujana Swami. Whenever he hears a brahmacārī lamenting,
Vishnujana says, “We’re trying to train you to be brāhmaṇas. Only
śūdras lament about the past.”
To appease the devotees on his bus who had hopes of traveling with
Vishnujana Swami and Sri Sri Radha-Damodara, Adi Keshava calls the
Radha-Damodara bus the “baby program” where new bhaktas are
trained. So being on his bus, he explains, means that they have
graduated from that.
Mahamantra: I went to Dhristadyumna’s bus. I was lamenting because I

wouldn’t get Vishnujana Maharaja’s association anymore. I felt like
that. We had a big festival and conclave, a meeting of the tribes. At the
meeting Tamal Krishna would swap men.
Misra Bhagavan: A little to my disappointment I was put on Adi

Keshava’s bus. But there was some honor in being on one of the other
buses because the Radha-Damodara bus had the people who needed the
strongest association. We called it the baby program.
The Gainesville temple becomes quiet when all the buses and
brahmacārīs leave.
Adi Keshava gets a busload of brahmacārīs and they head to the capital
of Florida, Tallahassee. There is no mechanic on board because his bus
runs pretty good. Dravanaksha will be the main driver with Subuddhi
assisting and continuing to fix the interior of the bus because it’s not
even finished.
Vishnujana Swami gives Subuddhi a five minute lesson how to drive the
bus, as a second driver. Subuddhi drives the bus around a parking lot
one time and also shifts just once. Vishnujana Swami smiles and says,
“Okay, you can do it.”
980
Subuddhi is shocked because it’s a huge bus, with bald tires and bad
brakes, and there’s no real training.
Dhristadyumna’s bus is preaching in Jacksonville with several fresh

recruits to augment his trained sankirtan men. His mood is, “We are on
a mission for Krishna,” and his men emulate this mentality. He wants to
do big to demonstrate that he can be an excellent leader. He gives his
men large quotas to encourage them to distribute everything, whatever it
takes. “Don’t come back to the bus until everything is gone.”
Ratnabahu: They dropped me off with six cases of BTGs and told me I
had to distribute them all. “Let them go for free if you have to, just flood
the place with BTGs.” Boy oh boy, was I running around like a
madman! I psyched myself up and for a while I was running on pure
enthusiasm. But as time approached to get picked up, I realized that I
still had quite a few magazines to distribute. I was not even close to my
quota. At this point I really started letting them fly, giving them away to
everybody.
There were magazines all over that people had discarded, but I didn’t
care about that. I had a quota to meet! When the van finally came for me
I had passed out almost all of the BTGs. I was a hero!
Unfortunately, the devotees are regularly arrested in Jacksonville. The

police are determined to stop the “illegal soliciting and disturbance of
the peace.” They are fed up with the devotees’ dogged determination to
continue distributing transcendental literature. Taking law enforcement
very seriously, the police seem bent on being as nasty as possible. Some
devotees are intimidated because they have never seen the inside of a
jail before. They are starting to learn firsthand what a ‘demon’ really is.
But Dhristadyumna is on top of everything and has the devotees out of

jail as soon as possible. Throughout the whole ordeal these new
devotees find Dhristadyumna to be a source of inspiration.
Govinda Datta: In Jacksonville we were arrested and charged with
981
soliciting without a permit. We had a favorable lawyer, and I want to
give him honorable mention, because he got us cleared every time. He
said we were just taking donations for our bibles. After five or six times
coming to the court, the judge told us, “You had better not come before
me anymore. If I ever see you again in this courtroom, you’d better
bring your towel and your toothbrush.”
We never showed up again; we left town.
Leaving Jacksonville, Dhristadyumna’s bus travels to Georgia where

they meet a potential devotee. They spend several days parked in front
of his house and Dhristadyumna preaches to his parents to allow him to
travel with the party. Dhristadyumna has been trained by Tamal Krishna
so he has a similar attitude. He’s a good leader, and a good organizer for
getting things done and carrying out his plan.
Kavi Datta: My first encounter with Radha-Damodara was with

Dhristadyumna’s bus at a mall in Columbus, Georgia. I invited about 20
devotees to stay out at my parent’s place. The bus was parked out front
and we had devotees sleeping in the house. They all got up in the
morning to use the bathroom and then did their morning program. I
talked to my parents about joining and they said it was okay.
In Tallahassee, Adi Keshava wants to do everything just like Vishnujana

Maharaja so his party puts on festivals and distributes BTGs. Misra
Bhagavan is familiar with the incense and BTG combination sankirtan
technique because he has done that in the parking lots in Portland. But
in Tallahassee he is arrested with several other devotees. They have no
permit or any legal reason to be out soliciting on the streets. After a few
hours, and a fine, they are released. But they feel lost sitting on the steps
outside the downtown jail waiting for Adi Keshava to pick them up.
Spreading Lord Chaitanya’s mission in America means taking big risks,

unlike India where devotees are considered to be sādhus!
Meanwhile. the Radha-Damodara bus with Vishnujana and Tamal
982
Krishna is on the road to Atlanta to continue doing the college
programs. Tamal Krishna’s idea is to preach in Atlanta until Prabhupada
arrives. His Divine Grace is scheduled to come to Atlanta after visiting
Honolulu, Los Angeles, Mexico, Venezuela, and Miami. Goswami is
certain that Prabhupada will be pleased to see how large the party has
grown.
Chicago, February 1975

All the men on Tripurari’s BBT party are excited to be going to Atlanta
to see Srila Prabhupada when he finally arrives. Ganapati and Riddha,
from the Vancouver TSKP, have now joined Tripurari’s party in
Chicago. Being the senior man, Ganapati has always taken really good
care of Riddha, who frequently gets mental and homesick being in
America. “I should go back to England.” They have been preaching
together and selling books for Vancouver temple for two years on their
bus, ‘Lord Chaitanya’s Sankirtan of Love.’
But with the new mood of distributing big books at airports, they have
sold their beautiful bus to get a fast vehicle – a van.
Ganapati and Riddha are a good team and fired-up to do airport

sankirtan. When they arrive in Chicago, devotees are already doing the
airport full-time but Tripurari allows them to work it after hours at
night. They soon become expert and are accepted into the original group
of airport book distributors.
Ganapati: In Chicago, Tripurari was still going out in a dhoti. I

remember he did 100 books in a dhoti and shaved head one day, and
collected $600, changing up everybody. Tripurari was preaching to us,
“You’re going out and sending your money to the temples, and you’re
not getting your facility. The gṛhasthas are living off you. Why not just
send it right to the BBT?”
So I called Bahudak and said, “I’m not coming back. You’re māyā.”
983
Tripurari was coaching me. We were trained to do airports, and army
bases on payday.
Riddha: We were sending money to Bahudak in Vancouver. But it was

the old syndrome, the brahmacārī collects, and the gṛhastha wastes. We
made friends with Tripurari and got trained to do airports. Gradually we
became the BBT airport sankirtan party. Those were great days.
During the Bali Mardan/Taittiriya affair in New York, Apurva had

sensed that something was wrong. He wants to join the BBT party so he
contacts Tripurari secretly about leaving New York. Apurva’s service is
cooking for Sri-Sri Radha-Govinda and he’s an excellent cook, but
Tripurari assures him it would be best to leave his service in the kitchen.
Apurva accepts this advice and leaves, which is unusual for the time.
Apurva: Tripurari told me he was traveling to the temples and he’d like
me to come with him and help train the cooks. I became very enlivened
and before maṅgala-ārati I left New York and took a bus to
Philadelphia. I took up devotional service there and waited a few weeks
for Tripurari to come. On the party I cooked, did the laundry, and went
out once a week.
The BBT Airport party is doing huge, enormous. Praghosh is one of the
biggest distributors and enlivens the other men. Now the party is
sending $100,000 every month to the BBT. They are doing bigger than
anybody else. Tripurari is the authority. He continues acquiring new
men by offering to train the best distributors from each temple. They
come to Chicago to receive his personal training, but he keeps the best
men for his own party. Bhakta Das sends Vaiseshika to Chicago for one
month’s training. He is then to return back to San Francisco and train
the other distributors.
Vaiseshika: The way we were trained, book distribution was the most
important service, nothing else mattered. To balance out everything else
that was going on, it was necessary to be total fanatics and just be
dedicated to it. I ended up staying in Chicago. Tripurari said it was
984
definitely a higher service to do books with him, than to go back to a
temple. He was working with Ramesvara as the official BBT party.
Keshava Bharati: I got a call to join Tripurari’s BBT party. We started

traveling around the country and opening up airports. That’s when book
distribution really started to expand. The Radha-Damodara party was
also expanding and beginning to get into book distribution.
Once he has enough men for his party, Tripurari begins sending his
people to other temples. With Chicago as their base, these men travel
from one temple to another to train brahmacārīs how to do books in the
airports. Most temples welcome the BBT Airport distributors. They
work and stay at a temple for long periods of time, although they are not
part of it. But they do give a percentage of their collections to the host
temple. In this way they don’t get involved with any temple politics.
Because they live and work within the temple structure, they are more
integrated and have more cooperation with the temple leaders.
At the same time they report directly to Tripurari. He is pushing for

sannyāsa but he is friendly with his men and is just one of the guys with
them.
By contrast, the Radha-Damodara party is more mobile. They work out

of their buses and stay in campsites. They have more of a renegade type
of mentality. As for their reputation, they begin stealing brahmacārīs
and some temples become fearful of them rolling into town, working the
good spots, and then leaving with a few men. But they are doing big in
terms of distributing transcendental literature. With all the new men,
they now distribute 50,000 BTGs every month with plans to increase
even more. On the other hand, the BBT Library party, headed by
Satsvarupa Maharaja, is composed of more refined devotees who do
specialized PR service preaching to Professors. They are expert in their
own kind of program, distributing full sets of Srila Prabhupada’s books
to every University library they can find.
Tripurari trains his BBT Airport party that the end justifies the means.
985
“So do whatever it takes to get Prabhupada’s books to as many people
as possible.” The result is the introduction of dishonest tactics in order
to get a book sold. The men are also taught the misconception that book
distribution is the highest service, and other services are inferior. When
this misconception reaches Srila Prabhupada, he is quick to point out the
fault in his correspondence.
Regarding your question about the controversial talks going on, this
kind of talk is not befitting my advanced students. This is childish. In
Krishna’s service, there is no inferior and superior. Deity worship is just
as important as book distribution. It is not material.
You should understand the importance of each and every item of

devotional service. Do not make any misunderstanding by devaluating
any of the spiritual activities. You are one of the advanced students. One
who distinguishes a particular type of service as inferior or superior, he
does not know the value of devotional service. It is all transcendental.
[Letter to Satsvarupa Maharaja - January 19, 1975]
Regarding the controversy about book distribution techniques, you are

right. Our occupation must be honest. Everyone should adore our
members as honest. If we do something which is deteriorating to the
popular sentiments of the public in favor of our movement, that is not
good. Somehow or other we should not become unpopular in the public
eye. These dishonest methods must be stopped. It is hampering our
reputation all over the world. [Letter to Rupanuga Das - January 9,
1975]
If we simply speak nicely to a person and try sincerely to get him to take
the book he’ll take it. Why should we adopt unfair means? We should
not do anything which will create a bad impression or make us
unpopular. People are after these books, they are hankering for them.
We don’t need to take cheating method. I never had to use any cheating
method when I first began. I simply presented the real thing. [Letter to
Ramesvara – January 1, 1975]
986
What should have been preached to the devotees was exactly what Srila
Prabhupada was writing in his books and teaching in his classes: that
devotional service is on the transcendental platform. According to time,
place, and circumstance, any particular service may be considered more
necessary, but not superior.
In the West, Srila Prabhupada is now emphasizing book distribution.

But in India, he is emphasizing gorgeous temple construction complete
with International guest facilities. And, above all else, Prabhupada is
emphasizing the chanting of the Hare Krishna mahā-mantra.
Respect for transcendental service is considered with due regard to an

individual’s psychological and physical constitution. Not everyone can
be a cook, or a pūjārī, a kirtan leader, or a book distributor. Not
everyone can fix cars, or build Ratha-yatra carts, or drive a Greyhound
bus. Some people are sickly, others are weak. But everyone can perform
devotional service and that service is transcendental.
It is true that Krishna has given some the opportunity to serve Him by
nice writing, some by good business ability, some by nice cooking, and
so on, but these various services are all accepted equally by Krishna. On
the transcendental plane, one service is as good as another! There is no
question of higher or lower. We are tiny, and we cannot really do much.
Simply we engage our time and energy, and that is all Krishna sees. He
sees this boy or girl is spending his time in My service and He is
pleased. [Letter to Hamsaduta and Himavati - March 3, 1968]
Deity worship or lecturing in the colleges is just as important as book

distribution. So, these things must be done very nicely and at the same
time book distribution should be done. Not that we should do one thing
at the sacrifice of another. [Letter to Adi Kesava Das - January 2, 1975]
Deity worship is just as important as book distribution. As we sing in

the Gurvastakam prayers, sri vigrahara dhana-nitya-nana srngara-
tanmandira-marjanadau. So it should be nicely done. At the same time
book distribution should be done. Not that we do one thing at the
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sacrifice of another. That requires a little common sense. [Letter to
Laksmimoni Devi - January 2, 1975]
In their zeal to please His Divine Grace, many leaders don’t live by this
essential instruction – not to sacrifice one service for another. This is
especially true for book distribution policies which are based on a faulty
foundation, that book distribution is the best service, and that the means
justifies the end.
Before long the Radha-Damodara party will become the emblem for this
type of mentality by preaching that the temples are māyā and every
brahmacārī will end up married, and fallen, unless they join a book
distribution party. This will become a source of anxiety for many
individuals and for the entire American yatra by 1976. Prabhupada will
call it a “fratricidal war.” But for now, this mentality is in its infancy.
Riddha: Unfortunately, I have to say this in all honesty, the airport party
was spoiled due to the fanaticism that came from Tripurari. He was
almost like a military man. It was a crack party. You had to get up at
2:00am. You had to be in bed by 9pm. It was like commandos. If you
didn’t do at least 30 books a day, you were useless. If you only did $200
a day you were useless, and he made you feel that way. It was a
chauvinistic regime. It was heavy.
There’s no way that you could have developed your feminine side there.
That’s what they needed, but they didn’t do it. They could have had lots
of women coming in as well, because women are good distributors too.
But it was a chauvinistic act. He had it stuck in his head that Lord
Chaitanya empowered him and he was an incarnation. It went to his
head. I’m sorry, but it did. So much so he didn’t believe in himself; he
wanted a danda. Prabhupada said he didn’t need sannyāsa, he was more
potent as he was. He should have just been more real. So at the end I
had to leave him. I had a lot of respect for him, though.
New people need to associate with more advanced devotees so they can
see the practical example of what is stated in Prabhupada’s books.
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Leaders who manage temples, and pūjārīs who do deity worship,
provide the infrastructure to cultivate people who visit after receiving
one of Prabhupada’s books. The temples demonstrate what is written in
the books. They are a focal point for celebrations and festivals, like
Janmastami and Ratha-yatra, and provide shelter from the conflicts of
material life.
People have many physical and psychological handicaps, due to

growing up in dysfunctional families, or even being abused as
youngsters. The temple environment is most important at the early stage
of an individual’s spiritual development. Thus, śāstra teaches that Deity
worship in the temple is essential for neophytes. And in Kali-yuga,
everybody is a neophyte. Therefore, Prabhupada’s guidance is essential.
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Sixteenth Wave,
1975 World Tour
We are not after collecting money, but when people offer something out
of love and sympathy for our mission, it becomes a great asset.
[Letter to Satsvarupa – September 28, 1968]
Honolulu, Hawaii, February 1975

After spending most of 1974 in India, Prabhupada embarks on a world
tour.
First he pays a visit to Hong Kong and then spends several days in
Tokyo before moving on to Honolulu. He is comfortably situated in the
temple where he diligently continues translating the Fifth Canto of
Srimad Bhagavatam. Paramahamsa Swami is his secretary and Nitai
Das is his Sanskrit editor. They work hard taking care of Prabhupada
because Srutakirti relinquished his service several months ago in
Bombay. Srutakirti is now living in Honolulu and is one of many
gṛhasthas struggling to remain fixed in devotional service outside the
temple. He is so caught up in his gṛhastha ashram that he only comes in
the evenings to give his spiritual master a massage. Prabhupada
mercifully never asks Srutakirti why he isn’t more active in his personal
service. He never asks what he’s doing throughout the day or why he’s
so busy in his household activities.
Srutakirti: Srila Prabhupada was sympathetic. I knew this because once

in Vrindavan, Srila Prabhupada spoke about the gṛhastha ashram saying,
“It is a great dilemma. We cannot pay them to live in the temple, but
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neither can they work outside.”
Unfortunately, there has been some agitation at the Honolulu temple due
to differences between Siddha Svarupananda Goswami and the temple
leaders. This is the sannyāsī that caused a furor in San Francisco with
his rock band in 1973. Then he sold the temple in Hawaii and
abandoned the Tulasi plants which Prabhupada called a “great fall
down.” Now the complaint is that Siddha Svarupa does not follow
ISKCON’s authority. This morning, Paramahamsa Swami brings the
temple’s objections to Prabhupada’s attention.
“So, bring Siddha Svarupa and we will have a meeting,” Prabhupada

declares.
The meeting is attended by Siddha Svarupa Maharaja, Paramahamsa

Maharaja, Nitai Prabhu, the temple president and Srutakirti. A pleasant
breeze comes through the open windows as they sit on the floor in
Prabhupada’s quarters. Avoiding formalities, Prabhupada gets right to
the point with Siddha Svarupa.
“So, the devotees here have some complaints against you.” “What is
that, Srila Prabhupada?” Siddha asks.
“One thing; why you do not shave your head?”
“If I shave my head then sometimes I get a cold,” Siddha answers.
Prabhupada finds that quite humorous. “In Hawaii, you get a cold?”
“Sometimes, Srila Prabhupada,” Siddha affirms.
“Then you can wear a hat. Then you will not catch cold. You are a
sannyāsī. Other people are watching. It is important that you set a good
example. Also, you do not carry your danda?” Prabhupada goes straight
to the second point.
“Well, they don’t usually let me carry it on airplanes, so it becomes
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difficult to travel around with it.”
“We have so many sannyāsīs,” Prabhupada replies. “Everyone is

carrying their danda. Paramahamsa, he is carrying a danda. He brings it
on the plane.” “Well, I have had many problems trying to get my danda
on the plane.”
Prabhupada calmly moves on to the next point of contention, each issue

becoming more serious. “They say that your followers, they do not
come here to see me,” he continues, “that they only see you. They only
hear from and deal with you. They won’t come here?”
“If they want to come, they can come.”
“But, this is your business.” Prabhupada replies with an authoritative

voice. “It’s all right they may worship you if they like you very much.
That’s all right. But your business is to bring them to me. You are my
disciple. The duty of the disciple is to bring the devotees to the spiritual
master. This is your business. Your preaching should be like this. If
your preaching does not bring them to this point, then it is useless.”
“This is probably my defect,” Siddha replies. “My preaching is not so

good.
Therefore, they are not coming. But, what can I do but try to preach to
them?”
“Well, if your preaching is insufficient, then better not to preach,”

Prabhupada admonishes him. All of a sudden the room becomes quiet.
A wave of courage sweeps over Srutakirti. To keep the conversation
going he speaks up.
“Srila Prabhupada, I have one observation.”
“Yes, go on,” Prabhupada says with a nod of approval.
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“For example, one morning in the temple room Siddha Svarupa
Maharaja was giving the class. He was sitting beside your vyāsāsana
and one of his people came up with a fresh flower garland and placed it
on Siddha Svarupa. When I saw it happen, my mind became disturbed.
In my opinion the garland should have been put on you, as there was no
garland on your picture on the vyāsāsana. I would think that the garland
should have been put on the vyāsāsana first.”
Turning to Siddha Svarupa, Prabhupada says, “He has a good point.

That is correct.
It is all right, they may have wanted to put it on you, but you should
have directed them to put it on my picture.”
At this juncture, Prabhupada finishes the discussion and does not

belabor the point. This final statement wraps up the meeting. Everyone
offers obeisances and leaves the room. Srila Prabhupada has candidly
addressed the issue of following the instructions of the spiritual master,
and the relationship between Guru and disciple.
The next day Siddha Svarupa Maharaja comes to see Prabhupada again.
He hands Prabhupada a donation of $10,000 that one of his followers
has given him. This demonstrates his understanding of Srila
Prabhupada’s instruction.
A few days later, Srutakirti is involved in an automobile accident while

out grocery shopping. He is taken to the emergency room of a nearby
hospital. His back is not severely damaged but does become a source of
pain for several months. Because he’s in the hospital overnight, he
doesn’t come to give Prabhupada his evening massage.
When Prabhupada hears about Srutakirti’s accident he immediately

says, “Oh! Call him here.” In a great deal of pain, Srutakirti makes his
way to Prabhupada’s room and slowly offers obeisances. With a
strained look on his face he sits before his divine master.
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“What has happened?” Prabhupada asks in a gentle voice. “I heard you
were in a car accident.” Srutakirti relates the details of the accident and
Prabhupada listens attentively. “Accha!” he exclaims. “If it wasn’t for
Krishna’s mercy, you would be dead.”
“Yes, it was very frightening.”
For the next few days Prabhupada talks about the incident to various
visitors. “Srutakirti was in a very serious accident. If not for the mercy
of Krishna he would have died.” Hearing this many times, Srutakirti
finally realizes that without the mercy of Prabhupada and Krishna he
really would have died.
Paramahamsa Swami and Nitai are continually trying to persuade

Srutakirti to return to his service as Prabhupada’s personal servant. “It
would be very helpful if you come on this tour because there’s no one to
cook for Srila Prabhupada.”
“I like the idea of being his servant in the West, but I always wind up
back in India and I don’t want to go to India.” This is Srutakirti’s main
objection.
“Well, when it comes time to go back to India, we’ll arrange for Nanda
Kumar to travel with Prabhupada.”
“It sounds good in theory, but it doesn’t seem very practical.”
Despite repeated attempts, they are unable to persuade Srutakirti to

travel again. But they do convince him to continue serving Prabhupada
at least until he leaves Hawaii.
The day before Prabhupada’s departure for Los Angeles, Gurukripa

Swami informs Srutakirti that Prabhupada wants to see him. Together
they return to Prabhupada’s room and offer obeisances. Prabhupada
smiles as he inquires, “So, Srutakirti, you are going to stay here? Your
wife is here, and child?”
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“Yes, Srila Prabhupada.”
“So, now you will stay here as a householder?” “Yes, I think so.”
“So, that is good,” Prabhupada smiles warmly. “You stay here with your
wife and child.”
Srutakirti begins to feel uncomfortable realizing that he is being selfish

by not agreeing to continue his service to Srila Prabhupada.
Srutakirti: He was giving me the opportunity to say I wanted to go with

him and still I wouldn’t say it. I sat before Srila Prabhupada with my
mind reeling. My senses were dragging me in all directions. Srila
Prabhupada was giving me the opportunity to travel with him again. He
was waiting for me to open my mouth and my heart, but I wasn’t doing
it. It was truly amazing how tolerant he was. I didn’t know what to say.
Seeing Srutakirti’s ambivalence, Prabhupada turns his attention to

Gurukripa Swami. Sitting and listening to their conversation, Srutakirti
feels even more uncomfortable. He knows he should surrender to his
guru mahārāja. Finally he blurts out, “Srila Prabhupada, I will come
with you and be your servant.”
Prabhupada smiles broadly, tips his head, and accepts the offer. “All
right!”
Srutakirti: I offered my obeisances and walked out of Srila

Prabhupada’s room with a spring in my step. I knew I was doing the
right thing. I began to prepare for my next exciting tour of duty with His
Divine Grace.
Prior to leaving Hawaii, Srutakirti arranges suitable accommodation for

the comfort and security of his wife and child at the Honolulu temple.
Srila Prabhupada has spent eleven pleasant days in Honolulu and is now
ready to depart for Los Angeles. A special evening has been planned for
995
his arrival.
After the sandhya-ārati, the LA theater troupe is ready to perform a

drama they have been rehearsing, taken from the pages of the First
Canto. The Pandavas are trying to avoid a full-scale war for the
kingdom, and so, Yuddhistira and Arjuna, accompanied by Krishna,
arrange a meeting with Duryodhana.
“We are kṣatriyas, after all,” Yuddhistira explains, “so if we have just
five villages to govern, you can have the rest of the kingdom, and a war
can be averted.”
But Duryodhana is adamant,. “I will not give you as much land as you
can put under the head of a pin!”
During dramatic moments like this, everyone turns to observe

Prabhupada’s reaction. After an hour’s performance the Pandavas
emerge victorious and the audience shows their appreciation with huge
applause. Prabhupada has a huge smile as everyone turns to face him.
Perhaps because it is Los Angeles, Prabhupada decides to give an

Academy Award to one of the actors. “So, the Oscar goes to
Yuddisthira.” Everyone responds, “JAYA!”
Lokamangala humbly accepts Prabhupada’s recognition of his

performance. He’s the only actor to ever receive an Oscar from Srila
Prabhupada.
Gradually, Prabhupada becomes serious, and his smile turns to gravity.

The room becomes silent as Prabhupoada begins to speak,
“So, my Guru Maharaja, His Divine Grace Bhaktisiddhanata Sarasvati

Goswami Maharaja, ordered me to spread the teachings of Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu in the English speaking countries. But I am an old man.
What can an old man do?
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“But my Guru Maharaja was so kind upon me that he sent all of you
American boys and girls to help me. So now I am very happy to say that
Sri Chaitanya’s mission is in the right hands.” As he utters these words,
Prabhupada moves his hands forward as a gesture of placing Lord
Chaitanya’s mission in the hands of the assembled devotees.
Everyone is shocked to hear these words. They look among themselves

to see whose hands Prabhupada is bestowing Lord Chaitanya’s mission.
Srila Prabhupada is obviously so enlivened by the dramatic performance
that he is confident that Lord Chaitanya’s mission is now in the right
hands.
“The grandfather is more kind to the children than the father,”

Prabhupada continues, “so my Guru Maharaja will be more kind upon
you than he will to me.”
Vaiyasaki: It was years later that I realized the significance of

Prabhupada’s gesture – that he was placing the responsibility of Lord
Chaitanya’s mission in our hands – the next generation of the parampara
system. I was there in that room and so I took it as my responsibility to
fulfill Prabhupada’s faith in us and not to let him down.
Thereafter, I always took it that Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur

was pleased with me whenever I was able to accomplish something
significant in devotional service.
However, Prabhupada only spends two days in New Dwaraka. He

speaks in the new temple room, tours the new BBT offices and
warehouse, and then goes to the airport to catch his flight to Mexico. As
many devotees as possible accompany His Divine Grace to the airport.
Prabhupada sits in the departure lounge surrounded by his many
admirers, most sitting on the floor surrounding him. When the flight is
announced ready for boarding, Prabhupada gets up and the assembled
devotees bow their heads on the floor to offer their obeisances.
Vaiyasaki: Everyone moved over to create an aisle for Prabhupada to
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move forward and then offered obeisances. I was at the edge of the aisle
and I opened my eyes as Prabhupada was about to pass me. I quickly
touched his lotus feet as he walked by and felt exhilarated that I had
touched the feet of a great saint.
But the temple president, Tulsi Das, saw that and he later chastised me
for giving my karma to my spiritual master. However, I was confident
that I would receive Prabhupada’s blessing by that action rather than his
displeasure.
Mexico City, Mexico, February 11, 1975

As Prabhupada and his party fly to Mexico City, the Mexican devotees
are prepared to receive their spiritual master with full VIP honors. The
Mexican officials have agreed to waive the routine formalities for Srila
Prabhupada as befitting an Ambassador from a foreign nation.
Instead of going through Immigration Control, Prabhupada bypasses the

mundane check points – as the transcendental emissary from Goloka
Vrindavan – and is escorted by officials directly from the plane to a
waiting limousine. It’s a nice change from the normal grueling airport
routine, where Immigration Officers are trained to treat people with
suspicion.
Prabhupada is pleased to see this wonderful reception with proper

etiquette for a sādhu. He’s always prepared to undergo difficulties,
because he is often delayed and sometimes searched. Two countries
have already refused him entry!
With sirens howling, police motorcycles lead the black limousine onto
the highway.
Prabhupada sits serenely in the rear seat chanting on his beads.

Srutakirti and Hrdayananda Goswami accompany him. Paramahamsa
Swami and Nitai are in a second car driven by a gṛhastha couple. They
998
take a short cut through the city to arrive at the temple before
Prabhupada.
As the police escort guides Prabhupada’s limousine through the city to

the temple, Prabhupada expresses his appreciation to Hrdayananda for
the VIP treatment. Eager to continue pleasing His Divine Grace,
Hrdayananda gives a report about all the exciting service the Spanish
BBT is doing. Many books are being translated and distributed in the
Spanish language and Prabhupada is delighted to hear that the glories of
the Lord are being spread in Latin America.
All the devotees back at the temple are fully prepared to receive their
spiritual master. Upon his arrival at the airport, someone had called the
temple and said, “Prabhupada is here. He has put his lotus feet in
Mexico.” The senior devotees remember that Prabhupada arrived in
1972 to find the temple almost empty, because everybody was en route
to the airport to greet him. So this time they have been rehearsing his
reception all week to make it perfect as befits the emissary of the
Supreme Lord.
The first vehicle to arrive at the temple is the gṛhastha car with Nitai and
Paramahamsa. Seeing the car with Americans inside, devotees begin an
ecstatic kirtan thinking that Srila Prabhupada has arrived. Paramahamsa
Swami speaks with a temple leader to calm everyone down.
“Take it easy. Prabhupada is going to arrive at any moment.” The kirtan

slows down as Paramahamsa and Nitai go upstairs to inspect
Prabhupada’s room to ensure it is ready. Soon, a devotee on the roof
begins to yell, “Prabhupada esta aqui! Prabhupada esta aqui! Jaya
Prabhupada, Jaya Prabhupada!” The police escort pulls up to the temple
followed by Prabhupada’s vehicle. It’s a very exciting moment as the
limousine slowly enters the property and comes to a complete stop.
Hrdayananda Maharaja gets out of the car first and opens the door for
his spiritual master. Prabhupada gets out of the limousine and stands
there looking around. Immediately, everybody falls to the ground to
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offer obeisances. At the same time, devotees on the roof throw flower
petals. Srila Prabhupada is besieged with a shower of petals. For a brief
moment everyone is stunned and no one knows what to do.
Hrdayananda excitedly yells, “Kirtan. Have kirtan!”
Devotees and guests form two lines from the car to the temple entrance.
Prabhupada passes between them to the temple room. Some devotees
continue to throw flower petals as Prabhupada enters into the main hall
where his vyāsāsana is situated. But instead of going to sit down, Srila
Prabhupada goes to the temple room instead for darshan of Sri Sri
Radha-Madan Gopal.
After darshan, Prabhupada looks around the temple room and

comments, “Oh, much improved.” Then he is escorted to the vyāsāsana
where his feet are washed, and guru-pūjā is performed. After guru-pūjā,
Prabhupada speaks to the assembled devotees and Hrdayananda
Maharaja translates into Spanish.
“My dear devotees, ladies and gentlemen,” Prabhupada begins, “I am

very glad to see you again, I think after four years? I was trying to come
here again. I like this place, but due to various engagements and due to
my old age also, I could not come earlier. But this time, by arrangement
of our Hrdayananda Maharaja, I have been forced to come here.”
Everyone bursts into appreciative laughter hearing the Spanish
translation.
“So I must thank you for your nice reception. I was received by police
escort very nicely, and I remember once I traveled with the governor of
U.P. in 1962 from Lucknow to Kanpur. So exactly we were driving in
the same fashion, escorted by the police motorcycle.
“So anyway, I am so pleased to see you, that you are interested in this
Krishna consciousness movement. So the Krishna consciousness
movement is very, very important for the human society. It is not
exactly a religious movement as it is understood in the Western
countries. Religion is described in the English dictionary as a kind of
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faith.”
Both devotees and guests listen to Prabhupada with rapt attention. This
great, saintly spiritual master, the jagad-guru, has come again to
ISKCON Mexico.
“It is very simple and easy,” Prabhupada goes on to describe Krishna

consciousness. “If you do not know, if you are not educated, if you have
no asset, you can simply chant the Hare Krishna mahā-mantra. And if
you are educated, a logician, a philosopher, you can read our books,
which are already fifty in number. There will be about seventy-five
books of four hundred pages to convince the philosopher, scientist, and
educationist what is Krishna consciousness. They are published in
English as well as other European languages. Take advantage of this.
“Along with the Deity worship in this temple, hold classes at least 5
hours. As in the schools and colleges, there are regular classes, forty-
five minute class, then five or 10 minutes recess, again forty-five minute
class, in this way. We have got enough subject matter to study, and if
we study all these books, to finish them it will take at least twenty-five
years. So you are all young men, I request you to engage your time in
reading books, in chanting, in Deity worship, in going to preach, selling
books. Don’t be lazy. Always remain engaged. Then that is Krishna
consciousness.”
After a brief introductory talk, Prabhupada asks for questions. A guest

asks, “If everyone is spirit soul, then isn’t sex life also spiritual?”
“There is no sex life in the spirit soul. Sex life is in the material body.
We are not this body. But because we are in this body, therefore we are
thinking pleasure of the body is pleasure of the soul.”
The next question is straight from śāstra. “Who are we, why are we
here, and where are we going?”
“You are all living entities,” Srila Prabhupada explains. “You wanted to
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come here, just like I wanted to come to your city. I have come here.
Similarly, you wanted to come to this material world and enjoy. So
because you wanted to enjoy this material world you have come here.
Krishna has allowed you to come here, and you are trying to enjoy this
material world. This is called struggle for existence. But you will never
be happy with this material world. It is simply a struggle for existence.
Therefore, you should go back to home, back to Godhead, then you’ll be
happy. That’s all.”
When the questions end, a Mexican lady stands up on impulse and states
in English, “In the name of all the guests and all the Mexico City
temple, we welcome you.”
At last, Prabhupada is shown to his room where he asks for the Deity’s
mahā- prasādam. This is his standard practice as he travels from temple
to temple. He always takes a personal interest to see that the Deities are
suitably worshipped and properly maintained. After one taste,
Prabhupada is not pleased with the mahā-prasādam. “This prasādam is
horrible. The Deity worship here is not up to standard. It is important to
worship the Deities very nicely.” Prabhupada emphasizes the point. “It
is as important to perform first-class Deity worship as it is to distribute
my books.”
Srutakirti: I was shocked! I had never heard Srila Prabhupada criticize

the Deity worship anywhere before. My heart went out to the devotees
doing the cooking, but I knew it was their turn to get some merciful
instruction. This would be something they would never forget. I
speculated about Srila Prabhupada’s relationship with the Deities. Being
of mundane vision, I saw the beautiful forms of the Lord, but couldn’t
recognize the innate principle of reciprocal interaction, līlā. Sometimes,
I tried to imagine what it might be like to take darshan of the Deities and
see Krishna as Prabhupada undoubtedly did. Srila Prabhupada
emphasized how we must understand that Krishna is non-different from
His form in the temple room. He kindly reminded us again and again.
1002
His Divine Grace wants everyone to know how imperative it is to
perform first-class Deity worship side-by-side with book distribution.
Ultimately, the purpose of Prabhupada’s books is to enlighten people
that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and we are His
servants. Deity worship is the application of this principle in
Unfortunately, another one of Prabhupada’s sannyāsī disciples has

fallen down from the sannyāsa standard and has married. Now dressed
as a householder, Hanuman has come to see his spiritual master. He
joins an intimate darshan in Prabhupada’s room and reveals his mind.
“Srila Prabhupada,” Hanuman begins humbly, “Lord Chaitanya

Mahaprabhu had one disciple in the renounced order, Choṭa Haridas,
whom He rejected from His association because he became too much
lusty after a woman. I was also one of your sannyāsa disciples, and I too
became lusty after a woman. I was wondering if you have also rejected
me from your association?”
A heavy silence follows. Everyone in the room looks at Prabhupada,

who sits with his head down. After a long pause, Prabhupada looks up
and speaks quietly to Hanuman. “Lord Chaitanya is God. He can spread
this movement all over the world in one second without the help of
anyone if He likes. I am not God. I am simply a servant of God. I
require so much assistance to help me spread Krishna consciousness all
over the world. If someone renders even some small service to help me,
I am eternally indebted to him. You have rendered so much assistance to
me, how could I reject you?”
The devotees in the room are deeply touched, astonished at the depth of
Srila Prabhupada’s empathy.
During his Mexican sojourn, devotees arrange for important people to

meet the Founder-Acharya of ISKCON. At one such darshan a guest
asks the following question: “What is the greatest offense?”
1003
“Yes, that is the first offense, guror avajñāśruti-śāstra-nindanam. If you
accept a guru and then again disobey him, then what is your position?
You are not a gentleman. You promised before guru, before Krishna,
before fire, that ‘I shall obey your order. I shall execute this.’ If again
you do not do this, then you are not even a gentleman, what to speak of
a devotee. This is common sense.”
On February 19, after spending eight days in Mexico City, Prabhupada

is ready to proceed to his next destination, Caracas, Venezuela. The
Mexican devotees arrange the same police escort to the airport.
However, this time it does not alleviate the usual problems of
international travel. When Prabhupada arrives at the airport, his flight is
delayed and he has to remain sitting in the car for almost an hour.
Prabhupada is used to transcendental reciprocation with his disciples at

airports all over the world, and he knows a great opportunity to enliven
them is being missed. “It would have been better waiting in the lounge. I
am having to wait in the car.”
He is feeling separation from his Mexican disciples who are denied the
pleasure of his darshan. For many devotees, this constitutes a major part
of their personal association with him.
While waiting in the car, Srutakirti reveals that he has not prepared any
prasādam for the flight. But prior to boarding the flight on Venezuela
Airlines, an Indian lady comes over and gives Srutakirti a bag filled
with puffed rice that she has made for the trip. At last, they are ready to
board the flight.
This is Srila Prabhupada’s first trip to Venezuela. On every flight,

Prabhupada always sits by the window. Srutakirti is always in the
middle seat, and Paramahamsa Swami sits in the aisle seat. Shortly after
takeoff, Srila Prabhupada feels hungry. “All right, let’s take prasādam.”
“Do you want what is being served on the plane?” Srutakirti asks.
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“No, no!” Prabhupada replies. “We have our prasādam. That’s all right.”
Srutakirti pulls out the puffed rice wrapped in aluminum foil and places
it on the tray-table for Prabhupada to take. Although it’s not a large
portion, Prabhupada only eats half and says, “All right, now you can
take.”
This is the nectar that devotees always relish. Prabhupada always takes
care of his entourage and they greatly appreciate his kindness. Srutakirti
takes the remaining puffed rice and splits the foil down the middle. He
offers half to Paramahamsa Swami and keeps the rest for himself.
While they are happily eating Prabhupada’s remnants, a young flight

attendant
walking down the aisle stops to watch them eating the puffed rice. All of
a sudden, she spontaneously reaches past Paramahamsa Swami and
takes a handful of Srutakirti’s mahā-prasādam. With a gleam in her eye,
she tosses it into her mouth.
“Oh, this is good. What do you call it?”
“It’s puffed rice,” Srutakirti answers feeling a little shocked by her

boldness. “It’s made from rice.”
Prabhupada looks over at her with a broad smile.
“Ah, this is very good,” she exclaims to Srila Prabhupada.
“I’m glad you like it,” Srutakirti responds trying to maintain his
composure. “Are you having anything else to eat?” she asks.
“Well, we’re vegetarian,” Srutakirti explains. “Unless there is some

fruit, we can’t have anything.”
“I’ll have a look in first class. There may be an extra basket of fruit,”
1005
she replies happily. Within moments, she returns with the basket of
fruit, and asks if there is anything else she can bring.
“Srila Prabhupada,” Srutakirti inquires, “would you like some milk?”

“Yes, hot milk.”
“Okay.” Srutakirti then turns to the flight attendant and says. “He will
have some hot milk and we will have some as well.”
She quickly goes back to first class and soon returns with hot milk.
Srutakirti: Prabhupada lectured many times about Supersoul residing in

the heart of the living entity. However, I never experienced His presence
before that day. I became convinced that only Supersoul within the heart
of the stewardess could have inspired her to act in such an
unprofessional manner. Sometimes devotees would offer me money to
get a taste of Srila Prabhupada’s remnants; I never took it. They begged
for the opportunity to render personal service. Here was this flight
attendant boldly going where no one had ever gone before by the mercy
of Krishna and His pure devotee.
Caracas, Venezuela, February 19, 1975

At Caracas International Airport, many local devotees greet their
spiritual master with a rousing kirtan. Devotees from other Latin
American countries have also come to Caracas desiring Prabhupada’s
holy association. He is the first pure devotee to visit South America in
modern history, and by his grace they want to take full advantage of
Lord Chaitanya’s mercy.
When Srila Prabhupada arrives at the Caracas temple it’s a replay of his
arrival at the Mexico temple, including a foot-bathing ceremony.
Prabhupada sits self-assured, yet humbly, on the modest seat offered to
him. To glorify the two Prabhus on the altar, Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai, Srila
Prabhupada takes up his kartāls and begins to sing Parama Karuna,
1006
unaccompanied. Some devotees notice that Prabhupada appears to be
trembling in ecstasy as he sings. They can feel their dedication swell
seeing their spiritual master’s perfect example. After his darshan of Sri
Sri Gaura-Nitai, Prabhupada retires to his room and asks to taste the
mahā-prasādam.
“These purīs are terrible,” Srila Prabhupada exclaims. “The vegetable is

horrible.
This prasādam is not good. Deity worship must be first-class. You must
worship the Deity very nicely!”
Again, Prabhupada emphasizes the importance of first-class Deity

worship. Simply by reading his books, his followers would know this
important principle of Krishna consciousness. He continues encouraging
his young disciples to make advancement on the spiritual path. It’s not
that he is upset; he simply wants to emphasize the importance of
performing devotional service with care and attention. Because
everything Prabhupada does is with the utmost attention and devotion to
Sri Krishna.
Srutakirti: Deity worship allows us to practice devotional service. Their

Lordships are the original root source of this Vaishnava family. Without
Them, we are lost. Srila Prabhupada’s books are like attractive, cordial
invitations to please come and personally serve the Deity. Our duty is to
remind whomever we meet that we are all servants of the Lord. Lord
Krishna’s Deity worship takes place at our temples around the world.
The books invite everyone, “Please, come and serve the Lord.” Deity
worship is the zenith of loving service. The books give us the
knowledge to come to this platform.
The Venezuelan devotees have also made arrangements for important

people to meet Srila Prabhupada. Among them are psychiatrists,
professors, and ten people from the Metaphysical Society. Prabhupada
preaches to the group of psychologists, informing them that they are
simply repairing the “automobile” and not touching the “driver.”
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Powerfully preaching on Krishna’s behalf, Prabhupada drives this point
home again and again for nearly an hour.
All in all, Prabhupada’s visit to Latin America has been very pleasant
and he is impressed with the sincerity of the devotees. Before leaving
Venezuela, he comments, “Unless I know everything directly and
indirectly about this Krishna consciousness movement, how can I call
myself the founder-ācārya?”
To conclude the episode of Srila Prabhupada’s preaching in Latin

America, we must go forward in time to 1985. Devotees in Brazil are
now going door to door distributing books from town to town. In a
remote village in the rainforest, several brahmacārīs visit every house
with books. At one house a woman answers the door. When she sees a
devotee dressed in dhoti and kurtā she exclaims, “Hare Krishna! Please
come in.”
The brahmacārī is impressed to be received so favorably. Inside her

house he’s surprised to see pictures of Krishna all over the walls. There
is also a beautiful altar with Deities.
After offering obeisances, he exclaims, “You’re a Vaishnava!”
“Yes, yes.” she replies. “It’s so wonderful to see another devotee here.”
“How did you become a devotee?”
“Well, ten years ago, I used to be an air hostess for Venezuela Airlines.
The first time I saw devotees I met Srila Prabhupada on a flight to
Caracas.”
By a moment’s association with the pure devotee and taking his

remnants, her life had completely achanged. As stated in śāstra:
‘sādhu-saṅga’, ‘sādhu-saṅga’—sarva-śāstre kaya lava-mātra sādhu-

saṅge sarva-siddhi haya
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The verdict of all revealed scriptures is that by even a moment’s
association with a pure devotee, one can attain all success. [CC Madhya
22.54]
Atlanta, Georgia, February 1975

Last December, the Atlanta devotees moved into a new temple complex.
This location is in a much better area of town with more expansive
grounds than previously. Everybody is excited about the prospects for
future preaching. Even more exciting is the fact that Prabhupada will
soon be coming. He’s on his 1975 world tour and is preaching in Latin
America. Then he will visit Miami, Atlanta, Dallas, and New York.
Everyone is frantically cleaning and decorating the new temple for

Prabhupada’s arrival when the Radha-Damodara bus turns up. The
arrival kirtan with Vishnujana singing and Tamal Krishna playing
mṛdaṅga is huge. Aja is now vice-president of the temple but he’s not
present to greet the party. He is keeping a safe distance away from
Tamal Krishna Goswami.
For class, the Swamis sit together and speak in tandem as they have
been doing for the past six months. Most devotees are impressed, but
there are others who feel that something is amiss.
Gokularanjana: Aja didn’t want to see Tamal Krishna. He was afraid to

see him because he had not only left the party but he was a householder.
Being a ‘whitey’ was like, you might as well be a karmi. I remember
they were very proud that they had their buses and their men. Kardama
Muni: My feeling at the time was that the mood had changed. Of course,
I was in no position to understand what that change was, but there was
something obvious in Vishnujana Maharaja’s countenance, and in his
vibration, if you will.
Ramanath Suka: Vishnujana Maharaja returned to Atlanta with Tamal

Krishna Maharaja and he was undergoing some difficulty. I remember a
1009
kind of false enthusiasm to elevate Tamal Krishna and Vishnujana.
They had special āsanas made for them to speak from. I thought that
was a little artificial. I remember they sat in front of the devotees on
these two special seats and preached together.
At this point in ISKCON’s history there is only one vyāsāsana in each

temple and Prabhupada’s portrait sits there prominently so that devotees
can perform guru-pūjā everyday. The portrait is removed only when
Prabhupada visits a temple so he can sit on the vyāsāsana. For the daily
Bhagavatam class, the speaker simply sits on a cushion. There is no
awareness of a vyāsāsana for anyone other than Srila Prabhupada. While
the Radha-Damodara bus waits for Prabhupada to arrive in Atlanta, the
Swamis go out to the regional colleges for their regular festival
program. Living in a temple environment is a new experience for Gopal
Acharya. He is uncomfortable because he doesn’t know how to live in
an ashram, and nobody is taking the time to teach him the daily routine
of sādhana bhakti. He can see that devotees are fired-up but he’s feeling
lost trying to figure everything out.
Gopal Acharya: In those first few days I was hanging around the bus all
day and Sridhar was the only one who stayed back. I was so impressed
with his intelligence. He had a lot of class and a wonderful singing
voice. We spent time together because he was the cook and pūjārī and I
wasn’t going out yet. Ramacharya also did pūjārī work, but Ramacharya
would go out. At first Sridhar seemed a little elitist, but then he’d tell me
stories about laying bricks in New Vrindavan, so he was more down to
earth than I was. I thought, Wow, this guy has been laying bricks and
sawing marble in the freezing cold at New Vrindavan! That’s really
earthy. At the same time he had a sort of elitist or aristocratic bearing,
like a contradictory nature.
When I first joined I was turned off by a cushion that Vishnujana Swami
sat on, plus he ate with a big sterling spoon. Goswami was a little heavy
once we got on the road and he started exercising some discipline. I
remember thinking they were a little arrogant, a little pompous, too
1010
authoritative and imperious. Of course that changed but it was a big deal
for me to be traveling with the devotees. I was rather intense at the time,
trying to make life decisions.
Gopal is concerned that if he doesn’t make friends with anyone soon, he

will have to leave. Intellectually, he believes he should stay, but he
doesn’t have a close relationship with anybody. He is used to having
close friendships. After his three day commitment has come and gone,
Gopal decides it’s time to return to his friends in Gainesville. Since
Vishnujana Swami is the softer of the sannyāsīs, he approaches him.
“Well, I’ve had a nice time and I think I’m gonna go now.” “Fine,” is
Maharaja’s reply.
This leaves Gopal in a quandary. “Are you going back to Gainesville, or

can I get some money for a bus ticket back?”
“Bhakta Tom, I’m sure that since you’re so God conscious, Krishna will
send some God conscious person to pick you up if you hitchhike.”
Normally Gopal wouldn’t mind hitchhiking, but at this particular time in
his life he is burned-out from it.
“Oh well, in that case I’ll just stay a couple of days more.” His guess is
that Vishnujana Swami knows that he really doesn’t want to hitchhike
and since there is no money forthcoming he will just decide to stay.
The next day, he approaches Maharaja again. “You know, I’ve had a
great time but I really do want to leave now.”
“Krishna consciousness is a process,” Vishnujana replies quietly. “It’s

not instant. You have to give it a little time. Just give it two weeks and
you’ll learn enough that when you do go you can take it with you.”
That seems to make sense so Gopal agrees to commit to two weeks.

Goswami is also trying to figure him out and convince him to stay
1011
Gopal Acharya: Tamal Krishna was very confrontational about his
philosophical ideas. I kept explaining my philosophy, but he would see
through it. So we had an immediate relationship but it was a little rocky.
He told me I should read Nectar of Devotion. He was trying to impress
upon me what it takes to be a devotee. “It requires some discipline; you
can’t just let it flow.” It was the first book he told me to read and I was
really glad because I was interested in poetry and studying emotions and
psychology. When I started reading about all the rāsas and emotions I
thought, This is unbelievable. How can anybody analyze emotions and
everything in this way? I was really knocked out by Nectar of Devotion.
One night Gopal bunks down with Marino and Satyaraja. He is attracted
to them because they are old friends who have a great relationship. For
an hour, the three of them lie in the dark talking and joking. They are
just like buddies and there’s no pretension in the air. Although he has
just met them, they make a friendship that is special, so he feels that he
can have friends in the movement. After this experience, he relaxes
because he feels accepted. Before falling asleep he thinks that now he
will probably stay.
Tamal Krishna has been keeping contact with Abhirama about Srila
Prabhupada’s pending arrival. When he learns that Prabhupada has
arrived in Miami, he decides to take the opportunity to be alone with his
spiritual master. He has a new idea; that Vishnujana Swami should take
the Radha-Damodara bus to Dallas and meet Prabhupada there. The
other buses will meet Prabhupada in Atlanta. This plan will
give Prabhupada a bigger picture of the size of the Radha-Damodara

party. Vishnujana Swami accepts this proposal and prepares to leave
with Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. Goswami also decides to separate
Marino and Satyaraja. In his opinion, they spend too much time together
talking prajalpa. He is convinced that the kirtan group only needs
Vishnujana Swami to be successful, and thus, Satyaraja is jettisoned to
Adi Keshava’s party. Vishnujana already knows that Satyaraja will
never be able to play the esraj so he has no objection on that level.
1012
But with Hasyagrami on Dhristadyumna’s bus, and Sri Rama on Adi
Keshava’s bus, that leaves no esraj player for his own kirtan party.
Vishnujana is not pleased by this decision to reduce the quality of his
festival program, but Tamal Krishna is certain that all you need for a
successful kirtan is Vishnujana Swami.
Later that morning, there’s a delivery notice for T. K. Goswami. Tamal

had previously arranged for a big shipment of BTGs and small books to
be delivered in Atlanta. He is emphasizing book distribution more and
more in his quest to be number one in the transcendental competition
that is being stoked by the Sankirtan Newsletter. As soon as he receives
this message, Tamal hires a rental truck to pick up the books at the
airport and entrusts the service to Gadadhar.
He assigns several new bhaktas to help Gadadhar at the airport. After

ensuring that every case is loaded onto the rental truck the men return to
the temple fully laden with their transcendental treasure.
By evening, Tamal Krishna receives some disastrous news. Gadadhar

reports that he entrusted the key of the truck with the entire supply of
BTGs and books to Bhakta Ray, and now that truck is nowhere to be
found. Bhakta Ray is also missing. Sheepishly, he suggests that Ray
might have left the party and driven off with the truck.
Hearing this proposition Goswami becomes furious. He orders all the

brahmacārīs to immediately search for and find the truck, then report
back to him. This causes a little excitement on the party. Some people
wonder how Goswami will deal with the issue. Ray had shaven up but
had not left a śikhā in contrast to the party line.
“If we don’t get these books back,” Goswami berates Gadadhar, “I’ll
have no sentiment in the matter. You will pay for every one of the
books. There will be no sentiment in this matter! Every penny you will
be responsible for.”
Gadadhar: Tamal Krishna got so heavy with me that he said, “You are
1013
not a devotee. You were never a devotee. I’m going to make sure you’re
never going to be a devotee.” He could be so heavy. To this day I’m still
shaking from that incident. Fortunately, the guy didn’t want the books.
He just wanted to get out of there.
Gokularanjana: Gadadhar had given the keys to one guy who took the
van and just kept going. I remember Tamal Krishna talking to
Gadadhar. It was heavy, really intense. Unfortunately, I saw a big
change in Vishnujana Swami after Tamal Krishna Maharaja joined the
program. He wasn’t the same. He seemed distant, like unhappy. It
seemed like he was overshadowed. Everything was getting organized
with quotas, etc.
It’s now clear that Goswami is really pragmatic about the crisis. He
suspects that Ray has indeed stolen the truck and fled. After waiting all
night for some positive development, there is still no sign of Ray after
mangal-ārati. Goswami’s increasing anguish comes to the attention of a
local devotee who used to be a detective linked to the Atlanta Police
Department. He suggests they put out a five-state alarm to trace the
stolen vehicle. With his assistance, Tamal Krishna calls the state police
and an APB [All Points Bulletin] is radioed across five states with a
description of the truck. Now, all that can be done is to wait and pray to
Krishna.
TKG: There was always a risk in accepting new devotees without a

sufficient period of testing. But for our party, which was constantly on
the move, this initial testing practiced by other temples was impossible.
We had to accept whoever volunteered to join us, as long as he appeared
sincere and was willing to follow our principles.
Miami, Florida, February 25, 1975

After two weeks in Mexico City and Caracas, Srila Prabhupada returns
to the United States. He stays in a cottage adjacent to the temple, which
is the residence of a householder couple. There are posters of devotional
1014
paintings from his books on the walls. One particular poster depicts
Krishna sitting on the chariot. Arjuna stands behind Him holding his
forehead with his left hand. Arjuna looks particularly distressed in this
depiction.
While looking at the poster, Prabhupada suddenly bursts out in laughter.
“Yes, this picture,” he says to Srutakirti. “I like this picture very much.
This picture is very instructive.”
“What is that Srila Prabhupada?”
“Well, Krishna is saying to Arjuna, ‘You must give up everything.’ He

is telling Arjuna, ‘Give up all your family. You must kill them. You
must kill your family members.’ So this is the point. One has to be ready
to give up everything for Krishna and do what Krishna desires. You
must be prepared to give up a wife, children, everything. One has to be
ready to kill their relatives if Krishna desires, what to speak of giving
them up. If Krishna wants, you kill your relatives. This is a devotee. A
devotee is prepared to kill their relatives for Krishna. So, at this point,
Arjuna is ready. He is having to accept. Then everything is all right. As
devotees, we must be able to give up all of these family relationships.”
Hearing this explanation, Srutakirti becomes overwhelmed with his own

internal turmoil. He is still a newly married man with a wonderful baby
boy. He’s just embarking on family life and certainly not ready to give it
up. He considers this point of surrender too extreme and accepts the fact
that he just doesn’t understand. Unable to speak, he simply looks down
at the ground and quietly says, “Yes, Srila Prabhupada.”
Srutakirti: I was tormented with the fact that I left my infant son and
young wife. The way His Divine Grace explained Arjuna’s dilemma
was completely objective. Srila Prabhupada was so expert. He was not
telling me to leave my family. He was gently persuading me to come to
my own conclusion. There was no indication in his voice that this was
my predicament. Yet, it was obvious to me that this was my exact
1015
predicament. I was attached and determined to stay with my family.
Srila Prabhupada philosophically prepared me to make the important
decision that was to come in the near future.
I was secure in the fact that my family was being provided for at the
Hawaii Temple. It wasn’t as if I had abandoned them. I was just called
away on a tour of eminent duty. I had only been with Srila Prabhupada
for two weeks after leaving Hawaii. I took comfort knowing that when
His Divine Grace left the United States, I would be back in the loving
arms of my family.
Tamal Krishna Goswami has flown into Miami and is at the temple this
evening to hear Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita class. For a change,
Prabhupada is giving evening Gita classes instead of his usual morning
Bhagavatam classes. In front of Miami’s beautiful Sri-Sri Gaura-Nitai
Deities, Prabhupada refers to a question raised in Venezuela. “The other
day in Caracas some psychiatrists came. Their question was that, ‘The
problems of the world are increasing, so what is your prescription to
solve these problems?’
“So the problem is very easy to be solved. I gave the example that this
body is there.
And there is something which is moving the body, living force. So that
living force is the driver of the body, and the body is also described in
the Bhagavad-gita as a machine. Actually it is a machine.
īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe ‘rjuna tiṣṭhati bhrāmayan sarva-

bhūtāni yantrārūḍhāni māyayā [Bg. 18.61]
“Yantra means machine. So we are seated on this machine. This is

knowledge. The person who is seated in this car, on the machine,
nobody knows. There are so many advancement-of-knowledge
departments, but where is the department to understand the living force
which is driving this machine? What is that living force? How it is
working? There is no enquiry and no education.
1016
“Therefore this education has no value. They do not know what is
education.
Education means to enquire about the living force which is moving this
body. That is education. This is not education, that we have
manufactured nice car or nice machine. That is called craftsmanship.
That is not education.”
Early the following morning, Srila Prabhupada takes a walk around the
temple grounds. Tamal Krishna and Abhirama accompany him.
Prabhupada appreciates the property, and is enjoying the fresh fruit that
is available in Miami. However, he’s a little disturbed because of all the
leaves lying on the ground.
At one point, Prabhupada stops and inquires from Abhirama. “Why

everyone else’s yards are clean? Here there are only leaves on the
ground?”
“Well, under the leaves there’s nothing but dirt. The leaves keep the dirt
from rising.”
“There are lawns everywhere,” Prabhupada points out. “Why here you
have dirt?” He chastises Abhirama that the grounds should always be
kept very clean and the leaves raked. “If you have your own property
you may neglect it, but when you are taking care of someone else’s
property you have to be very careful.” The purport is, be very careful to
take care of Krishna’s property.
Srila Prabhupada launches into ISKCON’s management problems.

Some GBCs want to centralize the management of the society whereas
Prabhupada wants every center to be autonomous and managed
individually by local devotees. His point is that if there is an attack
against ISKCON one temple may be affected, but if management is
centralized then the whole society is jeopardized. His second point is
that unless local devotees are in charge of their individual temples, the
movement will wither and fade.
1017
There are many discussions about organizing ISKCON along business
systems popular in America. Jayatirtha and Ramesvara introduce this
new direction, and there are good results from moving in that direction.
They preach that it’s the natural order of things because it’s obvious
devotees can’t carry on as hippies and Prabhupada certainly seems to be
endorsing that.
They also feel a need to make things consistent, to control things from a
mastermind headquarters in Los Angeles – centralization. But
Prabhupada clearly objects to that. He prefers the Ghandian system with
each temple separate and autonomous, headed by a strong temple
president who would become a leader in the community.
TKG: There was the incident of the Umbrella Corporation, which was
already coming to Srila Prabhupada’s attention, so he was very
disturbed. He said to me, “Why are Jayatirtha and Ramesvara pressing
me like this?” He wanted to avoid having all of our corporations under
one major corporation because Srila Prabhupada felt that this was
actually an attempt by the lawyers to control our society, since they
would make the whole thing so entangled and we would be totally
dependent upon them. In this way they would exercise control over us
and drain our money. In India such things are done by lawyers. They
completely control individuals as well as societies by legal
manipulation. Srila Prabhupada knew this although we were innocent.
Abhirama: There was talk about the significance of the centralization

issue. What is the role of a GBC? And what is the role of a temple
president? Prabhupada wanted a temple president to be autonomous. I
don’t think his position was supposed to be at the grace of the GBC. I
think the only right the GBC had to remove someone was only in
extreme cases, when there was a gross misappropriation of assets or
misconduct. Later on temple presidents just became a rubber stamp and
it’s wrong. It’s a very bad way to manage. From the study of
management it’s a very counterproductive system because we don’t
understand the principles of management, although Srila Prabhupada
1018
clearly understood.
Tamal Krishna was the first person, besides Karandhar, that I felt really
had some management abilities. He had a practical, let’s get the job
done, kind of attitude, which strikes my nature very well. This was an
immediate impression. I believe that Srila Prabhupada was a strong
pragmatist. Tamal Krishna Goswami had imbibed that from
Prabhupada. He was practical on every point. I liked that because it was
efficient. It meant using everything available, maximizing it for the
service of Krishna.
Jayatirtha and Ramesvara do not realize the danger of putting all

ISKCON properties under one umbrella corporation. They think this
will make management easier. To follow this issue to its conclusion, a
few weeks later, Jayatirtha would fly to Dallas to try again to convince
Prabhupada to incorporate ISKCON under the umbrella corporation.
But Srila Prabhupada again refuses to give his sanction.
Ultimately, when Srila Prabhupada would return to Los Angeles in June

‘75, the American GBC secretaries are called to discuss the umbrella
corporation. It’s becoming difficult for Prabhupada to assert his desire,
so he requests the meeting with the GBCs to help him because Jayatirtha
and Ramesvara are so insistent. The meeting is held in Prabhupada’s
quarters with the various GBC men sitting around him during his daily
massage. Prabhupada requests Jayatirtha to explain everything. After
hearing the explanation he’s not satisfied so Ramesvara and Jayatirtha
continue presenting their arguments.
Then Tamal Krishna speaks up. “Srila Prabhupada, what do you want?”
“I do not want this. It is very dangerous.”
As soon as he says this, the other GBC men agree. “What’s the question
of doing it then? We won’t do it.”
At this point Jayatirtha and Ramesvara are defeated in their attempt to

push the idea through, and the idea becomes dead in ISKCON. After
1019
Srila Prabhupada’s disappearance, however, the centralization issue
again rears its ugly head pushed by several sannyāsīs and GBCs.
But Prabhupada has already given his judgment in a letter to Karandhar

who proposed the idea way back in December, 1972. His reply then was
the same as always: the “Krishna Consciousness Movement is for
training men to be independently thoughtful and competent in all types
of departments of knowledge and action, not for making bureaucracy.”
I have heard from Jayatirtha you want to make a big plan for
centralization of management, taxes, monies, corporate status,
bookkeeping, credit, like that. I do not at all approve of such plan. Do
not centralize anything. Each temple must remain independent and self-
sufficient. That was my plan from the very beginning, why you are
thinking otherwise? Once before you wanted to do something
centralizing with your GBC meeting, and if I did not interfere the whole
thing would have been killed. Do not think in this way of big
corporation, big credits, centralization – these are all nonsense
proposals.
Only thing I wanted was that book printing and distribution should be
centralized, therefore I appointed you and Bali Mardan to do it.
Otherwise, management, everything, should be done locally by local
men. Accounts must be kept, things must be in order and lawfully done,
but that should be each temple’s concern, not yours. Krishna
Consciousness Movement is for training men to be independently
thoughtful and competent in all types of departments of knowledge and
action, not for making bureaucracy. Once there is bureaucracy the whole
thing will be spoiled.
There must be always individual striving and work and responsibility,

competitive spirit, not that one shall dominate and distribute benefits to
the others and they do nothing but beg from you and you provide. No.
Never mind there may be botheration to register each centre, take tax
certificate each, become separate corporations in each state. That will
1020
train men how to do these things, and they shall develop reliability and
responsibility, that is the point. [Letter to Karandhar - December 22,
1972]
Houston, Texas, February 1975

While Tamal Krishna is in Miami with Srila Prabhupada, Vishnujana
Swami and the Radha-Damodara bus have reached the Houston temple.
The small center is now packed with devotees. The traveling parties of
Yogesh Chandra and Janardan are also here and greet the bus
enthusiastically. They lead a group of fifteen recruits who know little
about the philosophy but want to distribute BTGs and collect money for
Prabhupada’s book fund.
The men have a great feeling of camaraderie which is attractive to

Gopal Acharya, but he’s not part of it because he hasn’t shaved up.
Everybody is preaching to him because he’s the new man with long
hair. But he feels this mood is too formal. He wants to be with people he
can relax and joke with. He’s waiting for that to happen.
Vishnujana Maharaja meets with Siddhavidya again and they have their
usual joyful reunion. When Maharaja informs him that there are two
more buses filled with brahmacārīs, Siddhavidya really wants to join the
party. He can understand that, after Prabhupada, the Radha-Damodara
party is the fastest devotee-making program ever. But his temple
president won’t give him permission to leave.
During a Bhagavatam class, Vishnujana makes a reference to the quote

by Lord Jesus, to become ‘fishers of men.’ In a mood resembling that of
Jesus, Maharaja says, “Now I want you to go out today and preach, so
you also become fishers of men.” The way Vishnujana uses his voice,
with his inflection and emotion, is so striking that his points usually
remain in one’s heart.
Yogesh Chandra is training Janardan how to lead the van parties. The
1021
main coaching is how to sell a pack of incense for one dollar. If a person
is receptive, they get a BTG as a bonus gift. Yogesh has taken an
already effective system to an even higher level. The Radha-Damodara
party has fifty devotees going out and collecting $40 a day, which is the
quota at this time. The incense pack and the BTG cost .25 cents each, so
the .50 cents profit brings in a minimum collection of $2000 every day.
The overhead for the buses is low, so the $60,000 coming in every
month sustains the party very well.
Tens of thousands of BTGs are distributed every month this way. Due to
this, Tamal Krishna is now applying pressure on the BTG staff to insert
the Radha-Damodara party ad in every single issue.
Yogesh Chandra envisions that 100 men will soon be going out and
bringing in $120,000 profit every month. That’s a lot of money,
especially in 1975, and will give rise to a new dimension in book
distribution. The concept is that with the extra money the men can
distribute the big books for less than cost, and still be debt free to the
BBT. This idea will bring the Radha-Damodara party into the big book
category of the Sankirtan Newsletter. They are already number one in
the small book category.
However, the introduction of this new policy, giving out big books for
less than actual cost, will soon become a controversial issue.
While the van parties go out to distribute BTGs, the bus goes to colleges
where Vishnujana Swami lectures in classes. The gurukula boy,
Ekendra, is also traveling with the bus. After giving a talk in a
philosophy class, Maharaja surprises everyone by suddenly announcing,
“We have a student with us from our school in Dallas. We challenge
that he can defeat anybody in a philosophical debate.”
Gopal Acharya discreetly asks Maharaja, “What’s the idea? You’re

taking a risk aren’t you?”
1022
“No,” Maharaja whispers tactfully. “It’s like this. These professors
might figure they can defeat him, but they’re not going to take the
chance. Because if someone is defeated by a Hare Krishna kid, he’s
finished. So nobody ever asks him anything, because there’s always the
chance Ekendra will defeat them and then they’re finished. But it makes
us look really good.”
Increasingly, Gopal develops courage to reveal his mind confidentially

to Maharaja.
Gopal Acharya: I talked to him about being attracted to women and how
to deal with that. He said, “You’ll notice, when I walk around I look at
the ground. I’m not looking around like you are. I’m looking at the
ground.”
I remember thinking, Wow, he’s really disciplined. He was giving me a

practical tip. It wasn’t just mystical and idealistic and everything just
happens automatically. He was showing me that you need to change
your behavior.
After several days in Houston, a van party brings back a man they have
met at a mall, who wants to become a devotee. He joins the party and
later becomes Acharyaratna. But Gopal feels it’s time for him to leave.
“I need my sleeping bag. I’m leaving now,” he says to Vrikasanga.
“Oh, you need your sleeping bag? No problem. It’s locked in the bay of
the bus. The only person with a key is Vishnujana Maharaja, so you can
ask him.”
This time Gopal is determined to be firm in his resolve. “I need to get

the key for the bus bay to get my sleeping bag,” he says to Maharaja.
“Why?”
“Because I’m leaving. I really appreciate everything you’ve done for
1023
me, and it’s been wonderful. We’ll have to stay in touch.”
“When you first came you promised me you were going to try it for two
weeks before you leave.” Looking deep into Gopal’s eyes, and with his
soft mellow voice, Maharaja says, “Bhakta Tom, if a man asks you to
walk with him one mile, then you should walk with him two miles.”
Gopal Acharya is taken aback by this reply. He thinks it’s poetic. It

really sounds like a native-American thing to say. But he doesn’t know
how to respond to it. So he just surrenders. “Well, okay. I’ll stay the full
time I committed to.”

The night before Prabhupada’s arrival, the Atlanta temple is absolutely
surcharged with devotional energy. Goswami has already ordered Adi
Keshava and Dhristadyumna to drive their buses to Atlanta.
Adi Keshava’s party travels all night through the southern states. They
are stopped by the Mississippi State police and ticketed for speeding.
But everyone is filled with excitement knowing they will soon meet
their spiritual master.
When Dhristadyumna’s bus arrives after midnight, his men come into
the temple super excited at the prospect of meeting Prabhupada for the
first time. To their surprise, they find that no one is asleep. All the
Atlanta devotees are running here and there making final preparations.
For the Radha-Damodara men, the first and most important thing to do
is shave up clean for Prabhupada. In the midst of shaving, somebody
suddenly announces, “We should get some flowers for Srila
Prabhupada.”
Immediately, Sanjaya leads a raiding party into the gardens of the

neighbor’s yards to liberate flowers. Because they have been out on
1024
book distribution, they have become gung-ho, macho, sankirtan
devotees, and they know it.
The ‘older’ Radha-Damodara men are thrilled to have another

opportunity to see Srila Prabhupada again. It’s been austere living on the
road since the San Francisco Ratha-yatra, taking bucket showers, and
living in crowded quarters.
The temple environment is much more comfortable with almost

unlimited prasādam whenever they want. Some of the men look forward
to visiting a temple, so they can meet other devotees, and not to be
watched over quite so closely. They are happy to have that freedom.

Prabhupada’s party flies into Atlanta from Miami. Hundreds of devotees
from all over the country join the local devotees to greet Srila
Prabhupada with kirtan. Even Jayananda Prabhu is here to greet His
Divine Grace. In the midst of all the excitement, Jayananda and Sri
Rama are assigned to get Prabhupada’s luggage.
Upon entering the Arrivals Lounge, Prabhupada stops to survey the

devotees who are now completely uncontrolled, singing and dancing in
a blissful kirtan. He walks into their midst completely calm, completely
controlled, and completely absorbing all their energy.
The occasion is overwhelming for the Atlanta book distributors who

have been distributing Srila Prabhupada’s books every day at this
airport. Now His Divine Grace is here at the place where his sankirtan
pastimes are performed daily. For them, it’s like seeing their spiritual
master in the holy dhāma.
As Prabhupada walks through the airport followed by hundreds of

beaming disciples, a female reporter from Channel Five News
interviews His Divine Grace keeping pace with him step by step. After a
1025
few short questions she leaves. Everyone resumes chanting Hare
Krishna with mṛdaṅgas pounding in great jubilation.
It’s a wonderful encounter for the Radha-Damodara men who have been
looking forward to seeing their spiritual master after hearing so much
about him. As Prabhupada settles into the rear seat of a black Cadillac,
Tamal Krishna quickly takes a seat beside him.
Everyone is excited to return to the temple to hear Prabhupada’s arrival

address. However, Jayananda and Sri Rama will stay behind to pick up
his luggage and his secretary.
Sri Rama: The memory is clear how I was going to see Srila Prabhupada
at the airport and then go back to hear him lecture for the first time. But
because of the logistics of picking up the luggage, I would not see
Prabhupada at the airport and I would be very lucky if I heard any of his
lecture, or even saw him. I had this distinct feeling of being cheated.
Hundreds of devotees were at the airport to see Prabhupada and here is
the first time I’m going to see my guru and I get stuck with the luggage.
But I picked up on the mood of Jayananda Prabhu, “We’re very lucky to

be collecting Srila Prabhupada’s luggage and serving Prabhupada in this
way.” So due to his influence I reconciled myself to that and gave up
my disappointment. I was thinking it’s not bad to get stuck with your
guru’s luggage. That’s a very nice service. But getting the luggage
meant kissing that lecture goodbye.
Balavanta drives Prabhupada’s car through an excellent neighborhood

on a long route to the temple so the others can reach there first, to greet
their spiritual master a second time. Back at the temple, hundreds of
people are packed into the undersized temple room eagerly awaiting
Prabhupada’s appearance. As everybody chants japa, suddenly someone
begins shouting.
“He’s here! Srila Prabhupada is here!” The devotee throng runs outside
to greet Prabhupada’s car as it parks in the driveway. With an
1026
uproarious kirtan, they escort His Divine Grace to the temple.
Upon entering the temple, conches sound and everyone hastily bows
down as the curtains open. The sound of Yamuna’s voice pervades the
atmosphere, govindam, adi purusam…. From their kneeling position,
most devotees glance up to see Srila Prabhupada’s saffron lotus feet as
he walks towards the altar.
The Atlanta Deities are Sri-Sri Gaura-Nitai. They are quite tall and
effulgent, transcendentally situated on top of lotus flower bases with
garlands hanging down past Their knees. Their faces show gentle,
compassionate smiles. Their arms are upraised as if urging everyone to
experience the nectar of Krishna’s Holy Names by chanting and
dancing.
Prabhupada stands before Gaura-Nitai with folded palms. The ceiling

and walls of the Deity room are mirrored and multiply the reflections of
the Deities. Prabhupada is again moved to see Sri-Sri Gaura-Nitai. He
has now taken Their darshan in three successive centers. He becomes
overwhelmed with emotion and his face appears to melt in ecstasy
seeing Gaura-Nitai’s beauty and mercy.
When Prabhupada turns to face the crowd, men and women separate to
create an aisle down the centre of the room with a clear path from the
altar to the vyāsāsana. Prabhupada walks down the aisle casting his
auspicious glance upon everyone as he passes. Although the temple is
overcrowded, the room quickly hushes into silence as he takes his seat
on the vyāsāsana.
“So I am very glad to see you,” Prabhupada begins. “I am coming first

of all from Mexico City, then Caracas, then Miami. I see your temple is
the best.”
The resident devotees burst into unrestrained cheers of “Jaya!” and

“Haribol!”
1027
“So Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is very kind, parama karuṇa, pahū dui jana.
Two Lords, nitai-Gauracandra, Nityananda Prabhu and Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu, They are very kind, you see. They have appeared just to
reclaim the fallen souls of this age. So They are more kind than Krishna.
Krishna, He is also very kind. He comes to deliver, but Krishna
demands; first of all surrender. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu does not
demand.”
As he tries to explain the unfathomable mercy of Lord Chaitanya,

Prabhupada becomes overwhelmed by transcendental emotions. There is
a silence, then he continues, “He is so kind…” Prabhupada’s voice
chokes up and he cannot go on. Tears begin to stream down his cheeks.
Some devotees can understand that Srila Prabhupada is overwhelmed by
the compassion of Lord Chaitanya and is experiencing transcendental
symptoms of Krishna prema.
Everyone begins chanting japa, waiting for Prabhupada to continue.
Satyaraja: I remember sitting across from Dhira Krishna, close to

Prabhupada’s āsana. We both looked up and saw tears shoot out from
Prabhupada’s eyes – it seemed as though the tears were darting out of a
syringe – landing on both Dhira and me. Feeling the wetness of his
tears, Dhira and I glanced at each other, and I’ll never forget the look in
Dhira’s eyes when he said: “I’m glad you’re experiencing this too,
because if I didn’t have confirmation from someone else, no one would
ever believe me!”
I felt the exact same way. I’ve always carried this with me for my entire
devotional life. It was one of my most outstanding experiences with
Srila Prabhupada – the type of thing you don’t forget.
Prabhupada attempts to carry on, to overcome the emotional ecstasy,

and exclaims in a faltering voice, “So take shelter of Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu…and be happy. Thank you very much.” Srila Prabhupada
lapses into silence, unable to continue. He is visibly weeping.
1028
Several devotees exclaim, “Haribol!” as everyone bows down
simultaneously.
Prabhupada rarely reveals his ecstatic symptoms. He controls his

transcendental ecstasies in order to instruct his disciples and transmit
Lord Chaitanya’s mission. The senior devotees consider themselves
fortunate to witness their spiritual master’s tears of ecstasy. The new
recruits don’t fully understand what is happening. But everyone has
been treated to a rare, ecstatic glimpse of their divine master.
Srutakirti: Stunned and astonished, everyone remained motionless;

mesmerized by Srila Prabhupada’s transcendental mellows. We stood in
rapt attention as our spiritual master left external consciousness while
each moment seemed like twelve years or more. Mysterious time
stretched out around us like the great unknown. Astounded, we
ecstatically stood and awaited Srila Prabhupada’s return.
While this drama is unfolding in the temple room, Jayananda and Sri
Rama have picked up Prabhupada’s luggage and have driven back to the
temple. Prabhupada’s rooms are on the second floor of the house on the
left side of the temple. They carry his luggage up the stairway and leave
everything in his bedroom. Then, their first thought is to hurry to the
temple to hear the rest of Prabhupada’s arrival address.
When Prabhupada opens his eyes, he nods for kirtan to begin. Then he
signals Srutakirti that he wants to leave. His arrival address is over; a
powerful event of three minutes. As he slowly walks out of the temple,
the kirtan increases in intensity. Devotees are stunned by this brief, but
overpowering, darshan.
As Jayananda and Sri Rama hurry down the stairs, lo and behold,
around the corner comes Srila Prabhupada and his entourage. Sri Rama
is bewildered because in his mind, Prabhupada should be speaking in
the temple.
Since they can no longer go down, in order to get out of the way,
1029
Jayananda and Sri Rama have to retreat back up to the landing. They
watch as Prabhupada comes up the stairs and is shown to his darshan
room, followed by the sannyāsīs and the big shots.
This is the first time Sri Rama is seeing his spiritual master, yet he feels
he should leave. Jayananda, however, has had a lot of association with
Prabhupada and he bids Sri Rama to wait. Jayananda opens the door to
the darshan room and sticks his head in to listen to Srila Prabhupada.
Now, Jayananda decides that he doesn’t want to leave so he signals Sri
Rama who stands at a distance.
“Come here Prabhu. Come here. Come here.” Sri Rama approaches and
also sneaks his head around the door. Prabhupada is sitting on an āsana
surrounded by sannyāsīs and GBC men. Within a few moments Tamal
Krishna notices them at the door. He motions Jayananda to come in. Sri
Rama follows Jayananda and they sit down at the back of the room.
At one point in the conversation, some GBC men are talking about
management and meetings. Jayananda takes the liberty to speak up,
“The main thing we have to do is, we just have to chant Hare Krishna.”
Sri Rama: The irony was that because we went to pick up that luggage
we missed the three minute lecture, but we got to hear Prabhupada talk
for hours. It was a long session. First it was the sannyāsīs and the GBC,
then the Library party with Satsvarupa Maharaja, then it was the
Bhaktivedanta Institute with Svarupa Damodara. I remember in
particular that Prabhupada said to the BI people, “the scientists are
trying so hard to discover how the material world is functioning, but it’s
already functioning. So why don’t they try to find the Person who has
designed it’s functioning.” That seemed so logical to me.
Kim Waters and Chris Murray came from Washington to show

Prabhupada their art book Illuminations of the Bhagavad-gita. It was an
amazing experience to get relegated to the luggage and then end up with
all this darshan. So I wasn’t cheated by Krishna.
1030
Srila Prabhupada sits in the room surrounded on either side by his senior
devotees and sannyāsīs. During a short lull in the conversation, he
suddenly asks, “Where is my guru Maharaja?” There is no photograph
of Srila Bhaktisiddhanata on his desk or on the walls of the room.
At that moment, Chris Murray gets up and approaches Srila Prabhupada.

He offers Prabhupada a photograph of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta beautifully
framed and decorated by Kim. Prabhupada folds his hands and nods his
head in gratitude of this gift.
Chris Murray: When one goes to see the spiritual master one should
have an offering. So Kim and I found a wonderful old photograph of his
Guru Maharaja. We put it in a frame and Kim beautifully decorated it
with pearls and gold paint. It was a wonderful opportunity to present
something to Prabhupada.
We were so taken by Prabhupada that we’d go wherever we heard he

was and sit near his lotus feet. He never once said don’t wear jeans, or
cut your hair. He just loved us. He was always so gracious and treated
us with affection and respect.
Vishnujana Swami was the same way. He accepted whatever service we

gave, and that’s all that concerned him. He wasn’t worried about the
rest. That kind of behavior drew you to want to try and perfect your life,
and to serve Krishna sweetly.
Later in the evening, Prabhupada comes over to the temple from his
rooms next door. More than 300 enthusiastic devotees have gathered to
catch a glimpse of him. Besides the local Atlanta devotees and other
visitors, almost 40 Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs, about 12 Library
Party devotees, the devotee-scientists of Svarupa Damodara’s
Bhaktivedanta Institute group, and about 10 men from the BBT airport
distribution party are present. They have all come to Atlanta to meet
their spiritual master and to have private talks with him about their
various services.
1031
The Atlanta temple room is long and narrow. At the far end is
Prabhupada’s vyāsāsana. There’s not enough room for everyone inside
the temple, so many devotees stand outside at a large open window to be
near their spiritual master. From this vantage point they can see and hear
Prabhupada clearly.
After taking his seat on the vyāsāsana, Srila Prabhupada says he wants
to teach a song, Parama Karuṇa. The Atlanta devotees pass out sheets of
Parama Karuna and Srila Prabhupada begins chanting with his kartāls in
a slow rhythm.
parama karuṇa, pahū dui-jana,
nitāi-gauracandra
saba avatāra, sāra śiromaṇi,
kevala ānanda-kanda
None of the devotees can follow. They are fumbling through the song
because they don’t know it. Although it’s included in the Vaishnava
Songbook, it has never been sung before. After a few moments,
Prabhupada stops and asks if someone can accompany him on mṛdaṅga.
Several mṛdaṅga players join in but they can’t seem to find the right
beat. Other players get up and take turns on the mṛdaṅga thinking that,
certainly I can do it. But nobody can pick up this mṛdaṅga beat.
Finally, Prabhupada stops them and says, “Give me that mṛdaṅga.”

Someone brings him the drum. But after testing it, Prabhupada says that
it sounds dead. Quickly, another drum is brought forward. Again,
Prabhupada rejects it saying that it’s also dead. Finally, one devotee
brings Srila Prabhupada his personal mṛdaṅga, covered with a red and
gold cloth. After testing this drum, Prabhupada finds it satisfactory.
Then he says that he will demonstrate how to play the mṛdaṅga beat.
A devotee rewinds the tape recorder that has been recording
1032
Prabhupada’s singing and he accompanies his recorded singing on
mṛdaṅga.
bhajo bhajo bhāi, caitanya nitāi
sudṛḍha biśwāsa kori
viṣaya chāḍiyā, se rase majiyā,
mukhe bolo hari hari
Seeing Prabhupada play mṛdaṅga is a real treat for everyone. They

watch in complete wonderment as he plays along with the taped
recording of his voice and kartāls just like professional studio musicians
do. After singing this bhajan by Locandas Thakur, he explains its
meaning.
“Pahū means prabhu. A shortcut of prabhu is pahū. Prabhu means ‘lord’

or ‘master.’ So these two prabhus are Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and
Nityananda. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is addressed as Mahaprabhu, and
others are addressed as Prabhu. So these two prabhus, Nityananda
Prabhu and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, are very merciful.”
Some devotees feel that Srila Prabhupada is giving a purport to his

irrepressible ecstasy that overwhelmed him earlier in the day.
“Parama karuṇa means extremely merciful,” Prabhupada continues with

his explanation. “Extremely merciful because Krishna is also merciful,
since He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His original feature.
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is also Krishna, but He is acting as a devotee.
He is not acting as Krishna. He is acting as a devotee of Krishna.”
Srila Prabhupada recites a śloka written by Sarvabhauma Bhaṭṭacharya

that further describes Lord Chaitanya’s mercy. “Lord Chaitanya has
come to teach us because we are all in the bodily concept of life. He has
come to teach us detachment and devotional service to Krishna.” Then
1033
Prabhupada quotes a śloka that begins jñāne prayāsam udapāsya
namanta eva which Ramananda Raya recited to Lord Chaitanya as the
perfection of dharma.
“The meaning is that one should give up other processes and just hear
about Krishna. And to hear about Him you do not require to change
your position – sthāne sthitāḥ. You are a scientist, that’s all right. You
are a lawyer, that’s all right. You are a fool, that’s all right. … But you
do one thing. You use your ear and hear from the realized soul.” After
relating some of Lord Chaitanya’s pastimes, Prabhupada makes a
comparison.
“That same Chaitanya Mahaprabhu has come here to Atlanta. So you

worship this Chaitanya Mahaprabhu – parama karuṇa, pahū dui jana.
They are very, very merciful. A little service will enhance your
devotional service to a larger scale.”
At the end of Prabhupada’s talk, the pūjā paraphernalia is brought

forward for guru- pūjā. Someone begins singing śrī-guru-carana-
padma… The ensuing kirtan becomes more and more ecstatic. As the
kirtan reaches a crescendo, Prabhupada starts taking off his garlands one
by one and throwing them into the crowd of devotees. Everyone is
going mad trying to catch a flying garland.
After throwing the last garland, Prabhupada picks up handfuls of loose

flowers that have been offered to his lotus feet and flings them into the
crowd. The ensuing madness can barely be described; it simply has to
be imagined.
Atlanta, Georgia, March 1, 1975

The weather in Atlanta is unseasonably chilly this morning. The temple
president, Balavanta, warms Srila Prabhupada’s car in advance so that
His Divine Grace will not be cold for the drive to the park. He also
presents Prabhupada with warm socks and a pair of canvas walking
1034
shoes for his lengthy stroll in the early morning chill. The Bhaktivedanta
Institute scientists, Satsvarupa’s Library Party distributors, and the men
from Tripurari’s BBT Party scramble to accompany His Divine Grace
for his walk in nearby Piedmont Park.
As he steps into the car Prabhupada comments, “This cold is not bad.
Actually it is pleasant.” Nonetheless, he is bundled up in a full-length
lined saffron coat with hood. A garland drapes over the coat.
At the park, Prabhupada walks briskly in the invigorating, chilly air.

Devotees run alongside to keep up with him. Wrapped in chaddars, they
continually rub their hands together to stay warm.
While Prabhupada is out for his walk, several mātājīs come to clean his
rooms. One of the nectar engagements is cleaning his desk. Mahadevi
picks up a beautiful ornate tilak mirror with a photo of Sri-Sri Radha-
Vrindavan Chandra on the back. After polishing the silver on this
mirror, Mahadevi sees that the other ladies are almost finished with the
cleaning. They always wash the floors on their way out so they won’t
step on the floor once it’s clean. It’s done this way so Prabhupada will
be the first person to step on the newly clean floor.
As the women are about to leave the room with their brooms and mops
and cleaning materials, suddenly Srila Prabhupada is standing all alone
at the doorway. Immediately they all offer obeisances.
Mahadevi: We hit the floor and all of a sudden I felt a hand on my head.
I looked up and Prabhupada had his other hand on another mātājīs head
next to me and he went “Jaya!” I was crying and I remember seeing
Prabhupada’s feet going by. He was all by himself and he was just so
bright. And then all the sannyāsīs came running up the steps, trying to
catch up to Prabhupada. That was the closest I’d ever been to
Prabhupada and his stature was small while the sannyāsīs were so big.
Even though physically he was smaller, he looked much bigger than
them at that particular time. He was so regal and so composed.
1035
After the morning class and breakfast prasādam, Srila Prabhupada
summons his servant by ringing the bell specifically for that purpose.
Srutakirti enters the room and offers obeisances.
“These shoes do not fit me,” Prabhupada says pointing to the canvas
walking shoes beside the door. “If they fit, you can use them.”
“I can’t wear your shoes, Srila Prabhupada,” Srutakirti answers

automatically without thinking. “That would be offensive.”
“If I say you can do it, then it is all right,” Prabhupada gently reassures
him. Srutakirti is taken by surprise. It has never even dawned on him
what it would be like to walk in Srila Prabhupada’s shoes!
Srutakirti: Like a young boy, I grew increasingly excited with the idea
of walking in my spiritual father’s shoes. I heard one should not use the
spiritual master’s shoes, so this made the idea even more intriguing. The
notion that I could do it was controversial! I liked it! I had firm faith that
when Srila Prabhupada said something was all right, then it was
definitely all right. I felt safe and was excited knowing his shoes were
filled with incredible potency. Smiling, I agreed to take his shoes.
Without missing a beat, Prabhupada asks, “Do you need any socks?”
Seeing that his spiritual master’s generosity is really flowing his way
this morning, Srutakirti cheerfully acknowledges, “Yes, I guess I do.”
Immediately, he feels a little shame.
“All right,” Prabhupada says nonchalantly, “take some socks for

yourself and give some to Paramahamsa and Nitai also.”
Srutakirti offers his obeisances, fills his arms with the shoes and socks
and happily leaves the room.
Srutakirti: The first thing I did was hurry to a secluded spot like a
mischievous child, and tried to place my feet into his transcendental
1036
footwear. Much like the evil stepsister, my feet were regrettably too big
to fit into His Divine Grace’s shoes. Persistently, I kept trying to
squeeze my locust feet into Srila Prabhupada’s magical shoes. Finally, I
understood the profound lesson. I practically and symbolically could
never walk in Srila Prabhupada’s shoes.
Srutakirti runs merrily to his godbrothers and gives them Prabhupada’s

socks as prasādam. They instantly chastise him. He explains that
Prabhupada wants them to have the socks. However, they resist, and
continue to reprimand him for his improper conduct. Srutakirti is not
upset by their behavior, having anticipated it in advance. He confidently
guarantees them that Prabhupada has given his personal endorsement
and they can rest assured that it will be perfectly okay to wear them.
Satisfied with this explanation, Paramhamsa and Nitai excitedly grab the
socks and put them on to warm their cold feet.
Srutakirti understands that His Divine Grace utilizes everything for

Krishna’s service, so he resolves to follow in Prabhupada’s footsteps,
not in his shoes. The next time he sees Balavanta, he explains that the
shoes don’t fit Prabhupada’s feet and returns them. Balavanta takes the
shoes and places them at the foot of Prabhupada’s vyāsāsana. Srutakirti
is too embarrassed to say that he had tried to put the shoes on, but he
feels confident that the shoes of the pure devotee can never be
contaminated.
During the day, Srila Prabhupada is kept busy as a long line of people
arrive to take his association. First are the devotee-scientists from the
Bhaktivedanta Institute. His Ph.D. disciple, Svarupa Damodara, has
written a small book, The Scientific Basis of Krishna Consciousness,
based on Prabhupada’s teachings that life come from life. The aim is to
dismantle the atheistic theories coming from the world of science.
Prabhupada is delighted to see this publication and expresses his desire
that Krishna conscious philosophy defeat the bombastic claims,
masquerading as science, that life occurs by chance or from matter.
1037
“These people have no common sense,” Prabhupada remarks, “and they
all pass as scientists. That we must protest, because we are servants of
God. We are not servants of scientists. Call them directly ‘rascal.’ We
are not a scientist, but we speak from common sense. That’s all. So
many people are being misled by these scientists and politicians.”
The next meeting is with several orthodox Christians. Prabhupada again

refers to the question raised by the psychiatrist in Venezuela. “His
question was how to solve the problems. So our statement is that unless
you treat the spiritual disease of the human society, then the problems
will increase. It will never be solved. The real disease is spiritual
disease.”
Every evening, Srutakirti massages Prabhupada in his room before he

takes rest. As Prabhupada lies in his bed with his head raised a little on
the pillow, Srutakirti rubs his legs and feet, usually for 10 or 15 minutes.
Prabhupada’s evening massage is the most intimate connection

Srutakirti has with his spiritual master. The lights are usually out and the
room is dark except for a small lamp giving an intimate ambience. At
this time of night, nobody comes to Prabhupada’s room while he
receives his evening massage.
As Srutkirti concentrates on the massage, Prabhupada suddenly offers

this gem, “I like the cowherd boys very much.” Srutakirti turns round
and realizes that Srila Prabhupada is looking at a large wall painting of
Krishna and Balarama. They appear to be around age eight and are
together with many cowherd boys and hundreds of cows in a forest of
Vrindavan.
Srutakirti: When he would speak in the evening it was nothing but

nectar, always nectar. So I just continued, I never stopped massaging.
When Prabhupada talked, he would just bring you, he would transport
you right there.
Prabhupada continues speaking. “Every day Krishna and Balarama go
1038
into the forest in Vrindavan. Before they go, Their mothers make
lunches, prepare tiffins for Them.”
Srutakirti is simply nodding his head hearing this nectar. Prabhupada

speaks very softly, almost like a reminiscence. It seems that Prabhupada
is right there, right inside the forest scene as he’s speaking about it.
“Krishna’s mother, Yashoda, she would make a very nice tiffin and in it
there would be puri, halava, kachori, laddhu… And the other cowherd
boys, their mothers were not so opulent so their tiffins would have roti,
rice, sabji, like that.
“Then they would go and play all day, and they didn’t have the cows.
They are simply little boys so they just have the calves with them. Then
finally they stop for lunch. Sometimes, one cowherd boy would steal
Krishna’s lunch and begin throwing the sweets to each other. They
would play keep-away with Krishna.”
Srutakirti remains silent, just massaging Prabhupada’s feet, allowing His

Divine Grace to reveal his heart.
“Finally, the cowherd boys throw their lunches to Krishna and they sit
down with His lunch. They eat the puri, halava, kachori and laddhu
while Krishna sits with them eating the rice, rotis, and sabji.”
Prabhupada is smiling brightly as he pauses for a moment and casually

remarks, “I just want to go back to the spiritual world and eat kachori
and laddhu with Krishna.” Then he closes his eyes and remains silent as
Srutakirti carries on massaging his feet.
Srutakirti: It was a very rare experience. Prabhupada was in just so

much ecstasy seeing everyone becoming Krishna conscious all over the
world.
Atlanta, March 2, 1975
1039
Today is Sunday, and the auspicious Appearance Day of Srila
Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami. Prabhupada gives the morning
lecture explaining how Srila Bhaktisiddhanta is empowered by Sri
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and thus known as gaura-śakti. Lord Chaitanya
desired to broadcast the Holy Name of Krishna and predicted that His
mission would spread worldwide. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati was
the first person who made an attempt to fulfill the desire of Sri
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu on a worldwide scale.
Prabhupada relates the history how Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur and Srila
Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati very much desired to spread Lord
Chaitanya’s teachings in the English speaking countries. In that
connection Prabhupada explains how the Gaudiya Math was begun, and
how he came to join the mission and accept Srila Bhaktisiddhanta
Saraswati as his spiritual master.
“So now, by the grace of Krishna and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and in the
presence of my guru-mahārāja, you are so nice boys and girls. So in
front of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu you are chanting Hare Krishna mantra,
and you are taking part in it very seriously. So my guru-mahārāja will be
very, very much pleased upon you and bless you with all benefits.
“It is not that he is dead and gone. That is not spiritual understanding.
Even ordinary living being, he does not die – na hanyate hanyamāne
śarīre [Bhagavad-gita 2.20]– and what to speak of such an exalted,
authorized personality like Bhaktisiddhanta. He is seeing. I never feel
that I am alone. Of course, when I came to your country without any
friend, without any means; practically, just like a vagabond I came. But
I had full faith that my guru-mahārāja is with me. I never lost this faith,
and that is a fact.
“There are two words, vāṇī and vapuḥ– vānī means words, and vapuḥ
means this physical body. So vāṇī is more important than the vapuḥ.
Vapuḥ will be finished. This material body, it will be finished. That is
nature. But if we keep to the vāṇī, to the words of the spiritual master,
1040
then we remain very fixed-up.”
Prabhupada relates vāṇī to the Bhagavad-gita. “It was spoken five

thousand years ago. But if you keep to the words of Krishna, then it is
always fresh and guiding. Not that because Arjuna personally listened to
Krishna about the instruction of Bhagavad- gita, therefore he knew it.
That is not the fact. If you accept Bhagavad-gita as it is, then you should
know that Krishna is present before you in His words in the Bhagavad-
gita. This is called spiritual realization. It is not mundane historical
incidences.
evaṁ paramparā-prāptam
imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ
sa kāleneha mahatā
yogo naṣṭaḥ parantapa
[Bg. 4.2]
“If you don’t keep in touch with the original link, then it will be lost.
And if you keep touch with the original link, then you are directly
hearing Krishna. Similarly, Krishna and Krishna’s representative,
spiritual master, if you keep always intact, in link with the words and
instruction of the superior authorities, then you are always fresh. This is
spiritual understanding.”
Next Srila Prabhupada emphasizes the disciplic succession and how

caste brāhmaṇas in India criticize him for giving Vaishnava dīkṣā to
foreigners.
“It doesn’t matter whether one is born in India or outside India. No.
When Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said, pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi-grāma –
as many towns and cities and villages are there – he did not say it to
make a farce. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So sometimes
1041
I am very much criticized that I am making foreigners brāhmaṇas. The
caste brāhmaṇas in India, they are very much against me. But this is not
fact. When Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said that all over the world His
message will be broadcast, does it mean that it will be simply a cinema
show? No. He wanted that everyone should become perfect Vaishnava.
That is His purpose.”
Then Prabhupada defines the word brāhmaṇa and explains that it is not a
spiritual classification.
“What is brāhmaṇa? Brāhmaṇa is also material. A devotee is more than

brāhmaṇa. The brahminical culture is included already – brahma jānātīti
brāhmaṇaḥ– brāhmaṇa means one who knows the Absolute Truth,
brahman. He is brāhmaṇa. But that is not very fixed up – brahmeti
paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate. [Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.11]
Brahman is impersonal effulgence, and then further progress, realization
of the localized aspect – paramātmā, antaryāmī– and finally,
understanding the Supreme Person, Krishna.”
In conclusion, Srila Prabhupada ties it all in by explaining how to get

this understanding.
“It requires Krishna’s grace to understand Him. So try to receive

Krishna’s grace through the disciplic succession of Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu. Then you will understand everything; yasya deve parā
bhaktir yathā deve tathā gurau. [Svetasvatara Upanisad 6.23] This is the
process, Vedic process. One should have unflinching faith in God and
spiritual master. Don’t jump over to God, crossing the spiritual master.
Then it will be failure. You must go through. We are observing vyāsa-
pūjā ceremony, the birth anniversary of our guru- mahārāja. Why? We
cannot understand Krishna without spiritual master. That is bogus. If
anyone wants to understand Krishna by jumping over the spiritual
master, then immediately he becomes bogus. Therefore, Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu says, guru- kṛṣṇa-kṛpāya pāya bhakti-latā-bīja. [CC,
Madhya 19.151]
1042
“That is Vedic injunction. Tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā,
[Bhagavad-gita 4.34] nobody can understand Krishna without going
through His most confidential servant. This is the meaning of this vyāsa-
pūjā. You cannot surpass. If you think that you have become very
learned and very advanced, now you can avoid the spiritual master and
you understand Krishna, that is bogus.”
Srila Prabhupada brings his talk to a close by reiterating the practical

Vedic advice.
“You may be very learned scholar. You may be a fool. It doesn’t matter.
You are under the laws of material nature. So before finishing this small
span of life…We have got this human form of life. It will be finished, as
the cats’ and dogs’ life is also finished. But if we try through the guru
and Vaishnava, then we can achieve in this life the full success, not
failure like cats’ and dogs’ life. That is the opportunity. So as far as
possible, we are trying to lead you in this line, and you kindly follow.
Then your life will be successful. That is the mission of Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu.”
After the talk, devotees place a large painting of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta

Saraswati on a special raised vyāsāsana. Everyone looks to Prabhupada
wondering if he will perform ārati. No one steps forward to perform the
ceremony and no one dares ask Srila Prabhupada to do it.
After several moments of silence, Prabhupada turns to Tamal Krishna

Maharaja who is standing by his side, “Maybe I should perform the
ārati. I should do it?”
“All the devotees think so, Srila Prabhupada. They would be very happy
if you did.” “Yes, I will do it.” Prabhupada gets up from the vyāsāsana
to perform the offering to his guru-mahārāja. Everyone’s eyes are fixed
on Srila Prabhupada as he offers guru- pūjā to Srila Bhaktisiddhanta
Saraswati Thakur. They can see that he is totally transfixed doing the
ārati.
1043
Unfortunately, some politics is going on at the temple during
Prabhupada’s visit. Rupanuga informs Adi Keshava that things are
going sour in Boston since he left, and orders him to return to his
service. Adi Keshava replies that he is now too attached to being a bus
leader on Radha-Damodara. He suggests that Aja would be a much
better choice. Since he’s no longer with Radha-Damodara it would be a
better engagement for Aja to be temple president in Boston than vice-
president in Atlanta.
Rupanuga likes this idea. Aja traveled with him when he was a sannyāsī
and they had a good relationship. Adi Keshava adds that he will
accompany Rupanuga to help broker the change.
But later, Rupanuga has a change of mind. He decides that he would

rather have Adi Keshava back in Boston since the temple was thriving
under him. His plan is to finalize everything with Prabhupada.
Tamal Krishna is with Prabhupada when Rupanuga and Adi Keshava

arrive.
Adi Keshava: There was a confrontation between Rupanuga and Tamal

Krishna Maharaja. Finally, Prabhupada said that I could go with the
buses, but that I should travel in Rupanuga’s zone and encourage the
preaching in his zone. Prabhupada, the grand diplomat! I was really
happy with that.
After Rupanuga leaves, Tamal Krishna takes the liberty to request

Prabhupada for a private darshan to introduce the many devotees from
the Radha-Damodara party. He is sure that Prabhupada personally wants
to meet all the devotees on his party. Tamal Krishna’s close relationship
with Prabhupada in India has now carried over to America. Normally, a
temple president would not bring every devotee in the temple to meet
Srila Prabhupada, but in this case Tamal feels it is proper. Goswami
considers himself personally trained in all branches of devotional
service by Srila Prabhupada himself and he wants the Radha-Damodara
party to be known as Prabhupada’s personal party.
1044
Having received approval, Tamal Krishna gathers his group of almost
40 devotees. After briefing them, he leads them up the rear stairway to
Prabhupada’s quarters in the residential building beside the temple.
Two sannyāsīs are already waiting to see Srila Prabhupada. They are
shocked to see a crowd of devotees coming up the stairs. “Tamal
Krishna Maharaja, you just can’t walk everybody in there,” they
exclaim, as if the men had suddenly walked up without an appointment.
Tamal Krishna doesn’t respond. As the Radha-Damodara men assemble

outside Prabhupada’s room dressed in their uniform – each wearing a
vest and a Prabhupada hat – Goswami simply opens the door to Srila
Prabhupada’s room.
When Prabhupada gives his consent, Tamal Krishna brings his men in,
one by one, just as he did in San Francisco. Prabhupada sits behind a
low table on a cushion with bolsters on either side. He is leaning back
against the wall with one knee up. As the men offer obeisances in front
of His Divine Grace, Goswami introduces them. When they get up he
says something about each person’s service or accomplishments. It’s
quite dramatic and Prabhupada has seen this before, but he allows it to
go on.
Goswami presents everyone to His Divine Grace according to their

service. “This person is a mechanic. This person is a cook. This person
is serving the Deities.” This is how the men meet their spiritual master.
After being introduced to Srila Prabhupada, each man finds a place to
sit. The darshan is intimate, because everyone is brought face to face
with their spiritual master.
Sri Rama: We’d half-walk, half-offer our obeisances in front of

Prabhupada, and then get down and offer full dandavats. While we were
offering dandavats, Tamal Krishna Maharaja would describe who we
were and what each of us did. When one of us was introduced as a this
or a that, Prabhupada would just say, “Hmmm.”
1045
I remember very clearly that Prabhupada was singularly uninterested in
anything except book distribution. When Sanjaya was introduced,
Tamal Krishna said how many books he was distributing. Then
Prabhupada commented how happy he was with that and we should
distribute books.
Sanjaya: Tamal Krishna had the pull, and he let everyone know he was
the way to meet Srila Prabhupada. So we were his boys. We were his
pride and joy. When he introduced me I was shaking like a leaf. “This is
Bhakta Chris, Srila Prabhupada. Bhakta Chris is one of the biggest
distributors.”
Prabhupada simply said, “Hmmm.”
“He’s distributing between 200 and 300 of your small books every day,
Srila Prabhupada.” As soon as those numbers hit him, Prabhupada
raised his head, rolled his eyes, and looked sideways as if to say, what
do you think of that? He was happy to hear it. I was a bit nervous
because it wasn’t exactly true. I wasn’t doing it every day. But by then I
had developed a bit of a reputation as being talented in that sphere.
Ratnabahu: When my turn came I paid dandavat pranams while Tamal

Krishna Maharaja narrated my ‘glories’. “And this is Bhakta Roger,
Srila Prabhupada. Just the other day, in one afternoon, Bhakta Roger
distributed 600 BTG’s in downtown Birmingham!” I looked up at Srila
Prabhupada and he had this HUGE grin on his face that stretched from
ear to ear! Everyone in the room resounded “Jaya!” It was a momentous
occasion for me.
Karnapur: Tamal Krishna introduced me, “this devotee is helping to

keep our accounts.” Prabhupada said, “It is very important to keep track
of every penny.”
Rajavidya: Everyone had to collect lakṣmī for the guru and each one of
us was introduced singly. Prabhupada just looked at each one of us and
said a few words or nothing. Generally he looked unimpressed. If Tamal
1046
Krishna glorified us he’d look even more unimpressed. He was so
transcendental to that.
Misra Bhagavan: Tamal Krishna Goswami introduced me to Srila

Prabhupada, for which I remain indebted to him ever since. I gave him a
flower and paid my obeisances. He gave the impression of being so
powerful having followers like Vishnujana Swami.
Subuddhi: It was a very beautiful experience being in a room with

Prabhupada and seeing him look over his devotees and be very happy
about them. He was encouraged about news of the Holy Name being
spread.
Uddhava is the last person to enter the room. After introducing him,
Tamal Krishna says, “This devotee used to be a Buddhist, Srila
Prabhupada.”
Prabhupada looks at Uddhava. “Why did you decide to become a

Vaishnava?”
“Well, in Buddhism there’s no ultimate goal. But in Krishna

consciousness the ultimate goal is Krishna!”
“Very nice,” Prabhupada agrees. “Before, there was no hope. Now there
is hope.” Looking up at Tamal Krishna, Prabhupada comments,
“Krishna has sent you every type of assistant in order to make this
program a great success.”
A large vase sits on Prabhupada’s desk. When he sees that it’s blocking
the line of vision for some devotees he moves it aside. Everyone sits
silently. All eyes watch Prabhupada’s every move. Before speaking,
Prabhupada takes a drink of water in his usual manner by not touching
his lips to the cup. He pours the water expertly into his mouth without
spilling a drop as all eyes open in wonderment. They have never seen
anybody drink water this way.
1047
Govinda Datta: Srila Prabhupada was so transcendental. He took a drink
of water and it was the first time I saw Srila Prabhupada drink water. It
was artistic. He acted unaffected.
Then leaning back upon his bolster pillow, Prabhupada begins to speak.
“My guru-mahārāja, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur, loved this

brahmacārī life. You can sleep anywhere, but if you get married then
you have to get apartment, and so much trouble.”
Prabhupada’s face becomes grave as he continues, “So the senses will

bite. They will demand satisfaction.” He points his finger at the men,
“But you preach. And you pray to Krishna.” Srila Prabhupada lifts his
hands in prayer. “And Krishna can make this itching sensation go
away.”
He points to the back of the room where Aja and Gadi are standing
dressed in white.
“But if it does not go away, then like them, you can take gṛhastha life.”
He doesn’t insist that everyone remain brahmacārī.
Sanjaya: One of the things Prabhupada said was, “You are all Vaikuntha
men. My spiritual master has sent you.” He also said, “You are all
brahmacārī. That is very good. Best you remain brahmacārī. As soon as
you get married, extra baggage.” That was very intimate. We felt we
were given our mission for life, because he was saying things like if you
help Lord Chaitanya to push on this movement, even at the time of
death, if you cannot think of Him, He will personally come and drag
you back to Godhead. It was a very moving experience. I came out of
there a changed man.
Ratnabahu: This was the first time I sat close to Srila Prabhupada. He
was very relaxed and blissful, and he had a smile on his face. He said
something like, “So, I am very happy with all of you. Please go on in
this way. A brahmacārī can live very simply, sleeping on the floor. You
1048
can travel immediately; such a nice life! But as soon as you get married
then, extra baggage. So facility is there in our Krishna consciousness
movement to get married, if you require. But my advice is that you stay
brahmacārī.”
Satyaraja: Prabhupada gave a very moving talk on brahmacārī life. I

remember Prabhupada crying and telling us how important it was to
remain strict brahmacārī. And then with tears in his eyes he said, “But if
you must get married, then get married. But at any cost do not leave this
movement.” He made it seem like brahmacārī was preferred, gṛhastha
life if you can’t be brahmacārī, but at no point should you leave the
movement.
Misra Bhagavan: Srila Prabhupada said, “You are all Vaikuntha men.”
He told us to stay brahmacārī and distribute his books. I really felt that
the Radha-Damodara party was very dear to Srila Prabhupada. He gave
us a lot of encouragement and nectar.
Dravanaksha: Prabhupada talked to us about brahmacārī life. He said it

was all right to get married in our movement, but it’s a botheration. If
you can avoid it you’ll avoid so much botheration. It was a real fired-up
brahmacārī talk he gave us.
Govinda Datta: Srila Prabhupada said, “You are all brahmacārīs. Try
and tolerate this sex itch. If you have some itch”– he showed his arm –
“if you scratch it then it will go. But better if you tolerate it and then it
will go away.” That was ecstatic because it was the first time I’d seen
Srila Prabhupada.
Jnapaka: I felt honored and privileged as a Radha-Damodara devotee to

meet Srila Prabhupada personally. He said it was better if we could lead
a brahmacārī life, because to understand Krishna you don’t need sex
life. We can be much stronger that way in our focus. He told us he was
happy that we came to Krishna consciousness and for him to have so
many nice children. He always spoke of us as his children.
1049
Gauranga: Prabhupada preached to us about the glories of Lord
Chaitanya’s movement, and how we were like Lord Chaitanya’s
soldiers. He encouraged us in brahmacārī life. It was very nectarine.
TKG: Srila Prabhupada proceeded to give a very powerful lecture about

remaining brahmacārī, telling the men that, “Why bother to get married.
When you get married your wife will immediately say, ‘Where is the
house? Where are children? Where is clothing? Where is food?’ In this
way there will be so many problems. Better to keep simple and remain
brahmacārī and preach Lord Chaitanya’s mission.”
Minaketan Ramdas and Gauridas Pandit have made Prabhupada hats

and everyone on the party is wearing one as part of their ‘uniform’.
They want to give Prabhupada the same hat so that everyone on the
party will have one like their spiritual master. They have made two hats
in case one doesn’t fit.
Prabhupada accepts the first hat graciously but it’s way too small. He
leaves it on top of his head for a moment and it looks almost like a glove
sitting on top of his head because of its small size. Prabhupada doesn’t
want to hurt anyone’s feelings, so he ventures, “I think it is too small.”
It’s a humorous moment.
Sanjaya: Prabhupada took the first hat that was too small and put it right
at the corner of his desk. I put a bee line on that hat. In my heart I
wanted that hat.
The second hat is a larger size, and this is now humbly offered.
Prabhupada takes the second hat to try on. It also looks like it’s going to
be a bit small, but Prabhupada pulls it down forcefully. It’s definitely a
little small, but he comments, “It is tight. But tight is all right.”
All the devotees respond, “Jaya, Srila Prabhupada.”
At this point a photo is snapped and the darshan is over. As the devotees
file out of the room, Tamal Krishna deftly picks up the first hat that
1050
Sanjaya has his heart set on.
Sanjaya: Later, I went into Tamal Krishna’s room and saw the hat.
Rather than asking directly for it, I asked him, “Can I clean your room?”
Then I said, “Oh, is that the hat that Srila Prabhupada tried on?”
“Do you want it?”
“Oh, yeah!” So he gave it to me. I wore that hat every day for at least
four years until it vanished in the New York temple during Ratha-yatra.
A few hours later, guests begin arriving for the Sunday Love Feast. As
Srila Prabhupada enters the temple for his Sunday address, the room is
packed to maximum. The word of his presence has spread.
After a short discourse, Srila Prabhupada calls for questions. There are
several Christians present and they soon begin to make their presence
felt. A man who appears puffed-up wants to catch Prabhupada off guard
and trip him up.
Out of the blue, this fellow raises his hand and in a strong, challenging
voice asks, “Srila Guru, I would like the name of the tenth avatāra of
Krishna.”
Devotees can feel tension in the atmosphere because there’s a lot of

challenges going on. Srila Prabhupada immediately responds.
“Tenth avatāra is Kalki. He will appear in the district of Sambhalpur.

His father’s name will be Vishnu Yasha, and He will be dressed like a
prince and cut all the heads of the demons.”
The assembled devotees break out in laughter and a tumultuous, “Jaya!

Haribol!”
“Because gradually we are so advancing that we shall remain only
1051
animal,” Prabhupada continues, “so there is no need of preaching. Cut
the head. Finish them.”
A woman also challenges Prabhupada with some pseudo Christian

sentiment.
Ratnabahu: She was an attractive young woman who asked something

in a challenging way. Prabhupada came down on her like a ton of bricks
and the woman practically broke into tears. Immediately, Srila
Prabhupada became soft as a rose and pacified her.
Misra Bhagavan: He answered a Christian lady who was real inimical

and challenging, but Prabhupada handled her in such a way that
somehow she ended up satisfied. It was really amazing.
The devotees feel simultaneously overjoyed and triumphant because

Srila Prabhupada can handle any opposition at any time and establish
himself as Krishna’s bona fide representative.
Prabhupada has only given a short talk but the questions and answers go
on for an hour! The room is filled with book distributors from all over
America. Nirantara, a book distributor from New York, asks,
“Prabhupada, what pleases you the most?”
There is a feeling of anticipation in the air. Almost everyone is certain

that Srila Prabhupada will confirm that distributing his books pleases
him the most. Prabhupada replies nonchalantly, “If you love Krishna.”
The tension is relieved and everyone responds, “Jaya,” because it’s the
obvious answer and the entire foundation of Lord Chaitanya’s
movement.
When there are no more questions, the Atlanta players are ready to
perform a drama depicting Lord Chaitanya’s civil disobedience action in
Navadvipa. Gokularanjana and Aja play the leading roles, Lord
Chaitanya and Chand Kazi, respectively. Everyone’s attention turns
1052
towards the makeshift stage.
At one point in the play, the smārta-brāhmaṇas complain to Chand Kazi.

“The public chanting of the mahā-mantra by Nimai Pandit and his
followers will spoil the sanctity of our dharma and destroy the potency
of this sacred mantra.”
Suddenly, Srila Prabhupada speaks up. “But it has already increased!”

Hundreds of joyous devotees respond with a tumultuous, “JAYA!” as a
testimony to Prabhupada’s service in progressively expanding the range
of the Hare Krishna mantra.
Prabhupada continues to stop the performance from time to time to give

a commentary and expand the meaning of the pastimes as they happen.
Then he urges them on, “Okay. Go on, go on.” Every person repeatedly
turns to watch Prabhupada’s reaction at each dramatic point in the play.
In one scene, Balabhadra leads the Vaishnavas in a kirtan party playing

a clay mṛdaṅga. Chand Kazi comes to stop the kirtan shouting in a
menacing voice, “There will be no more sankirtan in Navadvipa.”
Everyone turns to see Prabhupada’s expression. He appears upset as if
to say, who is this Chand Kazi?
Then Chand Kazi seizes the clay mṛdaṅga from the devotee. He lifts it
over his head and smashes it on the floor. It makes a colossal sound,
SMAAAASH. Prabhupada’s eyes become as wide as saucers. He can
scarcely believe that they have smashed a mṛdaṅga on the floor.
It’s an old broken-up drum from the basement that is no longer in use
but the audience is unaware of this. Balavanta has to come over to
reassure Prabhupada that the mṛdaṅga was already broken and not fit for
playing.
Srila Prabhupada is relieved, but the action is temporarily halted again

as he gives another short commentary before the drama continues.
1053
When Lord Nrsimhadeva appears to chastise Chand Kazi for disturbing
the sankirtan party, Prabhupada’s face lights up with a big smile. The
performance is very well done and Srila Prabhupada is all smiles.
Everyone is impressed to see their spiritual master so animated about
the presentation.
At the conclusion of the drama a kirtan begins with the Radha-

Damodara men in the spotlight. In the middle of the kirtan, Adi Keshava
and Radha Raman begin throwing Dhristadyumna straight up into the
air. Prabhupada’s head also goes up and down as he watches
Dhristadyumna bounce really high.
The following day, Prabhupada departs for his next stop, Dallas. With
the truck full of books still missing, Tamal Krishna is left with no choice
but to remain in Atlanta until it’s found. He can’t leave with his spiritual
master as he had originally planned.
Radha Raman decides that he has had enough of bus construction and
wants to go to India. He’s surprised that Tamal Krishna doesn’t share
his enthusiasm for India and refuses to give him the bus fare to go to
Florida to collect.
Undaunted, Radha Raman gets a loan from a resident Atlanta devotee

and returns to Miami where he collects his fare to India. He has always
been totally into Vishnujana Swami’s kirtans, but since he’s no longer
part of the festival program he is ready to move on. His idea is to travel
with Acyutananda Swami who has established himself as a powerful
kirtan force in India.
Radha Raman: There was no more chanting on Radha-Damodara for

me. I wasn’t doing the chanting program with Vishnujana anymore, so I
just went and joined Acyutananda. They were the stars, so there’s
always going to be comparisons. But they were just completely different
people. Their styles didn’t mix.
1054
Dallas, Texas, February 1975
The Radha-Damodara bus is at the Dallas temple while Prabhupada is in
Atlanta. Everyone is energized by the appearance of the bus, especially
the Gurukula kids. The kids are so happy whenever they hear that
Vishnujana Swami is coming because he’s so affectionate and gives
them a lot of attention. It’s always a big event because there will be
great kirtans and Radha-Damodara’s outstanding prasādam.
The bus is parked in the temple parking lot and Maharaja encourages the
kids to come on the bus and offer obeisances to Sri-Sri Radha-
Damodara. Then he sits at the harmonium facing them. Raghunath is
one of the kids that Vishnujana Swami interacts with. “What song do
you want to hear, Raghunath?” They obviously know each other.
Raghunath asks for radhe jaya jaya madhava dayite, and Maharaja sings
the song for the kids and several teachers who have also come.
Ranjit: It was really the most beautiful experience, Vishnujana Maharaja

singing the bhajan and playing the harmonium. It was another world. I
was Raghunath’s teacher for a time during that year. It seemed that
Maharaja and Raghunath were friends. I was struck by that. He knew
Raghunath like old buddies!
After finishing the song, Maharaja begins kirtan and soon the bus is
rocking with all the kids chanting and dancing. “Gaura Nityananda bol,
haribol, haribol...” It seems as if the whole school is on the bus. For the
teachers, the kirtan is spectacular. It’s amazing to see how wonderful
Vishnujana Swami is with the kids, and it’s amazing to see how much
the kids love Vishnujana.
Pasupati dd: Whenever he came, he would hold the children or let them
sit on his lap while he played harmonium. He was very paternal in that
way, like a father. He seemed to be an affectionate and loving devotee.
He emanated that kind of personality, like he really cared about
devotees and relationships. I got the feeling from him that he loved
1055
devotees, he loved prasādam, and he loved the Holy Name.
Madhava Priya dd: I remember I went over to the altar in the back of the
bus, looked at the Deities and then turned around and sat down on his
lap. I was five years old. He was so nice and friendly, always smiling.
That’s what I remember about him. His kirtans were always kind of
wild and enthusiastic. They didn’t let women on the bus but they let the
gurukula girls on.
Vakresvara: Whenever he came it was a big party and we were totally

psyched. Vishnujana Swami was huge, this giant guy from San
Francisco where he used to go out alone on the street and chant like a
madman. He always used to get us into the kirtans. We always wanted
to be on that bus because that was the best thing going. Yadubara spent
time with me when he was making the film The Hare Krishna People.
On the opening shot he has me offering incense.
Jagamana: Vishnujana Swami got everybody involved in the mahā-

mantra. He would take us on the bus and feed us. They had their famous
Radha-Damodara prasādam, and we had plenty of fruit to eat. We
traveled on his bus on weekends and I remember the ecstasy of all for
one, and one for all. He told stories about growing up and how he came
to Krishna consciousness. He presented Krishna consciousness rather
than cramming it in. He got a lot more across in a shorter time, with
more love. People came up and donated money at his feet, big
envelopes, but he never wanted anything in return.
Bimala and Mandalesvara have always been attracted to Vishnujana

Maharaja and Satsvarupa Maharaja. They want their young son, Iswara
Puri, to travel with a sannyāsī for few weeks but can’t decide which one
would be best for the boy. Now seeing Vishnujana lead kirtan in front of
Radha-Kalachandji they are in awe. It is simply the most amazing kirtan
ever. They do not experience such kirtans in their temple.
Bimala: When Vishnujana Swami came to Dallas he was with the bus
and led an incredible kirtan. It reminded me of a wonderful letter that
1056
Srila Prabhupada wrote to Vishnujana saying, “I want you to come, and
I want to hear your kirtans again. I remember your chanting, and I want
to hear you in my garden chanting Hare Krishna.” But he was like an
avadhūta. He was almost too transcendental, so we thought we better
give our son to Satsvarupa Maharaja. He was more grounded. Better to
have our son on this platform for a while.
The most exciting news around the temple is that Srila Prabhupada will
be arriving in a few days. Everybody becomes fully Prabhupada
conscious, making sure that every inch of the temple is as clean as
possible.
1057
Seventeeth Wave,
The GBC Meeting
When you are helping my missionary activities I am always thinking of
you and you are always thinking of me. That is real association.
Physical association is not so important as preceptorial association.
[Letter to Govinda Dasi - August 17, 1969]
ISKCON Dallas, March 3, 1975

During his 1975 tour, Prabhupada travels quickly through the western
world.
This year, he just spends a few days, or at most a week, visiting each
temple. He only blesses two places with his divine association for more
than a week: Honolulu and Mexico City. After spending three days in
Atlanta, Prabhupada and his entourage proceed to the Dallas yatra for a
brief visit.
Most Dallas devotees drive to the airport to greet His Divine Grace. For
the new devotees who are seeing Srila Prabhupada for the first time he
appears much smaller in stature than they would have expected.
Gopal Acharya: At the airport Prabhupada was sort of gliding along and
he looked light and petite. Compared to the picture I painted in my mind
of a giant authoritarian, I thought he had a humble look to him.
Everyone was making a big deal and there was a lot of fanfare. All the
attention was on him and he seemed shy. He wasn’t elated and he
wasn’t grave, but he seemed to be quite modest and that really
1058
impressed me. These thoughts occurred to me while watching him at the
airport; he’s humble, he’s modest, he doesn’t really like all this
attention, but at the same time he knows how to handle it.
The Dallas temple is packed with devotees anxious to meet their

spiritual master, but Prabhupada is first taken to his room. The altar
curtains remain closed and will open to the sound of the Govindam
prayers upon Srila Prabhupada’s entrance. Vishnujana Swami kneels in
front of the vyāsāsana, waiting for his divine master. After what seems
like 12 years or more, Prabhupada enters the temple room and
Yamuna’s voice rings out – govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ
bhajāmi…
During the Deity greeting Prabhupada remains standing with folded

palms for a long time, admiring the beauty of Sri-Sri Radha-
Kalachandji. Then he turns to the pūjārī and asks, “What is the mood of
the Deities? How are they feeling?”
Chaturatma has positioned himself beside His Divine Grace and is very
intrigued by this question. But the Dallas pūjārī is completely
flabbergasted and looks at Prabhupada as if to say, how am I supposed
to know that? After a pregnant pause, the pūjārī exclaims, “Well, I don’t
know Srila Prabhupada.”
Prabhupada is not pleased with this reply.
“You are the pūjārī. You are the intimate servant of the Deities.
Therefore, who else but you would know the mood of the Deities? You
should know this.”
Chaturatma: Vishnujana Swami knew the mood of Sri-Sri Radha-

Damodara. He was Their intimate servant. If Prabhupada expected a
pūjārī in one temple to know, why wouldn’t a pūjārī in another temple
be expected to know? Especially, a pūjārī like Vishnujana Swami who
was known for his intense devotion to his Deities.
1059
When Prabhupada takes his seat on the vyāsāsana, the conch blows for
guru-pūjā. The children are the first to offer obeisances to Srila
Prabhupada. Vishnujana Maharaja begins singing. As the kirtan builds,
he dances back and forth from the front to the rear of the large room.
Paramahamsa Swami joins him playing drums together and dancing
with the kids. One gurukula boy, Markendeya, is an expert musician,
although only six years old, and he plays mṛdaṅga with the sannyāsīs.
It’s a hot, sweaty, ecstatic kirtan that Prabhupada is thoroughly enjoying

as he plays along on his gong. At one point he becomes so joyful that he
pulls flowers off his garland to throw at the devotees. At the end of the
prema dhvani prayers Srila Prabhupada adds, “All glories to the dancing
devotees!” Very sweet!
Sitting on a burgundy vyāsāsana, Srila Prabhupada invites the women

and children to come and sit in front of him for his talk. Since Dallas is
the site of ISKCON’s International Gurukula, it’s mainly a children’s
place and the men sit behind the women and children at the rear of the
temple.
Every devotee is overjoyed by the association of the pure devotee.

Gopal Acharya had anticipated seeing Prabhupada in a year or more, but
within two weeks Krishna has fulfilled his desire! He has even shaved
up for the occasion. Unfortunately, he can hardly understand a word
Prabhupada speaks because of the Bengali accent. Therefore, he focuses
his attention on Prabhupada’s eyes, which are always moving. He
remembers reading in Nectar of Devotion that Radharani’s eyes are
always moving. So he concludes that Prabhupada’s eyes must be just
like Radharani’s eyes.
Gopal Acharya: A couple of times Prabhupada made pretty strong eye

contact with me and it just sent shivers down my spine. I was so
impressed with him from that class although I had no idea what he was
talking about. But at that point I was convinced he was Krishna’s
representative.
1060
Later that day, Prabhupada has a talk with the teachers. Then he meets
with several GBCs and sannyāsīs who have come to Dallas. The Radha-
Damodara brahmacārīs chant japa in the courtyard below the window
where Prabhupada is staying, thinking it would be nice for Prabhupada
to hear devotees chanting Hare Krishna if he opens the window. As they
look up at the lights in Prabhupada’s room, all of a sudden a side
window opens. Vishnujana Maharaja sticks his head out and sees
Marino.
“Bhakta Marino, just the one I wanted to see. Go into the freezer and get
me the blueberry ice cream we just offered Radha-Damodara and bring
it up here.” There’s a small refrigerator on the bus with a freezer
compartment. Marino is about to leave when he overhears Vishnujana
say, “Yeah, there’s a real nice boy I’d like you to meet. His name is
Bhakta Marino. I think he’s doing really good. I’d like you to meet
him.”
Marino: I was thinking, Oh my God, Maharaja wants to introduce me to

Prabhupada. Jumping Jehosaphat, this is great! So I was running to the
bus. I polished up the best silverware, took the ice cream and scooped it
out super nice to make a beautiful soda-parlor mound in a fancy glass. I
covered it and ran out of the bus. There were devotees lined from the
front door up to Prabhupada’s quarters as I came up the steps. I was
constantly saying, “Excuse me. Excuse me, Mahā for Srila Prabhupada.
Mahāprasāda for Srila Prabhupada.” Devotees were very obliging. It
was like the parting of the Red Sea. I felt like Moses for a second.
When Marino gets to Srila Prabhupada’s room a devotee is standing

guard at his door wearing a gun on his hip. “What’s that?” he demands.
“It’s Mahā blueberry ice cream for Srila Prabhupada, Prabhu.” Seeing
the gun, Marino figures he better call him Prabhu right away.
“I have to ask. Can you please uncover it?”
“It’s for Srila Prabhupada.” Marino is offended that the guard wants to
1061
see it first. Observing Marino’s expression, the guard explains himself.
“Look, there are crazy people out there. And sometimes they make
threats against Prabhupada. We received one such threat so I have to
check.”
Marino shows him the ice cream and is allowed to pass. “Okay, you can
go.” Opening the door, Marino sees Prabhupada sitting with Jayatirtha,
Ramesvara, and Jagadish; the so-called big guns of ISKCON.
Prabhupada looks up at Marino. “Oh? What is this?”
After offering obeisances, Marino explains, “It’s Mahā blueberry ice

cream from Radha-Damodara, Srila Prabhupada. Would you like
some?” “Accha!” Prabhupada pats his desk, “You can put that right
here.”
“Thank you, Srila Prabhupada.” Marino places the fancy glass on the
desk and lifts up the cover. He presents the spoon to Prabhupada and
offers obeisances.
After leaving the room Marino returns to the bus and starts chanting
japa. He is completely stunned by his meeting with Prabhupada.
Suddenly, Vishnujana Swami walks in. “Marino, what happened to

you?”
“What??” Marino is now in a complete fog.
“I asked for the blueberry ice cream. Paramhamsa Maharaja was in the
room with me and I wanted to introduce you. He’s Prabhupada’s
traveling secretary, and you never showed up. That’s embarrassing for
me, you know. He’s a very dear godbrother and friend of mine.”
“Maharaja, weren’t you in the room with Prabhupada?”
“You brought the ice cream to Prabhupada?” A look of indignation
1062
comes over Maharaja’s face. “Bhakta Bozo, I wanted that ice cream for
Paramahamsa Maharaja. Now you made me look like a fool. Just for
that, tomorrow morning when Prabhupada goes out for his morning
walk, you are not going on it.”
Marino is in tears by this time. “Maharaja, what are you doing? You
can’t do this to me? It was a mistake. It was an accident.”
Vishnujana bursts out in laughter. “A firm lesson you should learn with
the Lord’s pure devotee, there are no accidents.” Maharaja can feign
anger really well. “You met Prabhupada because you were supposed to
meet Prabhupada. Somehow or other, things were arranged that way. I
don’t feel bad that you gave it to Prabhupada, actually that’s paramparā.
And no uninitiated devotees go on the morning walks anyway.”
Maharaja smoothes things over after play-acting the anger. He’s actually
happy it happened the way it did and that Prabhupada got Radha-
Damodara’s ice-cream prasādam. By that misunderstanding, Marino got
the mercy to personally serve prasādam to Srila Prabhupada.
Overnight there is an ice storm. It never snows in Dallas, but during the
winter if it rains at night then it freezes by morning. Ice is everywhere
and tree limbs begin snapping because of the weight of the ice. Even
whole trees can be uprooted by the heavy weight of ice. Water pipes
also freeze and it can paralyze the city. Nevertheless, Srila Prabhupada
goes out for his morning walk. It was also very cold when Prabhupada
went for his walks in Atlanta a few days back.
Vishnujana loves dressing Radha-Damodara but if it comes to a

morning walk, he will take the walk with Prabhupada over dressing the
Deities. So, after maṅgala-ārati Maharaja says, “Sridhara, you dress
Radha-Damodara today.”
“Well, then, who’s going to cook?” Normally Vishnujana Swami

dresses Radha-Damodara and Sridhara cooks for Them. But since
Vishnujana is going on the morning walk with Prabhupada some
1063
adjustments will have to be made.
“Vrikasanga can cook today.”
Sridhara: Prabhupada loved a clean kitchen and I was so proud that I

kept the kitchen immaculate. I was thinking, Oh, God. Vrikasanga is
going to mess that kitchen up, and then Prabhupada will ask who’s in
charge of this kitchen, and I’ll be in charge of the kitchen and I’m going
to cop it. So that was my dilemma.
In spite of his fears, Sridhara accepts Maharaja’s decision and dresses

the Deities. Ramacharya brings flowers from wherever he manages to
locate flowers, and Vrikasanga goes into the kitchen to cook.
A car is waiting to take Prabhupada to a nearby golf course for his walk.
As Prabhupada and his group of devotees walk through the temple
parking lot, Vishnujana notices Yogesh Chandra’s orange and white
van. The fuel cap was recently lost and Yogesh has temporarily stuffed
a rag in the opening. Prabhupada detects the rag and comments, “Oh, a
Molotov cocktail?” He can sense danger with a vehicle minus the fuel
cap. Vishnujana realizes that they must buy a new one immediately.
At the golf course the grass is too icy to walk on, so Prabhupada decides
to take his walk around the parking lot. He explains how the trees have
to suffer so much because they can’t move. They can’t go inside when
it’s cold, or protect themselves from ice storms. He comments that the
living entities who have to stand as trees were nudies in their last life.
Prabhupada also condemns the useless waste of time playing golf. Out
of ignorance modern man doesn’t know there is another life, spiritual
life, so he spends his time pointlessly trying to put a ball in a hole.
Instead of a Bhagavatam class, today Prabhupada speaks on Chaitanya-

charitamrita.
Then the brahmacārīs get ready for breakfast. But Vishnujana says that
nobody should eat anything because Prabhupada will come for darshan
1064
of Radha-Damodara. “It’s not proper for us to eat until after we offer
prasādam to Prabhupada, so just wait.” There is no vyāsāsana on the
bus, so Maharaja instructs them to make one for Prabhupada. They take
several BTG boxes, stack them up against the wall, and cover them with
a colorful cloth. Finally, they put some pillows down and wait for
Prabhupada’s arrival. The brahmacārīs keep looking up at Prabhupada’s
window as time slowly passes. They wait and wait and wait, becoming
more and more hungry.
When it’s time for Radha-Damodara’s rāja-bhoga ārati, Prabhupada still

hasn’t come. Vrikasanga blows the conch and begins offering the
incense. Vishnujana Maharaja has made a garland of light green tulasi
leaves that are strung out to Damodara’s flute. When Vrikasanga turns
around to offer the incense back to the audience, Prabhupada is standing
there. He has just walked onto the bus. Immediately, the ārati is stopped
to acknowledge the presence of the spiritual master with obeisances.
When ārati resumes, Srila Prabhupada stands in front of Radha-

Damodara and talks to Them. Some devotees can see his mouth moving
and can hear his voice. It appears that Prabhupada is praying to Sri-Sri
Radha-Damodara. After ārati he turns around and comments, “This is
super excellent.” Hearing this, Sridhara is quite pleased with himself
because he has dressed the Deities.
Then Prabhupada asks, “So what is in the back?” Srutakirti quickly

speaks up.
“The kitchen is in the back, Srila Prabhupada. Do you want to see it?”
As Prabhupada turns towards the back, Sridhara’s heart drops. He

knows that Vrikasanga has been cooking and the kitchen is probably no
longer neat and clean.
But Prabhupada turns around and says, “I have seen before.” Instead, he
takes his seat on the makeshift vyāsāsana. Vishnujana introduces the
men one by one.
1065
A discussion ensues about having a Radha-Damodara party in India.
Prabhupada advises Vishnujana Maharaja that bullock carts would work
better there than buses, because fuel and parts are expensive and
sometimes hard to get. His idea is an exchange program between the
bullock carts in India and the buses in America. In this way, if someone
gets a little ‘burned-out’ he can go to India to get recharged and then
come back. Prabhupada speaks about this for quite some time.
Gadadhar: I was sitting on one side and Srila Prabhupada sat right
across from me. He was so happy and so proud. Prabhupada looked into
my eyes, and I kind of fell into the depth of his black pupils. I went right
in and I was swimming in there. Prabhupada looked at me with great
concern and with great love. During that little exchange, he was talking
about the bullock carts. He said, “In India all you need is the bullock.
You travel from village to village. Here we have your bus.”
Prabhupada wants the Radha-Damodara party paradigm in India

traveling by bullock cart instead of by bus. This did come to pass and
became known as Padayatra. Suddenly, a temple pūjārī enters the bus
with a silver platter of Radha-Kalachandji’s mahā-prasādam for Srila
Prabhupada. The hungry Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs, who are now
completely famished, can’t take their eyes off the tray filled with
assorted
Indian delicacies – savories, fried vegetables, milk sweets, and tropical

fruits. They are certain that if Prabhupada is as hungry as they are, he’ll
probably eat the whole thing.
Srila Prabhupada looks at the prasādam as if studying it. Then he picks

up one small slice of papaya and pops it into his mouth. He waves the
plate away with his hand, “A yogi doesn’t need to eat too much.” The
brahmacārīs are impressed by Prabhupada’s detachment and take it as
an instruction on sense control.
The bus is now also packed with Gurukula kids. Bhadrasena is only two
years young but he has come with the older kids because it’s the most
1066
fun thing being on Radha- Damodara’s bus with Srila Prabhupada. In
anxiety, Bhadrasena’s mother, Shasti, has come looking for him and she
now stands in the driver’s area at the front of the bus gazing at her
spiritual master.
Suddenly, the boy calls out, “Prabhupada.”
“Oh, who is that?” Prabhupada asks.
Srutakirti answers. “That is Mohanananda’s son, Srila Prabhupada.”
“Mohanananda? Oh, Mohanananda! Where is that rascal?” The words

seem to come from the core of his heart. It obviously means a lot to
Prabhupada that his disciple has left Krishna consciousness. When he
sees Shasti mātājī, he motions her to come forward. The brahmacārīs
consider this unusual because it has become taboo for women to be on
the bus. But Prabhupada has called her, so Shasti comes forward
holding Bhadrasena in her arms.
“Have you gone out to find him? Tell him he should come back. He’s an
intelligent boy.” As Prabhupada asks about her husband, everyone is
affected by his mood. They can see tears in his eyes as he speaks. “It is
like when I cut my finger the pain is felt in the mind as well. Similarly,
when my disciple has some difficulty, I feel the pain also.” Then
Prabhupada looks lovingly at the baby in mother Shasti’s arms. “Now
you become a pure devotee and rescue your father.” He motions for the
mahā plate to be brought to the child, who stares at the platter for a long
time as Prabhupada watches him. Finally, he reaches over his mother’s
arms and takes a strawberry from out of all the creamy milk sweets.
Prabhupada smiles and comments, “Yes, children like red.”
The rest of the mahā is distributed to the assembled devotees.
The Radha-Damodara pūjārīs have prepared a foot bathing ceremony

and are ready to proceed. Prabhupada sits beside Radha-Damodara with
his lotus feet on a little doily. One foot at a time is carefully washed.
1067
After this ritual, he leaves the bus. There is chaos inside as everyone
tries to get the remnants – the doily and the caraṇāmṛta water.
Janardan: The first time I saw Srila Prabhupada was in Brooklyn where
there were so many people. Here it seemed a lot more accessible and
intimate. Prabhupada spoke nicely of the party and I was feeling that
this is my link. Srila Prabhupada was sitting by the Deities and I was
there beside him. He pushed the importance of the party and praised us.
Even though there was a lot of hardship, the connection was there
between this party and Srila Prabhupada and me. Any of the inequities,
or difficulties, or fears, or doubts that I may have had, were washed
away. This was Prabhupada’s baby and I felt very connected with the
whole mood of a Vaishnava preacher in the line of Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu.
When Prabhupada is ready to leave Dallas, the question of a servant

comes up again. He is of the opinion that Nanda Kumar, although
qualified, is a little whimsical. He prefers Srutakirti to continue his
duties. Hearing that His Divine Grace prefers him to remain as his
personal servant, Srutakirti is overjoyed in his heart and agrees to
continue traveling with his spiritual master.
Meanwhile back in Atlanta, Tamal Krishna is in anxiety waiting for

news of the stolen truck. But a phone call from Ramesvara at the Los
Angeles BBT puts a smile on Goswami’s face. For selling ninety
thousand Back to Godhead magazines, the Radha- Damodara party has
captured first place in the Small Books category of the February BBT
Newsletter. Tripurari’s party is in first place in the coveted Big Books
category.
Tamal Krishna is so elated by this news that the disaster of the missing
truck is momentarily forgotten. In ecstasy, he telephones Vishnujana in
Dallas. He wants him to inform Prabhupada of the astonishing report.
Radha-Damodara’s small group of festival entertainers has now been
transformed into the leading BTG distribution force in the world by
1068
Goswami’s management expertise.
Needless to say, it was Yogesh Chandra’s commitment to Prabhupada’s

order to distribute books that was the original guiding principle.
Vishnujana Swami always had several book distribution parties under
Suhotra as the Radha-Damodara party sankirtan leader, but never at the
present level of intensity.
When Goswami returns to his room he finds another source of joy, a

note stating that the missing truck has been found and Ray is in police
custody. Immediately, he sends Dhristadyumna out to collect the truck
and return with the books and BTGs.
Tamal quickly books a flight to Dallas. As Shakespeare put it, “All’s

well that ends well.” But on the same day that Goswami takes his flight
into Dallas, Prabhupada takes a flight out of Dallas to New York.
Austin, Texas, March 5, 1975

As the Radha-Damodara bus prepares to leave Dallas, Vishnujana
discovers four kids in various concealed places; in the bays, in the
kitchen, and wherever they can find a hiding place. Maharaja pleads
with them to return to school. They beg him to let them travel with
Radha-Damodara. Also on board are Mangalananda and Naikatma who
came to see Prabhupada in Dallas. Mangalananda suggests that maybe
the teachers are too heavy because the kids obviously want to leave.
In Austin, a three-man kirtan party greets the bus on the street in front of
the temple,. Sannyāsīs are always welcomed in a reverential way. After
washing their feet, the Austin devotees offer them mahā-prasādam.
Goswami Maharaja just takes a tulasi leaf, while Vishnujana Maharaja
takes a gulābjāmun with gusto!
Prahladananda is still president of Austin temple and has a relationship

with Vishnujana Maharaja since they opened the Houston center
1069
together in 1971. In Dallas, Prahladananda had asked Maharaja if the
Radha-Damodara party could help his small temple by giving some
manpower. Now they have arrived and the bus is packed with over 20
people. But Goswami has another idea.
“We’re not going to give you more manpower. We’re going to take you
over!”
Jagadish is the new GBC for Texas. He has already informed

Prabhupada that the temple is not making devotees. His opinion is that it
would be better to close the center. Reluctantly, Prabhupada gives his
consent because there are only three devotees in Austin with no Deities.
Therefore, Prahladananda joins Radha-Damodara. The other two
brahmacārīs will go to the Houston temple.
Prahladananda: The first day I was on the bus Tamal Krishna Maharaja
asked me to give class. I gave a balanced class about brahmacārī life and
gṛhastha life. But the sannyāsīs didn’t like it because Tamal Krishna
Maharaja was fanatical against householders. I don’t know if he was
personally against household life, but the strategy was to use that tactic
to attract men with the same mentality. Vishnujana Maharaja was
having some difficulty but he wasn’t open. He was a little introverted in
that aspect, but he did reveal himself a little and I could understand he
was disturbed. Perhaps with the proper persons he might have been
more open.
The new men generally go out with Vishnujana Swami. As usual, their
service at the University of Texas is distributing prasādam and chanting
with the kirtan party. Marino pays close attention to Maharaja’s
personal interaction in preaching to students. He notes that Maharaja’s
style is one of deep realization, but he doesn’t let it go at that. During
the question and answer interval, he makes an offer to the students.
“Look. I’ve got a deal for anyone who is interested. I love to have fun.
That’s why I’m trying to share this with you because I’m having such a
good time. I’m convinced that anybody who comes and chants with us
1070
will have just as good a time, if not better. Now, if you think you can
show me something better, then please do. We’re all friends here and
friends tell each other what’s a good thing and what’s not. I’ll sit down
with anyone, anywhere, and talk about it. If you can convince me that I
can enjoy myself more doing something else, I’ll give this up. But I’m
having such a good time here that I want to share it with you.”
Marino: People would suggest this and that, and Vishnujana Maharaja
would show the superiority of bhakti-yoga and win people over with
sweet words. He could diffuse any negative situation. Wherever he went
people were instantly attracted. On the bus he was very keen on
prasādam etiquette. “Don’t leave half-empty plates lying around; clean
up after yourself.” And if people didn’t clean up after prasādam, he
would take the rag, get on the floor, and clean it himself. He didn’t act
like we thought a conventional sannyāsī would act.
The Radha-Damodara breakfast is huge to enable the BTG distributors

to stay out all day. Included on the daily menu are orange juice, salad,
chick peas, Gauranga potatoes, halavā, and hot milk. Gopal Acharya’s
morning service is to help serve breakfast. When the devotees go out for
distribution, Gopal stays back and cleans up. He knows that prasādam in
not to be wasted so he eats everything left over on the plates. He’s been
instructed that it’s all right to eat until you waddle like a duck.
Overeating is his thing so he retains that habit.
It’s not uncommon for him to drink a quart of hot milk, and finish all the
halavā that’s left over. He continues eating until there is nothing left to
eat. By the time he steps off the bus it’s already past 10:30am. As he
looks up, the sky is spinning like a kaleidoscope. Without delay he finds
an empty room in the house and falls asleep.
When Gopal wakes up, he is still totally hung over. Nonetheless, he

goes out for the first time to try selling BTGs. Austin is a liberal town
and the temple neighborhood has many hippies, students, and derelicts.
But without Yogesh Chandra present to train him, Gopal has no idea
1071
what to say to people. Marino has a suggestion. “Why don’t you just tell
them Radha-Damodara is in jail, and we need to bail Them out?”
Gopal decides to try that approach in Austin. “Hey, we’re doing a

special,” he says enthusiastically and hands someone a stick of incense.
“We’re trying to raise money to get Radha-Damodara out of jail. They
got busted and we’re trying to bail Them out.”
If anyone starts asking questions, he simply tells them exactly what

Radha-Damodara are doing. “Yeah, They were giving away free food
downtown to the street people, and doing some free concerts, and They
got popped, you know?”
Gopal Acharya: They were sending me out half days so I was staying
back and helping out Sridhar or Ramacharya in the mornings. We had
kirtans at night and Vishnujana Swami would get teary-eyed. Whenever
he led a good kirtan he would always get teary-eyed. He’d get a big grin
on his face and tears in his eyes. He would get very ecstatic leading
kirtan.
After several days, the Austin center is closed and the bus leaves for Los
Angeles via Phoenix. It’s a long drive through Texas, New Mexico, and
Arizona, but Vishnujana is always available to answer philosophical
queries from the men. He also likes to tell KRSNA Book stories. When
they pass Los Cruces, Vishnujana repeats the story how the old school
bus blew up and points out the spot where it happened. He does this
every time they pass this place.
When the men ask about his other adventures he usually tells episodes
with Radha-Damodara. Another favorite is his boat trip down the
Ganga.
Gopal Acharya: Vishnujana told me he traveled on the Ganges to places

only accessible by boat. People mistook him for Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
probably because of his physical stature and complexion. He had big
ears, big hands, long arms and a beautiful voice. They would have a
1072
festival program in the evening and he said that villagers would present
them with rice, incense, vegetables, children, and everything. He
enjoyed that a lot and loved talking about it.
Naikatma and Mangalananda are traveling with Radha-Damodara on

their way to the West Coast. With cramped quarters, sometimes tempers
get frayed. Although Mangalananda is a seasoned devotee, for some
reason Tamal Krishna treats him like a new recruit. At one point he yells
at him for something.
Mangalananda responds, “You’re not going to frighten me with this

yelling stuff.” He’s only catching a ride to Los Angeles and doesn’t feel
he should be treated like a new bhakta.
Goswami replies, “You’re too far in illusion, I can’t help you anymore.”
Having been declared in illusion, most of the men stay away from
Mangalananda and give him the silent treatment. When Vishnujana
Maharaja leads kirtan, however, such petty matters are quickly
forgotten.
The men consider that the best kirtans are when the bus is going full
speed down the highway. During kirtan, everyone always dances. While
dancing on a bus that’s going fast, when someone leaps up the bus
moves out from under him and he lands in a different place than where
he began. This often results in a fall and inevitably people fall over one
another. If someone jumps too high, his head might hit one of the plastic
light fixtures, and several break in this way.
The people driving on the highway are astonished to see these hi-jinks
on the bus. Kids stare in amazement from the back seat of their parent’s
car, seeing devotees flying up against the windows and sometimes
falling over. Every so often while driving down the highway for hours at
a time, the brahmacārīs look out the windows to catch the attention of
kids in the cars. They hold up a sign of the mahā-mantra and point to it.
Alternatively, they hold up a picture of Krishna and point to it.
1073
Naikatma: On that trip it was like heaven. As we were driving along the
road Vishnujana Swami was leading kirtan all the time. I was so
enamored by Maharaja. In the morning he would dress the Deities, and
in the evening he’d take rest in front of Their altar. I remember him
chanting for maṅgala-ārati and guru-pūjā and I felt it was like the
spiritual world. Tamal Krishna Maharaja had a different mood. Tamal
Krishna, in subtle ways, would belittle him. It made me feel
uncomfortable, because he was a wonderful preacher and nice example.
I can’t understand that līlā they had.
Phoenix, Arizona, March 1975

When the Radha-Damodara bus parks in front of the Phoenix preaching
center, Everyone is happy to see Vishnujana Swami again because they
hold him in the highest regard. Darpada and Danakeli offer the
sannyāsīs a small air-conditioned room in the house because Phoenix is
extremely hot most of the year.
There is a date palm in the front yard. Seeing that tree, Vishnujana goes
to the bus and returns with a hammer and chisel. He studies the tree to
pick out the best spot to tap it for date rasa. He hangs a small pot below
where he cuts the tree, like they do in India. By sunrise the next
morning, the pot is half full of date rasa. The sweet rasa is offered to
Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara and distributed to several devotees before it
becomes date wine!
Danakeli’s father has had a heart attack. She preaches to him daily in the
hospital.
He’s a staunch materialist whose biggest complaint is hypocritical

religion. But now, he’s developing an interest in transcendental
philosophy and becoming attracted to the teachings of Krishna
consciousness. He could never give up non-vegetarian food or high
living, so his materialistic lifestyle of meat-eating, drinking, and
smoking, culminated in a heart attack at the age of 43. In the hospital he
1074
was bewildered by this experience. How could it happen?
Darpada makes him promise to visit the temple after he is discharged.

When he comes to the temple he is noticeably humble, a clearly
different man. He even bows down before the altar and accepts
caraṇāmṛta.
Darpada: I wanted him to meet Vishnujana Maharaja because he was a

devotee that I respected highly. Vishnujana preached to my father-in-
law for 20 minutes and really communicated with him. After that he
bought a set of books and became a life member. He tried to perform
service even sending us to India. He came to Ratha-yatra one year and
saw Srila Prabhupada. Vishnujana changed him.
Maharaja would always find out exactly where people were at and
preach to them on that platform. That always impressed me because
devotees like myself in the neophyte stage, couldn’t get past that barrier.
For me, he was a special devotee because he was compassionate and
non-envious. He always made time to preach to people, and never
allowed a person’s status of life give him cause to look down on them.
Vatsala wants to cook for the sannyāsīs and is happy to see them
enjoying prasādam. Whenever he has free time, he comes by for
association. He’s attracted to the Radha- Damodara lifestyle but with a
wife and kids, joining the party is not an option.
One evening, Vatsala and Srikanta come by for a visit. Vishnujana is

lying on a thin chaddar on the floor listening to one of his men read
KRSNA Book. Maharaja asks Srikanta to set up engagements for him
while they are in town.
Srikanta is enthusiastic to fulfill Maharaja’s request. So on a bright

sunny morning the bus drives to the campus of the University of
Arizona in Tucson. As the brahmacārīs set up the equipment on their
little stage, students begin to congregate. As soon as Sri-Sri Radha-
Damodara arrive, Vishnujana Maharaja sits down in front of Them and
1075
begins a wonderful kirtan that only he can sing.
Naikatma: When Vishnujana Maharaja started chanting, all the young

people started diving into it. I felt such an ecstatic rush. It was like
listening to the Radha-Damodara tape. I listened to that tape all the time
and it was so blissful. I tried to stay close to Maharaja because I felt a
lot of shelter. During a Bhagavatam class I remember him closing his
eyes and talking about Radha-Krishna and the spiritual world, and how
Krishna consciousness is so beautiful and blissful. It reinforced my faith
so much just to have a little of his association.
Srikanta is totally immersed in the kirtan. He loves it when Maharaja

introduces the various Indian instruments and describes their qualities.
When the kirtan stops, prasādam is distributed to all the students. But
after lunch, instead of resuming the kirtan, the brahmacārīs begin to
break down the equipment and repack the bus bays.
Srikanta is bewildered by this. He approaches Vishnujana Maharaja to

inquire why the program is ending so quickly.
“What went wrong? Why on earth would this stop? There must be a
national disaster. Is there an earthquake or something?” Maharaja
quietly explains that the men have to put on karmi clothes to go out
selling incense and BTGs. Srikanta looks right into Vishnujana Swami’s
eyes and expresses his heart. “But this is so wonderful. Why can’t we do
this forever?”
“Yes,” Maharaja replies. “That’s why I started this party, so we could

simply chant without end.”
Srikanta: I could see that Vishnujana Maharaja was disappointed that

things had taken a turn. Not that there was any less value in the book
distribution, but the value of his chanting was so wonderful and such a
perfect engagement for Maharaja. He was unhappy to see it reduced
because it’s the devotees’ transcendental life.
1076
Ratnesvari dd: In Phoenix, the one point that really sticks out in my
mind is that Vishnujana Maharaja was different. He didn’t seem as
happy. I picked up that change of mood from when I remembered him
in San Francisco. He seemed troubled. I felt a change, but I didn’t know
what it was, of course.
Gokula: Vishnujana Maharaja had his heyday traveling to colleges and

making the demigods cry with his singing. But he was getting pressure
from several different directions and the reality of book distribution was
pressing on his heels. Tamal Krishna Goswami was turning the whole
program away from college presentations into a big effort for BTG
distribution. It gradually took prāṇa away from the college kirtan
emphasis. We would still do college programs, but Tamal Krishna was
taking attention and effort away from that by siphoning off more
devotees and more time, to get them on the streets for distributing
incense and BTGs.
I could see it was taxing Vishnujana a bit in the pressure he was getting
from Tamal Krishna in having to give in to this number one instruction
from Srila Prabhupada to distribute books. Acyutananda was also
having success with his tapes and he was getting big with his singing,
although Vishnujana Swami never saw it as competition. Just that he
was slipping a little bit, even though everywhere we went people always
loved him, because it was right at the point where he was most famous.
Srila Prabhupada has instructed many times that book distribution and
sankirtan should go on side by side. Not that one service should be
sacrificed for the other. But the overriding mood overtaking the society
in the ‘70s is book distribution, and this is being fueled by the Sankirtan
Newsletter. Everybody reads it and that produces a mood of competition
that increases book distribution tremendously.
By 1975, the word sankirtan has come to mean book distribution instead
of street chanting. Sankirtan, as Lord Chaitanya taught and
demonstrated, is reduced to an hour or two a week and is now called
1077
harināma. Prabhupada, however, continues using the terms sankirtan
and book distribution to mean two separate services.
Regarding Gurukula, they are in financial difficulty, so introduce book

distribution. Sankirtan and Book Distribution should be pushed side by
side, and there will be no difficulties. [Letter to Jagadisa Das -
November 12, 1974]
Regarding sankirtan and book distribution, book distribution is also

chanting. Anyone who reads the books that is also chanting and hearing.
[Letter to Rupanuga – October 19, 1974]

Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara, Vishnujana Swami, and Tamal Krishna
Goswami will soon arrive in New Dwaraka. All the local devotees are
excited. They have seen the photos and articles in Back to Godhead.
They have heard the buzz about Vishnujana Swami, the living legend of
ISKCON. The Radha-Damodara TSKP album that Vishnujana recorded
here in 1973 is still the hit of the movement. Maharaja’s kirtans are
blasting all day long from the New Dwaraka speakers outside the temple
president’s office. Krishna Kanti at Golden Avatar Studios can’t keep
up with the orders.
One morning after Bhagavatam class when almost every brahmacārī is

in the prasādam hall, and every gṛhastha is at their kitchen table, Sri-Sri
Radha-Damodara and Their transcendental temple on wheels pull up in
front of 3764 Watseka Avenue.
Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna are in Los Angeles to catch their flight
to India. Their stay in New Dwaraka will be short. Yogesh Chandra will
accompany them to Mayapur while the rest of the party remains behind
to distribute incense and BTGs. Yogesh Chandra’s van party will merge
with the Radha-Damodara bus while the three leaders are in India for a
month.
1078
Vaiyasaki: I heard that the Radha-Damodara party was coming. That
was the talk of the temple. I was finishing my japa in front of Sri-Sri
Rukmini-Dwarakadish while breakfast prasādam was served. Only a
handful of people were in the temple at the time. All of a sudden the
central doors opened at the front of the room. A shaft of sunlight entered
and brightened the atmosphere inside. I turned to see two sannyāsīs
walk in carrying their dandas. One was tall with a deep golden tan and I
thought, that must be Vishnujana Swami. The other sannyāsī was
shorter, with black rimmed glasses that made him look a little like a
professor. I had never seen these Vaishnavas before but I thought, that
must be Tamal Krishna Goswami. I moved to the side as they came in
front of the vyāsāsana to offer obeisances to Srila Prabhupada. After
offering dandavats to the Deities they stood for a long time taking
darshan.
While in Los Angeles, the Radha-Damodara brahmacārīs get their mail.

Within the first month of joining, new men usually have mail from
friends and family they have left behind. The system is that friends and
relatives are informed to send letters to the next major temple where the
bus will spend a period of time.
As everyone sits down for breakfast the next morning, Vishnujana

Swami hands out the mail. The procedure is to open the mail at
breakfast and not in private. Vishnujana hands a letter to Gopal Acharya
who sees that it’s from his friends in Gainesville.
“Why don’t you open it and look at it,” he says to Maharaja. “Let me
know if you think I should see it.” He thinks it’s from the woman he
was living with and he doesn’t have the fortitude to read it. He doesn’t
trust himself because he’s worried it might expose a weakness. Since he
has now developed some trust in Vishnujana he prefers that Maharaja
look at it first.
Vishnujana Maharaja is sitting on his little cushion when he opens the

envelope.
1079
Suddenly, some purple micro dot LSD falls out onto his plate. There is
also a little note: ‘I hear you’re traveling with the Krishnas. That’s great.
Here’s some really good acid.’ Gopal is mortified in front of everyone
on the bus.
Vishnujana says, “Well, I don’t think you want to hear from these
people anymore.” Tamal Krishna adds, “You told me that was a
spiritual community you were staying at. It doesn’t sound too spiritual
to me.”
After prasādam, Goswami makes an announcement to everyone.

“Vishnujana Maharaja and I are going to Mayapur and we have decided
that Yogesh Chandra will come with us to India. We’re taking Yogesh
not just because he is the sankirtan leader for our Radha-Damodara
party, but because he started our book distribution and he’s responsible
for our success.
“I’ve requested Dhristadyumna to take over the administration, and

oversee all the affairs of the party while we’re in India. Srila
Prabhupada has authorized a loan to purchase three more buses. That
means we will have six buses on the road within a few months. When
we return from India we’ll bring five sets of Gaura-Nitai Deities so
every bus will have their own set of Deities.
“We’re also going to bring instruments and festival equipment so that

each bus can put on a daily festival and distribute books at the same
time.
“Our Radha-Damodara TSKP is the largest traveling sankirtan program

ever, and we have plans to make it even bigger, because Srila
Prabhupada wants hundreds of such buses traveling all over the U.S.”
Radha-Damodara is too famous for the men to have any privacy. Seeing
the bus parked on the street many temple devotees, men, women, and
children, gather round for a look at the celebrated bus. By looking
through the windows they can see Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara on Their
1080
altar.
The senior women who lived in the LA temple with Vishnujana

Brahmacari, now find it difficult to look at Vishnujana Swami. He had
encouraged and inspired them in devotional service when he was the
temple commander here many years ago. But the mood is so different
now. They no longer feel comfortable in his presence.
Sachidevi: It was like the gopis seeing Krishna in Vrindavan, and the
gopis seeing Krishna at Kurukshetra. I know it’s a perverted reflection,
but the awe and reverence… He was famous and powerful and had a
large following now. Tamal Krishna, of course, gave an air of
exclusiveness like, don’t touch, don’t come near. That was really hard
for us, because Vishnujana had been so much a part of our lives.
Karta dd: I think the main reason the Radha-Damodara party really
expanded was because Vishnujana Maharaja was the main force of
inspiring and attracting people. The thing was the kirtan. He would start
leading and the next thing you didn’t know when the ārati had started or
when it had finished. Sandhyāārati was like that. Not only his music, but
also his pravacana was nice. He was a good preacher and a very sweet
person.
The singing and the preaching were very tasty, so people from all walks
of life joined. He was sweet and jolly, a happy person, positive and
caring, so people would respond immediately. I remember that mostly
he was a simple man. He would just walk around and anybody could
talk to him; he would immediately respond. But he was kind of aloof
also. He would be in his own world of thoughts. I think he was very
much in the vanguard.
For everyone else in the temple, the gleaming Radha-Damodara bus

with Vishnujana Swami creates a mood of excitement. The resident
brahmacārīs are especially receptive to the preaching of the Radha-
Damodara men who go into the brahmacārī ashram looking for
prospects. They are trained to flatter new men and say that they have
1081
great potential for spiritual life. Then they invite them to meet the
Maharaja! “So come and preach with us. We’ll travel all over America
and do festivals. It will be fun.”
One of the new prospects has seen Vishnujana Swami before and is
already impressed by him. Joining the bus party sounds better than
remaining in the brahmacārī ashram to wash pots in the kitchen.
Alambana: They came up to the ashram and said, “Hey, you wanna
come with us or you wanna get married?” I said, “What? I don’t wanna
do that.” Gadadhar was preaching to me. He was Vishnujana’s main
man for checking the new guys out. So right there I joined.
The first time I saw Vishnujana Swami do kirtan was back in the
summer of ‘74, my first month in devotional service. We went out to
Hollywood Blvd and he played that drum until his hands were dripping
with blood. I’m not kidding, there was blood dripping from his hands,
and the drum head was all bloody. He didn’t even care; he just kept on
playing. He went for hours that day, and he was dripping blood on both
hands. I thought, This guy doesn’t feel pain! He can be a sannyāsī. That
impressed me.
Tamal Krishna Goswami continues his recruitment mood. He gives

several iṣṭha- goṣṭhīs in the brahmacārī ashram. Vishnujana Swami
remains on the bus during these meetings, taking care Radha-
Damodara’s service. Because he’s the more charismatic sannyāsī, the
entire bus program appears attractive. Most of the brahmacārīs aspire to
be like him. Gone is the attempt to make devotees at college campuses.
The BTG ad is yielding better results. Taking devotees from the temples
is a much more effective method to expand the party quickly.
Not everyone can join the bus, however. There are some who would
love to join the traveling party, but are absolutely forbidden to leave
with the sannyāsīs.
Sanatana: Vishnujana Swami and Tamal Krishna Maharaja brought the
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Radha-Damodara Traveling Sankirtan Party to Los Angeles. They rolled
up to the New Dwaraka Temple in this amazing big silver bus, and
stepped out like Viṣṇudūtas, effulgent sannyāsīs and brahmacārīs with
shaven heads and orange robes, loudly and blissfully chanting the mahā-
mantra. It was like the circus had come to town, only much better, and
we were all invited to come join the ringmaster, Vishnujana Swami,
right in the middle of the main ring.
When Vishnujana Maharaja sang the holy names, it was like he was
reaching into the pond of his heart and offering the lotus flower of his
soul to Srila Prabhupada and Lord Krishna. I never wanted his kirtans
and bhajans to end! The Radha-Damodara men made celibacy, and
purity, and simple spiritual austerity look attractive and appealing.
I wanted to join Vishnujana Maharaja as his humble servant, his

brahmacārī assistant – to carry his waterpot and danda or whatever –
and follow him around the world to spread Krishna consciousness. But I
was only five years old.
Individuals who have been coming for the Sunday feast also get caught
up in the enthusiasm of Radha-Damodara. They are invited on the bus to
meet Goswami Maharaja. It sounds really good and some make a hasty
decision to travel with the Swamis. It looks so appealing that at least one
man gets on the bus at every temple. Several days later, the new recruit
finds himself hundreds of miles away from home.
Sometimes a newcomer has a change of heart. “You know I think I want

to go back.”
Then the reply is, “Okay. We can let you off here, if you want.”
That sounds an alarm. “What? Let me off here?” Nobody wants to be

dropped off alone on a highway, miles from civilization, to hitchhike
back.
“Actually, we’re only going to be on the road a few more days and then
1083
we’ll return in a week.” The man is trapped on the bus and can’t leave,
“Uhh, Okay.”
A week later, there is another story. “Well, plans have changed. We’ll
be here a while longer, but we have some people going back and you
can catch a ride with them in a day or so.” After a few weeks of getting
up for every morning program, eating prasāda, hearing the chanting and
the lectures every day, the man has become a devotee. It’s an effective
program because the man is captive.
In this way, the three Radha-Damodara buses travel around and scoop
up men who aren’t ready to surrender to a temple environment.
Early one morning, Vishnujana Swami, Tamal Krishna Goswami, and

Yogesh Chandra are dropped off at Los Angeles International airport to
join hundreds of other devotees who are going on pilgrimage to India to
celebrate Gaura Purnima. The 1975 Mayapur festival begins March 20,
and the holy appearance of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is on March 27.
After several delays, the grand opening of the Krishna- Balarama
Mandir in Vrindavan will finally take place on April 20 much to
Prabhupada’s relief.
Mahendra has chartered an entire Air India 747 jumbo jet to transport all
the devotees. He stands in front of the Air India check-in counter calling
out names and handing out tickets. The airport lounge is crowded with
devotees lining up to get their tickets. This is the first year that everyone
can go to India.
In 1974, the India pilgrimage was mainly for the leaders, temple
presidents, sannyāsīs, and senior devotees. But 1975 is open for
everyone and they will all travel together on the same plane. A charter is
cheaper and it brings all the devotees together – one for all and all for
one.
Before long everyone is comfortably seated on the plane. The air

hostesses all wear saris and the cabin’s decor has Krishna dancing with
1084
the gopis. Everyone feels at home in this environment. Some
congratulate Mahendra on a job well done, although this is standard for
Air India jets. At last the plane starts speeding down the runway and
takes off. Vishnujana leads the chanting of the Nrsimha prayers as the
747 takes flight, circles Los Angeles, and heads east.
The temple cooks have prepared prasādam, which is distributed to

everyone shortly after take-off. Aside from the devotees there are only a
few Indian families on board. Five hours later, the flight touches down
in New York to pick up the east coast devotees. Due to the three hour
time difference in the east, it’s now evening here.
Keshava Bharati is waiting at JFK along with Vaiseshika and Kasiram.

He has always been a little sickly, but now his health has broken down
due to the rigorous life of book distribution. He can’t go out so often
and he can’t do big when he does go out. Hoping to get spiritually
recharged in the holy dhāma, Keshava Bharati is now boarding the flight
to Mayapur.
On the plane he meets Tamal Krishna, Vishnujana, and Yogesh

Chandra. At this time, a controversy is raging about distribution
techniques. Several book distributors are trying to do straight preaching
without gimmicks, but the results haven’t been as big. Realizing his
fading ability to maintain full time book distribution, Keshava Bharati
decides to confide in Tamal Krishna. His health continues to deteriorate,
and he needs guidance about what to do next.
Keshava Bharati: I decided to talk to Tamal Krishna Maharaja. He then

hatched the scheme that I could actually manage the party. He didn’t tell
me he hatched the scheme, but that’s what he was thinking.
Another large quantity of prasādam is brought aboard in New York and

the flight is soon ready to depart for London. As the plane takes off
everyone can see the bright lights of New York City through the
windows as the flight heads out over the Atlantic. With so many
devotees from different temples on board everyone gets to associate
1085
with people they normally wouldn’t meet.
Before reaching London, devotees are awakened by a conch blown three

times to announce that maṅgala-ārati will begin in thirty minutes. After
everyone has freshened up, the conch blows again and Vishnujana leads
kirtan over the plane’s public address system. Before long, hundreds of
devotees rise from their seats to dance to Maharaja’s mṛdaṅga beats.
Vishnujana leads everyone up and down the aisles in an ecstatic kirtan
eight miles high.
Suddenly there’s an announcement over the intercom. “This is your

captain speaking. We are not able to navigate properly with over 300
people dancing and jumping in the aisles. I request everyone to return to
their seat and calm down.” Maharaja brings the kirtan to a close and
everyone gets into their japa.
Kavi Chandra: We had a big kirtan on the plane but we had to stop
because the pilots could feel something was happening and they
couldn’t allow that to continue.
Sruti Rupa dd: The whole plane was filled with devotees. We had kirtan,
maṅgala-ārati, prasādam. It was like, if I have to go, this is the best way
to go. It was ecstatic.
The European devotees have all gathered in London. They are excited as
they board the plane at Heathrow Airport. A fresh batch of prasādam is
also brought on board. When everyone is in their seat with seatbelts
fastened, the 747 takes off for the journey to New Delhi. The plane is
now completely packed with ISKCON devotees. The only other
passengers are a few Indian families and businessmen who are charmed
to see so many Westerners adopting their traditional culture and
lifestyle.
When the prasādam from Sri-Sri Radha-Londonisvara is distributed, the

American devotees consider it very special. Most of them have never
been to Europe before and they know these are the first Deities in the
1086
movement.
After eating, Yogesh Chandra gets up to go to the lavatory. The area is

crowded with many devotees waiting in line. Suddenly, he is shocked to
see Vishnujana Swami speaking with several women. They appear to be
very attracted to Maharaja.
Yogesh Chandra: The bathroom was very crowded and he didn’t know I
was behind him. Two women were completely staring at him, and he
was standing right next to them, and he was completely chatting with
them. I was shocked. I mean Vishnujana Maharaja is a great devotee,
but he was very attractive. That was there in his personality.
When the plane lands at New Delhi airport, there’s a problem with the
connecting flight to Calcutta. Consequently, everyone is put up
overnight in the Ashoka Hotel with an allotment of food. Being in India
for the first time, and seeing many beggars at the airport and near the
hotel, some devotees think that everybody in Delhi is starving. As a
result, they order room service and request fruit. Then they drop the
bananas, apples, and oranges out of the open windows to the beggars
below who scramble for the falling fruit like manna from heaven.
Calcutta, India, March 1975

Before the plane comes in for a landing the captain announces that this
is the first 747 Jumbo jet to land in Calcutta. A loud cheer of “Jaya!” is
the reaction.
A kirtan party from Mayapur, led by Dinanath Prabhu, is chanting in the

Arrivals Lounge as over 400 excited devotees deplane. His kirtan is
super-charged. Nobody has heard kirtan like this before. He’s
immediately surrounded by devotees recording his singing with cassette
recorders. He leads the throng towards a group of buses for the final ride
to Sri Mayapur dhāma. It will be another four hours before they arrive
and it will be quite late at night.
1087
Tamal Krishna Goswami is very happy to be back in Calcutta where he
did so much service before leaving for America. Srila Prabhupada is
also in Calcutta having arrived the day before. Both Vishnujana and
Tamal Krishna are looking forward to spending time with His Divine
Grace. Thus they prefer to stay in Calcutta rather than take the buses to
Mayapur.
Only sannyāsīs are staying at the temple along with the local devotees.
Yogesh Chandra accompanies the Swamis as their brahmacārī assistant.
The plan is to spend a few days in Calcutta, and go to Mayapur when
Srila Prabhupada goes.
The Radha-Damodara leaders are greeted at the temple by several

sannyāsīs, Acyutananada, Brahmananda, Madhudvisa, and Gargamuni.
Both Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna are happy to be received warmly.
Tamal Krishna puts on Vishnujana’s famous tape and the sounds fill the
Calcutta temple.
Goswami begins glorifying the Radha-Damodara program in America,

recounting several sankirtan stories, and showing photos of the kirtan
festivals on the Florida beaches. But the other sannyāsīs quickly lose
interest and say, “Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Suddenly, Gargamuni turns to
Tamal Krishna and says, “Man! Put some real music on. C’mon take
that off. Put Acyutananda on. What is this, Disneyland or something?”
Gargamuni puts on Acyutananda’s latest recording and Tamal Krishna
backs off a little. He is shocked by this unexpected assault.
In their room, Tamal Krishna vents his frustration. He begins blasting

people because that’s part of his nature. Vishnujana doesn’t complain
about it, but Tamal Krishna is disturbed because he was expecting a
bigger reception.
The next morning there is not enough water to satisfy everyone’s

bathing needs. There’s a small lake across the street from the temple
where the resident brahmacārīs are told to take bath because there is
only enough water for the sannyāsīs.
1088
Shyamlal: Vishnujana Maharaja went for a swim in the lake because
there was no water at the temple. Gargamuni told everybody to “jump in
the lake.” In those days you could only get water in the morning and
evening. I was with Gargamuni as his brahmacārī servant. I did a little
sevā for Vishnujana Swami and Tamal Krishna Maharaja. Vishnujana
Maharaja was not only a big sannyāsī but I found him to be a very good
devotee. He had a lot of humility and Vaishnava etiquette. He knew how
to respect Vaishnavas and how to deal with the other Vaishnavas and
fallen souls. I got real encouragement to be a krsna-bhakta by talking to
him.
At exactly 6:00am, Prabhupada is ready to go for his morning walk. He

is driven to the sprawling gardens surrounding the Victoria Memorial, a
grand edifice built by the British to commemorate the reign of Queen
Victoria who also carried the title, Empress of India. The memorial was
designed by Sir William Emerson in an architectural style similar to
Belfast City Hall. It’s a majestic white marble building, built between
1906 and 1921, at the southern end of the Calcutta Maidan.
Emerson was asked to design the building in the Italian Renaissance

style, but he was against the exclusive use of European styles. So he
used an Indo-Saracen style, integrating Mughal elements. It currently
serves as a museum and tourist attraction.
Sridhama Mayapur, March, 1975

Whenever Srila Prabhupada comes to Mayapur it’s always a momentous
occasion. Lookouts are posted on top of the temple to watch for him.
When they see his car coming around the bend from a distance, they set
off firecrackers. Now everyone knows that Prabhupada is arriving so
they run to the road to greet him, blowing conch shells in great
excitement. The entire area of Mayapur is completely farmland, with no
other buildings from the Yoga-Pitha to the ISKCON property.
A kirtan party meets the car on the road in front of Sri Mayapur
1089
Chandrodaya Mandir. Prabhupada’s car is decorated with flowers and is
followed by three cars packed with sannyāsīs. The convoy comes to a
halt as devotees offer dandavats on the road and surround the vehicles.
Then everybody walks down Bhaktisiddhanta Marg accompanying the
vehicles towards the front gate, which is still under construction.
Prabhupada has requested all the western Vaishnavas to come to

Mayapur. He emphasizes the importance of coming to Mayapur because
it’s the birthplace of the Hare Krishna movement. He wants them to
come every year to the holy dhāma to recharge their batteries before
returning to the west to preach.
Srila Prabhupada is always the center of the festival but the best time to
see him is during the morning program. When he returns from his
morning walk the temple is spotlessly clean. No one is allowed inside
the temple after it has been cleaned so nobody will walk on the marble
floor before Prabhupada. Devotees stand outside the gate and shower
him with flowers as he returns from his walk.
When Prabhupada enters the temple, he walks straight to Sri-Sri Radha-

Madhava for darshan. Sometimes, he makes interesting comments.
Today he explains, “You see how Radharani is holding her right hand
out with thumb and forefinger touching? She is offering a tambula pan
to Krishna. When Radharani offers this pan to Krishna, Krishna can
never leave Her.”
During the ārati kirtan, Prabhupada circumambulates the temple

followed by hundreds of devotees. Others stand in one place so they can
see Prabhupada as he comes round again. On either side of the altar a
large bell has been attached to the ceiling with a rope hanging down.
When Prabhupada approaches the bell he stops to ring it for a long time,
as if expressing his own ecstasy. Brahmananda, Bhavananda, Gurukripa,
Nalini Kanta, and Madhudvisa surround Prabhupada as he rings the bell.
Ringing the bell drives the devotees almost mad and everyone dances in
wild abandon. Seeing their spiritual master in this mood is so enlivening
1090
and so special for everyone. The ring of the bell is like a confirmation
that devotees are right on the mark, performing kirtan in Mayapur.
After this ritual, Prabhupada takes his seat for class. Before giving class,
he thanks Bhavananda for keeping the temple so clean and adds,
“Management means just keep everything clean.”
In the middle of class this morning, Prabhupada suddenly closes his

eyes, stops speaking, and becomes silent. He remains in a state of
complete absorption and the assembled devotees gradually realize they
are witnessing a special moment.
The room becomes dead quiet. Everyone’s heart is transported to a

sacred realm, all eyes overwhelmed with blissful anticipation. It’s a
poignant moment and every person in the room anxiously anticipates
what His Divine Grace will do next.
Unexpectedly, Hamsaduta begins chanting the praṇāma mantras quite

loudly which breaks the silence of the moment. Some devotees are
disturbed by this, considering it intrusive and inappropriate. Prabhupada
tips his head to indicate that they should continue chanting.
Srutakirti: I felt jolted from a heavenly realm. Gradually, the reluctant

devotees began to join in the kirtan. Soon, Srila Prabhupada regained his
external consciousness and joined his disciples in the kirtan.
After the program, an argument ensues among the leaders about the
proper etiquette when the spiritual master goes into ecstatic trance.
“Srila Prabhupada was in ecstasy. Hamsaduta disturbed the mood and
spoiled a special moment.”
The question finally comes to Prabhupada through his secretary,

Brahmananda. “Srila Prabhupada, do you remember in the lecture when
you stopped speaking and went into ecstasy?”
Prabhupada responds in a humble voice, “I do not do that very often.”
1091
He sounds a little embarrassed.
“No, Prabhupada, but when it does happen, what should we do? Should
we just sit there? Or should we chant japa?”
“Yes, just chant,” is Prabhupada’s reply. “Chant Hare Krishna. Why are
you making it such a big thing? What is to be done? Just chant Hare
Krishna. That is all right.”
Srutakirti: When he said, “I do not do that very often,” it was the most
innocent voice I had ever heard. The gentle grace and humility he
displayed was amazing. He was apologizing for exhibiting the
symptoms of a pure devotee! It appeared that Srila Prabhupada felt
awkward exposing us to his ecstasy. One of the most wonderful things
about His Divine Grace was the way he always made us feel that if we
just followed the process of Krishna consciousness, then we could
advance to the perfectional stage without difficulty.
Someone is always posted outside Prabhupada’s room to run errands for

his servants. One morning after breakfast prasādam, Prabhupada comes
out of his room to wash his hands. Seeing several sannyāsīs looking
over the balcony, he pauses and also has a look. The sannyāsīs are
watching an old lady and her child going through a pile of leaf plates
that have been thrown out after breakfast. Evidently the woman and her
child have missed the mass prasādam distribution, and so they are
picking through the plates looking for some remnants of food.
One sannyāsī remarks, “Sometimes I feel so sorry for these people.”
“Why just sometimes?” Prabhupada replies with the most deep,

compassionate, penetrating look.
After this incident Srila Prabhupada informs the managers of the

Mayapur temple that no one in Mayapur should go hungry within ten
miles of the temple. There is already a program for prasādam
distribution to the local people, but from this day on ISKCON Food
1092
Relief (IFR) expands. As money from the west pours into Mayapur, IFR
feeds vast numbers of India’s poor.
It’s not long before Prabhupada increases the program saying that no
one within a ten-mile radius of any ISKCON temple should ever lack
for food. IFR is replaced by ISKCON Food for Life and becomes a
worldwide preaching success.
There are regular darshans in Prabhupada’s room but no more than forty
people can squeeze inside. Those who get in are most fortunate.
Praghosa has a specific reason to go for darshan. He wants to thank
Prabhupada for inviting everyone to Mayapur.
At the end of one darshan he sees an opportunity when everybody offers

their obeisances before leaving. He offers obeisances very slowly and
stay down on the floor longer. By the time he stands up most people
have already left the room.
Praghosa: I stepped forward to Prabhupada sitting at his desk, and said,

“Srila Prabhupada?” He was just about to drink some water and he said,
“Yes?”
“I just want to take this opportunity to say thank you for bringing us all
here to Mayapur.” Prabhupada sipped a little water and said, “Oh, I have
not brought you. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and my Guru Maharaja,
they have brought you. Mayapur, and Vrindavan, this is your home.” He
drank some more water, leaned back, and smiled.
“The West, that is for preaching, or for sense gratification. So you come
every year. Take inspiration here in the holy dhāma and then go back to
the west and preach vigorously. Then come back again and take
inspiration.”
Every day Acyutananda Swami takes out a parikramā party, leading the
kirtans and explaining all the holy sites of Mahaprabhu’s early pastimes.
For most individuals this is their first visit to India and they see
1093
everything as cintāmaṇi. “This is the same dust that Lord Chaitanya
walked on! This is non-different from the spiritual world.” The visiting
devotees are very excited about everything they experience in Mayapur.
One of the places they visit is the house of Bhaktivinoda Thakur.

Vishnujana leads the kirtan down to Hular Ghat, banging a gong and
dancing with great intensity. The ghāt is packed with dozens of naukās,
small Bengali boats, ready to take the pilgrims across the Jalangi River.
The boats leave the ghāt filled to capacity with devotees from around
the world on pilgrimage to the most sacred Gaudiya Vaishnava sites.
Suddha Jiva: Vishnujana Swami was in the boat next to me. He was
singing and chanting all the time they were rowing across the river.
Acyutananda Swami was leading the tour and gave the talk when we
were there.
Shyamlal: I remember kirtans with Gurukripa Maharaja, Madhudvisa

Maharaja, Yasodanandana Maharaja, Dinanath Prabhu, and Vishnujana
Maharaja. The way Vishnujana Swami used to dance; we used to call
him like Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Because of his chanting and dancing
he attracted all the Bengalis. He had the figure like Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu with long arms down to the knees, and he was very tall,
and the way he danced, did kirtan and played mṛdaṅga. I especially got
attracted by his bhajan Vrindavane Ramya Sthana. That song actually
gave me a lot of boost in my spiritual life.

As the mass of devotees go on parikramā for the week leading up to
Gaura Purnima, the GBC men meet to pass their resolutions for the year.
They agree to have an annual meeting in Mayapur to resolve issues and
implement new preaching strategies. They also agree to follow the rules
of parliamentary procedure by bringing proposals to the floor, debating
them, amending them, and then voting on them. Jayatirtha is the
chairman and he has an agenda with guidelines and proposals.
1094
Prabhupada attends two of these meetings.
The main topic for discussion today is a legal document, the Oath of
Allegiance, to be signed by all GBC men. Jayatirtha reads the proposed
duties of a GBC man. “To insure that the highest standards, including
spiritual temple worship, sankirtan propaganda, recruitment of new
devotees and life members, financial management and repayment of all
debts are being adhered to.”
Prabhupada suddenly objects. “Why debts? Debts should be avoided.

One should not make debts.”
“All the temples are in debt,” Jayatirtha replies. Prabhupada is not

pleased. “Why? Debts are very wrong.”
“Either they owe BBT money or they owe bank money,” is Jayatirtha’s
answer.
“That is not good. No debts.” Prabhupada is firm. “If any temple wants
to make debt, it must be sanctioned by the GBC committee. Make it
clear. Not that he whimsically, the president, puts the Society into debt,
unless it is sanctioned.”
Jayatirtha responds, “That’s included in here, more or less.
But Prabhupada is steadfast. “Make it clear: They cannot create any

debt.”
Tamal Krishna brings up another angle, “When you say debt, do you
mean a loan?”
“Loan is also debt,” is Prabhupada’s strong reply. During the ensuing

discussion it’s clarified that a temple may purchase books from the BBT
on consignment and repay according to the terms. Then it’s considered a
loan. But if a temple falls behind on the payments, then they have
created a debt, and that is not approved by Prabhupada. Atreya Rishi
1095
suggests that most transactions should be on a cash basis.
Prabhupada agrees, “Yes.” The next point on the agenda is

recommending candidates for initiation. Srila Prabhupada says that
within six months to a year, one may accept initiation.
Tamal Krishna asks, “And for brāhmaṇa initiation?”
Rupanuga looks at Prabhupada and answers, “One year, you said, after
that.” Prabhupada corrects him. “No, within one year. That’s all. If
within one year, one does not come to the standard, then he’s unfit.”
Prabhupada confirms that the recommendation should be made by the
president.
Rupanuga is still confused. “Srila Prabhupada, after first initiation one

has to wait one year to get second initiation?
Prabhupada affirms his earlier statement. “Six months.”
Jayatirtha now moves on to the next topic. “A GBC man has to act as
the designated representative of Srila Prabhupada to settle all
philosophic, procedural disputes which may arise and are not settled at
the temple level. If there’s some quarrel – one man doesn’t like another
man – and the temple president can’t solve it, then the GBC man can
solve it.”
Prabhupada quickly responds, “There is no question of quarrel. Quarrel

is material.”
“Yes,” Jayatirtha agrees, “but it is the Age of Quarrel.” Prabhupada

reaffirms his statement. “Quarrel is not good.”
Jayatirtha moves on to the next point, receiving financial reports from

the presidents on a timely basis.
Prabhupada agrees. “The general report should be submitted at least
1096
monthly, to the board of the GBC or to the individual zonal GBC. But
they have that everyone is chanting 16 rounds, everyone is following the
principles, so much money received, so much money deposited in the
bank, and this is the balance. These are general reports. That’s all. The
financial report means what they have collected, and what they have
spent. And the general reporting, ‘Yes, everyone is chanting,’ or ‘He is
not chanting in spite of warning.’ This is very good.”
Jayatirtha continues. “So then the next thing, besides having a zonal
responsibility, a GBC man may have a functional responsibility, like
we’ve already discussed.” Prabhupada provides clarification. “The main
functional responsibility is to go and see that the regular temple work is
going on, the president is doing nicely, to check in this way. You can sit
down in the class and see how things are going on. That’s it!”
Jayatīrtha: That's it. Now, one point we've included that we haven't
really done before is the idea of establishing committees and individual
service...
Prabhupāda: Committee, I shall appoint also, if there is any need.

Amongst the GBC, I shall pick up some members and make a
committee for a particular...
Jayatīrtha: For example, we put down that there may be a regional

committee.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Jayatīrtha: Just like in Europe, we have a regional committee for

managing, I understand...
Prabhupāda: What is that regional co...?
Jayatīrtha: Isn't it Bhagavān, Haṁsadūta...?
Prabhupāda: Yes, I have said that Haṁsadūta, Bhagavān and
1097
Brahmānanda may...
Jayatīrtha: So it's a kind of regional committee for managing.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Jayatīrtha: So we similarly...
Prabhupāda: That we can change also. For the time being, it is going on.
Atreya Ṛṣi: I think what Śrīla Prabhupāda has said to us is that if we

have very close cooperation, the spirit of committee consultation always
exists...
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Like if Bhagavān dāsa is in U.S., then Satsvarūpa Mahārāja

and Rūpānuga Prabhu will consult with him, like they always consult
with each other.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Atreya Ṛṣi: They should always... And this spirit should go on amongst
the twelve. Or if I'm in Tehran, and if there is a financial matter...
Prabhupāda: Yes. Don't bring politics. Then it will be ruined.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Yes. The spirit should be that you write me and ask me, and
I will give you all the service that I can. This should come in us.
Jayatīrtha: For example, in the United States...
Atreya Ṛṣi: Not so much, necessarily, committees and formal...
Prabhupāda: So if a committee is necessary, it should be decided, first

stage, decided by the GBC, and I'll give final sanction.
1098
Jayatīrtha: For example, one committee that I would propose is in the
United States, since we share so many similar problems and so many
problems overlap...
Prabhupāda: So you... No, the GBC is already there. But that is...
Committee is there, the whole committee. But for any special purpose, if
committee is required...
Jayatīrtha: Another example of a kind of committee would be some

projects. Say...
Prabhupāda: Project will be decided by the GBC.
Jayatīrtha: Say, the Gurukula, for example...
Prabhupāda: Now I have elected this committee in Europe because the

German trouble is going on. When the German trouble is over, there is
no need of committee. It is only for this particular purpose because there
we have to defend court, we have to see... So two, three heads, not one
head. One head may be puzzled. Committee means for special purposes.
Otherwise, the standing committee, GBC, is already there.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Śrīla Prabhupāda?
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Just as a question...
Prabhupāda: Just like I appointed the committee to investigate...
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Bali Mardana.
Prabhupāda: Yes. So that committee is not standing. Yet similarly, a

committee may be formed for some special circumstances, but
otherwise the GBC committee is sufficient.
1099
Jayatīrtha: The main point about that is that the GBC, we all meet
together once a year...
Prabhupāda: Yes. And form all, what is to be discussed, what you are
going to do, future. Just like you can discuss the German affairs, and
find out how to defend ourselves. Of course, it is in the hands of the
lawyer. Still, we can suggest...
Jayatīrtha: Take, for another example, there's the ISKCON Food Relief
Program. Now, last year we discussed this, but no one was given any
specific responsibility for it, and nothing really has been... Some money
has been collected, but nothing major has been done. My idea would be
that if there were a committee, say, of two, three men formed who
would conjointly discuss and work on these projects, such as this
ISKCON Food Relief, then more would get done.
Haṁsadūta: No, I think it's entirely an individual...
Prabhupāda: I think this Oath of Allegiance should be signed by the

presidents also.
Jayatīrtha: That's nice.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Also.
Prabhupāda: Hm?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Also.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Not only the GBC, but the president.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Prabhupāda?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I just want to ask a question. We're in a... This meeting
1100
right now is concerning ISKCON and the GBC, but are we going to
have some kind of meeting regarding the BBT? Because that's a very
pressing matter also. Is that going to come in in these discussions, or are
we going to have a separate meeting?
Prabhupāda: The BBT I am conducting personally.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: But you mentioned in Miami... This is the reason I'm
bringing it up. In Miami we mentioned that we would be discussing at
Māyāpur. Something, you know, should be done so that...
Prabhupāda: What is that something? The first something is that

everyone is complaining that they are not getting books. You just, first
of all, do it, how to stop these complaints.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: We got to get the books [indistinct]
Jayatīrtha: In India?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Jayatīrtha: This is the problem.
Prabhupāda: The India is membership, and the members, if they are

dissatisfied, then? This is not good. So find out the way how this
complaint can be solved.
Haṁsadūta: So does it mean that the BBT should take charge of the Life
Membership program or to see that they're supplied the books?
Prabhupāda: No. Life Membership... Suppose you make one Life, he

has to be supplied books.
Haṁsadūta: Yes.
Prabhupāda: So fifty percent goes to the...
1101
Haṁsadūta: Book Fund.
Prabhupāda: That is stated in the BBT. That is the main purpose, that
fifty percent must go...
Haṁsadūta: For printing. Fifty percent for printing, fifty percent for
building.
Prabhupāda: That's all right. This is the main purpose.
Brahmānanda: But the difficulty is that in India there's no other source

of income besides the Life Membership. How they will maintain?
Prabhupāda: What is the...? That you discuss.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, a meeting. [?]
Prabhupāda: That you discuss, how these sources, how their

maintenance should be... But BBT is already declared. It is meant for
two purposes. Now you find out how the sources. That is business of
GBC.
Jayatīrtha: That we can discuss afterwards?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Śrīla Prabhupāda...
Prabhupāda: The BBT, that, it should be: how the complaints should be
stopped, and if they have no other income, then how things should be
managed. That is... GBC should discuss.
Atreya Ṛṣi: In other words, Śrīla Prabhupāda, BBT is not outside

ISKCON. BBT is part of ISKCON, and GBC is in charge of all
ISKCON. But in this case, BBT, you have your personal attention, so
since you are the supreme authority in ISKCON, you will...
1102
Prabhupāda: Now, one thing is that sometimes before, Jayatīrtha
suggested that if the ISKCON goes to liquidation, then the BBT also
will be affected.
Atreya Ṛṣi: This is only a legal matter.
Prabhupāda: Legal matter. So I want to protect BBT.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Legally, you will want. But, in fact, GBC is also
concerned...
Prabhupāda: That you are concerned. You do this—now how to stop

these complaints.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Yes.
Prabhupāda: Now they want to maintain from the GBC income. How
this can be avoided, you consider.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Yes. It is not something we forget because it's BBT.
Prabhupāda: Yes. But these are the important problems, that the, here in
India, the members are complaining. Sometimes they are sending
complaining to me. So the first business is how to, how the collection
from the membership is being dispersed, how the money is being
dispersed. Suppose I... He is a member. I take him, 222. Then how the
money is being spent? So you see first of all that...
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: This is a GBC matter.
Prabhupāda: Yes. This is GBC matter.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Prabhupāda?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I would like to ask a question. Just like in the... Now,
1103
this is one point to consider. Now, another point is, which we have put
off until this meeting, especially to be considered in this meeting, is the
moving of the Press. The moving of ISKCON Press. Is that...
Prabhupāda: That you decide amongst the GBC.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Is that a GBC matter or BBT matter?
Prabhupāda: No. It is GBC, er, yeah, GBC.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: The GBC.
Prabhupāda: Yes. I want to see, as the chairman of the BBT, that fifty
percent is spent on printing and fifty percent is for constructing temples.
That's all.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: And who sees to that? The GBC?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: The GBC.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That means, practically speaking, the management... The

BBT is separate from ISKCON for legal purposes, but the management
of it is done by the GBC.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That's nice.
Atreya Ṛṣi: However, at the present, Prabhupāda himself is heading this

management.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He's heading every management.
Atreya Ṛṣi: But in this particular case he's heading it very particularly.
This is something...
1104
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Because it's very sensitive issue. It doesn't mean separate.
Rūpānuga: But now, we discussed this... We discussed this before, Śrīla

Prabhupāda. You said that you didn't... You wanted to make some more
BBT members.
Prabhupāda: If I require, I can make.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: The reason I'm bringing this up is because, heretofore,

the BBT has been managed by one or two trustees, and the point is that
maybe it is best that it be managed by the GBC.
Prabhupāda: So that... First of all manage these things. Then you will, it
will be included in the trustees. First of all show your capacity that you
have managed these things very nicely, these two things. Why there
should be complaint? How you can solve it? And why the temples
should be maintained by collection of the BBT? It is meant for printing
and constructing temples. Why should [we] violate the purpose of the
Trust? So first of all you manage these two things. Then, if you want,
you can come. If the problem remains the same, then what is the use of
increasing heads?
Atreya Ṛṣi: What is obvious is that Prabhupāda's interference has

always come because we have not done our jobs right.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Atreya Ṛṣi: He would very much like to...
Prabhupāda: Yes. That is the real purpose.
Atreya Ṛṣi: He would... As soon as we show that we can...
Haṁsadūta: Work together.
1105
Atreya Ṛṣi: Work together and manage nicely, he wants to.
Prabhupāda: Now, so far the... Just like in Germany. They unnecessarily

take the money while there is creditor, printer. There was no need of
keeping money. Go on paying them. That was my policy. I instructed
Karandhara that whenever there is collection, go to pay. That
arrangement I made with Dai Nippon, that "I shall go on paying. You
don't ask me." So he never asked me. You know that.
Jayatīrtha: Yes.
Prabhupāda: As soon as there is collection, I paid him: "And you go on

printing these books." This should be the policy.
Atreya Ṛṣi: This is very important that we understand. This is not

common in the karmī world, that Śrīla Prabhupāda does not like credit
or playing with money and saving it or something... You have a debt;
you pay it; you don't create debt. Everything is just very honest and very
flowing. This I have to learn myself because this is not the way the
business world is, although I do a lot of business. And we all have to see
that this policy is followed.
Prabhupāda: This complaint from the members is not at all good. If

somebody becomes envious, he can file a suit that "These men have
collected money from me, eh, but not supplied books."
Jayatīrtha: They sign a document we also sign.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Jayatīrtha: We sign one document when they become a member.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Jayatīrtha: And they sign also. It's a contract.
1106
Prabhupāda: So this is the first thing, that the GBC maintains here.
Immediately the collection is there—fifty percent goes to the BBT
account, and fifty percent goes to the printer.
Atreya Ṛṣi: May I recommend, Śrīla Prabhupāda, that one GBC

member, plus GBC India be appointed to look very carefully into this
whole si...
Prabhupāda: Be appointed. Do this. Be appointed.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Yes. We will.
Prabhupāda: Yes, do this.
Atreya Ṛṣi: To investigate this whole...
Prabhupāda: Why...? Just stop this complaint.
Atreya Ṛṣi: This whole membership program.
Prabhupāda: I am giving you the appointment. Do it.
Haṁsadūta: We can consult with him later.
Jayatīrtha: So we'll discuss it and try to find out the details...
Atreya Ṛṣi: Put it in the agenda, this membership plan, immediately.
Jayatīrtha: ...later on
Prabhupāda: These complaints are not at all good. They have become
very serious. Complaint must be stopped. Why they are...? Now print
cheap edition here and give them books. Sell also.
Rūpānuga: They cannot accuse of being cheating.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
1107
Rūpānuga: They cannot accuse us of cheating them.
Prabhupāda: It is not good at all. Why there is complaint?
Jagadīśa: So make the agenda.
Jayatīrtha: I have nine points on the agenda so far.
Jagadīśa: What is it?
Jayatīrtha: The...
Prabhupāda: Just like Śyāmasundara. He was appointed the BBT

member. And what he is doing?
Jayatīrtha: There's been a very high attrition rate on GBC...
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Jayatīrtha: There's been a very high attrition rate on BBT trustees.
Prabhupāda: So this thing should be arranged first of all. Then...
Jayatīrtha: So the... There are a number of points that require

discussion...
Prabhupāda: So discuss...
Jayatīrtha: I don't know, necessarily, that it's your desire to have them
discussed in your presence or, for example...
Prabhupāda: No, I don't want, but if you want, you can...
Jayatīrtha: Well, we always love to have your association, Śrīla

Prabhupāda.
Rūpānuga: What about if you, at least, can approve the agenda?
1108
Jayatīrtha: Yes, that's nice.
Rūpānuga: If you can give us your blessings...
Prabhupāda: That you discuss, some of the agenda.
Jayatīrtha: The agenda that we've created so far is... The first point on
the agenda is how to become Kṛṣṇa conscious.
Prabhupāda: Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Jayatīrtha: Yes. You said that that should be our first point.
Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa conscious movement means... It is very practical.

Because our consciousness is now polluted... Just like water. Water,
originally, crystal clear water. But as soon as it touches the ground, it
becomes dirty, muddy. So our consciousness-originally clear, Kṛṣṇa
consciousness: "Kṛṣṇa is my eternal master. I am eternal servant." This
is real consciousness. Now, since we have come into this material
world, we have made, instead of Kṛṣṇa, "My wife is my master, my
society is my master, my country is my master, my political leader is my
master," so many. So the Kṛṣṇa consciousness means to purify the dirty
things and then... So, to purify this, Caitanya Mahāprabhu has
recommended, ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam [Cc. Antya 20.12], cleaning the
mirror of consciousness, this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. This is only way.
Jayatīrtha: Jaya. So that's the first point.
Prabhupāda: That is the first point.
Jayatīrtha: And the next point ...
Prabhupāda: We should know that our consciousness is now polluted.

The... Exactly like this: Clear water falls down from the sky, and as
soon as come in contact with the ground, it becomes muddy. You can
take the water again and filter, and then again clear. Again crystal clear.
1109
Jayatīrtha: By nature water is clear.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Jayatīrtha: And sometimes it can become polluted.
Prabhupāda: And the whole devotional service means ceto-darpaṇa-

mārjanam [Cc. Antya 20.12]]. That is the recommendation of Caitanya
Mahāprabhu, cleansing the dirty-politically, socially, communally, and
internationally, nationally... In this way, it is all contaminated. So that,
that is called upādhi, unnecessary. Just like water. You bring the colored
water. That is contamination, not crystal. So these are different colors.
So you have to strain the water from different colors. Then that is Kṛṣṇa
consciousness. Consciousness is already there. So instead of thinking
Kṛṣṇa, that "I am Kṛṣṇa's," I am thinking, "I am my family's. I am my,
my cat's, my dog's, my nation's, my community's..." This thinking is
opposite Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And when you simply think that "I am
Kṛṣṇa's," that's all. That is all.
Haṁsadūta: Yeah.
Jayatīrtha: So, so the agenda...
Prabhupāda: Is that all right?
Devotees: Jaya.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Just applicable to myself, it's very easy to think that "Now I
am in a position of responsibility. I may be most advanced." But what
your instruction is that I always think that this position of responsibility
requires that I become pure, so I have to be very, very careful. I am not
most advanced. I have to...
Prabhupāda: That purity process is chanting.
Atreya Ṛṣi: I have to chant very carefully...
1110
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Atreya Ṛṣi: ...and very seriously.
Prabhupāda: Offenseless.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Not that I'm already advanced.
Prabhupāda: Offenseless chanting, that will purify. That is the easiest

process, given by Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Ceto-da...[?] He first of all
recommends cleansing the heart. And as soon as your heart is cleansed,
then you become immediately purified. This is the way. So be always
engaged, either in chanting or reading or preaching. Then it will be
clarified.
Rūpānuga: It is actually a very easy process.
Prabhupāda: Yes. This is the easiest process. There is no secondary

process. Chanting. And it is recommended by Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the
authority, param vijayate śrī-kṛṣṇa-saṅkīrtanam. So many things will
happen.
ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanaṁ bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇaṁ
śreyaḥ-kairava candrikā-vitaraṇaṁ vidyā-vadhū-jīvanam
ānandāmbudhi-vardhanaṁ prati-padaṁ pūrṇāmṛtasvādanaṁ
[sarvātma-snapanaṁ] paraṁ vijāyate śrī-kṛṣṇa-saṅkīrtanam
[Cc. Antya 20.12]
This is His recommendation. We haven't got to invent something. It is

there already. You do it.
Jayatīrtha: So the agenda for the GBC meeting to decide on... First of
all, Jagadīśa has made one proposal for financing Gurukula, if it has to
1111
be discussed.
Prabhupāda: Hm? Financing?
Jayatīrtha: Gurukula is having some serious financial difficulties. So

Jagadīśa has made a proposal, which we'll discuss.
Prabhupāda: So everyone's son is there, all devotees' son. So from every

center some contribution should be given to the Gurukula.
Jayatīrtha: Jaya. That was my proposal. That becomes a kind of tax.
Prabhupāda: Hm?
Jayatīrtha: In a sense, it's like a school tax.
Prabhupāda: But, at the same time, it should be examined how Gurukula

is spending money.
Jayatīrtha: Yes. Jagadīśa has made a complete report.
Prabhupāda: Not unnecessarily spending. That is the duty of the GBC.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Śrīla Prabhupāda, about this tax, about this money to be
taken from each temple. Gurukula is one of the projects. For example,
there may be another project...
Prabhupāda: What is that?
Atreya Ṛṣi: ...that Your Divine Grace and group, when you travel, there
needs to be also... Every temple should contribute to that as well.
Prabhupāda: Well, if every temple cannot contribute, I shall manage

from the BBT fund. That is not a problem.
Atreya Ṛṣi: You want...? I am using that merely as a...
1112
Prabhupāda: And if you can pay, it is all right. If there is deficit, BBT
will pay. You don't bother.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Yes. But in this Gurukula project, Śrīla Prabhupāda, temples
are having difficulty in paying their debts to BBT already. I don't think
they will respond, respond. On one hand, BBT, Ramesvara Prabhu is
recommending that we reduce the cost of books, and on the other hand,
it's being recommended that the tax for Gurukula be collected.
Prabhupāda: No, no, cost of book... Cost of books?
Atreya Ṛṣi: Not cost. Price of books.
Jayatīrtha: Yes, price of...
Prabhupāda: Cost of selling price.
Jayatīrtha: That we discussed with you in Dallas, Ramesvara and I.
Prabhupāda: No, no. There is no need. There is no need.
Atreya Ṛṣi: So what I was...
Prabhupāda: It is not a fact that by reducing the price you'll sell more.
Jayatīrtha: No, no. Not reducing the price to the public. Reducing the
cost to the temple, so the temple can make more profit.
Prabhupāda: That you can do.
Jayatīrtha: That we discussed with you in Dallas.
Atreya Ṛṣi: What I am recommending is that, instead of reducing the

charge to the temple and then collecting a separate tax, do not reduce the
charge to the temple. Whatever reduction you were going to give, give
that reduction to Gurukula.
1113
Jayatīrtha: Then that means that BBT is paying.
Atreya Ṛṣi: No, BBT is not paying. You're going to give them a
reduction. Don't give it to them...
Madhudviṣa: That means giving them unlimited money.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Eh?
Madhudviṣa: That means giving them unlimited money.
Atreya Ṛṣi: No. Well, for example, let's say I...
Madhudviṣa: If I distribute more books, then Gurukula gets more

money. Then... They don't need all that money.
Atreya Ṛṣi: No.
Prabhupāda: No, no. This... This is... Contribution is better for you.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Separate contribution.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Rūpānuga: Does that, does that... What about those temples that don't
have any children there in Gurukula. Because it seems that the problem
is not just that... There are people besides devotees who are not paying...
Prabhupāda: No, they can give.[?]
Jagadīśa: That's part of the proposal. Why not discuss in relationship to

the proposal.
Jayatīrtha: Right. We have the whole proposal. Everyone has a copy, I

think. So we can discuss that. The main point, I'm just saying now, is to
read through the agenda and see if Prabhupāda approves that we're
talking about these things, and then..., because these things are so
1114
detailed, and we have some proposals in writing. We can discuss them
more. Anyway, so one proposal is Gurukula finance. Another proposal
is Brahmānanda's made some proposals about Africa, specifically
manpower to be sent to Africa. Another proposal... another thing is to
discuss the BBT, BBT loans, moving of the Press, several points about
BBT, lowering of the prices, these things...
Prabhupāda: So what is the advantage of moving the Press?
Jayatīrtha: That Ramesvara should be here to say.
Prabhupāda: Call [?] Ramesvara. If you be..., all GBC agrees, then you
do that.
Jayatīrtha: All right. So if we have a separate meeting, and Ramesvara

presents his proposals nicely, and everyone agrees, then we can...
Prabhupāda: You consider, and then you decide.
Jayatīrtha: So that's one thing to discuss. Another thing to discuss is

Spiritual Sky.
Madhudviṣa: Don't you think that there should be some representatives

from the Press at that meeting too?
Jayatīrtha: Yes, they'll be there.
Prabhupāda: Now, the Spiritual Sky... I have heard that you are paying
two thousand rupees, er, two thousand dollars, per month to the
accountant, and one thousand dollars to Karandhara.
Jayatīrtha: Yes, about that.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Jayatīrtha: Seventeen hundred dollars a month to the accountant, full-
1115
time accountant. That is the average price in America for a first-class
accountant. Otherwise, we have to hire, get Atreya Ṛṣi to come and do
it.
Prabhupāda: And Karandhara is taking one thousand dollars?
Jayatīrtha: Well, here's the problem, that because it is a business, people

must, that work there, have to get regular salary and pay taxes.
Otherwise we can get in a lot of trouble. We can get in a lot of trouble.
Maybe Bhagavān may know.
Bhagavān: Well, I have the same thing in France. Spiritual Sky is a legal
business. That means you have to legally employ people. But I employ
the temple people and just take their salary.
Jayatīrtha: Yes. That's all right.
Bhagavān: Do you take Karandhara's salary?
Jayatīrtha: No, that's a different thing. Anyway, let me finish the point.
The point is that legal salary has to be paid, and then taxes have to paid
from that. So for example, Karandhara's salary is not really a good
example because he doesn't give fifty percent. But one thousand dollars
is the salary.
Bhagavān: Minimum? Minimum salary?
Prabhupāda: No.
Jayatīrtha: That eight hundred, two hundred goes for taxes...
Prabhupāda: No our, our... That was the... Formerly, who was

managing?
Jayatīrtha: Formerly, I was managing.
1116
Prabhupāda: So you were also taking one thousand?
Jayatīrtha: I was... But that was... But I was... I wasn't taking anything.
But that was...
Prabhupāda: Then? How...? Why he is taking?
Jayatīrtha: Because we were working illegally.
Haṁsadūta: The thing is the whole situation has deteriorated into a

karmī business, and no one's making any profit on it.
Jayatīrtha: Well, now, let's...
Haṁsadūta: It's just a headache.
Jayatīrtha: That is a... That is an unschooled statement, an uneducated

statement. It's not a...
Haṁsadūta: No, that's not a fact. Where is the advantage?
Jayatīrtha: Anyway, let me finish... That's why I don't want to discuss

this in front of Prabhupāda, because of argument. Anyway, the next
point is that, as far as Karandhara's salary is concerned...
Prabhupāda: No, the Spiritual Sky was contemplated that our gṛhastha
bhaktas may be employed...
Haṁsadūta: Yeah, but they're not employed anymore.
Jayatīrtha: That's not true.
Prabhupāda: And the bare necessities should be paid.
Jayatīrtha: Right. Well, generally we have about seventeen, eighteen

gṛhasthas employed in Los Angeles, and they get much smaller salary,
and they, for the most part, they're giving everything over subsistence to
1117
the temple as donation. They take out minimum subsistence...
Prabhupāda: But Karandhara is not giving anything.
Jayatīrtha: Well, his point is... As you know, he made that unauthorized
loan from BBT when he left, for five thousand dollars. And he has to
pay it back at three hundred dollars per month. So after he makes...
Prabhupāda: Unauthorized loan?
Jayatīrtha: When he left last year, he took loan for five thousand dollars,
and he is repaying at three hundred dollars per month. So after taxes, he
gets eight hundred dollars. Three hundred dollars goes to BBT. That's
five hundred. Now, with the balance, he supports his wife and children,
and his wife is giving donations for Deities and so on. So he is not
actually...
Prabhupāda: No, that you discuss whether he is... Otherwise I can give
you a very first-class man, but he won't charge anything.
Jayatīrtha: Who is that?
Prabhupāda: That I'll not disclose. [laughter] You give him simply, his
wife and him, a shelter. He's Indian, I can say.
Jayatīrtha: Oh.
Prabhupāda: And he is qualified man. He can do. Yes.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Śrīla Prabhupāda...
Jayatīrtha: But he's not a devotee.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Karandhara's management is—I mean I'm just looking at it

from another view—is worth more than two thousand dollars. So if he is
getting only one...
1118
Prabhupāda: But your management is not worth five thousand dollars?
Atreya Ṛṣi: Mine is worth nothing.
Prabhupāda: Then why you are giving free service? Anyone, all of my
disciples, they are qualified. Their service is worth more than any
thousands of... Yes. So why you are maintaining Karandhara? All of
them, they are giving free service. But they are all worthy to take salary,
two thousand, three thousand, five thousand...
Atreya Ṛṣi: Karandhara is only, what he's getting is only enough for his
maintenance.
Prabhupāda: That's all right.
Atreya Ṛṣi: We are being maintained.
Prabhupāda: No, no. Maintenance... Here, everyone can earn money and
maintain him, but here this expense should be sacrifice. The essential is
service.
Haṁsadūta: It's his service...
Prabhupāda: Service, yes.
Haṁsadūta: It was started for that reason.
Prabhupāda: If we take payment, that is not service. That is business.

That is business.
Jayatīrtha: It is, no doubt, a fact that Karandhara is not giving his full, is
giving his full life as service. That is a fact. It may be taken...
Prabhupāda: Yes. Our organization is to give service.
Haṁsadūta: And then another point in this connection is that when I was
in Los Angeles last time, all the people that worked for Spiritual Sky,
1119
they were, they were starting to fall away because of Karandhara's
karmic attitude...
Jayatīrtha: That's...
Prabhupāda: So this point you discuss.
Jayatīrtha: [to Haṁsadūta:] That problem we'll discuss, and I'll discuss it
with you.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Śrīla Prabhupāda, there are also two reports we don't have
here, and we should read those before... One is Karandhara's report, and
one is Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Prabhu's report, who have investigated this.
Jagadīśa: He's told us to make his report.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Hm? Well, yes, that we have not heard yet. So we should
hear and read the...
Prabhupāda: All have contact. [?]
Atreya Ṛṣi: ...and then discuss this point.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That is your GBC.
Jayatīrtha: All right. So that we'll discuss. The other thing we'll discuss
is ISKCON Food Relief. And we'll also discuss the complaints about
books in India.
Prabhupāda: Yes, that is the main...
Jayatīrtha: So these things we can discuss.
Prabhupāda: ...how these complaints can be stopped.
Atreya Ṛṣi: The pledge. Should I read the pledge? I have written it.
1120
Haṁsadūta: What about the situation in Germany?
Jayatīrtha: All right, situation in Germany we'll also discuss.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Put the pledge on the agenda, Prabhu.
Jayatīrtha: You want to read that pledge?
Atreya Ṛṣi: You want me to read it, Prabhu?
Prabhupāda: Yes, yes, yes.
Jayatīrtha: I think so.
Prabhupāda: Everyone may hear.
Atreya Ṛṣi: I... The same pledge, that the Indian gentleman has written,
where it says, "Prabhupāda, I, Mr. So and So, karmī name, initiated
name in parenthesis, date of birth, at present residing at, of certain
nationality, do hereby solemnly affirm, declare and state as under as
follows: I state I have been elected or nominated a member of
Governing Body Commission, under the recommendation of my Guru
Mahārāja, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
founder and ācārya of Kṛṣṇa Consciousness Movement..."
Rūpānuga: Supreme Authority.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Shall I...
Satsvarūpa: Yes, Prabhupāda wanted it...
Rūpānuga: Ācārya and supreme authority.
Atreya Ṛṣi: It's down... There as well?
Jayatīrtha: There as well.
1121
Rūpānuga: Everywhere. Everywhere.
Atreya Ṛṣi: "Ācārya and..., of Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement under the

banner of International Society for Kṛṣṇa Consciousness. I state that I
have imposed all my faith, integrity and honesty in my aforesaid Guru
Mahārāja with the result he is the sole responsible person and supreme
authority of my present position and status which I have gained and I
am holding in the organization of the International Society for Kṛṣṇa
Consciousness. I, the said Mr. So and So, both names, do hereby swear
in the name of Kṛṣṇa that I will bear true faith and alliance to the
constitution, by-laws, rules, regulations and directions which," and this
has been added, "which have been given, including four regulative
principles..."
Madhudviṣa: They should be stated too.
Prabhupāda: Hm?
Madhudviṣa: The four regulative principles should be stated.
Prabhupāda: No, that may not be. We know, everyone.
Madhudviṣa: We know it, but does someone else know it?
Prabhupāda: Is it necessary to mention?
Rūpānuga: It's a legal document also.
Bhagavān: Yeah, it should be mentioned.
Prabhupāda: Mentioned? Mention.
Rūpānuga: If it was in parentheses, it would be better for a legal

document.
Jayatīrtha: That's not a legal document.
1122
Rūpānuga: It's a legal document. This is a legal document.
Atreya Ṛṣi: "And chanting sixteen rounds very seriously."
Madhudviṣa: Daily.
Atreya Ṛṣi: "Daily."
Madhudviṣa: At least.
Brahmānanda: And free from the offenses.
Haṁsadūta: We have to take some...
Jayatīrtha: Who's chanting free from the offenses?
Prabhupāda: No, no, don't...
Atreya Ṛṣi: "Very seriously" is all I can say.
Prabhupāda: Yes, yes, do that.
Atreya Ṛṣi: I cannot say "free of offenses." Because...
Prabhupāda: "Seriously" means without offense.
Atreya Ṛṣi: ...I am degraded. "Very seriously, or may be given to me

from time to time directly, these directions, by my aforesaid Guru
Mahārāja, or through his books, or..." In other words, direction given,
instruction given, directly by him or through his...
Prabhupāda: Better directly.
Atreya Ṛṣi: No "His books"?
Prabhupāda: No.
1123
Atreya Ṛṣi: Not necessary.
Prabhupāda: Because I may give direction according to the time.
Atreya Ṛṣi: "Or" means both.
Prabhupāda: Hm?
Atreya Ṛṣi: "Or" can mean... All right. "Or through his
commissioners..."[?]
Prabhupāda: Direct, direct instruction is important. Just like Kṛṣṇa. In

the books He has given many instructions, but then He says, sarva-
dharmān parityaja. If one says that "You gave me instruction before like
this. How can I give up this?" so that is not important. The direct
instruction is important.
Atreya Ṛṣi: "To me from time to time directly by my aforesaid Guru

Mahārāja, or through his commissioner..."
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Atreya Ṛṣi: "Or through his authorized person or persons, and I shall
obey faithfully all such instructions and directions which shall be, which
shall be binding on me, and that I will uphold the sovereignty and
integrity of my Guru Mahārāja, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta
Swami Prabhupāda, and the managing body commission and, or, any
other body appointed by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Prabhupāda working under the said International Society for Kṛṣṇa
Consciousness. And I shall faithfully discharge the duty upon which I
am about to enter or I have already appointed to that effect." Now this is
an addition. "I further pledge that His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta
Swami is the only source of authority, represented by his instructions
and books, and I shall follow his instructions, I shall follow the
instructions of the books..."
1124
Madhudviṣa: Only these books.
Atreya Ṛṣi: "Only these books" Rather than "I will not follow any other
book."
Prabhupāda: No, why you'll put? [laughs] This is...?
Atreya Ṛṣi: It's not...?
Prabhupāda: This is required?
Rūpānuga: You mean the part about the books, Śrīla Prabhupāda?
Prabhupāda: Hm?
Rūpānuga: You mean the part about the books?
Haṁsadūta: It's already said that you're his direct instructions.
Atreya Ṛṣi: This is to protect, like, if somebody chanting sixteen

rounds...
Haṁsadūta: It's redundant.
Madhudviṣa: Well, I thought if someone was chanting sixteen rounds

and following the principles and reading someone else's books, like
Siddha-svarūpa's people...
Haṁsadūta: Yeah, but we've just already read one portion where it says
that we will follow direct instructions of Prabhupāda.
Prabhupāda: That's it.
Haṁsadūta: So again he's repeating it.
Prabhupāda: Instruction, follow that.
1125
Atreya Ṛṣi: So then it's not necessary about this "only" sort part of...[?]
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Madhudviṣa: What if there is no direct instruction?
Prabhupāda: Yes. I don't think that part is anymore important.
Atreya Ṛṣi: "I further state that I am holding monies and movable and
immovable..."
Prabhupāda: No, why he's...? He's not holding money, GBC.
Atreya Ṛṣi: So this I'll take out.
Prabhupāda: No, GBC, practically does not hold any money.
Atreya Ṛṣi: No.
Prabhupāda: Then why you...?
Haṁsadūta: You can say, "Any monies or properties under my

direction..."
Jayatīrtha: That's what it should say.
Prabhupāda: Eh? What is that?
Haṁsadūta: Under, under his direction. Any monies or properties under

his direction.
Atreya Ṛṣi: That would be a separate oath. That would be a separate

thing, Prabhupāda.
Haṁsadūta: Maybe that should just be left out because if we're going to
have some legal document like an umbrella, then that will take care of
all those things.
1126
Atreya Ṛṣi: Well, that should be in the pledge, in the agenda.
Prabhupāda: No, no, GBC... Does GBC members deal with money?
Haṁsadūta: No, he does not personally. He doesn't have anything

personal.
Prabhupāda: No, no. I mean...
Brahmānanda: But he puts his signature.
Atreya Ṛṣi: No, no. As GBC, we do not deal with money. In other
words, if you're dealing with money, it's the temple president.
Prabhupāda: The GB...
Atreya Ṛṣi: Not as...
Prabhupāda: The GBC should see that it is being done properly. Why he
should...?
Haṁsadūta: But sometimes it...
Prabhupāda: ...involve himself in the...
Rūpānuga: Well, for example, in New York...
Prabhupāda: ...internal management?
Rūpānuga: Well, in New York, for example, I just recently signed with
Gopī-jana-vallabha Prabhu the papers on the farm. I signed conjointly
with him on the farm because the officers had to sign, and we just
recently had a thing in New York, ISKCON, Los Angeles, New York.
Prabhupāda: No, no, "sign" another thing. That I have signed, many.
Rūpānuga: So that's all right.
1127
Prabhupāda: The one thing is that GBC is wandering. If the checks are
to be signed, then where is the GBC?
Rūpānuga: There's no account, no GBC account.
Prabhupāda: The... The money matters should be dealt with the

president, secretary and the treasurer, three men. Out of three, two
should sign. And GBC's business is to see that things are going on,
money matters. That's all. GBC is not supposed to deal directly. He has
to inspect. That's all.
Atreya Ṛṣi: So I can cross this...
Prabhupāda: Just like... But the thing is, if the GBC and the president is
the same man, that is not good. That is not good. The president should
be separate. So the president, treasurer and secretary, they will deal
directly, and GBC should inspect book, account, that it is done very
nicely. That's all. You can question, "Why you have done this?" That's
nice. Otherwise, in the..., it will be difficult to manage.
Rūpānuga: Yes. We don't want to become entangled in that money.
Prabhupāda: Ah!
Rūpānuga: We don't want to become entangled in that money.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Madhudviṣa: What controls? What controls in the matter of money

then?
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Madhudviṣa: Who has control of the money?
Prabhupāda: Control means if there is vigilant, I mean to say,
1128
examination, inspection, then there is control of money.
Madhudviṣa: Well, let's say someone gives the temple president some
money, and he puts in an account with his name and the treasurer's
name, and they both conspire and take the money. Then there's no...
Prabhupāda: Yes. That you can do also.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Anyway...
Madhudviṣa: Yes, but...
Prabhupāda: GBC can do also.
Madhudviṣa: But isn't the GBC supposed to be more trusted than the
temple president?
Prabhupāda: Then everyone can do, who has got the...
Bhagavān: The BBT trustees did it.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Bhagavān: The BBT trustees also did it. They took unsanctioned loan
from the BBT.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Prabhupāda, what about in a case like myself. I'm a

sannyāsī, and I have a traveling saṅkīrtana party. So can I handle that
money?
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I'm a sannyāsī with a travelling preaching party. So I

have no... Because I am personally seeing to the money, tbere's no debt
on that party. Is that all right?
1129
Prabhupāda: That you decide amongst the GBC. [laughter] Best thing is
that don't keep money.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No, I have no money in my name.
Prabhupāda: Anyway, you don't... You spend the necessary expenditure,

and balance money, you give whatever you like.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah, yeah. We're doing... I meant to say...
Atreya Ṛṣi: Śrīla Prabhupāda is...
Prabhupāda: Sannyāsī is collecting and spending.
Atreya Ṛṣi: There you have a function of, more or less of a president, as
well as the GBC, in that party.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Atreya Ṛṣi: Which is... In that case, it has to have GBC approval.
Prabhupāda: So...
Jayatīrtha: So we can adjourn for lunch and...
Prabhupāda: Yes, you can... Till next we meet again.
Jayatīrtha: So the rest of these things we can discuss in...
Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes, yes.
Jayatīrtha: ...separate meeting.
Prabhupāda: Yes. You can...
Rūpānuga: Jaya. All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda.
1130
Everyone offers obeisances and the meeting is adjourned. Prabhupada
has cleared up misunderstandings, offered advice, and answered all
questions. It is now abundantly clear that the desire of the Founder-
Acharya is of paramount importance concerning how his ISKCON
society should be managed. The GBC men all sign the Oath of
Allegiance to strictly follow and obey the guidelines that Srila
Prabhupada has set forth at this meeting.

During his second meeting with the GBC body, Prabhupada now wants
to clear up misconceptions about the sannyāsa ashram. He has explained
many times that every Vaishnava is as good as a sannyāsī because they
sacrifice everything for Krishna’s service. Sannyāsa doesn’t just mean
having no wife and children. It means you possess nothing except
Krishna. Formal sannyāsa initiation is simply for preaching purposes.
“We are giving up this world. We are preparing ourselves for entering
into the family of Krishna. So why should we be very much anxious to
maintain this family?
“So actually, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu therefore says, ‘I’m not a sannyāsī.

I’m not a sannyāsī! I’m not a gṛhastha. I’m not a brahmacārī.’ This
varṇāśrama-dharma is unnecessary for spirituality. Therefore, Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu, when He was speaking with Ramananda Raya – you’ll
find in the Teachings of Lord Chaitanya – as soon as he suggested
varṇāśrama-dharma, Ramaṇanda Raya, immediately Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu said: ‘It is not very important. If you know better than this,
you go on.’
“He did not give any, much stress on this varṇāśrama-dharma. But for
regulated life, that is required. And ultimately, it is not required. So it is
not recommended for ordinary persons. But this is also unnecessary.
“Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s teaching is so sublime, that such things,
1131
which are the beginning of human life, that is also unnecessary. Iha
bahya age kaha ara… bahya means ‘this is superfluous.’ You speak
something higher than this.
“So that is not very easy thing. First of all, we have to live very
regulated life. Sannyāsa life is that regulated life. And then we can enter
into the real life. That is ideal. So anything more?”
The next point on the agenda is about opening new centers. Srila
Prabhupada says, “Shut them. Moving temples.” His wants to place
emphasis on moving temples – like the Radha-Damodara bus program –
over opening permanent centers.
“Moving temple means through bus, going from one place to another.
That is better. From one temple, they go from village to village, town to
town. That will be nice. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu personally did not
establish any temple. He was moving. Is it not? So that’s all right.
“We should be very much cautious to establish a new center. And if one
establishes, he cannot close it. This should be the principle. Don’t
whimsically open a temple and close next day. Don’t do that. If once
established, it must be maintained, at any cost.”
Mayapur, April, 1975

The GBC meetings drag on, but every afternoon at 4:30pm, Vishnujana
Swami gives Nectar of Devotion class in the temple.
After sandhyāārati, there is entertainment; dramas, and dances by

devotees from various places. Prabhupada saw the New Dwaraka dance
troupe perform in Los Angeles and requested them to perform in
Mayapur. He asked them to collect as much as they could for the trip
and whatever the shortfall, he said he would personally supply the
balance from his book fund.
1132
Regarding the dance troupe, I request you to prepare 7 different dances
(a new one each day) from the Chaitanya Charitamrita for displaying
and performing during the Mayapur festival. Also, I request you to
prepare 7 different dances from the KRSNA Book for performing
during the Vrindavan festival. When you come to India, I shall also give
you some personal direction concerning these dance performances.
There are so many nice stories that can be performed. We can have a
party of about 15 persons who can go all over and perform these dances.
It will be very attractive, if nicely done, and people will be inclined to
buy books and even buy tickets to see such a performance. In this way
all the expenses of going from one place to another will be covered. So,
organize this program nicely and it will be a great success. [Letter to
Gurudas and Prajapati – February 17, 1975]
The Bhakti Rasa Dance Ensemble is mainly Satarupa, Prajapati,

Rasajna, Lohitaksa, and Mahavegavati. Prabhupada had seen the
dancers in Los Angeles and wanted the troupe to perform in Mayapur.
But after only two performances there’s a complaint from the sannyāsīs
about women performing in the temple, even though Satarupa, who
plays Krishna, is completely covered from head to toe. So the rest of the
performances are stopped. It’s a difficult experience for some members
who don’t know what to make of it. They wonder why Prabhupada
doesn’t inform the sannyāsīs that he requested the performances and
helped pay the airfare. Most accept the decision but one member has
difficulty accepting it and ends up leaving.
Satarupa dd: We performed in the temple and the sannyāsīs freaked.

They went to Prabhupada and complained that they didn’t want to see
women dancing. Prabhupada had spent his money to bring us to India
and now he had to tell Prajapati that we weren’t going to do any more
dancing. We had worked so hard to get it all together, but when the
sannyāsīs complained he stopped it. We had already scheduled a little
fundraiser for that night, so he said we could do it in another room
which wasn’t even finished.
1133
We did the program for a few important people who were already on
their way. And Vishnujana Swami, just to show that he was not one of
the people who complained, came and played the drum for us that night.
It was like his statement to show that he was not in that group because
he was definitely a big cultural and art supporter in ISKCON. The other
sannyāsīs were upset with him that he was making a statement.
This incident causes a rift in the sannyāsī camp which is further

exacerbated when Svarupa Damodara brings some Manipuri dancers to
perform rāsa-līlā dances. One evening the Manipuri dancers perform a
rāsa-līlā dance in the temple before Srila Prabhupada and all the
devotees. They are beautifully decorated young ladies dancing and
depicting the various moods of the gopis. Prabhupada is surrounded by
sannyāsīs and brahmacārīs in the audience, so after the performance he
gives a short talk.
The first point is that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was very strict with his
renunciate followers that they should never associate with the opposite
sex, nor should they watch women dancing. Prabhupada makes this
point for the benefit of the sannyāsīs.
His second point is, “This kind of dancing is very welcome all over the
world if we do not misunderstand Krishna. That should be the
precaution. Otherwise it is very good. And our purpose is to introduce
these Krishna pastimes all over the world so that they may take lesson
that they are seeking after happiness; the happiness is with Krishna, not
in the material world. Then you’ll be successful. Thank you very much.”
This year’s festival is more organized than last year because the first
building has been completed. The festival is always a hectic time for
local devotees who are busy all day doing service. But Vishnujana
Swami meets again with Madhusevita and Nitai Chand and embraces
them tightly. He tells them about Radha-Damodara’s preaching in
America and they appreciate how sweetly he deals with them.
Mayapur has a small Gurukula with mostly Bengali children. They are
1134
learning Gitar Gana, Prabhupada’s Bengali poetry translation of
Bhagavad-gita. One day the teachers bring several boys to recite Gitar
Gana for Prabhupada. Hearing the boys sing the Bengali verses,
Prabhupada’s face lights up with a beautiful smile. He looks very
pleased as he gives each boy a coconut laddu after they finish.
Unfortunately, every night there is cinema music coming from

Navadvipa and Svarupa Ganj blasting on huge loudspeakers that
deprives devotees of sleep.
When Jayapataka and Bhavananda bring this complaint to Srila

Prabhupada, he says, “You should blast them back.” So they mount
massive speakers on each corner of the lotus building and play
Prabhupada’s kirtans full blast. The rationale is that it’s better to get
blasted by Prabhupada’s music, then by cinema music.
For a while there’s a sound war going on until the other side begins to
respect the devotees’ peace and quiet and the loud music from both
sides diminishes.
On a morning walk, Prabhupada talks about World War III. Everyone

gets close to him with pointed questions for more information. He
explains that the war will start between Pakistan and India, but the real
war will be between Russia and America. “Is there something we should
do to prepare ourselves for this disaster?” Hamsaduta asks.
“You should simply prepare for chanting Hare Krishna.”
“That’s all?”
“That’s all,” is Prabhupada’s firm response. He wants to emphasize

preaching. Devotees should be prepared to preach fearlessly, not that
there should be fear due to war. After the war, he says, preaching will be
very good.
Tamal Krishna is on the lookout for new recruits to join the party. Last
1135
year when Vishnujana came to India, Tamal proposed that he forget his
preaching in America and stay in India. Tamal couldn’t understand why
Vishnujana considered this suggestion absurd because he didn’t know
that Radha-Damodara had captured his heart. For the offense of trying
to steal Their servant, Radha-Damodara have now captured Tamal
Krishna’s heart also. The two sannyāsīs are now bound servants of Sri-
Sri Radha-Damodara, and not a day passes in Sri Mayapur without some
service performed on Their behalf.
TKG: They needed sārīs from which Their new outfits for the year
would be sewn. Viṣhṇujana dragged me to Calcutta to help select the
material. Down narrow lanes through teeming bazaars we shopped for
Varanasi silk and brocaded sārīs. Once before, as a gṛhastha, I had made
such a trek and stood by while for hours my wife tried on sārīs, deciding
which she wanted most. Before the ordeal had ended I had resolved to
never again undergo such a terrible experience. And yet here I was
being shown sārīs – yellows, greens, blues, and reds, embroidered and
brocaded. And yet I actually enjoyed it, because it was not to cover
someone’s material body, but rather to adorn the Supreme Lord’s
transcendental form.
Shopping for Radha-Damodara was perfect samādhi meditation, even

though we were in the heart of Calcutta’s busiest marketplaces.
The swamis venture across the Ganga to Navadvipa, where Lord

Chaitanya enacted transcendental pastimes. Their goal is to purchase
devotional paraphernalia: tulasī beads, harināma chaddars, mṛdaṅgas,
kartāls, ārati paraphernalia, dhotīs and vests. Followed by a group of
assistants they limp from place to place hauling heavy burlap sacks
filled with everything needed for fifty brahmacārīs, three buses, and
three more to come. They also order five sets of Gaura-Nitai Deities,
one set for each new bus.
Whenever time is available, Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna run to the

Ganga for relief from the heat of the day. As they swim in her cooling
1136
waters, their thoughts drift back to Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara. How nice
it would be to bring Them to India!
As much as the buses need to be equipped, in the same way good

leaders are required. Tamal Krishna and Vishnujana carefully study the
brahmacārīs attending the festival. They are looking for experienced
book distributors and proven preachers. Having visited many temples
over the past year they are familiar with many devotees, but the best
men are hard to conscript. Most brahmacārīs they speak to have not held
positions of responsibility.
Tripurari is also canvassing for good men. He’s about to accept

sannyāsa from Srila Prabhupada along with Gaura Govinda, a senior
devotee from Orissa. Vishnujana and Goswami realize that Tripurari’s
entire party is comprised of select men of leadership caliber. They
corner him to pressure him to give some of his men to Radha-
Damodara. Tripurari is not one to be pushed into anything he doesn’t
want to do. His experience distributing books in airports, and training
others in the technique, has made him one of the best transcendental
talkers in ISKCON. But, he’s about to accept sannyāsa and he wants to
have good relations with the senior sannyāsīs. “All right.
You can have Keshava Bharati. But that’s all.”
“Keshava Bharati?” Viṣhnujana is incredulous. “But he’s a gṛhastha!”

Vishnujana has always traveled with brahmacārīs so this doesn’t seem
practical.
“He may be small in stature, but he’s a ferocious book distributor. And a
lovable devotee, too.” Tamal Krishna admires his dedicated preaching
spirit.
“He’s too sickly,” Vishnujana concludes. “I know he can sometimes

distribute twice as many books as his peers, but his overexertion often
results in physical exhaustion. And that makes his service irregular.”
1137
“He’s an expert preacher with a talent for organization. He even
majored in business administration in college. Although he might not be
strong enough to stand in an airport six days a week, we need someone
to coordinate Radha-Damodara’s expansion. “I asked Dhristadyumna to
help with the administration, because I can’t personally look after every
affair. But if Dhristadyumna’s attention continues to be absorbed in
administration, we’ll lose one of our most able preachers! I think
Keshava Bharati is an ideal choice as overall coordinator of the entire
administration of our party.”
Hearing the sannyāsīs’ transcendental discussion, Tripurari gives his

final word. “Anyway, take him or leave him. He’s all I’m offering.”
Tamal Krishna is satisfied and outlines his vision to Vishnujana. “If we

establish a head office located near one of the temples, then he could be
stationed there. And if required, his wife and child could be there as
well. By speaking to the parties on the phone, he could preach to all the
sankirtan men and keep them enthused. He can also record their
expenses, collections, and send payments for the books and vehicles.”
Keshava Bharati: Tripurari could see I was on my way out doing full
time book distribution. He didn’t have a developed administration, so he
just thought, Well, they can have KB.
Vishnujana is still not 100% convinced. “Don’t you want to give him a
little test first? Just to see if he’s able to perform?”
“Good idea,” Tamal Krishna agrees. To test Keshava Bharati’s

administrative ability, Tamal gives him the task of overseeing the
transport of all Radha-Damodara’s India purchases back to America.
His first duty is to transport the goods already purchased to Vrindavan,
where the sannyāsīs plan to purchase even more paraphernalia.
The morning after Gaura Purnima day, many devotees leave Mayapur
for the next leg of the transcendental adventure – a program in
Hyderabad that Prabhupada will attend. But Prabhupada is not feeling
1138
well and there’s a question of whether he will go. Some devotees are not
up for going to Hyderabad with everybody else. They prefer to remain
in Mayapur with Srila Prabhupada. But after a few days, Prabhupada is
feeling better and he decides to meet the devotees in Hyderabad. Then
Balavanta, Amarendra, and Gokularanjana also decide to leave
Mayapur.
Gokularanjana: We hired a car and left Mayapur with Vishnujana

Swami. At the outskirts of the holy dhāma, he made the driver stop.
“Now we should offer our obeisances and say goodbye to Mayapur ‘till
next year when we come back.”
We all got out and paid our obeisances. That was a special moment for
me, and I carry that memory of being with him when we were leaving
Mayapur.
The next day I walked around Calcutta with him supposedly for
shopping. But, instead, he took me around to see street performers doing
bhajans, and he was getting ideas. To me he didn’t seem the same. It
seemed like something was bothering him, and he was really sad. From
just the year before I could see something was wrong.
Vishnujana Swami is holding something within that is causing him s

me anguish. He’s not revealing his mind about what the cause might be,
but he’s not fooling the people who have been his admirers for years.
It’s obvious to these individuals that something is disturbing Maharaja
but they have no idea what it could be. He is far too senior for them to
bring up the subject and communicate like peers.
1139
Eighteenth Wave,
The Ultimate Triumph
Everyone should treat godbrothers as Prabhu and nobody should try to
claim any extra honor on account of an official position. Why he says
his authority overrides yours? Everyone is working under my authority.
[Letter to Brahmananda – August 30, 1969]

While the Swamis are in India, Radha-Damodara continue Their
programs.
Some devotees go out to distribute BTGs while others find a place to set
up the festival program. Sridhar leads the kirtans now that Vishnujana
Maharaja is in India. He has a melodic voice and is the main man on the
bus as far as being brahminical and having a little intelligence.
Gadadhar is in charge and is kind of running things. He’s the temple
commander and takes care of the new bhaktas. Ramacharya and Sridhar
do the pūjā, with Vrikasanga as the cook, the driver, and the sergeant-at-
arms.
Gadadhar: They had entrusted the bus to me. I did some pūjā for Radha-
Damodara. I would also dress Them and bathe Their golden forms in
my mind, mānasa-pūjā. I still envision Their beautiful golden forms and
shining faces. That was one of the highlights of the little Deity worship I
have done. The vans would go out on book distribution, and I always
avoided that, so Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna allowed me to stay
back. There was always a new devotee that needed to be taken care of.
1140
Gaura Purnima is a big deal for the new recruits. Gopal Acharya is
hanging out with Marino during the day. As they finish the feast in the
evening, Alambana sits down beside them.
“Hey, I have a stash that I got from the pūjārī.” “What is it?”
“It’s the caraṇāmṛta; it’s really powerful stuff, really potent. It’s right
from the Deity’s feet and it’s full of mystical organic stuff.”
Alambana offers them a half-gallon milk carton of the caraṇāmṛta.

Marino and Gopal Acharya are very interested. They find a hiding place
in the bushes outside the temple and share the caraṇāmṛta. They finish it
off quickly, right there in the bushes, and soon become intoxicated.
Later that evening Gopal Acharya is on the bus listening to Sridhar lead
kirtan for the final ārati, but he is ripped! Feeling embarrassed, he looks
around the bus afraid someone will ask why he is high.
San Diego, April 1975

After Gaura Purnima, the bus moves south to try a new field. They like
to set up Sri Sri Radha-Damodara on Pacific beach and have a little
program right there on the sand. One afternoon there’s a confrontation.
Vrikasanga is a natural leader and likes to give a pep talk to the

devotees, just like a Marine Sergeant, to psyche them up for preaching.
“Now that the Swamis are gone we have to take more responsibility.
You all gotta be more mature, you know. You gotta be ready to protect
Radha-Damodara.”
Because Gopal Acharya is a little passionate, Vrikasanga specifically

tells him, “You gotta be ready to die for Radha-Damodara if you have
to, to protect Them out here.” Gopal makes a mental note, Yeah, okay,
and prepares himself to protect the Deities.
1141
After erecting the stage first, the brahmacārīs get the sound system
ready. A scrawny hippie with long brown hair approaches the devotees.
He leans over on the stage and starts up a conversation. “What’s
happening here?”
Bhakta Eric is a brand new recruit, a short stocky black-bodied devotee,

who is offended by the hippie. He quickly responds, “Don’t touch the
stage. That’s for the Deities. Don’t lean on it.” He adopts this mood
because Vrikasanga has just psyched everybody up to protect Krishna’s
property. Gopal Acharya doesn’t think it’s a big offense, “Hey Eric, it’s
no big deal,” but he can smell alcohol on the hippie’s breath.
Ignoring Bhakta Eric’s advice, the hippie continues leaning on the stage
and talking nonsense. This is too much for Eric and he comes over and
punches the guy several times really quick, pow, pow, pow. The hippie
gets the message and leaves. Several devotees see this and consider it a
little over the top.
Then Radha-Damodara are brought out on Their palanquin and placed

on the stage. The bhaktas like to take turns bringing Them out because
it’s a privilege and an honor to carry the Deities.
All of a sudden the hippie comes back in a belligerent mood. He’s

carrying a Bowie knife, a massive knife with a huge blade and a large
handle made out of buck horn. The devotees are taken aback as he walks
towards the stage flashing this huge knife that gleams in the sunlight.
Gopal Acharya approaches him, “What’s going on?”
“I wanna talk to that guy Eric.”
“You can’t talk to anybody with that knife in your hand.” He repeats, “I
wanna talk to Eric.”
Gopal runs back to the bus really fast to get Vrikasanga. “You better
come fast. This hippie’s got a huge knife and he’s looking for Eric.”
1142
Vrikasanga comes out of the bus wearing his dhoti, a T-shirt, and his
army jacket. He always wears his army jacket. Vrikasanga is short, but
he’s a trained Marine and is really good at karate. He walks barefoot in
the sand right up to the hippie flashing the huge knife. Gopal becomes
concerned for Vrikasanga.
The hippie simply repeats his demand, “I wanna talk to Eric.”
In a matter-of-fact tone Vrikasanga replies, “If you don’t drop that

knife, I’m gonna have to kill you.” His hands are by his side, so he’s not
in an aggressive posture.
“I’m gonna give you to the count of three, and then I’m gonna have to
kill you.”
Standing beside Vrikasanga, Gopal begins wondering, What will he do?

In his matter- of-fact attitude Vrikasanga starts counting slowly, “One…
Two…”
Thinking that the hippie is going to stab Vrikasanga, Gopal runs over to
the stage and grabs a mike stand. As he runs back he overhears
Vrikasanga say “…Three.”
It all happens in a few seconds. Vrikasanga first kicks the hippie in the
groin. As the guy bends forward in pain, Vrikasanga pops him in the
face twice, pow, pow, and then takes him down to the ground in a flash
with a headlock. Simultaneously, he takes away the knife with his other
hand and holds it to the side. Gopal was not aware that Vrikasanga is a
martial arts master.
Seeing Gopal rushing forward with the mike stand raised for a hit,
Vrikasanga yells, “Stop, stop. You’re gonna hurt him. Stop.” “Oh, okay.
You alright Brick?”
“Sure.” Vrikasanga is holding the knife as the guy is screaming,

“Krishna, Rama, Allah, Jesus Christ. Please don’t hurt me. I didn’t mean
1143
it.”
“Alright. Don’t worry. You shouldn’t have done that,” Vrikasanga

admonishes.
All of a sudden, Gopal Acharya looks up to see a huge giant of a man

with long hair and wearing a big buckskin jacket on. He’s gigantic and
looks like he weighs around 300 lbs. He’s holding a knife bigger than
the one the hippie was brandishing, and he stands in an aggressive
posture.
Gopal has never seen a knife so big in his life. His first thought is, O my
God, he’s going to kill Brick.
Gopal Acharya: Vrikasanga was down on the ground holding the hippie.
Suddenly the huge guy lunges down with his free hand. I was holding
the mike stand and I thought, This guy is big, but I’m just going to hit
him as hard as I can. I was getting ready to swing the mike stand and my
mind was spinning around.
Suddenly, this giant man grabs the hippie by his hair and puts the point
of his huge knife on top of his head. “If you mess with the Hare
Krishnas, you’re gonna mess with me. I was really in bad shape and
these guys fed me and took care of me.” Then he just turns around and
walks off down the beach.
In order to relax, Gopal Acharya goes over to where the other devotees
are serving prasādam. A bunch of bikers and all kinds of ratty types are
standing in line with their plates. To Gopal they look real mean with
their biker gear and long straggly hair. “Oh, oh, looks like more
trouble,” he says to himself.
As Gopal serves out the nectar drink, a biker comes up to him, “Hey
man, I saw how your guy took that hippie down. That was great. He was
really good, you know. Is there some way we can join?”
1144
“Well, yeah” Gopal replies. “You just buy some of our books and start
reading them. Then you come to our temple and you can chant.” They
want to follow what Gopal Acharya says because they all saw how
Vrikasanga took the hippie down. They think that the Krishnas are just
the toughest.
Another biker with his girl friend remarks, “I saw the whole thing. I’ve
never seen a barefoot guy in a dress take someone down holding a
Bowie knife like that. You guys were so cool the way you did that.”
Hyderabad, India, April 11, 1975

Over 150 people have come to Hyderabad from Mayapur by train in two
coaches full of devotees. At the pandal program with Srila Prabhupada a
large farm is donated to ISKCON. The Governor of Andhra Pradesh
attends the function as a special guest.
During the festival, Tamal Krishna and Vishnujana approach Yogesh

Chandra on separate occasions to take sannyāsa along with Tripurari in
Vrindavan. Both times he refuses. When they put pressure on him,
Yogesh explains. “No, no. Prabhupada said if you have any sex desire
do not do it.”
They reply, “Listen, every sannyāsī has sex desire. They just don’t act
on it, you know.” But Yogesh Chandra is adamant and his refusal to
conform doesn’t sit well with Tamal Krishna Goswami.
After the festival there is harināma-sankirtan through the streets of

Hyderabad with everyone dancing in ecstasy. Vishnujana Swami,
Acyutananda Swami, and Dinanath Prabhu take turns leading kirtan.
Finally, the mass of devotees board a train to Mathura to attend the
Krishna-Balarama Mandir Grand Opening.
In India the train station is a hub of activity. When the train stops at
stations along the way, Vishnujana leads many devotees out onto the
1145
platform for nagara-sankirtan. Some villages have never seen white
people before, what to speak of white Vaishnavas chanting and dancing,
so it attracts a lot of attention.
Sugata: Acyutananda was always yelling at me because I was doing

everything wrong culturally. Vishnujana was always very sweet and
always talking about Radha-Krishna, devotional service, and glorifying
devotees. He never wanted to hear anything bad about devotees. He
would close his ears sometimes when people would criticize.
Vaishnavananda: I had to get up in the middle of the night to pass water,

and Vishnujana Swami was already up, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.
He was eager for Krishna consciousness. He was absorbed, truly
absorbed. So I offered my respects to him. Although he was strict with
himself, he was tolerant with others.
On the train back to Mathura, many devotees are tired and take the
opportunity to catch up on rest. Two coaches are filled with devotees
only once again, but the Swamis are always the focus of attention.
Taking sannyāsa means that your behavior must be above reproach,
because all eyes are upon you.
Urukrama: I was sitting across from Tamal Krishna Maharaja and

Vishnujana Swami just observing their behavior together. Tamal
Krishna was chastising Vishnujana because he sat on a harināma
chaddar. It was funny to watch because Vishnujana assumed a very
humble, almost subservient, profile with Tamal Krishna.
Atendriya: Tamal Krishna was chewing him out for some reason.
Vishnujana was so dismayed that he took his chaddar, put it over his
head, and started chanting japa.
Yogesh Chandra: Tamal Krishna was always heavy. He yelled at me so

much that Trivikrama and other sannyāsīs came to me and said, “Take a
trip. Just relax and take a trip, because it’s too heavy. Nobody has to
take this kind of abuse.” He was getting heavy with Vishnujana too.
1146
I never heard Vishnujana Maharaja complaining, “Goswami this or
that.” He never said that. Everything was chummy on pilgrimage. That’s
not what fried Vishnujana Swami. It wasn’t that Tamal Krishna got on
his case. Vishnujana worked through that pretty good.
But I just couldn’t take it myself. It was outrageous. So I left and went
off for a week.
Vishnujana Maharaja will never say anything negative about any

devotee, no matter what the situation. His mood is that whenever a
problem arises between devotees he will always serve that devotee to
resolve the discrepancy. Finding fault is not in his nature. He accepts as
true the following maxim: All that is inauspicious in the heart will
gradually disappear simply by assuming the humble position.
Vrindavan, April 15, 1975

When Prabhupada arrives with the devotees from Hyderabad, everyone
is busy preparing for the opening of the Krishna-Balarama Mandir.
Although Prabhupada’s quarters are quite livable, they still need final
touch-ups. Concerned that his western disciples are properly cared for,
Prabhupada calls for the leaders.
“Is everyone being taken care of? Are they getting cows’ milk? They
shouldn’t drink buffalo milk.”
Prabhupada is repeatedly emphasizing the importance of serving first

class prasādam. A lot of devotees came to Mayapur but there was a high
attrition rate due to bad health and meager conditions. Now many are
sick.
In Hyderabad, Keshava Bharati became miserably ill with dysentery. In

spite of everything he got on the train to Vrindavan. But in the holy
dhāma, he feels like he’s going to leave his body and begs Tamal
Krishna to be relieved of his responsibility. However, Goswami is firm.
1147
He insists that Keshava Bharati has to pass this test to prove his fitness
to join the Radha-Damodara party.
There is insufficient facility for all the devotees that have arrived for the
celebration, and many devotees stay in Fogal Ashram a kilometer down
the road from the temple. Again, Prabhupada is concerned for their
comfort. He always accepts whatever Krishna provides, but for his
disciples he endeavors to provide them with comfortable surroundings.
He instructs the leaders, “Be sure the devotees have nice facility. They
should not be uncomfortable.”
Srila Prabhupada is always pleased to see his new Vaishnavas free from
anxiety, happily engaged in devotional service. His loving attention
inspires everyone to do the best they can do, and that means putting
emphasis on rising early to receive the spiritual benefits of the morning
sādhana.
Prabhupada instructs that 24-hour kirtan for the Deities should be a

daily function. So each temple pledges to do a certain shift to ensure that
the chanting never stops. The Atlanta temple offers to do a double shift,
2-4 in the morning, and 2-4 in the afternoon. Vishnujana Swami
volunteers for the graveyard shift from midnight until 2:00am. It’s hard
to get devotees for that shift, so Maharaja agrees to do it.
Gokularanjana: One morning, myself and Madhava were the only ones
who made it for our shift so we were alone. Vishnujana Maharaja had
just finished his shift and when he saw that we were alone, he asked,
“Where is everybody else?”
I said, “Well, they’re all still sleeping.” He was obviously tired and was
about to leave, but he saw that we were there by ourselves so he stayed
with us and led the kirtan. There was no harmonium, just khol and
kartāls. Even during the kirtans at Krishna-Balarama, he seemed distant.
I could see it in his face, although I didn’t know what was going on
inside. He had a major impact on my Krishna consciousness.
1148
Jagamana: I was one of the four original gurukula boys who went to
India. Vishnujana Swami led one of the 24-hour kirtans that I attended.
Everybody had a shift, but Vishnujana Swami’s shift really rocked. It
was optimum. We never missed a Vishnujana kirtan. Vishnujana and
Acyutananda were cool. They were music buddies.
Jagadananda Pandit: We were the first four to go to India, Dwarakadish,

Ekendra, Jagamana, and myself, and we were the first four to do
anything. We were in the advanced class, and we were the ones that got
everything tested on us. We were the ones they tried a new discipline
on. If they wanted to open up a new school they sent us out there.
Daily, Srila Prabhupada walks through the temple compound giving

advice here and there. He is on top of every detail and advises Saurabha
Das, his architect disciple from Holland, on necessary corrections.
Nothing escapes his watchful eye. Saurabha is always running around
supervising the progress of hundreds of workers, masons, and
carpenters. He has had very little sleep in the last two weeks and now
that the Deity installation is approaching he’s getting even less.
Repeatedly, Prabhupada calls for Saurabha to admonish him about

certain defects that he notices in the construction. Prabhupada wants
everything to be perfect and entrusts Saurabha to ensure every detail is
completed. The pressure on Saurabha continues to mount as the prāṇa-
pratiṣṭhā yajña draws near.
On a morning walk around the temple compound, one person says how
magnificent the temple looks. “Saurabha has done a very good job, Srila
Prabhupada,” he comments. Another adds, “He has worked very hard.
His work is excellent.”
“Yes,” Prabhupada replies. “Everyone is saying he has done a very nice

job, but I am simply criticizing. That is my duty. I am his spiritual
master. Therefore, I must guide.” For many devotees their only service
in the dhāma is to visit the famous temples built by the Six Goswamis,
and go on pilgrimage to the nearby holy places associated with
1149
Krishna’s pastimes. While everybody is out and about, Vishnujana
prefers to be alone to simply soak up the spiritual atmosphere
permeating Vrindavan. His favorite place is on the banks of the
Yamuna.
One day Yogesh Chandra shows up in Vrindavan. After spending some

time on his own he’s back for the Grand Opening. Vishnujana calls him
into his room. “Hey Yogesh, let’s not have any hard feelings or
anything. Come back to Radha-Damodara.”
Yogesh Chandra is pleased to hear this, so he agrees. “Fine.”
With so many devotees present, it’s easy for old friends to catch up.
Vishnujana hasn’t seen Baradraja since his trip to Mayapur last year and
is eager to have his association. Baradraja is a renowned artist and
kīrtanīyā who now lives in India. During lunch, Maharaja inquires about
his service in Vrindavan.
“I was in Mayapur,” he explains, “when I received a letter from Gurudas

asking me to go to Jaipur to see how the carving of the twelve Deities
for Krishna-Balarama
Temple was coming along. When I arrived in Jaipur, the sculptor let me
stay at his home along with the twenty-five members of his household –
three generations – all of whom helped with the carving.
“My first look at the Deities was inspiring. The two that were almost
finished were good, and I suggested only a few small changes – a slight
enlargement of the eyes and a change in the cheek structure. I was going
by my personal experience. Indian sculptors have their own tradition,
but much of it has been spoiled by years of catering to modern tastes. I
was trying to stick to the old tradition where the image is considered
beautiful only when it reflects the meditative mood of the sculptor, and
evokes that same mood in the onlooker.
“There are also strict rules about proportion, but they are secondary. A
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small deviation in the rules can remain as long as the Deity has the
proper mood.
“After instructing the sculptor on the few changes I wanted made, I saw
two rough chunks of marble – one white and the other black – that were
to become the Deities of Balarama and Krishna. I was spellbound. The
two brothers were being carved in Their characteristic shapes, and just
for fun the sculptors had put Them together the way They would appear
on the altar with Balarama’s elbow raised up to lean on Krishna’s
shoulder and Krishna’s arms positioned to hold His flute. Enchanted, I
felt I could see right through the white and black marble to the finished
Deities inside.
“A few months later, after a short visit to our clay-modeling workshop

in Bengal, I returned to Jaipur. This time I watched the sculptors finish
all the Deities except the one of Srila Prabhupada. The first attempt
wasn’t turning out too well, so I asked them to start over again. Then I
took a train up to Vrindavan to be there when Krishna, Balarama, and
the other completed Deities arrived. They were being driven up on a
Golden Jaipur Co. truck named ‘Krishna’, which I thought was very
auspicious.
“About 2:00am on the night the Deities were scheduled to arrive, I was
awakened by a terrific uproar. All the peacocks in Vrindavan seemed to
be trumpeting their piercing cries, producing waves of sound that started
far off and then swept across miles of holy land to the other side of
town, echoing, back and forth. I rose, dressed, and went outside to see
what was going on. Lo and behold, the truck with Krishna and Balarama
had pulled in!
“The workmen who unloaded the truck the next morning were very
nice. All day long, every day, they’d chant Hare Krishna as they
worked. And when some extra service turned up, they’d do it for
nothing, And although their supervisor was a Muslim, he was very
concerned about the Deities. ‘Be careful, be careful! Don’t break
1151
Krishna!’ he would shout, perspiring heavily.
“The crew of Muslims and Hindus labored side by side, loudly chanting
as they carried Krishna; and whenever they put a box down, they would
cry out in unison, ‘Jaya Krishna Balarama!’ It was fantastic.”
Vishnujana is enjoying this story immensely. He asks who painted the

Deities.
“I spent about a month painting the Deities. The residents of Vrindavan

soon learned about the new Krishna and Balarama murtis and they’d
come to the window of the room I was working in to catch a glimpse of
Them. But the Deities were always turned away from the window when
I was painting, so the eager Vrindavanites would bang on the window
grating with their sticks, ‘We want to see Krishna Balarama!’ But they
had to wait.
“When the painting was finished, I returned to Bengal for another short
visit and then went back to Jaipur a third and final time to supervise the
carving of the last Deity – Srila Prabhupada. The work should have
taken four days, but it stretched out to a full month. Not only was the
sculptor very temperamental, but on top of that he spoke only Hindi,
which I can’t speak. Although communication was difficult, by
Krishna’s mercy the work turned out nicely.
“Later on in Vrindavan I was painting the final touches on the Deity of

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur, when Srila Prabhupada walked
into the room to inspect the work. ‘Thank you very much,’ he said to
me. ‘But one thing,’ he added in his gentle, yet uncompromising way,
‘the lips should be a little more pink.’ I gladly changed the color. After
so many months of giving orders to sculptors, it was refreshing to take
orders from a pure devotee of the Lord.”
This is the kind of inside nectar that most devotees don’t have access to,
and Vishnujana Swami thanks Baradraja for his blissful elucidation on
how Krishna can manifest spirit from stone.
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During the three day lead-up to the installation, there are concerts,
dances, plays, guest speakers, and feasts for thousands. The opening
festivities begin April 17, and will culminate with the ancient Vedic
prāṇa-pratiṣṭhā ceremony to install the Deities on April 20. Finally, a
gala procession through the town of Vrindavan featuring elephants and
colorful costumed marching bands will conclude the celebrations.
Murti Das: The opening of the Vrindavan center was a tremendous

gathering of devotees. It was extremely intense with a tremendous
number of things going on at the same time. The temple was being
cleaned, classes were going on, kirtans, meetings with Prabhupada, and
the construction of the Guest House was being finished. It was going on
with hundreds of devotees around at the same time. Just about every
sannyāsī in the movement was there. They all gave classes and cleaned
and cooked and did all kinds of service.
Sukadeva: Vishnujana Swami was going out during the day with a
kirtan party. Because he was going, so many devotees wanted to go and
I also went. Just over from Loi Bazaar I saw a camel walking down the
street. All of a sudden two humongous bulls started fighting, locking
horns right on the street. They were knocking over all the stalls and it
was like a bar room brawl. All of a sudden, boom, there was no kirtan
party. Everybody was gone.
Krishna-Balarama Mandir, April 20, 1975

On Rama-Navami day, the appearance of Lord Ramachandra, many
government officials are present for the Grand Opening ceremony.
Prabhupada has personally invited the governor of the state of Uttar
Pradesh to be Guest of Honor. It’s important to establish the credibility
of his ISKCON mission and the Krishna-Balarama Mandir. He also
arranges for local Brahmins to perform the Deity installation ceremony.
He explains privately that otherwise the local people won’t consider the
Deities to be installed.
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“If these Brahmins don’t do the installation ceremony then the locals
won’t accept us as a bona fide temple. Actually we can just chant Hare
Krishna and Krishna will come. The Deities will be installed. But, so
that everybody here in Vrindavan will come to this temple, this is what
we want to do.”
He wants 24-hour kirtan to carry on continuously acknowledging that

kirtan is the actual installation of the Deities. “The real installation is the
kirtan that’s going on. That’s the real installation. But we will perform
this installation function so the local people won’t make offense and say
that the Deities are not really installed.” To follow the formal
convention, Prabhupada has local Brahmins perform the yajñas.
The temple is completely packed with people who are always jostling
one another trying to get a better view. Vishnujana Swami is among the
selected devotees to lead kirtan during the ceremonies prior to the fire
yajña. Prabhupada sits with the Brahmins throughout the yajña and
participates in some of the elaborate rituals. During the abhiṣeka he
pours various exotic substances upon the Deities.
After the Deities are taken to the altar, the kirtan continues on even
more blisssfully. At last, the conch blows three times to signal that the
first ārati in the temple is about to begin. Everybody jockeys for a better
viewing position. This causes a commotion and even some trepidation
for the western devotees.
When the curtains finally open, Srila Prabhupada stands before Krishna-
Balarama ready to offer the ārati. It’s a complete surprise because
nobody has been informed that Prabhupada would be offering ārati. The
devotees are filled with ānanda seeing His Divine Grace offering the
sacraments to Sri-Sri Krishna-Balarama. This is his great moment of
triumph and glory.
Some devotees have tears in their eyes realizing that this is the
fulfillment of Prabhupada’s dream to serve his Guru Maharaja when he
lived as a lone sādhu in
1154
Vrindavan ten years earlier. Now he has returned and built this
magnificent temple.
As the ārati comes to an end, Prabhupada turns to face the crowd with
an oceanic smile full of joy. He has conquered the earth planet and taken
Krishna consciousness around the world and back! He has accomplished
the impossible mission, the fulfillment of Lord Chaitanya’s prophecy.
In his ensuing address, Prabhupada exhibits extreme humility. The

speech is in Hindi so his focus is on the local guests. He begs their
forgiveness for any offenses he may have committed either knowingly
or unknowingly. He explains that this is an international temple, so
people from all over the world can come to worship and take shelter of
Sri-Sri Krishna-Balarama. Everyone applauds vigorously indicating
their recognition of his great achievement.
There is always sumptuous prasādam during the festival and especially

after the installation ceremony. Unknown to the local residents, most of
the cooks are Prabhupada’s western followers. There are many peacocks
in the Raman-reti area and some of the American devotees who are
making chapātīs like to throw them little pieces of chapātī dough.
Apurva: I was one of the head cooks for the Vrindavan opening.
Prabhupada wanted us to cook an incredible menu and do seven
offerings a day. The lunch offering was 25 preparations. We did a lot of
cooking so it was intense.
Because of a narrow-minded smārta-brāhmaṇa mentality, some of the

local people would not have honored the prasādam if they knew it was
cooked by westerners. There are even a few grumbles that Swamiji
should not have worn a kurta while performing ārati on the altar. But
Srila Prabhupada does not care for this kanistha mentality. It’s his day
and he is making his own statement.
With the sun setting on the western horizon, sandhyā-ārati is fast

approaching. This will be the first ārati performed by Prabhupada’s
1155
western disciples in the Krishna- Balarama Mandir. Tripurari Swami has
just accepted sannyāsa from Prabhupada and is determined that he and
his men will do the first sandhyā-ārati. He has already made the
arrangements to this service first. Pradyumna is also on the altar to set
up everything because he knows all the Vedic procedures and mantras.
Tripurari and his men, Sura and Vaiseshika, are lined up in the pūjārī
room ready to perform their service. Suddenly a GBC man, Bhagavan
Das, comes in with two other senior men and announces, “Okay, I’m
going to do the ārati.”
Tripurari stands his ground. He replies politely but firmly, “Sorry, but
we were here first.” Although Tripurari Maharaja is a brand new
sannyāsī, he is already a celebrity. Prabhupada had written previously
that Tripurari was “the incarnation of book distribution” and thus “he
was better than any sannyāsī.” As a result, Tripurari is already beyond
celebrity. Moreover, whenever he makes up his mind about something
he is totally dedicated and will never back down.
Vaiseshika, however, takes a humble position. “Well, I’ll go. He can do

it if he wants.” Vaiseshika hasn’t done many āratis in the past and he’s
actually petrified to do this ārati in Sri Vrindavan dhāma. The standard
he’s familiar with in Chicago is definitely not arcanā-padati. There is
just a list of ten things to be done and the pūjārīs simply wave the
articles in front of the Deities.
But Tripurari is firm. “No. You guys are here. We were here first. We
have already arranged it. We’re doing the first ārati.”
Pradyumna is ready to take rest because he has been without sleep for
48 hours, but he offers this sage advice before leaving. “Listen you
guys. You better do a good job because there are pandits from all over
Vrindavan here to watch you do the first ārati. And not only that,
Prabhupada will be here too with the sannyāsīs and GBCs.”
Hearing this Vaiseshika begins to tremble. He begs Tripurari Maharaja
1156
to let him leave. But Tripurari won’t back down, “Just get out there and
do it.”
Within minutes the American Vaishnavas, with conches in hand, come

in front of the curtains. Three long blasts signal the beginning of
sandhyā-ārati. Immediately thereafter, the sound of Yamuna singing,
“Govindam adi purusam…” fills the temple room and the curtains open.
The deity room has just been finished and there is a ceiling fan over
Gaura-Nitai’s altar where Sura is standing. That fan has been going full
blast, but nobody could find a switch to turn it off. So now it will be
permanently on for the ārati. This makes lighting the ghee lamps a
tremendous challenge for Sura, who stands before Sri-Sri Gaura-Nitai.
Every time he lights the ghee wicks the fan just goes ‘whoosh’ and
extinguishes the flame in a big puff of smoke.
On Radha-Shyamsundara’s altar, seeing the variety of different ghee

lamps with the long wicks, Vaiseshika is bewildered. He is used to the
small junior set in Chicago and has never seen such an opulent array of
paraphernalia. This does not feel familiar to him. He’s not even sure
where to stand because in Chicago the pūjārī stands behind a pillar and
is not even seen. Following the lead of Tripurari, however, he lights his
lamp and gets ready to begin his offering.
Sura is still trying to figure out how to light his ghee lamp, as the other
pūjārīs begin their offering. He finally uses his body as a shield from the
fan and gets everything lit. In the meantime the entire audience is
following the lead of Srila Prabhupada as he offers his obeisances in
front of Gaura-Nitai’s altar, then Krishna-Balarama’s altar, and then
Radha-Shyamasundar’s altar where Vaiseshika is standing.
Vaiseshika: There was Srila Prabhupada, all the GBCs and sannyāsīs,
and the devotees, all standing behind me and I was just totally blowing
it. Somebody actually had to come and push me out further, “Stand out
here.” I always thought you were supposed to stand back further. When
I threw the water, I hit Tamal Krishna Goswami right in the face and I
1157
could see him wiping his glasses off. It went from bad to worse.
I was fumbling through and by the time the others were finishing one
thing, I was just getting it together. All I could think was, Prabhupada is
going to take my brāhmaṇa initiation away. Sura was messing up too,
but nobody was watching him because Prabhupada was down at my
altar. It was like a comedy of errors, and I was mortified.
Afterwards, back in the pūjārī room, Vaiseshika is as white as a sheet.

“Tripurari Maharaja, I blew it.”
“Well, don’t worry we all did.” “Yeah, but they were watching me!”
Later that evening in his room, Prabhupada asks Jayatirtha, “Who were
the devotees doing ārati?”
“Those were Tripurari Maharaja’s men, Srila Prabhupada. They don’t

know very much about pūjā, they just distribute your books.”
Prabhupada simply tips his head and comments, “Oh. That is all right.”
Now that Sri-Sri Krishna-Balarama have manifested Their eternal forms

on the altar of the newly completed ISKCON Krishna-Balarama
Mandir, there will be an elaborate procession and parade through the
streets of Vrindavan. The parade begins at 4:30 the next afternoon. To
celebrate the occasion hundreds of devotees from all corners of the earth
assemble to perform ecstatic kirtan along with a shenai band, a circle of
drummers, and a special ratha with vijaya mūrtis of Radha and Krishna.
Paramahamsa Swami leads the kirtan from the temple to the center of
Vrindavan.
Beautifully decorated elephants with 3 devotees riding on the back of

each one, gives the parade a feeling of ancient India. Well-decorated
horses, brass bands, various rathas, attractively dressed vrajavāsīs, and
people of all descriptions proceed together creating a festival for the
1158
spiritual senses.
The supreme commander is our beloved Guru Maharaja, Srila

Prabhupada, who rides a victory chariot, mercifully bestowing his
transcendental glance upon all who are fortunate enough to be present.
A gorgeous parasol is help high over Prabhupada’s head shielding him
from the hot sun. As the parade moves along Chatikara Road [Later re-
named Bhaktivedanta Marg] from Raman Reti to Vrindavan town
center, Prabhupada appears like the full moon surrounded by a thousand
stars.
Suddenly, Prabhupada decides to walk in the company of his many

admirers and gracefully floats to the ground. Immediately, surging
crowds threaten to crush him in their eagerness to touch his lotus feet.
The devotees quickly link arms together to form long human barricades,
one on either side of their spiritual master. The energy created by the
surging crowd is tumultuous, like a hurricane, but at the center of the
commotion, Prabhupada is completely peaceful. Such a serene
atmosphere emanates from Prabhupada that the chaos of Kali-yuga
vanishes.
Many vrajavāsīs accompany His Divine Grace on the parade route along
with dozens of cows. As he walks at the head of the procession along
with his disciples who carry flags and festoons, Prabhupada is obviously
very pleased. He is beaming along the entire walk through the town of
Vrindavan and everyone relishes basking in the warm, effulgent rays of
his personal presence.
Murti Das: We walked from Raman Reti all the way into Loi Bazar, and
then down to the Rangaji Temple, the big Vishnu temple on the eastern
side of town. It was an amazing parade with several elephants and
bands, the shenai band in the front of the parade and the drum band at
the rear. They were really amazing drummers, with sticks. There was
constant kirtan going on with mṛdaṅga drums and all the devotees
singing. There were special kerosene lamps carried by locals that were
1159
lit as soon as the sun vanished beyond the horizon.
The entire celebration is a huge success. The Krishna-Balarama Mandir

is the first temple built by ISKCON and establishes Prabhupada as a
genuine acharya in the eyes of Vrindavan’s brahminical class.
The next morning, after returning from a walk, Prabhupada notices a

pile of broken pots in a corner of the temple property. Pointing with his
cane he challenges, “What is that?”
Someone answers, “These are extra ingredients that were not needed for
the Grand Opening.” Various leaders point to one another to avoid
taking the guilt.
Suddenly, Prabhupada interrupts them with a thunderous voice, “You

are all just like parrots! Every morning you sing, śrṅgāra-tan-mandira-
marjanādau: ‘the spiritual master is always engaged along with his
disciples in cleansing the temple.’ And yet you can’t even see that this is
also the temple.”
Prabhupada’s firm instruction always has a profound effect on

everyone’s consciousness. He expects his resident disciples to live
exemplary lives so he carefully supervises everyone’s devotional
practice. His opinion is that devotees who can’t come to the highest
standard of Krishna conscious behavior have no business living in the
holy dhāma.
After a long silence Akshayananda Swami tries to ‘break the ice.’ “Srila
Prabhupada?”
“Yes.”
“We all seem to be so foolish and incompetent. How can we help you
push on when you are the only one who can always see everything?”
Raising his cane, Prabhupada points to his disciples. “Yes. Therefore
1160
you must follow your Guru Maharaja.”
As everyone prepares to return home, the news comes that everyone

should gather for a group photo. Prabhupada gathers with his disciples
for the historic photo to commemorate the grand event.
Before everyone leaves Vrindavan for their home temples, Prabhupada

requests every temple to donate at least one man to help maintain the
new Krishna-Balarama Mandir and to assist him with his other projects
in India.
Apurva: After the temple opening in Vrindavan, every temple had to

leave a devotee in India, so Tripurari left me with some money and had
me purchase deities for him, Chota Gaura- Nitai. I stayed there for three
months.
Before I joined Tripurari, I was having some difficulty with my rounds,

being a cook. But he was so strict with his sādhana. After joining his
program he impressed upon me that before you do anything else, get
your 16 rounds done and attend the whole morning program. He got me
into that mood of being good with the sādhana. If someone is having
trouble you can usually track it back to a problem in sādhana.
In New Delhi, Vishnujana and Tamal Krishna purchase canopies and

siding cloth made from colorful shamiana tent material for Radha-
Damodara’s pandal set up. They also buy tambouras and harmoniums,
so each festival party will be fully equipped. By the time everyone is
ready to leave India, Keshava Bharati is still really drained. But Tamal
Krishna Maharaja convinces Vishnujana Swami that in spite of
everything it’s okay to bring him on the party.
Therefore, with great resolve Keshava Bharati arranges for numerous

returning devotees to help him carry 5 tambouras, 6 mṛdaṅgas, 25 sets
of kartāls, 10 large whompers, 100 japa mālās, 150 dhotīs and vests, 50
kilos of tilak, huge rolls of tent material, and 5 sets of 18-inch solid
brass Gaura-Nitai Deities, all as “carry-on” luggage aboard the 747
1161
returning to America.
Keshava Bharati: We had 5 sets of everything to equip 5 traveling

festival buses. It was a huge amount of stuff and as usual Tamal Krishna
didn’t want to spend any money. I went to all the devotees who were
first-timers in India, and a lot of them were sick or weak. I asked
Govardhan to make a list and get everybody to take all those things
along with all the other things they were taking. Finally, I got all the
gear on the plane and by then I was ready to leave my body. I crawled
underneath a row of seats, and spent the whole flight on the floor. When
we got to New York I had to gather the paraphernalia to make sure we
weren’t missing a single thing. But I was so sick at that point that I went
to LA with Tamal Krishna and spent a couple of weeks recuperating my
health.

Back in the states, the big news from India is that Tripurari is now a
sannyāsī and Rameswar is now a BBT trustee. They will prove to be a
formidable team.
On their return to Los Angeles, the Radha-Damodara leaders divide half

the India purchases between the existing three buses and the other three
buses that will come in the future. Vishnujana Maharaja visits various
householders to engage Ujjvala and her team of women in sewing
outfits for Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara and four sets of Gaura- Nitai
Deities.
To get the Deities ready for Their prāṇa-pratiṣṭhā ceremony, Maharaja

recruits Jahnava to give Them a fresh coat of paint. She comes every
day to the apartment of Puru and Jambavati where eight Deities of
Gauranga and Nityananda now stand on their kitchen counter.
Vishnujana Swami has returned from India with many photos to

distribute to devotees. “Look at the chanting party here. We had this
1162
great kirtan there.” He didn’t have his own camera, but other devotees
have taken pictures and given them to him.
“Wow, Maharaja, here you are with Srila Prabhupada. Mind if I have
this?”
“No. Go ahead.”
On a number of occasions he states that he’s glad not to be a GBC man,

because the GBC take up so much time in meetings. “I was always free
to wander about Mayapur and Vrindavan, to chant japa, have kirtan, and
take prasādam with devotees, and associate with devotees. Every time I
come back from India I feel refreshed, like a new man.”
Goswami is very eager to hear the reports from Dhristadyumna and Adi
Keshava for the month he was away. He is overjoyed to hear that for the
combined months of March and April, the Radha-Damodara party has
distributed 137,500 Back to Godhead magazines! This places them first
in the transcendental book distribution competition, ahead of Atlanta
and Chicago, who are second and third.
Dhristadyumna’s bus party is in Michigan, so Goswami flies to Detroit

taking Keshava Bharati with him. Tamal wants to free Dhristadyumna
from administration so he can travel and preach as a bus leader.
Dhristadyumna spends a day training Keshava Bharati how to do the
administration for the party. Then they all drive down to Florida where
the party’s administration office will be set up for the next surge of book
distribution.
Dravanaksha: Yogesh Chandra was the key to bringing book

distribution to its full force. He masterminded the distribution and book
sales exploded. He got a fleet of new vans so the parties could move out
in smaller groups. We put money down on brand new Dodge vans, and
we got a rebate through the Detroit Temple. It was a fleet buying
incentive for companies, then you’d get your rebate check back in the
mail. Each bus became a mother ship for several satellite vans and a few
1163
cars.
Epilogue By 1975, the exploits of the Radha-Damodara traveling

sankirtan party have increased in intensity. Devotees worldwide become
inspired. They see the ads in each issue of the BTG and they hear the
buzz.
The German yatra is at a low point at this time due to the heavy police
action last December. Book distribution is also at a low point, so it’s
really inspiring to hear and read about the escapades of the Radha-
Damodara party. These accounts help to rekindle the sankirtan spirit in
Germany
Nikhilananda: In the Frankfurt temple I saw the BTG articles on the

Radha-Damodara party and the beautiful pictures inviting young men to
come tour on a Greyhound bus through beautiful America. For a young
boy like me that sounded like a dream.
Throughout Europe, the exploits of the Radha-Damodara party are

talked about in glowing terms. They hear that more and more young
men are joining the party, and that’s always impressive. Many people
pass through London, and the English devotees hear the news how
Radha-Damodara has become a huge preaching force.
Bhaumadeva: Everybody loved Vishnujana Swami. They just adored

the guy. He was like a living legend, just through his tapes, his music,
and just through the grapevine. I used to arrange all the college
programs for Revatinandana Swami, his cousin. He didn’t talk about
Vishnujana so much. It was all through just hearing the guy’s voice and
stuff – phenomenal. We heard things that Prabhupada had said about
him, and what devotees were saying who were passing through England.
He was like a devotee’s devotee, a wonderful human being.
In South America everybody loves hearing about the adventures of

Radha- Damodara. They hear how the party is organized, a large group
of strong brahmacārīs traveling around with two sannyāsīs.
1164
In Brazil, they dream of doing something similar, traveling town to
town in a big bus with Deities, like Radha-Damodara.
Kuladeva: We heard about Vishnujana Swami and always thought of

him as being a very real part of the movement, as if he started our
movement. The first devotees who came to Brazil were Mahavirya, who
was Canadian, and then Hrdayananda Goswami.
Not only the devotees are inspired by the bus program. Srila Prabhupada
also likes this form of preaching and is continually encouraging his men
to expand the program.
When I hear about the Sankirtan buses that are moving all over the
world then I think that we are becoming like a gigantic guerilla warfare
movement fighting with maya. This traveling in buses is the best means
to drive away maya and establish Krishna consciousness all over the
world. After all the whole world is the property of Krishna, but
temporarily it is being illegally occupied by maya’s agents. Flood them
with kirtan and books, this is the best weapon. Increase the number of
buses, that will be your success. [Letter to Bahudak - August 28, 1973]
As there are many devotees, there are many opinions about everything
in ISKCON. Some of the controversial opinions are about management,
and the treatment of individuals. In other words, politics.
A growing topic of conversation is the expanding influence of the

Radha-Damodara traveling sankirtan party. On the one hand it’s very
enlivening and inspiring to some people. On the other hand, is the heavy
handed approach to bring men on board by raiding the temples. People
begin to take sides, and this gradually develops into a divisive rift – a
fratricidal war.
Balavanta: When Tamal Krishna joined, Vishnujana already had a

program that attracted people with beautiful music and prasādam. And
he made devotees. He didn’t ask for money.
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Most of the devotees made by Tamal Krishna were young men who had
been coming to the temples, had no attachments, and were on the verge
of becoming devotees, anyway. So then Radha-Damodara came through
with their program, “Associate with sannyāsīs, remain brahmacārī and
see if it doesn’t help you. We go to college campuses and chant all day,
eat wonderful prasādam, and have festivals.” That was very attractive
compared to living in the brahmacārī ashram and going out in vans for
book distribution. So they quickly expanded to 50-70 men with no
temple overhead, and no gṛhastha overhead.
Ravindra Svarupa: The first time they went around the temples there
were a lot of people sitting on the sidelines on the mental platform
wondering whether or not to move into a temple, and when Radha-
Damodara came they were inspired, and they would go with the bus. So
that’s where Tamal Krishna got his first big group of people to expand
the bus program, from the temples. And so he expanded.
Mahamaya dd: I was in Los Angeles when Vishnujana Swami and

Tamal Krishna were bringing men onto the bus and preaching. I
remember hearing about their body snatching thing. Devotees explained
the technique to me. They would bring boys onto the bus and preach to
just spend 3 or 4 days with them. That’s all they were asking. Either
they had no commitment and they could agree, with pressure, or if they
had a job or other commitment, the line would be, “Call in sick. It’s just
for 3 or 4 days.”
If the guy said, “But my boss will fire me,” they’d say, “What kind of
boss is that? Who would fire you if you were really sick? Do you want
to work for someone like that? C’mon, try it for just 3 or 4 days.” That’s
all they were asking for. Usually they would get so much nectar, that
they would agree to shave up in a week or two.
Jagadish: Vishnujana Swami was totally dedicated to Radha-Damodara,

worshipping Them and seeing that They got nice offerings. He would do
the worship himself every morning. He was very austere and used to
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sleep beside Radha-Damodara with only a thin chaddar over him. When
Tamal Krishna Goswami joined, Radha-Damodara took on a new
aspect.
Mahamantra: Vishnujana Swami was very expert. He was an expert

cook, expert in honoring prasādam, expert at lecturing, expert at
charming the hearts of all, and expert at kirtan. He was so enlivening.
But Vishnujana Maharaja became more grave as Tamal Krishna
Maharaja took over the party and laid more and more emphasis on book
distribution. Book distribution was going on with Vishnujana Maharaja
too, but it was more laissez faire. The party was looser. When Tamal
Krishna Maharaja joined the Radha-Damodara traveling sankirtan party,
then the men started wearing vests to give them a separate identity.
Lakshmi-Nrsimhadeva: He told us that his old friend Tamal Krishna

Goswami was going to joing the party. Of course we didn’t know what
that meant, but later on we realized. Things had been going free and
easy without much anxiety, and then Tamal Krishna came with the big
plan and started pressuring the build-up of Radha-Damodara. We started
getting devotees from all over and it became a big push for collections –
lots of lakṣmī, lots of books, more buses, this and that. I didn’t like the
mood and the pressure with all these very intense guys; that if you
weren’t distributing books you were in total māyā. I just wasn’t into it.
The mood definitely changed. Rather than being a band of merry

brahmacārīs and a sannyāsī, it became very intense, very competitive.
The impact on me was a negative one, honestly. That’s when I noticed
that Vishnujana Swami started changing, becoming a little bit more in
anxiety and a little less enthusiastic. It was something I noticed in
passing, but I figured this is what Prabhupada wanted and we all have to
grow in Krishna consciousness and maybe it was for his growth as well
as for all our growth.
Sadananda: Tamal Krishna was unbearable sometimes. Of course, his

idea was that he was tightening up the discipline on the bus. Radha-
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Damodara became very intense, there was no break in the routine, no
letting up.
Yogesh Chandra: When things went wrong, on Radha-Damodara or

India, wherever, Tamal Krishna would really let Vishnujana have it. I
felt bad. It was heavy. Vishnujana did take a lot of abuse, but their
relationship was usually loving and warm. Tamal Krishna blasted me so
heavy too, but he’s still my friend and I like him. It’s just that old style
from the old days.
Abhirama: Tamal Krishna had some management abilities. I really liked

the way he thought. He just made so much sense to me. He didn’t have
an airy-fairy view of things. He had a real practical, let’s get the job
done attitude, which I really could relate to. I tend to be a pragmatist,
and I really appreciate a pragmatic approach. I believe personally, from
my observation, that Srila Prabhupada was a strong pragmatist. TKG
had really imbibed that from Prabhupada, and he emitted it. It just came
out of his pores.
Sruti Rupa dd: When I was in Vrindavan, when I’d walk, I’d see him
down by the Madan Mohan area where the Jamuna used to flow. He’d
be down there with his harmonium, just having kirtan by himself,
singing Gopinath by himself on the bank of the river. I was with
Abhirama, and because we had an ongoing relationship, we felt
comfortable to sit. But he just carried on chanting. He’d always be off
alone.
The Radha-Damodara party is expanding, but between 1975 and 1976,

something happens to Vishnujana Swami, and something happens to
Tamal Krishna Goswami. Both their lives are turned upside down as
everything is taken away by Krishna.
The sannyāsīs and gṛhasthas become engaged in a bitter battle that

Prabhupada dubs “a fratricidal war.” Please stay tuned for the final
volume of the Radha-Damodara
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Vilasa trilogy when everything is finally revealed! In grateful service,
Vaiyasaki Das Adhikari… Comments: vaiyasaki@kirtan.org
1169
Appendix One,
Elevation to Ecstasy
A lecture delivered at the 1974 Ratha-yatra festival in Golden Gate
Park, San Francisco, by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Prabhupada Ladies and gentlemen, devotees, and all the sannyāsīs
present, I thank you very much for kindly joining this Ratha-yatra
festival. This festival has been going on in India for more than 2,000
years in the city of Jagannath Puri. The name Jagannath comes from two
words – jagat, which means “the universe,” and natha, which means
“the Lord.” Thus Jagannath means “the Lord of the universe.” The
Ratha-yatra festival and the sankirtan movement, the Hare Krishna
movement, are meant to enable one to realize the Lord of the universe.
From Vedic literature we understand that there are not only one but
innumerable universes. It is said:
yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi-
koṭiṣv aśeṣa-vasudhādi-vibhūti-bhinnam
tad brahma niṣkalam anantam aśeṣa-bhūtaṁ
govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi
“I worship Govinda, Krishna, the primal Lord, who is endowed with

great power. The glowing effulgence of His transcendental form is
absolute, complete and unlimited. It is the basis for the varieties of
countless planets, with their different opulences, in millions and
millions of universes.” (Brahma-samhita, 5.40)
Just as the sun is the source of the sunshine, so the Supreme Lord is the
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source of the impersonal effulgence in which all the universes rest.
Srimad-Bhagavatam says, therefore:
vadanti tat tattva-vidas
tattvaṁ yaj jñānam advayam
brahmeti paramātmeti
bhagavān iti śabdyate
[SB 1.2.11]
This verse informs us that the Absolute Truth may be realized from
three angles of vision in three different aspects. One is impersonal
(Brahman), and another is localized (Paramatma), but the ultimate phase
of the Absolute Truth is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna.
We find in Bhagavad-gita that Lord Krishna says: “There is no truth

superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a
thread.” (Bg. 7.7) Thus the Supreme Personality of Godhead says that
He is the ultimate goal, the Absolute Truth. The Krishna consciousness
movement, therefore, is meant to help one advance in understanding the
Absolute Truth.
The material world is full of relative truths, but one need not study these
relative truths separately, for in the Vedic literature, in the Upanisads, it
is said, yasmin vijnate sarvam evam vijnatam bhavanti: “If one
understands the Absolute Truth, the relative truths will automatically be
understood.” The material world is full of relative truths, and the
spiritual world is the Absolute Truth.
Age of Fighting
The Absolute Truth is very difficult for us to understand, however,
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because we are living in the age called Kali-yuga, which is an age of
fighting and misunderstanding. Prayenalpayusah sabhya kalav asmin
yuge janah. One of the symptoms of this age is that almost everyone has
a very short life span. We understand from the Vedic literature that in
this age one can live for as many as 100 years. There are four yugas, or
ages—Satya-yuga, Treta-yuga, Dvapara-yuga and Kali-yuga. In the
Satya-yuga, or the yuga of truthfulness, we used to live for 100,000
years. (I say “we used to live” because in fact we are eternal. although
we are changing from one body to the next.)
In the next age, Treta-yuga, the duration of life was reduced to 10,000
years, and in the next, Dvapara yuga, it was reduced to 1,000 years.
Now, in Kali-yuga, our duration of life is limited to only 100 years. But
unfortunately, because we are fallen – because our bodily strength, our
sense of mercy, our memory and our other good qualities have all been
reduced – we do not live for even 100 years. For instance, I am now
about eighty years old, so people think that I have lived very long. But
eighty years is nothing; we should actually live for 100 years. Because
of our sinful life, however, the time is coming when our duration of life
will be reduced so much that if a man lives for twenty or thirty years, he
will be considered a grand old man.
Therefore, since we are not very comfortable in material life, the

Krishna consciousness movement is meant to take us to the spiritual life
of the spiritual world. There is a spiritual world, and we receive
information about it from Bhagavad-gita. Those who have read
Bhagavad-gita know this, and so I shall request all of you to read our
Bhagavad-gita, As It Is. We have published about twenty books, each a
minimum of four hundred pages long, and Bhagavad-gita is eleven
hundred pages. Nevertheless, we shall have to publish about eighty
books to fully explain the Krishna consciousness movement.
I know that all the American ladies and gentlemen here are educated and
intelligent, and I am very much obliged to the Americans who have
helped me make this movement popular all over the world. When Sri
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Chaitanya Mahaprabhu first introduced the Hare Krishna movement, He
said:
bhārata-bhūmite haila manuṣya-janma yāra
janma sārthaka kari' kara para-upakāra
(Cc. Ādi 9.41]
He thus expressed His desire by saying that anyone who has taken birth
as a human being in Bharata-varsa, or India, should understand the
Krishna consciousness movement and spread it all over the world for
the benefit of all humanity.
He also said:
pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi grāma
sarvatra pracāra haibe mora nāma
[CB Antya-khaṇḍa 4.126]
This is a prediction that in all the villages and towns of the entire world,
the Krishna consciousness movement will be known. So with the
cooperation of you young Americans who are kindly helping to spread
this movement, it is now factually becoming well known all over the
world. I recently went to Melbourne, Australia, where we held a similar
festival, in which many thousands of people joined and chanted and
danced with us. Then I went to Chicago, where we held the same
ceremony. Now this morning I have come here, and I am so glad to see
that you are also joining this movement.
Universal Movement
This is a universal movement. Don’t think that it’s something only for
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Indians or Hindus. It is a movement for every living being. Krishna is
the supreme living being, and we are subordinate living beings. Because
we are part and parcel of Krishna, we are qualitatively one with Krishna,
but because of our material association, we have forgotten that our
qualities are in the same category as His. We are qualitatively the same
as Krishna but quantitatively different, just as a drop of ocean water is
equal in its qualities to the entire ocean, although the drop is but an
insignificant portion of the great ocean. We are part and parcel of God,
God is great, and we are small; God is the maintainer, and we are
maintained; God is the predominator, the master, and we are the
predominated servants.
This understanding that God is great and that we are all servants of God
is the essence of self-realization. Self-realization means knowledge of
one’s own identity. The self-realized person must be able to answer the
question, “Who am I?” and since this movement enables one to do so, it
is a movement of self-realization. I am therefore very glad that you are
taking part in it.
We celebrate the Ratha-yatra festival every year. I started the Ratha-

yatra festival here in San Francisco in 1967, and in your great country it
has continued here since then. We also celebrate the same festival in
other cities, such as London. Last year when I was in London, more than
ten thousand people followed our procession from Piccadilly Circus to
Trafalgar Square. Our Ratha-yatra festival was well received. In fact,
there is a great monument in London called the Nelson column, and
because our Jagannatha car was so high, a leading London newspaper,
The Guardian, reported that the car competed with that monument.
So I am glad that in Europe, in America and, indeed, all over the world,
the Krishna consciousness movement is being very well received. A few
days ago, we had a meeting in Melbourne, Australia, in which the
Bishop of Melbourne and many other priests greatly appreciated this
movement. Indeed, they admitted that they can learn a great deal from
it.
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I therefore request you not to consider this movement a sectarian
movement or a cultural import from India, for this is a movement meant
for all humanity. Its purpose is to educate men in such a way that
humanity will be lifted to the brahma-bhuta platform, the platform of
self-realization. Bhagavad-gita says:
brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā
na śocati na kāṅkṣati
samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu
mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām
[Bg. 18.54]
The meaning of this verse is that if you come to the platform of self-
realization, or brahma-bhuta understanding, you will always be jubilant.
By our constitutional position we are meant to be jubilant, and therefore,
despite frustration due to our contact with matter, we are always
hankering for happiness. We have to get out of contact with matter and
come to the stage of self-realization in order to be always jubilant. If
you become self-realized, you will have no more hankerings and
desires. Instead, you will feel, “Now I have everything and am fully
satisfied.” The Krishna conscious devotees here come from the same
country as you, and formerly they also felt frustrated. Now, however,
they feel complete, and that is why they are chanting and dancing.
Dance of Love
This dancing is not the dancing of dogs; it is a dance of feeling. Those
who are dancing are actually understanding God and feeling their
relationship with God. Therefore, their dancing is not ordinary, it is a
dance of love of God. And it is open to everyone who will simply chant
the mahā-mantra:
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Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama,
Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.
You are generally young, whereas I am an old man who may die at any
moment. Therefore I request you to take this movement seriously.
Understand it yourselves and then preach it throughout your country:
People outside America generally follow and imitate what America
does. I am traveling all over the world, and everywhere I see other
countries building skyscrapers and in other ways imitating your country.
Therefore if you kindly become Krishna conscious and chant and dance
in ecstasy, in emotional love of God, the entire world will follow you.
Thus the entire world can become Vaikuntha, a spiritual world in which
there will be no more trouble. Thank you very much!
1176
Appendix Two,
Conversations from India
How Krishna consciousness has gone from
East to West and back again
In March, 1974, hundreds of devotees worldwide gathered in India for a
pilgrimage to the holy cities of Mayapur and Vrindavan. Jayadvaita Das
had the opportunity, after four years, to again have the association of
His Holiness Tamal Krishna Goswami. The ISKCON temple in
Vrindavan was under construction, and Tamal Krishna Maharaja had a
small grass-and-adobe hut nearby, which he used as a headquarters for
chanting, reading, and executing his various Krishna conscious duties.
After Srila Prabhupada first brought some of his devotees to India in

1970, he entrusted Tamal Krishna Maharaja with the responsibility for
overseeing the Society’s various preaching programs in India. Goswami
Maharaja is always eager to talk about Krishna consciousness, and so he
kindly agreed to discuss with Jayadvaita what the movement has done in
India over the past four years.
Jayadvaita Das: There in his hut in Vrindavan, the transcendental land

where Lord Krishna Himself had appeared 5,000 years ago to display
His transcendental pastimes, Maharaja and I spent several mornings
simply talking about Krishna consciousness – and especially Krishna
consciousness in India.
Tamal Krishna Goswami: Srila Prabhupada has said that originally, after
he took sannyasa, his program was that he wanted to preach to the
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Indian people; that was his intention. But although the original culture
of India was a culture of God consciousness, the difficulty was that
when Westerners took over India, they introduced their own
materialistic values and impressed upon the Indians that the Indian
spiritual culture was backwards, primitive, inferior. After years of
Western domination, these ideas began to take hold, and the Indian
people began to think that real progress was to be found in
industrialization and Western materialism. Therefore, Srila Prabhupada
found that people were reluctant to again seriously take up the principles
of spiritual life.
So Srila Prabhupada decided to go to America. He thought that if he

could get some of the materialistic Westerners to appreciate the science
of devotional service as found in the Vedic scriptures – and to actually
become sincere devotees of Krishna, the Supreme Personality of
Godhead – then the Indians would also realize the importance of the
spiritual culture they had given up.
In India people are just starting to get enthusiastic about materialistic

life, but in the West many people are frustrated with empty materialism.
They are starting to realize that just to have bigger and bigger cities,
more cars and more television sets will not necessarily make them
happy. So Srila Prabhupada thought that if he could get some of these
Westerners to become spiritually pure, they could inspire the Indian
people and in this way set off a spiritual chain reaction.
Jayadvaita Das: Srila Prabhupada sees great spiritual potential in India.
Tamal Krishna Goswami: Yes. Srila Prabhupada always used to say,

“My main business is in the West.” But at the same time I could see that
he was spending much of his time here in India. So I could understand
that India must also be very important.
Land of Pious Life
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I remember Srila Prabhupada saying that to take birth in India is a very
rare opportunity. It means that one is very high in the spiritual
evolutionary cycle. We understand from the Vedic literature that the
living being is not actually his material body; he is the spiritual soul
within the body. That spiritual soul is eternal, but because of material
desires, he’s taking birth in one body after another, in various species of
life. The body is temporary, and after the death of the body, according to
one’s consciousness, he takes a new body. In this way, the living being
takes body after body, in 8,400,000 species of life, until gradually he
comes to the human form. Then, in that human form, one gets the
opportunity to cultivate spiritual consciousness, or God consciousness,
and the perfection of that God consciousness is to get free from this
cycle of birth and death by becoming a pure devotee of Krishna, God,
and going back home, back to Godhead. But even if one doesn’t achieve
that perfection, if one makes only partial advancement on the path, he
still gets to come back again in another human body and continue from
where he left off.
It would seem, therefore, if we study the past, that to take one’s birth in
India would be an advantage, because India is traditionally a country of
spiritual culture. It is called punya-bhumi, or the land of pious life.
Many great incarnations of God have appeared in India. For example,
this city of Vrindavan is special because Lord Krishna appeared here.
Therefore, even today there are so many temples of Krishna here, the
people chant Krishna’s holy name, and they’re always hearing and
chanting about the activities of Krishna. So if you happen to be born in a
place where you can see the places of Krishna’s pastimes, hear and
chant His holy names or take food that’s been offered to the Lord, that’s
very auspicious. And Lord Chaitanya said, bharata-bhumite haila
manusya-janma yara / janma sarthaka kari’ kara para-upakara: “One
who has taken his birth as a human being in the land of India should
make his life successful and work for the benefit of all other people.”
Jayadvaita Das: So India is a good place to preach Krishna

consciousness.
1179
Tamal Krishna Goswami: Yes, it’s a very good preaching field. It’s
good because the people are still to some extent Krishna conscious here
in India. Preaching here is not a question of teaching something
completely new; it’s a question of reviving something which is not very
dormant. We say that Krishna consciousness is the dormant God
consciousness within everyone. But here it’s not quite as dormant. It’s
just barely sleeping. You go anywhere and start chanting Hare Krishna,
and right away people join in with the chanting. You don’t have to teach
them these nonsectarian holy names of the Lord, because they already
know how to chant them—Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna
Krishna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.
Purity in the Midst of Confusion

But you do have to overcome the Mayavada influence, the impersonal
influence. That is very strong. In the West, people are innocent. They
are materialistic, but their spiritual tradition is more or less simple and
straightforward because they have faith in only one God, the Supreme
Lord who created everything, and they generally understand that
everyone else is a servant of God. Now originally the Vedic writings
contain the same information found in other scriptures in other parts of
the world, but they also reveal more.
Srila Prabhupada gives the example that two plus two equals four both
in elementary arithmetic and in advanced calculus, but with calculus one
has a more detailed understanding. In the same way, other scriptures tell
us that God is great, but through the Vedic scriptures we can understand
how He manifests His greatness because they tell about His name, form,
qualities and pastimes. The Vedic scriptures also give information that
God has an impersonal aspect, just as the sun has its sunshine, and they
tell us that there are many demigods, who are also living beings like us,
subordinate to God, but who control various functions of nature as a
service to the Supreme Lord. So the Vedic literature is advanced and
comprehensive, and therefore one must be pure to understand it.
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The Vedic culture was originally one of purity, in which the central
point was God consciousness. But it has gradually deteriorated because
we’ve now entered an age of quarrel and hypocrisy, called Kali-yuga. In
this age, which began 5,000 years ago and will last roughly 400,000
more, people are short-lived, their memories are short, their good
qualities are diminished, and their minds are generally agitated.
Therefore, people in this age are generally more inclined toward sense
gratification than spiritual life, and so the high standards of the Vedic
culture, even in India, are gradually being forgotten.
Now, with the combined influence of Kali-yuga and Western

materialism, what’s happened in India is that various so-called gurus, or
spiritual teachers, have twisted the scriptures and confused people by
teaching that there’s no difference between God, the demigods and the
impersonal feature of God. Taking advantage of the innocent people,
they’ve taught that God is impersonal and that we are all one with God.
They don’t distinguish between God in His personal form, God in His
impersonal feature, the demigods and the ordinary living beings. Their
main point is that everything is one and everybody is one. “Everything
is one. But I am the biggest one, I am the leader of the ones, because I
have realized it.” That is their point. And bewildered people subscribe to
these ideas.
These teachings, however, distort the real principle of Vedic spiritual

culture. According to the Vedic scriptures, we are all one with God in
our qualities, but God is great whereas we are very tiny. The example is
given of a golden ornament and a mine of gold. The gold in the
ornament and the gold in the mine have the same qualities, but the
quantity of gold in the ornament cannot compare to the quantity in the
mine. Another example is that of the drop of ocean water and the vast
ocean itself. The drop is qualitatively one and quantitatively different
from the ocean. Similarly, we are one with God in our qualities, but we
are different from Him in quantity because He is very great and we are
very small. The impersonal aspect is also one with God because it is a
part of God, but it is not the complete realization; it is only one partial
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feature of God, and Bhagavad-gita says that it is subordinate to God’s
personal form. The demigods are also servants of God. They may be
more powerful than us, but they are all tiny in relationship with God.
The Vedic scriptures say, nityo nityanam cetanas cetananam: “There is
one supreme eternal living being among all the many eternal living
beings.” There is one Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is known
as Krishna, and everyone else is His servant. That is the original Vedic
principle.
A Sensation Within the Heart

Now, the distorted teachings of the impersonalists and demigod
worshipers, mixed with the upsurge of materialism, have caused
confusion in the spiritual culture of India, but actually that confusion is
only superficial because in their hearts most Indian people still think of
themselves as servants of God. They may sit and hear some lecture by a
big impersonalist scholar, but ultimately you’ll find that when they go
home they have a little altar, and before they eat they offer their food to
Krishna. They sing to Krishna, and they celebrate Janmastami, Lord
Krishna’s appearance day. They love Krishna. And this spirit of
devotion to the Supreme Lord is actually lying dormant in every
Indian’s heart. That is the point.
Jayadvaita Das: It’s just been covered over.
Tamal Krishna Goswami: Yes, in the cities it may be a bit more

covered, and in the big cities the people are often very materialistic, but
in their hearts at least seventy-five or eighty percent of the people are
Krishna conscious. It’s just slightly covered over. Only within the last
couple of hundred years has it been covered over.
Vaishnavism, Krishna consciousness, is very strong in the hearts of

many people, and seeing Westerners taking to Vaishnavism has a
particular effect. It’s like a shock. It produces a tremendous sensation
within the hearts of these people. They almost want to cry. It’s
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something so much pleasing to them that all they want to do is say,
“Please come into my home. Please stay with us.” It’s like that. They
cannot express how happy they are. It’s a very wonderful feeling. That’s
a very developed Krishna conscious spirit. And Prabhupada sees that.
In a battlefield, if someone is very seriously injured and someone is not

so seriously injured, you first heal the one who is not so seriously
injured, because you have a better chance of saving him. These people
in India, at least many of them, are in that position. They can be brought
up to the platform of Krishna consciousness very, very easily.
Of course, when people in India see Western Krishna conscious

devotees, they often feel pride, thinking that we are also becoming
Hindus. Now, we’re glad that they’re pleased by the Krishna
consciousness movement, but actually we have to explain to them that
we are not in fact becoming Hindus. Rather, we are becoming
Vaisnavas, or devotees of the Supreme Lord. This is natural. The soul is
neither Christian, nor Hindu, nor Jewish. The natural, eternal position of
every single soul is to be a servant of Krishna, or God. Therefore, we
tell our Indian friends that we are not trying to spread the culture of one
particular nation, sect or faith. Rather, we want to come to a higher
understanding, an understanding that Krishna is actually the same
Supreme Lord who is within everyone and who is worshiped by
different names throughout the world, and that devotional service to
Krishna is the natural spiritual consciousness that is dormant within
every living being.
An Ecstatic Beginning
So that is the background of the position of India. Prabhupada’s
program for coming to India revolved around a plan to immediately
restore the spiritual balance in Indian culture. In America he had to
present his program slowly at first because when he first came, Krishna
consciousness was a science that no one knew anything about. So he
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started very humbly—”I opened a temple on Second Avenue, and I
chanted in a park”—and gradually he became successful. When he came
back to India, however, the news of his wonderful preaching in America
had preceded him.
The first thing Srila Prabhupada did was to come to Bombay, to a

meeting called the Sadhu Samaj, where all the big sadhus, saintly
persons in India, come together once a year. At this meeting almost
every sannyāsī was a Mayavadi sannyāsī. And then Prabhupada came
on with forty disciples from ten different countries, including Sarasvati,
the three-year-old daughter of an American devotee couple, and just
completely overwhelmed everyone. We all sat down in the third or
fourth row, behind all the big sadhus. This was up on a very elevated
stage, and there were about ten thousand people sitting on chairs on the
ground. The sannyāsīs were all giving lengthy addresses, but I could see
that all the people were straining to catch a glimpse of Sarasvati, of the
foreign disciples, and especially of Srila Prabhupada. They had
practically no interest in these big sadhus.
Finally, after about two and a half hours of lengthy, tedious lectures,
they gave us the nod, and the first thing we did was start a rip-roaring
kirtan. We danced all around those big sadhus, encouraging them to join
in dancing and singing the holy names of the Lord. But they were too
embarrassed to do so—in fact, most of them walked right off the stage.
And we just took over the whole stage, then we jumped to the ground,
and everyone rose up. We didn’t ask them—they just rose up and started
chanting and dancing. All the guards were trying to control them, but
they pushed the guards away, and the people came in and were dancing
with us in ecstasy.
We had kirtan for about half an hour. Finally we stopped and asked
everyone to sit down. Everyone rushed up to the stage. They didn’t even
want to sit down. Then Prabhupada just said, “I do not want to say
anything. I think that this chanting has said everything I could possibly
say. I am not making any claims to have performed any miracles. I do
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not claim to be God. I am simply the servant of the servant of the
servant of God. I am spreading Lord Chaitanya’s message, and this is
the result.” He gave a very humble talk—about two minutes—but it was
just more than anyone could have said. And immediately it was all over
the front pages. Then he told us to go on the streets for kirtan, and
immediately, again, all over the front pages. Our pictures were featured
in all the leading magazines. It was sensational. We were the first
substantial group of Eastern-influenced Westerners to come to India; no
one had ever done this before.
And that was just the beginning. It was followed by the pandal, the first
pandal program in Bombay, which was just unbelievable. This was a
two-week-long Krishna conscious festival in a huge pandal, or
exhibition tent, in Cross Maiden, the central crossroads of Bombay. It
put us in the forefront of public attention.
The Leaders of India

Jayadvaita Das: How did the temples here in Vrindavan and Mayapur
first get started?
Tamal Krishna Goswami: At that time, I remember—it was about three

or four months after we came to India—Prabhupada was searching for
land in Mayapur. “I came to get land in Mayapur.” We had tried to go to
Mayapur to look for land when we first came to Calcutta, but we
couldn’t; the flood waters stopped us from crossing the Ganges to go.
So Prabhupada was thinking, “Maybe Lord Chaitanya doesn’t want me
to establish a temple in Mayapur.” So he sent me to Vrindavan, but we
didn’t get any land in Vrindavan either. He kept saying to us, “You have
to establish yourselves and do something tangible. It will not do if you
are simply known as dancing white elephants.
‘They came, sang, danced—and left.’ You must do something

substantial so that they will say, ‘The Westerners have come, and this is
what they have done.’”
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So Prabhupada was trying for some land, and somehow we finally got
this land in Mayapur and began construction. Then again someone gave
us land here in Vrindavan, so we began constructing a temple here also.
Then we got land in Bombay. The land in Mayapur is in the best
location. You’ve seen it now. It’s centrally located on the main road,
between all the temples. The land in Vrindavan is on the main road,
bordering on three different roads, and it’s in the most serene and
respected area of spiritual importance, where all the ashrams are located.
It’s the best location. The land in Bombay is now said to be worth four
times what we paid for it. It’s said that this area will become like the
Miami Beach of India, visited by millions of people, and we have five
acres. In Hyderabad we were donated land directly in the center of the
city, like Times Square and 42nd Street. And at least 1,000 to 2,000
people come to the daily noontime service, without any advertising.
So we have very nicely situated land, and the leading men of India have
enrolled as members of our Society. Prabhupada has always stressed,
“Get to the leaders of India.” And we have. We count among our life
members the leading industrialists, politicians and professionals of
India, about three thousand of them. We’re establishing different places
with guest houses for them to stay in, as well as guest houses for tourists
from abroad.
A Practical Program for Basic Needs

Jayadvaita Das: The building in Mayapur is wonderful. Westerners like
us can come here, live without inconvenience and advance in Krishna
consciousness. What is Prabhupada stressing for India now?
Tamal Krishna Goswami: Now our program is slowly starting to shift.

Our movement is definitely number one in India. Everyone
acknowledges that there is no other movement so substantial, at this
particular time, as our movement.
Jayadvaita Das: Spiritually.
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Tamal Krishna Goswami: Spiritually! Everyone has now acknowledged
that this is the number-one movement and that Prabhupada is the
number-one guru in the world. The Indian people acknowledge that fact,
clearly. So now that he’s established our movement’s prestige as first
class and has gotten this land, which establishes our structure, he’s
especially working for the benefit of the masses. And the way is by food
distribution. That is the method of approach. Feed a man, give him
Krishna-prasāda and let him engage in the kirtan and ārati. That can
gradually help thousands and thousands of people, not only by relieving
their hunger but by reviving their Krishna consciousness. Because if
anyone comes to our prasāda distribution program, that means he’s
hungry. If he is hungry, that means he can’t listen to philosophy. If his
hunger is not satisfied, he’ll never become Krishna conscious. This is
the point. If we just went around with a program of speaking and kirtan,
they’d come once or twice, but they wouldn’t see its practical value. But
if you give them prasāda daily, with kirtan and speaking, eventually you
can convince them, “Look, this is the most practical way of life. Why
don’t you just live with us completely and work with us?” This is the
program.
Practically speaking, many people in India are hungry. Not only can’t
they afford to purchase the necessary food to feed their families, but
staple foods are no longer available in the larger cities of India. For
example, the major cities Bombay and Calcutta, as well as many other
cities of India, are now passing through. a crisis period, in which there is
no wheat available whatsoever. The basic food, called chapatti, which
goes along with every meal, just as in the West there is bread, is made
from this wheat, but no wheat is available. And when it is available it is
mixed with sawdust. Then, too, the rice being sold is of a terribly
inferior quality. No one even wants to use it. Rice is another basic staple
of the Indian diet. So with such important necessities as rice and wheat
not available, people are literally starving here in India. Therefore we
are organizing on an international basis to bring foodstuffs here to India
that are very plentiful in other countries of the world. We are arranging
for wheat, milk powder and other surplus foodstuffs from America,
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Canada and Australia.
Prosperity Through God Consciousness

Actually, God has arranged the world in such a way that what is short in
one place is plentiful in another. Even within our own countries we may
find in one place a surplus of gold and in another place a surplus of
wheat, but in the place where there’s gold there may be no wheat at all.
Therefore the national economy is run so that there’s a balance, by
bringing products from places where they’re plentiful to other places,
where they’re short. This now should be done worldwide. Actually,
these national boundaries are man-made. God had no such boundaries in
mind when He made this planet. Rather, He wants people throughout
the world to cooperate. So if we want to cooperate with God’s plan, we
must overcome these nationalistic boundaries and bring whatever is
lacking in one country from the countries where it is in plentiful supply.
With this in mind, we are now arranging for these foods to be brought to
India. Of course, we do not hope to immediately feed all the hungry
people of India. But in the major cities, such as Calcutta, Bombay and
Delhi, we can immediately begin to feed thousands daily. And this
program can gradually expand to include more and more people as it
proves successful. We have no doubt that when people begin to eat the
purified food we’ll be serving—which is not merely food but what we
call the mercy of God, or prasāda, since it’s being given as an offering
from God—people will begin to appreciate that God is maintaining
them. In effect, we hope that when people’s hunger is alleviated, they
will be able to listen closely and have enough faith in the fact that God
is their only maintainer and protector. The entire Vedic civilization was
based on this God-centered philosophy. So that has to be restored to
India. If it is, then the peopled of India will automatically once again
take to a very natural, happy and prosperous way of life.
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Appendix Three,
You Can’t Eat Nuts And Bolts
Conversations From India (Part II)
Tamal Krishna Goswami describes how materialism has plundered
India’s valuable jewel of Vedic culture.
Jayadvaita Das: If Krishna consciousness is the background of India,

how is it that India has become known all over the world for being an
economically backward country? In some parts of India you walk down
the streets and see beggars everywhere, people with little or nothing to
eat. Is that the fruit of Vedic civilization?
Tamal Krishna Goswami: First of all we have to ask, “What is a Krishna

conscious Vedic civilization?” If we study the life of a typical villager in
a Vedic community, we may find him living with his wife and a few
children in a thatched hut with mud walls and a dirt floor. He has a
couple of cows, a well and four or five acres of land. The river is
nearby. He may never have gone beyond two or three villages away, but
he’s very happy. He lives to a ripe old age, doesn’t get many diseases,
works honestly in the fields, and has enough milk and grains to eat.
With his extra produce, beyond what he needs to maintain his family, he
may trade for clothing, jewelry and other items. In other words, he lives
a very simple life. And he has sufficient time to cultivate God
consciousness or spiritual consciousness. That is the ideal Krishna
conscious Vedic culture.
The ideal materialistic culture – do we have to go into it? It’s what we

find throughout the world today; that is to say, a culture that has no
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thought of God but is simply based upon accelerating and fulfilling
desires for bodily enjoyment. It doesn’t have anything to do with
fulfilling the needs of the real self, the soul within the body. It simply
deals with the body, the gross material body.
According to the Vedas, the individual is a pure spiritual soul, eternal,

all-cognizant and full of bliss. In his original state, residing in the
kingdom of God, the soul has a spiritual body endowed with spiritual
qualities. But now, living in this material world, the soul is covered by a
material body, which brings with it temporality, ignorance and great
suffering. Vedic culture is concerned with transporting the soul back to
the kingdom of God for a life of eternity, knowledge and bliss.
The Vedas tell you to work enough to maintain a healthy body and a
healthy life for your family and spend the balance of your time
developing love of God, God consciousness. And the work you do is
honest work, using the things given by God, like the ground, water and
sun. No cheating is involved; it is not a cheating process. You have a
just amount, given to you by God, and you use it properly. God supplies
everything you need.
A Cheating Civilization
Actually, God has provided all our natural resources, but today’s
civilization is taking them from Him without any thought of return.
Hardly even a “thanks.” A materialist simply tries to enjoy the body.
Never mind if the resources will run out; never mind where they came
from—just madly chasing after material prosperity. It’s a cheating,
thieving civilization. And very cumbersome, too. Suppose a man lives
in a twenty-five-room house or builds a twenty-five-story building or a
hundred-story building. What is the need actually? Does he need it to
keep alive? No. It has nothing to do with just maintaining the body. It’s
geared for accelerating and fulfilling bodily desires. It has nothing to do
with the essential needs. But most people deem this to be advancement.
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That is the point. So first of all we have to understand what
advancement is. According to Krishna consciousness, advancement
means simple living and high thinking.
Jayadvaita Das: But India now, it seems, doesn’t ever have the simple
necessities.
Tamal Krishna Goswami: Yes, that’s true. But in India now we don’t
find the ideal Vedic culture. When we did fine it, two or three hundred
years ago, it was ideal. You wouldn’t have found people starving to
death. But what happened was this—the first picture the West gets of
India comes through the eyes of the British. The British see India, and
they see a Vedic culture, which is very simple and, in their terminology,
barbaric, backwards, because from the materialistic standpoint anyone
who lives in a mud hut with a grass roof is backwards. If he can’t read
English—of course he may read Sanskrit, but if he can’t read English
he’s illiterate. The Indian people were reading Sanskrit, many of them,
but not English. “Oh, he’s illiterate.” In the same way, one may know
Bhagavad- gita, but if he doesn’t know the Bible he’s irreligious.
So in other words, the whole process of westernizing, India or

materializing India began about two or three hundred years ago. The
Westerners introduced their so- called civilization, with its coffee, tea
and meat eating. They built factories and developed large cities that had
never been developed before. The entire Indian economy had been
based on the villages, but under British rule and then recently more and
more, everything moved toward the city. What happened is that the
Vedic culture broke down. When it was present, the necessities of life
were plentiful; there was no difficulty. But by and by it broke down.
People were encouraged, “Come into the cities to work in the big
factories.” And what is the great advantage of the big factories? Luxury:
an economy with the ultimate goal of material, temporary sense
gratification. And as bodily satisfaction becomes paramount, spiritual
culture fades away. But the actual necessities—fruits, grains, vegetables,
milk—these were not produced by the factories. You can’t eat nuts and
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bolts, you know.
Railway Robbery
Jayadvaita Das: The British built the railroads.
Tamal Krishna Goswami: The British built the railroads to link up all
the big cities so that people would no longer live in villages. The British
induced the villagers to come to the cities to work in the factories. Then
they took all the goods and all of India’s wealth to Britain. Gandhi’s
movement was to stop this. What did Gandhi say? Village industry. Go
back to the village; begin the small, industries. Decentralize,
dematerialize, de-industrialize. He had the intelligence to see that this
was required. But unfortunately by the time so- called independence
came, the people were already materialized to a great extent; enough
people had become so polluted that they could no longer go back.
The materialistic disease eats away at a man’s intelligence so that he

loses the strength to realize his fallen condition; instead, he sees his
fallen position as superior. But how has the city man actually improved
his condition? Has he solved any of the real problems of life, such as
birth, death, disease and old age? No. Does he actually know who he is
—that he is pure spirit soul, not his body? No. So what is the gain? He
lives in a big, comfortable house, complete with all luxuries and a big
bank balance. But at the time of death, how will any of these help him?
Can he take his house or bank balance with him? You see, the material
disease is so bewildering that at the time of death a man clings
desperately to all his possessions. All his life he has identified himself
with his body and his possessions, instead of cultivating knowledge of
the true self, the soul, and the real possession, love of God. As a result
he dies in misery and ignorance, destined for a hellish future. But just as
a crazy man thinks that he’s sane and everyone else is insane, so a
materially diseased person thinks, “I’m very well off, but the other man
is not.” The man in the village? “Oh, barbaric, backwards,
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impoverished.” You see? But the Vedic villager lives simply and
honestly, and with the better part of his time he cultivates spiritual
knowledge. He has real wealth: knowledge of the self, of God, and his
relationship with God.
The Lure of City Life

These people were lured out of the villages, and now they’ve become
completely indoctrinated to believe that a cumbersome, complex society
is more advanced. A society of slaughtering millions of animals to drink
their blood instead of drinking their milk, a society of prostitution, of
living packed together in small places where there’s insufficient air and
space—this is more advanced. But actually, you know, there’s a huge
amount of land in India, enough to maintain not only seven hundred
million people but ten times that; there is that much land. Go traveling
on the train in India, and you’ll find that nearly all of India is
unpopulated except for a few big cities. We hear that people are living
in horrible conditions. But the most horrible conditions exist within the
cities. The people in the villages are still relatively happy.
The fact is, however, that the city life and the city consciousness are
beginning to infiltrate the villages, so that now most of the young men
have left the villages.
Therefore the villagers are no longer farming properly. There aren’t

enough young men to farm properly, so there’s not enough food.
There’s not enough produce. And the intelligent men, the leaders of the
village, the spiritual leaders, are also gone. Everyone is being lured
away into this dream of the city and led to believe that the city is the
panacea that will bring all happiness.
Jayadvaita Das: So the problems in India today are due to lack of a

Vedic, Krishna conscious culture.
Tamal Krishna Goswami: In a Vedic culture, there is no poverty. The
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poverty we see here is not present in a Vedic culture; it’s a consequence
of our modern materialistic culture.
Jayadvaita Das: All right. Because the traditional Indian culture has
been contaminated by Western culture, it doesn’t work. So suppose we
introduce Krishna consciousness and the mass of Indian people, the
intelligentsia of Indian people, take to it. Then what do they do
practically?
Tamal Krishna Goswami: The first thing is that a Krishna conscious

culture, or a perfect society, is based on a varṇāśrama system. A
varṇāśrama society is a community of brahmanas, ksatriyas, vaisyas and
sudras [intellectuals, administrators, farmers and workers]. One of the
first features of Indian culture destroyed by foreigners was the caste
system. This point is very much played up. “India was for so long held
down by the caste system, but now it’s being abolished, and India is
developing.” But what is the caste system? The caste system, Krishna
says, was originally created by Him.
catur-varnyam maya srstam
guna-karma-vibhagasah
“I have created these four varnas according to the qualities and work of
different people.” Krishna, God, says, “I have created these divisions.”
And what are they? The brahmanas are the intelligent men—are there
not intelligent men all over the world? Ksatriya means the protective
class. The brahmana teaches and the ksatriya protects. Is there not a
class of administrators who protect? Vaisya means a farmer, a protector
of cows or a trader. Aren’t there people everywhere who normally do
that? And sudra means one who simply does menial work, assisting the
other classes. So in any country in the world, not just in India but
everywhere, you’ll find these four varnas, or occupational divisions.
Automatically they are there.
By nature, everyone is inclined toward a certain type of work, and
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therefore the purpose of the varṇāśrama system is to define the duties of
each division, so that everyone will have his own work to do and
everyone can work cooperatively in a peaceful and progressive society.
Without these four divisions, there’s no question of a civilized society.
There are so many societies—human society, animal society, plant
society and so on. But only the human society is considered civilized.
Why? Because a human being can regulate his life to achieve a higher
purpose. The so-called caste system is therefore meant to regulate
human society in such a way that everyone can be prosperous and at the
same time God conscious. So what is the question of destroying these
divisions? You cannot destroy them; it’s not possible to destroy them.
They represent natural divisions of labor, divisions of work. So the first
point is that if we’re going to restore the culture of the Vedas, if we’re
going to restore prosperity to India, we have to clearly define divisions
of human society and establish them properly.
Natural Divisions
What is the greatest attack upon the caste system? Its critics say that it
holds a man back. It unfairly gives preference to one community above
another. Now, anyone who says this has not understood the actual
varṇāśrama system. In its modern, polluted, materialistic form, the caste
system holds people down, but the actual system of the Vedas is not like
that. According to the actual Vedic system, the different duties required
within any community or society must be given to persons who are
naturally meant to perform them. For example, in your body there’s a
head, there are arms, there’s a belly, and there are legs. It’s not that
there’s only a head, only legs or only arms. All are needed for a healthy
body. Similarly, in a healthy social body, there are those meant to teach,
those qualified to provide protection and administration, those inclined
toward agriculture and those needed to help the others. All are given
equal respect as being necessary for a healthy social body. So, similarly,
all have an equal right to develop love of God. Everyone is respected on
the worldly plane as being required for a well-rounded society, and
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everyone is respected on the spiritual platform as a servant of God.
Panditah sama-darsinah: a learned person sees with equal vision a
brahmana, an elephant, a cow, a dog and a dog-eater One who has Vedic
vision sees spiritually, so he sees all living entities as equals. Therefore
in the Vedic varṇāśrama system all living entities were given an equal
opportunity to develop Krishna consciousness. One caste was never
superior to another. In the eyes of God, everyone is equal, so in the eyes
of a Vedic man also, everyone is equal.
We have to restore the caste system on the Vedic basis. For instance, we
must train qualified teachers. Instead, society now has teachers who are
not at all qualified. Teaching means giving knowledge. And what is
knowledge? One should know spirit, matter and the creator of both.
That is real knowledge. Knowledge should not simply deal with
materialistic subjects. To have complete knowledge means to also know
about spiritual subjects, especially about God, who has created
everything. So where is the qualified man? The teachers who are now
teaching have no knowledge of God. And where is the institution where
knowledge of God is available? The universities offer, courses in every
field of material research, but we hardly find even one course in the
science of God or the science of the soul. In fact, because of separation
of church and state, you’re not allowed to teach about God.
The Brains of Society

So, first of all, we want to create a community of brahmanas. Those who
can understand God, the spiritual world, the soul and the material world
should be considered the brain of the social body. They should give
advice. To whom? To the administrators. And who are the
administrators? They’re those who know how to maintain a Vedic
society, how to implement the teaching of the brahmanas practically.
The brahmana teaches that God is the center of the state because He is
the original proprietor of everything within the state. Actually this is not
an exaggeration.
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From the Vedas we learn, isavasyam idam sarvam yat kinca jagatyam
jagat: everything within the universe is controlled and owned by the
Lord. Why? Aham sarvasya prabhavo mattah sarvam pravartate:
because He is the source of all planets and because everything is
emanating from Him. As the creator of everything, from huge planets to
minute atomic particles, God has natural proprietary rights. We are only
secondary proprietors because we’ve gotten everything from Him on a
loan basis. Since He is the real master, whatever we have should be used
in His service. Everything should center around service to God.
Everyone is a servant of God, and if the master is satisfied, all the
servants will automatically become satisfied because the master gives
full protection and maintenance to his faithful servants. That is what the
brahmana teaches. And the ksatriya gives directions to practically
implement that understanding. “All right, let the farmers go out and
bring home the produce. Let it be offered to God and then be distributed
equally to all. Let the brahmanas be maintained for their teachings. They
shouldn’t have to take up any other employment. Let them simply teach
and be given enough to maintain themselves. And the sudras, who are
helping all the other communities—let them also get enough; give them
a fair share of what they farm. See that everyone has proper living
standards, see that everyone is instructed properly, see that everyone is
protected from attack, and see that Krishna is always being served.”
That is the business of the ksatriya. And what is the business of the
vaisya? He should see that the animals are protected, the fields are being
worked and the land is productive. Krishna has created the earth and
given it to man—”Here is a gift; take care of it.” Since it is actually
God’s land, it should be used as He intended. That is the business of a
vaisya—to take care of Krishna’s earth and produce from it. Krishna’s
giving is complete, om purnam adah purnam idam. It can provide
enough to maintain everything if it’s dealt with properly. That is the
business of a vaisya—to use the land properly. And the sudra’s
business? To serve all the others. And for that service, because the
sudras are so faithful, they are maintained completely by the other three
orders. If a sudra does menial service for a brahmana, the brahmana
takes care of him. If he’s employed by a vaisya, the vaisya will take care
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of him. The sudra is like a child. You simply take care of him nicely.
There is nothing wrong with this: everyone becomes happy. So this is
our program. This is an ideal community.
Beyond the Barriers of Birth

Jayadvaita Das: In modern India, caste seems to be determined by birth.
The caste you’re born into is the caste you stay in. But can there be
changing also? What would you say about that? Could someone in the
family of a sudra, for instance, become a brahmana?
Tamal Krishna Goswami: These castes are not fixed according to birth.
A man can be born in a sudra caste and be elevated to the highest
position of a brahmana. It’s according to his ability. If he’s qualified,
there’s no stopping him. It’s not something fixed; it’s according to the
nature of a person and the work he’s doing. Suppose your father is a
judge on the Supreme Court, does that make you also a Supreme Court
justice? No, of course not. You have to be properly qualified. It’s not a
question of heredity. The caste system simply means a system of
division of labor.
Jayadvaita Das: Suppose we reinstitute the varṇāśrama divisions, with

Krishna conscious teachers, Krishna conscious administrators, and so
on. What is the next step?
Tamal Krishna Goswami: Lord Chaitanya has shown the way. He

instructs: harer nama harer nama harer nama eva kevalam / kalau
nastyeva nastyeva nastyeva gatir anyatha. The Vedic scriptures explain
that history progresses in cycles of ages, and the age we’re in now is
called Kali-yuga. In the Kali-yuga, the best way to attain the perfection
of life is to chant the holy names of the Lord: Hare Krishna, Hare
Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama
Rama, Hare Hare. There is no other way, there is no other way, there is
no other way. Lord Chaitanya repeats “there is no other way” three
times, just to emphasize the point.
1198
In previous ages other methods were recommended. Each age has
different conditions, both in the people and in the environment, and,
accordingly, an appropriate method for achieving the truth is
recommended. In this age the sankirtan- yajña, the chanting of the Hare
Krishna mantra, is perfect. All the divisions of society may cooperate to
perform it successfully. Sankirtan means chanting God’s name
congregationally for the well-being of the nation and the well-being of
all the citizens. And yajña means sacrifice—everyone must sacrifice.
The vaisyas should bring abundant amounts of grains, fruits, vegetables
and milk products from the fields. The ksatriyas should pass laws
encouraging all the citizens to take part in the sacrifice. And they should
see that each person offers his services fully, according to his
occupation. The sudras may assist in every way possible. And the
brahmanas should lead everyone in chanting the holy names—Hare
Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare
Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. The Vedic scriptures confirm this:
yatah pravrttir bhutanam yena sarvam idam tatam sva-karmana tam

abhyarcya siddhim vindati manavah
By worship of the Lord, who is the source of all beings and who is all-
pervading, man can, in the performance of his own duty, attain
perfection. [Bg. 18.46]
This, then, is the culmination of Vedic society. Everyone working for a

common goal: to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is
the perfection of life. If India once again takes up the Vedic way, there
will be no limit to, her prosperity, no end to the people’s joy. And why
just India? Let the whole world join the sankirtan movement of Lord
Chaitanya and chant, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna,
Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.
Let everyone perfect life’s mission and go back home, back to Godhead.
[End]
1199
Table of Contents
Dedication 10
Acknowledgements 11
Foreword 15
Introduction 20
Preface 29
Prologue 37
First Wave, 42
Broadway Bound 42
Vrindavan, October 15, 1972 42
Boston, October 1972 47
New York, October 1972 49
Philadelphia, October 27, 1972 56
Atlanta, November 1972 61
Govardhana Puja 1972 63
Vrindavan, November 1972 64
Atlanta, November 1972 66
Dallas, November 1972 75
New Orleans, November 1972 78
Bombay, December 1972 80
Miami, December 1972 81
Los Angeles, December 1972 94
Second Wave, 98
South of the Border 98
Florida, January 1973 98
Gainesville, Florida, January 1973 105
Philadelphia, February 1973 117
1200
New Orleans, Louisiana, February 1973 120
Houston, Texas, March 1973 127
Mexico, March 1973 129
Austin, Texas, March 1973 139
Dallas, March 1973 141
St Louis, March 27 1973 145
Third Wave, 156
The Kidnapping of Ramacharya 156
Mayapur, March 1973 156
New York, April 5, 1973 159
Boston, April 13, 1973 168
Philadelphia, April 1973 173
Pittsburgh, April 1973 181
Detroit, April 1973 187
Chicago, April 1973 190
Denver, April 1973 196
Los Angeles, May 1973 198
Laguna Beach, May 1973 206
Fourth Wave, 218
High School Confidential 218
San Francisco, May 1973 218
Portland, Oregon, May 1973 233
Seattle, May 1973 260
Vancouver, Canada, May 1973 264
Denver, May 29, 1973 270
New Vrindavan, June 1973 271
Fifth Wave, 273
Bikers and Brahmanas 273
New Vrindavan, April 1973 273
1201
Louisville, Kentucky, May 1973 276
New Vrindavan, June 1973 280
Philadelphia, June 1973 312
San Francisco, June 1973 317
Rathayatra, July 1973 324
Sixth Wave, 341
The Mayor’s Race 341
Summer 1973 341
Chicago, August 1973 344
Detroit, August 1973 348
New York, August 1973 351
State Fairs, 1973 352
New Vrindavan, Janmastami 1973 363
Atlanta, Georgia, September 1973 368
Atlanta, October 1973 383
Nashville, Tennessee, October 1973 386
Dallas, Texas, October 1973 390
Seventh Wave, 395
The Blazing Inferno 395
Los Angeles, October 1973 395
Houston, Texas, November 1973 408
Phoenix, Arizona, November 1973 412
New Mexico, November 10, 1973 415
Houston, Texas, November 12, 1973 428
Dallas, Texas, November 1973 431
New Vrindavan, November, 1973 433
New Jersey, December 1973 448
Los Angeles, December 1973 451
Eighth Wave, 462
1202
Big River 462
Pasadena, California, January 1974 462
Bombay, India, January 1974 466
Miami, January 1974 471
New Delhi, India, January 1974 474
Jaipur, India, January 1974 482
New Delhi, India, January 1974 485
Allahabad, India, January 1974 486
Patna, February 1974 495
Mayapur, February 1974 511
Vrindavan, India, March 1974 521
Bombay, India, March 1974 522
Ninth Wave, 526
Back in the USA 526
New York, March 1974 526
Miami, Florida, March 1974 529
Key West, Florida, March 1974 536
Atlanta, Georgia, April 1974 541
Boone, North Carolina, April 1974 545
New York, April 1974 554
Bombay, India, April 1974 555
San Francisco, California, April 1974 561
Seattle, Washington, May 1974 568
New York, May 1974 571
Vancouver, Canada, May 1974 573
Chicago, May 1974 585
San Francisco, May 1974 586
Dallas, Texas, May 1974 589
Tenth Wave, 591
1203
A Garland of Jivas 591
Los Angeles, June 1974 591
San Francisco, June 1974 602
San Francisco, July 6, 1974 641
San Francisco, July 7, 1974 646
Eleventh Wave, 663
No Grand Opening 663
San Francisco, July 1974 663
Minot, North Dakota, July 1974 671
ISKCON Chicago, July 1974 681
Ann Arbor, Michigan, August 1974 690
Vrindavan, India, August 1974 704
San Francisco, August 1974 707
Jagannath Puri, Orissa, August 1974 708
New Vrindavan, August 1974 717
Vrindavan, India, August 1974 731
New Vrindavan, August 1974 733
Twelfth Wave, 736
Steps and Missteps 736
Boston, August 13, 1974 736
Vrindavan, August 13, 1974 738
Boston, August 16, 1974 742
Philadelphia, August 1974 758
Philadelphia, September 1974 769
Washington, DC September 1974 780
Thirteenth Wave, 802
On the Wings of a Prayer 802
Virginia Beach, October 1974 802
Denver, Colorado, October 1974 809
1204
Berkeley, California, October 1974 812
Los Angeles, October 1974 828
San Diego, November 1974 834
Los Angeles, November 1974 847
Govardhana Puja, 1974 852
Fourteenth Wave, 861
Escapade on Esplanade 861
Arizona, November 1974 861
Texas, November 1974 868
New Orleans, November 1974 873
Bombay, India, December 1974 881
Gainesville, Florida, December 1974 884
Miami, Florida, December 1974 895
Miami, Florida, December 1974 913
Sidney, Australia, February 1973 920
Melbourne, Australia, December 1974 922
New York, December 1974 924
Fifteenth Wave, 930
Faults and Faultfinders 930
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, January 1975 930
Brooklyn, New York, January 1975 937
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, January 1975 939
Key West, Florida, January 1975 949
Fort Lauderdale, January 1975 955
Gainesville, Florida, February 1975 963
Chicago, February 1975 983
Sixteenth Wave, 990
1975 World Tour 990
Honolulu, Hawaii, February 1975 990
1205
Mexico City, Mexico, February 11, 1975 998
Caracas, Venezuela, February 19, 1975 1006
Atlanta, Georgia, February 1975 1009
Miami, Florida, February 25, 1975 1014
Houston, Texas, February 1975 1021
Atlanta, Georgia, February 27, 1975 1024
Atlanta, Georgia, February 28, 1975 1025
Atlanta, Georgia, March 1, 1975 1034
Atlanta, March 2, 1975 1039
Dallas, Texas, February 1975 1055
Seventeeth Wave, 1058
The GBC Meeting 1058
ISKCON Dallas, March 3, 1975 1058
Austin, Texas, March 5, 1975 1069
Phoenix, Arizona, March 1975 1074
Los Angeles, March 1975 1078
Calcutta, India, March 1975 1087
Sridhama Mayapur, March, 1975 1089
Mayapur, March 27, 1975 1094
Mayapur, March 31, 1975 1131
Mayapur, April, 1975 1132
Eighteenth Wave, 1140
The Ultimate Triumph 1140
Los Angeles, March 1975 1140
San Diego, April 1975 1141
Hyderabad, India, April 11, 1975 1145
Vrindavan, April 15, 1975 1147
Krishna-Balarama Mandir, April 20, 1975 1153
Los Angeles, May 1975 1162
1206
Appendix One, 1170
Elevation to Ecstasy 1170
Age of Fighting 1171
Universal Movement 1173
Dance of Love 1175
Appendix Two, 1177
Conversations from India 1177
How Krishna consciousness has gone from East to West and
1177
back again
Land of Pious Life 1178
Purity in the Midst of Confusion 1180
A Sensation Within the Heart 1182
An Ecstatic Beginning 1183
The Leaders of India 1185
A Practical Program for Basic Needs 1186
Prosperity Through God Consciousness 1188
Appendix Three, 1189
You Can’t Eat Nuts And Bolts 1189
Conversations From India (Part II) 1189
A Cheating Civilization 1190
Railway Robbery 1192
The Lure of City Life 1193
Natural Divisions 1195
The Brains of Society 1196
Beyond the Barriers of Birth 1198
1207

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Table of Contents

The Inner Life of Vishnujana Swami & Jayananda Prabhu

Readers interested in the subject matter of this book are invited to

Copyright 2013 Per Sinclair - All Rights Reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or

Sections of this book excerpted from the recorded conversations,

lectures, and letters of Srila Prabhupada, and all photographs are

Copyright Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International.

In association with Transcendental Art Associates

As I began traveling and conducting interviews, I realized that the

Consequently, my initial goal developed into a whole new project: a

Therefore, he handed all his research material to me and begged me to

The cornerstone of the mountain of information at my disposal was the

It was surprising to discover how many people figured prominently in

In a few instances, I had to resort to secondary sources to give particular

In addition to the interviews, the Bhaktivedanta Archives was another

I was fortunate to receive Vishnujana Swami’s original kirtan, bhajan,

Of course, I am always indebted to my editors, Braja Sevaki Dasi, and

At a certain point, it became obvious to me that the direction of the book

Throughout the book I have adopted certain conventions, like using

Last, but certainly not least, I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to my

– Vaiyasaki Das Adhikari –

The initial stages of this spiritual journey were effectively and

Time is mysterious: In some cases, it changes things drastically. Milk

The subject of Radha-Damodara Vilasa transcends time – in a sense. It

The answer is disarmingly simple: The work of this movement and of

Jayananda, too, inspires this magical experience, but mainly through

As the years have passed, Vaiyasaki has himself developed a reputation

Although spiritual advancement is not limited by time constraints, a

Although I am the lowest of men and have no knowledge, the

śrī-caitanya-prasādena tad-rūpasya vinirṇayam bālo ‘pi kurute śāstra

By the mercy of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, even a foolish child can

Mahamaya Dasi wrote something terribly wrong about Vishnujana

Both the families of Vishnujana Swami and Jayananda Prabhu received

As Sri Krishna states in the opening verses of Bhagavad-gita, Chapter 6,

In the first volume there wasn’t much of Vishnujana Swami’s actual

In the early days of the movement, everything was progressing through

Srila Prabhupada adopted quite a liberal approach with his young

In San Diego, he elucidated further. “Conservative means unnecessarily

In this volume, the sannyāsī leaders of the Radha-Damodara party,

Some readers may be disturbed by the actions of Tamal Krishna

Tamal Krishna was frequently the recipient of Prabhupada’s heavy side

Sri-Sri Radha-Damodara arranged the perfect balance – Vishnujana

As Advaita Acharya demonstrated, receiving the mercy doesn’t always

mahānubhāvera cittera svabhāva ei haya puṣpa-sama komala, kaṭhina

In the text, Tamal Krishna Goswami’s name is sometimes shortened to

To reassure such people, I point out that the friendly nomenclature

For the next generation, however, it would be disrespectful, because it is

The target audience for Radha-Damodara Vilasa is the devotee

Radha-Damodara Vilasa may be the first book that a devotee a hundred

I also want to reveal that the Supreme Personality of Godhead came to

Prabhupada was very much enlivened by the Radha-Damodara traveling

dekhi’ nityānanda prabhu kahe bhakta-gaṇe ei-rūpe nṛtya āge habe

Upon seeing the chanting and dancing of Lord Sri Chaitanya

Srila Prabhupada’s purport:

“This prediction of Sri Nityananda Prabhu is applicable not only in

Prabhupada’s comment appears to be a direct reference to the Radha-

Srila Prabhupada continues:

Apparently, this comment is a warning for all devotees to dedicate

Therefore, I owe the greatest debt of gratitude to these two stalwart