My father had a sudden brain stroke in March 2015 and was rushed to the hospital where he was operated twice. He was in a coma for some time, then he appeared to recover slowly, but was not able to talk. So my mother and sisters couldn't communicate with him. Eventually after a few months his health became worse and worse. He died in August last year (2015). My mother arranged for a catholic funeral and I also performed the shraddha ceremony in September. We were shocked by his sudden departure at the age of only 68. At the same time I was having some relationship problems so I fell into big depression. I wasn't chanting much or not at all for about 7 or 8 last years, because I tried to pursue my material desires, lost faith in the power of the maha mantra and disappointed with ISKCON to some degree. But I was so desperate in October, I was willing to try anything to get me out of my miseries. So I decided I would try to chant a few rounds of the maha mantra again because I couldn't think of another therapy for my troubled mind. And after a few days of chanting I realized how much chanting helped me so I continued chanting every day and gradually increased the number of rounds to 8, 9 and finally back to 16. After that I decided to start reading Srila Prabhupada's books again for the first time after some 10 or 12 years. Then I felt even better when I realized how much I have forgotten, how much of my intelligence maya took away when I stopped reading and chanting. I felt wonderful, just like 23 years ago when I first met the devotees when everything was so new and blissful. My relationship problem seemed much smaller.
An amazing thing happened the next month while I went on a short vacation. While I was chanting very early in the morning, I suddenly thought about my father and the next moment I FELT AS IF HE WAS THERE IN THE HOTEL ROOM WITH ME! I didn't see him of hear him, but somehow I could hear his every thought. I felt we communicated through the heart, I'm not sure how to describe it really. Such a thing never happened to me before or since. I could hear/feel my father's mind beg me to forgive him for all the bad things he had done to me. I told him not to worry, I forgive him everything. But he was still insisting, he said he was really sorry for everything, kept asking for forgiveness and I kept reassuring him in my mind. Finally I told him also verbally. I was crying during the whole few minutes while this conversation was going on. It was the most emotional experience of my life. Finally the last thing he told me was that now that he's on the other side, he realized that HARE KRISHNA IS THE BEST THING IN THE WHOLE WORLD! And that further confirmed what I've already been feeling myself for the last 4 weeks when I started practicing Krishna consciousness again after a long time.
After that he left and I didn't have a similar connection with him. But I could still feel him helping me for the next few month in my life.
I have to also mention that while he was alive, he never liked Krishna, he was very much against my practicing Krishna consciousness at home or in the temple.
ys Jagat-Prasu das
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