Remembering Srila Prabhupada - My Memories of Srila Prabhupada - Blog - ISKCON Desire Tree

My Memories of Srila Prabhupada

The only time I had eye-to-eye contact with Srila Prabhupada was at Bhaktivedanta Manor, I think 1976, during a darsana in Srila Prabhupada's room. Somehow Srila Prabhupada's glance fell on me, and I was bold enough to hold it. Srila Prabhupada did not exactly look at me, but into me. I felt ashamed at all the bad things he was seeing. But there was also concern.... Srila Prabhupada's glance rested on me for a second only, then turned elsewhere. I will never forget it.

At the end of one of his darsanas, I gave a little gift to Srila Prabhupada. I saw that all the other devotees were giving Srila Prabhupada very nice gifts. I had read in the Nectar of Devotion that one should offer to the Deity something that is dear to oneself. I had hardly any possessions except my clothes and toothbrush. But I did have a small, unframed photo of London- Isvara, the Deity of Krsna in our central London temple. It was dear to me. So I decided to give it to Srila Prabhupada. Actually I should have got it framed and nicely wrapped, but I did not know any of these things. Nor as brahmacaris did we have any personal money. In those days, for a brahmacari to have his own money, even to buy a gift for Srila Prabhupada, was just not proper. Different devotees were standing in line at the end of the darsana room to offer their obeisances to Srila Prabhupada. One devotee in front of me gave a flower. Then I gave this photo and I offered my obeisances. I hoped that Srila Prabhupada might have acknowledged, but he simply touched the photo to his head and did not say anything.

- From the "My Memories of Srila Prabhupada" by HH Bhakti Vikas Swami

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