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Remembering Srila Prabhupada - Nandini

Nandini

Himavati dasi, Hansaduta's former wife, is also here in Vrndavana, staying at Bhagatji's house. She, Bhagatji and a German devotee, Hrmati dasi, all came to see Prabhupada in the evening to show him Hrmati's newly-born baby. Her husband, Atmavidya dasa, is driving from Germany to India with another bus. Their child, a girl, was born on Vyasa-puja, Srila Prabhupada's own birthday.

Laughing, Himavati eagerly came forward and placed the baby right on Prabhupada's lap. Prabhupada grinned as the baby began to squirm a little. "Oh, so small!" he said, his eyes opening wider. Himavati leaned forward and gently rubbed the baby's head against Srila Prabhupada's foot. Hrmati, on the other hand, was a bit nervous because the child wasn't wearing a diaper.

Bhagatji was in his usual jovial mood. He informed Prabhupada that the child had a very similar horoscope to that of Prabhupada, as she was born at almost the same time. Prabhupada's birth time was approximately 4:00 p.m. and the baby was born at 4:51 p.m. Bhagatji then asked Srila Prabhupada to name the child.

"Nandini," Prabhupada said without hesitation.

Hrmati hadn't heard the name before, so she asked what it meant.

Prabhupada smiled and said, "There was so much excitment around that day for Nanda Maharaja because it was the day after Krsna's appearance."

Having little Nandini on his lap invoked recollections of his own childhood, because for a few minutes Prabhupada happily recounted some of his own pastimes. Among other things, he told us that as a boy he really liked trains.


- From "A Transcendental Diary Vol 4" by HG Hari Sauri Prabhu
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