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Camp: Mayapur

Towards evening, Prabhupada's room was packed with devotees, including those from Australia, armed with gifts, happy just to be sitting in Prabhupada's presence. Bali-mardana gave his report on the proposed new Sydney temple. He admitted that although it was in a good location, only minutes from the city centre, and looked good from the outside, it needed considerable work inside.

The conversation turned to farms. Prabhupada stressed to Bali-mardana the economic necessity of cow protection.

"You must do it. The other day I was explaining that from an economic point of view, even if the cows do not supply, still, they should be protected. Because that stool and urine is also useful. Cow is so important. They'll eat and they'll pass stool and urine. That is also important. If they supply milk, it is very good. From that point of view, we should give them protection."

Bali-mardana told Srila Prabhupada more about the new farm in Murwillumbah. "There is a house on the property just for you, so when you come there the house is waiting. It is a very peaceful place for translation, and there is no winter. It's 75 degrees in the winter -- very nice. In the summertime, 85 degrees -- a little hotter. But it rains. Summer is a rainy season, two or three months of the year."

Prabhupada asked if it was near the sea. Bali-mardana explained that it was 19km from the ocean, and it was twenty-five minutes from the airport, so the farm was very easy to get to. "It is right near all of the resorts where the Australians go for their beach holidays during the winter months."

Prabhupada seemed impressed with the location. "One can get a good appetite?" he asked with a grin. "Nowadays I cannot eat."

Bali-mardana assured him that he could.

"Anyway," Prabhupada added, "you maintain cows and get ghee."

Bali-mardana recalled the time that he and Prabhupada were flying from Perth to Sydney in 1971. "When we were flying over Australia when you first came there, you pointed down and you said, 'You just get some land here and maintain cows'."

Prabhupada was surprised. "Oh, yes. You remember it."

"Yes," said Bali-mardana. "So I was thinking, 'I must fulfil this instruction'."

Prabhupada nodded. "Purnam idam. Everything is complete by the arrangement of Krsna. Simply we mismanage. That's all. I do not know why people are engaged with politics, fighting and so on. By Krsna's grace everything is complete. You eat sufficiently, you become strong and keep your health good and chant Hare Krsna. This is the arrangement. These rascals, they have created 'civilisation' -- simply animosity -- fighting, politics. This is Kali-yuga. Kali means simply unnecessarily fighting. There is no need of fighting, but they'll create a situation for fighting. That's all. Why politics? Why so much discussion, barking in the United Nations? Krsna has given the formula. Annad bhavanti bhutani.

"In America, Australia, Africa, they can produce so much grain, that ten times the population as it is now can be maintained. Similarly, Australia can produce ghee. So by Krsna's arrangement everything is all right, the economic problem [fixed]. Why they create this situation and occasionally fight and finish the whole thing? Such a rubbish civilisation. Raksasa, unnecessarily increasing military power and spending all the revenues."

More Australian devotees squeezed into Prabhupada's small room, armed with gifts. Hari-sauri, indicating their offerings, said. "I think all the Australian devotees have brought some ghee for you." On cue, the devotees started piling up 2kg cans of ghee on Srila Prabhupada's desk, along with tins of full-cream powdered milk and boxes of fresh honeycomb.

Srila Prabhupada smiled. "Just see. Krsna has given so many nice things in Australia, and they are doing killing business. Just see how fallen. This is their civilisation. They have got such nice things to eat, but they are making business by killing. How insane. Killing is done by the uncivilised men when they are hungry. But when there are so many nice things to eat, why they should kill? Australia can produce huge quantity of ghee."

Yet more devotees squeezed into the impossibly crowded room, adding their offerings of "liquid gold" to the large pile on Srila Prabhupada's desk.

Prabhupada turned to his senior men. "This ghee should be distributed in all our Indian centres."

Sabhapati presented a photograph of the Gaura-Nitai Deities cast in the Melbourne temple the previous year, and now installed on his travelling bus. Prabhupada studied the photo.

"Hmm. The face is not very good. It is improportionate. Anyway," he assured, "this is an attempt. It will improve by doing more work."

A young man in saffron cloth edged forward. Bali-mardana introduced him to Srila Prabhupada. "This is Balarama, the president of Melbourne temple. He is also a pujari." Balarama handed Srila Prabhupada some recent pictures of the gorgeously dressed Melbourne temple Deities on their white marble thrones.

Prabhupada gazed at them lovingly. "Melbourne temple. Gaura-Nitai is wonderful. Hmm. Very nice. Thank you very much."

Such exchanges with their spiritual master, although brief, made all the austerities of spiritual life worthwhile. The devotees basked in Srila Prabhupada's presence for a while longer. Then they left, and enthusiastically danced and chanted for their first evening arati ceremony before the golden forms of Sri Sri Radha-Madhava.

Meanwhile, Prabhupada sat peacefully on the wide, cool veranda, listening to the resounding kirtana, as the moon rose over the holy land of Mayapur.


- From "The Great Transcendental Adventure" by HG Kurma Prabhu