Srutakirti set about quickly unpacking Srila Prabhupada's bags. He placed Prabhupada's pen and his tilaka set on his low desk along with his compact mirror used when Prabhupada applied his tilaka, the large Sanskrit Srimad-Bhagavatam volumes and the reel-to-reel tape recorder and dictaphone. Srila Prabhupada placed his small white travel bag next to the cotton-covered bolster cushions behind the desk.
Towards mid-morning, Prabhupada decided to take his daily massage in the backyard. It had been raining, but the sun now shone. Srila Prabhupada and Srutakirti descended the old wooden fire escape at the rear of the building.
A young brahmacari, who was still sweeping the stairs rapidly collected dirt while walking backwards down them. He reached the last step with a shovelful of dust as Prabhupada's feet simultaneously touched the ground level. Prabhupada looked down and smiled. "Thank you very much," he said.
Until the previous day, the backyard had been a solid expanse of concrete. Ian, a slightly deranged young man, had suddenly decided to plant a lawn and had dug up the entire area only twelve hours before Prabhupada's arrival. The devotees had frantically removed the rubble and hastily laid a base of sand and gravel, along with a raised pathway of loosely-placed bricks.
Having a little prior notice of the massage plans, someone had placed a Belgian-style rug topped with a soft white towel in the centre of the yard. Many devotees stood around at various vantage points, and watched as Prabhupada unselfconsciously undressed for his massage. He slipped off his sandals and wrapped the reddish-checked gamcha around his waist. Then he took off his saffron silk shirt and expertly allowed his dhoti to drop under the gamcha.
Before sitting down, Prabhupada glanced across at the side wall adjacent to the building next door. There, leaning against the wall were the huge wooden wheels from the Ratha-yatra cart. Prabhupada turned to a devotee and said: "These should be covered, otherwise they will become rotten. That is Lord Jagannatha's paraphernalia. It is nondifferent from Him. Please look after it."
Someone went to get a tarpaulin cover. Prabhupada, his golden-brown skin glowing under the morning sun, sat down. Srutakirti, also dressed in a gamcha, knelt before him and began the massage, using mustard oil for Prabhupada's body and sandalwood oil for his head. Devotees, now lined up on and below the upstairs veranda, watched the transcendental scene.
Tania, a sister of one of the young temple brahmacaris, was visiting at the invitation of her brother. Whilst Prabhupada's massage was in full swing, Tania chanced to walk by. Glancing up at her from his mat, Srila Prabhupada gestured for her to come over.
"Do you have any questions?" Srila Prabhupada asked earnestly.
Tania was taken aback. "Yes, I have so many. So many questions, I don't know where to start."
"Then just ask one," said Srila Prabhupada encouragingly.
Tania thought for a moment. As a pursuant of various quasi-spiritual doctrines, she quickly formulated a question. "Do you have cosmic consciousness?"
Prabhupada answered decisively: "No, I have Krsna consciousness." He explained that if one becomes conscious of Krsna, then everything else, including consciousness of this cosmic manifestation is included. Tania listened attentively. After a few minutes, Prabhupada's massage resumed in full swing and Tania excused herself.
After massage, Srila Prabhupada returned upstairs for his preferred bucket bath, whilst efficient Srutakirti, who had started cooking Prabhupada's lunch before the massage, checked on its progress.
By the time Srila Prabhupada had returned from his bath, Srutakirti had laid out Prabhupada's underwear, clean dhoti and kurta on his bed, organised his tilaka set on his desk, and returned to the tiny kitchenette to cook chapatis.
- From "The Great Transcendental Adventure" by HG Kurma Prabhu
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