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The sastras enjoin, "One can never know the mind of the acarya." Since this is true, then how can we know Prabhupada? How can we share his inner life in those pleasant homecoming days of December 1967 and January 1968 in San Francisco? In one sense we cannot. As Krsnadasa Kaviraja says, "I do not know the deep meaning of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's activities. As far as possible I shall try to explain them externally." But sometimes Prabhupada reveals himself directly in his own words: "I have returned by Krsna's grace. I am fit to serve you." We can enter his thoughts through his spoken words. Through those who knew him and lived with him, we have another intimate approach to Prabhupada's life. How they saw him and how they dealt with him-often this is as close as we can get.

Mukunda: It was in this period that Prabhupada went to visit Mr. B. K. Nehru, who was a big Indian government official. I drove Prabhupada to the St. Francis Hotel in a beat-up old Ford with the name Krsna stenciled in multicolors in three different places on the car. The St. Francis Hotel, of course, is a very elite hotel. We arrived at the front door and there was a doorman. I got out and asked him if we could leave the car in front of the hotel for about fifteen minutes. Somehow, I don't know why, he immediately agreed to look after the car. We went up to one of the top floors of the building to a very beautiful suite. Mr. Nehru greeted us. He was wearing Western clothes. I was also wearing Western clothes, and my head wasn't shaved. Mr. Nehru's wife was also there. I sat on the same couch as Prabhupada, with Mr. Nehru in the middle and Prabhupada on the other end.

In the beginning they spoke English. Prabhupada reiterated some of his past life history and mentioned that he had had a pharmacy called Prayag Pharmacy. He had met Mr. Nehru in India, and Mr. Nehru acknowledged that he knew about the pharmacy. Prabhupada then explained how he had taken sannyasa. I noted that Prabhupada was very warm and friendly. It was a side of him that I had never seen before. Not that he hadn't been warm and friendly, but to a nondevotee person, I had never seen him quite in such a friendly attitude. I was totally intrigued to see how open and almost intimate Prabhupada was becoming with this man. I noticed that Prabhupada was presenting himself as a mendicant, a sannyasi.

And then the rest of the conversation took place in Hindi. It was a wonderful time for me to observe the facial expressions and gestures and the great depth of feeling with which Prabhupada communicated, because I had to try to guess what he was talking about. In fact, I was always speculating on what he might be saying. Then of course Mr. Nehru and sometimes his wife would interject remarks-all in Hindi. I was spinning enormous fantasies about what they all might be talking about. Prabhupada had introduced me as Michael Grant, secretary, and I was sitting on top of the world from the beginning of the conversation. I felt that I had a stake in the conversation, that maybe Mr. Nehru is not aware that I am not understanding. I was very tuned in to the mood of the conversation even though I was not understanding it, but thinking that maybe I was understanding part of it, and trying to act as if I might know something about what they were saying. At some point in the conversation I was getting very involved in my fantasies of what it was about, and I heard the words missionary work come from Prabhupada. He stopped and looked at me momentarily-there was a beat, and then the conservation resumed. I then realized that I had really been tuned in by that. Prabhupada was asking something. Then, later in the conservation, he said in English, "But one word from you," to Mr. Nehru. Then Srila Prabhupada's eyes opened wide and he paused, and I believe he looked around at me at that time. Then after a somewhat awkward silence, the conversation resumed again. Then I knew that Srila Prabhupada was really asking for a favor and that he was letting me in on this by saying it in English. I felt that all I could do was try to look very serious and important somehow, such that this man would think that by my presence, as an American disciple, he could see that Srila Prabhupada was doing great things by converting us Westerners to Krsna consciousness. Somehow I wanted to help. But I didn't know what it was, so I couldn't say; and I just tried to play the part that Srila Prabhupada seemed to want me to play in this transcendental game. Then the conversation became very convivial and the subject had changed.

Later the wife of B. K. Nehru came forward and called Prabhupada "Swamiji" and said something in Hindi and gave him something wrapped in tin foil. It was about the size of a small apple. Then they exchanged words, and Srila Prabhupada was very warm and cordial with Mrs. Nehru. On the way out I asked Prabhupada first of all what the conversation was about. He was very vague but said it was about some land that he had been trying to get in India, I think in Vrndavana. It may have been in litigation, I don't know, but he was asking Mr. Nehru's help. I asked whether he was going to help, and Srila Prabhupada was again rather vague about it, but he indicated that he felt the meeting was successful, or at least a step in the right direction. Then I asked about Mr. Nehru's wife, whether she was European or what, and Prabhupada said, "No, she is a Parsi." Then on the ride back Prabhupada opened the tin foil, and in it was a huge date, the biggest one I have ever seen in my life. And he took it out and took a big bite out of it and then offered me the rest, which I took, of course!


- From "Prabhupada-lila" by HH Satsvarupa dasa Goswami