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Later in the afternoon, Tusta Krsna Swami arrived from New Zealand. He and his followers continued to practise Krsna consciousness separate from the Auckland temple. Giving Prabhupada a glowing report of the activities of his farm and city preaching in Auckland, he invited Srila Prabhupada to visit them when he came the following week. Prabhupada accepted his invitation.

In the evening, the devotees set up a television in Prabhupada's room for him to watch the broadcast of the morning's TV interviews. Since Mike, Carol and their crews were both from different television networks, a lot of channel switching was required to catch both interviews. In the meantime, Prabhupada was confronted with a good deal of mundane television. Srila Prabhupada expressed little emotion with the litany of depressing news that rolled by on the screen: "Financial crisis in the Victorian dairy industry"; "Pay disputes continue to cripple the Australian Wool industry"; "Melbourne still in the grips of its driest Autumn for fifty-three years".

Mike Barron's interview never went to air. Carol's was very short -- only brief excerpts of what Prabhupada had actually said were broadcast. Nevertheless, Prabhupada was happy, since throughout the segment the producers had inserted brief intervals of devotees chanting in kirtana.

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The devotees chanted with great vigour and enthusiasm at the 7pm kirtana in the temple. Afterwards, Srila Prabhupada gave another extempore class on Bhagavad-gita, Chapter 9, verse 2, explaining how Krsna consciousness could solve all problems. He made reference to the TV news: "We are manufacturing so many ways of happy life, this 'ism', that 'ism', that plan, this plan. So many plans. We are seeing suggestion, so many suggestions, in the television. 'This is the problem. This is the problem. That is the problem.' Full of new, new problems, new, new suggestions. But because we are lacking this raja-vidya, the king of knowledge, we are perplexed. But if you know that Krsna is the root cause of everything and if we serve Krsna, then every problem will be solved immediately."

Tania Perera had associated with devotees since her first meeting with Srila Prabhupada at the former Melbourne Temple in St. Kilda three years previously. She regularly attended Prabhupada's classes and actively took part in question and answer sessions. After class, as Prabhupada stood to leave the temple, Tania humbly approached Srila Prabhupada and presented him with a gift of a gold chain, and an accompanying letter. Prabhupada graciously accepted the offering, much to Tania's joy.


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