Srila Prabhupada was not just a teacher, but also a teacher of teacher's for the modern age. He translated more then 70 Vedic books into english and honored by many leading scholars. He taught and led by example, embodying the knowledge that he conveyed. He is recognized as 'Prabhupada'- one at whose feet the others masters sit.
Srila Prabhupada was an authorized spiritual teacher is an unbroken succession that can be traced back to God himself - and His appearance was predicted. Sages in the line have learned and taught the pure wisdom of God's original instructions for millennia and include Vyasa, the author of the sacred scriptures and Caitanya - The propagator of the holy name of the Lord.
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada came to New York in 1965 and in twelve short years made the chanting of 'Hare Krishna' known throughout the world. He started a spiritual revolution wherein devotion, simplicity and compassion became the direction for living. Coming from a lineage of self-realised teachers, Srila Prabhupada gave a fearless exposition of devotional wisdom which had been kept locked within India for centuries.
The special position of Srila Prabhupada is that his appearance, mission and teachings were predicted by ancient sages and masters:
“My commander-in-chief devotee will spread the chanting of the holy names around the world.”
― Caitanya Mahaprabhu [1], 500 years ago
“Very soon a great personality will appear who will spread Krishna consciousness all over the world.”
― Bhaktivinode Thakhur [2], a great Vaisnava saint, in 1881
“After 5,000 years of this age have passed, the great sage and worshiper of my holy names will appear and spread the chanting of my names throughout the world.”
― Lord Krishna [3] in Brahma-vaivarta Purana, 5000 years ago
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (1896-1977), founder-Acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, is the extraordinary person who dedicated his life to teaching the world about Krishna consciousness, ancient India's most noble message of spiritual wisdom.
In 1965, at the age of 69, on the order of his spiritual master Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura, representing a line of teachers dating back to Lord Krishna Himself, Srila Prabhupada sailed from India to New York to share Lord Krishna's message. He brought with him a trunk of books, $7 in change, and the firm faith that the holy name of Krishna would transform the hearts of people he would meet. In the years that followed, he founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), traveled and taught throughout the world, opened more than 100 temples and inspired thousands of devotees.
He wrote over forty volumes of translation and commentary on such classics as Srimad-Bhagavatam (Bhagavata Purana), Chaitanya-charitamrita, and Bhagavad-gita. He wrote not only as a scholar but as a consummate practitioner, teaching by the example of his life. Throughout his works, Srila Prabhupada's mood was to convey the natural meaning of the scriptures without far-fetched interpretations, giving us an authentic rendition of the Vedic conclusions on such important topics as the purpose of human life, the nature of the soul, consciousness, and God.
From 1966 to 1977, despite his advanced age, Srila Prabhupada circled the globe fourteen times on lecture tours that took him to six continents. Though no longer physically present among us, he lives forever in his instructions, books, videos and audio recordings, and in the hearts of those whose lives he touched
The word ‘guru’, a trendy marketing term in the West for someone whose expertise has garnered them some followers, actually derives from the ancient Sanskrit language meaning ‘teacher’.
In the original Vedic culture the teacher was a saintly person, whose role was indispensable in guiding the spiritual progress and development of the disciples or students by instructing them in particular ceremonies, rites of passage and enlightening them about material and spiritual realities, and their real purpose of life.
Srila Prabhupada is one of the world’s greatest gurus in a succession of gurus. His profound ability to impart a traditional spiritual culture on foreign land is testament to his efficacy as a guru. His expertise is visible in making ancient wisdom relevant to modern man and demystifying spiritual truths with insightful explanations and analogies. His capacity to understand the innate nature of his students and those who encountered him left deep impressions on the psyche of people of all ages and from every country across the globe.
Thousands of people from all over the world became his followers and students. However Srila Prabhupada was no ordinary teacher, his role and mission had been predicted by ancient sages and thus he is recognised as an acharya – ‘teacher of teachers’. The acharya is also recognised because he implants a change in consciousness of society and starts a worldwide movement, which Srila Prabhupada did.
As an astute scholar of ancient Vedic wisdom, he translated more than 70 books into English, and these books are now available in over 75 languages with more than 450 million distributed to date. He was honoured by many Eastern and Western scholars for his philosophical astuteness and scholarly presentations, especially his translation of the philosophical treatises like Bhagavad-Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam. An acclaimed literary giant, his depth of knowledge was incomparable.
Despite managing a worldwide movement, Srila Prabhupada still expressed personal care for his disciples who describe him as a benevolent father, an affectionate friend, and a deeply compassionate master. He often signed-off his correspondence with the words, “Your Ever-well-wisher”, indicative of the unconditional love a teacher has for his student’s progress.
Srila Prabhupada was one of the world’s greatest teachers because he embodied the knowledge that he conveyed. He taught by example. Thus every moment in his presence was a personal lesson. The genuine spiritual teacher does not attract followers by promises of cheap material rewards or shows of mystic power. He gives them the ultimate knowledge that liberates them from the material world. Therefore his greatness is recognised in the awarding of the honorific title –Prabhupada – ‘prabhu’ meaning ‘master’ and ‘pada’ meaning ‘feet’ – translated as ‘one at whose feet all the other masters sit’. [ Source : prabhupada.net & krishna.com]
Once a person challenged me that Srila Prabhupada often said he is simply repeating what he had heard from his spiritual master and the previous teachers. “By his own admission”, the man reasoned, “Srila Prabhupada had nothing original to contribute. Isn’t he hackneyed and what’s his relevance if he hasn’t given us something unique?”
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