The Day I Met Srila Prabhupada || Memories of Srila Prabhupada Series - 02

18 Sept 2021 · 5 min

Watch on YouTube

4:48

In this first‑person recollection, the speaker narrates how he first visited an ISKCON temple in Montreal during Labour Day weekend 1967 while studying in Toronto, and how a subsequent invitation led him to meet Srila Prabhupada on June 1, 1968. He describes his initial duties (cleaning Prabhupada’s apartment), his observations of Prabhupada’s saintly demeanor, scriptural knowledge, and friendly yet straightforward nature. The speaker notes his lack of prior exposure to Indian spiritual traditions, his introduction to concepts such as Vṛndāvana, Māyāpur, and Lord Caitanya, and his distinction as Prabhupada’s first Indian disciple in the West. He also mentions Prabhupada’s three‑month stay in Montreal, his desire to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness among Indians, and brief interactions with other devotees.

Chapters

Jai Jai Jagannatha! I first came to an ISKCON temple on Labor Day weekend, 1967, in Montreal. I was studying in Toronto. And I had come for the weekend to visit Expo. And I casually asked one of my friends, "Is there any Hindu temple in Montreal?" He said, "Yes, the Americans have opened some temple here. Why don't you visit it?" So I went to the Montreal temple on Labour Day weekend, '67. And I took part in the Sunday program. The kirtan just went on and on and on and on. And as I was leaving the temple, they had a visitor's book in which I wrote down my name and address. And after returning to Toronto, I started getting a letter every month informing me about the schedule and asking for donation. And in May '68, I received a letter, "Our Swamiji is coming to Montreal on June 4th, '68. Please come and meet him." So I was planning on relocating back to Montreal in any case, and I arrived in Montreal on May 31st, and the first assignment the temple president gave me was to clean Prabhupāda's apartment, because Prabhupāda was coming the next day. And Prabhupāda resided at 420 Prince Arthur. So I had the privilege of meeting Prabhupāda. On June 1st, 1968. And I had almost no exposure to sadhus in India. In fact, there was one Bengali gentleman, Mr. Mukherjee, who used to come to meet Prabhupāda regularly. He would tell me, "Oh, this sadhu is different." Anyway, as time went along, I could see that Prabhupāda was a genuine saint. He quoted from the scriptures. He never said something of his own. He was very— he was like a real well-wisher, very friendly, and he wanted everyone to be happy. But he knew that real happiness will only come if you follow the scriptures. And Prabhupāda was always straightforward. And in those days, there were not so many devotees. Prabhupāda actually stayed in Montreal for 3 months. He had some green card problems in America, so he had to go out of America. And he came to Montreal on June 1st, and he stayed on till August '68. And in those days, Leaders from different parts of America would regularly come to meet Prabhupāda. As I said, I had zero exposure to sadhus. I had never been to Vṛndāvana in my life. I had never even heard of Vṛndāvana or Māyāpur before I met Prabhupāda. And I had never heard of Lord Caitanya. The brief introduction about Prabhupāda was given to me by the Bengali gentleman who said, "I've touched the feet of many sadhus, but he looks special." And as I said earlier, Prabhupāda also gave me a lot of attention. I was Prabhupāda's first Indian disciple. In the West. And Prabhupāda had a strong desire to also preach to the Indians. He wanted them to take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Actually, there was one Indian who had joined from Buffalo, but he didn't stay for long.