Ballavhi: In 1974 my husband, Balavanta, and I went to the Chicago Ratha-yatra where Prabhupada was presiding. In his lecture, Prabhupada explained to the audience why Lord Jagannath came to the United States. He said, “Actually, Lord Jagannath has come to your country because Jesus Christ was a great devotee of Lord Jagannath.” He further explained that it does not matter which names of God that you chant. You can chant the name of Christ or you can chant the name of Krishna. The important thing is to chant the names of God. That was Srila Prabhupada’s way of letting everyone in the audience know that chanting the Holy Names of God is for everyone no matter what their denomination.
Before I got initiated in 1971 in Atlanta, Prabhupada gave a class with all the devotees present, and he asked, “What are the ten offenses?” Jadurani raised her hand and said, “Well Prabhupada, the first offense is to not blaspheme the pure devotee of the Lord.” Prabhupada checked her and said, “No. Any devotee who is sincerely chanting the Holy Names and trying to spread the Holy Names, they should not be criticized in any way.” In relation to this, when a devotee asked, “Well, Prabhupada, how can we repay you?” Prabhupada said, “Actually, the disciple cannot repay the spiritual master.” He said, “But, if you want to try to repay the spiritual master, you can do that by preaching.” Then he explained how there are four ways of preaching. One can preach by his life; one can preach by example; one can preach with his words or with money. So my understanding was that any devotee who is sincerely preaching, in whatever capacity they’re wanting to preach and spread Lord Chaitanya’s sankirtan movement, there should be no criticism. Prabhupada really wanted to illustrate the point that we not only do not blaspheme the pure devotee, but any devotee who is sincerely trying to preach Lord Chaitanya’s movement and spread the Holy Names.
It was 1973 or ’74 when my husband, Balavanta, ran for mayor of Atlanta. In one of the letters from His Divine Grace, Prabhupada was very much appreciating his preaching. He wrote, “This is what I want and I am so pleased with you because you are preaching ‘As it is’ without compromising the philosophy.” He said, “Never mind that you don’t get many votes. That does not matter.” He said, “When one tries to shoot the rhinoceros, if he does not shoot the rhinoceros, no one criticizes because they say, ‘Oh, who can shoot the rhinoceros anyway?’ But then if one does shoot the rhinoceros, then that is very nice also. So either way, it does not matter. Just that you are trying your best for Krishna. That’s what’s important, and that’s very pleasing to me.” I try to remember that when sometimes I feel like, “Oh, I’m not doing so much to help Prabhupada.” But then I think of that instruction that just so long as I’m trying my best, Prabhupada is pleased and that is what matters.
I would say Prabhupada’s instruction that more important than vapu, the physical association of the guru, is vani, is what has kept me inspired on my devotional service path through all these years. When I was a devotee of one month, I went to New Vrindavan for the Janmastami festival. It was at that time several sannyasis there were giving some wrong information about the philosophy. They began speculating that Srila Prabhupada was actually God. I remember everyone, including myself, was bewildered about this new philosophy. I reflected on it and I thought that was not my understanding of what Prabhupada was saying in his books. I believe it was the Nectar of Devotion where Prabhupada was talking about how the spiritual master is supposed to be honored as good as God. I remember asking the sannyasis during this discussion in the temple room, “Well, does that mean that all the spiritual masters in the disciplic succession are God?” There was not an answer to the question and I had to reflect within my own self what Prabhupada said in the Nectar of Devotion. I came to the conclusion that the spiritual master, the pure devotee, is to be honored as good as God, because in quality he is as good as God. But he’s different from God. Just like what Prabhupada said that we’re simultaneously one and yet different from Krishna. In other words, the philosophy in Prabhupada’s books has always been my main inspiration as well praying to Prabhupada for guidance. Sometimes there are so many different things that are said or done that can lead one to be confused. But Prabhupada has said, “I am always with you. I am always with you in my teachings and in prayer. I’m always with you.”
