Madhuha das Remembers Srila Prabhupada
Prabhupada Memories
Interview 01
Madhuha: It was very difficult to go on a morning walk, and if you were not initiated, there was no chance at all. But I remember one day when I had yet to be initiated, a devotee named Arjuna said to me, “Just get in the car. We are going.” We got in his car and ran so many red lights in order to catch up with Srila Prabhupada on his walk in Waikiki on the beach at Ala Moana. This is the famous beach where Prabhupada looked out and said, “the sufferers,” when he saw the surfers. But on this particular walk, one of the devotees, who was a temple commander in Honolulu, was complaining to Prabhupada, “Prabhupada we have some devotees who just want to read Krishna Book all day long.” Prabhupada said, “Oh, very nice, very nice.” The temple commander said, “Oh, no Prabhupada, you don’t know what I mean. They don’t want to do any service, but they are just reading Krishna Book all day long.” “That’s very nice reading…” “No, no. They are not doing service, like helping in the temple.” Then Prabhupada said, “Yes, when you are in the hospital, you have to follow the doctor’s instructions.” What I realized was that Srila Prabhupada certainly did not want us to be simply book salesmen, he also wanted us to read his books and understand them, while at the same time, he wanted his temples to be maintained. They were his temples that needed to be taken care of, so the two activities of reading and doing seva to maintain the temples were essential parts of our sadhana. |
To view the entire unedited video go to Memories 64 - The New Talavan Clan +3
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