Ramakeli das Remembers Srila Prabhupada

Following Srila Prabhupada

Interview DVD 09

Ramakeli: I had gotten a magazine at a concert, John McLaughlin and his Mahavishnu Orchestra, and the devotees gave me this magazine and said, “This is Mahavishnu.” After coming to the temple for the first Sunday Feast, I continued to come. I never missed one Sunday Feast. I kept going and started chanting regularly and attending the classes. And on Friday after I got off from work, I would get on the train and try to make it to the temple and stay there all weekend. Devotees would drop me off on Monday at the train station. They would be going on Harinam and I had to go to work, and finally I said, “I don’t want to go to this job. I want to stay and chant with the devotees.” Finally, after that I joined. We were going on book distribution. I traveled from Chicago to St. Louis to Texas to Oklahoma, Arizona, and all the way up to Los Angeles, and I ended up staying in Los Angeles. But somehow I still wasn’t convinced by the devotees’ behavior. A couple of things happened that were a little disturbing. So I said, “Prabhupada is coming to Chicago. So I am going to go back to Chicago and meet Prabhupada, and I’ll know then for sure whether I’m going to stay in Krishna consciousness or whether I am going to leave.” I took the bus back. It was a very hot three-day ride on the bus. We were painting the temple and waiting for Prabhupada to come, and finally the day arrived. The devotees were going to the airport. I also wanted to go but they told me that I couldn’t go, I had to keep on cleaning the temple and getting everything ready for Prabhupada to come. When the car was on the way back, they called and said, “OK, Prabhupada is on the way. All the devotees should get ready to have kirtan out in the front.” So we went outside to wait, and the car pulled up and Prabhupada was sitting in the back seat. They opened the door and Prabhupada got out, and immediately on seeing Prabhupada uncontrollable tears came down my face. I didn’t think I was a crybaby type but something…it was just uncontrollable, I couldn’t control it. But then I knew that actually “Yes, this is the messenger of God.” I was completely convinced from that point that Prabhupada was definitely Krishna’s representative. There was no doubt about it. So I said, “OK, Krishna, I’m not going anywhere.” And I made a vow at that time that I would continue to serve Prabhupada regardless, no matter what happened in the long run, whoever went, whoever stayed, that somehow or other I would continue serving Prabhupada.