Vishvadevi devi dasi Remembers Srila Prabhupada

Prabhupada Memories

Interview 01

Vishvadevi: When I received my Gayatri mantra, there was not a pujari in Amsterdam. When I walked into Prabhupada’s room, there was a beautiful glow from the sunlight coming through the window as he sat behind his desk. He asked me to come and sit next to him on his right side. He started reading the mantra out loud, and he asked me to repeat after him, and then he showed me how to count on my fingers up to ten for each line of the mantra. I got it right for the first line, putting the finger at the exact place in the joints of my right hand. And just before I was to leave, after he explained the entire mantra, he asked me to show him again how to count. This time, however, I got it wrong. It was then that I got my first lesson from Srila Prabhupada to not be proud, which is one of my many shortcomings.

One time in Vrindavan Srila Prabhupada found out that Balaram’s plough, which was made of silver, was stolen from the altar, and it was the second time this had happened. The head pujari said, “Well, it was stolen by some rascal and that person will have to suffer for stealing from Krishna.” Prabhupada said, “Yes, but you will have to suffer half the consequences.” He said this because the theft occurred under the pujari’s watch and he was supposed to be responsible for that service. He facilitated the thief and enabled him to steal the plough. So that was a pretty heavy lesson that we have to take responsibilities seriously.

To view the entire unedited video go to Memories 73 - Bhakti Caitanya Swami, and the UK Yatra.

The full Prabhupada Memories Series can be viewed here and also at www.prabhupadamemories.com

Following Srila Prabhupada

Interview DVD 08

Vishvadevi: After everyone had darshan when the Deities opened in the morning for Mangala-aratik, then they went to their respective altars. The women had Radha and Krishna, and the men had Krishna Balarama and Gaura-Nitai. When in Mangala-aratik having darshan, at some point I turned around and then there was Prabhupada with two or three other devotees with him, one secretary or something. But all I know is that it was amazing to turn around and Prabhupada is standing…you know how there are some steps. So he could not see very much, I suppose, being down from those steps and having the women standing, turning our back to him, not knowing he was here obviously. I found out from Upendra afterwards that he was there for almost 10 minutes. Somebody was going to come to tell us to move; but when they tried to do that, Prabhupada said to just leave it. Here is Prabhupada probably not seeing very much, and he just stood there with all our backs to him. And had I not turned around and seen him, no one would have moved away. It touched me.