ISKCON—Montreal

Dear Srila Prabhupada,

Most insignificant Montreal Yatra bows down a thousand times at the lotus feet of Your Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in a joyous celebration of the most sacred day of Your appearance on this earth planet. Blessed be that day on which the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krsna, displayed His causeless mercy on these most difficult times of Kali-yuga by showering upon mankind the pure sparks of knowledge and devotion, Your Divine Grace. Let the whole world rejoice in the shelter of Your lotus feet, for You are delivering love of God across the boundaries of mountains and oceans, across the barriers of races and nations, and past the breeding grounds of speculation and sectarianism. You have sounded the transcendental conchshell of devotion and God's army has gathered, vibrating the most holy sound of Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

Though we cannot serve and Your blessing do not deserve, we take shelter of Your divine lotus feet, O our spiritual master, knowing You to be the direct representative of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Sri Krsna.

In the year nineteen sixty-eight of the Christian Era, Your Divine Grace sanctified this northern corner of the world with Your soft lotus feet. You took Vaikuntha-loka from Your heart and installed it in an abandoned bowling alley at the foot of Mount Royal, Montreal's Govardhana-like Hill. You touched the finger of love of God on this city, a fester of godless enjoyment. Into the jaws of Ste-Catherine street, a modern Aghasura, amidst the clatter and screech, cow eating, illicit sex, gambling and deadening intoxicants, You sent children of God chanting nicely the transcendental call of Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, with saffron robes flashing in the sun, chattering of karatalas and sweet pounding of mrdahga drums, and even through rain and snow they chant and dance ecstatically. "Mais qu est ce que c'est?" "It's sahkirtana, Hari Bol! The life of all transcendental knowledge! See how miserable is this world: one season we are freezing, the next we are sweating; here there is only flickering happiness, birth, old age, disease and death. Come to Vaikuntha, where you can be eternally blissful and full of knowledge." And by Your mercy they come. The temple is scented with fragrant spices, incense and flowers; there is constant singing and dancing for the Absolute Person; there is sumptuous feasting on the remnants of holy prasadam; there are transcendental plays and blissful discussions on the sublime science of devotional service; Lord Jagannatha is smiling, and the spiritual masters of the disciplic succession seem to drink the nectar of that smile. O people of the world, just cast aside for a moment the snares of speculation and doubt and taste the sublime nectar of devotion to the Lord at the lotus feet of His Divine Grace! The ocean of gratefulness of the devotees knows no shore and could only be expressed in wondrous joy and tears of ineptitude. There was no creeper of devotion within our hearts, just dry ashes and accumulated dust, but You planted the seed, and under Your direction we shall go on trying to glorify the Supreme Personality of Godhead and indulge in the hope that we will always guard against offenses at Your lotus feet. With the watering process of chanting, the creeper of devotion will affirm itself and steadily grow to eventually produce the ripened fruit of love of Godhead, the goal of human life.

Jayate Srila Prabhupada.

ISKCON-Montreal