Satsvarūpa dāsa Gosvāmī, GBC-Pacific Northwest, Dallas

Namaḥ-obeisances. Before you came, Srila Prabhupada, there were no real obeisances. As children, we submitted to the guidance of our parents and society's overseers, but as we grew up we rejected their leadership. I know in my own case I submissively imbibed allegiance to conventional religious belief and nation-worship-and later found the objects of obeisances to be false, hypocritical, blind. Some of us in hopelessness then made "obeisances" to marijuana, LSD, hippy life radical politics, or to more respectable material gods-but all were later exposed as cheaters. But in rendering utmost respect to you, we honor love and spiritual wisdom personified. Bowing down to you again and again is natural and proper. Why? Because you are the confidential servitor of Lord Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Lord Krsna's greatness demands we make repeated prostrated obeisances when faced with His inconceivable, unlimited opulences as the Supreme Controller, the resting place of the innumerable souls and the source of all material and spiritual universes. You, Srila Prabhupada, are the proven representative of Lord Krsna, and in making obeisances to you we honor and please Krsna Himself. And because you alone have so kindly come and expertly taken us out of our abysmal suffering condition (samsara-davanala-liḍha-loka) we personally thank you and bow at your feet, begging to be maintained by you in eternal devotional service to the Supreme Lord Krsna.

om-address. As our spiritual master you have taught us how to address you and how to address the Supreme Personality of Godhead through you. Otherwise, as we did not know how to make obeisances, so we also did not know how to address you or the Lord. So you have given us this Srila Prabhupada praati, and it is completely right and fitting.

visnu-padaya-unto him who is at the feet of Lord Krsna. Because you are most humbly taking shelter at the feet of the Supreme Lord, therefore you are the greatest person in human society and therefore we follow your example and instructions. We consider the dust of your feet the most treasured crown. You do not act outside of Krsna's devotional service, and you always remain confident of the protection He extends to the surrendered soul. This is no mere figure of speech, but you have demonstrated your surrender as the boldest and the most successful world-acarya ever, on behalf of Lord Krsna.

krsna-presthaya-who is very dear to Lord Krsna. Because you are taking shelter of Krsna's lotus feet, therefore you are very dear to the transcendental Lord. One who is dear to Lord Krsna is very rare (sa mahatma sudurlabhaḥ), and he is like an auspicious touchstone who can turn whomever he meets into another rare devotee of Krsna. You are speaking Krsna's eternal teachings throughout the world in millions of published books. Thousands of dedicated bhaktas are surrendered to you and engaged by you in full-time preaching of Lord Krsna's glories. You have induced the whole world into chanting "Hare Krsna!" Anyone with intelligence can understand that you are krsna-presthaya, very dear to Krsna.

bhū-tale-on the earth. You are preaching here on the earth, the planet of death. Lord Krsna sent you here. You came to 26 Second Avenue, New York City, the earth, and the East Village newspaper proclaimed your mission with the front-page headline: "Save Earth now!". You are the saviour of the earth, and therefore you live amongst us, although you have nothing to do with the earth, being entirely spiritual. But because you are engaged in preaching you are moving all over this earth planet and informing us, "You are not this body, which is nothing but earth, water and fire. You are all eternal spirit souls; you belong to Krsna and the spiritual world." It is no exaggeration to say you bless the earth wherever your lotus feet touch.

srimate-all beautiful. This describes Lord Krsna, and it is also the address preceding your name. You alone, out of so many gurus and yogis, teachers and leaders, carry the eternally youthful beauty of Krsna. The Krsna Book describes that Devaki became the most beautiful to behold when Krsna was residing in her womb before His birth. You also are pure and beautiful to behold, bearing Krsna's Holy Name in the prisonlike atmosphere of 20th century Kali-yuga.

Bhaktivedanta-svamin-A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami. Not just "gurudeva" we praise, or "the spiritual master," but the one Srila Prabhupada who is the object of our personal prayer and homage, the only one, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Keeping your name is our claim to Lord Krsna's attention. We will always go on chanting your name in Srila Prabhupada Pranati; your name is directly the holy name and can be chanted as such.

iti namine-who is named. Jaya Srila Prabhupada!

namaḥ-obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada! All glories to Srila Prabhupada! All glories to Srila Prabhupada! All glories especially to his vani. But all glories to his personal darsana as well, soft as a rose, and hard as the thunderbolt.

te-unto you. Our devotional service is rendered not to Lord Krsna directly, but unto you. Prasada means offering foodstuff first unto you. The vows of brahmacarya and sannyasa are made unto you. Grhasthas' regulated promises are unto you; and their children are rendered unto you. Offerings of life, money, intelligence and words are unto you, and the entire sankirtana movement is rendering service unto you-every book and every dollar collected is rendered unto you. And because you are visnu-padaya, we know for certain that whatever we render to you goes lovingly directed to Krsna's lotus feet. There is no Krsna prema unless it is bhakti unto you.

sarasvate deve-servant of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami; spiritual master. We have heard the greatness of our grandfather spiritual master, your guru maharaja. He was a lion-guru, and on his order you came to the West and saved us. Here you are impressing on us that you are the meek servitor of your spiritual master. You ask us to pray to you in your connection with Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami. You are our lord and master and yet you are the servant of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami. "Whatever little success I have achieved," you've told us, is coming from your believing a hundred percent in the words of your spiritual master. You have complete faith in Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada. We cannot understand your intimate relationship with your spiritual master, but we aspire to worship you in your obedience to his order. That you are his servant is also the secret of our success; we want to help you carry out the order of your guru-maharaja, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, and thus please him.

gaura-vai-the message of Lord Caitanya. This is the substance of your teaching. Scholars may say Caitanya Mahaprabhu was a great Vaisava saint of long ago, five hundred years past, but He is not still completely with us as we push on Caitanya Mahaprabhu's sankirtana movement on your order? Yes, Caitanya Mahaprabhu is living in this Hare Krsna Movement-Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. You are delivering His message undiluted, and it is being appreciated more and more by young men who are joining you, as well as by learned scholars, as the highest contribution to all living entities. And you have demonstrated in your seventeen volumes of Caitanya-caritamrta, with forcible logic and Vedic evidence, that Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Lord Krsna Himself, the cause of all causes.

pracarine-who are preaching. You have well earned retirement millions of times, but you go on preaching. Sometimes you are so weak you cannot stand, you cannot eat, but you go on preaching. "Help the suffering humanity. They are all in ignorance and cannot understand that there is another life. Give them Krsna." It is only rascaldom if we claim not to understand our duty as your disciples. I heard you myself at one initiation, as you handed the sannyasis their daḍas: "Now preach! Preach! Go preach!"

nirvisesa-from impersonalism; sūnya-vadi-from voidism. Previously we did not even know the disease, although we were inflicted. Now we are cured and equipped to fight all kinds of Mayavadis. You have trained us all expertly. "I am simply praying," you have said, "for the mercy to be able to fight on behalf of Caitanya Mahaprabhu."

pascatya; western; desa-countries. The further west you go in India, people are most like asses, said Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Narada Muni described the western gate of the body as the source of degradation through unrestrained sexual proclivity. But now Krsna consciousness is firmly implanted in the West. "The brainwashing books are already there." It is spreading like an epidemic. We can eventually see the day when the West becomes pious under Krsna consciousness. The blind man and the lame man are cooperating. It is all because of your preaching, on the order of Lord Caitanya and Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami.

tarine-who are delivering. Please engage us always in your sublime devotional service. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

Satsvarūpa dasa Gosvami
GBC-Pacific Northwest, Dallas