The Hare Krishna Movement

HOW WAS PRABHUPADA RECEIVED IN MEXICO

A memory by Citsukhananda das

I didn’t expect so many people. But literally there were five to six hundred people in the temple room and more were standing outside, and they were all very, very much anxious to see Srila Prabhupada. So Srila Prabhupada gave a wonderful lecture. I wish I could remember some of the things that he said, but one of the things they asked was, “Why do you wear these marks on your forehead?” And he said, “So this is simply to make people chant Hare Krsna, that when they see these marks on our foreheads they will remember, ‘Oh, that is a Hare Krsna devotee.’ And therefore they are beginning to chant, and by chanting they can become happy. The only way to become happy is to chant. So our business is to make everyone chant by one way or another.” So everyone was very pleased with his answers.

After the lecture Srila Prabhupada went up to his room, and the kirtana went on and it became very, very ecstatic. Five to six hundred people were chanting, “Jaya Prabhupada! Jaya Prabhupada! Jaya Prabhupada! Jaya Prabhupada! Prabhupada! Prabhupada! Prabhupada!” and it seemed like the temple was going to come down. I was in his room and he said, “What is this? What is so much noise they are making? They are making so much nice kirtana? What is this?” I said, “They are chanting your name.” And I went down to see what was going on, and all the people were trying to come into Prabhupada’s room. It was like they wanted to charge up to Prabhupada’s room to be able to see him. They kept yelling his name, “Prabhupada! Prabhupada!” So I came up to Srila Prabhupada, “Prabhupada, they want to take some darsana. They want to see you.” And Srila Prabhupada said, “Well, let them come.”

So I immediately arranged that people could come in one door. He had two doors to his room. So they were coming in through one door, left side, and leaving in front and down the stairs. So we got the devotees organized, and we had the people come up one by one in line. They just filtered through like a great parade, coming with offering different words to Srila Prabhupada. Most of the people were saying, “Su santidad, su santidad, tu divina gracia, tu divina gracia.” “Your Divine Grace, Your Holiness, bless me and give me your benediction.” Everyone was praying for his benediction.

By that time we had many more books from the printers, and so we were able to distribute them at this feast. As the people would come in, they would bow down. Everyone was bowing down and everyone was extremely submissive, and there were many people with tears in their eyes to see the great saint Srila Prabhupada. They said to Srila Prabhupada, “Please give me your blessing.” Prabhupada would ask me, “What are they saying?” And I said, “They want blessing, benediction.” He had his hand in his bead bag, and with his finger outside his bead bag he would point to them and say, “Hare Krsna!” And they all were very happy. Very, very ecstatically they left. So on and on you can see how merciful Srila Prabhupada was, that even these people wanted to see him, he would not say, “No, they cannot see me, I am so great.” No. He was always more humble than everyone, and he was ready to serve everyone more than everyone was ready to serve him.