Today on Visvarupa Mahotsava we honor the day that Srila Prabhupada accepted the renounced order (sannyasa) of life, in 1959.
…Recognizing Śrīla Prabhupāda’s philosophical learning and devotion, the society of Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas honored him in 1947 with the title “Bhaktivedanta.” In 1950, at the age of fifty-four, Śrīla Prabhupāda retired from family life, adopting the vānaprastha (retired) order to devote more time to study, writing and preaching. Śrīla Prabhupāda moved to the holy city of Vṛndāvana, where he lived in humble circumstances in the historic medieval temple of Rādhā-Dāmodara. There he spent several years in deep study and writing. He accepted the renounced order of life (sannyāsa) in 1959. At Rādhā-Dāmodara, Śrīla Prabhupāda began work on his life’s masterpiece: a multivolume annotated translation of the eighteen-thousand-verse Srīmad-Bhāgavatam (Bhāgavata Purāṇa). He also wrote Easy Journey to Other Planets…
The Hare Krishna Movement 