Preaching is the Essence
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"Since we have started this movement in the Western countries, Europeans, Americans, Africans, Egyptians, and Japanese are all chanting. There is no difficulty. They are chanting very gladly, and they are getting the results. What is the difficulty?" (Srila Prabhupada lecture, November 1969, London's Conway Hall)
Srila Prabhupada often explained that the best servant or disciple anticipates the desire of the master and tries to fulfill it even before being asked to do so. In the above quote, Prabhupada revealed his desire to see the chanting of Hare Krishna spread far and wide, even to unlikely places such as Egypt and Africa. Our Godbrother, Tribhuvannatha Prabhu, took up such service with great enthusiasm and courage, and therefore we happily honor him here in the pages of The Prabhupada Connection. Furthermore, Prabhupada has repeatedly informed us that to be "the servant of the servant" is the most desirable position in Krishna consciousness:
"A Krishna Conscious person is never falsely puffed-up; he is satisfied with his humble position as the servant of the servant of the servant of Krishna." (Srila Prabhupada letter, June 1, 1968)
The simple stamp pictured above was designed by Tribhuvannatha Prabhu and it beautifully expresses the very essence of our philosophy. First, there is the image of Srila Prabhupada, our beloved Founder-Acarya, preaching Krishna consciousness. Prabhupada has stated that "preaching is the essence." Secondly, there is the name of Prabhupada's society or mission, the "International Society for Krishna Consciousness." And thirdly, beneath the acronym "ISKCON," there is reference to Tribhuvannatha's prabhu-datta-desa (the place of residence or preaching field as given by the spiritual master) at the time. Tribhuvannatha was very quick -- and smart -- to take the essence; and by doing so, he pleased our spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada. Once, after arranging a preaching program for Srila Prabhupada in Glasgow, Tribhuvannatha described Prabhupada's reaction:
"I had never seen Prabhupada like that before. I held the door and he put both his hands on my head and started rubbing it in a very gentle way. I couldn't believe it. He said, 'I am very pleased with what you have done. Now you preach Krishna consciousness all over Scotland.' It was so beautiful that it's hard to put into words. It was one of those amazing moments in life that can never be repeated."
Lord Krishna declares in the Bhagavad-gita (18.22-23) that no one is more dear to Him than he who preaches His sublime message. I remember Tribhuvannatha telling me a story about Prabhupada in London. At the end of a class there, Srila Prabhupada said to the audience, "Krishna consciousness is so simple, that you'll miss it." During a lecture in Boston in 1969, Srila Prabhupada stated that Krishna consciousness is "simple for the simple, but it is very hard for the crooked." Tribhuvannatha Prabhu exemplified that simplicity and he captured it well in the simple but sublime image above.
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