.The Greatest Miracle Ever Told
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by Gokulananda das
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How Srila Prabhupada was able to bring down to this sorry planet a veritable deluge of divine grace and enact the world-wide Hare Krishna explosion is surely one of the greatest miracles ever told. As future generations gladly hear this greatest of sagas, they will also acknowledge with awe and gratitude Srila Prabhupada's immense contributions to the betterment of all humankind. It is a story worth elaborating in all of its glorious details. Every one of us can add our own personal note to that great symphony of salvation.
There we were, the sons and daughters of affluence, lost souls in the ocean of samsara who somehow became captured in the great net of Srila Prabhupada's universal compassion. Turning hippies into happies with his humble magic, he set about showing the whole world how much love God wants to give, miraculously delivered by one of His very own. His pure heart overflowing with divine love, Srila Prabhupada was thus empowered to deliver it to even the lowest and uplift them to the highest spiritual perfection. Such power to change sullen hearts from ignorance towards devotion is very rare and miraculous, only possible for God's dearest servants. His transcendent purity and genuiness thus captured our hearts to draw out our dormant capacity towards God's humble servcie. Simply by accepting his loving shelter, we were allowed precious glimpses into his own exalted state of being, into that highest realm of pure bhakti's secret garden. These greatest of mysteries were made accessible to all the fortunate souls who followed strictly the simple process of devotional life he offered to all. As we continued chanting Hare Krishna and serving his mission, we gradually began to experience more of Srila Prabhupada's inestimable spiritual opulences, as we came to realize that we were certainly the most fortunate souls in the universe to be in the presence of one so great. And that he had brought us all right in the middle of the greatest event in history: Sri Caitanyadev's Sankirtan Movement, destined to change the entire course of history. We were also blessed to vicariously experience something of the inconceivably deep love and surrender which he shared with his own great master. Many times he stated to us (his rag-tag family of neophyte followers) that he saw us all as representatives of his spiritual master, who had sent us to help him fulfill his master's order. Such humility and purity of heart deeply moved us to dedicate everything we had to his service, for our eternal benefit. For he was the source of all our inspiration and of all our strength.
Not only was he the most enlightened perfect teacher, he was also the living embodiment of all he taught: his teachings all came alive in him. He was the ultimate Acharya: whatever he taught was never theoretical but fully realized and manifested in his own pure transparent character, as the permanent point of reference for all details of Krishna consciousness. Our faith in Lord Krishna's and Lord Caitanya's divinity (although amply proclaimed throughout the Vedic scriptures) was solidified through him alone. All our doubts were easily vanquished because we had the living proof of all these higher truths right there in front of us, fully incarnated in such a beautiful genuine soul, the most perfect pure devotee of the Lord. That was the secret of his success: his cent-per-cent surrender and devotion to his beloved Lord and his great spiritual master, Who poured upon him unlimited potency to change the whole world. We forever remain in awe of him.
As our personal saviour, Srila Prabhupada lives forever in our hearts. His oceanic love and compassion has propelled us to the doorstep of eternity where he perpetually awaits us to humbly accept our offerings of grateful service. Let us continue to churn the ocean of Prabhupada-katha and repeatedly bathe in that life-giving nectar, to nourrish our meager efforts to persevere in serving his mission of grace, in the constant remembrance of his enduring kindness towards us all.
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