Life with the Perfect Master : A Personal Servant's Account

Accounts of life with Srila Prabhupada, therefore, should be told in a sincere attempt to share one's good fortune with others-to grant the hearers a further, intimate entrance into Srila Prabhupada's wonderful life not to gain credit for oneself. Most of what I have read or heard of my Godbrothers' accounts of life with Srila Prabhupada have been humble and sincere presentations, and I hope to follow that path.

I HAVE A PERSONAL story to tell. It is a about a time (January-July 1974) I spent as a personal servant and secretary of my spiritual master, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Although I have written extensively about Srila Prabhupada, I've hesitated to give this account, for fear it would expose me as a poor disciple. But now I'm going ahead, confident that the truth will purify both my readers and myself. I hope that as I write I will reach a deeper, clearer understanding of my relationship with Srila Prabhupada, and I trust I will find lessons and realizations worth sharing.

I hope to avoid a "more fortunate than thou" attitude as I tell my story, since a Vaisnava should not try to project an image of himself as a unique, favored disciple. In the name of glorifying Srila Prabhupada one should not think of himself as glorious and pure and conclude that that is why Srila Prabhupada gave him attention and personal association. Srila Prabhupada was equal to all. Of course, whoever personally associated with him was certainly very fortunate-but that fortune was the causeless mercy of the pure devotee. Accounts of life with Srila Prabhupada, therefore, should be told in a sincere attempt to share one's good fortune with others to grant the hearers a further, intimate entrance into Srila Prabhupada's wonderful life-not to gain credit for oneself. Most of what I have read or heard of my Godbrothers' accounts of life with Srila Prabhupada have been humble and sincere presentations, and I hope to follow that path.

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