Meditation on Srila Prabhupada continued
Category: Article
Title: Meditation on Srila Prabhupada continued
Upload date: 2006-07-26
Śivarāma Swami
On July 19th, the posting on SivaramaSwami.com included a photograph of Srila Prabhupada (below). The title of that podcast was “Meditation on Srila Prabhupada,” and it was especially so for Ramadevi dasi, Maharaja s godsister who served Radha Gokulananda at the Manor for many years, and who he referred to last week as “the best seamstress.” Ramadevi started sewing for Srila Prabhupada and the deities 35 years ago, and now lives and serves in Mayapur, where, along with Kesavi Dasi, she serves as the seamstress for Radha Madhava, the gopis, and Panca-tattva. When she logged into the site on the 19th and saw the photo of Prabhupada, she wrote to Maharaja and told him why that photo was such a special “meditation on Srila Prabhupada” … here s an excerpt from that letter:
“When I opened your website today I was so happy to see the picture of Srila Prabhupada on the old red vyasasana from Bury Place. That photo was taken in Edinburgh temple (the vyasasana was sent to Edinburgh as it was too big to stay in Bury Place) and shows the first personal service my Mum and I did for Srila Prabhupada! The vase on the mantle behind him was lent by my mother. I had only been a devotee for about 3 months at the time so didn t have the foresight to keep them. But they are still in my mother s house somewhere, keeping her safe! The pink bolster cushion behind Prabhupada is the first thing I ever sewed as a devotee.
“When I joined I was sent to Manchester because in Edinburgh there were only brahmacaris. But after Rathayatra in 1972, there was talk of Radha Gokulananda being installed in Edinburgh. So I was sent with Sarvamangala, Kamadhuk, and Suci to help prepare everything. We had no money at that time but Sarva charmed the chap in the cloth department of a big store into giving us a roll of pink nylon lining and a remnant of pink satin on credit. She was to pay him back 50p a week!
“The satin was used for cushions for Srila Prabhupada while he sat at his desk: a secondhand table with the legs sawed off. The pink nylon was used for lining for the curtains in his room. My Mum provided the sheets and blankets (in spite of the fact that she wasn t talking to me for having run off to join a cult ), and a congregation lady lent a folding camp bed. We had to use the pink bolster on the red vyasasana because they didn t send the red one from London. Boy, was I ever proud of that cushion! It followed Prabhupada wherever he went during that visit — from his room to the temple room, to Woodside Halls in Glasgow. I was one happy bunny!”
2006-07-26
“When I opened your website today I was so happy to see the picture of Srila Prabhupada on the old red vyasasana from Bury Place. That photo was taken in Edinburgh temple (the vyasasana was sent to Edinburgh as it was too big to stay in Bury Place) and shows the first personal service my Mum and I did for Srila Prabhupada! The vase on the mantle behind him was lent by my mother. I had only been a devotee for about 3 months at the time so didn t have the foresight to keep them. But they are still in my mother s house somewhere, keeping her safe! The pink bolster cushion behind Prabhupada is the first thing I ever sewed as a devotee.
“When I joined I was sent to Manchester because in Edinburgh there were only brahmacaris. But after Rathayatra in 1972, there was talk of Radha Gokulananda being installed in Edinburgh. So I was sent with Sarvamangala, Kamadhuk, and Suci to help prepare everything. We had no money at that time but Sarva charmed the chap in the cloth department of a big store into giving us a roll of pink nylon lining and a remnant of pink satin on credit. She was to pay him back 50p a week!
“The satin was used for cushions for Srila Prabhupada while he sat at his desk: a secondhand table with the legs sawed off. The pink nylon was used for lining for the curtains in his room. My Mum provided the sheets and blankets (in spite of the fact that she wasn t talking to me for having run off to join a cult ), and a congregation lady lent a folding camp bed. We had to use the pink bolster on the red vyasasana because they didn t send the red one from London. Boy, was I ever proud of that cushion! It followed Prabhupada wherever he went during that visit — from his room to the temple room, to Woodside Halls in Glasgow. I was one happy bunny!”
2006-07-26