His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

Allahabad, around 1924. From left to right: (seated) Abhay and his son Prayag Raj; his father, Gour Mohan; his older sister, Rajesvari, with her daughter, Sulakshman; (standing) Radharani, Abhay's wife; her nepheu Tulasi and her brother Krishna Caran.

Abhay Charan Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder-acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, was born in 1896, in Calcutta, in a Vaisnava family.

His father, Gour Mohan De, named him Abhay Charan. His father's only wish was that, Abhay would become a devotee of Srimati Radharani.

Abhay studied under British colonial rule, finally going to university to read chemistry. At university, he became a supporter of Gandhi's movement to gain independence for India. As a measure of this support, he would only dress in white handloom cloth, woven in India and furthermore, he declined to accept his degree from the university.

Abhay married and went into business as a small pharmaceutical firm to support his wife and family.

He met his spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami, for the first time in Calcutta in 1922. Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati, took a liking to Abhay and told him to devote his life to teaching Vedic Knowledge; more specifically to preach Lord Caitanya's message to the English speaking world. Although, Abhay accepted, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta within his heart as his spiritual master, it was not until 1932 that he became initiated. He then received both harinama and mantra diksa at his initiation.

In 1936 Srila Prabhupada wrote his spiritual master requesting if there was any particular service that he could render. Srila Prabhupada received a reply to that letter containing the same instruction the he had received in 1922: 'Preach Krishna consciousness to the English speaking world'. His spiritual master passed away from this world two weeks later; thus leaving these final instructions engraved on Srila Prabhupada's heart. These instructions were to form the focus of Srila Prabhupada's life.

Left: His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami and the magazine Back to Godnead. Right: September 17th 1959, the day when Abhay took sannyasa. From left to right: Muni Maharaj, Bhaktiprajnana Kesava Maharaj and A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami.

In 1959 he took sannyasa, the renounced order of life. It was then, while staying at Radha-Damodara temple that he started on his masterpiece: translation and commentary of the Srimad-Bhagavatam in English. He also wrote Easy Journey to Other Planets.

Srila Prabhupada wrote a commentary on the Bhagavad-gita and assisted the Gaudiya Matha in its work. In 1944, during the Second World War, when paper was scarce and people had little money to spend, Srila Prabhupada began a magazine called Back to Godhead. Single-handedly, he would write, edit, oversee the layout, proof-read and sell the copies himself. This magazine is still being published today.

In 1950 Srila Prabhupada adopted the vanaprastha (retired) life; thus retiring from home and family life, in order to devote more time to his studies. In 1953 he received the title Bhaktivedanta from his Godbrothers. He travelled to Vrindavana, where he lived very humbly at the Radha-Damodara temple. He spent several years there studying the scriptures and writing.

Within a few years, he had written three volumes of English translation and commentary for the first canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam. Once again, single handedly, he bought the paper and gathered funds, to print the books. He sold the books himself and through agents in the larger Indian cities.

He now felt ready to carry out his spiritual master's orders and decided to start by taking the message of Krishna consciousness to America, convinced that other countries would follow suit. Obtaining free passage on a freight ship, called the Jaladuta he finally arrived in New York in 1965. He was 69 and practically penniless. All he possessed was a few copies of the Srimad-Bhagavatam and a few hundred rupees.

Srila Prabhupada expressed his thoughts with this prayer to Lord Sri Krishna. Read..

He had had a very difficult crossing, suffering two heart attacks and once arrived in New York he didn't know which way to turn. After a difficult six months, preaching here and there, his few followers rented a storefront and apartment in Manhattan. Here, he would regularly give lectures, kirtana and distribute prasadam. People from all walks of life, including hippies, were drawn here; in search of that missing element from their lives and many became part of 'Swamiji's' following.

Top: On August 13th 1965 A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami left Calcutta on board of the Jaladuta. Bottom: Srila Prabhupada at the Bowery, June 1965, photographed by Fred McDarrah of the Village Voice.

Top:The unusual hand-painted sign - Matchless Gifts - was a holdover from when the place had been a nostalgic-gift shop. Right, Srila Prabhupada at the courtyard between the storefront and his apartment. Bottom: Srila Prabhupada's first kirtana at the Tompkins Square park, New York, 1966. Featured photo from the artcile on The East Village Other.

As people became more serious, Srila Prabhupada's followers used to hold regular kirtanas in the parks. The lectures and Sunday feast days became renowned. His young followers eventually took initiation from Srila Prabhupada, promising to follow the regulative principles and chant 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra daily. He also reinstated the Back to Godhead magazine.

In July 1966, Srila Prabhupada established the International Society for Krishna Consciousness — ISKCON. His aim was to use the society to promote Krishna Consciousness throughout the world. In 1967, he visited San Francisco and started an ISKCON society there. He then sent his disciples all over the world to spread Caitanya Mahaprabhu's message and open new centres in Montreal, Boston, London, Berlin, and other cities in North America, India, and Europe.

In India, three magnificent temples were initially planned: Vrindavana, the Krishna Balaram temple with all its ancillary facilties; Bombay, a temple with an educational and cultural centre; and in Mayapur, a huge temple with a Vedic planetarium.

Srila Prabhupada's first kirtana at the Tompkins Square park, New York, 1966. Featured photo from the artcile on The East Village Other.

Srila Prabhupada produced all of his books bar the three written in India within the next eleven years. Srila Prabhupada slept little and would spend the early morning hours writing. He would write almost daily between 1:30 and 4:30 a.m. He dictated his text, which his disciples then typed and edited. Srila Prabhupada would translate the original texts from Sanskrit or Bengali, word by word, and gave a complete commentary.

His works include Bhagavad-gita As It Is, the multi-volume Srimad-Bhagavatam, the multivolume Caitanya-caritamrta, The Nectar of Devotion, Krsna: The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Teachings of Lord Kapila, Teachings of Queen Kunti, Sri Isopanisad, The Nectar of Instruction, and dozens of small books.

At the top: the Srimad-Bhagavatam, 12 cantos and 18,000 verses; under it: the Caitanya Caritamrita, 9 volumes; bottom-left: Bhagavad-gita As It Is; and bottom-right: The Nectar of Devotion.

When he first arrived by freighter in New York City, Srila Prabhupada was practically penniless. Only after almost a year of great difficulty did he establish the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, in July of 1966. Before he passed away on November 14, 1977, he had guided the Society and seen it grow to a worldwide confederation of more than one hundred ashramas, schools, temples, institutes, and farm communities.

His Unique Mission

	To help all people discern reality from illusion, spirit from matter, the eternal from the temporary.

	To systematically propagate spiritual knowledge to society at large and to educate the people in the techniques of spiritual life, in order to check the imbalance of values in life and to achieve real unity and peace in the world.

	To propagate a consciousness of Krishna, as it is revealed in the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam.

	To teach and encourage sankirtana, congregational chanting of the holy name of God, as revealed in the teachings of Lord Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

	To erect for the members and for society at large a holy place of transcendental pastimes, dedicated to the Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna.

	To bring the members closer together for the purpose of teaching a simpler and more natural way of life.

	With a view towards achieving the aforementioned purposes, to publish and distribute periodicals, magazines, books, and other writings.

His Achievements

	He sent his followers, chanting the names of God, into the streets of cities and towns everywhere and Hare Krsna became famous in every corner of the earth.
	He sent his disciples to London, where they recorded the single, “Hare Krsna Mantra”, with George Harrison, in 1969. It became the fastest selling of all the Apple Corporation’s releases, including those of the Beatles. The record reached #3 in Czechoslovakia, #9 in Britain, and made the top ten in Germany, Japan, Australia, South Africa, Yugoslavia, and many other countries.
	He formally initiated approximately five thousand disciples. These initiates represented a sweeping diversity of nationalities, races, ethnicity, and religious backgrounds.
	He established 108 Krsna temples on six continents, installed the deity of Krsna in each center and trained his disciples in the process of deity worship. Thirty-two new temples (almost three a month) were opened in a single year, between 1970 and 1971.
	He inaugurated the Rathayatra Festival of Lord Jagannatha in major cities around the globe, in effect, bringing the temple to the people.
	He instituted the brahmacarini ashram, something previously unheard of in Vedic culture, to give shelter to single women wishing to practice Krsna consciousness.
	He instructed his disciples in 1967 to start an incense business to provide financial support for the temples. Within four years the business, Spiritual Sky Incense, generated an annual revenue of one million dollars (equivalent to $4,600,000 in 2004).
	He introduced the “Sunday Love Feast” and other prasadam (sanctified food) distribution programs that provided millions of free meals to the public.
	He created the world’s first chain of vegetarian restaurants.
	He spoke daily on the philosophy of Krsna consciousness, delivering thousands of formal lectures. Over 2,200 were recorded and archived.
	He conducted many hundreds of informal conversations on the science of Krsna consciousness with disciples, guests and friends. Over 1,300 were recorded and archived.
	He recorded more than twenty albums of devotional music.
	He published the monthly magazine, Back to Godhead, which he called the backbone of his movement. At the height of its circulation in the mid seventies, over a million copies per issue were sold.
	He launched the ISKCON Life Membership Program that enrolled tens of thousands of members.
	He built major temples in Bombay and Vrndavana, and founded a spiritual city at Mayapur. All became international sites of pilgrimage.
	He established primary schools to provide education in the principles of devotional service.
	He founded the Bhaktivedanta Institute to advance Krsna consciousness within the scientific community, engaging serious academics in the consideration of the science of self-realization.
	He formed the Bhaktivedanta Swami Charity Trust to unearth and renovate the holy places of Lord Caitanya’s pastimes.
	He set up farm communities to teach “simple living and high thinking”, emphasizing cow protection and dependence on God and nature.
	He commissioned his artist disciples to produce hundreds of illustrations of Krsna’s pastimes based on his meticulous instructions and the descriptions in his books.
	He directed some of his followers to learn the Indian art of “doll making” to present Vedic philosophy through dioramas. This project became the FATE Museums.
	He counseled his disciples on complex managerial, philosophical and personal issues in more than 6,000 archived letters.
	He was the subject of more than 30,000 archival photos and more than seventy hours of documentary film footage.
	He wrote approximately seventy books on the science of Krsna consciousness, sleeping only a few hours per day. Dozens of prominent scholars and educators from leading universities praised his work. The Encyclopedia Britannica proclaimed that his voluminous translations from the original Sanskrit and his lucid commentaries “have astounded literary and academic communities worldwide.” This feat is even more astonishing considering the translations and commentaries were in English, which was a second language to the author.
	He founded the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT) in 1972, to produce his books. By 1976, over 55,000,000 literatures had been published in twenty-five languages and distributed in almost every country, making the BBT the world’s largest publisher of Indian religious and philosophical texts. One printing alone of Bhagavad-gita As It Is required seventy-six train cars to ship the paper needed to print it.
	He completed the entire Caitanya-caritamrta manuscript (seventeen volumes) in eighteen months.
	He ordered and supervised the BBT in publishing seventeen volumes of his books in only two months time, in 1974.
	He circled the globe fourteen times, visiting twenty-four countries, preaching, inspiring his followers and making countless public appearances before multitudes of people.
	He skillfully managed his international society simply through letters and personal meetings, virtually without the use of a telephone.

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

His Unique Mission

To help all people discern reality from illusion, spirit from matter, the eternal from the temporary.

To systematically propagate spiritual knowledge to society at large and to educate the people in the techniques of spiritual life, in order to check the imbalance of values in life and to achieve real unity and peace in the world.

To propagate a consciousness of Krishna, as it is revealed in the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam.

To teach and encourage sankirtana, congregational chanting of the holy name of God, as revealed in the teachings of Lord Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

To erect for the members and for society at large a holy place of transcendental pastimes, dedicated to the Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna.

To bring the members closer together for the purpose of teaching a simpler and more natural way of life.

With a view towards achieving the aforementioned purposes, to publish and distribute periodicals, magazines, books, and other writings.

His Achievements

He sent his followers, chanting the names of God, into the streets of cities and towns everywhere and Hare Krsna became famous in every corner of the earth.

He formally initiated approximately five thousand disciples. These initiates represented a sweeping diversity of nationalities, races, ethnicity, and religious backgrounds.

He established 108 Krsna temples on six continents, installed the deity of Krsna in each center and trained his disciples in the process of deity worship. Thirty-two new temples (almost three a month) were opened in a single year, between 1970 and 1971.

He inaugurated the Rathayatra Festival of Lord Jagannatha in major cities around the globe, in effect, bringing the temple to the people.

He instituted the brahmacarini ashram, something previously unheard of in Vedic culture, to give shelter to single women wishing to practice Krsna consciousness.

He instructed his disciples in 1967 to start an incense business to provide financial support for the temples. Within four years the business, Spiritual Sky Incense, generated an annual revenue of one million dollars (equivalent to $4,600,000 in 2004).

He introduced the “Sunday Love Feast” and other prasadam (sanctified food) distribution programs that provided millions of free meals to the public.

He created the world’s first chain of vegetarian restaurants.

He spoke daily on the philosophy of Krsna consciousness, delivering thousands of formal lectures. Over 2,200 were recorded and archived.

He conducted many hundreds of informal conversations on the science of Krsna consciousness with disciples, guests and friends. Over 1,300 were recorded and archived.

He recorded more than twenty albums of devotional music.

He published the monthly magazine, Back to Godhead, which he called the backbone of his movement. At the height of its circulation in the mid seventies, over a million copies per issue were sold.

He launched the ISKCON Life Membership Program that enrolled tens of thousands of members.

He built major temples in Bombay and Vrndavana, and founded a spiritual city at Mayapur. All became international sites of pilgrimage.

He established primary schools to provide education in the principles of devotional service.

He founded the Bhaktivedanta Institute to advance Krsna consciousness within the scientific community, engaging serious academics in the consideration of the science of self-realization.

He formed the Bhaktivedanta Swami Charity Trust to unearth and renovate the holy places of Lord Caitanya’s pastimes.

He set up farm communities to teach “simple living and high thinking”, emphasizing cow protection and dependence on God and nature.

He commissioned his artist disciples to produce hundreds of illustrations of Krsna’s pastimes based on his meticulous instructions and the descriptions in his books.

He directed some of his followers to learn the Indian art of “doll making” to present Vedic philosophy through dioramas. This project became the FATE Museums.

He counseled his disciples on complex managerial, philosophical and personal issues in more than 6,000 archived letters.

He was the subject of more than 30,000 archival photos and more than seventy hours of documentary film footage.

He completed the entire Caitanya-caritamrta manuscript (seventeen volumes) in eighteen months.

He ordered and supervised the BBT in publishing seventeen volumes of his books in only two months time, in 1974.

He circled the globe fourteen times, visiting twenty-four countries, preaching, inspiring his followers and making countless public appearances before multitudes of people.

He skillfully managed his international society simply through letters and personal meetings, virtually without the use of a telephone.