Srila Prabhupada's Air New Zealand flight landed at Auckland airport at 10pm. Although it was quite late, many devotees -- 12 from the temple and 50 from the North Shore -- were there to greet him.
Many of the North Shore devotees had maintained only loose connections with Krsna consciousness, and rarely visited the temple. For Prabhupada's arrival, however, many now presented themselves with shaved heads, tilaka and devotional clothing. Yasomatinandana, Auckland's temple president, started an exuberant kirtana. Prabhupada passed through customs quite quickly and emerged, looking radiant and in good health, smiling broadly at the energetic crowd of devotees. Rama dasa, Auckland's head pujari, carefully placed a garland of flowers around Srila Prabhupada's neck, applied yellow camphor-scented sandalwood paste to his forehead and touched his feet.
Prabhupada walked quickly to the waiting car. On the highway, the devotees' cars one by one overtook Prabhupada's hired limousine. They were determined to reach the temple first for another greeting.
Back at the temple -- the same two-storey house in the suburbs that Prabhupada had visited three years before -- devotees were completing last-minute cooking and cleaning jobs. The temple had recently undergone extensive refurbishment. Most of the devotees had not slept for the last three days. The exterior of the temple had been pressure steam-cleaned and fully repainted, the grounds landscaped and new trees and shrubs planted. Devotees had remodelled the altar, cleaned and refitted the kitchen, and built a new vyasasana. Prabhupada's quarters had undergone the most transformation -- from a cold, bleak concrete room to something very comfortable. The floors were now covered with varnished cork tiles and a warm rug. The walls were repainted in Prabhupada's favourite colours -- pale blue with gold trim.
Roy, a newly-arrived and energetic young man, had built a small table for Prabhupada to take his prasadam on, and had assisted in installing a comfortable bed, a new bathroom and framed devotional pictures for the walls. At the very last minute, devotees had rushed off to purchase a book case and elegant new silver eating ware. They were exhausted. As they attended to final details, Prabhupada's car pulled up at the front of the temple.
The air was chilly. It was the start of winter, and the ground was wet from recent rain. As Prabhupada stepped out of his car, he noticed a group of young devotees, some with long hair, playing guitars and singing the Hare Krsna mantra to a slow, melancholy melody.
Jita Girisa, a young brahmacari from the temple, started up his own kirtana, chanting Jaya Prabhupada, Jaya Prabhupada, bounding up and down like a puppy greeting its master. Prabhupada smiled at him -- he seemed to appreciate the young man's spontaneous enthusiasm. Prabhupada mounted a few steps and entered the front door. It was too late to have darsana of the Deities, so Prabhupada decided to go to his room straightaway. The devotees congregated in the foyer as Prabhupada slowly climbed the stairs. He paused on the landing, turned, and surveyed the kirtana for a few moments. As he smiled, the kirtana rose in crescendo, karatalas, gongs, heavy brass whompers and voices all merging in youthful exuberance. Prabhupada completed the climb, and as he entered his room he turned and gave the kirtana party a broad grin.
After receiving a short foot-bathing ceremony with warm water and rose petals, Prabhupada looked around at his newly-furnished room. Glancing at the corner, he frowned quizzically. There, piled up atop a cloth on the floor, lay a large stack of Srimad Bhagavatam and Caitanya Caritamrta volumes. He turned to Rama dasa. "What are these books doing on the floor?" he asked.
Rama dasa tried to explain. There was a bookcase, he said, but since it was only purchased that afternoon, and varnished a few hours before, it was still wet. Two devotees had, in fact, stayed back from the airport just to fan it dry, but to no avail.
"It doesn't matter, bring it in," Prabhupada insisted. The sticky bookcase was quickly carried in.
"Fill it," said Prabhupada. As Rama dasa reached for the books it suddenly struck him that the shelves were not far apart enough to fit them.
Rama dasa: I made a miserable attempt at an excuse. "The books won't go in, Srila Prabhupada." Prabhupada patiently repeated his instruction: "Put the books in the bookcase." I nervously picked the books up again and, laying them flat on the shelves, started to stack them one on top of the other. Prabhupada stopped me, "No," Srila Prabhupada said, "You should never lay the books down like that."
"But Srila Prabhupada," I pleaded, “I can't get the books to go in."
Srila Prabhupada came over next to me and took the books out of my hand. "This is how you do it," Srila Prabhupada said. He held one on its edge, the side opposite the spine, and slid it into the bookshelf that way -- spine up. It fitted. As I handed him each book, he placed them all into the bookshelf in the same manner. Then Srila Prabhupada said he would like something to eat.
The devotees had presumed -- mistakenly -- that Prabhupada would not be hungry after his late-night flight. Rama dasa quickly ran down the stairs to arrange the prasadam. As Prabhupada's bags were unpacked, the kirtana continued downstairs. Hare Rama, the young brahmacari who had played the guitar for Prabhupada's arrival, led the chanting with another mellow, sweet tune. After a while, Prabhupada asked that all the devotees be invited up.
In a few minutes the room was packed. Prabhupada sat behind his low desk. Beside him on a stand stood a flourishing tulasi plant in an ornate pot. Prabhupada spoke pleasantly for some time, emphasising the great value of the human form of life. Now, he stressed, having progressed beyond animal life, there was a need for further improvement to advance more and more to the point of meeting Krsna face to face.
Unfortunately, he pointed out, the leaders of society were actually misdirecting, because they did not instruct the general population how to do this. "These rascals, so-called leaders, gurus and others, they do not know what is the goal of life. Na te viduh. They do not know. Some imaginary theory, ‘I am God', ‘I am this', ‘I am that'. A common-sense: ‘If I am God, then why I am under the control of the material nature?' Eh? Another rascal came, saying that ‘I am God'. If you are God, so why you have become dog? They say it is lila." The devotees laughed.
"Just see. God has come to manifest his lila, by becoming a dog, and He is beaten. Whole day, night, He is hungry and He has come to your home to ask some food and you are beating. So, God is displaying this lila. Just see what foolish rascals they are. This is going on. So don't be misguided by such rascals."
Prabhupada quoted the famous song by Narottama dasa Thakura. Hari hari biphale janama gonainu: My dear Lord, I have simply wasted my time. Why? Now, manusya janama paiya, radha krsna na bhajiya, janiya suniya bisa khainu: I got this human form of life. It is meant for understanding Krsna, and Krsna's pastimes with Radharani, Radha-Krsna. So I do not care for that. That means knowingly I have drunk poison.
"My only request," Srila Prabhupada said, "is that the Krsna consciousness movement is the most scientific movement to save the human society from falling down again in the cycle of birth and death. It is a very scientific movement. The cycle of birth and death is going on. We are eternal. The people have been put into such deep darkness that they do not know what is the aim of life. Whimsically, everyone is manufacturing some nonsense. So fortunately you have got this Krsna consciousness, so utilise your life properly."
Prabhupada reminded the devotees that they had an immense stock of literature. "Read it, digest it, and make your life perfect." He looked around the room. "We have published this book, Nectar of Instruction." He held up the new book. "Have you seen?"
He noted the devotees' enthusiastic greeting. "I'm very glad to see you, you are so enthusiastic. And you should be enthusiastic. For enhancing devotional activities, one must be very enthusiastic. That is the first proposition. Don't be dull. Enthusiastic and patient. And niscayat. Niscayat means firmly convinced: ‘yes, surely I shall meet Krsna and go to Him, back to home, back to Godhead.' But you have to do the prescribed duties. Sato vrtteh. You must be very honest, and sadhu-sange, and in the association of the devotees. If we follow these six principles, then it is sure."
Prabhupada warned of six things that would spoil one's devotional life; eating too much or collecting too much was the first of these. "Of course, for our preaching we require, but we shall collect as much as we require, not that we keep money in the bank and spend for some other purposes. That kind of collection is dangerous."
The second, Srila Prabhupada said, was prayasa. "Prayasa means endeavouring too much for getting something. Our life should be very simple. We shall act so simply that we shall have time for Krsna consciousness. So we should not attempt anything which is very difficult to execute."
"So, prajalpa, unnecessary talking all nonsense, politics, rascaldom, speculation, this, that. No. Be grave. Don't talk nonsense and waste time."
He described the last three items. "Niyamagraha. Niyamagraha means to not accept the regulative principles, niyama agraha. Agraha means not to accept, and niyamagraha means simply ‘I am packed up with the regulative principles, but I do not see whether I am making progress'. So, laulyam, greediness and jana-sangah, to associate with non-devotees, unwanted persons. These six things should be avoided. And the first mentioned six things should be accepted. Then our progress is sure, without any failure." Prabhupada concluded his informal arrival talk by encouraging his disciples to read the new book, Nectar of Instruction. "Everything is there," Srila Prabhupada said.
Prabhupada sat back on his bolster cushion and spoke appreciatively about New Zealand. "It has everything, lots of cows and grass -- all the natural things that are necessary for Krsna consciousness. You are lucky to be living in such a nice country. So you are all very fortunate. I just request one thing from you." Prabhupada looked around the room in earnest, giving an admonitory message: "You please don't concoct anything."
Rama dasa squeezed through the crowd, balancing a silver plate of puris and a succulent vegetable preparation. Prabhupada, appearing completely at ease, unselfconsciously began to eat.
Jita Girisa: Prabhupada was completely relaxed and transcendental. He gracefully took pieces of puri, and, wrapping subji in them, threw them into his mouth. I was incredulous. I had never seen anyone eat like that before. Such perfect poise! He never once touched his mouth with his hands. He slightly tilted his head back and delicately dropped morsels into his mouth.
It was so graceful and aristocratic. It was like watching a king or a demigod eat. The amazing thing was that this appeared to him to be the most natural thing to do, to eat completely quietly, without feeling the least bit discomfort or distraction, despite the fact that there were over 75 devotees watching every move that he made.
Prabhupada turned to Rama dasa. "This is very nice. Are the peas fresh?" Rama dasa, embarrassed, explained that they were frozen. Prabhupada gave Rama dasa an intense look. "Frozen peas should never be offered to Krsna."
He turned to Tusta Krsna Swami and asked if he grew peas on his farm. Tusta Krsna confirmed that he did. Prabhupada requested him to supply fresh vegetables to the temple every day so that they could be offered to the Deities.
Srila Prabhupada picked up a glass goblet, tipped his head back, and held the glass up very high, allowing a silver stream of water to pour directly into his mouth.
Jita Girisa: This was the first time I had seen anyone drink water like this. It was perfect. Sometimes when you see an actor, they've rehearsed a role so many times that they force themselves to make it look as natural as possible. They don't make any mistake, because it's so well-rehearsed. But Prabhupada's natural movements were much deeper than that... They were just completely natural and graceful. We were all astounded to see them.
Prabhupada ate a little piece of sandesa and started distributing the rest of his prasadam to the devotees. Someone from the North Shore had brought a large jar of home-made juicy rasagullas. Prabhupada asked Hari-sauri to distribute the sweets until everyone in the room had one. Finally, Prabhupada turned to Hari-sauri. Kindly and thoughtful as ever, he asked, "So, did you get?" Hari-sauri said that he didn't. Prabhupada smiled lovingly. "So, you also take."
Biographies and Glorifications of Srila Prabhupada-‘The Great Transcendental Adventure-‘‘The Southernmost Part of this Globe', Part II --Auckland, 1976–Kurma das
