Dear Srila Prabhupada,

Please accept my most respectful obeisances at your divine lotus feet.

As the years advance, the desire grows to know you as you really are. You once wrote to a disciple that just as when a person sees the clouds moving across the moon he thinks he sees the moon flying in the sky, so when a neophyte sees the external appearance of the spiritual master he thinks he sees the spiritual master as he is, but he does not see the actual form of a great devotee.

Our prayer on this occasion is to be blessed with increasing Krishna consciousness so that we may behold your true glory. Even this prayer we must offer in a spirit of wanting to serve you with increasing love and appreciation, and not with a desire to enjoy your glories.

You are surely present here with us, but you are certainly not limited to our association. Undoubtedly you are engaged in various ways in the Lord’s loving service, and we can only imagine how many worlds you are saving, just as you are saving this one. Our fervent wish is to go back to home, back to Srila Prabhupada, the pure loving servant of Lord Sri Krishna. Let us eternally assist you in your mission, wherever it may take you.

Falling in the dust of your lotus feet,
Your servant,
Hridayananda Dasa Goswami
1997