Payonidhi das, Sep 06: In 1975 or so, some devotees from various countries tried to start ISKCON in Denmark. At one point, HH Bhaktibhusana Maharaja had a small preaching center near Copenhagen. I have never gotten to ask him about it, I have not met Maharaja in many years. I was told once by the former police chief of Copenhagen (that I once met while distributing books there), that Interpol contacted him, and they told him that one Hare Krsna devotee had kidnapped his daughter and brought her to Denmark. What really happened is the mother left ISKCON, and wanted her daughter. So the police raided that preaching center and closed it down, deported all the devotees, and I was told confiscated the books, too. Some attempt was made to start Krsna Consciousness in a hippy commune called Christiania in Copenhagen, but devotees was simply thrown stones at when they did Harinam there.
When I met a German gentleman in 1978 in Denmark, through a friend, he introduced me to Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad Gita As It Is in German. Soon I started to read it. (German is compulsory in schools there.) And by Krsna’s grace, I met a devotee from Sweden doing sankirtana in the town I lived in. I bought a set of books, got an invitation card to the temple in Sweden, and I carefully went and read them. I went to Sweden in early 1979, and I was eager to see how I could hear and meet Srila Prabhupada. But to my great sadness, within 5 minutes of arriving at the temple, I was told Srila Prabhupada left this world in 1977. After meeting the devotees and spending 4 days there in Korsnaas Gard, New Radha Kunda, I decided I had had to become a full-time devotee and distribute Srila Prabhupada’s books and help start ISKCON in Denmark. Vegavan Prabhu was immediately my spiritual mentor and well wisher. He was the Temple President of Korsnaas Gaard and Regional Secretary of Scandinavia.
He and Ajit Prabhu, another disciple of Srila Prabhupada, started ISKCON there in Sweden. HH Smita Krsna Maharaja is also one of the first devotees there. I have often glorified Vegavan Prabhu for making so many devotees in the early days of ISKCON, and in Sweden, many devotees joined because of the efforts and preaching of Vegavan Prabhu. I pray to Krsna, everyone in the future will remember and understand what an important devotee he was. I also like to ask the GBC to kindly invite Vegavan Prabhu to visit and speak at the annual Mayapur festival. Everyone who knows Vegavan Prabhu only speaks kindly of him, he is truly not to be seen as an ordinary devotee. I joined, went through Bhakta training, and asked how soon I could join the book distribution party.
Some older devotees wanted me to wait but after around a month or so, I went on sankirtana. I was eager to learn to distribute Srila Prabhupada’s books, knowing what was in his Bhagavad Gita, Isopanisad and Krsna Book. In the summer of 1979, a preaching center was then finally attempted in Copenhagen again, and I asked Vegavan Prabhu and Harikesa if I could join the preaching there.
So on Janmastami of 1979, the first Janmastami of record there, many Indians came. Gopisvara Prabhu (a very kind devotee from the U.S.) and his wife (a disciple of Srila Prabhupada from Germany) organized the first Janamstami there. I started distributing books and helped maintain the temple, bringing guests to our evening program and Sunday feast. Unfortunately, they decided to leave after only 4 months, and Vaidyanatha Prabhu (the brother of Sacinandana Swami) became the Temple President. He tried his best but was seriously struggling to control his senses, and though I was going out alone on sankirtana from 9 30 am until sometimes 8 pm, he would still sometimes wake me up at 3 am. Having not been able to rest enough it was hard to do sankirtana for so many hours, plus I was not really allowed to sit down and read Srila Prabhupada’s books for 2 hours a day, as I wanted too.
I was so burned out after 2 months of 6 to 7 days of sankirtana a week, and not even being able to read Srila Prabhupada’s books enough (and I always liked to chant more than 16 rounds). I left the temple and went to stay with my German friend and his family for a few days to rest, and I called Vegavan Prabhu in Sweden. Vegavan Prabhu came to Denmark and I went with him back to Sweden and did sankirtana again until I got initiated in 1980, around Janmastami (this was the time Sri Sri Gandarvika Giridhari got installed). Back to Denmark and doing sankirtana again.
I should mention that in 1979, we had Ilapati Prabhu (later to be HH Bhaktivikas Maharaja and HH Prabhavisnu Maharaja doing some collecting in Denmark …selling ISKCON records).The association of these 2 great souls, at this time, I see in light of how Narada Muni served the Bhaktivedantas (unfortunately I did not get so much opportunity to serve them). But for me to see such staunch Vaisnavas was the mercy of Sri Krsna.
So many things happened I will not get into here, but in 1984, Devamrta Swami ordered me to sell paintings instead of Srila Prabhupada’s books. I simply refused to go and sell paintings to maintain a life of comfort for persons like himself. Srila Prabhupada never asked us to sell paintings, and quickly Krsna showed me the deviation that had crept into ISKCON by the influence of Kali.
This painting business was started by Bhavananda in Australia, simply selling karmi paintings, and Harikesa, Suhotra and Devamrta Swami also liked it. From this point on Krsna showed me that exclusively taking shelter of Srila Prabhupada is what is needed. None of these leaders that was making politics against other devotees where real serious devotees. Vegvan Prabhu was kicked out of ISKCON by Harikesa and Devamrta Swami. They where simply envious of him, that is an undisputed fact. I lived outside the temple and kept distributing Srila Prabhupada’s books, I tried to work with a Maharama das, who was the Temple President and Regional Secretary for Austria. He was so neophyte he would get in fights with taxi drivers because he refused to pay the full fair for taxis used by devotees, and made a public scene. I could not tolerate his neophyte nonsense, and left. Harikesa did not correct him, and Sacinandana (then not a Swami) chastised me, and asked me about how I thought of Harikesa: “He is a nice man”, I said. He was furious, how dare I see Harikesa as an ordinary person.
I had already stopped chanting his pranama mantra and never did so again, I simply started taking shelter of Srila Prabhupada. I did not want to disturb the mind of all his other ignorant disciples.
Suhotra was starting to fall down at this time. The GBC later made him into Vanacari, though he seemed to not follow any asrama, but the practice of burning out many devotees was never brought to the GBC’s attention. HH Bhaktivaibhava Swami never got into all this nonsense and always remained very kind to all devotees. This is why I have always liked him and respected him.
In 1985, Harikesa was asking me if I wanted to go on Padayatra. I gave a donation to Devamrta Swami and made a devotee, that I asked to join the temple in Copenhagen. So they became a bit kinder to me (rascals as they where). Devamrta Swami has later apologized to me and I forgive Maharaja and only see his good. I warned him in 1990 when he was in New Vrindavan this place was full of deviation, monk ropes, no tilak, no loudly chanting the Mahamantra in japa, keeping Srila Prabhupada’s murti outside in the winter, Kirtanananda building a “Prabhudabuddhapada”, a concocted deity of Prabhupada and Lord Buddha. I also told or reminded Devamrta Swami about Kirtanananda’s child abuse, and his murdering of Sulocana Prabhu. He suggested I tell this to Kirtanananda. I guess Devamrta would be pleased if Kirtanananda had me killed also?
Yes, it is a rosy world of ignorance.
Back to 1985, I was on ISKCON Padayatra, and distributed Srila Prabhupada’s books in the blazing South Indian sun, but I was glad to be with nice devotees like Lokanantha Maharaja and Jayadvaita Swami. Jaydvaita Swami encouraged me to try to take shelter of Harikesa again. I prayed hard to Srila Prabhupada and Krsna, and when I came to Sri Ramesvaram, Krsna gave me a dream to do so. So I tried when I came back to Denmark, at the end of 1985 (my Indian visa was expired, and back then you could only stay 6 months and not renew so easily.) Devamrta would not allow me to stay in the temple, but it was all Krsna’s mercy, because I met one sincere soul, that also became a devotee, and I distributed Srila Prabhupada’s books, and left Denmark to join Padayatra again.
I ended up going to Vrindavan doing some sankirtana, from there and really visiting so many places of Krsna’s lila there. I went to have darshan of Jagannatha Puri, Simhacalam and Ahovalam, and did a year’s sankirtana from Vrindavan, and other seva there. When I came back in 1986, Harikesa had finally thrown out Devamrta Swami from his zone. (So do not feel sorry for Devamrta Swami when he tells you a sob story how Harikesa mistreated him. Devamrta wanted Harikesa’s position, that is all.) Devamrta Swami made one crazy fellow, Adideva, his Temple President. He was also very envious of me, and never took any good advice. Sometimes when he was a new devotee, he would run around naked in the asrama, and then complain to Harikesa I wanted to be his Guru. (He forgot to tell him to just please put a gamsa on, as devotees do not run around naked.) He should never say the Mahamantra and for years was chanting “snik snak hare kritna” when doing artik in Vrindavan, turned the conch shell the wrong way, everything he did wrong and with false ego. He left shortly after Devamrta was forced to leave ISKCON Denmark, and became the total Mayavadi he was. I feel sorry to this day for him, that he was never properly trained in Krsna Consciousness. I am probably the only person praying he will come back to Srila Prabhupada and Krsna (but get better training in Krsna Consciousness.) Please pray for him. The day he got married, he told Harikesa that he could not help to only see his wife as a sense object.
The time I was in Austria with Maharama, I was getting some laxmi from the Danish Government, so I told Adideva he could take this laxmi for the temple, but if I ever needed some Laxmi, I would need to get my government checks back. When I had to leave Austria in 1984 he refused to give me my laxmi, and Devamrta was so envious he also did not want me to get my money. Only Harikesa had some sanity, and told them to give me what was mine.
To not make this too long I will divide this up into different parts.
This is to show how a serious devotee like myself can be so wrongly treated. However, I have taken all such obstacles as the mercy of Krsna, remembering the Pandavas (and Lord Ramachandra) that so-called suffered great injustices. I pray in my life I can stay fully faithful to proper dharma and justice and try to not offend anyone, but fully surrender to Radha Krishna, and Mahaprabhu and Lord Narasimha and Srila Prabhupada first of all. I have learned that all such obstacles are all but Krsna’s mercy to fully depend on Him alone, and Srila Prabhupada.
We should be careful to not push any devotee away from Krsna’s Lotus Feet. Not everyone will be so determined to stay, no matter what.
your humble servant,
Payonidhi das
PS. I pray Harikesa Prabhu and Vegavan Prabhu and many others that have left ISKCON can return. Please pray for them, they have rendered much service to Srila Prabhupada. Please pray for Suhotra Prabhu also. He has left us, I have only love for him. (He is not Suhotra Swami, just for the information of Radio Krsna Denmark, that keeps calling him Suhotra Swami.)
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