Sri Bhakti Prema Prabhu passed away in Sri Vrindavan Dham on Monday the 29th of Nov

We are sorry to inform the devotees about the sudden and surprising

departure of our dear godbrother and friend, Sri Bhakti Prema Prabhu.

Bhakti

Prema passed away in Sri Vrindavan Dham on Monday the 29th of November.

At the time of his departure, Bhakti Prema was only 36 years old. Raised

in

the UK in a pious Indian family, he came to India to take shelter of Sri

Srimad Gour Govinda Swami. Bhakti Prema stayed in Bhubaneswar for several

years and during that time he received a lot of merciful attention from

Srila Gour Govinda Maharaja. After Maharaja's departure, Bhakti Prema

received the mercy of Srila Bhakti Svarup Damodar Maharaja and took

initiation from him. Since 1996, Bhakti Prema kept the ISKCON Gadeigiri

temple in Orissa as his base. There, he rendered various services as a

kirtan leader, preacher, and laksmi collector for Sri Sri Radha Gopal Jiu,

the beloved deities of Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Swami. He was a well known

traveling brahmacari preacher and gave many classes in Europe and South

India.

Shortly before his departure, Bhakti Prema Prabhu was attending the Vraja

Mandala Parikrama of Sri Ramesh Baba of Barsana. For nearly the whole

month

of Kartika he was daily absorbed in hari-katha, blissful kirtan, dancing

and

taking darsan of different deities and holy places of Vraja. Devotees have

told us that he was having stomach problems due to some water he had drank

on the parikrama. Kartika finished on the 27th of November and the next

day

he went to Srila Bhakti Svarup Damodar Maharaja's temple at Radha Kund to

recuperate. However his condition worsened and he started suffering from

severe dysentery. The next day when he began badly shaking and vomiting

blood the devotees took him to the hospital at Govardhan. They said they

could not help him and referred him to the hospital in Vrindavan. He was

admitted to hospital in Vrindavan and that afternoon, sometime between

four

and five PM he left his body there.

That night, the devotees in Vrindavan phoned to inform us here in

Bhubaneswar. They said that because he was a foreigner, government

regulations would not allow them to burn his body until his passport and

papers were cleared. Hence Bhakti Prema Prabhu's body was taken to Srila

Gour Govinda Swami's Puspa Samadhi in Vrindavan where the devotees

performed

kirtan for him all night.

Bhakti Prema Prabhu was a young healthy brahmacari, his sudden departure

was

a shock to everyone. However, we consider his departure in Vrindavan to be

the most wonderful and glorious event. In his "Sri Mathura Mahatmya",

Srila

Rupa Goswamipad has described the glories of Vraja Mandala. Therein Lord

Varahadev says to the Earth goddess (texts 33-34):

"O Devi, among all holy places, Mathura (the town, but is also another

name

for the area of Vraja) is the most important because Lord Sri Krishna

performed many pastimes there. Every step of this land is purifying. It is

the abode of Sri Krishna's childhood pastimes with His cowherd boy friends

and this place is decorated with the marks of Sri Krishna's lotus feet."

In text 41, Rupa Goswami quotes Narada Muni from Skanda Purana, Mathura

Mahatmya:

"The result one obtains by performing pious activities in any part of

India

for thirty-three thousand years is obtained simply by remembering

Mathura."

In text 87, Srila Rupapada again quotes Lord Varaha's words to Bhumi Devi

in

the Adi Varaha Purana:

"O Devi, if persons give up their bodies anywhere in Mathura such as a in

a

house, on the water, in the land, on the road, or in a courtyard, they

will

certainly attain liberation."

Text 97 states:

"What to speak of human beings, if even insects, worms, flies, or trees

die

in this holy land, they will also attain the supreme destination."

Although we will miss our old friend, when we contemplate his good

fortune,

our hearts feel a great happiness. "Bhakti Prema Prabhu, wherever you are

today, we offer you our humble pranams. All glories!!"

Your old friend and servant, Madhavananda Das