Help Save the Life of Praghosa Prabhu... Please

krsna · May 15, 2004

Help Save the Life of

Praghosa Prabhu... Please

From Udayananda dasa

Posted May 15, 2004

Dear devotees,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

The following appeal is one of the most difficult and painful things I have had to do in my entire life. Our dear Godbrother and friend Praghosa dasa has contracted a life-threatening case of cancer. The doctors in the Chowpatty Temple have discovered a tumor 18 inches long and 10 inches wide in his abdominal area. The attached letters from Radhanatha Swami and from one of the doctors will give a further explanation of his condition.

It has been determined that in order to save Praghosa's life, this tumor needs to be shrunk by several sessions of extremely costly chemotherapy. Because of the size and location of this tumor, surgery and/or radiation is not possible at this juncture. The cost of this procedure will be a minimum of $25,000.00 US.

Praghosa is the father and provider of a wonderful Vaisnava family. He and his wife, Radhanga dasi have six children, a daughter-in-law, and a grandchild. They all live in Sri Dham Mayapura. His body is 51 years old. After 31 years of devotional service to Srila Prabhupada, he is still distributing Srila Prabhupada's books on a daily basis on the streets of New York City.

Just a little over a month ago, on St. Patrick's day, he distributed over 150 of Srila Prabhupada's books in New York. That day he called me on his cell phone and told me that he was feeling ecstatic in the nectar of book distribution and wanted to share it with me. He had a small hand's-free ear bud connected to his cell phone through which I could hear clearly what he was saying to the conditioned souls and how they were responding. I listened for about 45 minutes to one the most ecstatic exchanges of book distribution expertise that I have ever heard in my life. Practically every person that would stop would give a donation and with great appreciation take a book, promising to read it.

The possibilities of this maharathi book distributor continuing to distribute books and possibly training others will be over very soon if he cannot receive proper medical attention. The doctors say that if he is treated immediately, there is a 70 percent chance of survival.

Prabhus, I am begging on my knees, please help me to serve Srila Prabhupada's movement by restoring the health of this great soldier in Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's army. Forty-four years ago we became best friends. Thirty-one years ago I brought him to the temple. Now due to my bad karma I do not have the funds to save him. I can only beg for your mercy.

The worthless beggar,

Udayananda dasa

If you want to contribute by cash, check, MasterCard, Visa, Discover card, American Express, make your checks out to

Radhika Galleries-Save Praghosa Fund

3801 Obra Rd.

Graham, NC 27253

Thanks and appreciation from dipika.org to our sponsor and host,

You can contact me at my email address:

cieslakparker@aol.com

telephone:336-376-0331, 336-376-9377

For credit card or debit card

You can give me the card number, the expiration date, the name on the card and the amount you want to donate.

Thanking you in advance,

Your servant,

Udayananda dasa

A letter from Radhanatha Swami

Dear Udayananda Prabhu,

Please accept my respectful obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

Thank you very much for your kind letter. I have noted the contents carefully.

Let us sincerely pray for Praghosh Prabhu's health, and let us all do whatever is required to help him. If we wish to offer him a peaceful treatment we must all work together. Please allow me to honestly explain the situation. We offered to try our best to meet his medical expenses. If Praghosh Prabhu decides to go for the chemotherapy it will simply be too costly for our temple to afford without a lot of help.

Our doctors only earn about $500 per month (that is a lot in India). They all have families and homes to maintain. Our temple has been sustained hand to mouth over the years. In India there is no real income in book distribution. Chowpatty temple is in the top five of the world every year for the December Marathon and in the top ten for the yearly totals. All money earned by book distribution pays the BBT and maintains the book distribution parties. There are little or no funds beyond that.

Praghosh Prabhu could certainly inspire more book distribution but there is nothing Praghosh Prabhu could do to raise substantial income. In India, practically all temples are maintained by life membership. Our temple has never made a single life member. We agreed to this years ago, to avoid conflict with the Juhu temple. Thus our temple has always run hand to mouth for sustenance.

Our hospital having been closed for nine months has been a terrible financial strain for the supporters of the hospital. I informed the temple to try to compensate the costs of Praghosh Prabhu with money from donations and daksina that has been given to me. I always immediately turn it over to the temple. There is only about $3,000 left of that. I did not believe the treatments would exceed that.

Our doctors will continue to serve him around the clock absolutely free. That is already at much cost to them but they are grateful to do so. If Praghosh Prabhu requires chemotherapy, our simple temple simply has no means to cover the entire cost for the materials required. We will certainly do our very best and beyond. However, if our beloved Godbrother does go into this chemo treatment, it will require a joint effort of those who really love him. It appears to me that Krishna wants to give a chance to his dear friends to help at this time. "A friend in need is a friend indeed."

My humble and sincere request to you is, Please, please, please help in this crucial matter. You are his very dearest friend. You know who are his dear friends and well-wishers. Please contribute and inspire his other friends to contribute to this noble cause. It is a genuine way to show our love and to reciprocate with his incredible life of devotion. If this treatment is required let us all sincerely and earnestly work together to raise the funds required. Let us do everything possible to keep Praghosh Prabhu free of all financial anxieties at this critical time in his life. Let us show our love and appreciation through our service to him. Whatever is best for him, he should get with minimum disturbance.

Please, if necessary, do contact his friends and well wishers for help and contribute whatever you possibly can. Let us all stand united in our sacrifice to serve this great soul. Srila Prabhupada will certainly be pleased.

Your servant,

Radhanath Swami

Letter from Vishwarup das MD

4/28/04 –

Dear Radhanatha Swami Maharaja,

Hare Krishna. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. Please accept my most humble obeisances.

It was revealed in the investigations of H.G. Praghosh Prabhu that he has developed recurrence of his previous cancer. Amazingly, he has developed an unusually large-sized tumor, approximately 1-1/2 feet by 10 inches in size on the left side of the abdomen going into the pelvis, going up to the left kidney, encroaching upon important structures like left kidney, abdominal aorta and big veins, like an octopus. It is very obvious that he has neglected his health and the early symptoms of the relapse are very bad. In one sense, this is a very serious condition as the tumor can burst the aorta and veins and cause fatal bleeding inside.

He is still in the hospital. Today he was supposed to undergo a surgical excision of the left inguinal lymph node to assess the status of the cancer, whether malignant, benign or local. Surgical removal of the big tumor is impossible due to its octopus-like encroaching structure, which may endanger the vital structures.

He needs to urgently take six sessions of chemotherapy with advanced drugs with the interval of four to six weeks between the two sessions. For each session he needs to be hospitalized for 48 hours and each session will cost Indian rupees 1 lakh 25-30 thousand [125 to 130 thousand]. It will be unimaginably costly abroad.

The very first session will bring the tumor to 1/3rd of its size most probably. Please, please, please tell him not to think of any alternative treatment at this moment of time. That can be considered once the life threatening size of the tumor goes down by chemotherapy. Anything else but chemotherapy will put his life at risk. Detailed evaluation of the tumor is awaited. All the above things are duly explained to him.

Your servant,

Vishwarup das MD