This issue contains a graphic painting (pp. 34–35) of Lord Narsimha, Krsna’s half-man, half-lion incarnation, ripping apart Hiranyakasipu, an atheistic king hell-bent on killing his own son. Someone seeing a painting of Lord Narsimha for the first time might react with shock and skepticism. How could God do such a thing?Krsna’s devotees react differently. This fierce form of Krsna shows how much He loves His servants and will do anything to protect them. And there’s background to the story: Hiranyakasipu was himself a servant of the Lord, playing the role of a wicked king to give Krsna a chance to display some righteous anger.
Appreciating Lord Narsimha’s actions requires a well-rounded spiritual education. When Srila Prabhupada arrived in America, he carried that education with him in the erudite tradition he embodied. From the moment he landed, he sought opportunities to teach others deep spiritual truths.
In this issue, Sally and Gopal Agarwal tell us about Prabhupada’s earliest days in America. While their accounts of an elderly Indian swami encountering a foreign culture are charming and sometimes humorous, they also show the dedication with which Prabhupada pursued his mission of bringing to the world devotion to Krsna and His avatars. Hare Krsna.- Nagaraja Dasa, Editor
Our Purposes
• To help all people discern reality from illusion, spirit from matter, the eternal from the temporary.
• To expose the faults of materialism.
• To offer guidance in the Vedic techniques of spiritual life.
• To preserve and spread the Vedic culture.
• To celebrate the chanting of the holy names of God as taught by Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
• To help every living being remember and serve Sri Krsna, the Personality of Godhead.