By Indradyumna Swami
Sunday October 13
I was up late last night meeting my Moscow disciples. They were eager to tell me of their devotional services of the past few months, and I was eager to hear. Today is the second anniversary of my disciple Vraja Lila dasi’s passing away, and I spent much of the morning in my room reading from my own book, Vraja Lila. I wanted to capture in my heart again the moments of her glorious departure two years ago, which has so much affected the lives of many devotees throughout the world.
Just before noon there was a knock on my door. My servant, Uttama Sloka dasa, entered and announced that Vraja Lila’s mother, Taisiya Kuznetsova, was outside and that she wanted to see me. I was surprised, as I had never met her. I immediately asked that she be brought in.
She came into the room and immediately spoke to me. “Thank you so much,” she said, “for delivering my daughter to heaven.”
I had her sit down, and I asked her how it was she had come to the Moscow temple. She explained that although she lived far away, she felt that the temple was the best place to spend the anniversary of her daughter’s departure.
We talked for some time, and gradually Taisiya began showing a genuine interest in our movement. She asked if I could also help her go to the spiritual world. I asked Uttama Sloka for some beads and gave them to her, showing her how to chant. She memorized the mantra and promised to chant every day.
Finally she asked if she could somehow go to that “special village” in India where Vraja Lila had spent her last days, the village that had “brought my daughter so close to God.” I said I would be taking a group of devotees to that village, called Våndävana, soon and I would be happy if she came with us.
After she left, I remembered Lord Nåsiràhadeva’s promise to Prahlada Maharaja, that by the merit of his being a pure devotee, twenty-one generations of his family members would be liberated:
Sri-bhagavan uvaca
triù-saptabhiù pita putaù pitåbhiù saha te ‘nagha
yat sadho ‘sya kule jato bhavan vai kula-pavanaù
“The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: My dear Prahlada, O most pure, O great saintly person, your father has been purified, along with twenty-one forefathers in your family. Because you were born in this family, the entire dynasty has been purified.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.10.18)