FOREWARD
– by Chaturatma Dāsa
When I received a phone call from my dear friend Indradyumna Swami asking me for a favor, I was eager to satisfy him. But when he asked me to write the foreword for the current volume of his Diary of a Traveling Preacher, I was a bit hesitant. I’m no writer by any means, neither am I a great scholar. Yet I do have a small qualification: I have personally witnessed many of the remarkable pastimes and adventures of Indradyumna Swami in his service of spreading Krsna consciousness for Lord Caitanya.
In the life of Narada Muni, we see the travels of a great preacher who covers every corner of the universe. He encounters adventure, intrigue, danger, challenges, and achieves great successes. His ability to be so successful is due only to his attachment to the Supreme Lord and his desire to act as an order carrier of His teachings. As we read the pages of Diary of a Traveling Preacher, we cannot help but think of the similarities. Indradyumna Swami leaves no corner of the globe untouched as he travels in service to Srila Prabhupada, spreading the mission of Lord Caitanya. Whether he is floating down the Amazon River, speaking to leaders of gypsy villages, unlocking for his disciples the treasures of the holy dhamas, or spreading the holy name to hundreds of thousands of kids at the Polish Woodstock festival, his message is the same: take this holy name and chant.
This comes at no small price. He has sacrificed a peaceful life of contentedly living in one place, and put the very health of the body he uses in the Lord’s service at peril. Yet it can be said that there is no greater satisfaction for a preacher than to give everything in the battle for the sankirtan movement of Lord Caitanya. And, yes, he has received satisfaction, for the Lord has seen fit to reciprocate with him for his service. Many times he has been blessed with gifts of rare and exotic Deities of the Lord from ancient and forgotten tirthas.
A reader seeks to be entertained when reading – to feel the emotions of the character of the book, to observe the character’s development, to share with the character the daily challenges of his or her life. Indradyumna Swami is not afraid to open up and reveal himself. He shows us his strengths and weaknesses and how he develops and grows on the path of devotional service. He shows himself to be like you and me, yet by doing so he shows himself to be much different than you and me. He shows himself to be what we want to be, what we desire to be, but what we know we are not: a traveling preacher. What greater happiness can there be in this life?
Please now put aside these insignificant words of mine and plunge into the real world of bliss and excitement that is shared with all of us for our encouragement and advancement in the service to guru and Gauranga. Dive deep into Diary of a Traveling Preacher, Volume 8.
Chaturatma dasa
New Raman Reti Dhama
January 16, 2008