The next day was Vyasa-puja. We were not well seasoned in Krishna conscious observances. Kirtanananda was the most senior among us, as he had been a devotee for two or three years. Although we still should have known how to properly celebrate Srila Prabhupada’s Vyasa-puja, we were unprepared.
Srila Prabhupada arrived at the temple at around 11:30 a.m., took his seat on the vyasasana, and asked, “Where is the puspa?”
We were confused. Puspa? What is puspa?
Sudama thought, “Oh, he wants puspa rice,” a fancy kind of rice with nuts and curd balls. He immediately began preparing this dish, which caused further delays.
Meanwhile, Srila Prabhupada asked, “Where is the feast?”
But the feast was not ready.
He then asked, “Where is the garland?”
There were no garlands. Nor were there any flowers prepared for puspanjali.
Srila Prabhupada said, “No puspanjali. The feast is not ready. You are not saying the right prayers. There is no garland for the Deities. How is this a Vyasa-puja? This is not a Vyasa-puja. This is a disgrace.”
To Kirtanananda he said, “You are a senior disciple. Don’t you know how to celebrate the spiritual master’s appearance day? Don’t you have any understanding? This is a disgrace.”
Then he said, “Tomorrow we will celebrate it properly,” and walked out the door.
Kirtanananda began to cry, and we were all devastated. The temple was full of guests, and everyone felt as if a cold ice pick had pierced their hearts.
Later that same day, Srila Prabhupada called us to his room and said, “I will tell you how to celebrate Vyasa-puja, and you must not forget it for the rest of your lives.”
He instructed us:
“You must have flowers for the puspanjali.
You must stand and offer the flowers to the spiritual master three times, bow down three times, say the mangalacaranam prayers to the spiritual master, and have the offering ready.
The offering has to go on one minute before twelve so that it is on the altar at twelve.
You must also read homages.”
We hadn’t written any homages either.
“You must have the homages written. This is the way you celebrate the appearance of the spiritual master,” he said.
Srila Prabhupada was very strict with his disciples—and at the same time, very kind. After becoming his disciple, his kindness remained, but he also expected us to be properly trained in Krishna consciousness for our own spiritual benefit. He wanted us to know what to do, to avoid mistakes, and not to be offensive due to ignorance.
The next day, when Srila Prabhupada returned to the temple, we celebrated Vyasa-puja exactly the way he had taught us.
He was pleased.
Reference: Memories Anecdotes of a Modern Day Saint – Volume 1 by Siddhanta Dasa