by Daivi-sakti dd
Never before in the history of Vṛndāvana had people from outside of India come in a spirit of devotion to worship Śrī Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. It was the first time the residents of Vṛndāvana ever saw anything like this. Historically, over a span of thousands of years, barbaric invaders had swept the plains of India with the intent to conquer the sub-continent. Temples were plundered and destroyed, and Deities were desecrated by the invaders. Devotees were persecuted and many were forced into conversion or hiding. But Prabhupāda explained:
“In the Bhagavad-gītā Kṛṣṇa confirms, ‘My devotee will never perish.’ For hundreds of years, the Muslims tried to stamp out Kṛṣṇa worship in Vṛndāvana, Mathurā, and Jagannātha Purī—practically all of India—but still it’s going on, and the Muslims and British have come and gone. The potencies of the holy dhāma are greater than any mundane power. Of course, during Muslim times, the Deities had been hidden, but this does not mean that They need our protection. The Muslims would break the Deities with sticks and then think, ‘Oh, we have killed the Hindu God.’ Of course, this is nonsense. Simply the marble was broken, not the Deity. Foolish men think of the Deity in a limited, mundane way. God manifests Himself in the Deity out of mercy for His devotee, but He is still present in His eternal abode as well as in every atom of the creation. Kṛṣṇa is all powerful; His Deity form is indestructible and His dhāma possesses all spiritual potencies.”
To the untrained eye, the present-day Vṛndāvana, where Prabhupāda brought his foreign devotees, appeared to be dilapidated and neglected. Now Prabhupāda would begin the revival of the spiritual culture of India starting with Vṛndāvana. In the coming years, the town of Vṛndāvana would develop into an international centre for spiritual seekers and devotees. The local and state government also took an interest in uplifting Vṛndāvana to become a major tourist spot. Roads were widened, and many new buildings were constructed to accommodate the surge of visitors that now come to the growing town.
Aside from visiting the holy places, Prabhupāda also took the devotees to the homes of friends and devotees in Vṛndāvana. Nearby the Rādhā-Dāmodara temple there lived a pious couple, Kāśī Prasād Saraf and his devoted wife, Gītā Devī Saraf. Prabhupāda would often bring the devotees to their home for kīrtana and also invite the Sarafs to visit him at the Rādhā-Dāmodara temple.
One morning Prabhupāda told Mr. Saraf that he wanted to find some land in Vṛndāvana to build a temple. Mr. Saraf mentioned that they had property in Ramaṇa-reti, quite far from the town. Prabhupāda saw this as Kṛṣṇa’s arrangement and immediately asked if he could see the land. Mr. Saraf then took Prabhupāda in a car to Ramaṇa-reti, but while showing him the land, reminded him how far it is from the town. Prabhupāda told him that he preferred the temple to be in this place because this is where Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma would herd Their cows. He asked if Mr. Saraf was willing to sell the land, or possibly donate it. Mr. Saraf explained that the land was in the name of his wife, Gita Devī, and that she would return to Vṛndāvana only after a few months.
When Mrs. Saraf came to Vṛndāvana in March, she generously donated the entire land to Prabhupāda so he could build a temple. Initially, the front portion of the land was to remain in the name of the Sarafs so they could make some shops there to get some income perhaps. One day, Prabhupāda asked Gita Devī to come and speak with him. He told her, “You are thinking that Kṛṣṇa is your child, and you know when a mother has a child she is more affectionate to the child than to the father. We will make such a big temple for Kṛṣṇa, and it is the work of a mother for her lala, darling son, to make a big front gate.”
Gita Devī agreed that the temple should have a large front gate, so she gave permission for Prabhupāda to use the front portion of the land. Though her husband was reluctant, Prabhupāda arranged for a judge from Mathura to come personally to their home so they could all sign the deed. Sometimes transactions of this nature take six months to accomplish, but within three days, on March 12, 1972, it was approved by the judge, and the entire 4,800 square yard property was registered in the name of ISKCON.
Prabhupāda immediately planned a ceremony on March 13th to place a foundation stone where the temple would be constructed. He arranged for a local brāhmaṇa to perform the ceremony by chanting Vedic mantras while the devotees chanted Hare Kṛṣṇa. Auspicious articles were placed within a sixteen-foot-deep hole and then everyone present threw sacred Vraja-raj, the dust of Vṛndāvana, into the hole. Officially the temple construction began on that day.
Even from this early stage Prabhupāda wanted the Deities in Vṛndāvana be Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma. On April 25, 1972, he wrote to the Vṛndāvana temple president Gurudāsa and Yamuna, “Kṛṣṇa may be black, Balarāma of white, and the pose in the back of the Back to Godhead magazine is very nice.” He asked that a sign be put at the front of the land announcing, “Shri Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma Mandir.” He predicted that this would be the grandest temple in Vṛndāvana and foresaw the day when many gentlemen in Delhi who are also devotees would relish the chance to live at the temple on weekends. It would be just like Vaikuntha for them.
Prabhupāda encouraged the devotees to construct something wonderful that could also be a European preaching center. He wanted to attract the tourists who came to Vṛndāvana by giving them nice prasādam and engaging them in chanting, cleaning the temple, and reading the books. In that way the temple would give everyone the opportunity to engage in devotional service.
From this time onwards, Prabhupāda had the devotees go daily to the land at Ramaṇa-reti on kīrtana procession. Some devotees stayed at the Rādhā-Damodara temple, and a small crew of young men moved on to the land to begin construction. In those days, Ramaṇa-reti was considered to be a risky place to live. There were only a few houses in the area, and rickshaws were not willing to travel so far. One narrow road connected Ramaṇa-reti to Vṛndāvana town. On either side of the road there was undeveloped land sparsely dotted with temples and asrāmas. Despite the skepticism of some devotees, Prabhupāda decided this would be an ideal place for the temple.
Prabhupāda planned to make temples in both Vṛndāvana and Mayapur. Since the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement had been inaugurated, many Europeans and Americans came to visit Vṛndāvana, but they were not properly received by asrāmas or temples there. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness would now give them shelter in Vṛndāvana and train them in devotional service. There were also many tourists who came to India to explore India’s culture. The devotees in Vṛndāvana and Māyāpura would be able to accommodate them once the temples were complete. For these reasons, Prabhupāda considered this to be one of the most important projects of ISKCON.