Grandfather is More Merciful Than Father

One time the late Kartikeya Prabhu who was Prabhupada's servant at the time personally told me the following story.

Prabhupada was staying in Hawaii at the time. One day, Govinda Dasi brought some wheat germ from the market. I thought that the next time Srila Prabhupada asks for haleva, I'll make it from wheat germ and he'll be so pleased.

One day it was a rainy day. Sometimes when it rained or was cold, Prabhupada asked for haleva since the grains and ghee heated up the body. So this particular day he called me and asked me to make haleva. I was very excited and went to the kitchen and got the wheat germ and started to make haleva.

The whole time I was cooking, I was thinking how pleased Srila Prabhupada would be with this wheat germ haleva. This was my whole meditation, how Srila Prabhupada would be so pleased.

Then I offered it and brought it to Srila Prabhupada in his room. I was waiting to see how he would like it. He looked up with a very sour look on his face and said, "Haleva means suji (cream of wheat)." With his left hand he motioned saying, "Take this away." When someone rejects something with his left hand, it is very heavy. So broken heartedly, I took the bowl of haleva out of the room. I was very upset and didn't know what to do. So I went into the temple and sat in front of the altar before the pictures of Srila Prabhupada and Srila Bhaktisiddhanta. Crying, I began to pray to Srila Bhaktisiddhanta, "I was just trying to please your spiritual son, but somehow he is upset with me. I don't know what to do. I really only wanted to please him."

Suddenly, I heard Srila Prabhupada's voice calling from his room, "Kartikeya! Kartikeya!" I came running and he told me to bring the haleva. I immediately brought the bowl of haleva and Prabhupada began to eat it with great gusto and relish. Then he said, "Bring more." I broght more and again when he finished he requested more. In this way, he finished off the whole pot.

Kartikeya told me that from this he could understand that the whole disciplic succession is there behind Srila Prabhupada to pull us out of this deep dark well of material existence. My understanding is that just as Srila Prabhupada always told us, the grandfather is more merciful than the father. My own practical experience was that my grandfather owned what would now be called a convenience store. On one side there was the candy counter. We would always go over there, but our father would tell us not to take so much candy. But our grandfather behind his back would always slip us something.

So many times young devotees tell me that you were so fortunate, you got to have darshan of Srila Prabhupada. We're very unfortunate, we could never see him. But I tell them that they are more fortunate than us Prabhupada disciples because they have Srila Prabhupada as their grandfather spiritual master. He will be more merciful to you than to us. And I see practically, that so many of the second generation, despite so many troubles, are making wonderful advancement in Krishna Consciousness. It can only be the mercy of their grandfather spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada.

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