The Mahatma – HH Kadamba Kanana Swami – has left this material world, a few hours ago.
He was “a friend”. We met many times over the past four decades that I knew him. We worked in different spheres. He was at Mayapur and Vrindavan, at the beginning of his “devotional career”, and we knew each other from those days – right from the early 1980s.
Our last meeting was at Vrindavan, during this past Kartik 2022 – during late October. He was at peace with himself and resigned to the fact that his body was being destroyed by disease, and the end was to come in “a matter of months” – as it indeed turned out. He was very kind to spare time to meet me and my family members, and it was very cordial and friendly.
After leaving his services at Vrindavan, he became a “world preacher”, spreading Krishna consciousness through his lectures and now famous kirtans, in Europe, South Africa, the USA, and elsewhere. He was well known and liked by all, throughout the ISKCON world.
I remember meeting him at Berlin during 2012, while we were there. This last year we met at the NYC Rathayatra and spoke, briefly.
Words may not do justice to describing his transcendental activities of propagating Krishna consciousness and my own feelings of admiration and affection for him.
A few thoughts come to mind:
- कीर्तिर्यस्यसजिवति ।। (kirtir yasya sa jivati). “He who has acquired fame, he lives on (in that fame, forever).
- The poem of Bhaktivinoda Thakur:
“He reasons ill who tells that Vaisnavas die. When thou art living still in sound! The Vaisnavas die to live, and living try. To spread the holy name around!” - सद्गतिर्भवतु ! ।। (Sadgatir bhavatu!)
May he obtain the highest destination!