Daily Routine at Radha Damodara Temple

Mahanidhi Dasa: At one A.M., in the stillness of night by kerosene light, Srila Prabhupada would begin pouring out his Bhaktivedanta purports to Srimad-Bhagavatam. After working a few hours, Prabhupada would chant japa in his room, or sitting before Rupa Goswami's samadhi, or while pacing the eighteen foot long veranda connecting his kitchen and bedroom. From his desk he could view the large, beaming lotus face of Vrindavanchandra, the tallest Krishna Deity on Damodara's altar. Although more than one hundred and eight samadhis stand in the Radha-Damodara temple compound, Srila Prabhupada's daily routine included temple circumambulation and obeisances at four samadhis: Rupa Goswami, Jiva Goswami, Krishna Das Kaviraj, and Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati.

At ten A.M., Srila Prabhupada would visit neighboring temples for darshan, purchase vegetables and return by eleven to cook. Using a kerosene burner and a three-tiered cooker, Prabhupada would prepare rice, dahl, potatoes, chapatis and sometimes sabji. He took once a day at noon and at night a cup of hot milk. Prabhupada would honor the maha-prasadam of Radha-Damodara whenever it was impossible to cook for himself. Daily Prabhupada would gaze upon Rupa Goswami's samadhi while taking prasadam in his kitchen. Many years later Prabhupada said that he received great inspiration from Rupa Goswami, and that the plans for the Krishna consciousness movement were formulated during his years at Radha-Damodara. After lunch prasadam he would rest for fifteen minutes, and then write.