A Mother’s Love

Srila Prabhupada took his birth in a Vaisnava family, and his father Gour Mohan was a pure devotee. So from the very beginning of his life, he was hearing about Krsna. Srila Prabhupada described his mother Rajani Devi as always being concerned for his health and well-being. "If my mother were alive today, she would be happy just to see that I am living."

Srila Prabhupada: Mother Yasoda would chant mantras in the morning to protect Krsna from all dangers throughout the day. When Krsna killed some demon she thought it was due to her chanting. My mother would do a similar thing with me.

Srila Prabhupada's mother would often take him to the Ganges and personally bathe him. She also gave him a food supplement known as Horlicks. When he got dysentery, she cured it with hot puris and fried eggplant with salt, though sometimes when he was ill Abhay would show his obstinacy by refusing to take any medicine. But just as he was stubborn, his mother was determined, and she would forcibly administer medicine into his mouth, though sometimes it took three assistants to hold him down.

I never wanted to go to school. And my father was very kind. “So all right. Why you are not going to school?” I would say, “I will go tomorrow.” “All right.” But my mother was very careful. Perhaps if my mother would not have been little strict, I would not have gotten any education.

Rajani showered her love on Abhay and he was completely dependent on her guidance and reassurance.