Our purity is our strength

Yogeshvara : Sometime in 1972 or '73, I thought Prabhupada would appreciate it if I showed a little humor, so I made an announcement for the Krishna Yoga Club in the New York University student newspaper. It was a cartoon showing a cool guy with dark glasses on. In the next frame, he was completely laid out on the floor with swarms of students streaming over him holding a flying sign saying, "Krishna Yoga Club opens today." 

Srila Prabhupada sent me a letter saying, "I don't think you need to distract yourself for such cartoons. Our strength is our purity, and this kind of approach has made things seem less important and less serious than they really are. We don't need to go out of our way to attract public attention and appeal to anyone on some other basis. Our purity is our strength." 

To be chastised by the spiritual master is a great blessing. I've carried that incident with me all these years, and it's influenced everything I've done since.