Krishna Balarama prototypes made at Radha-Damodara Mandir

Yamuna : We had a doll maker from Bengal come, and in this little courtyard space at Radha-Damodara Mandir, the first Krishna Balarama prototypes for our temple were made with straw and mud. Prabhupada said They should be posed with Balarama's hand resting on Krishna's shoulder. Srila Prabhupada liked that pose very much. I believe They were modeled after the painting Bharadraja Dasa did which was on the cover of Back to Godhead magazine.

Unfortunately, at the time the mice were particularly bad at Radha-Damodara, so when the prototype Krishna and Balarama Deities were stored in Srila Prabhupada's kitchen, the mice, probably attracted by the wheat flour, gradually destroyed Them. Finally, Srila Prabhupada asked us to put Them in the Yamuna River and requested that another, smaller set be made. And so a second pair of Krishna Balarama clay prototypes were then made. When They were done, those Krishna Balarama clay Deities were placed in a little niche in Prabhupada's cupboard.