Life Question

Gaura Hari: The first time I saw Srila Prabhupada was in 1967 or '68 when he first came to San Francisco. At that time the mayor had called a meeting of various groups around the Haight Ashbury area of San Francisco as he anticipated thousands of kids coming for the "Summer of Love". I was with a group called the Diggers which was kind of a revolutionary group that would beg, borrow or steal food, and set up free kitchens in Golden Gate Park and elsewhere.

The Diggers were invited by Lou Gottlieb to go out and help farm his land in Sebestopol called Morning Star Ranch. I went out there to live and one day we heard that the devotees from the temple along with Prabhupada were going to come. We had built a platform, a little vyasasana for him in the woods on top of a hill underneath a cross that was on the property. I remember going out and picking yellow Scotchbroom flowers and decorating the vyasasana for Prabhupada.

Lou Gottlieb drove Srila Prabhupada out to the farm in his Volvo. When Prabhupada got there, I was digging potatoes in the garden, naked as most of us were at that time. Lou Gottlieb brought Prabhupada over to where I was. I shook Prabhupada's hand and Prabhupada said, "What are you doing?" I said, "Digging potatoes." He said, "No, what are you doing with your life?"

I was dumb-founded, as I don't even remember what I said to that, but I knew my spiritual life had been awakened.

Prabhupada then went up to the hill and we all chanted.

The thing was that after Prabhupada left, when all the people who were living there used to gather together for a common meal, everybody started chanting Hare Krishna before we ate. On that farm were many other people like Vishnujana, Tamal Krishna, Madhu-dvisa, Revatinandana and so many others who became devotees because of Srila Prabhupada's visit