AC Bhakthivedanta Swamy Prabhupad

Born on 1 September 1896, the day after Janmastami, one of the most important Vaishnava holidays, in a humble house in the tollugunge suburb of Calcutta, he was named Abhay Charan, "one who is fearless, having taken shelter at Lord Krishna's feet." Since he was born on the day of Nandotsava ("the celebration of ," Krishna's father, a traditional festival in honor of Krishna's birth) he was also called Nandulal. His parents, Sriman Gour Mohan De and Srimati Rajani De, were devout Vaishnavas (devotees of Vishnu). In accordance with  tradition, his mother had gone to the home of her parents for the delivery, and only a few days later Abhay returned with parents to his home at 151 Harrison Road in Calcutta, where he was brought up and educated.
He received a European led education in the Scottish Church College. This school was well reputed among Bengalis; many Vaishnava families sent their sons there. The professors, most of whom were Europeans, were known as sober, moral men, and it is believed that the students received a good education. The college was located in north Calcutta, not far from Harrison Road where Abhay's family lived. During his years in the college, Abhay Charan De was a member of the English Society as well as that of the Sanskrit Society, and it has been suggested that his education provided him a foundation for his future leadership. He graduated in 1920 with majors in English, philosophy and economics. However he rejected his diploma in response to Gandhi's independence movement. His refusal to accept the diploma he had earned was in protest of the British. He also wore the homespun cotton cloth the followers of Gandhi wore in support of home industry and protest of British rule in India.

In 1922, when Abhay Charan De first met his spiritual master, BhakthiSiddhanta Saraswathi Goswamy, he was requested to spread the message of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in the English language. Later in 1932 Abhoy Charan De became a formally initiated disciple of Bhaktisiddhanta. In 1944, (from his front room at Sita Kanta Banerjee, Calcutta), Abhoy Charan De started the publication called Back to Godhead, for which he acted as designer, publisher, editor, copy editor and distributor. He personally designed the logo, an effulgent figure of Caitanya Mahaprabhu in the upper left corner, with the motto: "Godhead is Light, Nescience is darkness" greeting the readers. In his first magazine he wrote:

“	Under the circumstances since 1936 up to now, I was simply speculating whether I shall venture this difficult task and that without any means and capacity; but as none have discouraged me, I have now taken courage to take up the work.	”
	— A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, Back to Godhead magazine(Vol.1, 1-4, 1944)

In 1947, the Gaudiya Vaishnava Society recognised Abhoy Charan De's scholarship with the title Bhaktivedanta, (bhakti-vedānta) meaning "one who has realised that devotional service to the Supreme Lord is the end of all knowledge" (with the words Bhakthi, indicating devotion and Vedanta indicating conclusive knowledge). His later well known name, Prabhupāda, is a Sanskrit title, literally meaning "he who has taken the shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord" where prabhu denotes "Lord", and pāda means "taking shelter."Also, "at whose feet masters sit". This name was used as a respectful form of address by his disciples from late 1967 early 1968 onwards. Previous to this, as with his early disciples, followers used to call him "Swamiji".


From 1950 onwards, Abhoy Charan Bhaktivedanta lived at the medieval Radha-Damodar mandir in the holy town of Vrindavan, where he began his commentary and translation work of the Sanskrit work Bhagavata Puran. Of all notable Vrindavana's temples, the Radha Damodar Mandir had at the time the largest collection of various copies of the original writings of the Six Gosvamis and their followers - more than two thousand separate manuscripts, many of them three hundred, some even four hundred years old. His guru Bhakthisiddhanta Saraswathi, had always encouraged Bhaktivedanta Swami that "If you ever get money, print books", referring to the need of literary presentation of the Vaishnava culture.

Keshavaji Gaudiya Matha was the place where Bhaktivedanta used to live, he had written and studied in the library of this building, here he edited the Gauḍīya Patrikā magazine and this is the place where he donated the murtiof Lord Chaitanya who stands on the altar beside the Deities of Radha Krishna (named Śrī Śrī Rādhā Vinodavihārījī). During his visit in September 1959 he entered the doors of this mathaa dressed in white, as Abhoy Babu, but would be leaving dressed in saffron, a sanyasi. He received the sannyasa name Swami (स्वामी Svāmi), In this matha, in Mathura Vrndavana, Abhoy Charan Bhaktivedanta took Vaishnava renunciate vows, sanyasa, from his friend and godbrother Bhakti Prajnana Keshava, and following this he single-handedly published the first three volumes covering seventeen chapters of the first book of Bhagavata Purana, filling three volumes of four hundred pages each with a detailed commentary. Introduction to the first volume was a biographical sketch of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He then left India, obtaining free passage on a freight ship called the Jaladuta, with the aim and a hope of fulfilling his spiritual master's instruction to spread the message of Caitanya Mahaprabhu around the world. In his possession were a suitcase, an umbrella, a supply of dry cereal, about eight dollars worth of Indian Currency, and several boxes of books.


A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami sailed to the USA in 1965. His trip to the United States was not sponsored by any religious organization, nor was he met upon arrival by a group of loyal followers.As he neared his destination on the ship, the Indian freighter Jaladuta, the enormity of his intended task weighed on him. On 13 September he wrote in his diary, "Today I have disclosed my mind to my companion, Lord Sri Krishna." On this occasion and on a number of others, Bhaktivedanta Swami, called on Krsna for help in his native Bengali. Examining these compositions, academics regard them as "intimate records of his prayerful preparation for what lay ahead" and a view on "how Bhaktivedanta Swami understood his own identity and mission."

“

I do not know why You have brought me here. Now You can do whatever You like with me. But I guess You have some business here, otherwise why would You bring me to this terrible place? How will I make them understand this message of Krishna consciousness? I am very unfortunate, unqualified and most fallen. Therefore I am seeking Your benediction so that I can convince them, for I am powerless to do so on my own.

”

By journeying to America, he was attempting to fulfill the wish of his guru, possible only by the grace of "his dear Lord Krishna". It is in July 1966 "global missionary Vaishnavism" was brought to the West by Bhaktivedanta Swami, "the soul agent", founding the International Society for Krishna Consciousness in New York City. Bhaktivedanta Swami spent much of the last decade of his life setting up the institution of ISKCON. Since he was the Society's leader, his personality and management were responsible for much of ISKCON's growth and the reach of his mission.
When it was suggested to Bhaktivedanta Swami at the time of founding the International Society for Krishna Consciousness in 1966 that a broader term "God Consciousness" would be preferable to "Krishna Consciousness" in the title, he rejected this recommendation, suggesting that name Krishna includes all other forms and concepts of God.
After a group of devotees and a temple had been established in New York another center was started in San Francisco in 1967. From here Bhaktivedanta Swami traveled throughout America with his disciples, popularizing the movement through street chanting (sankirtana), book distribution and public speeches.

Once ISKCON was more established in America a small number of devotees from theSan Francisco temple were sent to London, England. After a short time of being in London they came into contact with The Beatles, of whom George Harrison took the greatest interest, spending a significant time speaking with Bhaktivedanta Swami and producing a record with members of the later London Radha Krsna Temple. Over the following years Bhaktivedanta Swami's continuing leadership role took him around the world some several times setting up temples and communities in all of the major continents. By the time of his death in Vrindavan eleven years later in 1977, ISKCON became a widely known expression of Vaishnavism on an international basis.
In the twelve years from his arrival in New York until his final days, he:

• circled the globe fourteen times on lecture tours that took him to six continents
• initiated many disciples, awarding sanyasa initiations.
• introduced Vedic gurukul education to a Western audience
• directed the founding of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, which claims to be the world's largest publisher of ancient and classical Vaishnava religious texts
• founded the religious colony New Vrindavan in West Virginia,
• authored more than eighty books (with many available online) on Vedantic philosophy, religion, literature and culture (including four published originally in Bengali)
• introduced international celebrations in the capitals of the world like that of Jagannatha processions
• watched ISKCON grow to a confederation of more than 108 temples, various institutes and farm communities

Through his mission, Bhaktivedanta Swami followed and communicated the teachings of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and introduced bhakti yoga to an international audience. Within Gaudiya Vaishnavism this was viewed as the fulfillment of a long time mission to introduce Caitanya Mahaprabhu's teachings to the world.
In his discussion with a historian Arnold J. Toynbee in London, Bhaktivedanta Swami is quoted as saying: "I have started this Krishna Conscious Movement among the Indians and Americans and for the next ten thousand years it will increase."

According to the most recent issue of Back to Godhead magazine, founded by Srila Prabhupada, there are presently over 400 temples and farm communities listed to visit. This magazine lists only the major centers, there are many more homes turned temple that hold programs as well that aren't close by regular temples(Back to Godhead). Srila Prabhupada's initiated disciples and grand disciples number in the tens or hundreds of thousands with millions of more believers who accept his teachings as genuine and bona-fide throughout the world.
Srila Prabhupada stated his books, "Would be the lawbooks for mankind for the next ten thousand years." This is because of what is written in one of them, the Sri Caitanya Caritamrta, wherein it is predicted that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's movement will spread for ten thousand years. Srila Prabhupada came West fulfilling the order of his spiritual master, who told him to print books. His spiritual master said of Srila Prabhupada, "Whatever he writes, print it."(Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta). Srila Prabhupada was the latest branch of the Caitanya tree, the disciplic succession coming through from Sri Caitanya to Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati to Srila Prabhupada through the process of disciplic succession. Currently, there are approximately 80 spiritual masters initiating disciples in the movement, some of whom have more disciples than Srila Prabhupada personally initiated himself.Bhaktivedanta Swami stated "devotees should not be lazy, idle...we are not afraid to work. Whatever our engagement is, by offering the result to Krishna we become Krishna conscious". Bhaktivedanta Swami was critical of the monists philosophies of hinduism representing the Gaudiya Vaishnava point of view and often insulting the orthodox Vedanta adherents of monism with 'cruel words'.  the Gaudiya-Vaishnava philosophy he followed is neither fully dualistic nor monist (this is known as Achintya Bheda Abheda). As a school of thought, Gaudiya Vaishnavism has much more in common with the Dvaita, as opposed to the Advaita schools.

Initially, Bhaktivedanta Swami began his public preaching mission in India. He founded the League of Devotees in Jhansi in 1953. Following the establishment of temples and centres in the United States and Europe, Bhaktivedanta Swami returned to India in 1971, holding many public programs which were well attended. From 1971 onwards, the movement became increasingly popular and spread throughout the country, Bhaktivedanta Swami was particularly eager to see the progress at "the impressive temple project in" Mumbai which he and his disciples had fought very hard to establish, with large temples in Mayapur and Vrindavan to follow in mid-1970s. To promote the vedic education system in modern Indian education structure, he introduced the chain of Gurukul in various part of India. The Bhaktivedanta Gurukula (Vrindavan) is one of the most successful school in the list.
In 1996, the Government of India recognized Bhaktivedanta Swami's accomplishments by issuing a commemorative stamp in his honour as a part of Prabhupada Centennial celebrations.
Speaking at the inauguration of ISKCON's cultural center in New Delhi on 5 April on occasion of Ramnavmi in 1998, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, then India's prime minister, said:

“	If the Bhagavad Gita, the holy text of the Hindu traditions, is printed in millions of copies and scores of languages and distributed in all nooks and corners of the world, the credit for this great sacred service goes chiefly to ISKCON. For this accomplishment alone, Indians should be eternally grateful to the devoted spiritual army of Swami Prabhupada, the founder of the Hare Krishna movement, and to his followers. . . The arrival of Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in the United States in 1965 and the particular popularity his movement gained in a very short span of twelve years must be regarded as one of the greatest spiritual events of the century.	”
	— Atal Bihari Vajpayee - April 1998