He Lifted Us Into the Air With His Kirtan

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I first met Guru Maharaj in San Francisco. I was working in Ramdas Prabhu’s house. I had heard about Guru Maharaj's glories from Bindu Madhav Prabhu (France). He had told me how amazing Guru Maharaj was and hearing from him, I started to develop some attraction for Guru Maharaj. I feel like Guru Maharaj is so attractive and non-different from Supreme Lord: sākṣād-dharitvena samasta-śāstrair. Krishna attracts all and gives ānanda. This is how Guru Maharaj is, he attracts everyone like a magnet and in return gives us ānanda. So just hearing of his glories, even though I hadn’t met him I became attracted. As I was working in Ramdas Prabhu’s house, I was surrounded by Guru Maharaj’s books such as “Sri Chaitanya: His Life and Associates” and Srila Bhakti Pramod Puri Maharaj’s books, as well as books by so many exalted Vaishnavas and now I see that the presence of these books was purifying me.

When Guru Maharaj came with his entourage and associates I was very curious to meet him. Their presence transformed Ramdas Prabhu’s house into the spiritual world. The sevaks were busy in the kitchen cooking, they would sing beautiful bhajans and in the morning Guru Maharaj would give hari-kathā. I was young and not very aware of what was going on, so I would sit there and listen but I didn't remember much of what was being said. But even though I wasn’t able to grasp what Guru Maharaj was saying at that time, he is so merciful that those recordings, those hari-kathās that Guru Maharaj was giving at that time were all recorded, so even though I didn't pay much attention at that time he still made sure that I would get the chance to listen to them when the time was right. That's how amazingly wonderful he is, exceedingly merciful!

One day Srila Radhanath Maharaj came for San Francisco Ratha-yatra and Guru Maharaj also went and on one evening program Srila Radhanath Maharaj came to Ramdas Prabhu's house and he spoke on Chaitanya Charitamrita and Mahaprabhu’s kirtans and perhaps Ratha-yatra or Srivas Thakur's kirtans and it was very nice, very inspiring, but I had no idea what I was about to witness. Basically, after Srila Radhanath Maharaj's hari-kathā, Guru Maharaj spoke, and then he started performing kirtan. Guru Maharaj was in the center and his associates surrounded him. Ramdas Prabhu has these very high ceilings in his house and it was just one of those kirtans that were out of this world! I don’t even know how I was jumping, I wasn’t jumping from my own muscles, my body was just lifting up in the air by itself. I was oblivious to everything going on. I personally can’t explain it in words. It was my first taste of transcendence in the presence of Srila Guru Maharaj. At one point I remember being in the air and a little consciousness came back and I was thinking what is going on? Is everyone around me going through the same thing? I opened my eyes and looked around the room and the whole room was spinning and everyone was jumping. The material elements were even coming to life. And Guru Maharaj was just in the middle of it all, this sweet person with his two little fingers going like this and singing, “Jai Dao, Jai Dao!” And everyone was going completely crazy and that was absolutely amazing! That kirtan purified a good dose of ignorance in me.

I then met Srila Guru Maharaj in Mayapur in 2005, and that's when he mercifully gave me Hāriṇam. During my initiation, Guru Maharaj was sitting right in front of me and I was sitting on the floor because for some reason I couldn’t get initiated the day before with everyone else, so I had Guru Maharaj all to myself during my initiation. After giving me my mala and explaining how to chant and so on, I asked him if he would change my name. My name used to be Ratikeli. He became concerned thinking that perhaps I was previously initiated and he would never re-initiate anyone, so I reassured him by explaining that this was my birth-given name. Then he suggested my name should be Rukmini Dasi. And I said, "Actually Guru Maharaj, my very close friend that lives close to me also has that name, she is also my godsister. Then he said ''Rohini Dasi'." I said actually her name was Rohini dasi. I felt so bad that I couldn’t accept his first instructions to me.

Finally, he looked over my head as if seeing something or someone and that was it. He wasn’t asking me anymore, he was firm. He said, "Revati Dasi! Worship Baladev Prabhu and he will give you strength in spiritual life." Revati Dasi. That was a blissful moment and it was amazing how I felt like he could see Lord Balaram.

After my initiation, I went to Mumbai to catch my flight and I was astonished to see Revati written on almost every wall, it must have been an advertisement for a movie or something, but I took it as a sign from Srila Gurudev, confirming to me that my name is clearly Revati Dasi.

Jai Srila Gurudev !

—Revati Dasi

Transcribed and excerpted from Srila Gurudev's glories spoken by disciples April 16, 2020 (Zoom)




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