Read the Stories:
The Early Days I will eternally remain endebted to HG Tribhuvannatha Das as he was my main siksa guru and personally trained me and others up when we first joined in London in the early '70s.
His jovial attitude, and intense and enthusiastic devotional service did so much to inspire all of us. Hearing of his passing away fills me with regret of the seperation from his association. Still I am glad he is no longer suffering with his sick body any more. Most probably he has returned to Krsna with Srila Prabhupada's and Lord Gauranga's special mercy. There is a wonderful picture in my mind of Srila Prabhupada putting or patting his hand on Tribhuvannatha's childlike head. Where is that phone from Edinburgh? Many happy memories with him naturally come to mind.
He was the first devotee I met when I went up to London determined to try and join the temple in January 1971. It was a Saturday morning about 10.15 and I came around the street corner and saw that all the devotees were waiting on the street by a vehicle outside the temple. TB seemed to be their leader. I had with me my African drum, woollen jacket, long hair and £5 in my pocket-my life's savings. I approached TB and told him, "I want to join the temple". TB said, "OK-Great! Now we're going out on hariname sankirtan to King's Road, Chelsea. You want to come with us?". I was happy to agree as I had already been experimenting with my own one man harinams in Canterbury. TB said, "There's only one problem. The van's out of petrol. You have any money?". "Yes!" i replied and immediately handed him my £5 and he was very pleased. He had my drum and jacket put in the temple and we all happily went off to Kings Road, Chelsea where I danced and sang like mad. Next morning Trib woke me up and taught me how to bathe and go for Mangala arati. By his blessings I have never had Mangala Arati attendance problems. Same day he shaved me up.
I joined just after the "Radhe Krsna Temple" album was cut and the devotees had been on the "Top of the Pops" a few times and had become famous. So we still had some "gigs" to do at clubs around England because we had made a contract. I remember one time we had to drive up all day in an old van up to Halifax the black country. TB was our leader and we turned up in the evening outside a seedy working man's club. I was just a new bhakta with shaved head and pink bedsheets and TB was the most senior devotee with us. Malati, Janiki, Shyamsundar, Mukunda and others had either stayed behind or gone to India. I remember TB ushering us in backstage behind the curtains of the club. We could hear the chink of glasses and smell the cigarettes as people sat at their tables expectantly wondering what the "Radha Krsna Temple" group was going to be like. I felt a bit embarrassed because after all it was just US shaven head devotess and TB. But TB was undaunted and told us where to stand and gave me some kartals. The MC accounced in a dramatic voice: "The Radhe Krsna Temple!!" The curtains opened. Leading with mridanga TB swung into an enthusiastic, "Namah om vishnu padaya, Krsna presthaya bhutale..." The Impression I got was that the working class audience couldn't believe their eyes. As far as I remember our performance was cut short and we headed back to Bury place with our £60 which was a lot in those days.
As a new Bhakta one time I got the idea that I should have a change and to chant my morning jappa alone in the dark in the temple office upstairs at Bury Place. I was sitting in a corner in the dark chanting alone and TB came to search me out. He asked me what I was doing there. He told me it was best to chant with all the devotees and the pictures and he kindly but firmly brought me down to the temple room again.
TB always had me laughing so much. One of the funniest things he told us was the famous Prabhupada Gillette Razor Lila which he had perfected the art of telling in ISKCON bathrooms the world over with intense gestures as through he was Prabhupada himself doing it. It was in Bury Place I think. Prabhupada had called for a razor and TB went out and brought him one. Prabhupada was standing over the wash basin in shaving mode. He picked up the razor and inspected closely and asked TB, "Is this Gillette?" Tb said, "No, Prabhupada". Then TB when he was telling this lila used to exactly facially imitate Prabhupada's disdainfull experssion and fingers and we would drop the non-Gillette razor into the washbasin below as if it were a lump of stool. Clunk! Then TB would imitate Srila Prabhupada saying, "Bring me Gillette!" in such a momentous voice that he could be declaring the absolute truth. The way TB did it put me in ecstacy. Indirectly he was preaching that we should only offer the best to the spiritual master.
Because of TB the wonder of Srila Prabhupada's divine and incomprehensible personality swelled in my heart. Being with TB when he said this Lila and others always filled me with love for Srila Prabhupada and increased my affection for TB more and more.
He loved Srila Prabhupada so his classes were always special. Being with him was an intense adventure. I remember he once took me to George Harrison's country residence outside London to pick up some marble for the altar at the Manor. I remember he taught me how to say the offering prayers then as we had some apples to offer. Those early days he would lead his flock of us bhaktas out on harinam and he used to sing and play mrdanga so vigorously that his hands were bleeding. He is style everyone knows was inimitable. Every day he used to start by saying, "I cant play today - look at my hands". His fingers were all cracked. But later on inevitably he would grab the mrdanga and be oblivious to the blood and pain. When we were arrested by the police he would talk boldly in the count and one time the judge chastised the police for bringing us in the count.
There are so many other memories. He taught us book selling. One day a big boiler-suited electricity man came in the temple to cut off the supply because we hadn't paid the bills. TB saw him from the stairs and said, "Just wait a minute!" and flew up the stairs again. We waited wondering what would happen. A few minutes later he rushed down the stairs waving some money and the day was saved. The man went off.
In more recent years we could always see TB working so hard heading up the Festival Program in the UK and Africa as Srila Prabhupada had encouraged him. Although I had other committments in my Indian Region I always took opportunities to join his party if I could. He recommended Vrnda dd to be my disciple. I felt awkward to accept as I took TB as my superior but I agreed as a service to him. Of course it was an hour to have such a sincere soul offered by him. At Prabhupada's Disappearance Day last year at Soho St. he kept us all spellbound, laughing and crying during his talk. He seemed fully absorbed in Srila Prabhupada and Krsna Consciousness.
These words are so inadequate. But I hope they will contribute something. I wish I was there at the TB memorial program to hear more nectar and express my endebtness and appreciation.
His Grace Tribhuvanatha Prabhu Ki Jaya!
by Mahavishnu Swami Modify |
