- Gopal Krishna Goswami
Gopal Krishna Goswami is a religious leader within the
International Society for Krishna Consciousness (popularly known as theHare Krishna s). [ [http://www.cybernoon.com/DisplayArticle.asp?section=xtras&subsection=bombayfirst&xfile=February2005_extraspecial_standard481&child=extraspecial ISKCON festival on founder's anniversary]ISKCON Mumbai website] . He was the firstIndia n discipleA.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada to be initiated after the establishment of ISKCON. Gopal Krishna Goswami is currently a member of theGoverning Body Commission [ [http://www.indianexpress.com/res/web/pIe/ie/daily/19990111/01151765.html Society Scenes -- Pune]Indian Express ] and an initiatingguru within the movement. [ [http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/126544.cms ISKCON chairman in city]Times of India , 12 Aug 2003]Early life
Gopal Krishna Goswami was born on
August 14 1944 inNew Delhi ,India He was known at that time as "Gopal Krishna Khanna".Fact|date=February 2008After graduating from the
University of Delhi , he studied Business Management at theSorbonne University ofParis [ [http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/126544.cms ISKCON chairman in city]Times of India , 12 Aug 2003] on ascholarship from the French Government, and later studied for a Masters Degree in Business Administration from theMcGill University inMontreal .Fact|date=February 2008Before dedicating his life in the service of ISKCON, Gopal Krishna Khanna worked as a marketing research analyst for
Pepsi Cola andBristol-Myers .Fact|date=February 2008First meeting with his spiritual master
Gopal Krishan Khanna was living in
Toronto in May 1967 when the president of the Toronto ISKCON temple, Mahapurusa Dasa, invited him to visit the temple. Upon hearing that Prabhupada would arrive at the temple the next day, Gopal Krisha immediately requested Mahapurusa to provide him a chance to serve Srila Prabhupada, and he was sent up to clean Srila Prabhupada's room before he arrived.Fact|date=February 2008His first meeting with Srila Prabhupada occurred on the evening of
June 1 1967. Within two weeks of meeting him, Gopal Krishna Khanna decided to accept Srila Prabhupada as his spiritual master and was initiated as one of his disciples, receiving the name "Gopal Krishna dasa".Fact|date=February 2008Receiving Instructions and Initiation
During a three month period where Prabhupada stayed in Montreal, Gopal Krishna regularly heard from him on devotional topics and took instruction regarding his own personal life. "My only small qualification was that I was very respectful to Srila Prabhupada from he first day I saw him, and I would stay for his lectures till the end, and leave only after he left". [An interview published in Sri Vyasa Puja 1994, a book published by his disciples.]
Later Gopal Krishna moved into the temple and lived there. He acted as Srila Prabhupada's secretary for many years. In 1970, he entered into an arranged marriage with a disciple of Srila Prabhupada, Ekayani Devi Dasi, one of the earliest initiated devotees from New York, with the permission of Srila Prabhupada. Ekayani gave birth to a son in 1973. Ekayani and Gopal Krishna separated and he took the sanyasa order in 1982.Fact|date=February 2008
Mission to India
In 1975, Srila Prabhupada sent Gopal Krishna to India, giving him the responsibility of being a
Governing Body Commissioner within the area. Prabhupada also instructed him specifically to print and expand the distribution of his books in India and to translate and print books in Indian languages. Prabhupada was pleased when Gopal Krishna presented him the first copies of the Srimad Bhagavatam translated into Hindi.Fact|date=February 2008In the Prabhupada Lilamrita, a biography of Srila Prabhupada, written by
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami , it is mentioned that whenever Srila Prabhupada would see Gopal Krishna, he would enquire, "Where is book? Where is book?". Gopal Krishna would therefore ensure that he had a new version of a book or a translated book every time he would see Srila Prabhupada - such was his staunch determination to serve his Master. [For these and other details of Gopal Krishna Goswami's interactions with Srila Prabhupada, see Srila Prabhupada's biography: cite book
last = Goswāmī
first = Satsvarūpa dāsa
title = Śrīla Prabhupāda-līlāmŗta
publisher = The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust
date = 1980
location = Los Angeles.]Mission to Russia
In 1976, Prabhupada appointed Gopal Krishna as Governing Body Commissioner for the Soviet Union of which
Russia was a part at that time. Gopal Krishna made several trips to Communist Russia at that time to preach and publish the Bhagavad-gita in Russian, risking his life and putting himself in grave danger, especially at a time when theKGB was torturing and persecuting Russian Hare Krishna Hindu devotees.Fact|date=February 2008annyasa and renunciation
In 1981, he took the sannyasa order and was initiated into the monastic order of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition. He took the name, "Tridandi Swami Gopal Krishna Goswami Maharaja" and became an initiating
spiritual master of ISKCON. Since then Gopal Krishna Goswami has been traveling extensively all over the world preaching the mission ofChaitanya Mahaprabhu and the Bhagavad-gita, building temples, initiating disciples, delivering talks, and overseeing various philanthropic and devotional projects. [ [http://www.iskcon.net.au/sannyasaministry/listing List of Sannyasis in ISKCON April 2008] ISKCON Sannyasa Ministry, Retrieved on 5 May 2008]He is the Governing Body Commissioner [ [http://www.indianexpress.com/res/web/pIe/ie/daily/19990111/01151765.html Society Scenes -- Pune]
Indian Express ] of many countries and regions including Delhi, Vrindavan, Mumbai, Mayapur, Chandigarh, Kenya, Canada and parts of North America.Fact|date=February 2008Temple projects
Gopal Krishna Goswami played a leading role in inspiring and completing many of the largest
ISKCON temples after the departure of Srila Prabhupada in 1977. Some of the temples he built included the Glory of India temple in New Delhi and the Radha-Bankebihari temple in Nairobi.Fact|date=February 2008Lectures and writings
Gopal Krishna Goswami has been featured on many Radio, Television and Newspaper stories in India and abroad commenting on various issues. He has delivered many series of lectures to diverse audiences in the last three decades ranging from the Chamber of Commerce in Mumbai,
IIT students in Delhi, and devoted congregation householders to academics, politicians and interfaith communities. He also delivers lectures at various ISKCON courses and has spoken on various scriptures includingBhagavad Gita ,Srimad Bhagavatam and Upadeshamrita.Fact|date=February 2008Disciples
- Gopal Krishna Goswami has over 2000 disciples, including:
* Mahamantra Das, President Iskcon New Delhi ( Also known as Kamala Shankar Dubey)
* Sura Dasa, Director ofBhakti Kala Kshetra
* Romapada Dasa (also known asRamesh Kallidai , Secretary General of theHindu Forum of Britain and Vice Chair ofHindu Aid
* Veda Vyasa Dasa, known as Ved Prakash Aggarwal, an eminent industrialist in New Delhi
* Stoka Krishna Dasa, businessman from Kenya
* Sridama Dasa, Editor,Sky News , New Zealand
* Adi Purusa Dasa, Lecturer and Principal Manager, [http://vihe.org/ VIHE] , Vrindavana India
* Vanmali Krsna Dasa, General Practitioner, Sydney, Australia.
* Kadambini Radha Devi Dasi, General Practitioner, Sydney, Australia.References
External links
* [http://www.gopalkrishna.com Personal Site for Gopal Krishna Goswami]
* [http://gkg.ru/eng/content/blogsection/7/35/ Website for Gopal Krishna Goswami's disciples]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/s/w_asia/74181.stm Newsreport from BBC about the Glory of India project built by Gopal Krishna Goswami]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/s/w_asia/74181.stm ISKCON]
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