Updated:
Rasika Siromani dasi: His Holiness Indradyumna Swami just called me (I’m his secretary) and asked me to request you to take this article down as his health has improved much better and he’s not in serious condition anymore and could be discharged tomorrow and hence doesn’t want to alarm devotees.
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Indradyumna Swami: Dear devotees: With the introduction of a powerful antibiotic my condition has greatly improved and the e-coli that attacked me is no longer in my system. In fact, if all goes well throughout the day the doctors will release me from the hospital tomorrow morning and I can return to the temple. They will continue to monitor me, but with good rest and a proper diet the doctors say I can take up my services within two to three weeks time. I want to thank the many devotees around the world whose earnest prayers no doubt contributed to my recovery. I promise you all I will take up my services to Srila Prabhupada and this great movement with renewed vigor and enthusiasm.
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By Bhakti Caitanya Swami
I just spoke to Indradyumna Maharaja, who is still in hospital in Durban. His condition is still serious. He has septicemia, which means systemic poisoning, in which the whole body is poisoned. It can easily be fatal.
They took blood tests as soon as he went in, but they had to let the blood culture for some time so they can identify which type of bacteria is attacking his body. They found out it is a type of E coli, but a very rare type, which is generally fatal, unless treated with one of two very specific types of antibiotics. Those antibiotics are not generally kept by hospitals as they are very rare and difficult to obtain.
As it happened, the hospital he is in in Durban, which is one of the most advanced in the Southern Hemisphere, had one of those antibiotics, so they are treating him with it, and there has been some improvement.
However his temperature is not stable yet, so there is some danger of relapse.
In other words he is not really out of danger yet.
The next 24 hours are very critical, so all devotees should please pray for him. By tomorrow evening (Friday the 13th, Gita Jayanti) we should know if all is well, or if there will be some new twists and turns in the whole situation.
Just down the hallway from Maharaja is Syamalal prabhu, Srila Prabhupada’s disciple from Navadvipa, who it seems will be departing from this world fairly soon.