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By Giriraj Swami<\/strong><\/p>\n I will never forget the moment when I heard that George Harrison had passed away, shortly after Thanksgiving in 2001. The strength of my feelings of separation surprised me\u2014and made me think how important and dear George must have been to Srila Prabhupada and Sri Krishna. And I remembered my own little experience with George in Bombay. <\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n In 1974 George came to visit Srila Prabhupada at Hare Krishna Land, in Juhu. He was wearing a white kurta and white yogi pants and had a plain bead bag. I took him around the property, and he expressed his appreciation for our work and encouraged us in our efforts. When at twelve-thirty we heard the conch shell blow for raja-bhoga arati<\/i>, we went to the temple shed, where George chose a pair of kartals and played and sang with the other devotees. Puri dasa, originally from Scotland, was doing the arati<\/i>, and when he turned to offer the ghee lamp to the devotees and saw George, his hand started trembling so much that he thought he might drop the lamp.<\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n After the arati<\/i>, I arranged a full plate of maha-prasada<\/i> for George and, after he ate, accompanied him to meet Prabhupada in his apartment. Prabhupada greeted him warmly, and I left them together and returned to my office. <\/p>\n \n\u201cPrabhupada was behind his desk, with George in front of him,\u201d Kishor das later described. \u201cI barely remember what was said, but I remember the feeling of love that went back and forth between them. It was tangible. I didn\u2019t really understand what this relationship was. I was young, and here was a big rock star, and a pure devotee of Krishna, and there was I somewhere. But I could just feel this feeling of love that went back and forth between Prabhupada and George.\u201d<\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n About two hours later, a pudgy twelve-year-old boy with glasses\u2014the son of our friend and supporter Pranjivan G. Valia of the \u201cHare Krishna\u201d house in the Juhu Vile Parle development\u2014came to my small office at the back of the property. \u201cI heard George Harrison is here,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d I replied, \u201che is.\u201d <\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n \u201cI want to see him,\u201d he stated. <\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n \u201cWell, you can\u2019t. He\u2019s meeting with Srila Prabhupada.\u201d <\/p>\n He looked me straight in the eye, sizing me up, and, concluding that he wasn\u2019t going to get anywhere with me, turned, dashed to the stairs, and bolted down the steps. <\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n Oh my God,<\/i> I thought. He\u2019s going to try to find him.<\/i> So I bounded down the stairs in hot pursuit.<\/p>\n \nI ran across to the next building, and when I reached the second landing, in front of Prabhupada\u2019s flat, I found the door ajar. The boy stood just inside, and beyond him George sat cross-legged with his back erect, like a yogi\u2014a perfect disciple listening attentively at the feet of his master.<\/p>\n \nWith the boy\u2019s abrupt appearance, Prabhupada and George ended their meeting, exchanging some final words. George was gracious and appreciative, Prabhupada affectionate and kind. I was upset that the boy had interrupted them, but they took it as a matter of course. Maybe it was time for the meeting to end; maybe they took it as Krishna\u2019s arrangement. <\/p>\n \n<\/p>\n
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By Giriraj Swami<\/strong><\/p>\n