Category:My Childhood (Prabhupada)
Theme Analysis
Śrīla Prabhupāda often spoke of his childhood with great fondness, describing it not as a period of mundane play, but as a sacred apprenticeship in Vaiṣṇava culture. This category reveals the profound influence of his father, Gour Mohan De, a pure devotee who meticulously trained his son to worship the Deities, celebrate Ratha-yātrā, and respect even a single grain of rice on the ground. Śrīla Prabhupāda viewed his global success as the expansion of these childhood "imitations," proving that the seeds of devotion sown in early life can eventually shelter the entire world.
- The Training of a Vaiṣṇava Father: Śrīla Prabhupāda credited his father’s blessings and careful guidance for his spiritual position. From providing him with Radha-Kṛṣṇa Deities to encouraging his play-Ratha-yātrā festivals, his father ensured that his "pet son" was fully immersed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness from birth.
- Childhood Imitation as Spiritual Reality: He reflected that the temples he established and the festivals he organized worldwide were simply mature versions of the things he did as a young boy. By "imitating" the worship of his father and the service at the neighboring Mallik temple, he developed a natural, unshakeable affinity for the Lord.
- Memories of a Different Era: These quotes provide a window into the cultural atmosphere of late 19th-century Calcutta. Śrīla Prabhupāda recalled the purity of family life, the respect for brāhmaṇas, and the simplicity of a time before the widespread imitation of Western materialistic civilization.
- The Continuity of the Soul: Using his own life as an example, Śrīla Prabhupāda taught the philosophy of reincarnation. He vividly remembered his infancy and childhood, illustrating how the soul remains constant while the body shifts from babyhood to youthhood and finally to old age.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Vaiṣṇava Foundation of Prabhupāda's Childhood.
Pages in category "My Childhood (Prabhupada)"
The following 72 pages are in this category, out of 72 total.
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- By the grace of Lord Sri Krsna, we had the chance of being born in a Vaisnava family, and in our childhood we imitated the worship of Lord Krsna by imitating our father
- In my childhood I had got one tutor. So he was telling about his spiritual master. He was a yogi
- In my childhood I was very, very pet son of my father
- In my childhood, when I was five or six years old, I requested my father that "Father, give me this Deity. I shall worship." So father purchased for me little Krsna, Radha
- My father was of this Vaisnava line, and he trained me from childhood
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- A small ant, it can move, but a big tree cannot move. That is punishment. Just like in our childhood we were being punished by the teachers, "Stand up on the bench." So it is like that
- Actually I did not follow him (my Guru Maharaja) in the beginning. High philosophical speaking and I was a new boy. I could not follow him, but actually I was so much glad to hear him. That's all
- Actually what I am doing, it was all taught in our childhood by our parents, my family. We were taught, "There is a grain of rice on the ground, and if it is touched by your feet, you should pick up the grain and touch on your head." This was our training
- As a child when I was going to the neighboring Mallik temple, I was thinking then when will I have such a nice Deity to worship and now Krsna is so kind that I am establishing so many nice temples all over the world
- As soon as there is comet, there will be some disaster. Very great disaster. In our childhood we saw the comet, not this like. That was small comet. Still, the first world war was there declared
- As you are changing your body even in this present life, you remember that you were a child, you were a boy... I remember I was a child... I was a baby. I still remember in my babyhood I was lying down on my elder sister's lap
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- Formerly, in our childhood, we visited this temple with our parents because all the members of the suvarna-vanik community enthusiastically take interest in this temple of Uddharana Datta Thakura
- Fortunately, we had the good opportunity of learning bhagavata-dharma from our very childhood. My father was a devotee, and he trained us
- From my childhood I was very much fond of Radha-Krsna, and now my good disciples are helping me to open so many Radha-Krsna temples all over the world. It gives me so much pleasure
- From my life I experience, when I was very little child six or seven years old, I was very much fond of Krsna. And I got the opportunity of this two things. Although my father was not very rich, but he was pure Vaisnava
- From my very childhood I was also worshiping Lord Jagannatha
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- I am Calcutta born. What Calcutta was in our childhood days and what is now, I know everything. How we were happy during British days and what is now position, I can speak from my personal experience
- I am seventy-seven years old. So when this body will be finished, I'll get another body. As I have got consecutively from boyhood to childhood, childhood, I have, from childhood to boyhood, boyhood to youthhood, aged body, so why not next body?
- I asked my mother in my childhood, "My dear mother, how did I come out from your belly?" I still remember. So my mother showed me her navel: "You come out from this place"
- I had some experience in my childhood, in 1911. I was thirteen years old. There was a riot. So our house was there in Mahatma Gandhi Road, and all sides Muhammadans
- I have several times spoken to you that in my, when I was about six months old, I remember, I remember I was lying down on my eldest sister's lap, and she was knitting. I still remember it very vividly
- I lost my mother when I was only 14 years old. So I didn't get much of my mother's affection in my childhood. But in my old age, Krishna has given me so many young mothers to take care of me
- I remember when I was playing on the lap of my eldest sister, I remember still, and my body at that time six months old. But I still remember my eldest sister, she was nine years older than me, and I was playing on her lap and she was knitting
- I thank you very much for installing Radha-Giridhari. From my childhood I was very much fond of Radha-Krsna, and now my good disciples are helping me to open so many Radha-Krsna temples all over the world. It gives me so much pleasure
- I was born in 1896, and I was my father's pet child, so my education began a little late, still, I was educated in higher secondary, high school for eight years. In primary school four years, higher secondary school, eight years, in college, four years
- I was pet child of my father whom I lost in 1930, and since then nobody was taking care of me as affectionate son. But Krishna has sent me so many fathers to take care of me in a far distant place in USA
- In Calcutta in our childhood I have seen many big, big prostitutes, Vaisnavi
- In Calcutta Museum, in our childhood - it may be still existing - we saw one skeleton of a fish that is bigger than this room, a skeleton. It is hanging on the ceiling
- In childhood I used to take my ratha with my little friends, about 60 years ago. Again I am reviving the same attempt with my young disciples. I have become old, and you are also old. We may pass away, but my disciples will carry on this festival yearly
- In India I had one father who raised me a Krishna Conscious child, but in America I have got many fathers who are reminding me always of Krishna
- In my childhood I have actually seen my father receive not less than four guests every day, and in those days my father’s income was not very great. Nonetheless, there was no difficulty in offering prasadam to at least four guests every day
- In my childhood I used to take my ratha with my little friends, about 60 years ago
- In my childhood I was very naughty boy, and I used to catch my father in so many ways demanding unreasonable things, and my father used to satisfy me
- In my childhood I was worshiping Radha-Krsna Deities
- In my childhood I would not take medicine. Exactly like this, now also. So I was given medicine by force in the spoon. Two men will catch me, and my mother would take me on the lap and then force, and I shall take. I never agreed to take any medicine
- In my childhood, Radha-Govindaji were the source of my enjoyment. I asked my father to give me Radha-Govinda deities and he gave me and I worshiped. And I also asked him to give me ratha
- In my childhood, when I was three, four years old, I was saved. My all cloth burned, and there is a scar. You have seen. I would have died that day, but fortunately I was saved. The cloth was burning
- In my maternal uncle's house I was called Nandadulal. Nandu
- In our childhood every day some brahmana visitor would come
- In our childhood we had the occasion of taking part in a drama, Caitanya-lila. I took the part of Advaita, and our friends, others, somebody took the part of Caitanya, Nityananda. So that drama was so successful, it was unique in Calcutta
- In our childhood we have seen that Britishers started tea garden. There was no tea plants before Britishers
- In our childhood we saw some yogi, he used to come to my father. So he said that he could go anywhere within very few seconds
- In our childhood we saw some yogi; he used to come to my father. He said that he could go anywhere within very few seconds
- In our childhood, these tomatoes were called foreign eggplant, bilati beguna. And because it was foreign, nobody will touch it. In our childhood we'd never eat the tomato. It was rejected by the whole Indian Hindu culture
- In our childhood, we have seen gold mohor, guinea. They were used in practical use. And silver coins, gold coins, we saw. But now it is, everything, paper. So we are so advanced that there is no more gold and silver
- In our childhood, when I was a boy of eight or ten years, sometimes I used to accompany my father. My father was a great devotee. He would take prasadam from the temple
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- My father also trained me and instructed me to his best capacity, and he prayed for me that Radharani may be pleased upon me, and I think by my father's blessings and grace, I may have come to this position
- My father was very much affectionate, and in my childhood, whatever I wanted from my father he would at once give me
- My mother was always engaged in making some food preparation. Some pickle, some chutney, and this puffed rice, or something else, something else, something else
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- The child is afraid of taking medicine. That also I have experienced. In my childhood, when I became ill, I was very stubborn. I won't accept any medicine. So my mother used to force medicine within my mouth with a spoon. I was so obstinate
- The program executed by you on Janmastami and Nandotsava Days appears to be very nice and I am so glad that you remember my childhood name Nandu given by one of my uncles
- There is a very nice story. In our college days in logic class of Professor Purnachandra Sen, he cited a very nice example, that a student approached his teacher and the contract was that he wanted to become a law student, lawyer
- This ratha yatra festival is very dear to me from my very childhood days, so I very much appreciate your holding this festival in Chicago
- This Ratha-yatra, Radha-Govinda seva, prasada distribution. Only the new thing I am doing-writing of books by the order of Guru Maharaja. Otherwise, whatever I have introduced, I was trained up in childhood. I simply imitated. I am simply surprised
- This training from an early age is important, and I also was fortunate to have received such training when I was a child
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- We have actual experience in our childhood that our mother would not walk even next door to observe an invitation; rather, she would go in either a carriage or a palanquin carried by four men. This custom was also strictly followed five hundred years ago
- We saw in our childhood, Europeans were very tall, and now they are not coming typical so. Naturally when they'll not get sufficient nourishment, they'll be stunted
- What was my childhood play (Rathayatra) 65 years ago is now a worldwide event. The same Radha-Govindaji worship and Jagannatha worship is going on all over the world
- When I think of Radha-Krishna, I think of first the Radha-Govinda Vigraha of Mullicks Thakurabati because from my very childhood I am devoted to the same Deity
- When I was a child my father gave me one red gun, and then I was not more than eight years. Then, after getting one, I said, "I must have another one"
- When I was also a child, I was looking very beautiful, but kalena, in due course of time, I'm now old man, a ugly man. Nobody likes. (laughter) So this is the influence of time
- When people become godless, there is restriction of supply. Just like practical experience. I am saying from my practical experience that in my childhood I saw that India was exporting millions of tons of rice and wheat
- When we were children, brahmanas would visit householders like humble beggars, and people would derive great benefit from the mercy of such brahmanas
Y
- You are taking care. I am very much obliged to you. I sometimes think in my childhood I was very, very pet son of my father
- You'll be glad to know that even my in young age or early age - it was Krsna's grace - even amongst my young friends, I was considered the leader
- Young children should be educated from the very beginning about God consciousness or the science of God. We had the opportunity in our childhood. My father taught