In Honor of Srila Prabhupada's Disciple, Sriman Patatriraj dasa Prabhu
BY: MAHALAKSMI DEVI DASI
Dec 31, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA (SUN) — On November 17th, 2008, Srila Prabhupada’s dear disciple, Patatriraj dasa left this world at 9:58 pm, to the sound of devotees singing Jaya Radha Madhava and the Hare Krishna maha mantra. My heart breaks to write this, for I cannot remember those 7 weeks that I served him and his mother, Malini, age 84, without recognizing that an extremely special, surrendered Vaisnava is no longer visible amongst us.
Patatriraj is and was a mentor and friend to hundreds of persons, many of whom have developed deep and solid respect for Vaisnava culture through knowing him to be an exemplary person, who cared for his aging mother despite any inconvenience it may have presented to his practice as a holistic doctor.
Here is a brief summary, in Patatriraj’s own words, which I found just two days ago, of his life and aspirations:
“Dear devotees of New Dwarka,
Dandavats, all glories to Srila Prabhupada. This is Patariraj Das. I joined the movement in 1972 and took initiation from Srila Prabhupada in 1974. By his grace, I had the opportunity to travel with Vishnujana Swami and Radha Damodar all over the US, distribute books in 19 countries and in 10 languages, work with Life Membership and on the Library Party in India, and other uplifting services.
In 1982, I trained with a healer named Dr. John Ray in a powerful healing process called Body Electronics. This process uses Live Cell Analysis, Iridology, a vegetarian diet, live foods, enzymes, minerals, herbs, acupressure, emotional release work, and other modalities to bring about miraculous healing physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. As I took my training, and began to work with clients, I had the opportunity to witness some very profound healing. As I led workshops and support groups, I also got to witness a change in consciousness. I saw people who began the healing process very negative and shut down, opening up and becoming more loving, kind, caring, positive, outgoing, patient, and many more shifts. And another very important thing, I witnessed a phenomenon Sandra Ray mentions in her book, “Rebirthing In The New Age”. As people heal emotionally and drop old emotional baggage, they release and get past their “melodramas” and become very interested and open to spirituality. They get past survival and struggle and their spirituality becomes their new priority in life. I also worked with quite a few devotees in the Bay Area when I lived there from 1985 to 1990 and saw how some were more inspired in their Krsna Consciousness after improving their health and clearing some of their blocks.
I moved from the Bay Area and lived in the central valley of California for a while. During that period, I started coming to the LA area in 1990, more frequently in the last 5 years and moved here a year and a few months ago. In the last year plus, I have developed a clientele of a few hundred people, mostly on the Westside. I met a very enthusiastic healer who lives in the Riverside area and with her we have developed a line of our own organic products with our own label. She helped me do a weekly workshop in her area and from that and her network, we have a few hundred more people interested in workshops in her area. In the last year plus, I have been working to bring together a team on the Westside to develop a successful business which can help bring healing and spirituality all over the world.”
Patatriraj’s personal biography/letter to the New Dwarka devotees goes on to explain four different types of devotee assistance he is searching for, to establish his vision of a healing institution. He referred to his business as “The Enlightened Living Institute.” (This was different from the product line he mentioned in the last paragraph… these labels and the product line is called “Vibrant Health"… still being carried on by his business partner, Linda Butler).
It was beautiful to see a person have such a strong dream of offering a program for health to the world in general. Patatriraj didn’t think small… he would dream of centers in major cities around the country, maybe even overseas, where persons would be taught various healing skills. One modality he had learned, and I heard him explain once, was the understanding of the “emotional tone scale.” In this, various emotions were higher or lower on the tone scale. I remember him explaining that apathy, or saying “I don’t care”, over and over, was one step up from death. I wish I had taped his explanation of this… it was so educational.
Patatriraj was bedridden since the day he collapsed, in his apartment in Culver City, September 25th. On that day he was taken by ambulance to Brotman Medical Center, then transported to County Hospital. He had been in extreme pain for weeks prior to the spasms (in his back and legs) causing him to become paralyzed. After a cat-scan of his spine, which revealed a tumor on C7 vertebrae, he was scheduled for an operation, September 30th. With pins and metal rods holding his spine secure, his last 7 weeks in bed were total agony. He would comment that he felt that he was lying on a metal rake.
The operation did absolutely nothing for him, except free him from whatever pain he was meant to endure from previous karma. He submitted to this procedure, as he was in hopes that the use of his bladder would return, as well as the ability to walk. Neither function returned, and the procedure of cutting him (both horizontally in the front of the neck-2
inches, and approx. 8 inches vertically in his back to remove the C7 vertabrae) may very, very likely have caused the cancer to spread extremely rapidly.
As a holistic doctor, it was totally abhorrent to his psyche to submit to these “treatments”, but as the cancer had progressed to a very advanced stage, he chose that route. In his last few weeks, I would hear him say over and over on the phone, “Every day I’m getting a little bit better… I’m feeling a little stronger”. We (myself and Dhayanidhi prabhu, Dennis Lock, who took shifts with me caring for him) truly did not know that his condition was worsening until the last 48 hours. Then the pain in his back become unbearable, so that he began to take Vikaden. Until that point, he had only taken aspirin and a muscle relaxant to stop the spasms.
Then Monday, the 17th, his breathing became very, very short….he was gasping for air. That started around 5:00 in the morning, until he departed that night. The cancer had gone into his lungs. We had called an ambulance around ten that morning, to have him go to the hospital (Marina Del Rey), where he was given a private room for the last 6 hours or so. The hospital staff knew… I didn’t know until after a chaplain was sent in to talk to him, and one member of the home hospice care program told me, “Millie, when they send in a chaplain, it means that he will be leaving soon… very soon.”
Patatriraj was so fully conscious, all through the pain. He even asked me if it might be possible, if he were to choose to have a tube put down his throat to continue his breathing, if maybe he might be able to hold a little tiny flash light in his mouth and move it on a board, and draw letters so that he could communicate. It was so painful for him, hour after hour of slowly suffocating. But he faced it, bravely. That point was so painful for me, I started to cry thinking about being by his side, maybe one, maybe two, maybe three days, and I said, “Can you imagine how hard that would be for me, to see you unable to eat, to drink, to talk…..just there…..day after day?” I knew when I was asking him this that the cancer had gone too far for him to recover.
Patatriraj’s love, patience, and kindness to others is and was awesome. His natural supplements were always less expensive than anyone could imagine. If a client didn’t have money, regardless he would still give counsel and as much time and advice as he could. This selfless caring to help others is what truly causes many to think of him as a saint.
He was trained as a brahmacari on the Radha Damodar traveling Sankirtan party, and he lived this ideal. He did not flirt with any woman, but treated ladies with deepest respect and gravity. He is and was first a glorious diksha disciple of Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, and secondly, a siksha disciple of Srila B.V. Narayana Maharaj, who instructed him, “Take care of your mother”.
His daughter, Chaitanya dasi, (now attending her third year of college in Oakland) is one of the sweetest, gentlest examples of a sincere Vaisnavi that I have ever known… living testament that her mother Sujana dasi, and her father, Patatriraja Prabhu, are loving, caring conscious examples of parents who were able to transmit a wholesome, balanced understanding to their child that devotional service can continue, as well as one’s endeavors to pursue an academic career.
Malini devi dasi, his mother, (who taught in the Dallas gurukula during Srila Prabhupada’s presence) is always happy for Vaisnava association. She is living still in Culver City. Those who might have time to visit with her and share devotional pastimes are invited to email me at newlifeosociety@yahoo.com and set a time to visit. Donations are also humbly requested so that I may be blessed to take Patatriraj’s ashes to India this year during the holy celebration of Gaur Purnima.
In service to the Vaisnavas,
Mahalaksmi dasi
