It was IIT Mumbai. Radhanath Swami had just delivered a spell bounding lecture to a group of young IITians. They now looked at him in indecision: were they really at the zenith of knowledge-acquisition, or were they merely like that infamous frog who thought of his puny well as the ‘be all & end all’ of existence? Radhanath Swami, through his stellar presentation, had very dexterously challenged their ‘froggish’ mentality with something so arcane, the awe-inspiring knowledge of the Bhagavad Gita. As some of these brainy IITians swarmed around him admiring his angelic demeanor, my chest swelled in pride. Standing next to him, I watched him hoisting within the hearts of these chaps the flag of the Supreme Lord’s mercy –fluttering its compassionate ripples.
Slowly, the just now formed fan club of Radhanath Swami dispersed for the free dinner arranged by the organizers. But a student in his late teens waited behind to have Radhanath Swami’s autograph on his recently purchased ‘Bhagavad Gita As it is.’ As he inched forward, I quickly pulled out my pen and handed it to Radhanath Swami.
As Radhanath Swami opened that divine scripture, his eyes searched for a suitable page to pen down his autograph. There it was; the first page of the book! As with all books, the first page was relatively empty with the title of the book written on top in bold, & way at the bottom were the credentials of the author. Obviously, anybody would have signed in the middle of that page.
But for Radhanath Swami, signing there meant a breach of etiquette: it would mean signing his autograph above the name of his Guru Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada who was the author of that book. Hence he spontaneously chose to sign his autograph way below Srila Prabhupada’s name, where there was hardly any space to scribble a word. I was so moved, touched & impressed upon seeing Radhanath Swami’s extempore humility. Someone who was just a while ago so victorious over these astute & brainy IITians was not at all deterred from his vows of humility, even after such an alluring accomplishment. I guess this is the secret of his success: Determined to remain humble.
Sikshashtakam Das. Temple President, ISKCON Nasik.
145 replies on “Radhanath Swami’s Extempore Humility”
Radhanath Swami possesses great humility in his every thought,word & act.
This incident shows that how Radhanath Swami teaches humility no only through his classes but also through his behavior. Radhanath Swami walks his talk.
Radhanath Maharaj clearly exmplifies as humility personified.
Radhanath Swami’s unparalleled humility is evident in all his actions, words and behaviour. It comes from the core of his being.
Genuine humility as shown by HH Radhanath Swami cannot be mimicked artificially.
Determined to remain humble : That’s an austerity at neophyte stage. but for Maharaj that’s spontaneous
It is really rare to find such an advanced spiritualist…!!!!
Radhanath Swami walks his talk.
Thank you very much Sikshashtakam Prabhu for sharing this experience. H.H Radhanath Swami Maharaj is an ideal example of humility. I pray to the Lord to bless me a fraction of such humility.
very nice article.
Humility is permanantly moulded in each and every actions of Radhanath Swami.It’s great,imposible for person like me to remain on ground after succsess.I pray unto him that a small tinge of that quality may get developed in me while steadily progressing on path that he teaches.Thank you very much for sharing.
Radhanath swami’s humility is really un imaginable
Radhanath Swami teaches humility by his actions, and that is the quality that changes people’s heart and inspires them to follow him.
This small incident teaches us the most important lesson. Be humble!
Radhanath Swami exhibits natural humility. His every word, every action demonstrates humility. He lives what he preaches.
Maharaj has this mood and he wants his disciples also should carry forward it…
Radhanth Swami maharaj is always humble in his nature, because of his natural humility
PAMHO !!!
My koti koti shastangh dandavat pranam to our beloved guru maharaj HH Radhanath Swami…
After having conquered the young and brainy IITians yet maharaj been so humble is the greatness of the pure devotee of Lord Krsna !!!
All Glories To.H.H Radhanath Swami Maharaj
What an beautiful experience.
Hare Krishna
Humility is the ornament that makes Radhanath Swami very attracive.
Radhanath Swami’s is so sensitively humble.
Radhanath Swami’s humility is really exemplary….
Radhanath Swami never deviates an inch from rmly grounded on the principle of genuine humility
Radhanath Swami is humility personified. This rare and foremost quality for reviving our devotional service to Lord is so spontaneous and natural in Radhanath Swami. Radhanath Swami also, with his own example, (like this one) plants the seeds of humility in all his disciples of which the author of this article, H.G.Sikshashtakam Prabhu is the best example. Thank you Sikshashtakam Prabhu for sharing this wonderful experience with Radhanath Swami Maharaj.
radhanath swami is the selected jewel chosen by srila prabhupada, he is always very grateful to his guru at any point of his life,
Radhanath Swami Maharaj’s heart has substance of humility and devotion. Be it be effortless triumphs over the intellectual elite, or down to earth addresses to masses, his striking humility is witnessed by everyone.
It is so rare in this world to find a person who is humble in spite of being surrounded by illustrious people. Radhanath Swami shows by his example how it is possible by sincere effort to follow the principle verse given by Sri Chaitanya; trinad api sunichena…..
Yes, Radhanath Swami’s determination to remain humble makes him so dear to everyone.
Thank you very much for sharing. H.H.Radhanath Swami’s humility and deep love for his Guru Maharaj (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada) is clearly seen here
HE IS A TRUE PRACTIONER, A TRUE VAISHNAVA
He preaches by examples, a TRUE Acharya
Radhanath Swami’s dedication to his acaryas is clearly reflected here, which is just one of the qualities that makes him the saint he is.
Humility is so powerful; not a sign of weakness as the ignorant declare.
Very lesson giving incident
wonderful.thank you for sharing
Radhanath swamis life is based on the 3rd verse of the Sikhastakam
V V touching.Maharaj is so humble.so much to leran from him.All Glories to him
nice one. Thanks a lot for sharing.
Thank you very much for sharing this experience.
Radhanath Swami perfectly demonstrates humility through his actions words and deeds.
This is classic ! it comes naturally to him
Radhanath Swami is real acharya whose actions move the hearts of everyone
Thank You very much for sharing this. One more of the many examples by which we can see how His Holiness Radhanath Swami lives the ideals which he preaches.
from this incident we can learn and see how radhanath swami is really so humble
Humility cannot be artificial nor can it be acted. It is something which has to come spontaneously from within. This is what Radhanath swami has.
wow…simply amazing practical implementation of humility.
Radhanath Swami is naturally humble and these stories testify the fact. Thanks for sharing.
Radhanath Maharaj is Humility Personified.
Radhanath Maharaj is teaching us that true service to a Guru is by rendering service in humility. His contribution speaks volume of his ability in carrying forward the mission of his Guru.
it shows how deeply he is connected to prabhupada.