Dear Gurudeva, O Venerable Vaishnava!

Please accept my most respectful obeisances in the dust of your lotus feet. All glories to Srila Prabhupada, at whose feet many masters bow.

In the Bhagavatam in many places, the glories of washing the feet of a pure devotee are described. Here are a couple:

"Simply by our remembering you, our houses become instantly sanctified. And what to speak of seeing you, touching you, washing your holy feet and offering you a seat in our home?

"Just as the atheist cannot remain in the presence of the Personality of Godhead, so also the invulnerable sins of a man are immediately vanquished in your presence, O saint! O great mystic! (SB 1.19.33-34:)

"A person who is not very rich and is attached to family life becomes highly glorified when saintly persons are present in his home. The master and servants who are engaged in offering the exalted visitors water, a sitting place and paraphernalia for reception are glorified, and the home itself is also glorified.

"On the contrary, even though full of all opulence and material prosperity, any householder's house where the devotees of the Lord are never allowed to come in, and where there is no water for washing their feet, is to be considered a tree in which all venomous serpents live. (SB 4.22.10-11)

The memory of your visit in our home lingers like a sweet aroma. Your presence has injected fresh vigor and enthusiasm in our aging bodies.

By your visit, our house has been sanctified, along with our very lives.

What the Bhagavatam declares about receiving an exalted Vaishnava such as your good self is in no way an exaggeration. I know that every bit of it is true, because I have had the incredible good fortune to experience it first hand.

Now, every time I come across a passage describing how important it is to greet and serve the pure devotees of the Lord, it brings a tear to my eyes, and my throat becomes choked up, knowing that I have had this blessing in my life.

By your mercy, our home, our friends, and our relatives have been blessed by hearing you describe the glories of pure devotion to Lord Krishna.

I pray to the Lord, that I may again and again get the opportunity to greet you in our home and receive on my head the water that washes your lotus feet, and receive in my heart your instructions on how to achieve that most precious treasure of all, pure devotional service to Lord Krishna.

Sincerely,

Prema Bhakti dasa Adhikari
Your servant in Niles, Michigan