According to Balavanta dasa's November 11, 1997 report, the BBT Archives tape from Srila Prabhupada's room in Vrindavan on this date contains a statement by Srila Prabhupada in Hindi which some people have interpreted to mean that Srila Prabhupada was being poisoned.
Mahabuddhi dasa reports: “On tapes 2, 18, 19 & 20 there are definite conversations regarding Srila Prabhupada's health.”
On November 4, 1997, VNN noted that, in their preliminary investigation, they found the following conversation on the tapes. Some of the transcriptions reviewed as of that date matched the folio, and some could not be found on the folio. Sound files for this conversation were posted on the VNN website.
Room Conversation, Vrindavan 11/8/77Prabhupada: Sa eva go-kharah. (pause)
Tamala Krsna: Srila Prabhupada? You said before that you..., that it is said that you were poisoned?
Prabhupada: No. These kind of symptoms are seen when a man is poisoned. He said like that, not that I am poisoned.
Tamala Krsna: Did anyone tell you that, or you just know it from before?
Prabhupada: I read something.
Tamala Krsna: Ah, I see. That's why actually we cannot allow anyone else to cook for you.
Prabhupada: That is good.
Tamala Krsna: Jayapataka Maharaja was telling that one acarya, Sankaracarya, of the Sankaracarya line--this was a while ago--he was poisoned to death. Since that time, none of the acaryas or the gurus of the Sankaracarya line will ever take any food cooked except by their own men.
Prabhupada: My Guru Maharaja also.
Tamala Krsna: Oh. You, of course, have been so merciful that sometimes you would take prasada cooked by so many different people.
Prabhupada: That should be stopped. (pause)
Room Conversation, Vrindavan 11/8-9/77Kaviraja: (Hindi)
Devotee: He's saying that in this condition, Prabhupada can't take makara-dhvaja. That any medicine that contains mercury and arsenic is poison ... what Prabhupada said.
Tamala Krsna: That is a fact. He found that to be true.
Kaviraja: (Hindi)...
On November 29, 1997, VNN wrote: "The following hindi conversion can be found in Vol. 36, Conversations Books, Page 354 - Room Conversation Vrindavan Nov., 8, 1977. Hindi conversation between Kaviraja, Prabhupada and others (Audio Tape #44 Side A, beginning of tape):
Srila Prabhupada: koi bolta hai koi poison diya hai - some one is saying some poison has been given.
Kaviraja: kisko - to whom?
Srila Prabhupada: mujko - to me.VNN notes that, "One Hindi translator has explained that the term "koi bolta" means "some one is saying" or "it is said". Used in this connection the term "koi" means "some one" - "bolta" means "has said" - "some one has said" or "it is said" is used in Indian story telling and means "it is historical fact"."
Return to the Main Directory Return to the Home Page