Srila Prabhupada’s auspicious connection with the city of Kochi begins during his historic voyage on the Jaladuta which changed the course of world history.
On the 13th of August the cargo ship ‘Jaladuta’ that Srila Prabhupada had set sail on, started off from Kolkata. The next day it reached the Cochin coast where Srila Prabhuada’s volumes of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam had arrived from Bombay. The books were loaded onto the ship before leaving for America. In memory of this day ISKCON Kerala celebrated the 50th Anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s Cochin visit (1965 to 2015) on October 10th, 2015. The event marked the historic voyage of Srila Prabhupada from Kochi to America on August 23rd, 1965 aboard the Jaladuta, on which he was the only passenger.
The following words are permanently engraved on the Srila Prabhupada memorial plaque which is located within the confines of the port trust of Kochi.
“ On August 22 1965
His Divine grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada(1896-1977) set his lotus feet here at Mattanchery, Cochin en-route his historic voyage to the U.S.A. onboard the cargo ship M.V. Jaladuta.
Srila Prabhupada turned 70 onboard on August 21st and his books of Srimad Bhagavatam that arrived from Bombay were loaded onto the ship docked at this wharf at 4 PM on 22nd August 1965. He arrived at Bosto pier, U.S.A. on the 17th of September 1965 after 36 days of arduous voyage surviving two massive heart attacks.
The spiritual movement he subsequently started in a New York shop space spread to most major cities across continents- at a pace unprecedented in history. Today, his International Society for Krishna Consciousness(ISKCON), a non-sectarian movement, is engineering a global cultural revolution aimed at bringing the science and lifestyle of Krishna consciousness to every stratum of society, primarily through the chanting of God’s holy names as well as through its temples, books, festivals and sustainable eco-communities.
This memorial is dedicated to the evergreen memory of this stalwart servant of God whose life, books and teachings have begun to initiate a remarkable change in the course of world history as predicted by scriptures and sages of yore.
- Dedicated to Srila Prabhupada by his followers at ISKCON Kerala.-
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/ Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare…”
The following are the excerpts from the Jaladuta diary, the journal Srila prabhupada maintained during his journey aboard the Jaladuta.
Jaladuta Diary
August 19, 1965 – Thursday
We starting for Cochin at 6 p.m. The ship started at 7 p.m., the pilot being late in reaching the ship. It ran for the whole night and next day up to 3/30 p.m. and reached the coast of Cochin. The ship is standing on the coast of Cochin without entering the dock.
*August 20, 1965 – Friday*
Today at (20/8/65) the captain arranged for a meeting on board the M/V Jaladuta on account of Janmastami day and I spoke for an hour on the philosophy and teachings of Lord Sri Krishna. All the officers attended the meeting and there was distribution of Prasadam. The matter was radiographed to Smt. Sumati Moraji in Bombay. The ship is stranded on the Arabian Sea about 4 miles away from the coast. We are in this position from 3/20 p.m. 20/8/65 to 9/30 a.m. on 22/8/65.
August 22, 1965 – Sunday
At about 10 a.m. we are now in the dockyard of Cochin. The dock is peculiar because it is by nature full of small islands. Some of the islands are full with nice hutments formerly known as British Island. I saw my books from Bombay arrived in five cases and the agents loaded them on the ship at 4 p.m. on 22/8/65. The agent m/s Jairam & Sons kindly sent their car for my driving in the city. Out of the group of islands two big islands joined by an iron over-bridge are known as Cochin and Ernakulam. The iron over bridge was constructed by the Britishers very nicely along with railway lines. The railways line is extended up to the Port. There are many flourishing foreign firms and banks. It is (?) Sunday, the bazar was closed. I saw a peculiar kind of plantain available in this part of the country. The island known as Cochin is not an up to date city. The roads are like narrow lanes. The part of the city where the foreigners are residing are well situated. The buildings factories, etc. all big and(?) well maintained. The mohamedan quarters are separate from the Hindu quarters as usual in other Indian cities. The part known as Ernakulam is up to date. There is a nice park on the bank of the gulf and it is named Subhas Bose Park. It is good that Subhas Babu is popular in this part of the country. I saw the Kerala High Court and the public buildings, the High Court being
situated in Ernakulam it appears that the city is capital of Kerala. This Official Bhadra 31 days 1887 Saka part of India resembles Bengal scenario and the city Ernakulum also Cochin appears to me like old Kalighat or Tollygunge area of Calcutta. The culture is Indian as usual.
Official Bhadra 31 days 18887 Saka.
August 23, 1965 – Monday
Today Annada Ekadashi
We started towards Red sea on the western front at about 12/30 noon. The sky was almost clear and there was sunshine since the starting of the trip from Cochin port. We are floating now on the Arabian sea.
Jaya Srila Prabhupada!!!