Saving a life
I did sankirtan in the same spot in Gothenburg, Sweden for the whole month of the 2016 Prabhupada Marathon, except for one half hour on the last day, when, for some reason, I decided to try the other side of the walkway. There I stopped a well dressed man, aged 36. I told him who we are and what our books are about and said that these books help with everyday problems like stress and depression.
He looked at me with a shocked look, and then he told me, “Believe me or not, but I am just on the way to go and kill myself by jumping off a bridge. I have had enough. I just can't take it anymore. I want to end it all. But I see this as a divine intervention that you have stopped me. I believe in karma, so somehow it is our fate to meet, and to meet right now.”
It turned that the man, Sun, has three children, a well-paid job, and a good relationship with his wife. But on weekends (this was a Saturday), he goes crazy and drinks and takes drugs and is therefore a bad husband and father. And he's had enough of that.
We spoke for about forty minutes, and I explained to him the benefits of chanting and finding inner contentment and unlocking the happiness within. We spoke about his kids, and he began to feel enlivened. He basically found hope by our meeting and getting a Chant and be Happy. He clutched the book like someone holding a lifeline and mentioned over and over again that this is no coincidence that we met and this was a life-changing event. He then gave a nice donation and left.
As he was leaving I asked him, “You're not going to jump off the bridge?”
“No, I'm going to go and read this book. You just changed my life.”
Sadly, I was unable to get his contact info. Somehow, Krishna guided me to go on the other side of the walkway for that short time to meet him. Right after that meeting I went back to my old spot and continued.
Your aspiring servant,
Caitanya Candra Dasa
Hungary
