How Can We Help?

Table of Contents

Śrīla Prabhupāda on Tulasī Devī | Part 2

You are here:
< All Topics

The following article consists of excerpts about Śrīmatī Tulasī Devī from the letters, lectures, conversations, and books of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedānta Swāmī Prabhupāda.

Date: Feb. 17, 1973
Location: Sydney
Letter to: Govinda Dasī

You are the pioneer of pushing forward Tulasī worship in the Western world and I can understand that proportionally as your Tulasī plants are growing, your devotion and love is also growing. Please continue in this way.

Date: Unknown
Location: Unknown
Letter to: Jagad-mohinī Dasī

Whether we may prune the leaves of Tulasī, no, there is no question of pruning. But you can take for worshiping Kṛṣṇa leaves from the Tulasī. First utilize the dead leaves or leaves which have fallen down, and if more leaves are required for worshiping Kṛṣṇa, you may take them from Tulasī plant in this way: First approach Tulasī Devī and offer your obeisances, requesting her that for worshiping Kṛṣṇa you want to take some leaves. Then if she allows you may take. There is no question of pruning in the manner of gardeners just to make nice beautiful plant for ornamental purposes. And if there are any dead branches, these may be made into beads, like neck beads, and if they are large branches you can make japa beads.

Date: Dec. 6, 1973
Location: Los Angeles
Letter to: Kirtida Kanyaka

I understand that you are especially devoted to the care of Tulasī Devī. Formerly our Govinda Dasī introduced this Tulasī worship to our society and I was very much pleased to see it. Now she has temporarily gone away so you must take charge of caring for Tulasī Devī in Hawaii. The more you devote yourself to her service, the more you will understand and relish Kṛṣṇa Consciousness.

Date: Jan. 6, 1972
Location: Bombay
Letter to: Rādha-vallabha das

I am very glad to know that you are seriously taking to Śrīmatī Tulasī Devī worship. Tulasī Devī is a pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa and she should be treated with the same respect given to all Kṛṣṇa’s pure devotees. Simply by worshiping her faithfully, a devotee can get himself free of from all material miseries. In the Nectar of Devotion I have given two verses from the Skanda Purāṇa, one of which is: “Tulasī is auspicious in all respects. Simply by seeing, simply by touching, simply by remembering, simply by praying to, simply by bowing before, simply by hearing about, or simply by sowing the tree, there is always auspiciousness. Anyone who comes in touch with the Tulasī tree in the above mentioned ways lives eternally in the Vaikuṇṭha world.” So from this verse we can understand how pure is the service which Tulasī offers to Śrī Kṛṣṇa. So we should always endeavor after becoming servant of Tulasī Devī.

I do not know who has taught you that part of a Tulasī plant may be cut off and then replanted? From the Tulasī plant you can cut off only leaves for offering them to Kṛṣṇa, never for cutting and planting. That is an offense. The manjaris (seeds) can be offered in water and it makes the water fragrant and tasteful. And the manjaris can be planted for growing new Tulasī plants.

Yes, the prayer you have enclosed is bona fide. Tulasī Devī never goes back to Godhead, she is always with Godhead. She is a pure devotee and thus she has appeared on this planet to render service to Kṛṣṇa by being offered in all temples throughout the world by being offered up to the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa.