His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada took birth in this world on September 1, 1896 in Kolkata.

In 1922, Srila Prabhupada first met his spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur, who immediately asked him, "You are an intelligent young man, why don't you preach the message of Lord Chaitanya in English?" The message of chanting the Hare Krishna Mahamantra. This request was to be the driving force in Srila Prabhupada's life.

Although Srila Prabhupada then accepted his spiritual master within his heart, it was only in 1932 that he officially became Srila Bhaktisiddhanta's initiated disciple.

In 1944, Srila Prabhupada began his magazine, Back to Godhead, which is still being published today.

In 1959, he took the order of sanyasa - full renunciation from material life. Feeling the weight of his spiritual master's order and knowing Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's assurance that His Holy name would be heard in every town and village throughout the world, Srila Prabhupada was determined to go to America somehow or other and preach.

Begging passage on the Jaladuta, a cargo carrier and travelling 35 painful days across the ocean (he had two heart attacks on the journey), Srila Prabhupada arrived in New York City. He later related, "I didn't know where to turn, left or right." After a difficult six months, living here and there, he rented a small storefront on 26 Second Avenue in New York's Lower East Side, not the best neighbourhood by any estimation. It was here that some sincere searchers of spiritual knowledge gathered and gradually found shelter at the lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada, whom they affectionately called, "Swamiji."

In July 1966, Srila Prabhupada officially incorporated the International Society of Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and began to develop his infrastructure for spreading the message of Krishna throughout the world. Srila Prabhupada revived his Back to Godhead magazine.

Srila Prabhupada passed away from this world in 1977. After preaching for 11years in the West, he had created 108 centers worldwide, written 51 volumes of transcendental literature, travelled around the world eight times and initiated 5,000 disciples.