“I looked at our friend with an expression that asked, ‘What is happening here?’ He looked me straight in the eyes and said, ‘I am a devotee of Krishna, and all my family members are devotees of Krishna. My family has worshiped Lord Krishna for many generations. Actually, I was just testing you. And you did not compromise. So I am very pleased, and I will be honored to become your life member.’
“We went back to his office, I took out the forms, he took out his checkbook, and he paid the whole amount in one installment and became a life member.
“Then I was really confused. I started thinking, ‘Well, maybe I haven’t been doing the wrong thing after all’—but I still wasn’t quite sure.
“When I got back to the room where I was staying, there was a letter from Srila Prabhupada. Receiving a letter from Srila Prabhupada was always a great occasion. When I opened the letter, the words practically jumped out of the page: ‘The fact is that I am the only one in India who is openly criticizing, not only impersonalism and demigod worship, but everything that falls short of complete surrender to Krishna.’ Prabhupada’s words continued: ‘My guru maharaja never compromised in his preaching, nor will I, nor should any of my students. We are firmly convinced that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and that all others are His part and parcel servants. This we must declare boldly to the whole world, that they should not foolishly dream of world peace unless they are prepared to surrender fully to Krishna as Supreme Lord.’
“So I got my answer from Prabhupada.
“That was Srila Prabhupada’s mood—his guru maharaja’s mood and his mood—and that was the mood he wanted us to have. We don’t compromise in our philosophy.”