Yasoda Mata's 85-year-old foster father passed away two months ago.
During his stay in the hospital, Yasoda Mata prepared a tape recorder and
played the Hare Krsna Maha Mantra all day long in his ward. Her foster
father was actually in semi-coma, but miraculously when he heard the Maha
mantra, gradually he awoke and with closed eyes he appeared to enjoying the
music and the sound vibration.

He started to follow the tempo by tapping his hand on the edge of his bed.
His finger ring made the sound like "don, don don" "don, don don ........ "
He
looked like he was totally meditating on the Maha mantra. Suddenly he spoke,
"Look! There is a huge 5 clawed man, and his head looks just like a lion's,
he is coming into my ward. Don't you see him? He is coming ...." The foster
father still with eyes closed said "Oh, yes, I forgot you all cannot see
him, but he is really here.  I do not know who He is?"

At that moment Yasoda Mata and her daughters looked at each other in great
surprise and answered. "Father, He is Lord Nrsimhadev". "What dev ??? I
don't know Him.  But He is nodding His head to tell me that He is."
Yashoda mata felt great ecstasy in hearing this for in her house she keeps a
model of the Nrsimha Deity from Mayapur and had been offering heart felt
prayers to Him so that her father could leave the body without any
attachment and that his soul can become Krishna's devotee in his next birth.
Continuously her father said, "Look, He is smiling to me and starting to
speak again .… Oh, He is telling me that I have to learn to chant what you
are
chanting now.... what exactly are you chanting ?" He said.

"It is a mantra to call the holy name of Lord" Yasoda Mata replied.
" I don't know what mantra, but please teach Me." he said.
"All right father, please repeat after me and listen carefully -- Hare
Krishna, Hare Krishna........." Yasoda Mata taught her foster father word by
word patiently. Without taking a long time, he learned and tried to
chant.... and   chanted so nicely.

The next day he passed away with tranquility.

During that weekend, we devotees here congregated together to do the kirtan
for Yasoda Mata's father at the memorial service. Yasoda Mata prepared the
prasadam garland, Ganga water, tulasi, and put tilak on her father, which
have all been done nicely and properly according to her guru maharaj H.H.
Giridhari Swami's telephone instruction. Her foster father's face looked so
peaceful, his cheeks were a little pink, and his body was soft. After some
customary ceremonies the body was sent to the incinerator. A Few hours later
the people who work in the memorial service came to us and exclaimed in
amazement - "We have never seen anyone's ashes look so white and beautiful
like jade as your father's! What happened to him? What were you chanting for
him?" "Could you write it down for us? We want to learn and we think we can
also chant while doing our service here."

Why the Lord Himself personally appeared before someone who we consider is
not a devotee proves the sastric statement - that if one is always engaged
in the devotional service of the Lord, their family members will be
benefited as well.

From Lin Tulip
Taiwan, 20th March 2006
(originally sent by HG Pankajanghri Prabhu)