Services by Vinod Vani Dasi to Gaudiya Mission

Miss Daisy Cocilia Bowtwel, a young lady of a rich honorable family, was attracted among many others to the philosophy of Gaudiyas and surrendered from heart and soul to the Lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada. She was initiated through Sripad Tirtha Maharaj in the Month of February 1937. She was graced by the name Vinod Vani Dasi.

There are stacks of her handwritten correspondence with Bhakti Pradipa Tirtha going back to the 1930s. She had lots of books too, and the Srimad Bhagavatam she read in English from the edition of JM Sanyal, a 1906 six-volume English Chaitanya Charitamrta and Bhakti Pradipa’s own translation of the Gita, which he said he was inspired to write while sitting on the banks of the Thames. She had a nice long garden where she would chant japa and meditate on Vrindavan, as advised, and used to give Hari nama to some local Bengali immigrants.

Vinod Vani Dasi donated her residential house for the worship of Sri Gaur Radha Govinda Jiu and Sri Basudev Vigraha and simultaneously to Gaudiya Mission Society, U.K. She breathed her last in the year 1981, keeping back all her money and properties in the name of Gaudiya Mission. Her heart’s wishes were fulfilled, and Sri Vasudev Gaudiya Math was established at her house at 27- Crunhurst Road, London N.W.2. Sri Kamalaksha Das Bramhachari was the Saint who, by the order of the authority of the mission, reached London in the year 1982 and took the charge of the math.

Miss D. C. Bowtell, a young English lady was one of the listeners of Maharaj-ji. She witt Stella Harrish (alias Vishnupriya Dasi) threw themselves heart and soul into the graduated spiritual endeavor prescribed in the ‘Bhakti Sadhan’ for the final attainment. Being one of the recipients c the holy ‘Nama-Malika’, handed down by Srila Prabhupad, through Maharaj-ji, and rename Vinodevani Dassi’, she proved herself true to her faith and name till her mortal end. Her dwelling house was christened ‘Sri Vasudev Gaudiya Math’ and she continued to own it in trust on behalf of the Lord. After Srila Prabhupad, she maintained her steady link with the Mission through corresponding dance with Srila Bhakti Prasad Puri Goswami Thakur. It was in the sixties that the lady found an intimate spiritual brother in His Divine Grace Srila Acharyapad, The mantle of the Mission’s Sec starship had then fallen on His Divine Grace and correspondence ensued between the two. the spiritual maturity of Smt Vinodevani enabled her to reap the fullest benefit of His Divine Grace’s holy company through unbroken correspondence over the years. Thereafter she made her y and bequeathed all her movables and immovables to the Gaudiya Mission.