Malati Dasi

A surprise visit in October 1966 by Mukunda and his wife Janaki Dasi inspired Speerstra and Nagel to start following Gaudiya Vaishnava teachings and spiritual practices.

[12][13] Speerstra and Nagel convinced Mukunda to postpone his planned trip to India in order to try to open a Hare Krishna temple in San Francisco, and offered their assistance.

[20][21] Preparing for the event, Nagel happened to hear Moby Grape, a relatively unknown group at the time, and convinced the other team members to invite the band to play at the concert as well.

[22] Her initiative later proved pivotal for Moby Grape, catapulting the band onto the professional stage, with subsequent gigs with The Doors at the Avalon Ballroom and at the "First Love Circus" at the Winterland Arena, and a contract with Columbia Records.

[26] After acquiring a full set of Jagannath figures, Prabhupada asked Shyamasundara, an expert carpenter, to carve large replicas and then inaugurated their worship in the San Francisco temple, naming it "New Jagannatha Puri".

[27] In 1968, Malati and Shyamasundara, along with their infant daughter Saraswati, joined two other Hare Krishna couples – Mukunda and Janaki, and Gurudas and Yamuna – on a missionary trip to London in a bid to establish for ISKCON a foothold in England.

[3][28] After arriving in London, the team endured many months of financial insecurity and inadequate living conditions while maintaining their missionary activities including public kirtans, the distribution of promotional leaflets, and the cultivation of members of the local community.

[2] Things changed for the group when Shyamasundara finally met and befriended George Harrison, whom Malati found "receptive and very spiritual"[2] and helped introduce to the Hare Krishna philosophy and practice.

[31] Released on Apple Records, "Hare Krishna Mantra" reached number 12 on the UK Singles Chart and significantly boosted ISKCON's popularity in England and worldwide, with the devotees appearing on Top of the Pops.

[28] Harrison also helped the devotees rent a building in London's Bury Place near the British Museum for their first Hare Krishna temple,[29] and, in 1973, donated a 17-acre (6.9 ha) estate, which was named "Bhaktivedanta Manor" and became ISKCON's headquarters in England.

"[1] The resultant resolution of the GBC acknowledged the importance of the issue and asserted the priority of providing "equal facilities, full encouragement, and genuine care and protection for the women members of ISKCON.

"[1][9] Malati's responsibilities, as one of the 32 GBC global secretaries, include overseeing the activities of ISKCON in the US (Florida, Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and the New Vrindaban community in West Virginia),[36] which she visits twice a year.

[2] Described as "soft spoken" and having "an uncommon mix of humility and charisma," Malati is respected for her "clear understanding" of ISKCON's history and teachings and often counsels devotees, lectures on Gaudiya Vaishnava's philosophy and practice, and participates in inter-religious meetings.

The Mantra-Rock poster showing an Indian swami sitting cross-legged in the top half with circular patterns around and with information about the concert in the bottom half
The Mantra-Rock Dance poster by Harvey W. Cohen (created December 1966)
A black-and-white photo of the swami sitting cross-legged with a figure of round-eyed smiling deity to his right
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada chanting in Golden Gate Park , San Francisco , with the deity of Jagannath to his right. February 1967
A photo of George Harrison sitting cross-legged with chanting beads in a bag on his right hand
Malati Dasi helped introduce George Harrison to the spiritual practices of Gaudiya Vaishnavism ( pictured performing japa , or chanting Hare Krishna on beads ). Vrindavan ( Uttar Pradesh , India), 1996
A color photo of a young Western woman dressed in sari and an Indian Swami in the forefront
Malati Dasi accompanying Prabhupada on a morning walk in Vrindavan ( Uttar Pradesh , India) in 1975.