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HH Bhakti Tirtha Swami (Swami Krishnapada)
Bhakti Tirtha Swami was born John E. Favors in a pious, God-conscious family. As a child evangelist he appeared regularly on television. As a young man he was a leader in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's civil rights movement. At Princeton University he became president of the student council and also served as the chairman of the Third World Coalition. Although his main degree is in psychology, he has received accolades in many other fields, including politics, African studies, and international law.
Bhakti Tirtha Swami's books are used as reference texts in universities and leadership organisations throughout the world. Many of his books have been printed in English, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Macedonian, Croatian, Russian, Hebrew, Slovenian, Balinese and Italian.
Bhakti Tirtha Swami directly oversaw projects in the United States as a senior member of ISKCON's Governing Body Commision, particularly in Washington D.C., Potomac, Maryland, Detroit, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Additionally, he had international projects in West Africa, South Africa, Croatia and Bosnia. He also served as the director of the American Federation of Vaisnava Colleges and Schools.
A specialist in international relations and conflict resolution, Bhakti Tirtha Swami constantly traveled around the world and had become a spiritual consultant to many high profile individuals. These people include high-ranking members of the United Nations, various celebrities, several African chiefs, and even kings and high court justices. In 1990 His Holiness was coronated as a high chief in Warri, Nigeria in recognition of his outstanding work in Africa and the world. In recent years, he had met several times with then-President Nelson Mandela of South Africa to share visions and strategies for world peace.
In addition to encouraging self-sufficiency through the development of schools, clinics, farm projects and cottage industries, Bhakti Tirtha Swami conducted seminars and workshops on principle centered leadership, spiritual development, interpersonal relationships, stress and time management and other pertinent topics. He was also widely acknowledged as a viable participant in the resolution of global conflict.
HH Bhakti Tirtha Swami left this world on June 27th, 2005. He was suffering from advanced melanoma cancer. His realizations during the year he was fighting cancer are amazingly deep and profound. They can be read in the book he wrote during this time - "The Beggar IV, Die Before Dying" and in the many letters and classes that he gave. His passing was like his life - a deep expression of love and compassion, and a lesson for us all.
