His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder-Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness was born on September 1,1896, in Calcutta. His father Gour Mohan De and mother Rajani Devi were Vaishnavas. They belonged to one of the very respectable aaristocratic families of gold merchants in Calcutta. His father Gour Mohan De named him Abhay Charan. His father's only wish was that Abhay should become a devotee of Srimati Radharani.