Ekanatha dasa (Eddy Gaasbeek) Obituary (1952

Sandy Ridge: Ekanatha dasa (aka Eddy Gaasbeek), aged 74, departed this world on February 13 at his home. The funeral service will be held at 11 am on Saturday, February 21, 2026, at the Colonial Funeral Home Chapel in Sandy Ridge. Cremation will take place after the service. Ekanatha was born January 20, 1952, in Ede, Netherlands, to Lambertus Gaasbeek and Elizabeth Geertruida Pisart Gaasbeek. He is survived by his wife, Nitya Tripa Devi Dasi (aka Jennifer Gaasbeek), his son, Ramai Gaasbeek, his daughter, Ramani Gaasbeek, and his grandchildren, Anjali and Karuna Gaasbeek. His older brother, Rob Gaasbeek, also survives him. Ekanatha began his spiritual journey at age 19 with a determined commitment; he even hitchhiked all the way to India from the Netherlands in 1973 to further his quest, where he spent the next 5 years. After that, he came to the USA, taking up a position at the Bhaktivedanta Archives with the sole mission of preserving the teachings of his Spiritual Master, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). The Bhaktivedanta Archives relocated from Los Angeles to Sandy Ridge in 1993, following the Rodney King riots, where he continued to serve his mission until his untimely passing. His warmth, creativity, and passion will be sorely missed and remembered by all who knew him, not only in this small community here in Sandy Ridge but also on the world stage, thanks to his large social media presence. And the widely distributed software platform he developed, "VedaBase", features all the recorded and written teachings of his Spiritual Master in one searchable database. Colonial Funeral Home Stokes Chapel in Sandy Ridge, North Carolina is serving the family.