a.c. bhaktivedanta swami
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| Prabhupada Letters :: 1970 a.c. bhaktivedanta swami |
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Nov 25, 2006 25 November, 1970 Bombay My Dear Gurudasa, Please accept my blessings. I have not heard from you in a long time. Please let me know how many life members you are making, if any and what is the situation concerning the negotiation for the Vrindaban house. If it is favorable, then you can remain in Delhi for some time and send back to Bombay the three Brahmacari boys who are staying with you. If there is no possibility of getting that house, then all of you can immediately return to Bombay. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 13:18 | Wednesday, 25 November, 1970 Bombay My Dear Mukunda, Please accept my blessings. After a long time I have receive your letter dated November 19th, 1970, as well as your telegram dated the 24th November, 1970. I thank you very much that you have sent the memorandums etc. Hamsaduta, Syamasundara. and Tamala Krsna are detained here because we are trying to establish a center in Bombay. In the meantime, if you and your wife, Janaki, may take the place of Yamuna and Gurudasa and see that things are going on nicely there. London Temple is very important and things may not be neglected there. Please see that KRSNA books are sold and the sales proceeds directly sent to Dai Nippon for credit of ``Bhaktivedanta Book Fund''. I have to pay still $10,000 to Dai Nippon for the order I have placed with them. The total amount was $35,000, out of which by collection from U.S.A. and something from my bank, we have paid $26,000, so another $10,000 is required. Please see that the book funds are immediately sent to Dai Nippon. Please go on sending reports regularly and offer my blessings to your wife. I shall be glad to hear from her. Hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS:ds letters | 13:18 | 25 November, 1970 Bombay My Dear Satsvarupa, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of several letters from you and I am answering the points from letters dated October 7th, fortnightly report dated October 24th, and letters dated November 2nd and 13rd. I am very glad that you are trying with all the other GBC members to maintain all the various functions of our very large organization up to the standard as I have set for you. This is most important. So please always work cooperatively for this end. I know that there has been a great disturbance amongst the devotees caused recently, but now things are being rectified. You are right to say that the example and kindly guidance of our elder members in the Society is the most profound force for motivating our students both new and old towards advanced Krsna Consciousness. Neglect of following the regulative activities and so-called advancement on the basis of self-motivation are both offensive. One should sincerely try to bring himself to the stage of devotional service motivated by pure love of Krsna, and our personal example must set a guide for them. You have written, and several others have written to me intimations that you are establishing a membership program in the U.S. That is very good idea. However, I have already advised Rupanuga how the Membership fees are to be fixed. Please see that this business is done consistently by all our centers, otherwise there will be a confusion. Regarding means for increasing the income of the temples, I have asked Tamala Krsna to give you some hints how to do it. I am waiting further reports on the endeavors of our Sannyasis in establishing new centers in Houston, New Orleans and Coconut Grove. I have written Brahmananda how they are to manage their own establishment program. Every Temple must work independently so far as maintenance is concerned. I was so much anxious about Advaita and I am very much concerned lest he become further victim of maya. I am anxiously waiting for a letter from him. In the meantime, I have asked that as far as possible, all unpublished manuscripts be printed by him on ISKCON Press. I have also requested Kulasekhara to go to Boston to assist Advaita and I am confident that the tense situation will be relieved. Yes. You have the right attitude towards disturbing comments of fellow devotees.. Lord Caitanya has advised us to always remain more humble than the grasses and more tolerant than the tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige and ready to offer respects to all persons. It is not our policy to reject someone on any personal grounds. Rather it is our duty to encourage him on the common platform of devotional service to Krsna. I have received very nice reports from all our centers how they are very much appreciating my books and they are understanding association with the Spiritual Master is the same as association with His vani or teachings. This is a transcendental fact. I am very glad that Krsna has saved you from financial crises. In any case we shall not evade our natural dependency upon the Lord. Neither it can be done in any way. The materialists foolishly play that they are independent, but such false independence is vanquished at every instance by the superiority of the material nature. Devotees are never subject to such kinds of illusory thinking and its subsequent frustration because they keep themselves always engaged in their natural dependent position as sincere servants of the Lord. Regarding book binding, if you can produce only ten hardbound books per day that will suffice for our own purposes. For large quantities of hardbound books we shall have to depend either on Dai Nippon or some outside binder. But the softcover books are very good. Simply they must be sewn. I know these paperbound books are very popular with the college set in your country, so we should encourage them to take our books in that way also. I do not know why there should be such a lack of money for ISKCON Press. Every Temple reports very good books sales, but where is the money going? Anyway, your rectification program by the GBC in the matter of right payment of bills for literatures is good. So now please bring things under the right order. I fully approve of your idea to prepare every available manuscript up to the stage of printing, even if they remain in the layout stage for a while. I may tell you that I am not so much encouraged to work on translations unless I see that the literature is being printed or at least being prepared for printing. I have done some translating recently, but it is not yet decided whether to send you the tapes or to transcribe them here and send you a copy of the manuscript. Very soon you will know about this. I will be encouraged if you keep on with the work of readying my manuscripts and printing them. I have not heard in a long time from New York. I am confident that things are going on there alright, but still I would like to hear from you or Bhavananda report of our Temple in New York. Next time I return, I shall go first to New York. I am glad that many new centers are being opened in different places. I have had several encouraging letters from Mohanananda in Dallas and in all our centers things seem to be improving and the public reception is also improving. Hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS:ds letters | 13:17 | Nov 24, 2006 Tuesday, 24 November, 1970 Bombay My Dear Hayagriva, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated 16th November, 1970 and I've noted the contents carefully. I have instructed the GBC members with me here in India that they should write you once a week and report on activities here. It is very encouraging to hear that Pittsburgh temple is doing so nicely and that New Vrindaban is also being developed gradually. As far as the roadside property is concerned it is in long standing for purchase. So try to purchase as soon a possible, as you are hoping to get finances from spiritual sky incense which you are manufacturing under Ranadhir's expert guidance in Pittsburgh. Regarding KRSNA book, Vol II, 4,000 copies may be sent to the U.S.A. and 1,000 may be sent to London; the remaining 5,000 can be sent to Bombay, India. Regarding Printing of Bhagavad-gita complete and unabridged edition, it may be printed with our ISKCON PRESS and 5,000 copies may be sent, printed and folded to Bombay because I notice in your ISKCON PRESS newsletter that Advaita has expressed his opinion that if sent by ship without folding first, it would not be possible for the books to be properly folded and printed here in India. Regarding the missing verses, I will see if it is required and will send you at a later date. Kirtanananda Maharaja is feeling double separation. If he likes, he can go back to New Vrindaban. Let him feel only one separation. As far as myself, most probably I shall go back to U.S.A. by next spring, so I also am feeling separation. In your letter you refer to Gurudasa as GBC member, but I think there is some misunderstanding because he has not yet been appointed by me as GBC member, because there is no vacancy. Please offer my blessings to your good wife Syama Dasi and son Samba. Hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami P.S. I have advised K. Maharaja to return to New Vrindaban. ACB ACBS/adb letters | 13:16 | 24 November, 1970 Bombay My Dear Bali Mardan, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your two letters dated November 9th and 11th, 1970. You had mentioned going next to Singapore from Hong Kong. Singapore is also a nice place for organizing a center. There are many Indians and they will support the Movement there. Yes. The several cities you mention are all important cities in the Far East portion. Originally they all had Indian culture. But I do not think you should spend your time at this stage of life in trying to learn so many different local languages. That is not practical for us. Our most successful program is to begin preaching with the help of an interpreter from the local people and later train up some intelligent men who speak English. When they are conversant with our philosophy, they can preach to the general public. The Hare Krsna Mantra is international mantra. Simply try to induce people to chant and they will understand everything. Externally, English language is understood everywhere. Your enthusiasm for starting centers for educating the people of the world in this sublime Krsna Consciousness process is very good. You are actually authorized agent of my Guru Maharaja and through Him, Lord Caitanya. He predicted that in every town and village of the world His Name will be well known and you are trying for fulfilling His mission, certainly He will give you all strength and blessings. We simply have to work sincerely and automatically all other things will come. Recently one very responsible Indian gentleman was in our Temple in Sydney and he has given very good certificate for our activities there. Regarding staying in the various Temples of demigods that is quite alright, but you should not take prasadam from the demigods if you are offered. Our method is to follow the system as it is done in Jagannatha Puri. There, the bhoga is first offered to Lord Jagannatha and then His Prasadam is distributed and offered to various demigods who reside in some nearby Temples. Then the remnants of such Prasadam may be taken by us. So far a Temple place is concerned, even there is no place, we can sit down underneath a tree and chant as I did in New York. Krsna will give a nice place. You have been anxious to stick to fulfilling the desires of Krsna and Spiritual Master without deviation. Our technique is that we work sincerely and the dictation will come from within; Krsna is seated there. Hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 13:15 | 24 November, 1970 Bombay My Dear Madhudvisa Maharaja, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter that you say "I am now prepared to give up all self-created designations and work only as your servant." That is the real position; transcendental loving service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krishna. That is our real identification. All other identifications are false or temporary. Lord Caitanya said that "I am the servant of the servant of the servant 100 times removed" and similarly we should think ourselves as the servant of the servant of the servant and this attitude will lead to success in Krishna Consciousness. If we can acquire that Hamilton building, it will be a great credit to you and to our Krishna Consciousness Movement in India. People are expecting something from the American Vaisnavas and so we should make every effort to serve them with a nice place so that they may come and sit down with us and chant Hare Krishna and become Krishna Conscious, as Lord Caitanya desire. Here in Bombay we have already made over thirty life members. Every day we are receiving checks from influential men and the preaching work is going on with great success. So try for that house and we will see what Krishna desires. Hope you are all well and jolly in Krishna's service. Your ever well-wisher, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami P.S. If there is inconvenience, you may all come to Bombay. Your friend Jariwala has invited us to go to Surat in full strength. You may all go there directly or come to Bombay and we shall go together. We are seriously trying to purchase a nice house here, so if possible send all collections (including the promised 25,000/-) in favor of International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Before coming here please ship the deities to U.S.A as it was arranged and see Mr. Trivedi of Scindia Steam Navigation in this connection. letters | 13:15 | 24 November, 1970 Bombay My Dear Bhagavan Das, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated 16th November, 1970 and I thank you very much for your encouraging report. Yes, we are fighting impersonalism and voidism with pure devotional service. Impersonalism and voidism kills the natural aptitude of devotion which is lying dormant in everyone's heart. Therefore we are printing books like our KRSNA book so that people may know it that the supreme absolute truth is a person. The perfection of every living creature is to render transcendental loving service to that Supreme Person and thereby go back home, back to Godhead. Krishna has said in Bhagavad-gita that "whoever explains my transcendental glories to others is most dear to me in this world and never will there be one more dear to me than he." So go on with your organization for distribution of my books through press and other modern media and Krishna will certainly be pleased upon you. We can use everything--television, radio, movies, or whatever there may be--to tell about Krishna and outside of devotional service all these modern paraphernalia are just so much rubbish. It is very nice that you are opening another center in Cleveland, Ohio. Please do it very thoughtfully. Yes, any intelligent man can immediately appreciate the qualities of a Vaisnava devotee. The devotee is always truthful and therefore everyone feels confident about what he may say or do under any condition. So the judge has appreciated the transcendental qualities of our devotee Narottamadasa Das. I've seen your notice to the other centers regarding your new Sankirtana practices and it is very nice. Please continue to work cooperatively in this way and I will be very much grateful to you for your sincere efforts. Thanking you once again for your kind letter. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/adb P.S. I am in receipt of your last letter also. ACBS letters | 13:09 | Nov 22, 2006 Sunday, November 22, 1970 Bombay My Dear Sriman Ben, Please accept my blessings. I beg to thank you very much for your humble letter dated September 20th, 1970. I am presently staying in Bombay. Since arriving in India I have been extensively travelling and preaching our Sankirtana Movement to all parts of the country. There is good reception also for our Society here. From other countries all over the world I am receiving daily reports and thanks how everything is going on in Krsna Consciousness nicely. Our Movement has now become truly international Society. I am very glad that you are so much appreciative of our program and philosophy. Actually it is the only factual presentation of our true relationship with God, Krsna. And it is our earnest endeavor to preach this philosophy very vigorously to clear out the diseased condition of impersonal and voidist philosophy which are so much misleading the innocent persons. So you are very fortunate. Krsna has saved you from the impersonal calamity. I am very much pleased to know that you are trying to set a fine example to your young son, Joseph, and your good wife. It is the duty of our students who are married men to train both their wife and children in devotional service to the Supreme Lord. The easiest program is that you add to your daily schedule a Kirtana chanting of Hare Krsna Maha-mantra both in the evening and the morning with your family and after chanting you can read something from our Bhagavad Gita As It Is or Krsna Book or our other literatures. You are already offering service to Lord Jagannatha and offering Him some nicely prepared fruits, milk, sweet smelling flowers and incense. That is the way for householders. For householders it is prescribed that one should hear the Bhagavad-gita or other transcendental texts of which we now have ample supply from the lips of the devotee of the Lord, one should accept a Bona fide Spiritual Master and follow his instructions and one should install the Deity in his home and carry on worship there. These three items will make your life perfect. So you simply try to observe these things and if you need some advice how to do it you can ask the elder devotees of our New York Temple. Be very strict in your observance of the four principles of regulation, namely no illicit sex life, no intoxicants, no eating of any meat, fish or eggs, and no gambling. Always chant Hare Krsna at least sixteen rounds daily and be happy. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 13:08 | Nov 21, 2006 Saturday, 21 November, 1970 Bombay My Dear Upendra, [TEXT MISSING] I have received your frequent reports as you have been travelling and your account of the situation is of great interest to me, especially I am pleased to note your enthusiasm in the matter of spreading Krsna Consciousness. ___ all the people of the world. I am so much pleased with your sincere endeavor. You are doing service for the Lord and He is sure to reward you with advanced Krsna Consciousness in no time. I am very glad that you have found some interested and friendly persons to give you at least some temporary assistance in Fiji. Do not be worried about the future. If you will simply work on very strenuously in humble state of mind as the sincere servant of the servant of the Lord, then Krsna will give you all facilities. I know you are already acquainted with the Lord's mercy in this respect because you have already had several times experience in the matter of establishing our ISKCON Temples in different places. I have seen your leaflet and it is very nice. Regarding Hindi BTG, several hundred copies will be sent to you as soon as they are received by us. Yes. As you have noted the youth are our most potential source of converts to Krsna Consciousness. I do not think it is necessary for you to spend time unnecessarily at this time of your life to learn some foreign languages, but the program as we have followed with good success is to find out some local boy who is well acquainted with the English language and train him to preach to the general less educated public. This is the best system and do not be hopeless because you are sure to find such a helper very soon. The article in the Hindi paper appears to be nice. It is very good that you have renovated one flat for a Temple. Now you can begin your program properly and invite some boys to stay and learn Krsna Consciousness under your instruction. The young boy of 14 years is a very prospective candidate if you train him properly. So do it nicely. As usual, always be very careful that the regulative principles are being followed by yourself and others very strictly. If you keep to the standard in that way and make a nice Temple for serving the Lord that will be the right path for going home, back to Godhead. Regarding Devi Chandan, we have no use for it. It has got no place in our Vaisnava worship. So far the demigods are concerned, we Vaisnavas have nothing against them, so they may be offered all respects as part and parcel servitors of the Supreme Lord Krsna. The foolish persons may worship the Demigods as Supreme, but we see only that they are agents of the Lord and as such we may offer them our humble respects. Another thing, although we respect the demigods, we may not take their prasadam if invited. We observe the system followed in Jagannatha Puri. First the foodstuff is offered to Lord Jagannatha and then His Prasad is offered to the different demigods; then we may take such remainders as prasadam. This is the correct procedure. Hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami P.S. I am sending you the Hindi tape record as you have desired by separate book post. You should receive it soon. ACBS:ds letters | 13:08 | Nov 20, 2006 Friday, 20 November, 1970 Bombay My Dear Gaura Hari, Please accept my blessings. I beg to thank you for your nice letter dated 26 Damodara 484 Caitanya Era. It is my great pleasure that so many fine young boys have joined this Krsna Consciousness Movement and they are finding that their lives have been saved by this simple process. I have many times expressed my sympathy with the frustrated and unhappy younger generation of your country and it is our duty to teach them this formula for peace and happiness by chanting the Mahamantra. This is the business of a devotee, he himself finds the secret that by simply loving Krsna one automatically acquires love for all other beings and he takes it as the prime duty of life to spread this sublime knowledge to everyone he meets. I am very glad that you have decided to become a Grhastha member of our Society. That is the way of civilized and upright human life. After practicing brahmacarya and training under the guidance of a Spiritual Master the Vedic system is prescribing the asrama of Grhastha for those who are still desiring to enter into married family life. The so-called institution of free love marriage is ruining the human society and it is our duty therefore to reestablish the correct procedure of human life in the matter of encouraging our disciples who wish to marry to enter into a contract of spiritual wedlock. Such contract is made on the basis of compatible service of the Lord. Such mutual cooperation in serving the advancement of Krsna Consciousness minimizes the illusion of material compatibility and material incompatibility. We are seeing practically that our householder couples are setting an example for all persons that the perfection of happy family life is not based on sense-gratification, but on sincere service to the Lord. I have already replied to Sriman Locana das the circumstance concerning the girl, Lisa, whom you mentioned. Anyway, if you make either this arrangement or some other, I shall be pleased to offer my blessings upon you both in your marriage. Simply be anxious to keep your life, married or otherwise, always on the platform of pure devotional service to Krsna and be happy chanting Hare Krsna. Hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS:ds letters | 13:07 | |
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