a.c. bhaktivedanta swami
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| Prabhupada Letters :: 1972 a.c. bhaktivedanta swami |
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7 December 2007 Thursday, 7 December, 1972 Ahmedabad My dear Syamasundara and Tamala, Please accept my blessings. I am very much surprised not to hear from you about the Nair affair. I have tried to contact you by phone, but it is understood that you have left Mr. Valia's place and they could not say where you are. We have sent a telegram today reading as follows: "Anxious to know progress with Nair. Call urgent 83260." So my definite order is as follows: if the conveyance is not yet signed or there is difficulty, then immediately take back the money from the attorneys (3 lakhs), and make a fixed deposit with the bank for six months. Hope you are in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/pda letters | 12:32 | 6 December 2007 Sunday, 3 December, 1972 Bombay [Letter to Billy Reyburne] Regarding your question about writing songs about Krishna, this is not very important thing. You can write, but one cannot take it very seriously. If any Vaisnava is writing song about Krishna, that should be from one who himself has realized Krishna, just like our great saints and acaryas like Madhvacarya, Ramanujacarya, Rupa Gosvami, six Gosvamins, Bilvamangala, Bhaktivinode Thakur, like that. They are self-realized souls, therefore if they write something song about Krishna, that is perfectly from the transcendental platform, without any tinge of mundane influence or nonsense imagination. Unless someone comes in the category of these great leading Vaisnava personalities, his manufacturing some songs will be misleading to himself and to others. And unless his writing of poems and songs can be accepted as gospel, as Vedas or the Absolute Truth, such writing is diverting the attention from the subject matter only and should not be regarded very seriously. Now you should become serious to pursue this Krishna Consciousness movement with full energy of body, mind and soul. If you are writing poems and songs, that’s all right, you can do it also, but if you can write articles for our Back to Godhead magazine, that is better, that is solid preaching work. No one should write songs of Krishna unless he is self-realized soul, that will spoil the value of the whole thing. But try to use your writing and singing talent for Krishna’s preaching work, by writing articles, singing the kirtan, like that. Then you will be happy, and I think you should without further delay try to become devotees as the others are doing and live with us and practice the regulative principles of brahmacari life. In this way, become determined to fix your all attention for seeing Krishna face to face by the Krishna Consciousness process and then you shall qualify yourself for writing songs about Krishna and you chant always this Hare Krishna mantra you can come to the highest point of seeing Krishna very soon, you may know it for certain. ACBS letters | 12:31 | 5 December 2007 3 December, 1972 Bombay My dear Vamanadeva, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated November 19, 1972 and I have noted the contents. I am especially glad to see how nicely your St. Louis Temple is distributing Back To Godhead Magazine. Only three years ago I asked Dai Nippon to print 20,000 copies and barely we could distribute them. But now in your temple alone you are distributing so many, so this is very, very encouraging to me. It is the perfect form of preaching. Follow the line laid down by Prahlada Maharaja and try to take every one back to home, back to godhead. And this is done by distributing our literature. I am so much pleased upon each and every one of you for helping me this way to push on this great movement. Please find enclosed one sacred thread duly chanted by me. Now, hold the fire yajna ceremony and give Gayatri mantra to Socillia Dasa. Let him hear with earphones into his right ear the tape of me reciting Gayatri mantra and teach him to count on the finger divisions. The yajna should be held only in the presence of devotees. The world requires this Krishna consciousness movement, and for this purpose there must be a class of brahmanas for giving spiritual guidance by example. So you are one of the big leaders and you are nice, intelligent boy, so may such brahmanas, more and more. Yes, why not once again start the St. Louis Newsletter, and send me a copy. I hope this finds you and your all the temple inmates in the best health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/tkg Labels: BTG, initiation, St. Louis letters | 12:30 |4 December 2007 3 December, 1972 Bombay My dear Karandhara, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated November 11, 1972, and I have noted the contents with care and attention. Still we have not finished the business with Nair, and the case has become very complicated without any settlement. They were supposed to settle the Conveyance Deed on December first, as we had made a supplemental agreement in Hyderabad and Mrs. Nair had signed it. That was very favorable for us. But other things have interfered, and they have defaulted for one reason or another, so we have got the upper hand. Now I have asked Mr. Diwanji to come to see me tomorrow morning, and Mr. Nair is also coming here, so I want to make a settlement with them without further delay. I shall let you know later. I have heard from Syamasundara. that there may be some difficulty with tax. That must be corrected. We are world-wide organization, and we must have the cooperation of the government authorities, so we shall not create any unnecessary misunderstandings by avoiding government requirements. That will not be good for our movement. Of course, Lord Caitanya led civil disobedience movement against the government because they used show of force to stop Him performing sankirtana movement. So if there is forcing us to stop this sankirtana movement, that much we must protest. But the government of your country is very nice, I think the best in the world at present moment, and they have not made any objection, even they are allowing our boys as ministers to be given relief from this drafting system. So we shall give them all cooperation. Now that requires proper accounts in all our temples. That policy of "frying the fish in its own oil" is all right, but don't touch the bonds. It should be kept as it is. And now I am thinking to pay Dai Nippon for supplying books to India because there is no money in Mayapur Fund. There is huge demand for books in India, especially Bhagavad-Gita. So I wish to transfer the bonds for paying Dai Nippon on account of supplying books to India. The idea is that you can supply all varieties of books to India, whatever they order, and send them a bill in dollars, cost-price dollars, and the cost-price dollars may be paid to Dai Nippon by encashing the bonds. All of our books may be printed by Dai Nippon in huge amount to the extent of $100,000 cost-price and sent to India. I shall pay them with dollars from the bonds and everything, and here the money will be paid in rupees into a Bhaktivedanta Book Fund and M-V Trust Fund in Indian banks, at the rate of ten rupees per dollar. So there is no difficulty. Just like TLC costs $1.50, and the temple takes 25% or $1.50, and above that there is $3 profit. So from Jayan if we get 10 rupees per dollar, this way we will get 20 rupees. So far Bhagavad-Gita is concerned, you must approach the MacMillan Company and either they must immediately stock somewhere in India so that our people may take it, or they must print it here. There is overall huge demand. You may copy this letter and send the copy to Bali Mardan. Why they cannot give us permission for printing Bhagavad-Gita? Make it clear whether we can print the older abridged edition, or if we can print the newer unabridged one. They must allow us to print here or immediately send 20,000 copies in India. We can sell all. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: India, Los Angeles, MacMillan, printing, sankirtan letters | 12:29 |3 December 2007 3 December, 1972 Bombay My dear Ekayani, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated November 1, 1972, and I have noted the contents with great concern. I do not know why these things inventions are going on. That is our only business, to invent something new programme? We have already got our Vaisnava standard. That is sufficient for Madhvacarya, Ramanujacarya, it was sufficient for Lord Caitanya, six Gosvamis, for Bhaktivinode Thakura, for my Guru Maharaja Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, for me, for all big big saints and acaryas in our line - why it shall be inadequate for my disciples so they must manufacture something? That is not possible. Who has introduced these things, that women cannot have chanting japa in the temple, they cannot perform the arati and so many things? If they become agitated, then let the brahmacaris go to the forest, I have never introduced these things. The brahmacaris cannot remain in the presence of women in the temple, then they may go to the forest, not remaining in New York City, because in New York there are so many women, so how they can avoid seeing? Best thing is to go to the forest for not seeing any women, if they become so easily agitated, but then no one will either see them and how our preaching work will go on? They should not simply, husband and wife, live in the room together in the temple, otherwise there is no restriction. How it can be? It is not possible. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami cc: Bali Mardan Goswami ACBS/sda Labels: brahmacaris, Brooklyn, women letters | 12:35 |3 December, 1972 Bombay My dear Gopala Krishna, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter. I am very happy to hear of your new plan for forming the traveling Hindu Sankirtana party. That is a very nice idea. So you may organize the party as you see fit, and if you yourself are able sometimes to go with them, you will be able to instruct them how to do it in the best way possible. You have got good experience for managing in business world, so why not you become also expert organizer for Krishna? That plan is very much liked by me, now do it nicely, and may Lord Krishna give you His all blessings more and more. Thank you very much for assisting me in this way. If you are coming to Bombay side in February, I do not yet know what is my programme for that month, perhaps I may go to Australia, I do not know, let us see what Krishna desires. Hoping this meets you and your good wife in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: Brooklyn, Hindus, sankirtan letters | 12:27 | |
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