a.c. bhaktivedanta swami
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| Prabhupada Letters :: 1972 a.c. bhaktivedanta swami |
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22 December 2007 Friday, 22 December, 1972 Bombay My dear Karandhara, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your dated December 11, 1972, and I have noted the contents with care. Regarding your proposal to cash my bonds and take that house in New York, I have heard from Bali Mardan that the bid was refused and that he has made another bid, but it will be some time before it is decided. And Dhananjaya has telephoned to Bombay to request for keeping that down payment, because George is very keen to purchase one monastery and there is every chance they will get it before one week. At least let us see. So there is no immediate need to cash my bonds, nor take the money from London. Jayatirtha has informed that Bali Mardan has saved more than $100,000 in few months time only, so New York is very rich place for collecting, so why not he shall collect there for few more months to raise the whole price? Also, that place on 77th Street is not so much important as 5th Avenue and 40th Street. If we are taking such big place for big risk, why not in the important business district? Now my plan for books in India is this: We shall pay MacMillan for 20,000 copies of Bhagavad-Gita at $1.25 each. Price may be settled as it is required, but not more than $30,000. I shall pay for 5,000 copies from my bonds, you pay for the balance 15,000 copies from Book Fund there. 5,000 Gitas may be sent immediately to India, the balance you distribute other places. In India we want to order a variety of books. So you may immediately order from Dai Nippon 5,000 copies each of KRSNA (Vol. II) (Hard-bound), TLC (soft-bound), NOD (soft-bound), KRSNA TRILOGY (soft-bound), Srimad-Bhagavatam (5,000 of each volume), plus you may send to India 10,000 each of each of the small books, like Easy Journey, Topmost Yoga, Beyond Birth and Death, Isopanisad, like that. So these books should be given at cost-price only, not wholesale price, and you may cash some of my bonds to pay the total cost-price of the above books to Dai Nippon and ISKCON Press. They shall pay me back here into one M-V Trust Fund Account at the rate of ten rupees per dollar, plus they shall give me some profit. So you may inform me what is the cost per book for each of the above, and the total cost you are having to deduct from my bonds. All books should be sent to India as quickly as possible. Regarding the work of Pradyumna, now he is working very hard to finish those missing portions, and he will send you very soon. Actually, whatever else he may be doing, I very much appreciate Pradyumna's work. Everyday he gives me some solid work, at least something every day, so I am very much appreciating. I was in Ahmedabad preaching daily in the morning and evening for last two weeks, and at least ten thousand were coming to hear. From January 12th our second Hare Krishna Festival will go on in the Cross Maidan in Bombay, and Tamala Krishna and Syamasundara are planning something very gorgeous just to push on the preaching work. Meanwhile I am little resting behind the scenes for few days, and one Karatieya Mahadevia has been very kind to give us his place all to ourselves just by the seaside on Warden Road. Many big men of Bombay are coming to see me daily for confidential talks, and they are beginning to very much become inclined to our philosophy. I think in this place, it is very restful and there is no interruption, so I think I shall be able to increase my translations work. Regarding your points about taxation, corporate status, etc., I have heard from Jayatirtha you want to make big plan for centralization of management, taxes, monies, corporate status, bookkeeping, credit, like that. I do not at all approve of such plan. Do not centralize anything. Each temple must remain independent and self-sufficient. That was my plan from the very beginning, why you are thinking otherwise? Once before you wanted to do something centralizing with your GBC meeting, and if I did not interfere the whole thing would have been killed. Do not think in this way of big corporation, big credits, centralization - these are all nonsense proposals. Only thing I wanted was that books printing and distribution should be centralized, therefore I appointed you and Bali Mardan to do it. Otherwise, management, everything, should be done locally by local men. Accounts must be kept, things must be in order and lawfully done, but that should be each temple's concern, not yours. Krishna Consciousness Movement is for training men to be independently thoughtful and competent in all types of departments of knowledge and action, not for making bureaucracy. Once there is bureaucracy the whole thing will be spoiled. There must be always individual striving and work and responsibility, competitive spirit, not that one shall dominate and distribute benefits to the others and they do nothing but beg from you and you provide. No. Never mind there may be botheration to register each centre, take tax certificate each, become separate corporations in each state. That will train men how to do these things, and they shall develop reliability and responsibility, that is the point. I am little observing now, especially in your country, that our men are losing their enthusiasm for spreading on our programmes of Krishna Consciousness movement. Otherwise, why so many letters of problems are coming, dissatisfied? That is not a very good sign. The whole problem is they are not following the regulative principles, that I can detect. Without this, enthusiasm will be lacking. Even mechanically following, and if he gets gradually understanding from the class, he will come to the point of spontaneous enthusiasm. This spontaneous loving devotional service is not so easy matter, but if one simply sticks strictly to the rules and regulations, like rising early, chanting 16 rounds, chanting gayatri, keeping always clean - then his enthusiasm will grow more and more, and if there is also patience and determination, one day he will come to the platform of spontaneous devotion, then his life will be perfect. All of this I have told you in Nectar of Devotion. So I do not think the leaders are themselves following, nor they are seeing the others are following strictly. That must be rectified at once. Each centre remain independent, that's all right, but the president and other officers must themselves follow and see the others are following the regulative principles carefully, and giving them good instruction so they may understand nicely why this tapasya is necessary. And GBC and Sannyasis will travel and see the officers are doing this, and if they observe anything lowering of the standard, they must reform and advise, or if there is some discrepancy I shall remove it. Of course, if new men are coming, they may not be expected immediately to take to our regulative principles cent per cent. Therefore we should not be so anxious to induce them to live in the temple. Anyone who lives in the temple must agree to follow the rules and regulations without fail. So if some new man moves in with us he may become discouraged if he is forced in this way. Therefore let them live outside and become gradually convinced in the class why they should accept some austerity, then they will live with us out of their own accord and follow nicely everything. It is very difficult to give up very quickly so many bad habits as you have got in your country. So educate new men gradually, first with chanting, and do not be so much anxious to count up so many numbers of new devotees, if such devotees go away later being too early forced. I want to see a few sincere devotees, not many false devotees or pretenders. So my point is that the regulative principles must be followed by everyone. Otherwise their enthusiasm dwindles and they again think of sex and become restless, and so many problems are there. There is some symptom of missing the point. The point is to be engaged in doing something for Krishna. Never mind what is that job, but being so engaged in doing something very much satisfying to the devotee then he remains always enthusiastic. He will automatically follow the regulative principles because they are part of his occupational duty - by applying them practically as his occupational duty, he realizes the happy result of regulative principles. So the future of this Krishna Consciousness movement is very bright, so long the managers remain vigilant that 16 rounds are being chanted by everyone without fail, that they are all rising before four morning, attending mangal arati - our leaders shall be careful not to kill the spirit of enthusiastic service, which is individual and spontaneous and voluntary. They should try always to generate some atmosphere of fresh challenge to the devotees, so that they will agree enthusiastically to rise and meet it. That is the art of management: to draw out spontaneous loving spirit of sacrificing some energy for Krishna. But where are so many expert managers? All of us should become expert managers and preachers. We should not be very much after comforts and become complacent or self-contented. There must be always some tapasya, strictly observing the regulative principles - Krishna Consciousness movement must be always a challenge, a great achievement to be gained by voluntary desire to do it, and that will keep it healthy. So you big managers now try to train up more and more some competent preachers and managers like yourselves. Forget this centralizing and bureaucracy. Hoping this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS:sda Labels: enthusiasm, leader, Los Angeles, publishing, regulative principles letters | 17:24 |17 December 2007 17 December, 1972 Bombay My dear Danavir, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated November 27, 1972. I note that you are requesting to take the sannyasa order of life. But if you have got wife, that will be difficult. If someone devotee has got wife, that will not become a very popular policy to grant so easily sannyasa. And if your wife wants many children, that is the only purpose for getting married to wife, to have facility for sex-life, otherwise what is the use for taking so much botheration of married life? So now you are married man, that decision you have made. That is great responsibility, and that should not become so light matter that anyone may think, Oh, let me get married and if I don't like my wife, or there is anything difficulty, I will write Prabhupada for taking sannyasa, finished. Never mind wife, let her go to hell. That is not very nice proposal. Married life is serious business. If you have taken wife, you must be completely responsible for her throughout your life. She shall always serve and obey you without fail, and you shall instruct her in Krishna Consciousness and act as her spiritual master. Otherwise, without husband, women have great difficulty to make spiritual advancement. So if we have to develop a perfect society of scientific arrangement for making spiritual progress, then so many women will be there, so what shall they do? They have also come to Krishna, we cannot reject them. Therefore I have advised my students to get themselves married. I was householder, my Guru Maharaja was life-long brahmacari. But we are doing the same work of preaching Krishna Consciousness, so what is the difference, grhastha and brahmacari? Actual sannyasa means that he has given everything to Krishna, so practically you are already sannyasa. But if you have got wife, and if she is very desirous to raise children, she will not be very happy if you go away. That is not our business, to create havoc, no. If wife is very strong, she will appreciate if you take sannyasa, but if there is question at all, that should be avoided. Just like I never liked my wife, but I knew it was my duty to stick until my sons were grown-up, then I left. But if you give your wife one child, then she will be happy and she will have some life-long occupation, that you must consider. But at least you can wait until I come there next time, then we shall see further. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: ideal community, Los Angeles, marriage, sannyasa, women letters | 17:19 |14 December 2007 14 December, 1972 Ahmedabad My dear Karandhara/Bali Mardan, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your several telegrams. I have replied by telegram as follows: YES YOU CAN USE BOTH THE FUNDS IF IT IS A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR NEW YORK GORGEOUS TEMPLE. One thing is, that you should inform me in detail and send the plans of that place, along with how you shall make all the payments. You may repay me the $80,000 gradually by paying the money to Dai Nippon and shipping books to India, as they require, and they shall pay Rupees there into our M-V Trust Fund Account in Indian Bank. Another thing, Syamasundara is going to London in one or two weeks for some other urgent business, so he shall see what is the position for getting the house there, and if there is no urgent need to use it there at London he may send the money you had sent for down-payment back to New York. If there is any immediate need to utilize the money for the London house, we shall make some suitable adjustment. Hoping this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: building, Los Angeles, M-V Trust, New York letters | 13:06 |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 November 2007 3 November, 1972 Vrindaban My dear Karandhara, Please accept my blessings. We have now decided to take legal proceedings against Nair because we have received one telegram from Tamala Krishna as follows: "Nair unreasonable, settlement impossible, immediately filing criminal and civil suits, letter follows, Tamala Krishna." So I have immediately sent one telegram: "Suing Nair, don't change bonds, repeat, don't change bonds, Syamasundara. das." So we have decided for good not to settle, so there is no need to cash the bonds as we shall receive lump-sum dividend by 10th December for at least $3500, so we shall not lose this interest. We may, however, require to change the bonds when we find out a suitable house for M-V Trust. That I shall let you know. In the meantime, keep in safe-deposit box. Later developments I shall let you know. Hoping this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: Bombay, legal, Los Angeles, M-V Trust letters | 09:10 |1 August 2007 1 August, 1972 London My dear Karandhara, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated July 27, 1972 and I have noted the contents carefully. You have paid the bank $6250.00 and the balance remains $57250.00. I can pay you $56000.00 by advising the Bank of America, and the balance of $1250.00 you can find, and the escrow will be fully paid. Regarding the corner property, for which you have offered $73500.00, that is a nice proposal, if the book trust can purchase the whole building outright as an investment and collect the rents as dividends. I have just received the newscuttings from Calcutta, and the Rathayatra festival there was simply spectacular. In one day, we have captured the full attention of the Calcutta people and they are very much favorable. So in this way, if we perform many festivals in all of our centers around the world, many times during the year, then the general populous will become very much favorably inclined toward us and that will push on this sankirtana movement in the best way. Under separate post please find the copies of some important documents for your perusal. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Enclosures: -under sep. post. Labels: bank, festivals, Los Angeles, Ratha Yatra letters | 16:20 |22 July 2007 Saturday, 22 July, 1972 Paris My dear Suniti, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated July 13, 1972, describing the condition of your husband, Jaya Gopala das. Whatever happens we must take it as the special mercy shown by Krsna to his devotee. Yes, the reading of Krsna Book and chanting at his bedside must go on. I am offering prayers to Krsna that He may protect Jaya Gopala, who is such sincere devotee. Now you and your godbrothers and godsisters also continue to offer prayers and chant always the Hare Krsna Mantra for him, and this will save him under any conditions. Hoping this will meet him in improved condition of health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: chanting, difficulties, Los Angeles letters | 20:48 |21 July 2007 21 July, 1972 Paris To the Manager Great Western Savings and Loan Association Fairfax Branch Fairfax Avenue Los Angeles, California U.S.A. Dear Sir, r.e. My Fixed Deposit Account #6004600 I beg to inform you that I am purchasing one house at Venice Boulevard and I have to pay $63,500 on or before the 25th August, 1972. Kindly therefore transfer $20,000 to my checking account in the Bank of America branch #308 in favor of my account #3081-61625. The fixed deposit receipt is laying in the safe deposit box #361 in your bank. If it is necessary to present this document then I shall instruct my representative in Los Angeles to go to you with the key and he will deliver the receipt. Thanking you, Yours faithfully, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: bank, land, Los Angeles letters | 20:43 |19 July 2007 19 July, 1972 London My dear Karandhara, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated 7/13/72, and I have noted the contents. I have already sent you one telegram "OK SEND KRSNA BOOKS," so by now I think you have duly forwarded the $10,000 as per Bhavananda's instructions. From now on, I am insisting there be at least two signatures. I do not understand all of the points about purchasing the apartment house, whether I shall be required to sign anything or what. So you may explain in detail what is to be done. As for the payment, we shall not need to cash the bonds, we can manage in other ways to pay the $63,500. I understand that we must pay the full amount cash by August 25, 1972. As for Dayananda, I am enclosing the letter to him, so you may kindly forward to him. We have celebrated a very, very nice Rathayatra festival here in London, and in the Trafalgar Square itself I initiated nearly 30 new devotees with fire yajna before 25,000 persons, mostly Englishmen. All in all, it was the best Rathayatra we have seen to date. I have not heard anything from you about Rathayatra in San Francisco. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda nb. We are leaving for Paris tomorrow, so you may reply me there until the 28th. Labels: BBT, Los Angeles, Ratha Yatra letters | 20:41 |16 July 2007 Sunday, 16 July, 1972 London My Dear Mahatma, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter of July 6, 1972, and I have noted the contents. If you have taken a wife for grhastha life, why are you neglecting? That is not Vaisnava. Vaisnava means he is very much responsible, and if he is householder, then he must be responsible. I cannot give sannyasa to any devotee who has not proven himself to be responsible in all respects. Better you prove yourself first by being ideal householder and forget all this nonsense. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: grhasthas, Los Angeles, sannyasa, wife letters | 20:40 |14 July 2007 14 July, 1972 London My dear Karandhara, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated July 9, 1972, along with letters to temple presidents, which I have signed and duly posted. I am glad to hear that the owner has accepted our bid of $63,500 cash, and I shall be returning to U.S.A. before the end of 50 days to settle the matter. I have promised Brahmananda to be in Nairobi up to August 27th. If the deadline for payment is August 30th, that leaves very little time. Shall my presence be required to sell the FNMA bonds and make other arrangements? What do you suggest? So far Dayananda, I have no objection if the grhasthas live outside and earn money, but I do not want them to leave. The strict temple procedure is only for those who live in the temple. Grhasthas should live outside, and they cannot follow strictly everything, but why they should give up altogether their devotional procedures? So many big stalwart devotees are leaving, why is this? Advaita, Uddhava, Krsna das, and now our Dayananda and Nandarani. I have sent them each one letter, so if you find them, you may deliver them my letters. This is not at all good if our big devotees fall down so easily and go away. Try to save them. Hoping this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: grhasthas, Los Angeles, management letters | 19:20 |12 July 2007 Wednesday, 12 July, 1972 London My dear Jaya Gopala and Suniti, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your telegram dated July 9, 1972 and I have noted the contents with great concern. I am very much anxious to know what is your condition, and how you are recovering. Please let me know at your earliest convenience. In this material world, at every step there is danger, so we must become very diligent in executing spiritual life, and not neglect even a moment. Hoping this will meet you good spirits and increasing good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/nkd Labels: Los Angeles letters | 19:13 |7 July 2007 7 July, 1972 New York My dear Dayananda, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letters dated June 26, 1972, and July 4, 1972, and I have noted the contents very carefully. Now my advice is this, that you take your family to San Francisco and become the President there, because Kesava wants to change, and I think he has liked it in London very much, so he may come here immediately while I am here and help me to get one very nice temple here. What do you think of this proposal? Yes, reading my books will help you, philosophy must be there, but if you do not also apply the philosophy by participating in all temple affairs like rising early, attending mangal arati, performing devotional service, then simply learning the philosophy will have no effect. Therefore, my suggestion is that you should take charge of the San Francisco affairs, which are already in good order, and live nicely with your family in Krishna Consciousness, because you have got tendency to manage and also good experience and ability. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda cc: Kesava das/SF Labels: Los Angeles, management, San Francisco letters | 11:31 |16 June 2007 16 June, 1972 Los Angeles My Dear Prajapati, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge your letter of June 6, 1972 and I have noted the contents. It is very nice to hear that all the activities are going on with full enthusiasm there in Boston. Upon your recommendation, enclosed please find one letter for initiates as well as 4 copies of gayatri mantra and 3 sacred threads duly chanted by me. Four beads also duly chanted by me have been sent by separate post. Hold a fire yajna and give gayatri mantra to Brhatratha, Cediraja, Somadasa, and Sarmistha dasi. Rupanuga has got a tape of me reciting gayatri mantra, so you can get this from him. One thing is that the tape should be heard through earphones into the right ear. So the fire yajna can be held for all 8 devotees. Regarding your questions, we should not take any stock of rumors which may come, that is not our process to act upon rumors. We hear from the authorized sources, and then our hearing is perfect. So you are the leader of big temple, you should know these things and avoid them, and instruct the other students there to stick to whatever is mentioned in our books and try to understand that subject matter from every angle of vision, without trying to adulterate by adding anything rumor. Our preaching must be based upon the subject matter from books and nothing outside of them. The actual fact is that worshiping the Deity and chanting the glories of the Lord are both within the nine processes of devotional service recommended by Rupa Goswami. Besides chanting and hearing and remembering there are six other recommended activities in devotional service. So if we are able to practice even only one of these activities perfectly, the result will be the same. Or we may execute more than one, we may execute several o even all nine activities in devotional service, but even if we execute one perfectly we shall be completely successful in devotional service. So there is no question that one activity is more important than another or that Deity worship is more important than Sankirtana, but one individual may be able to perform one activity more satisfactorily than another, so to him that activity will be more important. But in general we cannot say that any of the nine processes is more important than the others, except that if hearing, chanting and remembering are there, that is the most vital consideration for the general class of men in this age. Service to the Deities, as you are asking me, begins whenever you remember Them and offer all your services by remembering at the same time. All activities, words, everything should be offered as service to the Deities, and this offering with remembering will gradually increase as you practice it. ACB Labels: initiation, Los Angeles, questions, sankirtan letters | 04:43 |12 May 2007 Friday, 12 May, 1972 Honolulu My dear Karandhara, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your special delivery letter dated May 9, 1972, and I have noted the contents. You may borrow the $15,000 from me, I have no objection. But now you have agreed to give Hayagriva $4000 per month, that was a great mistake. Now you have to rectify it. Now Hayagriva writes me that he is coming to Los Angeles, so we can discuss. Abruptly if we stop, that will not be good. So we have to rectify by arrangement and agreement. I am simply surprised how you all GBC men agreed to give him $4000 per month. So the mistake has been made, now it has to be corrected by other ways. We shall arrive in LA on the 18th, as per your arrangement. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: GBC, Los Angeles, management letters | 20:50 |10 May 2007 10 May, 1972 Honolulu My dear sons, Please accept my blessings. Upon the recommendation of Karandhara, I have gladly consented to accept all of you as my duly initiated disciples. Your beads have been duly chanted by me and they are sent under separate post. I have given you the spiritual names as follows: Michael McCloughlin, Rupa Manohara das (He whose form is all-enchanting) Paul League, Vipina Purandara das (the youthful boy of the forest) Richard Roland, Brajera Pakhala das (He who tends the calves of Vraja) Eddie Dougherty, Gopavrndapala das (protector of the cowherd boys) David Hardin, Kadambakanana das (He who plays in the groves where the kadamba flower grows) I am so glad to learn that all of you have been such a great help to Karandhara there in our Los Angeles center. I can understand that all of you are very sincere boys, and are very eligible candidates for going back to home, back to Godhead. And the process is simple. Follow the regulative principles, chant at least 16 rounds of beads daily, read our literatures, go for street sankirtana and book distribution, etc. In this way keep yourselves engaged in Krishna's business 24 hours and you will be really happy in this life and in the end you will reach the Supreme destination. Hoping this will meet you in good health and happy mood. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/nkd Labels: initiation, Los Angeles letters | 20:45 |4 May 2007 4 May, 1972 Tokyo My dear Karandhara, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated April 28, 1972, and I have noted the contents. I have no objection if Kesava tours the USA and gives instruction how to sell books, then when he is finished USA he can go to London. But one thing is, there is vast possibility for selling our books in England, I think more than in your country, and they have got program for buying a big, big church in London, so I want they should sell many books by buying cost-price from you and in this way pay for that church. I shall see when I go there for Rathayatra this summer. I have already replied concerning purchasing that convent school and asrama. What about my Bank of America Card? I have sent for it from you some time back because it has expired. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami n.b. I think it is best thing if the GBC members always travel on Sankirtana Party in their zone and go from one village to another and visit the temples to see how the students are learning and do my work. In this way, they will avoid the propensity to sit down and plot and scheme how to eat and sleep. So you can advise them all to travel extensively on Sankirtana all over their zone. ACBS Labels: book distribution, GBC, Los Angeles, sankirtan letters | 12:58 |4 May, 1972 Tokyo My dear Hrdayananda, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated April 30, 1972, and I have noted the contents. I was ready to send some threads and gayatri mantras to Houston, but now you have moved, so I shall send them to Pusta Krishna instead. I am going to Los Angeles soon, you can stay there, and we shall speak some. Hoping this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/sda Labels: initiation, Los Angeles letters | 12:57 |2 May 2007 Tuesday, 2 May, 1972 Tokyo My dear Karandhara, Please accept my blessings. I am just now in receipt of your special-delivery letters dated April 29, 1972. I am very much encouraged by the contents. The newspaper article is especially nice, it means that the citizens are beginning to look behind our dress to find out our nice philosophy. This is a very good sign. So far Madhudvisa is concerned, I am presently making a scheme for assigning GBC men to those new zones and for re-distributing the sannyasis, so do not encourage Madhudvisa to come there until I have decided where he shall go. I am very much in favor of your plan to get that place in Laurel Canyon, so begin immediately. $150,000 is not so much for such a place, especially if we can get for low down-payment, then it is a very good scheme. So this place and the skyscraper, you try for both of them immediately. I am also very much pleased to hear from you that you have sold 100 sets of paperback Krishna Book in one day, and that you have re-ordered from Dai Nippon. Gradually, we shall replace the literatures which are currently popular with our own style of transcendental literature. I have tried it: any page you open, that is wonderful reading matter. My ambition is to spread these books far and wide all over the world so that everyone shall read at least one of our books and that will change his life. If only 1% become devotees, that will change the world. I think that eventually we can print TLC in paperback also. In the skyscraper building, that can be a guest house for receiving tourists, so they can see how practical spiritual life is developing. If just 1% of these tourists become devotees, if they adopt this process, then our effort is successful. So far moving the Press to Los Angeles, that is for you to consult with Bali Mardan. You are Book Trust now, you discuss with him and do the needful, that's all. Hoping this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami n.b. Initiation letter under separate post. n.b. The idea is that all the devotees must attend arati, prasada, and other temple services. If they miss they will be deviated. So if they are living far away, like in Laurel Canyon, then another temple should be started. Unless there is arrangement for another temple, it will be not a nice proposal. Temple worship and prasada must be partaken, otherwise it will be ordinary residential quarters like karmis. A.C.B.S. ACBS/sda Labels: BBT, book distribution, building, GBC, Los Angeles letters | 12:53 |23 April 2007 Sunday, 23 April, 1972 Tokyo My dear Krsnakanti, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your note dated April 18, 1972 and I have noted the contents. Thank you very much for your contribution of $20. Your endeavors to spread Krishna consciousness by means of radio and television is very encouraging to me, and I am looking forward to participating in this program when I return to Los Angeles soon. Hoping this will meet you in good health and happy mood. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/nkd Labels: Los Angeles letters | 16:18 | |
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