a.c. bhaktivedanta swami
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| Prabhupada Letters :: 1969 a.c. bhaktivedanta swami |
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17 June 2005 Tuesday, June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Gaurasundara, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated June 13, 1969, and I have carefully noted the contents. I am very glad to hear about your recent Sankirtana success, and as long as this is going on, everything will come out nicely. I can understand that you are now forced to reduce your number living at the house, so for the time being you keep five or six men there. This landlady is increasing rent simply to take advantage, but as you have no other place to live you have to make some compromise. Jadurani may immediately return to Boston, and Sudama may immediately go to London. Sudama is much required in London, but because I thought he was needed in your center I did not ask him to go before. Under the circumstances, I think he may go to London immediately. In this way adjust things. Be confident that Krishna will save you from the present inconvenience, and take these steps immediately. You have spoken about Govinda Dasi's expertness on Sankirtana, and I know very well about her qualifications. I am 100% confident about her competence, and she can be very useful to your activities there. Unfortunately she becomes sickly, so as husband, you must see that she is taken proper care of. She is a good asset for you as your wife, and I want that you two work combinedly. That is my desire. You have such nice opportunity for doing very nice service to Lord Krishna in Hawaii, and I want that you two, husband and wife, work together. I have confidence in you, and I have got all blessings for you both that in the future you will be nice preachers. What you have done so far is very nice, and I am praying to Krishna for your success there. Please send all nice pictures of your activities to Hayagriva for publication in BTG. We have decided to give many pictures of our Sankirtana activities along with short descriptions. Hayagriva is now renovated to be the senior editor. You also should write articles as you have done before. Your articles are very much appreciated by me, so you write them, not only about Sankirtana, but also on our philosophy. But send immediately pictures to Hayagriva of your Sankirtana activities. Thanking you again for your letter. Hope you are well. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 07:48 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Dinesh, Please accept my blessings. I have just received your letter dated June 13, 1969, and I have carefully noted the contents. I quite follow you that you are planning to work conjointly with our London party. So I am sending you back the agreement duly signed by me, and I hope you will do the business side of these records with the Grace of Lord Caitanya. If you wish to go to London, I have no objection. The Sankirtana picture which you sent, I do not follow if you want to print this picture in the next album cover, or what is your idea of sending it. Anyway, it is very nice, and I thank you for enclosing it. Please immediately send to me one copy of the contract so I may keep it here in my files. Convey my blessings to your wife and child. I hope this will meet you all in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 07:48 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Umapati, Please accept by blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated June 12, 1969, and I have noted the contents. You could not secure till now a good job, but that does not mean you shall return to New York. Keep yourself in San Francisco for some time more, and if there is no favorable response, then you may go to Paris where there is contemplation of opening a center. This will be settled up, say after a month. Till then you remain either in San Francisco or Los Angeles, and then decide. I think there is a great plan of Krishna that you should not get suitable service till now. It may be that you are required for preaching work 100%. So depend on Krishna, chant Hare Krishna, and everything will work out. I am leaving for Los Angeles on June 23rd, so I am sure I will see you before long. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 07:47 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Muralidhara, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated June 12, 1969, and I have noted the contents. I have also seen your Krishna-Balarama picture and it is very nice. These pictures you are drawing for our Festivals in Los Angeles may be nicely colored and photographed and sent to Brahmananda for publication in BTG. The Bhagavatam picture you have already done is already arranged for publication on the front page, and in the absence of Jadurani's paintings, I shall require your work for so many pictures in BTG. I am enclosing a list of the special Krishna Consciousness holidays to be celebrated in your temple for the next several months. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 07:46 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Balabhadra, Please accept my blessings. I thank you very much for your letter (undated), and I have noted the contents with pleasure. Your description of the parade with 55,000 people viewing is very much encouraging, and it is clear that Krishna is giving you nice opportunities for spreading the Sankirtana Movement throughout Hawaii. Send pictures of your activities in this parade and your other activities to Hayagriva for being printed in Back To Godhead. I appreciate very much that you are a thoughtful, intelligent boy, and you have got Krishna's Grace undoubtedly. Your good Godbrothers and Godsisters also speak highly of you, so continue to develop as you are doing and Krishna will surely be very pleased upon you. I am praying to Krishna for your long life and service. Thanking you once more for your letter. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 07:46 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Hamsaduta, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letters dated June 7, 1969 and June 11, 1969, and I have noted the contents carefully. Regarding the tour of North Dakota, this is a nice proposal. So if it is practical, it will be very nice for you and your wife. Only thing you have to do is rent a station wagon, so you can travel, sleep and cook there. Keep with you four or five pairs of cymbals, one harmonium, one mrdanga. One of you play the harmonium, one of you plays the mrdanga, and some persons in the audience can play the karatalas. In this way you can perform nice kirtana. Subala met me here in New Vrindaban and described this plan, but I do not think it is mature yet. But when some arrangement is done, you can accept it. You have suggested that Nandakisora and his wife join you, but how will you manage with two pairs of husbands wives with the $350 per week? The program is very nice, and if you can make it practical, I have full support for it. This is a good opportunity for spreading our philosophy and Sankirtana. I understand that you and Himavati have gone already to Vancouver, and I am expecting a letter from you as to your report in this connection. Please offer my blessings to Himavati. I hope this will meet you both in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami PS: Regarding the time when the devotees arise in the morning, here in New Vindaban they are getting up by four o'clock. But in your country the people are not accostumed to this, and it will take a little time to get them used to it. But try to get them up at four o'clock as far as possible. letters | 07:45 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Satsvarupa, Please accept my blessings. I thank you very much for you letter dated June 14, 1969, sent along with Krishna tapes #11 and #12. The tapes are done very nicely as always. The first thing is that I have written to Jadurani today that she may immediately return to you in Boston. There is some inconvenience in Hawaii for accommodating so many people because the landlady has said there are too many living there. So Jadurani will be returning very soon. I have advised her that she may go on Sankirtana Party in Boston. Regarding your present difficulty with the police, things are going by Krishna's desire, and it will be all right. Try to get recognition from the police that we are a non-profit religious organization. In Los Angeles they have got a permit for begging, so you inquire from Tamala Krishna, and get a copy from him of this permit. We are non-profit religious organization and we have so much expenditure, so try to get this permit. Please keep me posted as to how this is progressing. Offer my blessings to the others. I am pleased to note that Murari is such a tremendous boon to your activities there, and you "do not know how you managed without him before." I hope this will meet you all in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 07:42 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Jadurani, Please accept my blessings. I thank you so much for your encouraging letter, and I am so pleased to learn that the center is doing very nice propaganda work in Hawaii. Now you send to Brahmananda as many photographs as possible of the parading and the other chanting engagements. It will be the policy of our paper now to print as many as possible photos and articles of our own activities. I understand from Gaurasundara's letter that there is now inconvenience in having so many people living in the house there, so I think you may immediately return to Satsvarupa in Boston. I think that you may now take part in Sankirtana activities, so when you return to Boston you may go out with them sometimes on Sankirtana Party. I am very glad to know that Govinda Dasi felt herself cured of all her diseases by hearing my words, and I am very much encouraged. Both of you chant Hare Krishna and join Sankirtana Party, and there will be no disease. Maharaja Pariksit said that chanting the glories of the Lord can be executed by liberated persons. This means by chanting one becomes liberated from all material impediments. Not only chanting gives us liberation, but even in our conditioned state we like to hear the sweet melodious sound of the chanting. Only a person who is committing suicide or who is addicted in animal killing, such persons cannot relish the sweetness of this chanting. But even if they take to this chanting, they will become liberated. Thank you again for your letter. I am enclosing a list of the special Krishna Consciousness holidays in the coming months. I hope this will meet you in improved health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 07:41 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Harer Nama and Prabhavati, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letters of June 10, 1969, and I have noted the contents of both with much encouragement. I have also received short letters from the new people who have come to help you in the Santa Fe temple, and their nice appreciation of our movement is a great pleasure for me to note. Keep them very nicely, and as you consider that one or all of them are ready for initiation and are desiring like that, then they can send their beads to me to be chanted upon. You have invited me to come again to visit the Sante Fe temple and this idea is nice, but at present I am planning to be going to London by the latter part of July, so I do not see any immediate opportunity. From London most probably I will be returning to Los Angeles, so let us see if there will be any opportunity at that time. The pictures you have sent are very, very nice, and I am hopeful that under your guidance the Sante Fe temple will spread the chanting of Hare Krishna throughout that area. Please convey my blessings to your nice wife, Prabhavati, and to the very nice new people who are fortunately taking to Krishna Consciousness. I hope this will meet you all in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 07:39 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Tamala Krishna, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated June 13, 1969, and I have noted the contents. You write to say in your your letter, "Please come to Los Angeles immediately, Prabhupada. There are so many devotees who are so much anticipating Your Divine Appearance." So considering this urgent call, I may go immediately to Los Angeles as I have not got any important business here. So you can send me passage money, and I shall go to Los Angeles along with Purusottama. The London devotees want me by the end of July, so even from Los Angeles I can go to London, and in this way spend at least one month in Los Angeles. Then after that period, if London wants me urgently, I can go there from Los Angeles. There is no difficulty. Under the circumstances, I am prepared to go to Los Angeles immediately as requested by you. Regarding opening branches in Laguna Beach, you know I am always very much enthusiastic to open branches, so if another branch can be opened for propagating Krishna Consciousness, it is always welcome. If we have got opportunity to open such branch, we must take advantage. So far as the money is concerned, it is not meant for banking, but it is meant for spending. Our policy should be to collect millions of dollars or more than that daily, and spend it daily. That should be our policy. Every morning we shall be empty-handed, get collection of a million dollars during the daytime, and by evening it should be all spent. That should be our motto. But because we are pushing on our activities regularly, therefore some money should be saved to meet emergencies. So if you have got chance of opening a branch in Laguna Beach, do it. When we get a big temple in Los Angeles, Krishna will supply the necessary funds. Regarding the throne, it should be made exactly to the design made by Muralidhara. It is 40 x 40 x 45 (length, breadth and height). I am enclosing this design, so you make the throne in that pattern for Radha-Krishna. I will expect to hear from you soon by return of post. Hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 07:39 | June 17, 1969 New Vrindaban Dear Sir: RE: S.B. a.c 2913 with you. I beg to hand you herewith one Bank Draft in your favor for Rs 825.00 for credit of my above a.c. The purpose of sending this money is to purchase Brass Deities from Vrindaban. Arrangement has been mad that Sri Ramnath Mukutwala of Lohi Bazar, Vrindaban, will supply Radha-Krishna Brass Murtis, 24" high, at Rs 825.00 per pair. So please call him and pay him in advance Rs 100.00. After manufacturing the Murtis, he will securely pack and book the parcel to Calcutta by Ry Parcel. On delivery of the Ry receipt to you, along with the invoice you will pay him the balance Rs 725.00, including packing and forwarding charge. This Ry receipt, his invoice along with your certificate to the Reserve Bank of Calcutta that money paid to Ramanath Mukutwala is American Exchange received by you on such and such date, all the documents may be forwarded by Regd. Post with asked due to M.s United Shipping Corporation, 14.2 Old China Bazar Street, Calcutta-1, and they will take care of shipping the package to the U.S.A. The money paid to Ramanath Mukutwala and your commission for this transaction may be charged against my above a.c. Please acknowledge receipt to my following address: ISKCON, 1975 South La Cienega Boulevard, Los Angeles, California 90034, U.S.A. Thanking you in anticipation. Sincerely, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 06:40 | 16 June 2005 Monday, 16 June, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Rayarama, Please accept my blessings. Sometimes ago you proposed that you would remain with me constantly and help me in editing my books specially Srimad-Bhagavatam. But now the situation is different. You are busy in some other way. This has given me much pain. However, if you still desire to remain with me and help me in editing my books, it will be a great pleasure for me, and if you so decide, you can go with me to London also. Back To Godhead is now simplified and if you only send the edited matter, the rest can be managed by others. Now you decide if you can remain with me constantly like Purusottama. I hope you will discuss with me on this when you come here in the next week. As your beloved spiritual master and father, it is my duty to give you all protection; but if you allow Maya to act upon you without any resistance, then it is your own choice. Hope you are well. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 19:35 | 16 June, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Rupanuga, Please accept my blessings. I am very glad to hear that you are successfully carrying on the Sankirtana Movement, and Krishna is giving you encouragement by mercifully giving some money also. So rest assured that Sankirtana Movement is specifically benedicted by Lord Caitanya for achieving all kinds of success. Stick to the principles seriously and faithfully, and there will be no difficulty. Now you may please send as many nice photographs of your Sankirtana activities as possible to Brahmananda for publication in Back To Godhead. In each issue of Back To Godhead there shall be sufficient pictures of our Sankirtana Movement with descriptions. I have advised to follow this policy rigidly. I am very glad to hear about Sacisuta's activities. He is very intelligent and serious devotee, but due to his past habits, he is a little flickering. I think if there is any suitable girl, you can negotiate for his marriage, and then he will be fixed-up. He has got various capacities, and he can help our movement very much, but as he is a little restless, try to help him be very serious and get a wife amongst our Krishna Conscious girls. Please convey my thanks to him as he is doing very well in Buffalo. Regarding the draft board, Tamala Krishna is also working on this in Los Angeles, so you can open direct correspondence if there is chance for mutual cooperation. I am enclosing list of Holy Days for the coming months, and also enclosed is a very nice letter I received recently from Sudama in Hawaii. Please convey my blessings to your wife and child. I shall be very pleased to see you again when you come to visit in New Vrindaban. Hope you are well. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 05:37 | 16 June, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Pradyumna, I am in due receipt of your letter dated June 11, 1969, and I have noted the contents carefully. You may immediately arrange for purchasing the machine. Make a contract, and I have advised Brahmananda to pay you the $503 when you need it. So when the transaction is completed, immediately call Brahmananda and he will pay you. Now Arundhati and Syama Dasi shall be in charge of composing at least four hours alternately. In this way, the machine should be used from 7:00 in the morning till 10:00 at night. Syama Dasi may type from 7:00 in the morning till 11:00 o'clock. Then Arundhati will type from 11 till three. Then Syama Dasi from three until seven o'clock, and Arundhati from seven o'clock until ten o'clock. In this way, you and Hayagriva shall guide them so that the machine will be fully utilized. I am sure that the monthly payments shall be arranged by you, and this is very good. Special care should be given to keep the machine in a safe room which is always closed and always locked. The property is worth about $6,000, and you will be responsible for the payments. So very much care should be taken to protect it from any damage or theft. Of course your quarters there are nice, but all necessary precautions must still be taken. Please write to inform me what you are going to do. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 05:37 | 16 June, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Arundhati, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated June 11, 1969, and I have noted the contents carefully. Regarding your question about offering Prasadam, whatever is offered to the Deity actually it goes through the Spiritual Master. The Spiritual Master offers to Lord Caitanya, and Lord Caitanya offers it to Krishna. Then Radha Krishna eats, or Jagannatha eats, then Caitanya Mahaprabhu eats, then the Spiritual Master eats, and it becomes Mahaprasadam. So when you offer something, you think like that and chant the Gayatri mantra, and then everything is complete. At last, ring the bell, take out the plate and wipe the place where the plate was kept. Regarding your second question about greeting karmis, if a karmi is a friend, you just greet him Hare Krishna, and with folded hands touch your forehead. If the karmi is a superior relative, then chant Hare Krishna and bow down down to him on the ground. That should be the etiquette in our society transactions. Whenever you have questions, you ask your husband or ask me. You should always be very sound in knowledge about Krishna Consciousness. But as you are very much attached to chanting, there will be no difficulty for you. Regarding your last question about the ecstatic symptoms of chanting Hare Krishna, you should know that the Hare Krishna Mantra has an equal effect upon all devotees. Just like the sunshine has an equal effect on everyone, but when it is covered, the sunshine has a different effect. Similarly, the influence of the Hare Krishna Mantra becomes manifest when one is no longer covered by the ten offenses to chanting. The more we become free from the ten offenses, the more the effect of chanting becomes manifested through us. Everyone can become a great devotee, being freed from the offenses 100%, simply by one's determination and effort. When the Composer machine is purchased, you will be engaged from eleven till three PM, and from seven till ten PM. That means seven hours in a day. When you are typing, you should know that it is as good as chanting, because the work is also on the matter of Krishna. Chanting on the beads and chanting on the typewriter Composer machine are both transcendental sounds of Krishna. Krishna's Name, His Fame, His Qualities--all of them are on the absolute platform, and therefore there is no difference between one and another. So do not be misled that you are typing and not chanting. Our books should be on the standard sample of Teachings of Lord Caitanya. Your husband will guide you, and Hayagriva will guide you, so do it nicely. Please convey my blessings to Jaya Gopala and the others. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 03:36 | 16 June, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Steve, Please accept my blessings. I thank you very much for your letter, and I understand from your one simple question that you are now serious about perfecting your life in Krishna Consciousness. You have asked me to tell you everything that you should know, and this, of course, is a great subject matter. We now have published several books which delve deeply into the topic of the Absolute Truth, so you should read them very carefully, and gradually the knowledge will become revealed to you. The first book you should study carefully is the Bhagavad-gita As It Is. The sum and substance of Bhagavad-gita is that we should surrender ourselves wholly and completely upon the Lotus Feet of Krishna. When one is not Krishna Consciousness, then he is Maya conscious, or in illusion. Just like when one is not in light, he is sure to be in darkness. Because absence of light means darkness. Similarly, to be forgetful of Krishna means one is in Maya, the darkness of ignorance. Just like when you turn away from the sun, you see the darkness of your shadow; but when you turn your face to the sun, then there is no question of a shadow. The whole principle of spiritual life is to turn our attention back to Krishna, and thus immediately be freed from all entanglements of Maya. There is no necessity to practice the various yogic postures, pressing the nose, and there is no need of becoming a great learned scholar to advance in spiritual life. Simply we have to turn our attention back to the Lotus Feet of Krishna, and then all spiritual perfection is automatically there. The process of turning to Krishna you are seeing practically everyday because you are now staying in the temple. You chant Hare Krishna; 16 rounds daily, follow the regulative principles, read Bhagavad-gita, and help your Godbrothers push on this movement as far as possible. I understand from Brahmananda that you are a very sincere boy, and now you are helping by working in the kitchen, preparing Krishna prasadam. So continue in this way and attend Sankirtana Party as much as possible; this will help you to advance without any doubt. When questions arise, you consult Brahmananda or the other older Godbrothers and they will help you. Of course, if you would like to question me upon some point, I am always at your service in this connection. So practice Krishna Consciousness very sincerely and surely Krishna will bless you. I hope this finds you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta letters | 03:34 | 16 June, 1969 West Virginia My Dear Visala Das, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated June 10, 1969, and I have noted the contents. I have not heard anything from you for some time so I am very pleased to receive your letter. you have asked three nice questions and I shall give you the answers herewith. Regarding your first question, what is the difference in full between the Spiritual Master, Krishna, and the devotee? The answer is that Krishna is the source of all energies of the spiritual and material creations, the devotee is the part and parcel servant of Krishna, and the Spiritual Master is the transparent via media for leading the conditioned souls back to home, back to Godhead. All living entities are the servants of Krishna, but the living entities who have fallen into this conditioned life are forgetful of their eternal relationship with the Lord. The role of the bona fide Spiritual Master is to lead the conditioned souls out of forgetfulness and back into pure consciousness of serving the Lord in transcendental loving service. In material consciousness one is identifying himself with his particular body, and he is forgetting that he is spirit soul, servant of Krishna. Then by the association and instructions of the purified servants of Krishna, the living entity gradually comes to remember that I am not part of this miserable material world, but I too am the eternal servant of Krishna, and my only business is to give pleasure to the Lord in pure Krishna Consciousness. In this way, such devotee becomes himself eligible to lead other back to the path of devotional service and thus he too may become a Spiritual Master. This process is called parampara, or the line of disciplic succession. Your next question is if Visala Das will be your name eternally. As I have told you in San Francisco, Visala means Krishna, the Greatest, and Das means the servant of. So eternally you are the servant of visal, or Krishna, and thus you are always Visala Das. Krishna has so many different names because He is unlimited in all respects, and you are Krishna's eternal servant. What your name will be eternally is not a very important subject at the present moment, but it is sufficient for you to know that you are always the servant of Visala, Krishna. Your final question is how can you become a pure devotee, and the answer to this is given in Bhagavad-gita. Krishna instructs Arjuna that the mahatma ,the pure devotee, is he who has fully surrendered himself unto the spiritual nature. And how can we tell if one is completely surrendered unto the spiritual nature? He is always fully engaged in devotional service to Krishna. So this is the process of becoming a pure devotee. We have to engage all of our words, thoughts, and activities in Krishna Consciousness under the direction of the Spiritual Master. Therefore, at every moment you should be busy in some way in serving Krishna and His pure devotees, and automatically you will become purified in Krishna Consciousness. Krishna is always willing to shower His mercy upon His devotees, so we have simply to become receptive to this mercy by devotional service, and then the path is very easy. I hope this will sufficiently answer your questions. Please convey my blessings to the others. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 03:33 | 15 June 2005 Sunday, 15 June, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Krishna Devi, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated Ekadasi, June 19, 1969, and I have noted the contents with pleasure. I am so pleased to note that you are chanting nicely and that Krishna is encouraging you in so many ways. This is the actual position that if we are sincerely chanting our rounds, following the prescribed regulative principles, and avoiding the ten offenses, then very quickly Krishna sees our efforts and He gives all encouragement to such sincere soul. Then with this taste of Krishna Consciousness, we become more and more attracted, so more and more Krishna gives encouragement, and then more and more we increase in our desire to serve Krishna in pure Krishna Consciousness. So in this way there is an unlimited ocean of nectar of devotional service which eternally increases on and on. When we begin this sublime chanting process, or even if we simply hear the sound Hare Krishna, then we have begun our journey back to the Spiritual Kingdom, back to Godhead. So please continue to be serious in your chanting, and then surely Krishna will save you and all the other sincere souls who are so fortunate to have taken to this movement. I am pleased to learn that you are thinking of putting together a cookbook of our Krishna prasadam recipes. I understand that in London, Yamuna Dasi has already done some work on this same project, so you may correspond with her in this connection. I know that at our feasts especially many persons become interested in preparing foodstuffs in this way. So this cookbook is a nice thing to instruct such persons in preparing and offering nice prasadam for the Lord. So when there is some tangible book ready for publication, please inform me, and we shall try to arrange for its publication. I am pleased to note your description of the increasing interest in vegetarian diet in this country. Actually, the practice of meat-eating is very detrimental to spiritual life, because in spiritual life the goal is to become free from all sinful reactions, and meat-eating means simply to force oneself to suffer the sinful reactions of killing our fellow living entities. So as many people will be taking to practicing spiritual life through the influence of our Sankirtana Movement, such cookbook will be very important, and you should work for this as you are able. Please convey my blessings to your husband, Dinesh, and to your child, Visnu Arati. I hope this will find you all well. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 02:31 | 15 June, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Sivananda, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your most recent letter (undated), and I have noted the contents carefully. I am so much encouraged to learn that one very nice German boy has come to live in your temple. This is clear evidence that you are all working sincerely to serve Krishna, and now one sincere soul has been so attracted by this, that he is also coming to join you. Actually, if one true Vaisnava goes any place in the world, then the spiritual instincts of the more advanced souls he comes into contact with will be awakened, and they will automatically be attracted. In the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna informs Arjuna that if in previous lifetimes one has begun the path of spiritual perfection but was unable to complete it for one reason or another, then in future lifetimes he will automatically become attracted again to spiritual life, and he will begin his progress from the point where he had previously left off. So throughout the material universes there are many such spiritually inclined souls, and our mission is to present to everyone right knowledge of spiritual life. In this way, those who are already interested may finish up there Krishna Consciousness business in this life, and similarly, those who are not so interested may advance themselves and make perfection of their life, simply by hearing our Sankirtana Party, attending our temple activities with association with devotees, and eating Krishna prasadam. Please take nice care of Oliver, and help him in whatever way you can. In Krishna Consciousness every man is so important because all of the activities of a devotee of Lord Krishna is beneficial to all living entities. So if there are any questions that he would like me to help him with, I am always at your service to help in any way I can. Regarding your proposal to go to Paris, you will be pleased to learn that Janardana has already gone there two weeks ago, and he is thinking seriously how to spread Krishna Consciousness there. For the time being your services are required in Germany, so you must stay there for the present. Let us see how Janardana is arranging things in Paris, and when the time is right, if you are required to go there, then I shall instruct you in this regards. In the meantime, you are in Hamburg, so try to advance the success of your temple there as far as possible. I have received Jaya Govinda's note along with the list of credits for German BTG. Please convey my blessings to the others. I hope this will meet you all in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 02:29 | 14 June 2005 Saturday, June 14, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Silavati, Please accept my blessings. I thank you very much for your letter dated June, 1969, and I have carefully noted the contents therein. Regarding the suggestion that you remarry, I have never suggested such thing, so you need not trouble yourself with this. As I have told you in Los Angeles, I wish that the mother's who have no husband at present should not remarry, but should dedicate their time to seeing that their children are brought up very nicely in Krishna Consciousness. Your boy, Birbhadra, has just arrived here, and he will be taken care of by Kirtanananda Maharaja. Satyabhama Dasi is in charge of educating the children in New Vrindaban, and she is very qualified to do this because she is educated and works very nicely with the children. So there is no difficulty at present in this regards, and as you are so nicely engaged in your activities in Los Angeles, you should continue as you are now doing. Your description of the course you are giving to the interested girls about the role they play in Krishna Consciousness is very nice, and I am pleased that you have begun this project. Actually the role of all conditioned souls is the same; to chant Hare Krishna, tell others to chant, perfect our lives in Krishna Consciousness, and to go back to Godhead when this body is finished. Now if you can induce all the women of Los Angeles to place an altar in their homes and help their husbands have peaceful, happy home life in Krishna Consciousness, that will be very great service for you. The actual system is that the husband is Spiritual Master to his wife, but if the wife can bring her husband into practising this process, then it is all right that the husband accepts wife as Spiritual Master. Caitanya Mahaprabhu has said that anyone who knows the science of Krishna, that person should be accepted as Spiritual Master, regardless of any material so-called qualifications; such as rich or poor, man or woman, or brahmana or sudra. So if you can show the women of the community how to help their husbands and children to perfect their home life, and all aspects of life, in Krishna Consciousness by chanting, aratrik ceremonies, and eating Krishna prasadam, then you will improve the conditions of the neighboring communities to an incalculable extent. So try for this as far as possible. I already have practical experience that many of the American girls and boys are very intelligent and qualified to take up this sublime movement. We simply have to instruct them nicely, and surely many will understand that here is such a nice thing and they must take to it. So I am very pleased with the nice efforts you are making. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 04:29 | 13 June 2005 Friday, June 13, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Krishna das, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated June 6, 1969, and I thank you very much for your submissive feelings. They are just appropriate for an advancing Vaisnava. Please keep yourself in this nice attitude and Krishna will bless you. Regarding registration of the society, you can simply translate our New York registration form into German and submit it to the court clerk, depositing the requisite fees, and I think that will finish the registration problem. If the police do not allow you to perform kirtana in public places, do not disobey their orders. Try to abide by the law of the state for taking advantage of performing kirtana as far as possible. Regarding your father's suspicion, you should not keep him in suspicion. As you are working in apprenticeship for jewelry work, you should continue that occupation, and even if your father comes and sees that you are engaged in your occupation as well as looking after management of the temple, he will not be displeased. I can understand from your attitude that your father must be good gentleman, otherwise how could he have such a nice son? So there is no need of playing hide-and-seek. If you continue learning the jeweler's trade, he will not be displeased. Besides that, some of our men must work, otherwise it is difficult to maintain all the expenses in the European countries. Regarding Sivananda's plan to go to Paris, it may be suspended till I request him to do so. In the meantime I have received information from London that they have secured a nice house at the cost of $400 per month, so they want me to go there by the end of July. In the meantime, if you think my presence in Hamburg will help your organization, I can go there for a few days. But I do not know what is your financial condition. So if you are serious to call me, you can let me know by return of post. I have received a letter from Mandali Bhadra that they are positively going there on the 27th of June. Regarding the conch shell that was donated, it is welcome. You can use it in the temple. Please convey my blessings to the others. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 04:28 | June 13, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Mukunda, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated June 7, 1969, as well as another letter signed by you, Syamasundara., Gurudasa and others jointly. It is very gratifying that at last you have got a five-story building, and in the meantime negotiations are continuing for a church. It is very good news and I thank you for your joint invitation. In your letter dated June 10th it is said that I shall not go to London earlier than July 20th. I do not know what is your financial position because you have not mentioned anything about our passage money. So kindly let me know if you are going to send me the money for passage, or if I will have to arrange for it. On receipt of this necessary information I shall do the needful. In the meantime I have replied Syamasundara.'s letter wherein I have stated that some of the devotees here are prepared to go to London. One brahmacari, Trivikrama das, from Buffalo will send you a telegram concerning this matter. Please convey my blessings to the others. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami P.S. In your previous letters, I was informed that in London I will have many engagements including interview with Archbishop of Canterbury. But in your letter under reply I understand that I will have to meet people in my apartment. This means that my presence is not very much needed. If you think so then why this invitation? Please clear the matter. letters | 03:27 | June 13, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Dinesh, Please accept my blessings. I thank you very much for sending me the broadcasting tape containing varieties of our Sankirtana Movement and it has come very, very nice. I have received one letter from Mukunda that you are already in negotiation with him for complete cooperation with the Beatles in future, and this is very nice program. Most probably I shall be going to London by the end of July, and from different sources I can understand that the Beatles are becoming interested in the Sankirtana Movement. In the meantime you may have received my letter to you dated June 10th in which I have asked you to explain some lines mentioned in the agreement between you and me. So I am expecting your reply, and upon receipt of it, I shall immediately send you the signed agreement as you have sent it to me. Please offer my blessings to Krishna Devi and Visnuaratrik. I hope this will meet all of you in good health. Thanking you once more for the tape. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 02:26 | 12 June 2005 Thursday, June 12, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Syamasundara, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter of June 5, 1969, and with great joy I understand that at last you have secured one nice house which can accommodate twenty or thirty people. I have immediately asked Trivikrama das Brahmacari of Buffalo to go there, and he is sending Mukunda one telegram confirming this. I am also advising Vibhavati and Isana das to go there. Next I shall try to find out some other brahmacaris to go there as you require immediately some men for your great endeavor. You write to say you are too much strained in various ways, but by your such activities, Krishna will be very much pleased. I think because Krishna is pleased, therefore you have got at last a very nice place. I was planning to go to Los Angeles because Tamala Krishna and others are insisting that I attend the Rathayatra Festival that they are performing very pompously in San Francisco. They have secured a wonderful hall at the beach where the festival will be held and the proprietor of the hall has donated the hall for one week's use. They have received promises from many persons contributing grains, fruits and flowers for holding huge prasadam distribution. It is understood that the hall has a kitchen with twenty burners, and it will easily accommodate 5,000 people. So I have not said anything to them yet unless I hear from you finally, but you may know that I am quite fit to go to London as soon as you can arrange for my arrival there. Regarding Rathayatra Festival in London, it is my great desire that you must perform it. I hope you have already secured permission from Scotland Yard in this connection. You will be glad to know that Mr. John Lennon had an interview with Vibhavati, and a nice article was published in the Montreal Star in which it is understood that he also is interested in our Krishna Consciousness Movement. You have already spoken about George Harrison, about his leaning towards Krishna Consciousness, and I understand they are anxious for some peace movement in the world. So when I go there, and if these interested young men talk with me, I think something very important may come by our mutual cooperation. So in your next letter as indicated in your letter under reply, I shall expect your final word as to when you like me to start for London. Accordingly I shall make my plan, but your decision must be informed to me not later than the 25th of June. Regarding the altar, the design which you have submitted is nice, but I wish to add that underneath the Jagannathas a throne of Radha-Krishna should be there. I am enclosing herewith a picture of the throne, and on the back side is my idea of an altar design. I thank you again for your very encouraging letter. Hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami P.S. Please inform Mukunda that I have received his letter of the 7th June. ACB letters | 05:24 | June 12, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Vibhavati, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your nice letter dated June 7, along with your article published in the Montreal Star on the same day. Everything appears to be very nice, and your service in this connection is recognized. You have done a great service by meeting with Mr. John Lennon. He is an influential man, and at least you have been able to publicize our Krishna Consciousness Movement in a way that the people will understand that the Beatles are interested. In London, Mr. George Harrison is also inclined to this movement and to our disciples, and recently a letter from Syamasundara conveyed Mr. Harrison's respectful obeisances unto me. Mr. John Lennon is anxious for peace in the world, so also is everyone anxious for peace in the world, but it should be known how that peace can be attained. If we keep the human society as it is, there is no possibility of peace. It is not a question of simply accepting God as the center of everything and peace will be achieved, but the question is how to live in God. Mr. Lennon wants to stop war, but the war is the creation of different politicians. So unless on the summit of administration there are actually Krishna Conscious men, we cannot stop war. Therefore people in general must understand the importance of Krishna Consciousness, and they must in this democratic day send their real representatives who can make right decisions whether there should be war or no war. We find from the history of Mahabharata that the battle of Kuruksetra was because of the belligerent attitude of Duryodhana. So such war as is was conducted under the advice of Lord Krishna is not bad, but war declared and executed by demonic politicians is certainly very bad. A Krishna conscious person like Arjuna is not inclined to the activities of warfare, but when there is a necessity for peace in the world to educate men to become Krishna Conscious, a Krishna Conscious person does not lag behind. Therefore the first necessity for peace in the world is to instruct men how to become Krishna Conscious, because as soon as one becomes Krishna Conscious all the good qualities in human society are manifested. So if it is possible that the party of Mr. Lennon and Mr. Harrison cooperate with this Krishna Consciousness Movement, I am sure we shall be able to stop all this nonsensical war. I think by this time, by your sincere practice, you have come to this conclusion that a Krishna Conscious situation is the only means for peace and happiness. I am very glad to see your sarcastic remark in the article where you write, "cigarette smoke hangs heavy in the air." The leaders of the peace movement must be all men of character, and to raise such men of character there must be the four regulative principles; namely, no illicit sex-life, no meat-eating, no gambling, and no intoxication. According to Vedic civilization, these four principles must be followed by persons desiring spiritual advancement of life, persons who want to be public leaders and persons who want to be highly intellectual for understanding God and His creation. So I am very much hopeful of Mr. John Lennon because he has several times chanted the word, Krishna. Now both you and your husband were eager to start for England, so you can now arrange for going there. I have received one letter from Syamasundara. that they are soon to occupy a nice house, so you can immediately open correspondence with him. His present address is Syamasundara Das Adhikari, 11 Balham Park Road, London SW 12, ENGLAND. If you have the money, you can immediately start. Their place can accommodate twenty or thirty men, and as they are making very elaborate effort for spreading Krishna Consciousness in London, they require help from brahmacaris, grhasthas, etc. So I think if you go there, not only you shall be assisting them, but you can further talk with Mr. John Lennon how actually peace in the world can be established on the above principles. I understand that both you and Isana das are very sincere souls, so in the future I hope you both will be a great asset in preaching this Krishna Consciousness Movement. I thank you once again for your letter. Hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 03:23 | June 12, 1969 New Vrindaban My Dear Tamala Krishna, Please accept my blessings. I am so pleased to receive your letter of June 9, 1969, and I can understand that Krishna is giving you intelligence how to manage the Western Coast branches of our society. I think you should now make an ad hoc committee of management, comprising yourself, Jayananda, Cidananda, Dindayal, Upendra, etc. If in this way you can take charge of management affairs, it will be a very nice thing. So far as a seal is concerned, you can make your own seal exactly like the one we have got in New York. Simply you make the seal replacing the word New York for Los Angeles. That will be nice. I have got full faith in you, so by Krishna's blessing try to improve all the four or five branches there. Trivikrama das Brahmacari from Buffalo wanted to open a branch in Sacramento or Santa Monica, but I have advised him to go to London because recently I received a letter from Syamasundara that they have secured a nice house. It is not yet all settled up, but he wants the help of some brahmacaris. So I shall be glad to know if you can spare some brahmacaris for London. They are of course planning something very gorgeous, but till now it has not been tangible. But because they are working very seriously and sincerely it will be successful. At present my plan is that by the 10th of July either I go to London or to Los Angeles. That is certain. So even if I do not go to Los Angeles, the Festival will be nicely performed there. If I go to London I shall see that the Rathayatra Festival is also performed there, and I have written to Syamasundara expressing my great desire like this. But everything depends on Krishna's disposal. Regarding your questions, it is all right to make up the plates for the feast as you have suggested so the guests will not have so long a wait after the offering. The the first plate made up, Krishna's plate, should be kept in a high place, a separate place, and covered. Then it is all right. Regarding Visala's idea of selling his car, that is all right, and the money may be utilized for Rathayatra Festival. But when I go I must have my car, so you will have to purchase. Regarding Jivananda and Harsarani, whatever you think is best for them is all right. And I approve of the suggestion you have made for them. Similarly, Mahapurusa may go to Vancouver. That is nice. As you see fit, you can manage such things without consulting me first. Now the West Coast management is practically on you. I am sure that Krishna will help you in this regards. I am enclosing a letter for Devahuti, so you may please hand it over to her. Hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 02:21 | |
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