a.c. bhaktivedanta swami
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| Prabhupada Letters :: 1968 a.c. bhaktivedanta swami |
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3 Apr 2004 Wednesday, April 3, 1968 San Francisco, Calif. My Dear Satsvarupa, Accept my blessing. I am in due receipt of your letter of 4.1.68 and I am glad that you have solved the hospital bill of Pradyumna. I am so glad to learn that he is taking part in Istagosthi. His answers are very much intelligent. I have fixed up date for going to N.Y. on the 17th. One thing you may inform all devotees that Maya cannot touch a pure devotee: When you find a devotee is supposed in difficulty it is not the work of Maya but it is the work of the Lord by His Personal internal energy. The Pandava's tribulation in so many ways, Lord Ramacandra's departure to the forest, His wife the Goddess of Fortune's being kidnapped by Ravana, Lord Krishna's death being caused by the arrow of a hunter, Thakura Haridasa's being caned in 22 market or Lord Jesus Christ being crucified are all acts of the Lord personally. We cannot always understand the intricacies of such incidences. Sometimes they are enacted to bewilder persons who demons. You should therefore discuss in the Istagosthi from current reading matters from B.G. or S.B. We should only try to understand everything from the standard of devotional service. It is stated clearly in the B.G. that any one who is cent per cent engaged in the service of the Lord is transcendentally situated and the influence of Maya has no more any action on such body. The Lord and His pure devotees are always beyond the range of Maya's action. Even though they appear like action of Maya, we should understand their action of Yogamaya or the internal potency of the Lord. My blessings for you all I am feeling alright. Your ever well wisher A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 05:26 | 2 Apr 2004 Tuesday, April 2, 1968 San Francisco, Calif. My Dear Brahmananda, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letters dated march 20, 25, 26, and I thank you very much for them. I am glad to hear that the lawyer and psychiatrist are going to help with Advaita, and I am praying Krishna for his safety. We are awaiting to receive the judge's statement, and when we secure it, I shall send it to you. Today I have received your dummy book, sent by Dai Nippon for sample, and it is very nice. I shall keep it with me, and bring it with me when I come to N.Y. I have written the preface, title page, dedication, and photo captions for Teachings of Lord Caitanya, and am sending herewith. Please take care of it as need be. The photos will appear at the front on the book. And the illustrations will appear at various intervals throughout the book, according to the text. Please inform me if still you do not understand about this. The mrdanga has been duly received some days ago, and it is a very nice one; the Kirtana here are very nice, with so many outsiders, as well as devotees, dancing in ecstasy. Yes, please have Rayarama finish the necessary on Transcendental Meditation as soon as possible, so that it can be printed and distributed. I am very much pleased about the activities of that boy Terry, and you please keep me informed of further developments in Atlantic City. Yes, it is right that the community members should support the center if there is to be one opened there. Yes, that rock is saffron dye; you can keep it there. It can be used to dye the Japamala bags if you like. Regarding my departure for New York: Reservations are being made on Flight 14, American Airlines, on April 17th, to arrive in N.Y. at 4:45 p.m. from India. My ticket is already for American Airlines, so you please refund the prepaid ticket you sent for United Airlines, and send the value in postal money order to Gaurasundara, in the name of Gary McElroy, so that he can see to purchasing two student fares with discount cards. Please expedite the matter as it is very important, so that we can come together in one party. Hoping you are all well. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 05:23 | Tuesday, April 2, 1968 San Francisco, Calif. My Dear Rayarama, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated March 28, 1968, and I thank you very much for it. I am pleased to hear that you are devoting yourself to the work on Back To Godhead, and it is all right by me if you discontinue the articles on Haridasa Thakura by Professor Sannyal. I know it is difficult to read because it is so presented in a scholarly manner, therefore it was not very much sold. There is no need of sending the Isopanisad here; I shall be in N.Y. in 2 weeks, we can discuss it at that time. So far my name is concerned, there is no need of adding Tridandi Goswami, but simply have it as A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, as it is already done in my other books, it will be continued. I made the title page sent herewith, and you will see it. You have to make the contents page for TLC. I have not got any copy of the book, neither it is possible to mark page numbers until we get press copy from the printer. But table of contents page is necessary, so please see to it. I do not like for Sri Bhaktivedanta Swami, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami is shorter, and nicer. Hoping you are well. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 05:20 | Tuesday, April 2, 1968 San Francisco, Calif. My Dear Satsvarupa, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated March 19th, 1968, along with copies of Srimad-Bhagavatam and I thank you very much. The astronomical calculation is that every 3 years, 1 month is added, so the year in which 1 month is added, that is always calculated as consisting of 13 months. Otherwise, generally it is 12 months in a year. At present I am keeping the copies as it is, and I shall see again and do the necessary corrections. I am very glad to see the Boston temple photos; and it gives me a nice idea. Offer Pradyumna my blessings and congratulate him on his coming back from the hospital. Please take care of him as best you can. You have not said anything how his hospital bills has to be paid. I have already written to you that if need be, then I can pay something from my book fund. Otherwise the bills may be paid by installment, as it is learned from here. I am going to N.Y. on the 17th of April, and I think I shall have to attend some meeting in the Philadelphia University on the 25th, and then I shall be free to go to Boston, and you can make your programs accordingly. I am very glad that Jadurani is preparing signs on account of my visits there. Please offer my blessings to Jadurani, Pradyumna, Yadunandana, Jaya Govinda, and others who are there. The boy of the name John, who was sometimes in Boston, he came here to meet me. I asked him to stay in the temple, but he's not in the temple, nor I have seen him again. Hoping you are all well. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 05:16 | 30 Mar 2004 Saturday, March 30, 1968 San Francisco, Calif. My Dear Subala, Please accept my blessings. I was just thinking about you since you departed from this place and was anxious to get your letter, and I am very glad to receive it. By Krishna's Grace you are finding everything favorable, and I hope gradually you will find the atmosphere more favorable. I understand in New York it is still raining and little cold, therefore I am extending my stay here in San Francisco, for a few days more. We had many engagements in radio and television and similarly we are going to have more similar engagements. Here the kirtana performances are going on, as nicely, and people are taking interest in them. The Radha Krishna statues prepared by Gaurasundara have been dispatched to Los Angeles through Aniruddha, and they are going to be cast in yellow brass. If one pair is successful then we shall get many pairs and one of the pairs shall be installed in your Santa Fe temple. Please don't feel lonely. krishna is always with you and I shall pray for you and to Krishna also that you may make progress more and more in this faithful discharge of duties in Krishna Consciousness. Thanking you once more. Your ever well-wisher, ACB letters | 05:30 | 29 Mar 2004 Friday, March 29, 1968 San Francisco, Calif. My Dear Nandarani and Dayananda, Please accept my blessings. I thank you for your nice letter of March 25, 1968, and the kind sentiments expressed therein. I am very happy to learn that you have a nice place in Florida, and you are feeling comfortable and your little Candra is enjoying the sun and the atmosphere. Candra's name is quite nice; you can simply add another word to make it become Candramukhi, which means, face resembling the moon. So sometimes the associate Gopis are are also addressed like that because all of the Gopis are transcendentally beautiful. I am very glad that you have invited me to Florida prior to my going to Bahamas. So far we have not received any letter from Bahamas, so my Florida program for the time being, is suspended. If I go however, to the Bahamas, in the meantime certainly I shall go to your place, and I shall inform you beforehand. But shortly I am visiting New York, and from there I shall go to Boston, then I may go to Montreal; this is the present program. But at the same time, I am seeking a place which will be both conducive to my health and comfortable. I understand that Florida is just prototype of Indian climate, like Bombay or elsewhere there. And I shall go, once, just to see how does it suit me. And from New York, it is nearer than San Francisco. I cna understand your feeling the absence of devotees. The best thing will be that you practice chanting, both husband and wife together, and Krishna may send some friends, who may also take part in the chanting. We have to create the atmosphere of Krishna Consciousness, and thus create devotees also. I therefore advise you to begin classes as usual, morning and evening, sitting together, husband and wife, in the front of Krishna's picture, and chant Hare Krishna and read Srimad-Bhagavatam. When I was in Los Angeles, I asked Dayananda to speak, and I was very glad that he speaks very nicely. So he can speak, also, in the class, and if there is none else there, he can speak to you. So don't feel lonely. Try to understand Krishna Consciousness mutually, and this will give you transcendental pleasure. Regarding your manner of behavior with your parents who are not in Krishna Consciousness; I may inform you that you should treat four different classes of men in four different ways. A devotee shoud love God and God's devotees. A devotee should make friendship with devotees. A devotee should try to enlighten innocent persons, and a devotee should reject opposite elements. As father and Mother they should be offered proper respect according to social custom, but you cannot accept their non-Godly instructions. Best thing is, to avoid misunderstanding, to remain silent without any affirmation or negation of their instructions. We should try to keep our friendship with everyone in the world, but we cannot sacrifice the principles of Krishna Consciousness on being employed by some relative of this world. Don't let them know that you do not approve your parents instructions, but at the same time you should be very careful in dealing with them. If you object to their instruction and let them know it, then they will feel sorry, sad. Please keep me informed of your activities there, as I am always very glad to hear from you both. Hope you are all three doing well. Your ever wellwisher, ACBS. letters | 05:26 | 28 Mar 2004 Thursday, March 28, 1968 San Francisco, Calif. My Dear Mahapurusa, Please accept my blessings. I am in receipt of your recent letter, and I am so glad to receive notes of your different Kirtana functions. So far preaching work is concerned, I am expecting both you and Janardana to be very powerful preachers in the near future. Both of you are sincere souls, sincere servitors of Lord Krishna, and He will be very kind to bestow His Blessings upon you. As you go on preaching you will become expert. In every sphere of activity the more a man becomes active, he becomes more and more expert. Your humble attitude is very praiseworthy. You keep yourself in that very humble mentality and Krishna will be very pleased upon you. All three of you are very sincere servitors, and you all should become very good preachers, Janardana, yourself, and Sivananda, so that this Krishna Consciousness movement will be spread all over the world. It is very good news for me that you are regularly chanting your 16 rounds; try to increase the rounds, but don't decrease. Yes, if you can inject this Krishna Consciousness to the young children, it will be a great service to the humanity and to the Lord. So far the Advent Day of Lord Rama Candra, it should be celebrated as Lord Caitanya's Birthday was done. Fasting up to evening, and then take prasadam, and chant Hare Krishna whole day, and be engaged in reading and chanting off and on, chant for some time, then read for some time, then again have Kirtana and so on, throughout the day. If you have not got a Ramayana, then you can read Bhagavad-gita or Srimad-Bhagavatam, that is all right. Yes, a non-initiate can work under the direction of a devotee in the kitchen. So Eric can certainly work under your direction in the kitchen for distribution of prasadam. That is very nice. Your are saying that you are a fool, and I shall be glad to get a number of fools like you. I want such transcendental fools and not material intellectuals. May Krishna bless you. I shall be glad to know what specific function you want to perform, and I understand you are going to McGill for performing Kirtana. That is very nice engagement. That is the only specific function for everyone of us. I think you shall try your best to perform Kirtana successfully, and that is the greatest specific function for you. And you can teach some of your God-brothers and God-sisters the art of cooking, which you know best. Yes, I am going to N.Y. after the 8th (probably on the 9th) of April and I shall let you know when I am exactly reaching there. Janardana wanted to see me in New York, and I shall be glad to see you both there before I go to Montreal. I wish to go to Montreal after the month of May after I finish my engagement in Boston. That is very good proposal, to get Indian Pavillion for our Kirtana program. Please try for it. And we can exhibit some of our paintings, and pictures. When I go to Montreal, I shall take selected pictures from Jadurani and as well as some of the pictures by Gaurasundara and Govinda published in our BTG. Jadurani has now become a nice preacher. I have report from Satsvarupa that she gives lectures very nicely. If we open a pavilion I shall take Jadurani also at that time, so she will deliver nice lectures. I shall probably be coming there to Montreal by first week of June. Hope you are all well. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami letters | 05:21 | |
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