a.c. bhaktivedanta swami
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| Prabhupada Letters :: 1975 a.c. bhaktivedanta swami |
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7 December 2008 Sunday, 7 December, 1975 Vrindaban My Dear Rupanuga Prabhu, Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated November 24, 1975. Upon seeing the pictures of the doll exhibit I thought it was some of our devotees play acting. This boy Saptaratha Das has done the dolls very very nicely, now make a museum for the public. This doll making was one of the programs of my Guru Maharaja, and the exhibit used to tour India. That same exhibit, although falling apart, is still touring India today and people are appreciating it. So develop this program, I am very pleased with this boys work, encourage him. Our cows are happy, therefore they give plenty of milk. Vedic civilization gives protection to all the living creatures, especially the cows, because they render such valuable service to the human society in the shape of milk, without which no one can become healthy and strong. In your country the dog is protected, and the cow is killed. The dog is passing stool and urine in the street, he is considered the best friend of man, and the cow is all pure, stool, urine, and milk, but they are taken to the slaughter house and killed for food. What kind of civilization is this. Therefore we have to preach against all this nonsense. How is the New temple building in New York? I hope this letter meets you well. Your ever well wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/hda Labels: cow protection, diorama, New York letters | 04:50 |7 December, 1975 Vrindaban My Dear Yogescandra Prabhu, Please accept my blessings. Thank you for your letter dated December 2, 1975. You always have my blessings, the father always wishes that the son may be more successful than himself. This is the spiritual conception. If one is doing well, then the materialistic persons become envious and try to check his progress. This was actually so with Prahlada Maharaja, he was only 5 years old, he was preaching Krishna consciousness to his school friends, and the father Hiranyakasipu became so envious that he attempted to kill his 5 year old son in so many ways. Krishna consciousness is just the opposite, if someone is doing well then the attitude of the devotee is to give him all facility to go on and improve more and more. Yes we are running on the mercy of the spiritual master, to understand this point is to get mercy more and more. Yasya prasadat bhagavata prasada. I hope this letter meets you well. Your ever well wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/hda Labels: bona fide spiritual master, New York letters | 04:48 |13 November 2008 13 November, 1975 Bombay My dear Gargamuni Swami, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter undated from El Paso, Texas and I have noted the contents. So I am glad to see that you are doing well. Similarly, now we are getting literature published all over the world. I just received very nice books in Swedish and also Italian Isopanisad and similarly our Bhagavad-gita is being prepared in Dutch language. And also our literatures are being received very nicely. Bhagavan das in Paris has reported that they are collecting $20,000 per week in literature distribution. Our Bhagavad-gita in French language is being received very enthusiastically by the people, libraries and schools. All other reports are also very good. Tamala Krsna is also distributing many big books and also magazines and having many college engagements. Here in India the government is beginning to give us facility for our men to remain here. I am here in Bombay and I am supervising the construction of our temple here. It is a very large project. The temple is larger than our Vrndavana temple. We are trying to get it done as quickly as possible. I have just received a report from Mukunda in London that the Encyclopedia Brittanica wants to carry my biography article in their publication. So this is all welcome news. So I am very pleased by all of the progress, how you boys and girls are working very sincerely to push on this movement of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The only difficulty is the fighting that is going on. Why there should be fighting in our society? This is not a good sign. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/BS/mdd letters | 00:10 | 4 November 2008 4 November, 1975 Bombay My Dear Gargamuni Swami, Please accept my blessings. Now after consideration it is my desire that you return to take over Calcutta affairs. Otherwise things are not at all going on nicely there. You are experienced man for Calcutta. I do not wish to see things deteriorating there. It is important center, and you have proven that you can manage things nicely, so why you should not be there? I want you to go there immediately. This is more important responsibility. Gopala Krishna also agrees with my desire, so you should go there. You can apply for one year entry visa. Say that you are a member of ISKCON and you are going to India to study Vedic culture and languages and Deity worship in our temples in India. Apply immediately because Gopala Krishna says it may take 6-8 weeks for the visa to be granted. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/bs Labels: Calcutta, New York, visa letters | 02:31 |17 October 2008 Friday, 17 October, 1975 Johannesburg My dear Gopijanavallabha dasa, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated September 24, 1975 and I have noted the contents carefully. Thank you for the enclosed check for Daksina. Your plan to have my quarters on the 11th. floor is very nice. I have made some alterations to your plan however and if possible you can implement then when you are designing the rooms. Enclosed is a copy of the 11th. floor plan with alterations. When it is completed, then I shall go there. New York is very special to me because I started there without anything except faith in my spiritual master and Lord Krishna. I am very glad to see that things are developing there nicely. Yes, your plan to hold 24 hour kirtana is approved. Everything is kirtana including recitation of Bhagavatam which is also kirtana, and japa as well. I hope that this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/pks Labels: New York letters | 02:04 |29 September 2008 Monday, 29 September, 1975 Ahmedabad My Dear Gargamuni Swami: Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated 25/8/75 and have noted the contents. Regarding the disturbance made by the women devotees, they are also living beings. They also come to Krishna. So consciously I cannot deny them. If our male members, the brahmacaris and the sannyasis, if they become steady in Krishna consciousness, there is no problem. It is the duty of the male members to be very steady and cautious. This can be done by regular chanting like Haridasa Thakura did. Whenever there is a young woman, we should remember Haridasa Thakura and beg his mercy to protect us, and we should think that these beautiful gopis are meant for the enjoyment of Krishna. It is a dilemma for our Society that we cannot deny these girls, and at the same time they are a great dangerous allurement to the young boys. Yes, as you say, I never think in terms of Indian or American regarding my students. I take you all as part and parcels of Krishna. Regarding your program, that is your fortune, that wherever you go, you do nicely. One thing is that in your absence the Calcutta center is not being managed very nicely. You were making progress for making a Calcutta temple. Who is there who can do that now? Those men cannot do that. Anyway you are doing greater service there by distributing so many magazines and also books. Your program of traveling to Europe and then by vehicles to India is a very good idea. I quite appreciate that idea. Do it. Come to India and preach. Six months in America and six months in India. Such a program of world touring work is very nice, and you are the competent person to execute this program. At the same time chant Hare Krishna regularly. That is my request. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/bs Labels: Calcutta, New York, sannyasa, women letters | 11:23 |29 September, 1975 Ahmedabad Delaplane, Virginia My Dear Rupanuga das: Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated September 19, 1975 and have noted the contents carefully. What is the street address of the new building in New York? The consent letter has been sent from Vrindaban. You should minimize the expenditure and increase the income, otherwise how will you liquidate the debts? I understand that you are saving on the milk bill by supplying your own milk from the farm. This is wanted. If these farm projects are successful, then all this industry will be closed. We do not have to make propaganda, but automatically people will not want. The people are innocent. The rascal leaders say it is primitive to remain on the farm, but to do business in the city and become rogue and rascal, that is advanced. They have dog race, horse race, gambling, coca cola, pepsi cola - all unnecessary. There is no use for it but the business is going on. They take to cigarette and T.V. because they have no good engagement. They are chewing the already chewed. So you get from all the farms all your necessities, then it will be successful. Fodder, milk, grains, vegetables, and animals and man will be satisfied, and you can chant Hare Krishna. No unnecessary cow killing, and no unnecessary needs of the body. Regarding the new New York house, yes, let me know when I shall have to go there to see. I have more houses than anyone else in the world, but I am not allowed to stay. The richest man in the world does not have such facilities. They have one or two, but in each place it is fit for prince, and they do not have as many as I have. I see that in every center we are getting good income, and it is all from the sale of the books. Philadelphia temple must have a proper place. Regarding Washington temple yes Brisakapi can be now recognized as the temple president. I give my consent for the present temple to be sold and you may purchase the other one as you have described it. Regarding Boston, yes you may utilize the funds as you have indicated. People are coming forward to donate. They are actually seeing. These boys were drug addicted, and now they are saintly. They do not smoke even. They talk only of God. The woman's SKP party, that is very good. And, the wife of Bali Mardan how was she giving such a bluff? This woman is very dangerous. That is nice that the parents are donating. They will donate more and more, because they see here is something good. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/bs Labels: Boston, farm, New York, Philadelphia, simple living letters | 10:24 |18 September 2008 18 September, 1975 Vrndavana My dear Pancaratna das, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated July 17, 1975. This proposal of yours is out of the question and it shall not be done. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/BS/mdd letters | 01:26 | 19 June 2008 19 June, 1975 Honolulu My dear Gopijanavallabha dasa, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated June 16, 1975 and have noted the contents. I accept the devotees that you have recommended for 1st initiation. Their names are as follows: Nick--Nandaki, David--Durjaya, Frank--Pharnesvara dasa, Jimmy--Jita-manyu, Joe--Jara-sangha, Kurt--Kesiha, Luis--Lokasvami, Wilfred--Vidisa, Linda--Laksmirniranjana, Judy--Jaganmata, Merylee--Murti-vandya. Their beads may be chanted on by Kirtanananda Swami. I have also accepted Bhaktivinode, Pankajanabha, Preraka, Vipramukhya, Agnideva, Urmila for 2nd initiation. Their threads and mantra sheet enclosed herein. Let them hear the tape of myself chanting the Gayatri mantra through their right ear. Please train our boys and girls to follow the principles very strictly. They must chant 16 rounds daily, follow the 4 principles, read our books very carefully, and always be engaged in the transcendental loving service of Lord Krishna. These things will give them real spiritual strength and their lives will be perfected. I hope this will meet you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/ps Labels: initiation, New York letters | 02:52 |26 May 2008 26 May, 1975 Honolulu My dear Radhavallabha dasa, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated 5/17/75 and have noted the contents. I have also received the first volume of the Madhya-lila. It is very nice. The pictures of Jagannatha Puri and the Samadhi tombs of Rupa Goswami, Jiva Goswami, and Krishna das Kaviraja are very nice. I will be very pleased if you can produce these books at top speed. Please do this. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami ACBS/ps Labels: Caitanya Caritamrta, New York, publishing letters | 03:22 |8 April 2008 8 April, 1975 Mayapur My dear Devakinandana dasa, Please accept my blessings. I have heard that you are a very good man with cows. Your service would be very valuable here in India. I think that you could travel to the centers here where we keep cows and try to establish a very high cow-protection standard. Our cow-protection program in India should be the exemplary standard for the whole world. So, if you like, come to India as soon as possible. You may come directly to Calcutta and from there you can easily go to Sri Mayapur-candra-daya Mandira. I want to improve our Gosala here in Mayapur first. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami ACBS/ps Labels: cows, Mayapur, New York letters | 06:13 |15 February 2008 15 February, 1975 Mexico City My dear Gopiparanadhana das, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated Feb. 6th, 1975 and have noted the contents. Regarding your problem of not being able to get married, this is not the proper type of question to place before your spiritual master. I think you should discuss this matter with Rupanuga das. Anyway, you should be sure to follow all the regulative principles without fail and to chant at least 16 rounds daily. If you do these things, then in any position of life you will be satisfied. Krishna is fully aware of your every necessity and he will surely provide everything that you need for your bodily maintenance. You should have this kind of faith. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami ACBS/ps Labels: faith, marriage, New York letters | 18:41 |6 February 2008 6 February, 1975 Honolulu My dear Radhavallabha das, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated Feb. 3, 1975 and have noted the contents. Thank you for distributing my books everyday. This is a nice program for the press workers to increase enthusiasm. The sample that you sent me of the new design for the BBT logo is approved by me. For the sake of consistency, you can also use it on the cover jacket. Every volume of Srimad-Bhagavatam as well as Caitanya Caritamrta must be fully complete with an index, list of references, glossary, Sanskrit pronunciation guide, and index of Sanskrit (or Bengali) verses. This will be best. I will be glad to see you all (at least 15 of you) in Mayapur for our festival. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami ACBS/ps Labels: BBT, Caitanya Caritamrta, New York letters | 16:51 |2 February 2008 2 February, 1975 Honolulu My dear Rupanuga das, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated nil and have noted the contents. Regarding the idea of suing the U.S. Government, it is better not to make such a move. Try to solve all problems with the local scale. The GBC men who are here now have considered this point and decided that it would not be wise to sue the Govt. at this point. According to Jayatirtha prabhu, Jagadisa's proposal for BBT loan has already been rejected. BTG is not meant for advertising ISKCON Food Relief. Regarding instruments for temple kirtanas, karatala and mrdanga are sufficient. There is no need of other instruments. Keep negotiations going for that building. It will be very nice if we can get that building. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami ACBS/ps letters | 11:55 | 2 February, 1975 Honolulu My dear Lokamangala das, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated Jan. 30, 1975 and have noted the contents. You have asked me what I feel is the best engagement for you at this time and in response, I kindly request you to continue to distribute my books full-time. You are very expert in this matter and you can also teach others how to do it. At the present moment, the plays are not as important as our book distribution. So, my desire is that you increase your book distribution more and more and be blessed by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami ACBS/ps Labels: book distribution, New York, plays letters | 11:54 |31 January 2008 31 January, 1975 Honolulu My dear Tamala Krishna Maharaja, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated Jan. 16th, 1975 and have noted the contents. Your report is very very encouraging. It means really preaching Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's message. Do that and be blessed. Krishna has given you a special duty, so carry it very faithfully and enthusiastically. The more you preach, the more you become recognized by Krishna and the more He gives you intelligence how to preach. You are a good representative of Radha Damodara. You are very fortunate that Radha Damodara is traveling with you and giving strength and intelligence. All glories to the assembled devotees. Regarding your meeting with Satsvarupa Maharaja and your 3-fold attack plan for preaching on the campuses, it is a very good idea. Do it. I know that you are practical. Instead of talking 100 times and doing nothing. That I want. This is a very good plan. You can call Revatinandana Svami also to join you. He is a good preacher also. If you think in terms of Krishna's instructions, then Krishna will give the intelligence how to execute. Strictly adhere to Krishna's instructions and He'll give intelligence how to execute them from within your heart. Regarding the idea of having the younger boys travel with you, the question is whether the government will object or not to our taking small boys in a sankirtana van. If there is no objection, then you can adopt this program immediately. It will be a very nice program. The US has got immense potentiality for accepting Krishna Consciousness. So, do service to your countrymen, as well as Krishna simultaneously. Your country has been glorified on account of her children like you. Krishna has has own plan for using your country-men for this movement. So, accept Krishna's mercy and do the needful. It is not just my desire, it is the desire of Lord Caitanya, then my Guru Maharaja, then it is my desire, and that desire should be executed by you all; then it will be accepted. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu accepted the Bharata-bhumi, but at least one person from Bharata-bhumi has accepted this cult and handed it over to you so, see that this desire takes practical shape. Your photo is very nice. I'll keep it to show others. Very encouraging. I want to organize such a program in India. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami ACBS/ps Labels: college preaching, New York letters | 12:28 |21 January 2008 21 January, 1975 Bombay My dear Radhavallabha das, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated 1-7-75 and have noted the contents. Regarding the book on Kapila's philosophy, you can call it "the Sankhya Philosophy of Kapila, (the Son of Devahuti)." You can give the roman transliteration for the sanskrit and the English translation and then the lecture. There is no need of the original sanskrit (deva-nagari), or the synonyms. For the time being, I shall consider regarding the dedication, and introduction. After it is ready, I will tell you. You can use pictures from the Srimad-Bhagavatam. That will be alright. Finish the Caitanya-Caritamrta as soon as possible. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami ACBS/ps Labels: New York, Srimad Bhagavatam, translating letters | 12:24 |19 January 2008 Sunday, 19 January, 1975 Bombay My dear Radhavallabha das, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated 1-8-75 and have noted the contents. I have received one copy of Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto 4, Volume 4, and Krsna Consciousness: the Matchless Gift. Thank you very much for these books. One thing is that every volume of Srimad-Bhagavatam, Caitanya Caritamrta and any other big volumes, must have a full index. It is not a very prestigious presentation without the index. All volumes in the future must have the index. Please go on there with great enthusiasm and strength to print my books very nicely. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami ACBS/ps Labels: New York, Srimad Bhagavatam letters | 17:52 |17 January 2008 Friday, 17 January, 1975 Bombay My dear Rupanuga das, Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated nil and have noted the contents. Why is it that money that has been collected on behalf of ISKCON Food Relief program has not been sent to India? Where is that money? This is not good. If you are not intending to send for food distribution, then do not collect in the name of Food Relief. Whatever is collected for India food distribution, must be sent as soon as it is collected, to India. You should send it to: Bank of America, International Society for Krishna Consciousness, Mayapur-Vrndavana Fund, account no. 16026 in Bombay. It must be sent, otherwise it will be a discrepancy. The plan that the lawyer has proposed to you is very good. There can be two separated accounts, ISKCON Food Relief, and BBT. Let Gopala Krishna come to India immediately. When he comes, he can get approval from Delhi for importing grains. Secure the new building. Be cautious. Do not spoil the negotiation. That building is very nice. We want it. The Bulletin that you have sent is very nice. Pancaratna has done very nicely. Maybe you can approach all the constituent members of the CSR (mentioned on the 2nd page) for giving us facility to expand our preaching work even more. Regarding Harikesa, I thought he was going to London to take standing orders of books from the libraries there. Anyway he is there now, he can be engaged as you both see it fit. Consult amongst yourselves. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami Labels: building, food relief, New York letters | 17:34 |16 January 2008 16 January, 1975 Bombay My dear Mr. Gold, Please accept my greetings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated 12-30-74 and have noted the contents. I am so glad to see that you are so much absorbed in our philosophy and comparing it to other philosophies. I have written many books already which are full of the different aspects of this deep philosophy of Krishna Consciousness. I request you to study them carefully and you will find a treasure house of scientific information in relation to the ultimate goal of life and conquering the major problems of life, birth, death, old age, and disease. Visit our temple there in Brooklyn as much as you can. By associating with the devotees there, your spiritual life will become fully developed. I hope this meets you in good health. Your ever well-wisher, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Svami ACBS/ps Labels: New York letters | 17:35 | |
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