740424 - Letter to Gurudasa written from Hyderabad

Letters by Date, 1974

Letter to Gurudas

Tridandi Goswami
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Founder-Acharya:
International Society for Krishna Consciousness
CENTER: Hare Krishna Land,
              Nampally Station Road
              Hyderabad, Andra Pradesh,

DATE ............April.24..............19.74

Dear Gurudas,
Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated April 21, 1974, and I have examined the contents.
Regarding you report on construction progress I am glad to hear the building is roofed, however what about the backside residential quarters? Please give me up to date information on all phases on the construction.
As for the purchase of a car for Vrindaban, we shall first finish the construction and then we can think of the car.
I have received a letter from Tejyas on the same day as yours. I am sending him the checks he has requested for construction, but he has requested one check for "Lalit Prasad", for Rupee 3,000 which you say is a down payment for four sets of clothes for the deity. But we cannot pay for these dresses. It was already agreed that you and Yamuna would collect separately for the deities, not that it would come out of the construction fund, but now you and Tejyas are requesting it come out of construction. Besides that, why go to the tailor? Lalit Prasad charges extraordinarily. We don't want to go to them. Whatever our devotees can make, that is all right. Have you already contracted from them? This check cannot be issued neither is it our plan to pay from construction for the deities. Where is the money you collected for this purpose?
When you next meet Dr. Kapoor offer him my respectful obeisances. I am sure Viswambar Goswami is educated, and advanced in judgement and I am pleased he is not disturbed. But Dr. Kapoor can expose Purusottam Goswami about his deal with the late Puri Goswami of the Gaudiya Math. If the mystery of his acquiring 50,000 rupees of books from Puri is exposed then his so called leadership will come to an end. He knows better than I and you can ask him about Purusottam Goswami's acquiring books from Puri--which is a mystery not yet disclosed, but every Gaudiya mission man knows the incident.
Your idea to have Hari Goswami conduct a deity worship class starting July 1st is a good, welcome idea. One defect in Hari Goswami is that although he wants to cooperate he wants to keep himself a little aloof as a goswami. I wish that he should mix with us with open mind, without reservation. Sometimes he hesitates to accept prasadam from us and he likes to cook for himself. If he desires to cook that means he keeps aloof. If he kindly teaches our men how to cook and worship the deity and he also takes prasadam along with us it will be a great achievement. Of course it depends on his discretion, but if he keeps aloof from us that is not very much desirable. As least he should come forward on the sastric injunction, arcya visnau siladhir gurusu naramatir vaisnave jati-buddhir. I do not think there is any difference in the method of deity worship he is teaching but you can also consult me.
You ask me how to recruit strong devotees to come there. You have to prepare strong devotees, not import them. You yourself become strong devotees and teach others by your example. Importation is not a good plan; everyone should be strong by behavior and action.

Your ever well-wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

ACBS/sdg
Krsna Balaram Temple/ Raman Reti, Vrindaban/ Mathura, U.P.