710324 - Letter to Bhagavan written from Bombay

Letters by Date, 1971

Letter to Bhagavandas

Tridandi Goswami
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

CAMP: ISKCON; Akash-Ganga Bldg, 7th floor; 89 Warden Road Bombay-26, INDIA
24th March, 1971

My Dear Bhagavandas,
Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated 16th March along with the enclosure of the letter received from Detroit City Municipality. It is very encouraging. Regarding the drug addicted young boys and girls in your country, we can give them the best service as it is already evident from our practical movement. Most of my students were drug addicted formerly and now having taken to Krsna Consciousness, they have given up everything and rapidly progressed toward spiritual realization. There is a Vedic injunction that one has to realize Krishna nicely and then he becomes perfectly wise. Here is a good opportunity to get cooperation from the government in the matter of our Hare Krishna Movement. Our process of helping the misguided youth should remain the same. Namely, they should join the different services in the temple; chanting, dancing in ecstasy with Hare Krishna Mantra. They must be cleanly shaved, with telok, have saffron robes, take prasadam, attend classes, chant 16 rounds of beads daily, etc. We are sure anyone who joins us will be free of all material disease including craziness and madness. Actually everyone in this material world is a crazy fellow; he doesn't know the aim of life. Even the erudite scholar doesn't know what is God or how the material world was created; so many things they do not know. So if the government officials want to take our help they must arrange for giving a nice place so we can accommodate the students concerned, according to our method. Such centers should be well equipped with temple, lecture room, sleeping quarters, kitchen, etc. as we have got everywhere. So try to convince the authorities that everyone will come to Krishna Consciousness, following our method, which is pure. Then craziness and madness will automatically disappear. This is practical welfare. So our movement should be very vigorously pushed on. But those who push must be pure; then it will be effective.
I am very glad you are getting many private home kirtan engagements. That is very encouraging. If each home adopts our method, they will be happy. There is no sectarian consideration. Everyone should be interested in what is God. The more one understands about God, the more he becomes wise and ultimately he achieves the goal of his life. Here in Bombay we have arranged a weeks meeting as San Kirtan Festival and the expenditure will be nearly Rs. 100,000, but the boys who are present here are doing nicely. Probably this festival will be very successful for drawing Indians about the importance of the San Kirtan Movement.
Regarding the automobile factory, that is very important news. In each and every factory if you can open a center with cooperation of the workers and the proprietor then certainly we shall make circumstances favorable for them that there will be no strike or dissension. So if you can introduce this program in factories, it will be a great achievement for our movement.
Regarding BTG, I have given a loan of $20,000 by check to Dai Nippon. I have given the information to Karandhar how to liquidate the Dai Nippon debt of $52,000. So follow this principle so that we shall not give chance for damaging our credit with them. I hope that the GBC members will see to this. I am thinking of returning to U.S.A. as soon as possible. Now everything depends on Krishna.
Hoping this will meet you in good health.

Your ever well-wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami