771015 - Conversation B - Vrndavana

Conversations by Date, 1977

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

771015R2-VRNDAVAN - October 15, 1977 - 90:21 Minutes

(Yaśodānandana Swami leading Govindam prayers)

Prabhupāda: Viśvambhara.

Upendra: No, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: Who is . . .?

Bhagavān: Bhagavān, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: Huh?

Bhagavān: Bhagavān.

Prabhupāda: Bhāgavata?

Bhagavān: Bhagavān. Bhagavān dāsa.

Prabhupāda: I wanted to see Viśvambhara. Eh?

Bhagavān: We can go send someone to get him right away.

Upendra: He's coming, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: (Hindi conversation with Viśvambhara) (break) Bhakti-caru?

Upendra: You want to see Bhakti-caru?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Upendra: I'll call him.

Prabhupāda: (Bengali with Bhakti-caru) Viśvambhara?

Viśvambhara: Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: (Hindi)

Viśvambhara: (Hindi)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Śrīla Prabhupāda? Nava-yogendra Mahārāja has come from Africa to see you. Should he come over?

Prabhupāda: Hmm.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He's brought some presentations for you.

Nava-yogendra: All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: This is a Deity of Kṛṣṇa. Sandalwood. Nice carving of Kṛṣṇa. These are sweets, different types. Many fruits.

Nava-yogendra: Dried fruit, Indian fruit. (Bhagatjī laughs)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Kaju. Milk sweets all on silver trays.

Prabhupāda: (Hindi with Nava-yogendra) Keep them properly and distribute to the devotees.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Distribute to the devotees. All right.

Prabhupāda: Bank business finished?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: What, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: Bank business?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Bank business concluded. (opening package) Almonds. Almonds. We'll keep these in the kitchen, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Special ām-ācāra. (Bhagatjī laughs)

Prabhupāda: (Hindi)

Bhagatjī: Prabhupāda asked me to take anything I want. (laughs)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: The dry things we can keep in your kitchen, almonds and nuts. Sometime you may like a little ground with honey or something. More fruits. Guava. (indistinct comments by devotees) Silver cup. Big cup.

Prabhupāda: (Hindi with Nava-yogendra)

Nava-yogendra: Śrīla Prabhupāda, can I put this garland? I want to make . . . It's very nice flower. Jaya Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: (Hindi) (break) (Hindi with Nava-yogendra and Bhagatjī)

Upendra: Girirāja is here, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: So, the bank business?

Girirāja: The manager came—I mean, not the manager, the assistant general manager from the head office. He came, and he brought the letter with our eleven-points program which we want to have, and he agreed with all of the points. And he said that probably Tuesday I can go to Delhi and collect the fixed deposit certificates, and they will be endorsed on the New Delhi branch. And he said that after ten days . . . Within ten days there will be a new manager for the extension counter, and we'll never have to deal with Mr. Gupta again. So many different small points, he instructed the people to comply. And he's going to have the whole extension counter refurnished with carpets and nice chairs and sofas, so that there's a nice atmosphere. So, I mean, I think from now on everything should be very straightforward.

Prabhupāda: So things are satisfactory now?

Girirāja: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Also another thing, that four thousand . . . er, four lakhs has reached Bombay?

Girirāja: Well, I sent a photocopy of that advice which they gave us here to the CBI, and I told them that they should be sure to get the money from Punjab Bank and put it in our account, BBT. But I didn't get any confirmation, because usually they give the advice to Bombay.

Prabhupāda: So?

Girirāja: So it's not confirmed that we got the money. But I'm sure that . . . Anyway, I think I'll be going to Bombay in the next week. Otherwise I can send another letter to the CBI to advise us here in Vṛndāvana confirming that the money has been credited.

Prabhupāda: CBI should have acknowledged. Why . . .? Hmm?

Girirāja: Yes. But generally they send all of their advices to our Bombay office. So they might have sent the advice to Bombay office, the four lakhs.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Oh, I got the advice. Today I got the, ad . . . I wrote to the Bombay office of Central Bank. I wrote a letter to Gwalior . . . You wrote a letter. Girirāja wrote a letter to Central Bank of India, Bombay, Gwalior Tank. And just today . . . When Prasannātmā Prabhu went there . . . I told him to go to the bank, and he got the advice, and I received it today—four lakhs received on time before the tenth and deposited and credited to our account, in time for gaining interest this month.

Prabhupāda: So it is all right.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Oh, yes. Transaction is complete. I just got it today.

Girirāja: Thanks for telling me.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I just got it.

Girirāja: So Śrīla Prabhupāda, I have a present for you from Lord Kṛṣṇa, Śrīnāthajī. This is a coat which was worn by Him.

Prabhupāda: Hmm.

Girirāja: So, He sent it to you.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Śrīnāthajī wore that?

Girirāja: Yes. In Nathadwar.

Prabhupāda: How you got it?

Girirāja: Well, you know the Maharaja of Udaipur? President of the Viswa-Hindu Parisad? So he sent it. His cousin came here to stay for about a week.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I think it will be very nice when the weather is a little cool, for you to wear it, Śrīla Prabhupāda, on your morning walks. (laughter)

Girirāja: Also, he converted one of his palaces into a hotel, and he's ordering 301 copies of Bhagavad-gītā As It Is—one for each room in the hotel. And he's also associated with the Taj Hotel. So he's going to try to see about having them take one Gītā for each room.

Prabhupāda: So you have taken your dinner?

Girirāja: Yes.

Prabhupāda: All right. Then take rest.

Girirāja: Jaya Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa. So Mr. Dugal . . .?

Girirāja: Mr. Dugal?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Girirāja: Well, he was a little bit upset that we were taking away all the fixed deposits. So the man from the head office told him that he has to win our confidence. Then, when he wins our confidence, we may make new fixed deposit. But right now . . . I mean, whatever we say, he has to accept.

Prabhupāda: So how much transferred?

Girirāja: Ten lakhs, sixty thousand.

Prabhupāda: To?

Girirāja: To the Parliament Street Main Branch in New Delhi.

Prabhupāda: And before that, four lakhs?

Girirāja: Yes, four lakhs to Central Bank in Bombay.

Prabhupāda: So Dugal is very unhappy, eh?

Girirāja: Well, I mean he feels that he's losing everything. But the man from the head office tried to explain that, you know, "This is the reaction to your activities," and that "If you change your activities in the future, we may bring in more money." Actually we're going to expand and develop our activities more and more. So if they win our confidence, we don't mind giving them any amount of money.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He also said that the chairman has taken a personal interest in our Society's accounts and has sent him as an emissary. And he also said that he's coming back in about ten days again. He said, "This time when I come back you will not have any complaints." In other words, he's going to rectify whatever mistakes have been made. (whispering)

Prabhupāda: Hmm? What is that "pish-pish"? (laughter)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I told him that . . . I told Girirāja, (laughing) I told Girirāja to explain to you about Mr. Gupta's departure.

Girirāja: He said he's going to send some nice younger person from New Delhi who will be very easy for us to work with.

Prabhupāda: Gupta was present? No.

Girirāja: Mostly he wasn't present. A little bit later he came for one or two minutes, but he didn't say anything.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: One thing I noticed though is that Mr. Goswami, the accountant, the cashier, and Mr. Dugal, when they were leaving, they seemed to be much more . . . I don't know if you could say friendly, but they were far more respectful now. I think that they have been a little bit humbled by this incident. They always used to tell us that "We don't care for your money. You must follow the rules. Even if we lose your money, we don't care, but you must stick to the rules." But they seemed a little humbled today, a little changed in their view. I don't think that they ever suspected that they would lose our deposits like this. I think now they'll make much more of an effort. I would expect so. Right?

Girirāja: Oh, yes. Now they're going to make every effort not to annoy us in any way.

Prabhupāda: Very carefully deal, and as far as possible, don't keep money in the bank. Invest in books and expansion. That is my request. If you keep money, there will be so much trouble.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: So much what?

Girirāja: Trouble.

Prabhupāda: So the current account and savings account, ten days' notice, these things are to be done?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: What did Prabhupāda ask?

Girirāja: Whether on the savings account we have to give ten-day notice.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: We didn't discuss that yet. We don't have any current accounts any longer. We changed them all to savings accounts.

Prabhupāda: So when you have to withdraw, you have to give ten days' notice?

Girirāja: Well what we did in Bombay is we made arrangement that if we could not give ten-day notice, we could predate a letter ten days before, and they would accept that.

Prabhupāda: Yes, the Bombay accept, but these people?

Girirāja: Well, we didn't discuss this, but the next time we meet the man from the head office I'm sure we can arrange it, because he wants to satisfy us.

Prabhupāda: The Central Bank, they do not mind.

Girirāja: No. These people are too fussy. Actually, every bank always bends the rules to accommodate the customers. These people . . . This is one of the symptoms of nonsurrender, that they are too attached to following the rules and regulations without understanding the purpose.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Niyamāgraha?

Prabhupāda: Niyamāgraha. (laughter) Do everything very carefully. You were present in the conference?

Girirāja: Well, actually I wasn't, because I wasn't feeling too well this morning. But tomorrow I want to be present.

Prabhupāda: I don't see Brahmānanda?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Brahmānanda has malaria, Śrīla Prabhupāda, for the last four days.

Trivikrama: Taking pills?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He's taking some medicines, but he's had fever on and off. He gets it regularly every year. This is the fourth time he got.

Prabhupāda: What medicine?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Quinine, and I think Śrīdhara Swami is arranging some other medicines. There is malaria epidemic in India. In Hyderabad every family, at least one person has malaria. It's all over India, even in big cities. Bhakti-prema Swami, he also has malaria. Mosquitoes seem to be a very envious creature. Are you liking the massage, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He is using the same idea as that brahmacārī, putting hot on different places.

Upendra: Leg. Tell him the leg.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: You have to explain to him about massaging.

Upendra: We did already.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Oh. You have pain in that hip, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: Hmm.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Maybe he can give some special massaging there.

Nathiram(?): (Hindi)

Upendra: After some time I think it will go away with the massage. I mean from lack of movement.

Viśvambhara(?): He said, "I am trying very slowly. He will not be able to tolerate it if hard massage." (whispering)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He seems like a good massage man.

Prabhupāda: So, why not publish in large quantity of . . . large number of books?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, I think that's advisable. There has been some complaints again about no stock.

Prabhupāda: Why it is not being done? There is money.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Jayapatākā had some complaint today.

Girirāja: It may be that because we're dealing with one printer he cannot handle all of the work.

Prabhupāda: Why one printer?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Well Jayapatākā was thinking his parties are distributing Hindi books also, in Bihar and other places, and they ran out of books, and even though they went to Bombay, he could not get the books he wanted. There was no stock.

Prabhupāda: So, what he recommends?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: So he says he can print cheaper anyway in Calcutta.

Prabhupāda: Then let him print.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes. That's what I . . . I mentioned that to him.

Prabhupāda: Why depend on one printer?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No.

Prabhupāda: Where is Gopāla?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Gopāla?

Girirāja: He went to Bombay today.

Prabhupāda: So, you arrange many printers.

Girirāja: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Never mind the price. Huge stock should be maintained. Why unnecessarily keeping in the bank?

Girirāja: No, now we'll spend it all for printing.

Prabhupāda: I think in the BBT there are five, six lakhs.

Girirāja: Yes.

Prabhupāda: So why . . .? Turn them into books.

Girirāja: (whispering) "I think that in the BBT there's five, six lakhs. So why not transform it into books?"

Prabhupāda: Hindi books can be distributed all over the world.

Girirāja: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Similarly Gujarati, and English to Australia. Why money should be kept in the bank?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I don't think it will be any more, now that we have your direction. You actually gave us directions about a week ago, and I think they're going to carry through on it.

Prabhupāda: Don't depend on one printer.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No. Actually, Jayapatākā is very enthusiastic for printing also. It's pretty easy to print at two different places, because once you have the plates, they can simply be . . . You know, the photos, offset machines. Once you have the negatives, you can simply send them, and they can be printed anywhere.

Hṛdayānanda: Anywhere in the world.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes. And especially you can send them from Bombay to Calcutta. There's no hindrance. (Girirāja whispering)

Prabhupāda: Hmm?

Girirāja: Well, I wrote a prayer to Lord Kṛṣṇa for your health. So I was . . . It's in the next room. I was thinking of bringing it and reading it.

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes.

Hṛdayānanda: Also a message arrived for your health, prayers from the devotees in Central America. They're all praying for you. A letter has just arrived.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I get many letters all week, Śrīla Prabhupāda, all praying for your recovery. The devotees cannot resign themselves to letting you go. They don't want to live without you. They cannot . . .

Prabhupāda: Viśvambhara, everywhere they want me. You also . . .

Viśvambhara: I can give my life, Prabhupāda. I can give some of my years. I pray that I may go early, Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: No, why you should go early? You live on.

Viśvambhara: Prabhupāda, you stay. I wish that . . . I told you already earlier here that please at least complete this Bhāgavatam, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: That is my desire also.

Viśvambhara: Will Kṛṣṇa not fulfill your desire?

Prabhupāda: Oh, Kṛṣṇa is independent.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: You've always stated in your books, Śrīla Prabhupāda, that Kṛṣṇa likes too much to fulfill the desire of His pure devotee. He uses His independence to fulfill the desire of His devotee.

Prabhupāda: (Hindi) My will said. Karmāṇi nirdahati kintu ca bhakti-bhājām (BS 5.54). What is the karma-phala? (Hindi) Yas tv indra-gopam athavendram aho . . . (Hindi with Viśvambhara)

Viśvambhara: Prabhupāda is saying if one is ordered to hang, how can he say . . . I say, I tell Prabhupāda, "President has got these special powers."

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: What did Prabhupāda say?

Viśvambhara: What? Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Would you like to hear Girirāja's prayer?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Girirāja: "My dear Lord Kṛṣṇa, You are known as Yogeśvara, the master of all mystic powers. So it is very easy for You to perform the impossible, as You have done many times in the past. By Your merciful glance You restored life to the boys and cows who had died by drinking the water of the Yamunā River which was poisoned by Kāliya. And You swallowed the devastating forest fire to protect the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana. In the rāsa dance You expanded Yourself to be simultaneously present by the side of each gopī. And as guru-dakṣiṇā, You recovered the dead son of Your teacher. When the hunchback maidservant of Kaṁsa smeared You with sandalwood pulp, You made her straight and beautiful. And as a householder in Dvārakā, You expanded Yourself into sixteen thousand Kṛṣṇas and simultaneously satisfied all of Your sixteen thousand wives. When Sudāmā Brāhmaṇa offered You chipped rice, You transformed his poor cottage into a beautiful palace suitable for the king of heaven. And to satisfy Mother Devakī, You returned her six dead sons from the kingdom of Bali. To appease the Dvārakā brāhmaṇa, You also reclaimed his dead sons from Mahā-Viṣṇu. When Śrīla Prabhupāda sat with seven dollars under a tree in Tompkins Square Park, You transformed that tree into so many royal palaces, and You expanded that seven dollars into millions of dollars. And when Śrīla Prabhupāda spoke Your message, You turned the mlecchas and caṇḍālas into Your devotees. And when Śrīla Prabhupāda went all by himself to sell his Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam volumes, You expanded him into ten thousand loving salesmen who are working day and night without asking any salary, and You expanded his suitcase of books into fifty-five million pieces of literature in twenty-three different languages. And when Hare Kṛṣṇa Land was lost to the demons, You returned it to His Divine Grace. So from these examples we can understand that for You, the impossible is not difficult, but rather, You have performed so many impossible feats for Your devotees. Therefore, if You desire, please give Śrīla Prabhupāda a new body."

Prabhupāda: Excellent. Very . . . Foundation, back to Godhead. I am getting little glimpse, He may agree to your prayer, yes.

Hṛdayānanda: Jaya Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: Now stock books immediately.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Here is Jayapatākā Swami.

Prabhupāda: You print. They will pay you. Jayapatākā?

Jayapatākā: Yes, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: There is no question of becoming miserly. You print as many books as you like. All money will be paid if you have no money. Why? If you are selling books, you must have money also.

Jayapatākā: We have a program to print. We're printing right now. It's in the press at the present time. The Bhakti Kathā, Jñāna Kathā, Bhagavāner Kathā and then hardback Vairāgya-vidyā. And also three issues of Bhāgavata-darśana. We're trying to, within that money also, print the first three chapters of Bhagavad-gītā.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: We gave him a loan of forty-five thousand rupees, and then another twenty-five is coming. But that's all . . .

Prabhupāda: So you'll get money. Print.

Jayapatākā: One of our parties has gone to Bihar, and they sold about twelve thousand books and they ran out. They just now ran out of books, so they went to Bombay to get Hindi books, but there was no stock. So they came here to . . . Spent four hundred rupees going there, they found no books. Then they came here to Delhi, and they got two thousand books from Vṛndāvana here, what stock they had.

Prabhupāda: So why stock lacking? Why this mismanagement? There is no question of shortage of stock. I give you open order: print more than necessity. If you do not print, what shall I do?

Bhakti-caru: Should we start printing Hindi books in Calcutta, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: I do not know where to be . . . But get it printed in huge stock.

Bhakti-caru: Calcutta also has all the facilities in Hindi.

Prabhupāda: What is use of telling me?

Hṛdayānanda: What is the use of telling him?

Jayapatākā: He said, "I give an open order to print books. Always have big stock."

Hṛdayānanda: Huge stock, he said, more than necessary.

Kīrtanānanda: It's up to us to figure out where to print books.

Gargamuni(?): I have to put that question, Prabhupāda.

Jayapatākā: He already answered that question. Gaura-Govinda, he's already translated sixteen chapters of Bhagavad-gītā in Oriya, and he's translated three small books in Oriya.

Prabhupāda: Let him bring. There is fifty thousand rupees in Orissa.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes.

Jayapatākā: That fifty thousand rupees was supposed to be for construction. Bhāgavata Prabhu has collected about 35,000 rupees on his own that he's put into the account there so far. More is also being collected. It was previously promised that whatever he would collect for construction, then that amount would be matched from BBT fund or from your . . .

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Somewhere.

Jayapatākā: Somewhere, wherever.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: So, so far he has to collect fifty thousand, 'cause that's already there.

Jayapatākā: He has to match that first before he can get it. (laughs softly) Just yesterday night, the SP of Cuttack District, Orissa, he came here, and he said that he was very impressed by the mandira. He told Bhāgavata . . . I happened to meet him also. He was very pleased. His wife and family were here. He gave his name and address and said, "When you come back to Orissa, you kindly see me and whatever I can do . . . I'm not so big a man, but whatever I can do to help you, I'll do." He's very pious man.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: You told him we will have Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma there?

Jayapatākā: Details Bhāgavata was discussing.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: We're installing Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma there, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: Hmm.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Orissa.

Prabhupāda: That construction is not so important as printing of books.

Jayapatākā: The president of the Bhadrak temple that Lokanātha Swami had got donated from the Gauḍīya Maṭha to ISKCON, he has been collecting Life Members, hoping that he can build and improve a little bit on it. He was hoping to get the same facility of Bhuvaneśvara, of matching fifty-fifty. He's collecting everything locally in Orissa.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Śrīla Prabhupāda? We got a telegram from Nṛsiṁha-Caitanya, about . . . You know, he's the boy who does library distribution? Should I read it to you?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Okay.

Jayapatākā: Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura's analogy of bṛhad-mṛdaṅga has really come true through Your Divine Grace. The sound of your books has been heard in all corners. (end).