750626 - Morning Walk - Los Angeles

Morning Walks by Date, 1975

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

750626MW-LOS ANGELES - June 26, 1975 - 12:39 Minutes

(in car)

Prabhupāda: . . . dark?

Jayatīrtha: It seems to be . . .

Prabhupāda: Cloudy.

Brahmānanda: Very cloudy today.

Jayatīrtha: Yes, cloudy. (break) . . . June in the history of Los Angeles.

Prabhupāda: Ācchā?

Jayatīrtha: Yes. It was warmer in January, the paper says, than now. Just during the day. (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . this warm. But it is cold. (break)

Brahmānanda: . . . was very nice. In London, when I came there, the weather was very sunny and bright. It was very pleasant. Everything was green.

Jayatīrtha: There the sun goes down at eleven o'clock and it gets up at four o'clock. (break)

Prabhupāda: Three hours. I was there. Up to eleven o'clock at night there is sun, and then perhaps twelve or half past eleven, there is night. That is also not full dark. And at three o'clock, again sun. So how many hours? Eleven to three. (break) . . . above Sweden there is no night tonight.

Brahmānanda: Yes. (break)

Prabhupāda: There is no day?

Brahmānanda: Yes. (break) . . . sociological problems there. Because when it's all night, people become very depressed and there's a high suicide rate. So they have been trying to have these artificially lights to light up the cities and make it appear as if it was daytime.

Jayatīrtha: Why not just make one big sun, big scientists?

Prabhupāda: (laughs) Still they do not accept God. (break) . . . ājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kāla-cakro (Bs. 5.52). Everything is. (break) . . . cribing the whole universal situation, Śukadeva Gosvāmī concluded, "As God has made it." He never mentioned any other demigod. "As God has made it." Yathā bhagavān kriyetām. (break) . . . not to accept the authority of Kṛṣṇa, misfortune. Narādhama.

(break) (on walk)

(japa) . . . kara bhai, ara saba mithyā, palaya patha nara yo mache piche(?): "Everyone should take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Remember, behind you there is the Yamarāja, death." (break) . . . to avoid this horrible conception that there is death, and they avoid this, that "There is death, but there is no life again." That's all. (break) . . . this dog race, and what is the rat race? There is a word, rat race?

Jayatīrtha: Yes, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: What is it?

Jayatīrtha: That describes the modern culture. Everyone runs around like rats in a maze, looking for food. It's a psychological test. They put rats in a maze, and at one end of the maze they put some food. So the rats run all through the maze trying to find the food. (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . this side, Hawaii?

Devotee: Yes, yes. (break)

Devotee (2): . . . I think they're everywhere. (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . coming from Hawaii, this boy? (indistinct discussion among devotees)

Devotee (2): Yes. (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . he has come, no?

Jayatīrtha: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Oh. And Jagannātha?

Nitāi: Jagannātha is here.

Prabhupāda: Oh, that's nice. (break) What is the news of Vṛndāvana?

Nitāi: Vṛndāvana is very nice. Twenty-four-hour kīrtana is going on there regularly, and Akṣayānanda Mahārāja is out collecting. He went to Kanpur with a party of men to make Life Members.

Prabhupāda: Visitors are coming?

Nitāi: Visitors are beginning to come. Even though there is no advertisement, they are beginning to come, and their general attitude is that they're very pleased with the building. They like it very much.

Prabhupāda: How many visitors come?

Nitāi: Well, daily three families will be there.

Devotee (3): Every evening āratika there are almost one hundred visitors at evening āratika.

Nitāi: To see the temple, whole buses come. Over a hundred rupees a day are collected just by . . .

Prabhupāda: Visitors?

Nitāi: Visitors or are giving for prasādam, contributions to the Deities. (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . is neat and clean?

Nitāi: Yes. It's very nice, very nicely kept. (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . Pradyumna? (break)

Nitāi: I have heard many people in Vṛndāvana say that our temple is the best in Vṛndāvana.

Prabhupāda: Yes, that's a fact.

Nitāi: There's no more beautiful temple.

Devotee (3): Especially the Deities. They are most impressed by the beautiful Deities.

Prabhupāda: They are dressing nicely?

Nitāi: Yes, very nicely. (break)

Prabhupāda: We have decided to finish these seventeen books, pending, within two months. So make your program, how to do it. It must be done.

Rādhā-vallabha: You're including the Fifth Canto. Is that right, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: Hmm?

Rādhā-vallabha: You're including the Fifth Canto when you say seventeen books.

Rāmeśvara: Yes. Fifth Canto also by the end of August, for Vyāsa-pūjā day.

Prabhupāda: That's nice. (break)

Rādhā-vallabha: . . . amṛta, that is thirteen more books. Caitanya-caritāmṛta is sixteen volumes altogether. So we have already finished four. So that's twelve plus maybe four to five Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. (break) Now that Nitāi and Jagannātha are here, it may be possible.

Prabhupāda: Yes. (break) . . . "may be"—must be. (laughter)

Nitāi: The only difficulty we face in editing is that sometimes there are problems that come up which we can't figure out ourselves.

Prabhupāda: So I shall remain here.

Nitāi: If you remain here, then we can finish very easily.

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. (break) There was some defect in the roof. They are repairing?

Nitāi: The roof there? Yes, the roof has been fixed.

Prabhupāda: Fixed. (break) . . . ārati time about hundred devotee, outsiders come?

Nitāi: At least.

Prabhupāda: Oh, at least.

Nitāi: It's crowded every night. (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . perform ārati nicely?

Nitāi: Yes, it's done very nicely.

Prabhupāda: How much, how long they do it?

Nitāi: They do for about twenty-five minutes.

Prabhupāda: Only?

Nitāi: Yes.

Brahmānanda: Then afterwards?

Nitāi: Then afterwards tulasī worship and . . .

Brahmānanda: People stay?

Nitāi: Yes. End of the class. The whole evening is taken up by ārati, class . . .

Brahmānanda: Who gives the class in the evening?

Nitāi: The devotees trade off.

Brahmānanda: In English?

Nitāi: Yes. And beginning at six o'clock in the evening they have Hindi class.

Prabhupāda: Ah. Who gives Hindi?

Nitāi: The Indian devotees there. Sac-cid-ānanda gives, and that one, Jātismarā. And one . . .

Prabhupāda: What Praṇava does?

Nitāi: Sambhunātha Paṇḍita also gives.

Prabhupāda: No, Praṇava?

Nitāi: Praṇava doesn't usually give, no.

Prabhupāda: He stays there?

Nitāi: Yes.

Prabhupāda: So is there any news of the land?

Nitāi: No word. Gopāla Kṛṣṇa has not been there in Vṛndāvana. He has been in Bombay.

Prabhupāda: No, it was entrusted to Praṇava.

Nitāi: Oh, Praṇava has not said anything, sent any word with me. Viśvambhara is very enthusiastic for starting the gurukula there. He has said that he can give more than a lakh in order to build a building. Previously he promised a lakh, but he said that there is more money he can continually give for supporting the gurukula there.

Prabhupāda: So I have sent news to Praṇava to complete the negotiation, and he has done nothing?

Nitāi: I don't know whether he has done or not. (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . doctor?

Nitāi: The doctor is staying there. He is . . . (break) . . . for a few days and stays, and then he goes for a few days, then he comes. One doctor . . . (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . Pradyumna is doing?

Nitāi: Pradyumna has gone to Māyāpur to help train the śāstrīs.

Prabhupāda: Hmm?

Nitāi: To teach the śāstrīs English, he has gone to Māyāpur. They have all gone to Māyāpur because they were facing criticism from the residents of Vṛndāvana. Many of their old schoolmates were criticizing that they are coming and joining us. These are . . . (break) . . . are very desirous of taking initiation from you.

Prabhupāda: Who?

Nitāi: Anantarāma Śāstri and one other, I forget his name. He is very, very good in Sanskrit. He reads it fluently, speaks it fluently.

Prabhupāda: He speaks Sanskrit also?

Nitāi: Yes. Speaks it. He lectures in Sanskrit.

Prabhupāda: Oh, that's good.

Nitāi: While he was in Vṛndāvana, we were taking daily a class with him in Bhagavad-gītā. We would read Viśvanātha Cakravartī's commentary.

Prabhupāda: Where is our car? (japa) (break)

(in car)

Brahmānanda: . . . they would help us acquire land for a gurukula. (break)

Prabhupāda: . . . sent Praṇava. How is that, there is no news about the land?

Brahmānanda: Yes. (end)