680213 - Letter to Gurudasa written from Los Angeles

Letters by Date, 1968

Tridandi Goswami
AC Bhaktivedanta Swami
Acharya: International Society For Krishna Consciousness

CAMP: ISKCON Radha Krishna Temple
5364 W. Pico Blvd.
Los Angeles, Cal. 90019

DATED ....Feb...13,..................196.8

My Dear Guru das,

Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated Feb. 8, and have noted the contents. I have received also one letter from Upendra today, and I am so glad he is released within 10 days. That was my expectation when he came to see me, that he couldn't be incarcerated for more than a week. This instance of suffering by a devotee should be carefully noted. As Upendra was in the beginning incarcerated for 3 months, it was reduced to one week; similarly, when a devotee is seen in trouble, it should be accepted as God's Mercy. Just like Upendra's suffering for 3 months was destined by the law, but by the Mercy of God the suffering is reduced to one week only. So a devotee always accepts his distress as minimized by God's Mercy, although he would have to suffer many more times the suffering. Any one who accepts this philosophy of God's Mercy in suffering conditions, and still makes progress in Krishna Consciousness, it is said that he is sure to go back to Home, Back to Godhead.

Regarding Achyutananda's letter to you: it is a fact that in Brahmachary Ashram no Grihasthas are supposed to live, but the American House which we are now contemplating has no separate department for Grihasthas or Brahmacharies. Therefore for the present we cannot make such distinction in the American House. We are just beginning the American House there and gradually we shall make departmental division later on. Your quotation from Lord Chaitanya that nobody should identify as a Brahmachary Householder, Sannyasi, is quite correct. On the Krishna platform there is no such distinction. The only reason is that on the material platform sex life is very predominant. Therefore a Brahmachary is advised not to live with Grihastas. But if there's strong sense of Krishna Consciousness, this distinction of material world will disappear in spiritual light. Anyway, so far you are concerned, I have received letter from Achyutananda which reads as follows about yourself: "Yamuna and Gurudas are welcomed and they may come soon so I must have your decision." So you can prepare yourself for going there and keeping correspondence with Achyutananda, so that as soon as the house is settled there you can go with a car.

I am keeping well. Hope you are well.

Your ever well-wisher,