680909 - Letter to Brahmananda written from San Francisco

Letters by Date, 1968

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

September 09, 1968

My Dear Brahmananda,

Please accept my blessings. We have safely reached yesterday after noon at 3:00 and there was grand reception, arranged by Jayananda and Patty. Many Indians were present, and I was very much pleased to see the activities of San Francisco devotees. They are doing very well. In the evening, some of the respectable Indian gentlemen came to see me, and they have offered one silver Murti of Krishna, to be installed today. So this evening, I am going to install that Deity, as well as initiate some of the newcomers devotees, as well as offer the sacred thread to Jayananda, Tamala Krishna, and like that, old students. So far our San Francisco business is concerned, they are doing very nicely. I understand Tamala Krishna has collected $1,500 in two months. And people are gradually taking interest in the Sankirtana. They are selling Back To Godhead also, and the whole situation appears to be all Krishna's Mercy. And you may convey my many many thanks to Rayarama for his nice article, "Evolution—the God that's failing." We should write similar articles in Back To Godhead. It is very very instructive, and it has appealed not only to me, but to many others. In the airplane, some of the passengers were reading that article with great interest. So I think Krishna is giving very good intelligence to Rayarama. Let him be seriously engaged in improving the shape and quality of Back To Godhead, and I am sure in future we will have as good a position as the other mundane magazines, like Life, Time, Etc. It is very good.

So far the press is concerned, let the boys, Advaita and __, learn it very nicely, and it is now settled. As soon as they think they will be able to conduct the press, we immediately ___ ___. So far you are concerned, you have to see about the wide circulation. Yourself and your good brother, Gargamuni, shall be in charge for distribution. Now immediately, we are getting about $30,000 worth of books from Japan, and in from India, you have got Srimad-Bhagavatam also, so that is also over two thousand dollars. So if you can transform this money into cash, then we can start a well equipped press. And I hope you will do it.

I am contemplating also to publish one book, Krishna in picture. One boy, his name is Mark, he is very good artist. I have given him some ideas of drawing some pictures about Krishna from Srimad-Bhagavatam. And if I see he is successful, which I hope he will, be then we shall print to many books of pictures. The picture books will be most appealing. We shall give stress on this point.

Regarding records: You must take quotation from different record manufacturing company, or from the same company immediately, from whom you took our Hare Krishna record. We shall ourselves issue so many records. And so far this record is concerned, in a suitable moment you can talk with Mr. Kallman that Swamiji was telling that he has not received any royalty of 5%. The agreement is there; you can see. So he must pay. But if he does not pay we don't mind; we shall issue our own records and try to sell. But you can speak with him, that Swamiji is speaking like that. At least, he must give us the concession that whenever we shall require the records, he must give us at cost price. So far you have already paid him $500.00 for one thousand records. You must take delivery of them and send them to India. There to Jaya Govinda. Because you cannot get the money to keep this man as our friend without any disturbance and settle up things peacefully.

You will be pleased to know that this morning I experimented with my harmonium, and of course, it is just an experiment, still all the girls present here and Tamala Krishna also, they liked the tune very much. Maybe such Sankirtana solo singing; I can give so many. I can give so many verses, just like Cintamani Prakara Sadmasu . . . and explain them in English, so we can produce not only pictures, but also records, in so many ways. So you should be serious about taking quotation of the records as soon as possible and immediately we shall print some records. So far I know, that the records, small records, as Gargamuni told me, it does not cost more than 10 cents. But this big record will not cost more than 50 cents, including everything, I am sure. Anyway, you seriously take quotations about the album, about printing, and just see what will be the cost. Then we shall immediately invest some money from the book fund, to print our second and third record.

I hope you have already talked with Montreal, to Hamsaduta, or Janardana, about the money dispatched from the Canadian National Bank to London. It is very important. They are in the foreign countries; if they do not receive the money at time, how much difficulty they are in?! So the Montreal representative must immediately finalize what happened. And let them drop a letter to me what has happened. I am very much anxious about it.

I hope this will find you in good cheerful health, and activity, and you will have always Krishna's blessings upon you. Go on straight. Our Krishna Consciousness movement must be successful in the western world.

Your ever well wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami