700622 - Letter to Hansadutta written from Los Angeles

Letters by Date, 1970

3764 Watseka Avenue
Los Angeles, Cal. 90034

22nd June 70

My Dear Hansadutta,
Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letters dated 14th and 17th June, 1970, respectively.
Regarding instruments, if the instruments are available in Hamburg it is good that you can purchase locally. If not, let me know what kind of instruments you want, and I shall advise you where to purchase in India.
Yes, Kulashekar is a first class press operator. It is nice. We also started in Boston because Advaita is a first class press operator. But the point is if we do not have a nice press, what is the question of press operator? We have invested in Boston about $20,000, but still it is not well equipped and the major portion of our printing work is being done in Japan. Until we can open a very nice press and print our literature up to date it will not be a good investment. If you want at all the BTG in French and German languages published locally, better you try to get it from a local first class press. I understand that in Germany and Holland there are many well equipped presses.
Regarding the daily work on translation done by Woomapati, Ilavati, Mandali Bhadra, and Hari Priya, Yes, that is our main business to translate all our literatures into German and French languages. When the matter is prepared, then we can get it printed anywhere to our satisfaction. Therefore, the most important thing is to get the composing and layout done.
I am so glad to know that Himavati is taking such nice care of the Deities. I have seen the pictures. It is far improved than before. The more you keep the Deity room and paraphernalia clean, the more you heart becomes cleansed from dirty things.
Pictures for our books are being done now in Boston, so Vasudeva may make as many pictures as possible of Pancatattva and Acaryas, especially your Spiritual Master and my Spiritual Master. Upendra in Australia is already asking for these pictures, so increase the number of these pictures as many as possible.
Regarding the devotees who are ready for receiving sacred thread, they may do so you have asked permission for Kulashekar, Vrndadevi, Ilavati, Sucandra, and Vasudeva. You are going to London, so I shall send the sacred threads duly sanctified and the mantras may be heard in London. The arrangement is there and Gurudas has already done it, so you can get them initiated as brahmins get them initiated as brahmins during Rathayatra days from 5th to 13rd of July.
Your proposal to open several new centers is very good news for me. However, for opening new centers Tamal and yourself must be present. There is no need of installing Deities immediately. New temples may be opened by placing Pancatattva and Acarya pictures. Unless we have got sufficient experienced devotees we shall not install Radha Krsna or Jagannath Deities. Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is very kind and lenient. Simply chanting of Hare Krsna will please Him. But when we have Deities like Radha Krsna or Jagannath we must strictly follow the regulative principles of Arcan. These things are elaborately described in the Nectar of Devotion which is already published. Order some from Boston and later on translate it into French and German. It is very important book for our guidance.
Regarding your consideration of management, No, we should take all risks for Krsna. This mentality to chant in a solitary place without any responsibility of preaching work is not approved by Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Maharaj. One of our God-brothers was doing like that and my Spiritual Master was not very satisfied with him.
We are not separated actually. There are two--vani or vapu. So vapu is physical presence and vani is presence by the vibration, but they are all the same. So Krsna when He was physically present before Arjuna is the same when He is present before us by His vani of Bhagavad-gita. So far I am concerned, I do not factually feel any separation from my Spiritual Master because I am trying to serve Him according to His desire. That should be the motto. If you kindly try to fulfill my mission for which you have been sent there, that will be our constant association.
Your sentiments are very nice, so do not be worried, we will meet very soon. If World Samkirtan Party is organized our meeting will be in a very short time. In this connection I shall ask you to contact Ksirodakasayee. He is very eager in this respect. He will surely attend Ratha Yatra, so you can see him at that time.
The news article which you sent along with a translation was not very sympathetic. Anyway, it is published. We are now printing a Krsna Consciousness Handbook, so in future any reporter coming may be given a copy to read, otherwise they will simply push their own view.
Regarding composing our literatures, diacritic marks will carry weight amongst the scholars, so for the present moment you can do this: wherever a word is required with diacritic mark, or when a verse is needed, since you are translating from our literatures already printed in English language, simply cut the word or verse from the English edition and past it on the layout in the correct place in the text. They are already using this system in Boston for printing the Devnagari script, and the result is very good.
Regarding purchasing the composing machine immediately in order to avoid a little rental money is no use. There is a proverb in Bengali--It is no use to purchase a golden earring,

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