731014 - Letter to Bali Mardan written from Bombay

Letters by Date, 1973

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

October 14, 1973

My dear Bali Mardan:

Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated October 8, 1973 and have noted the contents. After a great struggle for existence it appears that I have won over Mrs. Nair. The negotiation started on my arrival and the mediators suggested 20 lakhs. Then it went down to 17 lakhs, but by Krsna's grace I have settled with her for 14 lakhs 50 thousand and about 1 lakh for compensation to the other claimants. In this way we have to spend about 16 lakhs for the property, out of which 2 lakhs had been paid before. So now we have to pay 14 lakhs 50 thousand.

The day before yesterday whatever money I had in the Bombay account, about 4 lakhs, I've given Mrs. Nair another 3 lakhs, and I have compensated Ch__ganlal with 2 lakhs, 16 thousand, out of which 1 lakh 40 thousand has been paid by Mrs. Nair, and the balance I have paid. The charges of the several litigations have all been withdrawn and the preparations for the conveyance is in progress.

I was very much anxious to receive the money from New York. The foolish boy, Gopijanabalava, wanted to save money and dispatched the money by mail order. Out of anxiety we had to telephone several times and sent telegrams, so much so that the savings which the overintelligent boy wanted to make has been nullified by increasing the expenditure three times. After a telephone call yesterday, the bank informed by telex that the money is on the way by mail. So actually I have not yet received the money, but I am sure that it is coming. We shall have to utilize the amount to pay Mrs. Nair. The deadline is the 19th instant and today is the 14th. I hope that everything will be all right by that time.

I am pleased that your wife is expecting some children. You offer her my blessings to her for safe delivery.

We enquired the price of the Mercedes Benz here in Bombay, and they asked for 3 lakhs 50 thousand. Here in Bombay there is no possibility of getting a good car like a Chevrolet without paying Rs. 80,000-90,000. So a good car in India is very costly. If you get the car, you can get it in my name. Tejiyas Das will be in charge of taking care of it.

It is a good suggestion by your father-in-law that your wife not know sadness during pregnancy. She should not be shocked in any circumstance and eat mild foodstuff so as not to cause any irritation.

Now as I have been delayed in Bombay I wish to get leisure from this business by the 25th(?) instant. Then I shall go to Vrindaban and Delhi, and stay until the 18th November, then go from there to Nairobi. Brahmananda is there and we shall go with him for the installation ceremony and remain there until the end of Nov. Then I go to south Africa until Dec. 10, then Sydney, and remain say up to 15th Dec., then Hong Kong, and if your Japanese program is fixed I can go there or I can go to Hawaii on my way to L.A. by Dec. 20th.

My deposit certificate will mature by Nov. 23rd but I want to continue it for another month, and I shall take the payment when I return to the U.S.A. So I shall have to write to them or you shall arrange for it? If I have to write, then I shall send you a copy of the letter to your Hawaii address.

Then from Los Angeles I may come to New York to your new building.

I hope this meets you and your wife in best of health.

Your ever well wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

ACBS/bs