741005 - Letter to Kirtanananda written from Mayapur

Letters by Date, 1974

Tridandi Goswami
A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami
Founder-Acharya:
International Society for Krishna Consciousness
CENTER:
Sri Mayapur Chandradoya Mandir
P.O. Shree Dham Mayapur, Dist, Nadia, W.B.
DATE .....5/10/74................19......

His Holiness Kirtanananda Swami
New Vrindaban
R.D. 1 Box 620
McCreary's Ridge
Moundsville, W. Va. 26041

My Dear Kirtanananda Maharaj:
Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated September 24, 1974 with enclosed check for Dollars 500.00, color photos, building plans, and one letter and check for Dollars 50.00 forwarded by you. I was thinking that I have not received any check from Kirtanananda since considerable time passed, so immediately Krishna has sent the check. Thank you.
Regarding New Vrindaban I was very happy when I was there, not only myself but all devotees and GBC members all enjoyed the atmosphere of New Vrindaban, especially the cow protection scheme. May Krishna give more facilities to advance the cause of New Vrindaban, and I am expecting very soon to go there and live in my proposed palace at least for some time.
From the pictures anyone will see that you have organized New Vrindaban very nicely. It is just like Krishna's Vrindaban. How they are happy in New Vrindaban both animals and men. Here in one picture is Kirtanananda instructing the cow to chant Hare Krishna. In another picture the boys and the cows are being taken equal care. Everyone is living very peacefully and eating very nicely. There is so much land. This is real Vrindaban life. In Vrindaban Krishna calls the cows each by his own name. When cows were purchased in the beginning I have seen them crying because the calf was taken for killing. They can understand. Not that they are animal and cannot understand. The neighboring farmers come and they are astonished at the nice preparations made from their milk. I see in the small cottages they are living very, very happily. The cows are grazing, and the male members are doing the work. Local flowers are used for the garlands. Yes, New Vrindaban is almost a small state. Some of the rogues are envious. Rogues are always envious when they see something nice. Even Hayagriva will not leave that place. He is living very happily there.
The plans for the palace are very nice. It is a temple, like Jagannath temple. It is very calm and quiet there. I like it. In the beginning when Hayagriva purchased, I immediately gave him the idea of New Vrindaban—cow protection. On the whole our New Vrindaban scheme is successful.
There is one vacancy in the GBC Board, so myself in consultation with Brahmananda Maharaja and Jayatirtha Prabhu, we have decided you can fill up the post. This will be confirmed in the next GBC meeting. In the meantime I wish you may accept this responsibility. My desire is that some of our experienced members who have proved their sincerity of service may form the GBC Board so that the management of the whole institution may go on smoothly, and I may be relieved of affairs of management which hampers my writing of books because my attention is diverted. At present the following members are on the GBC Board: 1. Jayatirtha, 2. Hrydayananda, 3. Rupanuga, 4. Jagadisha, 5. Satsvarupa, 6. Brahmananda, 7. Madhudvisa, 8. Hansadutta, 9. Bhagavan, 10. Bali Mardan, 11. Tamal Krishna.
So I request you all to follow strictly the regulative principles, especially the chanting on the beads. GBC means to be a practical example to all residents of temples and devotees. If all of us follow this principle of purity, our spiritual position will remain sound, and maya will not touch us. mayam etam taranti te . A fully surrendered soul always remains untouched by the hand of maya. Otherwise it is not possible.
Recently there has been some provocation in our Society regarding Bali Mardan and his wife. Jayatirtha has received a bunch of complaints. Similarly Brahmananda Maharaja has also received, so far so that his wife is eating chicken in the temple. This has hampered me very much, so I wish to form an investigation committee. of three members, namely Tamala Krishna Goswami, Rupanuga Prabhu, and yourself. I am informing them also in this connection with a copy of this letter. So you combine together and investigate about the charges against Bali Mardan and his wife made by the following devotees: 1. Tosan Krishna, 2. Cindy Liston, 3. Kirtiraja, 4. Omkara Dasi, 5. Nabadwip 6. Ramesvar das, 7. Sudama Swami, 8. Jaya Ram das, 9. Sunita devi, 10. Gopal Krishna, 11. Atreya Rishi, 12. Anonymous. Kindly try your best to stop this provocation in our Society and I shall be much obliged to you all. Please submit your combined report as soon as possible.
Also regarding the devotees you have recommended, I have accepted them and their names are as follows: Mike Hoare— Manonatha dasa, Tony Riccardi— Tejomaya, Alfred Tarantino— Ajeya dasa, Terry Sheldon— Tapahpunja dasa, Catherine Conners— Khastha devi dasi. I have also accepted the following as twice initiated: Candramauli das, Krsna-sravana das, Gopinath das, Krpacarya das, Vahna das, Cirantana das, Gomata devi dasi, Vidya devi dasi, Bhaktiniddhi devi dasi, Vrajasana devi dasi, Vrajeswara devi dasi, Visvadika devi dasi. The threads duly sanctified are enclosed. You can impress upon the initiates that they are taking vows at the fire sacrifice before Krishna and Radha, the spiritual master, and the Vaishnavas, so they should not deviate or fail to follow our principles.
I Hope this meets you in good health.

Your ever well-wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

cc: Tamala Krsna Goswami, New York
Rupanuga Prabhu, Miami
Encs:
ACBS/bs