RAKSHA-BANDHAN IS NOT OBSERVED BY VAISHNAVAS

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

San Francisco
26 March, 1968

 

My Dear Mukunda,

Please accept my blessings. I am sorry I am delayed to reply your letter dated March 14, 1968, which I received over a week ago. I am very glad that you are repentant even for some action which is not sanctioned by me. This attitude is very nice and improves one in progressing on the path of devotional service. The Rakhi Bandhan ceremony observed by you under instruction of Prasad isn’t approved by our Vaisnava rituals. Of course, such ceremony is observed among the Hindu community as a socio-religious convention. But in our Vaisnava community there is no such observance. Now, forget the incidence, and in future don’t be misled by some unauthorized person.

Our next ceremony is Lord Ramacandra’s Birthday, on the 7th of April. It should be observed in the same way as Lord Caitanya’s Appearance Day, namely, fasting up to evening and then accept Prasadam, and all our ceremonies should be performed with continuous Kirtana, of Hare Krishna, Hare Rama. That will make all our functions successful.

WHENEVER THERE IS NEW BRANCH OF OUR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS SOCIETY, I BECOME VERY VERY HAPPY

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

 

Delhi

3 October, 1967

 

My Dear Nandarani, Krishna devi, Subala das, and Uddhava,

The Western World Headquarters of ISKCON at Los Angeles, California, USA

Please accept my blessings. I am very glad to know that you are now in Los Angeles & organizing the most important temple. I had great desire to have our center in L.A. & by grace of Krishna you have fulfilled my desire. I had another great desire to open a temple in London and hoped also that Kirtanananda after accepting sannyasa would do this job. For this purpose he was given an introductory letter to a London lady along with expenses. However out of his whim he did not go to London but went directly to New York. This is a terrible example and it has shocked me.

The Secret of Success in Spiritual Life is to Satisfy one’s Spiritual Master

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Krishna Balaram Mandir
Raman Reti, Vrindaban Dist. Mathura U.P., India

 

 

August 17, 1974

 

 

My Dear Spiritual Son Bhurijana das:

Please accept my blessings. I am very glad to receive your letter dated 8/7/74 from Singapore. I am very pleased that you have gone to that place simply on my order, alone, to preach the message of Lord Caitanya. I like this kind of spirit in you very much.

You know I went to your country also alone, in old age, because of the order given to me by my spiritual master. So I get great pleasure when I see my own disciples from America going to far off places leaving their rich nation with all facilities and their families, to preach.

Industrialism and Capitalism is no Material Advancement – It is material exploitation.

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Rupanuga, the recipient of this letter, sitting at the lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada

Your seventh question, “How is it that there is so much material “advancement” in the USA even though there is no formal demigod worship? Is a man after economic development automatically worshiping Lord Siva whether he is making Yajna or not?”

Actually there is no material advancement in the USA. Material advancement means there is amply opportunity for eating, sleeping, mating, and defending. Superficially, it appears that in the USA there is sufficient provision of eating, sleeping, mating and defending, but actually nobody is safe even in his good apartment. I have got practical experience in New York. Several times my typewriter and tape recorders were stolen and the police could not take any action. There are many persons in the Bowery street, they have no shelter to live.

I might have sold about half a million copies of this “Easy Journey” – My Krishna books are selling more than that!

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

 

Toronto

7 August, 1975

 

 

To,

Dr. Y. G. Naik, M.Sc., Ph.D.

Retired Principal, Gujarat College,

66 Hemdeep, Sharda Society

Ahmedabad, 7 INDIA

 

 

Dear Dr. Naik:

Please accept my greetings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated July 11, 1975. After long years it is pleasing and surprising to receive an affectionate letter from you. I think I met you sometimes in the year 1958. Since then in 1965 I came to America and started this missionary activity from New York in 1966. Now the Society has got about 100 branches all over the world. And, everywhere we have got Deity worship; Guru Gauranga, Radha Krishna, and Jagadisa.

Srila Prabhupada cooking a feast

Prasadam in this country means a full meal. From the very beginning even when I was alone, I was cooking myself for at least one dozen men, and I distributed full meals. According to Caitanya Mahaprabhu philosophy, prasadam should be taken up to the neck, akantha. In Jagannatha Puri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s only occupation was holding Sankirtana at least four hours every day and distributing prasadam to the devotees. It is stated in the Caitanya Caritamrta that the Lord was so liberal that He would give to every man prasadam quite sufficient for being eaten by two or three men. So we are trying to follow by distributing prasadam very liberally, and we invite everyone without any discrimination. Everywhere we have got temples we distribute prasadam especially to the poorer men. I am enclosing one issue of our “Back to Godhead” magazine which contains photos of our prasadam distribution starting on page 12. This prasadam distribution is going on all over the world.

Regarding the free distribution of books, there is no need in this country. They have sufficient money and sometimes they pay more than the price. Here in this country if literature is given free of charge, they throw it away. In most cases, we offer our books and ask for a contribution. And, sometimes they pay three rimes or four times the requested price. So about money matters they are very liberal. Krishna has given them money, and they spend it very liberally.

Krishna’s Mercy is always bestowed upon one who is sincerely serving Him

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

 

Hawaii

9 March, 1969

 

My Dear Sivananda,

Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your three letters post dated March 5, 1969, and I thank you very much for them. I have noted your points, and one thing is that the instruction given by one gentleman Mr. Somanatha to go to India as agriculturalists is absurd. Don’t be carried away by all this nonsense advice. So far Indian authority is concerned for preaching work, I am prepared to go to your center for preaching at any time you call me. Your statement that you will try to organize the Hamburg Center very nicely and have a smooth running energetic temple when I go there is also very encouraging. Please stick to this principle without any diversion.

Take it from me that I am always praying to Lord Krishna for your success in Krishna Consciousness movement.  You’re very sincere devotee and if you simply stick to the principles, success is sure for your life.

A Disciple may leave the Bonafide Spiritual Master but the Spiritual Master never lets go of His disciple

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

 

 

Calcutta

23 November, 1967

 

 

 

My Dear Umapati,

Please accept my blessings. I am so glad to receive your letter dated 15th Nov. 1967. You’re very anxious to see me back in New York and I may inform you that I had settled to be in San Francisco on the 24 of Nov. but due to a petty revolution in Calcutta I am not able to leave. Future arrangements are pending. I wish to go from San Francisco to the other two new branches and then return to New York.

Prabhupada with His disciples during the early days of ISKCON

I am so glad to learn that you are now getting the fruit of chanting Hare Krishna. Hare Krishna is so nice that it clears the dirty things from the mind of the devotee and the more one is used to chant the Holy Name offenselessly, the more one develops love of God, forgetting the whole material nonsense. (It is my duty to deliver you the right thing in right earnestness and it is the duty of the receiver to act in the standard spiritual regulation. When you left us I simply prayed to Krishna for your return to Krishna Consciousness because that was my duty. Any good soul who approaches me once for spiritual enlightenment is supposed to be depending on my responsibility to get him back to Krishna, back to home. The disciple may misunderstand a bona fide spiritual master being obliged to do so under pressure of Maya’s influence. But a bona fide spiritual master never lets go of a devotee once accepted. When a disciple misunderstands a bona fide spiritual master, the master regrets for his inability to protect the disciple and sometimes he cries with tears in the eyes. We had an experience while my Guru Maharaja was alive. One of His disciples who accepted sannyasa was one day forcibly dragged by his wife. My Guru Maharaja lamented with tears in His eyes saying that He could not save the soul.)

INFLATION IS DUE TO PAPER CURRENCY

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedānta Swami Prabhupāda

 

 

Tirupati

28 April, 1974

 

 

 

Atlanta, Georgia

Dear Balavanta,

Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter of April 18, 1974.

As for political speaking, first of all, don’t go so much into the details of the affairs. Our message is that people should elect pure God Conscious leaders – that is our main statement. We cannot go into details. As a side touch you can speak on inflation.

His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Yes inflation is due to paper currency. As for land ownership, in the Vedic civilization the land was given to the people for cultivation not for ownership, and a tax was collected which was 25% of the person’s income. The land belonged to the state and the man would cultivate it and pay 25% to the state. If he has no income then he doesn’t have to pay. If he doesn’t pay tax he may be disowned of the land. One cannot get land from the government unless he agrees to produce something and if everyone produces food then there is no scarcity. At least he has his own food produced by himself. Now people are educated as sudras. They are going to work, to produce what is not urgently needed by society.

Prabhupada addresses Alfred Ford’s Questions on Sannyasa and Cow-slaughter

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedānta Swami Prabhupāda

 

 

Los Angeles

16 July, 1974

 

 

 

 

Teton Village, Wyoming

Dear Sriman Alfred Ford:

So far as your questions are concerned, in India a sannyasi or a person in the renounced order of life is always honored. Even in this fallen down condition of India, a sannyasi is honored everywhere, and he has no problem for his living condition. So you are correct that a person in the renounced order of life is honored. Unfortunately some unscrupulous men take advantage of this renounced order dress and being filled up with all material desires they commit so many wrongful things, and the people in general take note of it and gradually the honor for the sannyasi is dwindling. Exactly like a person having received some counterfeit money is always afraid of being cheated, but this does not mean there is no good money. So unscrupulous men on account of this age of Kali yuga are taking advantage of sannyasi dress and are exploiting the people. So there is very awkward, and even a genuine sannyasi is sometimes in trouble. In the sastras therefore it is stated that unless one is perfectly detached from material things he should not be allowed to accept sannyasa order.

Alfred Ford, the great grandson of Henry Ford

I am very glad that you are so much inquisitive about the sense of the sastras. Yes, Krishna always gives shelter to the surrendered soul. Krishna never allows a brahmana to be killed. In the Bhagavad-gita it is stated as follows:

kaunteya pratijanihi na me bhaktah pranasyati [Bg. 9.31]

“My dear son of Kunti, be assured and declare it to the whole world that My devotee is never vanquished.”

Krishna is also worshiped as namo brahmanyaya devaya. His first business is to give protection to the cows and the brahmanas.

Srila Prabhupada on a morning walk with His disciples. Alfred Ford is on the immediate left of Srila Prabhupada

Now this question may be raised why are so many cows being killed in the slaughterhouse. The answer is that those who are

What if Muslims or Christians deny to chant the name of Krishna?

Letters of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedānta Swami Prabhupāda

Srila Prabhupada on a morning walk with Father Emmanuel Jungclaussen

For all practical purposes if we systematically preach to chant the holy name of Godhead, I think nobody, including even the religious fanatics, will take objection to it. Every human being has a conception of the Supreme Truth. That conception is presented in some concrete shape. If therefore the Mussulman or the Christian denies to chant the name of Rama or Krishna we may