Poslední příspěvky

I was on my first day of book distribution with HG Navina Nirada Prabhu.  We
headed down to our local spot, Byron Bay.  We did a harinam, sought the
blessings of the ocean and then purified ourselves with some Prasadam.  Now
that we felt sufficiently purified we were ready to engage in the sankirtana
yajna of book distribution.
 I stopped one young woman.  She seemed very interested in the concept of
Krsna consciousness but didn't seem totally inclined to take for some
mysterious reason.  She held onto the book for the whole time we talked and
then handed it back.  She moved on down the street where I saw Ekendra, ready
to stop her again.  I tried to signal that I had already stopped her but he
just couldn't see me.  I wandered over to see what he had to say.  He showed
her another Krsna book.  She was still very interested in holding the book but
revealed she was very financially down.  She had a few more weeks of her
vacation and she was only sure she could afford a potato for lunch.
 She seemed a bit down and we wanted to give her some of Krsna's mercy in any
shape or form.  I wrote a note to Dhruva (Veteran book distributor in
Australia).  He was working in the local Hare Krsna restaurant.  I gave the
note to the young woman and pointed her toward the restaurant.  The note was
asking Dhruva to give her a free meal.
 We kept distributing.  It was a little slow.  Half an hour later the same
woman came back.  She said the Prasadam was the best meal she had ever had.
She asked me for a flyer to our local temple, New Govardhana.
We returned to New Govardhana for a book distribution class by HG Navina
Nirada.  He was talking about utility being the principle.  "Sometimes you have
to do something out of the ordinary.  Like today the boys gave a young women a
free meal of Prasadam."  Ekendra, who was sitting in the audience, shot up his
hand and informed us that the same women, who's name was Elana, had called the
temple and was coming to stay on the New Govardhana farm for a few days.
Elana thoroughly enjoyed her stay in New Govardhana.  On her first day she
asked for some japa beads. She came to the Sunday feast in a sari and tilak.
On her last day on the farm she took a few more books. After this she flew
back home.
 Months later, 1000 km away, in Sydney, we were doing books with HH Devamrita
Swami's squad.  We had just finished our last day of a mid year marathon before
I was flying off to Europe.  We went to Govindas for a celebratory Prasadam
feast.   We were in a massive line up for the Prasadam, behind many guests.  I
was curious why it was such a busy night.  I anxiously looked ahead to see if
any devotees were in the line ahead of us, hoping to catch some sat sanga.  The
women in front of me turned around and it was Elana!  She was there for her
birthday and had brought thirty of her friends.  This explained the big line.
It was good to see Elana was still attracted to Krsna, the kind devotees, and
still hooked on Prasadam.

Your servant, Madhavendra Puri Dasa.

This, our book distribution is the most important task in our society.
Therefore I am giving so much stress and I am working so hard on this.
Because this is my life and soul according to the order of my Guru Maharaja.
And by his grace it is to some extent successful. And I took it seriously. I
take it seriously still now. That is my life and soul. I never tried in
India to construct big temples or even in your country we didn't. I never
tried. But I was selling personally books. That is the history. Sometimes
they are criticizing, "What kind of sannyasi? He is doing book business."

>>> Ref. VedaBase => Room Conversation -- December 31, 1976, Bombay


Sent by Bhakti Vikasa Swami

Arcita Prabhu, whose service is with the BBT, recived a call from a lady who
wanted to pay for the daily prasadam of the devotees at the New Dwaraka
temple in Los Angeles.

He asked her, "How did you become interested in Krsna consciousness?"

She said, "When I was seven, I died, but then, mysteriously, someone
took me around to different amazing places and I came back to life. When I
was fifty, someone gave me a book about Krsna. As soon as I saw Krsna's
picture I knew that He was the person that took me around and then brought
me back to life. I bought the book and then went to the temple. Eventually I
bought all the books available. I've read the Srimad-Bhagavatam, and I'm now
reading the Caitanya Caritamrta. I'm retired and spend most of my time
reading the books of Srila Prabhupada."

What if she had never met a sankirtana devotee? She would never have known
who it was that took her and brought her back. It's so important that we go
out and meet people.

your servant,
Vijaya das

In Russia a thirteen-year-old received one of Srila Prabhupada books, became
attracted to the philosophy, and went to the temple and loved everything.
The devotees gave him beads and more books.

He became more interested and became a devotee. But he knew his parents
wouldn't approve, so he secretly continued his Krsna consciousness.

He heard about a three-day festival a few hundred miles from Moscow. He
really wanted to go, so he told his parents that he was going camping with a
friend. He had all of Prabhupada's books hidden in his room, but if he went
away they might come into his room and find them. So he locked them in a
chest. They gave him permission to go, and he went to the festival confident
that there would be no problem.

However, when he returned there was no one home, and he found that the lock
on the chest had been broken. Now he was nervous.

His father later asked him, "Why didn't you tell us about these books? All
this time we didn't know what you were up to, but when you left we decided
to find out what it was. We opened the chest and found your books. We were
shocked to find so many books. Then we decided to find out what these books
were about, so we read and read and read. Both of us were happy to find
these treasure-houses of knowledge. Why didn't you tell us about this?

The boy was surprised and happy. He said, "I thought you would not approve."

The father embraced him and said, "Not only do we approve but we want to
know more." Then he said to his wife, "We're so fortunate to have a saint as
a son."

They became devotees.

One summer day I began distributing the books of Srila Prabhupada at a
square in a small south Czech Republic city. The third person I stopped was a
lady and as I presented the books, I noticed an older man listening
to us from a small distance. In our devotee-slang we call such people SPA
(secret police agents), and because they are a disturbing element in book
distribution, we try to avoid them. This man looked a bit crazy, due to
his slow motion and special accent. He interrupted our conversation and
asked how he could help me. Meanwhile the lady took the opportunity and
left. A bit annoyed, I told him, I don’t need any help and asked him to go
on with his business. The man was persistent though, and inquired what I
was actually doing there. Judging by his ways and appearance I concluded he
must be one of the musty, bored and curious old men who are more or less
obstructions for a book distributor and take away his valuable time and
determination. So I briefly replied that I am a Hare Krishna monk from
Prague and today I am distributing books about God here. To my surprise he
didn’t leave as I expected and further inquired about the books, so I told
him that they are encyclopedias of spiritual wisdom and one costs 2.800
crowns (price for a book set in Czech, 16 books). Because he was a retired
person who didn’t look that he could take even one of them, I was
convinced that this mantra will work and he will leave.

Then he said, "I will gladly take one encyclopedia."

My jaw dropped.  I started to wonder, "What is going on. Here is a soul, part
of Krishna, who is very much eager for the books of Srila Prabhupada and the
only obstacle is me. How absurd!" I felt terrible.

This man gave a donation of 1.000 crowns on the spot, without even seeing the
books, and the rest he bought within one hour. I invited him into the van,
where I showed him and gave him all our books and spent about forty minutes in
pleasant and friendly talk. This man turned out to be a nice
person, interested in spiritual things with deep understanding of our
philosophy. He very much appreciated our traveling life and the sublime
mission of Srila Prabhupada. It was the first time that I have distributed
all our books to one person, and, overwhelmed by bliss, I promised myself
that I will never again judge people on the street according to external
appearance, but rather will try to convey the causeless mercy of
Lord Caitanya to all conditioned souls without distinction.


Panca Tattva Dasa

Here are a couple of interesting exchanges I had on book distribution in
Australia . . .

In Perth I walked up to a house and saw a man sitting on a low brick
fence by his driveway and holding a half-empty beer can. I walked
straight up to him (wearing dhoti and kurta) and told him I was showing
everyone some books on inner peace. As he spoke I could see a lot of
anguish on his face. He asked if what I do made me happy. I said yes,
especially the meditation we practice. He looked at the SSR I was
showing him and said he liked this sort of book and would have a look at
it. Then he opened up to me and told me he'd been a sniper in
Afghanistan for ten years and had returned to Australia a year ago to
see his family for Christmas, whom he hadn't seen all that time. Just
before he was able to see them, his mother, father, brother, and sister
-- all his immediate family -- were killed in a car accident. He
said now he was trying to clean up his act and tolerate the emotional
pain he felt due to both the death of his family and all the killing
he'd done in Afghanistan (he felt especially guilty about accidently
killing a five-year-old boy). He'd become a vegetarian and was growing
veggies in his garden. He gave a donation and said he'd try reading the
book.

At the next house I was greeted at the door by a young chirpy boy. I
asked him if his parents were home, and he said they were and went and
to get them. When they came to the door, I showed them the book and told
them it was about peace. They said to me, "Sorry, we're not interested,"
and began to shut the door.

Just then the boy, who couldn't have been more than ten, grabbed the
book from me and said to his parents, "I'd like the book." He was really
serious about it. His parents, seeing his mood and wanting to please
him, said OK and asked me how much it cost. I told them and started
showing the boy what was in the book. He said he believed in karma and
reincarnation, and the more I showed him the more enthusiastic he
became. I told him he was continuing his interest in these things from a
past life, and he and his mom agreed.

In fact, now his mom was also showing a lot of interest and was
confirming to me how her son had always been very spiritually minded. I
showed him the "Higher Taste" cookbook and he wanted that too. So Mom
went and got some more money to give me. Then she told me that just a
day earlier they'd returned from Italy, where she'd pointed out to her
son some Hare Krishnas walking down the street. I said, "Nothing happens
by chance, does it?" They were really in ecstasy now, and we parted with
big smiles on our faces. I gave them the details of how to stay in touch
if they wanted.

Srila Prabhupada ki jaya !
Sri Sri Gaura Nitai ki jaya !

lease accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Krsna acts in so many wonderful ways . . .
Sometimes He attracts innocent souls by books . . .
Sometimes He attracts innocent souls by the smell of incense . . .
Sometimes He attracts innocent souls by music/mantra . . .
and sometimes He attracts innocent souls by food and the nice aroma of
spices . . .

Once I was visiting America Best for my eye exam. The technician did a
bunch of preliminary tests on me. Afterward she asked, "Which bubble gum
are you chewing? It smells soooooo good."

I said, "I always keep cardamom [an Indian spice] in my mouth." I gave a
bit to her from the small box in my pocket.

She asked, "Where can I get more of this?"

"You can get not only the spices but the full flavor of Indian food,
music, dance, and costumes at one place," I replied. I gave her the
address of our Boise temple.

Since then she has been coming regularly to our Friday evening
Bhagavad-gita class and to every Sunday Feast. Now she wants to sponsor
the Sunday feast! She has purchased so many of our books, she is chanting a
couple of rounds every day and has become a vegetarian. Of course, the devotees
are taking very nice care of her.

After this experience I realized that the Krsna consciousness movement
is destined to spread all over the world, since innocent souls are
everywhere and are waiting for devotees. Lord Caitanya just wants us to
take credit by taking part in this movement.

Lord Caitanya said, yare dekha, tare kaha 'krsna'-upadesa/ amara ajnaya
guru hana tara' ei desa: "Instruct everyone to follow the orders of Lord
Sri Krsna as they are given in the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam.
In this way become a spiritual master and try to liberate everyone in
this land."

Your servant,
Shri Hari Dasa
Boise Idaho USA

At present I'm traveling with my wife and eight-month-old
baby girl. It is a wonderful experience going to every town and village
and finding many people interested in Krsna consciousness. We decided we
wanted to do a trip from Sydney to Cairns in the far north of
Queensland Australia, and then further north to Cape Tribulation, and then
back to Sydney, spanning two months. We packed the van with as many soft- and
hardcover books as we could squeeze in and left just enough room for our
possessions. We managed to get about two thousand books into the van,
and we've been steadily distributing them, along with doing Harinam and
some feast programs.

I have to praise my wife Krsna-rupa Devi, who has given up her
comfortable home to live out of a van. Although she's not doing so many
books due to looking after the baby, she goes out nearly
every day selling books. Actually, our baby girl Vrndavanesvari has been
attracting many souls as she sits next to us in a pram or as we carry
her in one arm or in a sling as we sell books. Many people stop and
comment on how peaceful, well-fed, and attractive she looks, and then
they take a book from us. Of course, a family needs some extra
relaxation to stay happy, and so we've found some good beaches for
swimming and an island to stay on for a few days (where we also sold
books). Sometimes we slept in a tent, but we often stayed in nice
motels, since women and children find it difficult to perform too many
austerities.

In Townsville we could not find much accommodation under $150 a night. I
grimaced at spending so much book distribution laxmi, so I tried to
reason with my wife, but to no avail. So I surrendered. That night I was
checking the Internet when I noticed some men from New Guinea walking
into the motel. I showed them some books, and one man took a Gita and an
SSR. A little later another group from the same country walked past and
got a Krsna book, giving a nice donation. Later I was on laundry duty
when I noticed another man from New Guinea waiting for his clothes to
dry. I raced to the van and brought all the hardcover books I had. He
seemed very interested and went to his room, returning with $100! So I
gave him a Krsna book, a Bhagavad-gita, a Nectar of Devotion, an SSR, a
Your Ever Well-Wisher, and some small books. Within a half hour Krsna
had given me back the laxmi I'd spent on the room! A little later a lady
in a hotel gave $80 for a Gita, Kurma's cookbook, and a Your Ever
Well-wisher. So it's difficult to know how Krsna works in these
mysterious circumstances.

Your servant,
Rupa Raghunatha das

Dear devotees,

Recently I had the great fortune of having my four wisdom teeth pulled out.

I went to the dentist in dhoti and kurta, and all the dental staff were
really favorable, so I invited them for the Sunday Feast at our city
sankirtan ashram and promised to bring some books for them on my next
visit.

One week later I had to go in for a check-up. I was back on sankirtan
but taking it easy, and when I went for my appointment I took some books
for the staff as I had promised.

I entered the surgery reception, reported to the secretary, and took my
seat in the back row.

Then I saw a man sitting in front, to the left. He was wearing a
dark-green outfit, which is the common jail uniform here. Then I spotted
his escort, a male police officer, sitting to his left. I looked closer
at the prisoner. He had thick metal shackles on his wrists. I noticed
that there was a book resting on the seat to his right, which was the
seat directly in front of me.

I thought, "Wow. Look at this man all shackled up, with no freedom. And
he likes to read! Maybe I can somehow give him a book. But how? Should I
strike up a conversation with him and ask if he wants it? If the officer
became aware of the book, he might forbid the prisoner to get the mercy,
especially if he saw the title: 'Perfect Escape,' by His Holiness
Devamrita Swami."

I remembered that I had once tried to send some books to a lost gurukuli
brother of mine. He was in prison for an incident in which he had acted
in self-defense. But the jail officers informed me that I couldn't send
any books. So instead I wrote him a long letter about how we're all
locked up in the prison house of the material world and the invisible
bars are sex desire. So he should pray to Lord Narasimha-deva for His
protection.

Now my plan was that when the officer looked away I would somehow place
the book on top of the prisoner's other book through the back of the
seat in front of me. That way the prisoner would notice it without
making a big deal, and then he would hopefully take it back to the jail
for him and others to read.

While I was planning all this, the prisoner suddenly turned around and
looked at me!

"You getting your wisdom teeth pulled, bud?" he asked.

"Na, bro," I replied in the local street slang, "I got em out last week."

"Oh, you just in for a check-up, ey?" said the prisoner.

"Yeah," I replied with a nod that was familiar to him.

I asked if he was getting his teeth pulled out, and he said he was just
waiting for another prisoner who was having an operation. When you get
an operation, the nurses ask you to bring an escort to accompany you
home because of the aftereffects of the general anesthesia.

So Krishna had arranged our contact.

I positioned myself nicely for the drop, holding "Perfect Escape" under
the Krsna book I was reading. Now I just had to wait for the officer to
look the other way when the elevator doors opened to the left of us, as
he had done the last two times.

Ping! The doors opened. The officer turned his head to look at the
passengers exiting the lift, and I swiftly but silently slipped the book
through the hole in the back of the seat in front of me and placed it
right on top of the prisoner's other book.

The officer started talking to the prisoner about criminals, judges,
courts, the system, etc., as if he were a colleague. The prisoner
ignored him. The officer just kept going on, pointing out faults in the
system, as the prisoner turned his head to see the new book that had
mysteriously appeared. He looked at it curiously for a few seconds and
then looked back at me. I gave him the underworld nod to seal the deal.
He returned the nod with a secret look of strong gratitude.

He picked up the book and started inspecting the cover. "Perfect
Escape." The officer saw it but didn't pay any attention, still absorbed
in his conversation with himself. The prisoner opened it, read the
chapter tiles and the back cover, looked back at me with an eye of
respect, and then started reading the introduction. By this time the
officer had realized he wasn't getting any response from his detainee
and became silent. But he didn't show any concern about the new book.

Success! "This book could change his whole life!" I thought to myself.
And maybe many more back in the prison.

"Mr. Godden!" called the nurse. It was time for my check-up.

As I entered the door with the nurse, the officer called out, "Excuse
me, nurse." My heart skipped a beat! I thought I was going to get a
tongue-lashing from the officer. "How much longer?" He asked. I looked
back while the nurse said, "A few more minutes, sir." And the prisoner
again caught my eye and winked with deep appreciation.

I then went in for my check-up with the surgeon who had operated on me.
A favorable man. I asked him how the anesthesia worked. He explained
that they only knew how long a person would be unconscious according to
dosage and body weight, but they had absolutely no idea how the
anesthetic worked on the brain. He said, "The brain is an extremely
complex thing." I used this opportunity to point out that it's funny to
think that it all came from a big bang. He agreed and I gave him a book
to read also.

Jaya Srila Prabhupada!

Thank you for saving as all from Maya's dark dungeon.

Making an escape from Maya's prison, still dragging a ball and chain,

Your servant,
Dhruvananda Dasa
Sydney, Austrailia

Hare Krishna! Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila
Prabhupada.

In order to try to inspire devotees in book distribution, we have lectures on
book distribution at:
http://www.iskcondesiretree.net/page/book-distribution


Thank you
Your servant,
Vaishnava seva dasa
_____o_
www.iskcondesiretree.com
www.iskcondesiretree.net

"Chant Hare Krishna and be happy"