Bhakti Vikasa Swami's Blog, page 32

Srila Prabhupada’s life and soul

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.” (laughs)

Room Conversation – December 31, 1976, Bombay

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The loudest mrdanga ever

There is no comparison. There is no literature throughout the universe like Srimad-Bhagavatam. There is no comparison. There is no competition. Every word is for the good of the human society. Every word, each and every word. Therefore we stress so much in the book distribution. Somehow or other, if the book goes in one hand, he will be benefited. At least he will see, “Oh, they have taken so much price. Let me see what is there.” If he reads one sloka, his life will be successful. If one sloka, one word. This is such nice things. Therefore we are stressing so much, “Please distribute book, distribute book, distribute book.” A greater mrdanga. We are chanting, playing our mrdanga. It is heard within this room or little more. But this mrdanga will go home to home, country to country, community to community, this mrdanga.

From Srila Prabhupada’s lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.16.8 – Los Angeles, January 5, 1974

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Our most important activity

Distribution of books and magazines is our most important activity. Without books, our preaching has no solid basis.

From Srila Prabhupada’s Letter to Cyavana – Bombay, 26 December, 1971

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One must take shelter of a bona fide spiritual master

tasmad gurum prapadyeta
jijnasuh sreya uttamam
sabde pare ca nisnatam
brahmany upasamasrayam
[SB 11.3.21]

“Any person who seriously desires to achieve real happiness must seek out a bona fide spiritual master and take shelter of him by initiation. The qualification of his spiritual master is that he must have realized the conclusion of the scriptures by deliberation and be able to convince others of these conclusions. Such great personalities, who have taken shelter of the Supreme Godhead, leaving aside all material considerations, are to be understood as bona fide spiritual masters.”

Cited in Srila Prabhupada’s purport to Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.14.41

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Our first duty; chanting is the easy method of self-realization

Our first duty is to worship Caitanya Mahaprabhu. We keep the Deity. In the first we offer our obeisances to Caitanya Mahaprabhu along with His associate, and then, Guru-Gauranga… Then we offer Radha-Krsna or Jagannatha. So because this is the process of Kali-yuga, yajnaih sankirtana-prayair yajanti hi sumedhasah, if you perform this sankirtana, simply this process, as many times as possible before Lord Caitanya, then your success is guaranteed. You don’t require anything else. This is recommended: yajnaih sankirtanaih prayair yajanti hi sumedhasah. So those who are intelligent, they catch up this easy method of self-realization. The more you chant, then the cleansing process of the heart goes on very nicely. Ceto-darpana-marjanam [Cc. Antya 20.12]. This is recommended. Ceto-darp… This is the first, because our spiritual life does not begin unless ceto-darpana-marjanam, unless the mirror of the heart is cleansed. But this is the easiest process. If you chant Hare Krsna maha-mantra in ecstasy, the first benefit will be that your heart will be cleansed. Then you can see what is your position, what you are, what is your business.

From Srila Prabhupada’s lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.1.10 — June 23, 1975, Los Angeles

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Krishna gives what we want

If we want Krsna, He will give us a chance to have Him, and if we don’t want Krsna, He will give us a chance to forget Him. If we want to enjoy life forgetting Krsna, forgetting God, Krsna will give us all facility so that we can forget, but if we want to enjoy life in Krsna consciousness, Krsna will give us the chance to make progress.

From Krsna consciousness, the Matchless Gift by Srila Prabhupada

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Voluntary service in the spiritual world

In the spiritual world service is voluntary, some devotees want to serve Krishna as flower; so they become flower there. If I want that, to be a flower I shall lie down at the lotus feet of Krishna, then he becomes flower, voluntarily, and he can change his, from flower to human body. That is spiritual life. There is no restriction. If some devotee wants to serve Krishna as cow, he serves Krishna as cow, as calf, as flower, as plant, as water, as ground, field, or as father, as mother, as friend, as beloved, anything. It is
inconceivable, yet a fact.

From Srila Prabhupada’s lecture on SB 6.1.1-4, Melbourne, Australia, May 20, 1975

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Powerful Vaisnavas

Srila Vrndavana Dasa Thakura has sung that the devotees of Lord Caitanya are so powerful that each one of them can deliver a universe.

Srila Prabhupada; Srimad-Bhagavatam 4.24.58, purport

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Book distribution boosts other programs

As soon as I see that there is such increased book distribution figures, I take that to mean that all other programs are successful.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Jagadisa – Bombay, 5 January, 1973

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Servant of the wife

A man has served the family with heart and soul throughout the whole life, and when he is old man, if he asks permission from his wife, “My dear wife, now I have served so much. Let me take sannyasa now,” the wife will never give permission. She will say, “What you have done? I have got to do so many things. Your, this son is not yet settled up; this daughter is not yet married. How you can take sannyasa? So you cannot do.” So actually, he is the servant of the wife, but he is thinking, “I am master of the family.” This is called maya.

From Srila Prabhupada’s lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.1.3 — Caracas, February 24, 1975

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