Conversation Devotee (1): (offers obeisances) Prabhupada: Sit down. How are you? Devotee (1): Fine. (pause) Prabhupada: (Bengali) (indistinct) So? What is the report? Hm? Tamala Krsna: Want to give your report? You can… Devotee (1): Yes, I’ll just move in. Tamala Krsna: You want to hear any report, Srila Prabhupada? Or just talk? Prabhupada: Just talk. Mr. Myer: We have a beautiful temple, and I think… Prabhupada: Hm? Mr. Myer: It’s a beautiful temple. I’ve also been attending the various classes, reading some of the books, and I think it’s something we need in this country very badly. Prabhupada: Hm? Mr. Myer: We need in this country very much, in every city, in every town. For twenty years I was searching for something like this, and I think something exactly what I have dreamt of. And I think there are some very few problems that might come up, because most of the people are sannyasis. They are doing lot of preaching work. They aren’t necessarily bothered with lot of administrative work. And if their administrative work is done by some other people, then they can concentrate more on preaching, which is very necessary. Prabhupada: Yes, sannyasi, brahmacari, means preaching. They are not meant for material management. They have dedicated their life for spiritual—although this material service is also spiritual—but they are doing on such a strength. You cannot expect a very expertly management and… But they act. Simply ask them to do the needful. Mr. Myer: That’s right. Tamala Krsna: Yeah, out of desire to serve you, they carry out whatever you ask. Prabhupada: They cannot be expert, these men, managers. They are not… They are giving up everything. But as soon as there is big establishment, we require a top manager. Mr. Myer: Sometimes there are so many different areas. There is temple management. There is book distribution. There is guesthouse. Now the gurukula is coming. Prabhupada: Therefore we want some expert manager to stick to this. When they cannot manage, it is not their fault, because they are not meant for this. Mr. Myer: Quite right. Prabhupada: So if you kindly take up the general management, you are welcome. Money is being squandered. I know that. If you can save some money, that is your great success. Mr. Myer: And then we must try to follow the local customs here. What happens when people come to the temple, they normally like to offer flowers, special puja. And it might mean that we require more pujaris, and also we need some more public relations because today there are not many people to conduct these guests around the…, visitors who came to worship. Prabhupada: No, they are different men. They are coming from different country. Mr. Myer: That’s true. So it’s difficult for them to relieve. Prabhupada: And they are… Mr. Myer: Local people, we have to have local people with more language and… Prabhupada: The local people… Some educated people come, they… Then it can be done. Mr. Myer: ’Cause why… Prabhupada: But whatever they’re doing, simply by training, that there may be some… Mr. Myer: Yes. We can develop some sort of training program. The gurukula facilities are there. So if some young men are taken who are trained in that fashion, they could do quite a lot. And then we are having major problem in the distribution of some of the literature. You see, Back to Godhead seems to be a very powerful magazine. It has always been very dear to you. You started this even in India. Unfortunately it comes one year late, and we have about several thousand members in India. So I was wondering whether we should try to publish it in India now, because the quantity is not enough. And then have some members who are subscribing for the Back to Godhead… Because some people are unable to afford the very large membership. Otherwise we will remain very exclusive. We won’t be able to reach the common man. So one of the things is that each man who comes into the temple, if he can buy a copy of Back to Godhead magazine, he takes away something with him which he can remember. Otherwise people come to Mathura, they visit so many temples, and they don’t carry any souvenir. Tamala Krsna: But we’re selling our literature here. Mr. Myer: Yeah, but that’s very old. Some of the copies are very old. Tamala Krsna: But they don’t know that when they buy it. Mr. Myer: And secondly, that doesn’t cover much of the activity in India. Prabhupada: There is no “old.” By date it does not become old. Mr. Myer: You see, what happens, sometimes if you read the magazine, it says the Janmastami on the l8th of August, but this year it is possibly on some other date. So, you know, like that, if a person reads, then he feels that… Prabhupada: For him it is new, but because he did not see… Mr. Myer: That’s true. But we are not covering very many activities of India in that, what is happening here. Prabhupada: Just like panjika… What is called, that? Tamala Krsna: Almanac. Prabhupada: Almanac. It is always written there, Nutana Panjika, “New Panjika,” although it may be fifty years old. Mr. Myer: I understand. Who will read it? I recently bought a book. I bought a fifty-eighth anniversary book of… Prabhupada: “New Almanac.” And… Although you’ll see a fifty years old almanac, there is “New Almanac.” Tamala Krsna: So for the person who picks it up, it’s new. Mr. Myer: Quite right. I should liken to Readers Digest. I bought recently the fiftieth anniversary. They have published articles from last fifty years of books almost. So… Prabhupada: Hm. Tamala Krsna: I tried to suggest to Mr. Myer that one thing is that before he introduces too many new things, first of all make the things that are already introduced successful. Prabhupada: First of all thing is that the money is unnecessarily squandered. Try to save it. Mr. Myer: Quite right. Tamala Krsna: That’s the first point. Mr. Myer: Actually what we have to do is study the results of the last five months, and I think that if we can do it department ways, find out the individual operation of each area, then only it is possible to do some improvements and even then to control… Prabhupada: So do that. Tamala Krsna: That you know how to do. Mr. Myer: Quite right. So… Tamala Krsna: Whether you have some reservations? Mr. Myer: Not really. Only thing is that at the moment I am managing some four, five companies where I am the managing director, and I have some personal guarantees with the bank, thirteen, fourteen lakhs. So if I am to… I can come (indistinct). I can give away all the administrative problems to my coolie, who can manage the company, and I can come over here. It may require just going to some board meeting once in three months, just to complete the… Tamala Krsna: That’s nothing. But you mentioned that there’s some reservation here that your activities will be checked or something? Mr. Myer: Well, here the problem is that, you see… I’m just wondering what is the form of management, because it may happen that… I attended one committee meetings the other day when GBC was here from Bombay, and I was not able to find out that somebody who normally would take some action… There would have to be one person who has to be given some guidelines, and then he must take action. But then the trouble thing will be, if he has to go to a committee, it will only delay things. One can’t really act in… In committees, see, there are different people. They have different opinion, and very little can be consensus of all the different ideas. So I think it’s good to have a committee meeting where a man reports the problems, evaluation like, where we have a… I will attend a meeting in England, where… That is about twelve… Yatita Prabhu(?), he was conducting a meeting on a Sunday, and they were trying to take the stock of what had happened in the week and what was the budget for next week. That kind of a meeting is very… Because then there are some statistics. We have some performance of what happened and what we wish to do. Tamala Krsna: So make… You have to develop. You have to teach them how to do that. Mr. Myer: Quite right. Tamala Krsna: But you had… But he had a reservation that before any change like this can be made, Aksayananda Maharaja should also be acceptable to his proposal, because right now he’s managing everything himself. So… Prabhupada: That… Whatever I’ll say, he’ll accept. There is no question of refusing. Tamala Krsna: Right. Prabhupada: Whatever I’ll order… Tamala Krsna: I mean, he has to hear that from you. That’s what I was trying to indicate. Prabhupada: I’ll give you whatever you demand. Tamala Krsna: Yeah, he is completely surrendered. Prabhupada: There is no problem. Now show us. Let us practically see that what has happened by changing. Tamala Krsna: Changing. You have to show some results now. Mr. Myer: Quite right. Quite right. Prabhupada: Or doing something or not doing, whatever I’ll order… Mr. Myer: No, this may mean certain major reorganization in terms of the managing account. It is sort of personal. So it will have to be… Prabhupada: They’ll do. They’ll do whatever I ask. Mr. Myer: That is fine. I shall… That way, it is very convenient, because Prabhupada is now guiding us, and we have no problem. That is all for guru because I am managing only people, and as Prabhu said, it’s more a spiritual management here. It’s not just purely material management. Prabhupada: Whatever you think, you can do. Now, now… So let me see practically that… What is that? Thirteen thousand only? Mr. Myer: Well, I’m just trying to do a quick study. I have tried to find out what are the various expenses, and I found that the… Prabhupada: If somebody has said, then I shall know that he has practiced. Tamala Krsna: So this is what Prabhupada’s going to look for. Mr. Myer: We actually have a two-way program. One is to get in more money, and the other is to save what’s going out. Because the parade(?) all through the mission are not even thousand in a month in some months. It’s only 845 rupees in a month. On the average it’s only 1,600. And prasada, about 2,600. Main money was coming in sankirtana parties. They keep going out and they mail in a lot of money. Some money is coming from donations. But the generation here is very limited. I think that’s what we really need to attract. How would you like, get that initiated boy to start work for you? Tamala Krsna: I don’t know what Prabhupada… I mean… So Mr. Myer should begin. Prabhupada: Hm. Tamala Krsna: And Your Divine Grace will talk with Aksayananda Maharaja. Prabhupada: This night I’ll speak. Tamala Krsna: So what will Aksayananda Maharaja… He’ll be for preaching. Prabhupada: Whatever may be… Tamala Krsna: Mr. Myer was saying that he…, that Aksayananda Maharaja can remain as the president, and he can do preaching work. They need a good preacher here. And let him do all the management. Prabhupada: That will be done. Tamala Krsna: Let Aksayananda concentrate on preaching to the people who come here, making members, you know, classes… Mr. Myer: Yeah, at the moment the quality of our programs is very poor. Tamala Krsna: So let him… Mr. Myer: That’s one of the biggest problems, where people having… They’re not sticking… Prabhupada: Whatever I’ll say to him, he’ll do. Tamala Krsna: That’s a fact. We’re all like that. Mr. Myer: We want some quality of programs… Prabhupada: There is no problem. Now you manager… That means you have to… Tamala Krsna: So now it’s on you, starting tomorrow, to show some something. Mr. Myer: One thing, if I could just, Srila Prabhupada, for initiation… Tamala Krsna: He wants to be initiated, Srila Prabhupada. Mr. Myer: Then I could have your blessings to start the work. Prabhupada: Yes, you have all my blessings. Tamala Krsna: Do you want him to be initiated just now or wait some time? Prabhupada: He can be initiated. First thing is that… That is required. Tamala Krsna: He wants that. You have to shave your head to get initiated. Mr. Myer: No problem. Tamala Krsna: Can you do that? Mr. Myer: Yes. Tamala Krsna: How will you…? You will be able to do it? Mr. Myer: I can come back for it, once gone… Sri Krsna, I don’t… Visvanatha… Tamala Krsna: He can… If he works out nicely, it’ll be very good. So when do you want to get initiated? Mr. Myer: Any time Maharaja’s willing… Tamala Krsna: So I can consult Panditaji for an auspicious day. Prabhupada: Every day is auspicious. Tamala Krsna: (laughs) That’s why you’re able to spread Krsna consciousness all over the world, Srila Prabhupada. Mr. Myer: In Madras we have got very particular people. This is ho-kalam(?). One and a half hour every day, nobody does any work. Monday, 7:30 to nine. It’s some time every day they say very bad. People don’t start anything new, not going… In the afternoon there is rama-dandana.(?) So it always means a way of postponing things, so, as Guru was saying the other day, somebody said, “It’s not auspicious to sleep on the north side.” So then he said, “I don’t have a head, so it doesn’t matter which way the…” Quite true, that is. Tamala Krsna: So if tomorrow we could have this… Or day after tomorrow, perhaps. It will take a day to get the ingredients. Day after tomorrow is all right with you? Mr. Myer: No, that’s very good, yeah. Tamala Krsna: No, today’s Friday, so day after tomorrow will be Sunday. Sunday morning. Is that all right? Actually Mr. Myer came here to get initiated. He had no idea to come here to become a manager here. Originally, before he went back to Madras to get his wife, he just came here for this thing, because he heard that you were very ill, and he didn’t know what your position would be, so he wanted… So he rushed here, stopping all his work, simply to take initiation. Prabhupada: That is Krsna’s inspiration. Mr. Myer: So one year I was reading books on…, listening to the tapes, and I… Tamala Krsna: What is your first name? Mr. Myer: Krishan. Tamala Krsna: Good name. His name is Krishan Myer. Mr. Myer: Our grand-uncle in the family, he named all the brothers in the family after God. My eldest brother, he’s in Belux.(?) He’s already met you several times in Mayapura. He’s one of the first member in ISKCON from there. He was called Ram Prem Narayan Sen Myer. So teacher found the name was too long. She dropped the Ram, so she kept Prem Narayan Sen Myer. Then Dr. Badrinarayan Maraka, he abridged the name in Bangalore to Har Narayan Sen. However, I was told I named myself Krishan. I don’t know how it… So that’s how the name came into being. Prabhupada: So keep it on Sunday. Tamala Krsna: All right, Srila Prabhupada. There’s a letter from Vasudeva, Deoji Punja. Would you like to hear? Prabhupada: Hm. [break] Tamala Krsna: It says, “I met Hari-sauri in Australia last week.” He went to Australia. “He and I have agreed upon August 28th for the date of opening the Sri-Krsna-Kaliya Temple.” It says, “People here are very anxious for this event to take place. The Deities are to arrive on July l8th according to Ramesvara Swami, who also will be coming to the opening ceremonies. Ramesvara Swami has also told us that he will send money to Dhananjaya to make clothes, crowns and jewels for the Deities. Hari-sauri will be sending money to Yasodanandana Swami to come.” Prabhupada: That’s nice. Tamala Krsna: “And as luggage, he can carry the clothes, jewels, crowns, etc., for the opening if possible.” Prabhupada: Very good. Tamala Krsna: “We are sending our balance sheet for your inspection. Hope this meets you in good health. P.S. Book distribution is increasing two hundred percent this month, as desired.” Oh, doubling it. They also wrote him that he has to double the book distribution. He says, “Local people are enthusiastic to distribute Prabhupada’s literature.” He sent a very professional balance sheet, chartered accounts. Prabhupada: He can… You can see. Mr. Myer: Yes, very nice. Prabhupada: These things you’ll have to take. Mr. Myer: He’s not a (indistinct), so a very good manager… Prabhupada: He is the proper man. Tamala Krsna: This man is the biggest businessman in Lautoka, Fiji, and his brother is the mayor. And he became initiated disciple of Srila Prabhupada’s, and personally he has organized a society there, collected all the funds and built a beautiful temple with Krsna-Kaliya Deity. Mr. Myer: That is where Yasoda-nandana Maharaja is going for the opening. Tamala Krsna: Yeah. Mr. Myer: Fiji, yes. Very nice. Tamala Krsna: Very businesslike, how he sent this account sheet and everything. Mr. Myer: Beautiful, so beautiful, so exact, not… Prabhupada: No, they know business. Tamala Krsna: He’s a good businessman, this Deoji Punja. His name is Deoji Punja. Prabhupada: His father was a goldsmith, very humble position. Now they are the richest man. So Brahmananda not required? Tamala Krsna: I don’t think Brahmananda will go. Too costly for him. They can’t afford it. I’m glad that they’re inviting Yasoda-nandana Maharaja. I think it may be too difficult for you to go there at this time, Srila Prabhupada. You should stick to your principle that until you’re completely… The only thing that can make you move out of Vrndavana is Sri-Sri-Radha-Rasa-Vihari. Mr. Myer: In Bombay. Prabhupada: That. Mr. Myer: That will be very big event. Tamala Krsna: For Them you will do anything. ’Cause actually They have done everything for you, Srila Prabhupada. You asked Them to stand there despite… Mr. Myer: Yati Prabhu was telling me the entire story, how Srila Prabhupada moved into his…, when it was not even completed, and all the devotees had to… Tamala Krsna: Oh, recently? Mr. Myer: Yes, I learned about some time back. I was watching big picture and all. There are also… Tamala Krsna: Mrs. Singol, she wrote a letter. Prabhupada: Doctor. Tamala Krsna: Dr. Singol’s wife. Prabhupada: His wife? Tamala Krsna: She wrote you a letter, very feelingful letter. Prabhupada: Hm hm. She is very attached. Tamala Krsna: Want to hear the letter? Prabhupada: I’ll wait. Tamala Krsna: All right. Prabhupada: Or you can read. No harm. Tamala Krsna: She says, “Our most revered Guru Maharaja, my crores of charan and vandana at the lotus feet of Lord Krsna and at the lotus feet of our revered Guruji. When you were here we could not have your darshan due to your illness, and after that, you left Bombay and went to Vrndavana. We prayed to Lord Krsna for your life, and our Lord Krsna is so kind that He again heard our prayers, and now you are better. We are informed by the devotees that Guru Maharaja is better. May Lord Krsna give you a long life, happiness and good health and your stay with us for a few more years. We were in dark, and you have enlightened our life and taught us real religion. You shower your blessings on us. I always feel your presence near me always in the heart. We want you. Your life is very essential for us. Kindly, Guru Maharaja, take care of your health. We believe in both prayer and medicines, so kindly do not neglect yourself. Your dream of Bombay ISKCON temple has come true. It is just like Krsna’s palace in Dvaraka. It is a top building, a jewel and (indistinct). Now I close my letter with my prayers for your good health. Your faithful devotee, Nirmala Singol.” Prabhupada: You reply that I am progressing little. Tamala Krsna: Yes. Mr. Myer: It’s actually not only imagining that if we double the book distribution, then Srila Prabhupada will improve. Prabhupada: Everywhere book selling is… Mr. Myer: Everywhere it’s just going on doubling. That’s how the whole world people are looking toward your good health and balance(?). Sometime… Tamala Krsna: We’re looking forward to the Srimad-Bhagavatam, tenth, eleventh and twelfth cantos. That is what we’re all… Prabhupada: Yes. Tamala Krsna: We’re awaiting that. The whole world waits for Prabhupada’s books. We get letters from all over the world. One woman prayed that… She says that she has read all nine cantos. Now she’s stuck. She can’t come on the Tenth Canto till he finishes. And you already said that she shouldn’t, you know, that we should not read the bogus versions. So she can’t go into the Tenth Canto until we come out with our own edition. Jaya Srila Prabhupada. Prabhupada: Jaya. (end)
with His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
July 1, 1977, Vrndavana