Los Angeles SD Newsletter VOL. 2, ISSUE 24
(Continued from the last issue)
THE ORIGINAL BOOK PRODUCTION MARATHON
From the book “All Glories to the Sankirtana Devotees”
Nowadays we produce Srila Prabhupada’s books with a staff of ten to fifteen people—a translator, an editor, proofreaders, typists, composers, typesetters, layoutmen, cameramen—but Srila Prabhupada produced his books alone, with a technology that was primitive. The type was set with single-lettered lead type. They didn’t even have Linotypes, which produce one line at a time. How Srila Prabhupada went through all these different stages is beyond the understanding of those of us used to making books with machines.
And at the same time that he was producing his books, he was writing a topical newspaper, the original Back to Godhead, wherein he made relevant comments on the hot news of the day. He would sell his newspaper to people while they sat in cafes and restaurants sipping their tea. He once told me that the Delhi streets were so hot that he was swooning as he walked along. One time he fainted from the heat and was almost run over by a car, but he was saved by a well-wishing passerby. Despite these difficulties he would go out and distribute his books and newspapers; and with the donations from these sales and a few other sources, he would buy more paper and gradually go on printing his books. He went on printing his books even though he didn’t have a clear idea how to sell them. He tried selling them through bookstores, but they were not moving very fast. He placed them in libraries and universities. And he presented them to the Prime Minister, who greatly appreciated them. From a mundaner’s point of view, this was pure pound, shillings, and pence business and had nothing to with spiritual life. But amazingly, Srila Prabhupada was working just for Krishna and his spiritual master, who had given him the mission to preach in the English language so that all the people of the world could benefit.
