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Uncle Kamsa
In the early 1970s devotee-teams of matajis used to do traveling sankirtan. One of these devotees was Ananga Manjari dd. She relates a story that once happened at a fair. She and three other women were at a fair, and there one man was bothering two of the matajis by telling people not to give a donation. So they went to Ananga Manjari to ask what to do. She told them to go to another spot and she would try to deal with the problem. Sure enough, as soon as she would approach someone, he would tell them not to give a donation. At one point she...
read moreSecret of Success
I remember Christmas eve of the L.A December marathon of 1996. His Grace Vijay Prabhu had decided to stay at the LA airport for as long as it was necessary for him to distribute 100 Bhagavad Gitas hardbound. Sure enough, late at night, he came back to the temple, having distributed that exact amount and having collected 1200 dollars. Yajna Purusa Prabhu asked him a very important question which I recall vividly. He said, "So, Vijay, what is your secret? What is your secret for having distributed so many books for so many years?"...
read moreLos Angeles SD Newsletter Vol.3 Issue 22
VANCA KALPA… FAITH IS NOT RELIGION By Nitika Thapar Our last meeting was held at Bhakta Tony’s home. The program was attended by the faithful patrons of Sastra Dana who are always eager to receive the mercy in the form of Krsna-bhajan, Krsna-katha and Krsna-prasadam. Kakudmi Prabhu enthused us all with his beautiful bhajans and following this, Arcita Prabhu spoke from the Bhagavad-Gita (11.55): “My dear Arjuna, he who engages in my pure devotional service, free from the contaminations of fruitive activities and mental...
read moreLos Angeles SD Newsletter Vol.3 Issue 22
IN MEMORY By Nandanandana däsa Prakasananda dasa was the first devotee in Mexico City and in all of Latin America. On the Saturday, Dvadasi, 13 of October, Prakasananda prabhu left his body at Srila Prabhupada’s quarters in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Prakasananda prabhu met and joined the pioneering devotees, Citsukhananda das, Bhutahrit dasa and Bhakta Jan, in 1971. During Srila Prabhupada’s first visit to Mexico, in 1972, he got his first initiation from His Divine Grace. Few months later he left with Citsukhananda prabhu to...
read moreLos Angeles SD Newsletter Vol.3 Issue 22
LILAS “G-Love and the Special Sauce” Jïäna-cakñuç däsa (USA) Dear Prabhus, Please accept my humble obeisances! All glories to Srila Prabhupada! Here are two stories from the previous Friday, the 12th. While out with Bhakta (Rupa) Richard of Denver, we were talking about increasing the amount of donations that we would accept from the donators. The amount of $50 was thrown out. We went from the van to the parking lots here in Missouri for a shot at it. As it turned out, one very tall and hard to miss...
read moreLos Angeles SD Newsletter Vol.3 Issue 22
attached is a photo of Sergio Canela and his son (at Govinda's in New Dvaraka) WHO ARE THEY SERGIO CANELA By Mahat-tattva däsa I would like to thank all of the devotees like Sergio Canela Prabhu for their supporting the Sastra Dana distribution of Srila Prabhupada’s books. It is by their mercy that we are able to engage ourselves and others in devotional activity of giving people a chance to contact the Lord through the knowledge of Srimad Bhagavatam. Generally people are very much attached to the fruits of their labor. My...
read moreAhh Mormons!
Dear Prabhus, Please accept my humble obeisances, all glories to Srila Prabhupada. Doing books in Greece was super blissful. We did soft Gitas and Sri Isopanisads. When I saw that people were not interested I resorted to the old double reverse program by telling people that they definitely wouldn't enjoy the book and it was everything they weren't interested in and opposite of everything they believed in and whatever they do they shouldn't give a donation for the book. And of course that was enough to convince them that they...
read moreInterview with Brigupati Prabhu, October 2002
Dear Vijaya Prabhu, Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. Granted- I want name and fame. But I also want the book distributors world-wide to be pleased upon me. Some operate with the idea, "Krsna knows what I did; no need to tell anyone." But I operate with the idea that if devotees hear about my insignificant service, they will bestow their good wishes upon me, and that is my advancement. All this to say that I wouldn't mind being mentionned as the one who transcribed the following talk. Your...
read moreFor the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada, from Czech Republic
Here are some stories from the sankirtan devotees in Czech Republic. Panca-tattva Dasa (Czech) wrote the following homage to Srila Prabhupada for his last vyasa-puja celebration: One afternoon I distributed your books in a full supermarket parking lot: the Hypernova store in Ostrov (the west part of Czech). I knocked on the window of a car. There sat a serious older man patiently waiting for his wife to finish a two-hour shopping trip. These types of men usually gladly look through the books, because they get bored by waiting so long. He...
read moreIntimate Connection with the Supersoul
Once, at the L.A airport at Continental Airlines, Brigupati Prabhu and I were sitting in the airport seats, honoring prasadam as passengers walked by on the nearby isle way. At one point, an ordinary man passed, and Brigupati Prabhu stared at him for a long time. After this he turned to me and said, "Quickly! Go catch up to that guy over there! Sell him a Bhagavad Gita! He'll give you twenty dollars!" Without washing my hands, I picked up a hardbound Gita and ran up to the man. I stopped him and made my usual presentation to...
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