Blog
Krishna is Bhakta Vatsala
I approached an older black man at a street fair. In a respectful manner, he began to question why I believed what was in the books. Considering how good of an event this was, I was surprised that I was giving him so much time. But I would soon find out why. His daughter (about ten yrs. old) came and sat down next to her father, looked at the books, and said “Hey, that’s Krishna!” Her father and I were both shocked. I asked, “You know about Krishna?” She said, “Yeah, my father loves reading about Krishna.” I was surprised, but by...
read moreSrila Prabhupada’s books do the heavy lifting
We cast our books to the public, not knowing where they’ll go. It’s nice to see them take root and grow. Recently, I visited Matthew’s house in Lynchburg, Virginia. It was the first time I’d seen him since our brief encounter at a music festival nine years ago. He proudly showed me his Bhagavad Gita, “This is the book you sold me. I read the whole thing. It took me a year.” The book was full of colorful marks highlighting points he liked. Practically every page had marks on it. “This book brought about a major change in my life.”...
read moreMystical Messages on Sankirtan
Going on book distribution is always an adventure. We never know what lesson Krishna wants us to learn next. Recently, I was distributing on 16th Street in downtown Denver, Colorado. A young man approached me with a concern. He said, “Hey, why don’t you carry your books like a real monk on your back? Why do you cheat and use that rolling bag? That’s not very honorable.” Slightly amused by the ridiculous accusation, I was surprised that he then kept insisting that he knew what the dharma of a brahmacari is. I became a little...
read moreKrsna and His devotee give a helping hand
Burwood is usually one of the toughest suburbs in Sydney for book distribution. I have been there a few times already. So this time I started pessimistically again, then realized that I need to be positive to start book distribution, so I went on to greet some people. Met a couple of people and had unsuccessful attempts. Then along comes this Indian gentleman with ear phones on, listening to something. I stopped him and asked whether he would be interested in taking a Bhagavad-gita. It was the quickest sale of my life. He asked me, “Can you...
read moreAs a book distributor surrenders, Krishna may reciprocate accordingly
Every Sunday, we do harinama at the same market place in Minsk, Belarus, for two hours. Usually, I distribute books while it's going on. Recently, when the harinama was already approaching the end, in my bag were left six books: three big and three small, all with the same title. I started intensely praying to distribute all the books, but I was so unsuccessful that couldn't distribute even one. Finally, the whole harinama party came to our bus to leave, and I looked around in the hope of seeing someone who could take at least one...
read moreProvided with some ideas by Krsna
During our August sankirtan festival in Durban, I was as sick as a dog, but still wanted to take part. I organized my team, and they went were on their way. Unfortunately I couldn't join them. That week, I was admitted to a hospital for bronchial pneumonia and other complications while contemplating how to distribute books in that unfortunate condition, I was provided with some ideas by Krsna. I went on my phone and asked a few friends whether they were interested in purchasing books. Lo and behold, I was most surprised, as I distributed...
read moreYou just carry the books!
I approached my temple authority, saying, "Aditya Rupaka Prabhu, can I do another service today? I think that today isn't really my day for sankirtan." He didn't accept my argument, and he responded, "You just carry the books." "But Aditya Rupaka, I have no inspiration to talk to people." "Don't talk, just carry the books. Say to yourself, 'OK. Today I am just a carrier.'" As soon as I left the temple, I got the idea to walk to a park, sit there and read, maybe even nap, and then...
read more“Do I keep it? Do I put it back?”
During our Monthly Sankirtan Festival in Wellington, a boy was walking in our direction, so we asked him, “Are you a thoughtful person?” He responded, “Yes, I am. And right now I’m in a predicament. Maybe you guys can help me.” He was looking a little distressed so my husband, Bal Gopal, patted his shoulder and said, “Sure, man, what’s going on?” He said, “I just went to the cash machine down the road and a $20 note was just sitting there hanging out of the machine! I waited for about 5...
read moreA regular customer appeared out of nowhere
I was distributing in Bethlehem, Tauranga, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. In the Countdown Supermarket parking lot I saw a young delivery guy heading toward his van. I approached him and put a Hiding in Unnatural Happiness in his hand. Eru is a nineteen-year-old New Zealander half Maori native. Enthused about the book and our exchange, he wanted to donate but had no cash, so I pulled out the mobile eftpos PayClip machine. Eru trusted me but had doubts about this device. He expressed that he didn't want to take the risk. Just at that moment,...
read moreAtheist take Prabhupada’s books
I approached a couple in downtown Denver and offered them books. Immediately the man said, "Not interested — we're atheists." I responded, "You know, with all of the advancement in science, none of the scientists have a clue what consciousness is. They speculate about it, and that's it. There is no agreement among them what consciousness is. "But Socrates had a clear understanding of consciousness: it's the soul within the body. And these books also give a clear understanding of consciousness, which, by...
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