Simply Show the Books to one and all
Some devotees have preconceived notions of who will take a book and who won't. This becomes more common as the book distributors find expected responses from certain people. Krishna however mercifully reveals to us how we are simply insignificant. This truth gets more credence as certain unpredictable behavior is seen amongst people, which is completely inexplicable by mundane logic.
We had almost emptied our book bags with only one Gujarati Gita left and for the last one-hour were hoping someone takes the book. In this holiday crowd it was difficult to locate a Gujarati person, leave alone someone interested to take the only remaining copy. Earlier we would show books to anyone we came across. But now we restricted ourselves to studying various faces, searching out for only Gujarati people. It looked funny as both of us made long five minute announcements on how Bhagavad Gita is a unique book, a must for all and we have just one copy in one language meant for one special soul. Obviously the crowd wasn't impressed and not the least bit interested. A little while later as we finished our announcement, two Gujarati gentlemen simultaneously raised their hands showing their interest, one standing at the doorway and the other seated just in front of me. As a reflex action, I gave the copy to the seated passenger, while smiling apologetically to the one at the door. As this man then went through the book, the one a little further in the doorway, wanting to get down at the next station was stuck in a crowd of people and held the amount, 80 Rupies on his outstretched hand, wanting a copy in return.
I assured him I would certainly give him if this man didn't take the book. However as he casually flipped through, promising to pay up, the station was nearing and he seemed uninterested. Meanwhile the one wanting the book became impatient as he felt the pushing more intense. Then abruptly, the seated passenger returned the book with a disgust dismissal. There was no time to express shock at this behavior. Instead I immediately passed the book to the one who was all ready to take the copy. He was still waiting hopefully. As he got off the train, for no apparent reason, his smile turned to a frown. Returning the book, he put the money safely in his own pocket. This was another shock and we couldn't believe it. I immediately told Satish to get off the train and follow him. I too hastily followed Satish and ran behind this disgruntled customer. Finally we located him at the foot over bridge and I apologized for any unintended offense and also implored him to take the last remaining copy. He remained grave. I probed further, "but what happened sir? You seem to be upset about something." He said, "No, I just don't want the book. Leave me alone.". As we stood there confused, he walked away, still angry about something.
We returned dejected at the lost chance of an unfortunate soul who almost received Srila Prabhupad's mercy but threw it all away at the last second. However on our way back, an elderly couple greeted us. They seemed well educated, cultured and had polite mannerisms. The man turned to me, " You seem to be spiritual people. What do you do in life?" I picked up a Gita and handed it to him. "Oh, this is in Gujarati and that's our mother tongue.", the lady replied. As I spoke to the middle-aged gentleman, extolling the virtues of reading Bhagavad Gita, the lady noddingly approved. The man couldn't hide his eagerness, " you know we have been married for twenty five years and we have been praying to God everyday to give us some direction to our meaningless lives. There has to be something more to life than our daily drudgery. I hope this book gives us new hope and meaning." I assured it will. They thanked us gratefully for our 'kindness' in giving them the book. Krishna has decided who the recipients of His boundless mercy will be. Those who refuse Srila Prabhupada's books are simply clearing the way for the books to reach others who are earnestly seeking them. Our job is to simply show the books to one and all. If we however give up on distribution, we have certainly lost a rare chance of being used as instruments to connect the conditioned souls to Krishna.
Hare Krsna
