Room Conversation

Prabhupāda:
There is no arrangement for producing vegetable?

Mahāṁsa:
We just finished one harvest, Prabhupāda, and now the second harvest is already in the ground.

Prabhupāda:
So what kind of harvest? You finish and then you have to wait for six months for the second one.

Mahāṁsa:
Now we are designing one plot for continuous…

Prabhupāda:
Hmm, so this… Where is Tejiyas Mahārāja? So you immediately arrange for producing vegetables.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes.

Prabhupāda:
No, I’m asking Tejiyas.

Haṁsadūta:
Here is Tejiyas, here.

Prabhupāda:
Oh, here he is. So, why don’t you do that?

Tejiyas:
Yes. I’ll make up the scheme today. It should be that you have continuous crop. You plant seeds one week… But again they have made the same mistake with these cauliflower and cabbage.

Prabhupāda:
Well, they mistake… You say, “They mistake.” Who are “they”? You say you do mistake. Don’t say “they.” This is bureaucracy, “they.” You are all “they.” Anyway, whatever is done, immediately make arrangement. And this is one thing. And the other thing: I came here that there will be festival and prasādam distribution. Why this is not begun?

Mahāṁsa:
Till yesterday there was being marriages in the city. Now, from today, the paṇḍāls are free.

Prabhupāda:
Because there are marriages our program will be canceled?

Mahāṁsa:
No, but the person who gives us the paṇḍāl… It’s supposed to start today, Prabhupāda, their program. They have been advertising in the villages about the prasādam distribution this evening, so the stage and the śāmiyānā will be coming today and the pots are coming today. So we have all the grains and everything. We can start the prasādam distribution this evening.

Prabhupāda:
So you’ll keep…, come in charge. So do this also immediately. And the next is that Bhogilal wants to come here. So bring him immediately. What is the difficulty of that house?

Mahāṁsa:
All the plastering inside is finished now.

Prabhupāda:
Everything, whatever is finished…

Mahāṁsa:
Painting has to be done.

Prabhupāda:
Eh?

Mahāṁsa:
The toilets are working, all the connections are finished, and only thing is the painting has to be done today.

Prabhupāda:
So painting also can be… Without painting, we can go there. What is the wrong there?

Mahāṁsa:
It looks a little shabby. If we wait for one more day it will look much better.

Prabhupāda:
So one more day we shall wait, but tomorrow we must go there.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes, tomorrow we can go there.

Prabhupāda:
So arrange for bringing Bhogilal tomorrow.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes, tomorrow afternoon or evening we can arrange.

Prabhupāda:
No. Yes, so immediately arrange for that. He is very important man. If he comes, you can all mature consultation about this tubewells, about managing. He is practically doing. He has one thousand acres of land.

Mahāṁsa:
Oh, yes, it’s not a joke.

Prabhupāda:
And he is practical businessman. So immediately… And besides that, he is already sympathetic. He is becoming interested more. So he can do so many things for us. He is a very nice man. So he volunteered to come here. So bring him immediately. So arrange. From tomorrow we go there. If it is not finished, then he may be given that place. I am at here. I shall stay. Or he can be given this room; I can go there. In this way… Because the doors are not yet fitted.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes, that’s the main problem.

Prabhupāda:
But there are so many main problems. So at least in my side the doors are fitted. So I can go there, and he can stay here. Anyway, either there or here, arrange to bring him immediately. He will go away by the twelfth. So he may stay here at least for one week.

Mahāṁsa:
One week.

Prabhupāda:
Tell him like that.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes. And the cooking will be done by his men.

Prabhupāda:
Yes.

Mahāṁsa:
Because if he comes, his cook will also come.

Prabhupāda:
Oh, yes. His cook, his servant, yes. So make this arrangement so that everything should be inaugurated tomorrow, not more than that. So you have to purchase vegetable and then make it big, big scheme. [chuckles] Bahv-ārambhe laghu-kriyā. Ārambha, very big, and action, very little. And ask some of our devotees to collect all the gobars and bring here. I want gobar. There is so much gobars scattered here and there. Take one basket and two men may go and collect all of them, put it in the sunshine. So nowadays sunshine is so bright. You can have so many things exposed to sunshine. All vitamins. So you immediately make program for vegetable, fruits, flower, surrounding this, immediately. So how Bhogilal will be brought here?

Mahāṁsa:
In his car.

Prabhupāda:
In his car. So make arrangement. Either we both of us, we may stay there, or one here, one there.

Mahāṁsa:
And the secretaries can stay here.

Prabhupāda:
Secretaries, as they are staying. I think one can manage that. There is no difficulty.

[break] So all the devotees here, they are all required there?

Mahāṁsa:
No.

Prabhupāda:
Then why… So the temple work is not suffering?

Mahāṁsa:
It is.

Prabhupāda:
Then why you are keeping so many devotees here?

Mahāṁsa:
The main problem now is that there were three pūjārīs, and out of that one of them is here, and he doesn’t want to go back to pūjārī work, so we have to find…

Prabhupāda:
Eh?

Mahāṁsa:
He doesn’t want to go back to do pūjārī work, so there’s only two pūjārīs, and they were just complaining yesterday that it’s very difficult to do so much Deity worship.

Prabhupāda:
So why? Why he does not want to go?

Mahāṁsa:
He wants to go traveling for a while.

Prabhupāda:
So that cannot be. So traveling means you have asked him to…?

Haṁsadūta:
No, I haven’t asked him any… It’s the same problem. Whenever I go somewhere there are always certain men, they want to go.

Prabhupāda:
No. Nobody can go without sanction. This is sense gratification, “I want to.” This is not good.

Jagadīśa:
Actually, the temple right now is in lack of a full time manager. Mahāṁsa Mahārāja spends most of his time here, and I can see that the temple management is not going right.

Prabhupāda:
Yes. Not going nice. So do you require…? But you also do not remain here.

Mahāṁsa:
No.

Prabhupāda:
Then you are not there; you are not here. Then where you are?

Mahāṁsa:
No, all these last, last two weeks I’ve been working on this house, and if I’m not here then… Like yesterday I was not here, and the workers didn’t work properly. Then I made them work in the night. When I came back, I saw that they have not…

Prabhupāda:
So that means everywhere, if you are not there, then everything is gone to hell. Then what is this management? You cannot be everywhere. That is not… You are not Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānām [Bg. 18.61].

Mahāṁsa:
I mean, the problem that came up in the temple, it was going on okay before, but then there was suddenly so many more devotees that came. Half of them were here, half of them were there, and they were moving around every day. So the temple managers were confused. They didn’t know how much…, how many devotees…

Prabhupāda:
No, temple… Who is temple manager?

Mahāṁsa:
Ānandamaya is managing now. He’s very good. He can do it nicely, but he was confused because there were devotees…

Prabhupāda:
Now there is no confusion. Immediately they can go, all the devotees. They are not required. What is the use?

Jagadīśa:
That temple is a big, big project. Ānandamaya is not competent to handle the whole thing. He doesn’t have the respect of the other members, enough. And plus I don’t see him taking charge anymore. If you ask him to get something done he says, “Well…” He always makes some excuse. This was my experience while we were there.

Prabhupāda:
Who is that man?

Mahāṁsa:
Ānandamaya. He has been here since four years, and he knows practically everybody in Hyderabad. He was working with me all the time.

Prabhupāda:
So then why does he not go there? Why he’s here?

Mahāṁsa:
He’s not here; he’s there.

Prabhupāda:
Oh. So the devotees may go there. They have no business here to stay, so many. Why? They can return back.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes.

Prabhupāda:
Yes. Immediately.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes.

Jagadīśa:
They need a head, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda:
Hmm?

Jagadīśa:
They need a head.

Prabhupāda:
A head means you have to train head. If you cut head, then how there will be head? Neither tail, neither head. Head means you have to train them, head. There is no need of so many men here. Why?

Jagadīśa:
Many of the men who are here are on Haṁsadūta’s party.

Prabhupāda:
So, do they require here?

Haṁsadūta:
I sent all the men here because Mahāṁsa promised that there would be a program lined up, but there is no program. That’s why they’re just… Now they all want to go, and if they can go I can send them. They are ready to go. They don’t want to stay.

Prabhupāda:
So?

Mahāṁsa:
The problem is that the programs I didn’t arrange, because the devotees were not regular in coming. I didn’t know when they were all coming. So if I arrange a program, that means my men…

Prabhupāda:
But therefore the meeting is here. Do here now.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes, now it can be done. But I couldn’t do…

Prabhupāda:
So it can be done. Why can you…? What? When it will be done, do that.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes.

Prabhupāda:
Don’t make future promise. You do it immediately. Make program. But settle up when it will begin, when it is right. Here work is going on. That Mṛtyu, he cannot… No?

Mahāṁsa:
Mūrti dāsa.

Prabhupāda:
Mūrti. So he cannot manage without you?

Mahāṁsa:
He can. He has to be a little more acquainted with the people. He has to…

Prabhupāda:
He is here from the last June. He is not acquainted?

Mahāṁsa:
He’s only here since about ten days. He’s not here for a long time, and he’s not very forceful in making them do the work.

Prabhupāda:
So who will be forceful?

Mahāṁsa:
He can be trained. I’m training him.

Prabhupāda:
So that training… Everyone is under training; then who will be head? If in old age you have to be trained up, then when they will be trained up? So what is the…, to sit down silently? That’s all?

Mahāṁsa:
We’ll send the parties out…

Prabhupāda:
Make. Make immediately program, where to go.

[pause]

Prabhupāda:
So why you are not making?

Mahāṁsa:
Now? Here?

Prabhupāda:
Yes, make program immediately. Write what to do.

Mahāṁsa:
I was thinking one bus should go immediately to Kākināda, because that’s where they want to have program there, and they are ready to arrange it, and we can collect some money immediately for the expenses which are going on now.

Prabhupāda:
So go. Go.

Mahāṁsa:
So if you want, we could get one bus and few devotees can go on that.

Haṁsadūta:
But where is this place?

Mahāṁsa:
Kākināda. It’s in Andhra Pradesh, Visakhapatnam near Vizag.

Haṁsadūta:
You have to make a program that on the way… Not that we drive one thousand miles to go to one program. That’s not practical. Every fifty miles or so there should be some program.

Mahāṁsa:
That’s what I mean. That whole coast is… Andhra coast is the richest area in Andhra Pradesh.

Haṁsadūta:
Yes, like that.

Mahāṁsa:
They give very nicely. We have had programs there, Prabhupāda, since three years. We’ve collected lakhs of rupees from there, and thousands of books have been distributed there.

Prabhupāda:
This I have heard even.

Mahāṁsa:
You have heard, yeah.

Prabhupāda:
So go there. What is the…? Make this.

Mahāṁsa:
They can start today? The boys are ready. They want to move, but it’s just the leaders which have not decided on getting it done.

Prabhupāda:
So decide now. What is difficulty?

Mahāṁsa:
If you can give one bus they can go immediately. And another party can go to Nagpur and start arranging for the program there on the 25th. They can do nagara-kīrtanas, book distribution, and arrange for the program on the 25th, and one bus can go to Kākināda. So all the boys will be out and be engaged. And the boys from Hyderabad should go back to Hyderabad and get into the program there. There’s so much work to be done in Hyderabad. They’re suffering a lot.

Jagadīśa:
What about the program here?

Mahāṁsa:
The program here doesn’t need too many people. Only five, six people is enough.

Haṁsadūta:
[aside:] Close the door.

Mahāṁsa:
Because the program here is just needing supervision.

Jagadīśa:
No, but I mean kīrtana, constant kīrtana, and prasādam.

Mahāṁsa:
Well, if you want constant kīrtana, then we have to have more devotees here.

Prabhupāda:
Constant kīrtana? Who says constant?

Jagadīśa:
Well, we have to engage the villagers.

Prabhupāda:
Yes. So they’ll come in the evening. We cannot be always…

Haṁsadūta:
Why not?

German Devotee:
Śrīla Prabhupāda, we want to go nagara-saṅkīrtana to the villages and announce the program.

Prabhupāda:
Go.

Haṁsadūta:
Well, go.

German devotee:
But we cannot go because Candrodaya, he doesn’t want to go.

Mahāṁsa:
Take Rāma-śraddhā, he knows. Rāma-śraddhā knows everything. He knows.

German devotee:
Take as much as possible devotees?

Haṁsadūta:
Yes.

German devotee:
Okay.

Prabhupāda:
So write what you are going to do immediately. Write. Write the names, who is going where.

Mahāṁsa:
Kākināda Atmatirth will leave?

Haṁsadūta:
I just wrote down all the leaders. Ātmavidyā, Puṇyaśloka, [indistinct], Rājasāra. Otherwise I can go anywhere without fixing a program. I can go to any city. If no one is going to fix the program, I can go anywhere. That I was doing already. I came here because you promised me that in every city you know people, you can fix program. So fix them and then we’ll go there. Otherwise there is no need to send anyone. We’ll just go there and stay in a dharmaśālā.

Prabhupāda:
So why not go, one or two men, to fix up program?

Haṁsadūta:
In Nagpur, a city like Nagpur, you say you have members. Send some man who knows them from your temple. He makes an arrangement, we go there, make a nice program.

Mahāṁsa:
Okay.

Prabhupāda:
So who is going to Nagpur? Write that.

Mahāṁsa:
Basu Ghosh and who from yours?

Haṁsadūta:
I’ll see later who goes. Anyone can go with him if he knows what to do.

Mahāṁsa:
Someone who can speak Hindi.

Prabhupāda:
You cannot expect from his party anyone speaking Hindi.

Mahāṁsa:
He has many… He has a good Rajasthani boy who is very good with Basu Ghosh. He’s in Hyderabad now.

Haṁsadūta:
Who is that?

Mahāṁsa:
Vāsanta-kṛṣṇa, or somebody. They can take the van?

Haṁsadūta:
No need of van, is there? What’re you going to do with van?

Mahāṁsa:
Well, if they’re going to have to arrange a program in eight days, they have to run around to see so many people, get leaflets printed, get banners painted, see Municipal people, see the police people.

Prabhupāda:
For that reason van is required?

Haṁsadūta:
No, he can do everything by…

Mahāṁsa:
They have extra vans here.

Haṁsadūta:
It’s not practical. I tell you, these vans… It’s not practical to take these vans and drive them around the cities. It’s very dangerous. It’s not practical. It’s easier to go by rickshaw.

Mahāṁsa:
What about a small one?

Haṁsadūta:
Yes, the small ones. I mean, it’s easier to go by rickshaw. It’s a fact, you know. We had this experience…

Prabhupāda:
No, there is local bus. For one, two men van running is not good.

Mahāṁsa:
So one bus party goes immediately to Kakinagar, with maybe Ātmavidyā or whoever…

Haṁsadūta:
Ātmavidyā.

Mahāṁsa:
Ātmavidyā can lead that party. And one party goes to Nagpur as soon as that is fixed. And to fix that program, Basu Ghosh and Vāsanta-kṛṣṇa can go there.

Prabhupāda:
Yes.

Mahāṁsa:
Then Hyderabad temple, devotees should return to their services in Hyderabad, and Godruma should return to Deity worship. A crew of eight devotees will stay over here to do the program over here.

Prabhupāda:
Hmm. And Haṁsadūta will stay here.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes.

Prabhupāda:
That’s all. And you begin your digging.

Tejiyas:
Mahārāja, you should tell the other persons who I’ll have to work with that whatever I suggest, that they should do like that.

Prabhupāda:
But you take our ordinary laborer.

Tejiyas:
But they should know. Otherwise if I come, they may object, “Mahāṁsa Swami has to tell me.” Just like I told this Acyutāgraja something. He said, “I have to ask Mahāṁsa Swami.” I told Mūrti something. He said, “Only if Mahāṁsa Swami says, then I can do.”

Mahāṁsa:
No, no.

Tejiyas:
No, but you should make it clear when we have a meeting.

Mahāṁsa:
Oh, yes. Oh, yes. We’ll have a meeting with all the people on the farm.

Tejiyas:
You don’t have to… Then I’ll see that you have vegetables.

Prabhupāda:
And these village men or any laborer, as you proposed, if they want, they can stay. We shall give him food, shelter, as well as some remuneration.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes. Like that, many people…

Tejiyas:
We bring a few. I can talk to them Telugu, and I explain and see who likes. We can give them some…

Prabhupāda:
There is a… He will be in charge of growing this, and this way do everything. And you go to Bhogilal or phone. Bring him here and I’ll transfer there. I have no objection. Immediately. There is no need of painting.

Mahāṁsa:
No need of painting.

Prabhupāda:
No. Why there is use? We can manage there. Bhogilal may come, and he may be given here or wherever possible.

Mahāṁsa:
I’ll ask the carpenter to try and fix those doors by this evening in Bhogilal Patel’s room. The inside doors are already finished. Only those curved doors take time. So I’ll…

Prabhupāda:
So you have made…, cut fashion?

Mahāṁsa:
Pardon?

Prabhupāda:
Fashionable?

Mahāṁsa:
Yes, it looks a little nice.

Prabhupāda:
All right. So that room, if it is done, it is all right. If not, this room and that room. That’s all. Make arrangement. Bring him. He’ll be very useful.

Mahāṁsa:
Yes.

Prabhupāda:
That’s all right. Purchase one canopy instead of renting. We shall have to continue this program.

Mahāṁsa:
Right now it will be difficult to purchase, because we don’t have enough money.

Prabhupāda:
What is the money? How much?

Mahāṁsa:
We don’t have enough money. It will cost at least a thousand rupees or more, the whole thing, at least a thousand, maybe more. We don’t have so much money right now.

Prabhupāda:
So I’ll pay you thousand. But…

Mahāṁsa:
Okay.

Prabhupāda:
You pay me the rent, I’ll pay you thousand. Yes. What is the rent per day?

Mahāṁsa:
I’ll get it free, without rent.

Prabhupāda:
Then don’t purchase.

Mahāṁsa:
That member, he has a store. He gives…

Prabhupāda:
So then what is the use of purchase? If you get free, no need of purchasing.

Mahāṁsa:
No purchase.

Prabhupāda:
So make this arrangement immediately. Then go, and we shall go out. Is it clear? No. Not?

Mahāṁsa:
Yes, it’s right.

Prabhupāda:
I shall wash my teeth and go.

Tejiyas:
Jaya Śrīla Prabhupāda. [end]