Dear Hanumatpresaka Swami,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
First of all i wish to express my sincere happiness about and thankfulness for the Japa Joe thing that you offer. It inspires me and also pulls me along sometimes. All glories to the persons who get up at 1:30 in the morning to chant,
ASA - AGTSP Paoho... By our Doctor's orders we don't get up until 2.15AM and start Japa Joe workshop at 2.30AM. It is big change in life style but we try to follow our Ayur-vedic authority.
.... it requires strength and determination. Interesting to read how that nasty infection keeps lingering. I hope in general your health is fine.
ASA - Well put the news of Brother Ass in the DTC!
I am very happy to have learned that you will be visiting Belgium early february for almost two weeks, it offers a nice window to come over and have your association. At that time, our child will be around two months old, and i wish our whole family can make it.
Last Japa Joe you directly told me to give Krishna to others, and i would like to know what you ask of me. Personally, i think it implies a more direct meaning, such as telling people about Krishna, or distributing SP's books. What do you mean exactly? I used to like to distribute books on the street, and it is always necessary, but I prefer a more facilitating role, behind the scenes. Not that i will never distribute another book on the streets.
Your divine order that i should give Krishna to others made me think. I appreciate this order very much, and i feel that i am doing it right now, but not as much as i could (or should). At some point last year i decided that i had it with all this preaching, feeling unworthy and pretentious to speak to others what to do. I lost my way with it, i guess. Because of foolish and polluted ego i took wrong approach, and i noticed that i often end up telling people what to do and feel offended if they don't, and i regularly noticed loss of taste and other setbacks as a result. I decided to look within to understand more about me, to become a bit more genuine. Fortunately, it helped somewhat, by chanting and God knows what other mercy i received. However, i like this 'being in the back' position. This bigotry mentality is so strong and so annoying! If i could get rid of that, it would surely please my superiors and our Lordships.
I still perform service for the Dutch Krishna Bhakti Magazine, being responsible for content, translating and editing, serving as a sort of organizer for this small bi-monthly magazine. Since a month or two Amsterdam got a new temple president, a disciple of Kadamba Kanana Swami, a brahmacari from Germany in his twenties, who followed up Dhananjaya, who wants to do more preaching and bookdistribution in Amsterdam, in order to expand the congregation. As a result of that, they also want to make more money so that we can (finally) move to a bigger facility, after the new, but still to be prepared, building that they had was taken away because of bankruptcy of one rich godbrother of yours from Amsterdam that donated it. The TP asked me if i can help with the dutch official website, serving under the webmaster, working on the content. These two are my direct services.
What i would like to work towards is to establish contacts in the educational field who can facilitate speakers of ISKCON. I was reflecting earlier on how i could serve you directly, and this seems an option. How do you feel towards the idea of lecturing in Universities in the Netherlands, coinciding with your visit to Radhadesh for easy logistics? Another reason for thinking about university hosting is this. Yesterday we visited your godbrother Dhanesvara, who is currently touring Europe with his book Spiritual Economics (from the lessons of BG). I worked a bit with the dutch coordinator to facilite him and when we looked for preaching engagements we couldn't get him to speak in any university or high school because we didn't have immediate contacts. We learned how fragmented the Dutch yatra is, people have their own agenda's without good cooperation in this field. Apparently somebody used to maintain contacts with schools, but sadly enough, nobody was able to arrange a speaking arrangement anywhere but in temples and preaching centers. I figured, if i want such a thing to happen, i should work on it myself. I am not familiar with this scene, but my cousin is, so it might work nonetheless. Of course, i would also have to understand the content of your presentations.
Last thing i want to mention in yet another long letter is that i am reading about and slowly finding my way with this guru-tattva and ISKCON 'anomaly' approach to diksa. My japa is fairly good, 4 regs quite stable. I'm happy with how this goes!
Are your current speaking arrangements being recorded and published somewhere? I would like to keep up a bit more with what you are speaking. I wish your engagements are ample and satisfying you, and that you are in inspiring association.
Kind regards,
Your aspiring servant,
Richard
ASA - Ooof! AGTSP paoho... Yes, is a long letter, but good content. People are recording the lectures. Try www.jayarama.us/kd/links.txt there may be a link there to some lectures. Also on Facebook I hear some are posted. Krsna blocked us from Face Buk.
"Give Krsna to others." I don't know any details. It's like you say. We desire to do it then we see how we can best do it. Brahmanas know the filosofy and preach, teach. Ksatriyas know it but don't give classes. They facilitate the Brahmanas so that even an insincere Brahmana can have some use. Who are you? How can you preach? I don't know, but what you describe of your service seems like an excellent start.
I don't think we can get away from Spain and Radha desa while we are in Europe. You will have to be our representative.