Dearest Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Hare Kṛṣṇa. Please accept our obeisances at your lotus feet.
Your glories reverberate through time. Your mercy reaches us divine. In your immortal words,
you are our “ever well-wisher.” We are your ever-aspiring servants. In this relationship, we are
poised to serve countless souls on their journey home.
By establishing a society focused on developing love of God, you have given us the lifelong gift
of support and protection. You effectively created a container for us to be held in through every
stage of life. Along with this is the opportunity to use our God-given abilities and propensities in
community with others on the same path.
By creating the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, you ensured that we could
spend our lives in the association of and service to Kṛṣṇa’s devotees. You taught us the value of
Vaiṣṇava sevā, of being dāsānudāsa. In shaping this society, you emphasized the importance of
caring for one another, following your own behavior and directions. Round and round we may
go, lifetime after lifetime, from birth to youth to old age to death, guided by your teachings and
example, and your society is here to support and protect us on our journey home. By your mercy,
those of us here today may have the good fortune to take shelter of your society in our next birth.
You said the children coming into ISKCON are given to us by Kṛṣṇa; they are Vaiṣṇavas. You
called them “Vaikuṇṭha children” and made it clear that it was our duty to protect them (Letter
to Arundhatī Devī Dāsī, July 30, 1972). A question we can regularly ask ourselves is: Are we creat-
ing the safe, nurturing environment required to encourage our children to embrace love of God,
Kṛṣṇa?
Childhood is the foundation upon which the rest of one’s life is built. In a letter to Hayagrīva
Dāsa dated November 7, 1969, you wrote, “Please also take care of the children. They are our
future hopes, and the adolescent age is the most dangerous age. It is the turning point of one’s
life. In this age, if you take care of the children, surely they will come out first class Krishna Con-
scious devotees.”
It has been twenty-seven years since the Child Protection Office was established to help
ISKCON management and members ensure that the children are safe. Your movement is expand-
ing year by year. Please help us understand how best to serve these great souls taking shelter of
ISKCON from the very beginning of their lives.
It is said that it takes a village to raise a child. As you have shown, protecting those who take
shelter of Lord Caitanya’s movement from birth requires the participation of all. It is not just the
parents’ responsibility. We each play a part in shaping a child’s life, with ripple effects far into the
future. Śrīla Prabhupāda, please give us the intelligence to organize ourselves to effectively carry
out this sacred duty.
Thank you for sending more devotees to help strengthen child protection services, and the
resources to sustain growth. Every day we feel gratitude for the opportunity to serve these special
souls on their journey home.
The servants of your servants,
Child Protection Office – ISKCON North America
Dearest Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept my obeisances. All glories to you, our lord and master.
This year marks fifty-five years since you first visited the African continent, namely Kenya, and
later on, Mauritius and South Africa.
You will be pleased to know that throughout all these years, ISKCON has grown and is flour-
ishing in many countries in Africa, with more and more devotees taking to this wonderful process
of Kṛṣṇa consciousness you have given to us.
Toward the latter part of last year, the first Regional Child Protection Office (CPO) for Africa
was established. The International Child Protection Office has been established for over twenty-
five years now. However, we have only recently managed to establish a Child Protection Office
here in Africa for Africa, where many of the children come from disadvantaged communities.
Poverty is rife on the African continent. Poverty significantly increases the risk of child neglect,
with children in low socioeconomic households being more vulnerable to neglect and abuse com-
pared to those in higher socioeconomic households. This historic opening of the African Regional
Governing body’s CPO is a pivotal first step to protecting our little Vaiṣṇavas and Vaiṣṇavīs,
which was your desire, Śrīla Prabhupāda.
In many instances through your personal example, letters, instructions, and books, you have
emphasized the importance of child protection. In the purport to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.8.5 you
state: “The protection of children gives the human form of life its best chance to prepare the way
of liberty from material bondage.” In this simple, unassuming statement, you emphasize the
importance of child protection and how important it is to free one from material bondage.
As time is progressing, it has become evident to the GBC body that child protection has to
be taken a lot more seriously, and with this they felt the need to restructure the Child Protection
Office. It is now the Child Protection Oversight Committee. There are many concerns about
how effective this will be for child protection. My commitment to you, Śrīla Prabhupāda, is that
I will do my best to ensure that our children are not compromised by the events around them,
and I will work to bring about an awareness of child protection so that more devotees feel freer
to report cases of abuse. The ideal will be to have an ISKCON where all children are safe and
protected. As Kali-yuga progresses, this will be a challenging task, but you can rest assured that
you have devotees committed to protecting children, and this enthusiasm and determination will
spread across our region, if not the world.
Through my involvement with the GBC College, new strategies are being explored, and we
hope that these will be successfully implemented for your pleasure.
Please bless us so that we can serve you in such a way that you will be pleased. Give us the
intelligence to overcome any obstacles, and may we realize this dream of an ISKCON where all
children can thrive in a safe, Kṛṣṇa conscious environment, as you envisioned!
Your aspiring servant,
Karuṇāmayī Devī Dāsī,
Child Protection Director, African Regional Governing Body
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
We offer our respectful obeisances unto you.
We are thankful for all you’ve done for us: bringing Kṛṣṇa consciousness to the West, opening
schools and temples, writing books to tell us all about Kṛṣṇa, and spreading Lord Caitanya’s mis-
sion. We are grateful for the holy name, which you told us about. Without you, there would be no
gurukula, and our community of friends would not exist. We are thankful for our gurukula family –
devotee teachers, parents, and children all coming together to learn in an environment filled with
devotion.
We hope that we can please you. Therefore, we perform guru-pūjā to you every Monday, tulasī-
pūjā every Wednesday, and kīrtanas every day during our morning worship program. We have
faith lessons in each class, and study your books and teachings. We learn how to play harmonium
and mṛdaṅga, and we sometimes sing at the Manor. Recently, we performed at the Celebrating
Śrīla Prabhupāda day at the Manor. We performed a play about your disciple Amekalā Devī Dāsī,
and sang a song about your coming to the West. Many devotees appreciated it. We also celebrate
other festivals that you told us about: Snāna-yātrā, Ratha-yātrā, and appearance day festivals,
where we do abhiṣekas and hear about the different personalities. We also have a Śrīla Prabhupāda
week, where most of our lessons focus on you and what you have given us.
We hope that all the gurukula students continue to remember you and serve you always. You
have given us so much. We would like to become your instruments and serve your movement in
whatever ways we can. Please give us your blessings and mercy.
Your servant,
Venudhar, year 3, age 9
On behalf of the Hare Kṛṣṇa Primary School
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept my humble obeisances at your divine lotus feet. On this sacred Vyāsa-pūjā day,
all glories to you and your boundless mercy, which continually guides and nourishes our souls.
Those of us who serve at the Bhaktivedanta College are continually inspired by your profound
teachings and the immense spiritual educational legacy you left us. We are committed to contrib-
uting to this divine mission with deep respect and a strong sense of responsibility.
The essence of our educational endeavor is summed up in your 1974 letter to Acharya Prab-
hakar Mishra: “If we want perfect education, we must follow the principle of the Bhagavad-gita.
Such education will help the whole human society.” Despite its modest size, our college aims to
make a significant spiritual impact throughout the world. Guided by your instructions, we are
working with all our might to create a shining beacon of Vedic education that will illuminate the
path to Kṛṣṇa, not only for our students but for all souls entangled in material existence.
Our students’ spiritual resilience is just as important as their academic performance; thus we
are truly dedicated to both. Our curriculum helps us to equip them as messengers of this time-
less wisdom and nourish them with divine knowledge. By means of this, they represent the ideal
you so clearly expressed: “The result of material education is that the living entity forgets his own
identification […]. According to the Vedic education, one must realize his actual identity as brah-
man or the spirit soul.” (Letter to Hayagrīva Dāsa, 1970).
Our commitment to your teachings has also led us to forge international alliances with
esteemed institutions that respect and value the depth of our Vedic tradition. These partnerships
are not just academic – they are spiritual bridges, bringing together diverse cultures in a shared
quest for transcendental knowledge and understanding.
Your profound vision that human life is especially meant for spiritual education is the
cornerstone of our philosophy at Bhaktivedanta College. We see its transformative impact on the
lives of our students and, through them, on communities around the country. Parents from vari-
ous backgrounds entrust their children to us, drawn not by worldly accreditation but by the spiri-
tual sanctuary our college offers – free from the anxieties of material life, as envisioned in your
letter to Aniruddha Dāsa, March 7, 1972. I recently witnessed the joy of spiritual connection on
the faces of our students during a bhajana that took place during a break between classes. It was a
living testament to the impact of your teachings.
On this sacred day of Vyāsa-pūjā, I pray for your continued guidance and blessings so that we
may carry forward this sacred torch of knowledge, lighting the way for souls yearning for spiritual
emancipation. May our efforts here at the college always serve to glorify your divine mission and
bring us closer to fulfilling your dream of a spiritually enlightened society. May we always remain
faithful to your mission, spreading the light of Kṛṣṇa consciousness far and wide, and may our
efforts here at the college serve as a humble offering at your lotus feet.
Your eternal servants at the Bhaktivedanta College, Budapest, Hungary
(written by Gaurasundara Kṛpāmoya Dāsa)
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our humble obeisances.
On this most auspicious occasion of your Vyāsa-pūjā, we, your servants engaged in the mis-
sion of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust and the service of Śrī Śrī Gāndharvikā-Giridhārī at New
Rādhākuṇḍa, Sweden, offer our deepest gratitude and heartfelt glorification at your lotus feet.
Every day, we immerse ourselves in your sublime translation of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
and your illuminating purports. We have recently reached the Tenth Canto. Lord Viṣṇu has
just appeared before Vasudeva and Devakī in Kaṁsa’s prison. Their prayers to Lord Viṣṇu are
profoundly enlightening, offering great encouragement for contemplation: Kṛṣṇa is the cause of
all causes and the ultimate controller. Devakī prays to Him for protection from the fear of Kaṁsa,
and in her plea we hear the echo of all sincere devotees seeking shelter in the Lord’s mercy. Simi-
larly, we pray to Kṛṣṇa to protect us from the fears of this chaotic and bewildering material world.
At times, we wondered how much more insane the world must become before Kṛṣṇa appears,
but now, through several of your purports in the Tenth Canto, you reveal that Kṛṣṇa is already
here – in the form of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. It does not get any better than that.
Your purports in the Tenth Canto stand as the pinnacle of your transcendental wisdom, depth,
and preaching prowess.
At first, we felt unqualified to enter into the Tenth Canto. How would we be able to handle
such intimate spiritual intensity? Yet, through your careful and compassionate guidance, you
protect us from misinterpretations and inappropriate speculation, and we are now quite confident
that we will be able to study the remaining cantos.
You are training us to gradually accept that we are not in any position of control. We ended up
in the material realm because we wanted to experience the feeling of control. Thank you for burst-
ing that bubble and snapping us out of this powerful illusion.
All we can truly offer – all we can bring to the table – is our eagerness to surrender and our
enthusiasm to serve Kṛṣṇa by serving you.
Thank you for placing your stamp of approval on the most essential scriptures, on the prin-
ciples of life, on attitudes and decision-making, and on the countless ways one can engage in
devotional service.
We desire nothing but to serve you and the devotees, especially those who share your strong
desire for the distribution of your transcendental books. Our greatest fortune is to remain forever
engaged in your service. Please give us the determination to carry forward your mission, the intel-
ligence to get your books translated into all the languages entrusted to us, and the humility to
serve in whatever capacity Kṛṣṇa desires. All success is yours and Śrī Śrī Gāndharvikā-Giridhārī’s.
Your servants at the North European BBT
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
Please accept our most humble obeisances in the dust of your lotus feet.
In a 1974 letter to Hridayananda dāsa Goswami you wrote: “Please print as many books as pos-
sible, this is my real pleasure. By printing these books of our Krishna Conscious philosophy in so
many different languages we can actually inject our movement into the masses of persons all over
the world, especially there in the western countries, and we can literally turn whole nations into
Krishna Conscious nations.”
In another letter in 1974 you wrote: “Actually these books are the foundation stone of our
movement. Whatever we are is resting on these books. Read them and distribute them. This
should be our motto.”
By your insistence, in your manifest presence hundreds of thousands of books were printed
and distributed. In the form of those books, your incalculable mercy on the masses of people all
over the world continues to have an indelible impact.
Despite your obvious personal effort to translate and publish these transcendental books, you
gave all credit to your spiritual master. In the purport to Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi 12.8 you wrote:
We took up the mission of Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura and Bhaktivinoda
Ṭhākura to preach the cult of Caitanya Mahāprabhu all over the world, under the
protection of all the predecessor ācāryas, and we find that our humble attempt has
been successful. We followed the principles especially explained by Śrīla Viśvanātha
Cakravartī Ṭhākura in his commentary on the Bhagavad-gītā verse beginning
vyavasāyātmikā buddhir ekeha kuru-nandana. According to this instruction of Viśvanātha
Cakravartī Ṭhākura, it is the duty of a disciple to follow strictly the orders of his spiri-
tual master. The secret of success in advancement in spiritual life is the firm faith of the
disciple in the orders of his spiritual master.
In the same purport you wrote: “Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura wanted to print as
many books as possible and distribute them all over the world. We have tried our best in this
connection, and we are getting results beyond our expectations.”
On this occasion we pray that you bless us so that our efforts to keep your book distributors
in North America amply supplied with your books may be successful and pleasing to Your Divine
Grace.
Your servants at the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust offices in North America
