The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust: Latin Division

Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our humble obeisances.
At the Latin BBT, our motto is Śāstra Sevā, the art of serving your books by translating them,
compiling them, editing them, designing and laying them out, printing them, and also reading
and studying them, distributing them, encouraging others to read and distribute them, put-
ting them into practice in our lives, and serving in so many other ways. Thus, by focusing our
lives on your words (guru-mukha-padma-vākya), we try to always remain fixed at your lotus feet
(śrī-guru-caraṇa-padma).
In this way, enlivened by the divine influx of your presence in your books, we go out of our
comfort zone and try to help you in this mission of spreading your books all over the region. We
innovate in the methods of distribution, trying to inspire our large congregations and encour-
age them in Śāstra Sevā; we communicate with the saṅkīrtana devotees and try to serve them and
facilitate their distribution with campaigns and promotions; we ourselves go out onto the streets
to present these luminous books to the conditioned souls; and above all, we apply ourselves to
practicing what’s in your books – reading them and chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa with the fervent desire
that one day the darkness of false ego will leave our hearts and we will have the qualification to be
lifted by your loving hands into the presence of Kṛṣṇa.
Always praying for your blessing, and with all love and gratitude,
Your humble servant,
Nṛsiṁha-kṛpa Dāsa
On behalf of your servants at the Latin Division of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust

The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust: Kerala

Dearest Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our respectful obeisances at the dust of your lotus feet, which traveled this planet
many times to give the nectarean teachings of Lord Caitanya through your example, your vāṇī,
and through your books.
All glories to Your Divine Grace for giving us the service of producing your books and distrib-
uting them to our hearts’ content into the hands of conditioned souls. You said you will never die
but will remain eternally in your books!
We see you in your books and feel a sacred kindred nearness that is so sweet and inspiring.
Your books, Śrīla Prabhupāda, have so much valuable information in them for the well-being of
all humanity for all time to come. We have increasing realizations about your statement, “Every-
thing is in my books!” as people read these books and become devotees.
These are not just ordinary books, Śrīla Prabhupāda – they are a living, conscious, breathing
manifestation of the Absolute Truth, Kṛṣṇa. Again, thank you for allowing us to serve you by
producing these books in the Malayalam language for the people of Kerala, who also live in all
corners of the world.
Recently we had the opportunity to meet the new governor of Kerala state in South India, and
he was very appreciative of your contribution through your books. He commented that the intel-
lectual elite will benefit from them.
You said you feel like an “‘emperor who has conquered” every time you get one of your newly
published books in any language. Every time a new book is published in Malayalam, we blow
our trumpet of victory over Māyā’s world by calling a “book-release program,” and we let highly
literate and interested people know about the new publication while calling upon a dignitary to
receive the first copy. It gives us at the BBT immense pleasure to be playing a very small part in
helping you conquer, Śrīla Prabhupāda, and know that you will be pleased with the publication
of your books.
At the BBT in Kerala we have been able to complete almost all the titles and more. The Śrīmad-
Bhāgavatam was released at a grand function commemorating the fiftieth year of your visit to
Cochin (Kochi), Kerala, in August 2015. We chose the dates August 21–22, when the Jaladuta
docked at Kochi’s port, and you received the consignment of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam sets, sent from
Bombay. The devotees at the BBT were highly emotional while making this offering to you on this
most memorable fiftieth anniversary of your visit to Kerala!
We also released the Caitanya-caritāmṛta at a grand function in Guruvayur, where union minis-
ters were present with state leaders to receive the copies, along with the chief priest of the Guru-
vayur temple. We have also released a special deluxe edition of the Bhagavad-gītā – a collector’s
item – that is twice the size of the regular book, with an opulent finish and a wooden case. People
love it.
Our team at the BBT, consisting of translators, proofreaders, production assistants, and man-
agers, needs your very special blessings, Śrīla Prabhupāda, as they have been sincerely working to
produce your books for many, many years. Kerala is the most literate state in India. It’s also the
state that ranks highest in India in suicides and the consumption of alcohol and meat! How odd!
This strange anomaly can best be explained and solved only through your books. Being the home-
land of Śaṅkarācārya, Māyāvādīs and other impersonalists as well as communists abound in this
state and have free voice in the intellectual arena. Your books are these people’s only hope.
Śrīla Prabhupāda our existence in spiritual life is based on your books. It’s by this new govern-
ment “of your books, for your books, and by your books” that we can survive in Kṛṣṇa conscious-
ness and share the teachings far and wide.
We at the BBT seek your blessings while thanking you immensely from the core of our hearts
for engaging us in this most relishing service of producing your books in the local Malayalam
language.
Your servants,
BBT Kerala, South India
(Sanātana Dharma Dāsa, Kuñjamohinī Devī Dāsī, Gopāl Gaura Guru Dāsa, Śaraṇamukhi Devī
Dāsī, Mañjari Devī Dāsī, Śyāmalikā Devī Dāsī, Manorañjan Dāsa, Ūrmilā Sevinī Devī Dāsī,
Śrīnivāsa Hari Dāsa, Giri Govardhana Dāsa, Prabhavi Gopī Devī Dāsī, Bhaktin Sudha Balachan-
dran, Sheela Nair, and Bhakta Ratheesh)

The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust: Africa Division

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 humble obeisances at your divine lotus feet on this auspicious occasion of your
Vyāsa-pūjā.
As the world accelerates into a future marked by technological advancement and digital
saturation, we find ourselves at a unique and urgent juncture. Artificial intelligence has become
mainstream, human attention is fragmented, and spiritual inquiry is often replaced by algorithmic
distraction. Society today is experiencing a crisis not just of meaning but of memory. We have
forgotten who we are, why we are here, and what the ultimate goal of life is.
The Bhagavad-gītā describes Kali-yuga as an age of quarrel and hypocrisy. We see this playing
out daily where truth is diluted, values are compromised, and dharma is increasingly obscured
by competing narratives. Externally, it may seem that the world is more connected. Yet internally,
people feel more lost than ever before.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, it is in this environment of confusion, uncertainty, and instability that your
books become essential. They are not simply religious texts or philosophical treatises – they are
lifeboats. They offer a return to clarity, a reorientation to what is real, what is eternal, and what is
worth pursuing.
You did not wait for ideal conditions before acting. You saw the urgency. You saw the suffering.
And you responded. You translated and published these books as a dedicated servant carrying out
the order of your spiritual master. That same spirit of urgency and mood of compassionate disrup-
tion is what built the International Society for Krishna Consciousness and The Bhaktivedanta
Book Trust. And it is what continues to sustain BBT Africa today.
As your servants, we strive to carry that mission forward with the same conviction. In a conti-
nent as diverse and rich as Africa, access is everything. When someone reads the Bhagavad-gītā in
their native language, they are not just reading words; they are encountering Kṛṣṇa speaking to
them, in their voice, through your mercy.
This commitment to access and inclusion guided our publication of Bhagavad-gītā As It Is in
Kreole Morisyen (Mauritian Creole) for the people of Mauritius. This was a significant milestone,
as it was an extension of your mission. In the same spirit, your Back to Godhead magazine is now
transitioning into digital format, aligning with how people engage with information today, with-
out compromising the depth of spiritual substance.
The African saṅkīrtana team distributed an impressive 157,977 Bhaktivedanta Book Trust publi-
cations, including both books and magazines. Book distributors across the continent continue to
innovate, finding new and creative ways to expand the reach of your books.
All around us people are beginning to ask deeper questions. There is a growing recognition
that material progress alone cannot satisfy the heart. They are searching for answers that go
beyond surface-level solutions. There is a quiet but rising need for truth that is rooted in some-
thing greater than themselves. And the answers that they are searching for are present in your
books.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, your life was the embodiment of selfless service. On this sacred day of your
Vyasa-puja, we recognize more than ever how urgently the world needs your books. We offer our
renewed commitment at your lotus feet: to continue translating and publishing them with dedica-
tion and care. Please bless us so that we may carry on this sacred mission.
Your servants,
The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust in Africa

The Bhaktivedanta Archives

Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Your Divine Grace.
On this most auspicious day of Vyāsa-pūjā we celebrate your glories, personality, accomplish-
ments, and instructions (vāṇī). Through your mercy you have revealed to us your qualities that are
naturally inherent in an exalted spirit:
1. Kind to everyone, 2. Does not quarrel with anyone, 3. Fixed in the Absolute Truth, 4. Equal
to everyone, 5. Faultless, 6. Charitable, 7. Mild, 8. Clean, 9. Simple, 10. Benevolent, 11. Peace-
ful, 12. Completely attached to Kṛṣṇa, 13. Has no material hankerings, 14. Meek, 15. Steady, 16.
Self-controlled, 17. Does not eat more than required, 18. Sane, 19. Respectful, 20. Humble, 21.
Grave, 22. Compassionate, 23. Friendly, 24. Poetic, 25. Expert, 26. Silent.
Through your continued mercy, we are now able to release VedaBase 25. This update features
a significant amount of new, unique material, including 250 original Līlāmṛta interviews, which
highlight your personality and activities. This new VedaBase 25, for the first time, opens the
world to the English translations of your Hindi and Bengali instructions. 13,696 newly translated
records were added. We’d like to show some examples below of some enthralling new vāṇī:
Prabhupāda: That’s all. You simply become sorry and everything is finished. That’s all.
I do not know what to do. [break] … whatever you like. Whatever like, what can I do?
[Transl. Call that gentleman? Let me talk. You printed that in Bengali. Did you check
it with somebody, or you did it of your own?]
Bengali man: [Transl. I did of my own.]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. It won’t be accepted if you do of your own.]
Bengali man: [Transl. Whatever I understood. Did I make a mistake?]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. You don’t understand anything. You don’t understand any-
thing – that is clear from your writing. You have written with your own motive. I
named it “Māyāpura Candrodaya,” and you have separated it by saying “Māyāpura-
sthita-Candrodaya.” Why?]
Bengali man: [Transl. What I can do? Whatever I understood I wrote.]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. What right have you got to speak the way you understand?
Who has given you the right?]
Bengali man: [Transl. Please forgive my offense.]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. Forgive my offense … but you don’t understand the harm you
have done. Why you have … We gave you, “Śrīmāyāpuracandrodaya,” and you have
written Śrīmāyāpura, and explained it also that “the moon is rising in Māyāpura.” We
named the Mandir “Māyāpuracandrodaya,” and you have changed the whole mean-
ing! You don’t understand anything, and he has written all these things against our
movement.]
Bengali man: [Transl. I didn’t say anything against! Did I say anything contrary?]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. This is contrary!]
Bengali man: [Transl. How is it contrary?]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. We said, Śrīmāyāpurcandrodaya, and you have changed it to
Śrī Māyāpur separate and Candrodaya separate, as if moon rising in Māyāpura. Who
gave you this idea? “Rām is not thief,” and you change it to “Rām is thief.” We named
it “Śrīmāyāpuracandrodaya,” and you changed it to Śrī Māyāpura [space] Candrodaya,
and he explained it like that. They all address me as “Prabhupāda,” which you didn’t.
You say “Viṣṇupāda.” Who told you? They all call me Prabhupāda.]
Bengali man: Nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale –
Prabhupāda: [Transl. That’s all right. Whatever they say, whatever they call me in this
mandir you will also have to say that. Why do you say as you like? And why you write
like that about us, then? Nobody writes “Oṁ viṣṇupāda,” so why do you write?]
Bengali man: [Transl. I have some problem in my ears.]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. So twist your ears strongly. This is not good. You are writing
about us, so until it is approved by us, how can you write? That’s all I am saying. You
have done it of your own, that’s good. But the path we are following, you set it aside
and you follow your own way. That is not good. Shouldn’t you print after checking
it with us? You printed so hurriedly without any permission! Here other bābājīs write
“Nitāi gaura rādhe śyāma hare kṛṣṇa hare rāma,” but we object it. This is also same like
that. Don’t we protest? But they say, we do what we think good. They may think it
as good, but we object it. In the same way, you may think it as good, but we have
objection.
What you have done is done, but don’t do such things in future. After writing you
must check it with us whether it is right or not. That is the proper way. Just like that
vipra from Bangladesh wrote something and wanted to show it to Mahāprabhu. But
Svarūpa Dāmodara said, “No, this is useless!” Never print anything whimsically.
When we print a book, we thoroughly check it so many times before we print.]
Bengali man: [Transl. I didn’t say anything against the organization.]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. You are saying, but they are doing it. Why we don’t approve?
They are also chanting “Nitāi gaura rādhe śyāma” with devotion, but why we don’t
approve it? Don’t you know this?]
Bengali man: [Transl. I don’t have so much knowledge.]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. Don’t have knowledge – then why do you write like an igno-
rant? This is the point. You don’t have knowledge, so you have to take it from some-
one who has it. If you know that you have no knowledge, then first you have to take
the knowledge. Isn’t that right? And this was done purposefully. We joined together
“Śrīmāyāpurcandrodaya,” and why have you separated them? Not only that you have
also explained the meaning! This means you were fully aware of this! What was the
need to separate?]
Bengali man: [Transl. That’s how I understood. Māyāpur Candrodaya… like Caitanya
Candrodaya …]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. Why did you understand like that? We said,
“Māyāpurcandrodaya,” and you wrote Śrīmāyāpura Candrodaya. And why have you
explained also?]
Bengali man: [Transl. Candrodaya means Caitanya Candrodaya I thought.]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. Where is Caitanya Candrodaya?]
Bengali man: [Transl. Caitanyacandra is Caitanya Candrodaya I thought.]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. That means anything whimsical you can think, that’s all! I
thought, I thought. That will not be allowed here. I thought! Who you are! Do you
know that? This will not be allowed if you want to stay here.]
Bengali man: [Transl. I will not do it again. I apologize.]
Prabhupāda: [Transl. I thought so! Who you are! I thought like that. Who cares what
you think? Everybody thinks what I am doing is best. But we have to judge by the
result!] So what are you going to do about this finishing? Everything … [Transl. peṭāya
namaḥ? Namaḥ peṭāya. Stomachāya. Namaḥ stomachāya. Whatever comes, devour it.]
We are forever grateful and eternally indebted to Your Divine Grace. We pray to remain your eter-
nal humble servants. Thank you very much.
Your servants at the Bhaktivedanta Archives