Letter to: Mahendranath , Los Angeles , 1972-09-29
New Orleans
My dear son,
Please accept my blessings. On the recommendation of Nityananda I have gladly consented to accept you as my duly initiated disciple. I have duly chanted your beads and they have been dispatched by separate post. I have given you the spiritual name of Mahendranath das Brahmacari.
Now please continue to follow strictly the regulative principles, and observe especially rigidly the four principle restrictions, and without fail always chant at least sixteen rounds on your beads daily, and be happy.
If you follow these principles with determination, you will be freed from all attachment to maya, by Krsna's grace. The example is that when the sun is in the sky, then where is the question of darkness? Similarly, when the Hare Krsna mantra is vibrating on your tongue, and you are hearing attentively, then your consciousness becomes pure, or Krsna Conscious, and there is no question of maya or hazy consciousness. Just as when the darkness and the light come together the darkness cannot stand before the light, so maya cannot remain in the presence of Krsna. Always remember therefore to chant Hare Krsna, and that will save you in all circumstances, without any doubt.
Hoping this meets you in good health.
Your ever well-wisher,
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
ACBS/sda