Letter to: RamaKrishnaji , Honolulu , 1976-05-14
My Dear Sriman RamKrishnaji,
Please accept my greetings. I thank you very much for your invitation letter dated April 28, 1976, addressed to my Bombay headquarters, forwarded to me here in Honolulu. When you came to see me in Bombay I had already accepted to become the member of the Co-ordinating Committee of the Gita Prachar Conference.
As you know I am trying my best to preach the teachings of the Bhagavad-gita all over the world, and I am experiencing some glimpse of success in this connection. Naturally, I'm inclined to preach the teachings of the Bhagavad-gita very fervently in India. India is the land of spiritual culture. But gradually, India, being influenced by the material allurement; Its spiritual culture is being forgotten.
It is the duty of the Indian Leaders to note this degradation. There is no harm to become materially advanced, but if simply for material advancement we forget our spiritual basis, it will be a great loss. Therefore, I am also very eager to revive India's spiritual culture with the help of the Gita Foundation.
The difficulty is, I have come out of India with a program scheduled to continue up to August 14th, 1976, the expected date of return to Bombay. Now, if I suddenly return to India, I will have to cancel all other programs, or if I go to India by the time, June 28th, I would have to return again to complete the scheduled program, which means very heavy expenditures. Two secretaries travel with me inevitably, so I am in this dilemma; whether I shall return and again come back spending heavily. So, I shall be glad to hear from you what you advise. In this connection, you can contact my secretary, Giriraja das Brahmacari, at our Bombay center.
I hope that this meets you in good health.
Yours faithfully,
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
n.b. The teachings of the Bhagavad-gita are so potential that if it is practiced seriously, it can bring in a new life and civilization. Now you have established a Gita Pratisthan, so do it very seriously.
ACBS/pks