Forest (Letters)

Expressions researched:
"forest" |"forester" |"forests"

Notes from the compiler: VedaBase query: forest* not "go* forest*"@5 not "went forest*"@5 not "forest* fire"@5"

1966 Correspondence

Letter to Sir Padampat Singhania -- New York 20 January, 1966:

I am very glad to learn it that you wish to construct a Temple of Sri Sri Radha Krishna with nice architecture and the idea is quite appropriate for a personality of your position. You are a great devotee of Lord Dvarakadhisa traditionally. Lord Dvarakadhisa exhibited His opulence at Dvaraka with sixteen thousands of queen and it is understood that He built up as many palaces for each and every queen and the palaces were so made with jewels and stones that there was no necessity of artificial light in the palaces. So your conception of building temple of Lord Krishna is in opulence. But we our residents of Vrindaban and Vrindaban has no palaces like your Dvaraka. Vrindaban is full of forest and cows on the bank of the Yamuna and Lord Krishna in His childhood played the part of a cow boy without any royal opulence as you people inhabitants of Dvaraka think. So when the Dvarakawalas and the Vrindabanwalas meet there may be a via media.

1969 Correspondence

Letter to Janardana -- Los Angeles 2 March, 1969:

So our Krishna Consciousness movement does not belong to any such cheating process. They are cheating processes in the sense that the basic principle is for economic development, and if it is simply for solving the problem of bread, it is not true religion as described by Srimad-Bhagavatam. Even if the living entity is born with a silver spoon in his mouth he will not be happy so such plans for economic development are simply cheating processes. Therefore, the great rishis in the forest Naimisaranya inquired of the great sage, Suta Goswami, "How can the living entities actually be happy?" Srimad-Bhagavatam answers this question that the top-most super-excellent religious principle is that which following, the protagonist becomes a devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, without any motive and without being checked by any material impediments. That will make a person completely satisfied, and that is our process. We are educated people how they can develop their dormant love of the Supreme Lord without being impaired by any material condition.

Letter to Janardana -- Los Angeles 2 March, 1969:

Even if the living entity is born with a silver spoon in his mouth he will not be happy so such plans for economic development are simply cheating processes. Therefore, the great rishis in the forest Naimisaranya inquired of the great sage, Suta Goswami, "How can the living entities actually be happy?" Srimad-Bhagavatam answers this question that the top-most super-excellent religious principle is that which following, the protagonist becomes a devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, without any motive and without being checked by any material impediments. That will make a person completely satisfied, and that is our process. We are educated people how they can develop their dormant love of the Supreme Lord without being impaired by any material condition.

Letter to Hamsaduta -- New Vrindaban 8 June, 1969:

This whole material civilization is gross ignorance, and therefore you cannot expect very intelligent persons in this part of the world. Even though one is a great philosopher, writer, or something like that, it does not qualify him to be one of the selected intelligent persons who take to Krishna Consciousness. There is another proverb in Bengali that in the forest a jackal is considered to be a great nobility because he is very cunning. Similarly, in the materialistic way of life everyone is blind, and in spite of thousands of big blind leaders, the followers who are also blind cannot get any tangible benefit. So you have done your duty to give him some impression about Krishna Consciousness. That is all right. We should not waste much of our time with these so-called leaders because they are jackals in the forest. They are not actually leaders. The only leader is Krishna and one who is Krishna Conscious. Others are simply misleaders.

1970 Correspondence

Letter to Jagadisa -- Los Angeles 9 July, 1970:

Anyway, the idea is that now we are increasing in size of our organization and also our expenditures for literatures are increasing so we must do everything very carefully so that there will not be any difficulty.

You have written that your temple is like an oasis in a desert. Yes, it is a fact that our temples are providing shelter from the burning forest fires of material existence. It does not matter poor quarter or richer quarter, our temples are nothing to do with any material situation. They are situated in the Spiritual sky and as such they are the only alternative offering relief from the miseries of all kinds of material conditions of life. So encourage people to come and spend time with us in the temple and become purified from all contaminations and anxieties. Everyone is suffering from thirst for spiritual life or Krsna consciousness and it is the temple which can offer them Krsna Consciousness to satisfy their thirsting.

Letter to Bali-mardana -- Tokyo 25 August, 1970:

There are two verses in the Canakya Sloka how a family or an institution can be glorified or burned into ashes by one person. The Canakya Pandit says that if there is one tree in the forest producing nice aromatic flower, that one tree can glorify the whole forest by the flavor of its flower. Similarly if there is one tree in whose cavity there is a little fire, that one tree can burn into ashes the whole forest. So this simile is applicable anywhere. In a family if there is one good boy, he can glorify the whole family and similarly if there is bad boy he can turn the whole family into ashes. Similarly in this institution if there is a bad disciple he can burn the whole institution into ashes. The Governing Body Commission's duty is therefore to see that every member is following the rules and regulations and chanting sixteen round regularly on the beads.

Letter to Rupanuga -- Bombay 13 November, 1970:

For the present I am more prominent than all swamis. People are appreciating—What are these swamis? They cannot go outside. There is a Bengali saying that a jackal is king in a small forest. The story is that a jackal became king in the forest by fooling the other animals for some time, but he remained always a jackal and his ruse was at last exposed.

1971 Correspondence

Letter to Jayadvaita -- Los Angeles 13 July, 1971:

Also I have received the laid-out sheets for tapes no. 1 & 2 and they are very well done. Thank you very much. I was so much pleased to see that already the tapes were edited and laid out and this is encouraging me to translate more and more. You can give Ch. 8 of S.B. canto 4 the title "Dhruva Maharaja enters the forest to meet the Lord".

One point is that I do not understand how it is that the synonyms for the last 18 chapters of the 3d canto and the first 7 chapters of 4th canto are missing? Anyway, I have begun this work and the first tape of synonyms, tape no. 6, was sent to Pradyumna today. This work will take at least one month to complete.

1972 Correspondence

Letter to Govinda -- Bombay 6 January, 1972:

Please accept my blessings and offer the same to your good husband Gaurasundara. How are your Tulasi plants in Hawaii? How are they feeling? I am always thinking of them and you. Please let me know how they are growing and how you are taking care of them. This time when I go to Hawaii I shall sit down in the forest of Tulasi plants and chant Hare Krishna.

Letter to Rupa Manohara (Michael McCloughlin), Vipina Purandara (Paul League), Brajera Pakhala (Richard Roland), Gopavrndapala (Eddie Dougherty), Kadambakanana (David Hardin) -- Honolulu 10 May, 1972:

Upon the recommendation of Karandhara, I have gladly consented to accept all of you as my duly initiated disciples. Your beads have been duly chanted by me and they are sent under separate post. I have given you the spiritual names as follows:

Michael McCloughlin,

Rupa Manohara das (He whose form is all-enchanting)

Paul League,

Vipina Purandara das (the youthful boy of the forest)

Richard Roland,

Brajera Pakhala das (He who tends the calves of Vraja)

Eddie Dougherty,

Gopavrndapala das (protector of the cowherd boys)

David Hardin,

Kadambakanana das (He who plays in the groves where the kadamba flower grows)

I am so glad to learn that all of you have been such a great help to Karandhara there in our Los Angeles center. I can understand that all of you are very sincere boys, and are very eligible candidates for going back to home, back to Godhead. And the process is simple.

Letter to Sankarasana -- Bombay 31 December, 1972:

If people like to contribute by hearing such things, there is no harm, that is just to induce him to purchase. Some of my godbrothers, I can remember, when we used to go out for begging some contribution from some big man, they used to say that my Guru Maharaja had lived for 12 years in the forest in solitary place, living only on the tulasi leaves. I could scarcely stop from laughing when I heard such story, but it was effective to get the money and give to our Guru Maharaja, and he was pleased by our gift. So the idea is not what you are saying, so much as how you say it. If you understand this properly, then you may be able to say the truth at all times in the most palatable way, according to the situation and the type of hearer. To perfect this art, that takes practice, so practice preaching from this understanding and gradually you will develop it more and more.

1974 Correspondence

Letter to Sadajeewatlalji -- Bombay 20 November, 1974:

Last night we had some talks on your new attempt to elevate the girivanavasi people. It is very enlightening for anyone that you are trying to elevate the position of the people in the forest and in the hills. This sort of desire is certainly very much laudable, because in our Vaisnava philosophy it is said that a perfect Vaisnava is always very kind, and he is aggrieved by others miserable condition. para-duhkha-duhkhi krpam buddhih. Or, a Vaisnava is always unhappy by seeing others unhappiness, and he is the ocean of kindness.

Letter to Sacimata -- Bombay 8 December, 1974:

Then all other things will be manifested in you by the grace of Lord Krishna. It is the advice of Narottama das Thakura to chant the holy name of Gauranga either if one remains at home or in the forest. Similarly, do not forget the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra either you live in the temple or at home.

1975 Correspondence

Letter to W.J. Carpenter -- New Delhi 30 November, 1975:

Material life means attachment for women, children, friends, countrymen, position, wealth, and good name. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam material existence is compare to a forest full of plunderers, dacoits, jackals, tigers and other ferocious animals. The jackals are compare to one's wife and children. In the dead of the night jackals cry very loudly, and similarly one's wife and children in this material world also cry like jackals. The children say, "Father is wanted: give me this, I am your dear son." Or the wife says, "I am your dear wife. Please give me this. This is now needed." In this way one is plundered by the thieves in the forest.

1976 Correspondence

Letter to Abhirama -- Bombay 9 January, 1976:

This is a sure sign of spiritual strength, for where there is preaching there must be life. Please go on increasing more and more the book distribution. You are working in the right direction.

I hope this meets you and all the devotees at New Naimisaranya Forest in the best of health.

Letter to Ramesvara , Ranadira -- Melbourne 23 April, 1976:

In regards to the International Yoga and Meditation Conference in Chicago, there is no need for any of our men to participate. However, you can have a Bhakti-yoga bookstall, and paintings, a painting of Dhruva Maharaja as 5 years old alone in the forest. One painting of a devotee sitting in a nice place chanting japa Hare Krishna. We have got yoga meditation . . . and quote authoritatively giving evidence: Yoginam api sarvesam, etc (BG 6.47). One who chants Hare Krishna is the topmost yogi. The highest perfection of yoga is Radharani . . . Krishna goes to Mathura and all night She is crying, "Where is My Krishna?" But what they can understand? So you can have a bookstall, and show paintings, like that.