Sankirtana party (Conversations)

Expressions researched:
"sankirtan party" |"sankirtana parties" |"sankirtana party"

1969 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- April 27, 1969, Boston:

Satsvarūpa: Well, the temple room is maybe even smaller than the present temple room, but then there's another large, very large room for a kitchen and then another space where bunks could be for sleeping. So there's actually three different spaces. The thing is that the main temple hall is not too large.

Prabhupāda: That's all right. That doesn't matter. You have to take saṅkīrtana party. That should be the main business. And the..., at least sixteen men, four mṛdaṅgas. Practice mṛdaṅga like that. And twelve cymbals, and one chanting and all others responding. Oh, it will be tremendous. Take some flags, "ISKCON, Hare Kṛṣṇa" flag, red flag. You see? And conchshell, mṛdaṅga. In New York they are doing now, and they also one day collected 240 dollars or something like that. What is that?

Puruṣottama: 247.

Prabhupāda: 247. You see? (chuckles)

Haṁsadūta: I'll try in Montreal. We have new devotees now, lot of new boys.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Oh, you will get devotees. You just begin saṅkīrtana party. You will get many devotees. You see? In Los Angeles, daily the devotees, new devotees, are coming, and very nice boys. We are now searching after a bigger place. Yes. That temple is not sufficient, although that is the biggest center of all our centers. It has got compound. It has got parking place. It has got two big halls, one big room, one big kitchen, and three, four, five small rooms. It is a nice situation, you see, just suitable for our purpose. And they decorate Jagannātha very nicely. Yes. So increase centers.

Discussion with BTG Staff -- December 24, 1969, Boston:

Hayagrīva: You want me to do Nectar of Devotion and then Kṛṣṇa and then Bhagavad-gītā, in that order?

Prabhupāda: Yes. So everything is all right, bṛhat-mṛdaṅga department? Major saṅkīrtana party. They are going, saṅkīrtana parties in different cities. That is junior. But your, this party, it is senior. You are sitting one place; you have to work thousand times more than them. Yes. You have to edit in such a way. Where is that water?

Brahmānanda: It's being offered, Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: All right, all right.

1971 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- August 15, 1971, London:

Prabhupāda: Simply we shall sell retail in our saṅkīrtana. Let them sell to the bookstore. We shall not sell a single copy to the bookstore, or wholesaler. We shall simply sell in our saṅkīrtana party. In this way arrange...(break)

Śyāmasundara: ...weekend festivals from town to town?

Prabhupāda: Town to town. What do you think this idea Huh? Continue engagement. And as many men may join us, we can accommodate them. Every country. Yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana prāyair yajanti hi sumedhasaḥ (SB 11.5.32). I got this idea, one king, (indistinct), the grandson of Prthuraya, this Mahārāja Prithu, he performed so many yajñas that on the surface of the earth, there were only kuśa grass scattered. Yajña, they require kuśa grass. Kuśa grass. So all over the world it was simply scattered, after yajñas, I have given my comment in this. Similarly, we shall perform this saṅkīrtana yajña all over the world, town to town, town to town. Now we have got GBC all over the world. Let them organize. What they'll do? Organize yajña after yajña, yajña after yajña. So that as at the present moment even if we go somewhere, are known to: "Hare Kṛṣṇa!" They say. The whole world will say, "Hare Kṛṣṇa."

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- June 14, 1972, Los Angeles:

Marilyn: I just got here a few days ago, but I've been twice. We'll be here Friday or Saturday or so. I chanted on the street.

Prabhupāda: You chanted?

Marilyn: Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Devotee: Saṅkīrtana party.

Prabhupāda: Very good.

John Fahey: We want get some cymbals, cymbals.

Marilyn: Cymbals. We sang Hare Kṛṣṇa on the airplane.

Prabhupāda: You're chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa on the airplane?

John Fahey: Yeah, it was fun.

Prabhupāda: You can chant anywhere. There is no restriction. There is no special rules and regulations. You can chant anywhere. Whenever you find it convenient, you can chant.

Room Conversation -- August 1, 1972, London:

Prabhupāda: (converses in Hindi with Indian about traveling saṅkīrtana party in Birmingham, Cardiff)

Devotee (1): She was very happy, Sumati Morarji.

Prabhupāda: Huh?

Devotee (1): She went away very happy.

Prabhupāda: Everyone will be happy when you are Kṛṣṇa's devotee. You see? She's seeing Kṛṣṇa's so many devotees. That is Kṛṣṇa bhakta.

Room Conversation -- August 1, 1972, London:

Dhanañjaya: Traveling Saṅkīrtana Party is very strong here. There's some very nice boys now.

Revatīnandana: They go out and they simply distribute, and just like I think in San Francisco, Keśava's... He began it here. They just go out with literature and simply to distribute literature, you know, in that way.

Prabhupāda: So Keśava's feeling not well, then he can come here.

Devotee (2): He wanted to. He wanted to bring his party here.

Prabhupāda: He can do that. Let him do that. Write him.

Revatīnandana: But actually he may improve it even more. They are already a good group. They are doing all right.

Prabhupāda: Very expert. Not only good, very expert.

Room Conversation -- August 1, 1972, London:

Prabhupāda: Yes. So make arrangement. At least two cars, nice cars.

Devotee: One car and one van?

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Devotee: One car and one van?

Prabhupāda: Van? What is the use of van?

Devotee: Well, they can carry many people, that's the thing, like a saṅkīrtana party.

Prabhupāda: Saṅkīrtana may be six men. They can go in car.

Morning Walks -- October 1-3, 1972, Los Angeles:

Jayatīrtha: (indistinct) is in charge of our traveling saṅkīrtana party, so he's back here for a few days. They're going around to all the fairs, state fairs, county fairs, and distributing literature. He's had very great success

Prabhupāda: Indians are coming in Europe and America to learn technology, but next generation will come here to learn spiritual science, to seek brāhmaṇas. What do you think?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Yes, there's no doubt about it. They will learn technology the coming years, and when they become frustrated again, then they will again learn the spiritual science.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- May 3, 1973, Los Angeles:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: If we publish that the original source is life, then everybody has to accept it that the... Everybody has to accept Kṛṣṇa.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is our program. As soon as they agree, "Yes, life is...," then they have to accept Kṛṣṇa automatically. Sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam (Bs. 5.1). (break) Some of them are thinking that this is a saṅkīrtana party. We are saṅkīrtana party, undoubtedly. But they may not think "They are sentimentalists." They must know that we are scientists. Everywhere is the direction. These high waves, this big Pacific Ocean, they are also carrying out the direction of that Supreme life. Just like this airplane is floating. Is it floating without any direction?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: There is direction.

Prabhupāda: Yes. So everything is working under direction. Why do the rascals say like that? The aeroplane is a big machine. It is flying, but under the direction of a small spiritual spark, the driver, pilot. How you can deny? So as the small spiritual spark can direct a so-called gigantic plane, similarly, the big spiritual spark is directing this whole cosmic manifest.

Room Conversation with Father Tanner and other guests -- July 11, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: Now, our program here is like that. We have got Deities, six times ārati. In preparation for that, cleansing the temple room, washing the dishes of the Deity, cooking for the Deity, arranging for the other things... So they are always thinking of Kṛṣṇa. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Just like we have got so many books. So they are reading books of Kṛṣṇa. This is also Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So... Or they are going to saṅkīrtana party. That is also Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So it is a question of practice and practical understanding.

Room Conversation with Sanskrit Professor -- August 13, 1973, Paris:

Prabhupāda: Yes, each of them. And as soon as they brought books in saṅkīrtana, people take it immediately—"Give me one, give me one, give me one..." That's... These books, we charge fifty cents. They pay easily.

Professor: I saw that in the streets of New York.

Yogeśvara: Oh yes, you've seen the saṅkīrtana party?

Professor: No, I have not seen the temple, but I've seen, last time I was in New York, I saw, just in front of the library on the Fifth Avenue...

Yogeśvara: He has seen our saṅkīrtana.

Room Conversation -- September 19, 1973, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Yes yes. Because he will try to understand Kṛṣṇa. Even Lord Brahmā could not understand Kṛṣṇa. (laughs) No. (Hindi) Therefore, to understand Kṛṣṇa he desired to take birth in Vṛndāvana.

manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu

kaścid yatati siddhaye

yatatām api siddhānāṁ

kaścin māṁ vetti tattvataḥ

(BG 7.3)

Out of many millions of persons, they try to understand what is the perfection of life, and out of many such millions of persons who are in the line of understanding perfection of life, some of them or some one may understand Kṛṣṇa. Muhyanti yat sūrayaḥ. Just like Brahmā was also bewildered whether Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Brahmā, the first creature of this universe, he's also... muhyanti yat sūrayaḥ. Therefore we should take advantage of this opportunity. Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself in the Bhagavad-gītā, about Himself. That is the highest perfection of life, simply to understand Bhagavad-gītā as it is. As spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Then one's life is perfect. But unfortunately, so many scholars and swamis, they are misinterpreting Kṛṣṇa and Bhagavad-gītā. The people are placed in darkness. They are already in darkness. By misinterpretation, they are putting them in darkness. They cannot understand Kṛṣṇa. For practical example you can see in European countries the Bhagavad-gītā was being studied at least for two hundred, three hundred years, but there was not a single devotee of Kṛṣṇa, not even. Within the history. And now they are studying Bhagavad-gītā As It Is, you will find thousands of kṛṣṇa-bhaktas. They are not given the chance to understand Bhagavad-gītā by misinterpretation. "This means that, this means that, Kṛṣṇa means this, Kurukṣetra means body." Misinterpretation, misled. Therefore we are presenting Bhagavad-gītā as it is, and people are accepting and becoming seriously devotee of Kṛṣṇa. They are surprised, the newspaper reporters. They inquire from me, "Swamiji, why younger generation is attracted with this movement?" And younger generation, they are inquisitive. Old fools, whatever they have learned they have to forget again. Then they will, it will take some time. They have learned something wrong. So one has to be washed of these wrong impressions; then he can come to the point of understanding Kṛṣṇa. But these young hearts, they are receptive. They are seeing, "Here is nice." They are accepting. They are chanting now on the streets. You have heard that record, Hare Kṛṣṇa?

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Do you want to play it?

Prabhupāda: Yes, why not play it. Bring that record. On New York, Fifth Avenue, our saṅkīrtana party is going on.

Morning Walk -- December 5, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: That is our śāstric injunction, that as soon as you see a sannyāsī, you must bow down. Otherwise, you should fast one day. It doesn't matter, I or you. This is the injunction of the śāstra, that sannyāsī is supposed to be the guru of the society. So one must bow down.

Yaśomatīnandana: Prabhupāda, in our movement there are so many sannyāsīs. If we see the sannyāsī, same, so many times in one day, we should bow down every time we see him?

Prabhupāda: If you can, of course.

Śrutakīrti: It wouldn't hurt.

Prabhupāda: Yes. (break) ...this time He used to take His saṅkīrtana party for strolling all over the city.

udilo aruṇa pūraba-bhāge

dwija-maṇi gorā amani jāge

Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- February 13, 1974, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: In India, yes. No, by publisher, especially publisher like MacMillan you save so much time and investment also. We are not for profit. We want to see the publication in the market, so in that sense we save so much trouble, but they always look after their business profit.

Dr. Kapoor: Naturally.

Prabhupāda: In the beginning also I requested them to publish the whole, but they said, "No, it will be very big, it will be costly. You reduce it to 400 pages." So that 1100 pages were reduced to 400 pages. Now when people are demanding this Bhagavad-gītā As It Is, people are coming. When our saṅkīrtana party goes in the street many gentlemen comes and demands "Have you got Bhaktivedanta's Bhagavad-gītā As It Is?"

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- February 3, 1975, Hawaii:

Rāmeśvara: Śrīla Prabhupāda, it seems unfortunate that if the devotees cannot live in the temples, then they have to work for some karmi just to support themselves, and then they do not have time to go on the saṅkīrtana party. So it is such mercy to be on the saṅkīrtana party. So it seems very unfortunate that they do not have the time.

Prabhupāda: No, then they should live in the temple if they want to give service in the saṅkīrtana party.

Rāmeśvara: We always try to encourage them to come back to the temple.

Prabhupāda: Yes. If he does not join the saṅkīrtana party, that does not mean his spiritual life is hampered. He has to follow the rules and regulation. He may not be able to join the saṅkīrtana party, but he must follow the process, rules and regulation. That is wanted. And because he is living outside the temple, therefore he will forget all rules and regulation and do whatever he likes—then it will ruin the whole thing.

Room Conversation -- October 5, 1975, Mauritius:

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: We could have big saṅkīrtana parties in the villages here too.

Brahmānanda: How is it that the trees and plants will be happy?

Prabhupāda: Because they will hear Hare Kṛṣṇa. Not only trees and plants. The insects and everyone, they will have the opportunity of hearing Hare Kṛṣṇa. That will benefit.

Morning Walk -- December 4, 1975, Vrndavana:

Bhāvānanda: Someone had mentioned that we should start up in Bihar and come down into Bengal.

Prabhupāda: Do you think if they go to Orissa it will be nice? No? The saṅkīrtana party.

Akṣayānanda: Orissa will be nice?

Prabhupāda: So you talk with him.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation With Radha-Damodara Sankirtana Party -- March 16, 1976, Mayapur:

Devotees: Jaya Prabhupāda! (obeisances)

Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa. All glories to the saṅkīrtana party, Rādhā-Dāmodara.

Devotees: All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda!

Room Conversation -- June 28, 1976, New Vrindaban:

Prabhupāda: Best thing is to preach for some time. Go with the saṅkīrtana party. He's a good mṛdaṅga player also. His photograph is there.

Evening Darsana -- July 13, 1976, New York:

Devotee (1): Excuse me, Śrīla Prabhupāda. This evening they are having one convention here, the Democratic National Convention. One of the two big political parties in the city, at one place called Madison Square Garden. And all the television and newspaper people in the whole country will be there. They're beginning at 8 o'clock this evening. So we want to send all the devotees in the temple on saṅkīrtana party there, because we feel that not only will the atmosphere become purified but also all the television cameras and all the newspaper people will interview our devotees and take their pictures, and they will be on television all over the country, simply because...

Prabhupāda: That is good cause.

Devotee (1): So we are requesting if all the devotees can possibly go?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Devotee (1): In that way they can all attend, if we have a big force...

Prabhupāda: At least, let them hear Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Devotees: Yes.

Devotee (1): I have a feeling it could be just like with the Chand Kazi. When he was... Lord Caitanya made a civil disobedience mood, perhaps if we chant loudly enough...

Prabhupāda: No, by hearing this transcendental vibration they will benefited.

Meeting With Member of Parliament, Mr. Krishna Modi -- August 31, 1976, Delhi:

Prabhupāda: One cooperation is that we can bring immediately a small vans or buses so that we can go village to village, town to town. If I get government permit then... Because here the buses are very costly, and at the same time they are not very good. But foreign buses... India hasn't got to pay anything but simply let us have and work in India. This much facility wanted. Besides that, our men, they are coming, spending ten thousand rupees and after three months or six months, "Get out, get out, get out." And Indians are not joining. Indians are not so sacrificing. But these boys they have sacrificed everything. I am sure if some cooperation is coming from the government I can very soon change the face of India. But I am not getting any facilities. We have experimented in Bengal, and here also, he is also going, saṅkīrtana party. But he could not do it in a large scale for want of facilities. And in foreign countries these boys are so sacrificing spirit, as soon as we give him some program, immediately they make arrangement. Immediately. We are going village to village with books in buses. Hundreds of buses are working.

Krishna Modi: In America.

Prabhupāda: In America, in Europe. They have got facilities, full facilities. And government appreciates. Some of the governments they have given public holiday of the Ratha-yātrā.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Discussion about Kumbhamela -- January 8, 1977, Bombay:

Gurudāsa: So we won't do it. We can try and preach to them at other place. Because we're going out on saṅkīrtana many times. We're getting a list of all the other programs in the Mela, so we'll take our saṅkīrtana parties where it's going to be prominent and pass out literature. Now, for the meeting, for the resolution, I thought perhaps on the 16th or the 17th, because it is close to the big bathing day on the 14th and it won't conflict that much with other programs.

Prabhupāda: Meeting means all other sādhus, they will meet?

Gurudāsa: Yes. I'm getting invitations printed up, and then we can write their names in, and I want to make the invitation something personal, like "This is a meeting of utmost importance."

Room Conversation -- January 31, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Yogeśvara: Paris? Paris, there is good enthusiasm because there is saṅkīrtana party. It is more difficult at the farm, because there is no saṅkīrtana.

Prabhupāda: Why? There are so many men. There is no saṅkīrtana?

Yogeśvara: Yes. It is far from the nearest city.

Prabhupāda: But within the farm there is no saṅkīrtana?

Yogeśvara: Regular temple activities are going on.

Prabhupāda: Saṅkīrtana is there.

Room Conversation -- February 19, 1977, Mayapura:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: When these boys grow up a little they can be sent all over India.

Prabhupāda: Oh. Yes. They can be trained up very nice, from the very beginning.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: So that should be one of their programs here, saṅkīrtana parties with the young gurukula boys when they get to be twelve, thirteen.

Prabhupāda: Similarly, Vṛndāvana also can be done.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Are they making devotees there? Not so much.

Prabhupāda: Vṛndāvana locally you cannot do. Mostly they rogues, the bābājīs. But there is good potential.