Los Angeles SD Newsletter VOL. 2, ISSUE 25, DECEMBER 2000
VANCA KALPA…
“WORLD ENLIGHTENMENT DAY”
By Nitika Thapar
HARE KRISHNA! Please accept our greetings from the Sastra Dana program for congregational distribution of Srila Prabhupada’s books. Our last meeting was held at Bhakta Dan’s house and was attended by our organizational committee members. This meeting was primarily meant to discuss the operation of book distribution for the World Enlightenment Day which was celebrated on the 16th of December. This is the day when every member of the congregation tries to go out and distribute as many books as he/she can. And this year was no exception! The enthusiasm generated was infectious and lots of devotees volunteered to distribute books in places ranging from the malls to markets to libraries to old-age homes. The Sastra Dana patrons decided to work as a team and distribute books in different shifts from morning to evening. We set our goal to distribute 1000 pieces of Srila Prabhupada’s literature in one day! With the mercy of Guru and Gauranga, we hope to achieve this goal. After the bhajans sung so faithfully by Kakudmi Prabhu and the discussion, it was time for prasadam. We had a pot-luck dinner and it turned out to be a big feast with a variety of delicious fares. We thank all of you for your participation and constant endeavors to make this program a success. Please continue to support us according to your capacity, your help means a lot to us! Haribol!
“WORLD ENLIGHTENMENT DAY” REPORT
By Nitika Thapar
Hare Krishna! We bring you a special World Enlightenment Day report now! December 16th was celebrated exclusively as the day for book distribution at a massive level. Majority of the Sastra Dana members participated with full enthusiasm and gusto. The day started with the devotees carrying cases of Srila Prabhupada’s literature to various places including the Santa Monica Promenade, Downtown LA, Artesia, libraries, local Indian stores and old-age homes. The nectar included small and big books, calendars, Back To Godhead magazines, pamphlets, etc. It was a wonderful sight to see the devotees piling up their vehicles with transcendental books to be distributed unrestrictedly to the public! Most of us worked in shifts though quite a few did the full 12 hour stint and returned back in the night. This shows the sense of duty each person feels for fulfilling our spiritual master’s mission. The temple was a flurry of activity with men, women and children participating whole-heartedly and contributing in every possible way they could. Each person had his or her own experience to recount but despite the long day, everyone returned happy and satisfied. We thank all of you for your support and hope that next year you can participate again and enliven your family and friends for this noble cause. HARIBOL!
