Book distribution nectar in New Zealand
Hare Krsna,
My guru, Devamrita Swami, once asked whether we ever distributed in a small town called Tokoroa. Many small towns in New Zealand rarely get visited, so on our most recent trip, to fulfill his desire, this town was one of the first places we stopped at. Bhakta Dennis and I started off in the town centre and then continued distributing door to door in the evening.
We had many wonderful exchanges, but here I will describe just three.
I stopped a pleasant young man and showed him the Gita. He became animated. Explaining that he'd always wanted to learn more about spirituality, he happily gave a donation for a copy. I then asked him his name.
Shaking my hand, he replied, “Sage.”
Smiling, I asked him what his name meant. Amazingly, he was unsure! So I told him two common meanings: wise and a herb. I asked him to live up to the meaning of wise by studying Bhagavad-gita. And I assured him that he would thus simultaneously avoid becoming a plant in his next life! Sage was happy to hear this and promised to read the book.
Going door to door, we approached a detached house surrounded by a garden. Uncertain whether anyone was home, we went around the house and met two ladies who were sitting on the back porch. They had just been catching up and were discussing karma and reincarnation! After enthusiastically inviting us to sit with them, they asked questions about Krishna consciousness and then purchased a Gita.
As our evening drew to a close, Bhakta Dennis and I went to two last houses. I had a pleasant chat with a Maori family, but they were unable to donate. Similarly, the man Dennis spoke with next door had not taken a book.
However, as I walked back past the open front door of the house Dennis had visited, the man called out to me in a gruff voice.
Uncertain and a little apprehensive, I slowly approached the front door and peered in. The dark front room was a complete pigsty. The man explained that his wife had overheard my conversation next door and wanted to speak to me.
Wheeling herself into position, she revealed how much she was suffering from illness. She was desperate to find deeper answers to life's problems. I presented the Gita, and somehow or other they scraped together just enough to get a copy. With sincere gratitude she thanked us for visiting their area and promised to carefully read the book.
Door-to-door is special because we can meet many people we would never otherwise contact. And we get to see how people really live and thereby strengthen our conviction that becoming Krishna conscious is essential.
Your servant,
Caitanya Vihara Dasa
