Book Distribution on India’s Trains
“If one can please a pure devotee of the Lord, such action means immediate satisfaction of the Lord, even though such a person is not officially qualified to receive the mercy of the Lord.”
(Srila Prabhupada's letter to Yeager, Dec. 20, 1970)
By our book distribution, the super-pure devotee Srila Prabhupada is pleased, and the Lord's mercy touches us even if we are not officially qualified to receive it. There are many ways to distribute Srila Prabhupada's books. A very good way to distribute a lot of books in India is to ride on trains. In India there are so many different trains that you can overflood with Srila Prabhupada's books. If you are in the right train at the right time, the books go out like delicious halava.
The many advantages of distribution on trains are: –
people have time to listen to you –
they are not in a hurry –
usually they have nothing to do –
they cannot escape or hide –
there are no doors to be closed in front of you –
people are usually bored, and one or a few of Srila Prabhupada's books are very good for their enlightenment on a long journey –
people are more open & friendly –
money is with them –
you can show the books to many persons at once –
many persons at once can take books –
and you're always in the sunshine.
By the mercy of Hari, guru, and the Vaisnavas, during the Prabhupada marathon I had very, very nice and unusual experiences and had a great time distributing Srila Prabhupada's books on trains in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. I distributed 99% maha-big books, mostly Bhagavad gita As It Is and the Krishna Book. At first I could not believe that so many books could go out. Many, many times it happened that the circumstances were so favorable that I sometimes distributed twenty, thirty, or more maha-big books in one train car. This happened mostly because the first person in the car was so favourable that when he took all the books, others were also encouraged to take some.
I learned an important lesson about distributing books to persons of different faiths. I showed books to a Muslim. He was uninterested, and the person next to him was also not prepared to take a book. The Muslim started aggressively telling me that every person is born a Muslim and every person shall die a Muslim. I humbly wanted to follow Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's instruction, trinad api sunicena: be humble and tolerant. So I presented Bhagavad gita As It Is as a universal book on the science of self-realization that is applicable to everyone, regardless of one's faith, nationality, or caste. I showed him the picture of the soul's transmigration, which happens to everyone. And I said that there is not a Muslim atma (soul), a Hindu atma, or a Christian atma. The atma is always spiritual, part and parcel of the Supreme Lord and has nothing to do with material designations.
Now, he was not prepared to take the mercy of Sri Caintya Mahaprabhu, but the person next to him, previously unwilling to take the books, changed his mind by the influence of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and said: “I will take some.”
He happily took all the books, while the first person has to wait for a second chance.
Important lesson: Just tolerate & pray like anything to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
“Things that are very difficult to do become easy to execute if one somehow or other simply remembers Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. But if one does not remember Him, even easy things become very difficult. To this Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu I offer my respectful obeisances. “ (Cc. Adi-lila 14.1)
Sankirtan is fun & easy. Sankirtan is for everyone. Param Vijayate Sri Krsna Sankirtanam!
Your servant of the servant,
Lomancita Dasa ISKCON Slovenia (on leave in Salem, Tamil Nadu)
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