Friends of the BBT Newsletter – November 07

In This Issue…

• Spotlight
• News in Brief
• People Profile
• Distribution Story

Spotlight

Translators in Training

by Madhava Smullen

In a small town where Krishna once protected his devotees with the holy Govardhana Hill, a major part of the future of Vaishnava culture and learning has been born. Srimad Bhagavat Vidyapitham, ISKCON’s version of the traditional vidyapitham Sanskrit language school, focuses its work around the cream of all Vedic literature, Srimad Bhagavatam.

Gopiparanadhana Dasa, a BBT Sanskrit editor and translator for thirty-five years, has long seen the need for a school that will provide the BBT and ISKCON with a new generation of translators, editors, and competent Vaishnava scholars. But there’s more to his plan than intellectual knowledge. “We need to provide special training for devotees to learn how to function as brahmanas,” he says.

While the BBT morally and financially supported Gopiparana-dhana’s early attempts at starting a Sanskrit school, it took him time to realize the magnitude of his project. “The facility needed to be extremely well organized and disciplined,” he reasons, “To make it possible for ISKCON devotees, with less than brahmnical backgrounds, to rise to the standards of character and skill required for translating, explaining, and researching the books of our acharyas.”

But Gopiparanadhana stuck to his goal. And in 2005, after several meetings with visionary and Friends of the BBT co-chair Gopal Bhatta Dasa, the Sanskrit school he’d always imagined opened its doors.

For the school’s brahmachari (celibate) students, life is spiritual, regulated and full of learning. After the temple morning program, they chant Bhagavatam verses, followed by classes on Jiva Goswami’s Sat-Sandarbhas, the science of poetry by Kavi Karnapura, how to read, understand and explain acharya’s commentaries on Srimad-Bhagavatam, and even a course on spoken Sanskrit.

“They also undergo intense training in Sanskrit grammar, mainly using Jiva Goswami’s Harinamamrita Vyakarana,” says Gopiparanadhana, who is also one of the school’s five teachers.  “But that’s only used to promote the study and teaching of the Bhagavatam.”

With such a full schedule, Srimad-Bhagavat Vidyapitham is the perfect place to focus on learning. One of the students, Vishnukanta Dasa, tells me that their non-academic activities include typical ashram services such as cleaning the temple room, serving prasadam, and washing their own clothes. “Considering the duration of time spent in classes, preparation for next day and services, we hardly have any time to think about anything else,” he says. But his enthusiastic tone suggests that this is a good thing…

Read the rest of the article here >>

News in Brief

Friends of the BBT Membership Campaign

Friends of the BBT was originally formed in 2005 by chairpersons Gopal Bhatta Dasa and Pranada Dasi. But we are only just coming to the end of our first active year, with a newsletter, website and membership program all in full swing.

Director Pancharatna Dasa brings us up to date. “So far, quite a few members have joined Friends of the BBT without any major solicitation. Now we’re reaching out and asking the rest of the world to join. Your support is essential in achieving the exciting goals we have for 2008.”

Goals include supporting the Srimad-Bhagavat Vidyapitham—the Sanskrit school at Govardhana, the annual BBT Arts Seminar, and the expansion of Krishna.com. While Krishna.com now functions with its own resources, much more can happen with the help of Friends of the BBT donors. The main focus will be on developing new content, especially video. Launching Krishna.com in Spanish is a close forerunner.

Perhaps our biggest goal is to help establish Krishna.com as an introduction to Krishna consciousness, through downloads, online reading, mentors, live chat, and online courses. Krishna.com can help students progress systematically in Krishna consciousness, and steer them towards buying Prabhupada’s books, including a full Srimad-Bhagavatam set.

This program will be affiliated with Tools for Weekend Warriors, which helps devotees to distribute more BBT products. ISKCON Silicon Valley’s monthly Sankirtana Festival, for instance, consists of devotees who can only distribute books on weekends and don’t have time to follow up with “customers.” Friends of the BBT is helping fund Vaisesika Dasa’s system enabling such distributors to pass potential devotees’ names onto Krishna.com, and prepare them for an introduction to Krishna consciousness. Establishing this program is one of our most important goals for 2008.

Read the rest of the article here >>

Prabhupada Art Book

The BBT is preparing to release an incredible new book on the 30th anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s disappearance this November.

The Prabhupada Art Book will appear in a large format similar to the previously released Darshan, and will be 192 pages long. A meditation book, it will contain minimal text alongside many restored photographs of Srila Prabhupada. The first printing will be 3,000 copies.

Photographer Nitya Tripta Dasi returns for this amazing book, which captures the sweetness and charming compassionate nature of Srila Prabhupada in both intimate and outdoor preaching situations.

Also working on the project are Braja Sevaki Dasi, Haladhara Dasa, Akincana Krsna Dasa, Ali Krsna Dasi and Madhusevita Dasa.

People Profile

Vishnukanta Dasa: Sanskrit School Special

Born and raised in Chennai, India, Vishnukanta was on his way to becoming a typically prosperous software engineer, when the real purpose of his life showed up.

“I was graduating from university in 2002, when I wandered into a preaching program in one of the classrooms hosted by a local Hare Krishna Youth Forum,” he says. “I found the rich culture and profound philosophy very attractive. But it was Srila Prabhupada’s books, and his expertise in explaining Krishna consciousness, that made the biggest impression on me.”

Now an ISKCON devotee, Vishnukanta continued to study while practicing Krishna consciousness, doing his Bachelors in Computer Science and working as a software engineer for nearly three years. “But I just wasn’t happy,” he says. “I wanted to study and serve, and immerse myself in deeper spirituality.”

A sincere desire yields results, and it wasn’t long before Krishna stepped in. A seemingly chance meeting with Gopiparanadhana Dasa answered nearly all Vishnukanta’s questions. “Right away, I knew I wanted to study under this man,” he recalls. “And I wanted to use the knowledge I learned to serve the BBT and the devotee community.”

Read the rest of the article here >>

“I Am From Hell”

by Omkara Dasa

Recently Bhrigupati, Prema Sankirtana, Dvarakesh, and I traveled to Santa Rosa, California for Harmony, a three-day music festival.

When we arrived, I saw a man who was covered in tattoos, including an insignia of devil worship and an upside-down pentagram, and who had a profusion of piercings. I called him over, introduced myself and asked him where he was from.

“I am from hell!” he snarled at me.

“Wow, that’s great!” I exclaimed, ignoring his attitude and showing him pictures from the books I carried. I explained to him that they were about yoga and meditation.

He muttered quietly, “I actually kinda like yoga and meditation.”

He gave me a donation and took the books. He thanked me from the bottom of his heart for having been there that day and given him the opportunity to purchase such wonderful books.

As I left, I noticed that he had tears in his eyes.

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