Friends of the BBT Newsletter – January 08

In This Issue…

• Spotlight
• News in Brief
• Distribution Story

Spotlight

Bengal Beats the Big Mridanga

by Madhava Smullen

The Bengali BBT emerged in Mayapur in 1977 to humble beginnings. Only Bhagavad Darshan, a monthly Bengali edition of Back to Godhead magazine, and several small booklets, gave any hint of what was to come.

When Shyama-Rupa Dasa joined the team in 1984, things hadn’t gotten much grander. “In those days, the BBT offices were crammed into one room,” he says. “We also had a press with two small printing machines, and a city office near the Kolkota temple.

But only a few of Srila Prabhupada’s books had been translated into Bengali, and we had to use both our Mayapur Press and
an outside offset press in Kolkata to print them.”

Still, Shyama-Rupa considered himself fortunate. Originally from Kolkata, Srila Prabhupada’s birthplace, he was sure that working for the BBT had always been in the stars for him. This destiny was only further confirmed when he joined ISKCON and authorities immediately gave him BBT work as his first service.

But it was hearing a quote from Srila Prabhupada, “The BBT is my heart and soul,” that really sealed the deal for him. From then on, Shyama-Rupa decided he wanted it to be his heart and soul, too.

“Once in the old BBT days, before I became a manager,” he recalls, “My co-devotee Brihat Kirtan Prabhu, one worker named Asit, and I were still printing at 1a.m. at night. Suddenly my Guru Maharaja, Jayapataka Swami, entered our press room. ‘Why are you printing so late at night?’ he asked.

‘Tomorrow is the mailing date for our newspaper, Hare Krishna Sankirtan Samachar,’ we answered, ‘But the printing has not been finished yet. So here we are.’”

“Guru Maharaja was pleased, and blessed us, ‘Please continue throughout your whole life with this sincerity, and you will be perfectly serving Srila Prabhupada.’”

This blessing made Shyama-Rupa determined to continue his service for as long as possible. “It is Srila Prabhupada’s mercy that he has granted my desire,” he says now. “And I’m still here.”

And we’re glad he is. Now the General Manager and official publisher, he’s seen the Bengali BBT grow into something Srila Prabhupada would be truly proud of.

Read the rest of the article here >>

News in Brief

Land Purchased for the BBT’s Sanskrit School

Srimad-Bhagavata Vidyapitham, the BBT’s Sanskrit School for training brahmanas and new translators, has just purchased over five acres for its brand new campus.

Only one mile from Govardhan Hill and close to Chandra Sarovara, where Krishna held many of His rasa-lila pastimes, the land’s location is well suited for creating a  peaceful, sattvic environment.

The campus now under development will house sixty students as well as teachers and staff. It will be beautifully landscaped, and the buildings —30,000 square feet—will feature classrooms and a library of more than four thousand volumes.

Anticipation is high for this, one of the most exciting projects ISKCON has seen in many years. Friends of the BBT would like to thank Gopal Bhatta Dasa for his generous contribution towards making this possible and Trinadapi
Sunicena Dasa for his hard work in securing the land. We will keep you updated on further developments

BBT Meetings

The latest BBT meetings were held from November 7 through 9 in
Vrindavana dhama in India, and attended by BBT trustees, directors, managers and staff from around the world. Were they productive? Absolutely, and we’re pleased to bring you the highlights:

First off is the Oral History Project, an attempt to capture the history of the BBT and its books. Through interviews with individuals who were involved in the early days of ISKCON, the BBT will track the history of its book production, helping to preserve Srila Prabhupada’s legacy and our future enlightenment.

Another project is the BBT’s IT Google Group, an online discussion forum for IT professionals who’d like to help the BBT make Srila Prabhupada’s books available through the internet, e-books and more. If you’re an IT professional and you’d like to help, you can join at groups.google.com/group/bbt-it.

Were you inspired by last year’s Pra-bhupada Marathon? If so, the BBT is doing their best to make it easier for you to continue distributing books throughout the year. A subcommittee consisting of BBT Trustees and experienced book distributors will consider the pricing
and availability of BBT books for sale
by individual devotees, especially
householders.

And there’s more: if you need to brush up on your philosophy before heading out onto the streets, you’re in luck. Our very own Pancharatna Dasa will coordinate an effort to create online versions of Urmila Dasi’s study guides on Bhagavad-gita As It Is and other important books.

Finally, book distribution could be truly growing with the times. BBT Trustee Brahma Muhurta Dasa and veteran book distributor Vaisesika Dasa have teamed up to create DVDs for public distribution.

So look out for a new era of modern enlightenment!

The BBT Art Seminar

This year, the first-ever BBT Art Seminar was held in Vrindavana, India, from October 20 to November 12. Taught by veteran ISKCON artists Dhriti Dasi and Ram Dasa Abhirama Dasa, the course was attended by eighteen devotee artists from around the globe.

“I hope that this group set the mood for the future of devotee artists,” Dhriti says. “They approached the seminar with great enthusiasm and a determined desire to truly grasp the essence of devotional art.”

Each day of the course was packed with activity. Mornings were reserved for life drawing and lessons on anatomy and form, and in the afternoon students worked on an oil painting of their choice from scripture. These activities were supplemented with lessons on composition, values, color, transcendental form, aesthetics, drama, and painting technique.

Dhriti and Ram Dasa based the Art Seminar on actual processes and techniques used by the BBT Art Department, presenting their students with a book showing the progression of prominent BBT paintings from sketch to finished work. “I think it was interesting and eye opening for them to see the amount of preparation that went into each painting,” Dhriti says.

Students were also treated to “parikrama painting,” as the class ventured out into the early-morning mists of Vrindavana, taking inspiration from the sights and sounds of the holy dhama. And there were evening excursions too. “Once we all took a boat ride across the Yamuna and then painted the Madana Mohana temple as the sun set,” Dhriti recalls. “It was an experience that filled us all with peace and joy.”

For the students, being able to paint Krishna was their life’s dream. For the teachers, passing on their knowledge was a dream, too. “We tried to convey how sweet and intense a meditation it is to paint Krishna,” Dhriti says. “When you mix an artist’s natural love for his art with a strong desire to depict the Supreme Lord and His pastimes, you get a truly potent combination.”

In the end, the course yielded some remarkable results, with at least five high-quality paintings nearly completed. And the response from all the students was unanimously positive—many say they hope to return for future seminars.

Perhaps a new generation of BBT artists has been born with this seminar. We can only wait and see…

A Taste of Real Happiness

by Ahaituki Bhakti Dasi

I was distributing books in the small Finnish town of Kausala, and handed one woman Teachings of Queen Kunti.

“So this is about Krishna?” she asked me. “I’ve heard of Him, but I don’t know anything about Him. This’ll be a very interesting read.”

We talked for a long time about how to find real, spiritual happiness, and she asked many intelligent questions. At long last a girl that looked like she could potentially take a book walked by. Since I was still engaged in conversation, I couldn’t present her with a book. But suddenly the woman I was talking to noticed the girl too and called out, “Come here and see these books! Take one for yourself! They’re about Krishna! You’ll love them!”

When the girl came over, I handed her a book and the woman began animatedly  glorifying it and explaining the philosophical points we had just discussed. I stood watching with equal parts bemusement and awe, until the girl bought the book, and they both went their separate ways.

I was left to reflect on how straight after our discussion on real happiness, the woman had gotten a taste of it by distributing Srila Prabhupada’s book.

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