All ISKCON temples should purchase the books of His Divine Grace from the BBT exclusively!
Posted By Administrator On January 12, 2014 @ 7:41 am In Editorial, GBC | Comments Disabled
To All Temples
Dear Devotees,
Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
It has come to our attention that there is some confusion regarding the purchase of Srila Prabhupada’s books for mass distribution. It is the policy of ISKCON, clarified by Srila Prabhupada in the accompanying letter, that all ISKCON temples purchase the books of His Divine Grace from the BBT exclusively.
Recently a pocket Bhagavad-gita As It Is was printed in large quantities, and sales agents for this printing have been actively engaged in attempting to sell these books to temples and temple devotees for mass distribution.
These books are not authorized by the BBT and do not meet the criteria outlined in the BBT agreement with Krishna Books Inc for the printing of the pre-1978 works of Srila Prabhupada. Any argument to the contrary is false.
As pointed out in Srila Prabhupada’s letter:
“If temples print independently it will be at the cost of the books I am myself printing, and could eventually cause the financial ruin of the BBT, meaning I could not order new books from the printer or have sufficient funds for construction of temple projects.
“I trust this is now clear and you will all do the needful. If you have any questions in this matter you can write me directly or consult with the GBC representative.”
Please do not be unsure or confused in this regard. These books are not authorized by the BBT. For ISKCON temples to distribute them would be contrary to Srila Prabhupada’s direct instructions.
Your servants,
Tamohara Das,
GBC executive committee chairman
On behalf of
The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust
Svavasa Das, Trustee