The recording captures a live devotional assembly in Pune where senior ISKCON leaders, including Ramana Swami, Sarvilakshan Prabhu, and other senior devotees, praise His Holiness Śrīla Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja for his unparalleled contributions to book distribution, temple construction, and prasadam service. The speakers announce a "Book Marathon" campaign running from November 1st through December 2023, targeting the distribution of 7 lakh (700,000) books worldwide, and call devotees to participate as a devotional offering. They also detail a large‑scale fundraising drama for the Pandarpur temple project, describing its artistic modules, technical scale, and the teams involved. Additional announcements cover logistical arrangements—stage, sound, lighting, security, prasadam preparation, and volunteer coordination—along with acknowledgments of various volunteers and leaders. The overall tone is reverent, celebratory, and motivational, urging the community to emulate the compassion of Śrīla Prabhupāda and the Maharaja by engaging in service, book distribution, and supporting the temple construction effort.
Chapters
Marathon competition. So anyway, I already have your books.
So we start the book marathon from November 1st.
Sorry, frequency changed. 89.7.
Krishna pristaya bhutale, Sri Matai bhaktivedanta, Swamin itti namine. Namaste Saraswati Devi, Gauravani pracharine, Nirbhisheesha Shunyavadi. Prabhunityananda Sri Aduyide Gadadhara Shivase Digo Bhaktabrinda. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. I am sincerely honored, grateful, and feel very blessed to be among all of the assembled devotees in the presence of His Holiness Śrīla Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Gosvāmī Mahāprabhu. Maharaj, I cannot properly express my gratitude to you. Śrīla Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja has been inspiring us and encouraging us to find true happiness and to share true happiness through sharing Śrīla Prabhupāda's compassion. With the people of Pune, Maharashtra, India, and the whole world through the distribution of Śrīla Prabhupāda's books. How is it that when he comes here every year to Pune, he invests in all of your hearts with the potency to perform miracles of hundreds and hundreds and thousands of books distributed. He speaks with realization. In the history of our movement, Śrīla Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja has distributed the maximum number of books through his inspiration, and miraculously, through his compassion, whoever he affects distributes more and more books every year. Śrīla Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja has built and opened more temples than anyone in the history of our movement. And practically every temple is magnificent with thriving congregations, thriving ashrams. Śrīla Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Gosvāmī, in the history of our movement, has distributed more plates of Kṛṣṇa's Prasadam. It is only possible because he is intimately empowered by Śrīla Prabhupāda's divine grace. And that empowerment is coming because of his true love and surrender to please Śrīla Prabhupāda. His life, his example is teaching us what Bhagavad-gītā declares to be the most secret of all secrets: to know Kṛṣṇa and to love Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Prabhupāda, the efforts, the sacrifices that he made To provide these books to us is one of the greatest gestures of love of God this world has ever seen. Because Śrīla Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja has taken so seriously Śrīla Prabhupāda's mission of compassion He's given his entire life to share it with the world. His age, his health— how is it even possible for him to come here all the way to Pune simply to request us to receive Śrīla Prabhupāda's mercy by giving that mercy to others. His sitting on this asana is thousands of times a greater sacrifice than all of us together going out every day and making sacrifices to distribute these books. He's living and he's willing to die at any moment to show compassion to the fallen souls and give happiness to the people who are suffering. Not just happiness, but the happiness of the soul in pure devotional service. Krishna prema, love for Krishna. I only request one thing, and it's my humble message. Please, all of the community of Pune and all of the community of the devotees Throughout the world, let us reciprocate Vāsudeva Gosvāmī's compassion, his mercy on us, by making this month a sacrificial offering of devotion to please him by distributing Śrīla Prabhupāda's books. Marathon. Śrīla Prabhupāda, I think, chose that word. I don't know. But the word marathon indicates really struggling to reach a goal against all odds, untiring. Maharaj is an example of this. I am astounded because I have seen the community of Pune over the decades, how he has transformed you and empowered you from a little simple hut in the military area, cantonment, whatever, to becoming the largest center for book distribution in the world. Maharaj, we're going to try our best to make you happy. That is how we can make Śrīla Prabhupāda happy, by making you happy. Thank you very much. Śrīla Prabhupāda ki jāna. And I thank all of you in this wonderful community, Rādhā-śāmprabhu and all of the devotees, for creating the spiritual world here in Pune. Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Hare Krishna. Hare Krishna.
When, uh, His Holiness Rahanath Maharaj was sending me to Pune way back in 1995. The first meeting when I was about to come to Pune, Maharaj was telling that His Holiness Gopalakrishna Gosvami Maharaj is my senior godbrother and is very close to Śrīla Prabhupāda, and I have deep respect for him. And he said, if you please him, you will please me, he said. So, His Holiness Ranath Maharaj always considers His Holiness Gopakrishna Maharaj like an elder godbrother and very respectable godbrother. As you heard from him just now, how beautifully he glorified His Holiness Gopakrishna Maharaj and his contribution, his sacrifice, his dedication, and also he persuaded all of us to also take a very active part in this marathon and then bring up the quota that Gopakshumaraj spelled out 3 times today, which is 7 lakh books this year. So thank you very much, Prasadam Nisargamaraj. It's very kind of you that you stayed back and after the meeting, and both of you, seeing you together on the dais and hearing from both of you was so nectarian. And so energy giving for all of us. I'm sure everyone is getting a very great spiritual boost by both of your divine presence. Thank you, thank you.
Hare Krishna. I feel a little embarrassed by Ramana Swami being very kind to me. Ramana Swami is one of the leading preachers of our movement. And he has inspired lakhs of people to come to Krishna Consciousness, and himself is very great preacher. So thank you for kind words, you being very humble and praising me. I don't deserve any of that. Hare Krishna. Hare.
Hare Krishna. Now we have His Grace Sarvilakshan Prabhu, who is heading our publicity mission department in the last so many years, along with his team of Amiya Murti Sundara Prabhu and almost 20 others, right? 20 more devotees in your department. In Kunjabair Temple, we have His Grace Sujay Gopi Keshava Prabhu. They are a very powerful team, very well organized team. So he would like to make some announcements regarding the forthcoming Marathon 2023, December, November-December.
Hare Krishna. Hare Krishna. Krishna Krishna.
Hare Hare.
Hare Rama. Hare Rama.
Rama Rama.
Hare Hare. Hare Krishna. Last moment may decide. 500 and 1,000 and 5,000 and 10,000. Yes. So, Alagala Bhakta, his grace Satchinandan Bhagavan Prabhu, his grace Sundar Vishambhar Prabhu, his grace Krishna Lok Prabhu, Sundar Vishambhar Prabhu, sorry, his grace Sundar Vishambhar Prabhu, his grace Krishna Lok Prabhu, his grace Bhagavata Katha Prabhu, His Grace Madhu Kiran Prabhu, His Grace Govind Prabhu, and His Grace Sanak Sanatan Prabhu.
Hari bol.
To iski baad ek chota sa program ho raha hai. To yah aapar ek shorty prabhu yah aapar aye hain. Iske inka ek program se pehle chota sa announcement karta hoon.
Jaise last year Zahudewa chha gawa is prakar ke do mahanaat te sadar kiye the. Aaj, hamne sab ko pata hai ki Parampuja Lukanath Swami Maharaj Pandarpur mein ek bohoti bada ek sopachis karod rupa hai ka ek bhave nirman mandir kareni jaar hai hai. Is mandir ko support dena ke liye hamare mandir ke adhyaksha shrimaan Radhe Shyam Prabhu. Inhone kahaa hai ki kyun ki Pandarpur jo hai Maharashtra ka Vrindavan hai, whose height is 100 feet. This Prakarik Bhavya stage, we are sitting in Radha Kunja Bihar, Radha Vrindavan Chandra, or Vishal Nagar. In these 3 mandirs, bhaktas, 10,000 bhaktas, are sitting. This Sundar drama is going to be performed. This Sundar Mahanathya's lekhan, digdarshan, jo kiya hai, woh bishmiya maridu bhakta. Sundar Kanhai Prabhu or Vrindavan Chandra Prabhu, ye do bhakto dwara uska dikdarshan kiya gaya hai. Ye Mahanath te ham sadar karenge, aat nau das gyara peburwari ko. Mandir ke samne hi aatekar land hai. Is land ke upar ham ye Mahanath te prastut karenge. Char din kele Mahanath te hoga. Koshish karenge, is Mahanath te se teen koro drupe ki katta ho.
Aribo! Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Ram, Hare Ram, Ram Ram, Hare Hare. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Ram, Hare. Hare Krishna, ye last moment mein hum ko ye pata chala, is last moment mein kuch bhakto ne saath mein aake ye satsang ka success kele prayas ke, First of all, we welcome His Grace Radhe Shyam Prabhupada.
Hare Krishna. Actually, this Balaji drama, for doing it, the team, as you know, Radha Vandanachandra Prabhu, Sundar Kaniya Prabhu, and many others, they have done a lot of research from all the technical details of the drama, and they have— How long you have been doing it?
You are?
Ah, 2 and a half years. Earlier there was a small drama here, right? This is a more bigger version of that and they have— it's not only a big investment of money and also 250 actors are acting. So my request to all of you is kindly spread the word around to other devotees who may not be aware of it and where will they get more details about it, you want to say?
So we request all the devotees to kindly bless this drama. This drama is purely done only by the mercy of Lord Balaji. Everything happening in this drama, all the participants coming, the fund flow, all the dancers, choreographers, and the set designers, and everyone is participating in such a way as if Lord Balaji has personally sent them from their abode here. And I mean, we are not able to fathom these things at all, that, you know, how such miraculous tasks are happening. You know, every day some new development it is going on.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So this drama is mainly done under the guidance of Kanata Kuru and His Grace Adeshwar Prabhu. So we request all the devotees, actually there has been extensive research done. So this drama has mainly 3 modules which is there in this book. It is called Itihas, Leela, and Samarpan. That means the history, the story, and the sacrifice. So we are having about 12 themes which we will be covering in this drama. And this drama is extremely entertaining, extremely spiritually motivating. It has a lot of historical background, it has a lot of cultural background, and we hope to induce a devotion in everyone's hearts and at the same time raise funds for the Pandarpur project. So we request all the devotees to kindly bless, bless this dharma and bless us. Thank you so much.
So one last announcement about this pandal arrangements.
Hare Krishna. Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare. Hare Ram Hare Ram Ram Ram. Hare Hare. Saath-Saath mein yeh pandal aur stage ka setup kiya hai. Is grace Dauji Nitai prabhu and Ajay Gopal prabhu. Aur stage decoration kiya hai. Stage decoration kiya hai Gaurang Pran prabhu and Kaustubh prabhu. LED lights, Kamyavan Pravu and Sriniketan Pravu. Sound system, Shri Bhagavatseva Pravu and Abhishek Pravu. Kirtan, Dayasindhu Pravu and Murali Govind Pravu. Prasadam cooking and prasadam distribution, His Grace Shri Kumar Krishna Pravu and Shankar Pandit Pravu and team. Our security and crowd control, Satya Priyapru and team. Hare Krishna. Thank you very much. Hare Krishna. ₹100 discount, special discount. Special feast prasadam aapke liye intuzaar karraha hai. Hare Krishna!
