720216 - Letter to Kirtika written from Calcutta

Letters by Date, 1972

Tridandi Goswami
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

Date: February 16, 1972
Camp: ISKCON Calcutta

My dear Kirtika dasi,

Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter of January 15, 1972, and I have noted the contents. Regarding your question whether husband and wife should live together in the temple, according to temple rules they should not live together in the temple. It does not give a good impression for brahmacharies and sannyasis. It is better if the grihasthas have a separate ashram, just like in Los Angeles the married disciples rent rooms together in one apartment house near the temple and live there separately, and in this way no one is disturbed, neither the brahmacharies are disturbed by householder life, nor the grihasthas are disturbed by brahmacharies. This is the best system, and if you and your good husband require to live together to advance nicely in Krishna Consciousness, that is very good proposal, but you should try to model the arrangement after the Los Angeles temple, and you should live separately, men and women, if you live in the temple itself.
It is a very important question, and I am glad that you have asked me, but I think from now on the GBC men may be consulted in all such matters of temple management and affairs. I have given them everything, so they shall be able to answer all questions, and if they cannot answer from their experience, then I have given answer in my books--and still if they cannot answer, they may ask me. But now we are expanding very rapidly with so many centres throughout the world, and every day I am receiving not less than ten to fifteen important letters. I am always very much encouraged to hear from my disciples and to reply them, but now I am old man and I have inclination for philosophy and translating, and if all day and night I am reading and answering and signing letters then I cannot utilize this, the fag-end of my life, to give you so many nice literatures like the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, Ramayana, Mahabharat, and other books in our own Gaudiya line, like Rupa Goswami, Sanatan Goswami, Viswanath Chakravarty and others. So if the GBC which I have appointed for this task will kindly now assist me in this way, by handling very expertly and with all good consideration all matters of managing, I shall devote my full time to giving you further nice books.
Hoping this will meet you in good health and happy mood.

Your ever well-wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

ACBS/sda