741124 - Letter to Sukadeva written from Bombay

Letters by Date, 1974

Tridandi Goswami
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Founder-Acharya:
International Society for Krishna Consciousness
CENTER:
Hare krishna Land, Gandhi Gram Road
Juhu, Bombay 400 054
DATE ..................24/11....1974...

Sriman Sukadeva das Adhikary
ISKCON
400 18 Avenue East
Seattle, Washington 98112
My Dear Sukadeva das:
Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter undated and have noted the contents. I am glad to learn that you are having nice college programs. Regarding there going to be depression and atomic war, who said that? This is all false propaganda. I never said this.
Regarding free will and pre-destination, yes, materially everything is decided. Spiritually you can make advancement despite all material destiny. Materially you cannot change things as they are but spiritually it is possible. No, devotees are not allowed more than one wife. Devotees should have no wife if possible, but those who cannot maintain celibacy, they can marry one wife. At the present moment people are so unfortunate they cannot maintain even one wife. First of all at the present moment they are not married and remain mostly unmarried. So for such persons even one wife is a great burden. Under the circumstances how one can think of more than one wife? This is stupidity.
Regarding your fifth question, that I shall think over. Regarding the sannyasi, therefore I have stopped sannyas. No Vaishnava says that he is advanced. Please send me the name of the sannyasi, and I shall do the needful. Regarding the cooking, a non-brahmin may assist but he cannot cook.
I hope this meets you in good health.

Your ever well wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

ACBS/bs