Personal experience

By Bhaktin Sara Bock

We never can tell what effect Krishna’s name or His books will have on people.

One lady who I work with ended up in the hospital – in a room that happened to have a view of the LA Krishna temple. She had learned some mantras in our meditation class at work, and had visited the temple once when we took a field trip there.

She called from the hospital and asked me to bring her books, music, and Krishna food while she was in the hospital to cheer her up. Part of me hesitated for fear of work authorities accusing me of “proselytizing” in a work related situation, but deeply I knew this was too important to pass up! I dropped off some books, music, and of course Krishna cookies.

A week later when returning she told me of her situation – she reads daily Light of the Bhagavata which she loves, and each morning at 5 am, and each night before bed, she closes her hospital room door, looks out the window at the temple, turns on her “Temple Bhajan Band” music, and chants and dances to lift her spirit.

Hospitals seem to be a very wide open door for sharing Krishna Consciousness with others.

Hare Krishna.

Our Purpose

The Mission:

The purpose of Sastra Dana is to enable you to participate directly in the missionary activities of distributing Srila Prabhupada’s books by sponsoring them. Our goal is to expose as many people as possible to the spiritual information given in Srila Prabhupada’s books.

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How Do We Distribute the Books?

By placing donated books in locations where they are properly kept and read, such as libraries, schools, prisonhouses, hospital waiting rooms, government offices, dentists’ offices, and nail and hair salons. Sastra Dana members also distribute books to relatives, colleagues, etc.

How Can You Participate?

By sponsoring the books, by coming up with creative ideas for getting donations or for distributing books, by personally distributing the sponsored books, by telling others about the program, etc.

What are the Benefits of Sastra Dana?

Everyone benefits! People in general benefit by getting a chance to read about Krishna, and you directly participate in the preaching mission of Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Srila Prabhupada. Your help increases book distribution, which is the highest welfare work for all humanity.

All BBT publications are made available to you at the printing cost only. Donations to Sastra Dana are fully tax deductible. Receipts are available upon request.

In praise of Sastra Dana

The following is a quote by His Holiness Kadamba Kanana Swami:

This program of Sastra Dana, to place scriptures in different public libraries and so on, is a very nice program. Many people, in this way, get the opportunity to read Srila Prabhupada’s books, the whole library gets purified, and it is a very powerful way of getting Krishna consciousness into the world…

Srila Prabhupada, of course, had a library party. At that time the library party used to visit the different libraries in different countries, very systematically, trying to get the libraries to purchase Srila Prabhupada’s books. Of course in the more wealthy countries and in the bigger libraries that was possible. But there are many, many smaller libraries that don’t have the budget for purchasing the books. So over the years the program of Sastra Dana was developed, a program where devotees are sponsoring the books and then the books are offered as a gift to the libraries. Then, generally, libraries are very happy to receive them and then, as I said before, people can get a lot of benefit.

Because whoever reads Srila Prabhupada’s books, his life is permanently changed. Just by touching the pages of Srila Prabhupada’s books one’s spiritual life has begun. In this way the potency of Srila Prabhupada’s books is so extraordinary. Srila Prabhupada pointed out that these books are the principle means for changing the entire world and therefore any program that relates to the distribution of Srila Prabhupada’s books, as this Sastra Dana does, is very important! So everyone should help. Partake either by going to the libraries or by financially supporting the program.