Prabhupada on taking care of children: Move from santa to dasya

[Guest guest]

Prabhup€da: Now, I shall request you one thing. The... During €r€trika time,

hundreds of children come to us. I give little pras€dam. You have seen it?

 

Dr. Patel: Yes.

 

Prabhup€da: They are very interested in dance and... Now, I wish that they

may be given sumptuous food and dress.

 

Dr. Patel: Yes, dress, I also thought of that. Some of them are very badly

dressed, poor people...

 

Prabhup€da: Yes, if they come, "All right, come here. Just take your bath,

be cleansed, tilaka, and a nice dress" and giving them some food.

 

Tam€la KŠa: Every day they can put on their nice clothes for the Deity.

Prabhup€da: Yes, because their father, mother, neither they do know how to

take care of the children, but they come to us. We should take care of them.

 

Dr. Patel: This is just like those Christian missions, we must...

 

Prabhup€da: Any one...

 

Dr. Patel: I think, I think we must do that. Then we will be able to

propagate.

 

Prabhup€da: Not with that purpose. Here is a poor child. He comes

automatically to dance. So we should take care of them.

 

Dr. Patel: Yes, I have thought of it long ago.

 

Prabhup€da: Yes.

 

Dr. Patel: We must collect some funds and buy some ready-made clothes, keep

them ready and present them.

 

Prabhup€da: So from €nta-rasa we can begin this d€sya-rasa. Yes. Instead of

taking care of them [srila Prabhupada's disciples -- Mmd], you please kindly

take up these poor children.

 

Dr. Patel: Yes, you see, my wife used to take care of more than hundred

children in the schools, giving them fees, giving them notes, pencils and

clothing and...

 

Prabhup€da: A little more, little more.

 

Dr. Patel: She was doing it, but I am not she. She was a multi-millionaire's

daughter; I am a poor man's son.

 

Prabhup€da: But you are not poor man.

 

Dr. Patel: She had that painting from her young days of her father as a

billionaire. But I am a extremely poor man.

 

Prabhup€da: But you are the husband of a millionaire's daughter.

 

Dr. Patel: She's dead now. She has got no... She had a grip on me when she

was living. I am now a vagabond in her absence. (laughs)

 

Prabhup€da: No, it is not the question of you or she. I am just pointing

out.

 

Dr. Patel: No, no, no. I will try. I have taken your, this thing to my

heart. I will try to collect some fund and get some clothing, those

ready-made ones.

 

Prabhup€da: So one day a tailors may be brought and take their measurement.

 

Dr. Patel: But ready-made is there.

 

Prabhup€da: Or ready-made. Ready made. So in the evening they should come,

they should take bath, be cleansed, and give dress. Next day when they come,

change the dress. Let them be habituated. They are coming...

 

Dr. Patel: In cleanliness, you give them impression of cleanliness.

 

Prabhup€da: ...voluntarily, to dance, to take pras€dam. So why you should

not take care of them? This is my point. We don't make distinction whether

they are coming from Christian or Hindu or...

 

Dr. Patel: No, no, no, no, man is a man. I mean those Christians think that

we are Hindus and they are Christian. We don't think because in Hinduism or

in actually Vedic religion everyone is created one.

 

Prabhup€da: Yes.

 

Dr. Patel: I am in fact, When I go near...

 

Prabhup€da: Our, our, our mantra is sarve sukhino bhavantu.

 

Dr. Patel: That's right.

 

Prabhup€da: Sarve sukhina... Everyone be happy. This is KŠa consciousness

movement. We want to see everyone to be happy. That's all.

 

Dr. Patel: I, but, this is naturally me, if I see, of course... Then

naturally... The great Jesus Christ, great bhakta of God. (some other men

talk in background) But Christians, they have, they are...

 

Prabhup€da: No, no. These, they may be low grade. They may be inferior, but

if we are superior, we must act as superior.

 

Dr. Patel: That's right.

Prabhup€da: That is our movement.

 

Dr. Patel: Your religion is extremely catholic.

 

Prabhup€da: Our catholic KŠa consciousness—KŠa says sarva-yoniu.

Sarva-yoniu kaunteya sambhavanti m™rtayaƒ y€ƒ: [bg. 14.4] "Any form of

life, that is, I am the seed-giving father."

 

Dr. Patel: That's right, sir.

 

Prabhup€da: And how lovingly they come to take little pras€dam. I was

thinking that...

 

Dr. Patel: I was noticing, myself, the same thing...

 

Prabhup€da: How lovingly they offer me obeisances, touch my feet, and a

little fruit or little, whatever I give, they are satisfied. So they are so

friendly because they are innocent. They do not know what is this Hindu,

Christian. So we must take care of them.

 

Guest (1): Some of those childrens are Christians.

 

Prabhup€da: Never mind Christian, Hindu, Muslim. A Christian or a..., if we

offer them nice food and nice dress, nobody will deny.

 

Dr. Patel: But these Hindus became Christians because they were offered nice

food and dress by Christian missionaries.

 

Prabhup€da: No, our point is not that, just to bring them and proselytize

them to Hinduism. No. Take pras€dam, take dress, chant Hare KŠa, dance.

That's all.