Final Sri Mayapur Flood Bulletin and Gurukula Appeal.

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(Could you put please this one on 'X' Raktambara Prabhu. Thank you. YS. Bdd)

 

October 25th, 2000.

 

Dear Maharajs and Prabhus.

 

Please accept my obeisances.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

 

There is still a lot of work to do in ISKCON Mayapur, and we are continuing

to support the villagers around the campus. And we still need your help.

However, I think it would be fair to downgrade our emergency status from 10

down to about 7 on the Richter scale as it were.

 

That would not at all have been possible if it had not been for the

substantial help and support we have received from devotees all over the

world. I will write to all contributors individually in due course, but I

wanted to offer a general thank you to all members of the devotee community

for all your well-wishes, your kindness and your consideration.

 

I have included three short sections in this bulletin. The first is from

Dayaram Prabhu, expressing the feelings of the devotees in Mayapur.

 

One of our main areas of concern at this time are the Gurukulas. I next have

two letters from our school leaders in Mayapur, Racitambara DD and Lalita

DD. They both have a huge task in front of them, as they try to get their

schools ready for students.

 

They are also looking ahead and planning improvements, by which they will

avoid such damage in the future. If you feel able to support our Gurukulas

at this time, we would all be extremely grateful.

 

I will continue to update our emergency page at:

 

http://www.mayapur.org/community/flood2000/index.htm

 

You can find out about and support the continuing village relief programme

at the Mayapur Trust flood page at:

 

http://www.mayapurtrust.org/flood2000.html

 

Once again, thank you for all your help.

 

Your Servant

Bhagavat Dharma Dasa

 

 

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1). Letter from Dayarama Dasa, Oct. 25th.

========================================

 

Dear Devotees,

 

Dandavats. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

 

I am absolutely at a loss of words to express how touched we, the devotees

at Mayapur, are with the overwhelming response of the world-wide body of

devotees, to our request for help.

 

I would like to conclude that it is just another way in which the Lord

reassures us that we are in the right company, and on the right path and

under the right shelter.

 

Sometimes the plans of the Supreme Lord are best understood by the Lord

Himself. At all times, no matter how trying they may seem, we must simply

push forward the mission entrusted unto us by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu

through Srila Prabhupada.

 

All of us at Mayapur wish to convey our deepest gratitude for the love,

regard and genuine thoughtfulness this act of yours conveys.

 

Your response has been so wonderful, that we can only reciprocate by praying

to Sri Sri Radha Madhava that They bestow choicest blessings upon you all.

We pray with all that is at our command that you all may be blessed to lead

a blissful and satisfying devotional life, and pray that somehow or other we

continue to get your association and blessings.

 

We hope that we will be able to serve you all whenever you come to Sri

Mayapur Dham. We look forward to having your association.

 

Hare Krsna.

 

Your servant,

Dayaram Das

 

 

=====================================================

2) Request from Racitambara DD, Head of the Gurukula

=====================================================

 

> Phalguna writes that 30,000 dollars of books have been

> destroyed. Is this correct? This is a very dramatic loss for

> the Gurukula. If it is so, then the more details you give me

> the better - what books were they?

 

Yes, we have had a huge loss in books. We had been collecting for 5 years

and lost our ENTIRE children's library, MOST of our textbooks and All of our

teachers' resources. We have also suffered huge damage to our kitchen, 5

residential huts, our temple room, assembly house, and the grounds. Our

school building (again grass roofed hut-type) also suffered damage.

 

Since we flood every year, it would be good to once and for all go all out

to get financial support which would allow us rebuild in a more permanent

way so that after each flood we just wash off and keep going, instead of

having to rebuild each year. This is very costly and not cost-effective in

the long run.

 

The huts in our school cost from Rs 30,000 to Rs 60,000 (700-1400 USD) to

build, depending on the size. However, we have a large prasadam hall, which

has a foundation for two storeys. We could build classrooms on top of that,

which would cost us about 6 lakhs of rupees. (13,500 USD). Also the huts

could be built with brick and concrete plinths and brick columns, rather

than bamboo, and these would them still be traditional, but they would be

permanent structures that would not wash away in the flood.

 

Similarly, our kitchen could be fortified and not wash away either. With 10

lakhs (23,000 USD), we could do it all and next year and in the ensuing

years not have to ask for much at all.

 

We would then basically have a clean up job after each flood, rather than a

construction site. It would be a HUGE saving year after year! Also we would

have a permanent storage space well above even tidal wave level, and would

never lose another book, nor all the bedding and clothing we lost this year.

 

Please consider our appeal for once-and-for-all building a proper school

that is permanent and flood-proof. A big donation this year will mean we

won't be bothering you year after year.

 

You can send cheques for the Mayapur Gurukula, made out to 'Vaishnava

Community Services', to Sesa Dasa, 15206 NW 89th Street Alachua, FL 32615,

USA. You can also give via secure credit card server from the Mayapur Trust

page at

 

http://www.mayapurtrust.org/flood2000.html

 

(Please put 'Gurukula Village' in the comment box).

 

If you are in India, you can send your gift for our school to me via

 

Racitambara Devi Dasi

c/o Pancaratna Das

ISKCON

31 Lake Avenue,

Calcutta 700026,

West Bengal

 

 

Your servant

 

Racitambara dasi

(racitambara.acbsp (AT) pamho (DOT) net)

 

PS - there are more details on our SOS page at:

 

http://www.mayapur.org/community/flood2000/racitambara1.htm

 

 

==========================================================

3) Letter from Lalita DD, head of the Mayapur Day School.

==========================================================

 

Dear Devotees

 

Please accept my obeisances.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

 

Thank you for all your efforts to help us here.

 

We have experienced the kind of devastation we thought would never come to

an end. The local people are dazed by their losses and many have no home, no

job and family members are dead or sick. The little shops outside the main

gate have started to reopen their tiny muddy windows and attempt to sell a

few bits and pieces to feed their families.

 

Inside ISKCON we slip and slide along muddy pathways. The smell of rotting

vegetation is everywhere. Our spirits have lifted however, Radha Madhava

smiles on us as we dance once more before Him.

 

Such pastimes with Mother Ganga we will never understand.

 

The Ganga water has gone down and we are left with a huge mess to clean up

in the Day school. All that is left are broken huts, scattered bamboos and

shapeless melted mud floors. The bathrooms and swing houses are also ruined.

 

We have started the clean up with a team of labourers. Their first job has

been shovelling mud and heaps of water hyacinth from damaged pathways and

out of the main buildings and the school goshalla.

 

The children are asking when school will start. I am hoping to at least get

the main building ready for classes by the end of the month. However, the

rest of the school will take months to rebuild and of course a lot of money.

 

I am more convinced than ever that we need to somehow raise the funds to

build brick structures that can be raised above flood level.

 

One of my immediate concerns is that the broken fences that surround the

school will encourage theft by impoverished locals. So one of the first

things that I need to do is rebuild these fences. They were completely

wrecked by the strong water current that swept across the school area. This

is a huge expense and it must be done immediately as we are hoping to open

the school on the 1st November.

 

You can see some images of our damaged school at:

 

http://www.mayapur.org/galleries/13

 

I will keep you informed of our progress. Once again, thank you for your

help.

 

Your servant

Lalita DD

(lalita.bppg (AT) pamho (DOT) net)

 

You can send cheques for the Mayapur Day School, made out to 'Vaishnava

Community Services', to Sesa Dasa, 15206 NW 89th Street Alachua, FL 32615,

USA. Please specify that your gift is for the 'Day School'. You can also

give via secure credit card server from the Mayapur Trust page at

 

http://www.mayapurtrust.org/flood2000.html

 

(Please put 'Mayapur Day School' in the comment box).

 

If you are in India, you can send your gift for our school directly to me

via

 

Lalita Dasi, Day School.

c/o Pancaratna Das

ISKCON

31 Lake Avenue,

Calcutta 700026,

West Bengal

 

 

Thank you very much.

 

Your Servant

 

Lalita DD.