PART I: Ashram Life
1. Where are you currently located and what is(are) your sevā(s)?
I am located at the Yuga Dharma Ashram in upper westside Manhattan New York City. My main services are cooking, book distribution and Harināma sankirtan.
2. How is the current situation affecting your ability to perform those sevas?
The corona virus has affected our public harināma and Sunday feast program dramatically and as a result we had to stop all public preaching engagements. We move to another state for the wellbeing of our ashram and with the hope of continuing our public harināma and book distribution.
3. What does a day in your life look like, from the time you wake until the time you take rest at night?
I rise up by 3am every morning. And by 3:30am I am in the temple room chanting nāma japa.
From 4:30am - 5am/ we have mangal ārati, Nṛsiṁha ārati & Tulasī Pūjā.
5am-6:30am/japa, from
6:30am-7am/ I chant a chapter of Bhagavad Gītā, Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, Brahmā saṁhitā & Kṛṣṇa hoite catur mukha...
7am-7:20am/morning clean
7:20am-7:40am/Guru Pūjā
7:40am-9am/Bhāgavatam class
9am/Breakfast
After breakfast up until 12pm is free time. Most of us take a nap. I read, chant, practice mridanga study ślokas. If sleepy I take a short nap about 20 min.
12pm-1pm is traveling through subway to our harināma spot. The train rides we utilize for extra reading time.
1pm-7pm Harināma Sankirtan and book distribution (Each devotee has 2 half hour breaks. We take a big hot container of kitchari for all of us to eat.)
7pm-8pm traveling back to ashram (More reading)
8pm-9pm Hot milk & Kṛṣṇa book
9pm-3am Bedtime
PART II: Book Distribution
4. Regarding book distribution, what are 3-5 tips you can give on how to distribute more than just one book at a time?
1st tip: you have to show more to sell more. If you just show a Bhagavad then you will be expected to only sell a Bhagavad Gītā.
2nd tip: Chant your maṅgalācaraṇa prayers & pray to Śrī Guru and Gaurāṅga to use you as an instrument for spreading the pure message of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. And to distribute as many books as possible.
3rd tip: Try to sell the stack of books from the very beginning of meeting someone. If they express, it's too much to read or no money then show a smaller set of books etc ...
4th tip: The longer you try to distribute more books the more you will sell. Be as straightforward as possible and give them the pure message of Bhagavad Gītā as it is!
4a. How do you or your team get people to come to your table?
Not many people come to our book table. We usually approach them walking by. If they come to the book table, it is due to our book sign or out of curiosity.
4b. Do you set personal or team goals for how much to distribute or do you just go with the flow of the day and traffic around the table?
We set a personal goal according the capacity of the book distributor, so the distributor is always thinking I have to distribute this many book's today. If there's no goal, there will be laziness.
4c. What advice can you offer for someone new to book distribution? How about someone shy or timid? Or someone afraid to ask for donations?
Just associate and watch how experienced book distributors act and talk. Just repeat the same book distribution śloka... Most distributors start shy but by experience they grow bold and know that this is the desire of Caitanya Mahāprabhu that Kṛṣṇa consciousness be spread throughout the world. (There must be a clear understanding of the mood and mission of Śrīla Prabhupāda and our acharyas and that distributing Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books means to give people a chance to go back to the Spiritual world.)
5. How important is it to couple book distribution with Harināma Saṅkīrtana?
The harināma gives a better chance to distribute more books because favorable people will stop for the harināma and the chances of them getting books in higher, but it's not necessary that harināma should be there.
"Book Distribution is the Greater Kīrtan"
Book distribution is better than the Street Saṅkīrtana (Letter to: Rāmeśvara: — Bombay 25 November 1974)
Without literature, how can we enlighten the people at large? My Guru Mahārāja used to say that this press is bṛhad-mṛdaṅga. Bṛhad means bigger, at large, bigger mṛdaṅga, bigger. Just like we are playing mṛdaṅga. This mṛdaṅga can be vibrated in the neighboring quarter, but our mṛdaṅga, Back to Godhead, that will go far, far away. So therefore this press was considered by my Guru Mahārāja as bṛhad-mṛdaṅga. He said. You’ll find in the picture: there is this mṛdaṅga and press. He was very much fond of press. In the very beginning of his, this life, he started one press. You’ll find in his life a small press. So this press propaganda, this literary propaganda, is required because it is not sentiment. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.5.12-13 — New Vrindaban, June 11, 1969)
PART III: ISKCON & Gauḍīya Matha
6. You mentioned that your Guru Mahārāja had a dream about uniting ISKCON and Gauḍīya Maṭha devotees. Does this include all saṅgas of the Gauḍīya Maṭha?
Yes, all sincere followers of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. No matter what branch of what organization they are it is the desire of Caitanya Mahāprabhu that everyone get off the bodily platform of life and chant the names of Kṛṣṇa.
6a. Do you feel this is plausible, for ISKCON and Gauḍīya Maṭha devotees to serve side by side one day?
It’s the desire of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and the previous acharyas that Kṛṣṇa consciousness be spread throughout the world so if iskcon is cooperating with non-devotees to spread this message why wouldn't the society work with another society who has the same desire?
6b. How do you see this happening? Is there something already in place for uniting these branches in cooperation and service?
There are several leading devotees from iskcon who are trying to establish a friendly relationship with the Gauḍīya maṭha. If both parties agree on the fundamental principle to put all things aside and focus on the Yuga Dharma (congregational chanting of the Holy Name of Kṛṣṇa.) Then despite all so-called differences, we can harmonize both parties to spread Lord Caitanya Sankirtan movement.
6c. Would you like to see this happen in your lifetime, breaking down the walls of sectarianism?
Who would not like to see the society of Gauḍīya Vaishnavas get along and transform this material world into Vaikuṇṭha dham?