Srila Prabhupada Conversation: Always Have Big Stock of Books, Vrndavan, October 16, 1977
Prabhupada: So, why not publish in large quantity of … large number of books?
Tamala Krishna: Yes, I think that's advisable. There have been some complaints again about no stock.
Prabhupada: Why it is not being done? There is money?
Tamala Krishna: Jayapataka had some complaint today.
Giriraja: It may be that because we're dealing with one printer he cannot handle all of the work.
Prabhupada: Why one printer?
Tamala Krishna: And Jayapataka was thinking his parties are distributing Hindi books also, in Bihar and other places, and they ran out of books, and even though they went to Bombay, he could not get the books he wanted. There was no stock.
Prabhupada: So what he recommends?
Tamala Krishna: So he says he can print cheaper anyway in Calcutta. Prabhupada: Then let him print.
Tamala Krishna: Yes. That's what I mentioned to him.
Prabhupada: Why depend on one printer?
Tamala Krishna: No.
Prabhupada: Where is Gopala?
Giriraja: He went to Bombay today.
Prabhupada: So, you arrange many printers.
Giriraja: Yes.
Prabhupada: Never mind the price. Huge stock should be maintained. Why unnecessarily keeping in the bank?
Giriraja: Now we'll spend it all for printing.
Prabhupada: I think in the BBT there are five, six lakhs.
Giriraja: Yes.
Prabhupada: So why? Turn them into books.
Giriraja: (whispering) "I think that in the BBT there's five, six lakhs. So why not transform it into books?"
Prabhupada: Hindi books can be distributed all over the world.
Giriraja: Yes.
Prabhupada: Similarly Gujarati, and English to Australia. Why money should be kept in the bank?
Tamala Krishna: I don't think it will be any more, now that we have your direction. You actually gave us directions about a week ago, and I think they're going to carry through on it.
Prabhupada: Don't depend on one printer.
Tamala Krishna: No. Actually Jayapataka is very enthusiastic for printing also. It's pretty easy to print at two different places, because once you have the plates, they can simply be … You know, the photos, offset machines. Once you have the negatives, you can simply send them, and they can be printed anywhere.
Hrdayananda: Anywhere in the world.
Tamala Krishna: Yes. And especially you can send them from Bombay to Calcutta.
Prabhupada: Visvambhara, everywhere they want me. You also …
Visvambhara: I can give my life, Prabhupada. I can give some of my years. I pray that I may go early, Prabhupada.
Prabhupada: No, why you should go early? You live on.
Visvambhara: Prabhupada, you stay. I wish that … I told you already earlier here that please at least complete this Bhagavatam, Srila Prabhupada. Prabhupada: That is my desire also.
Visvambhara: Will Krishna not fulfill your desire?
Prabhupada: Oh, Krishna is independent.
Tamala Krishna: You've always stated in your books, Srila Prabhupada that Krishna likes too much to fulfill the desire of His pure devotee. He uses His independence to fulfill the desire of His devotee.
Prabhupada: (Hindi) My will said. Karmani nirdahati kintu ca bhakti-bhajam [Bs. 5.54]. What is the karma-phala? (Hindi) Yas tv indra-gopam athavendram aho…
Visvambhara: Prabhupada is saying if one is ordered to hang, how can he say … I say, I tell Prabhupada, "President has got these special powers."
Prabhupada: Now stock books immediately.
Tamala Krishna: Here is Jayapataka Swami.
Prabhupada: You print. They will pay you, Jayapataka?
Jayapataka: Yes, Srila Prabhupada.
Prabhupada: There is no question of becoming miserly. You print as many books as you like. All money will be paid if you have no money. Why? If you are selling books, you must have money also.
Jayapataka: We have a program to print. We're printing right now. It's in the press at the present time. The Bhakti-katha, Jnana-katha, Bhagavanera-katha and then hardback Vairagya-vidya. And also three issues of Bhagavata-darsana. We're trying to … within that money also, print the first three chapters of Bhagavad-gita.
Tamala Krishna: We gave him a loan of forty-five thousand rupees, and then another twenty-five is coming. But that's all …
Prabhupada: So you'll get money. Print.
Jayapataka: One of our parties has gone to Bihar, and they sold about twelve thousand books and they ran out. They just now ran out of books, so they went to Bombay to get Hindi books, but there was no stock. So they came here to … and spent four hundred rupees going there, they found no books. Then they came here to Delhi, and they got two thousand books from Vrndavana here, what stock they had.
Prabhupada: So why stock lacking? Why this mismanagement? There is no question of shortage of stock. I give you open order. Print more than necessity. If you do not print, what shall I do?
Bhakti-caru: Should we start printing Hindi books in Calcutta, Srila Prabhupada?
Prabhupada: I do not know where to be … But get it printed in huge stock. Bhakti-caru: Calcutta also has all the facilities in Hindi.
Prabhupada: What is use of telling me?
Hrdayananda: What is the use of telling him?
Jayapataka: He said, "I give an open order to print books. Always have big stock."
Hrdayananda: Huge stock, he said, more than necessary.
Kirtanananda: It's up to us to figure out where to print books.
Gargamuni: I have to put this question, Prabhupada.
Jayapataka: He already answered that question. Gaura-Govinda, he's already translated sixteen chapters of Bhagavad-gita in Oriya, and he's translated three small books in Oriya.
Prabhupada: Let him bring. There is fifty thousand rupees in Orissa.
Tamala Krishna: Yes.
Jayapataka: That fifty thousand rupees was supposed to be for construction. Bhagavata Prabhu has collected about 35,000 rupees on his own that he's put into the account there so far. More is also being collected. It was previously promised that whatever he would collect for construction, then that amount would be matched from BBT fund.
Tamala Krishna: Somewhere. So so far he has to collect fifty thousand, 'cause that's already there.
Prabhupada: That construction is not so important as printing of books.
Jayapataka: The president of the Bhadrak temple that Lokanatha Swami got donated from the Gaudiya Matha to ISKCON, he has been collecting life members, hoping that he can build and improve a little bit on it. He was hoping to get the same facility of Bhuvanesvara, of matching fifty-fifty. He's collecting everything locally in Orissa.
Tamala Krishna: Srila Prabhupada? We got a telegram from Nrsimha-Caitanya. You know, he's the boy who does library distribution? Should I read it to you?
Prabhupada: Yes.
Tamala Krsna: Okay.
Jayapataka: Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura's analogy of Brhad-mrdanga has really come true through Your Divine Grace. The sound of your books has been heard in all corners.