“Rascal Editors”

This is a key conversation in relation to the editing and publishing of Prabhupada’s books. Many points from it have been debated, and many future posts on this blog will no doubt refer and discuss points from it. So here we bring the complete conversation as a reference.

Prabhupada: Where are others?
Tamala Krsna: Shall I get other people? Satadhanya Maharaja? (long pause)
Prabhupada: That… Find this verse, munayah sadhu prsto ‘ham… [SB 1.2.5].
Tamala Krsna: There’s no index. It’s not a new Bhagavatam. There’s no index in this Bhagavatam. Munayah sadhu…? “The Effects of Kali-yuga” chapter? Is that the verse, about the effects of Kali-yuga? No. (background talking, looking for verse)
munayah sadhu prsto ‘ham
bhavadbhir loka-mangalam
yat krtah krsna-samprasno
yenatma suprasidati
[SB 1.2.5]
“munayah — of the sages; sadhu — this is relevant; prstah — questioned; aham…”
Prabhupada: No? What is that? Sadhu? What is that? Munayah?
Tamala Krsna: Says, “sadhu — this is relevant.”
Prabhupada: Relevant?
Tamala Krsna: That’s what it’s translated as, “this is relevant.” May be a mistake.
Devotee (1): It’s a mistake.
Prabhupada: Munayah?
Tamala Krsna: “Munayah — of the sages; sadhu — this is relevant…”
Prabhupada: The nonsense, they are… They are correcting my trans… Rascal. Who has done this? Munayah is addressing all these munis. Continue reading

Krishna helped me write it!

Prabhupāda: And it was not possible for me to digest. (laughs) Somebody else helped me to… I am a layman. I do not know.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: How did you write it?

Prabhupāda: That somebody, Kṛṣṇa, helped me. That He manufactured.

Yaśodānandana: And these mountains, they extend to the beaches. “It is considered, according to the Bhāga…”

Prabhupāda: When I was writing, I was praying Kṛṣṇa that “I do not actually accommodate all this knowledge. Please help me.” Yes. That’s all right.

Room Conversation, June 18, 1977, Vṛndāvana

Unfortunately BBT International are now altering Krishna’s words as He chose to have them revealed through Srila Prabhupada and Srila Prabhupada’s personally chosen helpers!

Jayadvaita Swami admits there is no authorization

Vyapaka Dasa: “Do you have explicit instructions from Srila Prabhupada authorizing you to make post-samadhi changes to his books?”
Jayadvaita Swami: “No.” (Published e-mail correspondence between Jayadvaita Swami og Vyapaka Dasa)

Govinda Dasi: “…Jayadvaita Maharaja has said that Srila Prabhupada did not specifically give him the permission to…”
Jayadvaita Swami: “I never got an explicit word from Srila Prabhupada to do this work at an explicit time.” (Conversation between Govinda Dasi and Jayadvaita Swami about the posthumous changes to Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita, Honolulu on Jan 19, 2003)

“To my knowledge, Srila Prabhupada never asked us to re-edit the book.” (Jayadvaita Swami’s Letter to Amogha Lila 1986)

“Dear Yasodanandana Prabhu,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

In answer to your questions, I don’t have any original tape recording of any kind of Srila Prabhupada authorizing the editorial changes in the Gita. And despite scouring the GBC resolutions from 1979-83, I found no reference to the Bhagavad-gita whatsover. It seems the assignment of Jayadvaita Swami to perform that task was unpublished–at least I couldn’t find it in the GBC resolutions made widely available.

Hoping this meets you well, I remain

Your servant,
Dravida dasa [Editor for the BBT(I)]” (Letter from Dravida Dasa to Yasodanandana Dasa, Date: Wed, 24 Apr 1996 09:45:12 -0700)

So both Jayadvaita Swami and Dravida Dasa, who are the leading editors for the BBT International admit there is no instruction from Prabhupada to edit his Bhagavad-gita As It Is (or any other of his books).

About the Arsa-Prayoga Blog

prabhupada-gita-smiling

The term “Arsa-Prayoga” means we should not correct the transcendental mistakes sometimes made by the acaryas. We can only correct if the acarya explicitly orders us to do so. And even then we should be very cautious and reluctant.

What does arsha-prayoga mean?

Prabhupada explains:

If one is too big, there is no mistake. Arsa-prayoga means there may be discrepancies but it is all right. Just like Shakespeare, sometimes there are odd usages of language, but he is accepted as authority. I have explained all these things in my Preface to First Canto. (Letter to Mandali Bhadra, Jaipur 20 January, 1972)

Continue reading