Cunning (Letters)

Expressions researched:
"cunning" |"cunningly" |"cunningness"

1967 Correspondence

You are all innocent boys without any experience of the world. The cunning world can befool you at any time. So please be careful of the world in Krishna Consciousness.

Letter to Satsvarupa -- San Francisco 15 February, 1967: So far I can see from the correspondence of Brahmananda it is not possible for us to get the house for so many reasons. The main reason is that we have no money to pay cash and nobody is going to invest cash in that house because it is neither complete nor has any income. It is simply utopian to think of possessing the house and Mr. Payne is simply giving us false hope. That is the verdict of devotees and trustees here and for reasons I believe it is correct. Please see therefore that the above amount is immediately transferred. When actual sale contract is there I shall again retransfer the amount as I did it a few days ago. You are all innocent boys without any experience of the world. The cunning world can befool you at any time. So please be careful of the world in Krishna Consciousness. When Krishna will desire the house will come to us automatically. But we should not ask Krishna to give us a house let Krishna give us when He likes. If Mr. Payne is able to give us the house it is so far very good. But from circumstances it appears that Mr. Payne cannot get financial assistance from any businessman. If somebody gives us donation for the right cause that is a different thing. So we should only wait for Krishna's mercy and should not jeopardize the hard earned money for service of Krishna. I hope you will not misunderstand me. Both you and Gargamuni must be careful about the accounts and see that checks above $50.00 are not issued indiscriminately.

1969 Correspondence

Regarding Dai Nippon's change of policy, I know the Japanese people are very cunning in the matter of business. They can produce things very cheaply and attract customers, but when the customer is in his grip, he does not behave very well.

Letter to Brahmananda -- Allston, Mass 5 May, 1969: Regarding Dai Nippon's change of policy, I know the Japanese people are very cunning in the matter of business. They can produce things very cheaply and attract customers, but when the customer is in his grip, he does not behave very well. Under the circumstances, I do not know whether it will be nice to select another Japanese printer. The best thing will be if we get them printed in New York as I suggested to Rayarama and also Uddhava. Uddhava and Vaikuntha are very much hopeful for collecting for the book fund, and they have promised that at least $20.00 can be collected daily. Regarding the musical instruments, I do not think there need be any discount on them. So far as sending the book to Gaurasundara, you can send him one copy of Caitanya Caritamrta, and explain to him that out of his $100.00 there is no balance, so he can send the price of that book.

There is a Sanskrit proverb, sati shatyam samacharit, and this means if somebody is cunning, we must also become cunning. To a cunning person we must not be a simpleton. Krishna Conscious devotees are expected to be very intelligent, so we have to work very intelligently to prove our advancement in Krishna Consciousness.

Letter to Hamsaduta -- New Vrindaban 8 June, 1969: I understand that you are feeling some inconvenience due to police interruption, but we have to make the best of a bad bargain. There is a Sanskrit proverb, sati shatyam samacharit, and this means if somebody is cunning, we must also become cunning. To a cunning person we must not be a simpleton. Krishna Conscious devotees are expected to be very intelligent, so we have to work very intelligently to prove our advancement in Krishna Consciousness. I think you should keep a table by the Sankirtana Party, a table with a charity box and our books and literatures for sale. You go on with your work as usual and when the police come you say you are not canvassing. You have simply kept a table and whoever wishes to purchase may do so. This is called sati shatyam samacharit.

Regarding the Beatle hero, certainly you will find him nonsense. Actually they are nonsense, but in the Western part of the world it is a folly to be wise, and ignorance is bliss. This whole material civilization is gross ignorance, and therefore you cannot expect very intelligent persons in this part of the world. Even though one is a great philosopher, writer, or something like that, it does not qualify him to be one of the selected intelligent persons who take to Krishna Consciousness. There is another proverb in Bengali that in the forest a jackal is considered to be a great nobility because he is very cunning. Similarly, in the materialistic way of life everyone is blind, and in spite of thousands of big blind leaders, the followers who are also blind cannot get any tangible benefit. So you have done your duty to give him some impression about Krishna Consciousness. That is all right. We should not waste much of our time with these so-called leaders because they are jackals in the forest. They are not actually leaders. The only leader is Krishna and one who is Krishna Conscious. Others are simply misleaders.

Your unhappiness in the absence of sufficient engagement is a good sign. This is called abertya kalatyum. When a person is advanced in Krishna Consciousness he should always think that my time may not go in vain without being engaged in Krishna's service. Your main business is Sankirtana. From everywhere I am getting good reports, especially from Boston, New York, Los Angeles, and Hawaii that they are having good success by outdoor kirtanas. So you follow this principle without fail, and treat the cunning with cunningness. Sometimes in your letter it appears that you are confused. I do not know why you should be like that. Your clear program is spreading Krishna Consciousness, and you are competent and experienced for this. Why you should feel confused? As you are feeling for a little change, I thing you can go with your Sankirtana Party to Vancouver for some time, and help establish a center firmly because Ananda is struggling there alone. He had been helped by Mandali Bhadra and Vrndavanesvari, but soon they are leaving for Hamburg. So why don't you go for a few days to Vancouver?

1975 Correspondence

People are very cunning nowadays, and we have to be careful. You should manage the whole thing very nicely, just like in Tirupati they are managing so many buildings very carefully.

Letter to Giriraja -- Evanston, Illinois 4 July, 1975: Regarding the money you are taking for the rooms, this must be carefully done. As soon as you take money and allow a person to stay in your place, then the money can be considered by him as rent. The Rent Act is so subtle in India. If you have to call the police to eject a man, the police will not do it. They will see that the man is living there only, but they will not ask how he got there. That is a matter for the courts to settle. And in India court business is very troublesome. Practically it is useless because you have to bribe. This is Kali Yuga; you have to pay money to get justice. Neither will it be sufficient for you to print on the registration form that the visitor signs that you have some right to bar entrance. Making your own law on the registration form has no value. You know of that Mr. Mukherjee who refuse to leave our place even when you called the police. In Tirupati they have a nice system. You have to see how the hotels and dharmasalas are doing it. What laws there are to protect them. People are very cunning nowadays, and we have to be careful. You should manage the whole thing very nicely, just like in Tirupati they are managing so many buildings very carefully.

I am very glad to receive your letter. I can understand this cunning Purusottama das has taken advantage of your simplicity. So any one of my godbrothers cannot help me in this way of book writing because they are unfortunate in the matter of preaching work.

Letter to Karunasindhu -- Bombay 9 November, 1975: Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated October 24, 1975 and I have noted the contents. I am very glad to receive your letter. I can understand this cunning Purusottama das has taken advantage of your simplicity. So any one of my godbrothers cannot help me in this way of book writing because they are unfortunate in the matter of preaching work. They are simply trying to infiltrate our society to so something harmful by their attempt. So please do not have any correspondence with this Purusottama or any of my godbrothers, so-called. And do not do anything without consulting me. You can inform this instruction to everyone and send back to me the sheets of corrections sent to you by Purusottama. I was very much anxious to know how Purusottama entered in our camp. Now the matter is clear. Be careful for further dealings with such men.

1976 Correspondence

A realized soul, a person who knows things, he'll explain that Kuruksetra is a place where religious ritualistic ceremonies are performed from time immemorial, from the time before the Battle of Kuruksetra. But, if you read the books of some cunning politician, he'll mislead you and you'll learn that Kuruksetra means this body which is not actually the fact.

Letter to Punjabi Premanand -- Bombay 16 April, 1976: Our system, the Vedic system, is to approach the right person and hear from him exactly as Arjuna listened from Krishna. Mental speculation will not help. Hearing is the main point. In the Bhagavad-gita, it is written, dharmaksetre kuruksetre . . . when you hear from a realized soul, a person who knows things, he'll explain that Kuruksetra is a place where religious ritualistic ceremonies are performed from time immemorial, from the time before the Battle of Kuruksetra. But, if you read the books of some cunning politician, he'll mislead you and you'll learn that Kuruksetra means this body which is not actually the fact. That is the difference, hearing from devotees, the sound vibration coming from the realized person. Reading the book is the same thing . . . tattva-darsana—hearing from one who has seen the truth. Reading or hearing from the realized person there is no difference, but hearing the sound vibration from the realized soul is still more effective, better.