High-class (Letters)

Expressions researched:
"high class" |"higher class" |"higher classes" |"highest class" |"highest classes"

1947 to 1965 Correspondence

Letter to Raja Mohendra Pratap -- Cawnpore 13 July, 1947:

7) Sri Krishna is the Personality of Godhead and is the Summum Bonum Cause of all Causes proved by fact and figures in the statement of Bhagavad-gita, but He reserves the right of not being exposed to the sensual speculations of the empiric philosophers.

8) One should therefore surrender unto Him if one wants to know Him as He is and that is the real process to approach the Infinite by the infinitesimals.

9) Sri Krishna is easily available by the religion of love i.e. by love and service as conceived by the damsels of Vraja who had practically no education whatsoever and much less any claim for high class birth right.

10) The highest service that can be rendered to the mankind is, therefore, to preach the philosophy and religion of Bhagavad-gita for all the times, all the places and all the people.

1969 Correspondence

Letter to Nara-narayana -- Los Angeles 1 February, 1969:

Please accept my blessings. I am very much encouraged by your proposal as stated in your letter of January 25, 1969 of constructing housing in New Vrindaban for an estimate of about $1,000. This money will be secured somehow or other and invested in New Vrindaban for constructing the proposed cottages. These cottages needn't be very high class finished. We simply want protection; that's all. They may be very roughly finished. Please send me your plans which you have mentioned, and we shall begin this housing scheme in April. We agree to invest the money in this project, and the persons you wanted will join you when you actually begin the work.

1970 Correspondence

Letter to Unknown -- Los Angeles 12 April, 1970:

This Vedic knowledge was stated in the Atharva Veda. Later on, just on the beginning of this millenium, the Kali yuga, Vyasadeva, who is the supreme authority of Vedic knowledge, considering the degraded condition of men in this age, divided the whole Veda into departmental knowledge and some of his disciples were entrusted with a particular type of departmental knowledge. In this way the whole Vedic knowledge developed into four Vedas, 108 Upanisads, 18 Puranas, then summarized in Vedanta Sutra, and then again to benefit the less intelligent class of men like women, workers, and the degraded descendants of the higher class he made another fifth Veda known as Mahabharata or the great history of India.

1971 Correspondence

Letter to Vrindaban Candra -- Bombay 13 April, 1971:

So you have got some talent for writing and producing dramas and now Krishna has given you the opportunity for dovetailing your talents in His service. Very good. When I go there I shall be very glad to see these dramas enacted. Yes, I acted the part of Advaita Prabhu in one such drama. I organized that theater performance in my youthhood. My friends were trained up and we performed and it was very much appreciated by the highest class of men in Calcutta. We were invited to many places to perform the drama. Lord Caitanya inaugurated these Vaisnava dramas, it is true, but where to obtain such copies of these plays I do not know.* While performing such dramas, always the actors must be Vaisnavas. Outsiders may help but devotees should have all the major roles. So you may perform such plays conveniently. It is a very nice program, but do not sacrifice other programs on account of it.

1972 Correspondence

Letter to Isho Kumar -- Los Angeles 26 May, 1972:

Since I saw you and your father in Delhi in November, 1971, I did not see you any more. Now we are thinking of publishing our books in India, both in Hindi and English languages. So I shall be very glad if you are interested in publishing my books. Here In America, Europe, Canada, et cetera, we are selling our books in huge quantities. At the present moment we are publishing our books in Japan, because in India there is no high class printing. But now just to supply cheap books in India, I want to publish there, so I shall be glad to know if you are interested in publishing both our Hindi and English literatures.

Letter to Tejiyas -- Los Angeles 12 June, 1972:

I am very pleased to hear that the collecting work for Vrndavana project is going on by cooperative endeavor amongst yourselves there. ___ to interest the life members and richer class of men to purchase rooms in our Vrndavana Temple on the Bhetnama system for staying with us on weekends. Many high class gentlemen in Delhi who are also devotees would relish the chance to live with us on weekends and it will be for them just like Vaikuntha. I very much appreciate your courageous preaching work and I can understand that Krishna is giving you all facilities for making your spiritual advancement.

Letter to Hrdayananda -- New York 9 July, 1972:

Try to understand the subject matter from different varieties or approaches. For example, we know from Bhagavad-gita that Krishna says He is the taste in water. Now try to understand just how Krishna is that taste in water, that is the high-class education.

Letter to Balavanta -- Ahmedabad 13 December, 1972:

I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated November 13, 1972, and I have noted the contents with great care. I have had a good laugh and enjoyed your tricking the opponent candidates in election race, especially in front of the college students. That is a very good sign. Now I want that we shall recruit more and more our men amongst the intelligent class of men. They, because they are little educated or they have got some wealth or fame or ability, so they will be sometimes little puffed-up, but that is all right, they deserve it. Now we shall have to learn the art how to approach such higher-class of men and attract them to apply themselves to this Krishna Consciousness process of self-realization. That requires much tact, and we shall have to expect to meet all challenges by sharp minds. But if we remain always absorbed in remembering Lord Caitanya, how He converted so many intelligent men, even sitting for three days and nights to hear them speak without Himself speaking anything, and if we remember how Krishna was so much patient to explain everything to Arjuna, even Arjuna was speaking like a fool—in this way, being always tolerant of others and appreciating their points-of-view, it will be easy matter for us to convince them gradually to join us. So you have got a very great opportunity for this kind of preaching work.

Letter to Sukadeva -- Ahmedabad 13 December, 1972:

We are servants of Krishna, that means because we understand that Krishna is our Protector under all circumstances, we have no more any anxiety, so we become very liberal and tolerant of all kinds of seeing others' sinful activities, and we see them innocent victims of maya, and we try to help them understand what is the real position of life. So you know this art, how to attract and engage men, so aim yourself at the top-class of men and give them every opportunity and facility to become convinced of our philosophy and engage themselves to their satisfaction. That will be the best contribution. Now spread this idea also to the other leaders. So now I do not think there will be any difficulty for you to fill your Seattle centre with the best devotees in our Movement, and then I shall be very glad to come there at next opportunity to give them all my personal instruction. In this way, appeal yourself to the high class of men, not the mass. Mass, too, we do not eliminate anyone, but if best men are there to run on things, mass will follow later.

Letter to Mukunda -- Bombay 27 December, 1972:

But one thing is, our experience is that such big men will not help us—except if there is some rare soul like Mr. George Harrison, and they must be guided also by our personally contacting them again and again and slowly build-up the relationship. We are more interested that the mass of men shall support us—what good a handful of high-class supporters will do? Just like in your country, there was election, and the opponent of Mr. Nixon, he was supported by all high-class men, but because Mr. Nixon had help of the common men he was successful and won the fight. But, if even one such high-class man becomes preacher on our behalf, if he actually becomes converted to Krishna Consciousness preaching work, then that is the best contribution of your preaching also. Just like George, now he is practically converted and he is only preaching about Krishna, and he has done that from the beginning—I think you knew him in London also, so you know how he is helping us push on the preaching—so that type of big personality, if you can catch one or two such men for preaching contribution, oh, that will be wonderful achievement for you. We want that the mass shall support us, but we want that the class shall preach for us, that is the distinction. Is it clear? Please inform me from time to time how that programme, of inducing influential men to preach somehow or other our Krishna philosophy is progressing.

Letter to Bhavananda -- Bombay 29 December, 1972:

Please accept my blessings. Tamala Krishna has informed me that you are inviting me to come there to Calcutta immediately after the Bombay Cross Maidan Pandal program is finished, so I shall come there as you desire. So you may kindly arrange the airplane tickets for four persons, namely myself and three secretaries, and we shall come there on 23rd morning of January 1973, provided that you mail us the tickets at your earliest. I want to stay until 1st February and then fly from Calcutta to Djakarta and Australia and other places, as Madhudvisa has invited me to come there during February month. So I shall be in Calcutta for nine days, that means I want to speak at nine different programs in various parts of Calcutta city. So you try to arrange some big big speaking programs in various places of the city, all of them being well-advertised and attended by respectable and sober men. Of course, we can talk to any class of men, but I want to speak especially to large numbers of the higher-class or respectable and sober class of men of Calcutta. I will speak in Bengali, Hindi, or English, whatever language is required. So you may arrange the programs immediately in the various places, such as the Bar Association, the Chamber of Commerce, the Stock Exchange, the Royal Asiatic Society, University Institute, Ramakrishna Cultural Institute, YMCA, Govinda Bhavan, Madan Mohan's Temple, Gaudiya Math, Jalan's Ramchandra Temple, like that. Or if there is any Mohammedan or Christian association, we are universal spiritual culture, we can speak to these people also.

1973 Correspondence

Letter to Damodara -- Bombay, India 9 January, 1973:

By going out for sankirtana and selling books to the citizens at large, in this way we are gradually getting the support of everyone, not just a select few. I have heard that during the last election of President in your country that the opposite party to Mr. Nixon was supported by most of the so-called intelligent class of men of your country, but still, what could they do, such high class of men, in comparison with Mr. Nixon? Mr. Nixon has got the support of the common men, therefore he is successful. So life that, we must get the support of the mass of men, and if the leading men can be induced by you to preach on our behalf, then you will be able to speed up the process and actually that is a very great service for Krsna. Spending so much time with upper class citizens to get funds must be judged on this idea, whether their appreciating our movement will have any practical effect in terms of widespread spreading of Krsna Consciousness and preaching to the mass of men? The program, as you have mentioned it, of approaching the professors to introduce our books in their classrooms, that is the right idea. In that way the leading class, just like the professors, if they can be induced to preach on our behalf, just like introducing the books to their students is one form of preaching, if they will do like that, then spending time with them is very, very desirable and effective.

Letter to Niranjana -- Brooklyn 21 May, 1973:

Just like a carpenter can manufacture so much nice furniture by his technological education, but in our Vedic society, the carpenter is considered a sudra. Similarly a tannery expert was called a cobbler. So these things are now lost. Everyone is prepared to become a cobbler, a carpenter, a chemist, a physicist, an electrician and so many other things, but they do not know that after such education one has to depend on other's mercy. So-called highly qualified technologists cannot earn their livelihood without getting a suitable job. It is just like a dog, however stout and strong it may be, it cannot be happy without having gotten a wealthy master. Without being protected by a wealthy master it is nothing but a street dog and he is never happy. So all the students at the present moment are getting educated how to become first class sudras. How they can be interested in Krsna Consciousness, which is the business of high class brahmanas and Vaisnavas? Still it is our duty to preach, and our sincere endeavor for preaching work will be appreciated by the Lord. That much we want. Our mission is to see that Lord Caitanya is satisfied, never mind if we could not turn many of them to this cult. Here is a quotation from Caitanya Mahaprabhu's instruction, "Yare dekha, tare kaha 'krsna'—upadesa/amara ajnaya guru hana tara' ei desa (CC Madhya 7.128)." Caitanya Caritamrta, Madhya-lila, 7:128. So our mission is, by the order of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, we shall try to teach people about the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam, etc., without being depressed whether people are accepting them or not. This is our credit. We shall be judged by the quality of our work and not by the material return.

1975 Correspondence

Letter to Mahamsa -- Vrindaban 9 December, 1975:

Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated December 5, 1975 and have noted the contents. So Gaura Govinda Maharaja has to go to Orissa to get that land in Bhunesvara, so I have given him the documents for necessary action. Unless he is absolutely required in Hyderabad he may go there with the other Orissa devotee. I have seen his Orissa literature about our movement and it appears to be very nice, any common man can understand it, and it is set up very nicely. He is very much hopeful to sell our books there amongst the higher class. I have already given him all instructions how to organize a center there. So I wish that he may go there and do his best to show his ability.

1976 Correspondence

Letter to Aksayananda -- Nellore 6 January, 1976:

Regarding the land of Sri R. N. Bhargava, since he is offering it to us for our unconditional use, why not take it? Naturally, if we start a Gosala there, later on we can start a Vedic school for the higher class of people. Study of the Vedas is not meant for children. You should ascertain definitely by asking some knowledgable persons, whether or not the Ganges will come again. Another point is whether the government can be induced to build a road there. So, if there is possibility of developing the land, then we can take it.

Letter to Lokanatha -- Vrindaban 24 September, 1976:

If possible you can collect something for our Gurukula and Temple also, and if some high-class men want to offer their children to Gurukula we can accept.

1977 Correspondence

Letter to Inquirer -- Boston Unknown Date:

This Vedic knowledge was stated in the Atharva-veda. Later on, just at the beginning of this millennium, the Kali-yuga, Vyasadeva, who is the supreme authority on Vedic knowledge, considering the degraded condition of men in this age, divided the whole Veda into departmental knowledge, and some of his disciples were entrusted with the particular departments. In this way the entire Vedic knowledge was developed into four Vedas, then 108 Upanisads, 18 Puranas, and then summarized in Vedanta-sutra. And then again, to benefit the less intelligent class of men like women, workers, and the degraded descendants of the higher class, Vyasadeva made a fifth Veda, known as Mahabharata, or the great history of India.