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April 20, 1975 : Vrindavan

Satsvarupa: Srila Prabhupada installed the Deities for the grand opening of the Krishna-Balarama Mandir. Almost a thousand disciples were present, and the Governor of Uttar Pradesh was the guest of honor. After years of hard endeavor, the grand opening was a climactic triumph for Srila Prabhupada and his movement. While still standing at the altar after having offered the first arati to Krishna and Balarama, Prabhupada addressed the crowd, explaining that this was an international temple, where people from all over the world could come to worship and take shelter of Gaura-Nitai, Krishna-Balarama, and Radha-Krishna.

Later that evening, Srila Prabhupada sat in his room with a few G.B.C. men. The buttons on his kurta open because of the heat, his legs and bare feet extended under the low table, he relaxed, and his men sat close around him in the dim light of the desk lamp. It was a milestone, he said, but still they had to go forward, not merely savor their success. Many things were still required to make the temple and guesthouse operative.

Srila Prabhupada was thinking beyond Vrindavan. "This temple construction is so important," he said, "that I'm willing to spend many lakhs to open a temple like this. And yet as important as it is, the book production is even more important." This was a significant reaffirmation of the priority of book production; even while in the midst of this splendid temple opening, he was stressing that book production was more important.


Reference: Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta Volume 6 - Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami