Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated December 18th, 1970, redirected to me here in Surat we have had a very successful preaching program during the last two weeks. Also in hand I have your letter dated 26th November, 1970, which is also acknowledged.

The most important thing is that the money donated by Sai should be kept as I have directed you for some concrete project, specifically the construction of a large center here in India. So you please keep it intact and wait further instructions what to do with the $28,000. Otherwise, it is a bad policy to send good money after bad money as in the matter of paying some past debts. That is not good business proposal. I am sure those debts will be liquidated in due course by other means as I have suggested to you before and you have also indicated that in some time hence the BTG debt will be cleared.

I am very glad that you find the situation in Hawaii so congenial and I know that Gaurasundara is doing his best there. The newly acquired property I have named as Advaita Bhavan and it sounds very inviting place for me to do my translating work. I am glad that Sai is also improving. He and his former followers are all good souls, so all of you should try to help them become fixed up in the bona fide line of devotional service to Krsna.

I am also glad that you are continuing to send money into the "Bhaktivedanta Book Fund Deposit'' with Dai Nippon. I am very eager to begin printing of new books and the first thing is clearing our bills to date. So the matter of proceeds from distribution of Books should be carefully done so that the returns may be immediately sent off to Dai Nippon. I have also written to Satsvarupa and Advaita that the plan for printing our Bhagavad-gita As It Is in enlarged edition should go on as soon as possible.

Regarding your proposal that recommendations for initiations should be approved by the GBC members, that is not a good idea. Such recommendation is for the local President to make from first hand observation.

I am glad that you have found all our West Coast Temples to be going on nicely to the standard and I am also very enthusiastic for you to continue opening more branches as far as possible. But the first thing is that the already established Temples must be maintained and the second is that once a center is opened it may not be closed down. That is very bad. So all considerations must be done very thoughtfully and carefully.

Please offer my blessings to all the good devotees in Los Angeles. Hope this will meet you in good health.