By Ekachakra Prana Dasa
The Prabhupada Marathon has inspired book distribution throughout ISKCON since 1972. Now it is being celebrated as the Live to Give campaign.
This year our global team has set an unprecedented goal to distribute at least three million Bhagavad-gitas between September 11th and January 7th, 2023. Last year we distributed 2,805,444, smashing the goal of 2.2 million.
Vaisesika Prabhu said, “The purpose of the campaign is to carry on the work of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, as passed down to us through the previous Acharyas. Sankirtana, especially through the medium of book distribution, is the very essence of the Krishna consciousness movement.
This is the most important time in history for us to distribute Bhagavad-gita. It’s a well-accepted book of knowledge, people will read it and benefit, and the whole world will be a better place. Start by assuming you can do it–and in a big way. You will be successful. Go for it!”
Communities all around the world are making pledges to distribute Bhagavad-gitas. As the campaign website states, “Our mantra is, “a lot of people, each doing a little bit.’”
Momentum is at an all-time high, following a record-breaking Bhadra Campaign which distributed over 45,800 Srimad Bhagavatam sets earlier this year.
Members of the ICC have verified that India has already pledged 2.7 million Bhagavad-gitas to be distributed. Additionally, they are launching an app where devotees can track progress in real-time and report scores as they distribute books, rather than waiting for the end of the month.
North America has pledged 124,000 Gitas so far, with many more communities still calculating pledges.
Throughout the campaign, Zoom events are scheduled to share inspiration, hear tips from advanced devotees, and catch updates from around the world.
At the most recent “Super Sunday” Zoom call, His Holiness Jayapataka Swami said, “This marathon is not only for the brahmacaris, but for all the grihastas. The Vaisnavas and the Vaishnavis, they can also participate… We should all live to give Bhagavad-gita to everyone!”
Many leaders were in attendance sharing best practices. Gopal Campu Prabhu from Brooklyn gave a practical tutorial on distributing stacks of books. Malini Devi Dasi shared techniques that have been working at ISV, such as empowering youth teams and using language cards in ethnic areas.
Read more: https://iskconnews.org/live-to-give-campaign-aims-to-distribute-3-million-bhagavad-gitas/
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