By: HG Champakalata Devi Dasi
Material vision is vital to every living entity, the absence of which is like utter darkness, an abyss, just like staring into the depths of a dark hole. Visually impaired people cannot understand what black is because they have never seen it.
Human communication is 95% through vision. Though the blinds are deprived on this count, their learning happens with the help of a special language called Braille which is nothing but patterns of holes embossed on paper that can be felt by fingers, additionally they can hear and speak to enhance their learning.
However, what is most important in the human form of life is to identify oneself as a soul, understand the relationship between the soul and lord, and the path to traverse to attain the love of God.
HH Bhakti Raghava Swami Maharaj has mercifully sent his disciples to blind schools to revive the spiritual vision of the blinds. The preaching work has been successfully going on since 2012 at Devnar School for the Blind and since 2016 at Pune school for the blind by Champakalata Devi Dasi.
Many children took to the chanting of the maha-mantra on beads, shloka recitation, hearing stories from Srimad Bhagavatam, Ramayana, Mahabharata and practising pure principles of bhakti. One boy also got initiated by Maharaj and is now Isvara Puri das. Some more persons are being groomed to purify their senses and see with spiritual eyes the higher truths that can enable them to acquire the love of Godhead in this very birth. As more and more special souls are taking to Krishna Consciousness. The need for Braille versions of Srila Prabhupada’s books has arisen. Vaishnava songbook in Braille was released by Maharaj in 2014 and in February this year, one small book of SP titled “Light of the Bhagavata” had been printed in Braille.
And now as per the desire of our dear HH Bhakti Raghava Swami Maharaj, the following books about Varnasrama were released in Braille on 23rd May 2019, on the occasion of Vyasa puja of Maharaj.
*Modernity is Killing Civilization
*Traditional Education
*Village Life
These Braille books were printed, edited and proofread by visually impaired people in Pune and by doing so they got so much of bhakti unmukha sukriti and divine blessings of Srila Prabhupada and Maharaj. They also got employment by which they could earn some Lakshmi.
We are grateful to Maharaj for His mercy in enabling Champaka Lata Dasi to make the Braille versions manifest for the spiritual progress of visually impaired. Guru and Krishna willing, by the year 2020 we will have at least a few chapters of “Bhagavad Gita As It is” and a few more small books of Srila Prabhupada in Braille for the sole benefit of Braille readers. We request all the Vaishnavas to bless the endeavour and pray for it.
For Braille books you may contact:
pranavalatha@gmail.com
Champakalata Devi Dasi
98490 43420
Thank you. Hare Krishna!