Spiritual sounds

On a sunny, breezy day by the Arabian Sea, an idea struck Ananda Tirtha Dasa who had been pacing up and down Mumbai's Juhu Beach.

- Dola Mitra

A short distance from the ISKCON temple which has been his home for over twenty years, the devotee who is also the CEO of Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT), one of the books wings of the international spiritual organization, was deep in thought as he pondered ways to alleviate the gloom that had descended over the entire globe.

It was the year 2020 and the Covid 19 pandemic was raging across the world.

"It was a time of utter distress and I was searching for a way to help people, physically, psychologically and spiritually," he tells me during an interview earlier this month.

"March is a spiritual month.

And then, as though through divine guidance the idea struck him like a flash of lightning.

"It occurred to me that I had at my disposal all these books, especially the ancient scriptures, which were full of messages of spiritual solace," he says.

"I thought, 'Why don't I try to send these messages to as many people as possible?'"