Prabhupāda Instructs His Disciples to Translate Books into All Languages
To fulfill the prophecy that the holy names of Kṛṣṇa would be chanted in every town and village, the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement had to overcome the barriers of language. Śrīla Prabhupāda established the translation of his books and the Back to Godhead magazine as the foremost priority for his international branches. He guided his disciples to translate the transcendental Vedic literature with absolute purity and devotion, ensuring that the supreme science of bhakti-yoga could be universally understood and distributed to every home across the globe.
The Primary Business of the Movement
Śrīla Prabhupāda often stated that his spiritual master, Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, ordered him to print books. Consequently, Śrīla Prabhupāda made the translation and publication of literature the very foundation of his preaching mission. He considered reports of new foreign language publications to be his greatest source of joy and the true measure of the society's success.
- That is my only life. When I see that there is publication of the Srimad-Bhagavatam and other books in other languages, that gives me life.
- Printing and translation must continue. That is our main business. It cannot be stopped. Must go on. Just like persisting, now we have got so many Hindi literature. (laughs) I was simply persisting, "Where is Hindi? So it has come to some tangible form.
- My Guru Maharaja told me personally that "If you get some money, print books." Therefore I am stressing on this point: "Where is book? Where is book? Where is book?" So kindly help me. This is my request. Print as many books in as many languages.
- That is the first business, make books and distribute. So I am always encouraged to hear that you are increasing in this respect of making books in foreign languages.
Breaking the Language Barrier
The goal of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is not limited to one nation or culture; it is meant for the entire human society. Śrīla Prabhupāda instructed his disciples to vigorously translate foundational books like the Bhagavad-gītā into every possible language, effectively erasing the language barrier and allowing the philosophy to infiltrate the masses worldwide.
- Every house should have our books, every gentleman, in any language. It doesn't matter. That is our propaganda. Now you are getting all languages, so we can capture the whole world.
- Please print as many books as possible, this is my real pleasure. By printing these books of our Krsna Conscious philosophy in so many different languages we can actually inject our movement into the masses of persons all over the world.
- We work so that men of all languages and cultures may join us in chanting Hare Krishna and for this we need so many literatures in so many different languages. So please try for this.
- I am especially happy to hear that you have got one Chinese boy there who is doing some translating work. Yes, the Chinese-speaking portion of the world is very huge and it requires to infiltrate gradually, especially by distributing our literatures.
Spiritual Realization Over Mundane Scholarship
Translating Vedic texts is not equivalent to translating ordinary literature. Śrīla Prabhupāda warned that a mere academic understanding of language is insufficient for conveying the profound transcendental message of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The translator must be a practicing, realized devotee of the Lord in order to preserve the original spiritual potency of the text.
- We want all our foreign language books to be translated by devotees.
- This translation work is very important. It is not simply a matter of ABC's, but it requires spiritual realization to do it properly. I understand that you are a good sankirtana man and book distributer. So you all cooperate.
- Even though the transcendental subject matter of Vedic literature is still spiritually potent despite the crudest translation, still, because we have got facility to make it perfect, that is our philosophy.
- If you are serious to be an important assistant in our Society you should fully engage yourself in translation work, and do not mix yourself with my so-called god-brothers.
Translating "As It Is"
The integrity of the paramparā system relies on passing down the knowledge exactly as it was given by the Supreme Lord and the previous ācāryas. Śrīla Prabhupāda demanded strict accuracy from his translators, instructing them never to deviate, omit, or interject their own mental speculations. The knowledge must be translated perfectly "as it is."
- I am very glad to learn that you are translating the Bhagavad-gita As It Is into Portuguese. Be careful not to change anything but present it exactly as it is.
- They must translate as it is, they must not deviate. Anyway, our motto should be to somehow or other express the objectives of Krishna Consciousness to the German-speaking people.
- French language also, very important, we must translate and bring books. "Bring books" means we have got already book. Simply translate it in the particular language and publish it. That's all. Idea is already there. You haven't got to manufacture idea.
- So far your telling me that some devotees consider that because there may be some grammatical discrepancies in my Srimad-Bhagavatam, first canto, then they may also be allowed to translate with errors accepted, that is just like imitating Raslila.
The Strategy of Publishing Back to Godhead
For regions where printing massive volumes was not immediately possible, Śrīla Prabhupāda heavily promoted the translation of the Back to Godhead magazine. This strategic approach allowed local centers to distribute philosophy quickly and affordably. By reproducing the English issues in French, German, Japanese, and other languages, the society built the necessary foundation and cooperation to eventually print all the major books.
- Actually we want that Back to Godhead be printed in every major language and distributed all over the world so that there is no language barrier in taking to our movement.
- Regarding Back to Godhead, my plan is this, that you shall simply translate from our English issues and reproduce the writing and insert it wherever there is writing in the English version.
- We must have close cooperation between America and Germany for the successful publication of our Back to Godhead regularly in French, German and English languages.
- You continue to publish Back to Godhead in French language, in the mimeograph machine, and when you feel confident that it is going on, and Cintamani das is fixed up then it will great success for us to start a small press in Montreal.
Conclusion
The massive endeavor to translate Śrīla Prabhupāda's literature into the world's languages is one of the greatest achievements of his disciples. By combining dedicated linguistic skill with genuine spiritual realization, they ensured that the pure, unadulterated message of Kṛṣṇa consciousness could reach the hearts of millions. Through their tireless translation work, the mission of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu continues to overflood every corner of the earth.
Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani
Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category Our Translating in Different Languages (Disciples of SP). We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.