Prabhupada was asked, “Are you an incarnation of God?” “No,” he answered, “I am
servant of God.” Then he paused and went on, “Not exactly servant. To be servant
of God is not an ordinary thing.” The servants or devotees of Krsna are so great that
they are beyond the desire to merge with God. Sometimes, in their intimate
association and exchange with God, they even become “greater” than Him, as when
He allows some devotee to become His mother or lover. Prabhupada’s mission is not
less than to distribute this topmost love of God to all persons. It is stated in the
Vedic literature that a small man wants to make only himself happy, a somewhat
bigger man wants to make his family or his country happy, but the great man wants
to make all persons happy.

Bhaktivedanta Swami produces his books by speaking them on a dictaphone. He is
presently working on five books at once. These books are a matter of realization. As
he has said, “When you become self-realized you automatically write volumes of
books.” And one of the qualifications of a devotee is that he is poetic. Srila
Prabhupada is always immersed in Krsna by speaking, dictating, singing about
Krsna’s glories, preaching formally at meetings or planning the expansion of the
Krsna consciousness movement. In the Bhagavad-gita, Seventh Chapter, it is stated
that out of thousands of men few seek perfection, and out of the thousands who
attain perfection hardly one knows Krsna. Lord Krsna also declares in the
Eighteenth Chapter that the dearmost devotee of all is he who spreads the teaching
of love of Krsna: “Never will there be one dearer to Me.”

Bhaktivedanta Swami’s spiritual master, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, once drew a
picture of a mrdanga (drum used on sankirtana) and, beside it, a printing press. He
said that the mrdanga can be heard for several blocks, but the press can be heard
around the world. He therefore called the printing press “the big mrdanga.” For the
purpose of world-wide service to humanity, ISKCON Press has been established, for
the exclusive printing of Srila Prabhupada’s books.

In 1968, Macmillan published The Bhagavad Gita As It ls, translated with
commentary by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami. The Gita is the gist of the entire Vedic
literature. Just this one book can free anyone from the clutches of material Nature
and fix one in eternal loving service unto Sri Krsna , the Personality of Godhead. As
originally written by Srila Prabhupada, the manuscript of The Bhagavad Gita As It Is
is many times larger than the version published by Macmillan. Publication of this
original, expanded version is being undertaken by ISKCON. Another important
published literature by Prabhupada is his Teachings of Lord Chaitanya. This book
outlines the precepts of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the golden avatara who appeared in
