The Bhagavata Purana is one of the most revered scriptures of Vaisnavism, occupying a central place in their devotion as well as in their thought. It was the great ambition of Swami Bhaktivedanta, the founder-acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, to make this great work available to the English speaking world, by providing its translation and his own commentary in a sixty-volume set.

Satsvarupa dasa Goswami takes up that tradition and presents in his A Poor Man Reads the Bhagavatam, of which the first volume is now appearing, a beautiful re-rendering of this scripture, together with a lively and contemporary commentary of his own. Dedicated to Srila Prabhupada, the founder-acarya of ISKCON at the occasion of his 100th birthday, it is a testimony of love and devotion. It documents a western devotee's growth in bhakti as well as the problems and doubts that accompany this process. Satsvarupa dasa Goswami writes beautifully, poetically, spiritually.

I am certain that this work will succeed in conveying to many the genuine spirit of Vaishnavism in a garb that is woven of Eastern as well as Western strands, and that reveals the beauty as well as the depth of that tradition. I hope that A Poor Man Reads the Bhagavatam will find many readers. Nothing could have been dearer to Swami Bhaktivedanta than such a 100th birthday gift from his western devotees.

Professor Klaus K. Klostermaier

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