Today’s world is in disarray. Even the so-called educated class of society has no idea how to be happy, or how to do good for the world. Fortunately for us, the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya entertained this idea thousands of years ago. As a result of their thousand-year sacrifice, the enlightened sage, Śukadeva Gosvāmī, spoke Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, the panacea for respiritualizing the entire planet. Because the Bhāgavatam addresses the root cause of suffering, it is a cure-all for the many ills we suffer in this world. Śukadeva Gosvāmī’s sole purpose in life was to see that everyone received this panacea, this ultimate, all-pervading and always effective cure for the disease of material existence. Now, by the mercy of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, we all have the opportunity to help expand the distribution of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam all over the world.

Many years ago, Śrīla Prabhupāda was sitting in a small room in Vṛndāvana, thinking, “How can I fulfill the desires of my spiritual master and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu?” With that meditation, he began to type, using just his two index fingers, the first three volumes of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. Through hot summers and freezing cold winters, he sat and worked, unperturbed by any external discomfort. When he finally had printed the entire First Canto, he filled up trunks with the many precious books and set out for America aboard the Jaladuta. By the end of his life, Śrīla Prabhupāda had completed the first nine cantos, and he had begun work on the tenth. After his departure, empowered by their guru’s grace, his disciples worked collaboratively to complete the remaining chapters of their master’s magnum opus.

In Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 1.5.11, purport, Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, “When there is fire in a house, the inmates of the house go out to get help from the neighbors who may be foreigners, and yet without knowing the language the victims of the fire express themselves, and the neighbors understand the need, even though not expressed in the same language. The same spirit of cooperation is needed to broadcast this transcendental message of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam throughout the polluted atmosphere of the world.”

About five years ago, Vaiśeṣika Dāsa noticed a verse in the Bhāgavatam and, along with a team of senior devotees, came up with a brilliant strategy for expanding the distribution of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. According to Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 12.13.13, anyone who gives a set of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam as a gift on the full moon day in the month of Bhadra receives the amazing gift of one day going back home back to Godhead. This Śrīmad Bhāgavatam is not from this material world; it is from the spiritual world. Anyone who listens to it or distributes it is transformed into a spiritual being and returns to the spiritual world.

In 2021, 35,432 Śrīmad Bhāgavatam sets were distributed across the world. While the numbers were steadily increasing over the past few years, the biggest jump in distribution actually came at the most unexpected time — during the COVID pandemic. These numbers would have been inconceivable just a few years ago. However, following our magic affirmation, “Assume it can be done,” and by working together as the One World Team, a unified network of book distributors across the globe, we were able to smash our annual goals.

As Vaiśeṣika Dāsa says, “We set goals because of what it makes of us in achieving them.” This year, the One World Team has fixed a goal to distribute at least 100,000 sets in the year 2026. This implies steadily increasing our capacities by expanding book distribution pipelines, enhancing the supply chain, and empowering more distributors. A key feature of this campaign is to make Śrīmad Bhāgavatam available in more languages. “Every town and village means every language”, says Vaiśeṣika Dāsa. Working towards 100,000 sets, the goal for the 2022 Bhadra Pūrṇimā Campaign has been set to distribute at least 43,000 sets.

In stepping aboard the Jaladuta back in 1965, Śrīla Prabhupāda took an extraordinary risk for propagating Kṛṣṇa Consciousness all across the world. By his example, he empowered his followers to adopt the same spirit of fearless ambition in spreading Kṛṣṇa’s message to every corner of the world. This opportunity to place a Bhāgavatam set in every home is our Jaladuta. Let’s get on the boat! Let’s take this risk!

There is no better way to take shelter of Śrīla Prabhupāda than by fulfilling his desire to broadcast the transcendental message of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam throughout the world. As he writes, “Let there be systematic propaganda for popularizing reading of the Bhagavad Gita and the Srimad Bhagavatam, which will act like sugar candy for the jaundice-like condition of sense gratification. When men have a taste for this literature, the other literature, which is catering poison to society, will then automatically cease.” (SB 1.5.11 purport)