In 1961, Srila Prabhupada was invited to attend a world conference, the Congress for Cultivating the Human Spirit, which was to be held in Japan. Planning on going, Srila Prabhupada knowing that most of the attendees would be from the Orient, considered how He could best present the teachings of Srimad Bhagavatam to these people in a short, simple, but complete way. In this consciousness, Srila Prabhupada chose one chapter from Bhagavatam for presentation, which He felt would give the best delivery of the message of Srimad Bhagavatam, and embellished it with His wonderful purports.

Srila Prabhupada chose the chapter in Bhagavatam which gave a description of the autumn season in Vrndavana, His knowing that the people of the orient were very fond of hearing (and painting) descriptions of nature and that the autumn season is considered auspicious to them. Srila Prabhupada presented spiritual philosophy by giving the seasonal examples from nature spoken of in Srimad Bhagavatam, and then giving a subsequent teaching to present a spiriual lesson.
Srila Prabhupada wanted a book to come from these efforts, hoping that He could find a qualified artist to illustrate each verse, and wrote directions to the organizers of the conference in that light, but due to circumstance, Srila Prabhupada was not able to attend the conference, and thus, the whole project of "Light of the Bhagavata" was not accomplished. In fact, Srila Prabhupada left the planet before illustrations for this book could be made, and the book published.

After Srila Prabhupada left the planet, responsibility for the publishing of this book (along with finding an artist to appropriately illustrate it) was given to the Hong Kong branch of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, and by their desire and Krsna's grace flowing through these devotees, a renowned artist, Madame Li Yun Sheng, was found to make the illustrations for this book. By Krsna's mercy, Srila Prabhupada's purity and ingenuity, Madam Li Yun Sheng's illustrations, such an extraordinary exposition of the Srimad Bhagavatam was produced according to kala, desha and patra.

The following is a verse and purport from Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada's "Light of the Bhagavat" which I think appropriate for our existing condition in this age of Kali:

Text 32

The beautiful white clouds, freed from all burdens of water distribution, float in midair, like mendicants freed from all family responsibilities.

Srila Prabhupada's purport:

As long as one is attached to the so-called responsibilities of family burdens, he is always full of cares and anxieties about meeting his family expenses. The four orders of social life, as designed in the varnasrama system, are very scientific and cooperative. In student life one is taught the primary principles of the human form of life. One who enters the householder's life can execute the duties of a family man because he has already been trained for this job in the brahmacarya-asrama. And after fifty years of age the householder retires from family life and prepares for the life of sannyasa.

The householder is duty-bound to maintain the members of all three of the other asramas, namely the brahmacaris, the vanaprasthas, and sannyasis. In this way, every member of society was given a chance to retire for a higher order of spiritual culture, and the householders neglected no one. The brahmacaris, vanaprasthas, and sannyasis all curtailed their necessities to the minimum, and therefore no one would begrudge maintaining them in the bare necessities of life.

In Kali-yuga, however, the entire system has gone topsy-turvy. The student lives in luxury at the expense of the father or the father-in-law. When the educated, indulgent student becomes a householder by the strength of university degrees, he requires money by all means for all kinds of bodily comfort, and therefore he cannot spare even a penny for the so-called vanaprasthas and sannyasis. The vanaprasthas and sannyasis nowadays are those who were unsuccessful in family life. Thus the so-called sannyasis try to construct another home in the name of the sannyasa-asrama and glide down into all sorts of luxury at the expense of others. So all these varnas and asramas have now become so many transcendental frauds.

But that does not mean that there is no reality in them. One should not conclude that there is no good money simply because one has met with counterfeit coins. The sannyasa-asrama is meant for complete freedom from all anxieties, and it is meant for uplifting the fallen souls, who are merged in materialism. But unless the sannyasi is freed from all cares and anxieties, like a white cloud, it is difficult for him to do anything good for society.

May we all become successful in the development of Krsna Prema.

Jagat Guru Srila Prabhupada ki JAYA!!!

Gour Premanandi Hari Hari Bol.
Your servant,
Mahavegavati Dasi
Hare Krsna