His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
My Dear Friends,
Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated May 9, 1972 and I have noted the contents. Actually outside of our bona fide Krishna Consciousness centers, there is no possibility of finding out what Krishna does or does not want. We say "We feel that Krishna wills this for us. But I feel Krishna does not. So whose feelings will be all right? You say that you are following the regulative principles, so if you are following the regulative principles, why you will not cooperate? If by following the regulative principles you do not become devotees, and you can not appreciate other devotees, then what is the use of these regulative principles? If you are actually chanting regularly 16 rounds, holding sankirtana daily, reading our books as much as possible, like that, then I think you will feel that such program of living separately, away from our Krishna consciousness program is a great mistake.
So my only request is that you immediately return either to the Cleveland temple or to some other temple. You may correspond with Bhagavan das at the Detroit center, 8311 E. Jefferson St., Detroit 48214, in this connection. He is the GBC zonal secretary for that zone of the mid-west, so you may address your questions and inquiries to him. I am very much encouraged that you are all chanting Hare Krishna and trying to become Krishna Conscious. But I do not advise that you approach the matter of perfecting your life in this independent way.
Unless there is connection with a bona fide spiritual master, coming in the line of disciplic succession, there is no possibility of making progress in spiritual life. So I have established ISKCON centers for the purpose of catching up the Lotus Feet of Krishna by intimate connection with the spiritual master. These are my authorized centers for that purpose. You say that whatever I instruct you you will carry out, so again my instruction is that you abandon this independent scheme and join your good god-brothers and sisters at some one of our ISKCON centers.
Hoping this meets you in good health.
Your ever well-wisher,
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
"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." SB 1.5.11, Purport
Comment by Editor and reply
We will be happy to go back once the criminals leave. Until then we are not ALLOWED TO by cultists living in Srila Prabhupada's temples.
Comment by Ramananada Maharajah
Hare Krishna Prabhu.
I am aware of what you have written
I am always happy to cooperate in pursuance of Srila Prabhupada's mission.
Hare Krishna and a wonderful day
Jaya Srila PrabhupadaI am aware of what you have written.
I am always happy to cooperate in pursuance of Srila Prabhupada's mission.
Hare Krishna and a wonderful day.
Jaya Srila Prabhupada!
Comment by Editor 2 hours ago
Ramananda Prabhu; Are you aware that this e-site is created by disciples of Srila Prabhupada who were violently and against our wills run out of our own temples around the world by gangs of cultists who have occupied our spiritual master's buildings, and vyasasana? Are you aware that we poverty sticken brahmanas loyal to him are fighting to kick the usurping thieves and poisoners out of our temples? So we either build our own, or oust the asuras somehow or other. So, if you have any land or money and time, or any practical plans, then all cooperative donations are appreciated. Hare Krishna!
In a July 9, 1971 letter to Umapati Das, Srila Prabhupada wrote:"GBC members are simply to see that things are going on. Other centers have got president, secretary, etc. and they are managing separately. That is the formula. So how is it that the GBC are the final authority? They are simply to examine that things are going on nicely, that is all."“GBC men should not dictate very much, simply supervise and see that the standards are maintained.”(Srila Prabhupada Letter, February 14th, 1972)
“What will happen when I am not here, shall everything be spoiled by GBC? So for the time being, let the GBC activities be suspended until I thoroughly revise the whole procedure.”(Srila Prabhupada Letter, April 11th, 1972)
“I made the GBC to give me relief, but if you do like this, then where is the relief. It is anxiety for me. This is the difficulty, that as soon as one gets power, he becomes whimsical and spoils everything.”(Srila Prabhupada Letter, September 12th, 1974 )
“I am training some of my experienced disciples how to manage after my departure. So if instead of taking the training, if in my lifetime you people say I am the Lord of all I survey, that is dangerous conspiracy.”(Srila Prabhupada Letter, October 8th, 1974)
“But the difficulty is that our GBC men are falling victim to maya. Today I trust this GBC and tomorrow he will fall down. That is the difficulty. If the GBC men are so flickering then what to speak of the others. Unless this problem is solved whatever we may resolve it will not be very useful. “(Srila Prabhupada Letter, December 16th, 1974)
“The GBC should all be the instructor (siksa) gurus. I am the initiator (diksa) guru, and you should be the instructor guru by teaching what I am teaching and doing what I am doing. This is not a title, but you must actually come to this platform. This I want.”(Srila Prabhupada Letter, August 4th, 1975)
“The GBC (Governing Body Commission) has been established by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada to represent Him in carrying out the responsibility of managing the International Society for Krishna Consciousness of which He is the Founder-Acarya and supreme authority. The GBC accepts as its life and soul His divine instructions and recognizes that it is completely dependent on His mercy in all respects. The GBC has no other function or purpose other than to execute the instructions so kindly given by His Divine Grace and preserve and spread his Teachings to the world in their pure form.”;(GBC Resolution No.1, 1975)
“Now has the GBC become more than Guru Maharaja? As if simply GBC is meant for looking after pounds, shilling, pence. The GBC does not look after spiritual life. That is a defect.”(Srila Prabhupada Letter, November 10th, 1975)
"It is now evident that some of our top men are very much ambitious and there has been so many fall-downs.”
(Srila Prabhupada Letter, January 27th, 1975)
"Our mission is to serve bhakta-visesa and live with devotees. Not that you take the place of the guru. That is nonsense, very dangerous. Then everything will be spoiled. As soon as you become ambitious to take the place of guru—gurusu nara-matih. That is the material disease.”( Srila Prabhupada Conversation, April 20th, 1977)
Srila Haridasa Thakura
" Bhaja Krsna, Bolo Krsna, Laha Krsna Nam Krsna Mata, Krsna Pita, Krsna Dhana Prana ! "
Srila Haridasa Thakura and Sri Nityananda Raya performed the first sankirtana preaching, to the residents of Nadia , and then to every one of us also, using the above message by instruction of Sri Sri Viswambhara Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
" Our Movement is a declaration of war against MAYA. That you can understand very well, so we have to recruit many fighting soldiers-so do it vigorously! " Srila Prabhupada
“...in His army, to win the war with Maya and establish Krishna Consciousness as the perfect way of life for every living entity.”(Srila Prabhupada Letter, 15/11/1971)
His Divine Grace Śrīla A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda Founder~Acharya of the Krsna Consciousness Movement
August 24, 1968 Montreal, Quebec, Letter to Brahmacari Sivananda
" You write to say, "I really miss Swamiji and my God-brothers' association so much." But I may remind you that I am always with you. And so wherever I am there, and you are there, all your God-brothers are there. Please remember always the humble teachings that you have received from me, and that will make you always associated with me, and with your other God-brothers. "
Tamoharadasa;
Thank you Ramananda Prabhu.
We devotes have lived difficult and sometimes dangerous lives in our service, some of us since our teenage years. Like old soldiers, we have become hardened against any perceived resistance in the work. The short quotes which you chose suggesting we all go back to some temples somewhere is the last thing i suggest anyone do. I last served full time live-in doing sankirtana and kitchen work, in Iskcon Montreal, 2008, as vanaprastha. I was purposefully trailed and spied on and thus abused, later insulted, and eventually run out of the temple i served in for years by young punk disciples of Radhanatha Swami, this because I refuse to accept the corrupt unqualified GBC thieves and kali yuga wannabe gooroos as the supreme authority in Iskcon.
It is of course they who should leave our spritual master's temple, is that not the correct etiquette? They are disciples of persons who wrongfully took over Srila Prabhupada's temples and all assets and honor. Now, they want to kick out, have kicked out 97% of us now, the spiritual sons of the guru, in order to shore up their criminal takeovers and keep illigitimate dogs on their thrones. Meanwhile we hear of homosex rape, murder, cocaine trafficng, prostitution, homosex, wife abuse, child abuse, stolen money, fakery, hinduisztion, farms sold, Deities disclaced, books banned devotees ousted over political whims of raging madmen. Shall i continue, i just got started? They stole all ISKCON and handed control to a criminal organization incorporated in Bengal. Dont beleive me? Just ask to see the society documents.
They have banned Prabhupadas books in Iskcon temples. Not all.
Russia and Gujerat have now both taken moves to ban SP's books in their lands, as they are perceived to come from criminals.
Thanks very much, criminal phony Iskcon for dragging our name into the dirt. Last time i was in Puri, 1997, a little boy tried to sell me drugs, then told me all the isckon devotees buy from him. Then later the same day, another Puri man, in a discussion of iskcon, asked me if ALL iskcon sannyasis were gay?
I am from the early days preaching in Bhubaneswara, 1976-1980. Back then, we were respected.
How about rats and cockroaches living in most of our temples, as well as bed bugs now? How about third class foods served to the Deities. How about devotees living with holes in their clothes? How about temple presidents pocketing temple money regularly? How about pujaris who have to steal and sell maha sweets and do poojas in front of Radha Krsna for money?
Radhanatha Swami isnt even a GBC here, he who controls Canada Montreal Iskcon by dint of his gang of insider criminal thugs and spies.
And I am not the only one, just one in a whole long succcession of my godbrothers who are nowadays abused in Iskcon Canada by the GBC thieves and wannabe Jesus's who sit high on the vyasasana and steal all Srila Prabhupada's resources and disciples for their own foot washers. Yea, they are not even proper madhyama adhikaris, as they abuse devotees and use them, as might foolish kanisthas or demons. Bhaktimarga, Nrsngha Caitanya, and Veda Vyasa, are the main culprits in my misadventures. They are just typical of the brainwashed CIA dupes now running ISKCON in the name of
"a NEW WORLD Krsna conscious ORDER" - quote direct from photocopy of written document sent to GBCs, Jayapataka Swami, Sept 5, 1985.
Prabhupada: “There’s No Need to Leave Home and Join the Temple…”
Prabhupada: “people inquire whether they have to give up family life to join the Society, but that is not our mission.”
This is the sublime mission of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Many people come and inquire whether they have to give up family life to join the Society, but that is not our mission. One can remain comfortably in his residence. We simply request everyone to chant the maha-mantra: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. If one is a little literate and can read Bhagavad-gita As It Is and Srimad-Bhagavatam, that is so much the better. These works are now available in an English translation and are done very authoritatively to appeal to all classes of men. Instead of living engrossed in material activities, people throughout the world should take advantage of this movement and chant the Hare Krsna maha-mantra at home with their families. (CC Madhya 7.128 pp)
There’s No Need to Leave Home and Join the Temple…
“The brahmana Kurma begged Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, “My dear Lord, kindly show me favor and let me go with You. I can no longer tolerate the waves of misery caused by materialistic life.” It appears that he was materially very happy. Now, being glorious, he wanted to leave all these material opulences. He wanted to travel with Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. According to the Vedic way of civilization, one should leave his
It is not advisable in this Age of Kali to leave one’s family suddenly, for people are not trained as proper brahmacaris and grhasthas. Therefore Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu advised the brahmana not to be too eager to give up family life. It would be better to remain with his family and try to become purified by chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra regularly under the direction of a spiritual master. This is the instruction of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. If this principle is followed by everyone, there is no need to accept sannyasa.
It is not advisable in this age of Kali to leave one’s family suddenly
In Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya-lila, Chapter Seven, Lord Chaitanya’s method of preaching and Prabhupada’s comments regarding the process of preaching Lord Chaitanya practiced while travelling throughout South India (a period of about two years) are very necessary for all devotees to study and understand clearly.
Because of the circumstances under which most of Prabhupada’s early disciples joined the movement, a widespread misunderstanding has become a great obstacle for people in general to accept and practice Krishna consciousness in a realistic and progressive way under all circumstances. That misunderstanding is that a serious candidate for accepting and advancing in Krishna consciousness must abandon his worldly environment and responsibilities to join a temple ashram and live a communal or communistic life style under the rigid authority of an ISKCON GBC or guru. Nothing could be further from the truth, as we can plainly understand from the following descriptions of Lord Chaitanya’s preaching method and Prabhupada’s purports, which clearly support and obviously encourage the process introduced by Lord Chaitanya in His dealing with the Kurma brahmana and everyone He encountered throughout His two years of travelling and preaching in South India.
Text 125: “My dear Lord, there is no limit to my great fortune. It cannot be described. Today my family, birth and riches have all been glorified.”
Text 126: The brahmana begged Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, “My dear Lord, kindly show me favour and let me go with You. I can no longer tolerate the waves of misery caused by materialistic life.”
PURPORT: This statement is applicable for everyone, regardless of how rich or prosperous one may be. Narottama das Thakur has confirmed this statement: samsara visanale, diva-nisi hiya jvale. He states that the materialistic way of life causes a burning in the heart. One cannot make any provisions for the troublesome life of the material world. It is a fact that one may be very happy as far as riches are concerned and one may be very opulent in every respect, yet one has to manage the visayas to meet the demands of the body and of so many family members and subordinates. One has to take so much trouble to minister to others. Narottama dasa Thakura therefore prays: visaya chapiya kabe suddha habe mana. Thus one must become freed from the materialistic way of life. One has to merge himself in the ocean of transcendental bliss. In other words, one cannot relish transcendental bliss without being freed from the materialistic way of life. It appears that the brahmana named Kurma was materially very happy, for he expressed his family tradition as janmakula-dhana. Now, being glorified, he wanted to leave all these material opulences. He wanted to travel with Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. According to the Vedic way of civilisation, one should leave his family after attaining fifty years of age and go to the forest of Vrindavan to devote the rest of his life to the service of the Lord.
Text 127: Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu replied, “Don’t speak like that again. Better to remain at home and chant the holy name of Krishna always.
PURPORT: It is not advisable in this age of Kali to leave one’s family suddenly, for people are not trained as proper brahmacharis and grihasthas. Therefore Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu advised the brahmana not to be too eager to give up family life. It would be better to remain with his family and try to become purified by chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra regularly under the direction of a spiritual master. This is the instruction of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. If this principle is followed by everyone, there is no need to accept sannyasa. In the next verse, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu advises everyone to become an ideal householder by offencelessly chanting the Hare Krishna mantra and teaching the same principle to everyone He meets.
Text 128: “Instruct everyone to follow the orders of Lord Sri Krishna as they are given in Bhagavad-gita and Srimad- Bhagavatam. In this way, become a spiritual master and try to liberate everyone in this land.”
PURPORT: This is the sublime mission of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Many people come and inquire whether they have to give up family life to join the Society, but that is not our mission. One can remain comfortably in his residence. We simply request everyone to chant the maha-mantra: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. If one is a little literate and can read Bhagavad-gita As It Is and Srimad-Bhagavatam, that is so much the better. These works are now available in an English translation, and are done very authoritatively to appeal to all classes of men. Instead of living engrossed in material activities, people throughout the world should take advantage of this movement and chant the Hare Krishna maha- mantra at home with their families. One should also refrain from sinful activities-illicit sex, meat eating, gambling and intoxication. Out of these four items, illicit sex is very sinful. Every person must get married. Every woman especially must get married. If the women outnumber the men, some men can accept more than one wife. In that way there will be no prostitution in society. If men can marry more than one wife, illicit sex life will be stopped. One can also produce many nice preparations to offer KrishnaÑ grain, fruit, flowers and milk. Why should one indulge in unnecessary meat eating and maintain horrible slaughterhouses? What is the use of smoking and drinking tea and coffee? People are already intoxicated by material enjoyment, and if they indulge in further intoxication, what chance is therefore selfrealisation? Similarly, one should not partake in gambling and unnecessarily agitate the mind. The real purpose of human life is to attain the spiritual platform and return to Godhead. That is the summum bonum of spiritual realisation. The Krishna consciousness movement is trying to elevate human society to the perfection of life by pursuing the method described by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in His advice to the brahmana Kurma. That is, one should stay at home, chant the Hare Krishna mantra and preach the instructions of Krishna as they are given in Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam.
Text 129: Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu further advised the brahmana Kurma, “If you follow this instruction, your materialistic life at home will not obstruct your spiritual advancement. Indeed, if you follow these regulative principles, we will again meet here, or, rather, you will never lose My company.”
PURPORT: This is an opportunity for everyone. If one simply follows the instructions of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, under the guidance of His representative, and chants the Hare Krishna mantra, teaching everyone a far as possible the same principle, the contamination of the materialistic way of life will not even touch him. It does not matter whether one lives in a holy place like Vrndavana, Navadwipa or Jagnnatha Puri or in the midst of European cities where the materialistic eay of live is very prominent. If a devotee follows the instructions of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, he lives in the company of the Lord. Wherever he lives, he converts that place into Vrindavan and Navadwipa. This means that materialism cannot touch him. This is the secret of success for one advancing in Krishna consciousness.
Text 130: At whosoever’s house Sri Chaitanya accepted His alms by taking prasada, He would convert the dwellers to His sankirtana movement and advise them just as He advised the brahmana named Kurma.
PURPORT: The cult of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is explained here very nicely. One who surrenders to Him and is ready to follow Him with heart and soul does not need to change his location. Nor is it necessary for one to change status. One may remain a householder, a medical practitioner, an engineer or whatever. It doesn’t matter. One only has to follow the instruction of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra and instruct relatives and friends in the teachings of Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam. One has to learn humility and meekness at home, following the instructions of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and in that way one’s life will be spiritually successful. One should not try to be an artificially advanced devotee thinking, “I am a first-class devotee.” Such thinking should be avoided. It is best not to accept any disciples. One has to become purified at home by chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra and preaching the principles enunciated by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Thus one can become a spiritual master and be freed from the contamination of material life.
There are many sahajiyas [pretenders] who decry the activities of the six Goswamis Rupa, Sanatana, Raghunatha das, Bhatta Raghunatha, Jiva and Gopala Bhatta Goswamis who are the personal associates of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and who enlightened society by writing books on devotional service. Similarly, Narottama dasa Thakura and other great acharyas like Madhvacharya, Ramanujacharya and others accepted many thousands of disciples to induce them to render devotional service. However, there is a class of sahajiyas who think that these activities are opposed to the principles of devotional service. Indeed, they consider such activities simply another phase of materialism. Thus opposing the principles of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, they commit offenses at His lotus feet. They should better consider His instructions and instead of seeking to be considered humble and meek, should refrain from criticising the followers of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who engage in preaching. To protect His preachers, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu has given much clear advice in these verses of Chaitanya-charitamrita.
Text 131-132: While on His tour, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu would spend the night at a temple or on the roadside. Whenever He accepted food from a person, He would give him the same advice He gave the brahmana named Kurma. He adopted this process until He returned from His South Indian tour to Jagannatha Puri.
Text 133: Thus I have described the Lord’s behaviour elaborately in the case of Kurma. In this way, you will know of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s dealings throughout South India.
Text 134: Thus Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu would remain at night in one place and the next moming, after bathing, start again. — Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya-lila, Chapter Seven, Verses 125-134)
This is the process which was actually practiced by Lord Chaitanya. It was also taught by Bhaktivinoda Thakura. In fact, he wrote a small booklet called Nama-hatta . Nama-hatta means the marketplace of the Holy Name. In that book he drew an analogy between the preaching of the Holy Name and a marketplace, where one buys and sells commodities. The description given in that book is exactly like what we would call today multi-level marketing, such as practiced by Amway or Shaklee, where a friend comes to you and says, “Look, you buy soap, right?” and you say, “Yes, of course,” and he says, “So why not buy your soap from me?” He sells his friend soap, and his friend can also sell to his friends and relatives, and in this way make some money, and he can get the soap for practically nothing. And he tells his friends and relatives the same thing: “Look, you can sell to your friends and relatives.” In this way, multi-level marketing has become a dynamic way for American entrepreneurs to distribute their products.
Even companies like MCI have contracted Amway to sell their products. This is a natural, simple and convenient way for people to enterprise and circumvent the big corporate structures that have monopolised American industry. Similarly, 100 years ago, Bhaktivinoda Thakura suggested that the preaching of Krishna consciousness should be done in this way.
Just as Srila Prabhupada came to us and taught us to chant Hare Krishna and follow the principles of Krishna consciousness, how to cook prasadam and he published these books, we in turn told our friends about it in those days, during the 60′s and 70′s. Of course, in those days, we did not have a home. We were in the street, having rejected society, so we did not have a social circumstance. We did not have an economic situation. We had given up society, because we were so frustrated and confused. Bllt times have changed, and people are not wandering the streets like they were in those days. In the 60′s, Prabhupada gave us a home. He took us in, and we slept on the floor in the temple, and ate chapatis and rice and went about chanting Hare Krishna and convinced some of our peers to take up Krishna consciousness.
Unfortunately, many of us continued to project this method onto the whole world that people have to shave up and move into the temple and give up their car, bank balance, wife and kids and as a result, the Krishna consciousness movement is not spreading. In fact, it is disintegrating-not because there is something wrong with Krishna consciousness, but because in our shortsightedness we have failed to see the broader application.
There is no use of going to the forest for one who has failed to control his mind, because he only takes his uncontrolled mind with him. The best course of action is to remain situated in that environment where one finds himself due to the arrangement of Krishna and practice chanting the Holy Name of Krishna, expecting the mercy of the Lord in due course of time.
Everything depends on practice, and through practice of chanting the Holy Name a taste develops for hearing the transcendental vibration of Krishna’s Holy Name. Thus one naturally becomes indifferent to his family attachment, although he may be in the midst of such attachments (wife, children, house, car, etc.).
This method of practicing Krishna consciousness should be encouraged- not the misleading method of premature renunciation, which misleads one to mistake the abandoning of one’s material circumstance with renunciation. True renunciation is a side product of true attachment or taste for chanting the Holy Name of Krishna.
Simply making an external show of abandoning the troublesome objects of the senses (wealth, woman, prestige) will not help one to taste Krishna consciousness. It only creates pride and envy.
Some points to consider: One cannot abandon his mundane responsibilities. One cannot enjoy his mundane responsibilities. One should focus on the vibration of the Holy Name. We are in the midst of the ocean of material action and reaction. One wastes his valuable time and energy combatting the waves of the ocean. The aim is to come out of the ocean. Chant Hare Krishna, speak of Krishna, think of Krishna, serve Krishna–everything connected to Krishna. The flow of material activities is incidental. It will go on.
Devotees keep asking themselves, “How will the Krishna consciousness movement spread under the present circumstances?” They observe the lame leadership and feel personally helpless to make any change or contribution toward rectifying the situation or themselves. The answer to this debilitating state of thought is to see one’s self in the correct spiritual perspective. The devotees who helped Prabhupada spread his movement ISKCON are the same ones who can and will spread Krishna consciousness now and in the future. All that is required is that each individual devotee see himself as the servant of Prabhupada (the Sampradaya Acarya), now exactly as he was then (when Prabhupada was present).
Prabhupada: “the temple centre is started just to present an example to the neighbouring residents, how they can make a small temple in each and every home. It is not necessary that hundreds and thousands of people will live in our temple, but if we can make effective propaganda, then the neighbouring residents, householders, will be inclined to be initiated and follow the modes of temple life. So you can encourage the visitors, boys and girls, as well as married couples, to understand the value of life and how they can peacefully and happily live if they follow the routine worship method in the temple and establish this in their home to be happy in all respects.– Srila Prabhupada, letter to Tamal Krishna, June 1, 1969
Replies
Hare Krsna, obeisances to all;
Just a few practical necessities we should probabaly address;
While Bhakti Caru’s article sounds like a step in the right direction, talk is cheap. There is also the question of addressing all the devotees’ greivances seriously.
Suggestions; Issue a call for all of Srila Prabhupada’s diciples to return, including all the “ritvik-vadis”, then totally remove the current GBCs, and re-elect all officers in the temples once Prabhupada’s disciples are prepared, and extend full voting rights to all such disciples, living in the temple or not. Elect all these temple authorities, and then they should elect an all-new GBC. The current administrators should be disallowed to be reelected until a new governing regime is settled, so that the perception will be of complete breaking with the old ways and a return to original Iskcon mood.
Remove all banned labels on account of ritvik, and apologize to us.
Extend the natural right to all initiated devotees of Srila Prabhupada to live and fully serve to their best capacities in our spiritual master’s temple societies, and no one can kick them out or restrict their thinking or preaching in any way! Establish istagostis immediately, and show submission to the collective devotee’s ideas and suggestions.
Try to provide full facilities for preachers of all kinds, including brahmacaries and vanaprasthas.
Issue membership cards, acquire life insurance programs, give daksina regularly and generously to all ashrama members, except grhastas.
Stop all salaries immediately! Other avenues of support may be arranged, as ncessary, such as daksina or grants.
Stop earning money by doing Hindu ceremonies before our deities. Stop allowing anyone other than initiated Iskcon brahmanas or other qualified brahmana Vaisnavas to cook in the temples.
Insist that every devotee go on sankirtana regularly. Reduce the deity worship if necessary to accomplish this. The yuga dharma is harinama sankirtana, not temple worship, so priorities need to be rearranged in some cases.
Remove the rubber stamp system altogether. Retain the current spiritual masters who accept ritivk role, and make arrnagments for those who do not accept this to be reestablished outside of Prabhupada’s temples. All temples and farms etc started by Srila Prabhupada should be designated as such, while those started by others should go to their hands and their disciples.
Rewrite the role of all sannyasis in Iskcon to one appropriate for the ashrama. No more sannyasi managers. All brahamanas should give classes at least occassionally, and the cult of the high-flying sannyasis and Iskcon rock stars must end now.
Stop harassing Madhu Pandita et al. Withdraw all court cases.
Stop rewriting Srila Prabhupada’s books, and extend right to print to all disiciples.
Any devotees who wish to act as gurus should have lesser rights within Iskcon, and restrictions of their activites within Prabhupadas society should be mandated. They and their disciples should either rethink their allegiances to Srila Prabhupada, or make way for Prabhupada’s disciples to manage and govern without interference from these new spiritaul masters or their disciples. They should plan to and be assisted to find their own centres as sub-branches of Iskcon. Once their seperate identity is established and Prabhupada’s temples are returned to him and his disciples, ritvik post-samadhi disciples as well as the original devotees, then full mutual cooperation between Iskcon and the branches can be maintained.
Start massive e-preaching within a now unified Iskcon body.
Increase devotee in-temple ashramas immediately, and encourage seekers to live with us for a stretch, and encourage renunciants of all ashreamas to live in and perform sankirtana activites of all sorts.
Action along these lines will be real. Just talk not followed by actual
reform will be dissappointing and not so helpful.
Thank you, prabhus. Hare Krsna and obeisances to all!
Thank you Tamohara for your views. I hope Prabhupada’s disciples who went away will be encouraged by your words.
Dear Sukhada Devi; Please mataji; What makes you think any of us “went away”? We were driven out violently by the current usurpers!! But perhaps that was not your meaning when you say “went away”. Thanks otherwise. Pamho.
(Letter to Bhagavata Maharaja, August 21, 1969)
“Disunity between individual souls is so strong within this material world that even in a society of Krsna consciousness; members sometimes appear disunited due to their having different opinions and leaning toward material things. Actually, in Krsna consciousness there cannot be two opinions. There is only one goal: to serve Krsna to one’s best ability. If there is some disagreement over service, such disagreement is to be taken as spiritual. Those who are actually engaged in the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead cannot be disunited in any circumstance.” *** SB 4.30.8
All Glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gouranga
8 October, 1974
Mayapur
Letter to Karandhara das:
"The thing is where is the question of making any conspiracy. The materialistic man creates diplomacy and conspiracy for sense gratification. Everyone wants in the material world some reputation, profit, and some adoration. But so far we are concerned we are being trained up by following the footsteps of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu:
na dhanam na janam na sundarim
kavitam va jagadisa kamaye
mama janmani janmanisvare
bhavatad bhaktir ahaituki tvayi
"My Lord I do not want any monetary gain, neither any number of followers, or wife, but simply I want to be engaged in Your causeless devotional service, which means I do not even want salvation." So if actually we follow the footsteps of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, where is the question of conspiracy?"