July 14, 2010 – Dear ISKCON leaders,
Please accept my humble obeisances.
All Glories to Srila Prabhupada!
Hare Krishna, You don’t know me, I’m a long time visitor to Berkeley temple and lived in the Temple many years ago.
I’m writing to bring your attention to a situation that we feel needs attention from Temple authorities such as yourself.
In the last few years of attending the Ratha Yatra festival in San Francisco, my wife and I have witnessed stage performances that some may find offensive and could possibly even be displeasing to our Founder Srila Prabhupada.
Specifically we are referring to music and dance performances at the end of the parade procession of Lord Jagannatha. We would like to bring to your attention the fact that some of these performances are accompanied by Hindi Bollywood songs that, while seeming to be related to Krishna consciousness, are actually quite offensive if one knows their origins.
Of course people in the West including most devotees do not speak the Hindi language, so it is understandable that this nonsense is going on year after year. Devotees and the general public attending the festival are only hearing the tunes and beats of these Bollywood songs and not unstanding the lyrics and where these lyrics are derived from.
These songs may satisfy the gross senses to some degree, everybody is attracted to a catchy beat or rhythm, but these songs are more appropriate in a Nightclub or a Disco, not Ratha Yatra. Quite simply, it is the message that these songs convey in the Hindi language that is so offensive. In their original context, these songs are part of Bollywood movies that have recently come out, movies such as “Devdas”, “Kishna”, “Laagan” etc.
In the movie “Devdas”, the song “Kahe chere chere mohe” is a Bollywood love story; the lead actress plays a prostitute and is dancing and singing for a group of drunkards in a brothel. The question arises, why was this song chosen to be performed last year at the Ratha Yatra program?
In the movie “Kishna” the hero and heroine are singing to each other, addressing one another as Krishna and Radha in front of a Krishna temple. It is a romantic scene in the movie that is a perversion of Radha and Krishna’s Madurya rasa, it makes Sri Radha and Sri Krishna look cheap and mundane. I don’t see how Srila Prabhupada could ever be pleased with this blatant Sahajiyaism.
Srila Prabhupada didn’t even accept the bhajans of saints like Mirabai, Nanak, Surdas, Tulsidas etc., how is it that regular Bollywood songs are allowed? We overheard regular Karmi Hindus criticizing Iskcon at last years festival. You know things are bad when regular Hindus make comments about what they are hearing, even they understand that this is a deviation.
We know for a fact that Chaitanya dasi is responsible for these songs. Are there no checks and balances to assure that what is performed at Ratha Yatra is actually in line with the teachings of Srila Prabhupada?
Our sincere request is to please stop these songs of ignorance and passion from polluting the atmosphere of the Ratha Yatra festival. Please admonish the person or persons who are responsible and get back to the pure songs of our lineage. We sincerely hope someone like yourself is able to rectify the regrettable situation.Thank you.
Yours in the service of Srila Prabhupad,
Damodar Pandita dasa, Indrani devi dasi
More Infos: http://krishna1008.blogspot.com/
My respect and danadavats to the author. Unfortunatelly the same thing goes on in Poland.
ISKCON advertise itself openly as hindu religion! Openly! And they love Bollyvood too! What a nonsence, this is actually going on all over “ISGONE”. Any criticism? Must
be fault finder! “Times change, so we have to spread our movement
accordingly to time, space, and circumstances” -they say. I see the dynamic, it’s going to be hard for all of us very soon,
since we go like this straight into Kali Yugas hell, while rejecting the shelter of Acaryas instructions and desires. Actually, what we see it is already hell, since of the deliberate offences against the Holy Name of Lord Krishna, which begin with disrespect for the orders and instructions of the Founder Acarya. The demiurges of “ISGONE” are openly promoting hellish pseudo religion. The only hope is in the pure chanting of the rare real servants of Prabhupada, and a lot of compassion, which we can expect only from such pure devotees. Prabhupada is allways with those who remember proudly HIS vani! No compromise! Compromise for a devotee equals death! This little fanaticism we have to keep for ever. Maya or Krishna, there is no other choice! Thank you for sharing your wise reflections admin. prabhu
y.s jd
People who write such comments can not appreciate the intentions of the artists. Krishna appreciates the mood or intention, not the material origins of what is being offered. The film may be mundane or even vulgar, but that does not disqualify song from being presented in a pure way. Our society is Krishna Consciousness, with an emphasis on ‘consciousness’. 99.9% of devotees were mundane or even vulgar in their habits prior to coming to KC, but are they disqualified because of their past? A devotee’s talent is to transform the mundane and material to the spiritual platform.
There was once a film by Devanand in which a bunch of hippies sat around taking drugs and chanting Hare Krishna Hare Ram. We also chant Hare Krishna Hare Ram but are we drugged-up hippies by association with Devanand’s film? No, Srila Prabhupada transformed us from crows into swans. The people who write this kind of article are presenting themself as swan but they still have the taste-buds of a crow.
You are wrong Prabhu, absolutely wrong. You sound you are not from our ‘sampradaya’. For your information, Srila Prabhupada always gave us warning about the Holy name, we should not hear the holy name of Lord Krishna from a non-devotee, “Milk touched by the sarpent”. I can mention at least 15 quotes from Srila Prabhupada, where he mentioned against movie songs or mundane songs sang by karmis should be avoided, no matter how ‘artistic’ and ‘devotional’ they are according to you. Please don’t make such idiot offence to our Jagat Guru by giving your non-vaishnava comment which is unknown to the devotees of Lord Krishna.
Thank you, Madhavi d.d.
Paradhyeya prabhu,
Srila Prabhupada as Nityanandavesha Acarya, was most equipped to adapt things according to time, place and circumstances, which He, Srila Prabhupada did. At the same time, Srila Prabhupada did not make any compromises to cheapen Krsna consciousness, but kept the integrity of our Sampradaya. The most pure (and effective) mantras (through songs) are those of our Vaisnava Acaryas, since They are possessed of the highest purity, in highest level of love, service and meditation on the Lotus Feet of Sri Sri Radha-Krsna and Their Associates.
Think about this carefully, do you really believe the statements you’ve written in terms of believing that Srila Prabhupada would be approving that these songs be sung for Krsna’s pleasure after Jagannath’s Rathatra, during the ongoing festival? (If you really do feel that Srila Prabhupada would be appreciative of this “stuff” the it seems you do not have a proper understanding of the mood of Srila Prabhupada and our Sampradaya, Whose Acaryas were so expert and careful in presenting Krsna consciousness.
Your servant,
B. Radha-Govinda
Hare Krsna