BY: JAYA MADHAVA DAS (ACBSP)
Nov 05, 2011 — MOSCOW, RUSSIA (SUN) — I came across this article, “Sixty New Devotees Join Gainesville’s Krishna House Over Three Years” at the ISKCON News website recently, and read it with mixed feelings. I don’t know Kalakantha prabhu personally, but after contacting some Godbrothers who live in the Alachua/Gainesville area to verify certain facts and get another viewpoint, I found out that he’s a very nice devotee, very caring, concerned, kind, exemplary in every way, a good preacher and knowledgeable.
He’s also an initiating ISKCON spiritual master. I would like to be the first person to avoid finding faults in such a devotee preacher who is accomplishing such remarkable results. At first glance the program sounds really appealing and intelligently organized. Yet some things in this article really bothered me philosophically. And they have far reaching and questionable effects on ISKCON in general.
First of all, I was also informed that the number of new devotees the article claims to have joined Krishna House is exaggerated and is not all the “young American students in their twenties” that the article boasts they are. Rather, I am told it is a mixture of new devotees from other parts of the country looking for a solid devotional training program (why don’t the temples they come from have a training program?), Indian students at UF who have found a “home away from home” and some locals who met devotees, along with the regular Western UF students mentioned (about 25%).
Whatever the case, large or small, it is certainly a significant number of devotees joining and getting trained all in one temple during a time when “few new Westerners are joining ISKCON”, as the article says.
But WHY are so few Westerners joining ISKCON? That’s the real question. Indirectly, this article is admitting that we seem to be doing something wrong, that Westerners aren’t attracted to Krishna consciousness anymore as they were in the early days of ISKCON. Something has got to change. This appears to be the underlying overall theme in this article and the answer proposed by Kalakantha prabhu is where my philosophical objection arises.
He states unabashedly, “while the open-ended, ‘join now and worry about everything else later’ style of early ISKCON worked well in the alternative social milieu of the sixties and seventies, a finite study program that simply gives people the training to add Krishna consciousness to their lives has proven much more attractive in today’s world”. He further states, “I do think that this is the future of ISKCON’s outreach,” he says.
“In any religious organization, there are a small number of clergy, and a large number of flock. We were approaching Krishna consciousness as if the only option was to be a man of the cloth. And that’s unrealistic. Religious organizations thrive when they have a relevance beyond the clergy.”
“Outreach?” “Religious organization?” “Clergy?” Flock?” “Man of the cloth?” It’s starting to sound like a mundane religion.
To clarify, Krishna House was started decades ago by our Godbrother Amarendra prabhu who later became a full-time lawyer. When this program began in the early ’70s it was a real ISKCON Temple with authorized programs and ISKCON world standards established by Srila Prabhupada. Dozens of people joined, books were being distributed and preaching was going on in full force.
Similarly, it didn’t matter where you went, N.Y., L.A., London, Tokyo…Prabhupada’s ISKCON was standardized and worked well in any country regardless of material considerations. The results came sooner or later (Russia is a prime example). Not like today, where it’s changed to the whims of the local management for preaching to select crowds…Students, New Agers, Hindus (with money), etc. I call this selective preaching or putting it bluntly – discrimination.
That’s a fact, the ISKCON Bhakta Program was once alive and making many real temple devotees. But heck, don’t bother to mention that, or that many ISKCON Temples have been changed to new improved versions. ISKCON News P.R. leaves out pesky details about what an ISKCON Temple is supposed to be – a Temple with bonafide Srila Prabhupada programs.
But instead we find Prabhupada’s basic programs being altered and changed supposedly because his formula for Krsna Consciousness is now “old school” and doesn’t work in America anymore. Or so says Kalakantha prabhu.
At Krishna House, Mongal Artik is at 6:00 A.M. and chanting only 8 rounds is all that is required. And you get two days off a week from the morning program.
Sounds more like a half-way house than a Temple like the one I joined. In Srila Prabhupada’s time, this compromise and change of temple standards to accommodate the masses would have been unheard of. Srila Prabhupada would have stopped it dead in its tracks.
I do not agree with Kalakantha that Americans won’t join and surrender and live in our temples as temple devotees. The fact is, ISKCON Temples in North America have mostly stopped trying to offer that option and even discourage it.
Temples like Gainesville have stopped trying to preserve the original Bhakta programs and offer this concoction. And just because something is “working” doesn’t means it’s necessarily right.
Yes, I do agree not everyone will live in the Brahmacari/Brahmacarini ashrams, but Srila Prabhupada wanted his temples to specifically be shelters so people could join and surrender and live according to high spiritual standards.
Now, however, things have gone off or have been compromised in many ISKCON centers and remain without any correction from any GBC or guru. No strong ashrams exist anymore as ISKCON North America falls apart. Some communities are even rebuilding their Temples without including ashram facilities for full-time devotees.
One famous example of a Prabhupada disciple who decided to change the Krsna Consciousness programs was in Hawaii in the mid-70s. A strong charismatic sannyasi decided ISKCON’s preaching strategy was too direct and confronting. He had his own ideas, which he still follows to this day. Even so, Srila Prabhupada reluctantly encouraged him to preach, though he eventually separated from ISKCON.
Therefore, if my Godbrothers think they have a better way of preaching and it’s not in line with Prabhupada’s standards, it would be more proper for them to start their own temples, not alter and compromise his instructions on how to manage the organization.
This would be a more honest route… just go your own way and preach Krsna consciousness as you want, and don’t imply Prabhupada’s ISKCON must be changed to fit the times. This in itself is absurd and offensive to Srila Prabhupada and those disciples who preached in the 60s and 70s.
It’s real heartbreaking to see Srila Prabhupada’s disciples do things like this in his Centers/Temples. And the GBC body DO NOTHING to correct these compromises and deviations. And on account of not correcting misconceptions, these changes spread like a cancer all across the movement.
Now it’s a milder and user friendly, easy ISKCON (I’m Ok, You’re OK, anything goes)…… take it easy folks, K.C. has arrived for the new age. Let’s hold hands and dance with New Age Interfaith/Hinduized programs. We don’t want to offend or scare the public away. We want to be accepted.
I find his statement, “what worked well in the alternative social milieu of the sixties and seventies” to be a convenient excuse for the lack of preaching enthusiasm in North America. From my perspective, what we did in the sixties and seventies to preach Krishna consciousness and make devotees is what Srila Prabhupada told us to do. And it had nothing to do with the social milieu of the day. Nor did his approach to presenting Krishna consciousness have “no relevance beyond clergy”. It was always completely relevant for all times. And while we could have had a more mature application of his transcendental strategies and missionary mood, we pleased him by our efforts and achieved results beyond anyone’s expectations.
We followed the pure devotee, world acharya, Krishna was pleased and the results came. That was always the formula. Now we are to understand that the ‘join now and worry about everything else later’ style of early ISKCON no longer works or was, in fact, not a good approach to begin with but was really “unrealistic”, as are, apparently, many other things Srila Prabhupada taught us to do.
I think this is over-intelligent and subtly offensive to Srila Prabhupada. It infers that he was incorrect in his methodology, in his vision to transform the world by getting people to turn their backs on modern society and sense gratification and surrender their lives to becoming a devotee. Yes, Srila Prabhupada was heavy, he was straightforward, he cut to the chase and didn’t mince ideologies. Even a cursory listen to some of his lectures, morning walks and conversations reveal a spiritual being who wouldn’t settle for less than to transform every individual to the highest perfection of life, as quickly as possible.
Do I think that Kalakantha prabhu is not successfully preaching and making devotees? No, not at all. He has made a niche for himself and has found something that works well in that situation according to his abilities and perspective. What I object to is the idea that we shouldn’t try to convince people to give up everything and become full-time devotees. That we should be selective and timid in our preaching and representation of Krishna consciousness and simply try to help people “add Krishna consciousness to their lives.” That is also an acceptable approach. But what is the harm in preaching strongly? In other words, both are possible. And the expert preacher knows when and how to apply either strategy to a particular individual.
It is the institutionalization of these “new and improved” methods and ideologies that is objectionable and the lowering of the temple standards to facilitate such a concept. It’s the ultimate in disregarding Srila Prabhupada’s very last instructions to his disciples, “Do not change anything”. Sadly, many things have been changed in ISKCON and not always for the better, as we watch helplessly.
You have it all wrong, it is a business, Indian students stay here for very cheap accomodation and free ( if you are doing service ) food/prasadam, so here is very successful business, nothing more. They have 1000 ( one thousand ) plates of food/prasadam being sold at $4.00 per plate, I hope you got the picture!!!!!!!!
Dear Chandra ji,
It is not the picture you are painting. Right now actually there are ONLY 4 Indian bodied students in Krishna House. Three of them are initiated and the other one though not initiated chants 16 rounds. Most of the Indian students have moved out in nearby apartments, and most of them are initiated now. The Indian couple who lives here actually does service for free. They make the salad dressing for 1000 people everyday. I live right across the road and now do pujari service and whatever other service needed i.e. sankirtan (we go to nearby cities in FL, for book distribution, kirtans etc) , running the Bhakti yoga club on campus,or just talking to a visitor. We do ask for donations of $4.00. It is not a very successful “business”. We are normally in losses.
My request is that before making a huge Vaishnav offence which you have done, get your facts straight.
Go make some power moves of your own, then, and stop hating on someone who’s already doing big things.
What cow dung. This devotee either can talk directly to Krishna or not. Can he? No? Then he’s a bogus phony usaurper cheat, and anyone accepting this material person as perfect guru is a fool and is cheated. Disgusting gambling and lying .
Is this directed towards Jaya Madhava pr or Kalakantha pr?
Both are Prabhupada disciples, and such words are not befitting.
If you are talking about Kalakantha Prabhu, all I can say that he knows the science of Krishna Consciousness, so he is a perfect Guru. I am sure you know the verse from CC – kiba vipra, kiba nyasi … i.e. anyone who knows the science of KC is a perfect Guru. Next time gives some sastric references, like Srila Prabhupada always does when presenting an argument.
Anyone claiming to be a Vaisnava diksa Gooroo under the auspices of the guru-hatya arsenic sampradaya, I$-CON CO. is unauthorized and bogus. Doesn’t take sastra to know that followers of murderers are also criminals. All it takes is the scientific hair analysis, which I have posted at our site, – proving that Srila Prabhupada was murdered by these bums, and they and their CIA-NWO coconspiratorial controlled slaves then took over the organization, forced the real and loyal disciples out, the 90%, seized the money and through lawyers and wasting millions of dollars, stole everything, and now they want to be God, like self-congratulating corporate flies sitting on a throne. Thier followers are being cheated and lied to, you too have been conned. Now you in your naivete and slavishness wanrt to ask me to provide sastric references? Kindly go do some reading then come back, because its been all over the devotee internet, sir, for decades now. Hare Krsna. ( acbssp since ’72. )
Prabhupada: If I say I am ISKCON, what is the harm there? Morning Walk July 3, 1976 Nellore
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. ”
London, 15 November, 1969 Srila Prabhupada dit;
[…] “So far as I am concerned, in relationship with my disciples who are so kindly cooperating with me in the matter of my rendering service to my Spiritual Master, for them I am always ready to come back from Goloka Vrindaban, if they are not delivered along with me. So don’t be worried about the clutches of Maya. Be fixed up in your determination and go on serving the Supreme Lord, Krishna, with determination as you are already doing.”
Considering the above quote, who is there so foolish to suggest that Srila Prabhupada is no longer accessible fully to his followers?
April 3, 1969
San Francisco, Calif.
Letter to Krishna das
“Don’t do anything whimsically. The direction comes through the Spiritual Master, and any one who abides by the order of the Spiritual Master to give shape to the wish of the Lord, he is perfectly surrendered soul.”
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Founder~Acharya of the Krsna Consciousness Movement September 20, 1972 Los Angeles
Srila Prabhupada Lecture
Srimad Bhagavatam 1.3.15
“Advancement means… But we don’t change our Vedic knowledge. We do not say, “Now, Kṛṣṇa, five thousand years ago, said like this. Now we are advanced. We change this line.” Of course, others are doing. In the scriptures… Just like the Christians, they are changing the words. But you cannot do that. Then where is the authority? If you change the word of the scripture, then where is the authority of the scripture? Just like in lawbooks, there is some law made already. Whimsically you cannot, I mean to say, erase the words and put something that “It should be changed like this.” That will not be accepted. Law, if there is change… Actually, there is no change. There cannot be change. Real law means there is no change. Just like day and night, it is coming. The fortnight, the dark period and the light period, it is coming for millions and millions and time immemorial. The same law is going, going on. You cannot change. So as soon as you change, that means it is imperfect. You change.
So Vedic laws are not like that. You cannot change. Five thousand years ago Kṛṣṇa said, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja: [Bg. 18.66] “You give up all other religious principles. Simply surrender unto Me.” We are preaching the same thing. No change. No change. There is no possibility of change. Then how Kṛṣṇa is authority? So change means imperfect knowledge.”
Never in the history of our sampradaya have there been over one hundred rubber-stamped diksa gurus approved of by a poisoners’ club.
Dear Jaya Madhava Das Prabhu
Please accept my humble obeisances
All glories to Srila Prabhupada
I am Srutisagara Das. I study at UF, and lived in Krishna House for 2 years and now I live right across the road. I got initiated while I lived in Krishna House. I am 21 years old and found Krishna Consciouness through the Krishna House. I am Indian bodied.
It was funny how I found this article; I was googling “Kalakantha Das” to find a website related to him.
I liked your article. It is very sincere and not a long letter of allegations. I can clearly see your dedication to Srila Prabhupada’s mission and that is why you feel so strongly about things. I feel there are few things which must be clarified in points of “What you wrote” and “Reality”
What you wrote:
” Rather, I am told it is a mixture of new devotees from other parts of the country looking for a solid devotional training program (why don’t the temples they come from have a training program?), Indian students at UF who have found a “home away from home” and some locals who met devotees, along with the regular Western UF students mentioned (about 25%).”
Reality:
Lets see, as of now, only 5 or 7 students have come from a different parts of the country over a span of 3 years. Most of the students are either from Alachua or UF. Right now there are only 4 Indian students living in Krishna House. Other Indian students living near Krishna House and most of them are initiated. All the Indians are serious devotees, and not just people who found a home away from home.
What you wrote:
To clarify, Krishna House was started decades ago by our Godbrother Amarendra prabhu who later became a full-time lawyer. When this program began in the early ’70s it was a real ISKCON Temple with authorized programs and ISKCON world standards established by Srila Prabhupada. Dozens of people joined, books were being distributed and preaching was going on in full force.
Reality:
I beg to differ. Books are still distributed, prasadam plates have increased four folds, we have Kirtan at the prasdam distribution place the whole time i.e. 2.5 hours.
What you wrote:
Similarly, it didn’t matter where you went, N.Y., L.A., London, Tokyo…Prabhupada’s ISKCON was standardized and worked well in any country regardless of material considerations. The results came sooner or later (Russia is a prime example). Not like today, where it’s changed to the whims of the local management for preaching to select crowds…Students, New Agers, Hindus (with money), etc. I call this selective preaching or putting it bluntly – discrimination.
Reality:
Preaching here is very general, to be honest. We do not focus on anyone. We present Krishna Consciousness as it is. I say this because there are at least 3 people who are above 50 and are getting into KC. One of them live just across the street and even chants 8 rounds now. We really have no focus group, we might tend to focus on students in general because we meet 1000 of them everyday. But, we preach to all kinds of people and slowly they are also taking KC. Also, Srila Prabhupada was once asked by a Journalist in Gainesville “Why do you have so many young people?” Srila Prabhupada shot back, “Why do you have so many young people in the university” Answer: “Education”. So it is natural to focus on students but again everyone is welcome to be at Krishna House.
What you wrote:
At Krishna House, Mongal Artik is at 6:00 A.M. and chanting only 8 rounds is all that is required. And you get two days off a week from the morning program.
Reality:
Well, the morning program starts at 5am, with Tulasi aarti. The full time devotees must attend that. Tulasi aarti and greeting of dieties last till 5:20am and then everyone chants till 6am when we have Mangal aarti (when EVERYONE has to come) and then we have another hour of chanting. Also, even though the requirement is 8 rounds, 16 out of the 20 students chant 16 rounds. Most of them wake up for the 5am program.
Also, the students VOLUNTARILY do the morning program by themselves on weekends. Even though no one is required, out of devotion we do it. Now that is some unmotivated devotional service.
Also the Srimad Bhagavatam classes in Krishna House are the best. I speak that from experience. I have generally been disappointed when I go to other temples as far as the Bhagavatam classes are concerned. We actually have a very thorough curriculum for the whole year.
Also, I think we are the SOLE or may be one of the few temples in North America, where it is mandatory to come for Gaur Aarti at 6pm and then BG class at 6:30pm. We have atleast 6 to 10 devotees for Gaur aarti, even after a whole day of standing in the sun serving Krishna Lunch, or being in classes etc.
What you felt:
What I object to is the idea that we shouldn’t try to convince people to give up everything and become full-time devotees. That we should be selective and timid in our preaching and representation of Krishna consciousness and simply try to help people “add Krishna consciousness to their lives.” That is also an acceptable approach. But what is the harm in preaching strongly? In other words, both are possible. And the expert preacher knows when and how to apply either strategy to a particular individual.
Reality:
You will be glad to know that there are atleast 4 devotees who graduated from Krishna House and are excellent book distributors. Three of them are in US, and one is in India learning about Farming etc. Also, many students at Krishna House distribute books and do Harinaams etc
To be honest, I feel all the students at Krishna House are very dedicated to Prabhupada’s movement. We might not be full time saffron devotees, but we know our sole mission in life to cultivate Krishna Consciousness and spread it. In my case, I cannot leave school since I will have to go back to India, where my parents will never let me practice KC. So, what do I do? For others who can be full time, they are doing it. For others, they sincerely pray for more service.
What you wrote:
It is the institutionalization of these “new and improved” methods and ideologies that is objectionable and the lowering of the temple standards to facilitate such a concept. It’s the ultimate in disregarding Srila Prabhupada’s very last instructions to his disciples, “Do not change anything”. Sadly, many things have been changed in ISKCON and not always for the better, as we watch helplessly.
Reality:
I have no idea, how ISKCON looked back then. But, I do not think we have not changed much in Krishna House except for the timings in the morning program (Note: Mangal aarti though not at 4:30am is still in Brahma Muhurta), everyone does so much service, we go and preach at different locations on weekends, we interact with all kinds of crowds. The message of Krishna Consciousness is not reduced in any way. We encourage some interfaith dialogue by finding the common things, but never do we reduce the message of Krishna Consciousness. There is no “Hindu” target audience. We always lack in funds in general.
I personally found so much love in Krishna House. It changed my heart. The devotees at Krishna House, though new and stumbling are sincere and are trying to develop their Krishna Consciousness.
—
I cannot say anything about Iskcon as a whole, but I can only speak of my experience at Krishna House. Also, please this was not to attack you. I wanted to clarify things. There are actually several other glorious things about Krishna House, not mentioned in the article. I would say that you please visit Krishna House someday and I feel you will like it.
I also feel that you should write to Kalakantha Prabhu about your concerns. You can ask him sincere questions and he might answer you to your satisfaction. If you want I can give you his email.
Also, I feel it is Krishna’s House, then also Prabhupada’s house, and also in the end Kalakantha prabhu’s house. Krishna’s house for obvious reasons. Prabhupada’s house because all the students at Krishna House love Him, and are always eager to serve Him. Kalakantha prabhu’s house because he is like a fahter figure to all of us. He literally takes care of each one of us. He is our link to Prabhupada. In several ways, Krishna House is like the Matchless Gifts where there was Prabhupada and His intimate disciples. Krishna house also is small, intimate with senior devotees like Kalakantha Prabhu who is our link to Prabhupada, Gauranga and Krishna.
Also, recently we made a video about Krishna House for possible fundraising. The video is by PriyavrataDas. The video will help you look at the actual Krishna House.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5D5dM7Vpy1Y&feature=results_main&playnext=1&list=PLFC33BEB634D68F97
Please, I beg you, watch it!
Also, the Indian bodied soul in the end of the video saying prema dhani prayers is me. Srila Prabhupada ki Jaya!
Your servant
Srutisagara Das
Dear Readers,
please accept my most humble obeisances,
all Glories to HDG Srila Prabhupada.
I want to clarify this issue with Krishna House.
Originally it is an Iskcon Temple from decades ago (not Krishna House).
I am not attacking any good work it is doing.
I’m not saying there are no good results or good devotees there but something is way off and I will not pretend its ok. Sorry prabhus.
Nor am I attacking Kalakantha Das Prabhu.
Frankly in todays – Iskcon Society – compromise is all over the place – Example:
The Bhaktivedanta Manor, Seattle Iskcon, New York Iskcon, Dallas Iskcon, Houston Iskcon, Utah Krisnhas, etc., etc. and its all about – we are in charge and we do it our way! We know better than Srila Prabhupada.
Or, “we know what Prabhupada wants and, you don’t. So shut up, go away.”
Basically that’s the mood. Is this honest or spiritual? Also the mood we don’t care about our Godbrothers and Godsisters pointing out our changes – they don’t know anything, we know more than them!
See it as ego, false pride. It’s maya, illusion and ignorance and offensive, it’s a fact.
Not following exactly Prabhupada’s instructions on how Iskcon should be managed – changes and deviations and compromise everywhere in Iskcon.
It’s I’m ok, you’re ok and like that – it’s not Iskcon anymore after some time, just in name only. This is sad and tragic and the truth.
A real disease of lazyness has infected people in general in society.
People are in denial these days when the truth is in front of their faces.
Srila Prabhupada said “DO NOT CHANGE ANYTHING”.
That’s including all procedure and methods on how to run an Iskcon Temple.
Manage the laxmi of the devotees and preaching. In other words a set standard.
Not to be tampered by Iskcon leadership and tampered with what happened right after Srila Prabhupada left the planet and is still a problem.
Is it hard to understand this order? What don’t you understand?
Many leaders in Iskcon ignore Prabhupada’s exact orders
thus causing unnecessary controversy and it won’t end until
devotees like Kalakanhta Prabhu either fix this big mistake or just start their own temple (outside Iskcon). That’s a more honest thing.
Unfortunately honesty in Kali Yuga is faded even in Iskcon.
The Iskcon News article was PR and deceptive and not accurate (I researched it very well) Please consider this observation..
Being a guru does not give him the right to change Prabhupada’s temple.
I hope this will not be forever. Lord KRSNA will do something eventually.
Srila Prabhupada’s Iskcon has been damaged by changes and compromise.
I wish Kala Kantha Das and his disciples well — but HONESTY is needed.
Not changes with lame/weak excuses.
It’s an insult to Srila Prabhupada to undermine/deviate from his instructions because we say – WE KNOW BETTER…
Think about it.
Your servant,
Jaya Madhava Das (ACBSP), Moscow
P.S. – All my articles were submitted for the Sampradaya Sun ONLY for publication. Please be aware I am long time member and well wisher of Iskcon and no other group or society. I preach and serve in Iskcon.
That does not mean I have to be a blind follower, when I see mistakes made all over Iskcon.
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Shrila Prabhupada.
It is well documented, tjhere is so much evidence that Prabhupada never authorised any of his disciples to be initiating gurus. He did ask disciples to do initiatiations on his behalf since 1972 approximately and he asked in 1977 certain disciples to continue initiating on his behalf after his disappearance because he knew none of his disciples had the power to take on disciples sins and he also saw just following the regulated principles would be too difficult for most of us in the future. He once told one disciple don;t be surprised if some one goes be surprised if he stays!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am not asking anyone to blindly accept what I am saying here, the internet has been for years very good for accessing Prabhupada’s words about what he desired after his departure from this world and the words of the guru are the life and the soul of his real disciples. So please don’t just take my word for it, unless we think we are as good or better than Prabhupada therefor we can not dare to become an initiating guru, it will not last because we are not qualified. This is a general statement, there might be some extremely rare soul, but just to think we are that most rare soul is most unrealistic. All I am saying is we need to understand most scrutinisingly what Prabhupada said about being a guru and accepting disciples and really understand most deeply everything he asked of us including his most strong desire to have Varnasrama based communities that embraced everyone’s abilities in a most realistic way. A good motivation is not good enough when uktimately we will fall down horribly because of our inability to carry the weight of our disciples sins which has been proved so disastourasky through the years. To direct persons to Prabhupada to be his disciples is perfect understanding and train them up through Prabhupada’s unchanged original translations, but I;m not asking anyone to take my word for it, just take Prabhupada’s word for it, who is beyond any ability to error or be illusioned… I pray everyone of us who have accepted Prabhupada are studyng his every word most seriously or we are bound to error, and this can not onl;y harm ourselves but also all those who trust in us. You can attack me, but please do not misunderstand Shrila Prabhupada when he spoke so very extensively on everything we need to know and will be with us as much as we put our faith in him and follow him truly, and we will know it if we really do!!!!!!!!! i PERSONALLY WAS INITIATED RIGHT IN FRONT OF pRABHUPADA IN 1972 but this means nothing if I am not attatched to just hearing from him in his books and have complete faith in everything he said, do not change a word, he said but now his bookks are being changed it seems more and more every year.. they don’t want anything to do with those pointing to Prabhupada as our spiritual master for years now in iskcon, we need to know Prabhupada lives most strongly in the sound vibration of his books and tapes, he said his books would do everything, what poweful words and no one can take my place but Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. If someone is doing exactly like Prabhupada, manifesting love for Krishna just like him and opening temples all over the world with strictly following disciples, thats another thing, he should be self effulgent, but this is really most rare someone is like this, we need to be first of all know we are always a fool before Prabhupada, Prabhupada said as soon as we think we are not a fool before Prabhupada, we are finished, we need his direct authorisation for everything we are undertaking and have full faith he is here for us with all the answers or we have not properly even understood Prabhupada at all!!!!!!! We need to keep fully intact the example of the society he revealed to us that was overtaken by a sinister movement which he described right in his books, do we want to be part of that sinister movement or Prabhupada’s movement…that is the only question that remains, no one is forced we must be most cautiouse and careful Prabhupada said when accepting a spiritual master, does he have the qualifications mentioned in the nectar of instruction and so many other vaishnava literatures. tHE VAISHNAVA LITERATURES ARE FREE FROM ALL ANIMOSITY WRITTEN BY MOST PEACEFUL BLISSFUL SAGES WHO KNEW EVERYTHING MOST SCIENTIFICLY..Prabhupada said it is most easy for us to fall down, for us it is most easy to misunderstand and fight and spoil everything, it truly is a most rare person who really will take the bonafide spiritual master most seriously and never deviate an inch, after many births and deaths, I love Kalakanta myself, he gives me credit for convincing him to join the movement and Krishna knows he’s a much more piouse and Krishna consciouse soul than myself, so I just pray I am not misunderstood here, all I am wanting is Prabhupada is understood properly and followered to the T, and the biggest error is to all of the sudden believe I can take on the sins of disciples and guide them perfectly, I know all the purports of the vedas and can easily defeat any argument, I can preach extensively like Prabhupada on anty philosophy, I can easily defeat most easily any cheater or pretender, Prabhupada can defitley do this, but can I really?
your eternal servant,
Anubhavananda dasa.
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Shrila Prabhupada!!!
I must emphasise if Kalakantha is just giving his so called disciples to Prabhupada then at least he will not have to know the embarrasment of ultimately falling down disasterously. It is much better to be safe than sorry. Shrila Prabhupada is truly the guru of the universe or Jagat Guru he is directly empowered for this function and he can not make any mistake, however those who think differently have caused havok ever since 1977. It is to be understood we can not do perfectly if we are not perfect, we just need to honestly know our qualifications and act axccordingly but this is not easy at all because we all fell in to this material world out of envy of Krishna in the first place and this envy therefore is not such an easy thing to overcome, this desire to be God or diksha guru when we are extremely unqualified. So this is the very problem we are dealing with. We can guide people very nicely still through our understanding of Prabhupada and we don’t have to initiate any of our own disciples. Prabhupada said as soon as they read my books they are initiated, why do you think he came to the west mainly to get his books published and distributed?!!!
This is a perfect realisation, Prabhupada said his books will do everything if he ever thought any of us was qualified to accept our own desciples he would have made it most clear. But just as there is no use in reading Bhagavad-gita if we don’t accept the speaker is God, if we don’t accept Prabhupada as good as God then it becomes easy to deviate and think we can do a better job. And all my preaching this truth is useless here, I am preaching to the faithless, a very great offense to the holy name!
So we indeed take a great risk really as soon as we preach the truth, in recent times Vaishnavas have been murdered for this by the cheaters they were pointing out most clearly, too clearly, but these Vaishnavas went back to Godhead, they knew their risk and just had to preach, this is the greatest devotees mentality, he must preach the truth in a world where powerful demons absolutely hate it. Yes we even can spread Krishna consciousness by Prabhupada’s blessings but that doesn’t mean we’re qualified to be diksha guru!!!
Lord Chaitanya actually ordered every man become guru but He did not mean Diksha Guru who initiates he meant siksha guru be preaching all over the world particularly what Prabhupada is preaching in his books but the more envious we are we like to twist these words for our own desires to have many followers and fame and distinction and the enlightened know.
IF WE CAN NICELY SPREAD KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS WE MUST BY ALL MEANS!!!!
But this does not at all necessitate becoming a Diksha guru, at all. We can simply follow Prabhupada and we will most perfectly lead, the perfect follower is the perfect leader Prabhupada said, the perfect follower of Prabhupada will naturally attract thousands to Krishna. Because what a great man does the general mass of people want to follow, and it does not mean at all you have to initiaye everyone – just convince them to read and follow Prabhupada’s books till the day they leave this world, then great service is done. But the humility that is required is nothing ordinary it can only be blessed upon us by an empowered personality like Shrila Prabhupada. Prabhupada said you have my mercy when you have no more sex desire which means much more than just gross sex, it means the desire to have many followers, woman, fame distinction..the list goes on and on…
Prabhupada came to the west only on the order of his guru to get his books published and spread pure Krishna consciousness and therefore he was sent so many souls to assist him by Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati who knew as soon as he saw Prabhupada he was the soul to do it, that he definitely would do it!!!
But also when this envy is still present we don’t like to hear the truth really and we are overwhelmed infact to do what we believe is possible for us by the power of maya not Prabhupada.
This is going on in the maya iskcon where everyone is being patted on the back when they cooperate. But real spiritual life means being eager to be chastised not in to flattery at all!!!! Therefore they don’t like to hear about Prabhupada, thats the fact, these persons so intoxicated by the flattery of these usurpers of Prabhupadas society.
Because the path back to Godhead is one of complete sacrifice of our false egos of ourselves and complete surrender to Guru and Krishna.
So the bigger brains we think we have the more we tend to think we know better than the perfect pure representative of Krishna. This is going on!!!
But if we are really sincere for the truth and only the truth we may be deviated and tested in this way, but that desire for just the truth must never leave us and we will be truly guided to Prabhupada’s original books and take 100% shelter of them. The trouble is maya is so very strong for us conditioned souls we tend to firmly believe we have the truth we are eating meat and we are saved by Jesus Christ, but if we know the truth we know that is not the truth.
But such is the power of maya, I know Jesus and represent him while I’m eating meat. Now I’m a great preacher and the very mouthpiece of God when I’m killiling and eating meat, but demons want us to believe this, this is their propaganda everywhere.
Maya has unlimited tricks like this, therefore we need to be so very rare not to be implicated by maya in some way or other.
These persons who have been suckers for these pretenders really want to kill those who preach to them the truth about Prabhupada. So this is what we are up against!!!
But if our conclusion is just to understand Srila Prabhupada and despite all odds obey him mpost strictly, who ever we are, we found the truth, and we should never give up that truth, no one knows better than Prabhupada and if he says he does, get out of there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thats all.