London Prabhupadanugas: The many varieties of deviation

The reasons why Srila Prabhupada’s disciples have disobeyed him and instead created a bogus Guru system vary from individual to individual, but the basic motives are similar: position, control, followers, honour, distinction etc. Unfortunately, if these desires remain, then even if one rejects the bogus Guru system in ISKCON, one will simply replace it with another deviation, which still allows these desires for distinction, honour etc to be satisfied. Thus we are seeing many attempts to “reform” or replace the ISKCON Guru with other solutions, usually by persons who themselves could not “make it” in the current Guru system, or who want to become independent of GBC and Guru control, which fall short of the real solution – the original ISKCON, as left us by Srila Prabhupada in 1977: an international society of devotees working together coast to coast, governed by a bona-fide GBC, following the initiation system exactly as left by Srila Prabhupada in 1977 via the July 9th directive. We outline here these many varieties of deviation.

1) We need ANOTHER Srila Prabhupada

This takes two forms

a) Look for an elderly Indian who will not fall down
We have seen a mass exodus from ISKCON motivated by its crumbling and failing Guru system, to the relatively “safe” (in terms of falldown) elderly Indian Swamis; HH Narayana Maharaja of the Gaudiya Matha being the most prominent.

b) Wait for the self-effulgent acarya
Those who do not like the current Gurus, basically use the ritvik system as an excuse to reject the current Gurus, with Srila Prabhupada being merely a convenient “stop-gap” while they wait for the “real” Guru to emerge – which of course could very well be one of the same people who are following this philosophy! This is also known as “soft” or temporary ritvik.

2) Srila Prabhupada is ALMOST the Guru:
In this variation, Srila Prabhupada is again used to reject the current Gurus, but the back door is still kept open for the followers of this system to maybe also become some sort of Gurus one day. This takes many forms such as

a) Srila Prabhupada is the MAIN Guru: But we still need “pancaratika” Gurus/officiating acaryas who would still have “disciples”, even though Srila Prabhupada is the MAIN object of worship.

b) Srila Prabhupada is the PROMINENT Guru: But the current gurus can also remain side-by-side, and the disciples will effectively have two Gurus – Srila Prabhupada as Major Guru, and the current Gurus as Minor Guru. Arguing that we must have 2 diksa Gurus -one who gives the transcendental knowledge, and another who gives the “formal diksa”, or that we must follow the Ramanuja sampradaya system of one “acarya-Guru” for everyone along with “individual Gurus”, also fall under this category.

3) Set up your own matha/society
Appearing to come closer to the real solution is the variation which correctly accepts that Srila Prabhupada is the only Guru for all time in ISKCON, and then uses that to reject all authority, and set up one’s own matha/temple/society, completely independent of anyone’s else control.

This allows one or a small number of connected individuals to seize control of devotees and assets and assume absolute power for themselves. Also, but not always, another feature of this system is that the ‘GBC/Ritvik/Temple President’ are usually collapsed into one single person or group of persons controlled by one person, who will then act as a self-appointed “ritvik acarya” to dispense “ritvik initiations” like confetti to anyone and everyone.
This allows the “ritvik-acarya” to promote himself as the “giver of initiation” (rather like the bogus Gurus do), and hence take on some status vis-a-vis those seeking initiation “from Srila Prabhupada.” Eventually however, by its very nature, this system merely spawns another Gaudiya Matha scenario, when others realize that if anyone can set themselves up with a matha/temple and offer initiation, then even they can do so, and eventually you result in a series of many individual mathas all competing with each other to offer the gift of being initiated as Srila Prabhupada’s disciple.

Another variation is to simply use the problems in ISKCON as an excuse to say we must reject ISKCON in toto and form our own new society, just like Srila Prabhupada did with the Gaudiya Matha. It is pointed out that Srila Prabhupada did not try and preach to the Gaudiya Matha, but just formed his own new society called ISKCON. This analogy however fails due to one big difference – Srila Prabhupada is the Acarya, and therefore can set up his own society, as acaryas do – but we are not acaryas, only disciples, and therefore must simply try and work under the parameters given by Srila Prabhupada.

4) Only my issue matters:
Another variation is to accept that ISKCON’s Guru system is completely bogus, but the solution is to not to re-build the real ISKCON with Srila Prabhupada as the Guru. Rather this issue is considered “less important” compared to what ever individual “issue” is being pushed at the time – such as ”cow-protection,” “poison issue,” “women’s issue,” “varnasrama,” etc. Usually there can be as many “answers,” and “solutions,” all portending to offer the “REAL” fix as there are individuals.

However, beginning with the solution that Srila Prabhupada is alone the real Guru for all of humanity for the next many thousands of years has to be the foundation required before anything else can be resolved. Only once this foundation is in place, can we even begin to fix individual symptoms of this root disease of disobedience to Srila Prabhupada.

Due to all the many different varieties of half-baked and incomplete alternatives to ISKCON’s false Guru system listed above, we have many fractured camps, all claiming to offer an alternative to ISKCON. However replacing the current ISKCON with another deviation in the form of a “ritvik” Gaudiya Matha, with dozens of little societies each with their own self-appointed acaryas/leaders, is not the answer – for two wrongs never make a right.

The actual solution
Give Srila Prabhupada back the ISKCON he bequeathed us in 1977, with the same standards, systems and structure in place, for initiation and everything else, with no shortcuts and half-measures, due to a desire to get some short-term benefit in our own lifetimes as quickly as possible. Rather, our mission is to create a real bona fide functioning ISKCON, which was Srila Prabhupada’s mission, which will benefit future generations for thousands of years.