Srimad-Bhagavatam, 5.26.16
"In his next life, a sinful king or governmental representative who punishes an innocent person, or who inflicts corporal punishment upon a brahmana, is taken by the Yamadutas to the hell named Sukaramukha, where the most powerful assistants of Yamaraja crush him exactly as one crushes sugarcane to squeeze out the juice. The sinful living entity cries very pitiably and faints, just like an innocent man undergoing punishments. This is the result of punishing a faultless person."



Bhagavad-Gita, 10.4 Purport
"Satyam, truthfulness, means that facts should be presented as they are for the benefit of others. Facts should not be misrepresented. According to social conventions it is said that one can speak the truth when it is palatable to others. But that is not truthfulness. The truth should be spoken in such a straightforward way, so that others will understand actually what the facts are. If a man is a thief and people are warned that he is a thief, that is truth. Although sometimes the truth is impalatable, one should not refrain from speaking it. Truthfulness demands that the facts be presented as they are for the benefit of others. That is the definition of truth."



ESTABLISHING THE QUESTIONS

We are now faced with what is, perhaps, the most serious possible allegation of criminal activity and spiritual degradation ever to be brought forward among the disciples of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada.

We must begin by examining a few basic facts:

    1) Evidence has been brought forward that casts a reasonable cloud of suspicion over the events surrounding Srila Prabhupada's physical departure.

    2) It has been clearly established that some members of the GBC, and others holding positions of power within ISKCON, have been known to lie, steal, cheat, diametrically oppose Srila Prabhupada's explicit instructions, and have participated in criminal activities of various kinds.

    3) The disciples of Srila Prabhupada would be grossly negligent NOT to investigate recent suspicious evidence, and we would be similarly negligent to leave such investigation in the hands of those who have proven themselves untrustworthy in the past.

Therefore, as painful and potentially spiritually dangerous as it may be, I do not see how we can shirk our responsibilities in this regard. In order that we might present the facts of this matter, we begin by discussing and questioning. To the greatest of our abilities, we must engage in this process with open minds, having put aside our personal agendas and biases. It would be unconscionable to avoid this process on the grounds that we might discover that the suspicions raised have no basis in fact.

If professional analyses of tape recordings and examination of other collateral materials reveals an absence of incriminating proof regarding the alleged poisoning of Srila Prabhupada, there is no doubt that many important lessons will have been learned, regardless. Already, important historical information is coming to light that apparently has not been properly archived to date. This gathering of information, and grassroots examination and discussion of the many questions, is certain to afford a positive outcome.

The following links will lead you to an "in-progress" archive of correspondence, documents and transcripts that contain pertinent questions. We encourage every devotee to read, think about, respond to, and add to this list of questions. Additional questions, comments and discussion may be posted in the Dharma Mela forum, linked below, or emailed to us at: question@harekrsna.com.

We are not required to immediately determine the answers. We are instead responsible to methodically study, think deeply, and sincerely question what lies before us.


List of Questions

Sadhu Sanga Transcript - 11-16-97

Dharma Mela Forum

Vaishnava News Network


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