Milk Touched...
BY: MAHASANA DASA
Mar 11, FLORIDA, USA (SUN) —
"I am sure in ISKCON everyone knows Tamal Krishna Maharaj. He was very, very special devotee. I am sure that those who met Tamal know that when Srila Prabhupada came Sriman Mahaprabhu had sent many devotees to assist Srila Prabhupada. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu had planted these devotees in different parts of the world especially in America. Srila Prabhupada even said that, that Mahaprabhu sent the devotees to assist him in his preaching mission to spread Krishna consciousness all over the world fulfilling Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's prediction. And Tamal Krishna Maharaj undoubtedly is one of the leading ones of those associates, eternal associates of Srila Prabhupada." – Bhakti Caru Swami, 2010
Nrsimhananda das's article, "Myth Creation Begun", inspired me to look online to see what Bhakti Caru Swami said about Tamal Krsna Goswami (see above). Rocana dasa's article, "The High Price of Sentiment" (citing Tamal Krsna's dubious character), encouraged me to submit my thoughts.
Having been out of ISKCON for many years, I have had the opportunity to read a lot of things that are prohibited in ISKCON, like Srila Prabhupada's original books! I have visited all sorts of websites which discuss Srila Prabhupada's last days in Vrndavana, heard the "poison tapes", and read the transcripts of November 1977. I have also read Someone Has Poisoned Me by Nityananda dasa, Not That I am Poisoned by ISKCON, and Judge for Yourself by B.I.F.
There has been a great deal of back and forth about the poison issue and I would like to give a sketch of the two sides, and Bhakti Caru's possible involvement.
Those who believe Srila Prabhupada was poisoned are often called "poison-vadis". Those who believe Srila Prabhupada was not poisoned have no special name.
The poison-vadis believe that Tamal Krsna Goswami, Jayapataka Swami, and Bhavananda Swami, and perhaps others, ganged up on Srila Prabhupada and poisoned him, Tamal Krsna being the ringleader. This belief is based on both direct and indirect evidence, which you can find online and in the books Someone Has Poisoned Me and Judge for Yourself.
Those who believe that Srila Prabhupada was not poisoned say that the evidence is insufficient to merit discussion. Some say that such discussion is offensive. Their arguments are also online and in the book Not That I am Poisoned.
As an historical note, the three books above, Someone Has Poisoned Me, Not That I am Poisoned, and Judge for Yourself were written as a report, rebuttal, and counter-rebuttal, respectively; so it is best to read them sequentially.
Because there was no autopsy, no blood tests, and no confession, there is uncertainty surrounding Srila Prabhupada's poisoning and therefore the issue remains open.
Now, as far as Bhakti Caru is concerned, the poison-vadis claim that Srila Prabhupada was systematically poisoned over a period of time (a year or so) and, in the final days in Vrndavana, Srila Prabhupada was given poison in his milk by Bhakti Caru (and maybe others).
The poison-vadis are divided concerning Bhakti Caru's level of involvement. One camp believes that Bhakti Caru gave Srila Prabhupada poison intentionally and the other camp believes Bhakti Caru gave Srila Prabhupada poison inadvertently, as a stooge for Tamal Krsna. The latter camp feels that Bhakti Caru was set-up, because Bhakti Caru was seen outside Srila Prabhupada's room in those final days, in tears, complaining that Srila Prabhupada had been poisoned.
Given all of the above, the sides, the arguments, the books, the information, the allegations, the suspicions, and the indeterminate nature of the case, if there were the slightest possibility that Tamal Krsna had suckered you into poisoning Srila Prabhupada, would you unequivocally declare Tamal Krsna an avatar?
