The Stars of Follywood
BY: ROCANA DASA
Jun 13, CANADA (SUN) — The quality and spirit of the discussion that Kapila Kuli and I are engaged in is in the true spirit of brahminical dialogue. This is one of the main goals of the Sampradaya Sun. I appreciate the fact that Kapila is taking so much of his valuable time to compose these articles. Kapila, we've gotten some feedback from others who have enjoyed reading your articles, and the dialogue is motivating others to participate. In fact, we experienced a significant surge in site traffic as a result of the Indradyumna Swami thread.
In your last article, you began by saying that your motivation is that you have a fear of the continued "disintegration" of ISKCON:
Actually, this is also my fear, and the fear of many of our contributors and readers. The reason this movement has gotten to the state it's in now is partially due to the fact that there has been no freedom of speech and press, pillars that I consider to be a brahminical aspect of a varnasrama culture. Brahmans were above the law in the sense that they could say anything, and not even the King could punish them. But we see that King Kamsa and demons like him in Krsna's time tried to stop the brahmans from performing sacrifices, which in a sense is stopping them from talking or criticizing the leaders, or performing sacrifices that might be intended to change the leadership.
In most despotic or tyrannical regimes, the first thing that modern tyrants do is to shut down the press, and especially the media that's critical of them. They impose a state-run media in its place. In fact, we read time and time again about how the most dangerous occupation in the world is not being a soldier, but being a journalist. They're being murdered, kidnapped and suppressed as we speak. And it's always on the excuse of those in power, who say the information they're disseminating is causing disintegration -- not the actions of the leaders. And yet your position seems to be partially based on the fact that you feel the opposite is true.
You've made it clear that you think criticism should be on the "highest level". My response is, please specifically define what the "highest level" is in this particular context - our discussion of the pastimes of Indradyumna Swami. I'm guessing that if it was up to Indradyumna Swami, he would close the Sampradaya Sun down in a heartbeat if he could do so. Would you agree? And do you think he'd be right in taking such an action?
You also have to keep in mind that on this particular subject matter, there is a big difference between you and I and Indradyumna Swami. Neither of us are claiming to be big spiritually advanced leaders, neither have we taken sannyasa, nor are we accepting disciples. So our position is very different from his. We admit that we're conditioned souls and that we're prone to make mistakes. We don’t have to worry or concern ourselves with the expectations of followers, who like to believe and are led to believe, that we are very, very advanced souls. And as such, we don't have to maintain the kind of profile and myth that Indradyumna Swami does.
Consider too, that the chances of the Swami responding to us are so remote that it's virtually inconceivable. And, as I pointed out before, none of his followers are jumping to his defense, either. Just the "mildly inspired", such as yourself.
One of the themes you bring up is that when it comes to anyone who is promoting or encouraging the chanting of the Holy Name, we have to be very careful about criticizing, and we should always be encouraging this. Certainly there's some truth to that. But the fact is that the Swami is in a different category in that regard. Many, many of Srila Prabhupada's disciples are always encouraging people to participate in the chanting process, in whatever capacity they're in. I assume you include yourself in that group. But the Swami is given full facility to do this, and he represents the society on a high level. The question here is whether or not his Diary is actually operating on a correspondingly high level, and is beneficial towards achieving the expected goals. I admitted that the big festivals wherein he is the number one draw in Poland are undoubtedly beneficial, but we're not talking about that. We're talking about the Diary, and why his Diary is being published and distributed rather than his lectures on the philosophy. One would assume there's a big difference. Or is it that when he's on the vyasasana, he talks the same way he does in the Diary - which is so many notches below the standard of preaching that Srila Prabhupada demonstrated and encouraged us to engage in.
In making up your list of what has transpired so far, you say that these particular points have been made and addressed, although a great deal more could and should be said on these matters. Yes, I hold Indradyumna and Radhanatha Swamis, among others, responsible for what has happened in the movement. Of course I don't hold them entirely responsible, I only them hold responsible for their own parts in the process of getting us to where we are today. I hold them accountable, each for their own actions. I have pointed out that most devotees in ISKCON are not made aware of the fact that both these Swamis supported and encouraged their Zonal Acarya sannyasa gurus, who are now, as we all known, huge clouds on ISKCON's horizon. I have raised questions as to their bona fides, given who their sannyasa gurus were. And, I have pointed out my own personal experiences with them, which have been very negative as I was involved in the unsuccessful reform movement of the late 1980's.
We understand that in this material world, the suffering conditioned souls are always looking for the perfect leader so that they can repose their loving propensity in him or her, in hopes that they'll achieve higher states of spiritual awareness. But it's also a fact that many unscrupulous persons exploit that tendency, and exploit the fact that uneducated, ignorant people can be easily fooled into believing something they want to believe -- which is that their idol, their star, their guru is a perfect representative for God. And as such we see, as you pointed out, that many 2nd generation devotees are now taking shelter of various personalities. Radhanatha, Indradyumna, Narayana Maharaja, whoever, in hopes of ultimately gaining access to our Sampradaya. So the qualifications of these personalities are extremely important, and it is the duty of the 1st generation to safekeep the 2nd generation by serving as guardians of Srila Prabhupada's perfect process, to the degree we are able to do so.
And in the absence of a manifest Sampradaya Acarya the risk factor is very high, especially if the actual mission that the Acarya established does not clearly define who is a Sampradaya Acarya, and who isn't. In ISKCON, the leaders are certainly giving the illusion that these swami/gurus are a transparent via media. In fact, the GBC resolutions state this year that if you're in a leadership position and you don't promote this idea, it's grounds for losing your position. You have to promote the idea that one MUST be diksa initiated by somebody. I contend that this is an asiddhantic conclusion. It's not that I'm against diksa initiation. It's just that nowadays, especially, one has to be very well educated in the writings of the true Sampradaya Acaryas before they're qualified to make the distinction. My contention is that if you did this, then you wouldn’t accept individuals such as Indradyumna Swami as your guru, for the very reasons demonstrated in the Swami's Diary.
You mention that the 'Kulis' are making all sorts of personal decisions in regards to ISKCON and it's luminaries, and of course the Gaudiya Matha's luminaries as well, and some are choosing not to have anything to do with Krsna consciousness at all. It's interesting that you brought up this subject because recently, when I was visiting your parents home, another of the Kulis was in attendance for a festival happening there. I had the opportunity to talk at some length with him, and one of the subjects that came up (which he introduced) was Indradyumna Swami. This particularly Kuli, who I'm sure you know, is a renowned musician and is very much in touch with other Kulis who have also become very accomplished in the Vaisnava music culture. He mentioned one of his friends, who is known throughout the whole of ISKCON as being THE most expert mrdanga player. Of course, many of the Kulis consider themselves experts, but they all agree that he's the best.
On one of Indradyumna Swami's visits, I believe it was to Alachua, this top-notch mrdanga player began to participate in a kirtan led by Indradyumna Swami. Shortly after beginning, the Swami stopped the whole kirtan and ordered him to stop playing, which shocked everyone in attendance. The Swami didn't like being upstaged, and wanted to play himself, but apparently couldn't keep up with him. Instead of the Swami picking up a pair of kartals, he made the Kuli stop so that he could do his old-style, unprofessional mrdanga playing routine.
Indradyumna Swami is well known for loving to be the center of attention at festivals and programs. In fact, he has a reputation for surrounding himself at such events with young girls, who adoringly flock 'round while he hands out treats and attention. In the most recent Dandavats segment from Diary of a Traveling Preacher, editor Praghosa dasa included a nice photo of the Swami (shown above) looking happy, suntanned and fit. However when one looks at the entire photo (below), it's interesting to note what Praghosa dasa cropped out of the picture.
It is apparent to me from the Swami's writings that he is not at all strict. Granted, I don't spend time with him, but a picture tells a thousand words. One doesn't have to even meet him to recognize from the pastimes he's engaged in that he is not a strict sannyasa. Through pictures and words he is exposing himself, and I believe this is the way Krsna is working.
On another front, you've challenged my assertion that the Mahabharata is not sastra that should be quoted. Of course, you're right that the Mahabharata is a bona fide sastra, and I certainly don't disagree with that. But my point is that Srila Prabhupada did not purport or comment on any aspect of the Mahabharata except for the Bhagavad-gita. In is now in vogue for the devotees to refer liberally to the Mahabharata, and we have a real problem with that, particularly in the Indian run temples. I contend that one of the reasons devotees have a tendency to do this is because the Mahabharata stories are open to interpretation. Anyone can give their own purport, commenting on excerpts and pastimes in the Mahabharata. The commentator can offer their own perception and understanding of that pastime without having it clarified by the commentaries or purports of the absolutely pure Sampradaya Acaryas. Consequently, many take the opportunity to use this sastra to support their own perceptions and arguments in discussions such as the one we're having now. I say that it's much more proper for us to rely on the wealth of purported sastric material Srila Prabhupada gave us. There are no arguments you, I, or any one of us needs to make that cannot be soundly set down based on Srila Prabhupada's direct instructions. To step outside of that realm in a philosophical debate or discussion is simply unnecessary.
You even chosen to refer to Zulu philosophy, which is fine if you're attracted to such material. Personally, I'm not. In this case, we're discussing Indradyumna Swami, the disciple and supposedly pure, transparent via media guru to Srila Prabhupada, and whether or not his Diary should be considered sastra-like or up to the standard of someone who's presenting himself as such. I would consider it to be on a much higher level of sastric verification for you to quote Srila Prabhupada directly, or a sastra that he has made purports upon, rather than relying on the Zulu master. Considering that Srila Prabhupada has left so much for us, that shouldn't be difficult, particularly when you have the Vedabase. Of course, if you want to quote Srila Prabhupada and challenge me based on his instructions, then you not only have to read a single excerpt from that sastra, but you should also be familiar with Srila Prabhupada's lectures and talks on the same matter, otherwise you might meet a strong rebuttal. You certainly won't get much argument from me on the Zulu material.
And speaking of exotic personalities, I referred to Tom Cruise because I feel that Indradyumna Swami is a Tom Cruise-like character in ISKCON. Aside from the airbrushed good looks that give him that all-American-boy persona, he usually looks nicely tanned and muscled up, his silks nicely ironed. He reminds me of Tom Cruise and many other movie stars. And if anyone can claim to have movie star status in ISKCON, it's Indradyumna Swami. I really feel that he tries to maintain that image. Even the Poland tour is geared towards a Woodstock mood. And while there are other stars on the stage, Indradyumna Swami is the number one attraction. He obviously loves to cut that profile.
And by the way, I disagree with your statement, "Tom Cruise did not make Scientology a laughing stock." Granted, Scientology was already a laughing stock with a great many informed persons before Tom came along, but I don't know how you can deny that the popular media had a field day with Cruise's recent actions, and in nearly all cases the spin was very, very negative for Tom Cruise. And that negative coverage went on and on. But hey -- 'That's Follywood'.
All of this is of little importance. What is of far greater import are the issues we've been discussing about the degree to which Indradyumna Swami and his Diary do or do not properly represent Srila Prabhupada's Krsna consciousness movement. You made the statement that "What I fear most, however, is a continued process of disintegration and division." I certainly agree, and I find "continued" to be a key word. Certain activities have gone on in the past that have significantly damaged the movement. It is very important to recognize the ways in which the very same mentality that drove those damaging actions is still being expressed today - and in this case, in Indradyumna Swami's actions and writings. I assert that much of what the Swami writes is clearly indicative of the same spiritual malaise that was so evident amongst the leaders who damaged ISKCON in years past. You apparently disagree. I'll have to continue pointing out the examples of contamination as they manifest in future editions of the Diary, and hopefully we can continue this dialogue until we come to a clearer understanding of one another's positions.
You wrote:
"I believe that the Diary of a travelling preacher helps to spread the holy name and should be encouraged although it is not the Bhagavad Gita and Indradyumna Swami is not Srila Prabhupada."
And:
"I believe that exaggerated criticism of positive actions diminishes the power of legitimate criticism of negative actions."
Again, I find that the mood, mentality and philosophy expressed in the Diary seriously degrades its value as a preaching tool. And while on the surface such writings may appear to be "helpful" or " legitimate" because the Holy Names is being broadcast, that doesn't override the negative aspects, which include the philosophical misconceptions neophyte readers are likely to get upon consuming this material. In this regard, Indradyumna Swami's Diary is not unlike Satsvarupa's Lilamrta, although the latter is certainly much, much worse.
You report that 9 Kulis recently took initiation from Radhanath Swami, and many are inspired by he and Indradyumna Swami. This takes me back to your earlier statement:
Personally, what I fear most is complacency, not only among my godbrothers and sisters, but amongst the up and coming 2nd generation devotees, who are now becoming leaders themselves. As history shows us, that complacency will very likely come in the form of the devotees not calling a spade a spade - not strongly criticizing and sanctioning those leaders who are acting below the standards required of their positions, because some good can be found in their actions, or the devotees generally find them pleasing, entertaining, or enlivening. Such was the case with nearly all of the charismatic leaders who have nearly ruined Srila Prabhupada's preaching mission.
You say that you want to be about the business of "seeking realms of agreement, while being severe and firm on very specific actions of wrong that destroy the very foundation of the truth they are spreading." I agree. And I suggest that Indradyumna Swami's Diary is one of a number of a good places for us to begin.
