An Open Letter to Kripamoya on Gauri's Forced Resignation
BY: SANAKA RSI DAS
Aug 12, UK (SUN) — Hare Krsna Kripamoya Prabhu, Please accept my humble obeisances. All Glories to Srila Prabhupada.
My name is Sanaka Rsi das. We have met a few times at the Bhaktivedanta Manor. I grew up in the Gurukula at Villa Vrindavana near Florence, in Italy. In 1990 I was enrolled in the Bhaktivedanta Swami International Gurukula in Vrindavana, India, where Gauri das was my asrama teacher.
Throughout the review of Gauri das's case I have liaised with the ISKCON Child Protection Office (CPO) as the spokesperson for the numerous former students of Gauri das that submitted testimonies of mistreatment.
I was disturbed in reading the recent correspondence between yourself and Bhakta Rob, in the recent Sun article entitled "Correspondence with Kripamoya Prabhu". As your letter was a public statement to the wider congregation of devotees, I am compelled to reply with an open letter.
If your letter had been written in 1980 I would have probably found it distasteful and offensive, but perhaps understandable. Seen as it was written in 2008, its contents left me speechless. I am appalled, hurt and quite frankly disgusted that as a leader of one of the most prominent temples in ISKCON, a father yourself, you have been as insensitive and unaware toward such a delicate and vital issue as the protection of the children in our Society.
After careful consideration of events, both past and present, I have decided to bring some specific circumstances related to Gauri das's case to the attention of the devotee community at large. I deem this to be necessary in order to shed some light and hopefully bring some clarity on this much speculated and misinformed case. I wish to apologize for any inaccuracies that will inevitably surface in this letter due to my shortcomings.
I would first like to clarify the rumor, circulating around the Bhaktivedanta Manor since Gauri das's resignation, suggesting that the CPO may have been biased towards the victims in reaching its verdict. This is a myth, born from the widespread ignorance in regards to the specific details of Gauri das's case and CPO procedures in general.
Things could not be further from the truth. As stated in the official CPO decision, the sanctions taken against Gauri das are light. When weighed against past, comparable CPO rulings it can be seen that the CPO afforded Gauri das much consideration. The official CPO verdict, perhaps intentionally, avoids mentioning the words "child abuser", which would have arguably been an apt description, given the circumstances.
The report makes no mention of the psychological torture some of the boys were subjected to. All considered, in my ("biased" some will argue) opinion, the CPO was lenient in the enforcement of punitive sanctions on Gauri das. However, as a member of ISKCON I respect their decision.
The official report also does not mention that in October 2006, before we asked the CPO to review Gauri das's case, I took the initiative to go to his office, where I had a lengthy discussion with him in the attempt to reach an amicable resolution so we could all move forward in our lives. I requested him to take responsibility for the actions and choices HE made in disciplining us and offer an apology to the children he has failed and who continued to suffer due to the lack of HIS duty of care. Unfortunately, at the time he was not ready or interested to give us that much.
The depositions submitted to the CPO describe the nature of the abuse perpetrated by Gauri das as: beating children as young as 7 years of age with powerful slaps, some boys testified that due to the intense shock they passed urine on themselves while being beaten.
Some of the witnesses give accounts of how as a punishment, when they were young children they were confined in a room for up to two weeks in the heat of the Indian summer; one boy was hit with a stick with such force that his body was bruised days after the incident. Photos showing the bruises were sent to the GBC. To top this, he ridiculed and insulted some of the boys after beating them. Some testimonies describe how witnessing Gauri das's excessive and at times uncontrolled beating of their friends invoked great fear, anxiety and traumatic impressions in their heart. Others were beaten on a regular basis as a punishment for their insubordinate and restless nature.
If, as a child, you have never been in a situation where a whimsical, unqualified and at times violent adult has had complete power over you for an extended period, without the possibility to plea for help from anybody, you cannot understand what these boys have suffered and how it continues to affect their lives.
The Bhaktivedanta Manor's monthly Newsletter writes: "Gauridas' vigilance in overseeing Bhaktivedanta Manor's development year after year means that his leadership will be missed. His contribution to the Manor's diverse activities has earned him much affection from those who have served under him". In your letter you also expressed that it is regretted that Gauri will not be able to serve as a Temple President.
Since Gauri has just been found guilty of mistreating children, it is at best inconsiderate and out of place to praise him, and publicly express disappointment when he has been made accountable, and a little, long awaited justice has finally been served. What does this say about the moral standing of our society? The implications of what is being said here are that the Hare Krsna Temple regrets that a person that mistreated children has been made accountable.
This mentality, I believe, does more damage to the public image of ISKCON than Gauri das's resignation as President ever could have. It shows a highly inappropriate, impersonal, heartless and insensitive mindset towards child protection, unbefitting a spiritual organization that propounds itself as the guidance and inspiration for society at large.
In your letter and in the Bhaktivedanta Manor's official statement on Dandavats we read: "We are pleased that Gauri Das has indicated that he would like to meet with the former students in the hope of further reconciliation".
When Mrigari the hunter was reformed due to the causeless mercy of Narada Muni, he spent the remainder of his life living as a mendicant; he did not appeal his case in the attempt to renegotiate the reactions of his misdeeds.
As Bh. Rob rightly points out, if Gauri intends to appeal the sentence, it suggests that he still does not accept the true impact of his wrongdoings, therefore: what value can his apologies really have?
In a press statement dated December 2nd, 2006 Gauri das claimed that allegations that he had used corporal punishment in ISKCON schools in India were "baseless"… Furthermore, up until recently, before the CPO's adjudication was made public, Gauri's response has often been that we were simply mendacious and vengeful individuals out to get him.
The above does not lend credibility to the authenticity of his much publicized wishes to reach out to his victims hoping to bring about some reconciliation. For the record, to date, Gauri has made no attempt to contact his victims to make any amends.
I cannot appreciate or understand the value and need to endeavor to manipulate the truth so as to make things look better than they are. What benefit can this possibly bring?
No statement at all would have been far better than this inappropriate effort to mislead the devotee community, in attempting to diminish the magnitude of Gauri 's misconduct.
What I find concerning when I observe the history of ISKCON is our authorities' too often resolute and inveterate loyalty and protection afforded to members of the society that have been involved in child abuse issues -- especially in high-profile cases such as Gauri das's, where great financial and political interests are at stake. This mentality, that all too often in the past has "sacrificed the child to protect the institution", sadly seems to be still present.
If we take a look at the infamous Dhanurdhara Swami case, a man whose misdeeds outweigh Gauri's, we can see how over the years he received an unjustifiable amount of support from the elite of our movement's leaders, many of them GBCs, Gurus and Sannyasis.
When it comes to child abuse issues in ISKCON, amongst our leaders there is too frequently an overwhelming and misplaced sense of compassion and forgiveness towards perpetrators, but sadly very little or none to spare for the victims. Three GBC members have submitted official letters to the CPO in support of Gauri das for the recent case; sadly one of them is an initiating Guru and two of them are themselves fathers.
Our Bhagavatam classes are overfilled with the highest philosophy, we discuss the most intimate knowledge available to mankind, yet it appears to me that we are unable to afford a little human decency for our children.
It seems almost as if collectively, as a society, we believe that the mere possession of this, unapplied and unrealized, superior knowledge, excuses us from our duty to strive to become, and act as, conscientious, decent and compassionate human beings. I regard this mentality to be a disease which, in its darkest expression, has facilitated countless so-called "men of God" in committing the worst crimes perpetrated in the history of humanity.
In an article titled "Organized Religion", Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Maharaj wrote:
"The churches have always proved the staunchest upholders of the grossest form of worldliness, from which even the worst of non-ecclesiastical criminals are found to recoil".
Sadly we cannot claim ISKCON's history to be entirely free from this failing.
In your letter, you reiterate Gauri das's defense that his use of corporal punishment "was not excessive". I would like to hope that you made this inappropriate statement in ignorance of the actual force Gauri das used when administering corporal punishments. The severity and degree of Gauri das's punishments would have been deemed disproportionate to the mistakes the children had committed by any considerate man's judgment.
Some of the boys that much suffered at Gauri's hands were younger than your son, and Gauri's daughter. I like to assume that if your children had been at the receiving end of such brutal punishments you would have rightly been less understanding, supportive and compassionate towards the perpetrator. I also presume that Gauri das would no longer describe it as "not excessive" if his daughter happened to be one of the unfortunate victims of such serious maltreatment. I plea with you to try some empathy, and extend a similar degree of compassion for Gauri das's victims. At the time of the incidents they were also defenseless Vaisnava children, just as deserving of protection, kindness and love.
Past abuse can be regarded a mistake, or inadequacy, or attributed to the devious nature of certain individuals, and perhaps an oversight of people in authority. However, our leaders at times inconsiderate approach to these matters seems to suggest that as a society, we are not sufficiently concerned to learn from our past mistakes and that we still do not give child abuse issues in ISKCON the importance deserved.
As a leader you carry the grave responsibility of setting the standard of what is the appropriate approach and dealings toward child abuse; your attempts to mitigate Gauri's wrongdoings suggest that on some level, you may condone and support his transgressions. Seeing as the CPO was established by the GBC, it is also your responsibility and duty to ensure that its decisions are appropriately respected and supported. Unfortunately your official statement seems to undermine the authority of the Child Protection Office and the service of the judges who volunteered their time for this trying case.
It must be pointed out that the CPO came to its conclusion after thoroughly evaluating all the confidential information pertinent to the case. If the devotees at the Bhaktivedanta Manor were to be made privy to this information, they would be in a position to better appreciate and/or understand the decision of the CPO. In the absence of this information, is it not appropriate to trust the judgment of the CPO?
If you were simply trying to lessen the impact of Gauri das's resignation on the community, from a purely "public relations" point of view, your provocative letter was at best counterproductive.
Attempts to diminish the severity of Gauri's misconducts are not in ISKCON's best interest as this condones his actions and undermines the reputation of Srila Prabhupada's movement. Indeed, it places the very integrity of our Society in grave jeopardy. It also sets a dangerous precedent to future transgressors.
If this challenging situation had been approached in a more honest and constructive way and ISKCON had actually seized the opportunity to emphasize the notion that as a Society, we do not tolerate in any way the mistreatment of children, instead of pointing out that we "regret Gauri das's resignation", this could have been an invaluable opportunity to redeem ISKCON's less than perfect public image in this regard. Surely it is not the resignation of Gauri das we ought to regret, but rather his past actions that have led to his forced resignation.
As a friend to Gauri das, your inappropriate "help and support" has actually done a two-fold disservice to him: first you have reinforced the notion that his actions were justified and second your inflammatory letter has now resulted in the degeneration of his already difficult position.
By mastering the internal character and strength necessary to choose ethics over convenience, Gauri das would be able to earn his real redemption and thus facilitate the progress in both his spiritual and material life.
Kripamoya Prabhu, I request you to offer the victims of Gauri das a public apology for your insensitive, inappropriate and misinformed letter and I pray that you may be able to reform your views on this very important matter.
A society that does not take a definitive stance for the protection of its children does not stand for much and has no future.
Thank you.
Yours in the service of Srila Prabhupada,
Sanaka rsi das
The following are excerpts from Srila Prabhupada's letters where he expresses his strong objections to the use of corporal punishment on children:
Letter to Bhanutanya mataji, November 18, 1972
"Now the thing is, children should not be beaten at all, that I have told. They should simply be shown the stick strongly. So if one cannot manage in that way then he is not fit as teacher. If a child is trained properly in Krishna Consciousness, he will never go away. That means he must have two things, love and education. So if there is beating of child, that will be difficult for him to accept in loving spirit, and when he is old enough he may want to go away-that is the danger. So why these things are going on _ marching and chanting japa, insufficient milk, too strict enforcement of time schedules, hitting the small children? Why these things are being imposed? Why they are inventing these such new things like marching and japa like military? What can I do from such a distant place? They should run and play when they are small children, not forced to chant japa, that is not the way.
Srila Prabhupada's love for his children pours out of this letter, it is so sad to see what he envisioned for us when it is compared to how we were actually raised. Srila Prabhupada with prophetic insight wrote that if you beat the child, when he is old enough he may want to go away; how sadly true his words have become."
Letter to Brahmanya Tirtha, Ahmedabad, December 10, 1972
"Regarding your question should force be used on children, no, there shall be no forcing the children to do anything. Child should not be forced. This is all nonsense. Who has devised these things? If we want them to become great devotees, then we must educate the children with love, not in a negative way. Of course, if they become naughty we may show the stick but we should never use it."
Letter to Aniruddha, January 10, 1972
"Encourage them to chant as much japa as possible, but there is no question of force or punishment. If there is need you may shake your finger at them but never physical punishment is allowed".
Letter to Rupa Vilasa, Hyderabad, November 18, 1972
"So I have heard that there as been some beating with sticks on the children. Of course I do not know, but that should not be. You may show the stick, threaten, but better art is to somehow or other, even by tricking them, avoid this matter of force and induce them to obey out of loving spirit. That is success of disciplinary method."
