Farewell: A Resignation from Yadunandana Pada Dasa

BY: Yadunandana Pada dasa

Jul 13, USA (SUN) —

Dear GBC, Temple Presidents and leaders,

I ask that you forgive my offenses, which follow, although I know that some of you will not, in as much as I am not able to be a diplomat. I feel strongly that diplomacy and positioning are a lie and that the diplomat is a liar and a politician. So, I apologize that I am incapable of stooping to that level-just by lack of intelligence, I guess.

"The cross and the hemlock have been meted out not so much to those who have threatened our economic interests as to those who threatened the moral self-respect of men. This tendency is to be observed even in the church, the one among all human institutions in which men meet on their highest levels, which stands for that which is enduring and universal in human society. Even here we see the common tendency to degenerate into ecclesiasticism with the emphasis placed upon protective devices, the tithing of mint and anise and cumin, creedal formulas and ritualistic niceties. And nowhere else, unless it be in certain organizations which make a religion of patriotism, do we find more bitterness when the protective devices are challenged. This is true precisely because the church is primarily concerned about the problem of safeguarding the moral self-respect of its members." -Anton Boisen, The Exploration of the Inner World

In plain English, "the truth hurts, and if you speak it we condemn you”-that is so repulsively indigenous of humankind.

Interestingly enough, I was approached by Amarendra Prabhu (the Los Angeles attorney handling the Child Abuse case), this morning after Mangal Arati, who told me that I could quote him on this:

"Yadu, for what it's worth, I agree with you 100% that the lack of care for the devotees is going to be the next big legal problem”. He continued by saying (and now I paraphrase) that he has been ‘warning the leaders for some time but they haven't seemed to be "listening” yet, but that it *is* now being "discussed" with the SSPT, and that now the temple president in New Dvarka is "considering" doing something soon'. This *is* all good news *if* we actually see fruit on this tree anytime soon, although a couple of decades late-another year may kill us!

I have recently washed my hands of the karma involved in this overlook by fully researching and developing turnkey solutions for the retirement and health care plans of the North American devotees (for starters), and also by launching an all-out awareness campaign, no bars held, for the last year, without a single response, until now from Amarendra Prabhu-as I am stepping away.

Amarendra continued by saying, ‘when these new waves hit', "I will not be involved." I believe he meant that he is far too busy and has been burning the candles at both ends for some time now. However, we ended the conversation on a note of questionable hope that the leaders may or may not listen.

I decided a couple of months ago, and had been waiting for the correct time and clear signs to announce ‘that my duty has been done and my hands are washed'- as I screamed my last loud hollers into the empty forest before I move on. My astrologer concurred, and the other signs in my life have given breath to this farewell. I am the single parent of a five year old girl in New Dvarka and have decided to dedicate the luxury of this added energy and resources to her future instead-resources which I have been spending on the notion of helping the devotees and the leaders, and which have subsequently gone unheard and unused.

So I turn my back on you all to instead give this added value to my daughter and our sadhana, because no one, not even the folks who needed these services the most were listening intently enough to back up the project. I am sorry; I don't have the time to waste on hopeless causes. I do wish you all the very best.

However, I will leave you all with one ‘word' of personal advice:

The notion that members of a society who give a portion, if not their entire life, to the mission should receive basic human rights, services and assurances such as health-care insurance and retirement facilities is not only irrefutable common sense and logic, but ‘common decency'. It has never been so clear in my mind that if individually each of our leaders is not willing to stand up and fight, putting their position on the line (if need be), for these basic human rights of the society's members, then the next paradigm shift needs to happen. -and the social dynamics of paradigm shifts will force the issue without my involvement. That is to say, if a leader cannot on his own conceive or fathom the notion of "member care" (and follow through), and additionally does not listen to his peers, and especially to his own attorney and counsel, then that level of intelligence dictates that it is time to re-elect new leaders. This is also not a far-fetched idea because Srila Prabhupada left us the resources for such a paradigm shift in the VedaBase and through the legal documents, letters and conversations. In the end, the supporting argument against all opposing rhetoric will be that "if it is clearly not working, then it needs to be fixed."-all the resources are there; Srila Prabhupada would not have left us without options or without a back door.

So, to quote Dannistha Prabhu , "It's been grand!"

Hare Krsna and good luck,

Yadunandana Pada Dasa
www.BuddhiYoga.org

P.S. Case and point:

RE: DYING IN VRINDAVAN-BE FULLY INFORMED BEFORE YOU MAKE YOUR CHOICE TO ALL GBC, TP, SANYASIS AND PRABHUS-

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

It has come to our attention that some temples are sending devotees to Vrindavan with terminal diseases for the purpose of leaving their bodies in the Holy Dham, expecting support, facility and cooperation.

We are sorry to inform everyone that at this time ISKCON Vrindavan has NO Hospice facility or funds for this nor is there any medical personnel or support group to assist such terminally ill persons. We have encountered serious difficulties while attempting to accommodate dying devotees without the proper arrangements, and therefore we have decided not to accept any more terminally ill persons on our ISKCON properties until proper arrangements are secured.

If a person decides he/she wishes to come to Vrindavan to die they will have to take full responsibility themselves and do so on private property. For your information, please keep in mind the following:

1. Any visitor to India who enters the country with a reportable contagious disease such as HIV, AIDS, TB or venereal diseases is liable to be deported by the Government of India. At our ISKCON Vrindavan properties we are legally obligated to report such persons to the local authorities, as are all public guest facilities in Vrindavan.

2. Medical facilities and doctors in Vrindavan are not at all up to western standard and are often insufficient for handling the problems that terminally ill persons have. The nearest adequate hospitals are 3 hours away.

3. Staying in Vrindavan during a terminal illness may not be as expensive as in the west, but everyone who has come here in the past with dying devotees have faced stress or difficulties meeting their expenses. Our temple cannot assist dying devotees financially. The care of the dying person, food/water and accommodations, maintainnance of support persons, doctor visits, transportation, communications, needed supplies and all the legalities and procedures must be paid for by those persons accompanying the dying person.

4. There are multifarious legal complications that must be dealt with before and after the death. The individual or temple sponsoring the devotee must be prepared to pay for these and should bring a person whose sole job it will be to process these formalities. Our temple is not able to process the legalities nor provide persons to arrange for them or the posthumous formalities such as embassy and police notification, obtaining the death certificates, the do-it-yourself cremation, etc.

5. Persons who arrive in Vrindavan without their legal documents, medical reports, Doctors prognosis/orders, living wills, property wills, power of attorney and who have not already notified the next of kin/closest relatives and have not filed with their Embassy will not receive permission for a cremation in Vrindavan and will encounter difficulties with the embassy and police.

6. Dying persons who are not accompanied by a licensed caregiver or trained relative to administer the appropriate care are risking possible legal difficulties here and at home.

7. Persons who decide to come to Vrindavan to die must fully understand that they are coming into a third-world situation where western facility is practically not available and ANYTHING could happen and that they may have to endure the very same sufferings as all the dying sadhus here.

8. No terminally ill person should arrive here unprepared and expect help from ISKCON. This kind of irresponsibility in the past has made many difficulties for us with local and international officials and our public image.

Persons coming to Vrindavan to die should do so responsibly, not whimsically or illegally. Further information on requirements is available from: Iskcon Vrindavan Community Services email: iskconvrncs@yahoo.co.in.

Your servant,
Dhanajaya das, MVT, Ganapati das, KB Guesthouse,
Devamrita das, KBM TP

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