List of Names by BDA
BY: MAHANANDA DASA
Jan 24, BANGALORE, INDIA (SUN) — I'm writing this as a response to the list of names of all the "ex-full time devotees" provided by the BDA.
About me: I joined ISKCON Bangalore in 1999 and served Srila Prabhupada's mighty mission till 2004, and now I work for a corporate company as a Trainer on Communication and Business Ethics. I'm initiated as Mahananda dasa and I continue to chant my 16 rounds each day. My name has been listed as well, and I would like to thoroughly condemn this desperate act by the "Anti Madhu Pandit" camp.
Let me clarify that I'm not a Madhu Pandit activist and as a matter of fact, I have not even met him personally ever since I left the movement as a full timer. This is only because I have been extremely busy trying to "fix" my life outside of the temple. (This is completely my fault.)
Like I mentioned before, I'm not here to falsely glorify or condemn Madhu Pandit Prabhu. I'm here only to emphasize that I was not purged or forced out of the temple. I have known most of the devotees mentioned on that list and I clearly know who left the temple for what reason. (I'm going to maintain those individual reasons, confidentially respecting the personal lives of those devotees.) So really, that whole sentimental and childish plea by the BDA making claims about Madhu Pandit prabhu's "dictatorship" is utter trash, and clearly a desperate a-Vaishnavic struggle for attention.
I was quite young when I left the temple as a full-timer and as much I would hate to admit it, I had my own personal desires to achieve, and that was the only reason why I chose to live outside. Chanclapathi Prabhu (VP ISKCON Bangalore) spoke to me and guided me with respect, despite the fact that I had tried to take shelter of the Vrindavan temple after leaving Bangalore. (By the way, I was forced to leave the Vrindavan temple by the local temple authorities because I claimed to be a disciple of Srila Prabhupada.)
I have spoken to many of the then Bangalore temple devotees, who have now joined hands with the Mumbai temple authorities to eliminate Madhu Pandit prabhu's Presidential position. All of them seem to pour out so much poison against him only on the basis of prathistha - only because they were not given enough respect and position after all the money they collected to build the temple. I'm not saying Madhu Pandit Prabhu is perfect and flawless in his people management abilities, but who is in ISKCON, apart from Srila Prabhupada himself??
Is our personal vengeance so much more important than Lord Chaitanya's desire to spread Krishna Consciousness in every town and village? Are personal revulsions more important than establishing Srila Prabhupada as the only guru for our coming generations of Gaudiya Vaishnava devotees? You don't have to answer it, it is rhetorical and something that you have to mull over.
I might have grievances and complaints, but in service to Srila Prabhupada I would still choose Madhu Pandit Prabhu over many of those wealth, hungry sannyasis and their supporters who have been feeding on Srila Prabhupada's money like blood-sucking parasites.
Aspiring servant of Srila Prabhupada,
Mahananda dasa
