ISKCON Leaders Vote to Stop the Distribution of Prabhupada's Books
BY: AMEYATMA DAS
Dec 31, USA (PRABHUPADANUGA NEWS) — There was a meeting in Los Angeles of a 16 member Strategic Planning Team (SSPT). This group was formed to assess the state and future direction of ISKCON's preaching and social issues in North America. They produced a survey and sent it out to devotees across NA. The survey was completed end of November and the team of 16 met in LA to assess it and start charting NA ISKCON's future course.
I do not know who all 16 members were, but among them were Svavas, Gopal Bhatta, Rabindra Swarup and Bhakti Marg Swami. We are told that Ravindra Svarupa Prabhu made a statement something to the effect that Srila Prabhupada's books should not be distributed at colleges and universities. Apparently he felt it would be better to distribute "transitional" Krsna Consciousness books (that he and others will or have written) as he states they would be better received by students today. It seems he feels that Srila Prabhupada's statements on social issues, such as women must be submissive and always dependent upon a man (a father, husband, or elder son – Srila Prabhupada has written many times that women are not to be given independence, and has written that women are less intelligent then men, etc) offend too many of the students and are therefore a hindrance to "the" preaching mission. As politically correct as that may sound, the logic has a few large flaws. Such as how is it that Srila Prabhupada's own preaching, in the form of his own books, has now become a hindrance to his own preaching mission???? Or, is it Ravindra Swarup's preaching mission that is hindered???
And, when I was speaking about this to my family and mentioned how they wanted to stop distributing Srila Prabhupada's books so as to not offend the non-devotees, my 8 year old son, Lal Krsna, immediately said, "But, Pita Sri, they are offending Srila Prabhupada". Yes. Even my 8 yr. old son could clearly see this in a flash. They have become DEMON Crazy. Check the Vox Populi in ISKCON, oh, the non-devotee population is offended by dharma issues, offended about Srila Prabhupada's stand on the Gay issue, so, lets keep Prabhupada's books on the shelves and lets write our own books and distribute them instead, after all we don't want to hinder the preaching by putting Prabhupada's books out there. We don't want to offend the belligerent faithless non-devotees, no matter how utterly vile we offend our spiritual master. Offending Radharani's pure servant, Srila Prabhupada, no big deal, but we must not offend the atheistic adharmic feminists or the gays and lesbians, etc.
Demon crazy. Rather then the head leading, giving direction and guidance, we have the head of ISKCON following their ass to toilet while their own ass is excreting stool in their own faces. Current GBC management Ki-Jail. (yes, that is jai with an "L" on the end.) I was told that no one made any objection to this proposal, except Svavas, who expressed his bitter disagreement and then resigned as a member of the group.
Then, Bhakti Marg Swami went even further. Outside the meeting, but while in LA, he approached Sura of the BBT with his own solution to the women's issues in ISKCON. He said that since so many mataji devotees are offended by certain statements in Srila Prabhupada's books, like being less intelligent, like Srila Prabhupada said that women must not be given leadership positions, that women are to remain submissive and subordinate to a man, etc., Bhakti Marge Swami advocated to Sura that ALL of Srila Prabhupada's books should be RE-EDITED and all the OFFENDING and Controversial issues be removed in order to make them acceptable to all those offended Prabhus, that Srila Prabhupada's books should be edited to remove all such controversial issues that have offended women both inside and outside of ISKCON. Sura, I am informed, also rejected the suggestion.
The thing is, of course there have been matajis who have been cruelly abused, and sometimes unscrupulous ‘devotee' men took advantage of different instructions Srila Prabhupada gave to perpetrate their atrocities. That is true with the gurukula children as well. I mean, it was true with anyone and everyone who was mistreated by any GBC or TP who misused their authority. It is true in modern America as well. I recall reading how their was a clique going on in the LA police Dept some years ago in which different officers would pull over young girls and start writing them up, then ask them to perform a trick on them, and they would let them go. That is abuse of authority, but, does that mean that you disband the whole police dept? No, you enforce the other laws that are already there and you properly deal with the bad elements. Same, Vedic culture and Srila Prabhupada promotes only the protection of women. If someone misuses one part of Srila Prabhupada's teachings for their own aggrandizement and in the process wrongly abuses someone, there are scriptural injunctions to deal with this, so we must take care of the bad elements, but we do not wholesale reject Vedic culture.
All of Srila Prabhupada's instructions regarding the position of the women in society are based on the Vedic Science – dharma shastra – Manu Samhita. Krsna Himself taught the law of dharma to the Sun God 120 million years ago, and it was passed down to Manu and written as the Manu Samhita. Srila Prabhupada based those "offending" and controversial teachings on Dharma-Shastra. On Vedic Science. If we edit them out, what do we replace our social standards with? The UN charters on human rights? The US Supreme Court rulings? The Taliban's version of Islamic Law???? The views of Gay and Lesbian groups? NOW and other feminist's views? What will become the basis of our social principles? Srila Prabhupada gave us HIS teachings, which are based strictly on the Vedic Science of Dharma.
Those who propose such abominable acts are possessed of hellish consciousness. They are exhibiting their long-standing faithlessness in the words and teachings of their guru, the great Founder-Acarya, Srila Prabhupada.
So, there are more and more devotees who are now seeing the reality. But, I am telling them, it is no different then 1985 when Ramesvara told me that Srila Prabhupada's instructions were outdated, no longer relevant, that I was to accept one of the NEW acaryas and follow them (To which I stood up shaking with anger and blasted him verbally, my fall down is that I did not tear his tongue out – Agni dev was in the room and when I stood up and began shouting at the top of my lungs, he got up and left. Ramesvara's disciples who were present, I thought would jump on me and beat me up, instead, they just sat their speechless.
Ramesvara ceased the FATE project after that, and ordered me to get out of ISKCON. I told him, I am not leaving, it's time for you to leave. A year latter he was gone. But, the same disease is still going on. Nothing has changed. The same disease, lack of faith in Srila Prabhupada's teachings. Like when Srila Prabhupada was on his dying bed and asked the GBC to tell ALL his disciples to come to his bed side. Instead, Ramesvara and others met and decided that the mass of devotees must NOT be allowed to hear that instruction. So, Ramesvara left India and came back to LA and told everyone that Srila Prabhupada has asked that no one leave, no one go to India, that Srila Prabhupada wanted everyone to remain engaged in their services. So much lack of faith. Privately Ramesvara spoke with me about this, he was boasting how he had SAVED Prabhupada's mission. He was saying that if everyone had heard that instruction by Srila Prabhupada that all the book distributors would have gone. There would have been no more money coming in to pay the mortgages. And, since no one knew just how long Srila Prabhupada may keep hanging on, it could drain ALL of ISKCON's resources if everyone ran off to Prabhupada's bed side. So, in his gallant effort to SAVE ISKCON, he purposefully lied to us, rather then passing on Srila Prabhupada's instruction that EVERYONE come to India and be by his bed side. Instead, Ramesvara left Prabhupada's bed side and came to LA and used Prabhupada's name, lying to us that Srila Prabhupada did not want us to go. Still, Ramesvara gloated how by doing this he saved (Prabhupada's ??? ) ISKCON. No, what it was is that Ramesvara feared that if all the devotees go to India and book distribution, i.e., the money coming into the BBT stops, and temples, like LA cannot make their mortgage payments, then what will be left for him when Srila Prabhupada leaves????? That was the REAL motive.
And, I have wondered in connection with the poison controversy… Ramesvara told me how he and other GBC were fearing that so many devotees were leaving their services, money was becoming an issue, temples were loosing their biggest money makers, I mean book distributors, they were fearing, they had no idea how long Srila Prabhupada may hang on. If he kept hanging on for many more months, and word gets out that Srila Prabhupada wants everyone to come, then all the temples will be lost – there won't be anything left over for them. So, that would have been a big motive to push along the process and make sure Srila Prabhupada hurries up and leaves his body ASAP, and stops lingering on…. Just some thoughts.
ys Ameyatma das
