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EDITORIAL August 19, 1999 VNN4537 Comment on this story Letter From Italian Devotees BY PARAMESWAR DAS EDITORIAL, Aug 19 (VNN) — Dear Maharajas and prabhus, Please accept our humble and respectful obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. Many male and female devotees advised us to write a letter in order to explain why we "left ISKCON" and we took diksa from H.H. Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayana Maharaja. We would like to specify that we never thought we left Srila Prabhupada's ISKCON just because we took shelter in Srila Narayana Maharaja. In fact, we are convinced that ISKCON as Srila Prabhupada imagined it, is a spiritual society where everybody, independently of the guru that he follows, can participate (naturally if his guru is a vaisnava). Just as Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura desired, when he ordered to all his disciples to collaborate to spread Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's mission all over the world (C.C. Adi Lila 7.95-96). The differences between one Acaryas instruction and another are insignificant if the Siddhanta is the same. This is the wonderful unity in the difference that marks Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's philosophy. The supreme goal is to develop love for Krsna. We should not forget it! Lets come to the point: we are forbidden to participate to sacred rituals and offer flowers to Srila Prabhupada's murti and to make bhajans and kirtans in the temple. They told us that we can only take deities darsana, better when there is nobody in the temple. (Isn't it offensive to separate Krsna's form from His holy name?). Naturally we are forbidden to do service. How is it possible that sincere devotees, in line with the parampara can have so much envy and hate for those who follow a bona fide guru also if he is not ISKCON? When on the contrary Srila Prabhupada allowed that his godbrothers disciples received him with garlands and flowers like we can read in Srila Prabhupada Lilamrita. Srila Prabhupada "built a house where everybody can live happily". If these measures aim to isolate us and to send us away from "Villaggio Hare Krsna" community (Milano, Italiy) we declare that we havent shared temple mentality for many years, also if we live in the village. We don't share the mentality of those who don't allow devotees to express their own opinion because "here there must be only one mentality, authority mentality". We don't share the mentality of those who don't allow doing kirtanas and bhajans because it is not considered a service or because they are not initiated or they play in traditional way. We don't share the mentality of those who consider vaisnavis inferior and marginalize them, and of those who permit that the cook says bad words and refuses to give some drink to a thirsty senior mataji. He also refuses to give prasadam to a Jayapataka Swamis disciple only because she is married with a Puri Maharajs disciple, and serves to matajis mouldy bread. We don't share the mentality of those who can invest a lot of money in a swimming pool while the cows don't have an adequate cowhouse and the temple risks to get a declaration for animal maltreatment. Some of us are accused of betraying our ex-guru Madhusevita Prabhu but we are asking you, sincere disciples of an authentic vaisnava, what would you do if your guru said during a lesson that he is TV-dependent, if he always speaks about Kali yuga horrors during Srimad Bhagavatam class (e.g. "a husband cut his wife into pieces, conserves her in the fridge for eating her" and histories like this), if while he is celebrating a fire sacrifices he always jokes saying to the grooms sentences like: now the bride should come to blows with the bridegroom and than they turn double and triple somersaults? We don't feel to share these offences to Visnu and to Agni. If one doesnt believe at the sacrality of what he is doing, how you can be a spiritual leader? How could you feel if an evening somebody gives you a letter where he also insinuates that your guru made some advances towards a married lady? If a devotee tells you that while going in a video library he was said by the clever that also "your guru" takes video for adults in this shop. Without speaking about his holiday at the seaside while his disciples are in difficult spiritual condition or about mangala-arati where nobody ever sees him neither attending the program nor chanting his rounds in the assembly of devotees. If you asked to Srila Prabhupada if he was afraid of death, do you think that he would tell you that you are not intelligent because "everybody is afraid of death!"? Now we are wondering where we are going? is the philosophy correctly applied? are we developing brahminic qualities? is our sadhana correct? or are we doing useless efforts ? why is it forbidden for Madhusevita Prabhus disciple to read Sri Caitanya Caritamrita while Srila Prabhupada was very angry when one of his disciples didnt know who Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya was (see Srila Prabhupada Lilamrita)? or why they only read the first part of Nectar of devotion mangala-arati ? isnt it offensive to censor Srila Prabhupada? Here in the temple almost nobody is able to give a lesson, there is not an adequate spiritual education, and for spiritual education we do not mean some brain-washing that we must accept every authority for good: "in any case Krsna wanted him". It is convenient to hide their responsibility behind "Krsnas will", we know very well that Krsna reciprocate with us like we reciprocate with him: if we want power, richness, success, for our devotional service He will satisfy us. But surely He will not give us the love for Krsna. Authority doesnt mean authoritarianism! We come to the initiation point. Srila Prabhupada was extremely merciful with initiations. In Caitanya Caritamrta (C.C. Madhya Lila 15-108) he spoke about 6 months of sadhana for having Harinama and 6 months for having diksa. Here those who don't grovel in front of temple authorities and who don't have their same mentality, those who only want to make themselves heard must forget to have the recommendation for initiation (some devotees were told that even if they chant 16 round and follow the principles since many years they will never get the recommendation). One of us used to work with a grhasta devotee but the autorithies told this devotee that he would never get recommendation for his initiation if he will give again the job to our Godbrother. Immagine the position of this grhasta: he already had problems because his brother took initiation from H.H. B.V Puri Maharaja and now he has to choose between our Godbrother or a karmi worker (local devotees suggested karmi worker).He still wants initiation from Gopal Krsna Maharaja but this blackmail quite bewildered him. At this point you can tell us that we had to take a siksa guru without leaving ISKCON. The answer is that we don't believe in the figure that siksa guru has in ISKCON at present. When we asked for a siksa-guru one of us was hampered, rejected and accused of "insincerity" from Madhusevita Prabhu while for the others the authorisation never arrived, although H.H. Bir Krsna Swami intervened like mediator. In any case somebody told us that siksa guru cannot be independent from diksa guru and we really didnt want to have any relation with Madhusevita Prabhu. We would like to precise that we have nothing of personal against Madhusevita Prabhu. We acknowledge that he is an intelligent person who has also managerial endowments. We invite all ISKCON sincere devotees to establish again the authentic spirit of suddha bhakti beyond of all other political, material considerations and without making any discrimination. Because of to this, we ask that: Everybody should be allowed to participate to religious functions. Every vaisnava should be free to frequent every temple since all kind of people is allowed (e.g. crazy, homosexual, drunkard, etc people). Everybody should be free to preach according to guru (if authentic in sampradaya), sadhu and sastra. Everybody should be free to read all vaisnava books because it is offensive to censor the six goswamis of Vrindavan or sadhus like H.H. B.V. Puri Maharaja or H.H. Bhaktivedanta Narayana Maharaj. Everybody should be free to do bhajans, kirtans and chant japa all the day long. (Sravana and Kirtana are devotional service too! Naturally without neglecting the other things). Everybody should be free to associate with non-ISKCON-gurus disciples without undergoing authority reprisal. For at least one year there should be stable presence in the temple of one vaisnava preacher who is able to re-define relations among devotees in the badge of love and who is able to re-define the right siddhanta. An elective and renewable brahminic council should be established of course not designated by Madhusevita Prabhu, with the function of taking the most important decisions and controlling temples budget and initiations. Nobody should be taken off the service (like they did a year ago to two of us even if they were still "ISKCON devotees") without giving any explanation and without the braminic councils approbation. We want to precise that we are conscious and happy of our decision but we don't want that some devotees give a sect imagine to Srila Prabhupadas ISKCON We thank you for the time that you are dedicating us reading our letter All glories to Srila Prabhupada and to all authentic gurus of our sampradaya! Vaisnavadasanudasa Parameswar das, Prabhavati d.d., Mangala d.d., Lalit Kisor das, Jay Lalita d.d., Vilasini d.d. Comment on this story  Contact VNN about this storySend this story to a friend
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