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EDITORIAL December 3, 1999 VNN5012 Comment on this story A Garland Of Insults BY SYAMASUNDARA DAS EDITORIAL, Dec 3 (VNN) — I have been attracted to Srila Prabhupada's books since 1986. I tried to take to the process of Krsna consciousness but never found a person whom I considered to be a living example of Krsna consciousness. It was a fact that I was addicted to intoxication and sex life, and it was a fact I needed good association, but these facts did not mean that I should give up my powers of discrimination and put my faith in someone on the basis of hearsay or institutional allegiance. Because I simply refused to be a blind follower and surrender my point of view, life in the institution was very difficult. I remember being labeled an upstart and trouble maker for pointing out that basing the sound of the mrdanga drum roll in the morning on the amount of money sankirtana devotees brought in instead of how many books were distributed was likely to produce money consciousness instead of Krsna consciousness. I remember being emotionally blackmailed by being told anyone who leaves Iskcon has to take birth on the hellish planets eternally. I remember cow slaughter being advertised in the Janmastami magazine ( Hindu leather suppliers ), and poison in the kitchens. Not that my intention is to criticize after all making mistakes is our birth right and we all fall short of the perfect mark. The point I am trying to make is that I was not impressed with the way things were. At the same time Iskcon was like an oasis in the desert of material life for me. I wanted to remain able to take advantage of the opportunity for service and at the same time distance myself from being ' institutionalized '. I had met, served and listened to many of the leaders and was not particularly inspired by any although I respected their dedication. When the rtvik papers started to materialize in the late 80's early 90's, it became clear in my mind that without personal guidance of a uttama vaisnava every thing is speculation and really just a gamble. If one is not on the level to receive transcendental reciprocation from Srila Prabhupada then we are interpreting his books through our polluted and faulty consciousness and then arrogantly believing our conception of his books is the real and only true conception, the proof of this lies in the fact that there are so many different groups and splinter groups declaring they are right and all others are wrong, " the message of the book Bhagavata is best received through that of the person Bhagavata " His Divine Grace states. By now I was married with two children and living in a city with just a small temple. We could go along to the Sunday programs try to glorify the Lord a little through congregational chanting and the rest of the week do our own thing. We didn't associate with many devotees their but tried to respect them from a distance. Stories of child molestations within Iskcon by its leaders being presented in the rtvik papers made us skeptical and suspicious. I occasionally distributed Prabhupada's books, and went to the Sunday programs and that was it. My children liked the programs and my son used to bring the arati flowers to each devotee for them to put to their nose, he was heart broken when they banned us. Everyone he met,on the busses, in the nursery school play ground, his teachers, at the super market, he would say proudly "do you know Krsna ? Do you eat meat ? Prabhupada has said we should chant Hare Krsna, it goes like this.....be a vegetarian....chant Hare Krsna....where ever we went whoever he met' Nitia Gauranga jaya Nitai Gauranga', with his arms in the air and a cheeky smile on his face. How do you explain to a three year old that the Sunday programs are a recruitment campaign for Iskcon leaders and that the temple is not really a public place of worship. It was Prabhupada's centennial. And while many were preparing for the business opportunity of a life time, an elderly and saintly vaisnava from Mathura appeared. We were warned at the local Iskcon center " urgent message from the g.b.c., dont go to see Narayana Maharaja."! I was taught in Iskcon the importance of guru / sadhu / sastra/ and I had never heard of anything to support this, blind acceptance of authority and fanatical allegiance have never been my pot of sweet rice. I had however read quote after quote after quote highlighting the absolute necessity of hearing from and serving vaisnavas. I am not a particularly sentimental or gullible person but the internal realization that came and the emotional potency of receiving Srila Narayana Maharajas blessings at that time was evidence enough of the fact I was in the presence of a real vaisnava. We wanted to immediately serve this person and we wanted to establish a connection with him. I had more realization, inspiration and faith than I had had in the last 10 years put together. It was inevitable that me and my wife would ask for Hari Nama from him. " I want to help you " he replied " but you must follow", "You should see if I am qualified and I too should see if you are qualified, come to all my classes and serve all you can". Srila Narayana Maharaja seemed to bring Srila Prabhupada's books to life for us. And we were both experiencing a taste we had never tasted before, as one Srila Prabhupada disciple so amusingly put it " I was coughing up anarthas left right and center " On the evening before our initiation I told the local temple president of our intentions ( naively I thought he would be happy for us ) He turned his nose up and said " thats not an initiation ", The next morning as we sat in front of our chosen spiritual master a letter was presented to Narayana Maharaja from the g.b.c. saying he should not initiate us as we are not following properly and are Iskcon property ! Srila Narayana Maharaja asked us about this. I was completely devastated, The most auspicious moment of my life and here was an unwelcome intrusion from people I had no faith in, and who's own society is in debate as to their bonafidity. My wife replied that followers of Jesus go to a church, we are trying to be followers of Krsna so we go to the temple. We don't expect to have property of g.b.c. stamped on our foreheads as we walk through the door. I admitted that I had trouble following, but we had not been aspiring towards any Iskcon guru. Srila Narayana Maharaja handed the letter back and said " I will help you" The g.b.c. never even considered the consequences of their actions if Srila Narayana Maharaja had not initiated us. It would have most likely destroyed our faith completely, but then seven of the original eleven have already proved to be expert in disrupting, disturbing and destroying the faith of thousands who became attracted by Prabhupada's books and later cheated by impersonating gurus.( This is not an offensive attack, it is fact as presented by Srila Prabhupada, B.G. 4,42 purport ) On this most auspicious day of my entire encasement in maya, They planted in my heart the seeds of anger and doubts with their undevotional action. While trying hard to sincerely follow the direction of Srila Prabhupada's books and sincerely follow the direction and instruction of Srila Narayana Maharaja I was at the same time feeling bitterness and resentment and a whole array of doubts stemming from this g.b.c. act which was blatantly offensive. An official apology would be the best course of action. The whole action was steeped in hypocrisy from start to finish considering the temple president arranged a private darsana with Srila Narayana Maharaja keeping it quiet from the rest of his congregation after warning them not to go and considering the g.b.c. who sent the letter was not so long ago sat at the feet of Srila Narayana Maharaja taking his siksa. Banning us from the local temple in Srila Prabhupada's centennial year was a complete mockery of their homage to him and makes one wonder if they've even read his books. Srila Prabhupada was not sectarian ( read S.S.R. ) For any devotee who still holds some paranoid fear of the Gaudiya Math. I suggest you investigate the situation thoroughly with full use of intellect and humility there are far more quotes from Srila Prabhupada than the ones being highlighted by those who have something to lose by revealing the whole picture and by those who out of dogmatic conviction of their conception of Srila Prabhupada simply refuse any other opinion but their own. For the record it is a fact that Srila Prabhupada requested Srila Narayana to help his disciples and that Srila Prabhupada wanted cooperation with the Gaudiya Math, it can't be defeated but still they don't accept, even though both rtvik and Iskcon use the axiom "in logic, later statements supersede earlier ones in importance." yet they don't actually practice what they preach they just use this axiom as a way of trying to defeat each other without actually applying it themselves. If all you needed was books B.G. 4.34, wouldn't even be their. "I have given direction in my books", "everything is in my books ", YES, hear person, serve person, find person, what person VAISNAVA-BONAFIDE VAISNAVA!!! Please tell me, can you in all honestly put your hands on your hearts and say, trying to prevent a family from receiving the holy name from a bonafide vaisnava is genuine service to Sri Guru & Gauranga, is writing critical and offensive letters about Srila Narayana Maharaja done in a loving spirit of service to Srila Prabhupada, and is banning families from temples really a Krsna conscious activity. I would dearly love to know where it is stated that the proper way to receive a Vaisnava is by presenting him with a garland of insults. Syamasundara@dasa.fsnet.co.uk Comment on this story  Contact VNN about this storySend this story to a friend
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