02/06/98 - 1581

Hare Krishna Toronto

Toronto (VNN) - from Toronto, Canada

Please accept my humble obeisances all glories to Srila Prabhupada. On Jan. 31, 1998, here in Toronto a meeting of devotees was held at a local temple that was started a number of months ago by a long term devotee of Srila Prabhupada . He and his wife operate it as an outreach centre for the local community and stay purposefully and understandably out of ISKCON politics. However the centre is open for a number of spiritual and physical self help groups which pay a small fee should they like to gather from time to time. The gathering of devotees was a three hour event, and after arotik plans were made for a future meeting to discuss the changing of Prabhupada's books, ISKCON women's issues, The Final Order book which everyone is reading, initiations for the future and more.

Out of this came the formation of HARE KRSNA TORONTO, a new association of new and original Srila Prabhupada devotees . The first gathering will be held in March and the time and address will be made available two weeks prior to the gathering. Of course many will be contacted well in advance. It will be held on a Sunday in direct transcendental competition to the other temple here in Toronto. Where was it ever written that there was to be only one Prabhupada temple per city or town? Non of the other religions are restricted in such a manner. Besides there is no preaching of the original philosophy here in Toronto, only devotees selling bogus books, splitting up the money between the temple and there guru who lives in some far off land.

There is no central focus or collective dedication to Srila Prabhupada. The Hindus give their monthly donations, continue their business and the residents go merrily along with whatever "MISCON" dictates. If the local Hindus knew that the so called sannyasi they allow to visit and speak, who was in Toronto a few weeks ago, was a homosexual pedophile, what do you think their reaction would be? So we are going ahead with a new temple, which for the moment will be nomadic until a location is found. As far as books are concerned every used book store in the city of Toronto will receive a list of Prabhupada's books.

The ones we will be requesting of course are those prior to the years that they were changed. Newspapers will be targeted with ads as well. In this city alone the devotees distributed over several hundred thousand of Srila Prabhupada's books in the 70's and 80's. We will be photocopying from the original books where necessary and of course preaching the reason why. That in and of itself will give the people first hand experience as to the workings of MAYA. As Victor Hugo remarked, "There is one thing more powerful than all the armies of the world, and that is an idea whose time has come". So now the time has come so we must arm ourselves with the weapons of knowledge. In passing a local bookstore the other day I saw a book entitled Cults. I checked for Hare Krsna and found a nice picture of Srila Prabhupada on, of course, page 108, and the rest of the article on page 109. The authors name is Micheal Jordon and the book was printed in Dubai.

I will quote you a statement he made on page 109 It seems even those about us can see the truth plainly:

"The Hare Krsna Movement, as it came to be popularly known was left sitting on the business empire Prabhupada had created. It possessed a substantial bank balance but no Director of Corporate affairs. Left in his wake was a clique of young street wise governors. They had SURFEIT of ambition but little experience of business. Almost immediately eleven of the 29 members of the commission issued the UNSUBSTANTIATED claim that Swami Prabhupada had made a death bed announcement that they were to carry the succession forward. Their spokesman was Keith Ham, otherwise known as Kirtanananda, who had been one of the original American disciples."

What's that saying, "you can fool some of the people some of the time... I leave you now with this. Over throwing and replacing the old order - any order, is risky business. Revolutionaries lead notoriously dangerous lives.

There is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things. For the reformer has enemies in all those who profit by the old order of things and only lukewarm defenders in all those who would profit by the new order, this lukewarmedness arising partly from fear of the adversaries who have the laws in their favor and partly from the incredulity of mankind, who never believe in anything new until they have had experience of it.

Thus it arises that on every opportunity for attacking the reformer, his opponents do so with the zeal of partisans, the others only defend him halfheartedly, so that between them he runs great danger. It is necessary, however... to examine whether these innovators are independent, or whether in order to carry out their designs they have to entreat or are able to compel. In the first case, they inariably succeed ill, and accomplish nothing; but when they can depend on their own strength and are able to use force, they rarely fail. Thus it comes about that all armed prophets have conquered and unarmed ones failed... wrote Machiavelli, with characteristic blunt acumen."

So arm yourself with the weapons of knowledge from Srila Prabhupada's original books. Remember Arjuna go forward and start opening those temples that Lord Caitanya and Srila Prabhupada wanted us to.

Until next time this is HARE KRSNA TORONTO saying ALL GLORIES TO SRILA PRABHUPADA