04/23/98 - 1763

Simple For The Simple!

USA (VNN) - by Praghosa Dasa (letter to Pratyatosa dasa)

Praghosa Dasa here. I hope all is well. Just thought you might appreciate my thoughts on this subject.

The President and his cabinet will discuss many things in the inner sanctum of their private meetings. These meetings can be, and more than likely are, recorded. Yet what comes out of these meetings and is forwarded to the House and Senate is then later formulated into written law. There is no possibility of the recorded conversations of the President and his advisors being taken as final law! For example, only recently there was great concern throughout the world that the US might very well renew hostilities in Iraq. Certainly we can assume that there were hours and hours of intense discussion in the "inner sanctum" of the President's cabinet, as well as the Pentagon and even the United Nations. In the end however there was neither an order from The Commander in Chief or a formal Declaration of War from the Congress. If some impetuous general in the Air Force took the recorded conversations that previously occurred in the privacy of the President's Cabinet as license to attack Iraq- and did so, his military career would have come to screeching halt and he would be forced to resign in utter disgrace!!

For anyone to continue quoting the conversations of May 28th as being relevant to Srila Prabhupada's Final Order on the subject of initiations in ISKCON, is in reality-disgraceful!! Even a young child in grammar school has learned that the Month of July follows the month of May-not visa versa! The conversations of May 28th were preceded by many others and followed by many others. Some taped-Some not! They have value precisely because we can see how simple Srila Prabhupada's approach to the subject was and how motivated were those who kept inquiring, even after he answered very clearly Satsvarupa Swami's original question. "Yes I will appoint some of you to act as officiating acharyas". But these taped conversations have been referred to in the past as "The appointment tapes". A status that has now been completely rejected by the devotees who so tenaciously pursued the position of guru from 1986 onward! So just what is the significance of these taped conversations remains unclear for the men who look to these tapes as some type of authorization. They are not clear and united as to what these tapes actually authorize them to do! But these tapes are not capable of being utilized for that at all precisely because after all was "said" and then "done" Srila Prabhupada eliminated the need to speculate even one iota. He distilled the results of undoubtedly many conversations on the subject in the simple, clear, concise, and very to the point, directive that he had sent to each and every Temple President and GBC on the ninth of July! Simple for the simple! Difficult for those who would have liked for him to have sent something else!

If we look carefully at Srila Prabhupada's Last Will, article 8, we see that he states one thing in relation to how his former family members will be provided for. Later on the 5th of November, just nine days before he enters samadhi, (NINE DAYS!!!) he takes the time to meticulously delineate just exactly what were his true intentions in regards to these matters stating that "his will did not express his true intentions" and therefore it was necessary to add a detailed "codicil" to make very clear just exactly how his former wife and children were going to receive their inheritance. And just what did this inheritance amount to? For most of them 250 rupees for 7years and his former wife for the remainder of her life. Now 250 rupees in 1977 amounted to roughly $15.00 (that's fifteen) dollars!! So Srila Prabhupada thought the matter of distributing $15. a month to each of his former family members so significant, so important, that he took the time and trouble at that late stage of his manifest pastimes, to arrange a highly detailed codicil to his original will just to insure that there would be no room for speculation, quarrel, and disappointment amongst his former family members! However in the matter of preserving the unity and integrity of His movement and all it's assets and the tenderhearted devotees who had who had renounced family, culture, wealth, education, and personal ambition in order to serve him-heart and soul-he either forgot to express his "true intentions" that were previously stated in his July 9th directive or he just didn't care to reciprocate with his devotees with the same degree of love and concern as he obviously did his former family!! I FOR ONE DO NOT BUY IT!!! And neither should anyone else with even the slightest understanding of Srila Prabhupada! If Srila Prabhupada had thought that the directive he sent to all his leaders on the 9th of July was somehow not representative of "His true intentions" he would have certainly amended it to insure that there would be no misunderstanding and subsequent danger that could visit his fledgling society he had so attentively nursed for so many years. To think otherwise is to not think at all!!

With the July 9th directive, the movement is perfectly protected and can accommodate unlimited numbers of cent per cent pure devotees who do not require anything in return for their service to Srila Prabhupada-"na dhanam na janam na sundarim!" The Acharya is in the center and there is no factionalization, no separate camps, no unnecessary distractions and most importantly no invasion from outside pseudo-Vaisnava "help" that serves to disrupt the preaching and turn the process into a sentimental hodge-podge!! So the GBC were commissioned by His Divine Grace to specifically protect his movement and all his devotees from any confusion on these matters. Point in fact-the so called "Reform" of 1986 should have come directly from the GBC themselves and when men like Virabahu Prabhu, Ravindra Swarupa Prabhu and others who felt the need to appoint themselves to the position of guru (as if such a thing were actually possible!) the GBC men and especially those who were originally designated as "officiating acharyas" should have by that time grown a backbone and admitted their mistake in misinterpreting Srila Prabhupada's July 9th directive. Then they would have been able to help these men and all others who felt it necessary to ignore this all-important directive in order to remain enlivened to preach! Srila Prabhupada appointed the original men on the basis of his confidence in them and their collective ability to lead correctly and their loyalty. He assumed that they had been given the bulk of his direct statements in regards to the dangers of associating with and even worse taking counsel from his Godbrothers. "They can only harm our natural progress". But instead of protecting us all, the GBC fell victim to the influence of those who did not understand the true position of His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada and their "wise" counsel was the beginning of the chaos in Srila Prabhupada's movement!

If we want to completely solve all the confusion and unite Srila Prabhupada's movement once and for all then we must call on the remainder of Srila Prabhupada's appointed "representative acharyas" as well as the balance of the GBC body to return to the simple formula given by His Divine Grace on the 9th of July, rapidly grow a backbone and just admit the mistake, sincerely apologize, demonstrate remorse and then roll up your sleeves and work. The entire world body of devotees will support your clear actions and Srila Prabhupada will open up the flood of Love of God that is just bursting at the seams to spring forth!!

Personally I believe that this is inevitable and is the ultimate will of our Acharya. It cannot be avoided.

So it is only a matter of time. Some devotees feel that many of the leaders are incapable of returning to Srila Prabhupada's directive. I do not. Ever since the elimination of the "simultaneous guru puja" was removed in 1980 our movement has been moving inexorably back to Srila Prabhupada's original order! The process has been slow and very damaging. Nevertheless it has been moving back. The final acceptance of the July 9th directive is nearly complete. For all intents and purposes it has been accepted. In practice ISKCON is very close to realizing the truth in these matters. So we can take heart in that and patiently speak with any devotee who is sincerely trying to understand these matters. Share these conclusions with everyone and discuss them openly. Nothing is spoiled by discussing. We are all accustomed to preaching and discussing philosophy. Those who are attached to the status quo have turned these matters into "dangerous topics". But they are not. His Divine Grace told us that "if they knew what I was actually accomplishing by preaching this Krishna Consciousness the leaders of this demoniac culture would certainly try to kill me!" So fear of discussion about these subjects is not to be feared and to demonstrate such fear is for lesser men-not stouthearted devotees!!

I myself have had to revisit this issue in three separate periods of my life. Without Srila Prabhupada's directive of the 9th of July I would not have been able to accept the idea of continued "representative" initiation within Srila Prabhupada's movement. With it I have been forced to see the simplicity and genius of Srila Prabhupada and to marvel at how brilliantly he has harmonized each and every statement he made in his books, lectures, and letters. So I have been forced to accept his simple directive. To do otherwise and to direct others to do the same is I believe ultimately the opposite of pure Krishna Consciousness. We cannot deliver the Holy Name while simultaneously disobeying the orders of the Spiritual Master. If the "guru" can pick and choose which order from his guru he can follow then the only disciples he will eventually attract are those whose approach to Krishna Consciousness is the same. The disciples who now follow their guru in ISKCON will in time learn of the significance of Srila Prabhupada's Final Order in regards to his ISKCON society and they will eventually question why their "guru" tenaciously resisted this order using twisted and motivated or at the least ignorant logic to do so. This will then result in a loss of faith in the disciples that will nearly impassible to regain unless the " Order" is ultimately followed. So I believe that rather than wait for that to happen we should all participate in open and frank discussion on these matters. I do not think that it will be possible for anyone to circumvent Srila Prabhupada's final directive sent out on the 9th of July. It could be and has been ignored, but it cannot be dismissed and it certainly should not be disobeyed!!!

I just thought you might like to hear some of my thoughts on this matter after I read your exchange with this devotee. If you feel there is any merit in them you may pass them on to whom ever you like.

Sincerely, your servant,
Praghosa Dasa