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EDITORIAL August 20, 1999 VNN4547 Comment on this story Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj : "They Should Not Leave Iskcon" BY RASIKANANDA DAS EDITORIAL, Aug 20 (VNN) — Dear Devotees, please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga. Recently, several devotees have been putting out false propaganda on VNN in order to try to recruit followers for Srila Narayana Maharaja. As a disciple of His Holiness Srila Gour Govinda Maharaja, I feel compelled to post this text in order to clear up this misleading information. The following is an excerpt from an arrival lecture given in 1992 in Bhubaneswar India by His Holiness Srila Gour Govinda Maharaja. ..." Next thing, this Sacinandana Swami in Heidelberg, Germany, he asked me, "Maharaja, why have you come ? What is the purpose of your coming now ? You have so much bodily problem, you cannot move freely. So much thing I could notice. Still you are doing alot of touring, travelling and preaching. What is your purpose ?" He asked me. I said, " Maharaja, I have dedicated my life, my body, my mind, my speech, everything I've dedicated for the service of Guru and Gauranga and my revered spiritual master, Srimad A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Maharaja has founded this International Society for Krsna Consciousness, like his life, his body. He is getting so much pain now, I could feel so. After his disappearance, many left, so- called sannyasis, leaders, those who have joined the other camp, Sridhara Maharaja camp and some other camp and they are now criticising ISKCON, criticising Srila Prabhupada, committing such great offense they couldn't understand, and they must get punishment for it, definitely. But what they say, it is intolerable on my part, intolerable, especially in Rome. They showed me that booklet they are publishing, Sadjana Tosani, and they have put the name of my guru maharaja there, Srimad A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, then Bhaktiraksa Sridhara, then Govinda maharaj. Why have they put the name of my guru maharaja ? Devotee: It's cheating. Gour Govinda maharaja: Cheating, yes they are cheating. You are publishing your booklet, then you'll put your name. But the photo of my guru maharaja, "Guru maharaja said" articles they have printed there and telling these ISKCON devotees that Bhaktivedanta Swami taught, gave only elementary knowledge, A B C. He has not given any higher Vaisnava philosophy, education. Now, after Bhaktiraksita Sridhara maharaja, Govinda maharaja is keeping it up, "please come and join." So they are just tricking and stealing the men of ISKCON. And that is intolerable, very painful. I got such a shock in my heart. These fools, who are going there. They are fools ! I chastised them, "Why you are such a fool ? You believe them ? You don't believe Prabhupada who fulfilled the desire of Gauranga Mahaprabhu ? prthivi-parajanta jata ache desa-grama sarvatra sancara hoibek mora nama. C.B Antya 4.126 Who did it ? Did they do it ? Srimad Bhaktisiddanta Prabhupada maharaj already sent, prior to the coming of my guru maharaj to the West, he sent Bhakti Tirtha, Bhakti Hrdaya Bon maharaj and some others. Why they couldn't do ? They were sannyasis, they were living in the math with Bhaktisiddanta, but my guru maharaja was a grhasta, he was living in his home. he was not matha-vasi, staying in the matha. He was not a sannyasi at that time, he was a grhasta. But he could get the complete, full mercy, complete mercy of Bhaktisiddanta, Bhaktivinoda Thakur, specially empowered person, an empowered devotee. Who could fulfil the desire of all previous acaryas, especially Bhaktivinoda Thakur, Bhaktisiddanta Saraswati. Who came to the West. Who sowed the seed, who laid the foundation of Krsna Consciousness. Who fulfilled the desire of Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu. Specially empowered. He's empowered. Can't you understand this thing, why couldn't they do this thing ? Why do they come at this time and do now, when the atmosphere is created, the platform is there, foundations are already laid some construction is there ? Now they are coming. Now you are going there, leaving ISKCON camp. Such foolishness ! You are such a fool. Can't you understand this thing ? Thereby they are committing such offence. He has given only elementary knowledge A B C, nothing higher ? You can't understand what he has said. When a tiny seed is there, it contains, like the seed of a banyan tree. So tiny but it contains a great banyan tree inside. You fool cannot understand this thing. So intolerable. As a disciple of my guru maharaja and as a member of this founded society ISKCON, it is our duty to keep up the prestige. Yes, it is our duty now. So, when Sacinandana Swami asked me, I said this thing. Therefore I have come, and I am now coming and touring, very extensive tour I am doing... ...Yes, that is my only purpose. So I am coming and teaching. And I want to make them 'mum', shut their mouth. Now there is higher teaching in ISKCON. Yes, the time has come now. The time has come when my guru maharaja, he gave everything in seed form. That seed will now be fructified. Yes, it contains everything and you should understand. You are so foolish you cannot understand this thing. What my guru maharaja said in one word, in one sentence, it needs further explanation. One word, one sentence contains and you can't understand, you're such fools. ... End. In 1994 in New York, U.S.A, I was with Srila Gour Govinda Swami when he made the following statement regarding his mission; He said " My mission is to show how Prabhupada has put everything in his books. The Gaudiya matha, they criticise that Prabhupada only taught A B C, and this gives me so much pain in my heart. So my mission is to show how everything is there in Prabhupada's books and make them 'mum' and so nobody will leave ISKCON." The following are two letters written by His Holiness Srila Gour Govinda Swami. One to Gudakesa das and one to Goloka Vrndavan das: Dear Gudakesa das Hare Krsna. Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. Thank you for your letter, undated. I have gone through it carefully and noted the contents. My opinion is that Srila Prabhupada will not be happy with these senior devotees going outside of ISKCON. Srila Prabhupada has said that everything is in his books. If you try to understand this, then by the mercy of Srila Prabhupada it will all be made clear to you. It is a fact that if an elevated Vaisnava is there, then one should go and take his association. There is no harm in that. But in this case there is a danger that the discipline in our organisation will be affected adversely. If the leaders are going outside of ISKCON, how will we be able to maintain discipline ? Srila Prabhupada has formed this society, and this THREAT (my emphasis) to his society will only cause him PAIN (my emphasis). With this consideration, they should not go. That will only lead to indiscipline in our society. Two sides are there; philosophical and organisational. On the organisational side, this practice is not good. Therefore we have this GBC body which makes so many rules to maintain the discipline of the members of our society. But how will we be able to keep discipline now ? No one will listen, 'if the leaders are going, why should we listen, we will also go'. This will create only trouble. May this letter find you in the best of health and a blissful mood of Krsna consciousness. Your servant Gour Govinda Swami Dated 3/11/94 next letter: Dear Goloka Vrndavan das, Hare Krsna. May you have the blessings of Sri Sri Guru and Gauranga all the time. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. Thank you for your letter dated Oct., 23 1993, which I have just received. I have gone through it carefully and noted the contents. You mention that many devotees are loosing faith in ISKCON and are leaving our society to find shelter elsewhere. That is not good. THEY SHOULD NOT LEAVE ISKCON (my emphasis); that will never please Srila Prabhupada. Develop patience and tolerance, and pray to Srila Prabhupada from the core of your heart. How is it that he will not help you ?... I hope this letter finds you in good health and a blissful mood of Krsna consciousness, Yours in the service of Srila Prabhupada Gour Govinda Swami. Dated 18/12/93 End. Of course, if one is crooked, one may try to twist what has been said in the above texts . Some so called godbrothers of mine have done this, but for the honest devotee, I'm sure it is clear. No doubt some will try to reply with all kinds of philosophical word jugglery, this and that, but we should try to understand things as it is, not in a crooked way. In his article of 8th August Giridhari das stated some gross untruths; He said: " Because of their intimate relationship, it was Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayan Maharaj who installed the murti of Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj in the Krsna-Balaram mandir in Bhubaneswar." Well, that's not exactly the fact. Yes, Narayan Maharaj was there as were many other senior vaisnavas, and one of Narayan Maharaj's disciples did help with the fire sacrafice, but to say that Narayan Maharaj installed the murti of my Gurudeva is a little exaggerated to say the least. In the last sentence of his article Giridhari das states the following: " By the arrangement of Sri Guru and Krsna the majority of Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj disciples have taken shelter at the lotus feet of Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayan Maharaj." Sorry Giridhari, I don't think you've worked out your figures correctly. There's a maximum of 60 disciples who have disobeyed the orders of their Spiritual Master, Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj, and are apparently taking shelter elsewhere. My Guru Maharaj has in excess of 600 disciples, therefore your 60 hardly constitutes a 'majority'. The last point I'd like to make to set things straight is this idea that Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj ever actually met Srila Narayan Maharaj: Previously it was being stated that they met firstly in 1995 in Jagganath Puri. Now that seems to have changed to 1993 or 1994 according to Giridhari das. My question then is; why is it that none of Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj's senior disciples, who were always with him and knew all of his engagements, can confirm the meeting ? Infact they flatly deny that there was such a meeting. That there actually was no meeting is confirmed by Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj's personel diaries. There is a detailed entry every day of every meeting etc. We went through these diaries carefully and there is not only no mention of a meeting with Srila Narayan Maharaj in 1993 or 1994, but my Guru Maharaj did not even go to Jagganath Puri in 1993 or1994. He did go in 1995 however and had a meeting with Srila Satsvarup Maharaj, but no one else. I leave you all to draw your own conclusions. Hare Krsna Y.S. Rasikananda das Comment on this story  Contact VNN about this storySend this story to a friend
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