© 1998 VNN
| WORLD November 21, 1998 VNN2535 See Related VNN Stories A Conspirator Speaks BY GURU-KRSNA DAS USA, Nov 21 (VNN) — Dear Venerable Vaisnvas & Vaisnavis, Please accept my respectful obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada! All glories to all genuine Prabhupadanugas! With a view towards satisfying the desire of those who may want to hear directly from us conspirators, I offer the following personal testimony, although I am an insignificant personality in any sphere: We were indeed conspirators, but only according to this definition (Webster's) of "conspire": "to act in harmony." As far as able, we did conspire to produce a treatise to be submitted to the GBC, aiming to effect bona fide social change within ISKCON based upon the Vedic model. However, we did not, as was reported herein, engage in "Conspiracy to Terminate the ISKCON Women's Ministry." Factually we did (and continue to) conspire to formally recommend that the IWM be either superseded by, amalgamated with, or governed by the Grhasta Ministry. It is also true that our goal was (and will continue to be) "to turn back the clock on the recent progress made by ISKCON Vaisnavis in their struggle to be recognized as individuals with the right to serve guru and Krsna according to their propensities" should such "right" contravene the sacred duty of a Vaisnavi as wife and mother. And it is true that we "tried to explain many current ISKCON problems as being due to women not acting according to Vedic principles." But it is also a fact that we acknowledged and still recognize that many current ISKCON problems are due to MEN not acting according to Vedic principles. As for our selective use of quotes "to blame everything from divorce to wife abuse on the women's attitudes and behavior," I humbly submit that this is an exaggeration of the actual consensus opinion of us conspirators. I proffer this portrayal as more accurate: We recognize the truth of Srila Prabhupada's statements that social disruption is caused primarily by women's improper attitudes and unacceptable behaviors, as enjoined by the *acaryas*, Manu-samhita, and *dharma-sastras*. (Ameyatma Prabhu has already provided unequivocal evidences of this in his recent response to the same news item) Finally, I offer my sincerest apologies to any and all whom I may have offended by my participation on GHQ and humbly invite personal correspondence for the purpose of conciliation. With straw between my teeth, I seek forgiveness for offenses and also blessings to remain in the service of the Vaisnavas. Thank you very much. I remain humbly endeavoring to become your servant in service to ISKCON, Guru-Krsna das (HDG) afn39393@afn.org *dharmo-rakshati rakshitaha* See Related VNN Stories This story URL: http://vaishnava-news-network.org/world/WD9811/WD21-2535.html |
