Суд над Бхагавад-гитой / Attempt to ban Bhagavad-gita

"From Madhavananda I have heard that there is some worship of yourself by the other devotees. Of course, it is proper to offer obeisances to a Vaishnava, but not in the presence of the spiritual master, it will come to that state, but now wait. Otherwise, it will create factions." (Hamsadutta, 10/1/74)

Note: Prabhupada is not saying here that after his departure anyone and everyone should be worshipped no matter how bogus they are. He is indicating that his disciples will no doubt start their own temples, etc. This is not only expected by Prabhupada, but it is Prabhupada's order. The sons naturally become fathers. Inevitably some devotees will not follow so strictly and will form factions. Others will more purely represent Srila Prabhupada. The GBC's job was not to control the different disciples' preaching projects but to make sure the ones not representing Prabhupada purely are not called ISKCON. But before the GBC can do their job, they themselves must know what it means to represent Prabhupada. Semen-drinking "gurus" do not represent Srila Prabhupada, and ff anyone says that they do...

"I am enclosing herewith a letter from Krishna devi which speaks for itself. Please reply her that she cannot take charge of one of our centers because she has violated the regulations of our society. In spite of having her duly married husband, she indulged in illicit sex life, so this is willful violation of our rules and regulations. So far her Krsna conscious activities are concerned, she can execute nicely wherever she lives, and I have all blessings for her, because the door of Krsna consciousness is open for everyone, but when one has to take charge of a center, he has to become completely above suspicion." (Brahmananda, 3/12/68)

Note: From this letter it is clear that none of the current "gurus" are qualified to be a temple president, what to speak of being a GBC or "Guru," because they are not in any way, shape, or form above suspicion. The misbehavior has been blatant and the suspicion is intractable because of it.

"In your letter you have made it clear that you are finding some difficulty with sex desire and have asked guidance from me to instruct you how to handle this problem of the material body.

"First of all I think you should know that such problems are not very unnatural because in the body the conditioned soul is very prone to failure. But also we must remember that such failure will not discourage us from executing the most important mission of our life, to become fully in Krsna consciousness. So whatever falldown has been, you should be regretful about it, but it is not so serious nor is it a permanent disqualification. But you must try to check yourself from such artificial things and take full shelter of the lotus feet of Krishna..." (Upendra, 12/9/68)

Note: Many of today's "gurus" use concessions like this one to justify their debauched behavior. They say that even though they commit the most abominable actions, they are saintly because they are rightly situated. Were they humble, and not posing as uttama-adhikaris, that may well be true. But a guru cannot use such verses as an excuse. A guru must be exemplary. What they are really doing is called committing offenses on the strength of chanting the Holy Name. In many places Prabhupada refers to ones weaknesses and minor falldowns as "a child kicking in the womb." He never really condemned such failure-prone children, but he never said that such pups could pose as pure devotees, either uttama or madhyama.(See Appendix 22, Part Two, for an in-depth analysis of this syndrome.)

"Simply because there is no stock of books, we can do anything whimsically??? Is this logic? Gita is not spoken in Vrindavana, it is spoken on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, but this is Vrindavana picture. That chariot driven by 4 horses, that is the real Kurukshetra picture. It is not that because there is no stock we can do whimsically as we like and lose the idea, that is rasa bhasa. Because there is no bread so you will take stone??? The front picture is most important thing and you have changed it." (Bhargava, 5/29/76)

Note: This analogy is very appropriate to the "guru-issue" in ISKCON. So they now think that simply because there are no pure devotees around we can do anything whimsically??? Is this logic? Pure devotees are not appointed, they are self-manifesting, but these men have appointed them. Pure devotees are seen by their having no material desire, they have all good qualities, and they never deviate from the authority of Guru, sastra, sadhu; that is the way to recognize a pure devotee. It is not that because there are no devotees around with these qualities that we can do whimsically as we like and lose the idea of what a guru is. That will pollute everything. Because there is no bread, you will take stone to eat??? There are no pure devotees, so everyone is worshipping any Tom, Dick, or Harry who's up on an opulent seat??? The qualifications for being a guru are the most important thing. But they have changed them.

"My advice is always chant l6 rounds minimum and follow the fou rregulative principles. All of my disciples must agree on this point, otherwise they are not my disciples. Let one live anywhere,but stick to the principles. Disagreements will continue in this material world. So one may live in a suitable place, but one must follow these five principles. My disciples must follow these five principles living either in heaven or hell." (Raja-Laksmi-dasi, 2/17/76)

Note: It goes without saying that if one who took formal initiation is not following strictly, and is therefore not a disciple, then one who did not take formal initiation, but is following strictly, is a disciple. You can live anywhere, but to be a disciple of Prabhupada, here are the qualifications. There are real disciples of Prabhupada all over the world who may have never been to a temple, but have gotten hold of a book and are following. Prabhupada says here that one may even be living in hell, but, if he is following, he is a disciple. The question of whether or not one needs a physically present guru to go back to Godhead is not the ultra crucial question. Guru is one. This means that if one follows Prabhupada's instructions strictly, then Krsna will send him a bona fide guru in due course of time. That bona fide guru is also non-different from Srila Prabhupada. So in that sense, while following Prabhupada's instructions, one is automatically linked up with Prabhupada and the whole parampara system. That is made clear from letters shortly following.

"You have asked 'How serious would it be for me if I should miss the golden opportunity to become your initiated disciple?' You should know that the value of accepting a bona fide spiritual master is more than we can calculate. It is not a mere formality. Of course everyone is encouraged to chant Hare Krishna, but until one gives up sinful activities and become determined to serve Krishna through His representative, then the firm fixing up of devotional service will not take hold, and there is every chance that one will fall prey to all sorts of material desires and have to come back again in the next life, and one cannot guarantee that he will be born in the form of life he may desire.

"I know you have been attending our temple in Boston sometimes, and that you wish to be a sincere devotee of Krishna. So go on faithfully with your chanting and pray to Krishna to give you strength for advancing in His service. It is a fact, however, that we must become free of all material desire before going back to Godhead, and this can only be achieved by following the instructions of a bona fide spiritual master." (2/12/74)

"It is a basic principle that one must accept a bonafide spiritual master in order to achieve the highest perfection of life, love of God. I thank all of you very much for accepting me as your spiritual master, and I promise that I will take you back to home, back to Godhead. I ask you all to promise me to always chant at least 1 6 rounds. Follow the regulative principles, read our books and try to preach this Krsna consciousness movement all over the world. So far my qualifications are concerned, I am simply trying to carry out the order of my Guru Maharaja." (Nityananda, 11/12/71)

Note: In the above three letters, the real qualifications for being a disciple are spelled out. Prabhupada never stressed in any place, in letter, book, or lecture, the absolute necessity of physical diksa. He stressed the instructions. Otherwise why would he be so concerned with writing his books? He knew he wouldn't be physically around much longer. He certainly knew his disciples were not qualified to become gurus yet. The fact is, Prabhupada is still as much with us as ever, actually more so. Before Prabhupada left the planet, devotees were under the illusion that Prabhupada was present where he was living. How the devotees are able to appreciate Prabhupada the way Prabhupada wanted to be appreciated, in his instructions. He is factually there in his books. Anyone who takes up the books wholeheartedly is a disciple of Prabhupada, whether he ever saw Prabhupada or not. If anyone asks such a person: "Who is your guru?" he can say in all honesty, "My guru is His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada because I have accepted his instructions as my life and soul." This point is clear from the following letters.

If such a devotee meets a more elevated disciple of Srila Prabhupada and develops full confidence that that higher devotee truly represents Srila Prabhupada, such a sincere seeker may elect to move close to Srila Prabhupada through the subjective instructions of such a manifest guru in Srila Prabhupada's line.

"Regarding your question about the disciplic succession coming down from Arjuna, it is just like I have got may disciples, so in the future these many disciples may have many branches of disciplic succession. So in one line of disciples we may not see another name coming from a different line. But this does not mean that person whose name does not appear was not in the disciplic succession... Another point is that disciplic succession does not mean one has to be directly a disciple of a particular person. The conclusions which we have tried to explain in our Bhagavad-gita are the same as those conclusions of Arjuna. Arjuna accepted Krishna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and we also accept the same truth under the disciplic succession of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Things equal to the same thing are equal to one another. This is an axiomatic truth..." (Kirtanananda, 1/25/69)

Note: So if anyone is preaching and following the exact same thing, then he is a bona fide disciple in the disciplic succession from Lord Caitanya and Prabhupada, whether he is a direct disciple or not. This is again stated even more clearly below:

"Regarding the disciplic succession coming from Arjuna, disciplic succession does not always mean that one has to be initiated officially. Disciplic succession means to accept the disciplic conclusion." (Dinesh, 10/31/69)

Note: This is the key letter. It should be memorized by anyone wishing to be a disciple of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Our only warning in this connection is that this liberal opportunity is only applicable if a true disciple is understanding the message properly and acting in accordance with the message, free from any and all motivated rationalizations. This is no easy task. Naturally such a person should be well-versed in scripture to substantiate his position in the parampara.

"So far personal association with the Guru is concerned, I was only with my Guru Maharaja four or five times, but I have never felt any separation. I have never left his association, not even for a moment, because I am following his instructions. There are some of my Godbrothers here in India who had constant personal association with Guru Maharaja, but who are neglecting his orders. This is just like the bug who is sitting on the lap of the king. He may be very puffed up by his position, but all he can succeed in doing is biting the king. Personal association is not so important as association through service." (Satadhanya, 2/20/72)

Note: We can't think of any more appropriate analogy than this to describe the position of ISKCON's current "gurus." They often say that they are the most advanced devotees, because they had the most personal association with Prabhupada. But here we can see that such a consideration is not only meaningless, but often becomes a disqualification. Chanakya Pandit warns that one should not live too close to a woman, the king, the fire, or the master (guru). Neither should one live too far away, for then he doesn't get the benefit. He recommends one deal with them in the middle way. Similarly, connection with the blazing sun can work in different ways due to different connections. The sun can give us warmth and health as it shines on our head, yet the same sun can bum the soles of our feet as we walk on the beach. Association with the ever-liberated saktyavesha-avatara is a razor's edge. It can give the highest benedictions, but if the personal secretaries, servants, and "big" devotees become familiar with the spiritual master, that close association degrades them.

"Unless there is connection with a bonafide spiritual master, coming in the line of disciplic succession, there is no Possibility of making progress in spiritual life. So I have established ISKCON centers for the purpose of catching up the Lotus Feet of Krishna by intimate connection with the spiritual master. These are my authorized centers for that purpose. You say that whatever I instruct you, you will carry out, so again my instruction is that you abandon this independent scheme and join your good Godbrothers and sisters at some one of our ISKCON centers." (Friends, 5/23/72)

Note: In many letters, including one quoted earlier, Prabhupada says one can live anywhere but just follow the principles. In this letter, however, it appears that living in an ISKCON temple is absolutely necessary. Is this a contradiction? One consideration is that this letter was written in May 1972. That is still a little early. In later years, as the politics increased, and purity decreased, Prabhupada did not stress moving into a temple as much. Instead he emphasized following the instructions wherever one may be. In the Caitanya-caritamrta Prabhupada says: "If one thinks that there are many pseudo-devotees or nondevotees in the Krsna consciousness society, one can keep direct company with the Spiritual Master, if there is any doubt." (Mad 7, p.340). Reading Srila Prabhupada's books, listening to Srila Prabhupada's tapes, serving Srila Prabhupada's desires, meditation on the form of Srila Prabhupada, and following Srila Prabhupada's many instructions are all non-different from direct association with Srila Prabhupada. In many cases, Prabhupada actually asked devotees to come and live with him personally when they were in difficulty with the "leaders." This instruction also means taking shelter of Prabhupada's books independently, since they are non-different. We are never obliged to enter into any so-called temple in which serious deviations are incorporated in either the philosophy or management. Never.

"That there have been no newly initiated devotees from Japan is all right. It doesn't matter whether they are initiated or not. If they are coming in large number, that is the success of our mission. We are not after making initiated members very many but our concern is that people understand this philosophy in wider circles. Initiated members are for managing the temples and preaching work, but our program is to invite people to our feasts, let them hear our philosophy and dance and chant. That is the basic principle of our philosophy in preaching work." (Sudama, 4/11/71)