No Guts, No Glory: The Sad Dysfunctional Society called ISKCON
BY: HAMSAVATAR DAS
Mar 29, 2011 — PECOS, NEW MEXICO, USA (SUN) — To begin with I would like to voice my appreciation for the well penned and extremely lucid writings of George A. Smith. George, I wish I could meet you and know who you are. You seem to be someone that could be of immense benefit to others in your ability to simply "reason" in a clear and logical manner.
ISKCON is run by a dysfunctional group of tyrants who are drunk with their delusions of power and grandeur. Sadly a huge amount of devotees are also extremely dysfunctional and have never matured "emotionally" from the days of their youth, although they now find themselves in their 50's and 60's. We must grow up. Leave our past mistakes and inadequacies from that past in the past. Then we at least had youth as some excuse for being fools. In the present we have no such excuse.
George's derisive quote from Ravindra Svarupa written within his answer to the "conspiracy hoax" article made me remember my own dealings with him when I first came to ISKCON. I was told he became Temple President because there was nobody else willing to do it after Subal left. Ravindra never did a damned thing of any consequence in all the years he was President of the Philadelphia temple. He went to Temple University full-time, getting his undergraduate, graduate and PhD degrees, ostensibly on the temple's "nickle", then sat up in his office for 99% of whatever time he was at the temple before and after school. The excuse was "Prabhupada wants academics who can preach to the scientists and educated class of men". Pray tell me, what lasting impressions he has ever made on any academics or scientists? Where are the justifiable results?
He's one of the most condescending and arrogant people I have ever met. I joined in Philadelphia and wouldn't move into the temple then because it was so dysfunctional. When I discovered LA temple had householders who were part of the temple, worked at jobs within the movement like Spiritual Sky and had families, I was excited! (I was told to move in and live as a "bramacari-grihastha" in the bramacari ashram and have no connection with my wife, but the taking of prasadam together, from the time I began coming to the Philadelphia temple in 1971.) I told him about my discovery of the community in LA where householders could live as such when a BTG cover featured the LA temple. His answer was "Oh, they're "west coast devotees", said with a sneer of derision on his face", as if his dysfunctional mode of lifestyle was the way life should be lived as a "real" devotee. My answer? "Well. I'm going to be a 'west coast devotee'. See ya!". My wife and I left and moved to the LA community in 1973, taking initiation from Srila Prabhupada a few months later.
I'll bet many devotees don't even know that Ravindra Svarupa also took sannyasa some years after Srila Prabhupada left. He sure did, but it was such a short period of being a so-called "renunciate" that if you blinked, you'd have missed it. One day I visited the Philadelphia temple (my family still lives there so I visit from time to time) and saw him on a vyasasana in his sannyasa garb, but the next time I visited he was in white again. I never heard any kind of "reprimand", "probation" or "demotion" for his "eating of his own vomit", as the saying goes. Nor did it seem many devotees even knew he ever took sannyasa at all.
One of our godbrothers who is not afraid of anyone, nor does he take any crap from anyone, saw him in Vrindavan last Kartik. (I won't mention his name because I haven't asked his permission, but believe me when I say that he is well known to almost everyone.) He asked Ravindra. "What are you doing here?" Ravindra replied, "Just hanging out". Then after a few more strong comments to Ravindra expressing his disgust at the attitudes and actions of certain members of the GBC, Ravindra said, "You're just envious because WE have all the power and you have NONE".
When the "poison conspiracy" was first brought to my attention so many years ago, I thought, "That's impossible. How could anyone even think of such a heinous action? Surely none of our godbrothers?", and I did not believe it. I WOULD not, COULD not, believe it. However, years later after hearing from senior devotees that were leaders within the GBC back at that time and were then heading up the investigation, I changed my mind. The small group that were the biggest power brokers of the GBC shut down the investigation when the truth was being found out that this heinous action may well have actually been committed. They did not demand it be seen through so the truth would be known to all. Those who were leading the investigation, as well as doing a lot of the detective work, were told unequivocally to "SHUT IT DOWN. NOW!" What does that tell you? It happened, but no...we'll NEVER "get over it".
Srila Prabhupada ordered the few around him when he was getting ready to leave that all of his disciples be told he was leaving the world and to come to Vrindavan immediately. He wanted to speak something to us all. In their infinite wisdom it was decided that Vrindavan could not possibly handle so many devotees coming. There was no facility. The truth was that nobody would have cared for facility. We'd have come to hear Prabhupada's last words to us. This carefully conceived plot could of course not be implemented fully if that instruction was followed, so naturally we didn't find out until afterwards that Prabhupada has asked that we all come. After all, if you're willing to heinously try to bring about the demise of your guru, what does such an instruction mean anyway? Three terrible men were responsible. The rest simply pawns.
Some of these present day leaders, like Ravindra, who later became a GBC, may not have been directly involved, but all who are silent share in the guilt. All who go along with the myriad of atrocities that have been committed upon devotees (a great majority upon women and children who are always to be protected), all who turn their heads from the grand larceny perpetrated, the wholesale excommunication, the complete marginalization of anyone and everyone who dared to speak up is guilty. SILENCE MEANS YOU AGREE.
One can judge the consciousness and position of a person by their words and actions. More than a few of these GBC politicians and gurus have exhibited the symptomatic traits of asuras. Many more exhibit the symptomatic traits of completely bewildered conditioned souls. In either case they are not fit to lead anybody, what to speak of a spiritual movement. Would anyone with any clarity of perception refute my assertions? Thieves, murderers, rapists, child molesters and just plain "nasty pieces of work". Wherever they fit it is certainly not as mentors and leaders of a spiritual movement. The ONLY way ISKCON in its present form could be saved would be if the rest of the GBC and temple presidents, who know full well what these men are like, planned and executed a coup and exorcised the movement of them. I doubt it will ever happen, though. They don't see fit to take direction from within the heart, to act on their realizations. Instead they take direction from these leading men outwardly, while privately voicing agreement with the "opposition" only when they are sure their words will not be repeated, always adding an admonition of "I will deny I ever said such a thing if you repeat this".
Sadly, although other devotees protest in print, as they can here on this website, hardly any have the guts to simply turn away from them. I notice quite a few don't even have the guts to put their names to what they write here and use pen names such as "Bhakta so and so". Why? Where is your self-respect? What if Rocana Prabhu had hidden behind a name like "Bhakta John", or his team under such pseudonyms? Would you have the same respect for them and attribute the same credence and power to their words and their work?
It is a pervasiveness of fear! Are you afraid that someone is going to come to kill you in the middle of the night? Do you worry that evil minded persons will think unkindly of you? Monsters under the bed? I'm not saying you have to lead any kind of revolution, but at least don't be a "wuss"! Like George A. Smith, you need to stand up as the intelligent and perceptive individuals that you are! Stop living in fear, all of you!
Most of these guys couldn't get jobs outside if they left, except maybe wearing a paper hat and asking "Would you like fries with that?", what to speak of doing something successful as an entrepreneur. What are their life skills that qualify them to be leaders? I ask you! Where are the qualifications? I don't know one of them that I would give a job to on my farm or in my business! They had the karma to be able to amass what they have procured materially in terms of wealth, but it was not done with honesty. Even a thief has to have the karma to be a successful one! But they will have to pay for it in the next life. That is certain. Every action begets a reaction in this or the next life. Dishonest and abhorrent actions will beget great suffering for the perpetrator. Honest actions beget further opportunity and charitable actions (punya) beget promotion to better births. Only actions in "yoga", the best being in "Krishna" Consciousness, beget the possibility of liberation from birth and death in the material world.
Why do the few GBC members who have admitted privately that the GBC body is rife with corruption, deceit and guile have no guts to leave? A true devotee, what to speak of a "guru", is dependent on only the Supreme Lord for inward direction, and the mercy of guru and the saintly sadhus for outward direction in the form of advice IF that is available. If not, they simply depend on Krishna and act according to the direction received from within the heart.
The GBC can only be powerful if you give them power over you. If devotees within the movement would simply turn their faces from this GBC, eventually nobody would be left for them to rule. Only themselves. Then they would fight amongst themselves and eventually disband, since they'd have nothing to do but try to lord it over each other.
Devotees must search their own hearts to understand who they are. Are you but an android that cannot think for him or herself? We are each "flying our own planes". Our destiny is in each of our own hands. ACTION SHAPES DESTINY! I'm not even advocating fighting them! I'm simply advocating standing up for what you believe. Have some self-respect. Turn away from these self-serving dictators. If you want to preach, do it. Srila Prabhupada's original books are now available to anyone that wishes to purchase and distribute them. There's no reason why any devotee cannot depend on Krishna in the heart and be guided to follow in Prabhupada's shoes. We may compare as a minute speck of dust in the heel of them, but so what?! The glory is in simply trying, with our only dependence being on the mercy of guru and Krishna.
What would happen if many temples "seceded"? What are they going to do? What are they going to do to any real gurus (if there are any) that decide to separate themselves from this crass, corrupt and dictatorial regime that is the GBC, and depend solely on Krishna in their hearts?
I doubt we'll ever find out, because most seem to prefer to die "towing the line". Those that had the guts to leave have already done so. I wonder what will happen to all the GBC men and these gurus' assets. Funny how ISKCON doesn't seem to have any money when it comes to paying court ordered recompense to abused children, yet individuals who are GBCs or gurus have millions in separate accounts that have no legal responsibility to ISKCON. Most temples are now under the control of the GBC, who have authority to hire or fire their leadership, but do they ever give any assistance to any temples' preaching programs (other than possibly their own in the case of the gurus with their own separate programs)?
What would Prabhupada think of this situation? What do you think he would do? We all know full well the answer, as he did it! He left India to follow his heart, that being to follow the order of his guru maharaj with only $7 in his pocket, no friends and no master plan, but only faith in his Spiritual Master and the Lord, giving him the courage and determination to follow through.
The Indian congregation needs to stop giving them any more money. Large donors need to stop giving them money. Let their "power" be shown then. Let's see what success they can manifest.
No guts, no glory. That's a motto of the US Marines, I believe (and no, I was never a Marine nor in any armed services nor even contemplated it). I used it as it seemed fitting. The vast majority of detractors just snivel and complain, rant and rave, then not only don't stand up, but don't even do something on their own, however small. It's like flogging a dead horse, trying to remove the GBC by such means. Besides, they have been very crafty in creating their positions which have no accountability to anyone. Better to use precious time doing something constructive outside their "club". They will soon die and their legacy will be that of destroying their Spiritual Master's movement. Yet it is only temporary. Krishna has His plan. "Not a blade of grass moves..."
If you had just read one of Prabhupada's books and wanted to have a chance to hear from a spiritual master, which would you think best? To follow Prabhupada and to feel you were aligned with a "param guru", a "sampradaya acarya", or to take a useless initiation from a materially bewildered and conditioned false guru?
Any disciples of Srila Prabhupada that feel qualified to take such a responsibility, that show the symptoms of a truly advanced devotee, have a duty to become guru, if and when Krishna sends souls to you seeking you as their spiritual preceptor. You take them as your disciples. But go your own way! Depend on Krishna, not on some body to approve you and give you a place
to preach under their auspices. That is our siddhanta and this is what is shown as proper in our lineage. However, bogus gurus are simply cheating and making victims of hapless persons.
An ecclesiastic body of tyrants, deviants, thieves and pompous asses is not congruent with a spiritual movement. To me they mean no more to my life than do the Pope and his Cardinals and Bishops in the Vatican. I ask you, my brothers and sisters....what will you think of yourselves when you are old and ready to leave this world if you have not enough self-respect to stand
up for what you feel is right? Whatever you believe to be truth, stand up and be counted. Otherwise what is the point of saying anything at all?
The bottom line is "stand up for what you believe" and do not cringe and hide from it. Otherwise you are a wuss, you have no self-respect, and without self-respect how can you say you have faith in God? Actions speak louder than mere words. Think about it.
Respectfully submitted,
Hamsavatar das
