Brahminical Culture vs. Kali Yuga Culture
BY: DAVID GOULD
Nov 02, N. HOBART, TASMANIA, AUSTRALIA (SUN) — Haribol! It is very obvious that for some time, there has been a need to have a brahminical council to provide sastric deliberation and spiritual direction to ISKCON to ensure compliance with the standards of Srila Prabhupada. Surely too we need some decision on the difference between brahmanas and administrators within Srila Prabhupada's society?
The third debate needs to be the independent incomes and material assets of sannyasis - which goes against the instructions of sastra and has contributed hugely to corruption with ISKCON. Sannyasis equipped with every gadget and IT device is not synonymous with simplicity and purity.
While we need managers who can manage affairs - finances, human resources, etc., it is the brahmanas - the pujaris, the religious scholars, the materially renounced varnaprastha preachers and sannyasis who should be sustaining the movement, spiritually. The time has surely come for the GBC to have the "Deputies" made full managerial members and for the sannyasis to step aside from management to provide the spiritual guidance that ISKCON requires.
There are so many agenda items for such a Council to work on: the revitalization of preaching to westerners, the need to create local devotees rather than relying on Indian and eastern European imported "religious workers", the re-opening of closed centers and the taking of the Holy Name to every town and village.
I expect also that getting a proper understanding of initiation, re-initiation, the relationship of ISKCON to other Gaudiya gurus and organizations, and making some sense of the guru fall downs and heresies such as the Bhaktipada New Vrindabin schism so that we can avoid recreating these in the future can be added to the list.
