A New Statement From H.H. Bhakti Vikasa Swami
BY: H.H. BHAKTI VIKASA SWAMI: All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
During my ongoing tour of Europe and America, I have been deliberately not speaking on contentious issues, considering that I had done enough for the time being and that it would be better for me to concentrate on direct Krsna-katha. (However, when presented with pointed queries I have not shied from answering them -- which particularly happened in Russia).
[PADA: Oh great, whether or not a layman (like Tamohara dasa) can banish members of the parampara, and / or dictate to members of the vaishnava parampara is now "a contention." Where is the contention? Laymen cannot dictate to the parampara members, its very simple. Claiming that this issue is "a contention" simply perpetuates and fosters the idea that the laymen are in charge of the parampara, and that the laymen can dictate to the parampara. This is the exact opposite of Krishna's teaching, He says He dictates to the guru, not the laymen? ]
BVKS: I did not desire or anticipate the controversy in which I am now involved. Nevertheless, I must convey my gratefulness to all the devotees who have expressed appreciation of my position and dismay at the "ban" on myself. It is a fact that I have been asked not to speak at two centers (Alachua and Gainesville) although I am not officially banned from either center.
I wanted to deal with this situation discreetly, but now that is not possible. I understand that being a leader within ISKCON is not at all easy and that certain of my statements are creating considerable difficulty for certain leaders.
However, I maintain that I am not the main problem, and that all this focus on myself is diverting attention from the real problems, which are the serious concerns that I have previously stated, and which need to be addressed by ISKCON leaders.
[PADA: This is very misleading: The statements of one guru are "creating considerable difficulty" for other gurus? This is not our siddhanta, our idea is that all the gurus help and compliment one another. HH Bhakti Vikas swami also refers to himself as "one of the leaders" of ISKCON, but he is NOT merely an administrative "leader" in ISKCON, he is counted as one of the "current link acharyas" within ISKCON. And this is why the followers of HH Bhakti Vikas Swami are currently writing that the other GBC leaders / gurus are "commiting the mad elephant offense" of disagreeing with and banishing BVKS.
Of course, the "other leaders" are also not minor league leaders either, they too are counted as ISKCON's acharyas. BVKS is thus avoiding the root issue all along: within ISKCON he is considered as one of the acharyas aka "parampara links" of the ISKCON mission, but he is simultaneously being banned in parts of ISKCON by the other leaders, who are also acharyas? This begs the question, "Which previous acharyas banned other acharyas"? This makes no sense.
So, this is merely a repeat of the same problem we had way back in 1979 when Jayatirtha was collapsing. The other "acharyas" said he could not speak at other temples, all ISKCON devotees were forbidden to possess his audio tapes, Jayatirtha was suspended from being a guru and so on, and this process of "containing renegade gurus" has happened repeatedly, but the main root question never gets answered, what is guru banning, guru suspension, guru monitoring, and so on and so forth?]
BVKS: Examples:
Hinduization: Increasingly, we present ourselves as Hindus.
[PADA: Right, the other gurus are presenting ISKCON as a Hindu operation, yet -- why would one guru criticize other gurus for being overly Hindu-ized? This is the first question here? Which never gets answered.]
BVKS: For instance, recently in Russia I learned that the article titled "Krsna Consciousness: Hindu Cult or Divine Culture?" had been expunged from the Russian edition of The Science of Self-realization. Srila Prabhupada opens that article by giving his definitive statement as to whether or not his movement is Hindu:
"There is a misconception that the Krsna consciousness movement represents the Hindu religion. In fact, however, Krsna consciousness is in no way a faith or religion that seeks to defeat other faiths or religions. Rather, it is an essential cultural movement for the entire human society and does not consider any particular sectarian faith. This cultural movement is especially meant to educate people in how they can love God. Sometimes Indians both inside and outside of India think that we are preaching the Hindu religion, but actually we are not."
However, a pamphlet called "Who are the Krsna-ites?", prepared by devotees for mass circulation in Russia, opens by stating that the Krsna consciousness movement is a branch of Hinduism, and includes the word "Hindu" four times in the first paragraph. It is certainly a matter of concern that devotees wish to redefine Srila Prabhupada's movement in a manner that directly opposes his own definition.
[PADA: OK notice, once again BVKS avoids the real point, its not "the devotees" who are advertising ISKCON as a Hindu religion, this deviation is being orchestrated by the other GBC gurus, i.e. the other acharyas are the ones who are orchestrating these deviations. Srila Prabhupada says the guru does not deviate at all, and yet herein we find BVKS saying that gurus deviate into all kinds of bogus schemes?]
BVKS: Portraying ISKCON as a Mundane Welfare Organization: Just one example: in a newspaper report a few years ago, an ISKCON leader was quoted as saying, 'We believe that feeding a hungry child is the best way to serve Lord Krsna'. Shades of daridra-narayana philosophy and definitely not the teachings of Srila Prabhupada.
[PADA: OK, these are not statements from other "leaders," these are statements from other "acharyas" like Radhanatha who are advertising their food for life program.]
BVKS: Increasing Mayavada Influence Within ISKCON: Promotion of Mayavadis and Nama-aparadhis, especially by certain of our esteemed swamis, should not go unquestioned. This has been elaborately analyzed on Sampradaya Sun.
[PADA: Right, not analysed by the GBC, rather analysed by those outside the GBC.]
BVKS: None of these can be said to be mere adjustments for time, place, and circumstance, as all of them radically alter the tenor of our movement ("mission drift"). From the responses I am receiving, it appears that many devotees worldwide share similar concerns. I do not wish to cause unnecessary disturbance within our movement and thus create more headaches for our esteemed leaders, but such issues are not going to go away and failing to deal with them will make for worse problems in future.
I appeal to all who have read this far to please keep a cool head. Understandably many devotees are upset, but I feel that the weighty issues at stake may best be tackled in a composed manner.
Although I appreciate the spirit of making a petition in my favor, a significantly more important petition would be one asking the GBC to clarify its stance on various issues, such as: is the Krsna consciousness movement Hindu; is feeding hungry children the best way to serve Krsna; are the apparent leanings toward Mayavada of certain of our swamis acceptable?
Rather than attempt to reply to the many queries being sent me, I am forwarding the relevant emails between myself and leaders at Alachua and Gainesville. I apologize to the senders for not consulting them before forwarding their mails, but doing so seems to be the best way to somewhat clarify the presently inflamed situation.
I must add that I have a long-standing and sweet relationship with Kalakantha Prabhu, and that although our outlooks on some issues are quite different, I respect his role as a preaching leader and his right to not invite persons who he sees as detrimental to his preaching strategies. I do not personally know Tamohara Prabhu or Mukhya Mataji. I have known Nartaka Gopala Mataji for many years. She has always been very supportive of my efforts, as also in this instance.
Dasa BVS
---------- Forwarded Message ----------
Letter PAMHO:24021005 (17 lines) {I4}
From: Internet: "tamohara" tamohara@yahoo.com
Date: 08-Sep-12 05:41 -0500 (03:41 -0700)
To: Bhakti Vikasa Swami [164845]
Cc: Kalakantha (das) ACBSP (Gainesville, FL - US) [116583]
(received: 08-Sep-12 09:06 -0500)
Cc: "Mukhya" mukhyadd@gmail.com
Cc: nartaka@windstream.net
Attached: 24021005.eml (4728 bytes) "Original email file"
Subject: Coming to Florida
------------------------------
Dear Bhakti Vikasa Maharaja,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prahupada.
There seems to be some confusion regarding your coming to the Alachua/Gainesville area and giving classes. Both the temple presidents of Alachua and Gainesville have told you that they prefer you do not give classes or preach here. This must be, and will be respected. As the GBC of Alachua, I fully support this decision. We feel that your opinions and style of preaching has tended to be disruptive and at times offensive to devotees, the GBC, and ISKCON.
Of course, any devotee is always welcome to visit, take darshan of the deities, etc. But, you will NOT be asked to preach, do programs, or give classes. Thus, I would suggest you may want to alter your September schedule.
Your servant,
Tamohara das GBC - Southeastern USA
Vice-Chair GBC Executive Committee
(Text PAMHO:24021005) ------------------------------
[PADA: Well there you have it, the GBC members says its own gurus are offensive, disruptive, and apa-siddhanta. Srila Prabhupada says we need to avoid those who are making such offensive statements about the acharyas, rather, he said we need to publicly oppose people who make such offensive claims, as HDG himself did. ys pd]
BY: H.H. BHAKTI VIKASA SWAMI: All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
During my ongoing tour of Europe and America, I have been deliberately not speaking on contentious issues, considering that I had done enough for the time being and that it would be better for me to concentrate on direct Krsna-katha. (However, when presented with pointed queries I have not shied from answering them -- which particularly happened in Russia).
[PADA: Oh great, whether or not a layman (like Tamohara dasa) can banish members of the parampara, and / or dictate to members of the vaishnava parampara is now "a contention." Where is the contention? Laymen cannot dictate to the parampara members, its very simple. Claiming that this issue is "a contention" simply perpetuates and fosters the idea that the laymen are in charge of the parampara, and that the laymen can dictate to the parampara. This is the exact opposite of Krishna's teaching, He says He dictates to the guru, not the laymen? ]
BVKS: I did not desire or anticipate the controversy in which I am now involved. Nevertheless, I must convey my gratefulness to all the devotees who have expressed appreciation of my position and dismay at the "ban" on myself. It is a fact that I have been asked not to speak at two centers (Alachua and Gainesville) although I am not officially banned from either center.
I wanted to deal with this situation discreetly, but now that is not possible. I understand that being a leader within ISKCON is not at all easy and that certain of my statements are creating considerable difficulty for certain leaders.
However, I maintain that I am not the main problem, and that all this focus on myself is diverting attention from the real problems, which are the serious concerns that I have previously stated, and which need to be addressed by ISKCON leaders.
[PADA: This is very misleading: The statements of one guru are "creating considerable difficulty" for other gurus? This is not our siddhanta, our idea is that all the gurus help and compliment one another. HH Bhakti Vikas swami also refers to himself as "one of the leaders" of ISKCON, but he is NOT merely an administrative "leader" in ISKCON, he is counted as one of the "current link acharyas" within ISKCON. And this is why the followers of HH Bhakti Vikas Swami are currently writing that the other GBC leaders / gurus are "commiting the mad elephant offense" of disagreeing with and banishing BVKS.
Of course, the "other leaders" are also not minor league leaders either, they too are counted as ISKCON's acharyas. BVKS is thus avoiding the root issue all along: within ISKCON he is considered as one of the acharyas aka "parampara links" of the ISKCON mission, but he is simultaneously being banned in parts of ISKCON by the other leaders, who are also acharyas? This begs the question, "Which previous acharyas banned other acharyas"? This makes no sense.
So, this is merely a repeat of the same problem we had way back in 1979 when Jayatirtha was collapsing. The other "acharyas" said he could not speak at other temples, all ISKCON devotees were forbidden to possess his audio tapes, Jayatirtha was suspended from being a guru and so on, and this process of "containing renegade gurus" has happened repeatedly, but the main root question never gets answered, what is guru banning, guru suspension, guru monitoring, and so on and so forth?]
BVKS: Examples:
Hinduization: Increasingly, we present ourselves as Hindus.
[PADA: Right, the other gurus are presenting ISKCON as a Hindu operation, yet -- why would one guru criticize other gurus for being overly Hindu-ized? This is the first question here? Which never gets answered.]
BVKS: For instance, recently in Russia I learned that the article titled "Krsna Consciousness: Hindu Cult or Divine Culture?" had been expunged from the Russian edition of The Science of Self-realization. Srila Prabhupada opens that article by giving his definitive statement as to whether or not his movement is Hindu:
"There is a misconception that the Krsna consciousness movement represents the Hindu religion. In fact, however, Krsna consciousness is in no way a faith or religion that seeks to defeat other faiths or religions. Rather, it is an essential cultural movement for the entire human society and does not consider any particular sectarian faith. This cultural movement is especially meant to educate people in how they can love God. Sometimes Indians both inside and outside of India think that we are preaching the Hindu religion, but actually we are not."
However, a pamphlet called "Who are the Krsna-ites?", prepared by devotees for mass circulation in Russia, opens by stating that the Krsna consciousness movement is a branch of Hinduism, and includes the word "Hindu" four times in the first paragraph. It is certainly a matter of concern that devotees wish to redefine Srila Prabhupada's movement in a manner that directly opposes his own definition.
[PADA: OK notice, once again BVKS avoids the real point, its not "the devotees" who are advertising ISKCON as a Hindu religion, this deviation is being orchestrated by the other GBC gurus, i.e. the other acharyas are the ones who are orchestrating these deviations. Srila Prabhupada says the guru does not deviate at all, and yet herein we find BVKS saying that gurus deviate into all kinds of bogus schemes?]
BVKS: Portraying ISKCON as a Mundane Welfare Organization: Just one example: in a newspaper report a few years ago, an ISKCON leader was quoted as saying, 'We believe that feeding a hungry child is the best way to serve Lord Krsna'. Shades of daridra-narayana philosophy and definitely not the teachings of Srila Prabhupada.
[PADA: OK, these are not statements from other "leaders," these are statements from other "acharyas" like Radhanatha who are advertising their food for life program.]
BVKS: Increasing Mayavada Influence Within ISKCON: Promotion of Mayavadis and Nama-aparadhis, especially by certain of our esteemed swamis, should not go unquestioned. This has been elaborately analyzed on Sampradaya Sun.
[PADA: Right, not analysed by the GBC, rather analysed by those outside the GBC.]
BVKS: None of these can be said to be mere adjustments for time, place, and circumstance, as all of them radically alter the tenor of our movement ("mission drift"). From the responses I am receiving, it appears that many devotees worldwide share similar concerns. I do not wish to cause unnecessary disturbance within our movement and thus create more headaches for our esteemed leaders, but such issues are not going to go away and failing to deal with them will make for worse problems in future.
I appeal to all who have read this far to please keep a cool head. Understandably many devotees are upset, but I feel that the weighty issues at stake may best be tackled in a composed manner.
Although I appreciate the spirit of making a petition in my favor, a significantly more important petition would be one asking the GBC to clarify its stance on various issues, such as: is the Krsna consciousness movement Hindu; is feeding hungry children the best way to serve Krsna; are the apparent leanings toward Mayavada of certain of our swamis acceptable?
Rather than attempt to reply to the many queries being sent me, I am forwarding the relevant emails between myself and leaders at Alachua and Gainesville. I apologize to the senders for not consulting them before forwarding their mails, but doing so seems to be the best way to somewhat clarify the presently inflamed situation.
I must add that I have a long-standing and sweet relationship with Kalakantha Prabhu, and that although our outlooks on some issues are quite different, I respect his role as a preaching leader and his right to not invite persons who he sees as detrimental to his preaching strategies. I do not personally know Tamohara Prabhu or Mukhya Mataji. I have known Nartaka Gopala Mataji for many years. She has always been very supportive of my efforts, as also in this instance.
Dasa BVS
---------- Forwarded Message ----------
Letter PAMHO:24021005 (17 lines) {I4}
From: Internet: "tamohara" tamohara@yahoo.com
Date: 08-Sep-12 05:41 -0500 (03:41 -0700)
To: Bhakti Vikasa Swami [164845]
Cc: Kalakantha (das) ACBSP (Gainesville, FL - US) [116583]
(received: 08-Sep-12 09:06 -0500)
Cc: "Mukhya" mukhyadd@gmail.com
Cc: nartaka@windstream.net
Attached: 24021005.eml (4728 bytes) "Original email file"
Subject: Coming to Florida
------------------------------
Dear Bhakti Vikasa Maharaja,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prahupada.
There seems to be some confusion regarding your coming to the Alachua/Gainesville area and giving classes. Both the temple presidents of Alachua and Gainesville have told you that they prefer you do not give classes or preach here. This must be, and will be respected. As the GBC of Alachua, I fully support this decision. We feel that your opinions and style of preaching has tended to be disruptive and at times offensive to devotees, the GBC, and ISKCON.
Of course, any devotee is always welcome to visit, take darshan of the deities, etc. But, you will NOT be asked to preach, do programs, or give classes. Thus, I would suggest you may want to alter your September schedule.
Your servant,
Tamohara das GBC - Southeastern USA
Vice-Chair GBC Executive Committee
(Text PAMHO:24021005) ------------------------------
[PADA: Well there you have it, the GBC members says its own gurus are offensive, disruptive, and apa-siddhanta. Srila Prabhupada says we need to avoid those who are making such offensive statements about the acharyas, rather, he said we need to publicly oppose people who make such offensive claims, as HDG himself did. ys pd]
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