RE: Book Changes Issue (Garuda Dasa)

MY DEAR VAISHNAVA SISTERS AND BROTHERS!

I offer all of you my affectionate praṇāmas. Śrīla Prabhupāda kī jaya!

In this post, I offer all of you words of a dear, senior Guru Bhai with whom I have been studying and working on the issue of editing Śrīla Prabhupāda's books over the past three years. These words so beautifully and eloquently articulate the editing problem, which I hope you will find helpful for your own understanding and for others' understanding as well:

The Editing Controversy Summarized

Paratrikananda Das

The controversy regarding the protracted, posthumous editing of Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita (and in some cases other publications) may be summarized as follows:

Where Srila Prabhupada granted conservative, provisional authority,

BBT editors assumed unrestricted, open-ended authority.

Where Srila Prabhupada requested only copyediting and correction

BBT editors undertook wholesale revision.

Where Srila Prabhupada requested scholarly editorial standards,

BBT editors employed pseudo-scholarly editorial practices.

Where scholarly editorial standards compelled full transparency,

BBT editors declined to duly disclose the extent of their editorial overreach or properly note the editor’s  name.

(Scholarly standards and publishing industry conventions specify that revised editions clearly indicate the name of the editor(s), either named on the cover of the book or declared on its copyright page.)

The misapprehension of Srila Prabhupada’s directions on the part of the editors has resulted in a great schism. This schism can be reversed by revisiting the original, author-approved edition of the book and applying only those editorial directives expressly enunciated by His Divine Grace. The additional editorial modifications by BBT editors can only be viewed as an infringement upon Srila Prabhupada’s will and authorial privilege and, arguably, a circuitous criticism of his personal vision.

So, my friends, there you have it. What are your thoughts?

I hope you find these words informative and edifying. In the meantime, I wish all of you a very HAPPY NEW YEAR in Krishna's bhajan and sevā!

Dāso 'smi tava hṛdayānām,

Garuḍa Dāsa