Purnacandra Swami on Lokanath's Issue

Dandavats.com

September 22 at 1:55 AM  

Judging Others & Jumping To Conclusions.

Purnacandra das Goswami: Westerners, in general, take too much for granted and are not careful enough in social dealings.

Modern Western society conditions one to artificially come too close, too soon without respect for one another. Modern Western society respects nothing beyond fame, money and sexual prowess; it is the antithesis of Vaishnava culture.

Prematurely judging others and jumping to conclusions are other negative traits found almost everywhere, which most of us must admit. These traits, born of the mode of passion, create dissension. We should seek to understand our fellow devotees and try to accommodate them. This principle is basic to all religious people and holds true even in mundane dealings.

Here is a story that illustrates the point of prematurely judging others and jumping to conclusions. Once, a man was sitting on a park bench, quietly reading a newspaper. A moment later, another man with three children came along and also sat down on the bench.

The man with the children looked morose and stared at the ground, but his children began to clamor for attention. The man ignored them and the children began to fight among themselves. The first man was trying to concentrate on his newspaper, but the children were making quite a disturbance. He thought, “Why doesn’t this man control his children?”

Ten minutes passed. Finally the first man suddenly put down his newspaper and turned to the second man and said, “Why the hell don’t you control your children? Can’t you understand that they’re creating a nuisance? It’s so disturbing!”

The second man slowly turned to the first, and with tears in his eyes, replied, “My wife has just died of cancer. I’ve come from the hospital. My children think that she’s gone to sleep. They don’t know that she’s dead, but they sense that something’s wrong. I don’t know how to explain it to them.” On hearing this, the first man realized that he had made a mistake. He acted too soon without properly understanding the situation.

Nowadays, if a devotee is accused of something, many jump to a conclusion and consider him guilty without knowing the details. And if a devotee is factually guilty of a crime or misbehavior, many hold it against him even twenty years later, never considering the possibility that he could have repented and become purified through devotional service. This closed-mindedness indicates a lack of faith in the process of bhakti and a lack of proper culture.

DF Dasi: Unfortunately, the traits he describes at the beginning are not exclusive to Western society. And I agree with you, MM Dasi: the last paragraph is heavy on the gaslight and spiritual manipulation.

If Lokanath Swami had repented or become purified, I believe he then would have stepped down as a spiritual leader. Holding leaders accountable for hurting others ir not having a closed-minded mentality.

MM Dasi: Thank you for your comment and validating that i’m not alone in what i was seeing.

I was pretty surprised to see this article coming from Dandavats as I considered it to be a somewhat impartial source of information but maybe i was just naive.

DF Dasi: If it helps in any way, this anecdote has been my beacon of light:

Yamuna: Srila Prabhupada, although we are very happy where we are, we are prepared to go wherever you would like to send us in order to have your blessings.

Srila Prabhupada: You westerners are always so restless. Why can’t you stay where you are?

Yamuna: But we have been told that because we don’t have the association of devotees, we cannot make any advancement.

Srila Prabhupada: Association can be two or two hundred. But you must be compatible. If you are two and are compatible, you can go back to Godhead. But if you are two hundred and not compatible [his eyes open widely], then no one will make any advancement.

Yamuna: But Srila Prabhupada, some of the leaders are saying that we have lost your mercy because we left ISKCON and without your mercy there is no meaning to our lives.

Srila Prabhupada: ISKCON is where you are chanting the Holy Names of Krsna. That is ISKCON. (Yamuna Devi, A Life of Unalloyed Devotion).

At this moment I'm not attending any ISKCON temple or program, although my friend and I do monthly kirtan programs in the downtown for people who are friendly and interested. We even did a book club about the book "Bhakti Shakti", from Pranada Comtois. None of the participants where part of ISKCON and it was truly inspiring hearing their spiritual realizations along the weeks.

I don't feel inspired at the moment to attend temples or conventional programs. I mostly connect with other like-minded vaishnavis and I've taken shelter mostly from senior vaishnavis. I don't think Prabhupada and Krishna are found exclusively in ISKCON, and it's liberating for me knowing that I can practice Bhakti from a place of freedom. I don't like organized religion or institutions... not much of a church goer! 

MM Dasi: Thank you for sharing this!

MD Dasi: As far as I know -- Dandavats was started by the GBC to provide the devotees worldwide exclusively with articles showing Srila Prabhupada's movement in a positive light. ISKCON critical articles are never posted. The website is replacing two previous websites, Chakra and Dipika, where devotees could freely write and express themselves also regarding negative topics and discuss them with others.

Dandavats claim to be impartial, but they also call themselves "GBC friendly"...

MM Dasi: Thank you for more info ...

NT Dasa: The story about the 2 men and the uncontrolled children is a story lifted from Stephen Covey, in his book and lectures on the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Great story, great book, great material. I wish more of the world would interact on the platform of those basic principles. But what Swami Maharaj is also failing to mention is the many other core principles that Covey espouses. Like: 

Don't act duplicitous. Honor the absent. Keep your promises. The so called Western devotees are angry because the GBC has acted with duplicity over and over and over again- it's been a 40+ year sordid affair of duplicity. And people are fed up, just as they are in the current world of fractured polarizing politics. 

The GBC cabal fail to even acknowledge the fact that they do not keep their promises (which if I can remind you, is also a core Vaishnava trait) and that ratches up the anger exponentially. IT'S THE DUPLICITY, STUPID (ITDS) Swami Maharaj, you can't sing "Kumbaya, why can't we all get along" while stepping on my foot. Doing so makes you look like you are not steeped in reality or worse, that you are part of that manipulative cabal.

SF Dasi: "Westerners, in general" are usually familiar with at least basic human manners and with the meaning "sexual predator". Westerners know that it is socially unacceptable to stare and size - up women they don't even know , (unless they are soliciting prostitution / " exotic" dance ); nor do they openly "take women's measurements" with their eyes "( English?) in the place of worship.

The Westerners also don't push and shove and injure mothers with small children in order to have Deiteis Darsan on crowded holy Festival days. Most importantly, the Westerners are not desensitized to the level of thinking that groping women is normal; nor that sexual assault is just teasing. 

Unlike Asians (sadly still all Asians, it seems, with largest numbers in South Asia, but also East and SE Asia, apparently, with their" Eve -Teasing"). Westerners also know that preying in children for sexual activities of all sorts is pedophilia, (including hebephilia), and therefore criminal offence. They usually live in countries where you cannot bribe and nepotism - away any crime that easily. 

And many of them got tired of generation after generation of children being abused by hypocrites in religious cloth , and decided to call such clergy, and Churches, what they are.

DK Das: I knew Purnachandra Goswami were well. We used to have lenghty discussions on many topics. Definitely he was not a person who won't be in favor of child protection etc. He was a very straightforward and sometimes uneasy debate opponent. 

Once he gave a lesson on Sunday Feast saying this is the process where Arjuna had to reject and kill his Gurus, Parasurama had to kill his mother etc. He said this is not a sentimental process singing Radhe Radhe etc. but you will be challenged to do many things., After lesson he was asked never to give a lesson again hahaha.

N Das: Acaryas, Mahajanas are the seers of the truth and ultimate steering holders and not a condition souls with 4 defects. They have already given clear guidence that the principle is that a fallen sannyasi should not remain in that ashram what to speak of guru. 

MM Dasi: Seems so straightforward. the mental gymnastics and word jugglery to work around it is like a bunch of red herrings.

PADA: They promised the victim LS would not hold a post of authority. That was never done. Where is the repenting? Ys pd

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