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EDITORIAL January 21, 2000 VNN5313 Comment on this story An Open Letter To My Godbrother BY KUNDALI DASA EDITORIAL, Jan 21 (VNN) — An Open Letter to My Godbrother Dear BB Govinda Maharaja, dandabats. All glory to Srila Prabhupada. It has been awhile since we last spoke. By a very roundabout method, I just got an email informing me that you met with one Santosh Agarwal in the mid-east and supposedly mentioned that I, Kundali Dasa, is "anti-iskcon". Whatever the truth of that meeting, I want to take the opportunity to tell you my position, just in case you are interested in representing me truthfully on your next outing for the GBC. I'm am not anti-iskcon at all. I'm anti coercion, anti-manipulation, anti-bullying, and other forms of cultish behavior practiced in iskcon. I'm anti-incompetence. I'm anti-illusion. I'm anti-politics and other symptoms of rajo-guna. I'm anti-high living and simple thinking. I'm anti-might-is-right dealings. I'm anti swindle, lying, stealing, cheating, etc., etc., etc. I'm anti the myth that fostering dependency in people is the way to cooperate for Srila Prabhupada, or that this is even Krishna consciousness at all. I'm anti apasiddhanta. I'm anti dysfunctional or cult dynamics. I'm anti the practice of chasing off thinking people and rewarding the blind followers. I'm anti disciple-making as a business. I'm anti naked emperors on every level. The fact that these things are practiced in iskcon does not make me anti-iskcon. It makes me more pro-iskcon than the people who do these things in iskcon. They are the ones who are anti-iskcon. Am I making sense or not? Hopefully you are not one of those people, in which case we are on the same side. Now, please let me tell you what I'm for: I'm pro-parampara--both in doctrine and practice. I'm for respect for human dignity, for integrity, for due process, for the exercise of reason, for discussion rather than coercion, for independent thoughtfulness, for inter-dependent cooperation. I'm for collegiality. I'm for the truth rather than the party line. I'm for cooperating with rational authorities. I'm for simple living and high thinking. I'm for competence, wisdom, and so on. I'm for leadership that facilitates people rather than seeks to control them. In short, I'm for Krishna consciousness, not institutionalized consciousness mis-labeled as Krishna consciousness. From reading Prabhupada's books, it is clear to me that these virtues make one very much pro-iskcon. In fact, I would say that in Prabhupada's eyes, there is a more than 99% possiblity that he sees me as more pro-iskcon than many who are willing mouthpieces for the society, considering that I have the integrity to refuse to be a mouthpiece for the control-crazed iskcon leaders, many of whom are very much like the people Prabhupada refused to cooperate with in the fifties and early sixties. What do you think? Anyway, I hope this has helped to clarify my position. Hare Krishna. ys. kundali dasa. Comment on this story  Contact VNN about this storySend this story to a friend
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