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EDITORIAL   The Prominent Link BY BALAVANTA DASA EDITORIAL, Feb 5 (VNN) — This is the Preface to Srila Prabhupada: The Prominent Link. The Preface is written by Balavanta Prabhu. Preface The question may be asked: Why another paper on the process of initiation when the GBC has already spoken definitively on the matter? Isn't this now a non-issue in ISKCON? The answer is that the GBC has spoken definitively on the process of initiation on so many occasions that we cannot rationally conclude that its voice on such matters is absolute. The GBC is a managerial body. Spiritual matters of the Society must be resolved by conscious consensus of conscience by reference to Srila Prabhupada's books. This is accomplished only by broad-based, open and frank discussions amongst mature devotees whose voices are not suppressed. Perhaps no single question has disturbed ISKCON in the last twenty some years more than how initiations are to be conducted. That a sober devotee such as Dhira Govinda prabhu has seen fit to put his energy into such a paper attests to the fact that the issue is indeed alive and well, i.e. not fully resolved. If a spiritual matter is not resolved, it must be discussed, not only by those members of the society currently on the GBC, but by all concerned. ISKCON will not flourish unless it attracts intelligent people. We won't attract intelligent people by asking them to discard their intelligence once in the Society. Intelligence is for reaching transcendence. It is used in the beginning to find the path. Finding the path means finding the person who can show the path. Thus intelligence is essential in the matter of accepting initiation. Faith is required, but not blind faith. Intelligence means free thought and open discussion. If this is suppressed then intelligence is suppressed. If intelligence is suppressed, then ISKCON will not attract intelligent people and will not flourish. I, for one, as neither a "ritvik" or an "absolutist", welcome Dhira Govinda's paper. He has obviously put a great deal of thought and soul-searching into it. The product is a position that cannot be ignored. There are clearly people making spiritual advancement in ISKCON without being formally initiated. They utter the holy name, they read about the glories of Krsna in the books, they take prasadam. In this way they advance. There are others making advancement even after the person by whom they have been formally initiated has ceased the practices of Krsna Consciousness. How is this possible? Clearly, such persons are in contact with Krsna in some fashion. However, Krsna cannot be approached by the conditioned soul directly. Only through Krsna's pure devotee can He be reached. Thus, they have contacted Krsna through the mercy of Srila Prabhupada who expertly brought Lord Caitanya's mission to the modern West. This is a simple and somewhat obvious point, but we need to hear it openly. Sometimes, intelligence means to state the obvious clearly. How can we forget that vani and vapu are the same? "He reasons ill who says that Vaisnavas die, when thou are living still in sound .." Srila Prabhupada often said he was never alone, because his spiritual master was always with him. How was that possible when Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati apparently passed away in 1936? Srila Prabhupada persistently reminded us that he was in his books. Who will deny that Srila Prabhupada is still present spiritually? But, how can those who are not formally initiated by him take advantage of his spiritual presence? One obvious way is through his books. Krsna spoke to Arjuna long ago. We still take advantage of that conversation as Krsna exists in His instructions. Srila Prabhupada, being pure, is also absolute and thus also exists in his instructions. Recently I was transcendentally amused to see Srila Prabhupada's reference to George Harrison as his "uninitiated disciple". If this was true then, why not now? Real initiation is to tread the path that Srila Prabhupada has laid out. One may follow Srila Prabhupada by taking formal initiation from one of his disciples. This is a formality. The substantial connection is to accept Srila Prabhupada's teachings and follow them. Then one is a disciple, whether formally initiated or not. I am always struck by the fact that Srila Prabhupada did not give much stress or detail to the matter of how initiation was to be con-ducted after his physical departure. In fact, he never initiated such discussions. He only replied to questions raised by the then members of the GBC, such as "What will we do for initiation if you leave?" He then answered but did not go on and on in detailed elaboration. Could the reason have been that the process and application of it is really very simple, sweet and pure? Could it be that we have unnecessarily blown the whole thing into an unrecognizable, controversial fog by missing the obvious? We are all followers of Srila Prabhupada, who is still present in his transcendental books and teachings. Formal initiations are conducted as a matter of course as convenient and reasonable, but Srila Prabhupada lives eternally as our acarya and transcendental shelter. "He lives forever and his disciple lives with him." As he used to frequently say, "What is the difficulty?" Actually, there is no difficulty. Merely, the need is for Krsna Consciousness. Whatever one's position on the issue of initiation, we may all thank Dhira Govinda Prabhu for bringing some good old-fashioned common sense to the discussion. Balavanta dasa Related VNN Stories Contact VNN about this storySend this story to a friend
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